NavNews Apr 2022 by The Navigators Singapore

Issue 01 2022

What’s Inside Leading out of the Scriptures Starting a Workplace Ministry Listening to God

MCI (P) 052/06/2021

From the

National Director

e have entered a season where The Navigators Singapore (SingNav) is focusing on a shared vision that provides a meaningful context that would help shape our strategic directions for the next 8 years. To move towards the actual fulfilment of our Vision 2030 — A New Wave of Disciple Makers for Singapore, Asia and Beyond, we will organise SingNav into 3 focal areas and faith directions:

1. 2. 3.

Foundational Student Ministries: Enlarge the Student Discipling Ministries Lifelong Community Ministries: Enlarge the City Discipling Network Global Missions in Asia and Beyond: Enlarge the Missionaries Pipeline

These 3 interconnected themes closely align with our unique strengths, regional directions and national priorities, positioning us well for the future while enlarging our faith in new ways. To realise these faith visions and directions, we will invest in 3 enablers that have great importance to our organisational capability: 1. 2. 3.

Develop Disciple-Making Leaders Develop Digital Resources Develop Donors Ministry

To do these efficaciously, we need to cultivate a Passionate, Pioneering and Partnering culture that aligns with our strategic directions. We need God, we need prayers, and we need you — to enlarge your faith from where you are. Will you take the first leap of faith? For the Gospel Advancement,

Viloane Ko National Director 3

by See Guan & Claire, School Teachers, Labourers in NTU Ministry

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fter the recent APEL (Asia Pacific Emerging Leaders) workshop session by Glen Morris (from Asia Pacific Navigators Leadership Team) on ‘Leading out of the Scriptures’, we (See Guan and Claire) came away with some lessons: Claire “I have learnt that both heart and knowledge are important in relating to Scripture. The Greek words Graphe and Logos are both used to describe Scripture – Graphe refers to the physical words of the Scripture, whereas Logos implies the living power of God; it is relational, and is neither static nor fixed. To experience both Graphe and Logos — the factual and relational aspects of the Word, I have to be intentional in listening with my heart to God’s Word and studying His Word diligently.

”

Graphe refers to the physical words of the Scripture, whereas Logos implies the living power of God; it is relational, and is neither static nor fixed. To experience both Graphe and Logos — the factual and relational aspects of the Word, I have to be intentional in listening with my heart to God’s Word and studying His Word diligently. - Claire

Paul’s letters in Thessalonians, Colossians and Galatians have been most helpful for me when we were faced with physical separation from those we were discipling due to the Covid-19 restrictions. Through studying the Scriptures, we were challenged to learn what the Bible had to say about connecting with one another in times of separation and what it means for us. Paul spent time in prayer and thanksgiving for those he was discipling, and grew in heart for the needs of his people, writing to them to share his concerns and prayers. I was refreshed and excited by how God had used and will use times of separation to grow His people in prayer and reliance on Him. While I had been worried about the changes the pandemic brought, it gave me much joy and confidence to know that God’s transforming work in our lives and that of others is being completed in ways I have never imagined.”

See Guan “What Glen Morris shared impressed me as he said that ‘it is through reading the Scripture (Graphe) that we hear God speaking His Word (Logos) to us’. I was looking forward to having ‘cafe’ (Logos) experiences with God — meeting with God and knowing Him in a relational manner. As I looked for journeys mentioned in the Bible to learn from, one journey that stood out to me was the Israelites’ exile to Babylon for 70 years. During their time of waiting, God’s instruction to them was to continue to build and increase. They were not to worry about their unusual circumstances but to be faithful and trust God.

God also promised that He was working out His good plans in His people’s lives and had plans to prosper them. It occurred to me that I should not give excuses not to do ministry work in this time of change, but to be faithful amidst the pandemic and various measurements in place. Thus, I continued to meet guys under my care both in-person and online, and I am grateful to witness their growth and faithfulness as they planned and organised activities within the current limitations to reach out to others proactively.”

See Guan & Claire “We see that Scripture helps to lead and guide us in our everyday lives. As we grow in relating to it in fellowship with others and with our hearts and minds, empowered by the Holy Spirit, we pray that its work in our own lives will bless those in the campus ministry whom we share the Word with.””

”

While encouraging others to love Christ by obeying Him, God is doing the same work in my life to be a pacesetting discipler who loves Him through obedience to Him — to be in it myself! - Jonathan

Developing Labourers in Character & Skills by Jonathan Kwa, Healthcare Professional, Labourer in NYP Ministry

abourers are crucial to advancing the Gospel into the nations. We must develop them in character and skills to be effective in the harvest. Character and skills are best shaped when a person is young, life upon life in the context of a community. Jonathan Kwa, one of our labourers from the NYP Ministry, recently attended the Asia Pacific Campus Forum (APCF) organised by the Asia Pacific Navigators. Here is his sharing from what he has learnt: “One lesson that impacted me is the message by the former National Director of the Malaysia Navigators, Mr Tai Yuk Kiem, on ‘Developing Labourers in Character and Skills’. In his teaching on ways we can intentionally develop character and skills in a person, he quoted Paul’s word in Philippians 3:12— “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me”, and he exhorted us to:

Him to develop others, I am also reminded that God uses these same principles to develop Christ-like character in me for His purposes. One area of development is to love Jesus by obeying Him wholeheartedly. There was a period of time when some of the guys I was leading and discipling sought the Lord for different matters, and whenever I shared the Word to them about making decisions to love Jesus, I felt God using the same scriptures to remind me to do the same. A personal example in my life was obeying Christ to continue working at the hospital. I was seeking the Lord regarding my career decision because my employment bond with the hospital had already ended. During the process, I saw how my heart leaned towards choosing to leave because of the stressful nature of the job, both physically and mentally, and staying on means that I will be placed in the COVID-19 team. God personally led me with Jeremiah 42:6,10 to stay:

“Whether it is favourable or unfavourable, we “Be in it yourself — This is what it means to will obey the Lord our God, to whom we are lead with the integrity of heart and skillful sending you, so that it will go well with us, for hands! Doing so will gain the trust of the we will obey the Lord our God.” (v6); “If you stay people we are helping. Your own experience in this land, I will build you up and not tear you and lessons learned will be a great resource down; I will plant you and not uproot you, for I in helping others. Be a pacesetting coach! am grieved over the disaster I have inflicted on Paul is an example of that, and he also exalted you.” (v10). Timothy to do the same.” While encouraging others to love Christ by It is a good reminder that as much as God obeying Him, God is doing the same work is the primary developer of people, He is in my life to be a pacesetting discipler who also the primary developer of my life. As I loves Him through obedience to Him — to be understand my part in working together with in it myself!”

Starting a Workplace Ministry

by Bernard Ho Ruixin , Labourer in the Marketplace Ministry

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ouldn’t it be wonderful if a few of us could come together for fellowship over lunch?” I shared this idea with a Christian colleague at the pantry over a cup of coffee. To my surprise, the response was, “Okay! Let’s do it over lunch this week!” In my head I was thinking to myself, “What?! Okay! Praise the Lord!”, and that was how the first group of my workplace ministry was formed in the year 2016. Working from 8 to 5 and having a family with 3 young kids on top of many commitments (not all mine), I knew that my plate was full. I struggled to set aside more time to serve in ministry and to help others know Jesus. Knowing that most of my waking hours are spent at work, it came to a point when I started to search for answers for the motivation and purpose of my work and how it relates to advancing the Kingdom of God.

One day, God spoke to me through Matthew 5:14-16:

Bernard with his wife, Ding Ling and their 3 kids — Darius, Rae-Ann, Rose-Ann (left to right)

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

These verses are not new to many and yet for the first time, they spoke directly to me about how the ‘house’ is my workplace, and ‘everyone’ refers to my colleagues whom I interact regularly with at the workplace. Not just anyone can come into this ‘house’ unless they have access, and I am privileged to be placed there by God to build relationships and minister to the people at my workplace. Lastly, the verses reminded me that to be a ‘light’ placed on a stand means that I need to be open and intentional in exercising my faith so that my colleagues can see it. This was the game changer, the starting point where the Lord began leading me to form a ministry at my workplace. God has placed us in our workplace for a purpose — to bring God’s love and the gospel to the people there, and at the same time, to be the ‘light’ so that people can see God through us. Lessons Learnt It is a challenge to be a ‘light’ at the workplace and start a workplace ministry. There were fears and worries about how my colleagues would feel, whether I would get into trouble, if it will affect my career, and many more questions such as those Moses had when he had his encounter with God at the burning bush. Remembering Matthew 6:33 which promised that God will take care of my basic needs, I was assured that I do not need to worry about not being able to bring the ‘rice bowl’ home if I do what God wants me to do. As I placed Jesus before me, both my mind and heart felt comforted with courage.

To do ministry at the workplace does not mean placing work as second priority. On the contrary, it is important to continue to excel at our work and develop good relationships with our colleagues. Let our actions speak first! People see the quality of our life and the work we produce. Doing our work well speaks volumes about our character. While Colossians 3:23-24 calls us to do our work with a spirit of excellence, it is not just about completing the tasks but also the way we behave and respond when carrying out our work. People appreciate kindness, compassion and goodness (Ephesians 4:32 and 1 Peter 3:8) and these are important qualities to have when cultivating good relationships with people at our workplace, to gain a listening ear and to start a real conversation. Some Tips As mentioned earlier in this article, the opportunity arose through a casual conversation with a colleague whom I had a good relationship with. I heard the Holy Spirit prompting me to ask him for fellowship over lunch. It turned out that our first Fellowship at the workplace — Bernard (far right) fellowship took place with his colleagues not just with one, but three colleagues. We had a quick lunch and adjourned to another place for a session of thanksgiving, sharing and prayer. Most of us will (if we haven’t already) spend more than half of our lives at the workplace, with some of us staying within the same organisation for a few years. A recent survey that I carried out with the Navigators’ 20s-30s Ministry showed that more than half of the respondents have been in the same organisation for at least 4 years. With that much time spent with believers and non-believers at the workplace, there are many opportunities to build relationships and advance the Kingdom of God. Therefore, the workplace will be where real transformation takes place with the day-to-day application of our faith at work, impacting others for God’s glory.”

Here is a ‘menu’ with some ideas to try if you are interested to start a workplace ministry:

Permanency: Developing Community & Team by Nicholas Cheng, Research Fellow, Labourer in NUS Ministry

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t the third session of the Asia Pacific Campus Forum, I learnt about the importance of expectant faith and prayer as well as the sovereignty of God in raising up people to labour in the campus ministry. Firstly, in the message, Simon Cayzer (National Director of New Zealand Navigators) shared with us from God’s Word what we can learn about a sustainable ministry from Paul’s letter to the Philippians. One of the key factors is heart and affection in prayer: “In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy… God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 1:4,8)

He asked us to consider, “What is the place of prayer in your own life and your team members’ life?” During the Q&A session, I had the privilege of asking Simon for some prayer pointers he may suggest in raising up a sustainable ministry. To summarise his answer, it is simply to pray, pray and pray. I am challenged to consider how much I am trusting God to see disciples and labourers being raised up who will bring the gospel of Jesus to the uttermost ends of the earth. I thank God for the privilege of having close teamwork with a team of disciplemakers over the past few years. I wrestle in prayer for them, that each may be captivated by Jesus’ heart to give their all in passing on what they have learnt to raise up the next generation of disciples and labourers for God’s kingdom. Practically, I intend to have regular prayer sessions with them to pray over the vision, calling and values of The Navigators with expectant faith that God will enable each one to be captivated by His heart for the world.

Secondly, in the Bible study on the book of Daniel, we learnt about how God established a community of Kingdom labourers in a pagan land. We first studied the circumstances that brought Daniel and his three friends together. Despite the Israelites going into exile, the king of Babylon was still interested in bringing Israelites with the following qualities together into his service: “Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, chief of his court officials, to bring in some of the Israelites from the royal family and the nobility — young men without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king’s palace. He was to teach them the language and literature of the Babylonians.” (Daniel 1:3-4) We learnt that God’s sovereignty was over the circumstances to allow Daniel and his three friends to make a significant impact on God’s Kingdom. One of the follow-up questions in the Bible study that made me ponder a lot was: ‘Do you believe that your presence in your campus ministry right now is part of God’s sovereignty over your life journey? In what ways?’ This question prompted me to reflect on my life journey. How did I begin my journey in my campus ministry? Why is it that I am involved in my campus ministry today? As I reflect upon the many circumstances on how I started joining my campus ministry, I thank God that in His sovereignty, He has placed in my life spiritual mentors who taught me the Word of God and how to practically obey Him. He has used His faithful labourers to pray for me earnestly and rebuke me along the way that my life may be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. In God’s sovereignty, I see that He will continue to use people to raise up the next generation of labourers for the campus ministry. Practically, I can trust that God will continually raise up people who will labour hard for His Kingdom. I thank God that because of His mighty power and unfailing plans, I can have a part in this royal mission of raising up people for God’s Kingdom, just as my spiritual mentors have done for me.”

“I thank God that in His sovereignty, He has placed in my life spiritual mentors who taught me the Word of God and how to practically obey Him. He has used His faithful labourers to pray for me earnestly and rebuke me along the way that my life may be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ.” -Nicholas

Listening to God by Margaret Ng, Navstaff

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argaret, the NET (National Executive Team) would like you to be in charge of the upcoming Staff Prayer Day in January.” My first reaction when I heard these words from Lee Yin (representing the NET) was that of fear, anxiety and consternation. However, after much prayer and reflection, I decided to do it as it was yet another opportunity and privilege for me to serve the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Hence, despite my own reservation and limitations, I decided to step out in faith, trusting Him for His enablement and empowerment. After listening attentively to God’s voice on the matter, a few dear colleagues and I decided on the theme ‘Listening to God’, where we would come before the Lord for a time of stillness to listen to His voice.

Kim Tok launched the Prayer Day with a short testimony of his own journey of listening to God. He declared the authority of God over all other voices so that we could be still before Him and discern His voice amidst the hustle and bustle of life. He prayed that we would surrender all our faculties and submit ourselves to the Lord Jesus. The first prayer session entitled ‘The King and I’ entailed spending time alone with God and seeking Him to reveal to us about our relationship with Him. Participants were divided into groups of five with a leader allocated to each group to facilitate the sessions. Mobile devices were also put away to avoid distractions before we proceeded to spend time to listen to God individually. After about an hour, we gathered back into our groups to share and pray for one another. It was a time of sharing, revelation and thanksgiving. We continued our second prayer session after lunch. This time, participants were to remain in their respective groups to discern God’s purpose for the Singapore Navigators with regards to the organisation’s cohesiveness.

Hence, this session was entitled ‘The King and His Kingdom’. Part of the session involved discerning how each individual could contribute to and collaborate in the ministry towards building up His Kingdom here in Singapore and into the nations. After sharing what God had revealed collectively to the group, participants prayed together, upholding what had been discerned and empowering one another for the purposes of God. Indeed, it had been a fruitful, fun and fulfilling time listening to God. One staff shared, “I had a blessed and renewed day with the Lord and with one another. I felt ministered by the worship songs and the listening prayer guide of the two Bible passages — Ephesians 4:1-16 and Isaiah 54:1-3. Some of the reflection questions were very helpful.” He concluded by saying that “Unity is the heartbeat of God. It is in exercising our different gifts given from Him together that we are able to enlarge our tents, so that God can be glorified.” Another had this to add, “I enjoyed the time listening to God too… I particularly appreciated Kim Tok’s frank sharing as well.”

Kim Tok, our former National Director (19901998), shared his journey of listening to God.

Personally, God ministered to me in His special way. When interacting with Him during our individual time, I had a chat with God about what He had to say about our relationship. This was the thought that He put in my mind: “I am your Supplier.” This word ‘supplier’ did not occur to me before in any of my interactions with Him. I paused, and asked Him to elaborate, and I waited. Then a whole list of how God had provided for me in times past (and in particular these past two months) rolled out before my mind. As I recalled these memories, I realised that indeed, God had never failed to provide for all my needs these past years.

Even during the preparation of this Staff Prayer Day — from the content, the people who had helped, the sharing, the programme execution, the operation of the PA and IT systems, the choices of worship songs, the drafting of the script and the editing of Powerpoint slides, it was God who had held it altogether to make it happen. When I ponder about His grace and mercy upon my life, the list could go on and on. I learnt that it is really all about Him, and Him allowing me to be a part of what He is doing in our midst. Praise and honour be to God!”

Here is the summarized ‘Listening to God’ guidelines for your reference. This was taken from Rusty Rustendbach’s Listening to God Forum Post # 46 – Listening to God Guidelines and Exercise.

by Kiam Siong, Navstaff

What has the Lord spoken to you personally at the Staff Prayer Day?

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hile I was on the way to the prayer retreat, the phrase that came to my mind was ‘burning bush’.

I spent some time meditating on Exodus 3 and 4 — Moses’ encounter with God through the burning bush. Exodus 3 and 4 are about God calling Moses to deliver Israel from the Egyptians. But as I was meditating at this prayer retreat, I saw that God was directing my focus to Moses’ relationship with God. The opening chapter in Exodus 3 pictured Moses as a man who succumbed to his circumstances. He had been attending to his sheep, and for forty years he lived in a desert with his father-in-law. However, after encountering God in Exodus 3, Moses began his adventure back to Egypt (in Exodus 4:20). I thought it was an adventure not just to deliver Israel , but God also had in mind to cultivate an intimate relationship between Moses and Himself. At the beginning, Moses seemed very distanced from God. He was surprised that God approached him. He was not sure who He was and what His name was. But in Deut 34:10, it was recorded that “no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face”. We can see that Moses stepped out in faith and took on the challenge to trust God. Many see him as a great leader, but to God, it was an adventure of developing an intimate relationship with Him.

Learning Points

1. Assignment Clarified We must be bold enough to ask God what He wants us to do in our life. God made known His assignment to Moses (Exodus 3: 7-10 ) and I learnt that the first thing to do when God gives us an assignment is:

a. Understand the heart of God in the assignment. God was compassionate over the cry of the Israelites being oppressed by the Egyptians. Anyone who desires to serve God must have the same compassion as Him for people. The ability to see the desperate sinful state of humanity and be filled with the compassion of God is the pre-requisite.

b. God’s assignment has to become my assignment. “So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” (Exodus 3:10). We often define our own assignment when serving God. This is fine if I want to serve God on my own terms, but if I want an intimate relationship with God, this adventure must begin with this attitude in mind: God’s assignment is my assignment.

2. Attitude Checked In these two chapters, I saw Moses ‘declining’ the assignment 5 times. Some may take it that Moses is making excuses, but I saw it as an ‘attitude check’ for a real adventurer. For any adventure, some associative words include ‘risk’, ‘exciting’, ‘unknown’, ‘fear’ and ‘rocking the boat’. There will be a certain level of uncertainty. I read it as Moses being humble, as he could have been boastful and see it as an opportunity to reinstate his rights which he lost 40 years ago (when he fled Egypt). An adventurer into an intimate relationship with God must know his personal limitations with respect to the assignment of God. God assured Moses in Exodus 3: 14, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” The assignment given by God will be accomplished by God through Moses. It can be scary to ask God what His assignment is for me but each of us can have the calm assurance that God will accomplish what He has entrusted to us and all we need is to have the right attitude: Faith.

3. Adventure Commenced in Faith Moses trusted God and commenced his adventure with faith, but the challenges he was about to face was only just the beginning. I learnt that putting our faith in God while embarking on an adventure does not mean the absence of challenges; it does not mean that everything in life will be smooth sailing. I saw that Moses struggled many times and had to keep coming back to cry out to God in the process of carrying out the assignment. “But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him.” (Exodus 3:19). As we commence our adventure with faithfulness to the assignment God has given us, we also need to anticipate God’s intervention with His mighty hand. Oftentimes, the assignment that God gives us is far greater than ourselves. Faith throughout the whole journey is necessary. Faith makes the journey an adventure that is beyond me, filled with anticipation of God at work at each step of the assignment. The journey of an intimate relationship with God is an adventure. What adventure is God calling you to in 2022 and what is your response?”

Fundraising: A Beautiful Activity? by Royston Koh, Navstaff

“And then I learned that the Levites hadn’t been given their regular food allotments. So the Levites and singers who led the services of worship had all left and gone back to their farms. I called the officials on the carpet, ‘Why has The Temple of God been abandoned?’ I got everyone back again and put them back on their jobs so that all Judah was again bringing in the tithe of grain, wine, and oil to the storerooms.” — Nehemiah 13:10 -12 (Message)

earning that the Levites had forsaken their roles in the temple and were working on their farms, Nehemiah was furious that the worship of Yahweh had deteriorated. Why weren’t the Levites working in the temple?

Royston Koh (left) and Indonesian Navstaff Pak Teguh (right)

They weren’t paid for their work in the temple because of shortage of funds. But Nehemiah confronted the leaders to re-establish that “all Judah was again bringing in the tithe .…”

Indonesian Navstaff Pak Teguh, with whom I zoom monthly, is helping his fellow Navigator staff in fundraising. The goal of fundraising coaching is to help empower each staff to receive full support to meet personal, family and ministry needs. Pak Teguh remarked, “Sharing vision and opportunity to give is a ministry as it allows the giver an avenue to worship God. And their collaboration will increase the Kingdom.”

Many missionaries staff struggle with asking for support. My role as a coach is to direct them to the Bible and help them overcome obstacles. I enjoy seeing the smile on their faces when they discover through Bible study that asking is not begging. Biblical fundraising is the noble task of inviting friends to partner with you in the ministry of extending God’s kingdom. This new perspective frees and emboldens mission workers. Fundraising then becomes a joyful activity because it is advancing the gospel. After the study, a staff concluded: “God can provide everything for His work by Himself. But he wants others to be involved. The benefit is for both givers and receivers. As receivers, we need to build deep relationships with our giving partners.” This quote brings out a fundamental error. Many believers think that “full-timers” (the clergy) do the work of God, and givers (the laity) are simply supporters. However, biblically we see that it takes both givers and receivers working in partnership to effect His work. Yes, we need Levites—“full-timers.” And Yes, we need “all Judah” as well. Both work together to see that the worship of God is in place. Givers shortchange themselves if they view their giving as anything less than building the work of God.

“Fundraising is a very rich and beautiful activity. It is a confident, joyful and hope-filled expression of ministry. In ministering to each other, each from the riches that he or she possesses, we work together for the full coming of God’s kingdom.” — Henri Nouwen

A beautiful thing Similarly, the Apostle Paul describes generous giving as “a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.” (Philippians 4:18b) Wow! Imagine you and me bringing a smile to the face of our Heavenly Father. Isn’t that motivational enough to give? Whatever brings a smile to the face of God must certainly be a beautiful thing.

www.navigators.org.sg @SingaporeNavigators @navigators.sg The Navigators Singapore, 117 Lor K, Telok Kurau, Singapore 425758 Tel: (65) 6344 4133 Email: admin@navigators.org.sg The calling of The Navigators is to advance the gospel of Jesus and His Kingdom into the nations through spiritual generations of labourers living and discipling among the lost. Views expressed in published articles are those of the individual writers and may not necessarily be the views of The Navigators Singapore. All Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version® Copyright © 1984, unless otherwise stated.