Hearing from Pastor J

This is the Year of God’s Possibilities. It is a proclamation to focus our people in faith attitudes in the one true almighty God. God’s people have resources supernaturally. These are accessed through our faith. Faith for the kingdom of heaven upon earth means faith for God’s goodness for our families, finance, friendships and fun.

Religion binds people up in ritualistic ways. Do not mistake holiness and sanctification with legalism. I am not saying we become so liberal that we become unrestrained in our morals and standards. I am saying that God is not a kill-joy God. Amidst faith for our families, finance and friendship, enjoying life is quite in order. I am saying this from a background where believers were not allowed to watch movies in cinemas or go bowling. Of course home movies, DVDs and computer games in Wii changed all that.

Over the years I noticed a change in the concept of fun and fellowship. People like me who used to be serious and melancholic have to learn rest, relaxation and having some fun.

Fun and your Stance

I learned from a mentor that there are three stances by which one may relate with others: as a brother, as a faithful worker or as a soldier.

As a brother the emphasis is on relationship. Brotherhood is enhanced by friendship. Brotherly affection focuses legitimately on fun. But it may be hard to focus on bearing fruit. To confront lack of fruitfulness is out of character with brotherly affection.

As a faithful worker he is diligent and committed but may be rigid. Fun may not be strong in his equation on work ethic. Absorbed in the work there is no time for fun and games. Stress is not unusual in these dear workers in the Lord’s harvest field. You can hardly do without these.

As a courageous soldier he handles opposition, fights for the cause and does not shrink back. He can take a lot of beating and get a share of bleeding but he may lose joy and fun in the process.

How is FUN a factor of faith for God’s possibilities?

Fun is a vent for a high pressured lifestyle. There is a time for it.

“A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” (Pro 17:22)

“… atime to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance” (Ecc 3:4)

Fun ways

Fun is not an anti-thesis to Godliness. Good humour is hard to come by but when present it is heartily welcomed by all. But at least we can learn to laugh more at ourselves and not take ourselves too seriously. This could be the first step to fun and joy.

I have noticed that a heart is more disposed to fun and laughter when one has learnt to be free from anxiety. Worry is deadly. Let us not borrow from tomorrow’s troubles. The Amplified Bible says in Matthew 6:34: “Do not get worked up by what may or may not happen tomorrow”. Give your attention to what is happening right now. When you are asleep, God works on your behalf (Mark 4: 26-29).

Asians are good at celebrations and festivals. These are good for fun in the midst of stress. Friends we invite for cell festivities respond well. Have a fun-filled and merry Christmas this year!

Ice-breakers are a bit of work but it always pays off, creating fun and laughter when transiting people from stress to cell meetings.

Laughing along with you,

Jeremiah Yap

Group Senior Pastor
New Life Churches

Friendship in the Kingdom of God

Friends are our social network ever since time began. There are business friends, school friends, “makan” friends, “drinking kaki” friends, true friends and kingdom friends. Year of God’s Possibilities have concerns for the friendship factor to enhance possibilities of life’s progress and results.

Connect

I want to introduce “kingdom friends”. Kingdom friendships show the kingdom while enjoying social relationships. Jesus called his disciples friends. In John 15, Jesus spoke of letting them know of his Father’s business. He did it with transparency. He also did the extreme, he laid down his life. That was beyond anybody’s idea of going the second mile. Yes, his death was not only for his friends but for all who will believe. That is true. His focus on the Father’s business and desire for friends that serve God are traits we can learn from Him. His transparency and impartation had an end – connecting his disciples to God’s purpose and people.

Comfort

When I think of true friendship I think of comfort. This is what the Holy Spirit is as our true companion. He is the comforter. A sounding board and hearing friends out in their trouble or crisis are marks of true friendship. There is a risk however, that some may take what was shared with them in transparency to affirm your weakness and use that against you. That is how some friendships fall apart. Innocence, honesty and transparency in vulnerable sharing may face a day of shaking. That is perhaps why some people are very guarded in friendships. Some have chosen just to be superficial. Vulnerable as it is, faithful friendship is meant to be a source of comfort.

Commitment

I have many friends in my life. The thing that makes me still think of them even though time and space have separated us is the quality of commitment. There is loyalty proven by their giving and pouring out one’s life to another. Commitment bears out the quality of generosity. True friends give of themselves in thoughtfulness. Giving in terms of time and substance is a reward of your own giving and thoughtfulness for others. True friendship is never a one-way street.

Confront

One Pastor who considers me his friend came and shared with me his inner struggles. I listened to him and prayed with him. Many years later he came and told me of his victory and release since then. When he told me that I could hardly remember what he was talking about until he was specific. In recent years I had written to him and spoke of my appreciation of his life and ministry in the Lord. All I could think of him is how great a man he has been and had totally forgotten his moments of weakness. It occurred to me that I had helped him confront an area of his struggle without judgment. I had prayed sincerely with him. Some people are “professional confronters”. They usually say that they do it in love. They want to see you change but may not pray through with you. Let us do better than that.

Friendships help our Future

Godly relationships and friendships that are true shape our future in the Lord. As we are God’s people, friendships are under-girded by our fellowship and service in the Lord. In Him we overcome shortcomings in any friendship. There are vertical and horizontal aspects to positive and ongoing friendship: God above and man on the side. When two agree and walk together, we are not alone; the possibilities in God increase.

“Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil.” (Ecclesiastes 4:9)

“For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!” (Ecclesiastes 4:10)

Jeremiah Yap

Group Senior Pastor, New Life Churches

Part of the Year of God’s Possibilities is in the area of successful friendships. Friendship facilitates relationships for training people under you, for marriage, for working among peers, for networking in business or as a team for project work in schools.

In the Bible, God called Moses friend. God also called Abraham friend. Jesus called his disciples friends

“Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses turned again into the camp, his assistant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.” (Exodus 33:11)

“and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness’–and he was called a friend of God.” (James 2:23)

“No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.” (John 15:15)

Jesus and Paul showed us different types of friendships:

• Friends that delight you
• Friends that are dedicated to you
• Friends that disappoint you
• Friends that desert you

Friends that delight you

Jesus seemed to find fellowship in the house of Lazarus. It could be his place of rest, enjoyment and solace. There he was away from the tests and traps of the Pharisees.

Friends that delight do not drain your emotional tank but add to it. Some friends drain you emotionally. Others are fun to be around. Some make you proud of them like Paul and Timothy.

Friends that are dedicated to you

These are loyal friends. Those dedicated to Christ were the future of Christ’s purpose. Mary who anointed Jesus’ feet with oil was dedicated. Her name was to be part of the Gospel to be preached in the world to come. Some friendships make bad history but others contain your future. The disciples dedicated to Jesus saw a friendship that positioned them for success in future ministry.

With Jesus as their friend, the disciples were released into their potential. God released Abraham and Moses to their potential.

Friends that disappoint you

Judas was such a friend in Christ’s company. Peter sometimes was also a disappointment. But Peter was dedicated and was given to remorse and repentance. He became Christ’s instrument to start the early church. Judas’ end, however, was tragic.

Friends that desert you

In the last hours of Christ, he was deserted by his disciples. At the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus wanted the disciples to pray with him for an hour but they went to sleep. Jesus was very much alone on the Cross. Peter denied Christ three times. Paul also experienced being deserted.

“Do your best to come to me soon.

For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.
Luke alone is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is very useful to me for ministry.
Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus.
When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments.
Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.
Beware of him yourself, for he strongly opposed our message.
At my first defense no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me. May it not be charged against them!
But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth.
The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.” (2 Timothy 4:9 – 18)

It is likely that we experienced friendship in each of these categories. Despite desertion, Paul’s heart was focused on safely arriving at God’s heavenly kingdom. People may not be perfect friends to us and we are not perfect friends to others. Successful friendship understands these four types of friendship. We can handle disappointment and desertion with right focus as below:

• Forgiveness must prevail for our good and that of others
• Faithfulness of God’s presence is our strength and God’s rescue is sure to the very end
• Favour of friends that care enough to take the second mile is to be cherished when you find them.

Friends do open up God’s possibilities for the kingdom of God. Over the years I have done that many times over, releasing people and giving them the blessing and privilege of serving God. I have laid hands and imparted to them all that I have so that they may prosper in their ministry and life. If you do this even when you do not enjoy the best all the time (and you will not) God will honour you.  In your disappointment God will send friends to bless you.  Most of all, God himself will be your truest friend and will strengthen you and rescue you, in the words of the Apostle Paul.

Love in Christ,

Jeremiah Yap
Group Senior Pastor

Ordination of Ps Ron to take on our PJ English Church was an event. For the ensuing 3 years it was helping different ones adjust to change in leadership. Unsuspecting it, adjustments also crept in on me with increasing realities of the transition.

Process

I remember when my Pastor (Richard Holland) retired and handed over to Kevin Conner who subsequently handed over to Mark they shared about their passing on the baton. I must admit that it was too far removed for me to grasp then. In recent years Ps Bernie Hartog retired and passed his baton to his successor. He mentioned to me his sense of grief in the process. This time it got closer home. Having invested my life into PJ (E) church for over 25 years, there are ties that I could not pretend that never existed. The people: their highs and lows, their pains, loss of loved ones or life’s crises and celebrations in child births, weddings, souls saved, are all life-oriented. Being a Pastor is never just a job. Relationships and emotions are real.

Hopefully this process equips me to be a better mentor to our outreach pastors in our New Life churches for the future when their turn comes. Someone said, once a pioneer always a pioneer. You tread through grounds before others for those behind you; just like parenting and grand-parenting. Even if children growing up may think that they do not need parents at some stage, the truth is, up to quite a few more years in their lives, they still look to their parents.

Promotion

In comforting me, Ps Lawrence said my situation should be viewed as a promotion as there are still things to do in overseeing the Group of churches. This promotion flows down first in the PJ (English) church with Ps Ron as its Pastor now. Others down the line move up and move around, even till today. Unlike my senior Pastor friends, they retired in old age. I am not there yet. So it is apt for me to empower our Pastors for successful service ahead of them.

Promotion with platform and progress

A government spells out the platform on which they rule the nation with ideals, vision, structures, policies and resources. For promotion to be meaningful platform and progress are part of the equation. Clarity of platform and process move us forward with better machinery and spiritual armoury. Further thoughts are in the making for our New Life Group Structure for a successful future. My headship over the Group will be helped by other Pastors.

Progress in ministry is meaningful only with empowerment of God’s grace. We serve a heavenly government. Ours is a spiritual service. Increased anointing with insight of God’s thoughts and ways are important. This is my focus in personal development. I hope it’s yours too. We are kingdom believers.

Progress is meaningful when platform includes the quality of right relationship at various levels. There is safety in this against the wiles of the evil one.

Mentoring and Books

My brother reminded me that success is not automatic. Mentors have been important to him. Mentoring is vital to us all. How true is that! Books are a great resource in this matter. Human mentors are not always easily accessible. If there are people willing to mentor us it is a blessing. A few pointers:

• There are no perfect mentors: learn their strengths and struggles
• There are longer term mentors and short term ones (seasonal)
• Mentors can be nearby or distant (authors)
• Mentors are experienced and gifted: fruit of ministry rather than a title

Pastor J

It is my desire to impart to our New Life Churches the many years of experience and lessons I learnt. Apart from visiting our churches and minister whenever possible, I have decided to write a column called “Hearing from Pastor J”. This is my first of a series of principles I learnt in my life. I hope it is helpful to some.

A few years ago my family and I were subjected to change due to long standing needs in our home. Now I have turned 55. The world system says ‘more changes’. However recent economic crises changed the retirement age. This shows that retirement is just a man-made mechanism in the world system. Singapore, Malaysia and Australia increased the age for retirement by 2 to 3 years. My take: we have to decide for ourselves and not fall prey to a mentality in transitions in life that lands us in unnecessary turmoil. Age may or may not be the best gauge for the need for transition. Not only the older face transitions, the young too. Young and old may lose their strength and change helps to bring refreshing.

“Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in (wait upon) the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles” (Isaiah 40:30)

Realistically speaking, we do reach certain optimum levels where we find ourselves dissatisfied with the status quo. What was fulfilling before does not seem to be satisfying now.

It happens when you reach a certain stage of your life – in career, in between jobs or business ventures or in relationships. These moments happen at teenage, middle age or at retiring age. Transition can be a crisis time for some. Confusion may set in. They grope for understanding. Tragically, some make wrong choices and venture into unhealthy activities. Age is not the only factor in good decision making. Bible says wisdom is principal.

Is there anything wrong with experiencing the emotions that come with transition in life? The obvious answer is ‘no’.

The Lord is leading even in times of life’s transitions. God is working destiny and testimony in your life. This is a time of further self-discovery. It may even be a time of new ventures and creativity. Faith is a factor here. Trusting the Lord to bring you into your next level is a significant attitude. Staying in negative emotions like frustration with things or people does not help. Switching channels in thought patterns and subsequently change how we feel about things or people is important. In my recent few years amidst changing circumstances, one could be tempted to feel at a loss but thankfully a few things helped me and have kept me not only going but now I can say, largely fulfilled.

Serve God – He leads with revelation and refreshing

The knowledge that I am a life totally given to serve the Lord (faithfully and passionately for long years) helped me trust Him in times of transition. His revelation on the Kingdom of God has given me further understanding of God’s purpose, the future of the church and ministry. That refreshed my faith, my spirit and my soul. God’s open doors for ministry affirm the relevance of this Biblical illumination for the Body of Christ. At the same time others with similar revelation of God’s kingdom surfaced. It gave me confidence that I am leading God’s people accurately into His truths, empowering them in a valid faith based on God’s Word. Repeated invitations year after year have been coming in and filled up my calendar. I am very grateful that I can serve God in such grace. Such is the goodness of God. This is mercy.

Sharpening your Gift is His way of focusing you

I landed in situations that allowed the use of the prophetic gift to flow. That has been amazing to me – most times very nervous at first but very grateful after the ministry event, having encouraged many. A Pastor reckons it is a clear gift that God has endowed. One said not only sharp but detailed were the prophetic words. The truth is how would I know when I am prophesying? I merely open my mouth and the Lord filled it. I am glad that I do not ‘know’ what I am talking about. Glory goes to the Lord! I rejoice.

Seeing my family grow too quickly – family is priority

While I am full-on each time when serving the Lord no matter where, the tug and desire for the family has been real. I noticed when I am too long away from them I go emotionally bonkers. It must be driven home that after God our family is the most important thing. I am very grateful to my wife for her dedication to our marriage and our family. My family is blessed to have her.

Seeing God’s provision – it made a huge difference

In the midst of change God’s practical provision is a daunting concern but when it comes through sovereign means it has been a great stabilizing factor. I am grateful for the love of quiet ones that cared and showed it practically and graciously. Each time I quietly prayed with thanksgiving, “Lord, please bless them. Only you can do it well enough for each of these dear ones.”

Set in sweetness and away from bitterness

Having been in the church world for many years, I have seen believers end in bitterness and misgiving. Few as they may be, I hope, we certainly hope not to be numbered among them. Many can be the reasons for people to feel disappointed with God or with man. But being grateful for what God has given us is an art. Sweetness comes from a fulfilled life, a satisfied soul.

What satisfy?

Enjoy serving God. Enjoy the gifts God has given us. Enjoy God. Keep feeling useful to God no matter what and bless others.
These I learnt about moving in life’s transitions.

Jeremiah Yap