Last night someone asked us what Graceworks is all about. It gave me a chance to try a new tagline that has been on my mind the last few days:
“Friendship — At the Heart of All We Do”
Our mission statement from the word go was Promoting Spiritual Friendship in Church and Society. This still holds true. But we now carry out this mission in various ways, as reflected in our publications.
Our 3-2-1 book, now in its 2nd edition, is still our core publication. Published 14 years ago, it summarises biblical teaching on our friendship in Christ: what it is and why we need it. It then gives a simple model to help friends walk together — three friends, meeting for two hours, once a month, hence 3-2-1. Of course, folks can modify the practice to their unique needs, e.g, in a 4-2-1 group. It has been a particular joy to see 3-2-1 helping to promote the concept and the practice of spiritual friendship in Singapore and beyond.
Most followers of Jesus experience community in some sort of small-group ministry. But putting 10 to 15 people in a room is no guarantee that they will connect as friends. Walking With the Risen Christ helps small-group members grow in authentic connections with each other when they realise that their primary friend, Jesus, is in their midst.
The publication that has probably attracted the most interest in recent times is The Generations Project. It summarises a major study undertaken by Graceworks to find out how the different generations of Singapore Christians view their faith. Our aim was to help the different generations understand themselves and each other, so as to minimise conflict between the different generations and help them work together — to help them be friends.
Graceworks also partners our friends in pursuing common concerns. For example, we partner with KIN (Koinonia Inclusion Network) in producing materials that enable the church to welcome and disciple people of all abilities. We worked together to publish Koinonia Groups: Nurturing Disability-Inclusive Small Groups in Your Church to help our churches welcome all sorts of people, believing that Jesus welcomes all and extends His friendship to all.
We have also published Mental Health & The Gospel Community to help churches better understand those who struggle with mental illness so that the latter will find the church a friendly and welcoming place.
Then there is our outstanding range of children’s books. One series, The Invisible People, is aimed at helping children (and their parents) pay attention to folks we usually don’t see in our busy, and sometimes elitist, society. How do we befriend folks like migrant workers, bus drivers, postmen, etc.? First, we need to “see” them and understand their lives.
We also believe that we should foster friendship with the created order. We have a book that directly addresses the topic — God’s Gardeners. Following on this theme, have a growing number of books that help children and older folks understand various aspects of God’s creation and our responsibility to care for it.
The above represent only a few of our publications. But it should show how friendship is indeed at the heart of all we do. In addition to our books, we also do teaching, preaching, mentoring and consulting, to support and promote the friendship agenda. Friendship is our DNA and we try our best to extend and receive friendship with all those we work with.
One sad consequence of the fracturing of our relationship with God is the breakdown of relationships with one other. Our daily news is inundated with reports of all sorts of conflicts. Loneliness is endemic in most societies. We believe God has raised Graceworks for such a time as this. But we need help. If you believe in what we are trying to do, would you pray seriously about partnering with Graceworks by giving spiritual and material support? If you need more information, let’s sit down for a cup of coffee and swap stories. We look forward to serving together as friends.
