Heart of God Church

Heart of God Church (Chinese: 神之心教会), abbreviated as HOGC, is a non-denominational church in Singapore.[1] It was founded by husband and wife Tan Seow How and Cecilia Chan, more commonly known as Pastor How and Pastor Lia, in 1999.[2] Today, Heart of God Church is led by a team of 5 senior pastors.[3]

Heart of God Church
CountrySingapore
DenominationNon-denominational, Charismatic
Websiteheartofgodchurch.org
History
Founded1999
Founder(s)
  • Tan Seow How
  • Cecilia Chan
Clergy
Senior pastor(s)
  • Tan Seow How
  • Cecilia Chan
  • Lynette Goh
  • Garrett Lee
  • Charleston Lim
Pastor(s)
  • Daniel Goh (Doctrine)
  • Eng Ee Loo (Youth)
  • Mae-Ann Sahai (Children)
  • Martin Wong (Missions)

The Heart of God Church currently holds its services in Paya Lebar in eastern Singapore. The church has a strong community built for youth members. It has maintained a young demographic with an average age of 22 across the church.[4] The church provides developmental opportunities especially for its young people, and that has allowed them to gain new skills and experiences that have helped them find full-time professional jobs.[5] The church is also known for its initiatives to build interfaith harmony in multi-religious Singapore.[6]

History

The church started when How and Lia, along with three other people, held the first group meeting in 1996. The church was officially registered as "Heart of God Church" in August 1999.[7] Lia spotted a group of nine teens who were fast outgrowing the children's church and started the first teens connect group. This group then grew to thousands of young people, some are now the next generation of homegrown pastors.[4]

The small auditorium at Henderson Industrial Park eventually could not hold the growing congregation; in 2004, the church moved from Henderson Industrial Park to Dhoby Ghaut. As the church grew, Lia built GenerationS and a deep bench of operations and worship teams, and How looked into conceptual and ministry systems.[8] In August 2007, the church moved to SingPost Centre in Paya Lebar when the premises were no longer able to accommodate its growing congregation.[9]

In January 2016, the church moved into its current location at Imaginarium, 115 Eunos Avenue 3.[10] In April that year, Senior Pastor Tan Seow How spoke about the need to build trust with neighbouring religious organisations, as a bulwark against flashpoints. The church launched community programmes with Khalid Mosque and Geylang United Temple.[6]

In 2018, Heart of God Church ordained three homegrown pastors: Charleston Lim, Lynette Goh, and Garrett Lee.[3]

Two-time Grammy Award-winner Matt Redman held a worship concert for Heart of God Church's 20th-anniversary celebrations in 2019.[11] In 2020, he released a video for his single, “The Same Jesus” which was recorded live at the church.[12][13]

Stream of Praise, a Chinese Christian music group, held a worship concert at Heart of God Church in 2019. A video of the concert was released the following year.[14]

The church's seasonal online services are put together by an IT team of mainly 17-to 22-year-olds.[15] They have features such as live chat, live voting, and interactive games.[15] In 2020, the church conducted both the main Easter service and the youth Easter service through its website, followed by online activities, videos, and podcasts to help engage young congregants and encourage them to stay home during the COVID-19 pandemic.[16][17] The online Easter services included a short film that allowed viewers to choose their own ending.[18]

Every year, Lia and How run the GenerationS Pastors Conference to train pastors from all around the world to build GenerationS in their churches.[9] The church released its first book, GenerationS on 30 September 2021. Co-authored by How and Lia, the book chronicles 20 years of the church's history. Volume 2 of GenerationS is set to be released in 2023.[9]

The church is registered with the National Council of Churches of Singapore (NCCS) and is an independent church with an independent board of directors, leadership and finances.[3][19]

Activities

Academic Excellence Programme

The church has a big focus on academic excellence and the creative expression of young people. The church was featured in The Straits Times on 27 November 2010 for encouraging a passion for study and creativity. During examination season, students are urged to study for at least 20 hours a week before they attend church. As a result, they have consistently outperformed the national average. To encourage studying and achieving good grades, the church disburses awards paid for from church coffers or donations by parents.[20][21][22]

The church also encourages young people to excel in creative pursuits, and many have gone on to enjoy success in their chosen fields. The church provides the environment and equipment for young people to explore what they are good at, such as music, multimedia, lighting, dance and art.[20]

Interfaith Community Work

The church intentionally builds bridges with other religious organisations to strengthen social cohesion in Singapore.[6] In April 2016, the church launched three joint community programmes with Khalid Mosque and Geylang United Temple.[23][24] The three initiatives launched were a combined tuition programme, a football coaching and mentoring programme headed by national footballer Isa Halim,[25] and a blood donation drive. The event was held in collaboration with the Geylang Serai Inter-Racial and Religious Confidence Circle (IRCC) and Berita Harian.[26][27][28]

On 4 April 2021, The Straits Times featured the church's interfaith collaboration with Khalid Mosque as a portrait of how the national ideal of harmony plays out on the ground in many everyday events. For example, during the pandemic, youth volunteers from the church prepared care gifts for COVID-19 front-line workers together with youths from the mosque. They also lent a hand at the mosque's Charity Briyani, where meals were packed and sold to raise funds for children's education.[6][29]

Interfaith.sg

An online playbook, Interfaith.sg encouraging more interfaith activities in Singapore was developed by Heart of God Church and Khalid Mosque youths. The website helps religious groups and charities planning interfaith events navigate through the challenges with checklists and insights.[6]

Joint Tuition Programme with Khalid Mosque

The joint tuition programme with Khalid Mosque[30][31] was featured on The Straits Times and CNA on 19 June 2019 as Singapore hosted the inaugural International Conference for Cohesive Societies, where President Halimah Yacob announced the signing of the Commitment to Safeguard Religious Harmony in Singapore. Heart of God Church was one of the 250 religious organisations that signed the Commitment.[32][33][34][35]

Joint Interfaith Annual Blood Donation Drive

Heart of God Church organised two joint blood donation drives with Khalid Mosque and Geylang United Temple. The blood donation took place on Heart of God Church's and Khalid Mosque's premises. The programme was launched with the belief that "under every skin colour and every creed, we all bleed the same colour – red. The Malay blood can save a Chinese man. The Hindu blood can save a Christian man."[36][37][38]

Heart For Our Heroes Initiatives

As part of its Heart For Our Heroes initiatives during the COVID-19 pandemic, Heart of God Church partnered with different religious organizations to give out thousands of care packs and cards to medical professionals, frontline workers in the Changi Airport Group, hawker centre cleaners, and others.[39][40]

Heart Community Services

Heart Community Services is a fund established by Heart of God Church in 2008 to provide financial and educational support, as well as social services to the local community.[41] Through it, pocket money, opportunity grants and scholarships are disbursed to young people from less well-to-do backgrounds, or whose families are going through a financial crisis.[41]

From April to June 2020, funds donated to Heart Community Services went towards an allocated budget that supported those whose families and livelihoods were significantly affected by COVID-19.[41] Over the three months, the church gave S$170,100 in financial aid to 144 church members. One hundred recipients were students.[42]

Discography
  • Sound of Revival (2018)
  • XYZ (2022)

References
  1. "Church Affiliation". Heart of God Church. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
  2. "About". Heart of God Church. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  3. "Heart of God Church – Leadership". Heart of God Church. Retrieved 2012-07-27.
  4. Outreach Magazine (2020-05-25). "A Heart for Youth". Outreach Magazine. Retrieved 2020-06-21.
  5. Lianhe Zaobao (2021-01-20). "Disabled but determined, with a dream for translation". Lianhe Zaobao (in Chinese). Retrieved 2021-01-20.
  6. The Straits Times (2021-01-04). "Easter and briyani: How a church and mosque build bridges, not walls to stem youth self-radicalisation". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2021-04-09.
  7. "Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth Charity Portal". Charity Portal. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  8. Outreach Magazine (2023-05-18). "Ministry for Two". Outreach Magazine. Retrieved 2023-06-16.
  9. "GenerationS Volume 1: How to Grow Your Church Younger and Stronger". generationsmvmt.com. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  10. "Location". Heart of God Church - Location. Retrieved 2019-09-04.
  11. HOGC Stories. "Matt Redman Live At Heart Of God Church's 20th Anniversary". HOGC Stories. Retrieved 2020-03-30.
  12. "CP Premiere: Matt Redman wants world to know Jesus is the same in every season, even in a pandemic". The Christian Post. 2020-03-26. Retrieved 2020-03-30.
  13. "Jesus is the same in every season, even a pandemic, says Matt Redman". Christian Today. 2020-03-27. Retrieved 2020-03-30.
  14. "Stream of Praise". www.facebook.com (in Chinese). Retrieved 2020-03-30.
  15. The Straits Times (2020-03-22). "Christians: Return of the house church". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2020-04-11.
  16. The Straits Times (2020-04-12). "Singapore churches hold online services to mark Easter Sunday". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2020-04-18.
  17. The New Paper (2020-04-13). "Local churches hold online services to mark Easter Sunday". The New Paper. Retrieved 2020-04-18.
  18. The Straits Times (2020-04-10). "Churches take Holy Week services online for Good Friday, Easter". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2020-04-11.
  19. "NCCS". National Council of Churches of Singapore. Archived from the original on 2013-06-12. Retrieved 2012-07-27.
  20. Lee Siew Hua (27 November 2010). "Pushing Education With A Creative Touch". The Straits Times.
  21. Lee Siew Hua (27 November 2010). "Making Faith Cool". The Straits Times.
  22. "Heart of God Church Academic Excellence". Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  23. "Masjid Khalid jalani ubah elok tampung lebih banyak jemaah, kegiatan". BeritaHarian.sg. Archived from the original on 2019-06-20. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  24. "Masjid Khalid - Peristiwa Gemilang & Bersejarah" (PDF).
  25. "Keharmonian agama diperkukuh melalui bola sepak, Berita Setempat - BeritaHarian.sg". BeritaHarian (in Malay). 2019-01-15. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  26. "Tiga badan berlainan agama bersatu lancar program bersama". Berita Harian. 29 April 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-05-31.
  27. "Inter-faith Community Event". The Straits Times. 27 April 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-04-28.
  28. "Interfaith social programmes". The Straits Times. 28 April 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-04-29.
  29. Berita Harian (2021-03-21). "Lebih $100,000 terkumpul hasil acara beriani amal sulung ETF, Masjid Khalid". Berita Harian (in Malay).
  30. "'If an attack happens, don't fear us'". BeritaHarian.sg. Archived from the original on 2019-06-20. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  31. "Masjid Khalid baharui seksyen belia". BeritaHarian.sg. Archived from the original on 2019-06-20. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  32. The Straits Times (2019-06-19). "More than 250 religious organisations commit to safeguard religious harmony". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  33. HOGC Stories. "Heart of God Church Joins The Commitment to Safeguard Religious Harmony in Singapore". HOGC Stories. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  34. CNA (2019-06-19), Religious organisations say interfaith work helps to safeguard Singapore's harmony, archived from the original on 2021-12-21, retrieved 2019-06-20
  35. "Religious Organisations Who Have Affirmed the Commitment to Safeguard Religious Harmony". www.ircc.sg. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  36. "Geylang Serai IRCC, Masjid Khalid, Heart Of God Church Blood Donation Drive". IRCC. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  37. "IRCC SG". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  38. "Penduduk pelbagai bangsa, agama derma darah, Berita Setempat - BeritaHarian.sg". BeritaHarian (in Malay). 2017-01-22. Retrieved 2019-06-20.
  39. Lee Siew Hua (21 March 2020). "Coronavirus and religious worship in Singapore: Return of the house church". The Straits Times.
  40. HOGC Stories (16 February 2020). "Heart For Our Heroes: Honouring The Healthcare Professionals On The Front Lines". HOGC Stories. Retrieved 2020-03-21.
  41. "Heart Community Services". Heart of God Church - Heart Community Services. Retrieved 2020-08-18.
  42. The Straits Times (2020-07-18). "Christians and Covid-19: Rise of the hybrid physical and digital church". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2020-08-18.
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