Outreach - Eternal Life Assembly

Shaped for Mission – At Every Age

Michelle Chiang — Sat, 14 Mar 2026 04:00:08 +0000

“Missions begin when we recognise that God has already been at work in our lives – shaping our stories, using our gifts and experiences for His redemptive purposes. Every believer has a role to play in His mission, both locally and across the globe.”

Rev Dr Daphne June Lau

In 2025, Eternal Life Assembly’s (“EL”) Missions Committee organised 14 mission trips and outreach events to share God’s love and spread His word in Singapore and beyond.

A total of 212 intergenerational ELites – children, youths, adults and seniors – answered God’s call to “do the good works which He has prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).

Let us hear from eight of them what prompted them to step out in faith, and what they experienced while serving.

Q: Which mission trip did you go for?

Bernard (aged 76, English Congregation): Cambodia Care Centre.

Declan (aged 18), Gordon (aged 23), Alythea (aged 21), Hannah (aged 20) and Zanna (aged 24) (Youth): EL Cambodia

Junxiang (aged 34, Mandarin Young Adult): Outreach to migrant workers at Tuas Recreation Centre.

Frank (aged 33, Mandarin Young Adult): EL Tanjung Pinang.

Q: What prompted you to sign up for the mission trip?

Bernard: I felt God call me to step out of my comfort zone and serve others.

Declan: Honestly, my flesh was unwilling at first. But I knew that a heart of service, love, and sacrifice must be lived out through action. Cambodia, far outside my comfort zone yet hungry for God, felt like the perfect place for my first mission trip.

Gordon: I’d heard that mission trips are eye-opening experiences, so I wanted to experience one myself. I’ve received blessings throughout my life and wanted to give back.

Zanna: I had not been to Cambodia since my first mission trip in 2017. Hearing how much had changed encouraged me to go because the people there are on God’s heart.

Junxiang: Migrant workers build our homes and infrastructure, yet they are often overlooked. I joined the Tuas South outreach to show appreciation and share the love of Jesus.

Frank: I did not say “yes” immediately. After praying about it, I sensed God prompting me to step out of my comfort zone. That gave me the confidence to go.

Q: What impacted you most on the trip?

Bernard: The faith and joy of the people despite their circumstances. Many had little materially, yet their gratitude, generosity and trust in God were remarkable. I went thinking I would give, but I received far more – renewed gratitude and a deeper awareness of God’s presence.

Declan: Same here. I was blessed! Cambodia may appear “lacking” to many, but to me there was abundance – of faith, hunger for God and heartfelt worship. Seeing believers sacrifice so much to serve Him reminded me to keep God at the centre of my life.

Gordon: It has to be EL Cambodia’s love for God. The leaders served sacrificially while juggling school and ministry, yet always with joy. And even though many of the team members fell ill before the trip, God carried us through. It reminded me to trust Him fully.

Zanna: Indeed, God was with us all the way. I was supposed to preach with notes on my iPad, but it couldn’t connect to Wi-Fi. After a quick prayer, I spoke without a script, and ideas kept coming as I spoke – even demonstrating “being the light of the world” with a headlamp. It reminded me that God equips us when we rely on Him.

Alythea: I was deeply moved by the believers’ hunger for God despite persecution from friends or family. Their sincere worship and bold faith showed me what genuine faith looks like – trusting God even when it is costly.

Hannah: Missions are not limited to overseas trips. We can reach people around us in Singapore who have yet to know Christ. I want to continue bringing God’s love to the people around me – to be the salt and light wherever He places me.

Junxiang: I learnt that sometimes a simple act of service opens doors. Offering to take a photo for two migrant brothers led to a friendly conversation.

Frank: The people we met made the biggest impact. Even though we were together for only a few days, the bond felt deep. It reminded me how God’s love connects people beyond differences.

Q: What would you say to someone considering going on a mission trip?

Bernard: Don’t wait until you feel ready. Missions is not about ability but willingness. God will work in your heart as you serve.

Declan: Go for it! Even when doubts come, trust that God will provide. Missions bless not only others but it also allows God to enrich our spiritual lives.

Gordon: Go! Stepping outside our “little red dot” helps us see how God is working beyond our familiar surroundings.

Zanna: Mission trips allow us to experience God’s empowerment for His kingdom purposes.

Junxiang: Missions does not always mean going overseas. There are many opportunities in Singapore to bless others and share God’s love.

Frank: Step out in faith. God works powerfully through willing hearts, and the experience will transform your faith.

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” – Ephesians 2:10

Eternal Life Assembly thanks every ELite who has answered God’s call to carry out the Great Commission – spreading His love in Singapore and beyond.

Age is no barrier. We are all SHAPED FOR GOD’S MISSION.

Step out in faith today. Click here to find out more about EL’s missions and indicate your interest for the upcoming mission trips in 2026.

The post Shaped for Mission – At Every Age first appeared on Eternal Life Assembly.

“The Power of Intergenerational Outreach” – Never too young nor too old to be a community of love and impact

Joyce Tham — Sun, 14 Apr 2024 03:20:00 +0000

A cosy pavilion brimmed with fairy lights, lanterns, and streamers as one pair of intergen life groups (LGs) welcomed about 20 residents to their Chinese New Year block party.

Following the successful Christmas block party organised by Safe Haven LG last December 2023, Safe Haven partnered with their fellow intergen LG, Blessings, to organise a Chinese New Year block party as a follow-up with the residents.

“The last round, we had some older folks. When it was just our LG [hosting the party], it was a bit difficult to engage them,” recalled Safe Haven’s co-cell leader, Yong Chian.

“It’s exciting that somebody organises such parties for residents. I think it’s a good idea; at least people know there is a LG in Telok Blangah area,” commented Panny, the leader of Blessings LG.

Initially, some of her LG members had difficulty seeing the purpose of having the intergen cell group. This started to change as members of both LGs bonded together through the collective preparation and evangelism efforts.

Preparations started with prayers and brochure distribution. Their faith was challenged when there were only a few sign-ups. The waiting game seemed forever.

There were questions if the correct date or timing was picked for the party. But with persistent prayers, more sign-ups streamed in, with most attending the party for the first time!

Initiating conversations does not come naturally to everyone. To equip members with the confidence to strike up conversations, Safe Haven conducted a mini role-play to share handles and to practise holding conversations with different profiles of people.

The profiles included gender, age, marital status, number of children, etc. Members then gave feedback to one another on how the conversations went and shared ways for improvement.

During the party, members mingled with and befriended the residents. “We saw a lot more conversations going on. People are not just standing alone or with people they are comfortable with,” recounted Safe Haven’s co-cell leader, Brenda.

“I was afraid to approach the residents as I didn’t feel confident carrying on conversations,” shared Joyce, a young adult member from Safe Haven.

“But this was an opportunity to share God’s love. Hence, I plucked up my courage and paired up with another life group member to speak with one resident with 2 young children. My partner and I took turns to converse with the resident and we learned more about her and her family. I was glad I took that first step to connect with her.”

Another member from Blessings life group, Judy, initially felt apprehensive, “When I heard about the outreach, my first reaction was to find an excuse not to attend. I am an introvert. I don’t like to socialise, entertain, or be involved in big gatherings. But I decided to attend to support my LG leader.”

At the party, she noticed a lady in her 60s. Remembering that the objective was to reach out, she walked over and began talking with the lady. “I shared that I am from Eternal Life Assembly (EL) and that we hoped to get to know the residents at Telok Blangah,” recalled Judy.

“I noticed a hump on her back and asked if I could pray for her. That opened an opportunity to share about EL’s Healing Room Ministry. As a volunteer serving in this ministry, I have seen several healings and I am glad that I was able to share testimonies to encourage her.

In the past, I would not know how to approach and talk to people, let alone share about God. I am thankful that God is using me in the Healing Ministry.”

The night ended with the residents receiving door gifts packed in the church’s red packets. It was a meaningful night of connecting with the residents. Now, the intergen LGs look forward to having more touchpoints with the residents in the future!

“An outreach should have some form of follow-up. It’s not a touch-and-go thing. We are there to know people and bring them in. The only way to do that is to form a relationship,” chimed in Brenda.

This intergenerational effort has proven that age is and never will be a barrier. Everyone can and has a role to play in sowing for breakthroughs in evangelism as long as we are willing to.

“Just start small, start simple. Then grow from there,” said Yong Chian. “We just have to start somewhere and the best time is now,” concluded Brenda.

The post “The Power of Intergenerational Outreach” – Never too young nor too old to be a community of love and impact first appeared on Eternal Life Assembly.

“Lord, I will say yes… but I can’t do this on my own” – The worship leader who felt like a Jonah on a Cambodia Missions Trip

Zanna Ker — Sun, 17 Mar 2024 06:08:00 +0000

Excitement filled me when the 2023 Cambodia missions trip was announced. The Lord had moved powerfully the last time I went there and I was eager to go again to share the love of Jesus with the Cambodians.

Moreover, Ps Daphne mentioned that the Cambodian worship team hoped to learn more about worship. Serving a youth worship leader, it was a chance for me to build the Cambodian church in this area.

My prayer before the trip was for God to show up, for the Cambodians and the missions team to be challenged by Him, and be ready to take up whatever God calls us to do.

God really challenged me. Days before the trip, I came down with COVID-19. And on the day itself, five other team members came down with COVID-19 too. They were my closest friends. This meant losing half the band playing in the Youth Evangelistic Concert (YEC) that we had planned for months!

At the airport, the pastoral team was assured to let me go, since I was no longer contagious by then. They left the decision up to me.

A sense of guilt tugged at my heart, as I felt responsible for possibly being the one to spread the coronavirus to my friends. My friends did not blame me, but further encouraged me to go.

Their gracious words gave me some assurance, but I was still anxious. Could I lead the Youth Evangelistic Concert (YEC) by myself? The task of leading worship in both English and Khmer* alone was daunting.

Feelings of inadequacy and a deep-seated fear overwhelmed me. Thoughts of staying home, resting, and watching K-Dramas became so enticing at that moment.

I felt like Jonah. I wanted to run away from doing God’s work.

who was I to disobey God, now that the door was already open?

Yet, this seemed like no coincidence. How was it that I was medically cleared the very day of the trip? Furthermore, it would not be right nor responsible of me as the Worship IC to bail on the rest. More importantly, who was I to disobey God, now that the door was already open?

Feeling a tugging in my heart to just go, I took a deep breath and told God, “Lord, I will say yes, but I really need your help. I can’t do this on my own.”

“Lord, I will say yes, but I really need your help. I can’t do this on my own.”

I left the airport trembling, with tears in my eyes. All I could do was to rely on God, 100%. Upon arrival in Cambodia, we took time to seek the Lord in worship and prayer to realign our hearts to His purposes.

The next day was a flurry of activity. We needed to pivot as half our YEC band was gone. One of our team members, Clarissa Ee, took the initiative and stepped up to play on the keyboard, even though she was quite new to the band. Two Cambodians also joined us – Ratha played the guitar, and Sis Chanthu joined me on the vocals. I was so grateful because she knew the Khmer words and could support and guide me on the pronunciation.

We spent time coordinating hand signals with them and teaching them some music theory so that we could flow with one another. It was a good time bridging our cross-cultural differences too.

When the day of the YEC came, I was so scared and nervous! The thought of leading worship in a foreign language to a new congregation sent my heart pounding.

However, my fears were unfounded. Once service started, the Cambodians sounded like they saw a K-pop band – the whole hall reverberated with their shouts and worship unto the Lord! Their overwhelming energy and eagerness to worship God was so encouraging and inspiring that I too jumped and praised Him with all my heart!

There and then, I experienced the Lord’s supernatural empowerment. Truth be told, I struggled so much with Khmer words. Prior to the trip, I would slow down each worship video to 0.25x speed to catch the pronunciation and write my personalised romanisation of the Khmer words.

Sis Chanthu also pronounced certain words differently during the practice sessions, which made me rather nervous. While the confidence screen at the back of the hall showed both Khmer romanisation and written Khmer, I could not seem to pronounce the words correctly even during the practice sessions.

However, during the actual YEC, I found myself speaking and singing all the Khmer words accurately!

Knowing that the Spirit of the Lord was upon me gave me the confidence and boldness

I was absolutely mindblown. How could I pronounce all those words without struggling? This was surely the Lord’s doing. Knowing that the Spirit of the Lord was upon me gave me the confidence and boldness to lead the congregation into the presence of God.

That night, God revealed to me that had I not gone for the missions trip, amazing things would still happen to the Cambodians, but they would not have happened through me. It was truly a humbling experience partnering with the Lord, and I’m so glad that I did not lose out on this joy!

Despite the many “disasters” we experienced – losing five leaders and having to re-strategize at the last minute, we all saw how God had turned the disasters into good.

Plans are necessary, but God’s plans are the best plans

If you are considering going for a missions trip, just go for it! Don’t be a Jonah. This missions trip taught me to trust in the Lord, and not in human plans. Plans are necessary, but God’s plans are the best plans, and we just have to flow with Him.

May you witness the faithfulness and power of God as you partner Him in obedience on a missions trip!

*Khmer is the official language of Cambodia.

The post “Lord, I will say yes… but I can’t do this on my own” – The worship leader who felt like a Jonah on a Cambodia Missions Trip first appeared on Eternal Life Assembly.