Bill Wilson is more than just a visionary with a big heart for children; he has literally impacted thousands around the world with his message and lifestyle. Read this inspiring interview of one man who truly makes a difference.

Contributed By Glynisia Yeo

CN PHOTO: Michael Chan.

Whenever you are back in New York, you still drive the Sunday School bus every week. What is it about driving the kids to church that you love so much?

It’s important for me not to forget where I came from. I was that kid who was sitting in that corner, that nobody wanted.

For me, because I’m on television so much, I write books, I teach in university, I do leadership conferences all over the world and that’s great! But it’s real easy … like a lot of guest speakers, to forget where they came from. Suddenly they become too important, and the very thing that brings them success in the first place, is now the thing they no longer do. That’s very common for preachers. The thing that brought them this level of acclaim … now they feel like they’re too good to do the thing that brought them there.

So it’s very important for me to stay connected with people. That’s why I stayed in the garbage dump for a couple of days when I was in the Philippines, with our kids that go to the Sunday School at the dump there. I think it’s very important for me to still live in the ghetto—I still live there, in Brooklyn. These are very important things that keep me grounded, to keep me rooted; they keep me connected.

That’s why every Christmas Eve, I go back to the corner where my mother left me waiting for three days. I sit there all night in the same place and I start to remember what it was like when nobody wanted me, when I was completely abandoned, when I had nobody, until the Christian man stopped [to pick me up]. I’ve done this for years now because I don’t want to forget where I came from.

So it’s a time of reflection to where I was, and the feelings and the emotion and all of that. And yet a time of thankfulness that even though nobody wanted me, the one man whose own son was dying of leukemia, in his own need and out of his own struggles and problems, he still chose to stop.

Those are the things that I think keep people connected. And when you don’t allow yourself to go back to those places, even if it’s in your mind, you end up in this mindset that says, “Well, OK, I did this.” Or “I got myself here.” Or “This is great now!” I think its human nature to have to work at not thinking this way [because] I think like that at times. But it is more important to always remember where we come from.

In your travels all over the world, you have seen different countries, churches and communities. Is there any one place in particular that has impacted you personally, and why?

That’s a tough one, because all these countries have their own unique culture and side to them. For instance, when I come to Singapore, I think I have enjoyed the people here very much, the hospitality. I think their generosity, their heart toward missions… so I see that side of the Singaporean culture that I don’t always see in other parts of Asia. Yet at the same time when I go to the Philippines, it’s such a huge need.

When I went there—it’s been 10 years ago that I started the Sunday School there—I spent 24 hours walking the streets of Manila, I never went to bed. I walked around and we found this little girl, dead, laying face down in one of the garbage dumps. I saw her ponytail sticking out of the garbage. I stopped, moved the garbage … One of the other preachers who was with me, he threw up. The other one stepped back. I moved forward, moved the garbage. She was laying face down in the garbage. I rolled her over and her face was covered with ants and the ants had eaten the eyeballs out of her head.

That was the catalyst for me starting Metro Sunday School in the Philippines. So you go from Singapore to the Philippines, two totally different contrasting cultures and yet it takes [the Christians in Singapore] to empower men like me to go to places like the Philippines and that’s what I call the power of partnership, where I’m crazy enough to go do what I do.

I’ll be going to the refugee camp next month [October] on the Kenya-Somalia border, where kids are dying by the thousands. I don’t know what I’m walking into there. I’m going to have to wear a bulletproof vest. I’ve done that before [because] I understand violence—shot in the head, thrown off the building, ribs broken, jaw broken. That’s part of the lifestyle that I live. But each one of these cultures is dramatically different.

For instance, up in the north of India, we’ll be starting Metro Sunday School in Delhi next year. And yet up in the north, there’s a part where people … It’s very common when people bury the dead, their funeral consists of them putting the body on a wooden raft, put it into the Ganges River and letting it float down the river. So we ran into some groups of cannibals. What they do: They wait down river for the dead people to float by; they pull them out to a religious ritual. Then they cut them up and eat them. We actually have the video of this guy taking an arm, cutting the arm off and eating it like a chicken leg.

So again, you have this part of the world that is so contrasting. You’ve got from Taiwan, different culture, Hong Kong, different culture, Malaysia, different culture, Australia, different culture, India, different culture, Philippines, different culture. I speak at the largest churches in Japan. We have had tremendous support from churches in Japan. But again it’s a different culture.

But I think when all of us realize that as the Bible tells us, not all of us are an eye. Not all of us are the ears, not all of us are the nose. We all have different parts to play and I think that’s a challenge to so many of the countries in Asia that have the ability to help some of these other countries, that have children that are in such tremendous need, that are having such a struggle, that if we can communicate to the nations that have, that have been blessed, that they have been blessed so that they can be a blessing. And if we can somehow challenge some of these churches…

And that’s why I think why I’m getting invited back now more and more to Asia, because people see what Metro is doing around the world and they’re saying, “Look, we want to partner with you.” They may not be able to go to the garbage dump; they may not be able to go up where the cannibals are. But I do. This is what I do. And I think so many of these folks here in Asia want to partner with a ministry that has a 43-year track record.

I’ve been in the ministry for 43 years; I’ve been in New York for 30. Metro is the largest Sunday School now in the world. We have 50,000 kids a week that we work with. So I think people want to connect with ministries of integrity, a ministry of great vision, and to be able to see beyond the little proverbial bubble or the little world that so many Christians build for themselves, because they want to go past success to significance.

Over here in this culture, if you have money and a job, a good education, that’s success. Just because you’re successful doesn’t mean you’re significant. And I think this is what we need to communicate to the Christian community. It’s not about being a success; it’s about being significant. To the whole world you may just be one person. But to one person, you may be the whole world.

That’s really the byline of Metro Ministries. It’s connecting through our child sponsorship program. It’s called Won By One, where one person, for instance in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, can take a child in Africa or India or Philippines and say, “I may not be able to change a nation, may not be able to change a city …” but just be like the man who picked me up. He had to borrow US$17.50—he didn’t even have it—he had to borrow it, which was what it cost to send me to Christian camp that summer in 1961. He invested a little bit in my life, but with great return. I was a pretty good investment of US$17.50.

And so it is, that these people can sponsor a child, can speak into the life of a child, can make it possible for a child to hear the gospel like that man did for me. It’s a S$30 a month commitment. And this is a great … it’s letting people be challenged to say, “OK, I’ve been blessed. I have a great education. I have a place to live. I’m blessed to live in a part of the world like Singapore, or HK.”

But people have to see past the vision. From Isaiah 6, how do you get that kind of vision, where Isaiah 6 v8 says, “Here am I Lord, send me.” It’s a process and if people want it, it’s not reserved for just a few hotshot preachers or for a few folks. It’s a process that if every believer wants to step into that vision that really changes things, that changes people, it’s possible.

In your ministry with children, can you share with us one story about your most memorable encounter with a child, and how he/she left a deep impression on you?

I would think it would have to be these children [in general] that became the catalyst for us starting Sunday School.

For instance, this 5-year-old girl that we found dead in the garbage dump in the Philippines. It was a defining moment for me. Personally. Not just as a pastor, but as a man. When you look at that, and how the ants have eaten the eyes out of her head, it puts you in a position where you have to put up or shut up. It’s nice to talk a good game. A lot of preachers talk a good game. They love crowds but they hate people. They love the microphone, they love the crowd but you get them one on one, they’re lost as a goose in a snowstorm.

To me, those are defining moments. For instance, this cannibal situation up in India, these are defining moments for me.

In NYC for instance, the one girl now that works on my team—there’s three of us that do my bus route in Brooklyn—so when I’m not there, like for this week, they just do it. She started riding my bus when she was 6 years old. Now she’s in Bible school. She comes back on the weekends, works on the bus route, that’s a connection that will be a lifetime connection; that will be a lifetime friendship with her. And when you find kids like this, whether its New York or situations in the Philippines or India, these are things that we all have to be open to.

One of the things I’ve always said is that, big doors open on really small hinges. It means as believers, we’re all waiting for the call of God, the proverbial audible Voice, burning bush… To me, I’m glad when that man picked me up off the street, he didn’t have to pray about it. He didn’t have to put it in a Hillsong tape to get in the mood; he didn’t have to pick up Joyce Meyer’s book and read about it to figure out what to do.

The need was the call. I might have said that to a few, people now say it all over the world. I’ve been saying this for 30 years and people quote that probably more often than anything else I’ve said, because if you see the need and you can fill that today, that’s the call of God for you today. That’s the key. And so it’s the little things that God puts in front of us almost everyday that if you’re faithful in those, then the big door [will open].

Who would have thought that when I started doing this when I was 19 years old—driving a van, picking up kids when I was a teenager, but that my faithfulness there created what became the fastest-growing Sunday School in the state of Florida back in the 1960s. Because of that, it opened the door for me to work with Tommy Barnett, which became the fastest-growing church America back in the 1970s.

Because of that, my faithfulness there, I was able to go to New York in 1980 and I had credibility. I already had a track record. I had credibility and so people wanted to get behind the New York project. But see, it started out with the small things. That’s why the Bible speaks clearly, to be faithful in the smaller things.

But a lot of Christians are waiting for the huge opportunity, the big break, the audible Voice. And then 40 years old comes pretty quick. Once you get past 40, your life starts picking up speed.

Life is like a song. When a musician writes a song, anybody watching doesn’t know what kind of song it’s going to be. You put one note on the sheet, you don’t know what it is—is it blues, is it jazz, is it gospel, is it rock—you don’t know. Then you add another note. And as you add the notes to the song, that song begins to take shape.

That’s like life. Life is like a series of notes on a music sheet but every decision becomes the note. The decisions you make in life are the notes. So as you make decisions, what you are doing [is that] you are putting together a song of your life. Most young people aren’t smart enough to know that. They make a series of hodgepodge decisions, this that, this that …

For instance the most important decision you make, or the second you make, is who you marry. The first is what you do with Jesus. The second is, who you marry, because who you marry, especially if you’re going into ministry, will greatly determine how far and to what extent you go in fulltime ministry.

And so you look at these notes, these decisions in life, and then one day, usually it happens early 40s, mid-40s, and then you have these series of decisions that you have made, that you can’t go back and re-write. So now your song has been written. Your song has been written and now you get to live with the song that you wrote. That’s how it works.

And most young people don’t get it because they make hodgepodge decisions here and there … and you’re putting these decisions as notes. That’s why when you get into your 40s and 50s, you don’t really have a song; you have just a bunch of noise that has no flow to it. There’s no flow, there’s no direction; it’s just notes on a page, decisions that you make. And now the decisions you made in your 20s and 30s will now hold you hostage in your 40s, 50s and onward because you made decisions when you’re young that determine the rest of your life.

That’s why its so critical in your 20s and 30s… you’re writing your song. What kind of song do you want? Pick your notes carefully. And that’s good advice for everyone.

You have faced many near-death situations in the course of your ministry. Was there any one instance where you felt that you were not going to make it? How did that experience change you and your approach to life and ministry?

I think when I got shot in the face; I think that was another defining moment. He (the mugger) had the gun in my mouth, these two guys, it was a robbery, and he was choking me. He had a gun, which was a 38 revolver. The other guy was punching me, in front of me, the other guy was behind me choking me, had the gun jammed in my mouth.

I don’t know how much you know about guns—this is Singapore you probably don’t, not many guns here. There are certain guns that would jam, but the kind of gun he had was the revolver, they do not jam; they do not misfire. That’s why people carry them. They shoot every time.

He pulled the trigger, it didn’t go off. If people know anything about guns, a 38-caliber revolver does not misfire; it just doesn’t. It’s a very reliable piece.

I knew they were going to kill me. I heard the hammer of the gun click. I thought, “He’s gonna kill me…” So I went down and fought. I went down to try to break lose. So I went down and the gun went down. He squeezed the trigger again—that one went off. It blew off the whole side of my face here.

So now, apparently from the explosion in my mouth, it must have knocked me out for a second. So I got up … I was on my hands and knees … I saw them running away, and the blood was just pumping out of the side of my face.

I got up. I walked back to the van, the church van. I drove myself to the hospital. I got on my cell phone … If you call an ambulance, you’ll die. It’s New York City. So I knew I had to get myself to the hospital.

So I called my office, said, “I’m going to Woodhull Hospital. It’s going to take me 15 minutes. Call the cops. Call the hospital. I’m coming in.” And I’m driving the van like this, and the blood—it’s splattering against the glass of the van and I’m watching it pile up on the floor.

So I’m watching myself bleed to death. 15 minutes to the hospital—you can think about a lot of things in 15 minutes. Your mind runs about a lot of things. “Is this it? Am I gonna make it?” I don’t know …

I’ve been through … I’ve had hepatitis, tuberculosis, dengue fever, thrown off a building, ribs broken, jaw broken, I’ve been in three airplane crashes, and now, is this it? Is this it? It’s a long 15 minutes, a long 15 minutes.

And I prayed, and I remembered what I prayed. I said, “God, if I get through this, I will do more, with what’s left of my life, than I’ve ever done up to this point.” That was a defining moment. And that’s why I have nothing put away for retirement. I have no money put away for retirement. Why? Because I’m not going to retire! This is it until I die.

That was a moment in time that I can look back at, and you can feel sorry for yourself—I’ve had three operations, you can just see a place I’ve had plastic surgery [on the left part of my face]. I have no feeling on this side of my face. So I’ve had three operations, lost 50 percent of the hearing in this ear, but I’m alive and I’m talking with you.

So guess what? India. Africa. The refugee camp. Are you afraid? No. Not if you’ve been through what I’ve been through …

See that’s when faith is tested. See, real faith is tested. When they were cutting the hole through the roof to bring the paralytic down to Jesus, do you remember what Jesus said when He looked up? “And when He saw their faith …”

If you are people of great faith, it’s obvious, it can be seen. So when somebody, when a Christian says, “I have great faith,” and you can’t see it, they’re lying. They’re lying, because if you have faith, people will know. People can see it. Don’t talk about your faith unless I can see it.

If you had 10 minutes with God today, what would you talk to Him about?

If I had 10 minutes? Wow…

I will never ask Him “Why?”. I wouldn’t … because I’ve learned in life that you can only see to the corner, but you’ll never be able to see around the corner. People always ask why. You will never see around the corner but if you see the One who can see around that corner, that’s all you need to see!

You will never see around the corner, you can only see to the corner. But if you can see the One who sees around the corner, if you see Him, that’s all you need to see.

See for me, one of the great things that I’m asked on television and I’m asked on interviews like this, is: “How have you been able to endure?” It’s about endurance. It’s about endurance.

In America, a thousand preachers quit every month. A thousand close up their Bible and walk away. That’s not senior pastors but that’s licensed, ordained ministers.

I’ve been in the ministry 43 years, been through horrendous pain, shootings, broke my hip last year, broke in half—I got a titanium rod from here to here—it’s one thing after another. It’s endurance.

People ask me, “How have you been able to stay in the ministry when people have lied to you, when people have lied about you, when people have stolen money from you, when people have walked away from you?”

I’ve never been disillusioned with people. Why? Because I was never “illusioned” [in the first place]. If you don’t get “illusioned,” you can never get disillusioned. People are what they are. People come and go.

But here’s the thing that you need to understand and your readers need to understand: My commitment is stronger than my emotions. You understand that?

You see, with most Christians, it’s all about emotions. “How do I feel?” “Oh, if it doesn’t feel right anymore, then the Lord must be leading me to other things … that thing the Lord is leading me to another ministry.” Because the reason why I’m sitting here with you, doing this? You know why? Because I didn’t give up! Otherwise you and I wouldn’t even be here today, correct? Well it makes sense.

See, my commitment is stronger than my emotions. It’s never been how I feel. It’s my commitment to Him, my commitment to a generation that over shadows, that outlasts and will outlive any emotion. Have I wanted to quit? Of course! There’s no sin in wanting to quit. The sin is when you quit. All of us are going to want to give up. Every one of us. And if anybody says they’ve never felt that way, they’re a liar. Cos we all want to give up. We all get tired.

I’m 62 years old, ok. I’ve had enough diseases and problems and struggles, and fist fights and knife fights and all that … if anybody wanted to quit, it’d be me. But it’s not about that; it’s about a commitment.

You see this is old school stuff. Your generation doesn’t understand this. I was raised with the old missionaries whose wives died on the mission field, whose kids died on the mission field.

When you talk about people … Have you ever read Fox’s Book of Martyrs? You need to. You look back at what men and women before us in the faith have gone through. We have nothing to complain about. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. It’s foolishness. You get people like David Livingstone, went to Africa. Almost got his left arm chewed off by a lion … ended up you know, sending the family home. Ended up dying on the mission field. They found him dead in a rainstorm. He died in prayer.

If I had a chance to talk to God for 10 minutes … You thought I forgot the question didn’t you? I’m old but I’m not senile [laughs].

I would not ask Him why. But I would thank Him for allowing me to play a little part to serve. I will thank Him for the man who picked me up off the street, I would thank Him, that in all the struggles, I was able to fight a good fight, to finish the course, to keep the faith, and be able to thank Him in person.

And I believe some day I will have that opportunity. But until then I’ll serve gladly.

We know about your painful background and how you were abandoned as a child. How do you reconcile that sense of loss when you came to the Lord, and how has that affected the way you share the gospel to others?

I think what makes me the communicator that I am is … I think for me, how I can communicate is again, all the ministry, all the stuff, all the stories, this isn’t something I used to do, I still do it. Most, as I said, most preachers, they feel like they’ve “graduated,” they don’t do the things they used to do.

I’m still very hands-on. I’m still very frontline. I’m driving the bus; going to the refugee camp, doing these things … I think that’s important for me. So when I get up to speak, it’s not about wanting people to feel sorry for me, it’s not about me trying to reconcile anything. It’s about me understanding that all things work together for good, to them that are part of the purpose of God, ok? That’s why I don’t ask why.

You see, a lot of Christians struggle, “Well, why is all this bad stuff happening to me?” It’s not about why it’s happening; it’s about making choices about what to do with it. The apostle Paul said everything that happened to him happened and he used it for the furtherance of the gospel.

I take all of these issues, I’ll communicate with the audience hopefully by the grace of God, to challenge them to go to the next level, to catch a greater vision. It’s not about where they’ve been to but where they can go, it’s not about what’s happened but taking what’s happened, turning it around and using it to encourage people.

I mean look, Hebrews 11 is a classic, because most preachers always preach from the first half of Hebrews 11: Great faith, ra-ra-ra … very few preaches will ever preach from the second half of the chapter, because they don’t want to hear about people cut in half, burned in oil, died for the cause. Because a lot of prosperity preachers, a lot of faith preachers, a lot of grace preachers—and these messages are all great and it’s all part of it, but it’s not the whole message—don’t preach it.

Understand: John got his head cut off. Peter was crucified upside down. The disciples, I mean, do you not read that part of the Bible? There was nobody that was none of great faith like them. But for some reason, we like to pump Christians up. But then the problem is, is when they go through something, they panic.

Like, you don’t get strength for a battle; you get strength from the battle. That’s why David—it was a process how David had great faith. It was a process. He didn’t run from the lion, he didn’t run from the bear. So when he faced the giant, it was just another fight. But with us, with Christians in our day and time, we don’t like to fight. They don’t like the battles, they don’t like the struggles.

Ask yourself this: At this point in my life, what do you think would make me quit? What? Think there’s anything out there that would have that capability over me, to discourage me, to disappoint me, to disillusion me that much to walk away at this point? You think?

Let me answer it for you. There isn’t. Cos I’ve been through everything. I’ve been called everything a man can call. I’ve been called crazy, people thought I was having a breakdown because of what I do, and where I go and the places I go.

I’ve been through all this. So what is it now that would make me walk away? Nothing! I’ve taken all of those things, all the battles, all the struggles, all the pain, all the disappointments, all being misunderstood, and what … I use them to encourage people like you, to encourage people I talk to. I can feel sorry for myself, I can have a pity-party, I can call 1800-CRYBABY …

I could do all that. But I’ve chosen not to do it because I’ve taken all that has happened to me and I use it to encourage people, which I hope this article will do. I hope it will encourage people, so that they can go, “If he can do it, if he can make it, I can make it.” That’s what this needs to do: it needs to motivate people to win the lost and at least challenge Christians to hang in there. I hope that’s going to be the result of this article. I trust that it will.

You have been a believer for many years now. What is it about Jesus that still captivates you today, the same way it captivated you the first time you heard about Him?

There used be an old song they used to sing in the church when I was a kid and the song was: He paid a debt He never owed. I owe a debt I can never pay. So I’m a grateful man because of what the Lord has done.

Jesus paid a debt on the cross on my behalf and because of what He did, I will never [need to] pay for it. Does that mean I’m saved by works? No. I’m saved by grace. So whatever I do is an overflow of the gratefulness I have toward the Lord in my life. When I think of the Cross, I feel very humbled.

Yet faith without works is dead.

I’ve also been to various places, where the great men and women of faith have walked before us and it’s a humbling experience. I’ve been in the coliseum in Rome; I’ve been underneath the coliseum where they kept the Christians before they brought them up to be eaten by the lions. And when you stand alone in the coliseum in Rome, it’s very humbling [when you remember what they went through for their faith].

That’s the thing with Thomas. He never understood the resurrection until he touched the wounds in the body of Christ.

When we as Christians touch the wounds in the Body of Christ, it pulls something out of you. When you touch a child dying of AIDS, it does something to you. Most Christians today in our cultures don’t want to be close enough to touch it, because the urgency demands something from you.

There was this wealthy couple who had been supporting our ministry for years, who visited us one weekend. They got on my bus and sat behind me as I went around picking up the children for Sunday School. That seat actually belonged to a boy, Matthew, who was dying of AIDS, so I leaned over to the lady and said, “Just put him on your lap and hold on to him. He has AIDS.” Her eyes swung open because she had never been around someone like that.

But because Matthew was always so sickly and tired, the moment I put him down, he laid his head on her chest and just closed his eyes. And I watched this woman go through a metamorphosis in about 10 seconds as her arms wrapped around him in an embrace. When she left New York City, that lady told me, “I came here wanting to be a blessing to the kids. But they were more of a blessing to me, because now I will never look at life the same again.”

When you touch the wounds in the Body of Christ, when you get close enough to touch them, and it’s real, and you can’t forget it.

That’s real life. That’s church life. It’s not being-on-a-platform-life. That’s real life.

Find more information, visit www.metroministries.org, or follow Bill Wilson on Facebook (search ‘Pastor Bill Wilson’). To contact the Singapore office, write to Metro Ministries Singapore, Katong PO Box 199, Singapore 914307 or email [email protected].

City News talks to the founder of the Festival Of Praise, Rev. Dr. Canon James Wong, about the journey the event has taken to reach this milestone year.

Contributed By Glynisia Yeo

Rev. Dr. Canon James Wong, founder of the Festival Of Praise, Singapore.

In 1985, a group of Singaporean and Indonesian Christians visited the land of Israel during the Feast of Tabernacles. The lively celebration in the capital of Jerusalem was marked by music, singing, dancing and the procession of banners, which inspired the team of Asian tourists.

Among them was Rev. Dr. Canon James Wong, whom God spoke to about organizing a similar event in Singapore. “As it was not practical to expect a large number of Singaporeans to go to Jerusalem to participate in this annual praise and worship event, I thought it would be a tremendous blessing if we could organize such a celebration for the churches in Singapore,” wrote Canon Wong in his book, The Charismatic Renewal In Singapore (2010).

Canon Wong at FOP 2010.

What followed was the launch of the Festival Of Praise, a yearly Christian event that sees a gathering of believers in one place to worship Jesus Christ and pray for the nation of Singapore. The FOP has three objectives: To encourage Christians to pray for the government of Singapore and thank God for His blessings upon the nation, to unite the body of Christ, and thirdly, to hear the Word of God for the new season through anointed preaching by world-class speakers.

In the early days, the FOP was held in several locations, with its first celebration at the hall of St. Margaret’s Primary School. Thereafter, FOP moved to larger venues such as the Mandarin Hotel ballroom, the now-defunct Harbour Pavilion at the World Trade Centre, and eventually to the Singapore Indoor Stadium where it has since been, to accommodate the increasing number of people who came to the event each passing year.

Christians from many churches gather at the Singapore Indoor Stadium each year to attend the FOP.

For Canon Wong, who has attended every FOP event since its inception, the most memorable moment happened at the Hougang Stadium. “This was the first and only outdoor Festival Of Praise event we had, and I remember how it was jam-packed with people who were standing for more than two hours throughout the meeting. There were the regular banner procession and the tambourine dancers which livened up the atmosphere,” he reflects.

Churches all over Singapore would take part in a banner design competition, showcasing the creativity of their members. This would culminate in a grand banner procession during the FOP.

Back in the early years, one of the highlights in FOP was the interchurch banner competition in which participating churches had to come up with one banner design depicting that particular year’s theme. Toward the end of the service, a special banner procession would be held to showcase the creative and artistic talents of the churches, and a winner would be announced before the meeting ended.

The FOP also attracted Christians to serve. In the early 90s, Margaret Yap, a Christian from Malaysia, moved to Singapore and approached Canon Wong to ask if she could serve at the FOP through tambourine dance. For several years, Yap trained hundreds of dancers from different churches to prepare them for the FOP, and this familiar performance segment at the FOP was only discontinued after Yap moved to America.

Apart from celebrating Christ through music, song and dance, the FOP bridged many Singaporean believers from the different denominations. More than just congregating in a place to worship and hear the preaching of the Word, the unity among the believers was a dream that Canon Wong had always wanted to see come to pass in Singapore.

“One of my goals of the Festival Of Praise was to unite the body of Christ in Singapore and pray for blessing on our nation and its government. This is why we moved the FOP dates from October to August, to coincide with our National Day celebrations. And to a certain extent, I believe this has been achieved,” he says.

Dancers in colorful costumes, bearing flags and tambourines, filled the floor area to minister in dance and worship to God.

Today, more than 100 churches from different denominations and para-church organizations participate in the yearly event, making it the largest Christian gathering in Singapore today. Out of the FOP, the Love Singapore Network was also born. LSN’s purpose was to provide another avenue to unite the various churches in Singapore and intercede for the country’s needs.

Over the years, the FOP has grown from glory to glory in both scale and quality. Overseas speakers have graced the stage, including Mike MacIntosh, Ed Silvoso and Colin Dye, as well as celebrated Christian artistes like Bob Fitts, Don Moen, Delirious? and the Hillsong team.

A dance performance by a youth group. PHOTOS COURTESY OF FESTIVAL OF PRAISE.

To Canon Wong, “praise and worship are an important part of building the spiritual atmosphere.” As such, he also hopes to raise the quality of praise and worship music in the local church scene as well as inspire more local songwriters and singers taking the platform.

This being its 25th year right now, the FOP committee is looking to the younger generation of leaders to play a more active role in interchurch events, such as the FOP. Canon Wong encourages young Christian leaders to get more involved and share their ideas and insights in order to bring this annual event to the next level. He also hopes to see more songs coming out from local churches because he wants to raise the profile of the worship teams in Singapore.

“My heartbeat is that [even with the new generation of leaders coming in], the churches will always grow deeper in the Word of God. This is why I place a great emphasis on the preaching and teaching of the Word during the Festival Of Praise. This year, we have invited John Bevere to share a message on holiness and intimacy with Christ, to tie in with the theme of FOP this year: “The Pursuit Of His Presence.” At the end of the day, our relationship with God should lead us to pray for revival in Singapore,” Canon Wong shares.

The Ministry Showcase weekend is here to encourage church members to use their talents and gifts to bless others.

Contributed By Glynisia Yeo

Visit the Ministry Showcase and discover an area to serve in, from drama and Children’s Church to photography and ushering. PHOTO COURTESY OF CITY HARVEST CHURCH.

“As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” ~ 1 Peter 4:10.

Christians are encouraged to use the gifts that God has given to them to minister to one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. After a person has experienced and received the love of God through salvation, he should naturally experience the desire to become a blessing to others because love seeks to give. As such, one way to express this desire is to serve one another in the house of God.

This weekend, City Harvest Church is holding a Ministry Showcase, which serves as an opportunity for its members to know more about the 37 different ministries available in the church, and to find the area they want to get involved in. More than just providing practical information, the ministry booths will also allow people to interact with members who are already serving in the ministry.

Be sure to visit the Ministry Showcase booths at Hall 603 this weekend. The opening hours of the ministry gallery are: July 23 (Saturday), 3-5 p.m. and 7:30-9 p.m. and July 24 (Sunday), 9-10 a.m. and 12-1:30 p.m. Log on to citynews.sg to read more about what it means to serve in a ministry. To sign up for a ministry online, go to www.chc.org.sg.

The renowned Christian evangelist leaves behind a legacy of changed lives.

Contributed By Glynisia Yeo

David Wilkerson: May 13, 1931 - April 27, 2011

Legendary evangelist David Wilkerson died on April 27, just three weeks before his 80th birthday, in a fatal head-on collision with an oncoming tractor-trailer rig in East Texas, USA. He was reportedly not wearing a seatbelt. His wife, Gwendolyn Wilkerson, was airlifted to a local hospital and is expected to recover.

Wilkerson was best known for his work among the street gangs in New York City. In 1958, he reached out to gang members relentlessly with the love of God despite being repeatedly beaten, ridiculed and threatened. Wilkerson eventually became instrumental in the dramatic conversion of Nicky Cruz, leader of the Mau Maus, one of the most dangerous gangs  in NYC then.

Wilkerson’s book, The Cross & The Switchblade,  became a bestseller for its unsanitized account of his work in the world of gangs and drugs. It was later adapted into a movie. Today, the fruit of Wilkerson’s ministry lies in Cruz, who is now a preacher who helps others find the true freedom he discovered in Jesus Christ.

Another lasting legacy of Wilkerson’s is the non-profit organization, Teen Challenge. The organization helps individuals trying to break away from their drug or alcohol addictions through centers across the globe. In the 1980s, Wilkerson founded Times Square Church in downtown Manhattan that has grown into an 8,000-member congregation today.

The Church may have lost a hero of faith but Wilkerson’s legacy lives on as countless lives have been impacted through his unflinching obedience to God for half a century.

Aside from the main English service, Easter was enthusiastically celebrated at the other CHC services.

Contributed By Glynisia Yeo

Apart from the main services that commemorated the Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday, the other members of CHC, namely the members of Children’s Church, Dialect Church and JAMs Church celebrated the season with their own specially planned programs.

The elderly members of the Dialect Church witnessed a moving portrayal of the love of Jesus through a drama performed by Dialect ministry volunteers. Tan Ban, 74, said, “The drama touched my heart so much that I couldn’t stop crying; it reminded me of God’s love for me.”

Over at the JAMs (Jesus For All Minds) Church, which caters to members with intellectual disabilities, an Easter Carnival was held. Entitled Jungle Trail, JAMs members, together with their families and friends, participated in fun activities like face painting, an obstacle course, digging up creepy crawlies, and going “fishing.”

For all the City Harvest kids and their friends, the Children’s Church team planned an Easter Surprise filled with exciting games, a magic show, songs, and for the first time, an impressive Strikeforce percussion performance that thrilled everyone in the room. And as is the tradition for Children’s Church, every child went home with a gift.

Easter Moments

Contributed By Glynisia Yeo

ON HIS SALVATION EXPERIENCE

“I was 15 years old when I came to Christ. I had no Christian background growing up and am a first generation believer in my family. Back then, I was attending Earlsheaton School and the school teacher of religious education, (which was a compulsory course in English schools at that time), Keri Jones, was a very devoted Christian man. He shared about God in a way I never heard before, as if God was a Person you could talk to and have a relationship with. Somehow as a 15-year-old coming from a non-Christian background, it had an appeal to me, his life and quality of life.

A few months into this talk with him, I remember praying one day in school, “God if You’re real like this guy says You are, I’m gonna give it a shot!” That was my first-ever conscious prayer to God and I’ve never turned back since. It is very strange because I had no church experience and no Christian friends. I’m still the only person in my family who is a believer, more than 35 years later till today, so I must have been searching and not have known it. Today, my ex-teacher, Mr. Jones, who is now in his late 60s or early 70s, is still serving in ministry.”

ON ABUNDANT LIFE CHURCH

“Our church has changed over the years. Ten years ago, we reinvented the church because it was inward looking, comfortable and safe, and I knew that that was not how we were supposed to be building the church.

So we started to become more outward-looking, reaching the poor, becoming more relevant to society, connecting with a range of people we never had in our church before. That created a lot of problems. I call it “crossing over” and I wrote a book about that—about the reinvention of our church 10 years ago. Socially our church was one type of people; people feel comfortable with those who are like them and I understood that. We needed to deliberately try and decide to not just “do life” with people like us, and not just build churches for people like us.

We broke beyond the comfort zone in our church, and began to reach the poor, those in the red light district, the working girls, the drug community, the homeless, refugees in our city, inner city, high crime areas, and into schools. So 10 years ago we began to get involved in the city and that has made a huge difference to our church.”

ON THE UNSAVED

“Many times we talk a lot about what we, the Church, can do for our city but we don’t talk about what the city can do for the Church. I think unsaved people change the Church—if you let them—in a good way.
Over time, our church has grown in compassion and become deeper in our understanding of what people need, our language has become more relevant in how to connect with people in the city. We’ve realized that it’s not as simple as we used to think it was; that people are complex and life is complex. This has changed how we do church [in ALC] and it’s changed our staffing.

The gift of the unsaved is huge to us. That’s why a growing church to me is not just about growing in numbers and getting people saved. We mustn’t miss what these [unsaved] people are bringing to our church; they are bringing gifts of their life stories, their experiences with them that many of us have not been through. We need to recognize that God is sending them to us, not just He sending us to them. This perspective has helped changed our church in a great way.

Reaching out to people starts with an ‘in-their-shoes’ approach to the church rather than an ‘in-your-face’ approach because sometimes our evangelism has been so judgmental and in people’s face. If you step in people’s shoes, you could learn how best to approach people, how best to speak to people. There must be someone else in the church that understands their language.

It’s been a great journey for us the last decade and it was because we radically reinvented our church. Ten years ago if you were to come to our city and got lost in finding our church building and you asked a stranger, “Do you know where Abundant Life Church is?” no one would have heard of us. But now, thousands of people who visit our church each year tell us that they got lost, stopped and asked for directions. Ninety-nine percent of them say that those people they approached would say that they know us and give them directions and will often add, “Is that the church that helps people?”

In a short span of time, we’ve grown from not being known to being known all across the city. Moreover we are not being known for what happens inside our church building on Sunday; we are being known for what we’ve taken into the city—our love and outreach and all the ministries we do to help people.”

ON THE CHALLENGE OF THE CHURCH

“Christians need to think of others and build a larger circle of love with our life. The challenge of the Church is that we default to self; we default to safety, we default to the 99 sheep instead of the one sheep that’s missing. So the biggest challenge still is to turn our hearts outward to those who are not yet reached—that would be my biggest concern about the Church around the world.”

ON THE IMPORTANCE OF FAMILY

“I think it’s important in society, not just in the Church, to have strong family units because the definition of the family has changed a lot [over the years] and we have to allow for that too. There are a lot of single parents in the church and they’re as much a family as any “regular” family would be. It has changed the dynamics in the church because we’re not just fathers to our own kids anymore; we’re also fathers to other people’s kids who don’t have a dad at home. So it has changed our responsibility to think wider than our own families. Hence, we need to reach out to people, even in our own church, who may not have a dad or a stable upbringing.”

ON THE HEART OF GOD FOR THE WORLD

“God’s heart hasn’t changed for the world since the beginning. I believe God loves the world and we must keep that on the forefront of what we do. God loves people; He’s not judging people and He’s not against people. He is for people and I think God’s been very misrepresented all around the world because much of the Church is not for people, it’s not loving people. Instead we judge people, and we point fingers at people.

God loves the world but He can only express that through His Church. We are God’s address, we are God’s hands and we are where God lives. So we should express the love of God to the world. There are many churches that live separately from their community and exist only for themselves; it doesn’t exist for those who are not in the church. The Church is usually for the 99 or those who are already saved—we love our fellowship, we love our worship, our Bible studies and that’s great. But what about the ones who are missing?

The one main word for me is: Others. This is what should drive us because that is God’s heart, it is always for the missing one.”

This is the Year of the Rabbit and you may be thinking of getting one. Instead of buying a pet rabbit, consider adopting, says the House Rabbit Society of Singapore.

This coming week, the Chinese usher in the Year of the Rabbit. While this calls for a time of celebration with family and friends, members of the House Rabbit Society of Singapore are duly concerned about the rise in impulse-buying of rabbits to mark the season.

This time of the year means profits for pets shops, some of which can be found displaying and encouraging passersby to buy up all those “cute bunnies.”

What might happen after the Chinese New Year is that owners become bored with the rabbits, or tired of the cleaning and feeding that comes with owning any pet. Worse, the Year of the Rabbit will end around the same time next year—so what happens to this year’s “hot pet” when it’s no longer hot?

Each year, large numbers of rabbits become unwanted pets and are abandoned, euthanized or carelessly given away. From July 2009 to July 2010, more than 60 abandoned rabbits were found across Singapore in lift landings, parks, reservoirs, even parking lots, cooped up in their cages or inside a box. Irresponsible owners leave their pets there, hoping some kind soul will pick them up and care for the rabbits.

Unlike dogs or cats, rabbits are not armed with natural defences like sharp teeth or claws. One HRSS volunteer responded to a help call and was shocked to find the carcass of a rabbit, with part of its body covered in maggots. It is not known how long the animal had been abandoned before meeting its cruel fate. While most rescued rabbits can be nursed back to health, those who are severely sick or injured have to be put down.

On top of this, restaurants are offering rabbit meat as a festive delicacy this year. According to a local newspaper, sales of rabbit meat has doubled this season which is a major concern for HRSS.

PETS ARE A LONG-TERM COMMITMENT

Owning pets is a long-term commitment. Although rabbits require different levels of attention and care compared to dogs and cats, it still begs the question: Why buy a pet if you don’t intend to keep it?

After the novelty of owning a cute, cuddly animal—rabbits in this case—has worn off, the daily mundane task of caring for the pet sets in. This is usually the time when the individual or family member neglects their pet(s) and subsequently decides to abandon them.

President of HRSS, Jacelyn Heng, is a firm advocate of protecting the welfare of rabbits in Singapore. One of the aims of HRSS—an all-volunteer, non-profit organization—is to raise awareness and educate the public on the plight of the pet rabbit population in Singapore. Its three core messages are: “Don’t buy a pet on impulse,” “Adopt, don’t buy,” and “Sterilize, don’t breed.” Heng believes that a family or individual should only keep a pet when they are prepared to take care of it in the long term.

More than re-homing and rescuing rabbits, HRSS also runs a fostering program to house rescued rabbits until they are ready to be adopted. At this moment, there are 11 volunteer “foster parent” homes that house these rabbits.

Betty Tan, who is a HRSS volunteer and foster parent, shares her experience, “Being a foster parent gave me a chance to help these rescued rabbits live in a secure environment while waiting to be adopted.”

All the rabbits from HRSS are sterilized and litter-trained before they are put up for adoption so potential owners need not worry about unwanted breeding and can let them roam freely in the house, just like cats and dogs.

Contrary to common belief, not all the rabbits that HRSS rescues are local rabbits; there are also other breeds like the Netherland Dwarf, Dutch and the long-eared Lop. A full listing of rabbits that are ready for adoption can be viewed in the adoption gallery on HRSS website.

CN PHOTOS: Koh Meng Kwang

HOW TO ADOPT YOUR BUNNY

One of the first things that HRSS will do is arrange an initial interview with potential adopters to find out more about their background and experience in owning pets. A follow-up meeting would then take place at the potential adopter’s home so HRSS can view and ascertain if there is enough space to house the rabbit.

HRSS strongly advocates a non-caged environment and promotes housing rabbits indoors in a free roaming, bunny-proof environment. Since rabbits are prey animals and have strong hind legs built to run, they require lots of exercise to stay healthy and happy. Alternatively, Heng suggests a spacious playpen setup as the next option. She also advises against leaving rabbits outdoors where the animal may be exposed to harsh weather conditions or other stray animals.

After passing the interview and house inspection, a date will be arranged for HRSS to deliver the rabbit to its new foster owner(s). At the same time, HRSS volunteers will give the new owners a list of things, such as pet food and accessories, to acquire from HRSS-partnered pet shops which give adopters good discounts. Through these face-to-face meetings, HRSS volunteers will reiterate the importance of maintaining the necessary dietary requirements and other related matters.

While the adopting process may be a little more tedious than buying a rabbit from a regular pet shop, HRSS finds it necessary to do so in order to ensure that these rabbits will be re-homed to good and dependable individuals or families. The entire procedure may take several weeks before official adoption documents are signed. By complying with these standards, HRSS ensures that proper care and attention are given to these rescued rabbits, which will hopefully have a happier home and future.

THINK BEFORE YOU BUY

Since its inception, HRSS has been able to re-home over 40 rabbits annually but their work continues and they rely on the public to help them in their mission.

So before you decide to get a rabbit, please think again about the 10 years of commitment involved in keeping this pet for its entire lifespan. Please don’t get a rabbit thinking it will bring you luck. The only guarantee is that it will offer you responsibility, and the occasional cuddle.

If you still want to own a rabbit, adopt one from HRSS.

HRSS is appealing for more Foster Parents to help take care of rescued rabbits. For more details on this, please visit www.hrss.net to get in touch with one of their volunteers. Sponsorships or donations are also welcome.

With sterilization and good house care, rabbits can live up to 12 years. An average lifespan of a rabbit is between 5 to 8 years old.

Rabbits cannot survive on carrots alone as it contains high sugar content, which is not healthy in the long run. Rabbits should be given a daily mixed diet of fresh green, leafy vegetables, good quality pellets and fresh green timothy hay, available from pet shops.

Rabbits do not need to be bathed. These furry creatures are clean and fastidious groomers who clean themselves regularly. However, clipping their nails and daily brushing of their fur are needed especially during the molting period.

Setting a rabbit free in the forests and jungles does not help them. On the contrary, they become quick targets for preying animals such as stray dogs. An abandoned rabbit carelessly misplaced in the wild, an open space, or near the dustbin, may suffer from starvation, heatstroke or in worse cases, physical abuse by passers-by. They eventually suffer a slow and painful death.

Rabbits are not low maintenance pets; monthly expenses usually range between S$50 to S$70. This excludes unforeseen visits to vets, which can be costly. As such, they are not suitable as gifts for anyone, especially children, since rabbits are prey animals and do not like being carried or cuddled for too long.

(adapted from www.hrss.net)

City News brings you the highlights of CHC’s major events in 2010.

CHC’s New Home At Suntec City

Nearly a year after the historic announcement of its new worship premises at Suntec City, CHC members are now looking forward to settle into their “new home” located in central Singapore next year. Plans are already underway to prepare for the big move, with meetings being held to address the technical, administrative, contractual and design aspects of the shift. See you in Suntec!

LifeBook Easter Drama

The CHC drama ministry took a bold step forward by presenting a contemporary version of the Easter story, which appealed to the audience’s modern sensibilities. The narrative combined the social network elements of Facebook with the Lamb’s Book of Life (as stated in the Book of Revelations). LifeBook also included modern touches such as a cast that was fully clad in modern-day attire.  “Jesus” was wearing a handsome white suit instead of the usual white robe.

Leader’s Appreciation Night

On Dec. 12, CHC honored a very special group of people for their hard work and faithfulness to the ministry—the cell group leaders, ministry heads and pioneers of the church. Many of these individuals serve the needs of the church on a voluntary basis, above and beyond their career, family and personal commitments. In a show of gratitude, CHC presented each one of them with a limited edition 2G USB thumbdrive containing selected sermons from various preachers.

Lionsgate Leadership and Missions Institute

CHC is partnering with Lionsgate Leadership and Missions Institute (U.S.A.) to offer a holistic missions-centered educational program that will focus on impacting the marketplace pillars of society with the gospel of Jesus Christ. The one-year program will include six months of classroom lessons and an additional six months of internship attachment (according to the student’s preference).

For more information or to apply, please visit www.lionsgateinfo.org.

CGI-Asia Conference

The Church Growth International-Asia Conference 2010 was possibly one of the largest Christian conferences in this part of the region. More than 25,000 delegates from 70 countries attended the five-day event, which was held at the Singapore Expo. The success of the conference is attributed to the countless hours of hard work put in by thousands of CHC volunteers who worked alongside the church staff and ministry leaders.

Formation Of Advisory Committee

In June 2010, investigations were made into CHC’s financial management and for several weeks, the stability of the church seemed fragile. In spite of the situation, the church members remained supportive even in the midst of uncertainty. An advisory committee was later formed to cushion the impact of the enquiry, strengthen the congregation, and reinforce the vision of the church. The committee is helmed by two of CHC’s spiritual mentors, A.R. Bernard (U.S.A.) and Phil Pringle (Australia) and was formally introduced to the congregation in October.

CN FILE PHOTOS

CHC Turns 21!

CHC members, with their families and friends in tow, turned up in droves for the church’s 21st birthday celebration held at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in August this year. The event was celebrated in a simple but heartwarming manner, with its theme on love and family. Apart from the inspiring praise and worship, the two packed-out services featured an exciting lineup of special performances before CHC’s founder and senior pastor, Kong Hee, and CHC spiritual mentor, Phil Pringle, went onstage to preach a word in season to the congregation.

Margaret Court’s first visit to CHC

CHC was blessed to sit under the ministry of the legendary tennis champion, Margaret Court from March 13 to 14 this year. The former Grand Slam record-holder is currently the senior pastor of Victory Life Centre in Perth, Australia. The congregation warmly received her message as she encouraged one and all to pursue the call of God on their lives and never give up on their dreams.

Staff Retreat

Staff members of CHC and their families headed to the popular Bintan Lagoon resort in Indonesia for a highly anticipated retreat in early December. More than an opportunity to strengthen one another through corporate prayer and the Word, the three-day two-night event also captured some of the most hilarious moments during the bonding activities as everyone let down their hair and indulged in some good, clean fun!

Singer-songwriter Nikki Fletcher releases her latest single.

PHOTOS COURTESY NIKKI FLETCHER

It’s no great mystery when worship leader Nikki Fletcher penned “I love You with all my heart, trust You with all I have,” which are the opening lines to her worship song “Glorious Redeemer”—she wanted to convey her deepest devotion to God and her total dependence on Him.

To those who are familiar with her songs, the depth of her relationship with God is reflected in her music. The talented artist admits that Jesus is number one in her life and this understanding has been a central part of her life ever since she was saved at 18. “Everything about Jesus captivates me,” she revealed. “When I read about Him, and meditate on the things He said, who He is and what He has done for me, I actually can’t comprehend it.” Her walk with God has deepened over the years.

Fletcher is not an unfamiliar face to City Harvest Church, having ministered at both the Jurong West and Singapore Expo premises several times over the past few years. Her songs, such as “Greater is He,” “Freedom” and “Change Me,” are well-known and well-loved choruses, popular among the congregation and sung in the weekend services and other church meetings.
Growing up in church with parents who were pastors, the young Fletcher was on her way to pursuing a pop career, until God intervened. “Until I was about 21, the last thing I wanted to be was a worship leader. Because my parents were involved in ministry, I desperately wanted to do something different,” she shared.

Prior to this, Fletcher was already a singer and songwriter. When she was 21 years old, she felt a strong conviction that God had called her to lead His people and His church in worship. She surrendered her gifts and talents to God and has never looked back since.

Fletcher went on to become a full-time worship leader and songwriter at Christian City Church, Oxford Falls. It was during this time that she traveled with CCC’s senior pastor, Phil Pringle, to CHC and met Kong Hee and the rest of the CHC band.
“Every time I step into a [CHC] worship service, a wave of life and joy hits me as I see thousands of people lifting their hands and crying out to God,” Fletcher recalls on her past trips to Singapore. “The congregation always inspires me and Pastor Kong has been a great encouragement to me.”

In 2008, Fletcher relocated to London from Sydney, Australia, with her husband, Jonathan, and son, Jones. She is currently on staff at Worship Central & Holy Trinity Brompton, London, where she leads worship, teaches and tours alongside other well-known worship artists such as Tim Hughes, Ben Cantelon and Al Goron.

Two years ago when Fletcher and her family moved to London, they knew that this was what God had called them to do and bid farewell to their hometown and all they had ever known as home. Together with her family, the past two years of transition have been an amazing adventure as they have learned to let go of everything they felt had defined them and their identity and to trust in God alone.

This entire journey is reflected in her brand new single, “All Glory,” which was released in July this year. Fletcher describes this song as “a story of my heart” which was birthed from a scripture from Ephesians 3:17-21 which became her constant source of strength.

As part of the Worship Central team, Fletcher is committed to her local church at Holy Trinity Brompton and together with the rest of the team, are passionate about seeing a move of the Holy Spirit in their church and in London. Beyond this, Worship Central wants to build the local church and to train and empower other worship leaders and musicians.

Aside from ministry, Fletcher is totally devoted to her family, who remain her inspiration. Her husband, who is working in the financial industry, is a firm supporter of her work and a constant encouragement to her. The couple believes that church and ministry should be an extension of the family and that everything should flow out of the relationships within the primary unit God has given to man.

The recent addition into their family is their one-year-old son, Jones. The adoring mum says, “Everyday when I look at my son, I am overwhelmed by how much God loves me.”

“All Glory” is available on iTunes. For more information on Nikki Fletcher, visit www.nikkifletcher.com.

City Harvest Church will be conducting its Water Baptism services at its Jurong West premises next weekend on Nov. 27 and 28.

The church believes in the necessity of water baptism by immersion in the name of the eternal Godhead in order to fulfill the command of the Lord Jesus Christ as found in the Scriptures (Matt. 28:19; Acts 2:34-36; 19:1-6).

Sign up with your cell group leader today if you have not done so or e-mail [email protected] to register your name.

Nov. 28, 2010 (Sun) • 2:30 p.m.

1 Jurong West St. 91 (Roof Garden, Level 5)

*Baptism candidates: Please gather at the baptism venue 30 minutes before the service starts.