17 October 2008 marked the second The Edge meeting as more than 1,800 young people from eight different zones congregated at Jurong West Church Auditorium for “The Great Makeover”, a night of thrills.
As the doors opened, youths decked out in their funkiest outfits and grooviest accessories streamed into the auditorium, turning their attention to the specially constructed runway in the centre of the floor.
The event kicked off with a pre-party at 6.30pm that gave the young people a chance to perform their talents. Fourteen-year-old Rachel performed a soulful rendition of Alicia Keys’ If I Ain’t Got You and an Indonesian band warmed up the crowd with two numbers. The Edge Dance Crew also made their debut appearance with an electrifying dance item.
The vision of the youth pastors and zone supervisors for this monthly youth meeting is to provide a platform for youth to share their talents and express their creativity.
Says Pastor Wu Yuzhuang: “Even if their standard is not high enough for them to play in the main service, here at The Edge they will have an opportunity to share their talents and perform.”
The Edge aims to overcome traditional expectations of what church is supposed to be like, yet at the same time not compromise on the spiritual aspect.
There was also a “Mr and Ms Edge” competition held as 16 models from each of the participating zones went through a complete makeover and took the stage to strut their stuff for the judges, Jacelyn Tay and Rev. Tan Ye Peng.
Despite the fact that none of the contestants were professional models, every single one still exuded confidence and glamour. It was not easy to single out two winners but eventually Julian Lee, representing Pastor Audrey Ng’s zone, emerged with the title of “Mr Edge” and Stephanie Surya, from Rev. Aries Zulkarnain’s zone was named “Ms Edge”.
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| PHOTOS: Kenneth / Xavier Tan |
Jacelyn was then invited onstage for a short interview with emcee Wayne Choong. The audience was awed to hear her share about her background and experiences of setting up her very own health spa business, as well as writing two books.
Pastor Yuzhuang took to the stage to share a message about the importance of having a healthy self-image before one can look attractive on the outside. His point was that people can only be changed from the inside out. The pointers he shared on how to improve one’s self image were valuable and practical.
All in all, The Edge proved to be a thrilling youth event that captured the audience’s attention and left them wanting more. It was an opportunity for the youth to see for themselves how they can be relevant to their generation, yet living life God’s way. Certainly, they will be looking forward to the next The Edge meeting in December titled “The Great Exchange”.
