Friends

Not paying attention in church.

City boy growing up

Learning horse-riding in the mall. 'Catch me if you can!'.

Growing up

New pastors and elders

Today was a special day in church.

We witnessed the ordination of three elders and two pastors. 'Ordination' is not a common word in my vocab, so here are some results from the dictionary... Ordination: 1. The status of being ordained to a sacred office. 2. The act of ordaining; the act of conferring (or receiving) holy orders. Not kena bagi naik pangkat, but more of kena bagi naik tanggungjawab.

The service started with a praise session. The worship team and musicians came from the various churches in Kota Kinabalu, in line with 1SIB, and they looked fantastic in their smart suits. The team prepared the congregation in the right heart for what was to come.

And we had some special guests for the auspicious morning. There was Pastor Dr. Chew Weng Chee from KL, I-don't-know-who-is-this-gentleman, and Pastor Agong Sakai from Ba Kelalan.

Pastor Agong started the ordination service with an opening speech.

The five were called to the front. L-R: Charles Albert, Andy Wong, Andy Majimbun, Pastor Bios Solingkin of SIB Metro, and Pastor Lee Lee Dusing of SIB Likas (English).

Receiving their special tasks in humility.

Some signing of certificates.

And it was done!

Pastor Bios and Elder Charles looking forward to bigger roles ahead, and blessings that come along. By the way, the word Elder is translated into Penatua in Bahasa Melayu. Somebody once quipped to me that Penatua means 'penat sampai tua'. But if one could see the hand of God at work in all those penat times, it would definitely be worth the effort.

Heaps of hugs and handshakes for the newly ordained servants of God.

Pastor Dr. Chew Weng Chee gave the message for the morning. This obstetrician-turned-pastor was one of the pioneers of SIB Likas a long time ago when there was hardly any proper roads in Sabah. He and his paediatrician wife subsequently left Kota Kinabalu some 15 years ago to start SIB in West Malaysia. They now tend to a vibrant 3000-plus congregation in SIB KL, impacting the minds and lives of the best brains of Malaysia right in the capital city. He shared about The Pre-requisites Of A Man/Woman Of God, an apt message for the newly ordained folks.

To be effective in the work that they are about to do, they would need...

1. Divine Strength
Not one's own strength or wisdom, but that which come from a greater resource. 'When the spirit of God is upon you, you will not need to shout and scream to get your point across. The wisdom of your words and your presence would be authoritative.'

2. Divine Strategies

'You can cry and complain when difficulties and crisis comes. But God doesn't give you sympathy. He gives you strategies to work through the challenges.' Pastor Chew sure knows what he is talking. His church in SIB KL functions in a very creative and effective cell-church concept.

3. Divine Sensitivity

'... to know when to stand firm and not compromise... and when to forgive and be gentle.'

3+1 Bonus. Divine Sustainability: FLY HIGH, STAY LONG

'Do not fly high and crash hard. The keyword is sustainability. Saul started off as a great candidate for a king, and achieved great success initially. But he got proud with his achievements and grew jealous of his assistant, and then met his downfall. John the Baptist had a sustainable ministry, because he knew his calling and stuck to it, without getting distracted or jealous with other things.'

See, I did not sleep in church this morning.

Pastor Chew showed a photo of the very early pioneers of the SIB church in Malaysia (colonial times?), taken during a recent gathering in Miri. I could just imagine what flowed through the minds of those men and women, to see the sacrifices made in giving the prime of their lives to missionary work in Malaysia, now grown into a major Christian movement that continues to change lives and shape the nation. Wouldn't you too wish that towards the end of your life, you could look back and see such fruits of your labour, than the shallow satisfaction of a fat bank account and a luxurious property.

Some photos taken at the end of Sunday service.

I am now drooling at Didi's new Tamron 17-50mm/f2.8.