Ministry Update MayJune 2020

My google calendar reminded me…I should be in Sabah for a mission trip. Again my google calendar reminded me…I should be in Tapah for a class. Everything seemed to pause and the pause is getting long. From mid of March till almost mid of June, that is about 3 months pause. And everyone is still unclear what holds after 9^th June. Will the Conditional Movement Control Order continue with lesser restrictions. For sure big gatherings n international travels will still be restricted. How about domestic travel? Wondering, wondering…with safety in mind; not so much for self but for people around in the community I am in.

What transpire along the months of MCO n CMCO: weekly broadcast of panel discussions aimed at the young adults segment trying to understand God in the midst of the COVID crisis. It started as a live stream on FB and later “progressed” to pre-recorded sessions on FB n Youtube. We started as “Teh Tarik sessions” n later became “Into the Unknown” series. We are also discussing to “expand” to another mid-week devotional. Apart from this, everything is pretty much normal except for the restricted movements. I used to go out once a week to get supplies during MCO n now during CMCO, twice a week to get supplies. NS is still pretty much a RED zone area, after Selangor n KL. Seremban district itself doesn’t seem to break away from RED; still swaying regularly between RED n ORANGE . My office is just about 2-3 minutes walk away from my apartment in campus. So, I still regularly go to the office for online classes, grading assignments, preparing for next semester, etc. Besides, the internet here is stronger than the one in my apartment block. And talking about the apartment block, it has been a mystery game for all dwellers in the apartment block to guess the water supply that comes on n off in our kitchens. We even hv a whatsapp chatgroup to update each other on whether water is here or water is gone on a daily basis! Well, that seems to be our only “entertainment” during this MCO/CMCO.

Several things I hv learned during this “confinement” period:

1.      Crisis brings out the “real” person: It is in such times that we see who really has the “substance” or they are just full of empty air. Some people talk big but when it gets to real work, there’s nothing at all. Some just cringe at the sudden change n cannot function all together; unable to make decisions, or just waiting for someone else to make decisions. I suppose it is in a crisis that we can clearly see the leadership quality of an individual (or the extreme lack of it)

2.      The “underdog” winners: several nations are confronting COVID more successful than others. I noticed (n I’m sure many too) that the “lesser known” nations are doing better than “developed” nations. I read these articles (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/21/africa-coronavirus-successes-innovation-europe-us; https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-52628283; https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/05/whats-south-koreas-secret/611215/; https://www.leadersleague.com/en/news/here-s-how-taiwan-succeeded-in-containing-covid-19) African nations, Vietnam, South Korea, Taiwan…just to name a few. Nations the world overlook in many aspects. Malaysia…I remember someone was sharing of his Singaporean friend’s response to COVID. The gist of it was that this doctor in Singapore was overwhelmed by the task to control COVID n I remember the comment…If Singapore finds it too overwhelming, how about Malaysia? We’re doomed! The next few weeks we surprisingly see Malaysia doing better than Singapore! Even videos uploaded to Youtube praised Malaysians for chipping in regardless of background to be united to fight COVID. Honestly, watching this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__G7wcGW43s; one I’m sure many Malaysians watched n moved to tears. On the other hand, the big developed nations, ie, the obvious Big Bro a.k.a. US, already had 1.68 million infections n over 98k deaths as of today 25052020, with its first case reported in late Jan while news reported that on 12 Apr US became the nation with the most deaths by COVID. What is God telling us? The “big nations” vs the “small nations”

3.      Church: everything we hv falsely built to define “church” are being challenged. Church is NOT buildings, traditions, structures. We are re-defining church n recognizing it as the people of God. Live streaming breaks down every boundary of geography n denomination. Finally, Christians come together to sing of blessing over our nations. Hey, wait a minute – do we need a crisis before we come together? In Haggai 2:6-7, For this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. I will shake all the nations, and they will come with all their treasures, and I will fill this house with glory, says the LORD of Hosts.  and Hebrews 12:26
At that time His voice shook the earth, but now He has promised, "Once more I will shake not only the earth, but heaven as well."

I think this is the time that the Lord breaks down everything that hinder us from drawing close to Him so that what remain are what truly matter – our faith, our love, n our trust in Him n Him alone

4.      Of prophecies and miracle healings: can one still believe in prophecies n miracle healings today in light of what’s happening? Several prophecies stated that COVID will fade away after April. Today is almost the end of May n COVID is still very much in the news every day. Some are even growing tired of it. So, what about the prophecy that COVID will end in April? All I can say is I STILL BELIEVE in prophecy! Look at ALL “predictions” n they all show cases dropping AFTER the month of April. WE may hv expected God to work the way we wanted Him to but He has His own ways. Healing? Look at nature n the many reports of how the pause is healing nature. For the first time in many decades the top of famous mountains can be seen, rivers are flowing clear, clean water, the ozone layer is recovering, etc. The problem is more of – can we RECOGNIZE the work of God in the events/news that we read each day. (https://www.india.com/viral/after-several-decades-mount-everest-visible-from-kathmandu-as-covid-19-lockdown-reduces-pollution-4032223/; https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2020/04/11/mco-lets-nature-repair-rivers-in-the-klang-valley/; https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/ozone-layer-healing-coronavirus-climate-sun-uv-rays-a9429341.html)

For the next few days till 9^th June, I pray we use it wisely n to spiritually discern God in the events that unfold each day – locally n globally. Let us adopt the new normal n practice what we know we should. We hv reached a junction n beyond this is a whole “new world” where the “old” is in the past. It is both a reset/pause n an accelerator. It is both scary and exciting as God takes us to the next level. Once again, thank you for your partnership in ministry