an update from Yangon

We received the following update from a pastor who has a church membership of about 100 in Yangon, a bible school (which we earlier told you was destroyed by the cyclone) with about 40 students, and oversees about 80 church planters all over Myanmar:

Thank God for His protection over me and my family.
We are safe.

In Yangon, we lost five pastors' houses, the Bible school (see photo on upper left), provision shop (profit from the sales used to support needy students), and all office equipment (see photo of office on lower left).

In the Ayerawaddy Division, we have three church planters based there and I intend to go and meet them in next week to find out how they are and to encourage them.

Please do pray for us so that we may re-build and re-equip these needs in Yangon as well as in the Ayerawaddy Division as soon as possible.


Continue to pray for his family as well. His wife gave birth to their third child recently.

Phil 1:19
For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ

Matt 25
35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’

there must be fuel for fire!

The following Tongues and Interpretation was delivered through Kenneth E. Hagin in April of 1983:

Just to sit still or stand still, or lie still and bemoan your situation and bemoan your condition, and
talk about those that are against you will only give the enemy authority and power over you. Causing
you to sink down even deeper into despair and defeat. But rising up in faith and declaring that in
Him you are complete will cause you to stand up and not sit down. Will cause you to stand up and
not stand still but march forward with you feet planted firmly on His Word, His promise and what He
said. And your lips speaking forth a psalm of praise. For the Lord God is alive and not dead. Yea,
He is my Father and I am His child. I'll walk in the light of His Word and in the power of His Spirit. I'll
glorify His Name and worship Him too. For He's raised me up. Yea, He made me to sit together with
Him in heavenly places. Even in Christ Jesus do I have my being, live and move and breathe. And I'll
sound forth praises unto His Name. 

Victory is not a thing to be desired and longed for. Victory is mine to enjoy today tomorrow and
forever. So praise the Lord and magnify His Name. Know what your rights and privileges are and
you will find that the enemy will always be put to flight. And life will not be a drudgery nor every day
the same. But life will be sublime. Filled with His presence, yea, filled with His power. Full of His
glory; shining forth even unto the darkness. And light through thee shall shine. And many will come
and fall in behind to follow you in the light that shines.

Deliverance will come and great victory in the life of those around about. And you will be filled with
His praise. And your mouth ever with a shout. And the enemy will be put on the run because he
knows what it's all about.

Being conscious of a mighty move in your spirit wanting and desiring to do the will of God. But don't
try to do it yourself. Just learn to relax and to flow with the Spirit. Don't try to figure out in your head,
"What does He want me to do?" Just learn to relax and flow with the Spirit, it'll take care of itself you
don't have to worry. I just wonder, I know there's something, I know there is something He wants me
to do. Fine just keep on praying. And just flow with the Spirit. You'll not come into the full potential of
what God has for you tomorrow. You'll not come into the full potential of what God has for you next
week. You'll not come into the full potential of what God has for you next month. Some will not even
come into the full potential of what God has for you next year. Some will not for quite a period of time.
But, as you're faithful, and as you're trained, and as you learn to yield, you'll move eventually into that
place, hallelujah, that He had for you all along.

Glory to God. Glory to God. Did you hear me? Did you hear me? Praise His holy Name. But you see
moving into that place of ministry or whatever it is, whether it's full time ministry, or pulpit ministry, or
personal ministry, or whatever your place is in the Body of Christ.

Moving into that place is fueled by prayer, fired by the Spirit and ignited with his glory. Hallelujah to
Jesus. Glory to God. I said, glory to God. Glory to God. Glory to God. Hallelujah. Hallelujah, praise
God. But you see if there's no fuel there, there's nothing to ignite. Notice the Spirit said [I never
thought of that, it came out of the inside of me] fueled by prayer, fired by the Spirit, ignited with His
glory. You have to stop and analyze that, there's a difference between firing, igniting. Yes. You see
it's like the furnace, you see? There's a pilot light there that fires the thing. And then when the whole
thing has become ignited then the heat flows out. Ha, ha, ha, can you see what He's saying? Fueled
by prayer, fired by the Spirit, ignited with His glory. Hallelujah. I never though of that. I mean it just
flowed up out of my Spirit. But you see if there's no fuel there, there's nothing to fire. If there's
no fuel, there's nothing to fire. Fueled by prayer, hallelujah, hallelujah.

cyclone relief

Our hearts are burdened as we receive news of the aftermath of the cyclone
that hit the city of Yangon and its surrounding villages from the media as well
as from our friends.

One of our contacts from a church in Yangon shared that about 200 families from
their church and in the areas they evangelise have lost their homes and lands.
Thank God that no one died. 

Another pastor shared that his orphanage which housed 22 orphans was
completely destroyed as it was made of bamboo. Nonetheless, the orphans are
safe. His family was also protected but his house was damaged (the roof blown
off by the cyclone). He is in the process of repairing his roof. Do pray that he is
able to find adequate building materials as they are costly and hard to come by
at the moment.

Many of the houses in the villages are bamboo huts with thatched roofs as they
are the cheapest form of housing available. They are like the “attap houses” in 
ingapore in the old days and are unable to survive a cyclone. A bible school that
we taught at was also destroyed as it was made of bamboo. 

Do pray for Myanmar as she try to recover from this catastrophe. About 40
townships in Yangon and 7 cities in the Ayeyarwady have been destroyed by the
cyclone. In some villages there are only a few survivors. 

At present, many people have no water, food or shelter. The churches have been
giving out of their limited resources. Due to limited supply of water and other
food items, prices have gone up. Fuel prices and transport costs have increased
considerably. The local churches need our assistance. 

The Lord has put in our hearts to help this nation through prayer and giving. If
you would like to donate to the churches and pastors that we minister to, please
contact us.

it will pass like a dream

I was much encouraged by the following passage that my brother sent me as i continue to press on in the path God has planned for me.

Isaiah 29:6-7
You will be visited by the LORD of hosts with thunder and with earthquake and great noise, with whirlwind and tempest, and the flame of a devouring fire.
And the multitude of all the nations that fight against me, all that fight against me and my stronghold and distress me, shall be LIKE A DREAM, a vision of the night.

i run!

FIRE!

This is the song that i referred to in my previous entry.

Indeed the world can never change or take away this divine fire that burns in my spirit!!

~~~ Fire ~~~
There's a fire that burns in me
That the world will never change
There's a fire that burns in me
His name is Jesus

Brighter and brighter
Consume my whole life
So I burn
Brighter and brighter for you

Abundant Life Church - Send Me

2 questions

During worship service yesterday, God spoke to me in a powerful way. His presence intensified during the praise session.

When we sang "Fire Fall Down", i was struck by the words of the song which echoed the desire of my heart. This was followed by a song about fire burning, and it was at this point that i felt the anointing and presence of God increased at this point. I sensed the fire of God re-ignited in me. More accurately, actually, there seemed to be a sudden surge of passion for the things of God which was already placed in me. I burst forth in intercession in my prayer language, and i sensed that i was praying for the church as well as the plans that God had for our lives.

As i was praying, these English words, amongst others, came repeatedly in a form of a question: Where is the Lord God of Elijah?

I remember this was exactly what Elisha prayed and declared after he received the double portion he asked for, just before he struck the waters, starting his ministry of miracles, signs and wonders. He was FULL of the power and anointing of the Lord so much so that even after he died, his bones brought to life a corpse that came into contact with his bones.

This was the first question.

The second question was asked by Jesus to his disciples in Mark 8:21. The preacher on Sunday highlighted this question, showing us what the disciples had learnt about depending on the Lord for provision. They had already seen Jesus feed the 5000 and then the 4000 with just 5 loaves and two fish, and then a few loaves and fish respectively. 7 baskets were filled with leftovers from the first incident, and 12 baskets from the second. And yet when it came to their own needs a few days later, they were concerned about not having enough.

This second question that impacted me, challenging me to greater faith in God's provision was preceded by Jesus' questions in Mark 8:17-19 (in bold). These questions display Jesus' assured knowledge of the very nature of the Heavenly Father in terms of providing, and also Kingdom principles in operation.

13 And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side. 14 Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat. 15 Then He charged them, saying, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”
16 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “ It is because we have no bread.”
17 But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “Why do you reason because you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive nor understand? Is your heart still hardened? 18 Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember? 19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?”
They said to Him, “Twelve.”
20 “Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?”
And they said, “Seven.”
21 So He said to them, “How is it you do not understand?”

I felt the question in verse 21 directed to me personally as i had been concerned about His provision as i take new steps. I had been uncertain about where the finances would come from in this transition i am facing.

Through this passage, i also learnt that God is not concerned just about providing for me, but providing through me so that others would be blessed.

That's how i want to live. I don't want to have just enough for me to live on, i want to have more so that i can give away that others might live on FOR HIM!

These 2 questions spur me to greater heights in my walk with the Lord!

2 simple statements

In the last couple of days, i've heard 2 simple statements made by 2 different young men which contained deep spiritual truth.

One is a pastor, and the other a teacher.

When a group of us were talking about how ministers of the past and present such as Charles Finney, Kenneth Hagin, Billy Graham, carried the presence and power of God wherever they went - at services and meetings and even as they lived out their every day lives. It was such that people could recognise and were aware of the love of God, even the conviction of the Holy Spirit. The lives of the people they encountered - even just once - were impacted, converted, transformed. The pastor among us observed that it was not a visitation, but a habitation.

The bible says that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit in Corinthians. We are told again in the same book that we have treasure within us that God has given us - the very power of God. In Ephesians, Paul reveals that the very same divine, miraculous, supernatural power that raised Jesus from the dead is at work in us.

In an email regarding prayer requests, the other young man, the teacher exorted in a simple line: Let's tap on the unlimited resources of God! Indeed our own human powers and ability may be exhausted, but the store house of the Lord which contains all things wonderful and special as revealed to us in glimpses in His precious word NEVER runs out.

I was so ENCOURAGED!

my aunt

My aunt gave a touching eulogy at my cousin's wake on the second and final evening. She shared that she never regretted having my cousin as her daughter in spite of what happened. She had learnt about love and forgiveness as some around her avoided them or questioned whether the parents had sinned, resulting in her daughter being in such a state.

She spoke of how her daughter always smiled at them, just like her father, and how she saw her as her pure and lovely angel whom God had gifted them with.

I admire and respect my aunt for how she has triumphed in these challenges.

It is not easy to lose two loved ones within the family in 7 months. It will take her and her second daughter some time to get over it. I remember losing my 3 grandparents within 7-8 months, and it took me a couple of years before i stopped crying at movies featuring death of a loved one, and at festive occasions. It will probably be more intense for them as they are grieving the loss of their husband/father, and daughter/sister.

But it will be just as she cried out in faith: "God help me, I know you will."

the cousin i never knew

my cousin, the elder daughter of my uncle who went to heaven last september, went to join her father early Tuesday morning.

I never knew her because of her condition - she was severely physically and mentally handicapped, and was bed ridden almost all of her life. It was a result of brain damage sustained during a high fever when she was a toddler.

Her 'ah gu' (uncle) gave a touching eulogy which revealed her character and spirit. It made me wish all the more i knew her better. He talked about her gentle and quiet spirit, which drew people to her. Even the doctors and nurses who looked after her at the hospital were drawn to her, and in a short period of a couple of weeks had a connection with her. Some of them shed tears at her passing on.

She may not have understood many things, but she was aware,and was responsive to love and touch. She knew what it meant to be prayed for. I believe she missed her father.

Her family, including her grandparents, took very good care of her. Mum remembers that uncle J once told her that cousin's life expectancy would be only 18 years according to the doctors. She lived till 34. That in itself is a miracle.

I will take time to know her in heaven, and because she will no longer have any physical or mental constraints, we will be able to communicate and interact.

I believe she is enjoying her new found liberty which includes unlimited mobility, eternal joy and expressive communication with her Lord and loved ones.

It is not an easy time for her mum and sister who remain behind, especially since it's the 2nd death in the family in just 6 months. My aunt is a strong woman. Her faith in God will not be easily shaken. She still has her younger daughter, and an extended family who loves and supports them in many ways. i heard her cry out last night: God, help me. I know you will.

God is our help in time of need.