Humans are hard. That’s not a typo or a grammatical error, by the way. Being human is hard, being around humans is also hard, relating to humans is hard. This is true everywhere. But when faith and discipleship come into this equation, many times it means humans are harder. There’s just more at stake when…

Which is more important: the self, the immediate community, or the wider community? I suspect when it comes down to it, all of us would have the self as our primary motivation. Each of us is the centre of our own universes, and the immediate and wider communities are only important insofar as they impact…

           Discipleship is often expressed in two very contrasting ways – as a burden that is difficult to carry and costs us everything (Luke 9:57-62), and as a joy that makes work light (Ps 100:1-2, Matt 11:28-30). It’s often hard for us to hold these two in balance with each other. Equally often we emphasise…

Last Sunday I preached in Gereja Kristus Yesus Journey on Nehemiah 9:1-38. And if you look at Nehemiah 9, much of it recounts what God has done in the world as well as in Israel’s history, with the conclusion that God truly is faithful beyond human reasonableness, so Israel re-commits herself to God as His…

In conversation with some long-time friends over dinner recently, I noticed one word which kept popping up – “feedback”. This was a word that kept occurring whenever they were talking about things which they didn’t like or didn’t go their way, and so they wanted to give “feedback” to the relevant authorities. Thinking about it,…

“I don’t feel that I’m being fed spiritually.”  I’ve heard this several times from friends on why they are changing church. Maybe they don’t understand the preaching or the teaching in church doesn’t address their real needs and struggles. Maybe the music or the preaching, though spiritually nourishing, is not to their taste and style.…

One of the images that has stayed with me in these past 3 years (nearly) of ministry in church is that of mountain climbing. Serving God through working in church has always reminded me of climbing up a steep, rocky mountain. And you know what? I’ve tried mountain climbing, albeit only on Kota Kinabalu, and…

A common description of Singaporeans is that we are a very pragmatic and task-oriented people, concerned more about outcomes than about reasons. After all, all the good intentions in the world will not feed you. And what does it matter why your boss wants something done? You’re not being paid to understand but to do!…

In John 13:34-35, Jesus tells his disciples “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” What does loving one another look like? Perhaps an immediate answer is what…

Hospitality is one of the things that we find most challenging as a society. It’s somehow really ingrained in us to leave others alone unless they ask to be approached. And in church, that means that we are content to sit in the same area as the same people for many years without ever knowing…