investiture is over!!

i have officially stepped down from my role as the president on friday!!

i was really impressed at how grand the occasion was... so glad to see cherlene and the other student council alumni coming back to support us!! the student guests were also impressed with the formality and 'class' of the event!!

haha... anyway, i will have to prepare for the EXCO handover meeting soon... but for now, i would like to blog about my handover speech in case my message was not clear during my speech!! haha... here it is:

"Good Afternoon, Elder Alvin Ooi; Mdm. Lee; teachers; fellow councillors and distinguished guests. Once again, welcome to our 6th Student Council Investiture! It is indeed an honour for me to stand here to represent the leadership of the 5th Student Council to give you my handover speech.

After a term as the president, it is really fulfilling to step down knowing that the Student Council is in good hands! With all the effort put in to mentor the next batch of councillors, it is encouraging to see them taking over the roles and responsibilities of the student leadership in our school with much eagerness to learn! The councillors have since created strong bonds with each other, showing care and concern when one of their own is in need of help and guidance!

The Student Council has grown much in the past year, both in strength and in unity. But I would like to remind the student councillors how they should act. The theme for this year’s investiture is “SOAR”, Serve, Obey, Aim and Rise.

First, they have to serve! Serve to lead, lead to serve. This is an important principle and we need to understand that we exist to serve the school.

Secondly, they have to obey God’s commands to live life the right way. God’s Word is always a reliable support to fall back on when in doubt.

Next, they have to aim, or set goals. Councillors, why do you think you are here today to be invested as student councillors? What do you want to achieve in your term of service?

Lastly, when they are successful in the previous steps, they can all rise together as one. To rise is very different from just achieving the best. When you rise, it is a very slow and steady process, which allows you to think about your next step, and to evaluate how you can make it better. We don’t want to go up too quickly and end up falling back to the ground!

I believe that every student councillor is not here by accident. I believe that God has planned for all of us to work together towards His purpose. We can rely on Him to create in us, servant leaders who possess depth and character.

Like what I did last year before I finished my speech, I would like to leave all of you with 2 verses from the Bible. It is taken from Obadiah 1:3-4. You can remember it by the date of today’s investiture.

13 July: Obadiah 1, 3 then you add the 2 verse numbers together to get 7, which is July.

3 The pride of your heart has deceived you,
you who live in the clefts of the rocks [a]
and make your home on the heights,
you who say to yourself,
'Who can bring me down to the ground?'

4 Though you soar like the eagle
and make your nest among the stars,
from there I will bring you down,"
declares the LORD.

THANK YOU & GOD BLESS!!"