New Year service, happy or sad?

As my church gets ready to usher in new year with our annual watch nite service, I do not know how to feel. Many things are all happening in one shot. My church office has just finished the last bits of our move to a new place, and it had been tiring and busy since last week. I was put in charge of preparing the Watchnite service multimedia presentation, it is to be filled to photos and videos of testimonies of God’s blessings on us all the whole year. I had just finished doing it last nite, complete with animations, flashy stuffs, and I even prepared the countdown multimedia, complete with animated fireworks and happy new year 2005 flashy text. It was to be a big bang, a gloriously happy occasion, merry making till the wee hours, joyous conversations of happy events remembered, thanksgiving and all.

I don’t know how appropriate this is gonna be. The plans are not changing for now, but I really don’t know. Even in Singapore :

“Singapore’s main arts center said its New Year’s Eve performance would now be a remembrance service for the hundreds of thousands killed by the waves spawned by the magnitude 9.0 quake in the seabed off Sumatra’s western coast.

A minute’s silence will be held at midnight instead of the traditional raucous countdown in the final seconds of the year, and donations will be collected from the audience for Red Cross relief operations, the Esplanade-Theaters on the Bay said.

A giant firework display has been canceled.

“This year, in light of the tragedy unfolding around us, it would be more appropriate to usher in the new year in a more contemplative manner,’’ the Esplanade said.

“The fireworks planned are best reserved for some other, more appropriate occasion in the future.’’ ” (excerpt from The Star)

But I do not know how to feel, trying out my presentation at the sanctuary today, looking the smiling images of our church members in past events like Christmas caroling, camps, mission trips and others, brought tears to my eyes. Tears of sorrow and yet thanksgiving, for so much that we have, yet we have taken for granted. Why do we still mumble and grumble at our job, at our busy ness, at our lack of time, if others are thankful even to get a day’s meal?

Anyways, I guess it won’t be ending the year with a Bang. I think pastor got a call from Prime Minister’s office today to remind us of praying instead of celebrating,well, something we were intending to do anyways.

We’re also gonna do some fund collection during the service, probably send it over to NST or the likes.