1983-198 BEAUTIFUL FEET
Leadership Under Matt & Celia Rawlins ( 1983 – 1988 )
Matt and Celia Rawlins were young leaders when they took over the leadership of YWAMSG from Dave and Lydia Hall . It was initially a daunting challenge . They were based in YWAM Hong Kong at that time and expecting their only son , but when their leaders asked if they would move to Singapore , a nation they did not know , they said , “ Yes .” Without a vision for the City or the base , the immutable vision that served them well was a deep love for God and the fear of the Lord . “ He is good and big enough . Regardless of what happened , we exhaled a ‘ Praise God !’ We didn ’ t have a big plan . We were just trying to love God and find ways to express it . We asked ourselves , ‘ How can we support , build and come alongside the body of Christ ? What do we have that we can use ?’”
They brought in FEET ( Far East Evangelism Team ), an evangelistic platform through the arts that Celia and a team first activated in Hong Kong . Birthed out of intercession and prayer , the acronym was conceived through Isaiah 52:7 : How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news , who publishes peace , who brings good news of happiness , who publishes salvation , who says to Zion , “ Your God reigns .” The FEET teams wore uniforms in the name of solidarity , and language barriers thrust them into a time of prayer that spawned Tribute , a 30-minute mime with dance and music that told the story of creation , salvation and Jesus . They performed on the streets , went into schools , prisons and regions of Asia that YWAM had not gone . They did this aggressively , spurred by the pulsing belief that they were sowing seeds in the nations for the Kingdom of God . Their compelling motivation was to take Singaporeans out into the world .
At a time when Christian contemporary music was little known in the little red dot , Matt and Celia brought in pioneering artistes of the genre . These were performers like Barry McGuire , Chuck Girard and Roby Duke who would perform for no more than an offering , steering clear of converting the hunger for salvation and community into cash and self-aggrandisement . The opening band for these performances was preferably homegrown and Matt and
Matt , Celia and Joshua as they prepare to go to India .
Roger , a staff , getting the YWAM van ready for ministry at the Fidelio Street House .
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