Jasmine Kon is the cell group leader of E541, a cell group in the zone led by Pastor Lee Yi Lun. The cell group has experienced great growth these last six years, multiplying into three cell groups. Revival, she says, begins when you genuinely love people.
When it comes to revival, I’ve always prayed and told God that I do not want to be too caught up with how many members join the cell group. At the end of the day, I’m just a shepherd, a vessel of God. Even if my cell group is made up of just one member and myself, I believe that a difference can be made. As long as I continue to be faithful, I know that the Lord will show Himself faithful too.
I became the cell group leader of E541 back in September 2013. We started with about 15 members, grew to 50, then multiplied into two groups in September 2016 (E541 and E559). Then in February 2019, E559 had reached 40 members, so we multiplied again into E559 and E564. This October, we’ll be multiplying E541 again. It was steady growth; it was us winning one soul at a time.
In the beginning, while praying for a revival in school campuses, I was quite discouraged as the efforts put in did not yield the results we were believing God for. We did a lot: prayer walks, gave out flyers, give out study packs and met up with new friends after school. Though we did all that we could, we were unable to integrate the new friends who came. But we kept believing, we kept praying and fasting for revival to come. As Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 3:6 (NKJV), “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase.” The seeds that were sown in the early days bore fruit ultimately as we witnessed the fruits of our labor in one of the secondary schools.
In spite of the uphill task of praying for revival in school campuses, our cell group still grew. Many of the members brought different friends, though we also saw our fair share of backsliders. But despite that, God was faithful. Even though some did not stay, God continued to add more and more friends into our cell group. In the process, we also raised up helpers and encouraged members to serve in ministries.
Through the years, I’ve always told my members not to be discouraged when we see that some of our members are not regularly attending service or not doing well. Instead of focusing on the negative, I encourage them to gather to pray and fast for these members. However, I believe that sometimes, having done all that we can, we have to remind ourselves to lift up everything and surrender it into God’s hands. We must have peace in our hearts that we’ve done our best. When it comes to doing the impossible, only God can.
There was a season in my life when I was struggling to overcome some personal challenges in ministry. I shared with Pastor Ming and he said, “When a cell group grows, the shepherd is doing something right.” That encouraged me a lot and I constantly reminded myself: even if I felt I was standing alone, I must keep my eyes on the vision that God has given to me. It doesn’t really matter what the size of the group is. What is most important is that we, as leaders, remain faithful in doing what the Lord has called us to do. We need to have this motivation like King David, which is to constantly strengthen ourselves in the Lord. “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” (Gal. 6:9, NKJV)
We must always remember this: one person can make a difference. Youths must not be afraid to be that one person in school to start a revival. Campus revival does not necessarily mean bringing your entire class to church. Our obedience to God is the key to unlock the miracle. It was the obedience of William Seymour to God’s call that sparked off the Azusa Street Revival! All we need to do is keep sharing the love of Christ, and loving people because God first loved us. As we do that, God will show His faithfulness and we can continue to win souls!
