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Singapore 2003 Trip Report
Singapore 2003 | Indonesia 2003 | India/Singapore 2002 | Hong Kong 2002
Location: Singapore
Date: Jul 3 - Jul 15, 2003
Team: Anthony & Isabella Chan, Bobby Medcalf, and Leo Wong
Even though this was our 6th trip to Singapore since 1999, we were just as excited as the first time we went because we knew and eagerly awaited to see the great things God was going to do. In fact, this was a continuation of our journey after Isabella and I left Indonesia. We were thrilled to have 2 other jnX members, Bobby (drummer) and Leo (keyboardist and backup vocals), joining us from the States. They arrived at Singapore one day ahead of us to "shake off" their jet lag. It was great to see them at the airport along with Pastor Adrian Ying of Living Sanctuary and Roslyn Yong, the Worship Director Intern of the Agape Baptist Church. Roslyn was the one who had initially invited jnX to come and she also linked up with Living Sanctuary to jointly organize a Night of Worship.
As soon as we checked into the Salvation Army Changi Conference Center where we would be staying, our team headed out to Agape Community Church to rehearse with their worship team. In October 2002, Bobby, Isabella and I ministered at the church before going to Nagaland. Pastor Lawrence Koo kindly asked us to lead worship with their team for Sunday service this time. It was wonderful serving with a group of gifted and committed musicians from that church.
Their singers had angelic voices but they told us they didn't know how to sing harmony. On Sunday afternoon, Leo and I had a training session with the singers on singing harmony while Bobby had a training session with the musicians on song arrangement. It's amazing that after 90 minutes of explaining music theory, rules for harmony and some exercises, when we brought the singers and the musicians together again, they were able to figure out some simple basic harmony on their own. We pray God will continue to bless, equip and expand them.
Our old friends of the ORTV band asked if could spend an evening with them. We had worked with them in October 2002 and had a blast. Of course we loved to see them again. They asked us to give them some feedback on their new arrangements on some old songs. It was very refreshing to listen to them "performing" their new twist on those songs with new perspective and interpretation. We shared our input and ideas; and helped them make some changes. The band was really good. May God use them mightily to reach out to the younger generation.
For the Living Sanctuary, we gave workshops on The Heart of Worship and Team Dynamics. While Bobby taught a Drum workshop, I taught a Singing Techniques workshop which some people from the Baptist church participated in. It is always fun and rewarding for me to teach the singing techniques workshop. Just seeing participants being able to correct their problems on the spot and experience immediate results is/was (your choice) encouraging. After the workshop, I volunteered to give them an extra workshop so we could follow up on more applications. Of course, that was a welcome offer (or of course, the response was overwhelming)!
Agape Baptist and Living Sanctuary share the same "DNA". Both churches share the same vision - to be a community-based church. The Baptist members visit the nearby government housing project every week. We were told that that project was/is among the poorest in Singapore. They have befriended the residents and live out the love of Jesus. The senior pastor is Guna Raman, born in Malaysia of Indian descent. His wife Christina is Chinese. The senior pastor of Living Sanctuary is Lawrence Chua, a practicing lawyer and a full-time pastor. When they first started planning to build their existing church building, which can hold 900 people, they had only about 300 members. Some of their members even sold their apartments and moved into the government housing in the area to be a part of that community. Just hearing their stories was inspiring and convicting.
The main bulk of our ministry work was with the Agape Baptist Church. We literally lived with them for over a week and we had something going on every night with different groups: the worship leaders, the musicians, the sound team, and the creative ministry. We really appreciate the fact that we were able to spend more time with them. By getting to know them and the issues they faced, we were able to be more specific and helpful in sharing our experiences and encouragement.
The memorable part was working with their team: they saw it as part of the training; we saw it as a precious opportunity to serve alongside them. They were simply great. We had a good mix of ages and backgrounds. Roger, the acoustic guitarist, was the older and more mature member but with a very contemporary feel when he played yet still very humble. Othniel, the electric guitarist, a creative guy, actually was a keyboardist. Although electric guitar was not his main instrument, he was very good and always supportive. Tommy, the bass player, an entrepreneur, was an experienced player who also played in another ministry band. Joel, the drummer at the church, switched from playing drum to playing djembe and percussion for the first time and did great. Grace and Kelvin, two singers who could harmonize naturally were so flexible! Together with Bobby, Leo and myself, we formed a 9-piece band and had 3 rehearsals in preparation for the Night of Worship.
The Night of Worship was a divine appointment with the Lord. It was held at the Living Sanctuary. Over 600 people attended and even though most of the songs were new to them, that did not prevent any of them from coming before our Almighty God to worship Him. There was no teaching. An hour of heartfelt worship smoothly transitioned into ministry time. God's presence was powerful and the moving of the Holy Spirit was evident. At the end, we lifted our voices in unity to worship God for 20 minutes more. We would like to thank Sarah and the Agape Baptist dance team for their submission and flexibility. We are also grateful to Eric of Agape Community Church for helping on sound.
What impressed me most was Pastor Guna's sensitivity and submission to the Holy Spirit. On the first night of our ministry at his church that was open to all members, after my teaching and worship, he sensed the prompting to call the whole church to come forward and repent before the Lord. He led the whole congregation to kneel down before God in repentance. Again, on Sunday during ministry time, he continued to be a conduit for God to flow through. God was doing amazing things with His people, bringing healing to many.
God never ceases to amaze us through how much He can and will do when we serve in obedience. We will press on. To God be the Glory!
His donkey,
Anthony
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