Preaching Assignments leading to 30th Anniversary in the Lord's Service

Suddenly within the past few days all my weekends are filled up for the month of November. Even until Saturday 30th November I am travelling outstation to preach in a meeting close to my former College in Taginambur some 30 years ago. I told the organisers to expect a surprise as I celebrate my 30th anniversary in the Lord's service as it was on that fateful day, 30th Nov 1994 I arrived with my family (wife and son aged 4) at Melangkap village where the College Campus was located to commence my full-time ministry officially on the next day 1st December 1994. So I might do a double celebration, one at the same district where I started 30 years ago and the second the next day in Kota Kinabalu which happens to be on a Sunday, 1st December. The stars seem to align as if it does not fall on a Sunday I might not do anything at all as driving in KK on a weekday is near impossible nowadays with traffic jam everywhere from sunrise to sundown and around my place especially.

But God is good. I have listed down my ten speaking engagements starting this Sunday 20th October until Christmas Day, to prepare mentally by praying and seeking the Lord's wisdom and strength. Yes strength for travel mercies if I have to drive more than an hour outstation. Even to Taginambur which is only about 90 minutes away is tiring as some parts of the road are bad and congested depending on the hour of the day. 

I turned down one invitation early this morning for the first weekend of December as it is simply too far all the way to Entilibon and I don't have a suitable vehicle to traverse potholes and uneven roads from Ranau to Telupid as there is a stretch of road that many drivers even on 4-wheel complain about. If it is not for the ministry of God's people there is nothing much to keep me here in Sabah. Economically and politically it is backwards and the church reflects its society, though we are called to be agents of transformation (salt and light), but often times church is affected by the world and not the other way round. 

Unless there is anointed leadership, the percentage of Christians in Sabah is just going to fall farther behind. When I preach the Malaysia Day message last month I did a bit of research with Sabah's Christians fallen to 24% of the population while Sarawak's Christians hit 50%. Why the difference? 35 years ago when I was still a lawyer in Kota Kinabalu, Christians in Sabah made up at least 35% of the population and the city of KK was brimming with Christians and many churches were alive and packed every Sunday.