Opinion

The Rev Dr Douglas E. Wingeier, who had lectured at Trinity Theological College, visited Singapore recently, and preached a sermon at Kampong Kapor Methodist Church on Feb 22, 2004. Below is a summary of the sermon. WHEN Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem on his last fateful week, he exclaimed, “If you had only […]

WHENEVER the question of church growth surfaces among pastors or church leaders, it presents an opportunity for either boasting one’s achievement for the church or defending the existing condition of the church. Statements like “We have experienced phenomenal growth under my leadership”, “stability is the key to our membership” and “quality is more important than […]

PART 8 OF THE SERIES OF MEDITATIONS ON ‘WISDOM TO LIVE BY: MODERN REFLECTIONS ON AN ANCIENT TEXT’   Ecclesiastes 4:1-6 IN VERSES 4-6, the Preacher turns to a subject that is especially relevant for Christians in Singapore: competitiveness. Competitiveness can be said to be healthy in that it may contribute to character formation. But […]

Finding rest in the midst of restlessness THE scream of a disturbed child shatters the silence of the night. It is soon joined by a mother’s loving and reassuring lullaby. Fear and love then have a strange conversation and fear begins to listen to love. The frightened child is soothed when he feels his mother’s […]

After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave … I’M SURE you’ve seen pictures of the Amish. They are […]

A YEAR ago, a schoolmate of mine, now an assistant pastor at an Assemblies of God church, asked me what my primary ministry was. I said, “My wife.” She laughed, “No, I mean in church. Do you see your main ministry as the youth or prayer or what?” And I continued my unconventional chant, “My […]

IT MUST feel strange to Christians of earlier generations if they were to attend modern worship services. One of the things they would find extremely odd is the absence of the prayer of confession which is an essential part of the worship service. Could it be that it is no longer fashionable to talk about […]

Preaching at Telok Ayer Chinese Methodist Church on Nov 16, 2003, Bishop Dr Robert Solomon addressed an issue that has been of deep interest to many Christians, Methodist and others – the question of “speaking in tongues” and its authenticity. A summary of his sermon follows. WITH John Wesley and John Calvin, we share in […]

IMAGINE a woman wearing an apron and holding a frying pan containing a hot pancake running up the pathway leading to the sanctuary in your church compound. Besides frowns and amusement, you may be baffled when the woman begins her confession of sins. Pure imagination and speculation in a time when we are required to […]

LONDON — The understanding of life as a journey has always played an important part in Christian imagery, but for John Wesley and the early Methodist pioneers, journeying was also of enormous practical significance — not the least because of its importance in holding together and strengthening the spreading network of Methodism. During his lifetime, […]

FAMILY stories often seem to have recurring themes. Some therapists call them family scripts. It seems as if unwritten but nevertheless powerful scripts find expression generation after generation. Researchers have noted that certain patterns in attitude and behaviour tend to be repeated in family history. Alcoholism, suicide, domestic violence, broken families, and other patterns of […]

ARE you a dragon? A horse? A Gemini? A Librian? Astrology uses these signs to describe you by judging the positions and qualities of the stars and planets according to their influence on events or human personality – in fact, upon all areas of life, including the future. Astrology sees our world as a miniature […]