How We Really Lived In 2024
This is a group post from the Core Team of 5 Js (clockwise from top left): Ps Jenni, Joanna, Jackii, Jophillien and Jessica.
Slow, Savour and Serve are antidotes to Speed, Shallowness and Self-centredness.
Seeing how our world operates by the latter, we cherish our healing, growth and the changes that ripple outwards as we embrace a different approach in order to really live.
From Joanna the new mom to Jessica the multi-tasking secretary, each one of us has different life contexts and unique circumstances, but we set down our intention to imagine and realise the abundant life, and this is what happened for us in 2024:
Jackii: This year, I learnt to make an effort to build deeper relationships. I am thankful for each opportunity to learn, and connect, making my life more meaningful and rich.
While I serve in TRL, I am truly a beneficiary of what TRL offers too! With every challenge, I learnt to practise the ethos of Slow, Savour, Serve in my life and found it helpful for my health, mind and soul. This helps in being more patient in relating with others and vice versa too.
My hope is to be even more rested in 2025 so that my body can heal more.
Jophillien: I am deeply grateful for the small breakthrough I have had in my relationship with my mum this year. It has been a precious step forward, and I am thankful for how God has been working in us. Another area of growth has been learning to have uncomfortable but necessary conversations with myself. Facing these inner truths about myself has been challenging, but it has also brought more clarity.
While I have experienced growth in some areas, the second half of the year came with its share of challenges. During a recent reflection on the year, I realised a misalignment between my ‘input’ and ‘output’ capacity. The disciplines to help me recharge and renew (‘input’), that I have developed at the beginning of the year, are now not sufficient to support the increased serving (‘output’) towards the end of the year. To me, serving is not only limited to formal roles but also includes something as simple as having intentional conversations with people.
Through this reflection, I realised the importance of regularly reviewing and assessing my capacity—not just once but throughout the year.
Jessica Zhuo: 2024 has been a year of even more restful creativity (two words that seem to be rarely combined)! I find that even as I learn not to be anxious about content creation, take time to pray, #Slow down in life, and #Savour each moment, inspiration for content comes in a way that can better #Serve the hearts of people. I am reminded that TRL aims not just to run programmes or flood the online space with content like other social media creators, but we do want whatever that is posted to be life-giving to people, and to remind them to embrace a healthy pace of Life, in keeping with the season they are going through.
Joanna: As I reflect on how God has been teaching me to be still and be present in a season of waiting, I’m so grateful for how 2024 has been so formative in this aspect. In just under a year, Z is now legally our son although the wait for his citizenship and passport application continues for a few more months. Putting a pause on work to witness Z’s growth and savour little firsts - most recently his first long stretch of unaided toddling - has been a huge blessing to me. For many, this is seen to be a privilege, especially as many cannot afford to (or may choose not to) live on a single income. But with the support of my husband, this past year of being a dedicated caregiver (while having flexibility of time to serve TRL with admin/ tech support and other meaningful experiences with community members) is what cannot be replicated with a dash of cash.
And I am so grateful.
This slower pace of not having to juggle multiple roles and responsibilities has given me the chance to savour being a mother through the seemingly mundane things of cooking, feeding, cleaning, disciplining… and fun times of playing, creating, connecting and laughing together. It has been a blessing to be mentally and physically present with Z whenever I do so, and to have been able to bring him out for meetings with friends and even a prophetic dance workshop!
Next year as we plan to put Z in playgroup once he turns 18 months and I return to work part-time, I will need to find a new ‘work-family-community’ rhythm that is still life-giving to both myself and my family. With what I’ve been learning to enjoy what is before me and not focus on the possible trade-offs, I believe 2025 will be yet another year filled with thanksliving!
Jenni: 2024 began very differently for me, with a major operation and then a travel time with my sisters and my family. The six weeks of post-surgery recovery were probably the slowest I have ever been in my life. As I healed, I was honestly reluctant to pick up the pace! At the same time, the big question on my heart was how to stay true to this journey to really live, and help the community to do so. I had to remind myself that this is a deep work of Grace and all my plans and more would not bring lasting change in lives. It has to be something that each of us wants to see happen in our lives and in our society.
The more I discover about life, and observe and hear about how people struggle, the more I know our community is important. In my life, and in the lives of those who participate with intention, it is clear that our ethos dismantles some of our hardwired reflexes and brings greater groundedness and courage. I watch with joy as different ones come alive, and our sparks ignite hope and strength in each other. This is what a true community does: it gives life.
TRL is about three things:
facing down what takes life from us,
building a scaffold of helpful habits that feed life, and
allowing our growth to be a source of encouragement and empowerment for others.
We are never fully ready and certainly will not be perfect. But we can learn to slow down, savour and serve.
This is a lifelong endeavour that will bear fruit in every season.
As we mature as a community, we also adjust what we do.
For one, we needed more hands on deck, so we are grateful to have gotten more facilitators on board for Quiet Hour and an overall coordinator. Our monthly Communi-tea times have been so enriched by members who have stepped up to ensure a meaningful time for all, whether in the area of logistical support, co-hosting or coming to share their lives and expertise.
Another intentional effort this year was pumping in more energy to walk with those who are seeking to make changes in their lives. Being creatures of habit and fear, we need the support and cheerleading of others to grow and mature. As is the nature of things, those who serve always receive as well.
There are so many possibilities of what we can explore and discover together.
Further away from Covid, it seems that everyone is getting back to busyness again. We talked about it as a team and we are so glad to have our habits of gathering around to slow down and share to help us pay attention to our lives and be aware of the risk of being swept off course by the currents of demands and expectations.
Life is a gift and this community will continue to thrive as each of us recognises and receives this gift with open hearts and hands, slowing down to savour it and serve with what we have.
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