January 2007 — Testimony shared by Kenny Low in City Harvest Church
Hi Church, I’m Kenny and this is my wife Serina. I’m the principal of CHEC and O School. In the last few years, God has been teaching us how to reach out to professional dancers in the entertainment industry.
In 2003, I was involved in a series of outreach concerts in Asia. We engaged Ryan Tan to be the dance director and choreographer for those events. Ryan is a very experienced and well respected dancer in the entertainment scene. I remembered the first concert we did in Hong Kong. I saw Ryan sitting by the side of the hall looking grumpy, with his jacket hood covering his face. While, hundreds of people were touched by Pastor’s preaching, he was completely disinterested with God and the church. Yet, I felt in my heart that somehow, the Lord will someday touch him.
Throughout the 8-month long tour, I shared the same hotel room with Ryan. As much as I was eager to lead him to Christ, I purposed in my heart not to preach to him immediately. I felt that he will be hearing enough preaching and altar calls through the 50-over gospel events that we were doing. Like what we’ve learnt in the Caring System, I began by befriending him and showing interest in his life. I read the comics that he read, listened to the songs that he listened to, attended his dance classes when we were back in Singapore, and even helped him out in his business by introducing more students to him. As we spent time together, Ryan began to open up and shared with me more about his life.
Serina:
After working with him for a year, Kenny and Ryan had become very close friends. At our last stopover in Australia , when Pastor Kong was giving the altar call, Ryan lifted up his hands to accept Jesus Christ as his personal Savior. He had even told Kenny that he was prepared to get saved in the meeting and that he actually went to buy a Bible before the meeting itself! After he said the sinner’s prayer, Ryan had tears flowing down his cheeks. We saw a different Ryan from the one that Kenny had seen originally in Hong Kong eight months earlier. God had truly touched his life. He is genuinely converted and was water baptized two months later in the river Jordan during our Israel tour. The moment he got out of the water, he was powerfully filled with the Holy Spirit.
The miracle did not stop there. After Ryan became a Christian, he began to help us with the Easter production. He brought in one of his students Carol as a dancing assistant. By that time, Ryan had become more on fire for the Lord. He was actively reaching out to his other friends about how Jesus has changed him. It was in the backroom at the Singapore Indoor Stadium where Ryan and Kenny first shared their testimonies with Carol and planted a seed of faith in her heart. A few weeks later, the dance ministry staged a dance during a Weekend Connection service. Ryan invited Carol to attend that service. Pastor Kong’s message about “Dreams” touched Carol’s heart and that day, she too gave her heart to Jesus.
Kenny:
Shortly after that, Ryan and Carol invited one other dancer to church. His name was Daniel. During that period of time, Daniel was facing a family crisis at home. Both Ryan and Carol began to share their testimonies on how their lives were changed in this church. They decided to show their care by pooling in their finances to help him out. They knew that Daniel loves to dance. So they asked him to perform during the recording of the 2005 Cross album. Daniel was very impacted during that time because he had never seen so many people so passionate and excited for their God. Soon after, they invited him to watch another dance performance at our Emerge Conference. Daniel was deeply touched by the presence of God and the message. As a result, he accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior as well. When Daniel was serving his National Service, he was unable to attend cell groups and services regularly. However, the cell group continued to show care by giving him Bible studies during his off days. Six months later, Daniel was fully integrated into the church.
But the love and care didn’t stop there. Ryan, Carol and Daniel began to reach out to more dancers in their circle of influence. So far, they have brought 17 other dancers to church, nine of them have accepted Christ and we are in the midst of integrating them into the church.
Through these very creative and talented individuals who came to City Harvest, the vision for O School was birthed. Today Ryan, Carol and Daniel are full-time instructors in O School. The ministry of O School is unique, we provide employment for young talented dancers, we raised bursaries to help youths finish their schooling, and we are giving them healthy role models in the area of dance. In just nine months, O School had crossed 1,000 in membership, we had done dance programs with 15 institutions, touching more than 900 students interested in dancing, and performed to over 10,000 people. I believe many more lives will be influenced for Christ as we shine for Him among these people.
Serina:
Being the salt and light in the world is not so difficult. It is not hard-selling the gospel or pestering people to become Christians. Sharing the love of God is simply showing care, love and interest in other people’s lives. By doing that, we change the world — one person at a time!
Guys(: I want to let u know that all of us can share the love of God and make a difference in other people's lives!(: We don't need a preacher to do that! All of us can play our part!(: Remember the "15 min Revolution" and the "Love Revolution" DVD? We are all empowered to make a difference!(: People need the Lord!(:
Love,
Mel(:
9:17 AM, & i live by faith and not by sight for you
