Meet Our New Pastoral Team Member, Mr Joshua Wong

CCMC has welcomed a new member to our pastoral team, Mr Joshua Wong. He will be assisting our Mandarin Ministry. Loaves+Fishes posed the following questions to get to know him better.

Please share some background about yourself and your family.

I am 48 years old. I was born in a small town called Yong Peng, Malaysia. I was born into a so-called Christian family, but until I entered the church at the age of 15 and was baptised at 18,  the only thing I really knew was that my mother was a Christian.

My father told me that he was brought to the church by his uncle to be baptised as a child. At 19, I came to Singapore to work and study. During this time, I moved from place to place many times. It wasn’t until 2013, by God's grace, that I became a Singapore citizen. Finally, in 2018, my family and I were able to settle down with our own BTO flat. I have been married to my wife Eva for 20 years, and we have one child, Luke.

How did you come to receive Jesus as Lord and Saviour? (Can be a personal testimony too)

I went to church not because I was attracted by music, and it is not through miracles; it is because of a sport that I love. God led me to church through badminton playing, and I joined the Youth Fellowship, Sunday School, and Boy’s Brigade. In 1994, I accepted Christ as my Saviour in one of the gospel rallies that the church had organised.

Where did you receive your theological training (if any) and what personal lessons (as opposed to knowledge) did you learn from it?

Singapore Bible College. It is the only college in Singapore that has a Church Music course.  I finished my Bachelor and Master of Church Music degree in 2010 and 2024. During my studies, I encountered numerous challenges and considered giving up. However, through God's grace, I overcame all the difficulties and graduated, just as Paul mentioned in the book of Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

What was your occupation(s) before full-time ministry? When and how did you realise your calling to full-time ministry?

I worked as a supervisor in Nitto Denko  since 1998. In 2000, I had the opportunity to join the Singapore Hallelujah Oratorio Society (HOS).

Throughout my time with HOS, I was called to serve in the church music ministry several times when Rev Lee Chong Min, the music director and conductor of HOS, shared his journey in this field. However, I often questioned whether I was truly suited for this, as I had no formal training in music.

In 2002, as HOS celebrated its 25th anniversary, Rev Lee intended to form a small group of singers, called the Hallelujah Singers. I decided to seize this opportunity to further explore my calling from God. I promised to follow His lead if I was selected.

When my name was called, I felt certain that this was part of God's plan for me. From that moment on, I began to learn music theory, flute, vocal techniques, and conducting to prepare myself for a full-time ministry in church music.

Who are your spiritual/ministry mentors? What valuable lessons did you learn from them?

I will divide this into two parts:

Mentors in Church Music Ministry: Rev Lee Chong Min (my former lecturer at Singapore Bible College’s School of Church Music). He was not only my choir conductor during my time in the Hallelujah Oratorio Society; through his sharing, God called me to go for full-time ministry in Church Music. He also served as both my vocal and conducting teacher at Singapore Bible College. His serious and disciplined approach to ministry and teaching has been a guiding model for me.

Mentors in Spiritual and Pastoral Ministry: Rev Christopher Chan, we served together at Glory Presbyterian Church. I always seek advice from him.

Where have you served and in what capacities? Give three principles that you use in your ministry, including examples of their applications.

I served as a church music preacher at Glory Presbyterian Church for 13 years. I led worship services, rehearsed and directed choirs and a worship team, integrated diverse musical styles into worship, and was involved in pastoral ministry.

3 principles:

(1) Worship should be Christ-centered: Focusing all our attention on honoring and glorifying God, rather than on personal feelings or what we gain from the worship experience.

(2) Knowing God in thought: We should always remember God's grace and redemption in our lives, reflecting on all He has done for us - whether in times of salvation, difficulty, or joy. This is like how the Israelites sang to the Lord after experiencing His great salvation in history (Exodus 15).

(3) Responding to God from the heart as we sing: When we truly affirm that God is my personal God as we sing, we begin to feel the meaning expressed in the song and recognise the reality of our past experiences. As the lyrics reflect what God has done in our lives, we experience His true presence from within and respond from the heart to the living God. Truly, He is my God.

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Find out more about CCMC's Mandarin Ministry here.