“Huh? What is phos? Sounds like Greek to me…”

Well, in fact it is Greek! According to VINE’s Bible Dictionary, phos is the original Greek word for light. (greek, not geek)

The theme verse for this newsletter is Matthew 5:16, “Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” We hope and pray that this newsletter will testify to what God is doing in our lives, and serve to encourage you in your walk with God.

This newsletter is by the Torchbearers for the Torchbearers. As the Torchbearers, we’re supposed to be the “light of the world” and shine for Christ. This newsletter will be useful as it contains LIGHT-hearted stories and ILLUMINATING articles.

We hope that as you read, God will transform you and touch your life.

Love, The phos team

Reflection CornerReflection CornerReflection CornerReflection Corner

John 3:19

“Light has come into the world, but men

loved darkness instead of light because

their deeds were evil. Everyone who does

evil hates the light, and will not come into

the light for fear that his deeds will be

exposed. But whoever lives by the truth

comes into the light, so that it may be seen

plainly that what he has done has been

done through God.”

When we come before Jesus, he reveals the

secrets of our heart. Sometimes that can be

a painful process as we have hidden sins

that we are ashamed of, or hidden hurts

and disappointments that make us bitter.

Many people are scared of coming to Jesus

because they are afraid that their deeds will

be exposed.

But as Christians, that is exactly what we

must do. God says, “a broken and contrite

heart, I will not despise” (Psalm 51:17).

Even as we allow Jesus to unravel and

reveal the filth and sin in our lives,

remember that he has already taken it

upon himself on the cross.

When the

fades...

Imagine the following scenario. You hold out your hand in front of your face,

but you can’t see your fingers. The darkness is suffocating, slowly threatening

to envelop you entirely. Suppressing an involuntary shudder, you strain your

ears in the eerie silence. Nothing. Fearful and vulnerable of the unknown, you

inch forward. You don’t know where you’re headed, and you realize that you

don’t care. All you want is to escape the darkness. Tripping on the uneven

ground causes you stumble, falling on the ground with a yelp of pain. You

struggle to get up, but a sharp pain in your ankle stops you from doing so.

Suddenly, you notice a small pinpoint of light in the darkness. You cry out for

help, and notice the light bobbing, closer and closer. As it approaches, the light

spills over the darkness, chasing the shadows away. The growing brightness

starts to hurt your eyes, and you instinctively turn away. The light becomes

brighter still, and the darkness soon becomes a distant memory. Slowly, your

pupils dilate and you get used to the light. You stop shielding your eyes and

look up, and find yourself staring at the torchbearer.

Our torch is the Good News, the gospel of truth. We carry it with us in the

darkness of this world, as messengers of the wondrous gift that God has given

us. Without a lighted torch, the bearer would be useless. We seek to provide

direction and counsel for the people we meet in our lives, using the word of

God to guide them.

Torches are heavy. The Olympic torch probably weighed about 1.5 – 2 kg. It is a

difficult task to keep it aloft and burning all the time. By our own strength, we

will inevitably falter and fail. But as we “hope in the Lord”, we will “run and not

grow weary”, “walk and not be faint.” With our eyes firmly fixed on God, we

can continue telling others about his word enthusiastically without feeling

tired.

In Athens, the Greeks used to fill their torches with sulphur mixed with lime.

This fire would continue burning even when plunged under water! But the

flame that we carry is stronger still. It is an eternal flame that can never be

diminished or extinguished! We are not perfect, and as we travel through life,

we may stumble and fall occasionally. But as we struggle to our feet, we’ll

notice the fire from our torches would still be blazing.

When faced with the light of God’s word, the first instinct for non-

believers is to turn away and shield their eyes. After being immersed in

darkness for so long, it is only fair that their natural response to the light

may not be the joy and unquestioning acceptance we expect. They have

grown used to the darkness. As torchbearers, it is our duty to show them

that there is a better way to life, God’s way.

How do we shine this metaphorical light in our everyday world? How do

we set people’s passion for God alight? We tell them about Jesus, and

live our lives according to His Word. We need to actively seek for people

that need God’s Word in their lives. We can start by praying, asking God

to give us an opportunity to share His good news to our friends and

family. We can also ask him to soften the hearts of the people around us.

Our belief in God must also be reflected in our lifestyle. One of the most

common reasons people cite when they reject Christianity is hypocrisy.

There must be evidence of our beliefs in the way we live. As our non-

believing friends around us notice that our chosen pathway through life is

different and better than theirs, they will undoubtedly be eager to find

out more.

This brings us to evangelism. We are commanded by God to spread the

good news to the corners of the earth. We can start by evangelising to

those within our sphere of influence, which are areas where we spend a

large proportion of our times. At home, we can tell our non-believing

relatives about God. When in school, army, or work, we can bring God

into our conversations, and find opportunities to tell others about how

Jesus died to save us.

Jesus is the light of the world. As torchbearers, we should endeavour to

bring this light to the people stumbling in the darkness around us. Pray

that God continues refining you, and pray that He continues to provide

you with the courage and desire to spread the gospel. Then grip the torch

of His Word firmly and step out with confidence, bringing the light to

those who have yet to experience His goodness and grace.

A whiff of fear and apprehension filled the air of the church multi-purpose hall as young faces glanced to and fro. Little did they know that what would be in store for them over the next few days…

The campers boarded a bus to take them to their camp destination. Not much was known about NACLI except that it is near Dominic’s house. “Mwahhaa! I will go home to bathe!” he proclaimed, only to be reprimanded by a few bystanding camp officials. But it proved to be an excellent location so thank God for his provision!

After putting down our barang barang, Camp Sergeant Major Kaiyang put us through a grueling set of ice-breakers. CSM Kaiyang definitely looked the part with rugged army fatigues, jockey cap and whistle (erm… except for his brown hair haha. Tsk tsk..), and totally exemplified the type of “tough love”that helps to bond us together. The “Left for Dead” icebreaker game lived up to its name as many campers left the arena with numerous carpet burns and slight trauma. (esp poor Sam Lim who was wrestled to the ground by his teammate Joel. Ouch.)

After nursing their wounds, the campers headed for the first sermon by our camp speaker Uncle Gordon. The scriptural passage was also our camp theme verse, Matthew 22:37-40. Uncle Gordon encouraged us to accept God’s love as it is, that we don’t have to do anything to deserve it. He said that God’s love has to be cultivated

intentionally by reading the bible and praying. The campers pondered over this as they returned to their rooms for a well deserved rest.

The next day began bright and early with a visit to D’Joy Children’s Centre. The groups had been busy the previous day preparing skits, games and songs for the kids. It was definitely hard work, but seeing the smiles on the faces of the children made it all worthwhile. It was such a pleasant and refreshing experience to get to share Jesus’ love with others!

The night’s sermon served to reinforce our morning’s experience as Uncle Gordon said that “small deeds done with great love can change the world.” However, he warned that we need to make ourselves vulnerable in order to love. But he also reassured us that as we choose to love, God will transform us at the same time.

The next big event was the night game “Night Strike”. The campers marched to nearby Kentridge Park for an adrenalin-pumping war game. “Soldiers” prowled and hid in the bushes, leaping out at the precise moment to strip the enemy soldier of his rank. The fierce battle raged for 2 hours before a truce was proclaimed and the campers went back to home base.

The next morning, Uncle Gordon did his last session with us, which was a workshop on spiritual gifts. He explained that spiritual gifts are graces from God, given through the Holy Spirit. He also emphasized that the gifts of the spirit are for us to build other people up.

Our last military exercise with CSM Kaiyang involved heavy artillery in the form of homemade catapults. Screams and shrieks were heard from afar as the hostages did their best re-enactment of the WW2 Battle of Bukit Panjang. The catapult operators showed no mercy as they showered the helpless victims with a terrifying hail of water bombs.

The final event of the camp was the much anticipated BOOMZ NIGHT. Each team was given a puzzling set of words and items to creatively construct a skit.

The first skit by “Lasagna” was a hilarious remake of Charlie and the Chocolate factory. Edwin, acting as a life-size Santa Claus, literally rocked the house by jumping on the ground to destroy his foes. However, after suffering a heart attack due to a diet of too much fatty food, he repented and begged for forgiveness from the chocolate factory owner.

“Oreos” then did a rather.. erm.. interesting commercial-filled skit which was punctuated by a energetic dance by Kaige and Gavan which featured the very retro “flush, flush, poot, clap clap” move.

Yvette’s character. In a story borrowing themes from Romeo and Juliet, Ashley overcame the family opposition and was about to press the button to annihilate Sam Chong and Abby, but at the last moment remembered what he learnt at youth camp - To love his enemies.

“Vessel” then performed a skit based on a true love story, where Rand… I mean Ashley, fell in love with Eliz… I mean

Lastly, “Everlast” gave an interesting story where evil king Renjie battled with his twin sisters/reindeers, and eventually realized that the path of love was still the best choice.

“Vessel” swept the Oscars, winning best skit, best actor and actress, but I guess we were all winners, witnessing some hilarious performances.

Camp Commander Sam Lim then closed the session with a moving testimony on how good God had been to provide the camp venue, the money, the speaker and much much more. Truly, we must give all the glory and thanks to God for making the camp possible!

Though the camp is over, the lessons learnt and bonds forged will remain with us for a long time.

CyaCyaCyaCya at Youth Camp 2010!at Youth Camp 2010!at Youth Camp 2010!at Youth Camp 2010!

“Court in the Middle” was a CAC Central District competition held on 6 Feb 2010. 16 teams from 5 CAC churches participated in thisevent, which aimed to foster greater bonds between the various CAC youth groups. The teams gathered in Foo Chow Methodist for a fun icebreaker game involving mentos, and got to know the youths from the other churches. They also had a short time of worship together (singing in Chinese!), and a time in which each church did a short presentation & introduced who they are.

Then came to the highlight of the event - the Captains Ball tournament. Hakka Methodist was well represented as the Torchbearers sent 2 senior teams and 1 junior team, while the Saltshakers sent 1 senior team. After a hard fought tournament, the Junior team finished a credible 3rd position, while the two Torchbearer senior teams finished 2nd and 4th.

We are especially proud of how the junior team performed. Despite having many 13 and 14 year olds, they competed valiantly against people much older than them. Kudos to joint-captains Darren and Wenqi for gelling the team together! Wenqicommented, “even though we didn't get first, I feel that we really put up a tough fight for the other teams and we showed good sportsmanship and team synergy.” Very classy! An excited and indefatigable Yvette also said, “Our team ROCKS! HAHAH next time we OWN! Whoo!”

On 27 Dec, the Torchbearers had a surprise Christmas party in the Oikos Room. The youths were stunned to be greeted by the sound of familiar Christmas carols, and the sight of nicely decorated tables laden with Christmas goodies!

The festivities started with a session of caroling, where each table took turns to carol to one another. Next, we sat down and watched a moving video clip on the birth of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. We then played a modified game of pass the parcel, where the person who ended up with the parcel had to share about how God had been good to them in the past year.

It was great to spend the last Sunday of the year just relaxing and enjoying the company of one another. May God strengthen our bond and help us love Him and each other more in 2010!

Truly Captains Ball is more than just winning, and we thank God for the chance to just go out and have fun with our brothers and sisters in Christ!

Phos: Hi Ashley! Tell us more about yourself! How old

are you? Where do you study?

Ashley: I’m 15, studying at ACS(I)

Phos: Do you have any hobbies/interests?

Ashley: Yeah haha. I like playing com and going out with

friends. HAHA.

Phos: Haha great! Heard you attended the last youth

camp. How was it?

Ashley: I found it great! The camp emphasized on how we

should love men as God loved us, even in the most

practical ways.

Phos: So what was your most memorable moment in

the camp?

Ashley: Hmm…. Probably the part where the pastor guy

(Uncle Gordon Aw) gave us examples of how we can share

God’s unconditional love. Then it struck me: Have I really

been showing acts of love to people? That was my biggest

takeaway from the camp.

Phos: So how have you learnt to love God more?

Ashley: I can love him through loving others. Like the verse

in Matthew said about clothing and sheltering the

homeless, feeding the hungry (Matthew 25:35-36). Jesus

said that if you did this to the least of them, you have done

it to me.

Phos: How have you learnt to love man (others) more?

Ashley: I learnt that loving men doesn’t mean you have to

do big things. It’s the little things that count.

Phos: Great! So what are you looking forward to in

2010?

Ashley: Well… I feel that as Christians, we shouldn’t just be

contented with the fact that we are convicted of God’s

existence. Being contented with that is just one plain thing.

After being convicted we have to be transformed. Like how

Peter took that leap of faith when he threw aside everything

to follow Christ. Knowing God exists isn’t enough. We have

to work towards becoming more like Christ, and progress in

that aspect. Yeah, I guess that’s why I’m looking forward to

2010! I hope that I can grow closer to Christ. I hope that as

I myself am transformed, others around me will be

transformed too.

Phos: Amen to that. Thanks for sharing all this with us.

May God truly help you grow closer to him and

transform your life and the life of those around you. =)

The phos editorial team went

to interview Ashley Tong,, to

find out his thoughts about life

and LOVE…