Sunday, July 01, 2012

City Harvest – Bringing the Cross-Over

After my last post, I was really pretty blown away by the response both online and offline. Friends and acquaintances told me how blessed they were to read our story (even though, on hindsight, I could have done better. But blogging away at the wee hours of the night diminishes my English prowess, apparently.) So maybe I can do a better post on that. To do Nic’s story more justice. Haha!

And I am also so proud to read other bloggers who are also members of City Harvest Church, and teared reading some of their stories. People like Edmund, Daphne, Klessis, Isaiah, Wendy, Yang, and many, many others who posted their stories on their blogs, and making waves on Facebook and Twitter et al. And we all have tried, in each our own way, to express and put the love we have for God, for the church and for our pastors in words.

I’ve heard people speak of City Harvest members as “worshipping” Pastor Kong and Sun, and that cannot be further from the truth. We worship God and God alone. But we love our church and we love our pastors, and we are a family. And what is a family but one that sticks with each other through thick and thin? We aren’t perfect. But we are a family. And when one is hurting, we all rally together. The Bible says that we should rejoice with those who are rejoicing and mourn with those who are mourning (Romans 12:15-16). In our successes and highs, we rejoice together; and now as we are facing a tough challenge, we stick and comfort each other.

But I do see that there is a gap. Between what we in CHC know as the "Crossover” and what the general public sees as monies spent on a single girl’s singing career. I was already in CHC when this project first began, and I remember how the entire church rallied behind the vision of literally bring the Cross… Over to the world, people who’d ordinarily not step into a church service, but wouldn’t mind attending a pop concert. So the Crossover is more than just a single lady “crossing” from singing church worship songs to now singing pop tunes, it is about bringing the Cross of Jesus and the love of God over as well.

Who benefitted? Quite literally hundreds of thousands through the concerts,

This is the City Harvest story.

Many detractors may not understand, but what we’re asking is that you also spare a thought for us when you make snide or rude or vulgar remarks about the people we love. If someone were to speak ill of your family member, I’m sure you’d be up in arms too. Well, this is just a larger family. ;) As a church, we have been taught to “choose love” – and sometimes choosing love means keeping our peace. But sometimes loving means also standing by the ones you love. And that is what I am doing.

The church has made its stand, and it is heartening for me to read the many Facebook posts and tweets from members, but perhaps more heartening for me to hear from my Pastor over the weekend, standing strong, maintaining his integrity.

Innocent till proven guilty.

Proven in the court of law. Not through certain speculative and sensationalistic media articles. Not through bloggers or individuals who, under the veil of anonymity, make suggestive statements. Not through coffeeshop talk.

But hey, it’s really fine for all this to continue. I just think it smacks of double standards when CHC supporters are asked to keep silent. :)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

If funds were used legitamately, why the need for round tripping?