blogpastor – Page 157

Author: blogpastor

The Ark: a place of rest

2 October 2014 blogpastor 5 Comments

The Ark is a Pentecostal church. What a unique name. Pastor Jimmy Hoo started this church after he left the Emmanuel Assembly of God. It is small fellowship of 30 plus and they worship at the Village Hotel Bugis at 390 Victoria Street on the 6th level. I got to know Pastor Jimmy on Facebook. I was introduced to him by Pastor Peter Sze who also helped linked up quite a few grace-based churches and ministers in the region. We met once with Joshua Lee, pastor Kevin Choo and another minister and talked shop over tea at Funan Center. He invited me to take the Sunday message and I was most happy to do so.

I took a cab there with my wife and my son who wanted to visit. It was the first time I stepped into the Village Hotel Bugis and the hotel function room was the size of two large classrooms. They also had a separate room for the children. I met with the members who were there early and we chatted with Pastor Jimmy Hoo and Mabel, his wife, who was very warm, hospitable and friendly. The service started at 9.30am and like the other grace-based church services I attended, the Holy Communion was conducted every Sunday. Soon I was at the pulpit and preaching a modified version of what I preached in my worship service the previous week at WRPF. I talked about how a Christian can still live under the old covenant and experience the miserable Christian life. I talked about what it meant to live under the new covenant. My main text was from Jeremiah 31:31-34. I drew my three main points and contrasts from the text itself, and drew sharp contrasts of what it would look like if you lived as a Christian under the old covenant or under the new covenant. I enjoyed partnering with the Holy Spirit in delivering the message.

After the service we had and early lunch at about 11.40am at a Bugis Junction food court. I enjoyed the nasi padang and the fellowship and warm banter. Inevitably from the topic of family, the conversation went to ministry and I heard a dramatic and grace-filled story of how this sincere and humble couple were initiated into the message of grace, and how they moved from being burnt-out and effort-driven to a place of rest in the grace of God.

Though many people crowd the Star Vista to hear the grace messages of the New Creation Church, small churches like this also deserves better support and encouragement. I am sure there are people who love the grace message but prefer a small church setting where things are less concert-like and more family-like, less distant and more personal, where they feel less like a spectator and more like a participant. This is one church you may want to explore visiting and being a part of, if you want to learn to rest in His grace, and a have a stronger community life. Pastor Jimmy and Mabel are well equipped with the message, the experience and love to give you the care, the rest and community you need.

Of PSLE and all other dreaded exams

29 September 2014 blogpastor Leave a comment

The PSLE examinations and results can be a forbidding hurdle that both parents and children have to navigate. It is a stressful time for all. Everyone prays and works and hopes for the best. We hope our child will manage to get at least into the express stream. We would even accept the normal stream, and hope he gets into the express stream soon after. We get elated or secretly disappointed if our prayers were not granted.

However, life goes on and reality sets in, and sooner or later we realize that God loves all his children, but they are not equally gifted for academic rigours and demands. Sooner or later we will accept that our children have different kind of intelligences and gifts and we perhaps begin to stumble into a more sane view that life will present unequal economic rewards to people with different talents and opportunities. Some of our children will grow to be adults and surprise us, for despite their academic qualifications, they out-earn the scholars. But is earnings the bottom line that frames our perspective of success? Then how different are we from the worldly minded?

Let me put it to you that God’s purpose in creating us is so that we may glorify God and serve and enjoy Him forever. Staying in this zone is what makes us truly “successful”. You can earn a lot and be highly qualified but yet live a life that disregards God’s purpose. This is a failed life. Or you can be a PSLE failure but live a life of faithful service and fellowship with God. This is the fulfilled life. The one essential thing is whether you fulfilled God’s purpose of glorifying Him and serving people with your God-given talents and opportunities.

Our job as parents is not just PSLE and all the other exam hoops our children have to jump through. It is guiding our children to discover their God-given abilities and to use them for serving people and for His glory. It is imparting the values of service, contentment and God-centeredness to them. As for PSLE and “O” and “A” levels, we do our best to support our children, and discover more about ourselves and our children. Shalom.

Hyundai Matrix: farewell

22 September 2014 blogpastor Leave a comment

The Hyundai Matrix, the faithful servant

Dust to dust, ashes to ashes, metal to scrap. The Hyundai Matrix that was bought by the church and that has served so faithfully has used up its entitlement to be on the road. It has been ten years. It is durable and roadworthy. But this is Singapore – a cemetery for 10 year old vehicles. It’s such a sad under-utilization of resources. Some of the cars will be re-exported to other Third World countries to be re-conditioned and used for perhaps another 20 years. The rest will end up as scrap metal. Very few will continue on Singapore’s roads. Today I said Goodbye to my Matrix.

Singapore is probably the most expensive place in the world to own and use a car. If you buy a new Toyota Vios at today’s prices, live in Jurong and work in Changi, include all expenses such as repairs, servicing, insurance and road tax, minus inflation, you would have spent about S$200,000 by the end of ten years. This was what I read somewhere.

It is strange but though the car is not a living creature we develop some kind of feeling towards it. The feeling could be positive or negative or both. For me it is all positive. It is respect. The car looks petite but this lady has a big inside that can even squeeze four in the back seats. The luggage space can handle four persons luggage. It is gratitude. This car has done its bit for the Lord, and for my family too. It is fondness too. After so many years, I have grown to like it. Maybe I am not fussy. Nor have I driven many cars in my life to provide any kind of comparison. I only drove passenger church vans before this car: a Toyota Hiace van and a Isuzu van, before this blessing from the church came into service. She is a petroholic, but I am still fond of her.

Now it has become too expensive for the church to provide a car. I am very thankful to the church that I had one for so many years. The church has been good. The Lord gives, the Lord takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord.

Even my children said, Take some photos before it goes. The family got sentimental with the car. So before it went we took some shots after lunch. I want to remember its spaciousness, its usefulness and faithfulness.

Well done thou good and faithful servant. Dust to dust, ashes to ashes, metal to scrap.

Now I will undergo some major adjustment. I am converting to a BMW (B for bus; M for MRT; and W for walk). Add on a double turbo (T for taxi and T for tompang). First heard this BMW thingy from Benny Ong a popular church speaker. Stuck with me. This will be a challenging and interesting change. Like the Minister of Transport once did, I will take the MRT. But unlike him, I cannot do anything to improve it. I can only adjust and live with it. Let the hardship begin. It cannot be as bad as what others suffer in other countries.