Greetings in the Name of our Lord Jesus!
The idea of an indigenous mission was conceived at the Singapore General Hospital in 1960! My late father, Dr G D James, had sustained a massive heart attack and was recuperating in the hospital when the Lord gave him a vision.
He saw thousands, if not millions of souls, heading for a Christless eternity. He heeded that vision and upon his recovery he established the Malaysia Evangelistic Fellowship, which was later changed to Asia Evangelistic Fellowship (AEF). The goal was to target Malaysians (in 1960 Singapore was still part of Malaysia) to train, equip and mobilize local people for evangelism and missions. At this time the existing Mission Organizations were not available to people in the non-western world, though the organizations were ministering to Asians and Africans. Several young people in Malaysia and Singapore were eager to serve the Lord but there were no avenues to channel their zeal and commitment. The first 3 Singaporeans who joined AEF to go forth as missionaries to East Malaysia were SBC alumni – Peck Hock Cheng, Chin Suat Mui and Herbert Woon!
Peck Hock Cheng and Suat Mui, as a couple later received further theological training and were lecturers at SBC. Subsequently many others joined the organization and several more were trained in SBC! Dr Suraja Raman, another SBC graduate, served as a Children’s worker under AEF for several years, blessing the churches with training and equipping children for Christ! In fact, the very first Missions Conference that was held at SBC was organized by AEF, SBC and OMF (Overseas Missionary Fellowship) in 1969. This was not just significant because it was the first, but also because it was at this Conference that I personally responded to the call of God to serve Him! I have no regrets ever since!
AEF also offered training in the local churches and encouraged young people to give of their lives in service to Christ. Rallies and crusades were conducted throughout Malaysia and Singapore, and later to other parts of Asia, where hundreds, if not thousands, have come to know Christ. The vision of G D James to train Asians for Asians spread to many countries in Asia. Today AEF International (AEFI) is an international organization, with over 200 workers, serving in 11 countries, with its headquarters in Perth, Australia.
Recently the President of AEFI, Jonathan James, edited a book entitled Asianization of Christianity with several articles contributed by the AEF evangelists, missionaries and pastors. The articles contain very helpful tools for evangelism, strategies and methods that have been tested and tried in their fields.
This book will be launched on 6 December 2024 at St Andrews Cathedral, Singapore, at 3pm, (Friday), by Dr Clement Chia, Principal of SBC!
Please register by clicking the QR Code on the poster or visiting www.aefi.asia before 29 November if you are in Singapore and can attend this event. It will be great to see you there!
Asia has over 65% of the world’s population, yet there are only 10% who know Christ. Let’s pray that this book will encourage and empower many Asian Christians to preach, teach and disciple their own people in their own cultures and languages, and reach the world for Christ!
Your humble servant,
