After her husband, Joseph Chean, passed away last November in a car accident, Kim Chean found in herself a strong compulsion to fulfil the things that had been on his heart before he died.

Joseph, the former National Director of Youth With A Mission (Singapore) and Strategic Coordinator of Antioch21, had been a passionate advocate for missions with a burden for the unreached – and had used his life to do something about it.

On the day he died, he had been in Istanbul on a short break, following a week of leading a Discipleship Training School in a nearby country. He was 56.

On Day 2 (October 4) of this year’s Antioch Summit held at St.John’s-St.Margaret’s Church (Anglican), Kim shared to an audience of more than 500 how, in the 10 months since her husband’s passing, she has embarked on mission trips close to Joseph’s heart – and the important question God has asked her through them.

Most of you may know that Joe passed away last November.

This was a family photo we took at the last (Antioch) Summit at Barker Road. We just grabbed one of the signposts and said: “Hey, let’s take a family photo” and I’m so glad we did that. 

The family photo that the Cheans took at last year’s Antioch21 Summit, with daughters Ashley (left) and Olivia (right).

After his passing, there was a lot of paperwork to do. Good thing we had a will which we did when the kids were three or four years old. So it was a very old will, but at least there was a will. I had to go execute the will, do what we planned. 

God also put in my heart to do some of the things that I knew had been on Joe’s heart.

When he passed, we actually had air tickets to go to Beirut. I had to cancel that. That was supposed to be in February, to be at a conference for an unreached people group.

I remembered that when Joe passed, I said if there’s only one mission trip I could go on for the rest of my life, it would be to Beirut. 

And so, while I didn’t manage to go in February – I was not in any mental state to be there – one sister from InterServe, who knew that this was something that Joe had planned, talked to me and said: “Kim, do you want to go?” And I said yes.

We arranged a date and in June we were there at the conference that Joe and I had meant to attend.

Soon after that, I had an invitation to join another mission trip. That was in September, two weeks ago, in Okinawa.

Two years ago, Joe had talked to Pastor Chua Seng Lee from Bethesda Bedok-Tampines Church and said: “There’s a lot of mental health issues in Japan, Okinawa in particular. Would you consider coming to run a mental health conference?”

Seng Lee said okay. They were prepared to go last year, but Joe had said Okinawa was not ready, so it was pushed to this year. And so Seng Lee and his church went and I was very blessed to join them and see what God is doing there.

Fulfilling Joe’s wishes

For both these trips – the Lebanon trip and the Okinawa trip – I really, really wanted to go. I wanted to do this because my husband had them on his heart. There was this compelling force in my heart to do it.

There were some people who went on the trip also because they knew Joe. There was one friend who went because these were the last two countries that Joe had gone to before he passed. For Seng Lee, Joe was also his friend. He wanted to do the trip to Okinawa because his friend had had it on his heart.

On the first day of Joe’s public wake, a friend from our church who had signed up to be an usher passed away that very morning. She was younger than Joe.

It was very shocking for all of us, and a very tough time for our church because two young-ish people had passed away suddenly within a week (of each other). We know the family – they are good friends of ours. The lady was in my Bible study group. She left behind three sons and her husband.

After her passing, her family renovated their house because they knew that Mum had wanted to renovate the house to have this colour in this room, adjust this and that. They did it because it had been on their mum’s heart.

I was thinking about what they did. I was thinking about what I did, and Joe’s friends who continue to do what they know had been on Joe’s heart. It made me think.

You know, I do it because I knew the man. I’m his wife. I’m doing Joe’s will. I feel the compulsion to do so. There’s a compelling force because I knew him. I knew his heart.

What about the Father’s will? Do we know our Father’s heart? God was asking me: “Do you know My will? Are you doing My will?”

(With God’s will), we may do it because aiya, bopian (no choice) lah. He say one, then we do. But there’s no bopian here with me doing what was on Joe’s heart.

I’d like for us to think: Will we do the Father’s will because we know the Father and we know what’s on the Father’s heart? 

Fulfilling Christ’s wishes

I know what Joe’s last plans were with me. There were some places that we said we’d go together. I want to go and do all those things.

(Before He ended His time on earth), Christ Jesus told us: “Go and make disciples of all nations.” These were His last words. Will we also do that and go and fulfil what He has asked us to do out of that relationship?

“Could we do the Father’s will because we know the Father and we know what’s on the Father’s heart?” said Kim at the Antioch 21 Summit.

Missions can be tiring. There will be difficulties. There will be challenges. But if we remember Who we are doing this for, why we are doing this, we will be able to press on with joy.

In the words of a song: “May we never lose the wonder, the wonder of His mercy.” We always need to come back to have the wonder of the mercy of God. That will compel us to live a godly life, compel us to reorganise our lives.

In some ways I am reorganising my life to live in a new season because of the passing of the life of another.

As we recognise God’s love for us, will we reorganise our lives so as to honour His wishes, His desires, because we know Him, we love Him?

Let us never lose the wonder of God’s mercy.

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