Saturday, 30 September, 9:00 am to 1:30 pm
Trinity Theological College
Level 1, Multi-purpose Hall
490 Upper Bukit Timah Rd S678093
Cost: $10
All youths and young adults (15–35 years old) are invited to participate in this joint missions seminar organised by FES and GoForth 2023. We will explore whether there is a new mandate and mission for youths and young adults in this world of hyperchange. So much has happened since Covid-19 and many new questions are being asked about Missions and the future of it. We now respond to these questions and learn to be aware of more changes to come.
Registration is now closed.
Keynote
Rev Dr Andrew Peh is a lecturer in mission and world religions at Trinity Theological College (TTC). He is an alumnus of TTC as well as Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore Kentucky, USA. He is ordained as a diaconal minister in the Chinese Annual Conference of the Methodist Church in Singapore and is attached to Bukit Panjang Methodist Church. His research interests are in colonial missions history of Southeast Asia (Singapore) and the missions history of East Asia (particularly Japanese Christianity).
Workshops
The Influence of Adulting on Missions – Vincent Lim
Adulting brings with it a new set of challenges, responsibilities and concerns as we transition into young adults. For example, we may find ourselves with less time and energy, be preoccupied with chasing the Singaporean Dream, or harder to give up time to “do ministry” instead of hustling or resting after the hustle. Does growing up mean that missions are no longer for us? How can we reconcile these practical issues against God’s call to make disciples of the nations? Join us to explore and wrestle with these issues in this workshop.
Vincent Lim is a missionary with the Methodist Missions Society of Singapore and has been serving in northeast Thailand since 2017. He started exploring missions since he was 21 years old. In his first year of undergraduate studies in NUS, he joined a missions programme through the Varsity Christian Fellowship. Through that programme, God started a desire in him to minister to the Thais. He then started to take Thai elective modules in the university and led mission teams to Thailand. To prepare for the mission field, he finished his theological studies at Trinity Theological College in 2015 followed by 2 years of full-time work in the local church.
The Influence of Pop Culture on Missions – Dr Justin Lee
In a world deeply influenced by popular culture, our approach to missions faces new challenges and opportunities—Christian mission is widely seen in popular culture as a fear-based message like “believe or go to hell”, and the Church is seen as outdated, oppressive or exploitative. In this workshop, we will explore the intersection of faith and pop culture, and discuss how to engage with a world shaped by media, entertainment, and evolving spiritual narratives.
Dr Justin Lee is a Korean-American from Los Angeles. He came to Singapore in 2019 to join the faculty of Singapore Bible College. Before coming to Singapore, he did his PhD in patristics in the UK and a postdoc in Germany. Though trained as a historical theologian, Justin is also interested in Asian theology and Asian-American theology. He is currently working on a project on theological methodology in Asia. Justin has also ministered in Korean diaspora churches around the world, mostly in youth ministry. He enjoys sports of all kinds (especially the American ones), good food, nature walks, reading, and stimulating conversations. He currently worships at Bartley Christian Church.
The Influence of Digitalisation on Missions – Pauline Phoon
In our ever-connected world, the landscape of missions is evolving at an unprecedented pace. The traditional concept of traveling to reach others is evolving, and new doors are opening for sharing the Gospel and ministering to diverse communities right where you are. In this digital age, the needs of communities have shifted, requiring a paradigm shift in our approach to missions. Missions are no longer solely about, for example, building physical infrastructure. Instead, we need to identify the new needs of communities. In this workshop, we will explore the dynamic intersection of faith, technology, and globalisation, and discover how we might leverage these forces to further God’s kingdom in today’s digital world.
Pauline Phoon is the founder of COMEBACK PTE LTD and SOOS OIO LLP. She noticed the societal and relational gaps that were being formed with the meteoric rise of gaming, and so she began to first plug those gaps with simple engagement activities for gamers. As her understanding of the psychology of games and gamers deepened, she developed various training programmes which continued to expand over the years. Pauline has been in the forefront of Youth Culture for more than a decade through Monsoon Productions Pte Ltd and Soulmanna Live Pte Ltd. She was the first to introduce the YouTube wave from the United States into the Asia Pacific, working with first generation Asian American YouTubers. She currently worships at Cornerstone Community Church.
The Influence of Plenty on Missions – Chng Eu-Lee
We often approach missions with preconceived notions shaped by our experience of plenty. For example, we tend to focus on poverty as an indicator of spiritual need, to the neglect of other forms of poverty impoverished people groups experience. Our experience of plenty might also cloud our eyes with a misconstrued sense of pride, a sense of playing god in the lives of others, that we are the ones going to help them, thus making us vulnerable to being insensitive to the people we are trying to help and their culture. In this workshop, we will explore the motivations behind our involvement in mission work. Are we driven by legalism, seeing it as an obligation? Do we engage in missions to boost our public image and attain a false sense of holiness, especially when we share our experiences on social media? Are we really facilitating the transformation in people’s lives? Are we doing more harm than good? This workshop aims to inspire a more genuine, compassionate, and culturally sensitive approach to missions, encouraging you to reassess your role in the global mission field.
Chng Eu-Lee is a senior program manager with World Vision US where he oversees the design and implementation of faith-based programmes in Asia. His work involves ensuring WV programmes have strong biblical foundations; equipping staff and church leaders in theology, development theory and social sciences; strengthening collaborations between WV, churches and other faith actors, and building evidence on impact of faith engagement in alleviating poverty. He is the Vice-Chair of Micah Global, an international network of Christians active in relief, development, care and advocacy. He is also serving as a board member with Operation Mobilisation Singapore. He holds a Master in Transformational Development and is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Ministry with the Asia Graduate School of Theology (AGST) Alliance.
The Influence of the Future on Missions – Rev Dr Nathanael Goh
The future is often described as VUCA – volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous – something we must address as we share the sure and certain hope of Christ with others. How does the Christian gospel offer hope for a planet engulfed in climate change? What exactly is being redeemed – is the gospel only for our souls, or does it encompass the greater cosmos? What future are we preparing for? Our eschatology will shape our understanding of and approach to mission. In a world where dystopian narratives dominate the news, how does the gospel offer hope and transformation in the midst of despair? These are some of the issues we will explore in this workshop.
Rev Dr Nathanael Goh is an ordained elder in the Chinese Annual Conference of the Methodist Church in Singapore. He serves as lecturer in Christian ethics at Trinity Theological College. An avid Manchester United supporter, Nathanael is married to Charmaine and they have two children: Jonathan and Joelle. He currently worships at Sengkang Methodist Church.