Come join the 3rd Revival Evangelistic Lunch meeting at Menara TA One, Kuala Lumpur, on 21st of August from 12:45 PM to 2 PM.

Date | 21 August (Friday)

Time | 12:45 PM – 2 PM (Light lunch will be provided)

Venue | Menara TA One

Address | 10th Floor, No 22 Jalan P. Ramlee, 50250 Kuala Lumpur

Held by the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship (FGBMF), Pr Manjit Singh is an ex-banker and a gifted Bible teacher who also moves in the gifts of healing.

Pr Manjit Singh (right)

Pr Manjit Singh has been serving as a pastor for the River of Life church in Semua House for more than 15 years with his wife Pr Sharon who is gifted in the word of knowledge and prophecy. The church is a multi-racial group with an emphasis of reaching out to the Punjabi people. The church has a prophetic edge and moves strongly in signs and wonders.

More than 70 people came to the first Revival Evangelistic Lunch meeting

The people who came forward for prayer in the More than 70 people came to the first Revival Evangelistic Lunch meeting

The FGBMF launched their first revival evangelistic meeting in June this year at Alpha Hub Cafeteria of Lot 10 in Kuala Lumpur. More than 70 people came with distinguished Ghana High Commissioner as one of the attendees. The meeting concluded with FGBMF National President H H Fong blessing the attendees with a closing prayer, followed by Rev Dr Bernard Teh, evangelist Gabriel Eng, and pastor Gan Jin Teck ministering to the attendees before they adjourned for a lunch blessed by Dato Robert Tan. This meeting was followed by a second revival meeting held in July at Menara TA One chapter. The speakers for this event came from Jerusalem.

The attendees of the first Revival Evangelistic Lunch meeting

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The post Revival Evangelistic Lunch | by Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship | Menara TA One | 21 August (Friday) | 12:45 PM – 2 PM appeared first on Malaysia’s most comprehensive Christian news website and was launched in September 2012, incorporated with the vision of delivering up-to-date news, information, and commentaries relevant to Christians across denominational lines.

I often find reading the Bible or spending time digging deeper into the Word of God a challenge in my busy lifestyle. But thank God for mobile Apps! With the 5 Apps below, I could find time listening, reading, and/or sharing the Word of God (when I am driving or doing some manual work). 

Bible.is 

Ref: bible.is

I find Bible.is incredibly helpful when I cannot find time to read the Bible. With a selection of different versions of the Bible including ESV, KJV, NASB, NIV, WEB, etc (and 1650 languages), I can download the whole Bible overnight over a fixed line. This Bible also comes with dramatised version, with background music and also the voices of each biblical character. It feels like watching a movie from listening to the Bible. The App also comes with 61 Jesus films, which we can download into our mobile phone. 

Our Daily Bread

Ref: ggpht

Our Daily Bread is a devotional book that I personally grew up with. I used to receive its monthly printed booklet. So, I got excited when I found out that Our Daily Bread is translated into an App now. Like Bible.is, we can also download the Daily Bread by month and play the voice recording of each daily sharing. Each usually only lasts from three to four minutes. Read by millions of people around the world since 1956, I love how the writers of Our Daily Bread could see God in the simplest and most ordinary happenings in life. 

YouVersion

Ref: christiantoday

YouVersion is a Bible App I use to refer to the Bible. With an overwhelming 1115 versions and 798 languages, I would personally use only one or two versions including NIV and NASB, and another two versions to refer such as AMP and KJV. I have also used the different plans offered in YouVersion before such as Bible in 90 days. Other plans include “What is God’s Purpose For My Life?” and “Scary Close-Reflections for Finding True intimacy.” YouVersion is like my faithful digital pocket Bible. 

The Daily Bible Devotional

Ref: staztic

As for devotionals, I find myself using this App most consistently because I like how this App delivers a bible verse followed by a concise message, one in the morning and one in the evening. Most of all, sometimes, I find God speaks to me through this App as well, for how timely the message are. In this App, we get to also “like” the devotional and leave messages under each devotional as a user. I also like how I can easily copy the message and share it with my friends and family through text message, Whassap, etc. 

Ask Pastor John

Ref: mzstatic

And finally, Ask Pastor John is an App I use a lot, in growing in my walk with God. I like how the questions are sent by listeners to Pastor John, from all over the world from listeners like me. The answers given by Pastor John is also very concise and easy to follow, covering a rich variety of theological and practical questions that last from six minutes to over eight minutes. Some of the questions you get are like “How do I choose between Two Good Things?” or “Can Jesus Really Understand My Temptations?”  or “Should My Spouse Talk to Others About our Marriage Struggles?”

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The post 5 Christian Mobile Apps we can all use! appeared first on Malaysia’s most comprehensive Christian news website and was launched in September 2012, incorporated with the vision of delivering up-to-date news, information, and commentaries relevant to Christians across denominational lines.

Pada bulan Ogos haribulan 23, Pastor Joshua Low berkhutbah di Hosanna Praise Assembly di Kajang tentang pendengaran suara Tuhan.

Lihat, Aku (Yesus) berdiri di muka pintu dan mengetuk; jikalau ada orang yang mendengar suara-Ku dan membukakan pintu, Aku akan masuk mendapatkannya dan Aku makan bersama-sama dengan dia, dan ia bersama-sama dengan Aku. (Wahyu 3:20)

“Untuk Yesus datang ke dalam hidupmu, saudara-saudari mesti membuka pintu kerana Yesus mengetuk. Tetapi, janganlah kita melewati ayat yang berkata, ‘jikalau ada orang yang mendengar suara-Ku.’

“Sebelum kita membuka pintu, Yesus akan bersorak. Kadang-kadang, saya berjumpa dengan orang percaya yang sudah lama. Tetapi apabila saya memberitahunya saya boleh mendengar suara Tuhan, dia terkejut.

“Orang yang keras hatinya ada masalah dalam komunikasinya dengan Yesus. Komunikasinya sudah terputus. Maka, betapa kuat sorakan Yesus pun, dia tidak dapat mendengar Yesus,” Pastor Joshua berkata, lalu dia bercerita tentang Hana dalam alkitab.

Pastor Etmi, isteri pastor Joshua, yang juga berkhutbah

Walaupun Hana dikasihi suaminya Elkana, Hana berasa susah hati kerana rahimnya sudah ditutup oleh Tuhan dan Penina, iaitu isteri suaminya yang lain, yang mempunyai anak. Maka, Hana mengunjungi rumah Tuhan dan berdoa kepada Tuhan dalam tangisannya. Dia bernazar dengan Tuhan bahawa jika Tuhan membuka rahimnya untuk melahirkan anak, Hana akan mempersembahkan anak pertamanya sebagai pelayan Tuhan.

“Kebanyakan ibu bapa berdoa kepada Tuhan, ‘Biar anak-anak saya menjadi doktor atau ahli bisnes supaya gaji mereka adalah banyak dan mereka boleh memberi saya sikit.’ Kita mahu anak-anak kita mendapat upah yang tinggi dan menjadi kaya.

“Tetapi anak pertama yang Hana kembalikan, Tuhan memberi Hana balik tiga anak lelaki dan dua anak perempuan. Hannah bagi Tuhan satu anak dan Tuhan bagi Hana lima anak,” Pastor Joshua berkata lalu mendorong orang-orang percaya untuk mengikuti teladan Hana. 

Anak pertama Hana ialah Samuel. Maka, Samuel diberi tugas oleh imam bernama Eli untuk melayani Tuhan di rumah Tuhan.

“Pada suatu hari, Tuhan mengajar Samuel sebagai hamba Tuhan: macam mana dia boleh mendengar suara Tuhan dengan jelas? Kadang-kadang kita tertanya, ‘Ini suara siapa? Suara saya, suara iblis atau suara Tuhan?’” Pastor Joshua berkata.

Orang percaya sedang memuji Tuhan dengan nyanyian lagu-lagu rohani

Ketika Samuel sedang tidur, Tuhan memanggilnya, “Samuel! Samuel!” (1 Sam 3:4) Tetapi Samuel tidak mengerti suara Tuhan dan berlari ke imam Eli. Samuel berkata dengan Eli, “Ya, bapa, bukankah bapa memanggil aku?” Eli berkata dengan Samuel, “Aku tidak memanggil. Tidurlah kembali.” (1 Sam 3:5)

Keadaan ini berlaku sebanyak tiga kali sebelum Eli mengerti bahawa Tuhanlah yang sedang memanggil Samuel. Pada kali ini, Eli berkata dengan Samuel, “Pergilah tidur dan apabila Dia memanggil engkau, katakanlah: Berbicaralah TUHAN, sebab hamba-Mu ini mendengar.” (1 Sam 3:9)

Maka, TUHAN datang dan memanggil Samuel seperti kali pertama hingga kali ketiga. Pada kali keempat sahaja, barulah Samuel sedar bahawa Tuhan sedang memanggilnya.

“Kamu masih online dengan Tuhan? Mungkin saudara-saudari berkata, ‘Pastor, saya sibuk.’ Tetapi Tuhan ada cara-Nya. Kalau kita hendak belajar bagaimana kita boleh online dengan Tuhan, kita boleh belajar dari Yesus,” Pastor Joshua berkata.

Sewaktu Yesus menjadi lebih terkenal daripada pemimpin-pemimpin agama di Jerusalem dan orang-orang Farisi, mereka dengki akan kejayaan Yesus. Maka, mereka selalu merancang untuk menurunkan Yesus.

“Tetapi kalau iblis mahu menyentuh kamu, dia mesti meminta izin daripada Tuhan. Mungkin Tuhan mengizinkan iblis untuk menyentuh badan kita dan memberi penyakit.

“Tetapi roh kita adalah milik Tuhan. Jadi, janganlah kamu berasa takut. Apa-apapun yang terjadi kepada badan kita, badan adalah sementara tetapi roh akan balik kepada Tuhan,” Pastor Joshua berkata.

Jadi, janganlah kita berasa takut kerana apabila kita mati dalam Yesus, kita juga akan bangkit dengan Yesus dalam badan yang baru.

“Maka, apabila Tuhan memanggil saya, saya mahu bersedia. Janganlah sewaktu Tuhan memanggil saya, saya sedang mabuk, tidak membuat apa-apa, atau hidup dalam dosa. Saya mahu sedia menampil Tuhan,” Pastor Joshua berkata.

Orang-orang percaya Tuhan yang sedang memuji Tuhan di Hosanna Praise Assembly, Kajang

Apabila kita berkomunikasi dengan Tuhan, iblis berasa sangat takut dengan kita. Ini adalah kerana komunikasi kita dengan Tuhan membawa kuasa.

“Aku (Yesus) berkata kepadamu: Sesungguhnya barangsiapa percaya kepada-Ku, ia akan melakukan juga pekerjaan-pekerjaan yang Aku lakukan, bahkan pekerjaan-pekerjaan yang lebih besar dari pada itu. Sebab Aku pergi kepada Bapa; dan apa juga yang kamu minta dalam nama-Ku, Aku akan melakukannya, supaya Bapa dipermuliakan di dalam Anak.” (Yohanes 14:12-13)

Kalau orang percaya ada firman Tuhan dan roh Tuhan di dalamnya, Tuhan akan menunaikan apa-apa yang kita meminta daripada-Nya. Ini adalah kerana kalau firman Tuhan berada di dalam isi hati kita dan kita memahami kehendak Tuhan disebabkan komunikasi kita dengan-Nya, kita tidak akan meminta sembarangan dari Tuhan. Tetapi permintaan kita akan menyenangkan hati Tuhan dan hati kita juga.

“Wah! Iblis sangat takut kerana selepas Tuhan menunaikan janji-Nya, kita akan lebih bersemangat. Tetapi iblis tidak mahu kamu menjadi lebih bersemangat. Iblis tidak mahu kamu setia. Dia mahu kamu berubah setia.

“Banyak orang Kristian berubah setia kerana mereka menghadapi masalah di dalam komunikasi mereka dengan Tuhan. Mungkin saudari berasa, ‘Sudah lama saya tidak mendengar suara Tuhan. Saya pun tidak tahu itu suara Tuhan ke tidak.’

“Jadi, saudari sudah menjadi binggung dan ragu-ragu akan kasih Tuhan. Sedangkan alkitab sudah berjanji bahawa kasih setia Tuhan baru setiap hari,” Pastor Joshua berkata.

Penyembah-penyembah Tuhan dalam nyanyian memuliakan Tuhan

Namun, terdapat orang-orang Kristian yang hanya mendengar suara Tuhan pada masa yang lapang iaitu pada hari Ahad sahaja. Tetapi pada hari-hari yang lain, mereka tidak mahu berkomunikasi dengan Tuhan.

“Sebenarnya, kasih Tuhan sedia ada setiap pagi dan kita boleh berkomunikasi dengan-Nya tiap-tiap pagi. Pagi-pagi, Tuhan sudah datang untuk mencari Adam. Bukan Adam yang mencari Tuhan.

“Tetapi Adam dan isterinya bersembunyi selepas mereka berdosa. Tuhan mencari mereka tetapi dua-dua bersembunyi sampai hari inilah, isu ini menjadi masalah pertama manusia.

“Kalau Tuhan datang melawat dan mengetuk pintumu, apakah yang perlu saudari buat? Kita perlu mendengar suara-Nya dahulu dan selepas itu, membuka pintu. Yesus memasuki hidup kita. Oh, itu persekutuan yang indah,” Pastor Joshua berkata.

Walaupun Yesus sibuk dalam pengajaran dan penyembuhan orang-orang, Dia tahu bila masanya untuk beristirehat (Markus 6:31) kerana Bapa-Nya di syurga bekerja enam hari dan beristirehat satu hari (Kejadian 2:2).

Lalu Yesus berkata kepada mereka: “Marilah ke tempat yang sunyi, supaya kita sendirian, dan beristirehatlah seketika!” Sebab memang begitu banyaknya orang yang datang dan yang pergi, sehingga makan pun mereka tidak sempat. (Markus 6:31)

“Yesus mengajar mereka, ‘Janganlah terlalu sibuk.’ Tetapi kita perlu pergi ke satu tempat untuk menenangkan dan merehatkan badan dan jiwa kita tanpa handphone kita.

“Hanya dalam posisi sedemikian seperti Samuel yang sedang beristirehat, kita boleh mendengar suara Tuhan dengan jelas,” Pastor Joshua berkata.

Pastor Joshua yang sedang berkhutbah

Namun, sesetengah orang Kristian mengutamakan perkerjaannya lebih daripada komunikasi dengan Tuhan. Mereka berkerja tiap-tiap hari tanpa rehat kerana mereka tergoda dengan upah yang tinggi dan juga perasaan yang hebat.

“Kalau bapa kita mahu kita berkerja, mungkin dia akan menggunakan rotan. Tetapi Tuhan kita baik dan sabar. Tuhan tidak akan menakutkan kita,” Pastor Joshua berkata.

Lebih-lebih lagi, Yesuya 40:31 mengatakan, “‘tetapi orang-orang yang menanti-nantikan TUHAN mendapat kekuatan baru: mereka seumpama burung helang yang naik terbang dengan kekuatan sayapnya; mereka berlari dan tidak menjadi lesu, mereka berjalan dan tidak menjadi lelah.”

Kadang-kadang, Tuhan bertanya, “Berapakah lama agaknya anak-anak Aku boleh menunggu?” Tuhan mahu menguji kesetiaan kita. Abraham menunggu 25 tahun sebelum rahim Sara dibuka oleh Tuhan. Tetapi Sara tidak sabar untuk menunggu untuk Tuhan. Yusuf di Mesir juga menunggu 13 tahun sebelum dia menjadi perdana menteri.

“Tak ada cepat-cepat, instant-instant punya. Semua instant bahaya, amen? Kamu makan instant mee, mati pun instant. Semua instant-instant, apa-apa yang tergesa-gesa ada akibatnya. Tuhan kita adalah panjang sabar. Jadi, kita mesti kuat dalam sifat itu.

“Tetapi manusia mahu cepat. Jadi, ini adalah satu pengajaran yang penting dalam hidup kita yang baru dalam Yesus,” Pastor Joshua berkata.

Mungkin bos kita menyuruh kita membuat sesuatu secara cepat tetapi tidak betul. Tetapi dalam keadaan ini, kita haruslah menenangkan fikiran kita dan berbicara dengan roh kudus Tuhan untuk cara-cara-Nya yang betul dan efektif.

“Sewaktu Tuhan datang dalam hidup kita, kita boleh mendengar suara Tuhan. Cara Tuhan adalah indah. Maka, kita haruslah pelihara jaringan komunikasi itu. Jangan sampai terputus.

“Jaringan itu tidak menggunakan bateri dan tidak memerlukan caj electrik. Jadi, kita caj dengan apa? Kita caj dengan doa. Tuhan pasti akan berbicara dengan kita apabila kita mahu berbicara dengan-Nya,” Pastor Joshua berkata.

Selepas pastor Joshua berkhutbah, Pastor Daniel menampil ke hadapan untuk berkongsi tentang kesaksiannya. Sebagai orang percaya dari gereja Methodist yang konservatif dan tradisional, dia menganggap Tuhan hanya akan berkomunikasi dengan kita menerusi perkataan-perkataan dalam alkitab sahaja.

Tetapi pada tahun 2007, roh Tuhan berbicara dengan roh Pastor Daniel dengan suara yang jelas. Pastor Daniel menerima satu perintah dari Tuhan untuk membina satu gereja di Sulawesi, Indonesia. Pendeta gereja tersebut sudah mengalami kebakaran gerejanya sebanyak tiga kali. Pada kali keempat ini, pendeta gereja ini diberikan sebidang tanah. Tetapi dia tidak mempunyai kewangan untuk membina gereja.

“Saya pun pergi ke Sulawesi untuk melihat tanah tersebut dan membuat rancangan pembangunan. Saya mempunyai iman bahawa Tuhan pasi akan menyelesaikan urusan kewangan.

“Maka, saya membuat satu perjanjian bisnes dengan Tuhan. Tuhan akan menyumbangkan wang dan saya menyumbangkan tenaga. Namun, saya tidak akan meminta siapa-siapa untuk menyumbangkan kewangan. Tuhanlah yang bertanggungjawab dalam urusan kewangan,” Pastor Daniel berkata.

Pastor Daniel mula membina modal kecil pembinaan gereja. Apabila orang-orang datang dan melihat modal tersebut, mereka menyumbang wang tanpa diminta oleh Pastor Daniel kepadanya. Maka, Pastor Daniel pun membina dan membangunkan gereja tersebut dengan anak-anak muda di Sulawesi yang menyenangkan hatinya.

“Saya nampak ibu-bapa mereka bekerja di sawah padi. Tetapi anak-anak kecil mereka dibiarkan keseorangan di sekeliling sawah tersebut.

“Ada anak-anak yang termenung di batu, termenung di bukit, dan termenung di semak-samun. Mereka tidak tahu apa yang mereka sedang buat. Hati saya berasa sangat berat untuk mereka,” Pastor Daniel berkata.

Pastor Joshua Ong (sebelah kiri) dengan Pastor Daniel

Tetapi apa yang menyenangkan hatinya ialah iman mereka yang kuat terhadap Tuhan. Walaupun mereka masih kecil dan mentah, mereka boleh berdoa seperti orang dewasa.

Apabila Pastor Daniel sudah menyelesaikan tugasnya untuk membina gereja dan membeli tiket penerbangan untuk pulang ke Malaysia, dia mendengar suara Tuhan yang jelas sekali lagi.

“Tuan Yesus suruh saya pergi ke Jakarta kali ini pada pukul tiga. Roh kudus-Nya berbicara dengan saya. Tetapi saya belum membeli tiket penerbangan.

“Saya pun telefon sini dan telefon sana, dan saya mendapat tiket. Saya belum mandi dan belum makan. Tetapi saya cepat-cepat pergi ke lapangan terbang dan berlari ke pesawat,” Pastor Daniel berkata.

Dalam pesawat, roh Tuhan berbicara dengan Pastor Daniel dan berkata, “Kamu tidak pergi ke sana untuk membina gereja fizikal. Tetapi kami pergi ke sana untuk membina gereja rohani Aku – bukan gereja batu-bata tetapi gereja berasaskan roh kudus.”

Di Jakarta, Pastor Daniel membina satu gereja rohani dengan menyatukan orang-orang percaya dari gereja-gereja berbeza untuk bersekutu dalam doa. Pastor Daniel berkata hanya disebabkan bantuan dan kata-kata Yesus kepadanya, dia boleh melaksanakan tugasnya. Dia berkongsi tentang Daniel 11:32 yang mengatakan, “tetapi umat yang mengenal Tuhan-Nya akan tetap kuat dan tetap bertindak.”

Pastor Daniel sedang berkhutbah tentang kesaksiannya mendengar suara Tuhan

Pastor Etmi menyambung kesaksian Pastor Daniel dan mengatakan, “Kalau hati saudari tidak mendengar suara Tuhan, jangan mengeraskan hati saudari hari ini. Kalau saudara-saudari sudah biasa mengeraskan hati, Tuhan tidak mahu berbicara lagi.

“Hati kita sudah menjadi seperit isteri Lot, iaitu menjadi batu. Tetapi janganlah menjadi batu. Itu adalah peringatan supaya kita jangan mengeraskan hati kita.”

Janganlah kita seperti Simson yang tidak tahu apabila Tuhan sudah meninggalkannya. Walaupun Tuhan sudah berjanji tidak akan meninggalkan kita, tetapi janganlah kita melengahkan komunikasi kita dengan Tuhan sampai kita ragu-ragu akan penyertaan Tuhan dalam hidup kita.

“Simson ingat semasa dia membuat dosa, Tuhan masih dengannya. Janganlah sampai orang percaya tidak tahu adakah Tuhan bicara atau tidak bicara dengannya. Kita haruslah sensitif dengan suara Bapa kita di syurga,” pastor Etmi berkata.

Maka, pastor Etmi berdoa dengan orang-orang percaya di Hosanna Praise Assembly, Kajang, “Bapa di Syurga, terima kasih. Kita mahu jadikan hati kita seperti tanah yang subur dan lembut – tanah yang menghasilkan ketika benih firman jatuh ke dalam hati kita. Kita mahu mendengar suara-Mu, Tuhan! Engkaulah segala-gala-Nya bagi kita.” 

Mahukah saudara-saudari berbicara dengan Tuhan pada hari ini? Tuhan Yesus sedang berdiri di pintu hati saudara-saudari sekarang. Kalau saudara-saudari mahu berkomunikasi dengan Tuhan dan mendengar suara-Nya, pasti Tuhan akan berbicara dengan kamu. Jangan takut. Engkau ialah anak Bapamu di Syurga! Dia pasti akan mahu berkomunikasi dengan engkau kalau engkau mahu berkomunikasi dengan-Nya.

Domba-domba-Ku mendengarkan suara-Ku. Aku mengenal mereka dan mereka mengikut Aku. Aku memberi mereka hidup sejati dan kekal, dan mereka tidak akan binasa. Tidak seorang pun dapat merampas mereka dari tangan-Ku. Apa yang diberikan oleh Bapa-Ku kepada-Ku lebih besar daripada segala-galanya. Tidak seorang pun dapat merampas mereka daripada tangan Bapa. Bapa dan Aku satu.” (Yohanes 10:27-30)

Pastor Etmi yang sedang memberi pujian kepada Tuhan dalam doanya

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The post Mahukah saudara-saudari berbicara dengan Tuhan? – Pastor Joshua Low di Hosanna Praise Assembly, Kajang appeared first on Malaysia’s most comprehensive Christian news website and was launched in September 2012, incorporated with the vision of delivering up-to-date news, information, and commentaries relevant to Christians across denominational lines.

Anak-anak Malaysia yang setia, ini Tuhanmu yang sedang bercakap dengan kamu. Sudah lama anak-anak semua. Sudah lama Saya tidak mendengar suaramu yang indah. Di manakah semua anak-anak Aku? Di mana kamu sedang berselindung? Saya menyahut, “Anak-anak semua! Kamu di mana?” Ya, Saya Bapamu. Ya, Aku Bapamu yang sesungguh-sungguhnya sedang menunggu untukmu dengan sabar, panjang lebar kasih Saya untukmu, anak-anak kesayangan-Ku.

Hati Aku sangat pedih. Hati Aku sangat pedih kerana anak-anak Saya yang Saya kasihi sedang berasa takut. Mereka takut manusia. Mereka takut masa hadapan mereka. Makanan untuk setiap hari, mereka berasa bimbang. Mereka bimbang, tertanya-tanya, “Adakah anak aku boleh makan esok? Agak berapa lamakah saya perlu tinggal dalam keadaan ini?”

Anak-anak kesayangan Aku, bukankah Aku Bapamu di Syurga? Bukankah Saya yang mencipta alam bumi ini? Bukankah gunung-ganang dan kekayaan di dunia ini milik Aku? Bukankah Aku Bapamu yang kuat dan setia yang boleh memberi apa-apa sahaja yang kamu perlukan? Anak-anak-Ku, mengapa kamu tidak datang untuk meminta pada Aku, keinginan dalam hatimu? Mengapa anak-anak-Ku semua tidak datang untuk meminta gunung-ganang dan kekayaan yang berlimpah-limpah dari-Ku, Aku, Aku Bapamu di Syurga yang mendengar segala permintaan kamu? Anak-anak, Aku sanggup… Aku sanggup memberi semua untuk kamu. Bukankah Saya sudah memberi Anak Kesayangan Saya, sesatu-satu anak Saya untukmu supaya kamu boleh datang kepada Aku. Bukankah Saya sudah membuka jalan ini untuk kamu datang kepada Saya?

Maka, anak-anak, Aku Yesus Kristus sedang berdiri di pintumu sekarang dan mengetuk pintu hatimu. Sanggupkah kamu memberi Saya masuk ke dalam isi hatimu?

Anak-anak kesayangan-Ku, Saya tidak pernah melupakan kamu. Malah, nama kamu tertulis di tapak tangan-Ku. Saya selalu berfikir tentang kamu. Tidak pernah Saya terlelah apabila kamu membuat doamu kepada Saya. Tidak pernah Saya menoleh ke belakang apabila kamu ingin melihat wajah-Ku. Saya sentiasa menantimu, anak. Jangan takut untuk menghadapi Bapamu di syurga. Usahlah kamu memikirkan perkara yang lalu, perkara yang menyakitkan hati, perkara yang kamu tidak boleh ubah sekarang. Tapi anak-anak kesayangan-Ku, lihatlah ke masa hadapan! Buka mata dan lihat betapa terang dan betapa indah jalan dan rancangan-Ku ada untukmu. Ya, rancangan yang tidak boleh dimusnahkan oleh sesiapa-siapa, tetapi rancangan yang terselindung dalam Aku.

Maka anak, Saya di sini. Bapamu di sini. Bapamu mendengar. Bapamu ada di kesampinganmu dan Bapamu tidak akan meninggalkanmu.

True Worshippers – Jadi SepertiMu

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Shofar Lau, beloved son of God, shared about how God revealed Himself to him even before he knew God.

A Sarawakian from a traditional Chinese family, Shofar grew up going to the temple with his family, practicing the traditions such as drinking burnt talisman. He often wondered if there was vested power within the statues there.

But it was only when he turned 18 years old, he was exposed to God through his roommate who was often seen reading the Bible. Shofar asked many question. But none of the answers satisfied him.

On 25th of September, Shofar Lau was invited as a speaker in the Full Gospel Business Men Fellowship (FGBMF) in the KL Ebenezer Jalan Gereja chapter led by Steven Toh. 

He thought, “How can one claim that his god is true when there are so many other gods in this world?” Hence, looking up to the sky, he asked in his heart, “Whoever is the highest God, please reveal yourself to me.”

Steven Toh, president of the KL Ebenezer Jalan Gereja chapter

So, Shofar graduated and came to a college in Kuala Lumpur (now KUTAR) with a friend. But after one month, his friend left the college. Yet, God did not leave Shofar alone. He sent him a Christian friend who invited him to join the Bible studies and fellowship. After six months, Shofar moved in with him with other Christians as well. And a year later, Shofar accepted Christ.

“Looking back, if my friend had not leaved me, I would have never become a Christian because I was an anti-Christian in high school. I would often fight with my classmate on whether God actually created the universe,” Shofar said.

His life appeared normal after believing in Christ. But even before he realized, God was already paving a path of blessing and favour for him.

Coming from a humble background, Shofar recalled how he had to work part-time to pay for his college tuition fees. At one time, he only had RM10 in his bank account. But two years into his career, God opened an opportunity for him to start an engineering lab educational equipment business, which he did considerably well.

Shofar Lau in the workplace

“But after a few years, I felt really dry spiritually. I started to question myself, ‘What is the meaning of life?’ and ‘Why am I here?’” said Shofar who began returning to church

The business continued to prosper, so much so, at one point Shofar had the means to give a six-figure check to the church.

“I am revealing this number not because I want to boast but I want to tell you about the glory of God,” said Shofar.

God brought to mind that day when Shofar was compelled during a Christian seminar at his university to give.

“Guess how much I give to the seminar? Guess how much I put in the envelope? Nothing.  Zero. I gave an empty envelope. But I gave to God my heart. I told God, ‘I want to give something in this envelope to you,’” said Shofar.

And how God honoured his desire! His business prospered. Yet, Shofar was reminded of 1 Corinthians 10:26 and Psalm 24:1.

The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers. (Psalm 24:1)

The earth is the Lord’s and everything in in. (1 Corinthians 10:26)

Shofar Lau

“I realized that I have not given to the Lord because everything I have belongs to God in the first place. I was giving Him what was already His. What I realized is that we cannot outgive God. He will always outgive us,” said Shofar.

After his six-figure check, his business of RM30 million turnover per year multiplied ten folds to RM300 million a year. This amount was unprecedented in his industry!

Yet, this overwhelming number of projects came with a price. Shofar worked long hours, day and night. Slowly, he began to compromise his time with God and church.

“Now that I recall, it is one of the mistakes I made in my life. There was no balance between my work and my life. I did not realize that I was working all the time, so much so I even neglected my health and went into depression,” said Shofar.

The sudden death of his mother who was pink in health triggered his depression. Shofar was burdened with the guilt of not spending enough time with her while she was still alive. Added to the pressure of managing over 30 engineers, Shofar slowly sunk into depression – one that sent him to a hospital during a work trip in Sabah.

“Even till the middle of the night, I just could not sleep and I felt really restless. I felt so tired that I thought I was going to drop dead. So, I went to the hotel receptionist to get a taxi to the hospital,” said Shofar.

Shofar Lau sharing how deep his depression was

In the hospital, Shofar insisted to overnight at the emergency ward although the medical officer assured him of his healthy condition. So, he slept and woke up to continue working again, having felt better. But not long after, Shofar had a panic attack and went to see the doctor. This time, the doctor asked him to quit his work in Sabah and return home in Kuala Lumpur.

“Now, I understand why people want to commit suicide. Depression is the disease of the soul. You cannot focus in life and you just want to die. Life is literally hell on earth. And one of the symptoms is insomnia,” said Shofar.

He added, “Sometimes, I just want to sit there and talk to the doctor. And I feel better. So, that is the extent of my depression.”

Although he did a full body check-up, which results were normal, he still felt something was very wrong. Suddenly, he remembered that there was one person he had not asked.

“Suddenly, I remember my God! The world has no answer for me. ‘But God, You must have the answer!’” said Shofar who immediately picked up his Bible to read, which verse 2 Chronicles 5:13-14 caught his eyes and moved his spirit. This verse talks about praising God.

The trumpeters and musicians joined in unison to give praise and thanks to the LORD. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, the singers raised their voices in praise to the LORD and sang: “He is good; his love endures forever.” Then the temple of the LORD was filled with the cloud, and the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the temple of God. (2 Chronicle 5:13-14)

“I did not know what to say to praise God. So, I just lied down and say, ‘I praise the Lord. Hallelujah. I praise the Lord.’ And you know what happen? I just sleep. Perfect sleep!” said Shofar, whose body was wrecked from over fatigue.

Shofar Lau

Having not experienced a deep sleep for six months, Shofar praised God again the next day and slept soundly without any problem. So, that was his daily sleeping medication – praising God!

“I realized that the Presence of God repels darkness. That is the principle of God. Before this, I could not even praise God. But now I can praise Him from my heart.

“My eyes were opened from that one experience. It was just one verse and it settled my problem. Wow! So, I turned to look at the Bible. It was so thick. I wondered what’s more in it.

“So, I started reading and God just opened my eyes to the Truth. I realized that there is a difference between knowledge and truth. Knowledge deals with my head. But Truth deals with my heart,” he said.

At one time, he was so voracious for the revelation from God that God just opened his eyes to His Word, day after day.

“My eyes were just glued to the book. I could not stop reading. I asked, ‘God, what are you saying?’ And He gave me a lot of revelations,” he said, citing Jeremiah 33:3.

Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know. (Jer 33:3)

“In the past, when I looked at the Word of God, I would understand it in an intellectual manner. But when God opened my spiritual eyes, I looked at His Word in a different angle. And through His Word, God healed me physically and relationally,” Shofar said.

Shofar Lau 

He recalled how God lifted his anger from his wife after an argument, when God literally spoke to him in an audible voice. And through that intervention, Shofar was released from the bondage of anger.

That is why reading the Word of God is so important to Shofar. It is the only way he could renew his mind, as said in Romans 12:2.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. (Rom 12:2)

“What convicted me is the verse, ‘What good will it be for me to gain the whole world yet forfeit my soul?’ Even if I were to get a business deal greater than what I experienced, I will not take it. I don’t want to. I want to enter through the small gate and narrow road that leads to life,” said Shofar, citing Matt 16:26 and Matt 7:14.

Right now, Shofar is actively involved in the foreign people ministry and worshipping in RLS Church in Desa Sri Hartamas. His goal in life now is to do what God the Father asks him to do.

“Why am I here? What is the meaning and purpose of this life? It’s not about me but God has a plan. I need to fit into His Plan. (Gal 2:20) It is like a jigsaw puzzle. And I am one piece of that jigsaw puzzle, a living stone, built into the building of God’s New Jerusalem. I don’t want to miss out (1 Pet 2:4-5),” said Shofar, citing Galatians 2:20 and 1 Peter 2:4-5.

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now life in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Gal 2:20)

As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stone are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. (1 Pet 2:4-5)

“That day will come; the time of departure is at hand but I don’t know when. I kept reminding myself to fight the good fight. Will I be able to do this? Especially when God has revealed to me now, I must go on,” said Shofar, citing Paul in 2 Tim 4:6-8, as these verses kept popping in his mind.

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing. (2 Tim 4:8)

Indeed, out of all the wealth Shofar has acquired, he realized the greatest wealth lies not in his possessions on earth, but in his Lord Jesus Christ.

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Visit KL Ebenezer Jalan Gereja chapter of FGBMF at 1 to 2 PM every Tuesday at Ebenezer Hall, 5th Floor, Sri Ebenezer, 2-8 Jalan Gereja, 50100 Kuala Lumpur.

The post The Greatest Wealth lies not in Possessions but in Jesus — Shofar Lau appeared first on Malaysia’s most comprehensive Christian news website and was launched in September 2012, incorporated with the vision of delivering up-to-date news, information, and commentaries relevant to Christians across denominational lines.

We need to understand that our God is a God of covenants. And there are two types of love of God – one is the common love and the other is the covenantal love.

Common love is an unconditional love given freely to all people, regardless of their responses.

We can see the definition of this common love in Matthew 5, where Jesus said, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in Heaven.” In this verse, we are called to love our enemies, following the nature of our Father.

Every person who loves, knows this common love of God. 1 John 4:8 says, “The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” In other words, anyone on earth can feel and receive this love whether they love or know God.

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This article is written as a reflectional piece based on the sharing of Reverend Lieow Meng Kuang on how we can attain victory in our spiritual encounter with God at Prescott Hotel Klang on 16^th to 18^th of July 2015. He started the session by explaining how we can enter a covenantal love with God.

Covenantal love, on the other hand, can be conditional and unconditional, initiated and given by God. An example of unconditional covenantal love is when God made a covenantal love with Noah that He will never destroy all living things with flood again. (Gen 9:11) In other words, without any conditions on us, God will hold His promise. However, an example of conditional covenantal love (or basically a covenantal love with conditions) is that Noah and his descendents would have to answer for every flesh of blood they consume and every human they murder, as God requires life for life due to the sanctity of a human life. (Gen 9:4-6)

Now, the question is how can love and covenant come together? Should not all love come without requirements? Yes, that love has already been defined, which is common love.

But covenantal love is different from common love. Common love only involves one party, God loving us. Covenantal love involves two parties — God loving us first and us loving God back. It is a two-sided, active, dynamic, and ongoing love relationship between us and God. In the covenantal love, we become God’s son and daughter, and we get to personally know God as our Father in Heaven.

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The greatest example of a covenantal love is the covenantal love established by Jesus Christ. According to the Word of God, this covenant is established when we believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and He died for our sins on the cross, rose on the third day, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Believing this is the condition to enter this covenantal relationship with God. In this covenantal relationship, God becomes our Father in Heaven, and we become His son and daughter, through Christ.

“For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” (John 3:17-18)

In fact, this covenantal love has been formed since the beginning. When God created Adam and Eve, he intended to have covenantal love and common love with us.

Adam and Eve knew God’s common love, meaning they experienced and felt love. But when Adam sinned, the covenantal love with God is broken. (Gen 2:6-17) Thus, they lost a relationship with God or they are separated from Him because of sin. Because they broke the covenant, they suffered a spiritual death, followed by a physical death. (Gen 2:17)

Hence, as descendents of Adam and Eve, we too “by nature” are “children of wrath” in the eyes of God, “indulging the desires of the flesh and the mind” (Eph 2:1-3). All of us are spiritually dead and separated from God, untill Jesus Christ reconciled us with Him. Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)

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However, although the covenantal love with God is broken, God’s common love remains. This explains why we can still experience and feel love without knowing or believing in God, while we are here on earth.

On a side note, another question that might emerge is why did God give Adam and Eve the ability to sin, by planting the tree of knowledge of good and evil? Would it not be more loving if God made Adam and Eve immune and incapable in deciding to sin?

First of all, Adam and Eve are made in the image of God. (Gen 1:27) And a key character of God is that He is love. (1 John 4:8) For love to happen, it must exist only in free-will. In other words, love has to come from the ability to decide or the ability to make a choice. It cannot be forced or programmed. Hence, to allow the operation of free will, God must plant the tree of knowledge of good and evil. This is because love can only happen in free will.

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But even though Adam and Eve broke the covenantal love with God, God has never stopped reaching out to us since then.

After Adam and Eve, we see God reaching out to Noah with His covenantal love. And because Noah had done all that God had commanded him, God made a covenantal love with Noah. Firstly, God blessed Noah to multiply and subdue all animals, consuming them as food. Secondly, Noah was commanded not to eat flesh with blood and to require life for life for a man. The covenant made with Noah is effectively carried out to the rest of mankind because all of us are actually descendents of Noah. (Gen 6:18)

Even until today, we see the effects of Noah’s covenant with God. The world had been multiplying and humans had always been stronger than animals, subduing them and consuming them as food. Capital punishment for murder had been practiced by governments since the early ages (though some are not practicing them now). And the apostles in the New Testament commanded the Christian Gentiles to abstain from flesh of blood. (Acts 15:28-29)

Let us look also at other covenantal love God made after Noah. Who can forget the great covenant God made with Abraham? God promised Abraham that He will make him a great nation and give his descendents the promised land. (Gen 12:1-3; Gen 15) Sealed by blood (Gen 15:9), we can see how this love covenant is carried by faith and not by strength – from Abraham to his son Isaac, to Jacob, and to the 12 tribes that made the people of Israel. In fact, this covenantal love foreshadows the kind of covenantal love that we would have with God, through Jesus Christ.

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And when the people of Israel has multiplied to become a Jewish nation, God made a covenantal love with them through Moses. He gave them the Law and the Ten Commandments. (Exo 20:1-17) Following the commandments would promise a multitude of blessings, and disobeying them would result in disciplining from God, even to the point of God being silent.

Here, we may ask how can God be loving when his covenant included discipline for not obeying them? Firstly, like a loving father, love is not marked by giving all that his children want, but giving them all they need.

Instead of seeing discipline as a punishment, it is necessary for the child to grow up to his or her greatest good. For example, if our children were to study for their exam, we as parents would reward or encourage them. But if they were lazy, we as parents would limit their video game time or withdraw privileges. While our children would see our discipline as unloving, we know that this action is best for them.

Hence, in a relationship of a Father and child, basically a covenantal love, discipline is necessary to make us more like Him, which is being the best person God has intended us to be.

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Also, it is interesting to see how personal God is when He makes a covenantal love with His People. Every time when He makes a covenant in the Bible, God will address Himself with a personal name such as LORD God, GOD, the Lord, the LORD, the Lord of hosts, and also other specific names that described His character such as Elohim, El Shaddai, Adonai, Jehovah Jireh, Jehovah Shalom, etc. Throughout the Bible, we see God wanting us to know Him, through a covenantal love.

Yet, before Jesus Christ came, only the Israelites can establish an individual covenantal love with God. For example, David, an Israelite, made a covenantal love with God. In this covenant, God promised to establish his throne forever and to bless his son with an unending love, when David wanted to build God a temple on earth. (1 Sam 7:1-16)

As for Nebuchadnezzar and Cyrus, who were both Gentiles, although they personally knew God – Nebuchadnezzar making a great confession of God (Dan 3:28-29) and Cyrus being called as the shepherd (Isa 44:28) – neither knew God the way the Israelites did. The Old Testament points out that Gentiles cannot establish this covenantal relationship with God.

Only when Jesus Christ came, this covenantal love is opened to the Gentiles as well. We may wonder if God have loved the Gentiles (basically the non-Jews who believe in Christ). But although God revealed Himself to the Israelites first, God has already purposed to establish a covenantal love with us as the Gentiles since the days of the Old Testament.

Citing the prophet Hosea, apostle Paul said of God’s Word, “I (meaning God speaking here) will plant her for myself in the land; I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.’ I will say to those called ‘Not my people,’ ‘You are my people’; and they will say, ‘You are my God’” and “In the very place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ there they will be called ‘children of the Living God.’” (Rom 9:25-26).

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Before Christ came, only the Israelites were called “loved one,” “His people,” and “children of the Living God.” Yet, in the passage above, Hosea prophesied how the Gentiles will be shown love and called His people and children of God. We might think God is unfair. But the Bible also says, “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.” (Matt 20:16) The Israelites were chosen first but they cannot boast of their natural heritage from Abraham for their salvation in God. The Gentiles cannot boast as well because they are saved only through faith. This is done so that God’s mercy is extended to all, so that none can boast. And all glory goes to God.

Under the new covenant with Jesus Christ, He brings together Jews and Gentiles as one perfect man. This new covenant is far superior than the old covenant of the Israelites, because Jesus was the perfect sacrifice for our sins. He died once for all. (1 Pet 3:18) Because of Jesus, we do not need to offer blood sacrifices like what the old covenant required from Israelites, to atone for our sins.

Because Jesus Christ died for us and God accepted Jesus as a perfect sacrifice, God no longer remember our iniquities. (Heb 8:12) In the new covenant, God place in us His Spirit, so that we no longer need to depend on our human flesh to observe all His commandment. But His Spirit will help us to follow God. Through Christ, we have God’s spirit in us!

Prophet Ezekiel said of the LORD, “I (meaning God speaking here) will give you a new heart and a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” (Eze 36:26-27) Prophet Jeremiah also prophesied the same. (Jer 31:31;333-4)

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In this new covenant as well, Jesus Christ becomes our mediator (Heb 12:24; 1 Timothy 2:5). ‘For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people.” (1 Tim 2:5-6a) Jesus also becomes our high priest who sits at the right hand of the throne of God in Heaven, constantly interceding for us. (Heb 3:1; Heb 6:20; Heb 8:1, Rom 8:34) The new covenant is established on better promises (Heb 8:6) and freedom in Christ. (Gal 4)

Hence, we are living in a time when many prophets and kings desired and yearned to see during their days. But they did not and they could not. (Luke 10:24) Without the covenant with God, no one can have a relationship with God because they are not His children or His people. Only under the covenant with Jesus Christ, we receive the Holy Spirit in us who testify that we are God’s children. (Rom 8:16)

And again, the condition to be in this covenant is to believe. Jesus said, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:25-30) And Jesus also said, “Whoever belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.” (John 8:47)

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So, common love is free for all to have and experience while they are alive on earth. But covenantal love only happens when we want to respond to God’s offer of a Father-and-child relationship with Him. And the condition to enter this covenant is really to believe in Jesus Christ, that He is ‘the way and the truth and the life.’ He said, “No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 3:17-18)

And yes, this covenantal love is open and free for all. No matter how bad your past is or how sinful you think you are, God will never reject you. He will always accept you and receive you as His son or daughter in Heaven. No sin is too big for God to reject you. And nothing in this world can stop His covenantal Love in Jesus Christ from reaching you! Only, you need to believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and He died for our sins on the cross, rose on the third day, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Only believe in your heart, confess with your mouth. And you have stepped into the Kingdom of Heaven, where you call God as your “Abba, Father!”

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom 8:38-39)

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Note: This article is not vetted by the speaker Reverend Lieow Meng Kuang and may not accurately represent the information he shared. It is a reflectional piece put together by the writer from her perspective and understanding as a participant of his seminar, Victory in Spiritual Encounter. Hence, the writer encourages the reader to examine this article in light of the Bible scripture to make a personal stand on this matter. The Bible, again, holds all authority in all matters. To gain a more accurate understanding about this topic, you can also attend the Victory in Spiritual Encounter by Reverend Lieow.

Rev Lieow

Reverend Lieow Meng Kuang has ministered to the Tamil community and Orang Asli community. At present, Reverend Lieow is stationed at Tapah, where he continues to serve as the Senior Pastor to the Orang Asli church there, and supervised the co-workers among the tribes. Reverend Lieow has over 30 years of experience in healing, deliverance, interpretation of dreams, and spiritual discernment of various types of spirits in the crosss-cultural Malaysian context. And in his seminars, he will teach on how to deal with these issues based on James 5:13-16. Reverend Lieow is married to Mary Chok Fonng Yeen and has four chidlren. For more information on his seminar, please email him at lieow55@gmail.com and kingbun@gmail.com 

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The post Entering into a Covenantal Love with God – Rev Lieow Meng Kuang appeared first on Malaysia’s most comprehensive Christian news website and was launched in September 2012, incorporated with the vision of delivering up-to-date news, information, and commentaries relevant to Christians across denominational lines.

The LORD God is the Lord of Hosts (Rev 19:11-20), and this has been mentioned 261 times in the Old Testament Scripture. Therefore, He rules over the angelic hosts, including the fallen angels. As a ruler, it is the LORD God who established the covenant with day and night, and the laws of heaven and earth. (Jer 33:25-26) These laws govern not only the physical world but also the spiritual world as well.

For example, God appointed a time to judge the devil Satan, his angelic host and man. The law appointed for men is for men to die once and then face judgment. (Heb 9:27, Job 30:23) This judgment will be held on a fixed day, whereby Jesus Christ will be the judge. (Dan 8:19, Acts 17:30-31)

This article is written as a reflectional piece based on the sharing of Reverend Lieow Meng Kuang on how we can attain victory in our spiritual encounter with God at Prescott Hotel Klang on 16^th to 18^th of July 2015. In this second session, Reverend Lieow discussed on whether Christians can still hold past covenantal ties to dark spirits.

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Not only men, the devil and his angelic hosts have an appointed day for judgment as well. The reason the devil is not destroyed is because his appointed time of judgment by God has not come. God has the power to destroy the devil and his angelic host. In the end, Jesus will go on a war with his armies of heaven. He will throw the beast and the false prophet into the firey lake of burning sulfur. And the kings of the earth and their armies will also be killed by the sword coming out from the mouth of Jesus. (Rev 19:11-21)

Yet, before the devil’s appointed time of judgment, he is given authority under a long chain in this world. He is called ‘the ruler of the world,’ ‘ruler of the kingdom of the air,’ and ‘the spirit who is at work in those who are disobedient.’ (John 14:30; Eph 2:1-2) The whole world is under the control of the evil one. (1 John 5:19) All of the children of Adam are subjected under his rule. (Eph 2:1-2)

But on the cross, Jesus Christ has ‘disarmed the powers and authorities’ of the devil and his angelic hosts. (Col 2:15) He is seated ‘far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.’ ‘And God placed all things under His feet and appointed Him to be head over everything for the church’ (Eph 1:21) Jesus ‘is the head over every power and authority’ (Col 2:10).

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On the cross, God made Jesus who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Cor 5:21) On the cross, Jesus forgave us all our sins and canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us. He had take this charge away and nailed it to the cross. (Col 2:14)

Yet, some of us who are first-generation Christians may hold certain past covenantal ties with the devil, his angelic host, and the elemental forces of this world. How can this be? Are not all past covenantal ties broken when we believe in Jesus Christ? The answer is yes! We are justified and sanctified by the blood of Jesus. (Rom 5:9; Heb 13:12)

However, if we still practice religious activities associated with worshipping an idol, we are actually offering ourselves as slaves to who we obey. Paul says to the Romans church, “Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey – whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?” (Rom 6:16)

Having an idol is actually a sign of covenant with the fallen angelic hosts and principalities. When God wanted to establish Israelites’ land, He commanded them, “Do not make a covenant with them (people living in the land) or with their gods…. Or they will cause you to sin against me, because the worship of their gods will certainly be a snare to you.” (Exo 23:32-33)

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That is why God took the subject of idolatry seriously. The first commandment that God gave the Israelites through Moses was, “You shall have no other gods before.” This is followed by, “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath on in the waters below. You shall no bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God.’ (Exo 20:1-5)

Hence, shall we partake food offered to idols? Scripture has much to say about this. The apostles consulted the Gentiles believers in Christ to abstain from food sacrificed to idols. (Act 15:28-30)

Paul has also addressed this matter clearly to the Corinthian church.  He says, “Consider the people of Israel: Do not those who eat the sacrifices participate in the altar? Do I mean then that food sacrificed to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons. Are we trying to arouse the Lord’s jealousy? Are we stronger than he?” (1 Cor 10:18-22) Hence, when we partake from and worship God and the demon, we are actually arousing God’s jealousy.

Ref: fineartamerica

Some of us may think that if we consecrate the food by the word of God and prayer, even the food offered to demons is acceptable. Paul says, “For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.” But if we were to read the whole passage, this part was written for believers who added human restraints to justify their faith in Christ. Not only they abstain from certain foods, they also forbid people to marry. Hence, although all food is to be eaten and received with thanksgiving, Paul has clearly stated that we shall not partake in food offered to idols.

In addition to idols, when we subject ourselves to elemental principles – basic or rudimental principles or personification of natural forces – we are actually choosing to be enslaved by them.

Paul rebuked the Galatian church by saying, “But now that you know God – or rather are known by God – how is that you are turning back to those weak and miserable forces? Do you want to be enslaved by them all over again? You are observing special days and months and seasons and years!” (Gal 4:9-10) The weak and miserable forces refer to elemental forces. (Gal 4:3) The people in this Scripture knowingly follow religious practices associated with elemental principles. While I know some of us unknowingly follow to appease the people around us, it is perhaps wise to not practice it, to avoid any chances of being enslaved by them.

Paul also rebuked the Colossian church by saying, “Since you died with Christ to the elemental spiritual forces of this world, why, as though you still belonged to the world, do you submit to its rules?”

Ref: frock-off

Hence, based on biblical Scripture, it is unwise to partake or perform religious rituals associated to idols and elemental principles.

Also, the purpose of this article is not to induce fear amongst ourselves or to make us paranoid on whether we have any past covenantal ties.

Jesus Christ already says, “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.” (John 10:27-29)

And ‘for in Christ, all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.’ (Col 2:9-10)

Darkness has no authority in our life. In fact, Scriptures says, “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”

Ref: catholiclane

“Since He (God) did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, won’t He also give us everything else? Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for His own? No one – for God Himself has given us right standing with Himself. Who then will condemn us? No one – for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and He is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us.” (Rom 8: 32-24)

And finally, “Nothing can separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow – not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below – indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus or Lord.” (Rom 8:38-39)

At this point however, on a side note, I also need to point out one sobering fact. Nothing external can separate us from the love of God. But personally, I do believe that we – ourselves – can separate ourselves from His love based on our free will. We can choose to walk away from God in thoughts and actions.

With that said, this article is written, so that we now do not unknowingly practice religious activities associated with worshipping or elemental spirits. In the past, some of us might have unknowingly participated. But now that we know, children of God, let us be wise and choose to do the right thing. Like the psalmist who says, “Teach me good discernment and knowledge, for I believe in Your commandments” (Psa 119:66); let us grow mature to eat solid food, like those ‘who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good and evil.” And hallelujah! We praise God for the access and availability of His Word in our lives. Amen.

Ref: theimaginativeconservative

Note: This article is not vetted by the speaker Reverend Lieow Meng Kuang and may not accurately represent the information he shared. It is a reflectional piece put together by the writer from her perspective and understanding as a participant of his seminar, Victory in Spiritual Encounter.Hence, the writer encourages the reader to examine this article in light of the Bible scripture to make a personal stand on this matter. The Bible, again, holds all authority in all matters. To gain a more accurate understanding about this topic, you can also attend the Victory in Spiritual Encounter by Reverend Lieow.

Rev Lieow

Reverend Lieow Meng Kuang has ministered to the Tamil community and Orang Asli community. At present, Reverend Lieow is stationed at Tapah, where he continues to serve as the Senior Pastor to the Orang Asli church there, and supervised the co-workers among the tribes. Reverend Lieow has over 30 years of experience in healing, deliverance, interpretation of dreams, and spiritual discernment of various types of spirits in the crosss-cultural Malaysian context. And in his seminars, he will teach on how to deal with these issues based on James 5:13-16. Reverend Lieow is married to Mary Chok Fonng Yeen and has four chidlren. For more information on his seminar, please email him at lieow55@gmail.com and kingbun@gmail.com 

The post Can Christians have covenantal ties with darkness? – Rev Lieow Meng Kuang appeared first on Malaysia’s most comprehensive Christian news website and was launched in September 2012, incorporated with the vision of delivering up-to-date news, information, and commentaries relevant to Christians across denominational lines.

The priesthood of believers in God has began since the beginning of time. It is a perpetual theme we see running from Genesis to Revelation.

But the only priest that can become a mediator between God and the whole mankind is Jesus Christ. (1 Tim 2:5) He is our High Priest according to the order of Melchizedek. (Psa 110:4, Heb 6:19-20)

This article is written as a reflectional piece based on the sharing of Reverend Lieow Meng Kuang on how we can attain victory in our spiritual encounter with God at Prescott Hotel Klang on 16^th to 18^th of July 2015. In this session, he explained about the priesthood of believers, starting first with Jesus Christ.

And here are four reasons why Jesus Christ is our High Priest or really the perfect priest.

Only Jesus descended from Heaven

Firstly, Jesus is our High Priest because He is the only person who descended from Heaven. (John 3:13)

Jesus says, “For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of Him who sent me.” (John 6:38) He also says, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven.” (John 6:51)

Only Jesus has seen the God and is in closest relationship with the Father. (John 1:18) That is why Jesus can fully understand the will of God while He was ministering on earth. (John 5:19, John 14:10)

This full understanding of God the Father makes Jesus a perfect priest for God because He does all that God wants Him to do. Jesus says, “I and the Father are one.” (John 10:30)

Ref: dreamatico

Only Jesus is fully human and fully God

But understand that Jesus is not like God. Jesus is God.

Isaiah prophesied the birth of Jesus, calling Him “The mighty God.” (Isa 9:6) John referred to Jesus as ‘the one and only Son, who is Himself God.’ (John 1:18) Even Jesus declares, “Verily, verily, I say unto you. Before Abraham was, I AM.” (John 8:58) “I AM” is the name of God. (Exo 3:14)

Yet, Jesus is fully human as well, which makes Him the perfect priest for us. Like us, Jesus got hungry (Matt 4:2), got tempted (Heb 4:15), and died. (Mark 15:37)

He was made ‘fully human in every way, in order that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and He might make atonement for the sins of people.’ (Heb 2:17)

Because Jesus is fully human, He is able to empathize with our weaknesses and help those of us who are being tempted. (Heb 2:18; Heb 4:15) This is the second reason why Jesus can be the High Priest for us.

Ref: jmichaelrios

Only Jesus can offer the Perfect Sacrifice

The third reason Jesus is the High Priest for us is that His sacrifice on the cross is perfect. (Heb 10:14)

The Israelite priests had to atone for sins by offering the same animal sacrifices day after day, which can never take away sins. (Heb 10:11)

But Jesus only sacrificed for sins once and for all when He offered Himself. (Heb 7:27) ‘He (Jesus) did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but He entered the Most Holy Place once for all by His own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption.’ (Heb 9:13)

‘For one sacrifice, Jesus has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.’ (Heb 10:14) And ‘so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many’ (Heb 9:28a)

Because of Jesus, ‘we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body.’ (Heb 10:19)

Ref: blogspot

The Most Holy Place is the holiest place in the temple of Jerusalem, which has the Ark of the Covenant. It is separated from the temple sanctuary with a curtain. Only the priests are allowed to enter this place, lest anyone should die in the Presence of God. In fact, only one priest can enter this place once a year to offer sacrifices and atone for sins.

But when Jesus died, the curtain in the temple torn from top to bottom. (Matt 27:51) This signifies Jesus tearing the barrier of sin between men and God, Jesus being sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Cor 5:21)

Because of our faith in Jesus, we are therefore justified before God (Rom 5:1, Gal 2:16).  And we can come into His Presence, to the Most Holy Place.

Ref: followingafterjesus

Only Jesus can be the Perfect Intercessor

The fourth reason Jesus is the High Priest is He is the perfect intercessor for us.

He is the priest who is now at the temple of the Living God and is standing

at the right hand of God. (Mark 16:19, Acts 2:23, Rom 8:34) ‘For Christ did not enter a santuary made with human hands that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence.’ (Heb 9:24)

So, what is Christ doing for us in God’s presence? He is interceding for us. (Rom 8:34) In fact, He is always interceding for us. (Hb 7:24-25)

And ‘because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore, He is able to save completely those who came to God through Him, because He always lives to intercede for them.’ (Heb 7:24-25)

Because Jesus is our immortal priest, He is able to constantly intercede for us, covering our sins with His blood when we come before Him and repent.

Ref: ggpht

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Note: This article is not vetted by the speaker Reverend Lieow Meng Kuang and may not accurately represent the information he shared. It is a reflectional piece put together by the writer from her perspective and understanding as a participant of his seminar, Victory in Spiritual Encounter.Hence, the writer encourages the reader to examine this article in light of the Bible scripture to make a personal stand on this matter. The Bible, again, holds all authority in all matters. To gain a more accurate understanding about this topic, you can also attend the Victory in Spiritual Encounter by Reverend Lieow.

Rev Lieow

Reverend Lieow Meng Kuang has ministered to the Tamil community and Orang Asli community. At present, Reverend Lieow is stationed at Tapah, where he continues to serve as the Senior Pastor to the Orang Asli churchthere, and supervised the co-workers among the tribes. Reverend Lieow has over 30 years of experience in healing, deliverance, interpretation of dreams, and spiritual discernment of various types of spirits in the crosss-cultural Malaysian context. And in his seminars, he will teach on how to deal with these issues based on James 5:13-16. Reverend Lieow is married to Mary Chok Fonng Yeen and has four chidlren. For more information on his seminar, please email him at lieow55@gmail.com and kingbun@gmail.com 

The post 4 Reasons Jesus is our High Priest – Reverend Lieow Meng Kuang appeared first on Malaysia’s most comprehensive Christian news website and was launched in September 2012, incorporated with the vision of delivering up-to-date news, information, and commentaries relevant to Christians across denominational lines.

“When I have depression, it was hard for me to control myself. Thinking back, I thank the people who took care of me. But I feel that if you want to get out of depression, what you really need is courage,” said Hiromi Wada, a 28-year old Hong Kong actress and singer who found God in the midst of her suicidal attempt.

A girl whose contagious laughter reverberates from her soul, Hiromi started performing early at only 14 years old. Yet, behind her smiling face, Hiromi grew up struggling with low-self esteem due to the lack of affirmation by her mother.

“I’m actually a very stubborn person. But somehow, I gave people the impression that I am very innocent and that I can be easily persuaded to change my thoughts,” said Hiromi who often became a prime target for manipulation in the entertainment industry, for her vulnerable appearance.

“So, most of the time, I felt really hurtful because I was thinking to myself, ‘How do I respond to this person?’” said Hiromi, whose trust on people began to erode over the years.

Nevertheless, although she did not know God at that time, she persevered and believed that her talent would help her shine in the entertainment industry.

“I persevered because I love the performing arts. But I didn’t want to do anything against my values to be promoted into stardom. If I want to get up, I want my effort and talent to be the reasons of my success,” said Hiromi, who began to realize how fragile humans are.

Hiromi Wada

“But no matter how stubborn you are and how much you persevere, there will come a day when you’ll reach exhaustion; you’ll lose all hope in this world when the people, even your good friends betray you. You’ll feel that there is no one to trust in this world,” said Hiromi.

After much disappointing experiences with people, she began to isolate herself at home. And with no hope and no purpose in life, Hiromi began hearing voices in her head with an unexplainable nauseating pressure, evident of a demonic attack.

But it was also during this time, she was exposed to God when she heard about how a friend at the last-stage of cancer was miraculously healed upon prayers by a group of Christian brothers and sisters.

“I felt so encouraged when I heard about my friend’s testimony because I thought, ‘Miracles can still happen in this world.’ So, I saw a way out from my depression,” said Hiromi.

However, she believed that it was actually her friend’s personal optimisim that healed her. “But actually, how much strength does a person has? For me, I cannot even control what will happen to me in the future.”

Hiromi did not think that such a miracle would happen to her. Sinking deeper into depression, she finally decided to commit suicide.

She began to understand that people under depression do not necessarily want to commit suicide. But because the mental torture is too great, taking one’s life appears to be an easy way to stop the torture.

“Normally, I would be fearful of many things. But at the moment I decided to commit suicde, there is a million times of strength for me to do it,” said Hiromi who recalled hearing the voice of a demon while she wanted to buy the sleeping pills to commit suicide.

“I actually talked to a person. I said, ‘I know you want me to die. Why don’t you just let me die?’ So, I asked this person to help me,” said Hiromi.

Hiromi Wada

Typically, a pharmacist would not sell a large number of sleeping pills without prescription from the doctor. Yet, the pharmacist surprisingly sold Hiromi many sleeping pills, believing that she was buying them for long-term usage.

“After I bought the pills, I didn’t really care about the voices in my head anymore. As long as I could commit suicide, I would have accomplished my mission,” said Hiromi, who began calling her friends for one last time.

“I realized that when a person really wants to commit suicide, she (or he) will not want to tell anyone about her (or his) intention. Because for me, it was hard for me to leave my loved ones behind when I called them.

“I would act normally and call them, ‘Hey, what are you doing now?’ We would even talk about having lunch together. I would laugh over the phone. But I thank God because I chose taking sleeping pills as a way to die. I wanted to die comfortably,” said Hiromi.

But when she reached home with the pills, her mind launched into a battleground. Two voices fought in her head, like an angel over a demon. A voice spoke to her, “Don’t do that!” She became disturbed because she wanted to die peacefully. At that point, a gentle voice spoke to her, “Why don’t you try praying? God will help you.” Because Hiromi wanted peace, she prayed and a novel transcendent peace came upon her.

“But because I was so stubborn in completing the mission, I still wanted to commit suicide. And I didn’t know how it happened because I just fell asleep,” said Hiromi who did not sleep for days due to depression.

“So, now that I have believed in God, I realized that my mental illness was caused by depression. And I have a burden for people with the same problem,” said Hiromi.

She explained, “When you have depression, it’s like you are being pulled back by this claw that would not let you go. It’s very torturing. Although it’s not a physical bleeding that is caused by a cut, mental illness is worse to me. It tears you apart and sucks the energy out of you.”

“It makes you lose all meaning of life and will to live. I realized that the life of a human is indeed fragile. So now, I want to go and encourage people with how God led me out of depression.”

Hiromi shared how people with mental illness need to dig deep into the root of depression with the help of the Holy Spirit. Every time when she feels afraid, she would ask herself, “Why am I so scared?” When she is frustrated, she would ask herself, “What caused this anger?” As we ask ourselves, we will start to understand the root cause of our problem.

Hiromi Wada

“Of course, it is God who told me. Actually, I have blind spots. There are things that I cannot see,” said Hiromi.

While God was leading Hiromi out of depression, the Lord also led her to her husband, a gift from God to her. Coming from a broken family, she had always wanted to get marry to experience the warmth of a happy family. But after a few romantic heartaches, she began to give up the idea of marriage altogether until she met her husband.

Interestingly, she never noticed her husband who grew up in the same church she had been attending for the past few years. Yet, God connected them. And as they conversed, both realized that they held similar family and moral values.

Hence, having completely healed from depression during the process, Hiromi decided to get marry with her husband, with the blessings of their pastors.

Both left Hong Kong to live a new and simple life in Australia plucking strawberries and digging farming grounds, leaving behind the glitz, glamour, and money in the entertainment industry.

“I don’t know how the entertainment industry in Malaysia is like. But the industry in Hong Kong is considerably complicated,” said Hiromi.

Brownnosing and flattery are commonplace and even expected to get a role in the entertainment industry. But for Hiromi, even if she were to perform a deed or express an appreciation, she would have to do them from a sincere heart, void of the sole agenda to illicit return.

“So, my personality would not allow me to be insincere. I said to myself, ‘Fine, it’s okay. Maybe it’s better for me to comtemplate and think if there is something else I could venture into,’” said Hiromi.

Hiromi Wada (second from left)

But to her surprise, even the industry in Australia, which she attempted to be involved in, was equally complicated. Her husband and her income began to dwindle, and they lost money to a questionable business.

“I still remember how I was at a garden in Australia. I just cried out to God while kneeling on the floor. I said to God, ‘God, why did you treat me this way? I just wanted to live a simple life,’” she said.

However, looking back at her days in Australia with her husband, she thank God for those hard times in building a strong foundation for marriage.

“We only had each other there in Australia. So, even though we would quarrelled, we would come back to each other. Had it not been those times, my husband and I would have many differences in opinions and we wouldn’t understand each other’s needs especially with busy schedule we have now in Hong Kong,” said Hiromi.

But because they understood each other, both constantly hold each other in prayer.

The couple decided to return to Hong Kong after a few months of staying in Australia. And to Hiromi’s surprise, the entertainment industry was still offering her jobs despite her exiting from the industry for a certain period.

“So, it seemed to me that God was telling me to enter the entertainment industry again. Even though I am not very active in socializing, I still get calls from the industry. This shows that God is paving the way for my entertainment career now in Hong Kong.

“So, I am not afraid when I don’t get projects, because I know and trust that God would give me the best. If I don’t get a project, I would say, ‘God, You must have something better for me,’” she added.

Hiromi Wada in a photoshoot

Even then, her faith did not come naturally but was also built during hard times. Hiromi recalled how God brought her to the desert whereby she had no income for three months, the first in her life. Struggling with her faith in God, she cried out to Him, “What do You want me to learn, God? I am very tired. Can you let me rest for a while?”

“God made me reach the the dead end of my entertainment career, where it felt like there was no hope anymore. I felt so tortured. I would cry until I laughed. I was not emotionally stable at that time.

“Yet, one day, I woke up and told myself, ‘I won’t do that to myself again.’ Suddenly, I felt a supernatural mega strength came upon me. Actually, I understood the concept of faith. But my heart could not accept it.

“So, God put me in a dead end and He asked me, ‘Have you done it? What are you losing? You have nothing to lose. You lost everything.’ I finally got the lesson. The faith in God suddenly changed my heart. When it ‘clicked,’ God began to bring everything to me,” said Hiromi.

She understood that her entertainment career from then onwards would be led in full dependence on God, and not through clever human schemes.

One thing led to the next and through her faith in Christ, she was introduced to her current manager outside of Hong Kong, Wen-Ji, who loves her like a dear sister.

“I had many managers but they didn’t feel like a family to me. I understand that we need to do business. But it is important for the artiste and manager to communicate. Sometimes artistes are treated like products. If this product is not good, then just find another product.

“Actually, as artistes, we have feelings too. There are also things we want to do. And many artistes hope to reach a place where they can decide on what they can do. Every one is just waiting for that moment,” said Hiromi, thanking Wen-Ji for basically loving her.

Hiromi Wada (Centre)

“Wen-Ji is really good. She is always asking me how I am feeling and how my day is. And I feel when a person respects me, I am okay with anything. Actually, that’s my personality – it’s not hard for me to trust people,” said Hiromi.

Yet, because of the negative experiences with a number of dishonest people in the industry, she learned to put up bars to protect herself.

“But I also thank God for the people who make me feel that they will love me no matter how much I changed. And when you feel their love, your bars will quickly come down. I will tend to completely trust a person.

“Although there are people who leave us in life, which is really hurtful, there are also those who stand behind us and closely support us. For me, I don’t know how to return their kindness except to do my best in work for them,” said Hiromi.

Entering into the entertainment scene again, Hiromi hopes to expand her career in singing and acting. She also hopes to sharpen her connection with people in the performing arts, by silently observing and understanding the background, personality, and motivation of people in a coffee shop, for example.

“In the past, I was quite oblivious with the people around me. I didn’t know how to discern. Whatever a person said, I would immediately trust. But God gave me a lot of training through the people who hurt me. I thank them for teaching me.

“And now, through a person’s eyes, I can tell about the state of a person’s heart. I realized a person’s words can never betray his or her heart. So, what we say about our eyes being the window to our soul, is true,” said Hiromi.

Hiromi Wada

Also, as the daughter of God, Hiromi also learned to be grateful and contented with what God gave her, away from the constant pressure of comparison.

“We like to say, ‘If only I’m like her, then I will be happy.’ But then, why even have you in this world, in the first place? The truth is: you are the one and only unique creation of God. So, why don’t we focus on discovering ourselves, the treasures and talents buried in us?” said Hiromi.

“Also, for every job I do, I do not see how much money I’ll get or how big the project is. Well, of course, every artiste would charge a certain price. But we don’t always need to talk about money first. To me, it’s more important on whether the project is meaningful,” Hiromi added who would share her testimony with school and university students.

A person with childlike faith and cheerfulness, Hiromi Wada, beloved daughter of God, is fully restored to who God made her to be even after all the hurts she experienced. In her, no bitterness or unforgiveness are found. But God has fully restored her to complete innocence, beauty, and wisdom. In fact, her restoration is so evident in her countenance that one can feel the emanating love, joy, and peace from her. Her sheer presence in the entertainment industry brought glory to God!

“I believe that every one has a life caling in different areas. And I also hope that I know my calling in life too. People had been telling me that I have a contagious smile and laughter.

“I thought to myeslf, “Maybe I am given the gift of making people around me happy.’ So, when I am onstage, it’s not only for my sake, but for the people’s sake, to make them happy and enjoy the show. Ultimately, the show is not about me but other people,” said Hiromi.

“He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the LORD and put their trust in Him.” (Psalm 40:2-3)

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Lately, we have heard a fair bit of information on why September 2015 is a month to behold.

Some speculated that the US dollars will crash in this coming September 13^th, which will send disastrous shockwaves to economies around the world. This will launch the one-world economic system – the beginning of the seven-year tribulation.

Ref: tumblr

Some believers, upon personal conviction, also believe that this is the day when Jesus will return and whisk them away in rapture, before the world accelerates into turbulence. 

So, how should we respond to all these speculations? First of all, the facts presented by the end-time preachers are reasonable. The fact that Israel was formed in 1948 is a fulfilment of a prophecy (Isa 66:7-8). If we were to read this chapter, the following verses talk about Jesus Christ returning to reign. 

However, this article is not written to convince you on whether Jesus Christ is indeed returning (though I do believe that we will be the generation to see His return).

But coming back to this impending day in September – to imagine that Jesus is coming back so soon – brought anxiety to my heart.

Why am I anxious? Firstly, I am not prepared for His return yet. Many of my family and friends had not know the Lord. Moreover, if I were to go through the seven-year tribulation, I don’t know if I am prepared for it. Hence, I sat down and thought to myself the best thing for me to do.

Ref: tumblr

What I did was to seek the face of my Father in Heaven. I poured all my anxieties on Him. I told Him, “Father, it is unfair for you to only reveal this to me now if you were to return. I don’t have time to prepare myself. What more others?”

I felt that I have the responsibility to inform in the best yet very limited way to believers on how to prepare on what is coming, if it’s true that the seven-year tribulation would begin.

For no one knows that no one knows that day and hour when Jesus returns. (Matt 24:36) He comes like a thief at night. (Rev 16:15,2 1 Thes 5:1-3) 

And then the answer came: You are always prepared when you are with God.

Ref: tumblr

If you look at every person in the book of Luke for example – beginning from Mary to the disciples of Jesus Christ – how many of them felt prepared and were prepared? 

Was Mary prepared to carry the Savior of the World into this world? Was Peter prepared to preach the gospel till his own cruxifixion on the cross? Was Gideon prepared to lead only 300 men to war against thousands of men? 

I believe most of them felt unprepared for what God prepared for them. Yet, the funny thing is that God has already prepared them. 

How? They know God. They were only called to follow God one day at a time, moment to moment. And they did only what God says, through dreams, visions, physical manifestations, and His Word. They followed God and God led them into victory and boldness. 

Hence, the most important thing is to draw close to God. Learn to discern His Voice. His Voice never go against His Word. Listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Cling unto Him. Walk with Him. Pray, pray, and pray. And you have nothing to fear, even if the world enters into tribulation.

But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. (Heb 5:14)

Ref: tumblr

There are many practical implications of drawing close to God and learning to discern His Voice, which always follows His Word.

In the one-world economic system, currency will be abolished. People will be forced to take the mark of the beast or they cannot trade. When this happens, everything that we can pay by money now – food, cellphones, gas for our car, car maintenance, house rental, hygiene supplies, etc – are lost. We lost all purchasing power.

So, what will happen next? One way to survive is to move into the forest, to plant and to grow our own food, and to communicate without our cell phones. 

Basically, we will be living like the orang asals. Come to think of it, we may be blessings to them now. But who knows if God is preparing them to be a blessing to us. Who else shall we run to for refuge and shelter? 

Now, I am not making any prophecies here but reasonable speculations. Communication will be cut off. How then shall we communicate during these times of turbulence, if we were to lose each other?

Do not fear because we have the Holy Spirit in us. Wow! Can you imagine how amazing is that? If all of us listens to the Holy Spirit who tells us where to meet and at what time individually, we do not need cell phones. When technology dies, we do not need to fear because we have the Holy Spirit in us!

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That is one very practical reason of learning to listen and discern the voice of God. And discernment can only come from knowing His Word, because again His Voice never go against His Word.

Also, Jesus says, “At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you ahead of time.” (Matt 24:23-25)

At first, I thought this Scripture was odd because how could people be so gullible to believe that the Messiah is back? But without telecommunication, news will only travel by hearsays and rumors. Furthermore, the distress during the end times will be so great (Matt 24:22) that we would want to believe that Jesus has returned. 

Also, do you know what is most comforting to us as believers in Christ? God has told us what we can expect in the end times. Yes, they are written in the Bible for us. Hence, there is no need to fear.

We have what we need to prepare ourselves, which is His Word.

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And amidst this foretelling suffering, do you know what is the most amazing thing? God’s Word still stands true. His every Word prevails!

What did God say? He says, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matt 11:28-30) He says, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matt 28:30)

The passages above is only a fraction of what He said in the whole Bible. Can you imagine the wealth of promises that we do not know of? All His Promises still stand even during the end times.

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Heb 13:8)

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Hence, let us come as we are before our Father in Heaven. This begins by worshipping and reading the Word of God. When we read enough of God’s Word – which is unchangeable even at the end times – we are able to discern His voice, which never go against His Word.

Reading the Word of God also changes our thinking into new, godly ways of thinking. Hence, we will begin to do what the Word says. And when we do that, we are likened to building our house on the rock.

Jesus says, “As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts the into practice, I will show you what they are like. They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When the flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built.” (Luke 6:47-48)

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He went on saying, “But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.” (Luke 6:49)

At the end times, if we listen to voice of the Holy Spirit and do what He says, we will surely stand in the torrent of flood.

Like how bankers examined the real bank notes to identify the fakes, we are also called to examine the Word of God to identify the lies and deceptions.

The good news is You are always prepared when you are with God. 

Ref: searchquotes

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On 4^th of September 2015, Pastor Alan Tan of First Assembly of God in Kota Bahru, Kelantan shared about King Josiah – understanding the season in our lives.

There are four stages in Josiah’s life including the child king, the boy king, and the prophetic king, and the restorer king.

At eight years old, Josiah became child king following the assasination of his father king Amon. (2 Chron 33:24-25) And at 16 years old, he grew into becoming a boy king. (2 Chron 34:3)

Scripture says, “In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, he began to seek the God of his father David.” (2 Chron 34:3)

Why is David referred to as Josiah’s father instead of his biological father Amon? This is because it was David, God made a covenant with, and not the other evil kings such as Amon and Manasseh. God’s eyes were kept on David.

“I became a Christian at sixteen years old. The world philosophies will tell you, ‘Come on man, you are too young to be religious. Why don’t you go and enjoy?’ But scholars told us that David was sixteen when he killed Goliath.

Worship team of First Assembly of God in Kota Bahru, Kelantan

“So, never despise the days of your youth. Timothy was a young man called into the ministry under the mentorship of Paul. Paul says, ‘Be an example in faith, in words, and in deeds. Don’t let them look down on you.’ You are never too young,” said Pastor Alan.

Those who seek the Lord will lack no good thing. (Psalm 34:10) And Jesus says, “But seek first the kingdom and his righteouesness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33) He also says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7)

“So, when Josiah seek the Lord, guess what happens? He found the Lord. If you seek the Lord, you will find Him. You will find what you seek for, that’s God’s principles.

“If you seek to find fault in each other, you will find fault because no one is perfect – faults in your husband, in your wife, in your church leaders, and in everybody – you will find it because that’s all you are looking for,” said Pastor Alan.

Likewise, if we seek spiritual gifts, we will find them. Paul says, “Eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit.” (1 Cor 14:1) Hence, if our church lacks spiritual gifts, that shows that we are not seeking enough.

If we have not found God, we have not seek Him enough. God says, “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chron 7:14)

The congregation of First Assembly of God in Kota Bahru, Kelantan

Without faith, it is impossible to please God. (Heb 11:6) But if we believe in God, He will reward us who seek Him like how He blessed King Josiah.

And seeking Him is not limited to only spiritual matters, but other life affairs as well such as seeking God’s direction at work, seeking a life partner, or seeking the next course in life to take. God is a very practical God.

“This is not all spiritual. If you seek Him and say, ‘You know God, I want to do Your Will, I want to know where I am going, I want to know which path to take.’ He will show you,” said Pastor Alan.

He shared how many people in his church, Harvest Christian Assembly, in Klang were experiencing the financial pinch of sustaining the children’s education overseas. Yet, God has blessed their business beyond what they required for the educational funds.

“Why? This is because they are looking at God. That is why there are so many dissapointments in our nations, because people are looking at what other people can do for them? But people will fail you,” said Pastor Alan. But God will never fail us.

King Josiah started to seek the Lord at 16 years old. Like Josiah, there is always a beginning for everything in our life. We got to start reading the Bible, praying, prophesying, and giving somewhere in our life.

The members of the First Assembly of God in Kota Bahru preparing for Holy Communion

Also, although King Josiah’s father and grandfather (Amon and Manasseh respectively) were evil, he did not blame his family history as a reason to not follow God.

And so, at 20 years old, King Josiah began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of high places, Asherah poles, and idols. He tore down the altars of Baals, and he burned the bones of the priests on their altars. It was a huge task because Israel was deeply entrenched in idol-worshipping for more than a hundred years.

What King Josiah did not know is that he was fulfilling a prophesy made of him 350 years ago. A prophet was prophesying as King Jeroboam stood by the altar, saying, “Altar, altar! This is what the Lord says: ‘A son named Josiah will be born to the house of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who make offerings here, and human bones will be burned on you.’” (1 Kings 13:1-2)

“You know when I read that, I summarize this: we have to live a prophetic life. We have to a prophetic generation. The church got to be prophetic. That means what we do is a fulfilment of God’s Word. You see, when Josiah did that, he didn’t know that he was fulfilling a prophesy,” said Pastor Alan.

For example, when the Holy Spirit fell during the Pentecost, Peter proclaimed that they were experiencing the fulfilment of a prophesy by prophet Joel. (Joel 2:28-32)

In the last days, God says,

    I will pour out my Spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophesy,

    your young men will see visions,

    your old men will dream dreams.

Even on my servants, both men and women,

    I will pour out my Spirit in those days,

    and they will prophesy.

I will show wonders in the heavens above

    and signs on the earth below,

    blood and fire and billows of smoke.

The sun will be turned to darkness

    and the moon to blood

    before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.

And everyone who calls

    on the name of the Lord will be saved.

(Acts 2:17-21)

Sisters-in-Christ coming together during the prayer meeting after church to pray for one another, at First Assembly of God, Kota Bahru

“Peter had the idea when he saw all that was happening. Suddenly, that Scripture came to light, ‘This is what that prophet spoke about, it is the fulfilment of a prophesy.’

“You see, everytime you prophesy, everytime you see a vision, everytime someone calls upon the name of the Lord, everytime someone has a dream, they are prophetic. They are prophetic because it’s a fulfilment of the Word of God about the end time,” said Pastor Alan.

Prophetic gifts are meant to exalt and admonish people, with the goal of edifying and strengthening people. Unfortunately, today we criticize more than we prophesize. We allow the news or people opinions to dictate the way we should live instead of the Word of God.

“A prophetic church is not dictated by the affairs of a nation. A prophetic church looks ahead. A prophetic church is dictated by the Word of God, what God says and not what the world says.

“A prophetic church is led by the Spirit and not led by their emotions. A prophetic people will sometimes say things in contrast to what is happening around them.

“A prophetic people will see things differently. So, they will see, they will speak, they will hear, and they will even live their lives in direct contradiction to what’s happening around them,” said Pastor Alan. Are we a prophetic people living a prophetic lifestyle?

Pastor Alan Tan preaching to the congregation of the First Assembly of God in Kota Bahru, Kelantan

When Martin Luther broke the religious system of the church in Europe, he returned the people to the Word of God. Instead of centering around human rituals, the attention of the people were fixed at the pulpit where the Word of God was shared.

Before Reformation, the altar was central. After the Reformation, the pulpit was central. Now in the 21^st century, the stage is central. But today, the whole stage becomes central to modern worshippers with all the lightings, decor, smoke machine and large LED. We forget that beyond all these accessories, God is looking for worshippers in spirit and in truth.

“The prophetic voices say that we must go back to the time when Christ becomes central. You see when the enemy cannot have you, the enemy will mislead you with a substitution.

“I have been to Vietnam. There was no musical instruments except for one guitar there. Let me tell you: I have never felt such purity in their worship. Why? Because it came from the heart,” said Pastor Alan.

The congregation of First Assembly of God in Kota Bahru worshipping God

Finally, at 26 years old, King Josiah was the restorer king. He began to repair and to restore the temple. (2 Chron 34:8) In the midst of cleaning the temple, he found the Book of the Law. (2 Chron 34:15) And King Josiah took this opportunity to read the law to all in the nation. (2 Chron 34:29-30)

After that, King Josiah celebrated Passover having read the Book of the Law. It was said that the celebration had never been held in such a scale in Israel, since the days of prophet Samuel. (2 Chron 35:18) With God, he restored Israel.

“Have you ever lost things in your life? I have. Lost friends? Lost sleep? Lost valuable things? Lost your love? lost your peace? Josiah restored the temple, the Book of Law, the Passover, and the priesthood,” said Pastor Alan.

Like how God used King Josiah to restore Israel, God will also restore our lives. We have a God of restoration! God restored to Job twice of what he had lost. And as a Father, God is generous in restoring to us what we have lost.

If we were parents, would we only give to our children what they sufficienly need? As parents, we will give our children more than they need, because we want to bless them. Hence if we being evil know how to give good gifts to our children, what more our perfect Father in Heaven? (Matthew 7:11)

“How many of you believe that God can restore to you everything you have lost? The thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy. But God comes to give life and life abundantly.

Pastor Alan Tan preaching the Word of God at First Assembly of God in Kota Bahru

“The Church has been stolen of her glory, power, and anointing. The believers have been stepped upon and lost their authority and lost their joy. But God is saying, ‘I will restore, I will restore,’” said Pastor Alan.

In conclusion, Josiah knew the seasons in his life. He did what he could at different stages of his life.

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For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are attentive to their prayer (1 Peter 3:12)

When we have a slight accident or when something unexpectedly and suddenly happens that we cannot do anything about, we naturally become exasperated and helpless.

A good example of such a situation is a time when we unknowingly drop a small expensive item of jewelry, as we were walking to the shopping center, and then only to realize our loss some moments afterwards. This happened to us a fortnight ago when I drove my wife to the shopping center.

She was adamant that she still had the pendant on her when we walked from the car park but when we got to the entrance of the super market she suddenly realized that it had fallen off from the chain.

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The two of us anxiously traced through our steps, being very cautious just in case we trample on the pendant! Being shortsighted, I had to stoop low and move my head slowly from side to side. At the same time, I was not aware or had the slightest concern for several people nearby looking quizzically at what I was doing! I sometimes hope that my wife knew at that split second when it fell off (then exclaimed loudly!) so that then I would just have to look only at a small area around her instead of scouring through this vast unknown!

Also, the pendant is so dainty that it could have silently fallen away when it came off the hook without giving us the slightest alarm. I could predict that it could be anywhere between the car and the entrance which measures at least 100 meters in distance! It could also have fallen into a small grassy patch at the edge of the road (God forbid!) or directly onto the gravel road. Whichever the case may be, chances are we have lost the pendant for good.

What do you do when you are totally helpless? What does a child does when he or she is frightened and helpless? The child spontaneously yells out loudly for daddy or mummy! Note that in an uncontrollable and exasperating situation such as this when one would just about to give up in desperation, how people would gasp “Oh God!” (or better still) “Oh help me God!” This is analogous to the child’s cry to his/ her parents for help. Remember, not every one of us believes in God, yet in desperation, our inner self – the real us – would cry out to God for intervention!

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After we walked the route from the car park to the shopping center gate not less than a dozen times looking for the lost pendant unsuccessfully, we came near to the brink of giving up. We needed a miracle so I stopped and prayed! “Help us Father God because we are truly powerless; please help us”. Then Lo and behold, on our final lap back to the car, I spotted a passing flash of sunlight coming from some loose gravel stones as we passed it. As I stopped to inspect closely, I couldn’t believe I have found the pendant! It was propped up on its edge among the loose pebbles and it was well camouflaged if not for its telling glitter. There was an exclamation of joy and relief when I picked the pendant up and brought it back to the elated owner. Thank you Lord, and indeed You have heard and answered my prayer even as soon as it left my lips!

And this dilemma happened to us again and too soon! This time, we were walking with throngs of people also patronizing the stalls of a Sunday Market. We have finished our shopping for fresh fruit and vegetables and were on our way home.

Again my wife gave me that same worried look when she was putting away her reading glasses! There was only one ‘arm’ remaining on the spectacles and the other must have fallen off! She said that it must have dropped off near the cashier of the last shop we visited, as this was where she had put away her glasses after she had paid the shopkeeper.

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We hurried back to the fruit shop and found out that the spectacle ‘arm’ was not there. Not again! I know of the hordes of people moving freely near the shops and chances are they could have walked on it and broke it! We were again facing another frustrating and exasperating situation.

What did I do when we were looking in vain for the lost pendant only last week? Again I humbly prayed to God to intervene. Again, lo and behold, not long afterwards, we saw the spectacle arm hidden beside a tent post near the shop! I picked it up and danced around to the surprise of the people near us. Did he find a jar of gold coins or what, they murmured to one another? Oh, I contended silently that this was even much better than finding gold! It concerned the response of a benevolent God. It involved the blessing of a gracious God to His trusting and faithful servant. If we actually found what we lost just once, we can say that our good luck was all by chance.

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Many people can tell us that they have experienced mishaps of accidently losing especially small and precious belongings and least of all, thought about praying for them to be found and yet they finally found them! They dismiss the whole thing to be a chance of good fortune. Yes, maybe just once. But this good fortune cannot have happened twice in a short succession. The statistician would calculate your chances of finding the two items that you have lost over a short week and tell you that it is 1 chance in 3 million!

But we believe that what happened to us on the two occasions did not occur by chance. Firstly, we lost the pendant and then after trying tediously to find it ourselves, we mentally gave up and prayed to God for help. Secondly, we accidentally dropped the arm of the spectacles because its side screw became loose. This time, when we realized that finding was pretty slim, we did not even attempt to start looking for it but instead we prayed to God for help. And he blessed us for believing in Him again!

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How much more our loving God wants to bless us whenever we experience situations such as these and we openly confess helplessness and express our complete dependence on His providence. In fact I firmly believe that He desire us his loving children, not only to call upon Him in times of desperation and need, but to live our lives daily in full dependence on Him. We are to yield to Him all aspects of our doings and activities. He has shown in His word that He wants us to adopt the role of innocent children especially when we experience distressful and unavoidable happenings. He wants us to confess that we are not able without Him and to cry loudly to Him for help no matter how trivial the matter may be.

In Romans 12:12 His word calls us to always be habitual in prayer under all circumstances.

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction and faithful in prayer.

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POSTCRIPT

Even as I was typing my essay, a third mishap happened to me! I had retrieved my old briefcase and filled it with note pads, pens and texts in preparation for my Bible classes for next week. When I closed it, I realized that I couldn’t open it because I had somehow accidentally shifted the set code numbers of the lock when I shut it and now I cannot remember the code numbers to open it again! My mind was a total blank. I tried dialing 0-0-0 (which I often used) but no way. I called my wife to see if she remembered. She said we should pray! Then somehow she said to try 1-8-6. I asked why she picked that number, as it did not ring a bell to me. Somehow, I felt that I have seen 1-8-6 (don’t ask me why) so I dialed 186 and squeezed the lock buttons to open the briefcase. Clicked, the hinges flipped up – it worked! Thank you (again) mighty God!

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“Mari kita siapkan hati kita dulu. Mari kita berdoa. Bapa kami di syurga, kami berterima kasih untuk masa yang Engkau berikan kami. Kami ingin memohon agar berkat-Mu akan berlimpah-limpah ke dalam hidup kami.

“Kami berdoa agar Engkau akan terus berada di sisi kami dan hadirat-Mu akan melinkungi kami setiap masa. Dalam nama Yesus kami berdoa. Amen,” Dr Chew Keng Sheng berdoa di Faith Sanctuary of Glory Church, Kota Bahru, Kelantan pada bulan September hari bulan empat.

Dr Chew ingin berkhutbah tentang tiga rintangan yang dialami oleh Nikodemus sebelum dia percaya bahawa Yesus adalah Tuhan.

Adalah seorang Farisi yang bernama Nikodemus, seorang pemimpin agama Yahudi. Dia datang pada waktu malam kepada Yesus dan berkata: “Rabi, kami tahu, bahawa Engkau datang sebagai guru yang diutus Tuhan; sebab tidak ada seorang pun yang dapat mengadakan tanda-tanda yang Engkau adakan itu, jika Tuhan tidak menyertainya.”

Yesus menjawab, kata-Nya: “Aku berkata kepadamu, sesungguhnya jika seorang tidak dilahirkan kembali, dia tidak dapat melihat Kerajaan Tuhan.”

Kata Nikodemus kepada-Nya: “Bagaimanakah mungkin seorang dilahirkan, kalau dia sudah tua? Dapatkah dia masuk kembali ke dalam rahim ibunya dan dilahirkan lagi?”

Jawab Yesus: “Aku berkata kepadamu, sesungguhnya jika seorang tidak dilahirkan dari air dan Roh, dia tidak dapat masuk ke dalam Kerajaan Tuhan. Apa yang dilahirkan dari daging, adalah daging, dan apa yang dilahirkan dari Roh, adalah roh. Janganlah engkau hairan, kerana Aku berkata kepadamu: Kamu harus dilahirkan kembali.

(Yohanes Bab 3:1-7)

Ref: gospelofchristcrucified

Apabila kita membaca Yohanes bab tiga dari ayat pertama, kita mengetahui terdapat seorang Farisi bernama Nikodemus datang berjumpa dengan Yesus. Ada dua perkara yang pelik dalam cerita ini. Pertamanya, Nikodemus adalah seorang pemimpin orang beragama Yahudi yang benci akan Yesus. Keduanya, Nikodemus datang berjumpa dengan Yesus pada waktu malam dan bukan waktu siang.

“Nikodemus datang pada waktu malam supaya orang lain tidak nampak. Dia ingin merahsiakan pertemuannya dengan Yesus. Ini adalah kerana Nikodemus tahu kawan-kawan Farisinya akan mengutuk kunjungannya,” katanya.

Ramai orang Kristian salah faham bahawa kebanyakan orang percaya Yesus dengan serta-merta semasa mereka sedang mengalami krisis hidup yang dramatik. Contohnya, Paulus mengetahui Yesus dalam keadaan yang dramatik. Dalam perjalannya ke Damsyik, tiba-tiba satu cahaya memancar dari langit lalu dia merebah ke tanah dan terdengar suara Tuhan. Itulah cara Paulus bertemu dengan Tuhan pada kali pertama. Namun, bukan semua pertemuan orang dengan Yesus sedramatik Paulus. Sebenarnya, perubahan tersebut memerlukan proses dalam tempoh tertentu dan sangat bergantung kepada tindakbalas hati kita. 

Ref: heiscomingblog

“Sebenarnya, kepercayaan untuk Yesus ini bukan sahaja disebabkan krisis hidup tetapi ia adalah satu proses yang perlahan dan beransur-ansur, terutamanya untuk orang Asia.

“Kepercayaan ini tidak senang kerana kita mengalami terlalu banyak stigma dari segi sosial, budaya, dan keluarga. Contohnya, apabila saya percaya Yesus, saya mendapat tentangan yang hebat daripada keluarga dan juga masyarakat sekitar saya,” lanjutnya.

Kali kedua Nikodemus disebut dalam buku Yohanes ialah bab ketujuh dan ayat kelima-puluh-satu. Walaupun pemimpin-pemimpin Farisi mahu menangkap Yesus, Nikodemus menegakkan keadilan untuk-Nya. Nikodemus berkata kepada pemimpin-pemimpin Farisi yang benci akan Yesus, “Apakah hukum Taurat (atau Torah) kita menghukum seseorang sebelum dia didengar atau orang mengetahui apa yang dibuatnya?” Kepercayaan Nikodemus dalam hukuman Tauratnya sudah bergoyah pada waktu ini dan dia sudah mula percaya kata-kata Yesus.

Ref: heartriverlutheran

Kali ketiga Nikodemus disebut dalam buku Yohanes ialah bab sembilan-belas, ayat ketiga-sembilan. Pada masa ini, Nikodemus sudah percaya Yesus dan menjadi pengikut-Nya. Apabila Yesus mati di kayu salib, Nikodemus dan Yusuf dari Arimatea menurunkan mayat Yesus dari salib untuk dikebumikan. Malah firman berkata bahawa Nikodemus membawa campuran minyak mur dengan minyak gaharu sebanyak lima puluh kati beratnya untuk pengebumian Yesus.

“Kita boleh melihat proses Nikodemus dalam menemui Yesus. Kepercayaannya terhadap Yesus bukan sekadar krisis hidup yang dramatik tetapi ia mengambil masa yang lama,” tambahnya.

Berapa lamakah masanya untuk Nikodemus ambil untuk percaya Yesus? Yesus melakukan mujizat pertamanya – mengubah air menjadi arak dalam majlis perkahwinan – di bab kedua Yohanes. Dan dalam bab seterusnya, Nikodemus sudah bertemu dengan Yesus. Maka, dari masa Nikodemus mengetahui Yesus dan benar-benar menjadi pengikut-Nya (iaitu apabila Yesus di kayu salib), Nikodemus mengambil kira-kira dua hingga tiga tahun untuk percaya Yesus.

“Oleh itu, apakah aplikasi untuk kita sebagai pengikut Yesus? Saya mahu mendorong kita semua di sini. Jangan kita berputus asa dalam memberi firman untuk kawan-kawan dan ahli keluarga kita. Mungkin ada di kalangan mereka salah faham bahawa ajaran kita adalah ajaran sesat,” lanjutnya.

Ref: blogspot

Apakah ciri-ciri ajaran Kristian yang sesat atau serong? Ajaran Kristian yang sesat atau serong ialah ajaran yang menafikan pengorbanan Yesus sebagai satu-satunya cara untuk menyelamatkan jiwa kita. Ini adalah kerana kita tahu hanya dengan iman kita terhadap pengorbanan Yesus di kayu salib, jiwa kita telah diselamatkan oleh-Nya selama-lamanya.

Maka, mungkin kawan-kawan atau ahli keluarga kita memerlukan lebih masa untuk memahami konsep-konsep dalam ajaran Kristian. Contohnya, konsep tritunggal Tuhan (yang terdiri daripada Tuhan Bapa, Tuhan Yesus, dan Roh Kudus) mengambil masa yang lama untuk faham dan terima. Lebih-lebih lagi, konsep ini menjadi lebih sukar untuk terima dan faham, tanpa pemikiran dari Tuhan yang dianugerahkan oleh Roh Kudus. Ini adalah kerana kemampuan kita sebagai manusia adalah terhad.

Maka, rintangan kedua yang ramai orang hadapi dalam percaya kepada Yesus ialah rintangan intelek. Contohnya, Nikodemus tidak faham maksud Yesus yang mengatakan seseorang mesti dilahirkan kembali untuk melihat kerajaan Tuhan.

“Tetapi apa yang Yesus maksudkan ialah kelahiran rohani, bukan fizikal. Maka, apabila kamu ada kawan-kawan yang mempunyai rintangan intelek, janganlah kita menjawab mereka terus-menerus tetapi tanya dulu maksud sebenar mereka.

“Contohnya, kalau kawan-kawan kita mengatakan alkitab Kristian adalah tidak benar, tanya balik. Kalau kita tidak tahu masalah atau punca utama, kita tidak boleh meneruskan perbualan kita dengan baik. Bicara dan siasat dulu. Janganlah kita memberi jawapan kita dengan serta-merta,” katanya.

Penganut-penganut Kristian di Faith Sanctuary of Glory Church, Kota Bahru, Kelantan

Selain konsep tritunggal, konsep yang sukar difahami juga ialah kewujudan Tuhan yang melebihi tiga dimensi. Tidak seperti manusia, Tuhan tidak dihadkan oleh dimensi masa. Kerana itulah Tuhan kita adalah Alpha dan Omega. (Wahyu 1:8) Tuhan tahu segala-Nya. Cara dan pemikiran-Nya juga adalah luar biasa.

“Satu gambaran yang baik ialah kita cuba menerangkan rupa tiub kepada seseorang yang tinggal dalam dunia dua dimensi. Walaupun kamu boleh menerangkan bentuk tiub itu, orang dalam dunia dua dimensi tidak akan dapat membayangkan rupanya.

“Oleh itu, Tuhan yang tinggal di dimensi yang melebihi dimensi kita tidak boleh menguraikan segala-galanya untuk kita dengan jelas. Ini adalah kerana manusia sesungguhnya adalah terhad,” lanjutnya.

Rintangan ketiga dialami oleh Nikodemus ialah rintangan kerohanian, iaitu rintangan yang paling sukar untuk diatasi. Untuk masalah kerohanian, satu-satunya cara untuk mengatasi masalah ini ialah kelahiran rohani semula.

“Dalam masalah ini, Roh Kudus Tuhan memainkan peranan yang sangat penting. Ini adalah kerana hanya dengan Roh Kudus, segala rintangan mustahil boleh diatasi. Maka, doalah selalu untuk kawan kamu kerana tiada manusia boleh melakukan perbuatan Roh Kudus dalam hati kawan.

Maka berbicaralah dia, katanya: “Inilah firman TUHAN kepada Zerubabel  bunyinya: Bukan  dengan keperkasaan dan bukan dengan kekuatan, melainkan dengan roh-Ku, firman TUHAN semesta alam. (Zakaria 4:6)

Kanak-kanak sedang belajar alkitab di Faith Sanctuary of Glory Church, Kota Bahru, Kelantan

“Jadi, apabila Nikodemus mengalami kuasa Roh Kudus Tuhan, hatinya diubah dan pemikirannya dibuka. Hanya pada masa itulah, Nikodemus mampu untuk memahami Yesus, disebabkan Roh Kudus Tuhan.

“Kalau kita bergantung kepada kepandaian manusia, hasil kita adalah amat kecil. Ini adalah kerana hanya Roh Kudus berkuasa untuk mengubah hati manusia,” tambahnya.

Akulah pokok anggur dan kamulah ranting-rantingnya. Barangsiapa tinggal di dalam Aku dan Aku di dalam dia, ia berbuah banyak, sebab di luar Aku kamu tidak dapat berbuat apa-apa. (Yohanes 15:5)

pada waktu itu Dia telah menyelamatkan kita, bukan kerana perbuatan baik yang telah kita lakukan, tetapi kerana rahmat-Nya oleh permandian kelahiran kembali dan oleh pembaharuan yang dikerjakan oleh Roh Kudus (Titus 3:5)

Dr Chew juga memerhati bahawa ramai orang tidak menyukai agama Kristian disebabkan masalah emosi juga (walaupun masalah ini tidak ketara dalam Nikodemus). Mereka tidak suka pergi ke gereja atau tidak suka agama Kristian kerana mereka pernah disinggung oleh pengikut-pengikut Yesus.

Penganut-penganut Kristian di Faith Sanctuary of Glory Church, Kota Bahru, Kelantan

“Namun, lebih daripada masalah emosi, kerohanian adalah masalah yang terutama kerana dunia kita mempunyai kerajaan roh terang dan kerajaan roh gelap yang tidak boleh dilihat dengan pandangan mata.

kerana perjuangan kita bukanlah melawan darah dan daging, tetapi melawan pemerintah-pemerintah, melawan penguasa-penguasa, melawan penghulu-penghulu dunia yang gelap ini, melawan roh-roh jahat di udara. (Efesus 6:12)

“Maka, setiap kali seseorang percaya Yesus, itu sebenarnya perlawanan dalam roh alam. Dan kerana itulah kita mesti berdoa selalu untuk kawan-kawan kita,” katanya.

Kesimpulannya, seperti Nikodemus, tiga rintangan yang orang tidak percaya alami ialah rintangan sosial dan budaya, rintangan intelek, dan rintangan rohani. Selain itu, mereka juga mengalami masalah emosi untuk percaya Yesus.

“Maka, seperti seorang doktor yang cekap, kita mestilah menyiasat penyakit pesakit kita sebelum memberi ubat. Diagnosis kita mestilah betul. Apakah sebenarnya masalah kawan saya? Adakah kawan saya sedang mengalami masalah budaya, intelek, rohani atau emosi?

“Secara dasarnya, semua masalah adalah masalah rohani. Kadang-kala, kawan kita mungkin ada lebih daripada satu masalah. Dan walaupun seseorang bertanya banyak soalan intelek, masalahnya mungkin bukan masalah intelek tetapi masalah emosi.

“Maka, cara terbaik ialah bertanya dengan Roh Kudus untuk memberi jawapan yang tepat dan benar. Doa kepada Tuhan untuk memberi kita hikmat untuk menjadi bejana-Nya untuk membawa berkat kepada kawan-kawan kita,” lanjutnya.

Kanak-kanak di Faith Sanctuary of Glory Church, Kota Bahru, Kelantan

Dr Chew mengakhirkan khutbahnya dengan satu doa, “Yesus Tuhan, berilah kami hikmat agar kami boleh terus menjadi bejana-Mu untuk kawan-kawan kami yang masih berada dalam kegelapan seperti Nikodemus.

“Berilah kami satu kesabaran dan kerendahan diri agar hati kami sentiasa dapat diajar, supaya hidup kami sesuai dengan rencana-Mu. Kami mengakui bahawa betapa banyak hikmat atau usaha kami, tanpa kekuasaan Roh Kudus-Mu, adalah mustahil untuk kami membuahkan hasil. Dalam nama Yesus kami berdoa. Amen.”

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Moses only started to lead the Israelites out of Egypt at 80 years old. And at 61 years old now, Pastor Moses Solomon is answering God in his final stretch of life to start operating a church at Kuala Krai, Kelantan, with nothing but faith in God. He learned that God’s work never lack God’s providence.

And so, the church was birthed through registration in year 2012, called the Malaysia Rhema Centre. With contractors and donors sent by God, even favor from nonbelivers in renting out the church premise, Pastor Moses has lived a life of seeing God parting the Red Sea over and over again. God never let him down.

Yet, this faith was not built on the comforts and pleasures of life. At 19 years old, Pastor Moses moved from his hometown in Slim River in Perak to stay with his uncle in Kuala Krai. After eight months of unemployment, God granted him a job in Barlow Bousted Agency in Gua Musang to work as a technician for steaming boilers. 

Pastor Moses (left) standing beside a diesel engine of a ship

In Gua Musang, although he was provided accomodation to stay, Pastor Moses had to be responsible for his own food. Yet, with only RM6 given in his pocket, he was unable to travel to the nearest town to buy food. For close to 20 days, he would only drink water until his feet would swell from malnourishment.

Yet, God was ever faithful. He sustained Pastor Moses by giving him favor through his neighbors who would offer him dinner. At that time, he learned to dine many types of exotic animals including anteaters, wild boars, and deers. It was at this time as well, he drew closer to God by feeding on His spiritual food through the Word.

Finally, after one month of lacking in food and sleeping on hard ground overlaid by newspapers, Pastor Moses received his first pay from the company. God promoted him to enjoy two meals a day at the canteen of his corporate with RM60 per month.

So, looking back, everything he is today came from God who divinely appointed him with many angels in his life. At 26 years old, God gave him the opportunity to obtain a government certificate for fixing steaming boilers and diesel engines (generator set).

The Lord also connected him with a good friend from Taiwan who would teach him the mechanics, formulas, and calculations for heavy machineries. And hence, with the advanced certificates of fixing steaming boilers from Australia and Singapore, Pastor Moses was able to steadily advance in his career later in Sime Darby and in Great Eastern Mills.

While advancing in his career, Pastor Moses also diligently served in the church as the handy-man. Gifted in fixing things, he was given the tasks from buying and setting up musical equipments to fixing the lights in the church. He did everything that was needed, from maintaining the church to leading the prayer group and finally preaching at the pulpit.

Pastor Moses (left) praying for a brother-in-Christ

The Lord was with him every step of the way. There was one time, before he devoted his life to God, he was saved from a fatal accident by the angel of God. Riding his motorcycle in high speed, he collided with a bull that suddenly blocked his path. Although the whole motorcycle was wrecked in pieces, he came out of the hospital the same day he was admitted with only bruises and stitches.

Hence, for more than 30 years Pastor Moses faithfully served in the church, following three prophesies made on him. The first prophesy came from Howard Wickford from United States who pointed at him in the middle of a prayer altar and said, “Son, God wants you to serve Him.” Another two guest speakers also prophesied on him after that.

But it was at the fourth prophecy, Pastor Moses heeded the call, which was when the wife of his Senior Pastor John Ezekiel prayed for him, Hepsiba John. Since then, she actively taught him the Word, fasting and praying, interceding, and everything she knew. When the pastoral family left Kuala Krai on 1984, Pastor Moses was already prepared to do God’s work under the guidance of another senior pastor.

Not only God has equipped him with skills, the Lord has also built Pastor Moses’ and his wife Gnanam’s faith. Through their experience with God, they never lacked and God never let them down.

Gnanam, a headmistress in a Tamil school at Kuala Krai, shared how God was faithful to her during the recent flood in Kelantan. While reading her daily devotional, the Bible verse Isaiah 28:17 stood out to her, which says, “And water will overflow your hiding place.” At that time, she knew in her heart that the rain waters would flood into her place.

Hence, on that night of Christmas Eve at 10 PM, she prepared for the flood by placing the chairs on the table and moved her Christmas tree on the cabinet. She went upstairs to sleep in the bedroom until past midnight when the couple could hear their neighbors shouting for evacuation.

Gnanam (first from left) and Pastor Moses (second from left) with Damien Chua (second from right) and a brother-in-Christ

Coming downstairs in their home, Pastor Moses and Gnanam realized that the water has flooded in and risened to ankle-level. While Pastor Moses quickly drove his car to higher ground, Gnanam found herself at peace packing her bag, as she waddled in knee-length level to the church premise at higher ground. At that time, the water was rising three feet every hour. 

Had God not warn her earlier, she would be shocked to find the flood waters gushing into her immaculately clean house. Yet, because she was faithful in reading the Word of God, God gave her peace to go through the flood.

The flood rose to an unprecedented level beyond their expectation, as it rained for eight days. Standing at their church premise, in full view of his double-storey house that was half immersed in water, Pastor Moses flung his hands up into the sky and asked for God to stop the rain and forgiveness from Him for all his sin. The rain miraculously stopped the next day.

And after the flood, Pastor Moses found strength to clean his house only after three months. The flood has caused demotivation for weeks. But as soon as he decided to fix his house, God provided him so much funds that he could even donate his supplies to other people and churches. Hence, such was the journey of faith that Pastor Moses and his wife Gnanam had.

Although the couple did not earn much since Pastor Moses quit his job to be a pastor, God had faithfully provided for them. The LORD preserved their health, which saved them costly hospital fees. The LORD has also preserved their Honda City of more than 15 years without much fixing fees. This was how God financially blessed Pastor Moses and Gnanam.

And such faith has been exemplified to their son Selwyn. Gnanam recalled how her nine-year-old son would come home crying because his friends would teased him of his small house.

Hence, during their evening walk, Gnanam and his son would faithfully pray to God, for a particular house in an empty developed plot. Little Selwyn would come home every day announcing that he had pray to God for the house, every time he passed by it in his bicycle. And God was faithful to provide them! As promised to God, the house is now dedicated to Him as a place of refuge and rest for the servants of God who are passing by Kuala Krai.

Pastor Moses and his grown-up son Selvyn

Not only their house but the building of the church came from the hands of God. Believers of God came to offer contributions to Pastor Moses’ church including his carpet, signboard, speakers, fans, and even the work in renovating the church. Not only that, God also moved the heart of non-believers to show favor to Pastor Moses in renting the premise at a low rate.

During the church dedication in 2013, Pastor Moses was amazed to see how God filled the church beyond the 60-seat capacity. People even had to stand on the side! Pastor Alan Tan from Klang even flew to dedicate the church. And God was faithful to provide Pastor Moses the means to serve all his guests a sumptuous buffet dinner.

Hence, at 61 years old now, Pastor Moses is seeing the prophesy of God fulfilled in his life. He finally understood why God has placed him in Kuala Krai. It is to be the beacon of light for Him there. The church is now operating with two families and a civil engineer who is willing to serve the community with free tuition. Praise the Lord!

Many of us are afraid to step into what God has called us to, because we lack the faith that God will enable us to fulfill the vision. But God’s vision will never lack God’s resources! We are only called to obey and take the first step. And because Moses took the first step and one step at a time after that, he saw the supernatural hands of God in his life. God’s word became alive!

Hence, having walked with God for over 40 years now, Pastor Moses and his wife Gnanam testified of God’s faithfulness in providing for their needs. God never let them down. In full dependence on God, Pastor Moses Solomon and his wife Gnanam look forward to serve God for the rest of their lives in their Father’s house.

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Introduction

The death of Christ on the cross reveals two important attributes about GOD. It shows GOD’s responsibility for man and Christ’s obedience to the Father, for man.

A Responsible GOD

GOD is responsible. With man’s fall into sin, God did not abandon man. GOD provided man the alternative of being redeemed—but only if man selected that alternative. The alternative was fully secured by GOD. GOD himself paid the price. He sent His son Jesus Christ as the ransom price to save many (Mark 10:45).Christ died as sin in order to deliver us from sin and its power (2 Cor 5:21).

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GOD’s Responsibility before the Foundation of the World

GOD in exercising His responsibility did not do a patchwork redemption, trying to cover up holes here and there. He had, before the foundation of the world chosen us to be in Christ (Eph 1:4).GOD was responsible towards us. GOD remains responsible towards us. The Spirit of GOD dwells in us, and makes us GOD’s temple (1 Cor 3:16). Here again, GOD does not abandon us to our own devices, to grope in the dark for our salvation. The Spirit of GOD guides us in our sanctification.

Christ’s Obedience

Christ’s obedience was to meet GOD’s redemption plan as the sacrifice for sin. Christ had repeatedly made references to His following the will of the Father and not His own will (Luke 22:42; John 4:34; 6:38-40). Even the timing of Christ’s second coming is solely for the Father to decide (Mark 13:32).

The Mind of Christ

If we expect eternal redemption, we should submit totally to the will of GOD, just as Christ did. We commit our will as Christ did to the plan of GOD. St. Paul says that we have the mind of Christ (1 Cor 2:16). He did not say that we could have the mind of Christ: we HAVE the mind of Christ—every one of us. The Holy Spirit living in us points to Christ’s perspective.

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The Will of GOD

The will of GOD should be our compass. The will of GOD is for all men to come to Christ (1 Tim 2:3-4; 2 Pet 3:9). Everything we say, do or think about, should have GOD’s will as our objective.

Therefore we have, as Paul says, to die daily (1 Cor 15:31). As Christ said, we have to carry our cross (Matthew 16:24).This death and crucifixion is of ourselves to the world. We are in the world–but not of the world (John 17:16).  

Christ said that we are instead the light of the world, the salt of the earth and a city on a hill, to be clearly visible. We are the gospel carriers in our daily roles (Matt 5:13-16). We are not alone in this. Christ is the source of all authority and is with us always to the end of time, to see this through (Matt 28:18 & 20).

Plans and desires are in order ONLY if Christ is foremost in them. Good things end up bad choices if we leave GOD out of them altogether.

Ref: strangenotions

How do we ensure that we are true to the will of GOD?

Three main areas apply in assessing how we meet the will of GOD.

Prayer

Charles Spurgeon (1834-92), the Baptist preacher, maintained that the Lord Himself is the first source of our sustenance (see Spurgeon’s Faith Checkbook, July 4th).Christ comes before bread, Spurgeon says. We relate to GOD through prayer. Prayer is our first and foremost duty. It is not a spare-time activity for a quick fix. Instead, it is a consistent priority. Prayer to GOD is our focus always (1 Thess 5:17), everywhere (1 Tim 2:8), for everything (Phil 4:6).  

A person with little dependence on prayer is like a ship with no rudder: it drifts aimlessly. We need to seriously pray over our concerns to GOD and to listen to GOD: we do not force issues to GOD for endorsement. Are we listening to the guidance from the in-dwelling the Holy Spirit?

Ref: 364daysofthanksgiving

The Word of GOD 

The word of GOD is our spiritual map (Matt 4:4; Eph 6:17; 2 Tim 3:16 &17).We should evaluate what we think, plan to say, or do, in the light of GOD’s word. We should identify if we are breaking any of GOD’s commandments. We should ask if GOD would back us up in what we are exercising. Would Christ be pleased with what we do? Would Christ Himself do this? Did Christ ask us to do this? Is doing it going to give Christ a bad name? How would our actions help the advance of the gospel?

Free from worldly lusts

We do not follow the values of the world. The Bible warns us about lusting for the things in the world and conforming to them. This is because we are not of the world and the things of the world are in contrast to the things of GOD. They do not gel with GOD’s priorities. We should divest our attachments to the world (Jn 17:14; Rom 12:2; James 4:4; 1 Jn 2:15-17; 1 Jn 3:13). 

We should examine the motives for all that we exercise in life. Are we engaged in pursuits just to please others? Do we blindly do things because others engage in them? Are we pursuing something in order to “save our face”? Are we ethical and honest in all that we are involved in? Do we justify misleading or cheating others in order to “bless” the Kingdom of GOD? Are we drawn unduly to something which seems to be terribly irresistible and too good to refuse? Are we doing all things for the glory of GOD (1 Cor 10:31)?

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Conclusion 

The cross of Christ shows us that GOD has never abandoned us. He is within us. We have the mind of Christ to do the will of GOD. We should therefore audit our motives. Our purposes must be blessed by GOD, our motives conformed to His word as well as to Christ’s standards, and our pursuits are not to be rooted in the world.

NOTE: Tony Dibble worships at Endeavour Christian Gathering, in Perth, Western Australia. Prior to this, he was attending the Church of Our Holy Saviour (COHS), in Labuan, East Malaysia. When in Kuala Lumpur, he worships and preaches at Faith Oasis Fellowship (FOF) Subang Jaya, Selangor.

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Josh Yeoh grew up as part of the worship team in FGA Penang, in an environment where prophesying frequently intertwines with worshipping God. He loved worship but not so much prayer. 

“I’m the last person to be leading a house of prayer. God has a cool sense of humour right?” said Josh, the Director of Penang House of Prayer (PENHOP) and speaker for the Harp and Bowl workshop in Kajang AOG on September 19th. 

“He picks the least likely person to do this. But I recognize when we feel like we have a problem with worship or prayer, that is not the problem. The problem is a lack of revelation of God.

“You never have a worship problem; you have a revelation problem. Why? Because worship is actually a response to the revelation of God. That is worship in its essence,” stressed Josh.

Our depth of worship follows our depth of revelation in God. God responds to our heart. Because of that, although we may be average in our musical skills and vocal, heaven comes down when we understand the meaning of the lyrics in our being.

The congregation of KAOG coming to experience the worship model of Harp and Bowl

“It’s when you journey with the Lord and when you build your history with Him, you will worship him authentically. You cannot fake authenticity. You cannot fake intimacy,” said Josh.

He recalled reading about Martha and Mary during the death of Lazarus. When Jesus came, Martha and Mary said to Jesus the same thing, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” (John 11:21; 32) But Jesus only wept over Mary. (John 11:35)

“It has always puzzled me, why Jesus did not cry over Martha? And something struck me. Every time Mary was mentioned, she was sitting at the feet of Jesus,” said Josh.

Unlike a passive position of doing nothing, Mary is waiting for Jesus. Notice that she only went to meet Jesus when she was called, while Martha immediately rose to meet Jesus. Both did the right thing in meeting Jesus. But the difference is timing.

“Have you ever considered timing? Timing is so important,” said Josh.

Like apples of gold in settings of silver is a ruling rightly given. (Proverbs 25:11)

Josh preaching about the meaning of worship

He shared how his friend Alan received and kept a prophetic Word from God about him, until God directed him to release it at the right time.

“It takes a real man of intimacy with God to keep that Word in, to know that God has shown this, so he has to pray about it until God says, ‘Now, tell Josh,’” he said.

During this time of waiting for God, Alan did not passsively wait but he actively interceded for Josh. And when the time came for Alan to reveal, it came as a confirmation for Josh who personally received this same message from God two days earlier.

“If Alan had been insensitive and told me a few months earlier, I would say, ‘That’s good. Thank you brother.’ But nothing change in my heart. Timing is so crucial,” said Josh.

Mary only went when she was called by Jesus. She had a depth of intimacy with Jesus. Hence, it is not only hearing what the Father is saying. It’s also saying it when the Father wants us to say and how He wants us to say it.

“So, how we communicate the heart of God – the time we do it and the way we do it – they are as important as what we hear the Father is saying,” said Josh.

Mary would posture herself to hear from the Lord. She was active in doing things. But when Jesus showed up, she stopped doing everything. Jesus was number one.

Ref: epicpew

“As we enter into this worship and prayer, a lot of times when we go into the prayer meeting, it’s not all about hitting the right things,” said Josh.

Worship and prayer is about being sensitive to God’s voice and pray according to what we hear. A spiritual warfare is won not through decibels or formula of words, but through an authentic an intimate relationship with God. We need not force His presence to come.

So, what kind of relationship do we have with God? We have a Father-child relationship, like how Jesus has a Father-Son relationship with God. How did Jesus relate to the Father? Jesus did everything He sees His Father is doing. (John 5:19)

Jesus came to die for our sins, not only so that we can go to Heaven, but we can have the same authentic and intimate relationship that Jesus had with God! This is made possible by His Holy Spirit, which dwells in us. (Gal 4:6)

Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who call out, “Abba, Father.” (Gal 4:6)

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“So, how else can we accomplish these great works? We can do nothing apart from Him. So, the implication for you and me is when we walk in the same level of intimacy and authority (like Jesus did with God), we can do like Jesus did on earth as well,” said Josh, stirring the audience for authentic kingdom living.

Josh shared that Harp and Bowl is not providing a model to merely copy, but a glimpse of how worship happens from a response to a reality in our heart that grows us into an authentic relationship with God.

Asians in particular are excellent in copying, in which the copied product sometimes turned out to be better than the original product.

“But often, when we take that into Christianity, what we end up doing is copying. We copy what we see in YouTube and what we hear others are doing, But we do not have the authentic, genuine expression within our heart to worship Him.

“So, worship is a response to the revelation of who God is. If you want a better worship, what do you do? Increase your level of revelation of God. You can sing the same song but because you’ve gone deeper and higher with God, all these words hit you in a whole new way,” said Josh.

Ref: noveltybox

For example, he shared how he had a deeper worship in God for the song – How Great is our God – when he had a deeper relevation about Him.

During his university days, he discovered that the thundering sound of the Niagara Falls simultaneously filled up the entire audible wavelengths of a sound machine. Hence, when Jesus says that His Voice is like the roar of rushing waters (Rev 14:2), He is actually saying that His Voice covers all the wavelengths of sound.

“Jesus is saying His Voice covers every spectrum of sound. And sometimes, we will say, ‘How can we hear God?’ How can we not? It’s like going to Niagara Falls, we ask, ‘How do you hear Niagara Falls?’ Jesus says, ‘My sheep hear my voice.’ It’s is harder to not hear God than to hear God,” said Josh.

Jesus also spoke creation into life. (John 1:3) This means every creation contains a resonation of His Voice, and all Creation respond to His Voice!

Not only Jesus returns to earth with a voice like the roar of rushing waters (Rev 14:2), His eyes also blaze with fire (Rev 19:12) and his hair is white like snow (Rev 1:14).

“So, when I sing, ‘The splendor of the king’ (in How Great is Our God), do you see that in your heart already? This is the king who is ‘robed in majesty’! Woah!” he said.

Ref: grahamchurch

The song ‘How Great is Our God’ continues with ‘He wraps Himself with light.” Jesus is the light of the world (John 8:12). in fact, He is brighter than the sun (Acts 26:13)! Imagine how bright Jesus is! He is so bright that light is only His accessory.

“All of a sudden, even though we play the four chords over and over again, Jesus becomes so real. Did we change the chords? No. Did we change the words? No. Why? But because our hearts are unlocked in worship, our revelation about Him has increased,” said Josh.

So, when we feel that we have a worship problem, it is a revelation problem. And the key to this problem is when Paul says, “I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better.” (Eph 1:17) The spirit of wisdom is how to apply what we know. The spirit of revelation is knowing what we do not know from God. In other words, Paul is praying, “Help us God to know You.”

Ref: findingourfeet

And for what purpose? Paul says, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people.” (Eph 1:18)

“Did you know that our generation is one of the most hopeless generation? There’s no hope because their eyes of understanding is not opened. We say what we hope for. But we are only repeating what we hear from Facebook.

“But when your eyes are opened, you begin to see God’s Perspective. What He says He do, He will do. There’s hope in His Calling and the riches of His inheritance for his saints!” said Josh.

Ref: southcongareelighthousebaptistchurch

What is inheritance? Inheritance is God’s most valuable possession placed in His most valuable creation – us, the only creation made in His image. And this possession, God will call it forth from us when the time is right.

“Wow! The inheritance of God is inside you and me. And God has wrapped you with that. So, on this side of eternity – when you say yes to Him, when you come into a place of prayer, when you worship Him, when you agree with Him, when you say, ‘Jesus, do what you want in my life’ – you are actually saying, ‘Jesus, receive your inheritance.’

“Whatever You place in me, the make up You made me – I am a musician, I am a make-up artiste, I am an entrepreneur, I am a businessman, I am a housewife – all these things, the thing that You place in me, belongs to You. They are your inheritance.

“All of a sudden, you don’t take things lightly anymore. When you clean dishes as a mum, you say, ‘This is my inheritance. Jesus is waiting for me to give it to Him.’ It’s powerful, all it takes is for your eyes to be opened,” said Josh.

He continued, “How amazing is that! And that’s just two bible verses. And all of a sudden, you begin to understand more. And you begin to worship God because worship is the response to the revelation of God. And when you worship in response to revelation, something shifts in your heart.”

Josh teaching the Harp and Bowl model to the worshippers of Kajang AOG

Finally, worship is agreeing with who God says He is. God says, “I am a holy God”; worship says, “God, you are a holy God.” God says, “I am your Father”; worship says, “You are my Father.” God says, “I am the righteous judge”; worship says, “You are the righteous judge.” 

“You know what intercession is? Intercession is agreeing with what God says He will do. God says, ‘I will pour out my Spirit in Kajang.’ Intercession says, “God, You will pour out your spirit in Kajang.’

“God says, ‘I want your entire family to be saved.’ What intercession says? Intercession says, ‘God, You want my entire family to be saved. Save my family!’ God says, ‘I want the young people to turn from the world, run wholeheartedly after Me.’ What’s the intercession? Interession says, ‘God turn the hearts of the young people to run wholeheartedly after you.’

“And when we come into that understanding of worship and intercession, it suddenly becomes very not mysterious,” said Josh.

Finally, worship is a response to a revelation from God. The deeper the revelation, the deeper our worship is, in God and for God, through an intimate and authentic relationship with Him.

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Sudir, seorang orang asli, berjumpa dengan Tuhan Bapa apabila kakaknya tiba-tiba jatuh sakit dan terlantar di katil selama tiga bulan. Walaupun bapanya ialah seorang ahli mata, tiada jampi atau ubat hospital yang boleh menyembuhkan kakaknya yang sudah terlantar di katil selama tiga bulan. Sampailah satu hari, Tuhan menghantar seorang pendeta Pak Charlie.

Pak Charlie mendapati bahawa kakak Sudir sudah sakit. Maka, selepas meminta keizinan untuk ‘menjampi’ kakaknya, Pak Charlie pun berdoa untuk penyembuhan kakaknya dalam nama Yesus.

Sudir berasa amat hairan kerana tiada pantang-larang dalam hal makanan untuk kakaknya. Namun, Pak Charlie menasihati Sudir supaya membaca beberapa ayat dari firman Tuhan yang ditulis untuknya. Maka, Sudir pun membaca firman Tuhan pada masa kesunyian dan mengakhiri firman tersebut dengan doa kepada Bapa Tuhan.

Ref: wwf

Lama-kelamaan, kakaknya boleh duduk di atas katil, merangkak, dan akhirnya berjalan. Apabila bapa Sudir melihat mujizat tersebut, dia pun menggesa Sudir untuk mencari Pak Charlie, supaya Sudir boleh belajar ilmu sihir daripadanya.

Maka, Sudir mulai mengikuti Pak Charlie ke kampung-kampung dan desa-desa untuk memberitakan Yesus Kristus. Ada orang yang mengganas dengan menunjukkan parang dan membalingkan batu. Tetapi walaupun Sudir ingin membalas dendam dengan pukulan, Pak Charlie menasihatinya supaya berdoa untuk mereka.

Pak Charlie berkata dengannya, “Bagaimana kau nak menerima kuasa, iaitu kuasa kelemah-lembutan dan bukan kuasa kejahatan. Untuk menerima kuasa ini, kau harus menerima Yesus sebagai juru selamat. Dari situlah, Yesus akan memberi kuasa kepadamu. Kalau kau percaya dan berdoa, kau akan diberi kuasa. Itu Roh Kudus Tuhan yang menolongmu. Bukan saya yang memberi kuasa kepadamu. Saya cuma memberitakan tetapi Roh Kudus Tuhan yang akan mengajar kau segalanya.”

Ref: backyardtravel

Dalam pembelajarannya dengan Pak Charlie, kakaknya jatuh sakit lagi dan meninggal dunia. Pada waktu ini, ibu dan adik-beradik Sudir menerima Yesus sebagai juru penyelamat mereka. Maka, mereka amat dibenci oleh orang-orang kampung mereka kerana mereka dianggap pengkhianat adat nenek moyang mereka. Namun, mereka tetap berpegang kepada iman mereka terhadap Yesus Kristus. Upacara pengebumian kakaknya yang sudah menerima Yesus tenang dan sunyi-sepi sekali tanpa bau yang busuk dan bunyi-bunyi yang aneh. Puji Tuhan kerana dalam nama-Nya yang maha kuasa, segala kutukan nenek moyang dipatahkan!

Pada masa inilah juga Sudir merasai satu dorongan yang kuat dari Roh Kudus Tuhan untuk menuntut di pengajian alkitab in Sabah. Sewaktu Sudir menamatkan pengajiannya, dia terus masuk ke dalam pedalaman untuk memberitakan Yesus kepada anak-anak bangsanya. Kadang-kala, Sudir berjalan sehingga lima belas jam sebelum dia sampai ke kampung. Malah, kenderaannya pernah dibakar satu kali dan diceraikan motor tiga kali semasa Sudir masuk ke dalam hutan untuk memberitakan Yesus. Hidupnya sebagai seorang pendeta Yesus Kristus memang tidak kurang daripada cabaran seperti Paulus.

Sudir yang sedang memandang jauh ke masa hadapan yang cerah untuk orang-orang asli Malaysia

Maka, adalah menjadi tabiat untuk Sudir sebagai pendeta untuk menyiapkan dirinya dengan firman Tuhan, doa, dan juga puasa sebelum dia memasuki pedalaman. Kebanyakan orang-orang di suku-suku dan puak-puak lain – walaupun mereka sememangnya anak Tuhan Bapa yang amat disayangi – tidak mesra dengan pemberitaan Yesus, malah ada di kalangan mereka akan menyerang.

Terdapat sebuah kampung di pedalaman yang memasang belantik untuk Sudir dan kawan-kawannya. Tetapi puji Tuhan, kerana Tuhan menghantar seorang lelaki untuk memberi amaran kepada mereka, supaya tidak lalu di tempat tersebut. Namun, selepas berdoa, Sudir dan kawan-kawannya didorong oleh Roh Kudus Tuhan untuk melalui belantik tersebut dengan kerendahan hati. Seperti Musa yang berjalan menerusi lautan yang dibuka, Sudir dan kawan-kawannya juga berjalan menerusi belantik tersebut. Malah lembing-lembing belantik ditolak ke belakang untuk membuka jalan kepada Sudir dan kawan-kawannya. Tiga bulan kemudian, orang-orang di kampung tersebut dibaptiskan dalam nama Yesus yang maha kuasa.

Bukan itu sahaja, Sudir dan kawan-kawannya pernah mengalami serangan sewang, iaitu serangan roh-roh gunung-ganang, air, dan daratan secara sekali gus terhadap kumpulan mereka. Semasa mereka berjalan menuju ke satu kampung, dua orang dari kumpulan Sudir tiba-tiba jatuh pengsan. Tetapi kerana Sudir telah menyiapkan dirinya dalam Roh Kudus Tuhan dengan membaca firman, berdoa, dan berpuasa, dia selamat daripada serangan. Maka, dia pun mencari dan membakar bahan jampian yang ditanam berhampiran mereka. Selepas itu, dia berdoa dengan kawan-kawan yang sudah jatuh pengsan. Tuhan Bapa pun menyedarkan mereka supaya mereka boleh meneruskan perjalanan ke dalam kampung. Tiga bulan kemudian, orang-orang kampung itu juga dibaptiskan dalam nama Yesus! Puji Tuhan!

Ref: febc

Namun, cabarannya belum tamat di kampung ini. Semasa Sudir menjalani perhimpunan penyembahan Tuhan, terdapat orang yang melakukan serangan sewang untuk melawan kuasa Tuhan. Tetapi, oleh sebab darah Yesus yang kudus dan sudah menuntut jiwa mereka sebagai jiwa milik-Nya, maka segala serangan dipatahkan! Semua orang berdiri dengan tegap dan tabah dalam penyembahan Tuhan Bapa, genap dengan kekudusan-Nya.

Maka, dalam setiap cabaran yang Sudir alami, dia mengingati dorongan Tuhan Bapa yang mengatakan kepadanya, “Berbahagialah kamu, jika kerana Aku, kamu dicela dan dianiaya dan kepadamu difitnahkan segala yang jahat. Bersukacita dan bergembiralah, kerana upahmu besar di syurga, sebab demikian juga telah dianiaya nabi-nabi yang sebelum kamu.” (Matius 5:11-12)

Marilah kita semua berdoa untuk keselamatan dan keberkatan pastor Sudir kerana ketaatannya kepada misi yang diberi Tuhan Bapa

Tuhan Bapa yang maha pengasih bukan sahaja mendorong Sudir dengan kata-kata-Nya yang hidup dalam firman, tetapi Dia juga menunjukkan kehadiran-Nya dengan melakukan pelbagai mujizat-mujizat kepada Sudir.

Sudir masih mengingati mujizat kebangkitan mayat, seperti kebangkitan Lazarus oleh Tuhan Yesus. Dalam kunjungannya ke satu kampung, Sudir ternampak seorang mayat pemuda yang sudah mati selama tiga jam. Namun, hatinya berasa sangat terdorong oleh Roh Kudus Tuhan untuk berdoa untuknya. Maka, Sudir pun memegang kepala pemuda tersebut dan berdoa. Sebelum dia mengakhiri doanya dengan mengatakan ‘Amen,’ tiba-tiba pemuda itu membuka matanya, lalu semua orang di sekelilingya pun lari dan terjun dari tingkap. Mereka ingat hantu mayat sudah bangkit.

Ref: deviantart

Maka, hanyalah tinggal Sudir dan pemuda tersebut di rumah itu. Pemuda itu tidak sedar bahawa dia sudah mati tetapi dia memberi kesaksian bahawa satu cahaya yang amat terang memancar dan memukul matanya, lalu membangunkannya. Disebabkan mujizat Lazarus ini, Sudir boleh memberitakan Yesus Kristus yang maha pengasih kepada orang-orang di kampung tersebut. Dan ramai di kalangan orang-orang kampung itu percaya Yesus dan dibaptiskan.

Hati Sudir bukan sahaja berat untuk penyelamatan jiwa puaknya tetapi puak-puak dan suku-suku orang-orang asli yang lain. Apabila dia melihat akta orang asli di Semenanjung Malaysia, hati dia berasa terdorong untuk satu puak yang kecil. Maka, Tuhan Bapa pun menghantar dua orang dari puak tersebut untuk bertemu dengan Sudir semasa kunjungannya ke hospital.

Apabila Sudir mengikuti mereka ke kampung mereka di hutan, dia mendapati seorang kanak-kanak hampir mati akibat cirit-birit selama tujuh hari. Maka, dia pun meminta keizinan dari ibunya untuk berdoa untuknya dan menghantarnya ke hospital. Dalam pelukannya, dia membawa kanak-kanak tersebut ke kereta. Tetapi sewaktu Sudir mahu memulakan perjalanannya, datuknya berteriak dari hutan dan mendekati Sudir. Sambil memegang parang dekat mukanya, datuk itu memarahi Sudir kerana perlanggaran adat untuk membiarkan cucunya untuk mati dengan tenang di atas pokok. Namun, Sudir menjelaskan kepadanya bahawa cucunya masih mempunyai peluang untuk hidup. Dan puji Tuhan kerana Sudir dilepaskan untuk menghantar cucunya ke hospital dan nyawanya pun diselamatkan. Kerana peristiwa tersebut, hati orang-orang kampung terbuka untuk menerima Yesus Kristus sebagai juru selamat yang maha pengasih dan mereka dibaptiskan.

Ref: wp

Dalam menamati kesaksiannya, Sudir mengatakan, “Harapan saya sebenarnya besar. Sementara saya berdoa dan berpuasa, saya mahu Tuhan menunjukkan sesuatu yang baru kepada orang asli supaya orang asli akan bangkit untuk lebih mengenali Tuhan, supaya mereka tidak ketinggalan.

“Hati saya ialah saya mahu berjumpa dengan semua puak-puak dan semua suku-suku orang asli di syurga. Saya tidak mahu mereka di neraka. Walaupun saya tidak sempurna depan Tuhan, tapi saya percaya Tuhan akan mengekalkan segala iman, segala perbuatan, dan segala perkara di muka bumi dan di syurga.

“Saya juga berdoa, bukan saya saja, tapi Tuhan akan membekalkan hamba-hamba yang lain supaya mereka akan memberitakan injil kepada orang asli, supaya mereka akan menemui keselamatan yang sebenar – bukan terdahulu atau sekarang – tetapi selama-lamanya untuk Yesus.”

Tambahnya lagi, “Saya lihat kami yang memegang kunci pertama orang asal yang membuka gerbang Malaysia bagi suku-suku lain untuk membangunkan. Saya percaya bahawa Tuhan akan membuat sesuatu yang baru supaya semua bangsa, bukan orang asli sahaja, tetapi semua orang yang mengenali Yesus, akan dibangkitkan. 

Sudir (sebelah kanan) berharap orang-orang asli akan bangkit dalam Roh Kudus Tuhan

Sudir berasa amat bersyukur juga kerana Tuhan telah menghantarkan anak-anak bangsa lain untuk melayani anak bangsanya. Mungkin sebelum dia mengenali Tuhan, dia berasa terpinggir dan tidak layak untuk berhadapan dengan anak-anak bangsa lain. Tetapi setelah dia mengenali Tuhan, dia berasa amat terdorong untuk melihat penyatuan anak bangsanya dengan anak-anak bangsa lain sebagai satu keluarga yang tulus dan kudus dalam darah Yesus.

Ya, tiada apa-apa yang perlu ditakuti dalam penyatuan umat-umat Yesus Kristus. Dalam penyatuan, ada kekuasaan! Dalam penyatuan, ada harapan! Dalam penyatuan, kita semua akan maju ke depan – bersama-sama, tiada satu yang akan ketinggalan. Maka, marilah ibu-ibu, bapa-bapa, kakak-kakak, abang-abang, dan adik-adik semua – tidak kira apa pun suku, puak, atau bangsa – marilah kita bersama-sama berganding tangan dalam perjalanan iman kita dalam Tuhan Yesus. Kerana tiada yang mustahil kalau kita berjalan bersama-sama! Ya, puji Tuhan! Tiada satu yang ketinggalan. Semua akan diselamatkan! Kita adalah satu keluarga yang besar, dalam darah Yesus Kristus, dengan satu Bapa Tuhan yang sama dan Roh Kudus Tuhan yang tidak berbeza. Puji Tuhan! Berikan semua kemuliaan kepada-Nya!

Ref: tulane

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We need your support! 

LIVING HOPE will be having a Charity Bazaar to raise funds for the children from the poor families. (www.livinghopeglobal.org)

The poor, needy, and marginalized children of Living Hope come from families with income of RM700 and below. They are among the poorest of the poor children of Malaysia, coming from single parent’s family. Without parental support, some are living under the care of their retired grandparents, who are also earning RM700 and below. They are the children from the communities and not from the orphanages. Thus, they have no covering from any non-profit organisations. Food is a scarcity and education is a privilege for them.

Please support us! One hundred percent of the coupon sales go to these children! The organiser and stall owners (from independent restaurant owners and merchandise distributors), are all offering their food and merchandise for free, to raise funds for them.

But our efforts are not complete without the support from patrons like you. We need you to support this charity bazaar by booking your coupons with us. 

It’s RM50 per booklet with a total of RM50 cash amount to buy food or merchandise at the Charity Bazaar. You can collect the coupons on the day itself at the Collection Counter at Jaya One on 8th November, 2015. 

DATE | 8 November 2015, SUNDAY
TIME | 11 AM – 5 PM
VENUE | The School, 
Ground Floor, Jaya One
72 Jalan University 
46200 Petaling Jaya

Please make your booking at LIVING HOPE MAYBANK ACCOUNT NO. 514196635780 and advise us accordingly with your full name and number of tickets bought. 

Living Hope’s children will be taking charge of the stalls on that day, side by side with college students volunteering from International Medical University (IMU), Sunway University, and Taylor’s University. 

A little effort here. A little effort there. If we all put a little here and a little there, we can truly and realistically change the future of these precious little ones. They deserve an opportunity to eat healthily and to receive proper education as well. Please don’t pass them by. Please support them. 

Living HOPE is a non-profit organization that has helped 42,444 poor, needy, and marginalized children living in Malaysia and also for children ages of 3 to 12 years old and 26 indigenous tribes.

LIVING HOPE 
No. 65A, Jalan SS 21/37
47400 Damansara Utama,
Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia
Email | dr.pwong@livinghopeglobal.org
susank@livinghopeglobal.org
Tel | (603) 7727 5887 / 7728 0710 or 0126527720
https://www.facebook.com/events/872433072811904/

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NOTE: Christianity Malaysia does not solicit or receive any funds for or from any organisations posted in this article. 

Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? (John 14:1-2)

The LORD is calling His children to come home and rest. How many of us, wounded and battered in our spiritual war, are afraid to come home to the Father?

Yes, we once left to war in our shiny armour, shield, and sword. How glorious our future seemed with the many promises of exploits made unto God. We were bold and courageous, filled with energy and expectation to do God’s work!

Ref: buzzerg

But behold, the spiritual war was tougher than we think. We attempted with all our might. We saw no fruit from our sweat and blood. We pushed on even harder. But we met discouragements and disappointments. Our flesh failed us. We failed. We fell. And we cannot let go of our failure.

We run. We hide. Like what our forefathers did. We feel that we have let down God. We have let down those around us whom we encouraged in faith! We feel so embarassed. How can this happen? We cannot go back now. We cannot return to the Father.

But the Father says, “Come home.”

“But I cannot face You, Father. I have done things… and I brought You nothing. I cannot enter Your sanctuary. I cannot come into Your Presence. I cannot come home,” the heart says.

Ref: writerscafe

“I see you at a distance. But you are not far away from Me. The gates for you are opened. A broken spirit and a contrite heart, I will not reject. Come home, my child,” says the Father.

Bruised, scarred, punched, bloodied, and scratched, we stand at a distance looking at our Father’s palace – our home – our sanctuary. We take the first heavy step back home, hanging our head in shame. Warm tears roll down as we mouth under our breath, “Sorry Father for what I have done. Sorry Father for failing You. Sorry LORD. I am so sorry!”

And the Father seeing us at a distance, was filled with compassion and ran to us in His royal robe. He threw His arms around us and kissed us.

Ref: hopeforyourfamily

The heart says, “Father! I have sinned against You! I am no longer worthy to be called your son!”

But the Father says to His servants, “Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!”

The heart says, “Father, I do not deserve your Favor! I do not deserve your Authority! And I do not deserve to be Your son!”

But the Father says, “My child, are you merely a soldier that you have forgotten your being as my child? Are you merely my servant that I will reject you when you have failed your task?”

Ref: benotweary

“I look not at your exploits or what you have brought to My feet. But I look to you coming back to Me. You are my child. And I am your Father. I desire to see you come back to Me.”

“I am not far away from you. You know the way home, my child. I am here waiting for you. Do not be afraid. I will not reject you. Come home, my child, come home. The gates are opened to you.”

Battered, broken, and contrite, the heart says, “Father, I am coming home… I am coming home…”

Ref: hisamazinggloryministries

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Pada 24 hingga 26 September 2015, satu Perhimpunan Doa Orang Asli (PDOA) yang menggemparkan bumi dan syurga telah diadakan di Grace Convention Centre (GCC), Petaling Jaya.

Penari-penari penyembahan Yeshua Hamashiach melakukan tarian profetik Roh Kudus Tuhan, berserta dengan penyanyi-penyanyi profetik yang turut melaungkan isi hati untuk Yeshua Hamashiach agar turun mengenapi perhimpunan anak-anak kesayangan-Nya.

Apa yang luar biasa dengan perhimpunan ini ialah mereka tidak mempunyai pengkhutbah-pengkhutbah tertentu. Tetapi mereka mempunyai sekumpulan pemimpin rohaniah yang datang bersama untuk mencari hati Bapa Tuhan dan mengikuti pimpinan Roh Kudus dengan spontan.

Dan pada tahun ini, hati penganjur iaitu Family Journey Malaysia (FMJ) didorong untuk mengadakan perhimpunan khas bagi anak-anak sulung Bapa Tuhan – iaitu orang-orang asli Semenanjung Malaysia, orang-orang asal Sarawak, dan anak-anak negeri Sabah – supaya pulang ke pangkuan-Nya.

“Sebagai orang asli dan penjaga pintu gerbang, kita mahu melihat kedaulatan Tuhan Bapa dinyatakan di bumi seperti di syurga. Sebagai orang asli, kita kata ‘tidak’ untuk kuasa kegelapan.

“Kita mahu menyatukan hati dan tubuh kita, untuk melihat wibawa Tuhan di Malaysia. Ini adalah masanya untuk keluarga anak sulung Tuhan Bapa untuk kukuh bersama-sama!” kata seorang pendeta.

Kerana itu, apa yang telah dipersatukan Tuhan, tidak boleh diceraikan manusia. (Markus 10:9)

Bunyi gendang, shofar, dan tangisan keluarga Yeshua Hamaschiah naik ke angkasa. Dengan satu suara dan satu hati (iaitu tema perhimpunan orang asli ini), semua wakil suku-suku melaungkan doa ke syurga untuk setiap orang dalam suku kembali ke pangkuan Tuhan Bapa.

Roh Kudus Tuhan yang sungguh pekat menyeliputi perhimpunan itu, bagaikan kabus pagi yang menghingapi setiap daun dan dahan. Tiada satu orang pun yang ketinggalan dalam merasai kehadiran-Nya.

“Adakah kamu percaya bahawa Tuhan Bapa sedang mengutuskan malaikat-malaikat-Nya untuk mengunjungi keluarga kita? ‘Engkau Tuhan yang maha kuasa! Engkaulah yang memilih puak-puak dan suku-suku di tanah ini sebelum dunia ini dijadikan.’

“’Pada hari ini, kami berdiri di depan-Mu, Tuhan. Kami datang ke hadapan takhta-Mu, ke hadapan ribuan malaikat-Mu, dan ke hadapan Anak Engkau, kami bersetuju dengan doa-Nya yang mengatakan bahawa Tuhan Bapa dan kami semua akan menjadi satu!” tambahnya lagi.

Pemuda-pemudi bahkan orang-orang tua dari semua suku-suku dan puak-puak datang ke hadapan untuk melutut di depan takhta Bapa Tuhan. Pada masa ini, tidak kira mereka dari – puak Chewong, Jah Hut, Jahai, Kensiu, Kintaq, Lanoh, Mah Meri, Mendriq, Orang Kanaq, Orang Seletar, Semai, Semelai, Semaq Beri, Temiar, Temuan, Bateq, Jakun, atau Cheq Wong – mereka datang sebagai satu keluarga.

“Sebelum kita membuat perjanjian dari suku ke suku, kami meminta Tuhan untuk mengampuni dosa kami. Dosa kerana ketidaktaaatan kami. Dosa kerana sembah hala. Dosa kerana tidak mendengar suara Tuhan. Dosa kerana tidak mahu membangunkan diri. Dosa kerana mengeraskan hati.

“Ampuni kami kerana dosa kami, Tuhan! Ampuni kami kerana kesilapan kami! Kami mahu kembali kepada Engkau! Kami mahu mengenal Engkau! Kuduskan kami, Tuhan. Sucikan kami. Pulihkan kami! Kami mahu dibebaskan dari ketakutan. Bertakhtalah Tuhan… Bertakhtalah Tuhan… Bertakthtalah…,” kata seorang pendeta yang lain.

Mereka juga berdoa untuk keberkatan orang-orang asli Semenanjung, orang-orang asal Sarawak, dan anak-anak negeri Sabah.

“Bapa Tuhan, pada malam ini, jadikanlah anak-anak sulung-Mu menjadi satu tembok kekudusan untuk berdiri teguh dalam iman untuk suku-suku mereka. Pada malam ini, biarlah perjanjian kesatuan ini dimeteraikan dalam darah Yesus!

“Jadikanlah mereka terang. Jadikanlah mereka kepala dan bukan ekor. Hari ini, kami meminta Engkau untuk melepaskan kemahiran dan pengetahuan untuk anak-anak-Mu supaya hidup dengan taat dan berjaya!” tambah seorang pendeta yang lain lagi.

Maka, tidak kira puak, suku, atau bangsa, kita semua adalah satu keluarga yang besar dalam nama Yeshua Hamashiach.

Janganlah kita dari bangsa-bangsa lain melupakan budi baik adik-beradik sulung kita yang tidak mengusir dan mengancam nenek moyang kita yang datang untuk mencari rezeki di tanah berkat ini. Malah, sebagai penjaga pintu gerbang di tanah ini, mereka telah mengizinkan semua untuk menetap dan memajukan diri.

Namun, adik-beradik sulung kita pada hari ini hidup dalam kemiskinan dan kepinggiran. Sanggupkah kita membiarkan ahli keluarga kita menderita bersendirian? Tidak. Kalau satu bahagian tubuh menderita, seluruh tubuh menderita. Bukankah kita semua tinggal dalam tubuh yang sama?

Maka, adik-beradik semua – di bandar-bandar, kampung-kampung, hilir-hilir, gunung-ganang, gua-gua – tidak kira di mana kamu berada, ingatlah kita semua adalah satu keluarga. Dalam Yeshua Hamasciah, tiada satu yang akan ketinggalan.

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