Written by Nathanael Goh
In 2025, the Youth Ministry organised five Youth Fellowships under the theme “Building a Faith-Centric Life.” With one clear objective in mind, we set out to help our youth learn how to prioritise God and place Him at the centre of their decisions. Each session built on the one before it, guiding us step by step toward a deeper, more grounded faith. We had 42 unique attendees throughout this series from Kota Kemuning, Subang Jaya, Section 17, Cheras, Klang, even one from the States, and several friends too.
Locked-In: Setting and Achieving Meaningful Spiritual Goals
We began the year by getting locked-In. Before discussing decisions, direction, or purpose, we first paused to ask an important question: What are we aiming for spiritually? Setting meaningful spiritual goals helped us recognise that growth doesn’t happen by accident. As Proverbs 16:3 reminds us, “Commit your works to the Lord, and your plans will be established.” When we commit our plans to God first, everything else finds its proper place.
During this YF, we set up several game stations that challenged participants to remain focused despite constant distractions. These included building a tower, navigating a blindfolded maze amid loud music and noise, Bible charades, and decoding Morse code to identify Bible verses or characters. Each activity was intentionally designed to test clarity, communication, and concentration. Losing focus even briefly could set you back significantly.
In the same way, life constantly bombards us with distractions that can cause us to lose sight of what truly matters and stray from the straight and narrow. This experience reminded us that spiritual focus requires intentionality, perseverance, and a commitment to keeping God at the centre, no matter the noise around us.
Navigating Life Choices
Once we understood the importance of spiritual direction, it naturally led us to Navigating Life Choices. Goals shape direction, but values shape decisions. In a world full of voices competing for our attention, we were reminded that aligning our values with God’s will is key. Romans 12:2 challenged us not to be shaped by the world, but to allow God to transform our thinking so we can discern His will in our everyday choices.
During this Youth Fellowship, we added a personal touch by setting up three Q&A stations focused on making significant life decisions. This gave the youth an opportunity to ask anything, then rotate twice to hear diverse perspectives on the topic.
Am I Successful if I have a Good Career?
As we discussed decisions and values, a deeper question emerged: What are we truly chasing? This led to the honest reflection, “Am I truly successful if I have a good career?” While careers, achievements, and dreams are important, we were reminded that they should never replace our relationship with God. True success starts with putting God first (Matthew 6:33) and not trying to fit Him into our busy lives later.
To illustrate this, we conducted a treasure hunt activity across all three floors of our church building. Participants had to complete various tasks to receive CV pieces, some godly, some not. At the end, they were tasked with building a CV for a given persona based on the provided scenarios. This exercise revealed the difference between building a “godly CV” versus an “ungodly CV.”
We often don’t realise how limited time is, and how we allocate it matters. It’s easy to get distracted and prioritise other things, like extracurricular achievements or career goals. While these things in themselves aren’t wrong, the danger lies in when they pull us away from spending time with God. It may seem small at first, like skipping church or fellowship for a particular event/assignment, but these choices accumulate over time.
This brings us to Mark 8:36, which asks, “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?” The verse reminds us that in our pursuit of success, we must not lose sight of our relationship with God. True success isn’t about worldly achievements but it’s about walking faithfully and keeping God first in everything we do.
Spiritual Friendships: Choosing Friends that Point You to Christ
Keeping God first is not necessarily something we do in isolation. Who we choose to surround ourselves with matters too. This naturally led us to reflect on the importance of Spiritual Friendships. If our values and priorities matter, then the people we choose to walk with matter too. Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” We were challenged to think about who is influencing our journey and just as importantly, what kind of influence we are having on others. Good friends don’t just walk beside us; they help guide us closer to Jesus.
We then engaged in group discussions on different scenarios, followed by a presentation on how to address key issues. Some of the scenarios included:
- A person making fun of someone’s medical challenge.
- A person who used to be active in church but has withdrawn himself because he feel overlooked/burnt out, unsure how to confront the situation, and therefore isolated himself.
- A passionate, strong-willed leader who gets defensive when someone disagrees with them, shutting down or avoiding the conversation.
In these scenarios, we reflected on what positive traits we should demonstrate, which negative traits to avoid, and which positive trait we’d like to be known for or work on.
While these scenarios may seem fictional, they reflect situations we may have encountered in real life or perhaps even displayed ourselves knowing or unknowingly. This exercise encouraged us to reflect not just on the behaviours of others, but on our own.
- Are we spending time with friends who share the right values?
- Are we drawing others toward Christ, or are others pulling us away?
- Are we pushing others away, or are we building relationships that point people to Him?
- How are we bringing others closer to Christ?
Light Up
Finally, we ended the year with Light Up. After setting goals, making God-centred choices, redefining success, and building spiritual friendships, the question became: What do we do with the faith we’ve been growing? Jesus reminds us in Matthew 5:14–16 that we are the light of the world. Faith was never meant to stay hidden. Light only makes an impact when it’s turned on.
Bro. Ben encouraged us through his devotion to live out our faith boldly, to be proactive, to be the spark, and to bring God’s light into the spaces we step into. He reminded us that even when we feel like hiding our light whether due to fear, doubt, or a sense of unworthiness, we’re still called to shine. Just like a cracked lantern can still give off light, we can reflect God’s truth and love even when we don’t feel perfect (Exodus 4:10, 2 Corinthians 4:7).
This devotion challenged us to be proactive in our faith: helping others without being asked, standing up for what’s right, and showing up when it’s tough. Every small act of kindness or courage has the potential to spark something bigger. As we stand together in faith, our light shines brighter and stronger (John 1:5, 1 Peter 2:12).
Conclusion
As we head to 2026, the journey continues but with deeper roots. We’ll be focusing on staying grounded by building spiritual maturity in Christ. We’ll explore what it means to understand ourselves and God’s design for emotions, exercise self-control, practice empathy, handle conflict, build emotional resilience and so much more!
Colossians 2:6–7 reminds us, “Just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him.” Growth isn’t just about knowing more, it’s about becoming more rooted in Him.