Friendship

The melting pot that is Singapore

ā€œIs it Masterchef today?ā€ Nadzirahā€™s eyes sparkled with excitement. It’s a quiet Saturday morning but there’s a buzz of excitement in the air. Everyone’s comeĀ armed with pots...

Life & Death

In the end: Reflections on death and the lives of Chester Bennington, Chris Cornell

An unashamed confession: About two weeks ago, the entire Thir.st team wasĀ huddled in a karaoke room celebrating our In-Dependence Day, throats going hoarse as we screamed into the mics: I tried so...

Music

Hold my hand, child of my heart: This is the cry of our fathers

Iā€™m Alexandra (Alex for short), and thatā€™s my brother, Andrew, on the guitar. We’ve been roving about and bringing worship in simple forms to different places, and that includes several...

Culture

When authenticity is no longer authentic

Times are changing. The real world isnā€™t exactly the real world. Our online personas arenā€™t exactly us. Itā€™s as if everyone is now a brand,Ā needingĀ a certain level of brand management....

Worldview

In Eugene Peterson’s wavering view on marriage, a message to be learnt

“要äøč¦ä¹°åøŒęœ›? Would you like to buy hope?” A friend of mine was asked years ago if he wanted to take part in the office Chinese New Year Toto Hongbao draw, the biggest pot to be...

Worldview

How can the church truly welcome those who identify as transgender?

On July 9,Ā the General Synod of the Church of England passed a motion on Welcoming Transgender People. The motion, moved by ReverendĀ Christopher Newlands, urgedĀ ā€œthat this Synod, recognising the...

Worldview

Make purity cool again

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they willĀ see God.” (Matthew 5:8) I’ve always wondered what it would beĀ likeĀ to see God. IĀ wonderĀ how He looks at me, and ifĀ He likes what...

Singlehood

When will my Song Joong Ki come?

K-drama fan or not, who could forget 2016 ā€“ the year of Korean blockbuster series Descendants of the Sun? Iā€™ll be able to look back fondly and tell my grandchildren one day that I was right there...

Culture

The fire of a man

I’ve been doing some thinking about manhood and found this interesting model: At the core of this model lies activities like hunting and surviving wilderness: Spilling blood, building from...