Weeks 33 & 34 (07) - Blessings of Divine Guidance

August was a triple blessing for me, having attended the Hope Euro Convention in Prague and the North America Annual Camp in Seattle. I also combined my NA trip with visiting my relatives in Vancouver.

It was a good opportunity to visit my Dad in Vancouver, who, by God's grace, is still very active. Together with my family members, we celebrated his 96 year birthday (see attached pic). May be I still have quite a few more years left to serve the Lord, if He did not come back before I went home. :o)

The NAAC was held in a beautiful camp site on the outskirt of Seattle. It was great to meet up with all the pastors from NA & Canada churches, encouraged by their determination and zeal in planting churches in that part of the world. We also had fellowship with the HGI Elders and quite a few international pastors. I also had the opportunity to lead a team of young people, taking part in a very creative Experiential Learning Programme. We had 2 days to work together as a team, coming up with a team name, a team slogan and a team act. On the final day, we also competed against 7 other teams in 4 game stations. I was utterly amazed by the talents and teamwork we had, winning all the games! Herewith a few pics to show the Anointed Warriors (our team name). Judy, Simon, Hai Eng, Orn, Praew, Kang, Alex, Derek, Tom, Rachel, Rebecca, Brian, Sek - you guys are awesome :o).

After the camp, Kim & I shared a car with Ps. James & Christine, driving back to Vancouver. We had the privilege of spending a day of their 1st Anniversary celebration, eating & sight-seeing together in Vancourver. It was good to see two long-time friends genuinelly loving and caring for one another!

I thank the Lord for bringing me into the Hope family 14 years ago. I have since met so many wonderful people committing their lives in following Jesus and doing His will. I think this is probably as close as one gets to carrying His cross!

When we have the heart-felt thanks for what the Lord has done, we can comprehend what the psalmist says. "When the LORD brought back the captives to Zion, we were like men who dreamed. Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy........The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy......Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him [Ps 126:1-6 NIV]." Keep going brothers and sisters. We may be sowing in tears now, but the big celebration awaits us at the end!

We should have Jacob's mindset of not wanting to be buried in Eygpt. "Now the Israelites settled in Egypt in the region of Goshen. They acquired property there and were fruitful and increased greatly in number. Jacob lived in Egypt seventeen years, and the years of his life were a hundred and forty-seven. When the time drew near for Israel to die, he called for his son Joseph and said to him, "If I have found favor in your eyes, put your hand under my thigh and promise that you will show me kindness and faithfulness. Do not bury me in Egypt.......[Gen 47:27-31 NIV]." We may be living in spiritual Eygpt. We may even have earthly riches and property. Our heart should not be in it!

Jesus has warned us that ".......a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God.......[John 16:1-4 NIV]." The time is already with us. Be strong & courageous. Put on our seat belt and ride the wave of persecution, which will only get worse towards the end!

All earthly possessions are temporal, "for riches do not endure forever, and a crown is not secure for all generations [Prov 27:23-27 NIV]." Lets embrace things that are eternal and pour our all into them!

Weeks 30 - 32 (07) - Blessings of Divine Guidance

At the beginning of 2007, I sensed that it was going to be a crucial year for the Church. I shared that The enemy would work overtime in hindering the work of God's Kingdom. Through sermons & teachings, I kept reminding the people the need to be alert & vigilant. By the middle of the year, a few Hope churches in Europe have suffered setbacks in different degrees, with one, a new starter, closing down completely!

Before the Euro Convention, I felt in my heart that God would give us a breakthrough and the chosen theme of Mission Possible was a fitting one. We prepared for it with a 21-Day Pre-Convention Fast. God indeed showed Himself faithful throughout the whole Convention held in Prague, the Czech Republic .

As a start, the weather was perfect for the whole duration, despite of the not-so-good weather forecasts. Hope Prague did a great job in the opening and closing ceremonies, despite of their limited manpower resources. The praise & worships sessions, led by different Hope Europe Churches, were all very uplighting and empowering. Many lives were also touched by the Word of God and responses to altar calls and mission were enthusiastic. The people were strengthened and encouraged to continue running the race!

We also spent an afternoon doing street evangelism. Different teams were using creative presentations to attract the crowds. Hope Prague and Hope Berlin did break-dancing whilst Hope UK performed a series of Thai dances (see photo). Both attracted huge crowds and our people managed to talk to many of the onlookers. Many contact details were collected, including a few who came to our evening evangelistic service. The enemy did try to stop the presentations by challenging the licenses held by us, but the Lord miraculously intervened and allowed the performances to proceed!

It is worth mentioning that through out the whole Convention, a dedicated team of intercessors were faithfully taking turns to interceed for all the activities. So I would conclude that God was with us and, through the different programmes, I believe He has done a deep work in the hearts of everyone. He alone gets all the honour and glory!

Having been walking with God for over 16 years, I am totally convinced that "My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip-- he who watches over you will not slumber; the LORD will keep you from all harm-- he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore [Ps 121:1-8 NIV]."

It is amazing that God sometimes use an unfortunate situation to fulfill His longer term objective. Although Joseph was sold into slavery, it turned out that God used it to preserve a remnant of His people on earth. "Joseph said to his brothers...., "I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance [Gen 45:4-7 NIV]." Thats why we should thank God under all circumstances [1 Th. 5:18]; faith and trust are built in difficult times!

We must understand that the devil hates every man & woman created by God. His plan is to deceive them and eventually destroy them. Jesus said "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first......I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. They will treat you this way because of my name....He who hates me hates my Father as well.....[John 15:18-25 NIV]". This is a fact we cannot deny. The good news is that God will one day redeem all that belongs to Him. He calls us to this mission and we will succeed with his help!


"......when a wise man is instructed, he gets knowledge. In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil.....A wise man attacks the city of the mighty and pulls down the stronghold in which they trust [Prov 21:11,20,22 NIV]." Let us seek God's wisdom in pulling down strongholds in our cities and advance God's Kingdom.

Weeks 27 - 29 (07) - Blessings of Divine Guidance

I have been preaching on the 7 "D"s of Kingdom People. Last Sunday, it was on "Discipline Our Whole Being" i.e. body, soul (mind, will & emotion) and spirit. Paul says in [1 Corin. 9:24-27] that "...in a race all the runners run.....everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training...for the prize". It is amazing how the health of one faculty of our whole being can affect the rest. We cannot be spiritually strong if our body is tired easily or sick often. All parts of our whole make-up need to be healthy if we desire to perform at our fullest potential in God.

So often, I see Christians with great heart & spirit handicapped in serving God due to poor physical health. Food, exercise and rest all play an important part in our physical health, which in turn impacts the health of our soul and spirit.

This week I stumbled across a booklet titled "Nutrition" in a bookshop. Nutrition is of a Latin origin meaning to nourish. The 2 basic function of nutrition are:
1) to provide individual building blocks enabling the construction of and renewal of the body
2) to supply the necessary fuel for our bodies to perform.

The booklet says that the dietary habits of today are not encouraging good health. Good health means a state of permanent well-being in which we are full of energy, with a strong able body, alert mind and balanced emotions. Together with a strong immune system that wards off infections and disease. A part of the foundation of good health is good nutrition.

A nutrient is a chemical substance in food that is used by the body to promote normal growth, maintenance and repair, and it assists in the metabolism (chemical process) of the body. Six categories of nutrients include water, carbohydrates, fats, protein, vitamin and minerals.

I was a little surprised to learn that increasing our water (which can just be tap water) consumption is an effective way of nourishing our body's needs. Water is involved in nearly every bodily process including digestion, absorption, circulation and excretion. Water is involved in the function of transportation of all nutrients throughout the body and assists in the elimination of waste products out of the body. The body's utilisation of water is at least 3 litres a day to perform its required functions. And an essential part of our diet is the consumption of water. It is important to drink A MINIMUM OF 8 GLASSES OF WATER every day. I wonder how many people do that. I for one was not doing it. I am now :o)

Besides drinking plenty of water, a healthy diet means an ABUNDANCE of fruits, vegetables and grains; a MODERATE amount of dairy products, nuts, eggs, meat; a REDUCTION in fat, salt, sugar, butter, cream, alcohol, tea (herbal tea is fine) and coffee. Hmmmm, a lot of food for thought and action!

I often am amazed at God's creation of the human body. It is soooo complex and wonderfully made. It is up to us to take good care of it. The Maker's manual, i.e. The Word of God will give us the understanding we need. "Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them......I do not forget your precepts.....your commands are my delight. Your statutes are forever right; give me understanding that I may live [Ps 119:139-144 NIV]."

Joseph had also put God's promises and His Word to the test. His integrity got him into trouble with his master Potiphar, who "took him and put him in prison....But while Joseph was there in the prison, the LORD was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there......the LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did [Gen 39:16-23 NIV]." His obedience of God's Word finally yielded dividends.

God is no respecter of men. He does not mince word. He meant exactly what He said. As a result, "many of his disciples said, "This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?"....... He went on to say, "This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him [John 6:53-70 NIV]." We should be glad that God the Father had touched us by His Spirit that we would come to accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour!

"A fool finds no pleasure in understanding but delights in airing his own opinions.....A fool's mouth is his undoing, and his lips are a snare to his soul [Prov 18:2,6-7 NIV]." Let us be a fool in Christ, but not a fool in the world.