A Time for Change and Healing

America today voted in a black President, a most unlikely candidate, but Barack Obama with much tact and perseverance managed to convince the electorate of a need for major change. Americans have spoken. What a change it was. Obama scored a bigger electoral victory than Bush did in either 2000 or 2004. He polled 349 against McCain’s 174, a margin of 2:1.

America has shown the world leadership in race relation. They have put aside their racial differences and voted as a united people disregarding petty differences for a greater good.

With three small words, he captured the hopes of not just America, but of the world. 'Change has come,' said Barack Obama. In his acceptance speech, President Barack Obama spoke of the dreams of the people and the values they all share. This phrase is meaningful: “…we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, 'We are not enemies, but friends though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection.'

All across the world, people of various nationalities and colour celebrated his victory. Kenya declared Thursday a public holiday. Obama’s father was from Kenya. In Singapore, a post in the Straits Times wrote, 'This is our moment. This is our time...that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism and doubt, and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond...Yes, we can.'

Yes we can, the campaign theme of Obama resonates even now to the rest of the world, telling us that we must unite and promote peace if we are to build a future for our next generation.

Spreading Peace and International Understanding Through ART

The Lions Club of Subang Jaya organised the annual World Peace Posters Art Contest on the 12th October in conjunction with the Health and Sightfirst Project which saw many students aged 7 to 13 participating.

These are our children who envisioned through their innocent minds their idea of world peace. And their visions were translated into drawings and colour for everyone to see and appreciate. And what a colourful display they gave on that day. The paintings depicted people of various races and nationalities from around the world living in harmony with doves flying symbolising peace and harmony. Colourful display of flags and national buildings add to the multinational approach in promoting international understanding.
This year’s contest was won by Vivian Teoh for the age 11 to 13 category and by Tey Li Sin for the Junior category of 10 and below.

The theme of the 2008-09 Peace Poster Contest is "Peace Begins With Me."

Each poster is judged on originality, artistic merit and expression of the theme. The international grand prize winner will receive a trip to a special award ceremony with the sponsoring club president and two family members at Lions Day with the United Nations in New York City, New York, USA.


Last year Ming Yang Soong a 13 years old from Ipoh, Malaysia did the country proud by winning the international grand prize. Judging by the good response and performance from our children, the country would very likely be represented once again this year among the winners.

Happiness in sharing

I had the privilege of presenting a kidney dialysis machine on behalf of my company to a non-profit dialysis centre that provides discounted service to members of the public last Friday. Together with a reprocessor (a steriliser-like equipment), the two costing USD20K were donated to Pusat Dialysis Touch in Sunway Damansara. (http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/Streets/Saturday/Stories/2395037/Article/) With this addition, their capacity increases to 66 patients. At the time of presentation, the centre serves about 3o patients.

Each patient requires 4 hours three times a week and each treatment costs not more than RM110 (USD30). The centre also helps patients to apply for government subsidy of about RM50 per treatment thus reducing their cost to RM60. I spoke to some of the patients undergoing dialysis during the tour around the facility and many were in good spirit. They attributed their end stage kidney failure to many reasons including TB and stress. Hepatitis patients were isolated with use of their own machine to prevent infection.

The centre is clean and well laid out. Volunteers managed the centre while salaried nurses (two shifts per day) serve the patients. The promoters of the centre are individuals commited to serving the community. There is an increasing need for such facilities as number of kidney patients continue to rise. I encouraged them to continue this good cause and wished them success.

http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2008/11/12/central/2494045&sec=central

A Tribute to Mr Chua

The poem below is an apt illustration of one student’s special regard and respect for Mr Chua Cheng Chye, the primary school headmaster of ACS Malacca during the mid 60s till the writer completed his secondary school education in 1976.

Teachers Paint our minds
and guide our thoughts
Share in our achievements
and advise our faults

Inspire a Love
of knowledge and truth
As they light the path
Which leads our youth

For our future brightens
with each lesson they teach
Each smile they lengthen
Each goal they help reach

For the dawn of each poet
each philosopher and king
Begins with a Teacher
And the wisdom they bring

- Poem by Kevin William Huff

Such were the unselfish dedication and contributions of teachers who helped made student life in school fun and inculcated a learning mindset to excel in every aspects of life. They helped to mold characters and develop minds towards becoming better citizens of tomorrow. Mr Chua exemplifies one such teacher who has through the years helped molded many students to becoming professionals and leaders of today. The years passed quickly and his students have now arrived and many speak volumes of his great influence on their lives and how his kind words and support have impacted positively in shaping their future.

Mr Chua is remembered for his regard in the welfare of his students, especially the under-privileged as this writer experienced on a personal level. During one school day I lost my pocket money and was searching for the lost coins, tears streaking down my face, along the road fronting Mr Chua’s office not knowing that he was watching from a short distance,. To my surprise, Mr Chua approached me to enquire about the problem and without hesitation he placed his hand into his pocket and out came some coins that made up the loss. What a joy and relief!

Over the years the friendship between Mr Chua and the writer grew with more friends added into a special circle; Mr Chua as the mentor and advisor. The blossoming of this friendship led to the informal Magna 7 (M7); a group of boys influenced by characters from story books coming together to establish a bond of friendship. We regularly met (almost weekly) at Mr Chua’s residence in Kampung Pantei to listen to his words of wisdom, enjoy his good food (which was really a treat to us students who experienced for the first time special recipes; from nyonya laksa to western food), and the rides in his car – a black Austin around town and sometimes to the outskirts. These were good times and the fond memories of the yesteryears flashed back as one reminisced the past and the times spent together.

Mr Chua, we salute you! You have made us into who we are and words fail us in expressing our deep appreciation for your kindness and mentorship. We cherished the moments shared together and will continue to treasure the memories. For many of us who came from poor background, your words of wisdom, the books, the magazines, the newspapers, not forgetting the times when you examined us as the Scout Movement’s District Commissioner for our proficiency badges, your commitment to the Boys Brigade; these were the first tastes of what education can bring for us and what a good Christian represents. And you motivated and prepared us to face the future with confidence.

The original M7 extended to include many other friends. These students have over time gone separate ways, some residing in far away countries, others returning and a few in the capital city of KL. The rest that stayed in Malacca were your regular companions. Those that are further away made a point to visit you on occasions when we returned home. Your students have now become Educators, Engineers, Accountants, Entrepreneurs, Surveyors and emulating your good examples. We are approaching retirement age ourselves and like you we hope to touch the lives of those we come into contact with, but it would be a tough act to follow.

Mr Chua we know that old age and poor vision may make it difficult for you to read what is written but we believe that deep inside, you are aware of our appreciation towards your friendship and the positive influence you have made in our lives. We pray that you will have many more years of good health and may God’s special blessings continue to fall upon you.

In honour of his memory, an adapted version of this article was printed in The Star Section 2 (page T10) on the 11th Nov 2008.

http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2008/11/11/lifefocus/2444873&sec=lifefocus


[Mr Chua left us for a better place on the 7th Nov 2008. May he find eternal peace in God's bosom]

Financial Meltdown2 Oct 2008

As we come to the end of a volatile month of Oct 2008, we are witnessing more financial problems and expecting things to get worse. No amount of government intervention (pumping of new money into the banking system, lowering of interest rates, cajoling banks to on-lend and pass lower interest to borrowers) could stabilise the economy and the financial markets. It just continued to fluatuate wildly amidst uncertainties dragging the poorer nations into near bankruptcies along the way. Two weeks ago the Nikkei and the Wall Street stayed above the 9000 level; today Nikkei briefly fall below 7000 ( a 26 year low before the government banned naked short-selling) and Dow Jones opened at just over 8000 before ending the day 11% up back to 9000! In Australia, the index hit a new 4 year low, finishing @ 3794, off its morning low of 3724 against 6900 a year ago. We are seeing some of the most turbulent times ever on the world stock markets (GLOBAL stock markets suffered their worst month in history in October, losing a whopping US$5.79 trillion (S$8.6 trillion), Standard & Poor's reported on Monday). The turmoil has led to coordinated government intervention into the financial systems of many countries at a level not seen before in my lifetime.

Crude oil dropped to a 17 month low of US$62 per barrel. Yen and US$ continued its upward climb caused by panic demand for cash. All across Aisa and Europe, double digit falls in the stock indexes were common and the free market theory of self-regulation has not been seen to work. In fact Alan Greenspan, the previous Fed Reserve Chairman who was a firm proponent of free market (an influential economist who in time past swayed market just by voicing his views) was earlier quoted as saying the property market bubble was little cause for concern but subsequent events had caused him to rethink, expressing shock of a flaw in the free market theory - in being unable to regulate itself. The frenzy of greed and fear feeds on itself thus causing further damage to self-regulation.


Malaysia too is beginning to feel the effect of the global crisis. MIER is adjusting its forecast downward. Index-wise, the KLSE is treading close to the 800 level and doomsayers are predicting it to go down further. Individual stocks performed badly; IOI, Gamuda and KNM all one-time darlings of investment houses came tumbling down. There is concern that when local investors finally panicked and redeemed their unit trusts and sell whatever stocks they are keeping irrespective of prices or when force selling takes place, the index will go even further south. The government announced an injection of RM5 billion into Valuecap, the company owned by Khazanah to purchase beaten-down stocks but this may not be able to stop the slide. It is a worldwide phenomenon and confidence has been shakened. My analyst friend advised nibbling but remained bearish over the short term. Market today is very volatile and changes direction like the wind. The important thing is not to be blown off course.


Last Sunday, a friend (an entrepreneur who is an OEM supplier to the Japanese electronic industry eg Panasonic/Sony) mentioned that his main customer is reducing the number of working days to 3 from the present 5 and employees will take home a lower pay. This appears to be the beginning. Today we read that Thailand may lose 1 million jobs as a result of the impending economic slowdown.


CPO prices last week went limit down to RM1370. IOI was reported as losing heavily (up to RM100 million in Q1) on FOREX position and many companies with loans denominated in USD and Yen are impacted adversely. We also see high volumes of share being transacted as prices plunged perhaps signalling heavy selling by foreign investment houses and buying by the main shareholders and local investment houses.


So continue to stay disciplined in spending and work hard to keep your jobs.

Financial Meltdown1 Oct 2008

Over the last two weeks, I have witnessed what can be considered the worst financial crisis in my lifetime. Two previous crises, one in Oct 1987 called ‘Black Monday’ and another in 1997 called the ‘Asian Financial Crisis’ when Soros and other speculators sold down the Asian currencies and stock market, paled in comparison with what we experienced this time around. It has the world in tears with massive write-offs from credit defaults and losses ran into tens of trillions; pensioners are left wondering whether there are any funds left in their retirement funds. Everyone was stumped.

Malaysia’s decline has been rather muted thanks in part to the relatively small exposure of our investment in the international market as well as the largely sold down position prior to the meltdown by international houses (led in part by political uncertainties); even so a massive RM57 billion was wiped our from the local bourse this week. Many reasons were given for the collapse of the investment banks in US and Europe that were the worst hit followed by insurance companies and fund houses. Governments round the world rushed in to bail out some of the institutions for fear that the domino effect of their failures will lead to further erosion of confidence and their economies at large. Even with these measures we saw the stock market heading southwards and major currencies of the world falling like never before. Within days trillion of $ were wiped off from double digit % decline in stock values. Interest rates cut did not stem the decline and credits remain tight. Commodity prices too declined substantially contributed by anticipated decline in demand. It was just a couple of months ago that oil prices were above USD140 per barrel and CPO at RM4500 per ton. Now it is about USD78 per barrel and RM1750 per ton respectively. What happened? Was it a 10-year cycle that was overdue? Was it human greed that drove prices to unexpected levels? Was it speculation that caused the upheavals? Was it the mistake of regulators who ignored the signs and plea for caution? Could it have been averted when the sub-prime crisis hit last year (tell-tale sign of the beginning of another correction 10 years on)? One never knows, perhaps it was a combination of all these.

What it means for many today is that the future will be filled with uncertainties. Rising food prices and unemployment mean that many will have to struggle to make ends meet. We are beginning to read once again of suicides caused by individual’s imprudent financial management and inability to accept the resulting fate. As the world adjust to this new awakening, residual fallouts from the failures of major financial institutions and economy from now till the dust settles may translate into many years of hardship not just for the rich but also for the poor. Charity organizations will see more people seeking aid but find that funds from benevolence will decline.
What can we do but just wait patiently and to manage the best we can under the circumstances. Keep our jobs, spend wisely, and pray for God’s comfort and protection. Like all difficulties and tribulations, this too will come to pass. Hopefully a new world order will emerge brought about by wisdom, prudence and better regulation; or is this wishful thinking?

HANDLING LIFE’S DIFFICULTIES 2

"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28)

This is a very powerful verse for every single person who has fallen into a trial or will be anytime in the near future. The condition is we must love God. In other words, it is for those who have established a good personal relationship with Him.
If you are walking in a full surrender with the Lord and have established a very good personal relationship with Him, then expect God to eventually work out all things for the best, no matter how bad and how hopeless some things may appear to you. The story of Job is one such example of how things turned out for him at the end of the trial.
When you are in the middle of some of these fiery trials, sometimes you can't see far ahead. This is when you have to totally trust God to work everything out in His time frame and in His way. And when you look back on everything at a later date, you will then be able to see how God eventually worked out everything for good.

God Is With You During the Trial
No matter how long the trials God will be with you from the very beginning of the trial to the very end of it. He will be by your side no matter what goes down and no matter how ugly things may get from time to time, through thick and thin..
If your trial is going to have any considerable length to it, these verses will help you stay the course to the very end of it.
"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me." (Psalm 23:4)
"Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! For my soul trusts in You; and in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, until these calamities have passed by." (Psalm 57:1)
"The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; for You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You." (Psalm 9:9)
God will also be our refuge as we bide our time waiting for the trial to end.

Waiting on the Lord
There may be times that the only thing left for us to do after we have done all is to simply wait for it to end.
"The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. It is good that one should hope and wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord." (Lamentations 3:25)
"For evildoers shall be cut off; but those who wait on the Lord, they shall inherit the earth. For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more ..." (Psalm 37:9)
You may start the trial up with tears and mourning, but eventually you will end up reaping joy in the morning if you hold fast to the Lord and wait for His deliverance.
God Will Eventually Deliver You
If you are thrown into any type of waiting mode with the Lord while going through a trial, the one thing you will have to hang onto is that the Lord can and will eventually deliver you if you continue to put all of your faith and trust in Him to do so - and hold that faith and trust in Him to the very end of the trial.
"For with God nothing is impossible." (Luke 1:37)
Absolutely nothing is too impossible for God to deal with or handle - no matter how grave, no matter how hopeless and no matter how severe your present set of circumstances may be.

Suffering for Christ
"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? “ (Romans 8:35)
Each of us should develop the mindset that if Jesus Himself was willing to come down to our earth to undergo the most extreme and brutal form of physical punishment known to mankind at the time - we should also be willing to do the same thing for Him if the call or need ever dictates that we face a certain amount of difficulties.
"…. rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy ... Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter ... therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator." (1 Peter 4:12,16,19)
Sometimes we will suffer as a result of the will of God, and when it does happen, we are not to be ashamed of it. We should continue to try and do good with our lives and stay fully committed and loyal to the Lord - no matter how trying and severe the trial or tribulation may become.
"Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution." (2 Timothy 3:12)
God wants to make us holy. He wants to transform us into the express image of His Son Jesus Christ. He wants to set us apart unto Himself.
He is the Potter and we are the clay. He wants to mould, shape and transform us into godly, righteous and holy saints. But this shaping, moulding and transformation process can be a very painful process at times. And at times, a certain amount of adversity and conflict is what God will use to help transform us.
All of the suffering we may have to undergo in this life will never compare with the glory that God has in store for all of us on the other side!

Thru’ The Valley
What God wanted us to realise is that victory comes thru’ the valleys. Valley life can lead to victorious life when biblical principles are applied. God says to every valley dwellers, “Trust me.” Today’s valley is tomorrow’s victory. Phillipians 4:4.
Perhaps you are in the valley today. Your mind is racing with questions of uncertainties. You are not sure which way to turn. Say a prayer to thank God and Praise Him, for doctors, radiologist, equipment, new hope, directions, etc. The Valley of uncertainties is sometimes more severe. A cancer patient undergoing therapy may have throats burn, inability to salivate, swallow…But regardless of the depth or width of the valley, all valleys provide the child of God the opportunity of bringing the most glory to God. It is in the valleys that growth takes place, mountain tops are often barren. Mountain top experience is good but valley is where we grow. The valleys deepen our root of faith.

Lessening the Load
We can call on several strategies to lessen the load. Here are a few effective steps:

• Learn from trials and suffering. They can help us learn new skills. Jesus Christ learned by His difficult circumstances and experiences (Hebrews 5:8), and so can we.
• Count your blessings. When we focus on pain, we often forget how good life has been to us. Paul said we should always be thankful (Philippians 4:6). He also explained that the result of giving thanks is a "peace which surpasses all understanding" (verse 7).
• Don't be a prisoner of your suffering. Severe trials can cause emotional paralysis. We need to remain active because inactivity further devastates morale. Look for activities that will fully absorb you, either mentally or physically.
• Find someone with whom you can share your load. Many people undergoing severe trials make the mistake of trying to handle them alone. Without question, those who reach out to others in times of need benefit from doing so. We need human contact. "Two are better than one ... But woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up" (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10).
• Break the trial into bite-sized bits. When your difficulty or workload is daunting, divide it into manageable chores.
• Take life one day at a time. People battling depression, emotional struggles and difficulties in general often share a self-defeating mind-set. Their emotions tell them their trial will never end. In such times we need an attitude that realizes that this trial, too, shall pass-as most difficulties indeed do. Adopt the psalmist's perspective: "This is the day which the LORD has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it" (Psalm 118:24), in spite of our difficulties.
• Don't be frustrated by trifling issues. Learn to put minor problems behind you and make decisions of lesser importance with a minimum of stress and worry.
• Eat a balanced, nourishing diet. Our bodies and minds are much less able to deal with stress and other difficulties if we do not provide them with the nutrients they need.
• Exercise regularly. Proper exercise relieves stress, provides a feeling of well-being and helps us sleep better-all of which are important for our contentment and mental stability.
• Provide yourself regular rest and relaxation. God provided a rest day every week. We also need relaxing time on a daily basis.
• Make a change. We cannot avoid some distressful situations. To opt out of them would be wrong. But don't be a glutton for punishment. If you can escape a trial without being irresponsible, take steps to do so (see Proverbs 22:3).
• Develop your sense of humor. A cheerful heart is good medicine (Proverbs 17:22, NIV). Humor helps us rise above stresses. Laughter truly is effective medicine.
• Realize that ultimately all things are in God's able hands. Jesus points us to God: "Father, into Your hands I commend My spirit" (Luke 23:46). David urges us to "commit your way to the LORD, trust also in Him ..." (Psalm 37:5).
• Praise God. “Praise the Lord, God is good.” The deeper the valley the greater the amount of glory and praise God gets. Psm 30:5, “Weeping may endure for a night , but joy comes in the morning.” This is what praise does, it sets prisoners free, free of uncertainties, free of fear, fear of the future.
• Be Still. When bad things happen, we have a tendency to get emotional. That's okay; God gave us emotions for a reason. It's okay to feel angry, sad, disappointed, or whatever other emotions crop up. Just realize it isn't a good time to react while your emotions are on overdrive. When you react out of your emotions you will usually end up attempting to do things in your own strength, which is exactly the opposite of how things work in the Kingdom of God. The bible says in Psalm 37:7 to "Cease striving and know" that He is God. Let your emotions run their course, but don't act based on how you feel.

Conclusion

Suffering of any kind, whether it be mental, emotional or physical, is not something that most people would easily gravitate towards.
We simply have to develop the mindset that we have to learn how to become good, brave and courageous soldiers of Jesus Christ.
All of the above Scripture verses are as plain and as clear as day. They give us perfect knowledge and perfect revelation as to why things are the way they are, and why every one of us will have to fight and engage with a certain amount of storm clouds in this life before we can finally depart to be with our Lord and Savior for the rest of all eternity.
And until that day comes, put on the whole armor of our God - and take on your enemies, your trials and your tribulations as a good and mighty soldier of Jesus Christ.

HANDLING LIFE’S DIFFICULTIES 1

James 1:2-5, My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. KJV

Whether we like it or not, every one of us will have to face a certain amount of life’s difficulties- with absolutely no exceptions. They may take the form of financial hardship, adversity, conflict, mishaps, trials and tribulations.
God is all-powerful and could prevent these trials if He chooses to do so. Yet, He often does not. Therefore, there must be some purpose for them, some divine reason for not sparing us these hardships. Once we begin to understand God’s purpose for these things, we will be able to stand strong through any storm of life.
All of us will face trials/temptations of many kinds. James leaves no room for doubt; he alludes to "when you encounter various trials," which indicates the inevitability of such ordeals.
He instructs us to "count it all joy" whenever hardships assault our lives. Trial and joy; going together? Tears, discouragement, disillusionment, despair . . . these are the things that we associate with trials. But joy? In James 1:5, in the midst of a discussion on trials, James changes the subject mid-stream. He has just explained how trials produce spiritual endurance and maturity, and then he says, "But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God . . . and it will be given to him."
In order for us to be able to "count it all joy" in the face of trials, we must view the matter from God’s perspective. This is what wisdom does. And when we need it we just have to pray; follow by application of that wisdom. We then become more able to evaluate people and circumstances and are thus better prepared to make sound decisions.

Why God Allows Trials?
There are reasons as to why God Himself "allows" a certain amount of adversity to come our way in this life. We can learn much by studying the lives of some of the greatest saints in the Bible, and look at the severe adversity that each one of them had to personally face in their lives.

1. The Disobedience of Adam and Eve
Adam and Eve represented all of mankind that would come after them when they were tested in the Garden of Eden, and when the both of them could not obey God's direct command to stay off the one fruit. As a result of their disobedience, man is separated from God. We are left to fend for ourselves. We have to labour and toil and with it the adversities of life. The ground is cursed. Satan continues to tempt and to cause problems and this world is no longer peaceful.
Some of us can end up being at the wrong place at the wrong time and thus end up being the possible victim of a crime or natural accident or disaster. Our bodies are not going to stop ageing. We can still catch different types of illnesses and diseases.

2. For Our Sanctification in the Lord
Trials have a way of putting pressure on us bringing hidden sins, bad habits, and areas of neglect to the surface. These things must be dealt with in order to become the mature Christians God wants us to be. God allow all different kinds of adversities, trials and tribulations to come our way for our own sanctification in Him.
"….that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing." (James 1:4)
"And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope." (Romans 5:3)
"…. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." (2 Cor 4:16)
Adversity has a real way of humbling us. Once we see how powerless we are against the real severe storm clouds of this life, we then depend on God to make it through this life. It is when we are weak that we are strong in Him (2 Cor 12:9).
Some people make their greatest strides in spiritual development and personal growth in the middle of the severe storm clouds. There is something about severe adversity that will either cause us to spiritually grow and mature in our walk with the Lord very quickly or it will cause us to quit.

3. The Testing of Our Faith in the Lord
James 1:3, "Knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance." The word "testing" here means to be tested and found proven; that is, God is testing our faith in order to prove its strength.
Unproven, untried faith is practically worthless. How do we know what we can face in life if our faith has not been tested? It's very easy to have high levels of faith in the Lord when everything is going good and great, but when severe adversity come knocking at our doors, the high levels of faith in God may then be tested.
"In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ ... receiving the end of your faith, the salvation of your souls." (1 Peter 1:6,9)
Endurance enables us to withstand any assault, no matter what form the trials take. Being tested by God strengthens us so that we can face trial after trial and still endure.
"But the Lord tests the righteous, but the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates." (Psalm 11:5) He will have nothing to do with the unrighteous.
"But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold. (Job 23:10) We too must be confident that the Lord will know the way we are taking.
"Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction." (Isaiah 48:10)
From great trials come great faiths. In other words, we develop great faith in the Lord when we have had our faith tested.
God has promised us that He will not allow us to be tested beyond that which we are able.
"No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it." (1 Corinthians 10:13)
Our faith and belief levels are our lifelines to the Lord. Our personal relationship with God is only as good as our faith in Him. The stronger our faith levels are in the Lord, the better and deeper our personal relationship will become with Him.

4. Our trials give God an opportunity to demonstrate His Glory and sustaining power for His children in tough times.
This is an amazing testimony to unbelievers, who may witness us going through a horribly difficult situation while still maintaining the peace that surpasses understanding.
"These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)
" ... strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, "We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God." (Acts 14:22)

5. A major purpose for our trials is to produce Christ-like character within us.
Our trials reveal to us that we cannot live the Christian life apart from Him. This requires our total surrender to His will, so that our reactions to stress, trial, and suffering are actually reactions molded from His teaching.
"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20)
We must learn how to put our faith into action to become eventual victors and overcomers in Him, and eventually gain deliverance and whatever blessings and rewards God will bestow upon us for making through it.
Looking unto Christ as the author and finisher of our faith. (Heb 12:2)

6. Trials equip us for service in the kingdom of God for the sake of others.
II Corinthians 1:4 makes this point clear, "[God] comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." Therefore, God is using our trials to make us more useful in helping others.
By fully understanding and identifying with someone else’s pain, we will be able to reach out to them in a way in which someone else may be unprepared for. The key to this type of service is knowing first hand what the other person is going through. If we have been through it ourselves, we will have an intimate understanding of what the hurting individual needs.

Fight the Good Fight of Faith
One of the ways God will test our faith in these trials and tribulations is to see if we will hold on to our faith in Him to the very end.
"Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called ..." (1 Timothy 6:12)
"For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world - our faith." (1 John 5:4)
"Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong." (1 Corinthians 16:13)
"Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life." (Revelation 2:10)
"Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been proved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him." (James 1:12)

With the grace, power, guidance and help from the Lord we can make it. Not only can God bring eventual freedom, victory and deliverance if we are willing to hold fast to Him to the very end of it, He can also help keep us properly preserved during it so that we can make it out in one piece.
He will make sure to keep us properly supported, uplifted and protected during the trial. Rest assured we will have what it takes to be able to make it all the way through.

I Believe, Help My Unbelief

"And when they came back to the disciples, they saw a large crowd around them, and some scribes arguing with them. And immediately, when the entire crowd saw Him, they were amazed, and began running up to greet Him. And He asked them, 'What are you discussing with them?' And one of the crowd answered Him, 'Teacher, I brought You my son, possessed with a spirit which makes him mute; and whenever it seizes him, it dashes him to the ground and he foams at the mouth, and grinds his teeth, and stiffens out. And I told Your disciples to cast it out, and they could not do it.'" Mark 9:14-29

The first thing Jesus encounter here was human insufficiency. The failure of His own disciples to deal with a demon-possessed boy. A large crowd had gathered around His disciples and the scribes were arguing with them. No doubt, the scribes were giving the disciples a hard time.
Jesus asked the crowd to explain what the discussion was about and one man spoke up. In his answer we sense the anguish of a father as he says in verse 22, "Take pity on us and help us."
This man was not condemning the disciples. He was pleading his case.

An Exhortation To Dependency on Prayers

"And He answered them and said, 'O unbelieving generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him to Me!' (v. 19ff)

Unbelief on the part of the people around! Even Jesus in such a situation will not perform miracles. In Mark 6:4-6, But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house." 5 Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And He marveled because of their unbelief. Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.
Jesus has the power to do anything, so His "lack of ability" to do miracles in His hometown is on account of unworthiness of the potential recipients of these miracles, and therefore is due to God’s self-imposed policy restraint, and not to any lack of inherent ability. For example, Christ could have turned the stones into bread at the devil's behest, but He did not because it would have been a violation of the testing which He had been led by the Spirit to endure (Matt.4).

"But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!' And Jesus said to him, '"If You can!" All things are possible to him who believes.' Immediately the boy's father cried out and began saying, 'I do believe; help me in my unbelief.'" (vv. 22b-24)
Understandably the father in his request to Jesus contained an element of the doubt: "if you are able". Now the centurion (Matt.8:13), and the Syro-Phoenecian woman (Matt.15:28) were commended for recognizing that our Lord was able, if only He were willing (Mk.7:24-30; 8:13). And on many, many occasions, Jesus tells the recipient of His miracles "your faith has saved you".

Then the man spoke the prayer that is the central text: "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!" Was he trying to say, "I do believe that you care, that you can help. But there is so much that I don't believe. I'm so much more acquainted with the struggle than I am with the victory. I have so much more evidence of demonic success than I have of divine intervention. Help my unbelief." This short prayer is wise because it acknowledges connection and calls for help. This man cried, "Help me in my unbelief. Only you can give me faith where I have no faith." He was calling for help rather than walking away in despair.

Through the exercise of this father's faith, Jesus would act to heal his son.

"And when Jesus saw that a crowd was rapidly gathering, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, 'You deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and do not enter him again.' And after crying out and throwing him into terrible convulsions, it came out; and the boy became so much like a corpse that most of them said, 'He is dead!' But Jesus took him by the hand and raised him; and he got up." (vv. 25-27)

Why did the disciples fail?

"And when He had come into the house, His disciples began questioning Him privately, 'Why is it that we could not cast it out?' And He said to them, 'This kind cannot come out by anything but prayer.'" (vv. 28-29)

What was so different in what Jesus had done? The disciples had tried the same thing. They had earlier gone about performing miracles.

The disciples had attempted to exorcise this demon by relying on their own experience rather than in the power of God as the scripture says there was unbelief on the part of the apostles. Jesus said to them, "This kind cannot come out by anything but prayer." What Jesus was revealing was the place of prayer as central to any true ministry. Only as they ministered out of that close fellowship with God could they have the power to do effective ministry.

The same is true for us. If we are not "prayerful," we do not allow God to work with us when we attempt to do His work. We may roll up our sleeves and work hard, but we may fail. The work of God must be done according to His will, or we will not succeed. Prayer is central to tapping into the blessings of God.

Dependence on God

There is futility in human effort without God in the picture. Man's dependence on God is illustrated by reference to basic human endeavors.
Unless the LORD builds the house, They labour in vain who build it; Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain. Ps 127:1
Building a house and watching over a city cannot succeed (according to divine standards of success) if God is not included in man's plans and efforts. Even the diligent man who works from early morning until late evening cannot hope for success without God's blessings and sanction.

Depending on Our Own strength

Independence, Self-reliance, Competence, all of these words are used to describe the ideal man -- total self-sufficiency. But it is this self-sufficiency that ultimately leads to destruction. In Job 8:14-15 Bildad speaks of the result of those who forget God, "Whose confidence shall be cut off, And whose trust is a spider's web. He leans on his house, but it does not stand. He holds it fast, but it does not endure.”

Depending on our own strength rather than God's is as foolish as leaning on a spider web for support.

It is right to depend on God. It is not shameful to trust God and depend on His presence as our refuge, our glory, and strength. Paul says, 2 Cor 3:5 “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God,”

Self -Will vs God Dependence

Each of us has a will. The will exerts conscious control over actions, exercises choice between alternatives, applies practical reason, and brings one to act. It is also a power, and as such, a facet of the self. The will consciously guides the person towards self-actualization and esteem.
Self-will is part of our human nature and always strives to make self the centre of its own universe. In this manner, our self-will is selfish and it desires to pull away from God and deny others justice and mercy to advance its own ambition.

Self-will conforms to the world and its beliefs; God's will does not.

Clearly, we should do, not our will, but God's. Apart from His will, we are like the undisciplined child—nervous, unstable, and blown about by the winds of whim because we really do not know what we ought to want. In due time, our continuance in doing the will of God will grant us the ultimate benefit: of entrance into His glorious Kingdom!

Help My Unbelief

Life is sometimes filled with disappointments and shattered dreams which create great pain; there are times we lose it all. Sometimes we ask of God only to have no patience in waiting for His answer. Often we start to think like the father of the demon possessed child having doubt and wondering if God is there for us. This is when the father’s prayer is relevant to us! When we have learned to be content and let God have control; then we'll have gained that which will bring, peace and contentment to heart and soul!

Lord, Help me in my unbelief! Truly that could be the cry of each one of us. Almost every Christian has experienced unbelief and doubt. We do believe God can work, but sometimes it's hard to believe that He can work in our situation. We must never be afraid to confess our sense of inadequacy, our struggle with faith. As we humbly come to God, He will bless the little faith we do have and increase that faith. After all, it only takes faith the size of a small mustard seed to move mountains. Jesus will reward any size of our faith if we will but put it in Him.

A Memorable Birthday Celebration

It is not often that we can spend our birthdays with celebrities or beauty queens at that. So it was a pleasant surprise when last December, Shirley was surrounded by Mrs World 2007 (who was the reigning Mrs America) and her fellow contestants for a special dinner together.

The occasion was made possible by ‘The Passions’ magazine who specially invited the world beauties to a Charity event in aid of National Hearts Foundation. Altogether some 11 beautifully married women from around the world including Mrs Malaysia visited various sites and participated in events including one hosted by the company in which I worked in.

They are parents who have taken their valuable time to help raise funds for the needy, and in this case for the sick. They were full of enthusiasm, spontaneity and energy, travelling from place to place and participating in the fashion parade during the Charity Ball Night as well as posing for the cameramen.

And for Shirley whose birthday coincided with one of their visits, it was most opportune to spend the happy and memorable moment with world beauties who themselves were married and parents. They showered her with praises, not forgetting the hugs and kisses to go along. There were lots of photo taking opportunities and the friendly atmosphere will bring back happy memories for many years to come. The cake cutting with all of them surrounding her and the hugs and wishes were indeed the highlight of the day for Shirley.

It was only after the long day when the beauties return to their hotels for a well-deserved rest that we too returned home for a private celebration with the children. Happy Birthday Shirley! May you have many more of such wonderful and blessed celebrations; and good health to go along! God bless.