by Admin | Mar 31, 2024 | Josephine Yue, • Timely Word •
Live the Resurrected Life Daily
Today is Easter. We gather to worship and celebrate the resurrection of Jesus! He is alive! Thanks be to God; Jesus our Saviour & Lord has conquered death and is living in each believer’s life.
14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 15 More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead.
1 Corinthians 15:14-15 (NIV)
From the verses above, we are reminded that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is foundational to our faith. Without the Resurrection, our faith and our preaching are futile and in vain. Everything is vanity!
During Lent, we are encouraged to draw closer to God through prayer, fasting, self-examination and repentance. It is to prepare us to observe Good Friday, the death of Jesus, and celebrate Easter, the resurrection of Jesus. May I suggest that we practise these disciplines regularly, and not just during Lent. Due to the resurrected Christ being in us, we have the enabling power to live and shine for Him in our lives. “His incomparably great power” in us is “the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead.” (Ephesians 1:19-20). We should recognise that we are graced with this power and can live our lives victoriously.
Have you experienced His great power at work in you? Let us be willing to share one or two experiences with our SGC members and continue to live out the resurrected life of Christ and bring glory and honour to His Name. Pre-believers are observing us, and we are preaching the Gospel to them through the way we live our lives! Let us be good witnesses of the faith we profess, encourage the weak and not stumble them by the way we live our lives.
When I fellowship with my brothers and sisters in Christ at the breakfast area or over lunch on Sunday, I am encouraged to hear stories of how they are living out their resurrected life in Christ.
- A sister is praying for the salvation of her colleague who is a free-thinker. When she needs to go for surgery, she allows this sister to pray for her even though she is not a believer yet.
- Another sister shared that she is helping her pre-believer niece to look for a job, and encouraged her to seek God in times of need. This niece is her OFJ target.
- Another sister is also reaching out to her dog groomer with the Gospel through the OFJ programme.
- A brother is meeting up with his old classmates on a regular basis and seeking the right moment to share the Gospel while having tea or meals together.
Our elder Ronald Wong, who spoke on “Jesus, the Holy Temple of God,” reminded us that Jesus dwells in us and we dwell in Him. Therefore, may we place our faith in God’s incomparably great power and live the resurrected life daily.
By sister Josephine Yue
by Admin | Jan 20, 2023 | Josephine Yue, • Timely Word •
A few decades ago, God put me in a Youth Fellowship where I could grow with other youths in my discipleship journey. I remembered having to meet our Youth Advisor one hour before the Youth meeting so that we could share our quiet time thoughts with him. Our advisor wanted to nurture us as youth leaders, and he was watching our spiritual growth. We were being discipled as a group. Later, he was able to find some young adults in the church to spend one on one time with each of us. To this day, I am thankful for this discipleship journey because it helped me to live my life worthy of the gospel and spurred me to love God, obey Him and to serve Him. I remembered starting to serve God at age 17, and I am still serving God today. Serving God is a great privilege, not a burden.
When I was a working adult, I began to serve in the Sunday School. I worked alongside many mature believers, and they have impacted my life too. Their passion and fervent prayers for the students encouraged me to make prayer a focus in any ministry I was led to serve in. I am always grateful for the many opportunities to serve God, to see His hand at work in and through me to accomplish His will.
When Fah Yong and I worked cross-culturally, we had plenty of opportunities to disciple university students and young adults. It was a joy to see them growing in their faith and influencing others in their lives. Many are now married and nurturing their own families. I remembered a young man that Fah Yong was discipling. He came from a remote village and when he came to the big city, he had to make many adjustments. We needed to disciple him holistically. He had no confidence and he walked with his head lowered – we had to encourage him to lift his head, and to walk boldly and confidently. He ate his meals in a rough manner, so we had to tell him how to eat politely. He had never ridden in a car before. One time, I had to stop him from opening the car door while it was moving – he thought he was opening the car’s window. We had to be patient and love him as a dear brother in Christ. After some months, his pastor was able to see a vast improvement in him not only spiritually but in different aspects of his life.
We can also experience disciple-making in our SGC community. In community, we are continuously impacting one another. We are always learning from one another’s example; your participation in an activity can spur a member to follow suit. Your enthusiasm in sharing the gospel can influence a member to share too. Your active listening will encourage a member to offer a listening ear to someone in trouble. It takes a community to shape a disciple and I am glad we are doing it in YCKC. May the transforming presence of God be evident in all our SGCs. Let us press on together.
In the verse below, Paul encouraged the Philippians to emulate him. We can put this verse into practice by emulating good examples from one another.
“Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me – put into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” (Philippians 3:9)
Questions to ponder:
- Which person or community has discipled you over the years?
- How can you be contributing to discipleship – one on one or in a community?
By sister Josephine Yue
by Admin | Jan 15, 2022 | Josephine Yue, • Timely Word •
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20
This verse is so familiar, I have read it since my youth days and our youth advisor kept emphasizing the need to share the Gospel and to make disciples.
At that time, he challenged the youths to share the Gospel at least once a week. He took us to the Toa Payoh Gardens to do witnessing which was permissible in the 1970s. We were encouraged when people were willing to stop what they were doing and listened to our sharing but politely declined to accept Jesus Christ at that moment. Nevertheless, we were practicing how to share the Gospel, and the more we did it, we became less fearful and more at ease with sharing the Gospel.
So, I do want to challenge all of you to share the Gospel when the divine moment presents itself and allow the Holy Spirit to empower you to do it with boldness and confidence. He will give you the words to share.
In my travels to visit missionaries in the field from 2016 to 2019, God has provided many divine moments for me to share the Gospel in the plane, in the speed train and in buses. Most recently, when my HDB flat was undergoing the “Home Improvement Project” I had the opportunity to share with two neighbours at the void deck. Be prepared to share the Gospel any time, in season and out of season, wherever you are.
In a Creative Access Nation, God gave opportunities for Fah Yong and I to share the gospel and to disciple young believers in the local church, university students and working adults. We served in that country for five years and discipling these Christians brought so much joy. It is truly a privilege to be used by God to fulfil the Great Commission.
Back in Singapore, we disciple and mentor potential missionaries, walking alongside them as they prepare themselves for the field. We journeyed with a couple with two young children from 2018 to early 2021. They are preparing to leave for the field in the first quarter of 2022. Presently, I am mentoring a young lady who will be leaving for the field in two years’ time. I am excited that young people are willing to give up the stability and the creature comfort of Singapore to follow the call of Jesus to missions. We continue to talk to adults of different ages who have shown interest in missions, especially after the FOMOS Mission Conference in October 2021. FOMOS means Fellowship of Missional Organisations in Singapore.
As I reflect, I am thankful I took early retirement to go into missions and I have never looked back. I am in mission and will always be in mission. It is such an enriching and meaningful experience! I would have missed all the immeasurable blessings from God if I have continued to be teacher till retirement and not obey God’s call into the mission field. Missions widened my horizon and we have made friends with people of different nations and continually learning to appreciate our differences and celebrate our uniqueness in Christ.
I want to encourage my brothers and sisters in Christ, to look beyond self, commit to serve the Lord and fulfil the Great Commandment and the Great Commission he has mandated for every believer. Seek the Lord, follow His will and obey Him. Live a life of obedience to His call. He is faithful to the end. Will you obey God?
By sister Josephine Yue
by Admin | Jan 8, 2021 | Josephine Yue, • Timely Word •
“In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor. 37 About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. 38 Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, “Please come at once!” 39 Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.”
Acts 9:36-39
In this passage, we are introduced to a disciple of Jesus, named Tabitha and also known as Dorcas.
Dorcas believed in Jesus and sought to follow him in her daily life. It means she put God’s word into action by seeking to live the way Christ wanted her to live. Her aim was to please the God she loved!
Dorcas was a doer
She was always doing good and helping the poor. She was not just a listener of God’s word but a doer. The word “always” denotes that it was not a one-off thing. She was consistently doing good and impacting the lives of the poor and needy in Lydda. It became her mission in life, her life-long ministry!
Dorcas had a personal mission
She had a target group she wanted to minister to – the poor widows. The highest calling in Christian ministry is to care in practical ways for the most vulnerable in society, especially the widows and orphans. James 1:27 says “Religion that God our father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”
Dorcas used her gift
She dedicated her gift of sewing to God. When she died the widows were crying and showing Peter the robes and other clothing that she had made while she was still with them. Sewing is a gift of help, it is practical serving which we often undervalue. Instead, we often value gifts of teaching, preaching and other more prominent gifts. Dorcas used her gift quietly and without fanfare but it was still impactful. She would have imparted her sewing skills to the widows who could in turn use this skill as a means of earning a living – a livelihood ministry in the community. She was meeting the physical needs and spiritual needs of the widows. Praise the Lord for a life of sacrificial and joyful service.
As I reflected on this passage, 3 questions came to my mind:
- As a disciple of Jesus, what am I doing to impact and influence lives?
- Do I have a target group that I want to reach out to?
- How am I using my talents and gifts to serve God?
Recently, one of the nurses in our small group shared that she had started an Alpha Course in her home for her colleagues. I was encouraged by her desire to reach her colleagues for Christ! It is a good and intentional move. Sometimes we just talk but take no action and ultimately missed the opportunity to be the salt and light for God in our place of work.
May the Lord help us to reflect on the 3 questions above and be led by the Holy Spirit to start doing something within our sphere of influence to draw people into the kingdom of God. Believe that God is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask of imagine. Let us look forward to a fruitful year of loving, obeying and serving God! Press on!
By Sister Josephine Yue
by Admin | Jan 12, 2020 | Josephine Yue, • Timely Word •
Recently, I read a book entitled “Kindness Quotient” which I borrowed from the National Library. This book motivated me to look into the Word for biblical stories on kindness and what I can learn from them.
The stories of Jesus overflow with acts of kindness. We have much to learn from Him, our Master Teacher. Below are some examples.
The Power of a Touch. Matthew 8:1-4
One day when Jesus came down from the mountainside, a man with leprosy came and knelt before Him, seeking healing from Him. Without hesitation, Jesus reached out His hand to touch the man and he was healed. This one touch meant so much to the leper. Back in those days lepers were outcasts and no one in the right frame of mind would touch the untouchable; but Jesus broke all laws and boundaries set by the Jewish society. Through the kindness of Jesus he could “Be clean”.
Many people in our society are longing for a touch from us and may God help us to be aware of who they are and reach out to them with a touch of kindness. In one touch, we could positively change someone’s outlook about life.
The Power of Acceptance. Luke 19:1-10
Back in Jesus’ days, tax collectors were hired by the Romans and were considered enemies of the Jews. They were considered sinners and despised by everyone because they collected extra tax and kept the money for themselves. So Zacchaeus, a tax collector was a reject in society, longing for someone to show him love and attention. When Jesus saw him looking down from the tree, He looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” Zacchaeus felt so good that Jesus accepted him for who he was that he decided to turn from his sinful way – he decided to give half his possession to the poor and to return four times the amount if he had cheated anybody of anything.
Many people in our society are longing for acceptance from us and may God help us to reach out to them and bring hope to their lives. We are glad that our church has started the S3P shelter in our basement. As Christians we are sending out a strong signal to the homeless that we love and accept them and we want to help them out of their dire state.
The Power of Compassion. Luke 8:45-48
In this story, a woman who was bleeding for 12 years was healed when she touched the edge of Jesus’ cloak. She came forward trembling and fell at Jesus’ feet when He asked who touched him. Jesus responded in kindness and addressed her as “daughter” – a term of endearment and a way to say that it was okay that she reached out to Him to receive healing power.
Many people in our society need our kindness and compassion and may God help us to be bold and courageous in showing kindness to those who are suffering and with no one to turn to.
In these three stories, we see the power of kindness and its impact on three lives. Let us follow Jesus’ example, let us show kindness to someone today or look out for opportunities to show kindness until it becomes a habit in our lives.
By Josephine Yue (YCKC Bulletin 12 January 2020)
by Admin | Feb 2, 2019 | Josephine Yue, • Timely Word •
There are days when some of us would feel down and lousy and wondering what is life all about? Why am I here on earth? Have I wasted my life? How would I account to God on how I live my life thus far?
I have been through trials, uncertainties and discouragement when I was a school teacher, when I was a missionary and presently as a pastoral staff for member care of missionaries in the field. God would not allow me to remain in doubt for too long – he would reach out His mighty hand to pull me out of my rut! I soldiered on knowing God is with me and He is my enabler.
My attitude in my Christian journey changed when I stepped out of my comfort zone and familiar environment into the mission field. I experienced much more of God’s provision, protection and presence in the field. I realized that I was too inward-looking and self-centered! I was not sure what I would face in the mission until I was in the field – God opened a whole new horizon for us and were drawn into evangelism and discipling quite naturally. Time spent with pre-believers and disciples was so meaningful that I would not exchange it for anything else! In the process, I have learnt to be grateful and to give thanks in all circumstances.
In the mission field, I was truly living life for God. I wished I knew that earlier in life! But God has a purpose for us to be in Central Asia at the right time and for a season to accomplish what He has for us to do. Our Almighty God has brought people into our lives so that we can share the Good News and to disciple them.
Now, some of our disciples are in different parts of the world and persevering in reaching those who are living and dying without the Gospel. When we came back to Singapore in the first quarter 2016, I continue to pray that God would grant me opportunities to share the Good News with pre-believers or to encourage someone I would meet in my daily activities.
God has never failed me – I was given opportunities to share the Good News with ladies I meet in the market, in the coffee shop, in the plane, in the train, in the bus, in the taxi and even while walking on the overhead bridge. So I want to encourage each one of us not to be afraid to share the Good News. It is not about us – how much we know, what method to use, etc, just let the Holy Spirit lead you, He will empower you and you would be surprised at the words that come out of your mouth when you begin to step out by faith to do it for His glory. Do it, don’t hesitate when an opportunity is presented to you! The Good News is central to our faith! It is meant to be shared and our Lord Jesus wants us to bring people into the Kingdom of God!
Mark 1:17 – “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”
Mark 16:1 – He said to them, ”Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.”
Two days later, we would be celebrating the Lunar New Year and it would be a great opportunity for us to renew ties with family members and friends and to let God give you the opportunities to share the Good News! May we continue to obey God and follow His command to share the Good News with those who are living and dying without it. Let us not forget God’s mandate for us! Go forth…
By Mrs Josephine Yue (YCKC Bulletin 2&3 February 2019)
