Articles by

Joanne Kwok

Mental Health

Mocked and molested, I attempted suicide again and again. But now I truly live

When I wasĀ 9, I wasĀ molested by my uncle. I was silenced; told not to lie. “Kids will be kids,” they said. When I was 11, I finally stood up to my uncle. I shouted at him to ā€œF***...

Easter

This Good Friday, take time to survey the wondrous Cross

Earworm:Ā Songs that stickĀ in yourĀ head andĀ get yourĀ toes a-tapping and fingers a-drumming. Sometimes youĀ hum the tune out loud. In a quiet office. Just when the boss walks past. I don’t...

Real Life, Real People

The unwilling, unlikely leader

At the age of 20, I became one of the youngest leaders in Singapore nominated to sit on the Local Church Executive Committee (LCEC), theĀ decision-making board that governs each Methodist church. I...

Real Life, Real People

At 23, I had an abortion. I’ve never told anyone,Ā until now

I was about 23 years old when I was faced with the most difficult decision of my life. I wasn’t married, but I gotĀ pregnant. This was probably the worst thing that could’ve happened to me...

Movies & TV

So, is the movie a Beauty or a Beast?

AĀ couple of days ago, I read a comment on social media from a friend whom I first met during my time in a para-church group while in university. HeĀ had recently watched Disney’s live-action...

Workplace

The Plate Spinner: Advice for busy young adults

Have you ever seen a plate spinner? A guy sets up a stick, puts a ridiculously fragile plate on top of it and spins the stick, such that the plate on top spins in tandem and stays upright in an...

Real Life, Real People

A new heart, and a new life to go with it

I went for open-heart surgery when I was 2 years old.Ā But I was so young then that it seems like a figment of my imagination, an event I cannotĀ recall, norĀ would I want to. But the month before I...

Discipleship

Why is it so hard to make the right decisions in life?

At the age of 10 I was introduced to The Game of Life, a board game that brings players through a series of life decisions from college to retirement, with jobs, homes, marriage and even children...

Devotionals

He brews: Glimpses of God in a slow-drip coffee

Q: When was coffee first mentioned in the Bible? A: In He-brews! My guess is that most of us have heard this joke before (one too many times, probably); it is joke that attempts to make sense of two...