Joseph Chean – known for his lifelong passion for missions – passed away, aged 56, following a road accident in Istanbul on Wednesday, November 15, 2023. ROY TAY reflects on the life and legacy of the tireless missions mobiliser.

The one thing that I will always remember about Joe is his effortless ability to make anyone feel seen, heard, and loved.

Whether I would bump into him along the hallway, find him among crowds of people, or meet him at a random coffeeshop in Geylang, he would always welcome me with his signature smile, cusp his hands around my face as though I was his son, and seamlessly go in for a tight hug. Joe exuded genuine care for every person he came across, and he was a friend to everyone.

Joe was renowned for his indisputable gift of teaching, preaching and storytelling.

Without skipping a beat, he could rile up congregations with incredible stories about God he had witnessed. Joe would often have these laser-focused eyes when he spoke about his new vision for God and the community, beckoning inevitable nods of agreement from his audience. Many would attest to his charismatic ability to speak to crowds and stir them up passionately for the Kingdom of God.

…he would always welcome me with his signature smile, cusp his hands around my face as though I was his son, and seamlessly go in for a tight hug.

Joe was undoubtedly a pastor.

He may not have been ordained but he certainly led and cared for the people God put under him. There was no money in what he was doing, so you know for sure that he sincerely cared about you, and he was never unapproachable. Despite being the National Director of YWAM, he strove to intimately connect with every single individual on a personal level – staff, student or stranger.

One can easily attribute this to his seemingly extroverted personality, but few would know that the man was naturally introverted – making his pastoral heart an intentional one.

I admired Joe’s healthy relationship with power.

Although he held many “prestigious” leadership titles in various organisations and boards, Joe held to them loosely.

He was never insecure about his authority and freely distributed his power among those whom he trusted.

He knew that these titles never looked good on him anyway, and he only pursued one “crown” – which I am sure our Lord is bestowing to him at this moment.

Joe had a passionate heart for the marginalised. One verse Joe repeatedly preached is God’s command to the prophet Micah, 

“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.”

He knew that the values of mercy and justice God held firmly and closely to His heart.

Joe was convinced that if Jesus was living in Singapore today, He would spend most of His time in Geylang where the nation’s vices are densely concentrated.

Therefore, YWAM Singapore could not be anywhere else.

Joe was a coach. In my five years in YWAM, every pivoting point of my journey was marked by some conversation I had with him.

During Discipleship Training School, Joe was our school leader and he would meet me over meals to talk about potential opportunities I could have with YWAM. Joe was relentless in believing in the potential of every person he talked to. He hated mediocrity. He always pushed others to go beyond what they thought they were limited to.

Joe would gently assert that he believes God wants the best for each person and, based on my personal experience, his intuition was usually right. 

As tears of reminiscence flow down our cheeks, our smiles can widen because Joe died doing what he loved – preaching God’s Word to the nations. 

Joe was a man of faith. He lived out the legacy of the biblical Joseph who, despite many challenges and difficulties, held on to God’s unwavering character.

He was a visionary who dreamt big dreams which are humanly impossible. He always knew that his business was God’s business.

Finances are often a worry for YWAM and YWAMers alike, but Joe never batted an eyelid because he knew that it was God’s bill to pay. Whether it was a boat or a building, Joe never ceased to trust God to provide abundantly. 

There are plenty of other things to describe Joseph Chean, yet these words will never be able to encapsulate the man that he was and the things he had done for God.

Surely, I believe that the blood of the martyr becomes the seed of the church, and this kernel of wheat that falls to the ground will eventually bear much fruit.

In the midst of grieving the loss of a life shortened by sudden death, especially one absent of goodbye, we can also rejoice because, while the world has lost an incredible man of whom it was not worthy, the people of the Resurrection will see him once again.

As tears of reminiscence flow down our cheeks, our smiles can widen because Joe died doing what he loved – preaching God’s Word to the nations.