On the first Sunday of the year, I shared my visions on three different ministries for our church this year. I would like to share my thoughts in more detail in this Open Mind column over the next few weeks. This is because these ministries require God to lead and guide us, so I would like us all to remember them in our daily prayers and also to share any ideas.

Today, I would like to elaborate on the first of the three ministries. Field meetings focuses on how to live our lives as Christians in the workplace, where we spend most of our time. It is a gathering of people from the same field/sector to share issues in the workplace, learn from others and pray together.

We’ve had these Field meetings on a couple of occasions already, but the question remained as to how everyone could participate and how to satisfy everyone’s needs in practice. So we’ve contacted Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York and All Souls Church in London, which already have such ministries in place. Both churches had programs which explained the basic concepts of work in the context of the gospel, but did not have any resources for each particular field, which our church wants to do.

So it became clear that this is something that our church would need to pioneer. To start with, we decided to look for books which can be used as a guide in each field. If anyone has good recommendations, please let me know! For now, we intend to search on the Internet to make a reading list and read those books together. Then, everyone will be able to share thoughts, discuss and pray about the book during the initial Field meetings. We will also be summarising the books to create a manual for each field, and continuously update it when we find more insightful books.

Furthermore, I hope to invite mature Christians who are equipped with God’s word and professional skills and are already a good influence in their field. Even though our fields may differ, each of us may benefit from gaining a broader understanding of the world by listening to them. After the talk, there would be a separate meeting for people in that particular field to encourage deeper fellowship.

Another important question is how to have these meetings regularly. Because we already have cell group meetings after Sunday service and it may be difficult for everyone to gather during weekdays, I am thinking of having the Field meetings instead of cell meetings once every 2 months, although this is not yet definitive. It has always been difficult to meet other GVC members outside our cell groups, and I think these Field meetings will be good opportunities to connect with others who are studying or working in the same field.

I hope that all of us get refreshed and experience God’s grace at GVC, and that our church will help prepare every one of us to go out into the world with courage to serve and change the world around us. This ministry can only be built up together, so please participate and pray daily!