Preacher Ko Lingkang

New NS Ministry

2 Timothy 2:3-4 "Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier."

A young man’s enlistment is often seen as a very significant milestone in his life. It is something that every Singaporean man has to go through, whether he likes it or not. It is also a rather shocking transition that he has to face, as he goes from a relatively comfortable, sheltered civilian life as a student, to the regimental, physically demanding and restricted life of a military personnel.

With these changes, come numerous trials, temptations and challenges that he has to overcome. The most obvious one would probably be the physical challenge, as one is suddenly thrown into a regime of physical training, fitness tests, route marches, outfield exercises etc. Beyond that would be the mental and emotional challenges that come coupled with the sudden regimentation of his life. Almost everything, from the time you sleep to the time you wake up and everything in between will be tightly controlled, with little or no freedom given. There would be a whole host of new rules and regulations to follow, of one’s dress code, understanding of hierarchy, respond to commands and even mode of moving from point to point. While trying to get used to all these changes, the young man also has to contend with the social issues involved in trying to integrate with a new group of people with whom he will be staying together, and spend almost every waking moment with. On top of all that, there are many more problems that he may encounter, such as difficult superiors, troublesome peers or subordinates, perceived unfairness of the system, and the many vices that he will be exposed to.

All these factors combined, will be a great spiritual battle that these new Christian enlistees have to face. All throughout their time as National Servicemen Full-Time (NSF), they will have to strive to maintain their walk with the Lord, and not be overwhelmed by all these challenges and temptations that they faces. Their service and involvement in church activities may also suffer, because of the time spent in camp, and the weekend duties that they may be assigned to do. How one faces up to these challenges and how he responds to the varied circumstances that he is thrown into, can really make or break him. He can either capitulate and succumb to the wiles of the Devil and turn away from God, or he can come out of the furnace tried as gold, and become a more effective testimony for the Lord.

In light of all these, can the church be of assistance to these young men? Should there be a concerted effort made to help them through these transitions, and prepare them spiritually for the many trials that they will most certainly face? The answer has to be a definite yes!

Hitherto, the YF has taken a sort of an unofficial role in providing support and help for these NSFs. As all of them are within the YF age group, and there are many older brothers who are going through or have recently gone through similar experiences, they would be suitable candidates to provide that listening ear and give words of advice to the younger ones. However, admittedly we also have our limitations. As not all the young men in our church are regular at YF, there are some guys who are missed out, or are not given equal attention. Also, as this is done in a more ad hoc manner, there is no structured program that we follow, or full attention given to follow up with all the guys currently serving their NS. Furthermore, not all of the senior guys in the YF are spiritually mature enough to always give the right counsel or advice to the younger guys.

Starting this year, we will begin a new ministry to cater specifically to the needs of the guys who will soon be enlisting, or are currently going through their National Service. It will be a ministry that will endeavour to prepare the young men for National Service, and help them to keep close to the Lord throughout their time there. Currently we have a committee that is led by Dn Eric Lim, who himself is a very active NS man. The rest of the committee consists of other men in our church (myself included) who have had varied experiences as either an NSF or regular. Together, we will try our best to encourage the young men to walk close to the Lord and to help address any queries, problems or concerns that may arise in their course of their time in the SAF.

At the moment, there are two main regular programs that we have planned for this ministry. Firstly, we will have a pre-enlistees meeting, the first of which was held two Sundays ago on the 3rd of January. The target audience would be the young men who are about to be enlisted. The purpose is to prepare them spiritually for what lies ahead by exhorting them from God’s Word, to give them some practical advice from the seniors, and also to have a Q&A session to address any concerns that they may have. This can also be a time where the pre-enlistees can get to know some of the other young men in church who are going through NS. Family and friends are also welcome to this meeting.

The second main program would be monthly meetings every first Saturday of the month, for an hour before the Church Bible Study (CBS). This will be for all NSFs to attend. The purpose of this meeting is for mutual edification and encouragement. There will be a short exhortation from God’s Word, followed by a time for prayer and sharing, where we can update each other on the blessings and struggles faced, and then to uphold one another in prayer. Hopefully through these sessions, the young men will realise that they are not alone in their struggles, and that there are many brethren in church who are facing or have faced similar situations, and are also praying for them. This can also be a time for them to seek advice on how to deal with any issues or problems that they may be going through.

Another avenue for mutual encouragement that we have is a WhatsApp (online messaging application on mobile phones) group set up for all the NSFs and also the NS ministry members. Through this platform, we are able to keep in touch throughout the week, share our prayer requests, and also update on what is going on in their lives.

Our prayer is that through these efforts, we can help the young men in our church to overcome the many trials and temptations that their time in NS can bring, and also serve as an avenue where they can mutually encourage one another. We hope that the NS experience will be one that shapes and moulds them to become more and more like Christ, and not to be conformed to the world.

As Paul exhorted young Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:3-4 "Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier", our exhortation to them would also be that they be able to endure the toughness of National Service with a desire to maintain a strong testimony for the Lord; that they would resist the temptations that come their way, and always remember their task at hand – that they are to please the Lord who has chosen him to be a soldier.

May you as the congregation also endeavour to pray for this ministry, and also for the young men in our church who are currently serving their NS. It would also be helpful to share a word of encouragement to strengthen them in the faith, and to let them know that we care!