I love this picture with the Malaysian flad hidden behind the people taken a couple of Sunday’s ago at one of our LiFE Group parties. First, it reminds me of the photos we take in the 60’s or 70’s because of the way they look and the positioning of their postures 🙂 Secondly, I like it because each person represents all the new people who’ve come to join the BLC community and our journey with Christ together. There’s Ken Beng on the far left who comes from a totally non-Christian background like Susan next to him and got baptised last year. This coming Sunday will be Susan’s turn. And it’s a great joy for me because we never pressured them in anyway, it was a slow and long process actually for each of them – first, Ken Beng and then Susan. Shereen second from the right said that she some how got “lost” along the way since her short connection with a church as a teenager (and got baptised then), she jokingly said she “poteng” (play traunt) as far as the school of followinf Christ is concerned and now is coming back for re-enrolment. What a joy it will be to see her re-affirm her faith this Sunday too! And of course, the one that’s smiling until we can’t she her eyes! Hoong Guit is the first female council member for our church starting this year (it’s not that we didn’t believe in female leadership – we really do support ladies to serve in leadership, it’s a matter of timing for our young 4 year old church!). Anyway, to see her growth since she stepped into our midst and had more focus in her walk with God, slowly taking up serving in the LiFe Groups and especially doing an excellent job with our Library, and now playing a role in the council is simply just awesome.
All this is happenning right before our eyes, and seeing the grace of God at work is just phew! what can I say? And this is happening in our 47 year old Malaysia right in the Klang Valley, in the mist of a local congregation of Christians and friends (who are open to the Christian faith). I like Brian McLaren’s little phrase … in that our vision is to see “more Christians and better Christian living in community for the sake of the world” and my prayer is that as we genuinely fulfill this … individually and collectively we really contribute to the betterment of our country. Our priority is the “kingdom of God” no doubt, but we also pray “Your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven …”, and I pray that god’s kingdom will come amongst us in our nation in and through us! In many ways just like the picture above, we are enjoying the “full life” God offers through Christ especially in community but it goes beyond that … helping us to look beyond ourselves to others around us or even far away from us!
So, as we celebrate Malaysia’s National day tomorrow on the 31st August, Thanks to Roy Lim for this Sing-a-long
you might want to join me in singing the national anthem. But, I’d like to invite you to join me further to the kind of stuff that I tried so inadequately to talk about in my reflection on the picture above!:-)