uthchronicleIssue I 2010 Apr - Jun

Heylo dear reader =)

Welcome to the second issue of Uth Chronicle for this year! As I wrote in last issue’s note, you will only read four of these a year. It is always a good time, then, for us to ask ourselves as we pick up the next issue of the Uth Chronicle whether we have been walking close to the Lord thus far. While we forge through the second quarter of 2010, may we strive to depend more on Christ, and to diligently seek after Him!

In this issue, our theme is simply ‘cross’, and we will consider the many things related to it, whether symbolically or lexically. But on a less quirky note, have we been living up to the Youth Fellowship’s theme of carrying our cross daily? Rev Quek pens an article that serves to remind us of the importance of doing so, echoing the message he delivered to us in March.

While we dwell on the cross of Christ, we also have a contribution from our resident Aussie, Kenny, who shares his calling to full-time service in ‘Crossing Paths with the Cross’. On top of that, Bro Eugene has contributed a piece that

touches on the importance of keeping a good testimony.

Branching off from the image of the cross of Christ, Sister Molly has written an article titled ‘Crossed!’ with some practical tips on how to react and behave when we meet with situations that provoke our anger. In the same vein, we run through the responses of our survey in ‘YFSpeaks’.

In our regular section ‘Retrospect’, Uncle Thomas pens a letter to his past self and gives us a glimpse into how he found the cross, and turned from a humanist to a believer.

This issue, we have the pleasure of welcoming new members to the Uth team, namely Dorothy, Jonan and Joel Quah! (Hopefully with all the new hands we can break the ‘tradition’ of publishing late =P)

We are also glad to reveal that the Uth Chronicle now has an online presence at uthchronicle.wordpress.com, where we will upload issues as they are published. The archive currently contains all issues dated back to 2009. Do take this opportunity to spread the

Uth Chronicle to friends from other churches, or even your Christian friends in school, that they may be blessed by the articles inside. =) Finally, even as we continue to labour in our studies or in our places of work, let us remember to always place God first, and set aside time to ‘study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.’ Timothy 2:15

May God bless your reading!

Yours in Christ,Brian

P.S.: There is an important change that is coming to the Uth Chronicle, and it concerns a subscription fee. For more information, please take a look at the cutout in page 15.

Editor’s Note

UTH TEAMAdvisor: Bro Henry Chua Editor: Brian Lim Secretary: Jonathan Tay Layouts: Grace Auyong Photos: Samuel Chia Chasers: Dorothy Chiang & Joel Quah

Special Ops: Jonan Tan, Michelle Chiang & Yeda Ko2

MATTHEW 16:24 ‘THEN SAID JESUS UNTO HIS DISCIPLES, IF ANY MAN WILL COME AFTER ME, LET HIM DENY HIMSELF, AND TAKE UP HIS CROSS, AND FOLLOW ME.’

The cross has been a symbol of suffering since the time of Christ when the Romans ‘popularized’ it. They made the crucifixion one of their most effective ways of dealing with common criminals or anyone who would opposes the Roman Empire. It was a most painful, humiliating and slow death.

But for the Christians, it has a completely different meaning. Christ’s death on the cross was prophesied in the Bible (see Isaiah 53). It has taken on a noble meaning in the eyes of every born-again believer. For the Saviour and LORD to die such a shameful, slow and painful death because of our sins is something every believer can never comprehend. They may understand it, but never fully. The deep sense of gratitude that stems from this understanding lasts a lifetime and continues into eternity. The cross that Christ carried is the example for us to understand the demand made by Christ of every genuine disciple who would follow Him.

Thus, when Christ Jesus gave all His disciples this qualification (see Matthew 16:24) for discipleship, He is asking us to do something that He Himself has done. He carried the cross that the Heavenly Father asked Him to bear. He completed it with total and absolute obedience to His Father for our sakes. Christ gave this offer to all without discrimination. ‘If any man will’ is an act of the will or the mind. Literally, it means ‘to have in mind or to be resolved’. It is an act of the will with strong determination. This is not given to people who are half-hearted or with a fanciful mind, who feel like doing it today but not tomorrow. Christ

referred to serious persons with a strong resolution to follow in His footsteps. If they possess this, then the steps to true discipleship begin. T h e s e a r e n o n - n e g o t i a b l e qualifications. The disciple cannot bargain with his master. The nature of a disciple is that he is a learner and knows hardly anything, and he is here to learn from the Master. Whatever the Master says he must do, without bargaining to ease the requirement of discipleship.

The first qualification for discipleship is ‘to deny self.’ This is a command, not an option. Because it is written in the middle voice, it means every individual disciple must do this himself. No one can do it for him. This is a personal denial of self. Literally, it means ‘to forget and lose sight of one’s self and all interests.’ He has to die to self. His ambitions, his will, and desires are to be set aside as if they do not exist anymore. He becomes a non-entity as a slave is to his master. Whatever the Master’s will is becomes his very own. All earthly positions and

accolades are to be forgotten as if he has just come out of his mother’s womb! The question the Christian must ask constantly before he makes a decision is: ‘what is God’s will for me in this matter?’ This includes treatment for sickness, the choices of a job, a life partner and where to serve God. What t h e C h r i s t i a n w a n t s i s o f n o consequence. All he wants now must be to glorify God in Christ Jesus.

The second is ‘to take up his cross.’ Luke has the word ‘daily’

attached to this qualification. Luke 9:23 ‘And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.’ The cross was a symbol of suffering and shame for Christ. This is true for every Christian too. When we live for Christ, Satan and his minions will harass and persecute and malign God’s servants. To carry the cross designed by Christ for each

and every one of His disciples is to be saved for service. Every individual believer is given a different cross determined by Christ alone. Christ knows the best way that particular believer can serve Him best. The believer’s duty is to comply by taking up the cross. The cross is not made of iron that will crush him. It is also not made of soft silk where luxury becomes a way of life. It is made of wood, although sometimes fear may turn it into stone, making it appear too heavy for the believer to carry. Christ has carried the cross and set the example for all believers to follow. He

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Take Up His Cross by Rev Quek Suan Yew

There is no vacation time or retirement in cross-carrying.

T h e m o m e n t h e b e c o m e s a Christ ian, the bel iever begins carrying his cross. He does not carry it alone, for Christ will be there to help carry it with him.

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did not put down the cross, and the believer is to do the same and to carry it daily. There is no vacation time or retirement in cross-carrying. The moment he becomes a Christian, the believer begins carrying his cross. He does not carry it alone, for Christ will be there to help carry it with him. Jesus says in Matthew 11:29-30 ‘Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ The believer is yoked with Christ. Everywhere he goes, carrying the cross, Christ is there with him.

Then he is asked by the Master to fo l low Him. I f the first two qualifications are absent, there is no point in following. He simply is forbidden by Christ to follow Him on his own terms. Before the sinner can follow Christ, he must first die to self, and then self must be replaced by Christ and a new life. Following Christ is a lifelong experience. The believer

n e v e r s t o p s f o l l o w i n g C h r i s t . C i rcumstances and hea l th and surroundings do not affect him at all. Paul the apostle carried the gospel everywhere the LORD sent him. As a free man, he went from city to city, knowing that in some cities he would have to be persecuted for Christ. He went, nonetheless. As a prisoner for Christ he continued to share the gospel to whomever God brought into his life.

The believer is saved for service. This service is called the cross. It is designed and given to every believer by his Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. He has to take up the cross and carry it all his life. The only way to do it is to first deny self and then can he take up the cross and follow Christ. There is no other way. This is part and parcel of salvation and not a matter of discipleship. There is no separation of salvation and service. It is a command and never an option.

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CROSSED! by Sister Molly

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Ouch! Why did you hit me?

Putting into practice what I learn in anger management class…

Most of us have been at the giving or receiving end of anger. The world tells us that anger is neither ‘bad’ nor ‘good’— it is an emotion that we must learn how to express positively and healthily. There are classes and therapies that help people to deal with the emotion by talking, journaling, exercising and meditating. Although some of the anger management techniques are useful, Christians must know that their understanding and management of anger need to be different from the world. As Apostle

Paul taught the Ephesians (4:20-24), now that we are in Christ, we must lay aside the old life and put on the “new man”, which is to follow a certain pattern laid out by Christ and model our lives after His. In short, anger is to be dealt with in God’s way, as we live lives in God’s way. As such, we need to look at His Word for guidance.

What does the Bible teach us about anger? It is something that is inside of us and is from God. In many

instances of anger mentioned in Scripture, anger is a negative response to a real or perceived injustice, arising from a sense of fairness or righteousness. The Bible teaches us that God has anger; He has a nature and character that is righteous, holy and good; and that He hates those things that are there after the Fall. In Psalm 7:11, we read that “God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day.” But God knows how to be angry - it is perfectly balanced and is equal to the

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wrongness of something. A good example of this is Exodus 34:6-7, where in spite of their stiff-necked, rebellious and idolatrous spirits, God was merciful towards the Israelites - “The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation”.

However, anger in people is another thing altogether. We tend to think: if I have love in my heart, that is good; but if I have anger in my heart, that is bad. However, it is not as clear-cut as that. The Bible teaches that we are ‘out of whack’— we do not know how to love right, we love out of kilter, we have compassion the wrong way - either too much or too little. That is why Jesus had to model it for us. In Mark 3:1-6, the Pharisees were watching Jesus in the synagogue, to see if He would heal the man with a withered hand on a Sabbath day. The Pharisees were looking for evidence to accuse Jesus of breaking the Sabbath law. Although Jesus was angry and grieved over the hardness of their hearts, He showed compassion and performed the miracle of healing the man’s withered hand.

Hence, anger can be justified as it comes from God, when it is a response to perceived unrighteousness. But because of the Fall, anger, along with love and the other rest of the emotions, oftentimes tends to be manifested in an unrighteous way. Benjamin Franklin once said that anger is never without a purpose, but seldom is that purpose a good one!

In verse 22 of Ephesians 4, Paul listed anger as part of this corruption resulting from deceitful lusts. James wrote about this as well (4:1-3). The reason why we quarrel and fight with each other is because we desire these things and we think we deserve them; when we do not get them, we get angry. Note that Paul also listed anger as being “deceitful”. Why? When we are angry, unjustly angry, beyond the measure that we are supposed to be

angry, we tend to lie. We lie to ourselves, to other people, and to God. Suppose you get angry with something or someone. Somebody sees you seething with anger, drumming your fingers on the table and asks, “Are you angry?” 9 times out of ten, your response would be, “No!” Why is that?

Take another example. When you get hurt and want to narrate the pain to someone, would you embellish or leave out some information so as to present yourself in a more ‘pitiful light’? I know I am guilty of that! Hence, anger is quite often tied up with deception. We also see this in Scripture too. In 2 Kings 11, we read of Athaliah murdering her grandchildren to get on the throne. She was successful in her treachery and reigned for about six years. However, one child was stashed away safely and survived. His name was Joash. In the seventh year, when Joash was anointed as rightful king of Judah in the temple, Athaliah rent her clothes and shouted in anger, “Treason, treason”. How absurd and ridiculous an accusation Athaliah had made! In the end, she died a dishonourable death like the rest of her family.

In verse 26 of Ephesians 4, Paul wrote “Be ye angry, and sin not”. Is anger ever justifiable? Well, Jesus was angry in that incident where He healed a man with a withered hand. Note that He was angry about a real injustice, that somebody weaker was being oppressed, and that His Father’s name and honour was being vilified. Hence, the lesson we are to learn about

managing anger in this incident is to recognize that there is an injustice being done; the next step it to take the matter to God immediately and pray to Him about it. In Psalm 4, David wrote how he was slandered unjustly and if anyone of us were in his position, anger would definitely be one of our emotional responses! However, instead of anger, David encouraged to “Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah”. Hence, instead of thinking about ways to get back at someone, we are told to commune our frustrations and burdens to God before we turn in for the night. And in our prayers to do His will, He will give us the peace that surpasses all understanding and a restful night of sleep will enable us to do what is right the next day.

In verse 27 of Ephesians 4, Paul wrote, “Neither give place to the devil”. We are told not to give a place in our lives to the devil, as this can happen when we do not deal with anger the way God wants us to (see verse 26b). One Chinese proverb teaches that when you go seeking revenge, dig two graves. Hence, when you deal with anger in ungodly ways, it will destroy you. Think back to Cain and Abel (Gen 4:1-8). Imagine: one generation away from Creation and there was murder in the family! Cain and Abel brought offerings to God. God gave blessings to Abel for his offering and not to Cain. Cain becomes very angry, downcast… God speaks to Cain, “Why art thou wroth?” God is not only asking about Cain’s feelings but also telling him that he has no right to be angry in this situation. But Cain does not engage in the dialogue with God; he turns his back on God and commits murder out of anger. In verse 7 of that same chapter, God also tells Cain that anger crouches like a lion or leopard at one’s door. Hence, he can have dominion over anger or anger can consume him. The choice was in Cain’s hands. Sadly, Cain chose the latter. Jesus wrote about this in Matthew 5:21-22, explaining anger as a form of murder. Hence, if we choose to speak angrily, then, at that point, we are deserving of God’s judgment.

In verse 29 of Ephesians 4, Paul wrote that anger can affect our communication. You know that your

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words will affect how people feel towards you, how a gentle word can actually turn away wrath. Hence, we have to learn to listen, use our voice to not speak harshly, nor talk slanderously about other people behind their backs. As James advised, “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath” (1:19). Paul further explained that if we do not deal with our anger in a godly way, it will pain and grieve the Holy Spirit, whom God has caused to dwell in us as believers (Eph 4:30).

In verse 31 of Ephesians 4, Paul listed the various forms of anger. Anger and wrath tend to connote the idea of retribution and most action-movies have this similar revenge idea. Typically, the hero or heroine shows restraint in the face of adversity that is almost virtuous… until his or her button gets pushed! Then, bloody shootings and huge explosions result, insinuating that such violence is justified! The Bible has a similar example as well for us to learn. In Genesis 34, when Dinah, daughter of Jacob, was violated by Shechem, Simeon and Levi (two of Dinah’s brothers) were really offended. They decided to avenge the matter in their own way using deception and deceit. The result? Matthew Henry commented on this incident in chapter 34, “Wrath thirsts for revenge; the thirst of revenge has recourse to treachery; treachery issues in murder; and murder is followed by other lawless actions. Were we to trace the history of unlawful commerce between the sexes, we should find it, more than any other sin, ending in blood”.

In verse 32 of Ephesians 4, Paul wrote that our resentment and wrath have to give way to kindness and forgiveness, since God had forgiven us. No matter what problems we have, we have to go back to the Cross. The Cross and all that it represents, is what defines a Christian — it is at the cross we see the righteousness of God and His holiness; it is at the Cross that we see the immense gravity of sin and judgment. It is at the Cross that we see the forgiveness and substitution of Christ on our behalf to take away all our wickedness upon Himself. And it is at the Cross we can be forgiven and it is at the Cross that we can start to forgive God’s way. The world cannot tell us to do this; the world can only tell us to pound something, attend anger management classes and talk about our feelings. It is only the Bible and what Christ has done on the cross that can help us take a realistic view of anger and how to deal with it in godly ways. When God forgives us, Scripture tells us that He takes our sins and blocks them out; He does not keep an account, of things He can hold against us; it is paid off fully by Christ (Jeremiah 31:34; Isaiah 43:25; 44:22). What about us? We keep a list of things people have done against us and it is taken off provisionally only when they behave well toward us. But the things get back on the list when they mess up!

Instead, what we should do is to burn our lists and go to God directly with our frustrations and burdens, and let Him be the judge instead. James Dobson once wrote that to forgive someone means that I am giving up my right to get back at the other person for hurting me. It does not mean that the other person did not hurt me, nor that it

was ‘ok’ for the person to hurt me; rather I recognize that I have been hurt, and that I am giving it up to God, to let Him, not me, be judge and executioner of the matter.

In sum, dealing with anger in God’s way means:

1. Being different from the world

Believers must recognize that they are going to deal with anger differently from the world. Although we agree in part with the world about the techniques involved in anger management, believers must recognize that the world does not go far enough because it does not deal with the heart, soul, righteousness and what is right or wrong from God’s point of view. There is no ultimate reconciliation because the world only deals with anger as an emotion - only the Christian knows that resolving anger in a godly way can lead to something better, a peace that surpasses all man’s understanding.

2. Replacing sinful anger with briefly-held righteous indignation

Remember also to replace sinful anger with briefly- held righteous indignation, so that the Devil may not be given opportunity. When you get hurt or angry, say how you feel; do not deny or lie about it. However, do say it with kindness. Perhaps delaying your talk might help, so that you have some time-out for cooling off and communing with God to search your heart for the truth about the matter that is frustrating you, making you angry.

3. Arguing about the problem and not about absolutes

Further, do not argue about absolutes. You know how when one person says, “You ALWAYS …..” and the other typically responds, “No, I don’t …”? Such are hopeless arguments! Instead, take a tip from James, “…be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath” (1:19). Provide information to the other person that is helpful to the other person and helpful in resolving the problem. And when you are wrong, please apologise. Never let pride stand in the way of 10 words that can heal your relationship: I’m sorry, I was wrong, will you forgive me?

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"Am I a Soldier of the Cross?": Isaac Wattsby Amos R. Wells

Isaac Watts, who wrote this hymn, was the father of hymn-writing in the English language, and the author of many of our greatest hymns.

He was born in Southampton, England, July 17, 1674. His father was not a member of the state church, and was twice thrown into jail for opposing it, so that when he was a baby his mother often carried him in her arms to visit his father in prison.

There are remarkable stories of young Isaac's boyhood, one of them declaring that he begged for books before he could talk plainly, and others asserting that he began Latin at the age of four and wrote poetry at the age of seven!

He became a minister in London. He was a little man, only about five feet tall. His health was very poor all his life, but his church took loving care of him, for he was greatly liked. One day, when Watts was sick, Sir Thomas Abney invited him to his splendid home for a week. He became so dear to the household that they kept him there for the rest of his life,— thirty-six years!

Besides his preaching, Dr. Watts wrote much. He was a most zealous student of geography, astronomy, philosophy, and theology, and he wrote books on all these themes. His great life-work, however, as he himself saw, was his hymn-writing.

Early in life he became wearied with the versified Psalms which the churches used and set out to compose hymns of his own. This was a new departure and met with persistent opposition, but his hymns soon became widely popular in nearly all the churches. In 1707 Watts published his famous collection of original hymns, which he entitled "Hymns and Spiritual Songs." Only two or three copies are now in existence, and one of these sold in 1901 for $700. There were 210 hymns in this first edition, and 144 were added to the second edition.

The greatest of Watts's hymns is probably "When I survey the wondrous Cross," and many — Matthew Arnold among them — have called it the greatest hymn in the English language. Among the other great hymns of this splendid Christian poet are "Jesus shall reign where'er the sun," "Before Jehovah's awful throne," "From all that dwell below the skies," "Come, let us join our cheerful songs," "There is a land of pure delight," "Our God! our help in ages past," "Alas! and did my Saviour bleed," "Come, Holy Spirit, heavenly Dove," "Give me the wings of faith to rise." Many of Watts's children's hymns have become famous, such as "Let dogs delight to bark and bite," "How doth the little busy bee," and the sweet cradle-song, "Hush, my dear, lie still and slumber." Watts had no children of his own, but well did he know the child's heart.

The poet died November 25, 1748, and was buried at Bunhill Fields, London, near the graves of John Bunyan and Daniel Defoe. He is to be ranked with Charles Wesley, the two standing together at the summit of English sacred verse.

The noble hymn that we are to commit to memory was written by Dr. Watts in 1709, to follow a sermon on 1 Corinthians 16:13, "Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong." It is sometimes condensed to four stanzas, but surely we shall not wish to lose the last two. Here it is:—

Am I a soldier of the cross,

   A follower of the Lamb?

And shall I fear to own His cause

   Or blush to speak His name?

Must I be carried to the skies

   On flowery beds of ease?

While others fought to win the prize,

   And sailed through bloody seas?

Are there no foes for me to face?

   Must I not stem the flood?

Is this vile world a friend to grace,

   To help me on to God?

Sure I must fight, if I would reign

   Increase my courage, Lord!

I'll bear the toil, endure the pain,

   Supported by Thy word.

Thy saints, in all this glorious war,

   Shall conquer, though they die;

They view the triumph from afar,

   And seize it with their eye.

When that illustrious day shall rise,

   And all Thy armies shine

In robes of victory through the skies,

   The glory shall be Thine.

Copied by Stephen Ross for WholesomeWords.org from A Treasure of Hymns ... by Amos R. Wells. Boston: United Society of Christian Endeavor, ©1914.

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Today, as I reflect on my life, I sincerely thank the Lord for His mercy and grace that He has shown by saving a wretched sinner like me.

When I was at the tender age of four, my family started to attend church after migrating to Melbourne (Australia). It was through this that I was exposed to the Word of God and with child-like faith I accepted practically everything taught to me. But only many years later did I realise that the lessons that I learnt through Sunday school was, for me, just head knowledge; I was not born again.

Many wonderful stories in the Bible were told in Sunday school, and I had also heard many times of all that Christ had done me on the cross, yet having all this head knowledge was still not enough for me to be genuinely born again. I was just a seat-warmer on Sunday, and for the rest of the week I lived a life that was lacking in prayer, devotion and reliance on the Lord – things that a true Christian should have.

Like the people in the time of ‘Judges’, I did that which was right in my own eyes. I also took pride in professing to be a Christian, but in reality I was only t a k i n g p r i d e i n m y o w n s e l f -righteousness. I strived for fame, power and prosperity and lived different lives by putting on façades for different groups of people I knew. Desiring to be the best in all things, I also became extremely competitive in a very unhealthy way.

These goals and values consumed me and led me to live a very sinful life with much arrogance and pride. It took me a long time to realise that after committing sin after sin, I was on a downward spiral of doom. As a professing Christian, I brought shame to Christ and even those who were not Chr is t ians d id not want to be associated with me as I was so conceited. My world, as I knew it, started to fall apart and it was only then, at the lowest point of my life, when it seemed like the whole world was against me and I had practically lost all my friends, the Holy Spirit convicted me of my sins and I finally realised the depth of my sins and came to the Lord. I repented. I was so deep in my sins, but I thank God that He

showed me His mercy and grace. I needed to realise my unrighteousness in His sight in order to be born again.

I thank the Lord that now with His help, mercy and grace I have been able to flee from the worldly desires in life and have taken heed of the words in John 3:30 speaking to me that ‘[Jesus] must increase, but I must decrease.’ When I was once a professing Christian who lived a life for myself and sought for all that the world could offer, the Lord helped me to understand Matthew 6:24, ‘no man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.’ I thank the Lord that despite losing many friends, I have now found so real a friend in Jesus, who loves me so dearly and will never leave my side. I thank the Lord for saving my soul.

My Calling

Since my salvation, I can truly say that the Lord has led and guided my life so meticulously in every aspect. He has a lso shown to me beyond any reasonable doubt that nothing in life has happened by chance, but through the divine will of God for ‘we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called a c c o r d i n g t o h i s purpose.’ (Romans 8:28)

It has been nearly six years since I first heard God’s calling for me to go into full time ministry through the testimony of a full time minister who shared the words of Matthew 9:37 saying that ‘the harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few.’

I had heard and read this verse many times before in my life, but hearing it again this time was different for I was struck with fear in a way that I never knew before. I had always been so certain about my life and what I was going to do, but a calling from God to be a full time minister of

Christ was something that I had never considered. It scared me, especially knowing that my dreams were not in line with the will of God.

In my heart, I started to bargain with God, proposing that if He would make me a multi-millionaire I would retire at the age of forty and then spend my time serving Him. I tried to plead with him, giving Him a list of all that I wanted to achieve in life, and reasoned how I could be more ready and effective if this and that first occurred in my life. I even prayed ‘earnestly’ that He would reconsider and to even take away His calling for me, hoping that I could delay or run away from it as I loved the world too much and hoped that He wouldn’t call me, at least not just yet, as I wanted many mansions on this earth.

As time went by, I continued struggling with my love of the world, but soon I started to realise that God always knows what is best for me and there was no running away. My life started to change. Slowly He worked in my life, preparing me and showing me that there is no greater joy than to deny myself, take up His cross daily, and follow Him. (Luke 9:23) By His grace, my faith started to grow by leaps and bounds as I spent quality time with the

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Crossing Paths with the Cross

My Salvation by Kenny Cheong

Lord regularly. God had begun to refine m e a n d e v e n g a v e m e m o r e opportunities to serve Him in greater capacities.

Then one day I was reminded of another minister’s testimony that one cannot run away from the Lord’s calling. By this time, my reaction was no longer a deep sense of fear or uncertainty as I had already thought and prayed much about it, and I knew the Lord had been continuously prompting me with the same calling, telling me that I too could not run away, and sooner rather than later, my time would come. But the question was when?

My life had changed so much and I had committed to serve the Lord with as much of my time as possible – doing my best to put Him first in my life – but the Lord still wanted more. I was now faced with the reality of giving up all my ambitions in life and to start questioning myself whether I truly had the faith to rely entirely on God to provide for all my needs. But thank God that He encouraged me i n t h e 2 0 0 7 ( B e t h e l B i b l e -Presbyterian Church) family camp and my heart was moved as I reflected on the testimony of a pastor who lives a life of simplicity, where at many points of his life, he knew that he could not even provide food on the table for his family and how through his trials he learnt to have full dependence on the Lord. During that camp I broke down and shared with others, testifying that I believed the Lord had been calling me and had placed a desire in my heart to serve him full time. I had finally come to accept that the Lord was calling me now rather later, but the problem was I still lacked faith.

Another year passed and life just seemed so smooth and peaceful. I was finally graduating from university and I no longer had the many voices telling me that I should or needed to finish my degree before making a major life d e c i s i o n . I a l s o h a d a h i g h l y p rospec t i ve bus iness adv i so ry consult ing role l ined for me to commence after a long international holiday that was partially funded by the company. I started to even think that it was God’s will that I ought to work for a few years before I entered Bible college, but little did I know that during

my international holiday the Lord was going to drop a boulder into my sea of tranquillity.

Chr istmas Day 2008 and whi le attending a Church service my life changed. From the singing of praises, I started to deeply reflect on what God meant to me. I remembered the millions of blessings He provided, while leading and guiding my whole life till that very day. The Lord’s messenger then shared how through his struggles and testings of faith in life, he was always able to rely on the Lord for He had never failed him. These words comforted and

encouraged me, but then finally the peak of the Lord’s moving came to me when he started sharing that for him, there was no greater love in life than to teach the God’s Word. From this the Lord reminded me of how I was also experiencing such love over the past few years through teaching Bible Studies at youth group and the teaching of children in Sunday school and this became the icing on the cake. I was so overwhelmed, that despite having a concept of trying to appear manly, I could not withhold from tearing.

For many years I struggled greatly with letting go of all that the world was trying to offer to me and to live a life of simplicity. Slowly the Lord removed these struggles and at that very moment during that service, from the bottom of my heart, I was convicted. I knew then that there had been no greater joy in my life than sharing and

teaching God’s Word and the thought that I could spend the rest of my life doing that was priceless.

Just days before, my heart was still plagued with doubts and fears. But that Christmas day, the calling to serve God full time was definitely confirmed and established in me. And until that day, I had never felt such perfect peace in my life, knowing that the Lord had called me.

I thank God that over a year has passed and since then the Lord had paved the way for me and removed

every obstacle in my path showing me His will exceptionally clearly. I also praise God for I am now in the middle of my second semester studying a Master of Divinity at the Far Eastern Bible College (FEBC). Truly the Lord has been gracious unto me for I heard His many calls to ‘follow [Him]’, but unlike the disciples of Christ found in Matthew 4:18-22 who ‘straightway’ and ‘immediately’ followed Him, I continuously gave excuses similar to that of Luke 9:59-62 and lacked faith. But now the Lord has given and shown me the meaning of F.A.I.T.H. – to Forsake All, I Take Him.

I also testify that since I took my small step of faith (Matthew 17:20) and left my life completely in the hands of my omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent God, I need not to ever worry for I can truly say that MY

GOD IS REAL and ‘[He] will never leave [me], nor forsake [me].’ My God has also been the provided of ‘all [my] need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.’ (Philippians 4:19)

It is really a blessing and privilege to have the opportunity to be here in Singapore to study the Word of God at FEBC, to be a regular worshiper at Calvary Pandan Bible-Presbyterian Church, and be involved in the Youth Fellowship. I have been thoroughly blessed ever so abundantly in every aspect of life and I definitely have no regrets. Certain I have made the best decision in my life to take up my cross and follow Him, I will press on despite hardships and struggles faced, and to come.

All glory unto God and may He continue to mould and make me into His faithful servant for His glory.

9

‘Hello world!’ Warmest greetings to you all in the blessed name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. How’s everything back in Singapore? I trust my writing finds all of you in the best of health.

I’d just like to share and update all of you CPYFers on the goings-on from the time we last met till this point in time. I’m in the second year, which commenced Oct ’09 and ends in Jun ’10, of my four-year Masters of Engineering Computing degree programme at Imperial College London.

I clearly recall the night I left mid-Oct last year on an approximately 13-hour flight bound for the land of the original ‘Monopoly’, 6761 miles away. It was such a great feeling to be back in London, although it was so disappointing to miss the snowfall a week prior to my arrival. Nevertheless, the flight was enjoyable and I managed to arrive in time for lectures that morning.

Looking back, my memories of this year are distinct from that of the previous year. I thank God for everything that’s happened to me, for His grace in even preserving and sustaining me, granting me such a precious opportunity to study overseas, for bestowing me with innumerable blessings I hardly deserve and unspeakable gifts, for family and friends, and a church in the vicinity. The list is endless.

Over time, I’ve started trying my hand at cooking some things such as chicken fajitas, pasta, vegetable soup and potatoes etc. I live about 10 minutes’ walking distance from college, opposite a supermarket, near two tube stations and near Sophia’s residence, and I pay close to nothing for an excellent place in a relatively expensive area. I share my room with a roommate David, and share the flat with 2 others, my secondary school friend Jack, and my other course-mate Lu. My flat-mates in general are compassionate and sincere. We’ve got a washing machine, dryer, oven, dishwasher, as well as a 40-inch Samsung TV and Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii. We’ve also got some friends who come over ever so often. It’s been a wonderful experience in becoming independent.

I go ice-skating most weeks, but nothing much really apart from that worth mentioning.

Whilst my fellow Singaporean friends stay together, I decide to hang out with my course-mates, all younger than me, of whom I’m the only Malaysian-turned-Singaporean. I don’t regret this at all because I believe the overseas experience is all about interacting with people from everywhere. Only my church friends are Singaporean/Malaysian – Joshua, Sophia, Grace, Joy, Rachael, Brian to name a few. We do meet to celebrate birthdays for one another.

College life this year has been really awesome. My schedule is such that my year is broken down into three 2.5-month-terms, where the start of the third is my finals exams. A typical week consists of two full days of lessons on Tue & Thu, so I would spend the other days mainly at home (took so long but we’ve got pretty decent Internet set up now) or in college computer labs helping my friends out with their coursework. However, my weekends are mostly dedicated to church (I worship at

New Life BPC) – Fri YAF, Sat Prayer Meeting, Sun worship. Pastor Ki is the resident minister now and he’s been ministering faithfully week after week.

This year, I’ve tried joining Imperial College Ice Hockey, I’ve gone for the CNY dinner and paintballing organized by DoCSoc (Dept of Computing Society). I’m also going to visit a church friend in Belgium, and I will be attending Easter Camp. There was also Free Brownie Day courtesy of Starbucks.

Work is purely an extension from last year and comparatively, there’s more independent study this year.

There’s also more group work this term. Major projects include writing a Pico C-subset compiler, modifying the Linux kernel to load an out-of-memory killer, and a compressed memory swap ramdisk. Modules range from math-based Statistics, Computational Techniques to computing/logic-based Software Engineering Design & Algorithms, Networks and Communications, Concurrency, AI, OS, Models of Computation, with 3 out of 4 options this term.

Thanks for upholding me in your prayers. Hope to meet up with you all real soon!

Lee Wei Yeong | Address: Flat 9, 37 Courtfield Gardens, SW5 0PJ | mobile +44 7850 077 128 | email: evandrix@gmail.com(by the way, my iPhone is stolen, but I managed to keep my number stated above, so don’t be surprised to find me without one)

My Bloo

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/var/log …a snapshot of my life in Imperial College London, UK

snow!

What does the cross means to you, dear reader? To most Christians, we recognise it as the symbol of Christianity, particularly related to Good Friday where our Lord and Saviour was nailed on the cross for our sins, repaying our blood debt with His death on the cross. To some, it is an ornament or piece of jewellery that we place on our desk or wear round our neck. To the atheistic history buff, it is one of the primitive means of capital punishment endorsed by some civilizations of the ancient world. It is interesting to note that the cross would not have been well known as a means of capital punishment if not for the fact that Jesus of Nazareth was crucified on a cross in AD 33.

The crosses that we have nowadays are perfectly symmetrical and made of precious metals or some exquisite varnished wood. Hence, we may forget that the crosses of the past were a far cry from what we have today, as it was after all a tool for execution. History tells us that the crosses then were made of easily available wood secured with either ropes or nails. Unlike the modern aesthetic cross, the cross used for execution consisted of two parts. The vertical portion was a long sturdy piece of wood fixed on the ground while the condemned person was required to carry the horizontal portion of the cross that weighed about 35-60 kg. Once he arrived at the execution site, he was simply lifted up together with the horizontal portion of the wood and nailed or tied to the vertical portion. You can imagine this was not a pleasant sight. Let us not forget this original image of the cross, for it was on such a cross that our Saviour suffered and died.

In my area of work, I do come across prisoners on death row and one of the most difficult things to accept about execution is that life will be forcefully taken away from you. In one moment you are fine and well, and in another, a noose will

be around your neck, the trap door underneath your feet will open a few seconds later and you will embrace eternity. In this land, the mode of judicial execution is by hanging and this method is almost instantaneous as it utilises the weight of the body to snap the neck of the person. It is not a case of slow suffocation, which is often the misconception about execution by hanging. The cross, on the other hand, was not designed for a person to die quickly. Its purpose was to give a slow, painful, very public and humiliating view of the execution. History states that most of the time, the condemned person was not allowed any clothes. This was the case for our beloved Saviuor as well.

The whole process takes a very long time, and you are actually a witness to your own death as you grow weaker and weaker. Your loved ones will be there to witness it and it will be an emotional struggle for both your loved ones and yourself. In fact, the whole process is so torturous and cruel that the cause of death can range from the loss of blood to asphyxiation or dehydration. Yet our Lord Jesus with His omniscience and omnipotence still was willing to go through it for our sakes. Therefore, may the Lord's Supper always remind us of His body broken for our sake and His blood shed to cleanse us from our sins. 

Though we were not present at

Golgotha when Jesus hung on the cross, we are no less guilty than those who witnessed the public execution and shouted in front of Pilate's hall to crucify Him; it is our sins that require a perfect sacrifice. It is only through His blood that we can be redeemed. It was His love for us that made Him willingly allow sinners like you and me to falsely accuse Him, and lead Him to die on the cross and yet, He asked the Father to 'forgive them for they know not what they do’.

Let us now consider three characters in the Gospels revolving around the cross. Firstly, the Roman governor Pontius Pilate. He symbolically washed his hands and said that he was not guilty of the blood of Christ. This is a false declaration. This outward physical cleansing and verbal declaration is not sufficient to leave him blameless as he had the power to declare that Jesus was innocent and set Him free, but he chose to give in to the pressure of the Jews and he eventually handed Jesus, an innocent man, to the Jews who wanted blood. The lesson we can learn then is not to succumb to pressure and make decisions based on what is popular instead of what is right.

The next two characters are the two dying thieves. One of them recognised that Jesus was the Son of God. He knew that he himself was guilty of the offence charged against him and in

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faith, he requested to be remembered when Jesus reigned in the Kingdom of God. The other thief cared only about his current state and hence his immediate need - which was the painful experience of dying on the cross. He requested that he be saved from his current predicament with no eternal view and approached Jesus with a big IF by doubting that Jesus is the Son of God. The question we need to ask ourselves is - which thief reflects your attitude? 

In my University days there was a female classmate who declared that she was a Christian. She capitalised on her looks and generated a lot of attention with her dressing. There were times when she would wear something with a low neckline, clearly revealing the cross on her neck. I was pretty sure her intention was not to draw attention to the cross she was wearing, but it inevitably did and I was disturbed about it as I thought she was bearing a very bad testimony with her immodest dressing despite the symbol of Christianity she bore. I shared my frustration with fellow FCMers during one of our meetings and a mature brother simply told me, ‘Let him with no sin, cast the first stone’. Immediately I was rebuked as I seemed to be the first one to pick the biggest stone to throw though I am no better than her. I was also known as a Christian in the class but more often that not, I was late for class and I sometimes dozed off in lectures, which was a bad testimony as well. From that incident, I learned always to be worthy of the cross I carry as I need to be a good testimony, and also not to be a judge of others. Are you wearing a cross round your neck? If you are not wearing a cross, it doesn’t mean that you are not a testimony of Christ. What I am saying is if you wear a cross, you have to be very mindful as it is an outward declaration that you are a Christian and hence an ambassador of Christ. Your every word and action matters and ought to be worthy of Christ.

Dear reader, may the symbol of the cross remind you of the suffering that Jesus had to endure for your sake, and may the symbol of the cross also remind you to always bear a good testimony, especially when you are wearing or displaying one. With these reminders, the symbol of the cross will be able to help us to become better Christians.

Bro. Eugene

Cottage Meeting by Ruth Ng23rd January signalled the first Youth Fellowship cottage meeting of 2010. Held at the Ngs’ house (the one with three sisters), a healthy number of around fifty people gathered for a heart-warming time of fellowship. The age range stretched from our newest batch of 17-year-olds to a really old 28-year-old lawyer. At this point, it’s worth noting that we welcomed the largest batch of fresh youths-out-of-teenz since the dragon batch; this due to the burger lunch that was held for them earlier that day. Regardless, it was a pretty heartening sight to see our ranks

replenished by younger blood.

Most of us arrived by 5.30pm, with the exception of the MRT gang who had to wait an eternity for the bus (hmmm), and kicked off the meeting with a round of singspiration.

Soon enough, the time was handed over to Brother Henry Chua who gave a message on the YF theme for the year, Take Up Thy Cross Daily. He gave a provoking message, challenging our understanding of Christ and what He means to us. Breaking down the phrase, he expounded on what it mean to deny one’s self and to daily carry the cross we have as Christians. Directing us to Luke 9:11-23, Brother Henry spoke of how many of the people thought that Jesus was John the Baptist, Elias or one of the prophets of old. Although I believe it’s safe to say that none of us would think that way, it did beg the question of who Jesus truly was to me. Was He was just a figurine on a cross? A man who died for a noble cause? Or was He a powerful figure fixed in ages past? Even if I knew He was God and man, the Messiah, did I understand that? Was it real to me or just a bunch of words strung together? To add to that, Brother Henry also pointed out that many people these days are so fixated with the idea of an awesome, almighty Saviour that they tend to forget He was a “man of sorrow, of anguish”, “the suffering servant”. I was truly provoked to examine my understanding and reverence towards God. On a whole, it was an important time of reflection. How else can we follow Christ if we do not know Him as He truly is? Thank God for the edifying message.

It was a pretty long message, ending at around 7.30pm as Brother Henry shyly asked if he had overstepped the time (despite the fact that no one was complaining (: ). Either way, a sweet time of makaning, chit-chatting and song singing was to follow. The buffet spread (which did not follow the menu that accompanied it [: ) served us all well and several clusters of friends formed. You’d find a bunch of youths in one corner doing a photoshoot for the FCM gospel rally and another trying desperately to sing through the entire youth song book. Yes, you’d most probably find one relaxing in one corner too (ha ha ha, sorry I have a sad sense of humour). In a sense, we ate, drank and were merry (: But in a good way right? So much so that the exco had trouble getting us to leave and go home (: Pray that we’ll continue to enjoy the sweet fellowship with each other and that God will continue to bless us with such meetings.

Dear Sam,

Just learned that there’s a group in Singapore called ‘The Singapore Humanist Meet-Up Group’. This struck a chord. You were proud to be labeled as a ‘humanist’.

Why not? The label ‘humanist’ has a nice ring to it, conjuring up the image of being ‘humane’, among other things. You were a great fan of Dr Julian Huxley, the great promoter of evolutionism and humanism, and identified with his ideas. It doesn’t hurt that Dr Huxley was the son of Thomas Huxley (who was famed as ‘Darwin’s bulldog’).

It’s nice believing that we don’t have to look outside ourselves for guidance, and we are free to make our own rules. To you, Buddhism is also a form of humanism – a religion without God, with the additional bonus of the stress on compassion – not the folk version of Buddhism, with its temples and incense and prayers, but the barebones Buddhism with its fourfold truths and eightfold paths – simple, and yet profound.

You read the Bible only as literature. You were a great fan of Western culture, and how could anybody understand Western culture if he didn’t know about Adam and Eve, Abraham and Moses, Jesus and Paul? You read your Bible, but you crossed whole passages off, and put myriads of question marks all over the Bible that your sister gave you – why does God have to punish Adam and Eve so severely – they just told a simple lie! Anyway, is there a Garden of Eden? Doesn’t science tell us that the universe is billions of years old -- and man came from monkeys?

But then you met a pretty young lady, and you had to go to church with her. Every Sunday was a struggle – go to church again? What for? You didn’t believe what came from the pulpit anyway.

You fought tool and nail against it.

Jesus – His teaching is too idealistic! Who can believe it? ‘Blessed are the poor’. ‘Blessed are the meek’. Come on, it’s the real world.

It’s easier for you to have your own ethical standards and live by them.

He said, ‘whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.’

Wow – then every man in the world is an adulterer!

It’s easier to be a humanist who believes that as long as you don’t harm anybody else, you can think whatever you like.

Dare you approach a God who tells you ‘be ye holy’? His standards are too high for you (or anybody else, for that matter).

Yes, I’m glad you were serious about the faith – being a true Christian means believing everything that God says in His Bible, and not be a ‘pick-and-choose’ Christian.

Yes, God wants you to be holy. His expectations are impossible to meet – unless you have the Holy Spirit in you.

He wants a new man. He wants you to die to yourself. Are you willing to do that?

TC

RetrospectUncle Thomas pens a letter to his younger self, nicknamed ‘Sam’

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CPYF 29th AnniversaryBy Ivan Ting

‘Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them’ Psalm 84:5

Thank God for seeing the Youth Fellowship through 29 years of praise, service and fellowship. We must realise it has all been by God’s strength, not our own. Our hearts should be filled with thankful remembrance of God’s strength in our lives, and in the life of the YF.

If the LORD tarries, our 30th Anniversary will come, but when it knocks at our door, will we ‘be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might’, or will our hearts in comfortable times be ‘lifted up’ and wax cold?

‘Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?’ Proverbs 20:6

Ex-Teen (now YFer) that talks

Anchor – attending YF has

strengthened my faith through the

various messages that pertain to our

current schooling life, rooting me in

the doctrines of God’s Word. I am

sure that YF has helped many to

build up a strong foundation on God

and the Bible.

Lasso – going to YF has helped

me to remind myself where I have

sinned during the week, and convicts

me of them, that I might seek

repentance for things I have done

wrong from God. Hence YF is sort of

a lasso for me, bringing me back to

God after every school week.

Supplements – the messages in

YF augment the teachings during

church service on Sunday, just like

people take vitamins / supplements

to maintain their health. I feel that YF

helps in strengthening a Christian’s

walk with God.

Besides, YF also has occasional

cottage meetings and outings, so it

isn’t just messages all the time. Of

course, the activities planned have

spiritual lessons that I can take away.

However, I like YF camps best

because it really helps in building up

our Christian faith, without the cares

of schoolwork or worldly friends. I

highly encourage everyone reading

this to come for YF. =)

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YF+YAF Combined Meeting by Adrian Ho

YF/YAF combined meetings are a long-standing tradition in our church - I can remember such meetings held as far back as 12 years ago. This year on 6 Feb, we had the privilege of having Dn Ko share with both fellowship groups on “the place of leisure in a Christian’s life”. To quote the speaker, it is a topic that is not only timely, but also timeless; YFers, YAFers and even AFers need to be reminded of the necessity to exercise godly wisdom in the choice of the leisure activities they engage in and the amount of time and monetary resources committed to these pursuits. The session of games immediately following the sermon was really great. Well, not because I organised it, but kudos to the spontaneity, creativeness and competitiveness of both fellowship groups. I must say that I underestimated the artistic calibre and ingenuity of both groups when planning the Pictionary clues. You would imagine that things such as “coup d’état” and ”gladiator” would be extremely hard to draw, but our talented artists made it almost too easy to guess. And for the finale, we had an interesting blend of Italian and local delights for dinner – pizzas, pastas, durian puffs and sago with gula melaka. I thought that I should append some of my personal thoughts to this brief summary of the event, especially since I’ve attended both fellowship groups. A while ago when I was still a young YFer, my main impression of YAFers was that they were folks who were difficult to relate to by reason of the vast age difference. As far as I was concerned back then, the YAFers were a bunch of folk I couldn’t identify with. Though barely a decade apart in terms of age, the divide was apparently very wide, at least from my perspective. I was still schooling whereas some of them were already parents. In my mind, YAF was stigmatised as a group for those who are either getting married or with kids, and not for the carefree and young-at-heart. Even when I graduated from YF and transited into YAF, for a year or so I continued to harbour the notion that YAFers were so “different” from YFers.

Now, why am I writing all this? It’s because I’m almost certain that not a few YFers at the recent combined meeting have had similar thoughts to those I used to have. I hope that my sharing here will help to set the right perspective on this issue.On hindsight, I realised that no two fellowship groups are the same and one should not attempt to compare them nor expect them to have the same dynamics - YAF is different from YF because YAFers and YFers are at a different stage of life. Doubtless, transiting from one fellowship group to another is not an easy affair. You have to leave the comfort zone of familiar faces and close buddies to join a group where most are strangers and you’re one of the youngest. Admittedly, I found attending YAF a little unsettling at first for these reasons, but I persisted in attending. With time, strangers became friends, even close friends, and I steadily grew accustomed to the fact that YAFers were simply folks with a set of responsibilities that came with age. In fact it is from these older brethren that I’ve been the beneficiary of countless advice, tips and encouragement when it came to my turn to get married and have a kid.

And so to conclude, I hope that those soon to graduate from YF will not be afraid to take the plunge and make the transition to YAF. In the meantime, do use such combined meetings as bridging opportunities to get to know what your next fellowship group will be like. That’s essentially the aim of the meeting. Hope you enjoyed it.

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Dear ReadersYou would’ve noticed that Uth now comes to you printed in full colour.

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Running the Race — Combined YF Outingby Christopher Cheong

On the 30th of January, the combined English and Mandarin

Congregation Youth Fellowships gathered at Pasir Ris Park for an

afternoon of games, object lessons and fellowship. Preacher Ko

Lingkang gave a short exhortation after the games, linking the

afternoon’s activities to the scripture passage which they were

conceptualized on.

Ecclesiastes 9: 10-11

10. Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no

work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou

goest.

11. I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor

the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men

of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance

happeneth to them all.

Based on the above verses, groups had to search for Lingkang, who was

circling the park on a bicycle, and stop him. A coin would be flipped. This

determined if the group would have the ‘blessing’ of being able to use

his bicycle to circle the park and take photos of various landmarks,

which were scattered along the entire length of the Pasir Ris Park.

At the same time, groups had to walk to one end of the park to find

Dorothy, who was comfortably entrenched under a park shelter, and

solve a series of tedious mathematical equations. ‘Blessings’ were

drawn in a lucky draw style, which included aids such as being allowed

to use a calculator, getting a free answer to one of the sub-questions, or

given extra working paper.

Subsequently, at a separate location, the group had to pick a number

that would determine the number of members who were allowed to

participate and to run around a mini-garden. Again, the ‘blessing’ of

being able to use a bicycle as an alternative to pure physical running

was left up to the chance of a coin toss.

Lingkang linked this activity to how one might run the race of life,

which was the overarching theme of the afternoon. The object lesson/

game station’s objective was to point out that ‘time and chance

happeneth to them all’ and that many things that we encounter in life

are out of our control – different people encounter different trials

and tribulations at different times. Some encounter more, some

encounter less, but God gives them all to each and every one of us.

God is definitely much more interested in the process, how we run

our various races, rather than the result we achieve at the end – which is

in God’s hands.

1 Corinthians 9:24

Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the

prize? So run, that ye may obtain.

Another station that groups had to complete involved a ‘circuit’ of sorts.

Firstly, one member had to climb through a pyramid of wires to pick up a

table tennis ball from the other side. The member had to deposit the ball 16

17

in a folded piece of cardboard, which all the other members of the group had to carry up a small hill, to another obstacle, where all members of the group had to clamber to the top and take a slide down the knoll, run up another hill, and take the slide on that hill down, run back to the starting point, and try to repeat the cycle as many times as possible within 10 minutes. Naturally, the group with the highest number of cycles was declared the 'winner' of the station. Once again, the youths were reminded that all were in a long distance race together – a race that would last as long as one's life, where there isn’t a tangible prize to be won. Lingkang also pointed out that during the Ancient Olympics, the winner of a race would receive a crown of laurels, which is a corruptible crown, and would wither and fade away after a few days.

Each and every one of us has different abilities that we can utilize to run the race. Lingkang reminded the youths that once again, the Lord is interested in the process, how one runs the race, and that perseverance and significant effort has to be put in to overcome whatever obstacles might come one's way. One of the obstacles encountered by the various groups was that of other children using the obstacles and slides. They had to find ways of cajoling or literally getting around the kids, (and disapproving parents), to allow them to use the facilities first, so as to be able to finish the circuit as many times as possible. Lingkang emphasized that one's

response, attitude and reaction to such obstacles is of paramount importance to the Lord. Hebrews 12:1

Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. The last of the three stations that groups were required to complete involved half the group being assigned seemingly random items, such as textbooks, computer CPUs, many tennis balls, goggles, luggage and a guitar. The group had to run along a predetermined route, which included tasks such as duck walking and running up and down three

stories worth of stairs, whilst carrying their items. This resulted in the vast number of young people with severely strained quadriceps grasping on to the handrails and grimacing in pain as they walked up and down the stairs in church the next day. The various items represented things such as Studies, Gaming, Sports, Travelling and Music. Taken individually, they're harmless, unless one places too much emphasis on the activity and allows it to become a significant burden or personal weight. Everyone will have different burdens to bear, and these will affect how each person runs his or her

race. One has to face different situations and circumstances, where one's personal weights will come into play and have to be managed without any detriment to one's spiritual walk. Sin will also plague one down as one runs his/her race, and personal willpower can only get one so far. Thus one has to rely on God, through prayer to be able to sustain to the end of the race. Lingkang also pointed out that everyone's in the same race together, and that likeminded brethren should help to prop each other up through it.All in all, it was a fruitful and spiritually enriching experiences, with all

the participants coming away from the outing well fed, (physically and spiritually), well exercised, (albeit with aching quadriceps), and well

baked (but not sun burnt).

Why are we Bible-Presbyterian? The many who attended the FCM Combined Meeting held in February were blessed and reminded of what constitutes the very heart and soul of the BP movement, and that is biblical separation.

The topic for the evening was ‘The Reason for Being Bible-Presbyterian’ (2 Corinthians 6:14-18) and the speaker was Rev (Dr) Quek Suan Yew. We first briefly traced our fundamentalist roots to Dr Carl McIntire who founded the BP Church and Faith Theological Seminary in the USA to guard against the infiltration of modernism, ecumenism and neo-evangelicalism. Having been providentially led by God to study theology at Faith Seminary, Rev Timothy Tow began the BP movement in Singapore to separate from the liberal Presbyterian Church that had an affiliation with the ecumenical World Council of Churches.

Continuing the same crucial tenet of biblical separation, the Fundamental Christian Ministry (FCM), formally known as the Fundamental Christian Fellowship (FCF), was formed to guard against the falling away of the BP youth in tertiary institutions. Many had begun imbibing modernist teachings in joining other non-separatist Christian fellowship groups such as Campus Crusade for Christ, Navigators and Varsity Christian Fellowship.

While there are fundamental doctrines such as a Calvinistic understanding of salvation that make us BP, to disregard the doctrine of biblical separation is to open the floodgate of Satanic attacks. It is the reason why we are Bible-Presbyterian; the Word of God must be upheld as our supreme and final authority in the life of every believer. The dissolution of the BP Synod in 1988 was in fact caused by the permissive and non-separatist stance of the BP leadership.

Thank God for the faithful preaching of His Word. We were warned and reminded that biblical separation is originally not a denominational distinctive but an ecclesiastical command for the local church and believers to abide by. 2 Corinthians 6:14-18 clearly teaches how we, as living temples of God, bring shame to the name of Christ when we do not practise separation from the world. Personal holiness is a practice of doctrinal purity; it is a command, not an option.

After the message, we were blessed by a song item by FCM NTU and the testimony shared by Brother Joseph, an FEBC student, of how he was led to Christ through an English teacher while he was still studying in Communist China. He shared his experience of having taken a non-separatist stand for more than 10 years before he was convicted of the need to separate himself from the support of ecumenical mission work in China. Thankful to God for the conviction to return to the Bible and its doctrines, Bro Joseph encouraged us to befriend and share the gospel with our schoolmates from China who are generally more accepting to religion, having not been exposed to it for most part of their lives, and to bring them to a church of sound doctrinal teachings.

The large turnout for the FCM Combined Meeting bore testament of how the Lord has been faithful in sustaining the various FCM groups from the respective tertiary institutions. Truly, may we not waste our youth nor compromise the standards of holy living. Pray that we will remain faithful in the doctrinal persuasion of biblical separation as well as daily separate from sin that we may be effective personal witnesses for our Lord Jesus Christ.

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FCM Combined Meeting 2010 by Joy Ng

March RetreatGREETINGS TO ALL! First of all, I would like to thank God for giving us this opportunity to serve him. It was really a blessed, enjoyable and fruitful retreat. The theme on confessions helped me realize we are indeed living in the end days. Have we ever denied Christ in our life? It is foolish of us to do so, as Jesus Christ came down to earth to do the will of God, to die for our sins – it is the most wonderful thing. ‘That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved’ Romans 10:9.

May we also earnestly contend for the faith that is delivered unto us. May we hold on to this faith, keep it deep in our hearts, learn to discern between the truth and false teachings, and bring others to Christ. It is dangerously easy for us to compromise with others, but we must strive to never compromise when it comes to our faith! Let us not live in self-denial of our sin but always ready to repent and seek the Lord for forgiveness. Sin is always around us, but we have the liberty of not sinning, so let us focus on the Lord and hold His name in reverence. ‘And let us focus on Christ and strive for things above, for earthly things will soon be gone.’

How true indeed that our fame on this earth will pass away, but the Word of the Lord will remain forever! Let us not be hearers only but doers as well, eager to do things that are pleasant in the eyes of the Lord! Let us guard ourselves with the Word of the Lord so that we may teach others the truth. Let us continue to press on for the Lord as we sojourn on this earth. God bless!

In Christ,Gabriel Teo

Poll ResultsOf 40 responses, we got the following:

Get sad, complain, rant, cry, outbursts, swearing, become antagonistic, blame others, find faults 14Engage in activity like indulging in comfort foods (ice cream, chocs, buffets?!), music, brisk walking/exercising, watch tv 8Pray, count to 10, sigh, silent moves, breathing in and out 7Keep to oneself, sleep it over, walk away

7

Tell somebody 2Cannot remember the last time he was cross

1Attack the root of the problem 1Tick

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YF Speaks Complied by Yeda Ko

For this issue, the Uth Team decided to ask the question – ‘What do you do when you are cross?’, a pun on the YF Theme of this year ‘Take Up Your Cross Daily’. The first round of the survey was conducted at the cottage meeting at Joy’s home, after Brother Henry gave the theme message. Sadly, the results were lost. Apologies for that! Thus here, we present to you the breakdown of the 40 responses we got from the second round of the survey!

35% of the responses, the highest percentage, involved antagonistic reactions towards the people or event that made them cross. They include blaming others, complaining, swearing and muttering under their breath, and getting sad and crying about the situation.

The next highest group related to physical activities and indulgences, or distractions, and made up 20% of the responses. Activities in this category included eating comfort food (ice cream, chocolates, even going for buffets!), immersing in music, exercising, and watching TV.

Interestingly, the abovementioned reactions to one being cross made up more than half of the results, and are seen as more active and aggressive in nature. The following results show the remaining half of responses, that reflected more passive responses.

17.5% of respondents indicated prayer, sighing, and regulating breathing in and out, as their response to being cross. Another 17.5% would choose to keep things to themselves, sleep it over, or just walk away and ignore whatever made them cross.

A small 5% said they would confide in someone when they find themselves cross.

There were a couple of interesting responses, like ‘I cannot remember the last time I was cross’, and ‘Attack root of problem! …calmly…’, but a personal favourite has got to be…

‘I’ll Tick.’

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Name: Serena Lok Yi-EnAge: 17School: Ngee Ann PolyCourse of Study: Advertising and Public RelationsHobbies: Facebooking, Msn-ing,Sleeping

Name: Bernita Woo Mun YeeAge: 16 going on 17School: Singapore PolyCourse of Study: Creative Writing in Television and New MediaHobbies: swimming,running,shopping,thinking

Name: Debbie Grace Tay

Age : 16 going on 17

School : Catholic Junior College

Course of Study : Arts! (Lit, Geog, Econs)

Hobbies : I used to enjoy reading until I entered JC, hahah! 

Name: Joel Woo Jun Jie

Age: 17

School: Ngee Ann Poly

Course of Study: Mechanical Engineering

Hobbies: soccer/cycling/guitar-ing and lots more

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

April

The Last Seven Sayings of Christ on the Cross Rev Jeffrey Khoo

3rd: Part 1 (Discussion)

10th: Part 2 (Group Time)

17th: Part 3 (Discussion)

24th: Fellowship — Bro Henry (Cottage Meeting)

Birthdays: 4th Shu-lin

5th Jonjon and Debbie 13th Alanna and Samuel 27th Yong Hwee 28th Joyce Auyong

May

Book Study on Colossians Bro Joshua Yong

1st: No YF (Church AGM)

8th: Part 1

15th: Part 2

22nd: BGR... the Cold, Hard Truth — Dn & Mrs James Fu

29th: Part 3

Birthday: 2nd Phoebe and Elliot 5th Ruth 18th Serena Ng 25th Dn Chia

17th — 22nd: FCM Camp

June

5th: YF Outing

12th: No YF (Church Camp)

19th: Midyr Remembrance Night

26th: No YF (Comb Youth Conf)

Birthdays: 24th Grace

PERSONAL POINTS

JANUARY 31st Dec 09 – 3rd: Joanne Khor and family have a short trip to Cambodia.

23rd: Elliot Chin and Ivan Ting sit for their SATs.

25th – 30th: FEBC trial week.

27th: Yeda Ko performs the harp in a trio with two flutes. The concert is attended by a small group of YF-ers.

28th: Lisa Ang returns from her studies in Australia. She flies off to India on the 3rd of February.

30th: YF has a combined outing to Pasir Ris Park.

31st: Jason Liew conducts an evangelism workshop for Pandan FCMers.

Also on the 31st, Jonathan Poon’s sister-in-law, Cindy, learns about her pregnancy.

• • •FEBRUARYSometime in February, Joel Woo helps out in an orientation camp for secondary ones in his former secondary school.

Also in the 3rd week: Jeremy Chan completes his three-year course in the polytechnic.

4th: Ivan Ting enlists for 22 months of National Service.

5th: Gabriel Teo successfully concludes his industrial Attachment.

10th: FCM NUS holds gospel rally. Dr Paul Ferguson speaks on the topic “Eat, drink and be merry?” FCM NTU also held a gospel rally. Pr Ko Ling Kang speaks on the topic “Eternity and you.”

10th - 25th: Phoebe returns from China for CNY holidays.

11th: Esther Huang returns from China for a short visit.

14th - 17th: Deacon Chia spends his Lunar New Year in Malaysia with family and relatives for the first time ever.

18th: Pr Ko Ling Kang heads back to BPCWA, Perth, for another three months.

26th: FCM holds a combined meeting in Calvary Pandan B-P Church. Rev Dr Quek Suan Yew speaks on the topic “The reason for being Bible-Presbyterian” .

• • •MARCH3rd: Raphael Ko goes off on a month long study trip to China.

5th – 7th: Jon Jon goes on a 3-day CIP trip to a secret location…

Also on the 5th, J2s from 2009 receive their A level results

14th – 20th: Kenny Cheong returns to Melbourne for a friend’s wedding.

13th – 17th: Kai Shuin, Abby, Alanna, Serena Lok, Ruth and Daniel Lim travel to BDC, Chiang Rai for a 5-day mission trip.

18th - 20th: CPBPC’s session retreat is held. On the 20th, Joyce Huang completes a first aid course and receives a first aid license.

21st: Christopher Cheong performs Tchaikovsky with the Orchestra of the Music Makers in Yong Siew Toh Conservatory Hall.

Short and Broad

2 Corinthians 5:20Now then we are (__2__) for Christ, as though God did (__4__) you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.

John 17:22-23And the (__14__) which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made (__5__) in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

1 Peter 2:5Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a (__6__) house, an holy (__17__), to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

James 4:4Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the (__9__) of the world is (__7__) with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

Ephesians 5:1-2Be ye therefore (__11__) of God, as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and

hath given himself for us an (__13__) and a (__8__) to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

Acts 14:22(__10__) the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much (__1__) enter into the kingdom of God

1 Corinthians 15:3-4For I (__12__) unto you first of all that which I also (__15__), how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Deuteronomy 15:15a And thou shalt remember that thou wast a (__16__) in the land of Egypt, and the LORD thy God (__15__) thee:

I Cor 2:11, 16For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the (__18__) of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. For who hath known the (__3__) of the Lord, that he may (__19__) him? But we have the mind of Christ.

Crossword get it?

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A Publication of

Calvary Pandan Youth Fellowship

Calvary Pandan Bible-Presbyterian Church 201 Pandan Gardens

Singapore 609337

Email: uth.chronicle@gmail.com“Edify, Educate, Engage”