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| A Pastor and Her Congregation |
“ Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.” Acts 20:28-31
On the
last day of 2012, we paid tribute to our outgoing Pastor Tan-Yeo Lay Suan, bidding her farewell after 7 years as the pastor-in-charge of Charis Methodist
Church. There were heaps of sincere praise and an outpouring of gratitude.
Lay
Suan came to our local congregation in January 2006, our very first lady
pastor. She is petite, a trifle frail, but she is a powerhouse minister,
performing her many duties as Pastor-in-Charge resolutely and with patience and gentleness.
Church elder, Koh Wan Yee aptly summarised her 7 years ministry in Charis, calling her “…a quintessential pastor, a pastor to all members for all seasons”.
A
minister of the church is a time-honoured vocation. It is an onerous job. At times, it can be
filled with agonising moments of disappointments whilst other times are filled
with the elation and joys of having influenced and assisted others in
their spiritual journeys. No achievement can surpass that of having guided
people through difficult periods, healing hurts, sustaining spirits and
restoring their spiritual health.
Unobtrusively, Lay Suan had the courage to exert her leadership in a manner after Bishop Emeritus Robert Solomon’s advice: “As ministers of order, pastors must exercise pastoral leadership, leading not just with the exhortation of their words, but also with the example of their lives. Pastors must also motivate their flocks to follow Christ and to live lives worthy of God. Their leadership must be exercised through personal involvement in the lives of their flocks. They must earn the respect of their flocks in the way they conduct themselves. They must lead their flocks." (Ref 1).
Unobtrusively, Lay Suan had the courage to exert her leadership in a manner after Bishop Emeritus Robert Solomon’s advice: “As ministers of order, pastors must exercise pastoral leadership, leading not just with the exhortation of their words, but also with the example of their lives. Pastors must also motivate their flocks to follow Christ and to live lives worthy of God. Their leadership must be exercised through personal involvement in the lives of their flocks. They must earn the respect of their flocks in the way they conduct themselves. They must lead their flocks." (Ref 1).
To these duties, Pastor Tan-Yeo offered herself unreservedly and unpretentiously. In so doing, she led, nurtured, encouraged, counselled and protected the flock just as St Paul expected in his farewell message to the Ephesians elders in Acts 20. She left behind an indelible mark and she will be remembered with fondness.
Lionel
Ref
1: R.S. Solomon Ordination Service at 28th Session of the Chinese
Annual Conference, Singapore 13 Nov 2003.
