Why We Feel Called to Join Covenant City

Fong and Emilia share more about why they feel called to join Covenant City.

After we got married, God called us to London for six years. Initially, we thought we went there “just for work,” but little did we know God was using that time not just for us to grow professionally and personally, but to deepen our faith. 

While in London, we joined Euston Church, where we learned the importance of being part of a solid, Bible-teaching church-one that teaches expositionally from Scripture, helping listeners understand what the author intended for the original audience and what it means for us today. From our church family, we learned how to be faithful Bible handlers. “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth” (2 Tim 2:15) became the verse that challenged us to let God’s Word guide our lives and our relationships. 

When we moved back to Vancouver, we were convicted to find a similar Bible-teaching home. Through our sister-in-law, Melody, we found Christ City Church. From our first visits, listening to sermons from Pastors Jon and Sam, we knew we were in a faithful church home. Soon, we were plugged into a community group led by the Diggenses in Steveston (Richmond)-just five minutes from our home-where the group’s sincerity and devotion spurred us on to grow in God’s Word. 

Yet, despite loving the community, we wrestled for months with the distance to Christ City in South Vancouver. Deep down, we longed to be part of a local neighborhood church-a place where we could serve locally and naturally invite our friends and neighbors. 

In 2025, Fong joined a group of local men to pray for a church plant in Richmond, and God answered remarkably fast. Christ City sent out a team to plant Covenant City-just 10 minutes from our home (and a stone’s throw from some of the best Asian food outside of Asia!). We knew we’d have rich Bible teaching and incredible fellowship meals right after! 

We felt a clear call from God to step up and help build His church here in Richmond. While neither of us works directly in Richmond, our children attend school here, connecting us with many local families. As we step into this new season, please join us in praying for wisdom, courage, and open doors to invite these families into our community and to introduce them to Jesus.