Why does it seem that things are going so well for my brother even though he doesn’t have God in his life? He has a stable job, enjoys his time going out with friends and has found a life partner (albeit a non- Christian), while I spend most of my free time on church activities and have yet to find a life partner. It seems unfair to me.
One statistic that recently caught my eye is the number of transnational marriages registered in Singapore in 2022. Such marriages, between a citizen and someone hailing from another country, account for about one out of every three unions. This means that of the nearly 30,000 marriages last year, 10,000 were transnational.
I have a close friend from secondary school whom I used to hang out with a lot. Recently, she seems uninterested in spending time with me and has started spending more time with her colleagues. She told me that I need to look for new friends. I feel hurt because I thought we were friends and we had supported each other through several difficult times in our friendship. I do have other friends, but I don’t understand why some friendships have to end just because new friends appear.
I’ve had to deal with my mother’s mood swings for the past 16 years since she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and prior to that, with her depressive episodes since my father passed away in my teens. Often, to preserve my own sanity and protect my children from the toxicity and negativity, I’ve chosen to keep a distance as each visit leaves me emotionally drained. I continue to care for her and maintain constant contact via text. But I am often made to feel guilty by well-meaning friends who feel I should spend more time with her. Where do I draw the line between honouring my mother, and caring for myself and my family?
For more than 20 years of marriage, my husband has struggled with addictions of different kinds. Currently (and for the most prolonged period), he is addicted to a mobile game that results in him having a device in front of him, at work, during meals or family game time. Even though he claims that the game is just “running in the background”, I feel it makes him less “present” and is affecting his ability to keep up with conversations in the household. It makes the children and me feel less valued. How can I help him to break this addiction without being a nag?
When the SARS epidemic swept through Singapore in 2003, Mr Teo Kim Seng’s packaging business took such a hard hit that he ended up filing for bankruptcy and switching to a taxi driving career. Soon after, cracks formed in his marriage, which wound up in divorce in 2015.
At TRAC Healing Ministry and Cairnhill Methodist Church, we have seen God heal all kinds of sickness, ranging from cancer, pain, gastrointestinal issues to deafness. At the most recent TRAC Healing Service in Aldersgate Methodist Church on 23 August 2023, we saw God heal arthritis, claw toe and knee pain; two persons on wheelchairs even started to walk!
Hosted by Sabah Annual Conference, the World Federation of the Chinese Methodist Churches (WFCMC) 10th Youth Leaders’ Conference (YLC) was held in Sabah, Malaysia from 6 to 10 July 2023. More than 150 Chinese Methodist youth leaders from West Malaysia, Sarawak, Sabah, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Australia participated.
Our world is saturated with images. Visuals are ubiquitous. They grace magazine covers and populate brochures and billboards.
Images push and shove their way into our line of sight. From logos on T-shirts to tattoos and graffiti, from graphic novels to flickering images on our computer screens, everywhere we look we are inundated by photos, icons, and graphics.
In August 1888, a woman missionary, Miss Sophia Blackmore, started a class for eight Nonya girls in a little rented Peranakan house at Cross Street, which became known as Telok Ayer Girls’ School. Through the years, it expanded and in 1912, under the leadership of Miss Mary Olson, it moved to Neil Road where it was renamed Fairfield Girls’ School in honour of a generous benefactor, Mr James Fairfield, who donated the largest sum of US$5,000 for the new school building.
