Elder Recommendation - Caleb Yap
Last Sunday, Pastor Ian interviewed Caleb Yap for the church to find out more about him as we prepare to affirm our elders on 17 Feb. Here, Caleb shares with us how God has been working in his life.
I have long felt uncertain about 1 Tim 3:1 — “The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task.” But by God’s grace and with the support of the pastors, elders, and my family, this is something I have come to believe through the year as an elder associate.
My parents, Yap Kim Meng and Beow Kheng had me in 1986 and raised me to know the living God. My siblings, Joshua, Deborah and Gideon, and I grew up here. The children’s ministry teachers that I am indebted to are: Esther Cher, Siang, Chris and Katherine Ng, Philip and Jena, Peter and Maggie, Swee Hin and Lee Peng, Yah Wu and Bryan Hwang.
(L-R): Joshua, Deborah, Kim Meng, Beow Keng, Gideon, Caleb and Rachel.
At 15, I attended a Navigators youth camp where I realised I was not born again. After, I learnt the gospel afresh: that Jesus lived and died in my place, and in love, offers a righteousness not from my performance, but through faith in Him. Repenting of my sin and united with Christ, I was baptised by Tom Chandler in 2002.
My faith grew in the university years through the excellent preaching at Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia and All Souls’ Church in London, which formed the core of my theology. I returned to work as a secondary school English teacher, was later posted to the Education and Defence ministries, and now work in communications.
In church, I was asked to lead disciple-making for young adults, and helped with music and worship, website, and communications. Beyond church, it has been my joy to teach the Bible weekly on Wednesdays for the last ten years.
My fiancée, Rachel (whose parents are Ryan and Katherine) and I will be married here at GBC on 6 July this year, and we hope many of you will come.
Though our Lord concluded His ministry at 33, I feel young at the same age, and God the Spirit is still patiently working in me for change. Reconciliation to other members in the church family whom I hurt due to my youthful passions, zeal and sin has been a major part of this. Many in church have encouraged me to take up this role, and to continue teaching the Bible when the opportunity arises. Rachel and I are nervous about this call, but we love our church family. As we believe that God is at work here, our prayer is that when we are weak, He will be strong. Soli Deo gloria.
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You can find out more about Caleb in an earlier post and also watch Pastor Ian's interview with Caleb below:
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