31 July 09

Devotion 

Philippians 1:1-8

Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: Even as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace. For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ.

[YJ insert]

Sharing & Prayer

1. How have you experienced God this week?
2. How do we show love to people in YAF?

In thinking over the question, it was a jarring reminder to be conscious of God/experiencing God throughout the week! Showing love...building meaningful relationships. 

Mongolia missions exposure

by Yeo Zhi Han

To summarize my sharing about the trip, I'd like to share two lessons that have left me challenged. Firstly, through our experience in Mongolia, we have truly learnt what it means to be part of the larger body of Christ and needless to say, we are more aware of how God moves on a global scale. God is truly the coordinator of His own good work and He knows where He will take His ministry. Oftentimes, we belittle God and take control of things with our techniques and methods and strategies and displace God from His rightful place of the centre of everything.

Secondly, after seeing that non-Christians were so willing to join FCS despite their indifference to Christianity, we were left with questions about why many of the ministries we serve in do not have environments that are welcoming to non-Christians. Have we lost touch with the world and what they think? Have we gotten so used to taking the moral high ground that non-Christians feel disgusted with our hypocrisy and boycott our activities? Are our various fellowships just meant to be Christian safe houses? What does it mean to be in the world but not of the world? These are just some of the questions that are a poignant reminder that we cannot stop re-examining and reflecting. As we return to our various churches, small groups, bible study classes etc., it may be apt to once again question the true purpose of its existence. With the Word of God as our foundation, we must continually wrestle with the issues that challenge the faith so that we may be able to face them and hold the banner of Christ high.

There is a higher throne

Than all this world has known,

Where faithful ones from ev'ry tongue

Will one day come.

Before the Son we'll stand,

Made faultless through the Lamb;

Believing hearts find promised grace—

Salvation comes.

Hear heaven's voices sing;

Their thund'rous anthem rings

Through em'rald courts and sapphire skies.

Their praises rise.

All glory, wisdom, pow'r,

Strength, thanks, and honor are

To God our King, who reigns on high

Forevermore.

And there we'll find our home,

Our life before the throne;

We'll honor Him in perfect song

Where we belong.

He'll wipe each tear-stained eye

As thirst and hunger die.

The Lamb becomes our Shepherd King;

We'll reign with Him.