Pandan Valley, server hiccups and 25 nationalities

This past week was packed with variety, technical troubleshooting, and meaningful encounters. On Friday afternoon, we said goodbye to the finance colleagues who had travelled to Singapore from various regional field offices for training week. While everyone worked diligently, the new platform proved quite complex to adopt all at once. Consequently, we made the decision to postpone the full production rollout until January 1st. This grants everyone the breathing room needed to master the workflows thoroughly.

That does mean our legacy finance server needs to hold the fort for a few more months. Right on cue, that machine started acting up again this week with mysterious error messages. After running extensive system diagnostics, we identified and repaired several corrupted system files. We are praying and trusting that it will run reliably through at least January 1st.

Alongside that, I am exploring a robust backup strategy for several core systems. Over the past week, I met with multiple commercial enterprise vendors for software demonstrations. It quickly became apparent that these corporate suites carry exorbitant licensing costs, simply far too expensive for a mission organization where every donated euro counts. Together with our CTO, we decided against these costly packages to focus on smarter, cost-effective alternatives. That will be a major focus for me in the coming week.

Between Thursday and Friday, we also faced a minor network emergency when office Wi-Fi suddenly dropped out. The culprit was a failed media converter (the small transceiver unit that converts incoming fiber-optic signals to Ethernet). Fortunately, our setup is designed with full redundancy, featuring two independent fiber links and dual converters. We quickly switched over to the backup link. We are temporarily operating on a single line, so ordering a replacement converter is on the agenda for next week to restore full redundancy.

Outside work hours, everyday life in Singapore is becoming more familiar. I explored local markets with my Filipino housemates, and the CTO took me to a local hawker centre. For those unfamiliar with the term: a hawker centre is a bustling open-air complex packed with dozens of independent stalls where locals dine daily. For just a few dollars you can enjoy incredible fresh dishes, and I now eat at a food court or hawker centre almost every evening. From our living room in Pandan Valley, we also enjoy a fantastic view across the lush neighborhood (see photo above).

Today, Saturday, brought a wonderful highlight to the week: International Day at the Anglican church. Around 25 different nationalities gathered together. Everyone brought traditional dishes from their home countries, accompanied by a vibrant program of worship, children's choirs, and traditional dance (see the video below). It was moving to witness people from so many backgrounds and languages worshipping God side by side.

I look back on these past days with deep gratitude for God's provision. Please pray along for stability on our legacy finance server until January 1st, and for wisdom and creativity as I design an affordable backup architecture in the coming week.