A father’s legacy

A father’s legacy

Last Friday, we were privileged to have brother Frederick Segar share with us. Brother Frederick’s father was a Hindu-Sanyasi-like person, someone who put on yellow robes and keep a long beard and go about walking barefoot. People like that sought to set themselves aside from being polluted by the world, and become close to God. He had a regular job but after work would don his “holy man” clothes and go from house to house and teach people from the Hindu scriptures how they could be close to God, and they also would give him an offering. 

He became a trusted person in the community, and when he came upon the idea of collecting funds to improve the road to the local school for the children, the people trusted him and gave funds freely for the cause. However, a more educated friend whom he had trusted to hold the funds took all the money for himself. Distraught at what had happened, brother Frederick’s father gave up totally on his religion and tried to commit suicide by drinking acid. Fortunately, someone found him shortly after consuming the acid, and quickly rushed him to the hospital. He was later transferred to General Hospital in KL, and was in a bad state as many of his organs had been corroded by the acid. His brother who was working in KL was a taxi driver and became very sad because of what happened. 

Now, it was his normal practice to fetch a particular Christian family to church every Sunday, and when they saw his countenance that particular week, they were concerned, and asked him why he was so sad. He shared the situation with them, and they invited him to go to church that Sunday. Usually, he would not go, but he was so sad that he agreed. In the church, he did not understand the sermon but was attracted to a window painting that had the picture of a man taking off his burden and putting it at the feet of the cross. After the message, the pastor shared his situation with the congregation, and they prayed fervently, even crying for his brother. He was amazed at how these people could cry for a complete stranger. After the service, the pastor and a few members followed him to the hospital to pray for Frederick’s father, and he was completely healed.

Thereafter, Frederick’s whole family became Christian, and his father exclaimed how the Bible was the answer to life. After his conversion, he again went back to his house to house excursions but without the robes, and now telling people about Jesus. As for brother Frederick, he grew up with the church and became a youth leader and Sunday School teacher. 

He also went on to become involved with promoting the music and songs of the Sastriar family which originated form the great songwriter and poet Vedanayagam Sastriar. He was a devout disciple of the Lord who composed many great songs which continue to be sung to this day. He was also active in preaching the gospel and wrote many books. Famously, he prophesied before he died that there would always be a descendant who would continue his ministry of song, poetry and preaching the gospel until the day the Lord returned. Interestingly, for the next 6 generations up till today, there has arisen at least one family member each generation who has taken up this mantle to continue the ministry.

Brother Frederick also shared an interesting story when Vedanayagam was a poet and songwriter in the king’s palace. The king liked him very much above all the other poets and called him “brother”, as they had gone to school together. One day, out of jealousy, the other poets came across a plan to get Vedanayagam out of favor. They suggested to the king that he should compose a song to praise the god that the king worshipped, and the king thought it was a good idea. However, Vedanayagam apologized to the king that he could only write songs to praise Jesus. The king persisted, asking him to just compose 4 lines, but Vedanayagam would not give in. Then the king became angry and ordered Vedanayagam to leave immediately. As he left, the great poet composed a sweet song “I only praise Jesus, only Jesus, only Jesus, I only praise Jesus, no one but Jesus” and this song has continued to be sung through the decades and is popular among the Christian Tamil congregations up to this day.

  

How to hear the voice of God

Last Friday, we were privileged at FGB to have Dr.Lee Soo Ann share with us. Based on the topic “How to hear the voice of God”, Dr.Lee shared important Scriptural principles as well as his personal experiences on how hearing God’s voice helped him and his family face various challenges.

In the bible, the term “Word” as translated from Greek actually comes in two forms – Logos or Rhema. Logos refers to the whole of God’s counsel, which is essentially the whole Bible. It is important for every Christian to know the Logos as a whole so that any time, a familiar verse or concept from the Bible can come to our attention at any given moment to help in a given situation. Dr.Lee shared here how his readings from the book of Proverbs in particular gave him the wisdom to deal with tough situations during his working life. At meetings, other department heads would sometimes accuse him or his department, but Dr Lee prudently did not defend himself or counterattack. Instead, he would seek out the department head after the meeting to sort out the matter. This peace-loving approach enabled him to gain respect among his peers, and also was a great testimony to others in an otherwise dog-eat-dog culture.

Rhema on the other hands, refers to the spoken Word of God, which is a specific, personal Word given by God to a person for a particular situation. In Romans 10:17 which says “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God”, the “Word” here is Rhema. Jesus Christ said in John 10:27 “My sheep hear my voice. And they follow Me”. It is so important for every Christian to learn to be attuned to the voice of our Lord.

Now, the way God speaks to us can come in many forms, but very often it comes through a particular verse in the Bible that jumps out at us, and is so relevant for our particular situation. That’s why it is so important for us to read the Bible regularly. In the late 80’s, a lump on the mid-thigh region appeared on Dr.Lee’s thigh and started to grow bigger and bigger. Having a wife with two young kids at that time, Dr.Lee feared for his life but God spoke to him through Psalm 50:15 which greatly comforted him “Call upon me in the day of trouble. I will deliver you and you shall glorify Me”. Later, by God’s mercy, the lump was removed surgically and proved to be non-cancerous.  

In 1984, Dr.Lee’s elder brother had a medical condition known as NPC which required treatment by radiation and in 1991, a small cancerous lump appeared below his chin. The doctor recommended chemotherapy which was devastating especially in those days, and warned him that death could follow soon. The whole family group gathered together to pray and the Lord gave them Psalm 66:12 We went through fire and through water but You brought us out to rich fulfillment. Water here was the chemotherapy, and confirmation that he should go through with the chemo. The elder Lee thus proceeded to go for the chemo, and lived on for another 6 years (13 years in total from the initial diagnosis).

The great preacher Derek Prince also once shared how as a young Christian, he was stricken with a skin disease that no doctor was able to cure. With nothing to do on the hospital bed, he proceeded to read the Bible through, and Proverbs 4:20-22 sprung out to him “My son, pay attention to what I say; turn your ear to my words. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart; for they are life to those who find them and health to one’s whole body.” He proceeded to take the verse to heart, deciding to read the Bible three times a day like taking medicine, really trying to study the Scriptures closely and listen to what God would teach him. And after some time, Derek Prince was healed completely as God’s Word came true, healing him as he read and studied the Word.

For major decisions, it is also good to seek the help of matured fellow brothers and sisters in looking to hear God’s voice and know His will. Many years ago, Dr. Lee was offered a

dream job involving overseas travel to Switzerland, which he had always wished for. Nevertheless, the submitted the offer to fellow church members to pray together about it. In the midst of this prayer, Proverbs 8:10-11 spoke to him “Receive my instruction, and not silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold”. Reluctantly, Dr.Lee took it as a warning from God not to take up this job.

In a short time, Dr.Lee found out why. Just a few weeks later, his 3 year old son’s actopic eczema flared up dramatically, and it took a few very tough months to care for him. Despite medication and diet restriction, everything seemed to be of no avail and it caused his heart pain to see his son’s broken skin leading to swelling of the lymph nodes. One night, after desperate prayer to God, Dr.Lee received comfort from God through Psalm 18:30 “As for God, his way is perfect: The Lord’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him.” Henceforth, his son recovered slowly over the 3 months. Looking back, Dr.Lee realized that it was absolutely essential that he had been around during that difficult period instead of being far away from his beloved family who so needed him during that time. God had known this was to happen in advance, and prevented Dr.Lee from making the wrong decision.

Quite often too, God may speak to us through a still, small voice, like when He spoke to Elijah in the cave when he was discouraged. Brother A.C Ho, a good friend of Dr.Lee was on mission trip overseas when he met a baby with pus on the head. He shared “I felt inside me that God was going to heal him. I just held the child’s hand and prayed and on the following night, the mother came to the evangelistic rally and I could see the baby’s head had totally healed.

Now, a good question many of us may ask is “How do I know it is God speaking to me?” This is where confirmation is very important. In general, whatever we think God tells us must be in line with the Logos, the general Word of God in the Bible. This also means we need to know our Bible well. God’s Rhema will also bring us peace in our heart when we decide to follow it. If we feel disturbed, it is a warning sign we need to pray more and perhaps seek further counsel and prayer from matured brothers and sisters we trust.

As we follow through on God’s Rhema, we will also know its genuineness if it leads to good things like bearing the fruit of the Holy Spirit, good works, salvation, discipleship and unity in the church. When Ananias received a vision from God to go and minister to Saul of Tarsus, he was afraid because of the reports of the evil Saul had done to the Christians. Nevertheless, he obeyed God, and as a result, Saul was delivered and baptized, eventually changing his name to Paul, and becoming the great apostle to the Gentiles, from whom God used to give us much of the New Testament.

All of us who call on Christ are God’s sons and daughters, and it is a blessing and privilege to listen to our Abba Father. It is not God’s will for us to be directionless. His wisdom and compassionate advice is a great blessing to all of us, and it also has a multiplying effect, touching other lives.

It is You who watch over my way

It is You who watch over my way

This Friday, we were privileged at FGB Jaya One to have brother Raymond Phang share with us.

As a child, since Kindergarten days, I attended the Sunday School at PJ Gospel Hall. Later, when I went to Methodist Primary School, I remember getting a ride there in an old bone-breaker of a car which did not have a working petrol gauge. Those days, we used to play football at the back of the church and some of us even made it to play on at district and state level.

At Secondary level, I moved to a Catholic school where I backslided and stopped going to church. Nevertheless, I still remembered God answering two very important prayers, once when I lost my spectacles and another timewhen I lost my expensive Casio calculator. I knew that the calculator was stolen but after I prayed, the Lord actually sent someone to return it to me.

When I was in Form 5, I started attending a devotion session on many  mornings under a tree. A form six student named  Kumar would cycle to school early in the morning and have devotions there for students. I used to arrive at school half an hour early and one day Kumar asked me to join his devotions. As he walked the earth, our Lord Himself would have typically taught crowds while seated under a tree. Kumar would go through the Scripture very thoroughly.

In school, I also picked up martial arts and became a 5th Dan, rising to the highest level to become the joint grand master of the school when my teacher left for overseas. As a Form 6 student, our headmaster said we
should not teach. So I remembered employing some former students who had left school to come back and teach the martial arts. We had as many as 50 students, and through these activities I was able to almost fully pay my way through my tertiary education in accounting in London.

One thing I didn’t quite like about becoming a grand master was that foreigners, some 6 feet tall would come and challenge me. However, I usually asked them to spar with some of my students and as they couldn’t even beat them, these foreigners even became my students. Later I guess the Lord led me to give up martial arts in 1997 before I got married.

After my studies and a few years working in audit, I went into the Insurance line and after moving around a few departments, found an interest in the Marketing division. At 27, I was already heading a branch of 100
staff with RM100 Million premiums at its height.

God had blessed me so much but in my ignorance, I thought all this blessing was because of myself and I still did not go to church. Strangely, I still ended up reading the Bible often. When I joined Amway, I bought a lot of motivational books, and I read avidly until I practically ran out of reading material – Anthony Robbins, Zigs Ziglar, you name them. One thing I noticed in these books was that the authors frequently referred to the Bible and I decided to read the Bible directly myself.

In 1998 I got married, and in 1999, I went for a house meeting at Gasing Heights where Pastor Kumar (one of the church leaders jailed during Ops Lalang) was sharing about the 7 churches from the book of Revelation. When he shared about the church of Ephesus which had lost its first love, I felt God was talking to me. I had lost my first love for God from my Sunday School days.

I was still doing my Bible reading that same year, and as I just finished the book of Joshua, I felt that I needed to name my son Joshua. This was strange as my wife and I were both Buddhists, but the Lord led us to name him Joshua. Joshua was born on a Good Friday in 1999 then and today, I like to remind him “Be courageous”. Later, when I found out my wife was pregnant again, I told her it would be girl. She was surprised and asked me how sure I was but I had just finished reading the book of Esther. God spoke to me to name my daughter Esther.

And then on 6th August 2000, just 4 days before my birthday 10 August, I became a Christian  by saying the sinners prayer in the presence of brother David Ong, his wife and some other brothers. The following month in September, also just few days before her birthday, my wife also became a Christian by saying the sinner's prayer. In that same year itself we were water-baptised.

Incredibly, In that same year, my business was struck by the financial crisis, and I found myself with huge debts of because of non-payment of RM300,000 from a Christian brother’s public listed company which had become PN17. The Credit Officer handling my banking account happened to be my ex-colleague and restructured my debts to RM120,000/-  over a 12 month instalment plan, with 12 post-dated cheques given. In my bank account, I remembered that I had only enough for 6 months payments and even if one cheque bounced, I would be pretty much bankrupt. I asked this ex-colleague of mine what should I do. He told me to go down on my knees and pray with shedding of tears.

Against this backdrop, I found out my wife was pregnant again despite birth control actions that we took. With so many worries on my mind, I called my FGT Pastor who was an old school friend of mine for lunch. He encouraged me that God is Jehovah Jireh, my provider, and reminded me how on the mountain where Isaac asked Abraham “where is the sacrifice?”, his father answered him “It will be provided”

Regarding my third child, I was led to read the verse in Genesis 1: 26/27 & 28 which says "Go forth and multiply”. Considering what I should name my second daughter, I was led by God to a verse on Sarah being mother of many nations, and so named her Sarah.

Later I managed to sell my share in another business venture I had undertaken and was able to meet my installments. The Lord did indeed provide.

Regarding my children, we encountered a problem later on with my two daughters when the specialist diagnosed them as having wheezing problems and possibly asthma. They thus had to go on special medication to our sadness.

At that time, we were sending them for babysitting with a very nice Hindu babysitter. However, later, my sister alerted me that the children were playing with the altar and the remains of the babysitter’s deceased husband in the house. I realized I needed to shift the children to another place, and gradually was able to transfer them to the childcare managed by Grace church. After 1 1/2 years of medication, our doctor one day surprisingly said they could stop the medication as they were completely healed.

Looking back, I realized the importance of their being under the covering of the church. They had also learnt good things like praying before meals and we thank the Lord for His grace.

Another time, my children were playing in the playground near my parents place when I happened to be home at 6pm that day and asked them to come back home. And, then I left for a meeting. Just half and hour later, we heard what sounded like firecrackers, but when my father went to investigate, it turned out there was a chase involving police and criminals with gunshots fired around the playground area. Again, God’s grace was so evident in protecting my family. We must always pray for the protection of our children.

Recently, I came across Psalm 142:1-3 which really sums up the story of my life. It says “I cry aloud to the Lord; I lift up my voice to the Lord for mercy. I pour out before him my complaint; before him I tell my trouble. When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who watch over my way.

I will leave you with these verses :

Remember Matthew 7:7 ASK, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you. Mark 10;27 For with God all things are possible. The parable of Talents talks about how each servant was given one, two & five talents respectively. The servants of the two & five talents doubled what they had and was commended by the Master “Well-done, Good & Faithful Servant” whereas the Servant with one talent hid  it & did not do anything to it. The Master rebuked him for being lazy and faithless. Then the Master took his one talent to give it to the one who had five talents initially, meaning he now had eleven talents. Our Lord is really into Economics! The Master told the Servant he should have at the least put his talent into a bank account to earn interest. Our Lord really wants us to grow in HIM and definitely be a Doer of his WORD! James 1:22

From meditation master to servant of God

Af FGB Jaya One, we were privileged to hear an incredible testimony from brother Samuel Tan, which is as follows:-

From meditation master to servant of God

I used to be a big time idol worshipper. Wherever anyone said a place was good, I would go to that temple. I believed in good works, and gave in charity to Buddhist, Christian and Islamic causes.

Then things began to change for me during a diving trip in Phuket. When under water, a few of us were drawn to an octopus which surprisingly was not afraid of us humans and we spent quite a bit of time with it. Upon returning home, I suddenly found myself behaving strangely for us, acting like the monkey god, a goddess and various other supposed deities. My family became concerned as I showed signs of being possessed. The next morning I (or rather what was inside me) drove at breakneck speed to the temple in Karak on a hill. Before I entered the entrance, I saw in a vision four big balls of fire drop down from the sky towards me with a thundering voice “Tuhan kita ada sam, kamu anak Tuhan yang Utama” which means “Our God is the same, you are a son of God Almighty.” Others around me could not hear the voice.

As I walked into the temple, I then saw a vision of Kuan Yin telling me “the joss stick and paper that you burn does not get you anything. Do not bow at us, if you do that, we (Kuan Yin and other deities) need to bow down even lower)” After that, I also saw a vision of a golden cat with the waving paw and a big bullock cart of treasure. It said to me “You must obey me and I will give you this”. I said “No” and it disappeared.

Shortly after, the Lord Jesus appeared to me in a dream. He walked like a man with great authority with a famous religious figure carrying his bag like a servant. He told me “God is only one, you are my chosen one”. I was puzzled by all this, but somehow, not long after, I was persuaded by someone to study and practices vispasana meditation. To everyone’s surprise, I became a meditation master in only 6 weeks, surpassing all my teachers in the field. I was sent to a famous master in Burma who told me “I have nothing more to teach you. You know more than me. Whenever you are here, you can come and stay here whenever you like”. I studied deeply into the Buddhist Scriptures and was puzzled that in the sacred writings on some of Buddha’s last sayings, he said “Don’t worship me, I am just a man. Don’t worship idols. Seek the holy one who will come after me. His hands and feet had discs like holes. On his head were blemishes and his stomach was pierced.”. Any Christian would immediately recognize this description as being the Lord Jesus, but I didn’t know it at that time, and there was a deep dissatisfaction inside me to know who this holy one was.

And then on 20^th March 2008, fate had it that a Christian sister crossed my path and asked me if I knew Jesus. I said “Sure. He’s even appeared to me in my dream”. She pressed on “Do you know you can have intimacy with God, intimacy with Jesus?” I said “Well, no, I didn’t know that, but that sure sounds good.” She then led me to say the sinner’s prayer, and after that, I felt a tremendous peace come upon me. I was a meditation master and knew very high levels of peace through my meditation but this peace was something truly different. The same Christian sister asked me if I wished to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, and the moment I said “yes”, tongues began to flow out of my mouth for some time.

As a young Christian, I became very hungry for God and attended the Discipleship Life School under Dr.Vernon Falls and in my first one and a half years as a Christian, I read the whole Bible through four times. As I grew in my Christian walk, the Lord also blessed my business. There were times when I was in big financial distress when there was not enough money in the bank to cash my postdated cheques but somehow payments would flow in just in time. I found out how crucial it was to praise and worship. When we praise and worship, the presence of God will come and bless.

In 2010, I was called to minister in Borneo, in Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei and the Lord enabled me to become a worship warrior in dance, with gifts of prophecy, healing and deliverance. Since then, I have ministered in the Children’s, Youth and Full Gospel Businessmen’s ministry as well and have been privileged to travel to countries such as Philippines, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Indonesia, and India for ministry.

Recently, I went to Bario, where the great revival in 1973 occurred, and I found that the flame is still there in that place. Once we receive the fire of God, it is always with us, although it may simmer down. We need to fan the flame again for the fire to come alive once more. When our team arrived at Bario, we were shocked that the organizers who invited us wanted to cancel as they had some reservations about our worship dance. However, we prayed and though only 20 were expected to show up at the first meeting, 60 came. And meeting after meeting, the crowd grew. As we praised and worshipped, the presence of God would come bringing healing and joy and many demons were cast out. Dance in worship is very importance and we can see this in Scriptures like Psalm 149:3 “Let them praise His name with dancing”, Psalm 68:25 “In front are the singers, after them the musicians;  with them are the young women playing the timbrels and Jeremiah 31:4 “You… shall go forth in the dances of them that make merry”. When we dance we tear down strongholds and trample on the enemy.

Joshua 22:5 says “serve God with all your heart and soul”. Are we serving God with all our heart and soul? Deuteronomy 6:4-9 says “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.” When we are with our children, do they hear us saying “I love you, Lord” ?

Once I had an issue with some associates I felt I had forgiven, but maybe not 200% for I didn’t really want to be in the same room with them or near them. In a cell group, I was convicted of my sin, and I heard God tell me “their sin has nothing to do with you”. I prayed “Father, forgive me for not forgiving them”. Forgiveness is very important for our hearts to be clear with God.

I felt someone push me forward

I felt someone push me forward

FGB Jaya One/Brother Charlie Yeo/12/10/12

I was sitting down just like you in FGB Meetings, wondering how I would begin to serve when the Lord opened up an opportunity in 1994. In 1995, I was appointed president of my first Chapter in SS15, just a few months after joining. I asked God for wisdom like Solomon. There were massive problems at first, with people coming and going. 50% of the Chapter consisted of ladies. At one stage, there were only 2 or 3 men, with the rest ladies. However, that too is a good thing because ladies are very vibrant in prayer. Without prayer, nothing happens. Then the SS15 Chapter began to boom. Ladies brought their husbands and boyfriends. Then the ladies left, but the men stayed. We still had problems, but then, every ministry has problems. In fact, when there are problems, the Chapter comes alive. Sometimes people persecuted me, but I committed all the problems to God. If my God is for me, who can be against me? If it had not been for God, I would have given up long ago.

Soon, I started to move in the Lord. I called for meetings and people would come. Everyone responded when I laid hands on them. We founded a committee of up to 10 members and began really working together in the ministry. There would be no ministry if we had no love. I prayed for them. Prayer is so important. Lives began to change. God will increase. There is a real joy in having brothers of different denominations come together to pray.

I was given a mandate to build up 11 chapters.  Some chapters which had been vibrant in the 80s, having 20-30 people, now only had 1 or 2. Even if no one showed up, I would still worship. Father, Son and Holy Spirit are there with us. In time, 1 then 2 then 3 would walk in. It’s a joy. All glory to God. We have to keep on praying and let Him do the work. It is the Holy Spirit who works as we pray.

After 4 years I wanted to step down from my first Chapter. One smart aleck said, since God created the world in 7 days, you can only step down after 7 years. Somehow, I automatically withdrew after 7 years and someone was there to take over. I became a field rep for FGB and told the Lord, I want to go further. You need to be submissive and teachable.

I used to do insurance for 18 years. I accepted Jesus through a Singaporean friend who brought me to Calvary church. I was in the car with him when he asked to stop by his church at Calvary. Instead of waiting in the car, he asked me to follow him and sell some insurance to the church people. And so I did. The next day, I was supposed to fetch him back to Calvary again, but somehow he didn’t show. Still, I found myself going there, and asked myself what I was doing here. From nowhere, my friend suddenly showed up and sat next to me. Reverend Datuk Dr Prince Guneratnam was preaching and at the end asked if there was anyone who wanted to accept Christ. Suddenly, I felt someone push me forward. I heard a second calling, and someone pushed me 2 steps forward. Then it was the final call, and someone pushed me 3 steps forward, right in front of the Reverend. He asked me again and I nodded my head.

Shortly after, I was baptized, and I recall pulling all three pastors down with me as I went down into the water, submerging all of us. As I came out, I found myself saying Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ so that it is no longer I that live, but Christ that lives in me. From that day onwards, my life changed. Before, I had been like a gangster, smoking, drinking, womanizing and at the nightclubs almost everyday. Now, I gave up everything. Smoking and whiskey tasted horrible to me. Because of my heavy smoking, I used to cough out black bits, but one day, I started coughing uncontrollably but at the end of it, there was no more black. My lungs were clear. When the doctor examined next, he was amazed how a chain smoker like me could have such clean lungs.

While before I used to be tall, thin and had a moustache, I then put on weight, and became shorter and heavier. When I visited my family in Toronto, my parents did not recognize me at all. At the train station, they saw me but did not recognize me. I decided to play a trick on them, and just sat and observed them. They even asked me once if they saw a man who was tall and thin with a moustache. After an hour, they were so agitated, they decided to go home. Then I called ‘dad’, and the second time, he recognized me and said “you rascal. How did you become like that?” I told them I was a Christian and most of them became Christians too.

FGB requires 4 members to form a chapter. The Head Office gave me 10 prayer groups to revive. When I came the Brickfields Chapter had 1 member and no committee, but now there are 8 committee members. Again, it was the ladies who brought the harvest. This is God’s business. Even if no one comes, and I will still pray. We have to be faithful, available, submissive to God and teachable. We must be FAST men. We must remember that if there is no love, there is no ministry. People like to complain, compare and criticize but let us instead to the 3E’s – Encourage, empower, exhort. 

Do not let the past rob you of your future

FGB Jaya One/Gus Kirby/5/10/12

Hebrews 10:24-25 says ^“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” God gives us warning to prepare us.

I first joined FGB in Taman Mayang about 6-7 years ago. One of the brothers approached my principal for a room and I felt convicted to join this fellowship. I saw that the group was struggling with the worship so the Lord prompted me to help in the area of worship. Over the years, I found FGB to be a tremendous ministry of testimonies. Before, my perception was limited, but the Holy Spirit convicted me that He accepts people whatever denomination who come to Him. We all comes as children of God. As the verse goes “As many as received him, as many are called children of God. Brothers shared how God rescued them. I too felt compelled to share with those who did not know God. There are those who are discouraged. There are those who need a helping hand. We all need a helping hand and brothers and sisters to come and walk alongside us. We are one body, and Christ is the head of the body. Even one small cut causes the whole body to be in pain. Unless there is agreement with God, no miracles take place. It take men agreeing with God. God gave us choice, free will. If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead you will be saved.

I have 4 brothers. For real transformation, there must be 2 in agreement. As the Scripture says, we must try to come together often in the name of Jesus, and He will be there with us. A threefold cord is not easily broken. The devil seeks to bring disunity and discord. We need to keep professing the Lord as Lord of our lives. God will arrange the steps of a righteous man. God does not look at numbers or the outward appearance. He looks at the heart Out of the abundance of the heart are the issues of life.

The Lord knows us by name. He knows the number of every hair on our heads. God is very meticulous, like accounting. You are important and precious to God. When 2 or more pray, bring God in. We must learn to live life lifting up and serving one another. We often think we can do things on our own, that we don’t need others. However, no man is an island. 

I like to watch Animal Planet. The Scripture says that we can learn from the beasts and the birds. My favorite are the big cats, the lions. When the female lions go hunting, they will move to isolate the prey that is weakest from the rest of the herd. When we isolate ourselves, then we become targets.

In my family, we had a reputation of serving in the church. There was peace in the home but my dad had a problem with alcohol and nicotine. It was a bondage he could not get over. My mum prayed constantly for deliverance from these vices. On the outside, people saw us a good family, but we had no conviction, no fear of the Lord. My brothers and I also picked up nicotine and did what the world did.

One of my first jobs in my career was to go to the Middle East, and it was a culture shock for me, but I was very thankful for the Bible my mum gave me. After the 3 years, I came back, but began following the world again, going back to the vices. I went into gambling and when I went to Australia, found even more gambling there. I lost everything and came back bitter and depressed. I was angry especially with friends who deserted me although I had treated them well in my better times.

My Pastor told me “You are the prodigal son, God had his hand on you, but you let go”. I realized that when I came back from the Middle East, I had let go of God. Then I met a friend of 10 years who had a totally transformed life. He had been a worst drinker, and I was so happy to see his life transformed. From that meeting on, he fasted and prayed for me and my family. My pastor says the reason you and I are in the kingdom of God is because someone prayed for us. Another wise saying my Pastor told me was “Don’t let your past rob you of your future”. I finally realized I had to surrender to God, to just come to him like a child.

We must acknowledge the gathering of saints be it in church, in FGB or in a cell group. I realized I must share how God delivered me from my nicotine habit. I began to attend a small fellowship. Our Lord Jesus said that He will build His church.

We must pray for our leaders. The Holy Spirit convicted me not to speak against my leaders. Its easy for us to criticize and complain. There is power in our tongues. The eye gate and the ear gate are also important. The proverbial “see no evil, hear nor evil, speak no evil” is so true. In Christ, he who was a liar lies no more. We must be careful what we speak. God has promised us that He will never leave us nor forsake us.

My mum passed away 5 months ago. She was faithful, always praying for her children. When she was diagnosed with cancer, we went through it together as a family. I am so thankful to the cell members who came alongside us to support us. She did not suffer for too long. We were so touched that even in her pain, she still had the heart of a mother, showing concern for us rather than for herself. The promises of God are Yes and Amen

In closing, I want to leave with you Psalm 50:15, the number to call in times of trouble. I first heard it in a sermon by Reinhardt Boenke. It says “ call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.                

The Lord gave me love for my dad

This was a very touching testimony by brother Jeremy. Reflecting on it, I learned a very meaningful lesson that to love someone is to go into that person’s world and spend time with him, sharing what is important to him.

The Lord gave me love for my dad

FGB Jaya One/Jeremy Lam/28/9/12

FGB Ministry has been a real blessing to my life, where I have met many friends and formed many wonderful relationships. The FGB platform is such that we share from our experiences. Today, I would like to focus on Exodus 20:12 which is quite suitable since the year is 2012. It says “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.” I would like to share my testimony about my relationship with my dad.

My dad came down to Malaysia by himself from China, seeking greener pastures, arriving before the Japanese occupation. Somehow, he ended up living in Klang. There is a big age gap between me and my dad, who became a father at age 42. Since I am 55 today, a quick calculation will tell you he is 97 now.

My dad was a simple man, having no commitments and owning only a single storey terrace house in Klang. His last drawn salary was RM1,000 at the age of 87. He worked for a hardware dealer, knowing the prices of the hardware at his fingertips. Every morning, he would wake up at 5am and drink his mug of Horlicks without fail and have 2 slices of bread. Then he would cycle 2.5km to his place of work. He had no major illnesses, just one operation on the prostate, but had a bit of high blood pressure and cholesterol. My dad didn’t have snacks and was very disciplined. After stopping work, my dad would still walk to another housing estate, to have breakfast, buy the papers, and perhaps catch up with some friends. Sometimes, he would walk to his old office to chat with his old colleagues.

One day while I was in Shanghai on business, I received a call from my sister, saying that my dad was missing. There was nothing I could do but just pray. They looked for him in his old office but could not find him. Fortunately, a neighbor’s friend who recognized him brought him home in a van. He had lost his sense of direction and we could not let him go out to walk by himself anymore.

Since I knew he likes to walk, I decided to drive up his house and walk with him. His started 3 years ago, and in the morning, my dad would usually be excited to go walking with me. My dad’s favorite food is fruits. So I often bought cherries, bananas or grapes for him. We would walk about 700m to the shop and quite often we would finish the fruits on the way. I would have 2 bananas, giving him one and taking the other. My father still loved his Horlicks, so I would mix in an egg and some oats, making it a very nutritious drink. Since he could not finish it, he would pour half for me, and we would share the drink. Likewise, of the two pieces of bread he had, he would give me one, and take the other. My dad had some problems swallowing, so I mixed his pills in his food for him. One day, to my amusement, he wanted to share his pills with me, since we were sharing so many things. 

It was only an hour I spent with him from 8-9am, but along the way, I did make some friends. Sometimes, as we walked, people would drive by in the car, stop, and say good, giving the thumbs up. Some standing by would chat with us.

Sadly, dad fell down sometime later in the house, and could not walk any longer. We had to send him to the nursing home, and I still went to visit him. There were some others that who still had sharp faculty of thought. My father had grown senile, and I missed talking to him. The Lord had given me love for my dad. I just want to encourage you to appreciate your parents, as this pleases the Lord.

Touching heaven, changing earth

Touching heaven, changing earth

FGB Jaya One/Pastor Kul Bal Singh/10/8/12

Just as every now and then, we may need a physical injection, so too, in our spiritual lives every now and then we need a kick up to push us to the next level. All of us have mountaintop experiences but none of us can live there all the time. A mountaintop experience could be a new project, a promotion, someone getting married. It could be at work or be a Christian experience. Perhaps we went to a Christian conference and enjoyed it, feeling ready to take over the world. It could be driving to work and having all the traffic lights green. It could be children getting a good report. Many of us go from top to bottom experiences, where it is not so fun. Most of us live between the high and low points of our lives. As Christians, we need a strategy, a formula, a method to live between.

Often we get churched by other people’s feelings, traffic hams, outside situations. As a Christian minister, I need to learn how to minister even when I am down. I was born in Malaysia, raised in Scotland, and now pastor in Australia. I am an itinerant minister, going out to release healing and miracles. Jesus is the healer. When I first went out, nobody knew me. I started my ministry going wherever I could, even to the smallest group. However, over time, I became one of the main speakers in FGB Australia, and spoke in the UK as well. God can take a nobody and give him an unimaginable ministry.

You learn in the light so that you can release in the dark. Do not release yourself or your emotions. Live in the light so you can release it in the dark. So when we travel downwards, we can touch people along the way.

There are 6 main areas in all of our lives.

Our gifts and talents are part of our skill portfolio. Our daily path is our journey and routine. Our anointing is the presence of God in our lives. All of us has an anointing because Jesus has forgiven us and we have been set free. Because we have been set free, we are able to help other people. Most of us are creatures of habit. We have breakfast at a certain time of the day, we read the newspaper a certain way. All of us have our unique identity, maturity and persona which also evolves. All of us have our unique set of experiences, hurts, victories, culture. All of come across other people daily.

When one or more of these incidents meet together, it is a coincidence. However, when 2 or more meet, it is no more a coincidence, but an assignment from God, especially when all incidents come together. Even when I am a valley Christian, I still have an assignment from God to release all I have on somebody else. God has designed it when 2 or more of these incidents meet! There is a Hillsong with the words “touching heaven, changing earth.” The favor of Heaven must so touch our hearts so that God’s favor can in us can touch someone else.

When I was a non-Christian, I had 2 young twin girls who died. I was so upset with the God I did not know. I had a lot of unique experiences with my wife who was from a different culture. A clash of cultures can be very difficult. When I lost my twins, I couldn’t understand. A year and a half after I became a Christian, Jesus came to me and I saw my twins that tall. I gave up my engineering because I found I could communicate with my experiences for godly purposes. I knew my assignment was to work for Jesus full time. An assignment can be daily or weekly or even minute by minute. It could be someone on the bus or on the train. Wherever I go, I will prayer for people.

Once I was buying an air-con in Australia during winter, when air-cons were cheaper. I noticed that the salesgirl did not look well, and she shared how she had a chronic pain in her hand and also had a severe migraine. I told her “let me pray for you”, and after that, she said she felt a little bit better. It is God who heals. My job is to minister, even in 30 seconds. My job is to encourage people, to win people for the Lord. Each day is different. I have a small garden, and I have an orange fruit tree. I give it to my neighbors so I can speak to them about Jesus. I was asked to give the prayer blessing at a gathering of 400 people. Only about a 100 were paying attention. I got the mike and shouted “Hallelujah”, God bless this people”. Sometimes we have to do something to activate our assignment. I was at a wonderful conference in New Zealand where there was healing, words of knowledge. Halfway through, I got ill. I questioned God “Lord, I’m doing my assignment. I experienced a doubtful moment. We need to increase our anointing part of life. By the time I returned to Australia, my ears were completely blocked. A rest was part of what I needed. Last year I preached 250 times in 25 nations. Whatever you do, remember that God has given you an assignment. If you don’t do it, nobody else will do it. God will bring people your way.

Neil Clark Warren was concerned whether his 3 young granddaughters would marry the right person. In America, there was so much divorce. He was a psychologist, and after doing a survey for a few years, started out a company called E-Harmony, a dating agency which today has 18 million members. All his experiences triggered him.

There was a lady who loved cats and needed money. Someone said “why don’t you write a book on cats?” She took some courses and wrote a book and made AUD30,000 just selling e-books. You and I can have skills but be so occupied that our creativeness gets stemmed down. I was not always a confident speaker but now speak all over the world. Don’t think “It’s Monday, I have to go to work.” Every moment you can be used by God to trigger something.

18 months ago, I went to Belgium where it was -12 degrees. A sick lady came to meetings 3 days in a row. After the preaching, she came forward for prayer every time. She had holes on her back because of bedsores. She was 68, and God healed her dramatically after praying for her for 3 days. She had to be carried to the meeting. I prayed that God would give her new skin. It was a small meeting, but she had faith. 90 came to the meeting, and more than 45 were saved for the very first time. God’s glory must be known all over the world.

There was a lady deaf in 2 ears and could not speak. I had prayed for her 4 times, and each time she went down but no healing. People were watching and I was worried. By the 5^th time, I was getting sacred. She fell down again, and suddenly she said “one”, repeating after me. I said two and she said two. To make sure she was not reading my lips, I went beside her and repeated, and she could hear. I learned an important lesson there of praying until something happens. Every moment you can be used by God to trigger something.

                                                                                                                                                                                               

Christianity in the marketplace

Christianity in the marketplace

FGB Jaya One/Quah Poh Keat/13/7/12

In the years 2008-2012, we have seen challenging times. Since 2007, we have seen recessions around the world or at least slow growth in most countries. There has been a loss of faith in the financial system, the political system and the government. Even the integrity of religious leaders are doubted. We in the marketplace are deep in the trenches, and bearing the wounds and scars yet also enjoying the victories.

Even in the marketplace, Jesus challenges us in Matthew 5:13-16. “You are salt for the Land. But if salt becomes tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything except being thrown out for people to trample on. “You are light for the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Likewise, when people light a lamp, they don’t cover it with a bowl but put it on a lampstand, so that it shines for everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before people, so that they may see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven. The role of salt is to preserve. Things will always go bad in themselves. We are supposed to step out, to give flavor, to bring something positive. If we lose our saltiness, we become good for nothing. We have to retain our godly nature. Sometimes we need to leave the pack, to speak up and take action.

Where there is light, there is also darkness. As disciples of Jesus, we are to show the way to the people. Then people will see our good deeds and praise God. We must be of such positive impact that when we are no longer around, people must feel there is a real loss.

Do we follow the world around us in their language? Do we lose our language and speak the same language as the masses? Can we change the atmosphere around our workplace. We need to persevere to honor God, even working within the system like Joseph, Daniel and Esther did. Sometimes, we need to make peace with the system while retaining our distinctiveness to improve the system. What does God expect of us?

In Joshua 1:9, the Lord says “Fear Not!” Fear paralyzes us. It causes us to hide away. There will be tough times. However, tough times will not last but tough people will. Charles Spurgeon once said that we should not worry about tomorrow because it robs today of its strength. Psalm 91:5 says “You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day.” We should not fear the daytime or the nighttime. The terror of our day could be a stock market report, a property bubble, a political impasse or cashflow or loss of staff. The challenge is for us to fear not.

We need to expect miracles to happen in the workplace. Then we can endure the challenges. Hebrews 4:12 says “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” We need to resist, fear not, and be aware that God has a plan for each one of us. Am I valuable to God? Do I ask God “What do you want me to do?” “Shall I be a pastor to the people around me?” Even in Jaya One, do I look at the whole place as a harvest field? How about Block A or B or C or D? Be a pastor wherever you are.

In 1857, there was an American businessman called Jeremiah Lamphere who asked God “What do you want me to do?” God said “start a prayer meeting”. And on 23^rd September 1857 at 1pm, he went for his first prayer meeting. Nobody was there but after half an hour, there were 4 of them. 6 months later, prayer meetings were being held all over the US, including San Francisco. And the prayer meetings spread to Canada, the UK and South Africa and continued for 40 years. Don’t see ourselves as just Jason Tan’s office. See ourselves as beyond Jason Tan’s office.

In 1857, invitations for the prayer meeting could only be made verbally. God can use anyone of us. The impact of these prayer meetings was such that when ships entered the harbor in the US, non-Christians would fall down and ask for forgiveness.

In another story, a taxi driver had just become a Christian and wanted to share the gospel to bring people to Christ. However, the only person he knew was a bartender. The bartender wanted to kill him for trying to witness but eventually became a Christian. It turned out the bartender was also a pimp, and he brought his girls to hear about Christ and 30 became Christians. In the end, the bar became a church.

In Phuket, a lady who was dying was healed by prayer and since she had come from an ignoble profession, the church bought an ice-cream cart from her to sell ice-cream. As she sold ice-cream, she led many villagers to Christ? One day she asked her pastor “Don’t you think the prime minister of Thailand needs to hear about Christ?”  and she proceeded to travel to Bangkok to see the PM. She waited from morning to evening before Abhisit finally decided to see her and even spoke with her for half an hour.

God can use a taxi driver. He can use an ice-cream seller. He can use any one of us.

Still, we have to be dependant on God. How big is your God? We may think of wood as a piece of wood, but when God thinks of wood, He thinks of the whole Amazon forest! Our God made the Himalaya mountains and the whole Pacific ocean. Our God is really a big God. Sometimes we try to “help” God when there really is no need. Abraham and Sarah had been promised a child by God and tried to “help” God through Hagar. Today, the descendants of Hagar are still giving problems to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Joseph tried to rush the cupbearer to tell the king about his predicament, but had to wait 2 more years for his time to come. Our attitude should be like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who said “God is able to save us, but even if He does not, it will be ok!”

Moses could not speak well, but God gave Him a staff that performed miracles. In the feeding of the 5,000, it all started with just 5 loaves and 2 small fish.

God expects us to be people of integrity. Yet, we tend to be economic with the truth. In 2008. the collapse of AIG and Lehmann Brothers caught the world by surprise. UK banks were mis-selling. Imagine if the 3 top banks in Malaysia suddenly disappeared.

The 10 commandments tells us we must bear false testimony, not to steal, not to covet. God expects integrity. Are we honest in computing our tax return? Do we render to Caesar’s what is Caesar’s?

We must say no to corruption. We must be honest with our creditors. Do we keep promises to our staff at the time of employment?                                                                                    What is our attitude towards the environment? Christians should be at the forefront of Corporate Social Responsibility. We need to inculcate integrity in our lives.

Once, while I was the KPMG tax partner, a client missed an important deadline and was facing a huge fine to the tune of half a million. To my horror there was no documentation to safeguard ourselves and the client was a very horrid man. I was preparing for the worst when asked to attend a meeting with them, but the staff in charge put up her hand to say it was her fault. Are we people of integrity?

I had a friend who went into a small time furniture business with a few partners and was left with a whole load of debt to pay. Renting a single storey house, he struggled to pay off the debt by selling insurance. Sadly, he contracted Hepatitis B. He had three children and the third was born deaf and blind. Later, he died of his disease, but to our surprise, he had left it in his will to pay off the creditors first from the insurance money before giving the rest to his family. What would people say at our eulogy? What will God say when we meet Him? It is only an audience of 1 that we need to please. In life, many things are gray, neither black nor white, but let us move on from gray to white.