Last Saturday (11 July), Yi Lun brought her daughter, Li’ora, for our Jurong West 3.30pm service for the first time! Who says that you cannot be faithful to God when you are a mother with kids?!? Let’s continue to seek first the kingdom of God and ALL other things shall be added unto you!

Hi friends! My name is Evangeline from W495. I am here to share of how God has given me faith to live out the calling that He has placed in my life.

I was saved at the age of 16, and during the time; I have received a vision for missions but as I was young, I did not know what to do and how to go about doing it. In Dec 2004, Tsunami hit various countries. I was touched by the video that showed the humanitarian works done by our church and I cried in the service, asking God why things happened and so many died and this left a deep impression in my heart.

2 weeks ago, my vision came to pass. I went for Morning Prayer meeting, praying for breakthroughs and for God to work in my life. For many days I had prayed and on Thurs of the week, Pastor Kenneth called me. He needed a nurse urgently for a mission at Sri Lanka and asked me whether I can join him for the mission trip which is on the 17^th of Jun.

This trip was unlike the normal mission trip. The whole team consisted of Pastor Kenneth, a CGL and another SOT student who was our translator and myself. I was the only medically trained personnel. The purpose of this trip was to visit refugees from the War Zones and to give out rations and medical support to them.

The whole journey was an unforgettable one. We were rushing in the night by 2 vans for about 8 hours, from Colombo to Batticaloa, and in the journey faced many army checkpoints. We arrived safely on Thurs and visited 1 Tsunami campsite, 6 refugees’ camps, to distribute free rations and medications. Our heart was deeply touched. Some lost their chance to pursue education due to the war. Some lost their property and possession and businesses to the war. Many of them smiled for the 1^st time since the tragedies.

I really want to thank God for this opportunity that was given to me. It was my first time travelling by plane to overseas on my own. You might be surprised, but I have never taken a plane before. As I stepped out of my comfort zone, I entered into a world of unknown. And as I went to the places that I can only see on news, I started to feel that even if I have no talents, what I can give them is a heart of compassion and a heart of willingness. At the last camp, I visited one of the make-shift houses.

And as I came out of the house, an old lady came to me, smiling at me with her toothless mouth and patting my back, I thought she was just saying ‘hi’ in her own way but she followed me and pat me a couple of times. I then realised, it was her way of saying ‘thank you’ to me. I was deeply touched and realised what a difference I have made.

In 1 Cor 13:1, Apostle Paul said, “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.” It is one thing to say it and it is another thing to show it. Through the journey, I discovered that many of them choose to put aside their comfort zone and came to Sri Lanka because they wanted to help the people. Beyond races, and skin colours, it is love that compelled me to make a difference.

I really want to thank Yi Lun for the opportunity that she has given to me and her faith in me make me believed that even if I am not very experienced, I can bring faith, hope and love to the people outside of the 4 walls of the church. I really want to challenge everyone here to step out of your comfort zone and live out your vision and dream like how I choose to live out mine!

13 July 2009, by Sarah Lim

Citynews report of LYL’s decentralised service

After weeks of anticipation, City Harvest Church (CHC) finally launched a weekend of 16 decentralised services on July 4-5, each organised by the various zones in the church.

At both worship locations in Jurong West St. 91 and Singapore Expo Hall 8, rooms were transformed into vibrant displays of colour and melodious songs.

Some 400 youths were treated to both a visual and auditory feast as song and dance items were performed, in a service held by Zone Supervisor’s Lee Yi Lun’s (LYL) zone.

The items included a performance by Campus Superstar (2009) finalist, Rachel Lim, who performed a song item, titled “We Can”, to encourage the audience to follow their hearts despite the many roadblocks that may come their way.

“I believe all of us are given talents by God and I just hope to use those talents for the glory of God,” she said. “I think we should just go ahead and chase our dreams, because with God, nothing is impossible!”

There was not a dull moment during the service, with many of the youths participating energetically in the games and waving their light sticks during the items.

15-year-old Ng Wei Hao enjoyed the service very much and said it was the best Saturday he has had in a long while. It was his first visit to CHC.

“I am looking forward to the other services,” he said.

The theme of the service was aptly named Live Your Life, where the youths were challenged to live their lives to the fullest and to make it count.

That is the message that Yi Lun wants to bring across to youths – that despite the circumstances in their lives, they can serve God’s purpose in their generation.

“We are only given one life to make our dreams a reality, one life to leave a mark on our generation. Life’s greatest tragedy is not being able to live our lives to the fullest,” said Yi Lun.

She shared about the three keys to greatness –a repentant heart, a trusting heart and a servant’s heart – the qualities that most people overlook when they are looking for a great person.

Many of the youths made a decision to serve God in their time and to make their lives count, like 21-year-old student, Seah Jing.

“The sermon brought me to new perspectives and convictions much closer to home. It really spoke right into my life and was a great word in season,” she said.

The fun did not end there, as many of the members and their friends lingered around to play different board games such as Life, Payday and Cluedo after the service. The LYL Cafe was inspired by a local establishment, The Mind Cafe, where friends can bond over fun games and food.

As the event drew to an end, many of the youths left with an expanded mindset, and a conviction that they could dream big dreams.

“More than anything else, I am really inspired by the faith of the young people, my own friends running the service. Now I feel that I can really dare to dream and see myself rising up to serve God in a way I’ve never dared to imagine before,” said Jing.

<<Extract from CityNews>>
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30 May 2009, 10:30 am by Sarah Lim

On 20 May, a group of six City Harvest Church (CHC) staff travelled to South Korea to visit the world’s largest church — Yoido Full Gospel Church (YFGC). The five-day trip may have been short, but it was certainly impactful.

YFGC was founded by David Yonggi Cho and his mother-in-law, Choi Ja-shil in 1958, in a living room, with just six people. It has since grown exponentially to a congregation of about 830,000, making it the world’s largest church.

PHOTOS: Tan Kim Hock

The next day, they were invited to Hansei University, for a theological symposium. The University was founded in 1953 to nurture leaders in the Christian faith. Besides offering courses in Theology, humanities and social sciences courses are also available.

The theme of the symposium was on Dr Cho’s understanding of social salvation, which is the sharing of love and happiness to others.

Cho believes that when one loves his neighbor as himself, love will thus be extended to oneself, society and the nation. He added that it was something biblical and substantiated in the Bible (John 3:16).

“It was a really enriching experience to hear the professors from various universities espousing their views and writing theological papers in response to Cho’s understanding of social salvation,” shared Zone Supervisor Lee Yi Lun.

“I feel so encouraged and comforted in knowing that as we reach out to the lost and needy, we will surely be blessed by God,” she added.

The team also had the chance to have dinner with Dr Cho and his wife, Dr Kim Sung Hae, after the symposium. During the dinner, Cho shared about his trip to Siberia a few years ago, where 20,000 people, who have never heard the name of Jesus, got saved. Miracles took place — a man who was paralyzed from the neck down was healed and could walk by the end of the meeting.

As Cho had a burning desire to preach the gospel around the world, he did not take a single vacation throughout 50 years. To date, he has traveled and preached in 70 countries and more than 400 cities.

Cho’s dedication and love for God impacted one of the team members, Bobby Chaw, the dean of students in CHC’s School of Theology (SOT).

“I feel so inspired to do more for the Lord as I see Dr Cho’s great love for the lost, poor and the needy. To preach the gospel in 70 countries and 400 cities is really phenomenal!” he said.

The trip was an eventful one, with the team having the opportunity to study the history of North and South Korea in a visit to the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), a strip of land that serves as a buffer zone between the North and South. They also attended several worship services and prayer meetings in YFGC, a 12,000-seater hall.

The team gained valuable insights during the trip and had an unforgettable experience.