Christmas....

Christmas Day had always been an elusive day for me. For many years now, I've not celebrated Christmas Day in any church as most of the time I made plans for family holiday. This year, as our family plans had gone haywire due to SYuen studies calendar, it was time to spent Christmas at home or probably a later holiday.

Earlier, SLing and I had laboured in our kitchen to prepare a good Christmas Eve dinner of roasted chicken, roasted beef , bacon infused salad and mushroom soup to accompany our family get-together. It was really nice to be able to be free to go shop with SLing, get our things together , get the ingredients, spent time together and just have fun as it is. It has been quite some time that we had not had such liberty to do what we've always liked to do because of my work commitments and so on. So, it was fun dishing out the dishes as it was going to be a great meal. Once, it was done, we were just so pumped out by the preparation and all that. We also shared this meal with Dinesh, Abby, Dinesh's mom and the children. It was a great night of food, fellowship and enjoying the night as it is.

Coming back to Christmas day, we headed out to our church that morning as usual. I hurried up to the Children Church to give them a hand at the Children's Christmas Party. There were quite a fair bit of children there and I saw Uncle Thomas setting up his hot dog table. Wow!Truly a blast of a party for sure!  I was told that he had prepared sausages and ice-cream float for the children on this occasion. Now, I am sure the children are going to enjoy the "party" alright! As the main service at the ground floor started, you could feel the atmosphere of festivity around you. It was a good festivity atmosphere while the Children Church Christmas Party decor liven up the hall upstairs. Young children were zigzagging and running across the room shouting their heads off and making noises as they whizzed passed me. Manning the registration counter were Charlene and David Lee. Each children was given a sticker with their names on it. There were many children that morning while the main sanctuary hall at the ground floor were filled to the brim with adults. 

The main service started off with praise & worship songs including classic Christmas carols. It was truly amazing to be in the spirit of Christmas while the Children Church also started off with Christmas carols led by Rebecca and Andrew. It was sweet to hear Christmas carols echoing the hall. Somehow, Christmas carols sung by adults and children do sound good indeed. Then David and Dinesh took over for the games and message for the day. Soon, the drama play written by Rebecca for this Christmas party was carried out and it was such a beautiful drama indeed.   

Then it was party time and food was the order of the day. Uncle Thomas churned out the hot dogs with great ease as mustard, tomato sauce, cabbage, cucumber and even saute onions were accompanying the hot dog and soft buns. I helped out the drinks section handing out root beer with ice-cream with my two happy-go-lucky mates, Yap S.K. and Jonathan Yip. It was a wonderfully hectic time and at the same time, the children were fed. Simple hot dog tasted so good when the company is right, right? Well, that's so true. I am thankful that I have spent some Christmas time with the children and the congregation at the ground floor. Everyone was in such a joyous mood and there was so much joy that morning.

I guess, spending time talking to friends and acquaintances on this joyous occasion was special. Young, old, mature,teenagers, youths, children and older folks just had a good time speaking to one another and shaking hands. Wouldn't the world be a better place if we could practised a little good like this each day to one another? Shouldn't we replace mistrust, racism, segregation, intolerance and general hateful with some good cheer on this special festive season? Why can't we replace all this with God's love, peace and joy.....in that way, our lives with one another in this diverse country of ours would be fruitful and respectful.

I am appalled that there are a small fraction of people in this country who still spread hate, racism, lies, disharmony and discord amongst the people today. I am also appalled at those who are in our higher offices who will still oppressed, look down or even bear arrogance towards the working staff. I pray that as we all remember this joyous occasion for it is a day of rejoicing and a day of lifelong hope ahead. Be of good cheer. Be understanding and most important of all , have a heart - It's Christmas, a day of hope, peace, love and joy....

Merry Christmas , everyone......

Children Church Mugshot!

On Sunday, I had the opportunity to teach the Sunday school children on the topic of money. Though it can be daunting and equally intimidating to teach these young ones as they can be quite witty, quirky and temperamental at times but I really find it a real challenge to help them in whatever way I could. So, I decided to teach them of the need to be not greedy for money and to the road of  blessing. 

Though it could be a real stretch to my already tight and strenuous life after an awesome night with the youths at CCC Y-Me Superhero Cafe Night, I was determined to do my best for the children. Upon arriving home after the youth event, I looked for the items I had prepared earlier , put them in a bag and making sure I did some reading of what I am going to teach the children the following morning. Honestly, after reading the scripture items I was supposed to teach and uploading pictures of the youth event on the FB page, I could not remember when I had drifted off to some far away land as I laid my head on the computer table.  I must say, sleep was mighty short but I was determine to teach something good to the children that morning. I was informed that I did not have much time to teach that morning as the rehearsal for the children's drama in lieu with the Children Church Christmas party was scheduled that day too. 

David Wong with his mugshot

So, that morning, as I asked the children to move to the other end of the hall, they seemed surprised and they waited in anticipation what I wanted to do. I then went to the opposite end of the hall and spread out the goodies I had in store for the children on the carpet flooring; spreading them out as far as possible. There were erasers, coins in all denominations , rulers, marbles and all the rest of the goodies. I then asked the children to turn around and they are given five second to grab what they wanted. What chaos it created! But what fun it was for the children. At the end of the 5 seconds, I asked them if they are satisfied with what they had. Some answered that they were satisfied while some just wished they had more time. When they answered that they are finally satisfied with what they had, I pulled out a whopper of other goodies and threw them into the spaces where the goodies were on the carpet. Immediately, their eyes lighted up and they all want to have a second chance at the goodies. When I told them that they had promised me earlier that they were "satisfied" with what they had, they seemed "shameful" and remorseful in a way. They are just so cute especially their guilty expressions and also, their easy ways. I am so thankful that they reacted that way.

Caitlin Kua with her mugshot....

I then took the opportunity to tell them of not to be greedy with the money they've had in their hands and also be thankful with what they have. It was also heartwarming to see that they understood what I have taught them. I also reinforced the lesson by telling them that all that we have belonged to the One Above. We should not take for granted that everything we have is ours as the Lord is the one who gives us what we have today and always be thankful. As they promised me that they would not be greedy with money, I pulled out a stack of mugshot forms for them to fill up and then took a picture of them. It was really wonderful fun for them and for me as I took their photographs to reinforce what they have promised. 

I am just thankful for the children's commitment. They looked so cute in their respective mugshot and I had the honor of taking their pictures. I just pray that they have learnt their lesson well while I am just thankful to the Lord for enabling me. Sometimes, I just don't know how I managed to get such things done but I do know where my strength comes from indeed....the One Above...as always... 

Pictorial Superhero Cafe Night 2013

The Superman booth with the Superwoman - Pastor Joanne in it!
Thank you for the support, encouragement & inspiration to the youths and leaders! 

SLing and me - just enjoying the fun...

Kenneth, the Youth Leader with the best dressed superhero, Ethan!
He took care of the food department! WELL DONE indeed!

Table decor...ingenius idea of David Lee...

The photo corner....

The team of fun leaders....

The singers and the band

Food & service team!

The decor & entertainment team!

Bukit Ridan, my perspective.....

The joyful people...who made it happen..

" The food stuff goes into Sunny's car." " The Christmas Shoe boxes, medicine, clothes, milk powder, drinks and some food stuff goes into the bus." " Some food stuff can also go into Robert's car." That's the early morning instructions belted out by Dr.Alvin Yip, our OA mission trip leader for the Christmas Shoe Box project 2013 to Bukit Ridan, Muadzam Shah, Pahang DM. I feel indeed privileged and honored to be working alongside this man of God, passionate and an encourager. Though he can be one meticulous planner and leader, I like the way he does his planning and there were many salient points and good leadership skills I had picked up along the way.  I am thankful too for good friend like Tan Dau Lim who had been a great encourager and motivator as the youths and I made this conscientious effort to bless the people in Bukit Ridan. I must say that I am way behind these people when it comes to planning for such events but I must confess I have learned a lot from these great people like Tan Jin Hui & Robert Chong from Gateway Christian Fellowship, Richard Lim, Dr. Pang and even Pastor Joanne. What a learning curve indeed.

The crowd....

We started out as early as 6.ooam and with all the shuffling of boxes and loading of goodies to cars and bus, we finally met up for a briefing and prayer 15 minutes before 7.00am. Then , it was off to our destination Bukit Ridan, Muadzam Shah, Pahang DM. Fifty five (55) of us, adults and youths from Gateway Christian Fellowship and City Community Church inched our way to our destination. There was an air of love, peace and joy though it was raining throughout our journey. However, I must confess that the pelting rain did not dampen our spirit that day. We had a divine appointment and a mission of great importance - to bless the children and the community of Bukit Ridan with our lives. Sure, we brought goodies and shoe boxes gifts along but to me, these are the side attractions. The main attraction is to allow the community to feel and be blessed with the love of Jesus through His humble servants in us. I must say that I have been blessed by the entire planning of this trip and I have great leadership examples to marvel at. This itself is a blessing.

My first few shy friends, Yuni & Asmira

Though we had "lost" our way upon reaching at Muadzam Shah, the sight of Ajis from Jus Chapel Selandar and Ton from Bukit Ridan Chapel on their m/cycle in the sweltering, cold and pouring rain gave us all a grand booster in our spirit. Though they were drenched wet, cold and shivering, they led us to Bukit Ridan OA village. It touched my heart to see them weathering and braving the pouring rain to bring us over to the village while we lounged at the comfort of our bus and cars. Upon arrival at the village, the ever smiling Pastor Joseph was at hand to welcome us. I shook hands with him and headed out to greet the Batin, the elders and the surrounding men and women there. I have learnt from my previous experiences that culturally it was good to greet the Batin ( head man ) - small built, graying hair and smiling man and his elders as this is the sign of respect to them as we visit their village. 

Delightful Balloon man, Tan Jin Hui....

Children, the men and the women folk were already seated in the newly built whittish in color Bukit Ridan Chapel. The rain did not let up but continued to pour incessantly but we had a divine destiny and nothing is going to hinder our work. We started to mingle with the children who were very shy and also started getting to know some villagers. Pastor Joseph's team started off with the praise & worship session  and this was followed by the children's skit on the birth of Jesus. 

Gateway youths were next. Under the leadership of Frankie, these youth belted out some nice BM praise & worship songs and rallied the crowd with some fine and fun actions. What a glorious start! The adults and children had great fun. The CCC Youth team led by Kenneth Pang, Joel Tan, Jaireh and Aaron Tay did the simple games that involved the children and the adults. It was a hilarious sight when they did the "Tupai, Pokok and Pemburu" game. Everyone mingled well and soon, the chillness and shyness went off and warmth crept in to warm hearts. I had the opportunity to make friends with three children namely Yuni, Asmira and Ira.I had enquired where the children were from and I was told that there were children from Kg.Simpai, Kg. Sinaling and Kg. Bukit Ibam. 

SLing with"orang tua" and his sister....

I could tell immediately that with their hair color and body size, these children were truly under-nourished. It was heartbreaking for me to see such depravity to these children. Before I could continue on to speak to the children , lunch was underway. Food comprised of wild boar cooked in black sauce and dried chilli, pucuk keledek ( sweet potato leaves ) , jantung pisang, kangkung and nangka lemak ( jackfruit cooked with lemak curry paste ) were the fare of the day. I was disappointed that many of our young people and adults did not try out the food. For me, this was already and exceptional food fare. Though these are simple food stuff, this was all they could offer and it would be disrespectful to decline food from them. I had no hesitation to try out the food and I found it to be tasty and nice especially the wild boar! 

Medical team - Dr.Alvin, Jessie, David, Dr.Wong & Timothy

The medical team, under the leadership of Dr.Alvin,Dr. Pang and Dr. Wong together with help from Manipal team namely David Lee , Jessie Looi and Timothy, then carried out their medical assistance to the villagers. Dr.Wong had the privileged to attend to the Batin who was the very first patient of the day. As the adults and children came forward for their medical examination and so on, we were most happy to hand out "ubat cacing" and multivitamin to these people. It was sad to know that there are still fungi related issues with these adults and children. It was disheartening that the adults had not taken care of their personal hygiene and this had spread to their children. I saw this brother and sister had fungi infection all over their bodies and there were bleeding at some of these patches mainly due to scratching. There wasn't much Dr. Alvin and his team could do except to prescribed anti fungi creobic cream for these adults and children for they knew that this type infection are quite common among the indigenous people. 

Joy to see the children having their meal....

The other thing was that I realised that the mothers are really young youths. I struck a conversation with Bebe from Bukit Ibam in regards to the young mothers. He informed me that most young girls who had reached the age of 14 years old would be married off and it was a cultural thing for their community. It is sad for me because all I saw was children having children. Where had society and culture gone so wrong on this matter - as I battered this question to my soul. My eyes was then turned to a frail,small built young mother breast-feeding her baby. What nutrient would have benefited the young children in such a deprived society? I wanted to take a picture of the breast feeding mother and her child but I refrained myself from doing so as I did not want to offend the people there at that time. That sight of young mothers and the frail breast feeding mothers filled my heart with sadness and more numbing questions. 

"Ubat Cacing" dispensers, SLing, Charlene, David & Timothy

As we gave out the shoe boxes gifts, milk powder and other food stuff, I never expected to be in another shocking sight. When the slippers and the clothes were being handed out at the centre of the chapel, it was like a mad rush and carnivale like atmosphere. Hands, limbs, legs flew in all directions as children and adults rushed for the clothes. I played that scene in my head so many times and I just couldn't help but felt how blessed we have been all these years. Things that we don't think twice of discarding like our old clothes are so precious to these people. I did asked a young man on why the rush for clothes. He told me that clothes would help them to be warm during cold weather. Here is a 17 year old man with two children and a 16 year old wife! As I stood there in disbelief at the grabbing of clothes and slippers, I felt thankful for those who had donate these clothes and slippers for the people on that day. Even Batin had a fitting coat to take home to and shield himself from the the cold. 

Joel,Aaron Y, Kenneth, Aaron T, Jenny, Joellene & Jaireh!

Indeed it was an eye opener for all of us who are first timers especially the youths and even seasoned helpers. That day, it wasn't about religion or boasting of being able to give. It wasn't about spreading the Gospel as we are most often accused of.  We simply cannot outgive our sovereign God. That day, it was spreading the love of God. It was about blessing a community. It was handing out a portion of God's goodness to the needy. It was allowing these people to know that we care.  It was about the same compassion, empathy, passion, love , peace and joy that God had entrusted us to relay on. It was about doing the right thing even though nobody is doing it. It was about touching lives of the receiver and the giver of that gifts. It is never about gifts but the gift seed from the heart for our lives are the only Bible one sees in places such as this. I am blessed though I have many unanswered questions as we leave that place that day. Perhaps when I meet my Maker one day, I shall ask him those question.

For now, I am contented that I have played a part in spreading that Christmas cheer to these people. Afterall, it is more blessed to give than to receive, is it not? I've learn this principle a long time ago! It never fails to cheer the heart! Thank you , GOD for a great outing! Thank you ,GOD for great people and unsung heroes that day - youths and adults , young and old!~