“Now, I’m ready to go home and bear fruit.”
(Left) Mr Tan Eng Kwang, EAST Admissions Officer. (Right) Mr Vitou Ngeth, 2021 graduate, Master of Divinity in Christian Ministry.
Ngeth Vitou (Cambodia), MDiv Christian Ministry
“First we clean the land and let the cows soften the soil; then we let the land rest and heal, add in fertilizers and plant rice.”
Vitou, 33, speaks like a pro because from the young age of seven, he was already helping his parents on their three-hectre rice fields.
First, we clean the land
Vitou’s spiritual growth path started at 21 at a Bible School in Sihanoukville (western Cambodia), four hours from his hometown in Takeo. “I wasn’t a believer then,” he says. “I enrolled at the school only because it was free.”
The fifth child of a family of six children confesses that he grew up very angry about being poor. “I dreamed of finding a better life for my family; my father died early and my mother lived a hard life,” says Vitou. “But when I accepted Jesus in my first year at the college, my dreams changed to helping others find eternal life.”
Prayer Pointers – 10 June 2021
“And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever toward Israel.” – Ezra 3:11a, ESV
We have much to thank God for: He has blessed us with EAST Mission Hub (EMH) and moved hearts of ministry partners in envisioning with us to “develop Christlike servant leaders for the Great Commission in Asia and around the world” at the recent online EMH Thanksgiving & Envisioning 2021. All glory to our mighty God!
Things will work out
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28, ESV
On the surface, Romans 8:28 seems a simple verse to understand. Love God, and things will work out well for you. However, this is not the case as “good” does not translate to our human and earthly understanding of the word. When we think “good” we understand it as going well or comfortable. The following verse, Romans 8:29, elaborates “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son.”
“Good” here means that we will draw closer to parity with the image of Jesus the more we love God and obey him. Our takeaway is that love and obedience to God may not materialise goodness in the way we imagine, but instead draw us ever closer to him.
To Be Like My Father
Yataka Gakiya (Japan), Master of Arts in Biblica Studies, 2021
Two images of his pastor father stand out for Yutaka Gakiya, 29. “He enjoys preaching God’s Word,” says the Sociology major from Kindai University in Osaka. “and he loves playing with me and my two younger brothers.”
“From young, my dream has been to be like my father.”
Yutaka’s journey to EAST began only after he met a Japanese pastor in a city where he worked. It was also during those three years that God’s call for him into full-time ministry was confirmed. Read more
Worldview and Biblical Decision Making (Day Course)
Worldview and Biblical Decision Making (Online)
TS560, 2 Credits
Wednesdays, 9.00 am-11.00 am
Your worldview shapes how you live even if you don’t know what it is and how it works. This course seeks to explore the big questions of life to enable you to better understand, defend, and live out your faith in the marketplace of competing ideas and lifestyles. It will also help you develop a biblically-informed framework for making moral decisions.
(Online courses will have synchronous sessions held only online.)
Lewis Winkler, PhD, joined Cru in 1987 and has taught in three seminaries in the USA and Asia. He enjoys interacting with students over basketball and casual discussion on how the Bible applies to life and issues today. Lewis is married to Barbara, and they have three adult children, two who are married and two grandchildren.
Jarred Jung, MDiv / PhD Studies, joined Cru in 2006 and ministers in Asian contexts. He has worked in campus ministry and most recently has lectured in developing seminaries. His passion is for teaching students how to apply theology to every square inch of their life through the lens of the Bible. He enjoys talking with students about theology, hosting people for dinners, and most of all living life with his wife Shelley and his three children.
This class may be taken for free from tuition fees by audit students under the GLO@EAST promotion (S$40 registration fee payable). Registration deadline is Friday, 9 July 2021.
EAST Library Catalogue
EAST Populi
National Library Board eResources
The Digital Theological Library
