~May Your Light Shine :D~

Monday, September 29, 2008

If you have been following this blog for a while now, you might be aware of my struggle about whether to stay in my current church in Singapore or find a new one. This has been tugging at my heart ever since I first came to Adelaide - so it has been almost 3 years.

Due to various circumstances, I find it hard to call the church I had been attending the past 6years or so, my home church. Don't get me wrong, the kids there are nice and the aunties and uncles there have been so supportive to my whole family. Unfortunately, I have not been able to make much of a connection there. And then I came here, and I found a church which is poles apart from the church back home. Although I have not really connected with the people there either, I feel like I am a part of the church simply because it holds dear the same values that I do. Perhaps you may think that I have just found a church that said what I liked to hear. And in some ways yes. Call me a weirdo if you want, but I love it that my pastors continually emphasize that it is about THE CHURCH and not edge church, aren't afraid to rebuke their members for being calculative, or to admit that there is trouble in their own personal lives or to challenge us to love people unconditionally, even those that society would much rather ignore like drug addicts. I love seeing lives in the community being changed and impacted by the church, because we weren't afraid to be there for them.

Ok, I digress. Back to my original point - the weekend that just passed has helped me make up my mind. After coming here, I wondered why God led my family to that church and why we stayed there for so long. Then I wondered why God brought me to a church that was so different here. At first I thought that God wanted me to bring back what I learnt here. Then I thought that I should come under the covering of the church and not bring my ministry there. In other words, I should go to a church where I agree with the church. But after Kairos and yesterday's sermon, I realized what I should do.

Christian leadership is God-focused, people -centered and is about change and transformation. Leadership isn't just for people who are in the pastoral team or in committees. All of us are leaders, called to lead people to Christ. I reconsidered why I wanted to go back to my church in Singapore. It wasn't because I wanted fame or glory. I am fully aware of the amount of opposition I will face. How seemingly impossible the task is. But because I know it is God's will that His people become one in Christ. I have also come to a realization that church shouldn't be just about fellowship, it should also be ownership and that I should not just choose the option that feels better. Ownership also means not just living in maintenance mode (i.e. status quo) but continuously moving forward; not isolating ourselves from the world but insulating ourselves with God's grace so that we can help people in need without stumbling ourselves. I saw that if I simply chose to move to a church that I was comfortable in, it would be a more selfish option and Im not sure how that will change anything back home. I am also convinced, that if that is God's will for me to have a role in His plan, then no matter how hard the circumstances may be, it will still happen. By the way, His plan will be carried out whether or not I live in obedience, but should I choose to disobey, Im gonna miss out, which I don't wish to.

Lydea blogged at 12:06 PM

May your light shine...
in the darkness...