"Be the one who lights a flame of love not fear! Faith is as contagious as fear, but much more positive and purposeful." RP
Love your neighbor. Good deeds will go a long way with a fearful public.
While much of the secular world’s response to the virus has been inward-looking, driven by fear, pastors in Singapore agree that the COVID-19 situation presents a God-given chance to shine in the darkness of the moment. However, for that to happen, the church must look beyond its own concerns and awaken to the opportunity.
“Having put in place the necessary measures in the church, we realized that this crisis has presented an opportunity to help and reach the community,” said Lim Lip Yong, executive pastor of Cornerstone Community Church.
After the initial window of adjusting to the new normal, churches have begun to observe how their local community has been affected. The needs are both practical—such as education on public hygiene for the elderly—and emotional, with panic and uncertainty the prevailing mood in the weeks after the first confirmed cases surface locally.
“One of the distinct things that we wanted to affect was the atmosphere of the community,” Lim told CT. “At the onset of the outbreak, people acted in fear. In Singapore, panic buying took hold of many people. Healthcare workers were chased off public transport for fear that they had come into contact with outbreak patients. Highly discriminatory remarks were made against Chinese nationals.
Article continues below, “We can never fully remove these negative elements in society,” he said, “But what we can do is ensure that there are more positive vibes being generated than negative ones." So we sent our people out to care—to be kind, and go the extra mile to help.”
Among other efforts, his church staff and members have reached out to migrant workers—many of whom have been unable to earn a living after projects were canceled due to virus fears—and taxi drivers, whose business has been badly affected with people choosing to stay home during this period.
Similarly, Christians across Singapore have kickstarted many acts of love and kindness, including:
Who is hardest hit in your area? Those directly afflicted with the virus? Those whose jobs have been disrupted by fear of it? Those emotionally weary of responding to it? Many of their doors would otherwise have been closed to the church, but Christians in Singapore have found new inroads through acts of love in this time of coronavirus.
While much of the secular world’s response to the virus has been inward-looking, driven by fear, pastors in Singapore agree that the COVID-19 situation presents a God-given chance to shine in the darkness of the moment. However, for that to happen, the church must look beyond its own concerns and awaken to the opportunity.
“Having put in place the necessary measures in the church, we realized that this crisis has presented an opportunity to help and reach the community,” said Lim Lip Yong, executive pastor of Cornerstone Community Church.
After the initial window of adjusting to the new normal, churches have begun to observe how their local community has been affected. The needs are both practical—such as education on public hygiene for the elderly—and emotional, with panic and uncertainty the prevailing mood in the weeks after the first confirmed cases surface locally.
“One of the distinct things that we wanted to affect was the atmosphere of the community,” Lim told CT. “At the onset of the outbreak, people acted in fear. In Singapore, panic buying took hold of many people. Healthcare workers were chased off public transport for fear that they had come into contact with outbreak patients. Highly discriminatory remarks were made against Chinese nationals.
Article continues below, “We can never fully remove these negative elements in society,” he said, “But what we can do is ensure that there are more positive vibes being generated than negative ones." So we sent our people out to care—to be kind, and go the extra mile to help.”
Among other efforts, his church staff and members have reached out to migrant workers—many of whom have been unable to earn a living after projects were canceled due to virus fears—and taxi drivers, whose business has been badly affected with people choosing to stay home during this period.
Similarly, Christians across Singapore have kickstarted many acts of love and kindness, including:
- A song of hope written by a 12-year-old.
- Blessing neighborhood cleaners.
- Giving migrant workers free masks and vitamins.
- Making thousands of handmade notes to encourage healthcare workers.
- Organizing a blood drive to help local blood banks that run low on supplies as people avoid hospitals.
Who is hardest hit in your area? Those directly afflicted with the virus? Those whose jobs have been disrupted by fear of it? Those emotionally weary of responding to it? Many of their doors would otherwise have been closed to the church, but Christians in Singapore have found new inroads through acts of love in this time of coronavirus.
ACTION STEP: Spread kindness! Viruses spread quickly, acknowledged Lim. “But kindness is infectious too.” Who is hardest hit in your area? Those directly afflicted with the virus? Those whose jobs have been disrupted by fear of it? Those emotionally weary of responding to it?
Many of their doors would otherwise have been closed to the church, but Christians in Singapore have found new inroads through acts of love in this time of coronavirus.
Instead of focusing on what you can't do--focus on what you can do!
Many of their doors would otherwise have been closed to the church, but Christians in Singapore have found new inroads through acts of love in this time of coronavirus.
Instead of focusing on what you can't do--focus on what you can do!
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