https://odb.org/MY/2023/01/02/a-small-start

When we look at the Bible, we will see that God raises people out of the weaker or smaller tribes or smaller cities. In the case of Jesus, He was from Bethlehem Epharathah, a small tribe among the clans of Judah and also a small village near Jerusalem. But because of who Jesus was and is, Bethlehem became famous throughout the world. In fact, I stayed in Bethlehem during my previous trip to Israel, nearly 8 years ago.

It was the same with King David. God selected him even though he was the youngest and thus considered the weakest then among the 8 children of Jesse. David was still in his youth when the LORD through the prophet Samuel chose him to be King to succeed Saul, and it is through the lineage of David that Jesus, the Messiah, was born. As history has shown, David became the greatest king Israel ever had. The era of David is regarded as the golden era of the kings of Israel and Judah.

Even in the world, it is the right path to start small, to be unknown among many. Like a fresh graduate entering a company as a management trainee starting at the bottom of the corporate ladder in terms of influence, authority, and pay scale. If we are into business, we should start with a simple business before venturing into large capital investments. That is why most successful businessmen are those early entrepreneur adopters. Rarely are those who succeed in business those who had worked many years and then invested their savings or work severance packages into a new venture. There are many lessons in business one can only acquire through trial and error as an investor of your own money and not as a salaried person.

Wherever we are and whatever sphere of influence we have, start there as our ministry. We will never be Reinhard Bonke or Billy Graham overnight. God will not zap us with some magical powers and transform us overnight into a powerful and effective evangelist. Tradition has it that after the Road to Damacus Experience, Paul spent 10 years in Arabia and another 3 years in Jerusalem with the other Apostles before starting on his ministry to the Gentiles, kings and the children of Israel as commissioned by Christ to him in Acts 9:15. Jesus Himself spent 30 years living as a normal human and working as a carpenter in adulthood before embarking on His ministry.

In our service for God, start small but start somewhere. It doesn’t matter that we are unknowns in ministry, although we could be giants in our field in the world. Start small, God sees our heart. In the end, what matters is our obedience to the call and not the magnitude or size of our ministry. For example, even if only 10 people read my blog writings, I will still keep on writing if this is what the Lord wants me to do. Hopefully, I will reach 100 people one day. The effort required is the same, so the more reading, the better, but it’s ok to start small and to continue with the effort as there is much to learn from the Lord in the process. When it comes to the things of God, most often than not, the journey is more beneficial than the end result.

https://odb.org/MY/2023/01/01/choose-joy

I recently asked someone how she is doing in terms of work, ministry, and family. Her answer was there are ups and downs. I interjected – and there is Jesus, the rock of our salvation. He is the constant in all these ups and downs.

Whether at work, ministry, or family, there will always be ups and downs. There are montain tops and there are also valleys. There are good days, and there are bad ones. Some days are uneventful, and yet some days are just so dramatic.

Over Christmas, I joined a family gathering and heard about my cousin having late stage colon cancer. It was shocking as he was a very fit runner. Two days later, we heard that he had passed on the night before, meaning he passed away on Boxing Day. I have not met him for about 35 years, and then out of the blue, we heard about this devastating news. At the wake, I met up with his brother, and we had a wonderful time talking about our childhood days and about him and his family, who are now based overseas. Sometimes life is such that we meet people from our past only during weddings and funerals.

2022, for me, has been eventful. I contracted Covid-19, my dad passed on, my eldest son graduated from university, and we went to the UK for a vacation as a family. My younger son started his first year in university. I left my previous job where I had spent my last 27 years of worklife and joined a startup of an established telco and as a result, I’m back to doing more legal work than my past 10 years. How was 2022 for you? Was it full of drama or just plain smooth sailing?

We don’t know what 2023 lies ahead for us, but we hear that it will not be a good year economically. A downturn or a recession could be forthcoming. In other words, it is expected to be a challenging year to earn a living, for ourselves, and for our companies. The advice is thus to save more, rather than spend and splurge. With the opening of borders, the temptation is to travel and spend with vengeance, but perhaps we should exercise caution and self-control?

The message today is to choose joy, no matter what we are going through. Choose to rejoice in the LORD despite our situation. It’s a verb, an active choice. Not as a result of, but notwithstanding. We rejoice in God because He is good, and His love endures forever. We can rest in the shadow of His wings, and as we wait upon Him, we may be able to have wings and soar like the eagle. Let our joy be in the Lord come 2023! Find the joy of the Lord in all that we do and are going through. Blessed 2023, everyone!

https://odb.org/MY/2022/12/30/grace-amid-the-chaos

The exhortation in Psalm 107:23-32 of the LORD saving the seagoing merchants from the raging storm that melted away their courage has a parallel in the New Testament story of Jesus calming the storm. This account can be found in all 3 Synoptic Gospels (see Matthew 8:23-27, Mark 4:27-31, and Luke 8:22-25). Both speak about the ability of God to control the elements, in particular, a very strong and violent storm, which, if nature was allowed to take its course, would have devoured and drowned the boat and everyone in it.

I believe the accounts have a deeper meaning in the sense that God can and will save His people in times of such storms. None of us will doubt that He can do it. That’s because, as believers, we know He is the Almighty God. If He created the heavens and the earth and everything in it, what is calming a storm? Surely He is capable. Surely He can do it.

The issue is will He do it for us? The Scriptures in this respect point to the fact that He can and He will. Even a literal physical storm – He can and will do it for us.

As a figure of speech and allegory, we can be sure that God can and will calm the storms of our lives. He is the rock that will bring stability to the chaos that comes with storms that, as humans, we can not avoid forever. Even with God in our lives, we could face storms and chaos and a sea of uncertainties; but like Psalmists did, if we were to cry out to the Lord, surely He will hear our cry and rescue us, for His steadfast love endureth forever.

If we were to read the account of Jesus calming the storm, we would see that a violent and life-threatening storm was turned to a gentle whisper of a wind by just a few words. Like a raging lion turned into a docile pussycat. Isn’t it wonderful and reassuring to have Jesus in our lives? Honour Him, worship Him, for He is worthy to be praised! He is our true shepherd, the shepherd of our soul, our rock, and our salvation!

https://odb.org/MY/2022/12/29/just-as-i-am-3

I think one of the things we must always remember when dealing with Jesus is that He takes us as we are. Not only at the point of our conversion and for salvation but even as we progress in the faith. He takes us as we are even as we mature in Him. That means not only our unique personality and talents but also our idiosyncrasies and weaknesses. It’s also our own peculiar journey of faith in Him. Our personal struggles and challenges, the life issues we face, our jobs, our families, communities, and the environment we are living in or brought up.

He takes us as we are, the whole package of who we are. We can see it in the life of the disciples. They were mostly fishermen with one tax collector. They were not educated people of the Temple, schooled in the traditions of the Mosaic faith and law. Just ordinary average people who were called by Jesus and responded with hearts full of faith, leaving everything behind and followed the Lord in His ministry for more than 3 years and after the Lord’s death and resurrection, carried on the torch of faith until their dying days.

But see what they became, especially after the Day of Pentecost. Look at the transformation of Peter, James, and John – speaking to the crowds, preaching Christ crucified, and resurrected. John wrote the Gospel of John and Revelation. In John 1:1, when he wrote about the logos of the Word in describing Jesus as God, he was countering Greek thought then on what logos was, the force in the universe that created even Zeus. But John went one step further and confounded Greek thought then by declaring that logos was Christ and He was with God and is God and is thus the creator of everything from the beginning.

Accept ourselves as we are in Christ, our journey of faith with all our diversions and side tracks, our weaknesses, our challenges, and struggles. Christ accepts us as we are. Commit our whole life before unto Christ and let Him guide and help us along. Give our life and our future to Christ. He will not only make the most but the best out of what we offer. We are all unworthy, but Christ can and will make us worthy, worthy of His service. Not just salvation for our life hereafter but everlasting life here on earth, as we pray for and endeavour to work for His will to be done here on earth as it is in heaven! A life in Christ is a life living in the power of His glory and grace even if we may encounter sufferings, trials, and tribulations.

https://odb.org/MY/2022/12/28/in-all-our-dealings

One characteristic of us as believers is to have integrity and Godly sincerity in our dealings with others – our friends, colleagues, acquaintances, and the public at large. Integrity in the sense that we are not out to cheat anyone. In fact, we think of others when we do something, not just ourselves or our interests or our benefit only. But it’s even more than all that. Integrity means having a clear conscience in all our dealings, that we do the right thing. We give what’s fair and due. We don’t over bargain. We leave something on the table like God did for the poor, widows, orphans, and foreigners at the harvest fields. Everyone needs to earn a living. Everyone has a family to take care of, mouths to feed, bills to pay. Everyone needs to save for a rainy day, for their old age.

If we are in business, we earn a margin that’s fair, reflecting our effort put in but also to compensate for the down times, the stock losses due to expiry or pilferage or times we had to sell below cost to clear our shelves to make room for new stocks arriving. At most times, prices are dictated by the market, for which we have no or little control. Even a near monopolistic large broadcasting organisation where I used to work for many years has to consider market forces in the pricing of their consumer offerings. Gone are the days when we could raise prices to turn in a comfortable margin as customers will nowadays not think too much in leaving. Times have somewhat changed. Content consumption patterns to choices in the market.

We are not perfect. Sometimes, we fall. Sometimes, we don’t do the best we can. But we know whenever we fall short, our conscience tells us. The Holy Spirit convicts us. We are not clueless, and neither can we pretend we do not know. I think when it comes to integrity and Godly sincerity, we need to be honest with God and ourselves. If we fail, we do better the next time. Don’t ever be immune to the voice in our hearts, to God speaking to us. Don’t be indifferent or have a hardened heart. Always have a heart that is sensitive to the Holy Spirit. We may get away with one or two indiscretions, but in the long run, it is better to be true to God and trust God for our future. Let the Lord take care of us rather than take matters into our own hands and have short-term gains. Scam someone and get away with RM2,000 and that may be a lot to us now, but in years to come, we could be earning RM200,000 annually and consistently with the LORD on our side, with us having integrity and Godly sincerity.

https://odb.org/MY/2022/12/27/beating-as-one

Allow me to point out a few interesting facts about today’s Scripture reading at Genesis 1:1, 27-31 for some of us who may not be aware. The first thing is that the Bible starts at Genesis 1:1 with the creation of the present world but ends at Revelation 21 and 22 with the end of the present world to the start of a new world of the new heaven and earth with the tree of life freely available again to the blessed ones of the Lord.

Thus, the Bible is essentially the story of God creating man in His image to have dominion over the creatures of the earth, but the fall of man led to his banishment out of Eden. Without access to the tree of life came mortality to the human body, but nevertheless, the spirit and soul live on in God after man dies. God then sent Jesus, a man given birth by a woman but not of a seed of another man but of the Holy Spirit and thus was sinless, and He saved mankind from eternal damnation by dying on the cross for our sins. Therefore, when we reach the coming era of Revelation 21-22, we will then have the eternal life as God had originally planned for us at Eden, the time when God will once again live amongst His people and creation. But note that not all have the privilege and right to enter the gate of the city and access the tree of life – see what was written in Revelation 22:15.

The other interesting fact is that living creatures were originally created with plants as food for the animals, including man. Thus, there was no need to shed blood and kill to live. Life was too precious for anyone to kill just to survive and live on. If we read on at Genesis, we will discover that the first animals killed by the LORD were to provide covering for Adam and Eve, who felt ashamed by their nakedness after they had sinned for the first time. After mankind’s first sin, God required the shedding of the blood of an unblemished animal (lamb or ram) to atone for their sins as set forth in Mosaic law which was ultimately fulfilled once and for all by Jesus Christ, the sinless son of man and son of God. This paved the way for the redemption and reconciliation of man and God, which one day will culminate in the new world as revealed in Revelation 21 and 22.

The right and privilege to enter the gates of the new city of God and access the tree of life is only given to the blessed ones of the Lord. We don’t want to be those left outside the gates, unable to enter the new city but are left at the place where there are eternal flames and gnashing of teeth.

Jesus had declared before and is declaring again even this morning – “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me though he die, yet he shall live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die.” (John 14:16, John 11:25-26).

As we close 2022 and enter into the new year, don’t ever lose sight of where we are heading and where we will be one day in the Lord! Even though we expect 2023 to be a challenging year, we know where we will be one day if we hold on to God all the way!

https://odb.org/MY/2022/12/25/christmas-card-perfect

For those who had been involved in Christmas presentations in church before, we know that it takes a lot of hard work and practice sessions to come out with the “perfect” presentation. There are churches that prepare 3 to 6 months in advance, but most of us probably start in November/December with some week day nights and most weekends dedicated to practice. Due to time constraints, some modifications inevitably would need to be made to the script as the road to perfection is ardous and is usually impossible for Christmas presentations! We make do with what the team can produce, although talented, rarely do this for a living in the church Christmas context.

As much as God in His wisdom had planned the birth of Jesus meticulously, the actual birth was not without its challenges. King Herod heard about it and was threatened that a King of Jews were to rise from his midst in his watch and thus used the decree by Ceasar that a census be taken for all male prospective births to secretly find and kill baby Jesus. When Joseph and Mary arrived at the inn after the census, there was no room left except a place at the stable among the animals. Thus, our Lord was born in a manger all forlorn. Yet the 3 Kings from the East (aka as the Magi or wisemen) manage to find Him following the star and the shepherds in the field, too, after angelic beings appeared before them proclaiming the birth of Christ! All ended well, but once in the natural, even our Immanuel (God with us) had to contend with nature and her elements.

This Christmas, be thankful that we have a God who created this world for us and yet took the trouble to come and lived amongst us as a man to die for our sins. He came to experience and showed us an example of dealing with what life throws us. As much as we can plan and script our lives, we know that things do not always turn out fully as expected. There are twists and turns, valleys, and mountain tops in this journey of life.

This Christmas, remember that God sent His only begotten Son to us so that we will not perish but have life eternal. Though He may lead me to the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for His staff and His rod comforted me. Surely goodness and mercy will follow me for the rest of my days as I dwell in the house of the Lord forever!

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to this world to live among us and die for our sins! We are forever grateful for your love and mercy and promise that we will do our best to fulfil your plans and purposes for our lives, that the will of the Father may be fulfilled here on earth through our lives as it is in heaven!

Blessed and merry Christmas, everyone! Have a joyous Christmas in church worshipping God and have a lovely time with friends and family!

https://odb.org/MY/2022/12/24/the-power-of-gods-word

Isaiah 55:11 is the Scripture preachers hold on to whenever we minister from the pulpit, trusting that the message as preached will accomplish the work God had set out for it to do in the hearts of those who hear it, touching and changing lives. The verse reads: “…so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty (void) but will accomplish what I desire and will achieve the purpose that I sent it”.

There is power in the name of Jesus, in the sense that demons tremble and flee at the name of Jesus. There is also power in the Word of God as read and spoken. Because Jesus is the Word, and He was with God at the beginning (John 1:1). The power of the Word can be seen in Genesis 1 when the LORD created the world and all that is in it, just with His Word. He said it, and it came into being. That is why some churches make it a point to read Scripture during their worship services, believing in the power of the Word, to heal and cause transformation from within us. I also make it a point to read the Word of God out loud whenever I am tasked to preach, believing in the power of the spoken Word.

But of course, in preaching, we need to focus and dwell on a text lest we digress too much from the message the Lord has planted in our hearts to speak. A sermon must always have a message from God to the congregation, a message that is current and contemporary to our situation, the happenings in our lives, and the life of the church. Both the logos and the rhema aspects of the Word are equally important for teaching and edification of the brethren. The message in the context it was written but applied in the context of what we are going through; the written as well as the spoken Word.

What’s the message for us this morning? As we read the Word each day, gain the knowledge, even the revelation that the Lord bestows upon us as He opens our minds to understand the mysteries of His Word and opens our hearts to receive it. But do seek out what He is saying to us today so that our quiet time is a time He ministers to us as we worship Him. What is His still small voice saying to us, to our hearts of hearts? Can we hear Him? Will we listen and obey? Will we do as He says, as He guides and encourages? Knowledge is important, but application is more so, and necessary.

Blessed Christmas, everyone, and have a great and joyful Christmas Eve!

https://odb.org/MY/2022/12/23/granny-whale

As a person, I’ve always been fascinated by nature and animals since I was young. With Astro, my favourite programmes were documentaries, and having once been involved in initial discussions in possibly commissioning a documentary, I know how much effort is involved in producing one and their high cost. Nowadays, with YouTube, we can pick and choose what we like to watch.

Orcas were one of my fascinations, being one of the most intelligent apex predators out there in the sea; basically, their use of group tactical manoeuvres to capture prey and their communication skills. As they move in pods, new births to the pods are taught the language, their tactics, and their hunting grounds. Like elephants, Orcas have the ability to pass on knowledge to their young, and thus, the traditions and practices in the pod are perpetuated, passed on from generation to generation. Today’s story of a grandmother teaching and caring for the grand baby killer whale is likely a norm in most Orca pods. The great white shark will flee by diving nearly 500m into the depths and travelling thousands of kilometres away when they sense the presence of Orcas in their midst as Orcas just love to kill them for their nutrient rich livers.

This brings us to the question of the day: Are we passing on the legacy of faith to our children and our children’s children? Like we make it a point to pray before meals. That our family attends and serves in a local church, giving our tithes and time for the furtherance of the Kingdom. That we have quiet time and family prayer time. Like we do not dabble in the occultic. But most importantly, the tradition of putting our faith in God for the significant matters in our family.

A family that prays together stays together, the same way that a family that eats together stays together. Each family has its own quirks, idiosyncrasies, and even dark secrets. Amidst all that, the legacy of our faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, Father God, and the Holy Spirit must be preserved within the family and passed on to our children and our children’s children. It is our prayer that all will remain in the faith until the end of time. Amen!

https://odb.org/MY/2022/12/22/bending-low

Today’s story of a mom comforting her child who fell while cycling, which prompted the child to continue cycling points to the Lord keeping Paul going despite the afflictions the latter suffered. When Jesus chose Paul to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles, He did tell that he was chosen to suffer for the sake of the Gospel when the Lord spoke to Ananias in Acts 9:15-16: “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and the kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.”

Today’s story also reminds me of Pastor George Chen, who spent 18 years in prison for his faith persecuted by the Chinese Communist regime back in the day. He spent most mornings cleaning a cesspool, but the Lord comforted by being with him in those long and difficult days dealing with human excrement. He experienced the Lord Jesus Christ being with him in the garden where he sung hymns and worshipped.

https://www.asiaharvest.org/in-memory-of-george-chen-forever-in-the-garden

Paul’s suffering was in a way voluntary as he knew what awaited him, and yet for the sake of Christ, he went ahead. George Chen’s was forced upon him by his cruel captors. Whether our suffering is voluntary or not, if we suffer for the sake of Christ, Christ will find a way to ease our suffering. The promise is that He will give us comfort and joy in our obvious pain and discomfort.

I recall taking a bus trip every Thursday afternoon from Pasir Puteh to Kota Bharu to serve and attend church on Friday (the Malaysian East Coast weekend) when I was 17 to 19, during my peak public examination years. 20 years later, I was doing the same ferrying my whole family to serve and attend church in another city for 6 years every Sunday, early morning. This is not a suffering but a sacrifice and dedication that brought about faithfulness in faith and perseverance and discipline responding to a call from God.

The message this morning is that whatever we are going through for Christ, whether it’s persecution or just our faithfulness to serve Him, come what may; Christ will find a way to make something good out of our suffering, pain or sacrifice or dedication. If we clean the church toilets every weekend after everyone has gone home, Christ will be there to accompany us. If we prepare the sacraments for Holy Communion every week or teach the children every Sunday, Christ will be there with us as we serve Him with our hearts. Persevere on our walk of faith. We will reach the finish line one day with Christ at our side in the journey every step of the way!