Greetings from Dubai

I am on my way to Nairobi, Kenya to visit Li Chuang and Lisa and some sisters from Thailand. This is going to be my second trip to Kenya in two years. But this time I am travelling alone. Last year I was travelling with four others. I am meeting Charmaine there though. She is flying from Johannesburg. I don't really like to travel alone. But I guess this is a small price to pay in doing God's work.

For my first leg of the trip (Singapore-Dubai) I was allocated a window seat. When I bought the ticket I requested for an aisle seat (I like aisle seat) and I was given a seat number accordingly. However, when I arrived in the airport they changed my seat twice and I ended at a window seat. For some reasons, that particular seat was very cram. That was the down part. The good part was that the person sitting besides me was a nice person. We chatted a little bit asking about each other's trip. She and her husband (in their fifties I think) are from Scotland. They are on the way back to Scotland after a one-month holiday in Australia. I am very happy with myself that I initiated the conversation. I can be a very shy person. To me sitting besides a complete stranger is a completely different ball game as compared to getting to know a new visitor in the service.

Right now I am at Dubai airport for a 10-hour transit. Dubai is really a very busy airport. People are everywhere. Apparently there are quite a number of things we can do here including shopping, eating and going for message. Eugene Phang told me that there is a wireless connection available throughout the airport. He is right. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to write this blog entry.

If you are reading this blog entry I would appreciate your prayers. Pray as the Holy Spirit leads you. I am getting very excited. In my heart I am sensing that something very good is about to happen in Nairobi. Thanks in advance for praying. May the Kingdom advance powerfully in Kenya!

If you want to see the impossible

Last Saturday I was in the Indonesian service when I believe God gave a rhema word. The rhema word is as follow: "If you want to see the impossible you must grow your faith."

On Wednesday, we had a Leaders Huddle session which was opened to any Christ follower in the district who wanted to come as well. We explored the topic of faith deeper that night. The below is the summary of the lesson.

Faith according to Hebrews 11

"If you want to see the impossible you need to grow your faith."

There is something about believing in God, that makes God willing to pass over a million people just to anoint you. I believe God will always turn out to meet you on a special line if you dare to believe Him. (Smith Wigglesworth)

Some facets of faith from some verses in Hebrews 11:

1. Confident of God’s power and promises (v. 1)

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”

* Things that we can’t see can be as real and better than the things that we can see. However, as we can’t see it, it requires faith for us to believe its reality and goodness.

* Part of that growth in faith is to believe that we are a supernatural being and that we are to live a supernatural life.

A supernatural life is simply living our life in the realm of faith and not in the realm of sight. A supernatural life is simply living our life with God’s power, wisdom and promises to accomplish His purposes.

2. Perceives the divine design (v. 3)

“By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.”

How can we apply this in our life and ministry?

* I believe the word therefore I experience the reality of the word

* We need to be careful not to modify our theology or belief based on our experience or lack of experience.

3. Acts on God’s promises (v. 8-22)

“8By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. 11By faith Abraham, even though he was past age—and Sarah herself was barren—was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise. 12And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore. 13All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. 14People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. 15If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. 16Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. 17By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." 19Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death. 20By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future. 21By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph's sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff. 22By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions about his bones.”

4. Esteem Christ above all (v. 24-26)

"24By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter. 25He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. 26He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward."

5. Overcome tremendous odds (v. 29-38)

“29By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned. 30By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the people had marched around them for seven days. 31By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient. 32And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, 33who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. 36Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. 37They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— 38the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.”

Great faith is the product of great fights. Great testimonies are the outcome of great tests. Great triumphs can only come out of great trials. (Smith Wigglesworth)

Conclusion

"Lord, please grow our faith! Amen!"

Reference

1. Personal Bible Study by Thomas Nelson Publishers

Guarding My Heart

The last several weeks have been quite intense for me. As part of my Bible College program I took an intensive 2-week course in the last week of June and in the first week of July. We started the course with the introduction of the course syllabus and by the end of the second week we needed to hand in an assignment. It was a group assignment thus as a group we faced a challenge of merging 4 different opinions and working styles. The remaining of the assignments are due this week and in the next few weeks.

In the last three weeks Lean Choo and I have also been spending time with my brother, his wife and our second nephew from Australia and on a separate occassion with my cousin from Indonesia who just came to Singapore to study. We had a great time with them. This week some relatives are coming from Indonesia. Next week my sister and her family are coming from Australia. It seems that we are really becoming an international family.

On Saturday afternoon I attended NG12 Male Group Shepherding or rather NG12 Cool Hunks Gathering? Unfortunately, I had to leave half way as I needed to preach in the Indonesian Service. I asked for the guys to pray for me as I struggled with the lack of time to prepare for the sermon. They guys prayed for me readily. That was brotherhood. I struggled a little bit with my sermon delivery but I was surprised by the responsiveness of the people in the service to the preaching. I really believe that God answered their prayers. Thanks a lot, bros. (you know who you are) Next time, it's my turn to pray for you.

When I look at my schedule for the next two and half months I have to take some deep breaths. Besides having to submit my assignments, making a trip to Kenya and doing some other things I noted 2 interesting 3-week stretch. In Aug, I will be preaching for 3 consecutive Saturdays. In Sep, I will have the privilege to solemnise and share the message for three couples for 3 consecutive Saturdays.

In the the midst of this busyness I was recently reminded of this important exhortation from the Word (Prov 4:23 - NIV):

Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.

When we are tired, stretched and under a lot of pressure we may allow certain character flaws to manifest that we wouldn't allow under normal circumstances.

Through my personal experiences there are some character flaws that we need to guard our hearts against whenever we are in those pressure cooker situations.

*Unkindness

We can be unkind, impatient and rude to others in those times. We feel that we have the right to do these things because of the difficult situation we are in.

* Pride

When we are busy doing many things we can develop a false sense of self importance, "I am doing many things therefore I am important."

* Self Pity

When we are overwhelmed by things we can have a pity party with ourselves, "Why must it be me all the time? Why am I the only one doing these things? Why aren't others sharing my loads?"

The last few weeks have been intense. The next 2 and half months are going to be intense too. It is time that I am more conscious and deliberate in guarding my hearts against those character flaws.

I must guard my heart for it is the wellspring of life.

"Dear God, please help me and I shall be helped. Amen!"

NG12 Band of Brothers

The guys in NG12 sub district have been having their monthly macho gatherings since May this year. It is great to see men coming together to have fun together and to spur one another on to become all that God makes them to be.

Here are some photos from the gatherings.

In case you are wondering, Kam Weng and Ronald were special guests in the gatherings.

The next gathering will be this Saturday, 2-4pm at Marc Ong's house in Queenstown.

The dates of the remaining gatherings for this year are below.

Thurs, 9 Aug

Sat, 8 Sep

Sat, 13 Oct

Sat, 10 Nov

Sat, 8 Dec

NG12 sisters, please don't disturb the guys on those dates, okay? :)

Having said that, do keep NG12 guys in prayers. They are going to be a great blessing to many brothers and SISTERS in many countries of the world.

And the sisters say...

My Celebrity Vocal Teachers

Yesterday, some of us from church office went for "Voice Spa" workshop. The instructors of the course were Jessica Seet and Vernetta Lopez. Jessica used to be a radio broadcaster and the voice behind SIA's flight announcement. Vernetta Lopez is doing many things currently including acting and radio broadcasting.

This is my first time having celebrities as my teachers. I was a little bit overwhelmed by that fact. I was relatively quiet in the class. I could have asked some questions. I could have interacted more with them. I could have been a better SOWer. Instead, I was only a very ordinary and well-behaved student. :)

Well, there may be a second chance for me, if I sign up for the intermediate program, perhaps some time next year.

Both Jessica and Vernetta facilitated the workshop very well. They were definitely qualified teaching the workshop with the wealth of knowledge and experiences they had accumulated on the topic. The class had great fun learning some practical skills to protect and blossom our voices. We even made an interesting voice pledge at the end of the session which includes "I promise to play with my voice everyday."

Though I was a little overwhelmed by the experience thankfully I still had my wisdom and sanity. As it is not everyday that I have celebrities as my teachers I took the opportunity to take photo with them.

And just in case anyone is wondering about it, "yes, I have my wife's permission and support to take the photo."

UNPLUGGED at Jazz@Southbridge

Finally, it came to pass. Our first Gen-Y event came into being with the birth of UNPLUGGED at Jazz@Southbridge on Sat, 23 June, 6-9pm.

We can only thank God for the overwhelming response to the event. When we chose the venue we knew that the maximum capacity of the venue was 80 people. As such we decided not to make the event a replacement of CG but a big SOW event instead. Those who had friends coming could bring them to the event. The publicity was released around 2 weeks before the event and we knew that we would have limited time to invite due to our Adults Camp in between.

On the day before the event the confirmation was around 60-70 people. But on the day itself, in the morning, I received a sms from Priscilla that we had 105 people and more were streaming in. We had a very good problem to solve. One solution was to turn away 25 people. But God gave Priscilla wisdom. She spoke to the manager of the venue and an arrangement could be made. Lean Choo however needed to sms the leaders to unfortunately stop inviting. This is the first time that we actually had to turn down visitors to join our event. :)

The night was an enjoyable night for many people. Juices and light snacks were supplied. The band led by David did a great job. The hosts were warm, funny and engaging. Our budding singers sang well with one singer truly shone that night. We were in our small groups interacting with our friends by playing some board/card games or just simply chatting. Nearing to the end of the event the band boldly sang one last song, a familiar song, "Love You So Much" by Hillsong. This was the only Christian song sung that night.

UNPLUGGED represents a fresh approach towards outreach. An informal night with clean fun and good music. This reminded me of two things. The first one is about Bill Hybels' parties. (Bill Hybels is the author of the book "Just Walk across the Room") From time to time Bill would organise some parties in his house. The party is informal and he would pray for some meaningful conversations to happen as sinners and redeemed sinners huddle in small groups interacting informally, with some food and drink around, of course. The second one is about a live band playing in an open space near Esplanade some months ago. Some of us were there listening to the band playing for awhile. They sang and played extremelly well. Just when we were about to leave we heard the tune and lyrics of a very familiar song, "Give Thanks". Suprisingly, the people stayed listening to the song. I believe that after singing and playing the other songs so well they earned the right to sing that song. I believe that these two things, informal parties facilitating the blossoming of genuine friendships and earning the right to speak the message, would be keys in the work of outreach in urban world.

I want to take this opportunity to thank Priscilla and team for doing a great job anchoring the event and making it into a wonderful reality. I applaud you for the team work, creativity, freshness and courage. I applaud you for singing that song at the end. I guess after playing and singing beautifully you earned that right to sing it to the audience, whoever they might be. :)

I believe that this is just the beginning. There are much more things that God has in store for us. Young adults in Singapore has bright hope and future for their counterparts in AG4 Hope Singapore dare to make a difference for Jesus. May God guide us on the next steps to take and continue to pour His favour upon us.

Below are some photos of the cool night taken using my humble phone. I am waiting for more photos to come my way.

Adults Camp 2007

In a blink of an eye the camp was over. It was a great camp as many people were really blessed by it.

God gave me a surprise by fulfilling my camp wish in the first night of the camp. Now, I am anticipating greater suprises in life after camp.

My action point from the camp is to push myself harder in the different things that I do. As I apply this action point I have started seeing my productivity improving. I am now accomplishing more things with the same amount of time. I will definitely continue to apply my action point as I am excited about growing in Christ.

Below are some random photos related to the camp. Perhaps I should have taken more photos. That would be my action point for the next camp. By the way, I stole one photo from Ps Jeff's blog. But they are my family members in the first place. :)

Dear loved ones in AG4 family

Lean Choo and I just want to say a BIG THANK YOU for the LoVe, SURPRISE gift and KIND words we received on Sunday. We are deeply touched by it.

THANK YOU so much.

It has been a joy and blessing to know all of you. You are very special and dear to us.

For those who missed my singing (thanks for bearing with my voice :) ) here are the words of the song for you.

I believe YOU can fly
I believe YOU can touch the sky
I think about it every night and day
YOU spread YOUR wings and fly away (within the Kingdom :) )
I believe YOU can soar
I see YOU running through that open door
I believe YOU can fly
I believe YOU can fly
I believe YOU can fly
(Adapted from “I believe I can fly” by R. Kelly)

I really meant what I sang, every single word of it. I really believe that you can soar up REALLY high with God.

The song is also a token of our love and appreciation for each one of you.

Lean Choo and I are going to attend some vocal lessons. Perhaps one day we can sing this song (the full version) accompanied by a guitar for all of you, he he

We want to thank God that many of us had a great camp experience in Malacca. We pray that God will move powerfully in and through our lives this week even as we apply our action and learning points. For those who couldn’t make it for the camp, we will share the good things with you.

Once again, thanks guys, you are the best!

With much love,

Michael & Lean Choo

My Camp Wish

This week I have been listening to one song again and again.

I found the song to be very ministering.

The title of the song is "I'm Forever Yours" by planetshakers, a praise & worship band from Australia.

The lyrics of the song is as below:

I'm Forever Yours

I give my all to you

Send me and

i will go for you

To the ends of the earth

I'll follow after you

I want the world to know

Your love endures forever

Tell me and i'll obey

This is far greater than sacrifice

Trusting you and not myself

Will always lead to blessing

Lord have your way in me

Not my will, yours be done

Here i stand within your presence

Longing for your touch

A thousand days cannot compare

To one day in your courts

Hold me now and never ever let me go

My jesus, my precious saviour

I'm forever yours

I will worship you forever

I will worship you

The chorus of this song, "Here i stand within your presence, Longing for your touch, A thousand days cannot compare to one day in your courts" echoes my heart desire for the upcoming camp.

In the past several months God has been speaking to me about intimacy with Him and personal worship.

I long to worship God deeply in the camp. That's my prayer.

I hope this song will be sung in the camp. That's my camp wish.

Maximising Our Camp Experience

Last night I visited Christine Chean's care group meeting. Christine wasn't there as she was overseas. It was good to see the younger believers rising up to the occassion to anchor the care group meeting.

The focus of the care group meeting was to prepare the people for our upcoming Adults camp in Melaka. Each person shared their camp personal goal, what they want to receive from God in the camp. The goals were written down on a large sheet of paper. I understand that the paper is going to travel to Melaka to remind them on their goals.

NG11A1 care group, me and their camp goals

Talking about camp below are some pointers that I have learned along the years on how we can maximise our camp experience.

1. Before the Camp: Preparation & Consecration

· Cleanse ourselves from sins (Psalms 24:3-4)

· Stir our desire & hunger for God (Matthew 5:6, 2 Kings 4:1-7)

· Set a personal goal (Direction, healing, deliverance, provision, restoration, refreshment, revival, victory, etc)

However, do be open with what God wants to speak and do in ourlives even if it is contrary with our goals.


2. During the Camp: Concentration

It is up to us whether this camp will be a tent of meeting where we experience God in a close and personal way just like Moses did. (Exodus 33:7-11)

· Cut away all possible distractions as best as you know how

(Handphone, TV, newspaper, unnecessary late nites, constant burden & worries, etc)

· Increase your focus toward God by:

* Fasting (Fasting shows desperateness before God. It is our personal decision with God whether we want fast and how intense it is going to be. Fasting is not necessarily food abstinence)

* Discipline our mind to focus on God and the things of God

We should not allow our mind to wander around and to worry about what is happenning outside the camp. We need to remember that God is in control. If there is an emergency God can take care of it or alert us of it. If we have committed everything to God and do our part the best we can we should then allow His peace to rule our hearts.

3. After the Camp: Penetration & Application

After the camp, take time to meditate and reflect.

Paul had some time to reflect and meditate on his encounter with God allowing the experience to penetrate deep into his heart during the days he was temporarily blinded. (Acts 9:8-9)

Some Practical tips:

· Draw up concrete application points before the camp ends and apply them immediately

· If we can afford it take one day off after the camp if not set apart the Monday or Tuesday night after the camp

* Revise the camp materials (Review what God had spoken to us in the camp)
* Let it penetrate/sink into our minds and hearts
* Spend time talk to God about it

I want to maximise my camp experience.

My personal camp goal? Well, I want to laugh with others and God during those four days. Laughing with others to me signifies a quality time with people. Laughing with God to me signifies close and personal moments with God.

Good News

Many people have been a blessing to my life.

Today I want to remember some of them. Next month I want to remember some others.

Eugene Phang - Somebody said that he was like the road runner character as he was very efficient. Well, this is definitely true. But let us not forget that he is also a nice guy. He has a pastoral heart coupled with a mind of wisdom.

Lean Choo - She is a very supportive person. One of the most supportive you can ever find in the planet. Her love for people are very evident and she is fun to be with. She loves to pray and worship as well. She makes a very good prayer leader and I know that one day she will make a very good worship leader as she continues to work on her voice. Btw, she is also a great and wonderful wife.

Cui Qin - I keep telling her that she is a very stable lady. That remains true. But I have noticed that she is getting trendier and more contemporary as well. Cui Qin exemplifies what availability is about. I see her as a great shepherd of new generation of leaders. I am excited to see great leaders emerging from under her wings.

Chiew Fang - She is a teachable lady. She is a gentle lady. She is a pastoral leader. These are what people see of her generally. But I also see her as a very determined person. Yesterday somebody said that she looked like the pink panther character. Owing to her determination I know that one day she is going to be a super panther for the Kingdom, regardless of her skin colour. :)

Priscilla - When I got to know her better in 2005 she blew me away by her creativity. She is one of the most creative person around. People have been blown away (positively) by her super sanguine personality and her lame jokes. She gives people fun and laughters. But now that I know her even better I say that she is also a very good girl. She has a kind heart. She is the female version of Patch Adams. She is going to be a very strong pillar in the Kingdom.

Desmond Lee - This guy has a charisma. This guy loves people. This guy writes amusing and inspiring sentences. A new genre in writing. It has been great knowing this brother. God has created him to be a joy carrier and an influencer. The best thing is that he just started. He will just shine brighter and brighter in the days to come. I will be there in the front seat, watching.

Jasmine Yeo - If Eugene Phang is road runner she would be the worthy competitor of that character. She is one real efficient lady. She is a lady with much insights as well. She loves people very much and exercises both tough and tender love, both truth and grace. We need more people like her in the world to make it a better one. It has been a blessing knowing her and I know that God is going to show her greater things in a not too distant future.

For those who are reading this blog entry I hope that this entry is good news to you. It is definitely good news to me.

They didn't think so

Last Friday, the church staff went for a family time together at Labrador Park. It was my first time there. We had a good time of eating, fellowshipping and doing things together.

That day we played one game that required us to think of a character or a celebrity that represented us as a person. I thought of Tony Leung. Personally, I do not consider him as a very handsome actor. But I do admire his acting talent. I chose him as I thought there were some similarities in our facial features (e.g. small eyes). I also chose him because I enjoyed acting.

But sadly, they didn't think so. :(

Note: Tony's photo is taken from http://gfx.filmweb.pl/p/31739/po.81269.jpg

His Name is Titus

Yesterday evening, Lean Choo, I, Agung and Merlyn went to the airport as our sister, Melia, is leaving to Melbourne together with her husband, Daniel, and their baby boy, Titus. They are going to be there for around one year.

Some of Daniel's family members were also there. It was great to see Hong Teck with his entire family there as well. Both sets of natural family and one set of spiritual family were present for the occassion.

Anyone present yesterday could notice that the star of the night was Titus.

This boy won people's hearts by his cuteness and smile. People were busy playing with him, taking his photo or video clip. Hopefully, his parents did not feel neglected. :)

On the way back home we had the opportunity to talk to Daniel's brother. We talked about many things including Titus. We talked about how Titus would be very different when we see him again. Actually, one part of me wants Titus to remain as he is while another part of me wants him to grow. :)

Through yesterday's happenning God reminded me of something very important. The next time I see Titus he will be a different boy as he will have grown. This is normal and expected. However, the next time I see Titus will I be a different person as I will have grown as well? Indeed, it is God's desire to see me growing continually. The end point is to be like Jesus. There is a long way to go to reach that point.

Indeed, time flies. I am already in the third division. Through these years I have noticed that change and growth do not happen automatically. If I was lazy 10 years ago I can still be lazy today. Indeed, time alone doesn't heal bad habits or characters.

As I am already in the third division I do feel a greater sense of urgency to see more changes and growth in some areas of my life. And if I really want to see more changes and growth more changes on habits and lifestyle will be required as well.

A Scripture came to my mind:

"The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful." (Matthew 13:22 - NIV)

Am I distracted? Or, am I focus? Am I distracted by the thorns of life? Am I distracted by the urgent and trivial matters of life? Or, am I focus on the truly important things?

I thank God for giving me a great nephew. He is surely cute. And recently, he also reminded me to grow along with him.

And by the way, his name is Titus.

A Happy Day

Last Sunday was a happy day for me for two good reasons.

Firstly, there was a historical moment in the world of tennis. Roger Federer defeated Rafael Nadal on Hamburg ATP Masters final on CLAY.

In order to help those who do not follow tennis let me give you a crash course of this wonderful game.

Tennis tournaments are played on three surfaces, clay, grass and cement (hard court). Roger Federer is the reigning no 1 player in the world. Rafael Nadal is the no 2. Federer is the king of grass while Nadal is the king of clay. Nadal had not been beaten on clay for 81 matches until last Sunday. Federer had never beaten Nadal on clay until last Sunday.

Few people thought that Federer could do it as he had not been in a good form in the weeks prior to the tournament and the final. On the other hand, Nadal was in the form of his life. But this is what champions do, they bounce back from their difficulties, they overcome all odds.

I was watching the match on Sunday. Federer was losing in the first set. Honestly, I felt quite scared about it and decided to switched to other channels hoping that the situation would be different when I switched back. Some time later I switched back and Federer was still losing. I switched to other channels again. Some time later I switched back again and there I saw Federer turning the situation around. I then continued to watch. Federer eventually defeated Nadal for the first time (on clay) by a big margin.

I learned two lessons from Federer. One, you just have to keep trying. Two, your breakthrough can come in the midst of impossibilities.

That is the first reason why last Sunday was a happy day for me.

The second reason (but definitely not the lesser one) is that last Sunday five people from the AG4 & AWAM groups decided to get wet for Jesus. Seeing people going through water baptism always warms my heart. Especially, when they are people I know.

My congratulations to Handoko, Irene, Klien, Angela and Pei Yang. I praise God for all of you. I trust that as you have taken this step of obedience the blessings of God will come upon your lives in a greater measure.

I really thank God for last Sunday. It was indeed a happy day.

Note: I took Federer's photo from the ATP official website. I took the water baptism photos from Wong Kam Weng's official camera. I hope to be able to upload more water baptism photos soon. For those who have Irene, Pei Yang and Handoko's water baptism photos please do a good deed by sending them to me. :)

A Powerful Testimony from Hope Manila

This year I spent Easter in Manila, Phillipines. It was indeed a privilege to be able to participate and minister in their camp.

Eugene Phang joined me for part of my trip. We had a great time there.

The experience and exposure has caused me to grow quite a fair bit. I learned valuable lessons and humbled by what God can and will do when His children choose to step out by faith.

There are many things that I can write about my experiences there. However, presently I just would like to pen down one testimony. This testimony is so powerful that it never fails to encourage my heart whenever I think of it.

Hope Manila has been renting a venue for their service, activities and office space for some years now. The venue can be divided into three areas. The first area is a big hall that can contain around 400-500 people, theatre style. Outside the hall there is this large outdoor space that can be used for all kinds of activities including basketball and volleyball. This is the second area. The third area is an office space that can contain around 8 people.

The owner of the place is a committed Christian from another church. In the beginning, he was asking for 80,000 peso per month for the rental of the venue. That's around $2500 per month. I think that's a quite reasonable pricing. It would definitely costs a lot more in Singapore for such a venue.

Over the years however the price kept going down. From time to time the owner would call and said, "I have been praying and the Holy Spirit told me to reduce the price". This kept happenning that right now they are only paying 10,000 peso per month. That's only around $300. Men, with that kind of pricing we can only rent a small room without an air conditioner in Singapore .

Some time ago the church went through a difficult time. Some people left the church. Many of the high income earners belong to this group. Consequently, the collection of the tithe and offering dropped significantly. But God is faithful. Soon after, the owner of the place unexpectedly called the church and said, "I have been praying and the Holy Spirit told me..."

This testimony truly speaks of the faithfulness of our God in providing for His people. As we take care of the house of God, as we take care of the people of God, God will surely take care of our needs. Our God is indeed our Jehovah Jireh, the Lord our Provider!

My New Hairstyle

I have been going back to "It's Hairy" situated at the fourth floor of Far East Plaza for many months now. My hairdresser doesn't want me to have the same hairstyle. He wants to do a new hairstyle for me each time I come back.

This time I told him that I wanted to cut and highlight. But he recommended cut and dye. He asked me to trust him.

This hairstyle is a lazy hairstyle meaning that I can choose to style it or do nothing at all and it would look acceptable.

If I choose to style it, the pictures below represent one possible outcome.

I think I like this hairstyle and colour. Lean Choo doesn't like the colour. Some people like it. One person told me that by having this hairstyle I look like a bad guy if I don't smile. Some people asked me to dye my thick eyebrows as well.

It seems that hairstyle is a controversial subject. For my case, as long as Jesus, my wife, I and the majority of young adults are comfortable with it I shall have my peace.

A Wonderful Thai Camp

This entry is the continuation of my previous blog on "The Ten Good Men". After having some fun in Bangkok we travelled overnight in a five star bus to Khon Khean for the Thai Camp Celebration.

I was back for the camp after 7 years. It was good to be back. They used the same convention hall being the largest one in Northern Part of Thailand, I heard. This year they were running the camp three times to contain all the people. The camp I attended had 6500 delegates. Two thousands volunteers were needed to run the camp. Wow, that's around 2/3 of Hope Singapore.

In this camp, I was really ministered by the worship sessions. Their worship team was incredible. It was so good to find out that they now displayed the English lyrics on the slides. Some songs were even sung in English. The international delegates were seated on the second floor of the auditorium. As I looked down to the first floor where my Thai brothers and sisters were, it was so gratifying to see every single hand raised to God. I couldn't find a hand that wasn't raised. This was really a display of a united and responsive worship. In one of the worship sessions I cried. It had been some time since I cried during a worship session. God was touching my heart and I was so blessed by it.

The churches in Thailand are continuing to grow steadily. We now have over 3000 churches all over Thailand. The Gospel is slowly but surely saturating the nation. The vision for Thailand is now to build a local church in every single village in the nation, 80,000 of them. I really want to thank God for the great example that the Thai churches have set for the rest of us to follow.

The Missions Night was fantastic. The entire Thailand is gearing up for Africa. The video presentation was very moving. Ps PN's message was great. This Missions Night gave me greater excitement and urgency as some of us are also championing Missions for Africa (Eastern and Southern parts of Africa). I really believe that we will see a lot more churches planted in Africa in the next few years. This is really exciting!

It was also great to be able to catch up with some brothers and sisters from Hope Manila in Thailand after getting to know them quite well through the Manila Easter Camp. It was good to be able to connect some of the ten good men to them as well. Since we are part of a global family it is always good to connect ourselves to others in other Hope Churches around the world.

We developed friendship with some Thai sisters as well. They were our buses' leaders while we were there. There were so hospitable. They took care of us really well and went beyond their call of duty to bless us. Two sisters that we got to know better were Ning (her photo is below) and Toto. Ning is a church staff with Hope Bangkok while Toto is with the International Fellowship of Hope Bangkok.

It was a wonderful Thai Camp. I wish that more of us from the district and AWAM could be there. I look foward to having many more of us being blessed out of our socks in Thai Camp 2008. Till then may this picture below act as an appetizer to the potential candidates of the "ninety nine good men". This was the best coconut drink I have ever tasted in my whole life thus far.

By the way, I calculated. If we start saving $1 to $1.5 everyday, going to Thai Camp is indeed within everyone's means.

Any additional takers?

The Ten Good Men

Eleven of us (from AG4 & AWAM) went to Thai Camp around 2-3 weeks ago. This is a stark contrast to only one of us (I, me & myself) going for LC in Thailand in Nov 06. This is why I call the additional people as the ten good men (including women).

Majority of us chose to arrive in Thailand one day earlier. The Thai Camp was held at Khon Khean (Northern part of Thailand) but we needed to take bus from Bangkok (a 8-hour journey using a five-star coach).

In Bangkok, we spent time patronising their shopping centres and food places. Some of us chose to pamper ourselves by going for a massage as well. This was one occassion where we could be really thankful for the mighty Singapore dollars.

We had a good time together in Bangkok, also with those who were outside of AG4 & AWAM. There were however three memorable incidents for me.

The first incident was our encounter with a 'sifu'. Some of us took a very long walk from one venue to another (thanks to Kam Weng's assurance that it was near - it's okay we still loved him). As we took that long walk we met this 'sifu'. He impressed us with his skill in peeling and cutting fruits. He peeled off a mango in probably only 20 seconds. He then dismantled the entire mango in probably only 10 seconds. What a display of mastery of a skill. By the way not all fruit sellers in Thailand are a 'sifu'. The rest we met subsequently were much slower than him. Indeed, there is a big difference between knowing and mastering a skill.

"The Sifu"

The second incident was where we met up with Yolanda's brother and sister-in-law for lunch. Yolanda's brother married a Thai and have been living in Bangkok for some time now. Yolanda does look like her brother. Lean Choo and I have known Yolanda for years. Knowing her life story (a powerful testimony) we know that God has brought her a long way for this happy incident to occur.

Yolanda with her brother and sister-in-law

The third incident was pretty embarrasing but hillarious. We went to this place called "The Fashion Mall". We were told by a shopping expert from Singapore that things in this place were very cheap. We went. There Kam Weng was shopping for some new pants. As there wasn't a changing room in one particular store I had to help my dear sheep to create a temporary changing room using a piece of "sarong". As a shepherd is to be willing to die for his sheep this was a good test of that willingness. :)

The makeshift changing room

We had a good time together. And the ten good men are: Lean Choo, Eugene Chong, Jacqueline, Robert, June, Yolanda, Kam Weng, Stephanie Peh, Simon and Priscilla Lim.

This time next year I hope to be able to write a blog on "The Ninety Nine Good Men". Any takers?

Young Adults

This is my first ever blog entry. I do this because blogging is part of young adults' world.

My fear of starting a blog is the inability to keep it going. I only journal occasionally though it has always been my desire to do it in a much regular basis. Who knows that starting a blog may provide the breakthrough. Also, after acquiring the habit of reading people's blogs for some time, I guess, it is time for me to contribute to the blogging world.

My wife, Lean Choo and I, have been in the company of young adults for a period of time now. By the way, we are still young ourselves. We are just starting our journey in the third division.

It has been an interesting and rewarding journey thus far. Obviously, there are ups and downs. But I enjoy this journey. I am excited of by the idea of young lives being consumed by God's love and vision. The possibilities are endless. They are the future leaders and hopes of the world.

I discover that young adults enjoy fun and music. They are highly relational people as well. Wow, this is a wonderful combination. What a contribution to our world it will be when biblical communities which are fun, musical and relational are springing up all over Singapore and beyond. I believe this is the kind of social circle or community that people in our urban world are seeking to be part of.

Well, the journey has just begun. And as the Scripture says, "He who began the good work in us will bring it into completion through Christ Jesus, our Lord."