Upcoming Cell Series: Building Healthy Self for Lasting Relationships

In the 4 weeks while the EA Pulpit series touches on Family and Marriage, ONELife will be having 2 weeks of discussions on building a healthy self for lasting relationships in their cell meetings. It will be a DVD cum discussion approach.


Week of Feb 7-11 – “The Compulsion for Completion”

All of us have a tendency to shortcut to personal wholeness by looking to others to complete us. We think “If I find the right person, my life will be complete”. This discussion will look at what it means to develop personal wholeness


Week of Feb 14-18 – “Keeping Family ties from Pulling Strings’

Our biological families influenced the way we relate to others. How much do we bring them into our relationships? What should we change and what should we keep?


If you are a Young working adult in your 20s and early 30s and are not currently in any cell, you are welcome to visit one of the ONELife cells for this discussion series. Please go to the Cell Connection Counter today and sign up and one of the ONELife leader will get in touch with you.

And also a reminder that Relationship Conference “The Right Combination” is on Feb 26, 9am – 2pm. You can register online at http://elife.riverlife.org.sg/weblink/therightcombination/intro.htm or sign up at the Conference booth in the atrium.

Looking Back 2010 - OL3 Doing Life Together

2010 has been a year with many life moments together. This year, we have seen 1 wedding, new births, 2 full month celebrations, outings, birthday celebrations, spending festive seasons together, having fun, praying for one another. Here's a pictorial review of the year we have spent together :D

Free picture slideshow generated with Smilebox

NLE Testimony

NLE (Men), now known as Divine Encounter (Men), is coming from 30 Oct-1 Nov @ Mercure Johor Palm Resort & Golf. Wonder any of you keen to go along together for a time of refreshing, healing and restoration? I do strongly encourage you to go if you believe that it would help or especially if the Lord is prompting you that you need further restoration. Just make the step in faith and leave the rest to the Holy Spirit.

I share with you here my concise testimony which I shared in church last year. I have previously shared my encounter in detail here.

Psalm 23:1-3 (NIV)
¹ The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. ² He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, ³ he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

As I shared in my previous testimony, the Lord may be saying to some of you "the time for restoration and healing is now". May the Lord make you lie down on green pastures and lead you to quiet waters.

“An upgrading project”… that’s how I would describe my experience with the New Life Encounter (Men) last year. Just like an upgrading project, I have come to realize in the days following NLE, that God has begun a work of significant restoration through NLE. Having been through the beatings of life… I’ve experienced God’s healing, restoration and renewal. He is also slowly working in my life to make things better than before…

Hello, my name is James. I am from OneLife and am currently also serving in the cell ministry there. I thank God for the opportunity to be able to stand here to share with you about NLE (Men). Frankly speaking, when I was approached more than a month ago to share my testimony for NLE, I was very hesitant. I still remember and am very grateful for the work God did in me through NLE. But being the introverted me, I thought that “this is not for me, leave it to others”. And yet, a part of me battled with that thought and gradually, I became convicted of the need to testify to what God has done in my life, and to bless others as God has blessed me. So, I told God that I am going forth in faith, believing that He will use it for His glory.

I came to RiverLife in August 2005. At that time, I was going through some struggles in my work and personal life, everything seemed to be falling apart. I was deeply wounded by people and circumstances and badly needed respite. In addition to that, I was also burning out at work.

I had backslided for some 15 years. For years, I had rejected friends’ invitation to church, for fear of being looked down upon as a backslider. But this time round, my friend told me that RiverLife was having a service to launch her new building and so I thought I would just come by to visit.

During that service, I was ministered to and rededicated my life to Christ, and God began healing my hurts. It’s interesting how God brought me back during that service (which happens to also be RiverLife’s anniversary). So now every year, I am reminded of my own coming back to God as the church celebrates her anniversary.

Over the course of time, I began to be ministered by God through the weekly sermons, and it began to help nurse my past disappointments, emotional hurts and unforgiveness. But one day, I realised how I had not really gotten over some of my unforgiveness. God impressed upon my heart how I was overwhelmed by unforgiveness and bitterness towards the people who had hurt me, and this was affecting both my personal and spiritual life. And I thought, “It is by no fault of mine that I am this way!”

But my problems in trusting people persisted. Everytime I got emotionally hurt again, I would spiral downwards. It was as if I had hit a glass ceiling and could go no further… I was getting real sick and tired of always yearning to connect with people but yet battling my tendency to withdraw from them for fear of disappointment and hurt again. I was getting very frustrated and desperately needed a breakthrough! And so, I decided I would give NLE a try.

I can recall the day of departure to NLE at Harbourfront, I was waiting around with the other brothers-in-Christ. I remember “beating myself up” emotionally, asking myself “why did I subject myself to this, coming to this retreat all alone?” The introverted side of me was causing me to feel real vulnerable amidst all the unfamiliar faces. I remember asking how I was to survive the next 2 days. I uttered a short prayer to God to watch over me the next 2 days, and help me keep the focus of dealing with my issues.

I had always thought that I had forgiven people for how they hurt me. But on the contrary, I came to realize during NLE how the hurt was still pretty raw and painful. The sessions not only helped to surface my unforgiveness towards others but even towards myself for the things I had done to grieve God. Some of these things have been repressed for so long I had totally forgotten about them. Most importantly, I have come to learn and understand from the heart, how we have been commanded to forgive, how Christ Himself set an example of releasing forgiveness through His work on the cross, how we are all WIP (Works in Progress), and how God not only loves us but wants to be reconciled with us, and to empower us.

Immediately after NLE, I went back to journal about my experience and encounter with God. It was a good time of reflection as I came to full realization and appreciation of the work that God had begun in me. So, I have much to share and can really go on and on about my 2 days experience. But the main thing is that I am really here to encourage those who need a touch from the Lord- take a step of faith and come forth to let Him start His work of significant restoration in you. Ecclesiastes 3:1 says “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven”. And I believe that God is saying to some of you here that it is time for you to release and commit your struggles to Him…allow Him to breakthrough for you.

Are there any areas of unforgiveness and bitterness in your life now? Are there areas which you find difficult to let go? God is willing to work with you and heal you if you yield yourself to Him… Thank you.

James Lim Soon Leong
OneLife
RiverLife Church

Defining Moments

Click here for the e-flyer to send to your friends.
Click here to submit your prayer requests for the event to our cell prayer list so we can pray together.

OL3 Celebrates Christmas

Our CG Celebrate Christmas is here on 12 Dec (Fri), 8pm @ 31 Ris Grandeur. Join us a simple gathering with food, games, songs and a video on the hope of Christmas.
Join us by emailing jameslimsl@yahoo.com.sg by 11 Dec 2008.

Onelife 3

Eagles Rendezvous: Failure, Freedom & Fulfillment

In the first 40 years of his life, Moses thought he was a somebody. In the next 40 years, he was convinced he was a nobody. In the final 40 years of his life, he discovered that God could use a nobody to accomplish a monumental task!

In this series of seven studies from the Book of Exodus we will discover how God used Moses despite his frailty and hang ups. Learn how God can prepare you as He prepared Moses through the crises and choice of his life to lead others to faith and freedom.

Speaker: Michael Tan
Dates: April 5, 12, 26; May 3, 10, 17, 24 (seven sessions)
Time: 4.30 - 7.00 pm
Venue: Golden Landmark Hotel 300 Victoria Street Galaxy Room, Level 5

For registration or inquiries, please contact:
Mimi at 6419 5012 or e-mail: ER@eagles.org.sg
Register online at www.eagles.com.sg/rendezvous.html

Nick Vujicic Outreach Service

Imagine having no hands
Imagine having no feet
Imagine how it would be like to live life?

Just as we are talking about having radical trust in God and hearing the brief sharing by Nick over the video, it's amazing how trust in God has helped him live life and be who he is today. I really cannot imagine being in his shoes and definitely, I believe that I will need a lot of faith and trust to continue with life. But in Nick's own words that "there are many times in our lives when we are looking for answers and we don't get it"... that "it is not as if one morning he woke up and have this confidence but it is a journey, it is character building". He had the willingness to let God use him.

I have uploaded the video to youtube (so if you have blogs, you can put it on your blogs and invite people to the event). Start praying for your friends and loved ones and invite them to the event. Pray for God to pave the way to ask and pray for salvation. I have included the e-Invite and the youtube video here. You can also visit the e-Invite on the church's website at http://elife.riverlife.org.sg/weblink/eInvites.aspx



Here are the e-Invites:


A glimpse into Nick's life

Event: Connect Conference

Who's keen on going?

Date: 21-22 September 2007
Time: 7 p.m. - 9 p.m. (Day 1) & 9 a.m.- 7 p.m. (Day 2)
Venue: ACS Barker Road
Fees: $35 per person

For more information, visit http://navigators.org.sg/archives/82#more-82

Upcoming Events

Hi all, found some upcoming events. Anyone keen on any of them?

Musical: Love Above All

In the 1950s, five American Christian missionaries made contact with the most fearsome and dangerous tribe in the Amazon. In the encounter, Jim Elliot and four of his missionary friends were savagely killed by the Auca Indians. The event shook the world.

Love Above All tells a gripping story of the profound impact the event had on the lives of the Auca Indians of Ecuador. It gives an account of how Elisabeth Elliot persisted to reach out in love to these killers in a remarkable act of love, forgiveness and reconciliation that eventually changed the lives of the entire tribe.

This original musical will be staged at the University Cultural Centre from 27 - 29 July, 2007 with an additional Sunday matinee on 29 July 2007.

Website: http://www.love-above-all.org/

Workshop: The Joy of Discovery

An invitation is open to sign up for The Joy of Discovery: a workshop on Inductive Bible Study . This course will help Christians, especially those who desire to get deeper into the Bible, and those who are leaders/members of small groups doing regular Bible Study.

This is a useful workshop to be taught by an experienced and an engaging teacher in the person of Dr. Peggy Yeo.

The workshop will be held on Saturday, 4th August, 2007, from 2.30pm - 5.15pm, at Faith Methodist Church, 400 Commonwealth Drive, S. 149604. The church is just in front of the Commonwealth MRT Station.

Website: http://www.ttc.edu.sg/thejoyofdiscovery.pdf and http://www.christianhub.com.sg/downloads/jun07/CDCM-JoDBrochure.pdf

Festival of Praise

Website: http://festivalofpraise.org.sg/