10 minute read
Interview with Col (Ret) Quek Koh Eng
Col (Ret) Quek Koh Eng has been serving MMS for 20 years and 6 months (2004 to 2024). He will be retiring at the end of 2024 as our Field Director and Regional Director. He also served as Home Director, Operation Director, Area Director and Church Engagement Director for some years. We are very appreciative of his leadership. Let’s read his reflections for these 20 plus years of faithful service. We wish him a blessed retirement.
Looking back on your two decades with MMS, what have been some of the most rewarding moments in your career?
My most rewarding moments were those opportunities of meeting different groups of people, sharing the word of God with them, and visiting remote places and villages on all kinds of transportation, whatever was available.
Missions is about people. Therefore, I find great joy to be able to interact with people and be immersed in their cultures. I am blessed to be able to discern the heartbeat of God in translating ideas into reality by helping to promote church planting and community development (like hostels, schools, etc.) to transform lives and communities.
What were some of the biggest challenges you faced in your roles as Field Director and Regional Director, and how did you overcome them?
I think we need to understand that the field situation is not routine but dynamic; things do not go according to plan most of the time. When any issue or problem arises, we must try to find out the source of the problem and nip it in the bud before it gets too big. For example, the need to exercise patience and understanding in dealing with the authorities at a national level for visa applications, licenses, registrations, etc.
One of the biggest challenges faced in the field is to do church planting and disciple making under very strict security and the threat of prosecution. We need to be innovative and constantly alert to avoid trouble. We need to rely on the Holy Spirit to guide and protect us to fulfil God’s mandate.
How do you feel your leadership has impacted the seven mission fields you’ve overseen? Are there specific projects or initiatives you’re particularly proud of?
I adopted the following leadership principles based on my military experience:
(1) To be intentional in what you are doing.(2) Maintain an attitude of openness to listen, consult and understand the issues before giving advice or instructions to propose the next course of action.(3) Stay on top of the situation and do not procrastinate.(4) A decision made whether right or wrong is better than no decision made.
I had to consciously rely on the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to discern, and to make concerted efforts to change the mindset of the national leadership which had been entrenched for more than two decades. I managed to convince the Thai national leadership not to be entirely dependent on the financial support from MMS but progressively, to take care of their own field operational and programme costs. The motivating factor is to achieve a good degree of self-reliance before the transition to a Provisional Annual Conference in 2027. One of the barriers of faith is conformity, so we need to exercise courage.
Another example was starting a training school to train our own church planters and evangelists in a Creative Access Country to support our 14 mission centres.
Could you share a memorable experience or story from your time in the mission field that has stayed with you over the years?
One of my most memorable experiences was during the early trips with Rev Teresa Wilborn to Gleno, Ermera District in Timor-Leste. We noticed that many of the high school students were walking and travelling in various modes of transportation to school. There was only one High School in Gleno serving the children from 7 subdistricts in Ermera. We were told that many students dropped out of school because when it rained, they were not able to attend school as the rivers were flooded and the roads became very muddy.
God gave us this divine realization to build a home in Gleno for these potential students who stayed in distant sub-districts, and to provide them a safe place to live, study, and be able to attend high school regularly. In addition, it afforded them an opportunity to develop their spiritual lives to be disciples of Christ. God brought to MMS a donor who sponsored the construction of Sundermeier Home, that would provide shelter to 40 high school students over two years. Praise God that over the last 10 years, the Home under our house parents, Joseph and Grace Mannar, had produced graduates who are not only spiritually mature and proficient in English but also highly successful in pursuing their tertiary education and other vocational trainings. This is a wonderful testimony of serving the need of the community, transforming lives, and building capacity for the nation.
During your time as Church Engagement Director, how did you see the relationship between the church and mission fields evolve?
I saw the need to have a close and evolving relationship with the church, and to develop a win-win strategy that gives synergy and alignment with God’s mandate and commandments.
The ability to understand the church’s missions policy was needed to propose platforms to establish a working partnership to fulfil God’s mandate and field goals. During my time, we developed a strategy of identifying three categories of churches. First, churches which are in some form of partnership with MMS but have more potential for growth. Second, churches which indicated interest to start a project or endeavour with MMS. Third, churches which have no partnership with MMS at all.
Working with the MMS Stakeholder Engagement Manager for over two years, we were able to engage almost all churches.
What were the key responsibilities you handled as Home Director in the earlier years, and how did that role prepare you for your subsequent leadership positions?
When I took over the Home Director appointment in 2004 from the late Rev Juliette Arulrajah, one of my key responsibilities was to engage the Methodist churches to be covenant partners with MMS. During my time, I managed to bring in about a dozen churches as strategic partners of MMS.
The other responsibilities were to improve the processes and working SOP with supporting documentations i.e. MMS Operation Manual; Student Sponsorship Scheme; Missionary Life Cycle, etc.
I initiated the formation of several committees to strengthen our processes and management in support of the field goals and objectives. These committees were the Education Committee, the Building Construction & Management Committee, and the Training Committee. These committees were formed under the leadership of Dr Grace Hsu, Mr Ho Lip Jin and the late Rev Juliette Arulrajah respectively.
How has your time with MMS influenced your personal and spiritual growth?
Even while serving in MMS, I was deeply involved in my church, serving in the LCEC and chairing the seniors ministry i.e. Charis Vineyard League. I have had the opportunity to work closely with all the MMS Executive Directors since the late Rev Dr Clarence Lim’s time as well as with all the Bishops since Bishop Emeritus Dr Solomon’s time. My involvement in planning and organising MCS 125th, 130th and 135th Anniversaries, GoForth 2018 Missions Conference, and the annual Aldersgate Celebrations has immensely strengthened my personal and spiritual life. Working at this level of leadership has helped me to develop my spiritual fervency and understanding especially on matters related to Methodism.
In MMS, all staff are encouraged to go for further studies and personal development. We meet every week to pray and spend devotional time to study the word of God.
What advice would you give to the person stepping into your role, especially in managing diverse mission fields?
Listen to the ground; their views may be quite diverse from country to country. And never assume they think the same way.
Work as a team in humility and with respect for one another. Mission fields involve spiritual battles hence it is important to unleash our persistent prayers and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. Not by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of God.
My wife, Shelley Quek, is my spiritual journeyer and best companion. She headed an intercessory prayer group in my church that would cover me with prayer during all my trips. On one occasion in a creative assess country, we were blasted by the national security, but the urgent activation of prayer saved us from being put into detention.
Listen to the ground; their views may be quite diverse from country to country.
As you retire, what are your hopes or visions for the future of MMS and the mission fields you have nurtured?
I hope to see, in the near future, that the discipleship movement will take root and grow in Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Nepal. And that the churches will achieve a certain level of sustainability and independence. I hope to see the Cambodia church becoming an Annual Conference (AC) and the Thai & Nepalese churches to become made Provisional Annual Conferences (PACs) in 2027 and 2032 respectively.
I also hope to see the Methodist schools in Thailand and Laos to be able to purchase land and start their secondary schools so that they can continue to provide excellent education and to inculcate Christian values.
What final message would you like to share with your colleagues, mission partners, and the communities you have served with over the years?
Missions work is all about people and their cultures. Therefore, we should not impose our ways of life, thinking, or expectations on them. We need to cultivate a deep understanding of their culture, local expression as well as their thinking processes. We should spend quality time to develop relationships and trust before introducing any major changes.
Never assume that you know everything. It is important to develop a consultative approach with regular dialogue at various levels. It is very essential to continue to equip and train the national pastors and lay leadership.
On a lighter note, what do you plan to do after your retirement?
I would want to continue to serve God as long as I still have breath, in my church and other parachurch ministry. Also, to spend more time with family, my children, and grandchildren.
I would love to pursue painting, reading, and attending ukulele jam sessions. Maybe, God willing, I would love to write a memoir of my life, and try to capture over 30+ years in the SAF, over 6+ years as Marketing Director with ST Engineer, and over 20+ years with MMS.
