Tuesday, July 31, 2012

The Initiative of Dicky @FGCC (28 July)


Appreciate the efforts of Dicky Sudrajah, an elder at FGCC (Fresh Generation Community Church) in Sunway who spearheaded a series of classes based on the Demolishing Strongholds video package from Answers in Genesis. It is heartening to see the young people coming back week after week to gain confidence that Scripture does give a logical worldview on issues of origins and history. Keep up the good work Dicky!
A personal gift of books for Dicky to further his study in the Creation Apologetics ministry! May the Lord establish the work of his hands as he continue to work with the next generation of leadership at FGCC.

Monday, July 16, 2012

Parenting Talk @Royal Klang Club (30 June)


Did a 1-hour plus talk on "Seasons of Parenting" at the Royal Klang Club - organized by Bethany Chapel Klang as part of their community outreach efforts. Had a really, fun interactive time with all who came. A timely reminder that while we exercise leadership in the marketplace, why are we not exercising it at home? For more information about upcoming parenting workshops, go to : http://www.goodmonday.com/parenting.html

Bible vs Science? @Subang Jaya AG Young Adults (29 June)

Bible vs Science - this is a popular misconception where many think that to believe in the Bible is to take a stand that is anti-intellectual. Far from it! Though a small group, we appreciate the opportunity to speak to young adults at Subang Jaya AG where we made an emphatic claim that Science and Scripture is not at odds at each other. It is the humanistic philosophy of man that is at the root of contention! So much of what is disguised as science are actually humanistic, anti-God presupposition and worldview.

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Home Sharing in Singapore (16 June)


At the invitation of Lawerence and Regina Fong - who is part of an established homeschooling network in Singapore, we had the opportunity to present a short talk in their home entitled - "Spotting Lies in Textbooks". The parents and children who turned up are part of the group who have been attending a week long speech and debate camp organized by Ethos (a group specializing in training Christian young people in their speaking, debating and thinking skills). Having homes like that of the Fongs opened up for ministry and fellowship is reminiscent of how the early church started in the Book of Acts. Perhaps, it is time for families to reclaim their home as a center for ministry!

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Young Adult Session at DUMC (1 June)




As part of the monthly HiYA (Highly Influential Young Adult) event in Damansara Methodist Utama Church (DUMC), we were invited back for the third time to speak. This time round we dealt with the age of the earth and the how Noah's flood washes away the millions of years. The greatest reward I get from such sessions is contained in a typical feedback - "Thanks for bringing such clarity to the Word of God. I now see the Bible's history with more confidence and how it all connects with the world around me."

Confidence in the authority of Scripture beginning with Genesis will spark off all sorts of enthusiasm in other areas including discipleship and evangelism. On a lighter note, I am grateful for my family - willing to stay back late - even if it means creating a makeshift rest on the chair!

Amazing Response Part Three (31 May)


This is the final session at Grace Assembly Petaling Jaya when we concluded with the topic of "Human Origins and One Race". Unlike a normal church service, we appreciate the high degree of interaction and participation - from both young and old. It's amazing to see how interested people are with regards to where we come from and how science catches up with Scripture when it comes to matters of human origins. The media is not short in telling us the story of evolution and "cave-men" but is the church providing a credible and Biblical alternative? 

Friday, May 25, 2012

Amazing Response Part Two (24 May)

As a continuation from last week's session at Grace Assembly Petaling Jaya, we continued on with a new topic yesterday evening - "Dinosaurs and the Flood". We are truly amazed at the turnout on a weekday evening - with more coming compared with the previous session. I was encouraged when a senior church leader is now seriously reconsidering his previously held old-age view of the earth after the presentation on theological inconsistency of the "million of years" view of origins. 

Friday, May 18, 2012

Amazing Response at Grace Assembly PJ (17 May)


Due to the persistent "marketing" effort from James Hoh (who recently returned from the Creation Museum), we had an "amazing grace" experience at Grace Assembly PJ as more than 200 people turned up, despite the fact that it was a Thursday evening seminar. If it wasn't for the collaborative effort from my wife, daughters and Angeline (James' wife) - we could not have managed the resource sale at the end of the seminar. Bad news - we ran out of stock for some of the popular titles like the Answers Pack but the good news is this - the senior pastor, Ps.Henry invited us to come back for two more sessions to complete the 7C's of Biblical History. We are truly amazed at the spiritual hunger and interest. To God be the Glory!

Creation @Bandar Sunway Gospel Center (4, 5 May)


Our first Creation Seminar after the Nepal trip. We have always enjoyed sharing in the Brethren churches because there is such a hunger to read and investigate - very much like the Bereans in Acts 17:11. Bandar Sunway Gospel Centre is no exception. It was also timely that the shipment from Answers in Genesis arrived and we had enough to "feed" the members who came for two nights. We are grateful for the well-designed resources of books and DVDs which serve to amplify the absolute authority of Scripture.

Monday, May 14, 2012

Mother's Day Special (13 May)

Quite a strange experience for me to share a Mother's Day message! Yet, we had a good time of laughter and interaction at Bethany Chapel Klang as we discoursed on the topic - "Five Basic Needs of a Mother". How we honor our wives and the mother of our children on a regular basis is more important that just setting aside a day every year. It is more a matter of consistency rather than commemoration.
Ended the day with a personal touch - here you see the mother of my own children also my own mother. Standing behind us - God willing - will be two future Godly mothers! 

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Before We Left Nepal (26 April)

Just the day before we are due to fly back home, we squeezed in two more training sessions - spending time with the teachers of New Life School at Covenant Christian Fellowship and also with the key youth leaders. The session with the youth leaders was very exciting because we had to work against "darkness" - due to the regular power outage in Nepal, I had to try and cover as much material as possible before it gets dark! Despite that, the enlightened look on the faces of the leaders really made the session worthwhile. May the principle of 2 Timothy 2:2 be true - commit you to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. Amen.

Sunday, April 22, 2012

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!

Friday, April 20, 2012

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...

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

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!


Monday, April 16, 2012

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".

Sunday, April 15, 2012

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.

Friday, April 6, 2012

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!

Sunday, March 25, 2012

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!

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

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!