The church board of elders granted me a 6 months sabbatical and I felt grateful and relieved. Grateful because they knew I needed it even though the timing was not perfect. There never is a perfect time in church life for sabbatical. Wait for the perfect time and it will never come. Relieved because I [...]
Posts Tagged ‘pastors’
Bukit Batok Presbyterian Church: traditional church in the heartlands
Tucked along Bukit Batok Street 11 and opposite St Luke’s hospital is the one and only Presbyterian church on a HDB site won by open tender. The Presbyterians have a few churches with HDB catchment areas but these are either in schools like Presbyterian High or were built long ago, like Glory Presbyterian Church. This [...]
What pastors can learn from Ms Sumiko Tan
Who is Sumiko?
Can a pastor learn anything from Singapore’s “most famous single woman”? Ms Sumiko Tan, 46, is a Straits Times editor. Her Sunday Times column, which began in July 1994, is famous and with it she has grown a mega fan base. Like a confession booth to which the public has access instead of [...]
Marrying Joseph Prince with Kong Hee
Two megachurch pastors
Someone who had been listening to messages of both Joseph Prince of New Creation Church and Kong Hee of City Harvest Church (pastors of the two largest churches in Singapore), made an interesting comment to me.
He said, “When I listen to Joseph Prince, I feel confidence and empowered.” “When I listen to Kong [...]
Do Singapore pastors overwork?
Anecdotal accounts tell me that Singapore pastors do overwork. Their minds are engaged perpetually on preaching and church ministry and problems. It even affects their family life. Even while physically present they could be emotionally absent from home. Rick Warren (Saddleback Community Church) warns pastors against overwork in the ministry.“My experience is pastors tend to [...]
Eating the flesh of Joseph Prince
There are things preachers and pastors can learn from Joseph Prince, the pastor of New Creation Church.
Leadership- then and now
Leadership was once about hard skills such as planning, finance, and business analysis. When command and control ruled the world, organization leaders were heroic rationalists who moved people around like pawns and fought like stags. When they spoke, the staff jumped.
Today, organizational leadership is increasingly concerned with soft skills—teamwork, communication, and motivation. Sadly for many [...]
Pastor compensation feeling the pinch
A recent Christianity Today International survey shows the compensation package paid to the average pastor (including salary, housing allowance/parsonage, life/health/disability insurance, education and retirement) in the USA has declined in 2009 by 2.4% for lead pastors to an average of $70,806. The average for senior pastors who lead multiple pastoral staff declined 0.5% to $80,745. [...]
Today’s pastors need encouragement
I was so blessed to receive a gift the other Sunday. It was not a box of mooncakes. Rather, something more precious: a wooden box with a beautiful handpainted rainbow, the word “Inspiring” and my name “Kenny”. Each of the English adult congregation pastor received one – each unique. Inside the box were well-crafted and [...]
Global Leadership Summit 2009 in Singapore
The Global Leadership Summit 2009 was a surprisingly engaging and inspiring conference. In Christendom, there is no better Christian leadership summit than the annual event led by Bill Hybels at the Willow Creek church campus in Chicago. What was screened here in Singapore were select videoed sessions of the current conference that ended recently. To [...]
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