19 Aug 2014 by Adeline Lum CM-
On 10th of August, Asian Beacon held their 45th Anniversary Thanksgiving Celebration at JW Marriott Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, welcoming more than 550 guests.
The evening began with worship, led by singer and songwriter Patrick Leong, followed by an opening prayer by Rev Loh Soon Choy, founding member of EFCM.
Goh Khoon Seng, chairman of Asian Beacon shared his gratitude for the guests who took time to participate in the ministry’s 45th Anniversary Thanksgiving dinner.
“‘A bold new phase’ has been our tagline since the beginning of this year. Asian Beacon has really taken bold moves,” said Khoon Seng.
The first bold move Asian Beacon took is changing their strategy to be a ‘full-faith ministry’ after 45 years. No longer are they charging readers for printed issues and soliciting advertisements, they are turning to God in providing for the ministry through supporters, sponsors and churches.
The second bold move is the launching of Asian Beacon into the digital platform, which began in a preliminary stage last September.
Finally, the third bold move is the formulation of a new vision, new mission statements, and a new logo representing their new strategy in the face of the digital era.
Chairman Khoon Seng shared that Asian Beacon has a vision to collaborate with all Christian communities in the media ministry to make known God’s glory.
He shared that the mission of Asian Beacon is to help their audience understand contemporary issues in the light of God’s Word through all platforms, to network and cooperate with churches and Christian organizations for a more impactful media ministry, to be the resource hub for services to the Christian community, and to equip and develop local talents to serve in the media ministry.
Taken into account of the new vision and missions, the four arrows in the new logo represent the wide and far-reaching connectivity of Asian Beacon as a Christian media with all churches and Christian organizations in Malaysia, Singapore, and even the rest of Asia.
Datuk Paul Low, guest of honor for the evening, highlighted the importance of the Media Mountain (amongst the Seven Mountains) in shaping the mind, attitude, and beliefs of Christian believers in this country. To him, there are three levels of the mountain—the ones at the foothill representing the citizen journalists or consumers of information, the ones in the middle of the mountain representing the media journalists, and the ones at the top representing the leaders who dictate the media.
“I am sure Asian Beacon is at the higher part of the mountain. I can see that there’s a strong role for Asian Beacon. While God has given you the name of a beacon, you have to shine light. And the mission for you is that you shine the right light because these days, it’s a battle of perception and a battle of who is telling the truth,” said Datuk Paul, urging journalists of Christian faith at all levels to always tell the truth.
While the guests fellowship over dinner after a thanksgiving prayer made by Secretary-General of NECF Eugene Yapp, they were also entertained by many beautiful musical presentations by Doreen Tang (Choir Director of PJEFC and lead vocal with Canticle Singers in year 2003), Tenors for Christ (Joshua Lee, Victor Chua, and Tom Tan), and Ed & Pae (Pr Edmund Smith and Paecy Wong). Not to mention, the art presentation of a flying eagle by Tommy Chen was spectacular, shown as part of the fundraising auction.
The event drew to an end with many honorable guests coming on-stage to cover Asian Beacon with their prayers, including Pr Dr Chew Weng Chee of SIBKL, Pr Dr Daniel Ho of DUMC, and Dr Chong Kwong Tek, the first Malaysian editor of Asian Beacon. Former chairmen and editors of Asian Beacon were also invited on-stage to receive their honorary gifts to appreciate and recognize their contributions.
With Asian Beacon’s new strategy, we certainly look forward to its great leap forward to the digital era!
The dinner is sponsored by Dato’ Mark Yeoh.
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