Heaven was truly rejoicing at City Harvest Church’s recent water baptism services, held on February 28 and March 1. The sun blazed over the roof garden and rooftop pool of the church at Jurong West Street 91, as 227 candidates decked in white were water-baptized — making a powerful and symbolic gesture of dying to their old ways, and becoming a new creation in Christ.

The services began with rousing praise and worship by those to be baptized and their supporters. The candidates were then led through a declaration of their faith, which they proclaimed with sincerity of heart.

Finally, the baptism pastor stepped into the pool and one by one, the new Christians entered the pool. Loud cheers and applause filled the air as supporters witnessed their family and friends being immersed into the water, and emerging again as a victorious man!

This important rite of passage in every Christian’s life is one worthy of great celebration — and celebrate these new Christians did.

As the freshly-baptized exited the pool, they made their way to a circle of proud cell group members for the next step of the City Harvest water baptism tradition. The candidates held lit candles and jars of salt, some even swallowing a huge dash of it, signifying that they are now the salt and light of the earth. They were presented with an apple, which symbolized their position as the apple of God’s eye. Then they were challenged to eat their apple in record time!

Radiant smiles and laughter marked a new beginning and inconceivable hope for these new Christians. Stephanie Liu, 14, cried jubilantly, “I feel so relieved and refreshed…a huge burden in my heart has left me!”

Sherry Ong said, her face glowing, “I believe this day is the first step towards my family’s salvation!”

It was also a star-studded baptism ceremony. Among the new Christians were former singer-songwriter Allan Moo, the brother of Eric Moo (巫启贤), Miss Singapore International 2006 Genecia Luo, and actress Foyce Le Xuan. It appears God is doing a tremendous work in the entertainment industry!

PHOTOS: Daniel Poh, Jason Lee & Irene Sunaryo Lie

The act of changing this world and redeeming it for God happens one person at a time, one family at a time, through the various sectors of the marketplace. Every new creation is now rid of past sins and defeat, and shines like a light in the darkness of this world.

To all those newly baptized, congratulations from the City News team!

Following the immense success of his 40-minute gig during Singfest last year, Jason Mraz returned to Singapore in fine form for a spectacular, sold-out concert on 5 March at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

All 6,000 tickets were sold out within a week, a testament to his popularity here in Singapore. Concert-goer, Sarah Ling was one of the die-hard fans who managed to get her hands on a pair of tickets. “I waited at my computer from 9 am in the morning the day the tickets went on sale just to get the seats.”

From the moment Mr. A-Z opened the show with the “Dynamo of Volition”, he sent the crowd into a frenzy with his smooth delivery and fancy footwork. Clad in his trademark hat and casual get-up, he was his usual quirky, yet geekishly-cool self. Ever the showman, he had the crowd eating out of his hands as belted out hits like “I’m Yours”, “Remedy” and “Geek in the Pink”.

During the night, he performed a solid set of songs mostly taken off his latest album, We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things, which managed to showcase his impeccable, soaring vocals and his uncanny ability to freestyle through the breakneck-paced lyrics. There was a good mix of songs, ranging from the operatic tunes of “Mr. Curiosity” to the gospel-inspired “Live High”. At one point, his three brass-instrument players appeared on the balcony of the Indoor Stadium to provide a surround-sound experience, as it were.

It was anything but an ordinary concert. True to his reputation of a phenomenal live performer, fans were especially thrilled as he worked the crowd with his poetic wordplay and witty one-liners. Towards the end of his set, he introduced his band and proceeded to take a Polaroid of each one, flinging them into the crowd as memorabilia.

This performance at the Indoor Stadium was a rare deviation from his usual fare of playing to cosy crowds of less than 1,000. Admittedly, it did not capture the intimate feel of his 2006 concert at the Esplanade theater, but it was nevertheless a brilliant performance by an artist who is a rare commodity in the world of music.

Paul Rudd and the notoriously funny and hormonally-charged Sean William Scott are the tag-team role model duo Danny and Wheeler. They are the traveling salesmen of Minotaur, an energy drink that bears a striking resemblance to Red Bull.

The movie starts on a high note with our duo making their rounds, going to various high schools to promote Minotaur. Wheeler is the half-bull half-man Minotaur mascot, jumping around in the background like a fool, as his partner Danny delivers a blurb about how kids should drink Minotaur instead of taking drugs. They are your true blue American role models, yes?

Wheeler just loves the suit and gets a kick being in it all day. Danny hates life and people in general, and reaches his near-breaking point when his girlfriend breaks up with him, because of his attitude towards her and life.

Things come to a head for this dastardly duo when Danny and Wheeler try to drive their Minotaur truck out of a tow truck to escape being towed and end up assaulting a police officer.

They land up in court and the judgment passed is that they spend 150 hours each serving at a Big Brother/mentor facility or going to jail for a month. Of course, they choose the former and now, here come the Role Models.

The rest of the movie spent illustrating every parent’s biggest nightmare: immoral mentors for their little sons. Wheeler is consistently educating his kid on the physical attributes of the opposite sex while Danny is forced to accompany his kid on strange fantasy excursions (this is probably the most original and unpredictable part of the film).

But of course in the end, all the shenanigans gives way to friendship, love, acceptance of others and oneself. Sounds like a Disney ending, but be not fooled: this movie is anything but it. It carries an NC-16 rating here in Singapore, but most parents would probably give it an M-18 rating, thanks to the barrage of crude humour, nudity and language.

Christopher Mintz-Plasse, from the movie Superbad plays one of the little brothers. One cannot help but think back to the toilet humor and depraved characters of Superbad as one watches Role Models. If you’re looking for a very, very light-hearted trashy comedy, that might make you laugh, then you might not mind killing a couple of hours with Role Models.

Rating:

Information contributed by Janelle Tan

One imperative for a fast growing church is counseling. February 20 and 21, a total of 150 counselors for the counseling ministry of City Harvest Church, gathered together at The Riverwalk at Clarke Quay in the first of a three-part training series known as the “Inner Healing and Counseling Clinic”. The aim is to train up effective counselors who can provide pastoral and practical guidance to those in the church who need help.

a fundamental in developing effective counseling skills is to understand and acknowledge different personality types and styles of communication. This understanding set the foundation for the counseling clinic.

Kevin and Joy Dyson, founders of New Covenant International University & Theological Seminary (USA), conducted the training sessions with the use of the DISC Personality Profiling Test. Widely used in various fields of study and especially in counseling, the DISC is an accurate and reliable tool for discovering one’s behavioral strengths and pitfalls.

The acronym DISC stands for four categories of personality types: Dominance (D), Influence (I), Steadiness (S) and Conscientiousness (C). Individuals highlighted characteristics that most accurately describe themselves. This was done through identifying personality-related words such as “Authoritative” and “Meticulous”. Accuracy is established by the fact that this test is taken in a “blind” fashion, where individuals are oblivious to the fact that each selected word counts as a point towards one of the four letters, D, I, S and C.

For example, someone with a high “D” score takes initiative in seeking ways to resolve his problems, whereas a low “I” score would mean a poor self-esteem and a lack in motivation to complete tasks.

Gaining insight into one’s personality type can help in establishing good and lasting relationships. A clear understanding of different preferences and styles of communication can help minimizes interpersonal conflicts. This can also help one to develop strategies to deal with the diverse needs of different people. DISC has been proven to significantly promote mutual understanding between individuals and reduce unnecessary stress in relationships.

PHOTOS: Lee Boon Bee

Amongst the flurry of personal anecdotes and humorous examples, Dyson reiterated a simple yet essential point. reading from Psalms 133:1-3 in the Bible, she said, “God made us different. God made us valuable. Differences that are accepted and appreciated bring unity, and unity draws down the blessings of God in our lives.”

Attendee Wendy Woo said, “I found the clinic extremely useful and practical. It has helped us to understand why some people act in a certain way and how we can relate to them. We were also taught how to manage our expectations of others and be responsible for our own actions towards them.”

In conclusion, God did not make a mistake by making us unique individuals, nor was it an error to put together people with differences. Each of us is fearfully and wonderfully made. God means for us to be joined together in Christ, in a way that we might grow and build ourselves up in love, hope and faith.

As we begin to better understand ourselves, our desire mode of communication and our differences, we also become open to adapting each others’ styles for optimal and effective communication. As we provide others with the environment for their gift to freely operate, relationships are strengthened and the body of Christ is blessed.

The place where differences in personalities are celebrated and harnessed, is the place where God’s power is manifested.

City Harvest Tamil Church (CHTC) held its Family Day on January 25. The security ministry of CHTC was tasked with planning the event and wasted no time roping in the help of other ministry heads to helm different sections of the event.

On the night before the event, at 1am, a team of seven set up tents and marked out boundaries at Pasir Ris Park. By 9am on the day of the event, three bus loads of 120 people, aged 2 months to 75 years, alighted at their destination with much chatter and enthusiasm. Another 40 people came in mini buses, cars and public transport.

The skies were heavy with rainclouds, but that didn’t deter these prayer warriors. At 9.30am, the group started praise and worship and sharing of the Word of God. Simultaneously, the logistics team set up tents for the kitchen and children’s areas. CHTC children’s church workers came prepared with exciting activities for the group of 40 children.

At 10.30am, the adults formed into four teams with each team creating their own cheer. There was fierce but healthy competition. The onlookers around the CHTC camp site came and cheered the teams on. One Indian family passing by even joined in the games and competitions.

The kitchen team had cooked and prepared nasi lemak for lunch, and served the elderly and children first, before everyone else tucked in.

Some took advantage of the two-hour lunch break to catch a nap while others went for a swim or played volleyball. At 2.30pm, all gathered for the main event: the Tug of War. The campers were divided into two teams.  Each team strategized their game plan and picked up their end of the rope.

PHOTOS: Gideon Hari

For a few minutes the rope did not move left or right. Finally the rope edged slowly towards the left. The rope finally crossed the line and there was a great shout of jubilation. True to good sportsmanship, the teams congratulated one another and went for a well deserved tea break of fried noodles with tea/Milo.

The program continued with a time of group activities. All the hustle and bustle ceased as teams sat down for a quiz on general knowledge. Many were surprised to know that the original name of the tomato was “love apple.”

The eagerly-awaited barbeque started at 5.30pm. The families had prepared barbequed items of chicken wings, sausages, otah and corn. At 8pm prize presentation took place with prizes awarded for the best-dressed individuals, the best team and the best family. In addition, each child and adult was given a present and a keychain. The Family Day ended with a thanksgiving prayer.

Following this success, CHTC is planning for their next lot of events, which will include a couples outing, prayer summit and youth camp.

CHCSA marked its first ever stakeholder’s night on 22 Feb 2009 with a big bang with an impressive showcase of its distinctive community services among youths, the elderly, multiple sclerosis patients, the hearing impaired and the intellectually-disadvantaged among many others while showing sincere appreciation to its volunteers and stakeholders.

This celebration, held at the Meritus Mandarin Hotel, was graced by Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports, who was the guest-of-honor for the evening.

The lifts that brought the guests to the ballroom opened to a bustling exhibition where CHCSA staff were on hand to answer questions at the information booth. One of the most prominent displays was the showcase of the “Special” musical, a project which involved the intellectually disadvantaged children coming together to showcase their talents next to their counterparts from mainstream schools for the purpose of social integration. Such out-of-the-box, creative and highly distinct projects that set CHCSA apart became very evident as the evening continued.

As the sumptuous multi-course chinese dinner was served, the audience was wowed by performances put up by Fusion Quartet, a four member band serving up jazz pieces with a modern twist, and a song item by the children from the “Special” musical.

However, one of the highlights of the evening was a performance by Mr. Andrew Tan, a beneficiary who is now living a new lease of life because of the hard work by volunteers from “Mighty Men in the Making” or M3, CHCSA’s outreach to inmates. Retelling his story about how the volunteers “never gave up on him” although he was not open to receiving help even though he had been in and out of corrective institutions all his life, their patience and belief in him melted his heart and inspired him to change.

An extremely talented individual, he sang a song about his changed life that he had penned himself, ending to a standing ovation by the audience. Reflecting on his journey, he constantly exhorted CHCSA to keep on doing its great work of helping people and his desire to use his own experience to help other inmates.

Before the evening was over, tokens of appreciation were given to the guest-of-honor and stakeholders who have been supporting CHCSA over the years. Awards were also presented to the most outstanding volunteers who have unselfishly given the best of their time and effort to be a blessing to the beneficiaries, to the warm appreciative applause from the crowd. The event ended on a high-note as sincere congratulations from all who were present to CHCSA and its staff capped a terrific evening.

Mr. Daniel Lee, a volunteer present at the event had this to say, “I think the event is a real success not only because it is an important milestone for CHCSA, but also because it celebrates the spirit of service within our society.

PHOTOS: Desmond Tan

Many times, we can get so busy. But sometimes all we need to do is to take a step back to put things back into perspective. Events like these will remind us that at the end of the day, it’s really all about the person next to us.” Spoken like a true volunteer, indeed.

Well done, CHCSA!

Special occasions ought not to be missed. The adults from ET zone know that very well, so during this Valentine’s week, they took the opportunity to make their loved ones feel extra special. Seven adult cell groups from the zone came together to host a valentine’s night at The Riverwalk.

Couples were in the mood for love and they affectionately called each other by names like ‘darling‘, ‘dear dear‘, ‘sweetie‘ and ‘honey‘ during the opening games. Three married couples from the winning teams were then called up to the stage for a romantic dinner that came with a twist.

PHOTOS: Kelvin Lim

Serving the spiritual entrée that lovely evening was zone supervisor Edmund Tay, who shared about building intimacy in relationships through quality time and a right attitude. Newly weds Edmund Tan and Tan Ming Hui, both cell group leaders, shared their moving love story and how they were richly blessed in starting their life together as husband and wife.

The men in the zone took turns to proclaim their love for their wives through affirming words, poems, video clips, presents and flowers. “It was so sweet that it made all the singles envious”, commented Wong Jing Jing of N149.

All the ladies, including the singles were presented with beautiful long-stemmed red roses by the men. Sng Wei Liang of N430 remarked that there was a “lovey dovey atmosphere” in that place. Newcomer John Chirayath found the gathering truly inspiring, and it definitely helped him understand what showing affection is all about.

It had been a night to remember, a night to celebrate love in different forms — one that is shared not only between spouses, but also among friends, families and most of all God.

PHOTOS: Tina Ho

Zone Secretary Claire Yeo explained the purpose behind the meetings.

“Tan wanted to equip the members to be more effective in their penetration into the marketplace, living out the message of the cultural mandate and in so doing, winning souls into the Kingdom.” In essence, the purpose of Marketplace Explosion was to inspire the members in CK Zone to explode in evangelism in their campuses and workplaces.

During the meeting, Tan preached about the story of the four men and the paralytic and challenged the members to be like the four men who broke through four barriers to achieve their desired breakthrough — the paralytic’s healing. He also stirred the members and challenged them to think big and not to be restrained in their dreams and visions. The key to the four men’s success was the desperation they had in them. More than dreams, diligence and desire, it was the desperation the four men had in them that propelled them towards their breakthrough.

Indeed, we can only wait with bated breath to see what breakthrough God has in store for the 1,200-strong CK Zone as they cry out in desperation for a Marketplace Explosion.

Stepping into the Jurong West Auditorium at 7pm on Friday night, you would have been forgiven if you thought it was a school. The 2,000 seater hall was jam-packed with Secondary School, Junior Colleges and Tertiary students clad in their myraid of colorful uniforms all ready for the Pre-Emerge meeting.

The meeting kicked off with a round of ice-breaker, and a time of praise and worship. After which, Annabel Soh, Lead Vocalist of the City Harvest Church Band shared her inspiring testimony: she was fifteen when she first started serving God as a Cell Group Leader, went to City Harvest’s School Of Theology at the age of nineteen and was promoted to serve God as a Zone Supervisor two years later. It was indeed a testimony that encouraged many. Sophia Goh, 20, a Business Applications student at Republic Polytechnic student said “I was encouraged as I heard Annabel’s testimony as her passion for her ministry is something I can learn from.”

The congregation was treated to a spectacular performance as the church’s Cheerleading Ministry performed a cheer item complete with stunts. After that, a relatable drama about the life of a struggling teenager was acted out by the drama team.

One of CHC’s pastors, Wu Yuzhuang came up to challenge the youths with his preaching. He taught about the disciples, and how Christians can be disciples only if they become fishes of men by winning souls to Christ. He shared that the students could do that by starting prayer groups in their schools, prayer walks, engaging into the lives of their friends and through sharing of their own testimonies.

PHOTOS:Gay Sen Min

However, the brunt of the message came when Wu shared the significance of keeping our bodies pure for the Lord. He urged the youths that while they were supposed to be relevant and contemporary, they had to keep the values of the Bible, and were not to defile themselves even though it is portrayed as the norm in society. After sharing, Wu gave an altar call that brought down the love of God that touched many.

It was a time of recharging for many of the youths, many whom are looking forward to Emerge 2009!

Wang Ming Quan, or Liza Wang, celebrated her 40th year in showbiz with a concert that brought back memories for her many fans.

The Max Pavilion was jammed packed with loyal fans, all excited to be part of a significant milestone in Wang Ming Quan’s career. Tonight’s show was an exclusive concert, organized by UnUsual Entertainment, commemorating her 40 years in the Hong Kong entertainment scene.

Wang Ming Quan, fondly known as the “Queen of TVB”, Hong Kong’s premier television network, has established herself as a Cantonese and Mandarin pop artiste, television host, actress and seasoned Cantonese opera singer. Beyond her legendary status as an all-rounded entertainer, less well-known is the fact that she is a philanthropist. Beyond screen and stage, she has been active in social work in villages in China and has also founded a home for the less fortunate.

Before the show, there was already an atmosphere of anticipation as fans queued at the entrance of the hall. Many in the audience had been following Wang Ming Quan throughout her showbiz career, and were now recalling her plethora of roles in various drama serials over the years.

“I first knew about Wang Ming Quan watching her on the TV screen in various drama serials in my childhood. My interest grew through my appreciation of her talent as a music artiste. Today, I am here with my mum and her friend — our common interest in the same artiste and love for cantopop music draws us closer as a family,” said Cynthia Tan, 40, who is also an ardent fan of Cantonese opera.

The diva stepped on stage decked in a purple, glittering French cabaret outfit with sequin trimmings that showed off a very slender figure. At 62, Wang Ming Quan continues to maintain her youthful beauty and vocal stamina belting out soothing ballads and timeless favorites.

PHOTOS: Michael Chan

She emanated significant stage presence, never losing a beat as she danced, posed and belted out hits like 万水千山總是情, 京华春梦, 热咖啡 and 自由女神 on stage.

Although mainly a Cantonese singer, she showcased her multi-linguistic talent by singing both in English and Mandarin. A highlight of the concert was the medley of familiar tunes like ‘One Way Ticket’ by Boney M, and ‘我要你的爱’, a credible Chinese cover version of an English song titled “I Want To Be Your Baby” by Georgia Gibbs.

Grooving to the beat of 我要你的爱, Wang delivered the original English lyrics in the chorus effortlessly at rap-like tempo.

Commonly known in the HK entertainment circle as “Big Sister”, she turned on her “big sister” charm by getting the crowd clapping and singing along the whole night.

It was a night of nostalgia for fans. Like they say, it ain’t over till the Fab Lady sings.