FAITH

WORKS 2!

…..an Arts Ministry Newsletter On Evangelism

There’s Hope

I have a group of very close friends from JC, and recently what God has been teaching me about evangelism has sparked off a greater fervor to pray daily for their salvation. There are around 12 of us in this group, with around 5 Christians and the rest either non-Christian/backslided Christians.

I have always struggled to reach out to these friends because they are all very intellectual and also quite anti-Christian in their outlook. And after a few occasions of trying to invite them for church services or evangelistic events, I have stopped trying. Honestly, what hinders me from actively doing more is basically my fear of harming the friendship, and also because I just cannot see them becoming Christian.

Yet, this thought came to mind recently. Who am I to decide whether or not a friend is “ready” or “suitable” enough to be saved? Jesus came to save ALL, and I do not have the right to pre-determine whether someone is “worth” sharing the Gospel to.

Attending the Evangelism Training during the break gave me a lot more to think about. I was very struck by Desmond’s sharing on Connecting Evangelism, because it helped me to refine my previous misconceptions of evangelism as simply sharing the Four Spiritual Laws. Instead, it confirmed my idea that we must be flexible enough to use different methods in different circumstances, and I think that in the case of my friends, this would mean engaging them on the level of their needs, and regularly praying for them.

Some incidents that happened recently also encouraged me not to give up. One, a friend who has always been closed to Christianity suddenly expressed more interest in knowing more about it, and also shared more openly about how his life feels very meaningless right now. Two, there have been quite a few opportunities to engage my friends on apologetics topics online (e.g. on Facebook or over MSN), and these have been useful in giving me an idea of where they stand with regards to spiritual issues. Third, a new Christian recently joined my cell group in church, and hearing of how he was always seeking, but never understanding till God opened his eyes one day to the truth of the Gospel, encouraged me to continue praying that one day my friends’ spiritual eyes will be opened.

Beyond all that, what is tugging most at my heart now is the fact that I can see how they really need God, and I wish that they can recognize that too. But I believe that these things take time, and so for the last year that I am going to be of influence in their lives (before they go overseas to study), I want to commit myself to praying daily for their salvations, equipping myself with the skills and knowledge needed to connect with them, and speaking boldly when given the chance to.

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” (Galatians 6:9)

                                                                                                                Shu May

Year 2

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かみさまがやられた

( GOD DID IT! )

I have always been trying to reach out to a close friend of mine since JC. God has impressed upon my heart to keep reaching out to her. However, I was afraid of my inadequacies; not able to connect to her, relate to her questions etc. Occasionally, during our conversations, I would say stupid things like “Hey… eh… here’s a magazine… my church… make one… eh!” I felt really frustrated many times because I simply could not connect to her and share to gospel to her. And each time when I tried to give her Christian materials and inviting her to church and letting someone else do the sharing, I will stumble and get really nervous.

Finally one day, I told her “I am doing all these because…I hope you will find true love.” And it connected! Not to me of course but to the need that she has been searching. She said she felt that she was not holy enough to receive Christ and we began explain certain truths about the Christian faith. I stumbled as usual, trying to squeeze Christian stuffs occasionally during outings, dinner etc, and really felt like an idiot. Sometimes I wondered what I shared makes any sense to her. Nevertheless, I just kept trying and trying. Sometimes I felt like just move on and since our paths kind of separated after JC when I entered army, maybe it’s time for me to take a break.

Just about 2 months ago, I received a call from her and she said “Adam, I went to a friend’s church and I felt something different, it felt so different…I don’t know how to explain.. and I received Christ!” I was stunned. Speechless. She thanked me for the times I spoke to her about Christ because it was a huge stepping stone for her. But to me, it must be God. How can God use those silly conversations to convict her heart? How can God change the way she has been thinking all the time about life? He can, because He is God.

Last week during the term break, I witnessed her baptism. My heart melted. As I hear her testimony of God’s amazing work and how I was mentioned in her journey, watched her being dipped into the pool, my heart whisper in a still small voice “It’s worth it, all the years, it’s worth it” I felt like a guardian angel as I witness this miracle of God. This can only be God’s doing, I am glad He used me during the process.

I am once again affirmed of my calling to full time ministry. Everyone has their own calling, but to me, this is something that I want to do for my whole life. This is one thing that I seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord forever and ever.

Adam Lee

Year 3

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He Who Hears And Answers

Earlier in the year, the opportunity came for me to go on a Gen12ii mission trip with Campus Crusade to Khon Kaen University in NE Thailand. I was very excited about the trip as I have a heart to see the Thais turn to Christ as well as I had been learning the Thai language in NUS for the past 3 semesters. This mission trip was a new experience for me as my previous trips were to villages, ministering to children and adults but this time we were going to minister to my peers, university students.

Right from the start, God heard the humble prayers of each of the members and answered them in His time. Several of my team mates were on their first mission trip and were quite apprehensive about the support raising. As the weeks went by and as the support came in, God blessed us with what we needed and more! Mouths that spoke words of apprehension now sung praises in awe.

Touching down in Thailand, we were greeted by the local Crusade staff and were briefed about the days ahead while we were there. Right from day 2, we were on campus every weekday making new friends and meeting up with friends made on previous days. For my partner, Jason, and me, we started off slow. But as we were reminded of our purpose we thickened our face and approached people. The Lord is faithful and knows how to pace us. The first strangers Jason and I approached were very warm and welcoming, one of whom is a Christian. As I reflected at the end of the first day, I realized that all the strangers we met went away, knowing that we are Christians. Even though no Gospel message was shared, the work of the Lord was already taking place.

All through the trip, we kept a team log of the things that we trusted God for as well as our thanksgivings. This served for us as a memory of God’s goodness and faithfulness, just as in the days of Joshua when the people set up a memorial after crossing the Jordan. Indeed God heard our prayers and answered them all and even more than what we could have hoped or imagined. I’ll just tell of three events that left a deep impression in me.

Divine appointment

During the trip, we held English and Chinese lessons, for which I was the contact person. Late one night I received a call from an unknown number. From the phone conversation, we arranged to meet for lunch the following week. During the lunch, I enquired as to how the student, Lion, got my number. To my surprise, he called the wrong number and yet was willing to talk and agree to meet up with a stranger. There was definitely more to this than mere accident. My partner and I continued to keep in contact with him and invited him to one of our parties. In our third meeting, Jason asked him if he had any questions about Christianity. While that felt strange to me as a question to ask to bridge to the sharing of the Gospel, Lion’s answer surprised me. He wanted to know the story that gave rise to the song Silent Night. Limited by my Thai, we motioned for a Thai Crusade staff to join us and answer his question. This eventually led to the sharing of the Gospel and when asked if he would want to receive Christ, he nodded. In that moment my heart rejoiced and I could imagine how the angels in heaven were rejoicing as well at the decision of his. The call made may seem like a mistake to many but God had intended it for His purposes. No man’s plan could have orchestrated for us to meet Lion and share the Gospel but that it is the Lord at work, seeking out the lost and bringing them back to Himself.

Divine providence

In traveling to the university everyday, we would have to walk about 10 minutes to the main road to take a bus which would take another 20 minutes to get to the university and we would have to squeeze with other passengers for space on the bus. It was the same when we got back each evening. One evening as we were heading back as a team, I was prompted to ask a bus driver if he would take the whole team and drive us all the way back to the hotel. To my surprise, he agreed and for no extra charge. Reaching the hotel, I was prompted to ask the driver to come pick us up the next morning to send us to the university. Much to our delight, he agreed. From that day on, he came day after day, sending us to school for no extra charge. Even on days when he was on leave, he would instruct another driver to pick us up. While we thought that this arrangement could have been easily achieved, we were wrong. Other attempts at asking a driver to send us back to the hotel were met with higher fares. When we told the Thai Crusade staff about our transport arrangement, they were surprised that we were able to get it for no extra charge. While the time spent each day with the driver was short, the relationship grew and he came for our Singapore Night party and even came to send us off on the day we left Khon Kaen. The “chartered” transport was by no means gotten by eloquence but only by His providence.

As the end of the trip drew near, we planned for a Singapore Night party as an event where our friends could know more about Singapore as well as hear a testimony and be challenged to accept Christ. We planned for it to be held on a Friday evening and we set a faith target of 70 students. When we told our plans to the Thai staff, they were telling us that Friday is a day where students who are from provinces other than Khon Kaen would head home for the weekend thus we should not be expecting too many people. By the end of the day before the party, we had about 40 students who had confirmed their attendance for the party. We were discouraged but we never gave up hope. We continued to pray and invite our friends, and seeking their confirmation of attendance. Location wise, we had to choose between a small hall which could accommodate 40 students and a larger hall which could hold many more people. By faith we went ahead with holding the party in the larger hall. When the night was over and the numbers tallied for the attendance, it came up to almost 100 people and amongst them some prayed to receive Christ at that party. When we live by sight, we are easily affected by the situations around us. But when we live by faith, nothing really matters.

The entire trip can be summed up in a line “The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.” (Psalm 126 : 3) We came back rejoicing at the great things we saw God doing over in Thailand, both amongst the team and the people we were reaching out to. In a foreign land, speaking a foreign language, I came to one conclusion – the work of evangelism is the Lord’s not ours. We just have to do our part in telling the Good News.

Wayne

Year 3

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Dearest Crusaders,

Do continue to let us hear your stories!! May you stand firm and be encouraged as you continue to press on for Him!

Remember…

One Semester

One Friend

One More For Chirst!

More faith stretching stories to be told…

Contact:

Xiaojun     98150521     xiaojun87@yahoo.com.sg

Or

Ruth     91556086     suoregand@hotmail.com

On Behalf Of E Comm.

E Comm presents to you…..

FAITH

WORKS

…..an Arts Ministry Newsletter On Evangelism

Evangelism Efforts in Japan

During the school holidays, I had the privilege and opportunity to go on a Gen12ii mission trip to Tokyo, Japan with a team of Arts Region staff and crusaders.

When the team was there, we had the chance to interact with the Japanese Campus Crusade staff and stinters, otherwise known as Student Impact members, who took great pains to ensure our comfort during our stay there. They led us into the mission field proper, leading by example and guiding those of us, like myself, who had little experience with mission work and evangelism. From their own unselfish sharing, I learnt many different strategies and sensitivities that I could apply to my own actions.

Most significantly, what impressed on me most of all was their constant encouragement not to give up and feel disappointed upon failure. Initially, I took this advice lightly, thinking that it came from a lack of faith and confidence in the ability of God to change lives. However, as I continued to interact with the Japanese students and share the gospel, I began to understand why such encouragement meant so much to them. I began to see my own efforts come to naught, and confidence in my own abilities shaken the more I tried. Receiving Christ into their lives was, in my opinion, nearly impossible for a Japanese student to do. It was almost as if nothing I did work, and to top it all, I was ashamed to share it with anyone. Then, one night as I was praying and brooding over my own helplessness alone in the room, two verses came to me:

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 2 Cor 12:9

Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Heb 10:25

In a span of one night, I transferred my dependence on my own inadequate abilities onto God’s infallible power, and began to encourage those around me never to give up, like the Japanese staff had been doing. Within the next three days, I met up with a new Japanese contact I had never met before, Yuta, and he rededicated his life to Jesus, marking out what probably was the happiest and proudest moment of my first mission trip experience.

Besides the staff, another remarkable group of people are the Japanese Christians themselves. The members of the Takenotsuka church service that the team attended during the first Sunday in Japan may have had been small, no more than fifty members. Nevertheless, their dreams for God were enormous. The congregation fellowships in a manner similar to that of the Early Church, partaking in food, enjoying sports and helping out one another in whatever way they can. Another defining moment was how an elderly lady from the Noboride church that we attended on the second Sunday of our stay, upon knowing that I could communicate in basic Japanese, kept encouraging me to come back and evangelize to the Japanese people. Although I could not make out what she was telling me totally, I could draw information about her love for her son back in Osaka whom she had been praying on his behalf for many years. Throughout the entire 1km walk to the nearest train station, she held on to my hand and kept inviting me to come back to Japan, and telling me how much the Japanese people needed Jesus. By the time we said goodbye to the Noboride congregation members, I was struggling to hold back my tears.

What I learnt and admired most was the daring hope of the Japanese Christians and missionaries to dream big dreams on behalf of our God. Despite continuous failure, being mistakenly perceived to be a cult group, and their own tiny, diminishing population, they still hold on fast to the promises in the Bible. What about us Christians back in Singapore? Do we dream big dreams worthy of the splendor of our King, or do we bask indulgently in the safe environment God has blessed us with, reluctant to step out of our comfort zone?

Finally, do continue to keep both the Japanese people and yourselves in prayer. The ground over there is in need of a spiritual revival, and it is my strong conviction that it is only a matter of time before our Lord will work His miracles and quench the growing population thirsting for the truth. For those who have a strong calling for Japan, go! You do not want to miss out of the blessings that God promises to those who will seek His kingdom first by faith in what is unseen, as well as play a role in what could be one of the most important pieces of the puzzle towards the day of the coming of our Lord.

May God bless you and keep you.

Victor Hui

Special Programs IC

Tokyo Team, Gen12ii ‘08

P.S. Just before we left, the leaders of Takenotsuka church showed the mission team their dream: a giant plot of land near the train station where they will be building their new church. Continue to keep them in your prayers too. J

________________________________________________

A Step Closer

After returning from a fruitful mission trip to Thailand and having witnessed the power of God, I felt the burden and urgency to share the gospel with my pre-believing friends. On the plane back from Thailand, God suddenly brought to mind the name of a friend I had met in my first semester in NUS. I have not spoken to this friend for about a year now and was wondering how to contact her after so long. Would it be weird to suddenly ask her out or talk to her?

God is good! For when I turned on my handphone when I touched down at Changi Airport, I received a SMS from her, asking me how I was doing and if I wanted to meet up with her! I immediately replied saying I had just returned from Thailand and would love to meet up with her.

The following week, I met up with this friend at Science canteen. We had lunch together and spent a great time catching up. I really wanted to share the gospel with her, but was hesitant as I did not know how to bridge the gospel into our conversation. I was sharing with her what happened in the mission trip to Thailand when she suddenly asked me why do I go to church. Praise the Lord! I was able to share with her my testimony; being born in a non-Christian family, how my friend had brought me to church and how subsequently, I had experienced the love of God and the realness of the living God and decided to become a Christian.

She was silent for a while and I could tell she was thinking about what I had said. I then asked her if I could share the gospel with her so she could know my God loves her too. She said “okay”, so I shared with her very simply the message of the gospel. After I shared the gospel, she said that she was very amazed at how so many of her friends are also Christian and how God seems to be bringing people in her life to share the gospel with her.

Then, I felt God reminding me that I had a book in my bag and to give that book to her. I struggled for a while, because I had brought that book for another friend for her birthday, and it was a Christian book, would my pre-believing friend read it even if I gave it to her? In the end, I  decided to obey and give that book to my friend. I took out that book and gave it to my friend. That book was titled “Is that really you, God?” by Loren Cunningham. When my friend saw the book, her eyes immediately brimmed with tears because the title was the question that she had been asking “Is that really you, God?”

She shared that she had wanted to believe in Jesus, but was not sure if it was really God speaking to her. Her parents were Buddhists, and she was also afraid how they might respond if she became a Christian. I was then able to discuss and reassure her concerning some of the fears she had.

I thank God for the opportunity to share the gospel with this friend of mine. Although I was very scared and did not know how to share the gospel at first, I am glad that God opened a door for me to share the gospel. I learned that as long as we are willing to obey Him, He will make a way! (despite all our fears and many questions “how?” “what if…?”)

Thank God that I was able to bring my friend a step closer to Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord!

Zhon Yun

Year 3

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Dearest Crusaders,

Above is the first ever newsletter on Evangelism for this academic year! =D

We WANT to collect MORE STORIES of you and your journeys with God, be it STRUGGLES, TRIALS or VICTORIES in Evangelism! With these faith stretching stories that God has provided you with, may you use these testimonies to encourage other fellow brothers and sisters in Christ to know that the movement for God is on at all times as we seek to fulfill the Great Commission that Jesus has given to us. May you be blessed, encouraged and be on fire to press on towards fulfilling the Great Commission!! =) =)

We truly believe that each and everyone of us has a story to tell. 

So if you would like to contribute your stories with us,

Do contact:

Xiaojun     98150521     xiaojun87@yahoo.com.sg

Or

Ruth     91556086     suoregand@hotmail.com

WE REALLY WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU SOOOOOOOOOOOON! =D

Ok I know this place has been collecting dust the past few weeks. It’s not easy to upkeep a organizational site without dedicated personnel involved (and I’m not a dedicated personnel) but anyways…I just thought I would bring us on a little scenic tour down the cobbled streets of already-happened meadows today.

We had a little steamboat dinner prior to the Chinese New Year Period and turned the Crusade corner into smoke-filled cluster of good fun, bad jokes and vegetable overkill. I think everyone had their little bit of fun getting to know one another over food. 4 tables of crusaders, each armed with their frightening array of plastic utensils, relentlessly laid siege on unsuspecting critters enjoying their sauna moment.

Kudos to the LM com (lead by renowned Korean Chef See-Yang-Ee, bottom right in top picture) for organizing this gathering of gluttons. Although most of the steamboats resembled mini hydroponic farms and some “boats” were unabashedly bigger than others, I’m sure everyone had their fill in one way or another (like Daniel Chan who migrated from table to table to wherever the food was)

A similar event followed the next day with a steamboat organized by the Fireseed kitchen (the culinary arm of the Fireseed com led by Miss Loh). Quentin, a first year student, provided a succinct reflection of the event…

“I felt really blessed to see outreach and bridges being built before my very eyes. These music students, who otherwise would not have any knowledge of us, let alone friendship, now share in community with us…”

“I had a great opportunity to spend most of the evening talking to a student named Benjamin, who is a final year student at the music school. Although we spent most of the time talking about music production and electronic music, thankfully we did manage to talk about religion and God, and we both shared our experiences and opinions on the matter…”

It’s heartening to know how food and festivals form such a platform for us to get to know our friends in the other faculties better. Thanks be to God for these open doors, and also the hospitable and initiative hearts of the Fireseed Kitchen chefs and waiters.

February 11th and 12th were the magazine distribution days. Scores of crusaders (and even some navigator peeps too!) were strategically dispatched to the ends-of-the-NUS, leaving no stone unturned (except toilets) and no corner unreached. Some crusaders commented on seeing people browsing it in lecture theaters, the canteen and even the tutorial room. Discipleship Com first lady Michell (in picture above), despite her vertical handicap of sorts, even strategically employed the steps at the central library bus stop to distribute to the taller recipients. Amazing effort indeed!

Not only were our brethren “out there” in distributing, but more importantly, prayer warriors were also “in there” with God, consecrating their hearts whilst interceding for the ministry and the lost as well. Engage, our semesterial prayer and fasting movement, ran concurrently with the Nakedi campaign distribution as welland provided a good opportunity for crusaders to really engage God’s heart in on the matters of love, relationships and sexuality.

Phew, what a long entry…

I guess at the end of the day, let’s keep “the main thing the main thing” (Teo, 2008). We’re not an activity-based ministry, but an actively-engaging-God ministry. Let’s continue to keep our end goals in mind, and continue to run together in this race. Grab a front row seat to see what God’s doing here in NUS, and find true joy in being established in the love of the one who is love.

“The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying him forever”
- John Piper

Li-en shared last Thursday on the need to connect with our generation now, to be open to new and creative ways to preach an unchanging gospel to a changing world…

“I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. “
- Corinthians 3:6-7

The reality is, we come in at different points and stages of pre-believer’s process towards knowing Christ. On our part, how can we make our involvement in that one little point really count?

In the postmodern context, I think love is still the key answer. His love should compel us, and our love for others will reflect back on our relationship with Him.

People don’t need care about what we know, but they need to know that we care.

Yup, so no matter where your ‘entry’ point is in that person’s process, do it with utmost care and love for them. Doing evangelism out of the love does not ensure ensure ’successful’ evangelism, it is successful evangelism.

Another Mass E thanksgiving! This time we hear from Evangeline!

This Mass E has been an awesome experience for me because I was emceeing for the FIRST time and I’d really like to thank our AMAZING GOD for allowing everything to flow so smoothly. Christian and I were notified of our roles just a week before. Thank God for the creativity and the access to the script we picked out of the internet that was simply delivered to us within 10 mins of searching! The tune composed forthe first part of the script was God-sent and Christian’s on-the-spot lameness was just part of God’s package to bless each one of us with laughter!

Imagine this: God gave us everything we needed to say and do within what? 1 meeting? We connected everything and rehearsed abit of it with Tracy and Janice in another meeting and that was all the work we did!
1. PRAY (if u consider that work?),
2. Go online, receive the script for the beginning,
3. Receive the tune from God,
4. Decide what to wear, and
5. know the announcements needed to be made!
And all that done ineffectively, 2-3 hrs? God’s the master of producing and creating and He did the job for us. We just received and delivered. Just as He promised in John 15:5, “I am the vine; u are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me, you can do nothing.”

Personally, I get the jitters on stage and gosh… there were 400 people there! Got feedback that I looked and sounded natural with the mic. But seriously, it wasn’t me… ask and she’ll tell u that I’m really not one to speak eloquently on stage. Last night, I silently prayed that God would work a miracle and that I’d be delivered from all fear and anxiety before going on stage, and that I wouldn’t stutter or trip over words so that the messages could be put
across. Once again, our faithful Father was right there giving me boldness and courage, putting the words into my mouth. The event concluded with the words “God is simply amazing, awesome, and I’m awestruck” resounding in my mind. He truly is.

I’d like to encourage all of u who read this. Sometimes, all we need to do is surrender ourselves to be used by God, to take that small step of faith. Just do it! And He will show u how true His words are. Our God is Love, and LOVE NEVER FAILS. All glory, honour and praise to God for the entire event!

“If you’re lost, you can look and u will find Him, time after time… if u fall, He will catch you, He’ll be waiting, to the end of time after time…”

Be Blessed!

Agape,
Evangeline Lee