often our idea of having a mentor is someone who will do bible study with us, some counselling session, and voila, we've level-ed up..
that's so naiive, and untrue, and usually happens in our minds.
even in the coporate world, mentors are usually ppl u observe, and people who have lived a life of experience, and processed it enough to be wise about it.
looking at this dg, God has put us here at this season, for this season.
it's the megachurch version of a cg. 30 ppl.
the kind of thing i used to comment when i was younger in YPM, when i hear megachurches' cg is 50 strong, where i'll comment how that's bigger than my whole youth ministry.
but now this time has come.
and for this season, God has blessed us with each other, and it's thoroughly an encouragement to do voices sst today with all of them.
worship in private devotion is God with Me. But usually when we come for service or cell/discipleship/bible study group (or whatever the nomenclature for whatever the function), we forget the We element.
it's hard also in the majority of singapore church services cuz of the limitations of the English Language, and the christiany songs are usually between God and i.
little wonder, as these songs were written in the private worship and devotion of the writers. With the best worship songs, most often coming out of despair. Cuz the writer wrote it in a real time of worship!
But back to the topic, dg really has encouraged me.
there's so many things to think about, but there are brothers and sisters who put this as an equal priority of our lives, serving God together, and this sense of loving God with the same heart together.
We had lots of fun doing ushering today. Yee and I will banter nonstop with our lame jokes and only we'll laugh at them. We did unexpected stuff today, since that was the tagline given.
Like writing "expect the unexpected" and with Kel's R2D2, where he actually joined us to have fun welcoming ppl.
such wonderful time worshipping God thru fun and lameness, and craziness and nuttiness. it is worship, as our hearts was right.
of cuz we may have gone overboard a little bit, but. overall.... yea! it was way unexpected for the ppl coming in. the oldest age dg grp so childish, scaring ppl in toilet on their sst, shocking them (and a parent) with hastily done "expect the unexpected" signs.
fortunately or unfortunately, we don't get excommunicated for doing this. :P
and with our international CNY steamboat coming up, wow. that's ownership. Kel wasnt at the discussion, but once it was up on fb, he juz initiated and told everyone!
this is YOUR heart on us LORD. it is the same!
the very thing that was the feeble thread that linked us together, is the very foundation that WILL link us forward too!
so encouraged.
yet, why is this called peer-mentoring?
cuz mentoring is observing someone's life and how we walks with Christ.
if its someone older and wiser, it's a great great blessing.
but with peer, we see each other's faithfulness and we emulate.
to my shame, im the lowest in this dg. but learning from people, they become my mentors in the details of life.
from Kel i learnt, organisation.
Jonq i learnt, not neglecting the details
Yee, i learnt how to be cheerful for ppl
Timmy, i learnt what ministry of presence really means.
Othniel, i learnt discipline is needed to achieve anything.
Gabe, i learnt what practice can produce.
Mark Lai, i learnt the art of knowing theology in this era.
Jo, i learnt how to love. and love others, finding and persevering in looking for the gem that they are deep within the surface.
and many more.
im the least talented among my friends. least disciplined, least understanding, most naiive.
and i Thank God for such ppl who are willing to accept me as their friend.
So thank God for friends. Cuz they could seriously just be that mentor that you have been praying for.
Lord, lead us together as one.
It's always such a pleasure to have high performing teams (after the forming-storming-norming stages of grp behabviour) that function so very well for God's kingdom.
nothing beats having a team together doing God's work, rather than 'earning money for my stakeholders, my ceo, who don't really care who u are anyways.'
nothing is more worthwhile. (nic from the future! hope this sounds true by then.)
Recently i read an article in Compass magazine, by Dr Tan Soo Inn, titled "Team Leadership: is There any Other Kind." Which confirms my observation that group and team leadership works greatly than a strongman leadership.
it hath been happening for eons, but i wonder if people really do observe or tasted it happening.
Maybe im blessed to both have seen it (SPO, and LKY's era of cabinet ministers) and been part of one. (musical).
He quoted this thing called " The 4 main Leadership Aptitudes"
-Executing / Operational Leaders : the ppl who are the ones who are gifted in structure and solutions to achieving the vision
- Influencing / Directing Leaders: the ppl who can cast vision kind, and they influence ppl in juz normal situations. Sometimes they dun get caught up in the details, so they can channel energy to vision-influencing.
- Relationship Biulding / team-building leaders: These are the glue kind of ppl who are the kind who makes the team feel warm, and builds the relationships between ppl, so that they become friends working together, not mere individuals. they hear, understand, and lurve everyone.
- Strategic thinking / Strategic Leaders: THese are the uncle Muntoh kind. or on a bigger scale, MM Lee. Where they can see problems and opportunities before it happens, and helps the group focus on what they're supposed to focus.
so here we are. continue in Your work Lord.
