Building Relationships
Building Relationships Through Parent Education: A New Initiative of Friendship Evangelism
From Hong Kong-Style Dinners to Deeper Community Connection
At Mountainside Lutheran Church, we’ve discovered that our most effective outreach happens through creating authentic spaces where relationships can flourish naturally. Our Parent Emotion Coaching Course, led by Dr. Chin “Forward” Fung, represents an evolution from one-time events to sustained relationship-building.
The Heart Behind the Ministry
Dr. Chin Fung, a member of our Chinese congregation and Counselling Lecturer at Laidlaw College, designed this program as an intentional bridge between church and community. Rather than simply offering parenting education, Forward created a way to demonstrate Christ’s love through practical service while fostering natural opportunities for deeper relationships.
Learning from Hong Kong-Style Dinners
Our successful Hong Kong-style dinner gatherings taught us that when people share meals and authentic conversation, barriers come down naturally. However, single events have limitations in building the deep relationships necessary for meaningful spiritual conversations.
The Parent Emotion Coaching Course applies these lessons with greater intentionality. The four weeks give people time to get to know each other in a relaxed way. Talking about parenting helps everyone share their own stories. Church members and local families join together as one group. There’s no divide between church members and visitors.
Early Results and God’s Blessing
We have now completed two weeks of this program, and we’re grateful to see God working through these efforts. Each session has drawn 30-40 participants, which provides an intimate enough setting for meaningful interaction while reaching a significant number of families in our community.
We’ve been encouraged to see that attendance numbers increased in the second week, suggesting that word is spreading and more people are learning about both this program and our church. This organic growth through personal recommendations shows that participants are finding genuine value in what we’re offering.
Perhaps most encouraging is that several families have chosen to stay after the formal sessions for our shared meals and conversation time. While not everyone remains, those who do are giving us precious opportunities to build deeper relationships and continue conversations that began during the teaching time. These extended interactions often prove to be where the most meaningful connections are formed.
As we look ahead to future sessions and follow-up opportunities, we ask for your prayers. Please pray that the friendships formed through this program will continue to deepen, and that God will provide natural opportunities for our church members to share His love and grace with the families we’ve met. This initiative represents our commitment to meeting people where they are, addressing real needs they’re facing, and creating space for God’s love to be experienced through genuine human connection. We’re excited to see how He will continue to work through these relationships in the days ahead.
Felix Tong
Mountainside Lutheran Church
September 2025
