What an honor to be here! I left Chicago Monday 500pm and arrived in Singapore on Wednesday at 1230pm. God is doing amazing things here in giving churches a vision for family ministry. I was invited to join an amazing team led by Ben and Jennifer Freudenberg, along with their daughter Cori, and am here also with Kirk Weaver and Mike Heinz from Family Time Training and Faith Legacy, respectively.
We have been invited to host a conference this weekend at Elim Church. The conference is designed to be a time of equipping and inspiration for parents and church leaders to live out their faith in their homes, to disciple their children, and serve their family members.
Singapore is an incredible place. The whole country, an island, is roughly 25×25 miles, and is almost entirely urban. The population is 5 million, with everyone living on top of each other in high rise apartment buildings. In most places, it is ultra-modern city.
70% of the population has a Chinese background, so Buddhism is the most common religion. The vast majority of Christians are the first generation believers in their families. Many of them, when they trusted Christ, were shunned by their families. One of the pastors at the church we are serving had no contact with his father for seven years after he trusted Christ, because his father would not speak to him. Now, as he told me, God is using his children, to slowly soften his father’s heart to Christ!
It is so humbling to be here and have the opportunity to teach the Bible this weekend, both at the conference, and then preaching Sunday morning. Because the church is made up of first generation Christians, they have the marvelous opportunity to build a theological foundation for family ministry right from the start! In the states, we have to repair the broken foundations of delegation parenting, age-segregation, and the absence of the biblical model for discipleship in and through families.
It is always best to build the foundation right from the start, and that is the blessed opportunity God has given to the church here in Singapore. Please keep our team in our prayers.