After a break of two years, we came together again—our annual two-day overnight BPCIS Retreat for pastors and leaders. Seventy of us gathered at Changi Cove, 4-5 July, from 10 member churches with speaker Pastor Denesh Divyanathan and guests from The Crossing Church. Under the banner, “Strengthening Our Churches”, we were stirred by expositions from 2 Timothy to train future leaders, navigate challenging landscape, and preach the Word. 

Pastor Denesh asked, “To what extent is your church facing stagnation or extinction?” He warned against gospel dilution and alerted us to gospel opposition. The biggest challenge in our churches is materialism, and the greatest need is “the crucial work of passing on the gospel”. 

A workshop “Grilling the Crossing” attracted many questions on the vibrant growth of the church, especially its emphasis on one-on-one passing on the gospel (2 Tim 2.2). Another guest, Pastor Tan Ye Peng, shared his experience with another church which saw phenomenal growth, but posed sober lessons along a different track. 

The Retreat provided many opportunities—in discussion groups, over coffee, at meals, not forgetting our traditional durian fellowship—to interact across churches and generations. We closed the Retreat with group photos by ages, and parted believing God has met with us, and given to our churches succeeding generations to continue His work. 

Belonging to the youngest contingent, Janelle Yeo, young mother from Mount Carmel, and final-year student of Singapore Bible Church, reflected: 

“Thank you for organising this Retreat, and bringing back together all the BP churches. I left the Retreat feeling so proud to be part of this BP community. I have never really understood the significance of the BP Church until coming for this Retreat, especially during the sharing of brief history of BPCIS at the start.”

A pastor probably spoke for many when he wrote in to thank the organisers, “This Retreat was positively the best of the three BPCIS Retreats (so far) that I've attended. Thanks also for bringing Ps Tan Ye Peng to share his testimony, which was hugely moving for me. My eyes keep welling up with tears when I think about his apology to the pastors. I am very glad for him that his nine long and uncertain years have turned out for him in such a remarkable way.” 

Now that the Retreat is over, may the apostle Paul’s words to Timothy continue to ring in our ears: “…be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.” 2 Tim‬ ‭2:1-2‬ ‭ESV‬‬