Day 2 - Nepal Creation Conference (20 April)

At the close of the Nepal Creation Conference, we were pleasantly surprised to receive a traditional gift from the host church (Covenant Christian Fellowship) - a Nepali topi for the men and a scarf for the ladies. For the second day, my presentation focused on dinosaurs and so far, I find that the fascination with dinosaurs is a global phenomena and a wonderful bridge to start talking about just how relevant Biblical history is. Praise the Lord for this amazing opportunity!

We are grateful to the leadership of Dr.Joseph Paturi and his wife, Shoba. Although there were some administrative challenges, he stepped up to provide leadership and worked closely with Pastor Ram in getting the conference to a great start. Quite possibly - as the Lord leads - we may do the next conference in New Delhi, India.

The Nepal Creation Conference would not have been successful without dedicated pastors who helped us with the translation. Pastor Silas and his wife traveled for almost a day to the conference and he was my translator for the first day of the conference. One of the youth leaders commented - "We've always have questions about dinosaurs, the Big Bang, etc but our pastors could not provide answers; instead they just ask us to trust in Jesus. Now, after the conference, we know that the Bible do provide answers!"

While, the conference was going on in the church auditorium, Eunice was busy having her own "ministry" - playing and making friends with the children from the orphanage. She now know more Nepali words than me!

Day 1 - Nepal Creation Conference (19 April)

Finally, the day is here for the first-ever Nepal Creation Conference! The above are the speakers - Dr.Joseph Paturi, Tom Reese, Dr.Pradhan and myself. We are appreciative of Pastor Ram, Senior Pastor of Covenant Christian Fellowship who offered the use of his fine church facility - comfortable enough to house the 300 people who came.

Those who came were mainly young people, students and pastors. Judging by their eagerness in taking notes, we are encouraged by their hunger to grow deeper in the history of Genesis. I spoke on the topic - "Building Strong Foundations in the Next Generation". Working with a translator is quite interesting - I would tell a joke - and then get a delayed response!

While the adult sessions were going on, Eunice certainly made herself at home playing with the local children! She certainly did not need a translator - in fact, she learnt a few Nepalese words by her own initiative. The words of Jesus rings true - Let the little children come...

The Journey to Bharatpur

We had a real taste of Nepalese road travel today in going from Khatmandu to Bharatpur. The two-lane hillside travel gave us a harrowing experience as we had to encounter not only aggressive drivers but also a few vehicle accidents as well. Praise God for His journey protection!

The other speaker for the  Creation Conference (Apr 19-20) is Tom Reese from the US who came with his wife, Marilyn. We last met during the All-Asian Creation Conference in Subang last year. On the far right is Pastor Kirin - who pastors a growing church called Bharatpur Gospel Center.

This is the entrance to Bharatpur Gospel Center - standing next to Pastor Kirin on the left is Pastor Simon Ram - the person responsible for discipling Pastor Kirin. It is in Pastor Ram's church - Covenant Christian Fellowship - that the first ever Nepal Creation Conference will be held from 19-20 April. We certainly look forward to this event.

 In addition to Pastor Kirin, a few pastors from nearby churches also came to fellowship with us. The group look pretty "mild" but when it was time to pray - Wow! they raised their voice with such vigor, enthusiasm and energy that it puts me to shame. Such simple faith and courageous attitude!

Eliza and Eunice with their new found friends. Was pleasantly surprised that they have Facebook accounts as well - so, that become our instant connection points! Tomorrow will be our final day of preparation (and rest) before the start of the conference. May the Lord be gracious and move in a powerful way!

Our First Overseas Mission Project

 

After months of anticipation, the moment finally arrived for our first overseas mission trip together as a family - participating in the first ever Creation Conference in Nepal, organized by the Covenant Christian Fellowship located in Kathmandu. We took the opportunity to travel earlier and gain some early fellowship time with the church leaders before the two-day conference begins on April 19.

There is much joy and deep satisfaction when my wife and children become a part of the Creation Ministry and how this not only draws us closer to our Creator but also to one another. May the next generation be motivated to "remember thy Creator in the days of your youth".

Character-Wise Parenting @All Nations Church (14 April)

 As part of All Nations Church (ANC) outreach to the community in Ara Damansara, I was invited to conduct a one-day Character-Wise Parenting workshop yesterday. We had a wonderful time as we unravel the leadership role of parents in addressing the "generation gap". This "gap" exists because we parents are not courageous enough to stand up for Biblical values and go counter-culture by taking personal responsibility for our child's character rather than "outsourcing" it other care-providers.

First Ministry Opportunity in China! (2 April)

As an extension of my business trip in Shanghai, the Lord provided an opportunity to link up with the young adults of a local house church group for a 3-hour Creation Seminar. As an added blessing - my good friend and fellow team member, Jimmy Chen - was also on business in China as well - so, we had the divine appointment of being able to connect with the Shanghai house church as a team.

With the last 30 minutes of the seminar being allotted for questions, I was surprised with the wave of questions that follow - covering a wide range of subjects covering Theology, Science and Philosophy! We were informed by our host that in China - evangelism is easy but the challenge is in discipleship, grounding Believers in basic doctrines and fundamental concepts based on Scripture. Indeed there is no better place to start than with the very first verse of the Bible!

First Creation Apologetics Training (1-Day Program)

We had 54 participants representing various churches in KL and PJ plus also one who flew in all the way from Kuching. The focus of this 1-day Creation Apologetics training is in line with our mission to "equip Christian parents and teachers on Creation Apolgetics so that they can in turn train the next generation to stand upon Biblical truth and be an effective disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ." See our website.

Small group discussions representing parents, Sunday school teachers, youth leaders and also those involed in evangelism and missions.

 Unlike the short seminars conducted thus far, we had a more time in this 1-day program to cover the teaching aspect of Creation Apologetics.

We were so encouraged by the impromptu testimony from a Masters student who shared with us on the importance to make a stand in the academic world and how this eventually strengthen her testimony to her friends. When we have firm views on the accuracy of Scripture beginning from Genesis, we become more salty and our light shines brighter!

Creation Youth Camp - Faith Methodist Church @Lundu, Sarawak (10-12 March)

"War of the worldviews - Can we really trust the Bible?" - that's the theme for the Youth Camp of Faith Methodist Church, Kuching. This is the first time we are privileged to conduct a Youth Camp for close to 50 young people - all eager to know more about matters of origins, science and history!

The teams were divided into dinosaur groups! In my conversation with a 13-year old student, he said the teaching session on dinosaurs was the one that impacted him the most. Almost everyone in the camp have books on dinosaurs at home but not many know the subtle impact of the millions of years myth.

This is the "Questioning Board" where a steady stream of "post-it" questions came from the "truth-hungry" youngsters! Popular questions asked were on Adam & Eve, aliens, dating methods, dinosaurs, evolution and even theological questions about what heaven and hell. I have never had such an inquisitive crowd before!

That's the group holding up the Bible to make a commitment to share the truth of creation to at least one friend. The one message that came strong was that we need to use Scripture as the "filter" by which to make sense of the world around us.

The Faith Methodist Church generation of the future who will stand upon the authority of Scripture - starting from the very first verse!

Many thanks to the team of Advisors who worked very hard behind the scene in putting this whole camp together. Really appreciate the hospitality of Meng Hung and his wife Eunice - really felt very much at home in Kuching! Who knows, the Lord may open up another opportunity again for the Creation message to spread even further as we continue to focus on fulfilling the Great Commission!

An Amazing Gathering in Kuching! (9 March)

It never cease to amaze me how the Lord moves in gathering like-minded believers together! Sometimes when I feel that we are just the remaining "remnant", He surprises us by revealing to us that there are many more who are enthusiastic about a literal stand on Genesis. The Friday evening "Introduction to Creation Apologetics" seminar at Good News Fellowship, Kuching brought together the largest gathering thus far of a creation seminar which we have conducted to date. We are very grateful to the hard work and generosity of Pastor Jeff and his team at Good News Fellowship for putting this event together. Indeed, how blessed it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!

Initially, I was thinking - could 40kg worth of books and DVD - shipping them all the way to Kuching - would people really buy them? Again, the Lord surprise me and it was almost sold out save for a few copies! The hunger for the right Biblical worldview is real! When believers are equipped with the alternative to evolution, standing up for our faith in the absolute authority of Scripture becomes very exciting indeed! Here's a recent testimony from someone who attended the All-Asian Creation Conference last year:

"Since the conference, I have been on fire sharing this message tirelessly in churches, youth camps and among my clients overseas. It has been truly a blessing to myself and others around me.

Thank you for bringing Ken Ham and his team to Malaysia. AIG has helped me to answer  the "missing link" and now I am so excited to have answers to all these difficult questions. It gives me a boldness in sharing the Gospel like never before. What a difference when you have answers!"

Answering the Critics - Part 2 (4 March)

Had the second session of "Answering the Critics" at the School of Christian Growth (SCG) class at Subang Jaya AOG. Topic = "One Race" - answering the question on origins of races and people groups. The Biblical worldview of how we all from flow from Adam and Eve, later on through the dispersion at Babel makes more sense of the world we see around us. At the heart of evangelism is a calling to ALL people to return to their true family, to return to their true home, to their one and only Heavenly Father. That is why it is important for us to have an understanding that Adam and Eve, Noah and his family are all literal, historical figures used by God to eventually linked us with Jesus Christ so that there can be a real "family reunion". This is the ministry of reconciliation that God has entrusted to us (2 Cor 5:16-21).

Dino Talk @DUMC Young Adults (Mar 2)

We had the privilege of being invited back again to the DUMC "HiYA" monthly fellowship event of the young adults. The first time we presented the topic of "Creation vs Evolution" and this time round it is "Dinosaurs, Dragons & the Gospel". Despite the heavy downpour, we are amazed with the turnout which almost took up all the seating space in the room!

The wonderful testimony came from a guy in his 20s who have had a fascination with dinosaurs since he was ten years old - constantly looking for answers in the Bible but found none. "Today, I have found the answers!" - was his joyous acclaim that now he can have an integrated worldview with the Scripture as his starting point. It is faith-building moments like this that make all the hard work worthwhile!

All-Asian Creation Conference DVD is now Ready!

After months of editing (and re-editing) - thanks to Bugs and his team- the DVD and MP3 package of the first ever All-Asian Creation Conference held last November is now finally ready for shipment! It is a truckload of information presentation, workshops and interviews recorded on 6 DVDs! For those who have ordered, thank you so much for your patience in waiting - it is definitely worth the wait ... be on the lookout for a package in your mailbox soon. We praise the Lord for the many hands that have made this possible - especially to Debra (my wife) and her team of helpers, Luke for leading the AV team together with Silas and Bugs. Thank you!

Goal-Setting @Haggai Institute National Seminar (27-29 Feb)

Was privileged to conduct a class on Goal-Setting for the Haggai Institute National Seminar at Premier Hotel, Klang. It is indeed refreshing to remind myself on the importance of redeeming the time and making sure the factor of "eternity" is considered in my Life Purpose Statement. Here's my Life Purpose Statement - As a disciple of Jesus Christ, I seek to invest in leading my own family to a Christ-centered abundant life and to demonstrate the power of the Gospel to the next generation - ensuring that my children's hearts are turned towards the Lord. I will contribute through teaching, speaking and writing. I seek to challenge leaders to address the character and faith gap of the next generation by engaging and equipping them with God-honoring thinking skills and a Biblical worldview.

"Answering the Critics" at Subang Jaya AOG

Last Sunday (Feb 26), we did Session One of "Answering the Critics" - as part of the SCG (School of Christian Growth) in Subang Jaya AOG. Focus was on the difference between Operational and Historical Science plus an introduction to the 7Cs of a Biblical Worldview. Was encouraged to see that there were parents who attended together with their teenagers - this is surely one way to build the faith of the next generation! Session Two will deal with One Race, the Flood & Dinosaurs.

Dino Talk for Families & Kids

My cell group had a casual dinner event today with a special focus - since this is the Chinese New Year of the Dragon - I did a presentation about "Dragons, Dinosaurs & the Gospel". It was interesting to note that all the families I contacted had dinosaur books at home (next to the Bible, I think dino books come second on children's bookshelves!). We had the children to look through their dino books and look up "facts" like what do these materials say about when dinosaurs roam the earth, etc. It was a pleasure to share with them next what the true history Book of the Universe had to say next! Children are a wonder to interact with - they have such wonderful comments and questions. May the Lord fertilize the seeds sown.

Character Goals to Last a Lifetime

We were invited to share in the Sunday Service of Grace EFC (Subang Jaya) today by Pastor Ben Skadiang on the topic "Character Goals to Last a Lifetime". Instead of the usual goal-setting, new year resolution type of message, I chose to focus on the critical need for parents to rise up to their call of addressing the potential curse of Malachi 4:6 where the hearts of the next generation is no longer turned to following the faith of their fathers. By choosing to remain passive, there is now arising a generation of young people who no longer "look" like their parents - with values and worldviews that are drastically different.

There are four points for a proper character-based education for our children (ref : Dr.Karl Coke) :

1. Provides competency for employment.
2. Provides morality for proper society.
3. Provides authority for order.
4. Provides absolutes to anchor life's decisions.

As parents, are we sacrificing our children on the altar of academic pursuits while neglecting the foundation of their faith? Wisdom, not intellect is the goal of for every parent. Here's the definition of a worthwhile character goal for every parent - "when there is such a bonding between the hearts of the fathers and their children that the next generation is inspired to follow the faith of their parents." (Gen 6:1-3, Exo 20:12).

p/s : Eunice was such an active sales-person for the book counter!

Community Outreach in Sentul

We are privileged to be invited by All-Nations Church to lead in a special outreach program to the children and youth of Sentul. The crowd which came was younger than expected and that led to some interesting spontaneous improvisation and interaction. Speaking to children is indeed a different ball game altogether! Very thankful also for the last-minute effort from the organizer to provide direct translation to Mandarin as most of the children present are Chinese-speaking.

We did two short sessions over two days (Dec 19-12) covering topics like :

1. Introducing you to your real family - ape vs man.
2. Why is there death and suffering - the curse and reality of sin.
3. Introducing you to your larger family - the origin of races.
4. Inviting you to join the heavenly family - salvation through Jesus Christ.

Young Adult Talk @DUMC

Last night, the Young Adults Ministry of DUMC (Damansara Utama Methodist Church) had a special Christmas social dinner event for about 100 people. As one of the many workshops available for the young adults, we were requested to conduct a one-hour "Creation vs Evolution - It's not about the facts!" talk.

Here's a testimony from one of the participants - "Great session yesterday, do come and share with us again next month. AiG really has a lot of good content, trust it would be a great teaching and evangelizing tool for churches.. Keep it up, will try to invite friends for the next sessions".

As you can see, being involved in Answers Academy have brought a common identity and passion for my family - a family that ministers together, stays together!

Report from Dr.Crandall @Answers in Genesis

Report from Dr.David Crandall, International Director of Answers Worldwide. He presented a summary (and testimonies) of what happened during the Nov 15-17 All-Asian Creation Conference - the audience was the Answers in Genesis staff located in the Creation Museum.

"Hello Joseph and Jimmy - My report went very well this this morning and our folks here were very excited. Everyone wants more details so I have been talking all day. It has been fun. Our Librarian/Historian would like to have a copy of the pieces of materials you printed…including 2 copies of the Conference booklet.

We're still thrilled......"