Rev. Edmund Chan, SP of Covenant EFC Singapore

“Ministry is the outflow of your life… Take care the depth of your life and let God take care of the breadth of your ministry.” –Rev. Edmund Chan

This quote caught me thinking even before I joined the IDMC (Intentional Disciple-making Churches) Conference. Depth of one’s life, something we get over with all too briefly in our daily conversations and ministry evaluation. Living in a culture where personal dignity is highly respected and ministry result is highly valued, issues like these are always being sidelined, intentionally or unintentionally. I saw a decline in my personal walk with God when no one around me see me as a spiritual being that hungers for correction, love, acceptance, guidance, and spiritual company. I saw how hard I try to look good on the outside while I know I’m a dead soul trying to look alive. No one dared to ask about my heart. No one dared to rebuke me. They seemed satisfied with my superficial answers!  Superficiality in Christianity today is poisonous! That is why we go around looking for answers for questions like why our ministry is not going anywhere but found none. We’ve missed the main issue!

Attending the conference helped me identify this crisis. God used the conference to help me deal with my heart issues. Things discussed like: intimacy with God, choose truth over lies, spiritual disciplines, overcoming sins by the power of the Holy Spirit and becoming a spiritual friend to someone else etc. prepared me deeply to be a true follower of Christ. I heard God said: “Son, don’t go any further before you get these things right!” Every session confirms my need to go deeper into Him and hide myself in Him, because apart from Him, I can do nothing. Nothing! It’s a refreshing soul-searching experience. God, being so loving and faithful, has NEVER FAILED to draw my heart back to Him when I need Him to.

I also realize the importance of cultivating spiritual friendship. Being a long-time struggler of becoming a friend to someone, I realize that unless I am intimate with the friend of all friends, Jesus Christ, I can never be a true friend to others. I long to be someone who come to my friend’s mind whenever they need someone who accepts them for who they really are. Spiritual friendship is what we need in the world today!

I want to close with this sharing. I still remember on the 1^st morning of the conference, a pastor actually asked all of us in the conference: “What are you looking for in IDMC?” I remembered my prompt answer was: “Another life changing experience.” But the Spirit of God asked again in my heart: “What are you looking for, REALLY?” …and I found myself saying from my innermost being: “God, I come and look for You. Yes, it is You that I seek”

What are you looking for in your life, really? What really matters?

Unless we constantly plunge ourselves in the sweet fellowship with our Lord, people will never see the beauty of God from our lives. It is His desire to draw close to us, why don’t we take Him at His Word?

So I signed up for the surf lessons provided by Satu Suku surf school without much hesitation, and Cherating (oh my, the best beach I’ve ever been so far in the peninsular!) happen to be the only place where you can surf in Malaysia.

So I met my super skilled and supportive coach (Landy), put on my surf suit, got a surf board (which is about 7ft. long ) and got into the sea and learn. Cut the long story short. Here are some things I learnt about surfing, and how it relates to our life.

Balance

The first thing I learnt was how to keep a balance on the surf board. Keeping a balance is very crucial as it determines how long you can stay on the board. Apart from that, balance will help you tap on the wave better, and you’ll find the board can be amazingly stable even when you stand up as the board moves.

Although balancing might sounds simple, it actually took me quite some time trying to balance myself even when I was lying on the board. For numerous times, I missed fantastic waves as the result of me spending too much time struggling to strike a balance on the board. Balance plays such a crucial role in surfing: It keeps you stay on the wave longer, but you can either miss the wave, or being violently tossed by the wave if you fail to do so.

This made me question myself how balanced I am doing in life. There are countless times I find myself over-emphasized on one area and neglected another, and the result is often endless anxieties and disappointments. What it means to live a balanced life?

I’m reminded of Jesus Christ. I think He demonstrated the perfect kind of life because He said: “I bought glory to You here on earth by completing the work You gave me to do… ” (John 17:4). What a confidence! His secret of success was: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37-40).

Living a balanced life means you honor God, others and yourself with the way you use your gifts and spend your time and resources. We are not perfect, we cannot be anyone to everyone. God is perfect, and therefore He knows what is right for us to do. Look at Jesus, despite his power and the needs of those around him, left much undone; yet he completed everything God had given him to do.

“You will find balance when you know that in God’s eyes you have done what you need to do.” – Divine Moments for Men

Wave

Watching the wave is another expertise to master. Wave watching can take a long time because not every wave can give you the push you need when you surf. Honestly speaking, I was (and still am.. hehehe, sorry Sifu!) very confused by the way the surfers predict the wave. Every “good” wave I see may not be good enough for the other surfers. There you’ll find me stupidly and clumsily prepare myself for a pick up yet others just stayed still and watch.

Positioning myself for wave is also something I learnt. I still remember myself going either too far from where the wave picks up, or predicted the wrong direction of the wave. As the result, I missed a lot of good opportunities to surf.

Thank God for my instructor. He can “smell” the wave before its’ coming. He knows which one is good, and he also knows where the wave is going. Whenever he sees one good wave coming, he’d say “ok Daniel, get on the board, wait… ok, now turn towards the beach, start paddle, paddle paddle paddle..!” and when the wave hits, the board accelerates and take off…… the rest is sheer excitement!!

Waves are like opportunities in life.

• They don’t come ALL the time, but when they do, cease it!
• Waiting for one can take quite a while, but stay alert, POSITION yourself for opportunity, study how it comes and where it goes, so that you can ride it just at the right time.
• It takes experience to know which opportunity to tap on. Some may be good and some may not. Getting an experienced mentor with you would be the best way to start.
• “Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days” (Ephesians 5:16)

Focus

As a beginner, I feel very excited when I find myself standing on the surf board and surf. It is almost like taking my first step on the moon! Think about it:  for the first time in my life, I roam without needing a mechanical engine, a single wheel, and not even my feet! It’s all hydropower! What an experience! I was mesmerized every time I look at the board and see how it ‘interacts’ with the water!

But however, looking down at the water and the board while you surf is a big no-no if you want to stay longer on the wave. “Don’t look down the board, focus on the direction you want to go”, as what my surf instructor repeats. Honestly speaking, for an excited-beginner like me, this is something really hard! It is like a new driver who cannot stop looking at the gear box while changing gear!

Hard it may be, it is true. I find that whenever I look at the board, I lose my focus (the direction I want to go); and when I lose balance, I fall into the water right away.

Focus is crucial not only in surfing but also in living!

What do you focus on? What is it that you want to pursue? I tend to focus on something near, something that gives instant and temporal excitement (like watching the water), but having a target that gives you long-term fulfillment is what brings you further. Set your heart on the right thing, find your life a purpose that is worth dying for, then go for it, and you can surf through the life!

I’d like to end this with something that happened over my last lesson. It was a bright morning, wave was great, and there were some other surfers around too. What’s interesting is that I finally managed to tap on some good waves without having my instructor telling me. It was a great feeling, something over-the top! But somehow I also repeated the same mistakes over and over again, and fall. I did actually ask myself at one point, out of frustrations: “Why am I doing this?”. For your information, surfing takes a lot of energy especially when you try to position yourself for the wave. Frustration comes when you tried your best to tap on the wave yet you either missed it, or you lost balance and fall.

God is good, there was a time after a failed attempt, I over-heard a local surfer singing “I wanna be a pro surfer, so freakin’ bad” . Sounds amusing, but somehow it’s true. Like him, I do want to become a pro surfer, but I also want to surf through my life like a pro. However, it takes a lot of mistakes, pain and disappointments in order to achieve that, and the key in order to achieve that is: Never give up trying! Yeah, never give up trying! Keep on trying until you become a pro, and you will, eventually, if you never give up!

… and I believe God is like my surf instructor! What can I say: Landy is a professional surfer. Despite of his qualifications, he is very down to earth, encouraging and supportive! Whenever I made it to tap on the wave and surf, I’d look to him who is standing far in the sea, and he’d raise his both arms and pointing his thumbs up. That’s the assurance! It made me feel good about myself. But whenever I missed a wave or didn’t last long enough on the board, he’d say: “It’s ok, your are doing just fine Daniel, just be mindful of the mistakes you usually make, and you’ll be perfect”. That’s the encouragement and acceptance I need to keep on trying and not giving up. If a mere human like Landy can be this encouraging and supportive, how much more our Father in Heaven, who love us and have our best interest in His heart?

“Surely Your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life” (Psalms 23:6)

“I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue His work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns” (Philippians 1:6)

May you be blessed by His goodness, and surf through life with the assurance that He is there for you, anytime, anywhere!

And oh, let me know if you want to join me in the next surfing trip again! It will be some where between November to January next year Believe me, it’s fun!!

My surf instructor, Mr. Landy Ismail

“It’s the most wonderful time of the year!”, as a song sings. I guess the song says it right. For someone who lives in this part of the world we call Malaysia, Christmas is somehow, the 2^nd most celebrated festival in the country (the 1^st is the National day-lah for sure!).

Why? Take a walk in one of those mega shopping malls, you will be amazed by the amount of efforts they put in to transforming their mall into a Christmas wonderland, as if they saved all their best decoration for this time of the year. Wowing the shoppers has been a constant contest among the shopping malls. Take a look at the shoppers: you can easily see multitude of people, regardless of race and religion, are busy doing Christmas shopping either for themselves or their loved ones. It’s a celebration for everyone! It’s another season to show some love to people we care!

Do you celebrate Christmas? How do you celebrate Christmas? Christmas Party? Gift exchange?

As a Christian, I celebrate Christmas together with my family and friends in the church. We go to the church early in the morning for Christmas service, and the rest of the day is usually spent having fellowship with our friends over a meal or two. But, frankly speaking, having celebrated the Christmas for more than 25 times now, I can almost predict what’s going to happen even before I get to my church. I know most of the songs that will be sung. I know the message will be about the baby Jesus, with references to the usual supporting cast: Mary and Joseph, the shepherds or the wise men, maybe some angels. I’ve heard it all before.

Talking about angels! Have you ever envy the shepherds of Bethlehem?

Sometimes I do. I mean, their Christmas was a lot more exciting than ours. You see, they had a surprised visit! They were amazed by the most comforting proclamation! They had the best choir around (I mean, who can beat the angels who have been created and trained for that?). Ah, not to mention all the visually stunning appearance! They were treated to a dazzling supernatural display. Heavenly light dazzled their eyes. Heavenly choruses rang in their ears.

In Luke 2:8-14 the Bible tells about that first Christmas night. Mary gave birth to baby Jesus, wrapped in strips of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room anywhere else.

⁸And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.“

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.“

I love that story, but sometimes I envy the shepherds. Wouldn’t it be great if we could see what they saw, if we could hear what they heard? What if angels came this Christmas?

Reacting to Real Angels

O, why not? Try to imagine our nice, predictable Christmas celebrations (church service, party, or meal fellowship) being interrupted by real angels. Suddenly everyone in the room is squinting at a brightness their eyes cannot handle. Our ears are filled with a voice like none we have ever heard. It’s the Christmas angel, come back to tell us the same thing he once told the shepherds.

“Don’t be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people…”

Imagine that…. how would you react?

Well, the Christians, or the follower of Jesus Christ may have heard those words many times in many different Christmas celebrations, but coming from the mouth of the angel, it’s like hearing the message for the first time. Don’t be afraid! Good news! Great joy! Yes, indeed! Amen and amen!

For non-Christians, you’ll probably can’t help but think over this supernatural phenomenon: Angels do exist? Why is the birth of that little Jewish baby boy is a good news to me? “Don’t be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people…”

If it really happen, I bet you’ll leap with gladness, some may even cry because of over-excited, some more cool-headed ones might take the camera, take a shot and upload onto facebook or twitter

“Do Not Be Afraid”

But wait… let me go back a little bit! Did I hear “Don’t be afraid” instead of “Merry Christmas” or “Felice Navidad” from the angels? No, you heard it right. If the angels ever appear, they’d probably repeat the same message to us: “Do not be afraid!”

“Don’t be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.”

We are all familiar with the joy and peace in the end of the story, but how about the first statement of the angels? Doesn’t this tell us something?

Yes, the Angels are right. We are fearful, worrisome, terrified people. You see, the birth of Christ took place in the midst of fearful people. The Christmas story started with the father of John the Baptist, Zecharias:

“But the angel said to him, “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayer, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son. You are to name him John.” (Luke 1: 13)

Then to Mary, mother of Jesus,

“The angel said to her, “Don’t be afraid, Mary; God has been gracious to you. You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus.” (Luke 1:30-31)

Then to Joseph, father of Jesus :

“While he was thinking about this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary to be your wife. For it is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived.” (Matthew 1:20)

And now, the shepherds
Here, four times the angel of the Lord spoke to mankind announcing the coming of the Messiah. These passages are so familiar we often miss the first message given by the angel. Fear Not! This is not just a clearing of the angel’s throat. (You know, they say this instead of “A-hem” or “Uh, hello!”)

It is a command. “Do not be afraid! Fear Not!”
You might say, well, the angel said that because those people were afraid because an angel showed up. Who wouldn’t be afraid? But as we will see from the scriptures, Old Testament, and New, from Abraham, all the great Bible heroes, to the prophets, the Gospels and Letters: The message is repeated. For Zechariah, he afraid that God played fool on him, that he’ll be a laughing stock for people around him. For Mary, is the fear of unworthiness/ or low self-esteem. For Joseph, is the fear of rejection and misunderstanding from his friends and relatives. For shepherds, maybe, that their sheep will run away because of the supernatural appearance of the angels, and that would cost them a fortune!

You see, our God understands that the natural human condition is FEAR, and our Lord tells us, DO NOT BE AFRAID!

Let us pause a moment. What is your fear? What is your fear right now?

Fear is the thing that robs away our joy in God, and Christmas is all about embracing the coming of God instead of embracing the fears in our life!

God With Us

The great news of Christmas is not simply that a glorious, all—powerful God exists. That’s true, of course, but our greatest need is not just to know that God exists somewhere out there, but to know that He is present right here: to realize that he has lived and walked among us 2 thousand years ago, that he has known our grieves, that he has carried our sorrows, that he has felt the temptations we feel, that he understand the fear of falling, that he knew how uncertainties in the future terrifies us… that he was made like us in every way except for sin, that he can help us in our weakness.

That’s why Christmas matters. That’s why the Son of God became one of us. He had been through what we are going through! In Jesus, God understands people totally, and he saves them completely.

Someone once said: “Peace is not the absence of problems; it is the presence of God in the midst of our problems!”

God wants to let us know: He is with us. He understands. And He will walk us through our fears, and grant us that peace and joy. “Don’t be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.” “…and he will be called Immanuel” (which means, “God is with us”). (Matt1:27)

Message of Christmas is very personal!

So Christmas isn’t just a sentimental break from our difficulties; it’s a time to celebrate that God is with us, that He has entered into our difficulties himself. Jesus came to enter our fear, to walk with us in the midst of it, and ultimately to lift us out of it.

Coming back to that imagination of angel appearing in our midst today. It is not a dazzling angel to pronounce that proclamation to us again that we need. What we need is for God to be with us. We need God to convince us that he loved us so much he became one of us. We need him to convince us of our sins and inadequacy to handle our life and help us receive the salvation, joy and peace that only Jesus Christ, can provide. That by doing so, you’ll be set free from your fear, and venture into a joyful and peaceful future with the Lord!

But actually, for the past two thousand years God has sent an angel every Christmas. In the original language, the word angel simply means “messenger”. In fact, you’re reading the words from one of God’s messengers right now. I’m not an angel of heaven, but as God’s messenger I bring you the same good news the angel brought the shepherds. “Don’t be afraid…To you has been born a Savior. He is Messiah. He is the Lord.”

It’s the same news the shepherds heard, and it calls for the same response. The shepherds immediately went to Jesus, and that’s what you must do: go to Jesus.

Do you want to do that right now through a prayer to God?

Erwin (right), a professional balloon sculptor, taught us some basics about balloon sculpting before the mission trip

The final products

All of us! Before we depart from church

Wonderful lunch at Bidor Pun Chan Restaurant

Spacious Winter Home. Our host Bro. Isaac (right)

More balloon sculpting

Breathtaking view from Winter Home . Sunshine after the shower!

Can't go without having steamboat in C.Highlands!

Bro. Isaac use his 4WD to bring children from surrounding Kampung to join our children program

We had great time with the kids! Singing songs, learning ABC, learning how to wash out hands properly...

Aren't they adorable?

Jesus loves you, kids!

Yea, wash your hands before lunch

Happy meal

One good way of keeping the food warm

Group picture before we leave

Discover the best Roti Canai + Sambal in Cameron Highland!

...and of course, the best scones and crepes!

Worship with Semai brothers and sisters on Sunday

Worship the Lord with singing

Group photo with the church members

Nothing flock Malaysian together like Durian!

The village

Brothe Jisah, the durian "supplier" of out team

Stopped by to pray for Tok Batin on our way back

Love this group pic!

Let there be love!

Wonderful lunch: Curry fish and Bak Kut Teh '

Sapu all the durian before we go back.

This trip remind me of the vast needs in Malaysia. There are so many orang asli in this nation that need to be reached with the Gospel of Christ. They stay so near to us, yet they live as if they are not of this country. It sadden my heart when I see their living condition.

I thank God also for the dedication of Brother Isaac and other pastors who minister to the OA tirelessly and faithfully. It is very challenging indeed! I praise the Lord for His everlasting grace and strength upon His servants!

Malaysia for Christ! This is my heart-most desire!

Malaysia for Christ

“The Imam and The Pastor” is a document depicting Imam Ashafa and Pastor James, 2 religious leaders from different religion, their effort to foster peace in their nation, Nigeria. This powerful documentary showed us the power of love, forgiveness and acceptance. I was very touched by this documentary the first time I saw it. If you are interested to watch the documentary, feel free to ask from me

Movie Flyer for ” The Imam & The Pastor“

Flyer

Then I shared with the students on the real meaning of peace. Our common understanding of peace is the absence of war or conflict, and everyone live in harmony.

But is that the real meaning of peace?

The real meaning of peace goes far beyond the absence of conflict or war, it is actually “Shalom”. In Hebrew, “shâlôm” means wholeness, completeness, soundness and prosperity. It’s a perfect state of being (much more better than merely the absence of conflicts!). When did we ever live in such state? It was a short period of time before Adam and Eve fell into sin. Sin ruined this “Shalom” in us and the “Shalom” is lost.

Remember how they tried to hide themselves from God? Remember how they accuse each others to protect themselves? These are symptoms of the absence of peace in their heart!

As Romans 3:13-18, after a series describing how sinful mankind is, it went on and says: “These people quickly become violent. Wherever they go, they leave ruin and destruction. They don’t know how to live in peace. They don’t even fear God.”

How can an imperfect person achieve perfect peace? The remedy? A redemption of heart!

Jesus Christ came for this very purpose: “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.　(Isaiah 53:5) He bore our sins, and take away our iniquities, so that we can have that “Shalom” restored in us (“Shalom” is a result of having perfect communion and fellowship with God)

Only a person who experience the “Shalom” in God is able to bring true peace to the world around him! No wonder the Lord compliment the peacemaker as “God’s children”. This shows the value of those who spread this wholesome peace to everyone around them.

I challenged the brothers and sisters reading this out there: “How would you be a peacemaker wherever you are?”

Here’s the link to my Prezi presentation. Enjoy “zooming” away and I hope it gives you a better understanding
http://prezi.com/toqcstcz8ehg/peacetalk-ending/

Apart from all the beautiful times spent with each others and also the message, one of the highlights of the camp was a Lectio Divina. God ministered to me personally using Isaiah 43:14-21. “I am doing a new thing… do not dwell on things in the past… I am making pathway through the wilderness, I am creating river in the dry wasteland…I have made Israel for myself, and they will someday honor me before the whole world” These are God’s personal message to me. I found release from shame I experience in the past, and was given hope and strength the explore the unknown future with God. Indeed, He is a Lord who does new things all the time, I should move along with Him instead of dwelling on the hurts in the past!

Here are some pictures I took… Enjoy

Welcomed by durians!

Butt Ball!

Lectio Divina by the stream. Awesome experience!

Dr. Kar Yong, our speaker. Learned a lot from him especially the "young at heart" character. "Buddy-buddy" kind of pastor with sound teaching

Debate going on: Is Resurrection of Jesus Christ True?

The group photo. Smile!

I want to thank Pastor Aaron, the youth Pastor for allowing me to join the camp. It was an eye-opening experience to me personally! I’m looking forward to see how I can journey alongside with these potential leaders and help them success!

I am never into rap or hip hop music alike. But somehow I find this really cool, and I like it! What surprised me is that the lyrics for the rap wasn’t scripted when Jaeson Ma (the singer, a youth pastor) went into the recording studio. It was actually a test and he prayed and asked God for the inspiration, and here comes this wonderful song (rap)… Isn’t God creative?

Here’s a video on Jaeson Ma’s life, his incredible life-changing experience through Jesus Christ. Enjoy

It wasn’t really well-planned. Where I’d stay for every single night of my trip is not planned as well. Thanks God for the 2 wonderful hosts, my former piano teacher Angeline and husband James in Taiping, and Elisius and Julianna in Penang. They welcomed me to their house generously and offer me for a stay. I enjoyed not only good sleep, but also homey companion from them

I started my journey by stopping by at Pantai Remis purposely for the Ang Tau Ka (blended red-bean), a famous local beverage that straight away come to my mind whenever Pantai Remis is mentioned. I was in Pantai Remis for mission trip in 2008. Driving in to the town area did bring back a lot of wonderful memories I had during the mission trip. It was great to talk to the “Taukeh Neow” there too (lady owner of the shop). She still remember us. It was like “balik kampung” for me at that moment

Ang Tau Ka Restaurant

Ang Tau Ka

After the Ang Tau Ka, I continued my journey to Taiping. It took just an hour to get to Taiping from Pantai Remis. Too bad I didn’t reach Taiping earlier, or else I would have stop by the Taiping lake and town area for some popiah and soya bean milk.

Angeline and James, together with the 3 girls kept me companion for my night in Taiping. Enjoyed the time on the table, and just getting updates from them on our friends. It was great too as we were sharing our passion and our calling on the different ministries of the Kingdom.

Angeline was not only my piano teacher, but also a role model to me. She is that someone who commit to serve the House of the Lord with dedication and perfection. It’s a blessing to have known her and her husband, James, who is also a key leader in his hometown church!

Wonderful dinner and fellowship

Thanks to James and Angeline

I headed further to north for Penang the next day. I love to cross the Penang bridge- – it always excite me! I met my long-time friend Alex after I reached Penang. I have not been meeting him for the past 5 years! Too bad he didn’t have much time to talk (working hours), but we managed to catch-up a little bit of each others’ recent lives. It was encouraging to hear that he is still actively serving the church despite of busyness

I then stop by Hoon Guan and Chooi Chooi’s house. Haw Zheng was ill, and it had been a long day for both of them taking care of him, yet they still sit down and spent some time talking with me. We had great time! It happened to be Haw Zheng’s 3rd birthday too, so I was invited to come back for a ‘simple’ dinner.

I then spent my late afternoon in USM. It was really a good time to just quiet myself, reflect on what have happened, and pray. Thank God for those wonderful hours of serenity

Serene lake

Serenity

Went back to Hoon Guan’s house for steamboat dinner. Wow, I must say I enjoyed every single moment there! Foods were nice, fellowship was warm. Thank God Haw Zheng remained well for his birthday celebration. We had lots of fun together too

Birthday boy and parents

Thanks HG and CC for the dinner

The day was ended after I met my former disciple, Deric. It’s good to catch up with him too! Found out something more about him too. Pray that he’ll remain faithful in the Lord

Kicked start the next morning with Elisius and family. They were really kind, and they brought me to a nearby hawker center (where all the good foods are!) for breakfast. I settled for Sabah Pan Mee (unusual choice in Penang) and some Kuih Apam balik. It was sweet to spent time with them too (did not really know them deeply before this). It has been quite a journey for them since they’ve served the USM students for the last 12 years! Wow

Elisius, Julianna and little Clement

Sabah Pan Mee

I then drove for some ‘beach and sun’ time. Went to Teluk Bahang, a relatively quieter beach compare to Batu Feringgi. Oh I loved those solitude moment: just God, myself, the book, the sea, the breeze and the sun! Read a chapter of Cut To the Chase on “Individuality”, triggered my mind about the great impact a single person can do.

Great waves

Good food for thought

After the reading time, spent 1 hour or so sun bathing (or snobe by the beach. The wave was quite rough that day, it hits the shore pretty strong too! How I long to see the wave of revival hits our country one day, stronger like never before, that shakes the foundations everything that is destined to fall!

The rest of the day? Food hunting and sight seeing bah ;p

Fried Kuey Teow (Most famous stall in Penang)

Loh Bak (Seasoned pork)

Fried Oyster... a food to die for

Umbra Juice, a must try! I had it almost every day when I was there

KongFooFriedHorFun

There are a lot of great things to share about this mission trip. Part of it is that it is a short and compact mission trip (6days) , where we need to do everything really short and sweet. I learned efficiency in this trip. Thanks to the efficient partnering church (Kg. Baru Methodist and Changkat Kruing Methodist), as well as the (very) efficient MT leaders (Leo and Ivy) and members! We’ve done quite a lot of works in those 5 days!

Local youths helped in prayer walk and visitation

Happy Participants in Life Calculator

Acted bad in Life Calculator

Message to the participants for Life Calculator

Second highlight about this trip is that God allowed me to learned what pre-evangelism is all about. I learnt it during the staff congress, and this mission trip is another perfect time for me to practice. I realise that it is actually very easy if we rely on the Holy Spirit. There are times where I felt really struggle to continue the conversation, but as I pray in my heart, God actually moved and make the other party keep the ball rolling, and often leads to discussion on spiritual topics. He loves them more than I do, He proved it by doing so

View from the place we stayed

Building bridges

Even children needs the Gospel!

Third thing is that God allowed me to experience some of the wonderful works He had done, sometimes, beyond our expectation! I had this privilege to help a semi-paralyzed man to a physiotherapy  center owned by Wesley Methodist in Sitiawan. There I was able to see some of the nicest and warmest moments throughout the whole trip… I see the realization of LOVE and COMPASSION. I also saw the importance of bringing the Gospel that is relevant to the needs of the people there.

Caring smile

We also see how God work through the children program. We (the MT members) were expecting 50-60 kids, but when we see that there are only about 25 kids turned up on the first day, we were actually a little bit disappointed. We moved on with high spirit anyway. Little did we know that the pastor there was actually expecting lesser than 10 (due to some past experience and her knowledge about the reaction of people there toward church programs). Having 25 kids turn up, and even with some non-believing parents attending children program in a church is already a miracle to her!

What a joy to hear something like that When we do everything by faith, we can witness how God’s spirit moves!

Happy Kids

Dance and song

Oh how can I forget to mention the warm familiness from the partnering church? Every meals are prepared by them, and everytime I eat those authentic Foo Chow foods, have have this warm feeling not only in my stomach, but also in my heart. It is always great to be part of God’s family!

AngZaoChicken (Red glutinous wine ginger chicken)

Whoa... still miss this bowl of rice!

AngJiu Mee Sua (Red Wine Meesuah)

The Mission trippers

Another thing that I learned is that evangelism can be very simple, as long as we make it a lifestyle! I’m training myself to direct a conversation between me and my friends onto spiritual topics. It is actually quite easy as long as we rely on the power of the Holy Spirit, and follow God’s guidance in each and every conversation.

I stood in front of various discussion results on how to talk to different people with different perspective on Heaven. It was a fun assignment!

Dr. Dave (Centre)

You may go to his ministry websites to find out more on how to use your day-to-day conversation to guide your friends one step closer to Jesus Click here

We also had wonderful time to share our struggle as a leader in the ministry. Thank God for the open sharing among the staffs (especially my group mate Boon Hwi and AlbertK). There are some good times where I can ponder upon my style of leadership, as well as some potential weaknesses that I might have. Thank God also for helping me to embrace the imperfectness in me and in others, so that we can work in such a way that He’ll have His full glory!

Building a ship that can withstand the attack (a game to test our team function). We had lots of fun

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