Hopeful, Excited, Thankful, Grateful, Anticipative, Joyful and Tired.

These were the most frequent sentiments expressed by the pastors who participated in the inaugural State of the Church (SOTC) in Singapore Study (https://saltandlight.sg/sotc2022/).

When the SOTC study was conducted (7 months ago in July/August 2022), we had been 3 months into DORSCON YELLOW. Pastors rolled up their sleeves to resume many of their onsite worship services and ministry activities, and to exhort many worshippers to ‘come back home’. Nothing could replace the blessing of embodied Christian community.

At the same time, new ministries had sprung up in response to the opportunities afforded by the COVID-19 pandemic (e.g. neighbourhood and guest worker outreach). The period 2020 - 2022 was a busy but hopeful time. What are the priorities of our churches now?

Pastors who participated in the SOTC shared what their top 3 priorities for the next 12 months would be (i.e. up to June 2023). The 5 most frequently cited priorities cover the broad spectrum of what every local church ought to be thinking about.

These five may be summarized as follows:

Priority 1: How do we love our neighbor and ‘bring the church’ to those outside the church? [Mission and Outreach]

Priority 2: How do we help non-believers encounter Christ and His people when they ‘come to church’? [Evangelism and Hospitality]

Priority 3: How do we nurture believers to mature as followers of Christ? [Discipleship]

Priority 4: How do we nurture a community where people grow in relationship with one another in the Body of Christ? [Community]

These are important priorities that strike a balance between an internal and an external focus, and between breadth and depth. They speak to the raison d’etre of the local church. I’m so glad that my fellow pastors are maintaining their focus on these things.

Priority 5: There is a fifth priority that I hope to discuss in more depth. It is of particular concern for the BP churches in Singapore, and that is to do with Leadership and Staffing Renewal, Recruitment and Succession. [Leadership and Staffing].

I firmly believe in the priesthood of all believers. But at the same time so much depends on how our full-time leaders and staff lead and mobilize the church to be such a priesthood. Looking back at biblical times, there won’t be much to speak of a ‘post-exilic’ church if there was no Joshua, Zerubbabel, Nehemiah, Ezra, Mordecai or Esther. In like manner, our local churches will languish if there is no raising of a generation dedicated to leading them for the next 10 to 20 years.

In the SOTC study, raising and developing new leaders was particularly high on the priority list among BPCIS pastors. That may not be surprising, and here’s why:

Our churches are elderly. Compared to other denominations, we have more than the average share of churches with a large proportion of elderly and a corresponding low proportion of youth and children. Churches with such a demographic profile are down a path of natural senescence and need urgent revitalisation. This usually begins with the renewal of its leadership and staffing.

Our pastors and staff have worked hard. The SOTC findings indicate that BPCIS churches have been very active in ministry work throughout the pandemic (no wonder “tired” was a frequent ‘emotion’ felt by pastors!). But it has come with a toll: More than the average proportion of staff from BPCIS churches (1 out of 3) suffered an adverse mental health outcome during the pandemic. This sobering statistic reinforces the need for renewal, not to mention healthy rhythms of work and rest.

At the time of writing, Singapore has gone into DORSCON GREEN. This is a clear indicator that the pandemic is behind us. The building up of God’s people for the next generation lies ahead of us. As I think further on this, I can better identify with what the pastors of the land have shared about their feelings emerging out of the pandemic: Hopeful, Excited, Thankful, Grateful, Anticipative, Joyful and Tired.

May the LORD raise up a renewed generation of leaders!

Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts. Zechariah 4:6 ESV