China Trip Reflection

Me and some of the other team members from Singapore.

I want to thank God for reminding me to make reflections a way of life, and to draw my focus back to Him for every moment, every day.

Beginning of this trip to China, I was pretty much an unwilling leader in many senses – having to run so much consolidation work for fundraising and preparations for the trip itself, on top of my personal heavy schedule. I even developed this notion that – “all work, no matter how tough, is nothing. It is the people that make it so troublesome.” Therefore, I was pretty much focused on the “process” aspect, taking care only if certain things are done.

However, after the first day in China, as I was doing my reflections with God, He began to show me that being a team leader is not just about processes and getting work done, it is also about being a motivator, about people management. After my group’s first devotion session, He showed me 1 Corinthians 13, about love, in my case, love for those who are difficult to love amongst us. Looking at bigger picture, it is not hard to draw the parallel that we are so caught up in work and processes that we often forget to ask “What does God say about this?” Truly, only with God as the primary focus and first priority, using His strength not ours, will there be true success.

What God showed me about His work in your life- that He is developing my heart for the lost, the down, and the outcasts.

Often outside of our formal program times, I found myself listening to some of our team members who were having problems – either they were badly affected by personal issues, or had nobody to turn to for a listening ear. I personally did not think much of this, until I shared with Camilla who discovered that I often have such encounters, and it may be possible that God is preparing me for something.

Whereas for the Chinese youths whom we have direct contact with, what struck me the most is that despite having such positive, warm, and enthusiastic attitudes, these youths were not taught to dream, as what they career entails is what the government “allocates” them to. Upon reflection for both, I felt that God wants to develop me to minister to a certain group of people, and I continue to pray to be His warrior in this arena.

I learnt about God Himself that- He is indeed the One who holds the grand master plan of the entire universe.

God never fails to amaze me. On our plane trip to China, we were randomly allocated our plane seats. I was sitting beside Joshua Teo, whilst the third seat was empty. On our second half of the trip after flight transfer, we were talking fervently about youth work and attitudes of youths in Singapore.

This time round, a man who was wrongly allocated his plane seat in the first half of the trip was occupying the third, previously empty seat. He overheard our conversation and was much blessed – turns out that he too, was working with youth and is currently finding his enthusiasm slowly burning out – hearing our conversation was a recharge, as well as a reminder from God to carry on (yes, he is also a believer). For us, it was an affirmation that it is possible to help the youth out there, relying on God’s strength. More than a coincidence, this is all part of God’s plan.

The famous 'beijing ya" restaurant.

Mary Yeo
Camilla’s sub-tribe