I share with you today an exhortation drawn from the timeless truths of God’s Word for our young men who are about to join the National Service (NS). GYF organised an online meeting for them yesterday, during which I gave this exhortation.
By God’s providence, you have been enlisted to serve the nation and are about to embark on a period of training and preparation. Throughout history, men have been called upon to rise, defend, and serve their nation. And now, in His sovereign plan, God has arranged for you to step into this responsibility. This is not a mere coincidence but a divine appointment—a significant stage in your life where your faith and character will be tested and refined.
As you prepare for the journey ahead, I want to share with you four essential spiritual mindsets that will serve as guiding principles throughout your national service. Military service is not merely a profession, but a sacred duty that calls for spiritual resilience, unwavering faith, and Christ-likeness.
The Lord says, “Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them ...” (Deuteronomy 31:6a). Courage is not the absence of fear, but the presence of faith in God and His promises amidst fear. On the battlefield—whether physical or spiritual—God calls men to remain steadfast, not swayed by fear but anchored in unwavering trust in Him. Therefore, we are commanded to strengthen ourselves by holding firmly to His Word. Do not allow circumstances or experiences to shake your confidence nor instil fear in your heart.
Courage is not a reckless (or foolhardy), daring attitude but a disciplined and obedient approach to life, especially in the face of temptation and trials. A soldier must be disciplined and obedient to his commanding officer, and likewise, Christians must remain disciplined and obedient to our Heavenly Commander. As Scripture says, “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy 2:3). A good soldier will be disciplined and obedient, equipping himself to face challenges, endure hardships, and remain steadfast in moments of crisis. Young men, train your bodies, discipline your minds, and guard your hearts with diligence and faithfulness.
“For the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee” (Deuteronomy 31:6b). God does not send His people into battle without His presence accompanying them. Just as commanders lead their troops into the fray, God Himself promises to go with you. When fear creeps in, the nights are long, and the conflict seems insurmountable, remember: God is with you! In moments of doubt or exhaustion, you can commune with Him in prayer, draw strength from His promises, and rejoice in the assurance of His unwavering presence.
The army may offer you rewards, promotions, and financial incentives, but do not let these become the driving force behind your service. Never covet them nor pursue them through dishonest or deceptive means. True excellence is not measured by rank or accolades, but by spiritual and moral integrity. Our country needs righteous men, for Scripture says, “Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people” (Proverbs 14:34). Young men, your integrity and character will speak louder than your words. Serve with honour, truthfulness and respect. Be an example to others in speech, action and attitude, reflecting the light of Christ in all you do.
Reuel Resuma
I thank God for enabling me and my family to attend the YAF-YF Retreat, and for the retreat committee who laboured much to prepare and manage the programme well. I thank the Lord for the 7 groups which sang praises to Him, as well as for the three preachers: Pastor Koshy, Pr Samson, and Pr Cornelius, who expounded on the theme: “Living by the Spirit”.
Pr Cornelius preached about the “Person and Personality of the Holy Spirit”. I learned that the Spirit is not a thing, but a Person. He reveals His divinity through His personality. The Holy Spirit’s personality is shown in His intellect, emotion, and will. He also guides, strengthens, assures, communes with, and convicts the believer. The right response to the Holy Spirit is to fear and reverence Him as God. Pr Cornelius also preached on the fruit of the Spirit, as mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23. Nine traits are mentioned: “love”, the essential nature of God; “joy”, the privilege and duty of every believer; “peace”, which stems from our justification by faith in Jesus; “longsuffering”, which is patience in suffering; “gentleness” and “goodness”, which are displayed in words and deeds of kindness; “faith”, our trust in God by the working of the Spirit; “meekness”, which is not being a pushover, but being sensitive to others, yet still standing firm in our convictions; “temperance”, also known as self-control, which is the believers’ wall of defence against sinful desires. We must honour God with our body, taking captive every thought for Christ, and fleeing from temptations. The fruit of the Spirit is singular, and is contrary to the works of the flesh. Without the Spirit’s help, we cannot bear the fruit of the Spirit.
Thereafter, Pr Samson taught us in 2 parts, about the “Work of the Holy Spirit”. Since the Holy Spirit has many roles, His works are many. He is the One who orchestrates our regeneration, quickens the believer, and gives new life. He baptizes us spiritually, and seals us. He indwells in us at the point of our salvation, and never leaves us. He adopts, fills, empowers, equips, and illumines us. He also bestows spiritual gifts upon and comforts the believer.
I learned from Pastor that, though we are still in our sinful flesh that constantly tries to make us sin, we are not to walk after the flesh. Because of this, there is a war in us waged by the flesh against our soul. Paul reminds us that “to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8:6). The flesh is against God, and when we lived in the flesh before our regeneration, we were against God and was under God’s condemnation. Now being justified by faith in Christ, we have the Holy Spirit to help us to fight against the lust of the flesh. Even though our life will always be a constant battle against the flesh, if we yield to the Spirit, we can overcome the flesh.
I thank the Lord for all the things I have learned during the retreat, and also for the fellowship we had with the brethren in Kuching. “Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place” (2 Corinthians 2:14). All glory and praise be to God!
Christopher Low
“Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever” (Psalm 106:1).
I thank God for helping my family and me to attend this year’s YAF-YF Retreat on the theme: “Living by the Spirit”.
In the 1st theme message, I learned that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are equal in essence, glory, and power. We must not grieve the Holy Spirit, as the Bible says in Ephesians 4:30 – “And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.”
In the 2nd theme message, I was taught that regeneration is the act of the Holy Spirit alone. He quickens elect sinners and makes them spiritually alive. Regeneration is once for all divine work; it is not repeated.
The 3rd theme message taught me about the Holy Spirit’s work of sanctifying believers and transforming them to be more like Christ. The Spirit also empowers us to serve God faithfully.
In the 4th theme message, I learned about the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. We must bear these various traits in our lives.
In the 5th theme message, I learned about the peace we have through our Lord Jesus Christ. His mercy keeps us from falling. Romans 8:6 says, “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.”
The 6th theme message reminded me that the carnal mind is against God. We must not follow worldly trends or philosophies, but walk after the Spirit.
In the final theme message, I learned that sin will always try to pull us back, and we will face trials and temptations. But after salvation, we are made into new creatures in Christ and have the Holy Spirit’s power to overcome sin.
I thank God for Pastor, Pr Cornelius, and Pr Samson, who preached God’s Word faithfully. Praise God also for the seven choir groups that presented songs, and for everyone who worked hard to organise the retreat. I thank God that I could join a choir group and sing for His glory. I have learned many wonderful lessons during this retreat. I pray that God will help me live by the Spirit and walk closer to Him every day. All glory and praise be unto God!
Caleb Low
“Praise ye the LORD. Praise, O ye servants of the LORD, praise the name of the LORD” (Psalm 113:1). I thank God for giving me the opportunity to attend the YAF-YF Retreat on the theme: “Living by the Spirit”. I would like to share some lessons which I have learnt from theme message 4 on “The Fruit of the Spirit”.
I learn that we are to love God and others, to be joyful, and to have peace with God, personal peace, and peace with others.
I am also reminded to be longsuffering, slow to anger, and to be gentle and do good to others. As Galatians 6:10 exhorts us, “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.”
We must have faith in God and trust Him. We must be humble, “with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love” (Ephesians 4:2).
Lastly, we must have temperance, i.e. to have self-control.
I pray that God will help me to live out the fruit of the Spirit every day. I want to show love and kindness to my family and friends, to be patient when things don’t go my way, and to trust God in everything. I also want to have self-control in how I speak and act, so that I can be a good testimony for Jesus. May God help me to grow more like Christ!
Nathan Resuma
I am thankful to God that my family and I could attend the YAF-YF Retreat in Kuching, as well as for the fellowship among brethren from Kuching and Singapore, and for the lessons I have learned from Pr Cornelius, Pr Samson and Pastor Koshy.
I learned from Pr Cornelius on the “Person and Personality of the Holy Spirit”, and how it is fundamentally important for Christians to understand that the Holy Spirit is a divine Person, who reveals His divinity through His divine personality. He has intellect, wisdom, emotions, and the will to decide and choose, and He can be obeyed, mistreated or abused through actions, such as blaspheming or lying to Him. He proceeds from the Father and the Son, yet and is equal to both of them. From this, I learned that Christians must worship Him accordingly, and not sin against Him.
I learned from Pr Samson on the “Work of the Holy Spirit”, concerning how He has been working since the beginning of time, and on how He works in believers. Pr Samson taught us how the Holy Spirit regenerates us to make us alive unto the call of salvation, baptizes us into union with Christ at the point of conversion, seals us by His presence as an assurance of our redemption and salvation, indwells all believers of the Old and New Testaments, graciously adopts us and give us the rights of God’s family, bestows spiritual gifts unto believers, never fails to intercede for us, and comforts us. Along with these, I learned that the Spirit calls, fills, empowers, and equips God’s servants for the ministry.
I also learned about the “Fruit of the Spirit” from Pr Cornelius, and how that Christians must live a fruitful life by partaking of the virtues of godliness. We must obey the Spirit’s working in us, so that the fruit of the Spirit, which is “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance” (Galatians 5:22-23), can be strengthened and preserved. The fruit of the Spirit is different from but works hand in hand with the gifts of the Spirit, for without the fruit, the gifts are poorly applied. Fruitful character and godly traits come from devotion to God, and results from the Spirit’s working in us.
I learned from Pastor on the main theme, “Living by the Spirit”, that we need the Spirit to convict us of sin, to bring us to Christ, help us against temptation, and teach us to follow Christ. For In our life, there is a conflict – flesh warring against our souls. Furthermore, we are not free from Satan’s attacks. However, we can rely on the Spirit to help us against flesh and Satan’s temptations. We must be willing to obey the Spirit’s bidding, surrender to God, and be spiritually minded by walking after the Spirit. We must never degenerate into carnal mindedness, but fight against it with the Spirit’s help, and let Him lead us to be more than conquerors for Christ.
Finally, I thank God for another opportunity to encourage the church in Kuching, and for the camp committee in the planning of this retreat. To God be all the glory.
Juffrey Balicao
Praise the LORD for the recent YAF-YF Retreat held in Kuching, on the theme: “Living by the Spirit”. It is by the Lord’s mercy and grace that all participants were sustained, preserved, and fed with His Word. He also blessed all the participants with a good time of fellowship during the breaks and game session, and in meeting the brethren at the Kuching mission station.
This year-end retreat is particularly noteworthy for my family and me. Firstly, I thank God for allowing me to serve as a member of the retreat committee. The Lord guided, strengthened, and gave wisdom to every committee member to fulfil their duties. Thank God for the spirit of unity and humility to serve Him and His people during this retreat. Additionally, I thank God for the good voices of the brethren who presented song presentations during each theme message. Furthermore, the Lord has blessed my family by enabling us to join this year-end retreat and be reunited. Thank God for the provision through the church, which sponsored both my family’s retreat fee and flights. This was our first visit to the mission church in Kuching, and our first time having fellowship with the brethren there.
During this 3-day event, the Lord blessed us with spiritual blessings through the preaching of His Word. The 1st theme message was delivered by Pr Cornelius and focused on the “Person and Personality of the Holy Spirit”. He thoroughly explained the Holy Spirit’s attributes of personality (intellect, emotions, will) and the Holy Spirit’s actions in the believer’s life (guiding, teaching, testifying, convicting of sin, interceding, restraining, sanctifying, equipping for service, calling for special service, assuring salvation). As Christians, we should know the workings of the Spirit and worship God accordingly.
For the next two theme messages, Pr Samson focused on the works of the Holy Spirit. It is important to note that every genuine believer has the Holy Spirit, and He is constantly working for the perfection of the believer’s faith. In the 4th theme message (by Pr Cornelius), we were taught about the two opposing forces in a believer’s life: the Spirit and the flesh. If you are led by the flesh, you shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Conversely, if you are led by the Spirit, you will be fruitful in the kingdom of God. With the nine traits listed by the apostle Paul in Galatians 5:22-23, we are encouraged us to bear all of the godly traits and to manifest them until we are perfected by the Lord.
Lastly, Pastor Koshy preached the remaining theme messages on “Living by the Spirit”, based on Romans 8:1-14. The Holy Spirit has quickened us from the deadness of sin, liberated us from the bondage of sin, and made residence in us permanently. He also leads believers to desire and passionately love and serve Christ. Spirit-minded believers must be Spirit-functioned and minded individuals. May we continuously fight against the works of the flesh with the help of the Holy Spirit, and walk constantly in His leading. All glory to God!
Stephanas Tan Yeh Wen
By God’s grace, my family attended the recent Kuching YAF-YF Retreat without much hindrance or sickness. Thank God also that the seven presentation groups (who had prepared tirelessly) were able to present their respective items well, even though some had fallen ill during the course of the retreat. May the Lord be pleased to use their music to edify both the musicians and the congregation.
Familiar doctrines, such as sanctification, calling, equipping, were given greater and more personal emphasis during this retreat. What blessings such doctrines and their implications bring to me! It is comforting that I am able to confess my sins and to trust in Jesus (the very first work of the Spirit in us) – only because of the Spirit that works in me, and not of myself. It is the Spirit that sanctifies me, calls and consecrates me to ministry, equips me with the relevant gifts and right attitudes to serve Him, and even grants me grace to be faithful – not of myself. Praise God that it is the Spirit alone who saves and empowers us!
One practical implication from the doctrines of the Holy Spirit is an emphasis in using the Word of God in evangelism, through which the Spirit of God works in order to bring about salvation. Another is to pray for the illumination of the Spirit upon the preachers and the listeners – for no theological degree nor human intelligence can grant such knowledge to our minds and hearts. Yet another is to trust wholly upon the Word of God in all that we say and do - for it is perfectly inspired and perfectly preserved by the Spirit for us!
Thank God for the messages addressing the gifts which the Spirit has bestowed upon us, as well as the nine traits of the fruit of the Spirit. What a reminder that we should take every opportunity to serve God, no matter how small or laborious, with much joy and thanksgiving, and not out of forced obligation (1 Corinthians 15:58) – relying upon the Holy Spirit to bear the fruit of the Spirit! May we not limit ourselves to ticking off a checklist, but to consider the list of 9 traits as non-exhaustive.
I also praise God for the reminder that the love borne as part of the fruit of the Spirit and the world’s love is not the same. Though the world has hijacked the term “love” to disguise their lust, yet nothing is further away from biblical love. Such a difference may be seen by the phrase, “preferring one another” (Romans 12:10). So often we emphasise on what others can do for us, rather than what we can do for others! How often have we then imbued the love of the world, rather than bearing biblical love in ourselves! Oh, that we should have more of Christ’s love, and put off, yea, detest, despise, even hate the lust of the world that has clothed itself with the term “love”.
May the Lord be pleased to apply these lessons continually in my life for the benefit of others around me.