Spiritual Man as Mad (Hosea 9:7)

I think it is in the prophet Hosea that it is said that a spiritual man is considered mad. Prophets as they come are seen as madmen. If one claims to be filled with the Spirit, to one who is natural or soulish, it seems sofoolish to him or her to behold such a spiritual man. Yesterday we had only half of the Christmas crowd, below 80 adults for the first Sunday of 2026. But I preached a solid message, a spiritual message from Proverbs on wisdom. I shared how God could increase our finances and treasuries. My congregation must hear that as many are bound by cycle of poverty, as if there is no release. I asked them to look to the Lord, for He promises the wise that He will fill their treasuries.

Why I thought I was mad? Because I shared the three occasions when I went out to another place with empty wallets. The first when I returned to serve in Sabah as a full time worker. I had nothing after my two years of study at Auckland where I bore all the costs of theological education. MYR100K and more were gone in 2 years, but it was a small investment to learn Hebrew and Greek. My home church had to fork out money to help me pay for my return fare from Auckland to Sabah. That was the first and last time that I had asked a human or a church for financial assistance. At least I could say that my record is clean that after I commenced full time ministry I have not asked a single soul for a dime. 

The second time when I completed my 3-year term of Treasurer-General of SIB where I raised half of the monthly operating expenses, easily RM20,000 to RM30,000 a month, built more than 100 churches until completion with no delay and a perfect record. When I ended my term, I did not have sufficient money to pay for one way tickets for myself and family (wife and son) let alone money to pursue my Masters study in theology. But I earned a doctorate in Biblical Studies, one of the hardest PhDs in theology. 

The third time, when I went to Singapore to serve as lecturer in New Testament. I had nothing. I sold my two cars in Sabah to pay for my son’s fees for Year 13 (Upper Six). I went to Singapore penniless, but I returned with little savings having paid for my son’s education for 5 years at Otago University. Indeed, God who blessed me in Singapore is the same God who blesses me in Sabah. In the past 12 years, I had waited close to 4 years earning nothing for different appointments. While I waited I earned no income, and soon I might find myself in the same predicament. And this time there is no guarantee I ever return to ministry in a formal manner. Yet the God who fed Jacob his whole life long is the same God who has taken care of me, since I was conceived in my mother’s womb.