He comes near to us

I'm going through a season of spiritual barrenness. You know, those times when you feel so far from God. I'm not sure if it's even correct to call it a season. By season you imply that it is a natural course of nature, when many time this emptiness are caused by the our negligence of God. But I guess by calling it a season, there is comfort in knowing it will pass. But then again, the coming of the fruitful season only comes by our efforts to continue seeking God.

I believe it's not enough to just sit back and wait for God to call us back. The first half of James 4:8 says "Come near to God and He will come near to You". Did you see that? It says come near to God, not God comes near to us first. God gave us the greatest invitation to be close to Him when Jesus paved the way to eternal salvation. Technically, He has already done His part. Now it's our turn to "come near to God". Then, when our heart softens in His Love and Grace, we "allow" God to come near to us.

God will not push His way in. He gave us the gift of freewill and because of that, we unfortunately shut God out sometimes. But He waits. As the loving father who waited for his prodigal son. So does God wait for us to return. But when we do, He won't spend a moment longer away from you. He's the Father who will meet us halfway. He comes near to us.

This post didn't turn out exactly like I planned. I wanted to write about something else. As a matter of fact, the original title was "Saving Faith and Holy Lives". But as I typed, I just felt led to write this instead. And you know what? It's just what I needed to hear myself. Thanks Dad, I love You. I'm sorry I've been keeping away from You. But I'm coming back. Thanks for waiting.

I need strength..

Still
Words and Music by Reuben Morgan

Verse1
Hide me now
Under your wings
Cover me
within your mighty hand

Chorus
When the oceans rise and thunders roar
I will soar with you above the storm
Father you are king over the flood
I will be still and know you are God

Verse2
Find rest my soul
In Christ alone
Know his power
In quietness and trust

During the dark periods of my life, this song never failed to give me hope and strength. The beautiful assurance of being able to rest in God and know that everything's going to ok. I remember sharing in youth some time ago about Peter and his experience of walking water. Whatever storms we're trying to navigate through, we'll never sink as long as we're looking towards God. But so many times we see the wind and are afraid much like Peter. But it good to know that despite our lack of faith, Jesus is there to reach out and lift us above the stormy waters.

As I write these words, I hope someone struggling out there will know that God's not going to let you sink. As I write these words I also want to encourage myself. It's been one of those days. Days that remind you that being a youth leader is not easy. I know, it's never easy, but some days are just tougher than others. To see so much effort, so many prayers, so much time, so much patience, so many teachings, so much listening, so much caring... fall to pieces in one of your youths. I'm far from perfect, but I know I must have done some good in my service. To have it gone completely unnoticed by the very person that I'm doing them for, it's heartbreaking. And I'm not talking about favours or the sorts, I don't mind if favours I do go unnoticed. But to have the compassion and patience shrugged off... I'm at a lost of words.

But don't worry about me, I know things will turn out ok in the end. I know these things are normal. I know that God will give me strength. I know I know I know. But for now, I'm just feeling a little down. I'm praying and I'm waiting. Don't worry, I'll rise on wings of eagles soon enough.

I want my 24-hour cyber cafe!!!

For the past two weeks almost every cyber cafe in Subang Jaya was shut down because they operated past midnight. There's a law in Subang Jaya which states that cyber cafes can only operate from 8am till midnight. But it hasn't been strictly enforced, until two weeks ago. Being typically Malaysians, the laws that we really pay any attention to are those that are being strictly enforced. Well MPSJ, you got my attention, along with many other irate gamers in Subang Jaya. GIVE US BACK OUR 24-HOUR CYBER CAFE!

Now, I know some of you reading this are thinking "Oh just another whiny kid", so let please allow me defend my case and not just whine. I hate whiny, pointless, baseless complaining as well.

Firstly, let me just say that rule boils down to one huge problem, discrimination or more specifically, ageism. This senseless ban is prejudice towards youth. Let's have a look at why do I say this. Many other establishments are allowed to operate past midnight. Cinemas, futsal centers, mamak stalls, bars and what not. Why are these places allowed to operate past midnight and not cyber cafes? These places have one thing in common; older people understand these establishments. Everyone's familiar with movies, futsal is a variation of football, older folks enjoy late night teh tariks too and our parents enjoyed getting drinks are bars as youth. Plainly speaking, these places can open past midnight because those "fuddy duddies" (I wanted to say worse but swearing's a sin) enjoy those activities or at least understand those businesses. But cyber cafes? NO WAY! Those places are smoke filled dens of gamblers. Look, if I wanted to gamble and smoke I would go to Genting Casino (which also opens 24-hours). Gamers go to cyber cafes to GAME and we don't want to choke on smoke while doing so.

I'm guessing the next thing they would say is, "Those games are murder simulator! They make teens violent!". I slap my face every time I hear that statement. If you're concerned about aggression stimulators, then ban football. There's been more football related deaths and violent conducts than computer game violence cases. Oh wait, I forgot. Old people like football as well. No way we could ban that. We can only ban things we don't like or don't understand.

And don't give me that rubbish about futsal places being good for health and that's why they should be allowed to remain open past midnight. I'm not saying that futsal isn't healthy. I'm saying that if you're so concerned about health, then please ban mamak stalls first. They're feeding young and old alike with oil drenched, fatty foods at late hours! Oh dear, sounds like a heart attack waiting to happen. Oh wait! I forgot again, the people at MPSJ probably like mamak stalls as well. How absent minded of me.

Some may be asking, why do cyber cafes need to be remain open past midnight? Well I know it's improper, but bear with me as I retort with a question, why do mamak stalls have to open past midnight? The answer is obvious isn't it? Because people still visit mamak stalls past midnight! There's business to be made at those wee hours as well. Many Malaysians are nocturnal in nature. We seem to enjoy going out for drinks and food late at night. Maybe it's the night air or perhaps we have no other free time except late at night. Whatever the reason, we can't deny that we're night creatures. We youngsters inherited this nocturnality as well. But instead of frequenting mamaks as our parents did, some of us frequent cyber cafes. 24-hour operating hours is necessary because of the nature of the business, the nature of the patrons.

But I guess it's not enough to be all talk and no action. So I'm starting a petition for 24-hour cyber cafes in Subang. If what i said made sense. Please, show your support here. Thank you so very much for your support.

http://www.PetitionOnline.com/sj24hrcc/petition.html

I was at a car wash...

I was at a car wash on Sunday with my sister when she said, "Wah, very worth it" as we saw all the dirt and grime being washed away. I confess that I am horrible at keeping my car clean, inside and out. Which is one of the reasons that prompted going to the car wash. Anyway, back to what my sister said, it made me think a little. Every person who parks there pays RM8 for the wash. We all get the same treatment; soap, rinse, dry and vacuum. But I believe no one else walked away feeling as happy as I did. As I stared at my shiny black Kembara I said to myself, "That was RM8 well spent". Why was that so? Well plainly because my car was by far the dirtiest car among the lot.

My thoughts then turned to the salvation that we receive through the death of Jesus Christ. We all received the same salvation. Jesus suffered to the same degree for all of us; none more, none less. But then again some of us seem to appreciate this eternal gift so much more, so much so they give their lives entirely to God. More often that not, these zealous brothers and sisters are what some may consider the "dirtiest among the lot". It is the people who recognize their dirty condition and then experience the cleansing touch of God that appreciate salvation the most. As long as we feel that we're "ok", we'll never be able to embrace the forgiveness of God. Isn't it high time we let God forgive us?

Last night, as I lied in bed, I thought of all the demons of my past. Things that I am not proud of. Things that I still struggle with a to a certain degree. At times I wondered, God why of all the kind of struggles, You had to give me such a difficult one. But I guess I would not appreciate salvation as I do now had I not had to struggle with such sins. So, thanks God, for making me wonderfully made.

Koinonia, how I love thee!

For those who don't know, I'm a youth leader of a small youth group named Koinonia. I say this with a grin on my face because I'm so thankful for the privilege of serving God's teens and young adults (not that I'm not a young adult myself :P). An opportunity to invest your life into the growth of God's youths, what a worthwhile call! However, like any ministry, it comes complete with struggles and troubles. Last night in our youth leader's meeting, one of my fellow leaders brought up one such struggle.

She said that she's frustrated that no real change has happened in our youth, even after our years of laboring. There seemed to be a stagnancy in our Youth for quite awhile. I must admit that at some point, I agree. Being a youth leader is tiring. We meet weekly to plan, prepare, fast and pray for our youths. But we rarely see the fruits of our labour. Lessons seem to fall on deaf ears and revival seems so far away. But then it dawned on me, a revelation (some what) of what it truly means to serve in a small group. Maybe our perception of "success" was wrong. We were all hoping that one day we'll see this youth group grow to about 50 strong members or even hundreds.

I believe that every ministry has a different but indispensable role in the body of God. Small ministries like Koinonia included. God willing, Koinonia will become like one of those "super" ministries some day. You know, the kind with an attendance of thousands and visible passion for God. But until then, I believe that our job is to be faithful with the little that God has given us. Our ministry may not transform thousands, but we have the duty of molding the 20 we're given. And even if only 2 out of the 20 truly give their lives to God, I feel we've done something to be proud of. We'll just move on from that two, and little by little we'll touch the other 18. We shouldn't be discouraged when we see that only a few youths change. Change is a matter of the heart. And the heart is often cold and doesn't sway easily. I'm happy taking one heart at the time.

We may never become like a factory, producing tens of thousands of youth on fire for God. But as for now, I'm content with being an artist. Pouring my life in each careful stroke of the brush until after years, one masterpiece is complete. And perhaps one day, that youth which I invested so much into will move on to produce the tens of thousands of youth on fire that I dreamed of.

About lawyers and homosexuality

I love the law series, Boston Legal. It's funny, clever, informative and oh so entertaining. Watching the series often has two effects on me. The first of which is short term namely, the effect of speaking quickly, briefly, loquacity and periphrasis. The second of which has a longer effect, namely the arousal of convictions. The episode I saw last night was a case about the "don't ask, don't tell" policy the US army employs. It's basically a policy which states that those who join the army will not be asked about their sexual orientation but if they happen to be homosexual they are expected to hide it. This case got me thinking about a rather taboo topic in Christianity: homosexuality. This topic has often been dismissed without much thought in many churches here in Malaysia. Perhaps it leaves too much of an icky feeling in most people. But one must wonder, how many homosexuals have turned from the Faith because of this matter. So here's MY THOUGHTS on this topic, I know some of you may think differently but hear me out.

Firstly, my stand on the topic is, homosexuality is a sin. Why do I say so? Because the word of God says so. Yes I know, many theologians have argued that many verses that speak about homosexuality are misinterpreted. I too agree that many verses quoted about homosexuality is wrongly used but many verses still stand. An interesting example which brought a revelation to me is the destruction of Sodom and Gomorra as an example of God's wrath against homosexuals. Ezekial 16:49 - 50 says this about Sodom and Gomorra " 'Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen." It didn't say anything about homosexuality. Some even argue that sodomizing foreigners was a way of insulting foreigners (I can't remember which verse I saw this in but if I do I'll post it here). So they were possibly heterosexual men who wanted to insult the angelic visitors.

This brings me an important point. I believe there are no homosexuals, just people who have the temptation to commit acts of homosexuality. Homosexuality like any other sin is an action. The tags that go along with these actions causes people to identify with those acts making them believe that that is who they are. For example, a person who lies is called a liar and if a person identifies with the title they believe it is who they are. The Bible says the power of life and death lies in tongues. What we confess will come to pass if we believe it. So if a homosexual confesses he or she is, he or she will become just that. The reason why I bring this point up is because many homosexuals may think that God hates who they are. But the truth is God doesn't hate anyone, he just cannot stand sinful actions. But even with this being the case, our sins are removed by the sacrifice of Jesus.

So my message to all Churches, stop exiling homosexuals and making them feel like scum. They are ordinary people who commit acts of sin just like everyone else. Remember the challenge of casting the first stone. It's easy to condemn something when we cannot relate to it. We don't take lying, speeding, gossiping and the likes very seriously because we are often caught doing the same. But when faced with something which we have never done before, we are often too quick to condemn the person caught. However, Jesus showed us the way. Look at ourselves and see that as humans "All have sinned fallen short of the Glory of God" (Romans 3:23). And in the words of Paul "if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently" (Galations 6:1a). Jesus died to save all, homosexuals as well. If homosexuals can't find love in the church who's very foundation is grace and love, where can they find it? You don't need to agree with their actions, just love the person and let God do the work in their lives.

As for my message to homosexuals, remember that "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ" (Romans 8:1). Jesus loved you and died for you just like he did for everyone else. No sin can ever separate us from the love of God, homosexuality included. But at some point, He will ask you to change. During those times, don't turn away from Him. He's saying this out of love. Instead, ask him for strength. Remember, "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it" (1 Corinthians 10:13).

God bless :)

Here in My Home

For those that don't already know, Here in My Home is the brainchild of the Malaysia Artistes for Unity project. It's a beautiful song with an even more beautiful message. Take a listen, share it and sing it in public to spread the love :)