I had a very full and eventful week. Preparing to teach the book of Revelation was challenging. I should add that the teacher is often blessed as he spends hours studying and digging into the Word. Unusually, I forgot to save my intense work of many hours and I had to restart. So, I was doubly blessed!

I also preached at the weekly chapel at Trinity Theological College on Wednesday. In such an academic setting, everything has to be scripted and submitted for the translator into Mandarin. It was stretching.

There were also side meetings to resolve various ministry challenges. On Friday evening, it was our Connect Group leaders meeting where we were all briefed on how we may organise our CG Christmas outreach and how it fits into our preparations for next year’s Celebration of Hope. Then on Saturday, it was my privilege to show appreciation to our Children Ministry teachers through one thing which I do reasonably well: cooking.

The usual weekend preaching and leading Services ensued. I managed to sit in for Jeremy Gwee’s preaching at the eleven:30 Service. Being his first, I thought I should be there. Being a recent retiree after many years in banking and finance, he could connect with the congregation in a unique way, and issues of faith in the marketplace came alive. Jeremy is working at helping SAC to start an active marketplace ministry where we can draw alongside Cathedral members who are a part of society’s workforce, which of course includes many of us. We will let you know soon on what is being planned.

In the evening, I attended the 12th Anniversary dinner of New Charis Mission, where we celebrated this important work to youths at risk, the elderly, destitute etc. It was definitely a switch of gear but encouraging nevertheless to see the reach of the Gospel.

This pace was different, coming after a relaxing but moving visit to witness SAC’s PKH work in Cambodia in the previous week.

Meanwhile, the administration work hums along. The “swing the bell" project is making progress. We have heard back from the authorities but we realise we have a lot more work to do. We always say that the Cathedral is a “living monument.” We don’t just preserve past memories and tell them to present and future generations. We are also creating new stories for future generations. Our heritage is not just our colonial past. We are living a “future heritage”, which generations later will "remember and tell.” There will be new role models, added to the likes of Elizabeth Choy and Graham White. We don’t freeze in time and stop enriching the present. Our national monuments should not be just relics of the past and devoid of life and stories in the present. How we think will affect what we do, and it is my prayer that those entrusted with national responsibilities will help create a vibrant, creative and mutually owned environment.

My sharing this week simply points to the fact that the church and her witness is very diverse. There is beauty in this breadth that sometimes takes our breath away. It is not exhaustion, but one being overwhelmed by what the Lord is doing in every facet of life. One sees the beauty and breadth of His work and exclaims, “Let's praise the Lord”, which in Hebrew also means, Hallelujah!