In a recent meal chat with a friend, he lamented the shortage of young adults taking on the challenge of full-time Christian ministry. We exchanged views and thought of these possible reasons:

1. 1. Financial concern over low salary and advancement
   2. Work-life imbalance due to wide job span and demanding schedule
   3. Societal pressure to pursue prestigious or financially lucrative careers
   4. Diverse career opportunities in the secular world
   5. The misconception that full-time ministry is ladened with leadership struggles, politics and restrictions
   6. Lack of role models expressing the joy and fulfilment of full-time ministry

You could probably add a few more reasons. They appear reasonable and are, at best, what most people think. Still, it is not certain that they are the real reasons for young adults shunning full-time ministry. My friend and I share the same observation that one main reason young adults are not responding to God’s call to full-time ministry is the lack of encouragement and challenge from the pulpit.

I paraphrase what the Apostle Paul declared in Rom 10:14, “How, then, can they commit their lives to serve God when they have not believed the need to do so? And how can they believe God’s call is God’s will when they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?”.

In 2023, Rev Koh Kok Chuan from Calvary BC, Rev Dr Rodney Woo from International BC and Rev Dr Isaac Teng from Queenstown BC gathered to initiate Project Pipeline with BTS to provide a conduit for young adults to come together to hear and understand the thrills and spills of full-time Christian ministry from pastors and missionaries. That inaugural Project Pipeline (themed One Life, His Purpose), held on 5 and 6 May attracted 50 participants mainly from the three churches.

With encouraging participant feedback, another Project Pipeline was held on 26 and 27 Apr 2024. Rev Adrian Lim from Thomson Road BC joined the planning team. 33 participants from 10 Baptist churches attended the overnight event. Dr James Lee (BTS), Rev Dr Isaac Teng (QBC) and Rev Dr Rodney Woo (IBC) shared their pastoral heartbeats on the Divine Call, Divine Cost and Divine Delay respectively. In the “Gallery Walk”, participants got to know several pastors and missionaries up close and asked personal questions as they moved from one table to another, interacting with different hosts.

A panel with Pastors Adrian Lim, Isaac Teng, Rodney Woo and Peter Lin rounded up Project Pipeline 2024 with participants asking personal, pointed and practical questions about pastoral calling and its challenges. It was a rare experience to hear about the gangster background of one pastor, the heart-wrenching grief of an unexpected crisis of another, and the background of poverty that did not deter another pastor from heeding God’s call. Many participants expressed interest in being mentored by pastors or attending a BTS course or the 4-month Ministry Emergence Programme (MEP). The MEP was launched to raise next-generation leaders.

At the evaluation for Project Pipeline 2024, I thanked God for the spontaneous decision by the project team to continue with Project Pipeline 2025, scheduled for 21 to 22 Mar 2025. We welcome another pastor to join the team. Call me and make my day! Notwithstanding the earlier reasons for young adults shunning full-time ministry, it is important to recognise that a unique combination of personal, social, and spiritual factors influences every individual’s decision. Honest sharing, encouraging open dialogue, providing mentorship and addressing some of these concerns directly will help them consider their calling to full-time ministry.

The planning team has agreed to open the door of Project Pipeline 2025 wide open to all our Baptist churches, and we look forward to active support from pastors. Your encouragement and sponsorship of your members to attend can potentially be a defining moment in their life’s journey of faith and service to the King of kings and Lord of lords. “Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto Thy name give glory, for Thy mercy, and for Thy truth’s sake” (Psalm 115:1).

Sincerely,

Peter Tang
Interim Managing Director