Wedding Anniversary @ HK

Grizzy Mountain Runaway Mine car 

 Our first wedding anniversary here was made even more special by celebrating with dear friends in Hong Kong — and spending the day at HK Disneyland.

Stark 4D ride

 We’re so grateful to have shared it with Danny and Julie, their lovely sons Nathaniel and Nicholas from Singapore, and Mariya from Ukraine. Being surrounded by friends from different parts of the world made the celebration feel even more meaningful. Danny was the friend who without knowing what happened two weeks ago shared the word of knowledge that was encouraging and super timely. 

It's a small, small world

 This was our second time at Disneyland — our first was with our twins at Disneyland Park in Anaheim — and returning brought back such sweet memories while creating beautiful new ones.

Super fun ride

 We stayed until late, leaving only after the fireworks at the end, tired but so full of joy. Danny and Julie persuaded us to join them, and we’re truly thankful they did. It was exactly what our hearts needed.

After the downer 2 weeks ago, today felt deeply restorative — a gift of laughter, gentle conversations, shared rides and chats while waiting in line.

Final pose

We’re very thankful for friendship, for love, and for moments like these that remind us how blessed we are. Holy Spirit knew the right time for us to receive a lift! And guided our friends to schedule their family holiday to Hong Kong during this time!

Tomorrow we'll go celebrate our anniversary - just the two of us. Right now I'm so grateful to the Holy Spirit for His love and kindness through Danny and Julie. 

 

  

 

First Cell Group retreat

With a grateful heart, I look back on our very first cell group retreat in Hong Kong —a weekend woven together by waiting, laughter, heat, heart-felt conversations, and God’s presence.

Huge roundtable

 After worship on Sunday morning, we boarded a direct coach bound for Liangtang Port of Entry, excited. The five of us Singapore passport holders—HanWei, his two kids, Dinah, and I—waited 90 minutes to clear immigration. It wasn’t the most comfortable start, but even in the waiting, there was anticipation. Holy Spirit was already teaching us patience before the retreat had fully begun.

Airbnb karaoke 

 All 22 of us eventually checked into a huge Airbnb in Jiao Chang Wei, a charming coastal village in Shenzhen. The anticipation and the joy of being together felt like a gift. That evening, we gathered for seafood around a grand roundtable that could seat 22 comfortably! It felt symbolic—one table, one family.

The six kids formed their own “band,” complete with animated performances—though there was no live music. Their laughter filled the room more beautifully than any soundtrack could. Back at the house, couples took turns at karaoke while the children entertained themselves. It was pure fun seeing couples belt out their favourite Cantonese classics. Later, our cell leaders Jason and Jessica invited Dinah and I to share about our week. It was a very rough week, but our cell group surrounded us in prayer. In that moment, we were reminded that community is not just about celebration—it is about carrying one another’s burdens. We felt seen, heard, and upheld.

Help: Summer heat

 We ordered breakfast in on Monday and lingered over heart-to-heart conversations. There was no rush—just space to listen, reflect, and connect more deeply.

 Later, we ventured to Dapeng Fortress. The historic stone walls stood quietly under the blazing summer sun, reminding us of legacy. The heat drove us into an a/c refuge in a café, where Dinah and I had meaningful conversations with Jingjun and folks. Simple moments over cold drinks became sacred pauses.

Hakka cuisine

Later someone introduced us to stinky tofu—an experience few of us will soon forget! What started as hesitation turned into laughter and shared adventure. Lunch at a Hakka restaurant followed, rich with flavours and friendship. 

On the taxi ride back to Hong Kong, HanWei, Jingjun, Dinah and I shared one of those rare, unhurried conversations that only happen when you are traveling together—honest, reflective, grateful. Their kids slept. Though we adults were physically exhausted, our hearts felt more connected than ever.

Pic by Jessie

 This retreat was more than a getaway. It was family expressed in shared meals, prayer circles, sweaty walks under the summer sun, children’s laughter, late-night karaoke, and vulnerable conversations. 

 I thank our heavenly Father:

•  For safe travels across borders.

•  For children who bring joy.

•  For honest conversations that deepen friendships.

• For being present in both waiting lines and worship songs.

• For the gift of family that prays and listens.

Our first cell group retreat here will always be remembered—not because everything was perfect, but because God met us in every moment.

With a thankful heart, I look forward to more journeys together.

The Day

Send off

Dinah had not slept much the past 3 nights, busy packing. I did not sleep well those same nights with my mind on the move. Today we awake early. And say to each other: "It's real!" This is really happening. 

We load luggage onto Teck Huat and Linda's car. And board Suzanna 's car to the airport. There is a sendoff party. And they pray for us. We're touched and hug each one goodbye. As we walk into the secure area, the officer asks why there are so many people in the send off party : )   

My son and I

Onboard Dinah is so tired and falls asleep. I'm feeling glad to have shared my heart with the people earlier. 

Wow, we're actually relocating to a Chinese city to immerse in a Chinese church! What will this 1 year be like?

Suddenly I experience a moment of panic. I feel like going back. Holy Spirit calms my heart... Then I pray for a love for the Hong Kong people.

Weimin & Purple

 Boy am I glad to see Weimin and Purple at the HK airport! It's winter and the temperature is a nice 20C : ) We stop for a brief transit at his place to get a lugagge of ours that we sent over earlier. Here we meet Aleph, Jolyn, Basil, Ruby and Goodness : )

 Next Aleph and Purple bring us to check in to our service apartment. It's suite # 770. Aleph or Purple said: "Perfect! Perfect!" And it is just beside Ting Kau bridge, lit up with a red line. I said: "We're under the blood!"

We go in. The view of the cove is breathtaking! What a welcome sight : ) Going to enjoy this!   

Aleph & Purple

Then Aleph and Purple take us out to dinner. It's our first meal in our new home city! After a yummy local meal and catchup with long-time friends, we unpack. There are 6 large luggage to work through. Also, we realise we do need groceries and household essentials. Plus there are tonnes of texts to reply. Exhausted, I sleep at 1:30 am and Dinah at 3 am.  

Grace upon Grace

Two Sundays ago, we were on the way to my sister-in-law's place for dinner when Dinah asked how I felt about the upcoming commissioning. This triggered a flashback. Memories started flooding my mind. I was brought back to 1996 when we discovered that Dinah was pregnant – with twins. We were going to be first-time parents. Everything was going to change. Just 1 month later, I was asked to serve as Senior Pastor of our former church. I had just turned 28. And this invitation came out of the blue. Everything was going to change for our church. After much prayer, my pregnant wife and I stepped into this assignment with fear and trembling. Looking back, God’s grace was on us as parents and for the ministry assignment.

In recent years, I was led to pioneer sexual wholeness and then whole life discipleship. Working with different churches was new. Again, there was grace. It was serving here when Dinah and I got reconnected with RiverLife Church through Pastor Lionel. Eventually Pastor Lionel and Elder Aaron would invite Dinah and I to serve with them in RiverLife. You can read that story here  http://benkclee.blogspot.com/2018/03/another-transition.html. Once again we were not expecting this – but it happened. Here is another perspective of the same story  http://www.riverlife.org.sg/leadership-succession.

After 5-10 seconds of flashbacks, I answered Dinah - "I feel God’s grace again being invited to serve as Senior Pastor the second time." (The difference this time: Dinah is not pregnant and I am no longer 28.) The moment I replied was when I realised the date of the commissioning was 05/05. Right then it struck me that the number five is associated with grace and redemption. There were two fives on the date so double grace. That's what I told Dinah - double grace. She replied, “grace upon grace”. And so we both came to this Scripture.

"For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace" John 1:16 (ESV)

Today is 05/05. This morning I was commissioned by our elders and senior leaders to serve as Senior Pastor. Our outgoing Senior Pastor Lionel Goh was smiling radiantly. He has been very happy for quite a few months. In his final message today as our Senior Pastor, he smilingly said that he and I are the happiest persons present. He was certainly very happy. The emotion I felt leading up to this morning and this morning was not quite happiness but a range actually.  

I do feel a sense of excitement for what's ahead that's mixed with the realisation of what's needed.This might have been how I also felt in 1996. I am sure there is happiness in there somewhere : ) Today I felt very encouraged. Our close friends were present, standing with us. Our twins could witness today's commissioning. They missed the first time because they were still in the womb during March 1996. Then the commissioning service today was very authentic and very honouring. Both services moved many hearts deeply. It felt like something shifted today.

In my message as incoming Senior Pastor, I encouraged our people that when everything seems to be changing, Deuteronomy 31:2-3 (from Pastor Lionel's message) reminds us that God remains the same. He never changes. He is faithful, and that:

“For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace” John 1:16 (ESV)

With this assurance - I called our church to join hearts and walk together to prepare the Bride of Christ for the imminent return of the Bridegroom.

Another Transition

It was May 2014 when I joined Focus on the Family. I started with pioneering sexual wholeness. This morphed into pioneering the Whole Life approach to discipleship together with Dinah who was also at Focus. This initiative was well received. Over 30 churches have taken or is about to take the Whole Life Inventory. Of these, 6 churches invited Dinah and I to coach them in the Whole Life approach.

With Whole Life taking off, Dinah and I began waiting on our heavenly Father for longer-term direction. Our prayer: Do we go deeper with Whole Life - including sexual wholeness?

As we prayed, several things became evident.  The first were two words. 

Go Deeper

Over the past 4 years at Focus we have gone wide with Whole Life as we worked with various churches and leadership teams. For our next season, we felt that we will continue with Whole Life but that we needed to go deeper. The question was: Is Focus the platform to go deeper?

Church partners could not see Whole Life fleshed out in a local church. We can probably go a bit further in a para-church. But going deep in a local church will enable us to pilot Whole Life and implement the full outworking -- going right into the cell groups and homes within a congregation. We became more convinced that we had to go deeper. There was another development.

Prophetic Words 

My year of Jubilee started March 2017. Over that February-March period, I received prophetic words from three persons in random situations. The words received combined "50" (meaning 2018) with both "Pastor" and "Senior Pastor". One went like this – “You will pastor a church that will lead people in the narrow and winding path that leads to salvation.” 

Signs seemed to point back to the local church in 2018. Dinah and I intensified praying towards the fact we would deep dive -- into one local church. Our sensing was to move on in March 2018, with or without jobs. However, 1^st March 2018 would be the annual luncheon that Focus hosts for Lead Pastors and Senior Leaders. We both felt that that we needed to stay on until 1st March help at this gathering. Then we received another piece of guidance. 

Just Wait Upon Me   

As we continued to pray, we felt the Lord asking us not to apply for any positions. After all, we desired a calling and we already have jobs. At the same time, we sensed that the next assignment would involve both Dinah and I. This meant that the eventual church, where we would deep dive, would make the approach and invite both of us. We noted that the approaches since 2010 were for me rather than for both. Finally, we also sensed it needed to be a Whole Life church. 

Accordingly, I turned down approaches for me only. Several churches approached both of us. And some were Whole Life churches. These senior leaders shared their hearts with us. We shared our heart for holistic lifespan discipleship. Then we committed all this to prayer and fasting, keeping close friends and our children in the loop. We finally shortlisted after rounds of discussions. The best fit was RiverLife Church. It was end-Oct 2017 when Dinah and I said yes to RiverLife, just as Dinah entered her Jubilee. 

RiverLife Church has invited Dinah and I to be part of their Senior Leadership Team.  The church is part of a family of Singapore churches known as the Bartley Family of Churches (BFOC). There are 4 local churches who are part of this extended spiritual family.

Dinah and I approached our bosses at Focus to share all this. We gave over 4 months’ notice. Our last day was yesterday (sob). Focus was gracious and invited us to share our Whole Life journey with the 260 church leaders present at the event yesterday. The pastors and leaders present prayed for our transition led by the Singapore Anglican Bishop Rennis Ponniah. 

My jubilee will end today. Today will also be the start of Dinah and my mini-sabbatical. We will enjoy a breather before we join up with RiverLife in end-March. Another adventure awaits... 

Jul 2015

Our highlight in July is the North America annual conference. There was much work and multiple night-time meetings before the trip. There was the farewell for Paul. And JDOP was amazing. 

Dinah and I did not sleep on the night before our early morning flight. It was a blessing to be on oversold flight and to be upgraded - on one of the three flights. Then the Vegas airport with its slot machines was a bit of a shock. The dry 38C temperature was not fun. We checked in to the hotel room in Henderson and then caught up with the leaders over dinner. The sleep afterwards was :)

The next day was one full day of pastors with the pastors. The following day saw meetings and  evening time was our first session. I felt the Lord tugging my heart to switch messages during worship. It went well. Meal times were spent with different leaders. After conference, our friends took us to the strip for dinner. Then we flew home. We thanked God for the positive atmosphere of unity. Upon arriving, we rested and took care of errands. There was time with the twins.  

But there was one night where jet lag hit and sleep was disrupted. So my throat went funny. I tried out drinking freshly squeezed lemon juice. It was very sour but also very effective.

We resumed family prayer. Our car COE expired and we got a replacement. There was one day of heavy rain  when we went jogging. Then the Focus staff retreat was fun. Our family enjoyed VSION at the Esplanade. We watched 7 Letters with Li Chuang at the new Capitol. Later Inn Siew joined us. Elvira’s birthday party was a blast and I reunited with aunt Mui Lan. There was time with Lionel and Han Hui. There was dinner with Jan's family.

Ministry wise, there was global polity work and the NA follow-up matters. 

All the above

June was slightly less packed. There were more fun moments. Dinah and the twins took me out on Fathers Day. Jan invited us over for a meal. Our family also had dinner with the Luns.

Dinah and I could catch up with Hock Lin and Dora, and with Shih Fen. We also caught up with Chiew Bong and Dora, and with Simon. Vincent hosted our pastors gathering. And I got to know Richard.

It was a privilege to speak at the Glad Tidings Church camp in Johor. It was a great opportunity to serve this church that helped us when we first pioneered our church. We were blessed to know the church leaders and members too.

There was a weekend when Dinah spoke at Bartley Christian Church as I spoke at Yio Chu Kang Chapel. And there was marriage mentoring. Then I spoke for Focus at Grace Methodist Church. Ministry wise, there was also CATALYSE, NA camp prep and Global Polity drafting.

Then I felt unwell one Sunday evening. Afterwards I fell ill for four days. Was this due to the weather, the schedule, weekend ministry trips or all the above?

The low point happened on Friday, June 26 when the SCOTUS redefined marriage. No words could describe my feelings...

Packed & Cold

The month of May was packed. Dinah and I helped a friend's church in Bangkok over a weekend. There was a one day workshop, a Sunday message and 2 talks on Sunday afternoon. But it was good to catch up with Kobchai, Nuey and many old friends.

It was also exciting to pioneer a new training on sexuality. Dinah and I also had marriage mentoring. We spoke for Focus at the Singapore Life Church. There was one Sunday when Dinah spoke at Living Waters Methodist church whist I spoke at Cherith Baptist church. Then I also ministered at the Glory Joy Christian Church. 

   

The low point in May happened after the trip. The first day after happened to be a long work day. Two days later, a sore throat arrived. Next I was thoroughly sick with a cold virus for four days. Sigh. 

In a full month, our family did enjoy one day out along with a movie. We also joined Momentum 2015. On Mother's Day, Dinah's extended family celebrated with her mom. Dinah and I got to know Daniel and Janice. And the COE for our car runs out in 2 months...

I was thankful for one particular hot day with much rain. There were several hot days with some rain. But the forecast is for more hotter days ahead - without rain. Sigh.

The heat is on

Easter weekend was memorable. Our family joined a Passover Meal on Good Friday. The long weekend was also nice. Then Deb started her internship. And there was Momentum 2015.

There was a catch up with my former CEO Hyong. There was Anthony and Hui Ling’s 20^th anniversary celebration. It was good to have  time with Mabel, with Nic, with Richard and Yuet Mei, with Wenjiang and Claramae, and with Nam Seng and Sok Mian. There was also time with my pastor friends.

One forgettable moment was opening a pastor friend's email and getting phished. So there was damage control (sigh). There was also the late tax return submission but thankfully not too late. 

Dinah and I ran a focus group for singles ministry. We trained a new generation of marriage mentors. We also spoke at Bethesda Frankel Estate Church. There was an interview for HIM's anniversary publication. There was the CATALYSE report. And there was the global polity meeting and the follow-up.

There were many hot days with some rain on a few afternoons. The heat is on.

Intense Emotions

March was a month of intense emotions.

Days, nights and weekends were all building up to the the sexuality conference. There were multiple local partners, speakers and speaker books to manage on top of the conference proper. I had a plenary session as well. The conference saw many walk-in registrations. The night session was virtually full house. I felt exhausted but joy-filled. After 2 days, we said our good byes as Dinah and I took the twins who volunteered at the conference for a special treat. Straight after, we began preparations for the special pastors tea.   

Again days, nights and the weekend were spent on preparations. There was broken sleep. This special pastors' tea was also the first of its nature. Mr LKY passes 3 days before. Affected, we continued and launched the Whole-Life Discipleship framework to pastors. Afterwards, Dinah and I took the twins who volunteered at the conference for a special treat. 

The final week was very intense. We cried throughout as we watched Farewell to LKY on Mar 29. It’s been an emotional week for the nation. My batteries were flat but tried to wrap up matters from conference and pastors tea. Treated our team to a special meal. Dinah and I went to the movies one night.

The first half of the month was less emotional except for the first day of the new office IT system. This impacted online registrations. This drama spilled over to our family outing. Also, Dinah and I had an interesting dinner with Che Ahn, Larry Bolz, Vincent and Genevie, Simon and Ping, Daniel and Joy. We had an unexpected meal with Pear, Derek and Gideon and then with Glen. 

Our family celebrated my birthday. Leonard took me out to lunch. There was an extended birthday meal with Vincent and Jenny.The guys in the office and our team took me out. The support group celebrated too. The staff team celebration was special with a watermelon as cake. I took this to symbolise fruit from gardening in the Sacred Garden.

This first half afforded some ministry time. Dinah and I spoke at Elim Church. Dinah spoke at Zion Full Gospel church. I also spoke at the English Presbytery Co-Workers Fellowship, the Board of Children's Ministry TRAC and Grace AG church.

March started out hot and humid. Days were mainly warm with clouds in the afternoon. Grateful for some drizzle and even rain. 

A welcome rest

February was Lunar New Year celebrations. The 5-day break was a welcome rest after an intense early 7 weeks in 2015. It was great to chill with our family, with Dinah's extended family and with friends. I called dad and mom. We had dinners with Dinah's family. We visited Esmond and Sue, Yu Ming and Linda, Vincent and Jenny, and Jacq visited us. We caught a movie and I caught up with writing. The weather was warm but cloudy.

There were good times outside LNY celebrations. There were catch ups with Kok Hiang and Sharon, with Henry, Melvyn, Boon Hup, Vincent and Kok Hiang, and with Charmaine too. There was jogging and family prayer.

Ministry wise, there was the launch of the new support group. Dinah and I spent Valentine's Day with couples from True Way Presbyterian Church. I did a mini-series at Living Waters Methodist church and spoke at the Fellowship of Christian Care Professionals. And church polity drafting.

Weather wise, there were cool days at the start. It became warm but cloudy with some rain. There were more hot days though. The last day of the month was a real scorcher. A sign of days to come?

Cushioned with breezes

Spring cleaning extended into the first weekend of the new year. Decluttering included scanning so to discard hardcopies. Then the first day of work was stepping into a newly renovated office. The first work week involved unpacking and rearranging furniture as contractors touch up. Work days are packed with multiple meetings since most of us were away for much of December.

January felt particularly hectic because of 2 work trips within 2 weeks. The first was Summit 2015 in Malacca. It was good to reconnect with pastor friends. The plenary sessions and testimonies were refreshing. Dinah and I joined the very early morning prayer. It was an enjoyable first and only regret was coming back with a cold. The second trip was to a family life pastors' consultation in KL. It was my first outing with this fraternity. It was good to meet Sabahan pastors, connect with Fung Fong, and catch up with Willie, Tryphena and Sylvia.

One January highlight was to catch up with Wee Leng, Wan Phing and Sharon. It was also good to gather with Glen, Swee Tin, Dennis, Laura and Paul. There was Skype catch up with Todd and Joan. And it was good to get to know Hock Cheng and Camelia along with Calvin and Grace plus their 3 girls. 

The new ministry year re-started too. I ministered at the Shekinah AG church and for the Eagles youth seminar. Mentoring and global polity work also resumed. Then sermon preparations featured on evenings and on weekends. 

Early parts of January saw some rain. Days are getting a little warmer but are cushioned with morning and evening breezes. Breezy times are when walk-a-jogs continued.

Quebec, Sabah & Singapore

December played out in 3 parts.

The first 10 days was all about ministry in Quebec. We reunited with our friend Eric for ministry but this time in winter. It was great to meet the new team in Montreal. This trip was both fruitful and freezing for Dinah and I. After this very cold climate in Canada, we spent 3 short days in Singapore re-acclimatising. I met Sebastian from Germany. During this time Dinah fell ill.

Then our family spent 10 days in Sabah. Dinah took this time to recuperate. My brother was back from UK so the whole family was together. Sabah was all about family. We conversed with dad, mom and my siblings. The family hung out together. It was very nice to enjoy home-cooked dishes that we grew up with (pic). I also caught up with childhood friends - Albert, Martin and Robert as well as an old friend from SG - Chiew Bong. Then I spoke at the Hope KK church too.

The last 8 days was Christmas and New Year in Singapore. There was Christmas celebrations with Dinah's extended family. Jan hosted a Christmas dinner. There was an extended evening with Charmaine and Li Chuang and then with Michael and Lean Choo. Jefferson dropped by. Li Chuang visited. Seng Hock called from Cambodia. I spoke at the SJSM church. And we spent 3 days spring cleaning. Needed to get our home more liveable now that we are staying.

Got no complaints about the weather. The 31 days in December were simply beautiful.

Change in the air

It was very special to have Stan and Samuel visit us. This was a very memorable evening. Here's a pic by Daniel.

In the month, Dinah and I got to know Richard, Silas and Mona from Shekinah AG church. We caught up with Simon Eng. There was a fun dinner with Yiu Wah, Yeow Chuan, wife, kids and Daryl, There was the extended evening with Tiong Howe. There was time with Henson and catch-up with Vincent and Jenny.

Otherwise, November felt very much like a month of preparation. There was planning and preparation including late nights and weekends for LEGACY, for Quebec and the upcoming wholeness conference.

Ministry wise, there was LEGACY. Dinah and I also ministered at the Faith AG church marital sexuality workshop. I spoke to AG ministers and at Shekinah AG church. I also spoke at KCC. Then I joined the Yale-NUS Christian Fellowship. There was a thank-you dinner for long-time church members. There was a conference call as well as mentoring.

Whilst jogging in the middle of the month, I felt the humidity retreating with a familiar incoming breeze. There is a temperature change in the air. Cooler season is coming. There were also a few afternoon showers during the month and a bit of nice weather at month-end. 

Birthdays

October is when three quarters of our household celebrate birthdays. The first celebration for Dinah was at the office. Different ones also took her out for lunch. Our family took Dinah to lunch and to dinner. Jan celebrated. Then Dinah and I took the twins out to lunch, for shopping and to dinner. Jan also celebrated. The care group surprised them. In between celebrations, we caught an awesome movie. At month-end, the twins went on live radio to share a teen perspective on parenting at 938LIVE.

Our buddies gathered and celebrated Dinah and Paul's birthdays. Our family caught up with Charmaine. And she sprang birthday gifts. Dinah and I celebrated Leslie’s birthday too. Stan, Norhaya and family had our family over for a meal. Calvin and Charis took us to dinner. Don and Su Ching hosted us at their place. I also caught up with Jason. Our family loved the WTA matches with Christian and Michael. 

Ministry wise, Dinah and I continued with marriage mentoring. We joined a session with Mark Sandford. We visited David and Alice's family ministry group. I had mentoring and also moderated at the Female Intimacy session There was the Global Polity meeting and ministering at Grace AG and SJSM. 

The hot days became hazy too (sigh). And I find myself thinking of year-end weather.

Pretty Intense

One big part of Sep was Mark Holmen's ministry trip. Dinah and I helped to host him at seminars, consultations and meetings. This 12-day visit took up much of the first half of the month. It was pretty intense. Then we helped host Michael Brown for a seminar during month-end.
In between the visits, it was a lot of catch up with work piled up during Mark's visit.  There was a visit to a support group. There was a NA conference call. There were mentoring sessions. I also spoke at Wesley.
Dinah and I did take time off to hang out with the twins. We managed some spring cleaning. Family prayer continued. Jogging and swimming continued too. The highlight was the Cavalia show, courtesy of the twins. My down side in Sep was the 2 days of broken sleep. Also had to fix one part of the car.
It was great to bump into Francis one morning. Then Betty cooked us dinner and Chin Sim hosted lunch. The Luns got us to celebrate the Maks birthday birthday together. There was a great time with Alan and Jason. And we hosted dinner for Evelyn and Benni.

A Spike

August saw a sudden spike in ministry and meetings.

Our family volunteered at Liberty League's Lasting Lessons. Dinah and I had marriage mentoring and Dinah and I spoke for Focus at Pasir Panjang Methodist and at Prinsep Street Presbyterian. Then I spoke at at New Horizon and to a team at Wesley Methodist. It was fun to be part of the forum panel at the quarterly Baptist Convention Pillars of Leadership (pic).
I had mentoring sessions. 

There were conference calls with NA leaders and with the Global Polity team. Then there was an endless stream of internal meetings as well external work meetings. Hope its a once-off. Or maybe the work is picking up. 

One memorable meal was catching up with long-lost friends at Christina's place. Another was catching up with Gift after years. Henson's launch of Archippus Awakening was special. Thankful for special times with Andy, with Paul, with Charmaine and with Joy. Here we come September...

HARVEST

HARVEST: 2014 North America Annual Conference was the big date in our annual calendar. This year Dinah and I were in Seattle spending time with individuals before conference. Next we conducted a 2-day pastors retreat. Then it was ministering in the 4-day conference.  So glad to reunite with folks from Canada and US. And I shared that our relocation is off after trying 5 years. Managed to catch up with more people after conference. In total, 8 days in July went into HARVEST, excluding post-trip jet-lag.

Ministry included working on global polity and ministering with church leaders at a Methodist church. Then two friends approached at different times to talk about same-sex attraction issues.

Dinah and I celebrated our 22nd wedding anniversary. It was a memorable day... And our family finally watched Frozen after a 6-year old friend loaned us her DVD. Weekly family prayer and work-outs resumed after HARVEST. We made time to join the Burning Hearts conference as well as Tryphena's seminars in Singapore.

There was a pastor friend's surprise party which turned out to be a real surprise when the organisers realised they got the date wrong. It was also a surprise to bump into Sue-Ann and her kids two Saturdays in a row. My circle of friends got to visit Kok Hiang and the new CRU office. 

Work wise, we were back in the office the day after arriving from Seattle. Had to organise an important event for church leaders. And then work on follow-through into August. 

New Season

Dinah and the twins took me out on Father's Day to celebrate. Another family highlight was time at a camp with Eddie Ma. There was also a memorable dinner with Paul.

Dinah and I met Benjamin and Ailene. We finally caught up with Wee Leng and Wan Phing. Kenny connected Tony Siew and I. Then I met Hon. And it was good to catch up with Edmond.

The adventure in Focus continued. There were
so many meetings. There was time for existing ministry. Dinah and I hosted an amazing session on marital sexuality. There was a global polity meeting. I spoke at Life United. Got to know Darren, Angela, Phoebe, Victoria, Emily and Chau. I continued with mentoring.

  

Much of June evenings and weekends were spent preparing for HARVEST. There were Skype calls, message preparation, packing and praying. Dinah and I flew off on Jun 29 via Taipei. There was time to connect with Seattle folks before HARVEST and prepare for the retreat and conference.

A developing story

May weather is my least favourite. But I'm thankful for the intermittent rain to cool the scorching heat and incessant humidity. Overall, May has been a month of two parts.

The first part was a time of waiting. Dinah and I have been praying intensely since November. Just like over 3 years ago, I was convicted to wait and not apply for positions. In waiting, it was becoming clear to focus on wholeness. And I got a download to help build spiritually and sexually whole people and families.

I have always desired to mentor and to pioneer. And trans-local ministry has been in my heart for years. Trans-local ministry is to minister across congregational, denominational and 'secular'-sacred boundaries as part of the Kingdom mandate. This call meant that I began to decline church offers coming in. Trans-local ministries also began approaching. So I asked myself - Do I start a new platform or plug in to an existing one to leverage start-up time...

Several things did continue throughout the month. Our family discussed and prayed over my next season. Weekend jogs continued. Dinah and Deb ran at the Sundown Marathon. We celebrated Eat With Your Family day, Mothers Day dinner with Dinah then with Dinah's mom. We were interviewed on the Between Us radio programme on 938LIVE. And I watched highlights of Arsenal's FA cup victory more than once.

There were some great moments with friends. There was the lunch with Jason and Leslie, and with Kevin. Edwin and Rosie had us over for dinner. Alan and Natasha also had us over for dinner. Dinah and I enjoyed times with Joshua and Claramae, and with our old friend Quan too.

Ministry also continued throughout May. We stepped up preparations for HARVEST NAAC 2014. Dinah and I volunteered at Liberty League, a community service organisation. We ministered at Grace Baptist church. There was one weekend where Dinah spoke at Wesley Methodist as I spoke at KCC. I ministered at KCC's inaugural ministry team gathering and also spoke at Life United church.

The other part of May was pretty exciting. It began with signing on the dotted line with Focus on the Family Singapore. The arrangement is that I would continue ministry with HIM. This effectively starts a new chapter. There remains uncertainty and challenges. But will take it one step at a time. So I humbly ask for you to uphold us in your prayers. 

This is a developing story.