Connect Group Coordinators are an important part of CHC’s cell group system. In a recent training series, they were taught the importance of connecting from the heart and winning souls for God.
By Foo Ce Chao
CN PHOTOS: Daniel Poh and Kenneth Lee.
In every City Harvest Church cell group, there are some people who help lighten the load of their cell group leaders by taking care of members. Each shepherds a group of two to three members, meeting their needs and discipling them. These are known as the Connect Group Coordinators.
To equip these CGCs with the necessary skills and knowledge to serve their cell groups in a greater capacity, the church organized three sessions of training recently. About 1,500 of them attended the first training session on Mar. 20, gaining wisdom from the co-founder of CHC, Sun Ho and executive pastor Tan Ye Peng.
The three essential roles of a CGC are: connecting people to God, connecting people to the church and connecting people to people. The session started with Ho reminding CGCs of the church’s focus for the year 2012: relationship and discipleship.
“I really believe that if there is true relationship between two people, discipleship can happen naturally,” she said.
Ho went on to share that she had, in several occasions this year, felt led to share with her counselees the importance of finding the “God-space” in their lives. “A space where we are always conscious of our relationship with Him in spite of our busyness,” she shared. “Our relationship with God is our anchor point in life.”
Coming from a non-Christian family, Ho would often hide in the toilet for long hours, finding her “God-space”. “If you and I would know God as our Father, we can go through anything,” she declares.
That is why it is so important to connect people to God. “Connecting people to God is a very supernatural and spiritual transaction. The primary mission of Jesus on earth was to connect the world back to the Father. Now, the task has been given to you and me,” Ho said. CGCs are called to take on the role of a priest, a spiritual identity that God has given, to connect people back to God through Jesus.
The life of the Spirit is designed to flow into a believer and out of him through his unique gifts, calling and personalities. “Whatever good thing God has given to us in this House, if we don’t let it flow out of us and be connected to this world, it will die,” Ho said. She emphasized that connecting begins with the heart: if believers can have the revelation that they were once being helped to connect to God, they would also do the same for others and this will become a lifestyle for them.
Joshua Lam, 49, felt that learning to connect is core to the role of the CGC. “I realized that we need to do it with sincerity—not just to connect to them but more importantly, to connect them to God. I am reminded that it is not for myself but ultimately for God.”
“I learned about our individual calling from God, which I feel is connected to our gifts and talents,” said Rayna Sam, a business development executive in her 40s. “I started to ask myself what my gifts are, and how they can be used to connect with people better. And it is not just the technical know-hows, the key thing is to do it from the heart.”
Tan took the stage after Ho’s sharing to teach CGCs the importance of soul-winning and how to accomplish it. “We have this diamond called soul-winning. It has become a revival in our church which we have sustained over 23 years,” Tan said.
He went on to share some of the challenges members faced while trying to win the lost, and taught CGCs how they can overcome the challenges through the caring system. Firstly, identify prospects from their circle of influence; secondly, work in teams to pray for the prospects. By praying, God will open doors for them to meet the needs of their friend, giving them an opportunity to build a connection with them. When a connection is built, the believer can share the gospel and lead the prospect to put his faith in Jesus.
“I feel very refreshed after attending this session,” said student, Low Qi Yu, 20. “I learned that the role of winning souls for the Kingdom of God is very important for a CGC. After this session, my goal is to identify more prospects and to pray with my members.”
Ray Thong, 26, trainee teacher, shared similar sentiments. “I feel very motivated to do more for God and His people. I learned that prayer is more important than skills and talents. You don’t need to be very talented to reach out to people.” When asked how is he planning to apply what he had learned to his ministry, he replied, “I will pray together with my connect group, set visions and reach out to new friends together.”
The CGCs have since undergone a second session with the district pastors, and next week, will enjoy their final training session with CHC’s senior pastor, Kong Hee.
