The Sovereignty Of God

Spurgeon once said that even a speck of dust cannot move unless God wants it to. God is in sovereign control of all he has made and of all the details of our lives. “Whatever the Lord pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps.” (Psalm 135:6).

So in a nutshell, whatever happen to you - God knows and He is in full control. Since nothing happens out of His will and plan, every day events that seems out of control to me are actually in God's control.

Lamentations 3:37–38 says, “Who can speak and have it happen if the Lord has not decreed it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that both calamities and good things come?” Jerry Bridges comments on this passage, “God is in control of every circumstance and every event of our lives, and he uses them, often in some mysterious way, to change us more into the likeness of Christ”

Here is the truth : All things happen for a reason : to change us to be more like Christ.

So when things doesn't move along well and becomes challenging it is an opportunity for me to trust him — to obey, to learn, to grow, to rely more on his grace. Life doesn’t feel out of control if we know Who is in control. We can trust and rest in God’s sovereignty, knowing that he is using our every stress for our transformation and his glory.

Renewing Your Vows in a Historical Setting - Cana in Israel

Where else would it be a more appropriate setting to renew our marriage vows once again?  In Cana, Israel of course. The place where Jesus performed His first miracle in turning water into wine at a wedding feast in Cana.

After 27 years of marriage, it is always good to stir up the flames of love by committing and reminding each other of our promises.

Christianity under Spotlight

I found myself eagerly following the updates on Pastor Kong Hee of City Harvest church. He and 5 others were charged in court for alleged misuse of church funds.


Like many others, I find myself trying to justify their actions by looking at the bigger picture. At the end of the day, they will have their day in court to explain. 

With this media hype surrounding the case, a lot of us are caught up taking sides, for and against these leaders. I see a parallel on what was happening in the Corinthian church where divisions surface on their allegiance to certain leaders cause a split in the community. 

" What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas”; still another, “I follow Christ.” (1 Cor 1:12,13)."

I pray that all of us will look at Christ in our allegiance and fulfill our mission to "make disciples of all nations..." ( Matt. 28:19,20 ).  Our focus then should be in Christ, not our human leaders. 

A Pilgrimage to the Holy Land

Ever since I came to know the Lord, I have been fascinated with the Holy Land. Imagine being able to walk the land where my Lord walks, taking in the landscapes, weather, and being transported back in time to actual biblical events happening in the places we visited.

I felt humbled, awed and deeply connected to my belief in my God, and His will and work in my life.

To God Be the Glory!

The Passing of an Icon

Steve Jobs passed away this morning.

While  addressing the graduates at Stanford University in June 12, 2005, he said ,


"Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure — these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart." Steve Jobs


Herein lies a great lesson in life. We don't need to wait until something happens that we begin to relook at what really matters in life. Steve Jobs followed his heart...look what he has left behind as his legacy.

The Bible teaches us many lessons on our heart. Someone shared Proverbs 4:23 with me just last week.

"Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life. "  NKJV

So, while pondering, be sure to look at what matters!

Have A Reality Check

I have always wondered how I will react when faced with a life threatening situation. Shock; bewilderment; unbelief or the feeling that the world just crumbled under my feet?

In the span of 2 weeks, I have come to know of 1 death and 2 confirmations from close friends/relatives of cancer related illness.  It is not a death sentence, that I know. However, I am sure that when we are confronted with such a situation, a lot of things would be going through our minds. Will I survive? How long ? What next ?

Whatever the questions that will come, one fundamental point will surface - it will entail a shift in focus - a life changing one. I am sure your priorities will be changed. Things that seemed important just awhile ago no longer holds you.

I have to say this : I will not know how I will react but I have learned from my personal journey that it will bore down to one thing : faith !

Our faith in God will determine how we face the impossible situations of life. We must learn to stand in the shadow of our Savior, trusting Him to work through the trials we encounter, through the extreme circumstances we cannot handle.  He is still the God of impossible situations. He still does what no earthly individual can do. Trust Him to do that!

What Matters?

I have been asked numerous times, " Who is your choice for President? ". While I contemplate to answer the question, a number have given me their choice of candidate and why they are putting their votes behind the man.

In this posting, I will not be putting a name forward but rather try to put my own 2 cents's worth of justification for a man or a system that seems to work. This is not a political post.

When I was growing up, I witnessed first hand the chaos created during the Chinese/Malay riots in the 60s. It was a dark moment in my young life when I saw my parents' distressed faces and that of those in our village. Every one was awake at night just so that they will not be caught by a surprised attack from the other side. This was a period of instability where school was disrupted often because of strikes/riots. After the PAP government came into power, the focus has shifted somewhat to development and nation building. The government has been largely successful and people has benefited much from its transformation. That is also why all these years, it has always been a 1 party government. However, grumblings has quicken lately on host of issues, from foreign talents to ministerial salaries, the list goes on. With the latest GE 2011 results showing the opposition gaining ground, in both the no of votes and wards, it does shows a growing discontent for all things PAP. Did they go horribly wrong ?

Paul in his writings to Timothy admonish them to pray for the government that "they will have peace...." (1 Timothy 2:1-4). Our focus then is to pray and ask God to put in place one that will be able to give us the comfort of a peaceful existence, one that will be able to allow us to carry out the great commission without fear of reprisal. Our personal choice then should be governed by this principle, and not of likes or dislikes, or along partisan lines, or herd instinct.

Being a beneficiency of the system, I am proud of what we have achieved as a nation and I will vote with a clear conscience of who I think will be able to carry out the duties of a President best within his mandate which I think has somewhat been blurred along the way.

A Fresh Wind Of Fire Part 2

Wow! The revival continues! It has been a month and we are still seeing people seeking intimacy with the Lord week after week as they respond to the altar call for ministry. Testimonies has been flooding in. Experiences of the Lord touching them in very different ways - speaking in tongues, healings, deeper intimacy and boldness in sharing the gospel. People of all ages, from the old to the very young, were impacted.


God is moving in a powerful way in PLMC. My prayer is that it will fester in the lives of those touched and translate down into powerful testimony of faith and good works manifested in holiness and good fruits.

Hallelujah!

A Fresh Wind Of Fire

Sunday Service last week started out as any other ordinary Sunday Service would have been. I wasn't expecting anything unusual. However when the worship started, I felt a heavy presence of the Lord in our midst. I felt it going through my body and my hands were strangely warmed.

When our Snr Pastor, Jonathan Seet rosed to speak, something caught my attention. He mentioned that only this morning did he discovered a revelation in God's Word. He referred us to Mark 1:9-11.

Mark 1:1-11 ( NIV )
 ⁹ At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. ¹⁰ Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. ¹¹ And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

Just as heaven opened up on the day of Christ's baptism, he had a vision of the roof of PLMC's sanctuary opens up and the glory of the Lord shines through. He expects God to do a mighty manifestation of His power in PLMC. Signs and Wonders will accompany revival as the people turns to seek after God. He ended with an altar call to join him in asking the Lord to fill the church with His glory and do His mighty works in our midst.

Needless to say, a large part of the worshippers responded and joined him in united prayer unto the Lord.

Could this be a beginning of something significant happening in PLMC? I see the faces of the people, hungry for the Lord and expecting great things to come, myself included.

Psalm 127 : 1,2

Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.

It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so he giveth his beloved sleep. - Psalm 127 : 1,2 KJV


I have meditated on these verses many times. Each time when something major that I am involved in hit a wall, doubts will creep into my head as to whether this path is what the Lord has planned for me.

However, my attention was fixated on the words "to eat the bread of sorrows". The RSV says "to eat the bread of anxious toil". It simply means "Don't be anxious...". We should not be anxious in our labor.

Anxiety grips us everytime something goes awry..things keep spinning in our heads on all possibilities and repercussions and as a result, we loses sleep, am uptight and unable to focus properly.

How has this help me to overcome anxiety? I reasoned that if  my highest efforts are only in vain without His help, then the success or failure lies ultimately on Him, not me. This truth is a starting point for me to move into any issues and ventures with the focus on Him to carry out the work through me. The Bible tells us not to be anxious for "He give to His beloved in his sleep" The incentive is this: God can perform more good for those who trust Him while they sleep than they can perform with anxious labor for themselves while awake.


The great test of faith is to believe that when we can see only a bleak outcome to some situation and no good coming of it, yet God can bring out of nowhere, as it were, a turn of events or attitudes that brings great blessing. And He can do it while we sleep!

I am contented with this knowledge to rest in Him and trust Him to do His work.

Christianity in the News

Christianity is in the news for all the wrong reasons in Singapore. With high profile court case of the couple who distributed insensitive tracts, to pastors who spoke insensitively on other religions at the pulpit as well as claims of plagiarism levied on well known pastors. Coupled with eye popping business deals worth hundreds of millions involving some of our biggest churches,you simply cannot ignore the sentiments going around and it has been on everyone lips everywhere you turn.

It didn't help when most of the war of words on the internet sprung from christians from differing camps. To all, I suggest we hold our horses and take a step back and reflect on the bigger picture. The world is watching us. Can we say that we are the "body of Christ" bonded in love and unity? The Bible tells us to admonish each other in the spirit of love. Let's just do that and leave the rest to God to convict and to restore the wayward party. We don't have to go after their blood, as some are doing. And to do this in public is simply tantamount to bringing brothers to the civilian courts.

What will be the impact of all this? Will the authorities react to the growing concerns of extremist evangelicalism in our midst, that eventually will undermine our religious freedom in this nation? I shudder to think of the consequences.

1 Tim 2:1-4 says :

1I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— 2for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. 3This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.

It's time for us to get on our knees and pray....

Pastor Rony Tan of Lighthouse Evangelism

Lighthouse Evangelism is listed as one of the mega churches in Singapore. Unlike the big ones that are known for its sheer size and the amount of money they garners every year, Lighthouse Evangelism is known more for its healing ministry. I have spoken with a number of people who has visited its services, usually the Saturday services. Most are there because they seek healing or are bringing someone that needs healing.

What captured our attention in the past few days, however was not so much on the miracle healing, but the result of such spiritual healing taking place that has caused a backlash against the church, especially its senior Pastor, Rev Rony Tan. In its exuberance, Pastor Rony Tan has unwittingly said something that has undermined the religious belief of others. He has openly came out to offer his apology and has removed all traces of the offending videos/messages.

There are still people out there - Christian and non Christian alike, screaming for his blood and I am not surprised that in his message to his congregation that Sunday that he plans to '...depart from the very nation that I love.".

Pastor Rony Tan has earned my respect for riding through this 'dark times' in his life. In the cause of doing the Lord's work, he has made some mistakes where he will have to rectify. Still, throughout the Bible and Christian history, men and women continues to take up the call to proclaim the good news, in season and out of season, in whatever way possible so that all will come to know Him.

To Pastor Rony Tan, my prayer will be for you to continue to shine for him. Your family, congregation at Lighthouse Evangelism needs you. The nation you love needs you. The devil will not have the victory but God will be glorified. Hallelujah !

Jesus Encounter ANEW

I have to admit it. I was not looking forward to spending the weekend having someone run through your life and help you clean out any lingering issues that remains a stumbling block to being the person God intends you to be. I have not taken up my golf clubs for 2 months now and was looking forward to a relaxing time at the greens.

However, God has other plans. He even shifted my intended business trip so that I can be around for the weekend. And, truly what a weekend it turns out to be.

Jesus Encounter ( ANEW ) is a PLMC initiative to get members to spend some time looking inwards into their lives. The foundational teaching will prepare the hearts and minds of the participants as the Holy Spirit reveals areas where the participants need ministry or release and healing, in order to walk in freedom, unhindered. There will be one on one prayer counselling where he/she is sensitively and prayerfully led to encounter God in these areas of bondages or woundings. By allowing the Spirit to reveal and let God remove those hindrances that keep us from deepening our relationship with Him and with others, we prepare ourselves for the renewal of our minds and the revival of our spirits for greater spiritual growth - a desire we all have.


I was particularly drawn to the teaching on the Tripartite Man - We have a body, soul & spirit. Within the soul resides our mind, emotions and will. This is where the battle rages on. When we became a christian, our spirit man is aligned with God. However our mind has just begun to be renewed after all the ungodly soul ties we have accumulated. We need to cut all ties and prevent the devil from using these to again pull us back into sin. That is why the Bible teaches that we need to constantly renew our mind ( Rom 12:2 ) with what is good and godly so that we will be able to make godly decisions ( will ).

We had a 3 hr one to one session with a counsellor at the end of the program to basically go through our life experiences right from birth to draw out any hurts, wrongs, ungodly affiliations that may explain our current struggles and to cut away all these ungodly ties.

Truly a rewarding time spent.

A New Assignment

God works in mysterious ways. When you least expected it, something happens that leave you completely stunned and you can't help but marvel at God's providence and timing. I was handled an added responsibility at work. Looking at the task at hand, I can't imagine how I can fit into this role. I can only look up and trust Him to lead the way and I will follow (Proverbs 3:5,6). Depending not on my strength, but His alone ( Phil 4:13 ).

All glory be to Him.

God's Blessings

After a long absence, I am back! Not because I did not want to write, but rather could hardly find the time to pen down my thoughts...

In the span of 4 months, I have been away on business trips, sold and bought a new house; renovate and finally move into our new home. Imagine the hassle involved. But God is good. Everything moves like clockwork. I am indeed thankful.

This year has been an eventful year for me. I am grateful for His many blessings at work and in the family.

I will blog on some of the events soon...

Psalms 23

I was looking forward to WIN on Tuesday night..praying for the church camp as well as the opportunity to listen to Rev David Holdaway. What he shared that night left a deep impression on me.

The life of David is a classic example of how God deals with those he loves and truly he has earned the distinction of being "one after God's heart". Throughout his life, it has never been a bed of roses...even after he was anointed by Samuel as the next King of Israel, he has to go through the school of hard knocks before he ascended the throne. Even then, he has been brought low through sin in his life. The psalms that David wrote gave us a glimpse into the emotions and struggles he went through at each trial. Psalm 23 shows us the unique relationship David has with God, his Shepherd and his total trust and faith in Him in good times as well as trying times.

As Rev Holdaway shared on Psalms 23, one verse stands out to me " Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me ". It had never occurred to me why the rod and staff are mentioned separately as both are used interchangeably throughout the Bible.

The rod stands for correction, but even the chastening of our God is comforting. Chastening assures us that we are yet the subjects of our Shepherd's love. "For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth." Heb. 12:6. "Now chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby." Heb. 12:11. In view of the chastening process we can even "joy in tribulation."

The staff stands for support, or something to lean upon in the time of weariness. Our loving Shepherd shares His staff with us and supports us in times of sorrow or trial. This staff may well stand for the unfailing precious promises of the Bible. What a staff to lean upon! Men's promises may fail, but the promises of our Lord can never fail.

For those out there who are suffering trials right now, Psalm 23 is really a wonderful passage to meditate, ponder and claim on. Let it be to us what David had experienced....to know the Shepherd intimately so that we can echo truly from our hearts "The Lord is my Shepherd. I shall not want..."

A Mother's Day Dedication

So many of us just take it for granted. We assume the things they do will be done because they always have been done. The house will be clean and tidy, the kids will be ready for schools on time, the meals will be on the table, etc. What basically needs to be done will be done. We take for granted that mothers will pay the price to be mothers. In fact, we assume it so much that we often don’t value it as we should.

So this year, a special dedication to my wife :

"Thank you for being there in the different stages of our lives.. Your love and dedication throughout the years has cement the foundation of our marriage and has made it stronger as we journey through this life together. Our 3 sons are a testimony to your dedication and upbringing and truly, I cannot imagine how well our sons were brought up. As I have promised you, "The Best is Yet To Be"..Enjoy the ride! I love you so much! I thank God for you and I recognise you as one of his greatest gifts to me! Happy Mother's Day."

"Give her the reward she has earned and let her good works bring her praise in the most public of places.” (Proverbs 31:30-31).

MOE's About Turn On AWARE's CSE Programme

MOE has done an about turn on their stand about AWARE's CSE Programme. They now feel that it does not conform to their guidelines and thus has pulled the plug on the programme.

I will not delve into the details but just to say that I thank God for what Josie and her team had done. They are willing to sacrifice their time and energy to right something which they saw was wrong in AWARE and the effect it has on our society, especially our children. I sincerely hope and pray that the old guard will see the error of their ways and change and embrace the help of some of the new members as well, to steer the ship back to its honourable goals.

A small victory nonetheless..Praise God indeed.

AWARE Saga Continues....

This is my third blog post concerning the AWARE saga. I am greatly disturbed, not by what had happened in the past few days, but rather by the subtle way that AWARE has been hijacked by what is commonly known as the GLBT ( Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender ) movement. Top on the list of course, is the Comprehensive Sexuality Education taught to school kids. I wonder what else is there that we have not uncovered. We will never know since the control is back to the old guard.



For those who wants to sign the petition to get MOE to review the CSE programme can do so here.



In the name of "Inclusiveness", GLBT movement has been gaining ground in many christian churches/denominations worldwide. We have the Anglican crisis that has caused the split of the episcopal church of US with its brethren worldwide. The Methodists has its own struggle from within. Now, the secular state of America has begun to legalise same sex marriages in some states. I dare not think what will happen to Singapore when Article 377A of the Penal code is successfully repealed.

Aware MUST get its act together and should go back to its original objectives of championing the rights of women. The noble thing to do is to seek a conciliatory path between the 2 camps as I believe that there are many women out there of the new blood that can contribute significantly to its causes.....unless of course...the old guard think that they are right all along..

The Plot Thickens....

The results are finally out....the old guard won a "non-confidence" vote against the new exco, and Josie Lau and her team have graciously step down from the leadership of AWARE. End of story....or is it?

The leadership tussle at AWARE has somehow unearthed a sinister plot that has gone undetected for some time which shows the old guard's slant towards accepting homosexuality as a way of life. They have promoted this through their "Comprehensive Sexuality Education" workshop that are now conducted in 11 schools.

I quote the following from an article in the christian post :

"the former Aware leadership had intended to spread a liberal, relativistic worldview through the CSE workshop, according to a website launched by the old guard.They justify the liberal programme by saying that students are taught to develop their own views in an environment where values are not challenged, but this is after the fundamental assumptions under girding a conservative worldview have been demolished, leaving a relativistic climate in which what is not objectionable to anyone is deemed right and acceptable."

Children are taught through the programme that homosexuality is ok and that anal sex is ok in spite of the state’s criminalisation of sodomy.

In the article, the media disclosed that the free workshop was funded by Chen Su Lan Trust, whose chairman Yap Kim Hao, a former Methodist bishop, is a pastoral advisor to Free Community Church, a pro-homosexuality congregation in Singapore. The Rev Yap affirmed that he was comfortable with the full contents of the programme.

So you see where all this leads to....a systematic programme to infiltrate the minds of the young ones to "experience" their sexuality in the hope to turn them to accept homosexuality as a way of life.

I thank God for people like Josie Lau & Thio Su Mien, among others who had seen the danger and decided to act to turn the tide in AWARE. Although the battle is lost with the old guard taking over the helm again, I believe that MOE will now wake up and act decisively on this matter. They owe it to all the concerned parents out there who are now well informed of the evil that is polluting the young minds of their children.