This will be my last post for the next couple weeks as I will be flying off tonight with a team of 10 other ymers from Wesley as we begin our long awaited plan to attend our first ever Hillsong's Conference in Sydney from 1- 10 July!
Really excited for this conference as I've been waiting to attend this conference for 4-5 years already. To be in a conference with so many international speakers and worship leaders around the world, worshiping with other like-minded believers all over the world who are all passionate and hungry for God, in one same place is an experience and sight which I would like to at least experience once in my life time. And now this dream is becoming a reality in only a couple days time! :)
2 MORE DAYS TO HILLSONG CONFERENCE 2012 (From 2-6 July)
The first time the "Team Wesley" delegates gathered together to plan and prepare ourselves for Hillsong Conference 2012 and our R&R plans in Sydney from 30 June to 10 July! :)
Our TEAM WESLEY “goes to Hillsong” limited edition T-Shirt is ready! Thanks Danette & Amanda for the design & producing this in such a short period! :) (Taken with Instagram)
"As we are blessed to be a blessing, we should touch the lives of others and we should spend ourselves on behalf of others. Be ready to step out right now. God will show you the way. Just go. Spend yourself, risk it. When God calls you to something and you are uncomfortable with it, run to it. God will meet you there!” - Jon Egan (Worship Leader, The Desperation Band, New Life Church)
Since last year, i've been preaching about what it means to "SHINE FORTH and to LIGHT UP THE WORLD" to the youths! It's easier said then done. But I can now truly testify of a sharing by Jon Egan that convicted me deeply last year.
I'm someone who is not very good with the elderly and do not have the same burdens compared to serving the youths. Partly because of the language barrier where I can't really communicate with many of them, and the age difference. But today, God taught me something new. I decided to challenged myself to get out of my comfort zone and trust in His leading. So I decided to participate in an event partnering with Wesley Befrienders Outreach Programme when the opportunity came. They were helping out with the Elderly from St.Luke's at Botanic Garden's this morning.
After I responded to this event, I actually had some fears about participating in it. I was praying the night before that I can be of some use to Him. I knew I was struggling to even speak basic mandarin and I was trying to learn and recap some basic Chinese conversational starters from others. I was also praying fervently for God to give me His compassion for His people. And you know God has His interesting ways of answering your prayers. He somehow divinely placed those who spoke English around me at the botanic gardens and during lunch! I was surprise myself that I could even hold an hour conversation with one of them under the shelter of botanics gardens as it rained! Looking back, just having simple conversations with them, walking them around and hearing their stories has truly blessed me more than what I think I've "blessed" them. I guess this is what it means when. "When God calls you to something and you are uncomfortable with it, run to it. God will meet you there!”
At botanic gardens with a few Ymers partnering with Wesley BOP with the elderly from St.Lukes's
As I reflected on my previous post and as I was preparing for my sharing on the Asbury revival at GAP last Friday. God kinda answered my prayer, and gave me a glimpse of heaven on earth as I visited the TMC youth retreat on the Thursday night before my sharing on Friday. It continued to build up on the hope in my heart to see God doing a deep work in the hearts of our youth ministry! To pray for this desperate hunger of an encounter of God in our very own YM Services each Sunday!
Had the privilege to experience first hand the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in upper room of TMC & everyone spontaneously responded kneeing before the Lord in awe of Him.
Decided to write down some personal reflections on a recent talk by Dr Robert E Coleman- "Revival & Evangelism" to encourage us to keep this hope in praying for a revival in our ministry. Below are the summarised notes of his amazing recollections of the Asbury revival back then in 1970.
Introduction:
A quick definition of "revival" is... "Revival is to restore what God has made."
Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever! That's what we are made for!
In Psalms 85:6, where the Psalmist pleaded, “Won’t you revive us Lord, so that we may rejoice in you again?”
In Ezekiel 37, Valley of dry bones, it speaks about the breath of God breathing life back into dry bones in a valley.
Usually in time of crisis, we call the name of the Lord!
2 Chronicles 7:14 (NIV)
"...if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
Throughout biblical history in the old testaments, revivals came & gone!
And then Jesus came!
He called his disciples before he even started His ministry.
Told His disciples to replicate His ministry!
Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV)
Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
It's a way of life at how Jesus lived! And his disciples are to continue & replicate this to others.
Before He left , He gave what He promised!
Acts 1:8 (NIV)
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Day of Pentecost came...
Acts 2:1-4 (NIV)
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them...
This is the revival of Jesus!
That started it all!
Revival is to bring back His people to where it should be!
Revivals normally come in times of peril, in their time of great need & distress.
“Won’t you revive us Lord, so that we may rejoice in you again?”
Reflections on the Asbury Revival
It all started in 1970,during a regular Tuesday chapel service at a Asbury College , Kentucky. At which the speaker, instead of delivering his prepared sermon, felt led to ask the students to participate in a testimony meeting. The testimonies were fervent and soul-searching. The bell rang, but no one left.
Academic work, sports and games came to a stand still... Atmosphere just change with another presence...
God had taken over the campus...
Thousand of people just felt the breadth of God!
Refresh renewing of the Holy spirit!
Lives changed!
Long series of testimonies just flooded!
Students flooded to pray at the altar
Great expression of Joy flooded!
Soon the press from NBC was alerted of this strange happening at this campus that day too
People all around was prostrate on their knees crying out to the Lord, some giving counsel some just giving praise to the Lord.
Through the night the meeting continued...
The Seminary across the street soon realized something was happening at that campus...
And then the seminary chapel was affected by the revival as well!
Both the college & the seminary...
Day after day... Priorities of Heaven just took precedence to everything that was happening on earth.
Strangely in the face of such liberty there seems to be order without any tension...
Others even passing by was affected. One driving by, heard the songs of praise. Came into the place. Went to the altar & gave their life to the Lord.
All denominations even came together!
With the fellowship of the Spirit, Jesus Christ is Lord of all!
One older lady even exclaimed, "I'm high on Jesus!"
People spontaneously sang praises to the Lord on the streets!
The revival spread for days!
Sharing of tracs & gospel became so spontaneous everywhere around town!
Even in the airport , students was preaching to masses the praises of God!
500 high school,
50 over universities,
2000 over churches were all heard to be affected!
Local churches came over to the college on that Sunday!
One of the lead pastor of a big church started to confess his bitterness to people & asked for forgiveness...
During those 8 days... Many just found deliverance at the altar & savoured the spirit of revival...
Even after that when classes resume...
The revival continued for 4 straight months... Even after supper... Students continued to pray
There were pockets of people who didn't experience anythihng,some fell eventually, some who didn't had discipline to continue their devotion...
But from this we still know that He is Lord!
And every knee will bow!
Revival is coming alive of a mighty God in our midst!
People are set free, hearts are made pure, Authority of God comes...
In authentic revival, we just want to take our shoes off our feets & bow down & worship Him upon the throne ...
That's the way we should always lived!
We should lived in a spirit of revival!
We should continued to be filled by the Spirit...
(Everything you see in this video (click link) seems like a dream but its actually real. This actually did take place 40 years ago in this town in kentucky in 1970, where there was a glimspe of "heaven" on earth for 8 days straight which extended to 4mths!)
Personal Reflections after his sharing:
His sharing has definitely reignited a desire for me to pray for such a revival to happen again in our youth ministry. I still remember 5-6 yrs ago when I was this pure radical zealous passionate youth who would just pray for revival every friday at GAP. Years passed by... and my views on revival change abit when my mind took precedence over my heart, I was exposed more into ministry, was more well-read on revival movements and thoughts came if there's a need for it actually? Are we prepared if it actually came? Would it be just a one of incident that die down after awhile?
But ever since last year YM Camp where we had glimspes of a "revival". There's this desperate hunger in my heart to pray & seek for such an experience of Heaven on Earth again. If it can happened then, who knows it can happened again right here in our own ministry?
You will never know, that anyone of us can be that group of students who started praying which eventual lasted for 8 days and further spread for 4 mths! With such a continual hunger and desire for God! If only we can experience such a revival at least once in our lifetime like him & look back to testify of God's Majestic nature of a glimpse of Heaven on earth!
I still remember right after his sharing, he gave an invitation for us to response to God by going to the front of the altar. Ps Raymond, Benedict Tay and me went up to the altar as we represented YM at that service. We kneeled at the altar and this sudden burden for me to pray for the ministry just grew exponentially! A thought came to me if only all of us leaders & youths catch this same vision & burden for the ministry! Such a desperate hunger will definitely lead to a fresh encounter of God again... and we just want to take our shoes off our feets & bow down & worship Him upon the throne in our very own YM service.
Looking back at that incident again few days later, whenever we come in a posture to pray, we are actually in total dependance on God. And in that process we realised our depravity and the need to have this eternal hope & eyes fixed on Him the Author & Perfecter of our Faith!
We will never know when that amazing glimpse of Heaven on Earth may come again?
Going back to the prayer of the psalmist in Psalms 85:6... Can we sincerely pray this prayer again...
“Won’t you revive us Lord, so that we may rejoice in you again?”
Spend a good 4 days 3 nights last week back at Hotel Equatorial, Melaka for our Wesley Church Camp! As usual had good quality time spent with the youths and the young adults at this camp!
Enjoyed the time spend with my discussion group, Y4, who were mainly sec3-4's, Was pretty amazed that the discussion got pretty lively despite being a generally quiet group at the start. And although we had only abt 3 discussion slots with each other, thought it was good that we did encouraged each other during those times as we discussed the 4 sessions that Rev Dr Gordon Wong gave spoke on the Story of Jonah.
Other memorable moments at this camp, was the deep MTMT times had with Mattho, Paul, Xunliang on the second night where we truly shared deep matters of our hearts and even prayed for each other after that. We had a continuation with Ps Ray and Mag too on the third night, where we continued to dig deeper in our hearts matters that we don't really casually talk abt on a normal day.
Overall, it's been a good camp yet again! And would definitely be looking forward to next year's church camp again! :)
(Photo courtesy from XL)
The YM Aloha Dance team!
The 2 items that the Youth Ministry prepared for for this year church camp! :)
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