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The Family of God is a great family, especially to me sans siblings, and with three children and three grandchildren away from home. Still Bethel, with my wife partnering me, has been “home” to those in the Bethel Bible Class and the Mission Committee regularly, and to others occasionally.
I thank God for my extended family.
In April 1999, I was a “grandpa” to Mi-Mae. On behalf of her mother, I gave her away to Kevin in marriage. He hath made all things beautiful in His time (Eccl. 3:11) was their marriage theme, and what a lovely couple they have blossomed into today.
I was the “Malaysian dad” to Annie Dora from Madurai, India during her 5-year nursing contract service in a Penang private hospital. She returned to her real dad on Sept. 12. My wife and I miss her lovely, cheerful Christlike personality. She gave us much joy when she was with us. She is still in contact with us by email.
November last year I became an uncle to 10-year old Meena from the Christian Missions Charitable Trust in India through sponsorship. She is a lovely girl from a broken home, rescued from the slums. We still communicate by snail mail.
To these are added others in God’s Great Family. I have those from my own assembly who regularly pray for me. To these are added, fervent saints in the Lord in the Penang assemblies as well as those in and outside Malaysia who bring my needs before the Throne of Grace regularly. Those who read this now are some of them. I say a big Thank You to God and to you for this remembrance of you all.
This family spirit was evident last term. At the end of May, I was at Salatiga Discipleship Training Centre, Indonesia, to conduct a 1-week course on Eschatology. I counted about 30 of these Indonesian brethren from East, West and Central Java – elderly farmers and young adults among God’s family who had come together to study God’s Word. They were wonderful for their keenness to study the deeper things of God. I was also able to catch up with the Harrison and Cowell families.
In June I was at Batu Gajah Gospel Hall to conduct a 3-day workshop on Biblical Assembly Distinctives. Representatives from Elim, Bidor, Kuala Kangsar and Keledang were there – all in God’s Family.
In July, my wife and I were away in a home away from home in the home of my former Butterworth Bible Class student, Ng Leong Yoke and her husband, Yau Chuan in Kepong. She nicknamed me her sifu and the care, concern and hospitality extended to us was more than could be said of a student-teacher relationship. It was a great family reunion not only with them but also with others of God’s family in Kepong and Sri Damansara Gospel Centre as they came together to listen to the three-day exposition on The Feasts of Yahweh.
From there, my wife and I proceeded to the Senior Citizens’ Fellowship Meeting at SS2 Gospel Centre to meet the 59 believers who came from the former five Jalan Gasing group of assemblies and a few other invitees from other churches. And who says that senior citizens cannot sit for a long time listening to the Word of God? They were there from just past 9am to 1 pm (with just a short tea break in between) listening to Psa. 23 as it was expounded to them by relating the compound names of Yahweh to the Psalm. At night, we were hosted a dinner by the Committee. And what a joyful dinner it was. For once, I (in my mid-sixties) was the youngest in that gathering! It was just humbling to see such joy and mirth among these senior citizens a few of whom were in their early eighties. I was proud to be in the midst of such wise company.
At night, we put up in the home of Mr. & Mrs. Ang Chui Pek. We had not seen Mrs. Ang for a long time – it was another great family reunion. Both of them were married on the same day as both of us, and by the same “minister”, Mr. SS Adams, only that they were married in Taiping in the morning and we in Penang in the afternoon. And we even honeymooned at the same Cameron Highland’s Rest House, occupying rooms next door to one another, without planning to do so!
In August, I was at GLO Bible Training School to lecture on Biblical Hermeneutics and Eschatology. This biggest group of 23 students for the year and for any eschatology course at GLO came mainly from Jalan Imbi Chapel and the assemblies in Penang. It was indeed ironical that the nine from Penang had to travel all the way to Taiping to listen to a local brother from among them. Still, it was a good time of family reunion for those of us in Penang and it was simply great to welcome others from Bidor, Cheras, Taiping, Bangsar, Batu Gajah and one from the Methodist Church into the family. The last and another sister were attending the course a 2nd time!
In September, I became “dad” to about 30 very lively talented teenagers whose mastery of English and the Bible amazed even me, though I had been warned of their intellectual prowess earlier. They were attending the Scripture Union Young Writers Camp at Seminari Theologi Methodist, Seremban. It was a real eye-opener to me as I wondered at their creativity with the spoken and written word even as I was invited there to teach them the Wonders of the Word of God and how to interpret the Word correctly so that they could base their creative writings on a solid foundation.
It was a real family affair here. For the first time in my life, it gave me great pride to have my son, Alvin, standing on the same platform teaching the Word of God to these young writers. Many of them are in Alvin’s Bible Class as well as working with him in various writing projects for the SU Phases magazine and for their own website. I had to leave the Camp on the last day, as I wanted to remember the Lord on the Lord’s Day. Bro. Frederick Tan, who lived nearby, took me to Nilai Gospel Centre where I spoke on James 1. Frederick and I were friends in the teaching profession. It was great to catch up with him and the other members in God’s family at Nilai.
I was disappointed to miss my own assembly Family Camp which commenced on the day when I was at Nilai – over 300 miles away. My spirit was with them and I was glad to hear that they had a very good profitable camp up Penang Hill. I had to miss my own spiritual family then.
However, three days later I was at Fraser’s Hill with the married and unmarried singles at the Northern Region Fellowship Camp. 39 of us, ranging from the twenties to the eighties came together to study Grace, All Sufficient for all, in all and through all. I took the morning devotions on Grace, while Mr. Chew Phye Keat expounded very ably on its relevance to present day issues and challenges. This too developed into a “family reunion” as I discovered that Phye Keat was the son of Mr. & Mrs. Chew Chye Theam, my good friends from Ipoh in my early years. It was wonderful to know that their son is now a very able teacher of God’s Word.
God tested us on the Challenge of Grace from the first day. The engine of one of the two vans that took us up the hill developed engine trouble for which we had to change to another second-hand one at the cost of RM1775.
In camp, the campers had great opportunities to demonstrate such grace as they attended to my wife who fell flat on her face when she tripped against a poorly patched uneven cemented pot-hole on the tarred road a short distance from Pine Resort where we stayed on the 2nd day. She broke four front denture teeth, bled her gums, had a swollen nose bridge and sprained her formerly fractured wrist. It was by the grace of God that her glasses remained intact. Mr. & Mrs. Seah Choon Bok, the firstfruits of our Fellowship Camp, were there to give her medical attention. Other campers were equally helpful as they learned how to be gracious to the one whom the Lord counted worthy to experience His sufficient grace in a practical way. Mrs. Seah was also my Bethel Bible Class student before and it was great to have one in the family to help my wife.
My wife and I would take this opportunity to thank all who phoned up (from Taiping even) and others who visited her in their concern and love when we returned home. It is great to be in God’s family.
At the end of September, I had a taste of real family life, as I was hosted lunch and dinner in separate homes. Each time, the same families came together for the meals – they took turns to be hosts and guests. This is the same family spirit that binds members of Bidor Gospel Centre as they came together to listen to Church Alive with others from Ipoh, Batu Gajah, Kuala Kangsar, and Kampar.
DV, next year’s teaching series will be held in: -
| [28-30.10.01 | - Bandar Sunway Gospel Centre on Daniel] |
| 18-20.01.02 | - Bidor Gospel Centre on Yaweh’s Feasts |
| 16-17.03.02 | - Bangsar Gospel Centre on Interpretation |
| 03-05.05.02 | - Kepong/Sri Damansara Gospel Centre |
| 25-27.05.02 | - The Life Chapel Family Retreat. |
| 14-16.06.02 | - Buttterworth Gospel Hall on Church Alive |
Chinese New Year of the Horse Series in the Pg. Family
| 03.02.02 | - Butterworth Gospel Hall |
| 10.02.02 | - Bukit Mertajam Gospel Hall |
| 17.02.02 | - Burmah Road Gospel Hall (English) |
| 17.02.02 | - Burmah Road Gospel Hall (Chinese) |
| 24.02.02 | - Sungei Nibong Gospel Hall |
| 03.03.02 | - Island Glades Gospel Centre |
| 10.03.02 | - Sungai Ara Gospel Hall |
Last term I was able to share God’s blessings with others in the family of the Lord’s Labourers, because there are the faithful members (including Anonymous from BRGH) who shared with me their blessings from the Lord. I am sure the recipients of God’s Grace will also join me in thanking you all for your giving grace, viz.
| 17.05.01 | Peter and Peggy Ferry, Scotland |
| 21.05.01 | Grace Fellowship, Indonesia |
| 04.06.01 | Chin Thiew Lun, Bangsar |
| 18.06.01 | Timothy Yong, Batu Gajah |
| 27.06.01 | N.Sinnappan, Cheras |
It is just great to have all of you in the Family of God and to be One
in the Family with you all.