generations youth (zone 9) archive

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GENERATIONS ZONE 9

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Publication of a deeper exploration of one of the Zones in the youth ministry.

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Page 1: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

GENERATIONS ZONE 9

Page 2: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

© Generations Youth Ministry, 2013All Rights ReservedNo part of this book or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied, modified or adapted, without the prior written consent of the author, unless otherwise indicated for stand-alone materials.

Page 3: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive
Page 4: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

Thank you for granting your child the permission and concession to be with us every Sat-

urday and Sunday. It brings me great joy to know that in this place lives are being trans-

formed on a daily basis through the encounters that they have with our Saviour and Lord.

I am both excited and elated to present to you our first ever shareholder’s report,

where we will share more about what we do in the youth ministry as well as what we

aim to build in every youth.

With gladness,

Matthew Long JiweiGenerations Youth Ministry

It is our earnest desire that by the time you finish reading the pages in this booklet,

you would be left with a better idea of what we stand for in our youth ministry. And

even more so, that we are committed in helping your child realize the potential that is

within them - a potential which has been placed by God in each of them.

Within these pages, we hope that you would be able to get a better idea of what

goes on every weekend in your child’s life, and to bridge a better communication

channel with you, the parents. We would also be sharing some of the personal ex-

periences of some of our youths to give you a feel of what your child can expect.

welcome.

Zone LeaderZone 9

This booklet is broken into 3 parts. In the first part, we would be sharing about what

the zone is and who are the key leaders. Then, we go on to share some testimonies of

our members’ life. Lastly, we wrap up the booklet by looking at the life of a person in

zone 9 during the weekends.

Page 5: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

In every conceiv-able manner, the family is a link to our past, a bridge to our future.

Alex Haley

Page 6: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

Zone 9 is led by a significant larger number of people above 20 as about 65% are people above 18 years old. It is an environ-ment where the older ones look after and shepherd the young ones. Older members can help the younger ones with academics and life skills.

34%

28%

30%

8%

12

10

8

6

4

2

013 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

DEMOGRAPHICS

AGE DISTRIBUTION

SECONDARY SCHOOL, JUNIOR COLLEGE OR POLYTECHNIC

SERVING NS OR WAITING FOR UNIVERSITY

UNIVERSITY

WORKING OR WATING FOR

EMPLOYMENT

About 50% are in university or have already secured a place in university. Our emphasis is being placed on academics and

also in having a holistic, all-rounded development in every aspect of our lives

60% 40%

MINISTRY INVOLVEMENT

FUNCTIONAL MINISTRY CELL SHEPHERDS

25/43HAS ORGANISED CHURCH EVENTS

Organising church events gives our members a chance to be exposed to the wider body of the Church, beyond the youth ministry and sometimes even beyond our church boundaries. These opportunities give them a chance to make new friends, sharpen their leadership and people skills, as well as enable them to serve their own brothers and sisters in Christ.

CCA LEADERS MEMBERS

61% 16%EXCO MEMBER (46%)

SECRETARY (21%)

2ND IN CHARGE (17%)

PRESIDENT/CAPT(30%)

SCHOOL INVOLVEMENT

9

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

0

BELOW 5

Distinctions

5 6 7 ABOVE 7

64%24% 7 DISTINCTIONS

AND MORE

5 DISTINCTIONS AND MORE

50%HAVE THEIR CLOSE OR BEST FRIENDS IN THE CHURCH

Apart from excelling in church, we also emphasize on excellence in their studies and their CCAs. We believe these 3 factors come into play to build a strong believer in Christ who is both spiritually, physically, and mentally strong.

Youth can join either functional ministries or be cell shepherds. They also have the option to take on both ministries if they can handle.

SURVEY OF

ZONE9We did a survey to find out what Zone 9 is really made up of. Below, we present to you an infographic about who are the people that make up zone 9.

Page 7: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

Zone 9 is led by a significant larger number of people above 20 as about 65% are people above 18 years old. It is an environ-ment where the older ones look after and shepherd the young ones. Older members can help the younger ones with academics and life skills.

34%

28%

30%

8%

12

10

8

6

4

2

013 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

DEMOGRAPHICS

AGE DISTRIBUTION

SECONDARY SCHOOL, JUNIOR COLLEGE OR POLYTECHNIC

SERVING NS OR WAITING FOR UNIVERSITY

UNIVERSITY

WORKING OR WATING FOR

EMPLOYMENT

About 50% are in university or have already secured a place in university. Our emphasis is being placed on academics and

also in having a holistic, all-rounded development in every aspect of our lives

60% 40%

MINISTRY INVOLVEMENT

FUNCTIONAL MINISTRY CELL SHEPHERDS

25/43HAS ORGANISED CHURCH EVENTS

Organising church events gives our members a chance to be exposed to the wider body of the Church, beyond the youth ministry and sometimes even beyond our church boundaries. These opportunities give them a chance to make new friends, sharpen their leadership and people skills, as well as enable them to serve their own brothers and sisters in Christ.

CCA LEADERS MEMBERS

61% 16%EXCO MEMBER (46%)

SECRETARY (21%)

2ND IN CHARGE (17%)

PRESIDENT/CAPT(30%)

SCHOOL INVOLVEMENT

9

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

0

BELOW 5

Distinctions

5 6 7 ABOVE 7

64%24% 7 DISTINCTIONS

AND MORE

5 DISTINCTIONS AND MORE

50%HAVE THEIR CLOSE OR BEST FRIENDS IN THE CHURCH

Apart from excelling in church, we also emphasize on excellence in their studies and their CCAs. We believe these 3 factors come into play to build a strong believer in Christ who is both spiritually, physically, and mentally strong.

Youth can join either functional ministries or be cell shepherds. They also have the option to take on both ministries if they can handle.

Page 8: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

Z O N EN I N E

L E A D E R S

Get to know the faces who form the backbone of this zone. These young, dedicated undergraduates are the tireless warriors who prepare the zone to meet God in-dividually every weekend during cell groups. They are also the hands and the feet behind the zone activities. Find out more about their cell groups and the drive

behind all that they do.

Page 9: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

The vision of Gen 9.1 is that everyone who comes through its doors and stays will be able to discover their destiny and worth not just as sons and daugh-ters of the Most High God but that of royalty as princes and princesses. We want to inculcate self confidence without pride among its members, kings and queens with a servant’s heart. We will contin-ue to enlarge ourselves and be a place where peo-ple not only receive but learn to give as well. Our core leaders are competent spiritual mentors who are always ready and willing to invest their time into the lives of the younger ones, nurturing them with Godly character and principles, eventually developing the leadership potential within them.

RO

YA

LT

YS

ER

VA

NT

RANON MAK9.1 CELL LEADER

Page 10: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

We aim to provide a safe environment for youths to grow holistically, excelling and achieving the best that they can in their school, ministry and family. We provide platforms by getting them in-volved in the planning of zone and cell activities so as to help them learn to take ownership and also build character in them which eventually will help them hit the call that God has set for them, not only in church, but also in their careers and dreams. Also, we want to provide a greenhouse for youths to dream and do great things in their lives for God. We will be there to believe in them, stand with them and help them reach the very goal that God has placed in their hearts. We will also equip them with the Word and encourage them to have a consistent prayer life. Ultimately, we want youths to have an intimate relationship with God, to taste and see the fullness of the power of God and the amazing things that God can do through their lives.

DREAMING+ BELIEVING

KOH YAO YI9.4 CELL LEADER

Z O N EN I N E

L E A D E R S

Page 11: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

To put it simply, Gen 9.3 is a family of God lovers that seeks after His Kingdom. Although we might not be the most loud-spoken bunch of people, we live our lives loud through our actions. More than just meeting up on weekends, we are a family 24/7 as we take time out of our busy schedules to support and spur each other through the week. Every one of us is an asset in His Kingdom where our gifts and talents are increasingly being unleashed for His glory. In this journey of growing together, our main goal is that of TRANSFORMATION. We seek to be-come disciples of Christ whereby we are continually transformed into His image, enabling us to grow in both maturity and conduct. As a result of our individually transformed lives, we go forth to impact the people around us, specifically serving and mentoring the younger generation by imparting our values and life experi-ences. In creating such a conducive environment of love and counsel, we hope to encourage the younger ones to dream big and fulfill their God-given destiny.

T R A N S F O R M A T I O NTo put it simply, Gen 9.3 is a fami-ly of God lovers that seek after His Kingdom. Although we might not be the most loud-spoken bunch of people, we live our lives loud through our actions. More than just meeting up on weekends, we are a family 24/7 as we take time out of our busy schedules to support and spur each other throughout the week. Every one of us is an asset in His Kingdom where our gifts and talents are increasingly being un-leashed for His glory. In this journey of growing together, our main goal is that of transformation. We seek to become disciples of Christ where-by we are continually transformed into His image, enabling us to grow in both maturity and conduct. As a result, we go forth to impact the people around us, specifically serv-ing and mentoring the younger gen-eration by imparting our values and life experiences. In creating such a conducive environment of love and counsel, we hope to encourage the younger ones to dream big and ful-

fill their God-given destiny.

NATHANAEL LIM9.3 CELL LEADER

Z O N EN I N E

L E A D E R S

Page 12: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

Gen 9.2 seeks to be a cell group that actively empowers young people through studying the Bi-ble together, constant encour-agement and building healthy and Godly relationships with one another. We aim to culti-vate a spirit of excellence and see every individual as a po-tential role model to peers and younger ones alike. Most of all, we hope that everyone who joins us will feel accepted and loved for who they are and that they are free to be the person that God intends for them to become. We choose to believe in people and the best that they can be because we are empow-ered to actively empower a gen-

eration for Jesus!

E M P O W E R M E N T

NAOMI YANG9.2 CELL LEADER

Z O N EN I N E

L E A D E R S

Page 13: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

A community who looks out for one another and where quality relationships are formed

To build youths into men/women who are mature whom have character and not despised despite their youth

To raise up young people who are excellent in all as-pects of life

Each youth a committed and passionate lover of Christ

Filled with a deep desire to see the enlargement of the Kingdom of God

Page 14: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

I grew up with a strained relationship with my Dad. In the past, my Dad always favoured my brother over his two daughters and I’ll always recalled how he had called me ‘useless’ which scarred me as a child. Learning that I was an unplanned child during my teenage years did not help at all.

My father replied. Though I do not remem-ber it word for word and I have lost that whole conversation, it went along the lines of “Papa is sorry and Papa loves you very much”. There and then something broke through, I felt so light-weighted like I could almost fly.

Even when I came to accept Christ as my Lord and Saviour in 2010 (I was 18 then), unknow-ingly I had my own idea of how a father was. God has really healed me in this aspect and He showered me with his gentle, overwhelm-ing love time and time again.

I thought that was the end of it. “Oh this is perfect. God is my Father; in Him I trust and love”, I thought. However, that was just the start of His miraculous healing. I began to realise something after a year: “Why is it that everytime there is an altar call for any healing that is related to hurt from fathers, I’m always there weeping and sobbing at the altar?” It also began to dawn on me that whenever my father spoke to me, I will start to tear up and be so intimidated around him. What did I do wrong this time?”

I will always remember the early morning when my father was flying off for a compa-ny’s retreat; I woke up to see him off. He re-quested for a hug. It was our first official hug. So we hugged and he kissed my head. Madly awkward yet madly loved. Once, he shouted ‘GRACE!’ from across the living rooms and I perked up, ready to go on my knees and re-pent for whatever that was coming. ‘I bought three cans of abalone especially for you! You like it right?’

It was not until one day, in 2011, when I told God, I had enough of this. The enemy is not going to have a foothold in my life. So I sent a text message to my father telling him about how I felt, how I do not want to feel and how I wanted to move on. With fingers trembling and tears overflowing, I pressed send.

Today, Grace and her brother, Jeremy are faithfully serving in the church. Their parents have joined Cornerstone and are running together with Jeremy and Grace

in this journey of faith..

we will serve the Lord.As for me and my household,

Healing completed, love defined and relationships restored.

Page 15: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

O F T H E F A T H E Rlove

For many years, Grace struggled with her rela-tionship with her father. But God intervened and her life changed forever.

Page 16: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

findingHIS SECONDhome

My family is Catholic and I was bap-tised into the Catholic faith when I was born. However, I never really knew God until I was invited to a nother church by one of my school friends. At that service, it was the very first time that I was touched by the love of God. I could not believe that for 15 years of my life, I never really understood who this God I was praying to was and since that very fateful day, 28th February 2012, I never looked back.

Page 17: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

I might have much homework to do, and my mum still gives me the freedom to spend each weekend at cell and church.

“ Everyday I longed to know God more and more. “

I wanted to transit from a Catholic church to a Christian one because I could connect with God more in the Christian faith. However, my parents were uncomfortable with it. As such, my parents and I began attending a small Christian family church instead.

However, we never really fitted in and I real-ised that I was not growing in faith. I began praying for direction and guidance from God to bring my family to a church where we could grow as a family and I could grow personally in my faith.

It was then when my neighbours introduced their church, Cornerstone, to my mom. With-out getting an invitation from them, we de-cided to try one of the Saturday services at Cornerstone. This was followed by five more consecutive visits to the Saturday service and my parents became more comfortable with the idea of me attending a Christian church instead of a Catholic one. I don’t believe that it was a coincidence that the very first person we asked for more information about the church just so happened to be Pastor Kevin. After explaining my journey with God thus far to Pastor Kevin, he promised to link me up with Pastor Paul and Pastor Paul invited me to the Generations service. Imagine not knowing a single person in the youth ministry and join-ing the youth service for the very first time without any invitation from a friend. Initially, I was worried about how awkward it would be standing there not knowing anyone. Howev-er, I believed that God paved the way for me and put some fantastic people in my life to make me feel comfortable in church. Just af-ter a short three months at Cornerstone, I’ve joined a cell, gotten to know many wonderful people, participated in Camp Too Much and have gotten to know God more and more. My parents have also become more supportive with my decision to join Cornerstone. My dad willingly drives me to church each Sunday and despite knowing that.

I really thank God for putting such supportive parents in my life. Parents who understand me. Parents who support me with my walk with God. Parents who love me for who I am. I thank God for bringing me to Cornerstone, putting God-sent brothers and sisters in my life and for increasing my passion for the Lord each day. Sometimes, my faith in the Lord is shaken by certain obstacles that I face in my life.

However as my shepherd Timothy once told me, “Salvation is free, everything else has a price. But never forget that there’s always a family supporting you. These people in cell are also the people that you will grow old with.” With God guiding me each day and two fam-ilies supporting me through hard times, my life has changed completely and I now know that nothing is impossible. Thank you God for everything that you have done for me.

Today, Raphael attends cell group and services every weekend.

Page 18: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

A LONG LONG TIME AGO, IN A GALAXY FAR FAR AWAY... there was a boy called Bobo. But not the Bobo that’s talking to you right now- a much different Bobo.

These teenagers talk about going to the nations. These teenagers talk about their ambitions to set up businesses that hon-ours God, having families that bring glo-ry to God. And they are dead serious. They have plans on how to achieve what they talk about, even though their dreams sound too big to be true, they are not ashamed.

This Bobo does not know love. He has no life. He has issues.This Bobo is what you will call, a typical teenager of the world. And then this Bobo met GENERATIONS. At first sight, GENERATIONS does not seem like much. “It’s just a church group”, he told himself.And they don’t seem like much too. They’re only his age, they look like “nerds” and they are re-ligious fanatics, but Bobo stayed. Why?

Because theres something about the people in GENERATIONS. They have this direction in life, like they all know they are created for something. Something great.People in GEN-ERATIONS don’t just talk about this Jesus all day long, they actually have a relationship with this Jesus.

And the rest is history. It’s not about age. GENERATIONS did not change me. GOD did. But it is the people of GENERATIONS, their maturity and their passion and their wisdom beyond their years, that attracted me to God.

And today, I am proud to be a member of

GENERATIONS.

Yun Xiang, whose nickname is Bobo, met Christ when he was in secondary school. Today, Bobo is serving his National Service and leading worship in cell on weekends.

These teenagers are not saying all these for the reward or glory that comes out of it. These teenagers clearly just want to bring glory to this Jesus they talked about. And this Jesus guy is clearly the one that makes all these teenagers so special.

And Bobo told himself “Who-ever this Jesus is. I want Him!”

When questioned on what his goals in life was, Bobo didn’t know what to say. “I just wanna be somebody.” Bobo finally con-fessed. “The generation that refuses to be conformed to the world, is the genera-tion that will change it.”, came the reply.

And they want to do something about it. These are 16-17 year olds, talking about changing the world. These teenagers talk about stuff that can put middle-aged men and women to shame!

Hello!MY NAME IS BOBO AND THIS IS MY STORY

Page 19: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

BreakingnormsLike any teen-ager, Peh Yun Xiang (Bobo) felt bounded by the cyni-cism of same-old Christian-ity until God pulled him out of the rut to be not just in Generations, but a part of Generations.

Page 20: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

AWAKENEDBYpurpose

Edwin’s world only consists of mon-sters, weapons and an unquench-able hunger for difficult games. Yet, an encounter with God trans-formed his very proficiency in computers into a tool to glorify God.

Page 21: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

When I was younger, I lived a carefree life and I now re-alized that I could have done so much more then, since I had more time and little was holding me back.

Instead, I once wasted my life, spend-ing countless hours playing computer games. Now however, I much rath-er spend my time doing useful things like writing codes. It all began when I started knowing God. Of course the changes didn’t happen overnight and it was a long process for me before I realized that computer games can only satisfy one’s excitement hunger for a while. I began to realize that the games I played became really meaningless and boring. I then questioned myself about why I still played them. Before I knew it, God came into the picture and my curiosity about God directed me to move away from the computer games to find out more about God. I started to read books about God and Christian living. As for the writing of codes, it was something that I picked up through my course of studies in Temasek Polytechnic. It became my interest and replaced the love that I had for playing games. Even though it might not seem like much, I feel com-forted knowing that I am making the best out of my skills and time. I am constantly reminded of what Kenneth said, that we will all one day be held accountable for the way we have spent our time on Earth when we stand be-fore God in heaven.

I have matured through this process and I’m not implying that one should not or cannot play games. Rather, I have realised that spending the same amount of time doing something meaningful instead of playing games is more beneficial and that has become a decision that I would never regret.

I have learnt that I could have played computer games or even wasted time do-ing nothing substantial and still lead a pleasurable life. However, at the end of the day, I realised that all of that was meaningless and transient.

In life, there are lots of opportunities. We often see them come but we surely do see them pass as well. Sometimes they might return but oftentimes, they do not. We can never be certain that a lost opportunity would ever return.

Everyone matures through life, of-ten through experiences and making choices. For me, I’ve made the choice to follow Jesus and that decision changed my life.

This journey in the IT jungle has brought Edwin to national coding competitions and he is currently a developer intern at

Microsoft Singapore.

Page 22: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

When I was in secondary school, I used to go to church because of my parents. I was not keen on learning God’s Word entirely and it was just a routined weekly visit. During the 4 years, I was an emo-tional girl who continually had negative thoughts that I was not talented and that my parents were unable to understand me.

I was actually very reluctant to join Cornerstone initially as I felt awkward and hesitant to make new friends. However, after hear-ing the sermons through progres-sive weeks, I encountered God in a personal way. Slowly, God dealt with my emotions and helped me become a joyful and friendly per-son.

Beatrice is a cell core member at 9.1 and she is happily serving the cell members alongside with her brother, Ranon. She also serves regularly at the Sunday School.

Thankfully, the Lord is good. Dur-ing secondary two I had a friend, 3 years my senior, who was there for me as a brother in Christ. He encouraged me in every prob-lem and situation, staying patient with me throughout the whole time. Now I realize that God had sent him to be my guardian angel and I’m so grateful for His help.

Soon after, I realised that I have always wanted to join the Chil-dren’s Ministry. God has really shown me that I am capable of doing things like leading praise and worship as well as commu-nicating with children. Without God's grace I probably would not have discovered my strengths. I really enjoy seeing the little chil-dren sing as their childlike faith and love towards God never fails to put a smile on my face. I am really thankful for God's patience and grace that has brought me to where I am today. I envision my sheep growing and doing won-derful things for God.

Because of my friend’s kindness towards me, I was inspired to help the younger ones around me as I could relate to the struggles and challenges that they were facing and I became passionate about helping them.

Page 23: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

THECHILDREN’S

MAGNET

Lastly, I believe that regardless of the magnitude and frequency of our mistakes, God will continually love and mould us until we become the person that He desires us to be if we allow Him to.

Page 24: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

I was not close to God in the begin-ning of my secondary school edu-cation. For me, going to church was like a "tradition" as my parents are Christians, but I didn’t know God in a personal manner. I became quite busy and eventually stopped attending church because of exams and tests.

After the end-of-year exams, my friend Clarissa asked me to go to chapel with her. Although I had not been to chapel for a long time and did not particular-ly enjoy it, I decided to go and I was amazed by the sight of people around me lifting their hands to worship and jump-ing to praise God, giving their best to Him. I felt it in the at-mosphere that God was there, right in that place. I felt trans-formed after that session and started thinking about returning to church and going all out for God. I realised that I too, could be passionate for God and I be-gan to lay aside my fear of being watched by others while praising and worshipping God. The fol-lowing week I invited one of my classmates, Shijin to church be-cause I wanted her to experience God’s presence as well.

When Shijin came for service that week, she felt God's presence and was touched. She gave her life to God and received salvation that day! I was so amazed and happy! I was spurred on to invite another of my class-mates, Rachel.

Page 25: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

Enlarged

graceBY

Shijin and I both invited her to come which resulted in her receiving salvation as well! Thus, my cell started to multiply as Shijin, Rachel and I grew passionate for God and invited our classmates to come to church.

By the beginning of 2013, we had many St. Hilda's Secondary School (SHSS) students in our cell. Hence, when we multiplied, we were all brought together in the same cell so that we could start a SHSS outreach. Recently, we have started our prayer meetings for the outreach and we hope to see more of God's glory change and make a difference in the lives of our schoolmates! We will continue to have this passion burning inside of us to share the gospel with more people and to bring them to church so that we can enlarge further!

Enlargement is impor-tant so that we can pop-ulate God's kingdom since everyone is a pre-cious child of God and deserves to experience His love and salvation! To me, reaching out to classmates and friends are important as we need godly friends to run alongside us- pursuing the same vision and goals and encouraging us when

we need it.

Chloe’s closest friends are in church today as a re-sult of that act of faith and stepping out. They spend their lives together almost

daily!

Page 26: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

TENACITYTO BE

excellent

TENACITYF O R Excellence

Page 27: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

After saying so much, I am not trying to imply that I am smart, but rather, I be-lieve that when you honour God, God will honour you. During the conference rehearsal periods, I chose to serve not because it was going to be fun, but I just wanted to serve God with whatever re-maining time I had and honour Him. During the 4 services, I had a lot of ques-tions running through my mind. I asked God why I had to be rostered for 4 servic-es, which ended up in taking up my stud-ying time. When I saw my friends being able to study during the weekends, I felt even more doubtful about my decision. One of my classmates thought I had gone bonkers to accept to serve in such a crit-ical juncture. However, it narrows down to my desire: “I wanted to honour God, because He is worthy. He has done so many things for me, from the cross to the grave, and I want to serve Him with all I have, and of course, joyfully!” This not only happened when I moved up to Wor-ship Ministry. When I was in the Helps Ministry, it just happened that I am al-ways rostered for duty too. Yet, I told my-self the same thing that I want to honour God, not because I want Him to honour me, but simply because He is worthy. In the end, God honoured me too.

As a polytechnic student, I have always been scoring above average and decent grades. Everything was set for my en-trance into university. However, right at the very last semes-ter, everything went haywire.

I was extremely worried about my results be-cause my final result seemed to be going down the slope quickly. For the past few tests and examinations, I scored way lower than expect-ed. This pulled down my cumulative GPA. 3 months before my final exam, I had lowered my targets to something that I could possibly obtain after seeing my lousy term test results. However, my grades slipped even further. I found myself drifting away from that target as time passed. Some of my lecture quizzes came back with a C grade. All in all, I did not do well for the majority of the tests before my fi-nal exams.

Life was really tough during that last semester as I had to play for The Next Level Conference (A Generations annual conference) and I was down for all 4 services before my last main exam paper, which also happened to be my weakest subject. The rehearsals were major and they took up my entire Friday, Saturday and Sunday, leaving me with only 1 day to study for that paper. Honestly, I was close to the point of giving up. I had resigned to the fact that I would no longer be able to make it to university anymore.

On the morning of March 15, 2013, at 1130am, my friend messaged me to inform me that the results were out. I was very reluctant to check my grades. Eventually, I relented. As I navi-gated to my results page, I realised that I did surprisingly well! My grades were nothing like I had expected after my series of poor results. In fact, my results were better than the target I had set months back! Ironically, the subject I used to score a D in, I ended up scoring an A! My cumulative GPA increased and even crossed the 10th percentile cut-off for the course I wanted in university!

I chose to serve not because it was going to be fun, but I just wanted to serve God with whatever remaining time

I had and honour Him.

Page 28: Generations Youth (Zone 9) Archive

Zi Ao is currently waiting for his National Service enlistment. He has already been offered a place at National Technological Universi-ty’s Chemical Engineering course. He is also serving bi-weekly as an electric guitarist in Generations.

Disclaimer: Geners are usually ex-empted from serving on weeks that they have examinations. In this case, it was Zi Ao’s decision to serve for all 4 services.

No matter where you are serving, from the toilet to the stage, serve with all your heart and be a joyful servant in His kingdom. Serve with excellence in your earthly duties and with your Kingdom duties. Our busy schedules should not be an excuse to break our consistency in serving our Lord Jesus. I know this to be true in my life: when you honour God, God honours you, just like what He had done during my 3 years in poly. I really thank God for my results. All the glory goes to Him!

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W H AT A R E

A S S I S TA N T SZone assistants are cell leaders who have stepped down but want to con-tinue to contribute in leadership to the zone. A zone assistant assists the zone leader in all range of matters from pastoral to administrative. They are the armourbearers for the zone leader and the hands and feet to assist the zone leader in zone-wide ac-tivities. Additionally, they help to oversee the cell groups and mentor cell leaders to ensure that they have someone covering them both spiritually and

physically.

Zone assis-tants are Kevin

Ang and Cheryl Lai

Z O N EN I N E

L E A D E R S

ZO N E

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LifeZone9in

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9Have you ever wondered what do your children do while they are at church? Or have you ever wondered what it would be like being part of Zone 9? In this section, we will share with you more about what it is like to be in the midst of Zone 9!

1: MY WEEKENDS

2: HIGHLIGHTS OF THE YEAR

4: VOICES OF THE ZONE

3: THE BLUEPRINT

Amrish, from Gen 9.4, shares with us what his schedule is like on the weekends.

Every year, the zone has a huge variety of activities to bring peo-ple together, to learn and to connect with God. Find out more here!

Hear from the ground what some of the people from zone 9 have to say about everything that is going on!

Every Gener that steps through the front gate of the youth minis-try is carefully discipled and released for greatness. Take a sneak peek at how we do this!

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SATURDAY

1415

1430

1500

1600

1730

HRS

HRS

HRS

HRS

HRS

Arrive at Cell Group

Getting Warmed Up

Praise and Worship

Sermon

Fellowship

Altar Call

Ending Song

Coming early helps me to get connected with my cell members and prepare myself to meet God

We usually begin with some games! They are essential to help us know more about our cell members and help newcomers feel more at home!

Praise and Worship prepares my heart to encounter God for the rest of the cell. It also gives me a chance to thank God for all He has done in the week!

The Word of God refreshes my spirit and sharpens my spiritual senses. It could either be my cell leader or my cell core members sharing the Word.

What is cell without the fellowship? We close the day with a time of food and fellowship before we say goodbye!

The Altar call helps us to make the word living by making a decision and giving a response to what has been preached. Sometimes, we will pray for one another. We would see how the Lord leads us.

And finally, a song to sum up the entire cell, as we praise God for what He has done in the cell today!

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LifeZone9in

SUNDAY

1300

1330

1345

1415

1430

1515

1545

HRS

HRS

HRS

HRS

HRS

HRS

HRS

Hang Around

Church Doors Open

Praise and Worship

Tithe and Offering

Message for the Week

Responding to the Word

Fellowship & Dinner

Arrive early and hang around with my cell members, while we wait for service to start. During this time, our service crew work at clockwork speed to prepare the Audi for service!

And suddenly, church doors open and we are greeted by friendly ushers who greet us with a big wide smile.

And the most exciting part begins. Before that, we stream down to the altar area to begin praise and worship!

We practice giving offerings to the Lord even at a young age. It is a time for us to give unto the Lord and receive in faith the bless-ings that He would pour into our lives.

The speaker for the week goes onto the stage to bring us the Word of God!

Generations makes it a point to give a salvation call for people who want to accept Christ. We then move on to altar call for the rest of the congregation.

After service, we use this time to grab a bite. During the exami-nation periods, we might even go study together after grabbing a quick bite

GoodbyeWe end the day at 7pm, but it is not over yet! Some may want to stay for movie or dessert!

1700HRS

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CALENDARMY GENERATIONS

THE NEXT LEVEL CONFERENCE

APART from the weekly cell meetings and services that our youths attend, there are also many ministry-wide events that are held throughout the year. Some of which includes The Next Level Conference, The Gemmy Awards as well as the most recent Camp Too Much.

Like its name, The Next Level Conference was held to encourage geners to hunger for more of God’s Presence as well as to go to the next level in our worship and intimacy with God. We were extremely honoured to have had three amazing speakers, Pastors Philip Mantofa, Henry Seeley and Jeremy Seaward preach during the conference. Apart from the sermons that were preached through-out the 3 day conference, different workshops were specifically designed for geners and they were given a choice to attend the ones that pertained to their interests and callings. Pastor Henry Seeley covered workshops pertaining to praise and worship for current and aspiring musicians while Pastor Jeremy Seaward inspired many secondary school students to reach out to their peers when he shared on the importance of evangelism and school outreaches. It did not take long for geners to catch the fire of God as the enthusiasm for more of God was palpable in the atmosphere.

The Next Level Conference was undeniably not a hype. It was not about the pulse racing music that the Generations band and Henry Seeley played, but rather, it was about knowing the heart of God and pursuing after more of Him simply because of who He is.

BY FAITH KOH

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LifeZone9in

GEMMY AWARDS

YOUTH CAMP

The next key event that we had was the Gemmy Awards through which recognition was given to geners who had served faithfully in church as well as those who were excellent in their academics. It was an elegant event with the dress code being vintage formal and geners arrived, all decked out in their best garbs, hair perfectly spiffed up and coiffed, with vibrant smiles to match.

The event was graced by many stellar performances, including a vi-olin repertoire by Pastor Rupert that certainly took my breath away. Nonetheless, the highlight of the day was the spirit of celebration and appreciation that each gener had for one another. It was a time when we could adequately thank the unsung heroes in our midst as well as acknowledge the servant’s heart that had been developed in many. It was also a platform for geners to appreciate the hard work and effort that the leaders had put into the ministry.

Last but not least, the most recent Camp Too Much! had also left an indelible impression on our geners. Despite spanning a short 4 days 3 nights, Camp Too Much! provided a plat-form through which geners could mingle with friends from different cells and zones. Aside from the fun and games, the sermons preached during the camp also impacted the geners greatly and many youths were seen weeping and crying out for more of God during the altar calls. For many, it was also the first time that they had encountered God in a personal manner and there was even one recorded salvation during the camp. All in all, it was evident that the camp was signifi-cant to our youths as they became more eager for God and bonded more closely with their peers.

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COUNTING THE COST

OF DISCIPLESHIP

CommunityEvery cell is a community of people , built on relationships and where believers are as-

similated and...1. Deeply Involved in Each Other’s Lives

2. Everyone’s Needs are Being Met

DiscipleshipEvery cell is a centre of discipleship . Disci-pleship is about living, thinking and becom-ing like Jesus Christ. Discipleship is carried through shepherd-sheep level and also through cell teachings. Discipleship involves spiritual disciplines that build godly char-acter. Generations follows a 5 progressive

steps of growth:

1. Navigator Series for New Believers2. Knowing our Core Values

3. Serving in a Ministry4. Completing our Core Book List

5. Shepherds Training

Every cell is a Centre of Evange-lism . Our main thrust in Evange-lism is through Friendship Evan-gelism, and main target group are Secondary School Students. This will be done through using the SALT-ING method and focusing on establishing a Strong School Out-

reach in each Cell.

Evangelism

Every healthy cell will grow and eventually multiply. It is the goal of each cell to multiply. This will en-sure that there are enough empty vessels for more souls to come in.

Multiplcation

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LifeZone9in

THE BLUEPRINTThe Blueprint is a ministry-wide strategy for bringing up believers into passionate and steady disciples of Jesus Christ. Zone 9 uses the Blueprint to ensure that all our members are brought up in a healthy envi-ronment

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voicesOFTHEZONE

Zone 9 is a family to me, a group of people with whom I am able to freely express myself and feel comfortable with.

Zone 9 is a family to me. A place where everyone is valued. A place full of joy and love. Zone 9 is a tree which bears fruits and is a close knitted group of people who are passionate lovers of God!

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ZONEWith the advent of technology, it has become so easy for us to neglect interpersonal relationships. Yet, listen to the authentic voices of these members of the zone as they share with us what it means to be part of Zone 9.

Zone 9 is my family. A place with relation-ships I never want to lose, friendships that will bring me through every mountain high and valley low.

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GrowingFaith

In this closing ar-ticle, we share about how a burn-ing desire in young Matthias’ heart for the Lord com-pelled him to act in faith to fulfill the Great Commission during his second-ary school days.

HIS

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GrowingFaith

As the Bible clearly defines it in Hebrews 11, faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

It is easy for many Christians to quote this verse over and over again but without truly compre-hending and experiencing faith from God in our daily lives. For me, a very particular event took place which allowed me to understand the full meaning of exercising the faith that God had planted in my heart.

Ever since I entered Victoria School in 2009, it has always been my heart’s desire to share the Love of Christ through the Gospel to my schoolmates. In-itially, I only invited my friends for harvest events, which occurred around 4 times each year. As time passed by, I became bolder and invited them every week for Youth Services. Although my invitations became more frequent, still not a single friend of mine accepted them after many weeks.

Soon, I was already a Secondary Four student spending my last year in Victoria School. Even though the responses of my friends to my invita-tions were very poor, I continued to trust and had faith in God that He still had a plan for my school.

Around July 2012, God began to expand my faith and He urged me to organise an evangelistic soc-cer event in August. I did not know why, but there was such a leap of faith within me that caused me to believe for 40 people to come. To me, 40 is not a small number as the best response for past events similar to this was less than 15 people.

This time I knew that God was planning some-thing greater and I had such a solid faith that the response will be large. Prior to the response, my cell and I acted in faith and decided to book 2 soc-cer courts at Tampines Safra and started the invi-tations through Facebook and also by giving out invitation cards to VS students. Before we knew it, that day arrived.

We did not know what the outcome would be like as the response on the Facebook page only showed an estimate of 20 people attending. However, I continued to believe and trust God for providing the 40 people that I prayed for. Initially when the event began, there were only a couple of boys who arrived at the court. Soon later, VS stu-dents started streaming into the playing area in groups and the two soccer pitches were soon overfilled with VS boys! There were so many of them that I did not know how many had come. I began to count the num-ber of people who were there and to my amazement, exactly 40 people turned up! I was expecting probably a rough approxima-tion of 40 people to arrive but the outcome turned out to be exactly 40 people! This was definitely not a coincidence and I knew that God was totally in control of this event.

When we have faith as small as a mustard seed, anything is possible with God as God wishes to see the trust you have in Him in your life. If you are looking for break-throughs and to overcome the giants in your life, start looking to God and enlarge your dreams and faith because God is only able to manifest his powers based on how much faith you have that He is able to do so. What God has done for me, He can definitely do for you again!

Today, Matthias runs alongside with his cell leader. Together, they are bring-ing more secondary school students into the kingdom of God and inspiring

new school outreaches.

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LettersFROM THE PARENTS

We want to give thanks to our Lord Jesus Christ for Generations Youth Ministry here in Corner-

stone. Our boys Nathanael, Jonathan and Matthias who have been attending Generations for the

past four years have grown and matured. This comes forth from a love relationship that they have

with Jesus rather than attending a religious activity.

In the world that we live in today, youths are often lonely and they desire to have a group of friends

who will be there for them. Cell group meetings here in Generations provide a place of love,

acceptance and relationships. When we opened our house for their cell group meetings, we were

able to interact and get to know their friends better, providing us a sense of assurance that they are

in the right sphere of influence - friends who will build and esteem them in their growing years.

Moreover, the caring leadership of Cornerstone has inculcated a strong set of character building

and values amongst the youths, which include honouring their parents and possessing a spirit of

excellence in whatever they do.

Apart from attending cell groups and services, our sons are actively serving in the various min-

istries of Generations, and in this process they grow in service to one another and to God. This

is not just limited to church activities, but displayed in their personal lives. Their willingness to

serve the younger peers is seen in mentoring them, acting as a pillar of support and encourage-

ment as well as tutoring them in their studies.

While being involved in church activities may take a lot of time, by the grace of God they are still

able to cope well with their studies. The spirit of excellence and glorifying God in their lives is

not just limited within church activities, but is also shown in their academics and their co-curric-

ular activities

The conducive environment provided for the youths here in Generations and the team of leaders

has assured us that our boys are growing and maturing into young men, possessing values and

good character that will positively influence the people around them.

Arthur & Phyllis Lim

In this concluding section,

we hear from 2 parents of who’s children have been brought

up in Generations and under the leadership of the current

leaders, and get an honest opinion of the fruits of the youth

ministry.

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Naomi joined the youth in Sec 4 about 6 years ago in 2007 when we first came to Cornerstone.

We have seen very significant growth in the things of God in her life and have seen her maturing.

She has been given the opportunity to grow in ministry as well as leadership and currently has

her own cell group which meets in our home.

We really find the Generations Youth in Cornerstone to be outstanding. The leadership of Pastor

Paul has made great impact in the lives of his leaders as well as the young people in the church.

It’s always great to see the young people milling around in the Odeon Katong Complex for they

bring a lot of life and their conversations are wholesome, righteous, their behavior good. We

have seen this also in Naomi’s personal life as she matures into a young lady. God has honored her in her studies and one of the good

things about the Generations Youth is that they do not interfere or take time away from the children

when exams are around or when there are things or responsibilities which have to be done at home.

It is important that the youth may never be seen as a competitor for the family and I think that the

Generations have to a certain extent succeeded. I just pray that Naomi will continue to mature

into a young adult, and eventually ease into the adult congregation and reproduce herself many

times over amongst the younger people who are coming up. We really know that the youth ministry

has made an impact in her life but also in the lives of many others and have seen how the

transformation of the lives of the other children have caused parents to also come to know

the Lord or to join Cornerstone as part of the adult congregation. I think this is a good

testimony for the youth ministry as well as for Cornerstone.

Yang Tuck LoongFather of Naomi Yang

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Dear Parents,I hope that after reading the accounts given by the various individuals, you have a better idea of what happens in the life of a youth here in Generations and the work that God has been doing in their midst and the values that we seek to build in each youth. At the end of

this book, there are 3 things that we hope that we could work on together.

CONNECT

COMMUNICATE

with one another. So that your child's cell leader can get to know you and to serve you. In doing so, we would build meaningful bridges that benefit

your child in time to come

with one another. So that we can reduce misunderstandings and also to enable us to assist you in answering any questions which you might have. In addition, if there are any areas which might be bothering you, we would like to have a communication channel in which you can

highlight your concerns to us.

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Z O N EN I N E

L E A D E R S

GRANTGrant your child the opportunity to join us on a regular basis for both cells and services, if they have not been doing so. Grant your child the room to make decisions and take ownership/responsibility for their own lives. Though not restricting either parties from disciplining or guiding them along the way in their pursuit of discovering their identity as well as their

strengths and their passion.

We hope that we would be able to work hand in hand with you to see your child reach his/her highest potential and to create an environment where he/she is

able to dream for his/her future and dream the dreams of God. We look forward to seeing your child blossom and grow in his/her time here in Gen-

erations.

For building the next Generation

Matthew Long

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Faith KohCHIEF EDITOR

Kevin AngCREATIVE DIRECTOR

MATTHEW LONGZONE LEADER

[email protected]

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Claire Lim Amrish SandhuASST. EDITOR ASST. EDITOR

RANON MAK NAOMI YANG NATHANAEL LIM KOH YAO YI9.1 CELL LEAD 9.2 CELL LEAD 9.3 CELL LEAD 9.4 CELL LEAD

[email protected]

[email protected]

[email protected]

[email protected]

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