From BOY to MAN
S. Zarni Pyoe Wai Saing (Myanmar) recently graduated with an MDiv in Christian Ministry at EAST 28th Commencement. He is now serving as a pastor in Little Myanmar Christian Fellowship under the All Saints Presbyterian Church.
Back in Yangon, Zarni was ‘king’ at home, pampered by his homemaker mother. Dad was a trainer of NGO workers. “But I had three big bully brothers,” he adds, laughing.
So when time came for studies in 2015, he was “shy a lot.” Compared to older brother Htike, EAST alumnus and outspoken leader, he was a frightened little boy in the Lion City of Singapore. “My greatest fear was people would laugh at my weak English,” says Zarni. “That led to problems like procrastination, missing assignment deadlines, and getting into trouble with my professors.”
But God patiently worked in his life.
When I am weak
Yami Asai Shimray (India) recently graduated with an MDiv in Christian Ministry and also received the EAST Spiritual Multiplier Award. She served as part of the pastoral team at New Horizon Church. She was recently married to Mathingmi Hongchui in a beautiful wedding service at Grace Baptist Church. Both of them are deeply committed to build up the Church in India and beyond. Yami will leave for her DMin studies in Family Ministry at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, joining her husband who is reading a PhD (Christian Education in Family and Generational Studies) at the same seminary.
Growing up in Manipur, India, ‘fear’ was not in Yami Shimray’s dictionary.
At six, she fell into a river during a riot but climbed back up “to everyone’s amazement”; at seven Dad passed away and she became Mummy’s helper at home while she worked; all through university and Masters degree in Tourism Management, she worked to support herself.
Meet at the Well
Meet our Valedictorian Jasmine Lee Wan Shan, 36, from the recent 28th Commencement. She worships at Bethesda (Bedok-Tampines) Church and has graduated with a Master of Divinity in Christian Ministry.
Four years ago, Jasmine Lee and ladies in her cell group started a “Meet At The Well” ministry, which gathers believers from different churches for friendship and fellowship in the Word.
“The program centers around conversations that concern singles, within an informal setting of food, games and spiritual encouragement,” says Jasmine.
In a way, Jasmine’s stop at EAST has also been a “meet at the well” for her.
Partner EAST to Equip International Servant Leaders
At East Asia School of Theology’s 28th Commencement Service in May 2022, we graduated and sent out another 17 workers to the harvest field. This is on top of the over 500 graduates that we have equipped since we started in 1992. 2022 is a significant milestone as we celebrate 30 years of God’s goodness and faithfulness in equipping Christlike servant leaders for the Great Commission.
Our alumni serve as missionaries, pastors, teachers, church planters, etc. in over 25 countries around the world and are making an eternal impact for God’s kingdom. See the following stories of our alumni with their ministry: Read more
Choong Voon: Renovation of Body, Heart and Soul
Meet a graduate from the recent 28th Commencement – Mr Wong Choong Voon, Malaysian, MDiv in Intercultural Studies and worshipped at Cornerstone Fellowship (Bahasa Indonesia). He is also the recipient of the EAST President Leadership Award and Academic Excellence Award.
Twenty years in full-time ministry, former Cru Malaysia staff, now Chinese Timothy Mission worker who served among slum-dwellers in Semarang, Java, before joining EAST. Choong Voon’s vision is to reach the unreached peoples in Malaysia and Indonesia.
“When I first arrived at EAST, I was all ready for hard work and discipline,” says the Micro-Electronics Engineer by training and EAST Student Council President (2020-21). “But my engine was in a very bad shape.” Years of late-nights, no exercise, and poor diet, he confides, led to an unhealthy body, heart and soul. “These bad habits carried on in my student life.”
The “turning point” came during his second-year school break.
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