God may give us a vision. God may give us a dream.
But it will usually not materialize in the way we expect!
The road is often long. The challenges are many.
And it is, by divine design, no express ticket to the Promised Land!
But it will be better, infinitely better – if we embrace a God-sized vision and a Spirit-led adventure!
Our Covenant East journey has all the hallmarks of such a faith-shaping classic!
A Prolonged Waiting Season…
For a time that felt like an eternal winter, we prayed in earnest; we deliberated hard.
We petitioned to God for a permanent place, in a heartland community, and one where Covenant East can truly call home!
We exercised great diligence; we studied countless options. We engaged the church at various platforms to catalyse conversations and to gather feedback. In time past, we were a whisker close to one, but it was not meant to be. Some were disappointed, and understandably so! But as good faith stewards, we remained on our bended knees; we soldiered on for the greater land promise.
With hindsight, we are incredibly thankful! We side-stepped a massive financial burden during a global pandemic. It was an uncertain period, a seismic moment that seared our collective memories.
The Search is Over Now!
Yes, it is official, and we all excitedly know, Sengkang is indeed God’s answer to our land search for Covenant East. It has fulfilled all that we had petitioned for! It is a blessed land. It is God’s promised land for us!
CEFC’s history books must remember this day: 23 Feb 2024.
It was a glorious day at the HDB land ballot!
We saw the Hand of God! Grace shaped the verdict.
We became an unmerited recipient of God’s grace! Our God of “How much more” prevailed.
In His signature fashion, the magnitude of blessings was immense! The land came steeply discounted at one-third the estimated market price (a generational low at $4.47m )! Even more so, the manner of blessing was supremely providential – by ballot! We were leaning in feebly with only one-third chance! It was against the odds. It was the Hand of God that sealed our place!
We were not the better one. But simply, the chosen one – for His glory in Sengkang!
Not the End of the Journey…
In the (paraphrased) parlance of Sir Winston Churchill, this is certainly not the end of our property faith journey. It is not even the beginning of the end. It is only the end of the beginning of our faith march towards Sengkang.
A New Chapter of Our Covenant Story…
Now, we are envisioning our vision for Sengkang – a “church without walls”. We are asking God for a new philosophy of ministry.
We want to be a “community church”, not a “commuter church”. We want to weave into the fabric of our communities, where the gospel will be real to souls unsaved, lives untouched. We are dissatisfied to merely exist as a church that commuters flock to on Sunday mornings. God has a bigger ask of us! A glimpse from the first-century church, perhaps?
At the heart of it, we want to build deep and long-term equity in Sengkang – to build spiritual equity, to be His light and His salt!
Where do we go from here?
The Resolution for East was approved in the 2019 AGM with a $40m mandate. We will keep to this prudent, perhaps tight, budget. We want to abide by our biblical principles of prudence and stewardship, as we navigate the global crosscurrents ahead of us.
And our fund raising must continue.
We’re very grateful for your sacrificial giving that has already brought us past the $27m mark. This faith journey perseveres on.
God willing, we should be ready for our first Sengkang Sunday service in or before the first quarter of 2028. As always, we have planned diligently, and we intend to hold lightly – allowing the Lord to lead us at all times and at all turns. By divine timing, this will perfectly coincide with our CEFC Jubilee Celebrations in 2028! It will be a high moment – 50 years of unmerited grace upon us!
Final Exhortation
I will end with this final exhortation, Proverbs 3:5-6 (ESV).
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your straight your paths.
Let’s acknowledge God’s Promises, Presence and Power in our property journey. He will make our paths straight.
It has been both a privilege and honour to serve God and CEFC through the ministryof the Property Committee.
This is a faith journey.
This is a spiritual journey.
It has been a fascinating ride of faith!
Come, join us!
