34th Year in Christ

I thought I was going share my testimony how I came to the Lord exactly 34 years ago today at a church which I had not preached in for 19 years. But I skipped it as my message centred on the theme given to me, "Experiencing miracles through faith" based on Jesus' healing the woman who bled for 12 years in Matthew 9,21. I shared three testimonies how the Lord worked miracles through prayers as I expound the verse,  "whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive." Mat 21,22.
I shared how the Lord answered my prayers on the 22nd June 2013 for the haze to be lifted from Singapore as I returned to the island republic after a short holidays in KK. On that day the haze hit 401 PSI the highest in Singapore history. When I saw the map of Singapore when I read Straitstimes on 25th June that showed that the haze was still hanging around the region except for a clear space encircling Singapore I bowed my head in worship.

Second,  I shared how a week after the earthquake when the Ranau's waters became bitter and the reservoirs had to be closed for days, I prayed and cried out to the Lord and the tap water was restored the same night. The verse came to me about how Elisha healed the bitter waters and made it drinkable.

Finally,  only two weeks ago it rained for the first time in 2 months in Namaus. How I asked the Lord not to send rain on the Saturday as I was travelling to Togis in Perancangan for preaching and the Lord heard our prayers. No rain on Saturday but after Sunday's intercessory prayers with the students, it rained heavily at 2pm while I was asleep. The Lord provides for his beloved in his sleep, says the Psalmist. At the end of the sermon I read from the end of Mathew 9, where the Lord was moved to compassion by the crowds like sheep without a shepherd. I shared how the text could be interpreted in two ways.

First, it could refer to those who are outside of Christ and need to hear the gospel. I told the city church (8 shop units belong to this KK church) that there could be up to 1 million souls in the KK district and how Jesus would have us share his love with them. I shared how almost I was delayed in coming to church because there was a jogathon in Teluk Likas and thousands were there which means they are not attending church on a Sunday. Second, the sheep without a shepherd refers to church members that need good pastors who care for them and visit them. I shared how after I resigned as pastor I still visited a church member up a steep hill, inaccessible even to my 4 wheel drive and how to this faithful widow my visit was a miracle itself. She must have prayed and the Lord answered her prayers by sending His servant to minister to her.

We ended at 10.15 am, and we had wonderful fellowship over early lunch for another 80 minutes before leaving the church at 11.40 am. When I went down stairs I met the President of a church-denomination. We used to be colleagues at College but I have not seen him in more than 10 years. I gave him the College magazine and we parted with joy and renewed friendship.  All these chance meetings are like miracles by the Lord, God accomplishing his purposes in and through us.