What is The Church ?

What Is the Church ? Why Go To Church ?

The Church is not the building and neither is it an organisation..the Church that Jesus refers to is every believer. In Mt 16:19 - Jesus said, I will build the church and the gates of hell will not prevail against the Church. In Greek, the Church is Ekklesia...Jesus is responsible to call out a people who do not know God, to follow Him and in and and through us build His kingdom !


In Genesis 12, God called Abram out of Haran and out of Terah...Its the same call today...God wants us to get out of a life where God is not there. Get out of a life where you walk in rebellion and unbelieve - SIN. Get out of a future that is gloomy..and walk with God to a greater life !

We must allow God to work in us...only when the church worship Him and lives for Him..to be faithful worshipper and passionate witness of the kingdom ..a simple question..how many people choose to go to Church on God's Sabbath these days (Is 58). Jesus was angry with the people that defiled the church, defiled their lives..(Mt 21)..nobody could get in..the moment Jesus threw out the rubbish nonsense..and He goes back in ...you will read that the people in need started flooding the church....Its so easy to run down other churches and christians..but the only one we can really work on first..is ME...lets allow the fire of the Holy Ghost burn away the dross and sin..so that faith can rise again.

The Church represents the Kingdom of God...It is build by Christ..in His Word, In His Power (Holy Spirit), in His Character...and only then can the Church bring glory to Christ...

The Church is you and me. Lets be faithful with the little that  God puts in our hands (time, money, resources)..when we can walk through the fire and flood with our faith in tact...only then the abundance will overflow !

Be the Church and let  God build the glorious Church that shines for God. After all, the Church is the place God meets His people..As He meets us as one He also meets us as our bodies are His temple. Jesus is in You !

The Kingdom of God is not coming..it is here. (Mt 10:7)
  
The CHurch is not here to just to meet my needs, the Church is each believer in unity shinning the light of the Glory of God in a community that has lost hope..YOU ARE the CITY ON THE HILL ! so stop running down Pastors and churches..love the Church of God again ! because God loves His church !

The Church is God's plan..it takes one that God works through..then it becomes more than 1..then it keeps growing and growing and growing ! ..Don't look down on God's plan..be in God's plan ! If there's something wrong with God's church, lets begin with ME ! ME needs to die first.

Daddy's Love

^{DADDY'S LOVE
48} Nathanael said to Him, “How do You know me?”
Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were 

under the fig tree, saw you.”
⁴⁹ Nathanael answered and said to Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!”
⁵⁰ Jesus answered and said to him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” ⁵¹ And He said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter^[j] you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” 

(John 1:48-50)

Nathanael was probably praying and working things out with God in the secret place - under that fig tree. He was talking with God in prayer. That's why Jesus said "I SAW You..."

Then Jesus asked Nathanael if he now believes ? If he believes, God will lead him and show him greater things. He will even see the heavens open and angels descending...Now this is the same thing Jacob saw in Genesis 28:17.

Remember Jacob was a man that had big shoes to fill namely his dad and grandpa's. Yet he was pretty sure about himself and he was ok on his own. He was on his way to find himself a wife. He sure had no desire for God at all.

It was God that revealed Himself to Jacob as He did with Nathanael. Everything begins with God first ! . God is the one that chooses to reveal Himself and that's how we have faith and miracles. That is how we get saved..when Jesus revealed Himself to us. We never sought Him, He let us know He was knocking on the doors of our hearts first. Jesus' disciples were the first to believed in Him because He revealed Himself to them first !.

There's one NAME that Jesus came to reveal to us that we often miss out quite alot. You see, God is the supreme eternal being everyone knows or tries to accept. Everyone knows the all amazing, majestic, holy God ! But one thing that God came to show us who He really is is what Jesus said in John 4:23

23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. (John 4:23)

That name is what reveals who God really is - OUR FATHER ! our Daddy. The Holy Spirit in us helps us to cry out ABBA FATHER...So many times we WORK so hard to get into God's presence. We pray like it is work. We try to draw out faith in our hearts to believe for a miracle we so need. But nothing is happening !!! We are casting this and that out ! why is it so hard ?

It should not, because God is not some task master..He is your daddy. Jesus broke His perfect relationship with His father on the cross for us. First time in scripture He calls His father, my God, my God why ? because He became distant because our sins are on Him..So that we can draw near and call God, PAPA !

You see, how do you come to a place of miracles where you see revelations and wonders that Jesus told Nathanael? You must believe..friends and that believe comes because. we know GOd loves ME (YOU).

You see,this is love isn't it ? That while we were still sinners Christ died for us. To Worship God (Mt 4:10) is to Fear God (Deut 6:13). To Fear God is to love Him and obey Him. Everything flows out of God's heart into yours and from then on the perfect works will come !

God as Father, wants you to draw nearer. Not just to know He is God..but to know He is daddy. Daddies are defenders, protectors, providers, source of life.

Its easier this way, your daddy's way. He loves you so.

Just like you are the kid of the President of the country. You can have access into his office like no other and right there you see his people work..in the same way, you have access into God's heart, and from there see the angels all around at work for Him and you too.

Luv Edwin

At The Wedding

AT THE WEDDING

¹³ But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, ¹⁴ and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

¹⁵ When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.”

¹⁶ Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. ¹⁷ At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’

   ¹⁸ “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’ (Luke 14)

Over this years of serving the Lord and living by faith, my wife and I have experienced God providing and taking care of us. He does this through the care and love of the people He has brought into our lives..namely - our family and friends and even Church leaders that we have the privilege to cross paths with.

Sometimes we have felt like a burden to them and that's when we always cry out to God to give us our own so that we don't need to be a burden. However I've come to realised, as someone told me a long long time ago...be humble enough to receive from God.

Why? because when God blesses and provides He does it through unsuspecting sources and people. To see how much sometimes people have done for us and stood by us..I just stand in awe and so humbled by it all. Instead of complaining about who He uses, my wife and I have learn to give thanks and appreciate people more. Thank God for our parents, siblings..for people like Pastor Benedict and Betty Rajan, Pastor Wee, Pastor June and Bro Ding, for Bishop Daniels and Alicia and so many many more.

Its because of them, my wife and I can do what we do now. Its because of them I love God more today. So whenever God wants to bless you, let Him do it His way.

Luv
Edwin 22/3/11

He is God, I'm not.

^{HE IS GOD, I AM NOT
10}Let be and be still, and know (recognize and understand)

 that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations! 

I will be exalted in the earth! (Ps 46:10)

In this season of prayer and fasting for me, God is doing delivering me from self. I suppose so many times in wanting to make things happen, I've taken things into my own hands. I do pray and pray alot, but one thing I have often failed to do...that is to let Jesus be God.

When we play God or try to bear the burdens of life, we try to be God. You see we are in the flesh and weak in corruption. When we try to bear things on our own, we end up messing things up. Because we are not meant to do those things and neither do we have the power to make things happen !  God never created man to bear life. God created man to walk with Him. When man learn to walk with God, they must learn to let God go before Him. Many times we go ahead or are left behind because we want to be in CONTROL.

We fear being taken out of our comfort zones or fear and manipulating of others. Instead of empowering and loving people, we repress and destroy lives and relationships  by our effort to control - to be God. God does not control, He loves. 

Jesus never forced anybody to love Him. He loved them. He was always with the rejected like the tax collectors, forgiving the unworthy. Fellowshipping with Zaccheus. Loving us. He always was with people. How He succeeded ? He loved His Father first. Jesus is who we must be. Its because He love His father, He came to us. Because of His Father's love in Him, He loved us. He always helps people to the point they are so helped they can walk in freedom !

I've learnt to trust Him more. 

Just yesterday (18/3/11), I needed RM1,595.00 to pay for our Church renovations. Till this point, God has brought a Pastor and her husband across our path. They have given so much to lift this church up. We always think it takes many to do much..I've learnt one thing from this couple, all it takes is God !

So my wife and I prayed hard. God's presence was so strong when we were praying yesterday. God prayed through me saying we don't have to borrow and that He will provide. We will have our miracle. By evening the miracle came RM1,000.00 from this Pastor and her husband. They've already gave us RM600.00 last Sunday to do the metal gate for our Church. Now we decided to put the two together and pay off the renovations. God did this in one day !

The lesson I've learnt is..cast your cares on Him because He cares for you..once cast already..then rest ..Because God will see us through. 

Awesome ! Praise Jesus !

Luv 

Edwin.

The Power of Fasting

THE POWER OF FASTING

The power of Fasting is not in not eating or not doing some lifestyle thing. God does not desire sacrifices but obedience..obedience is not doing this instead of that. Lets discover what Fasting really is.


Pastor June Yuen shared with our church recently what Fasting actually is. The more I meditated on it and studied the Word, God showed me much much more. Isaiah 58 teaches us on what ideal fasting and sabbath really means.


If you read Matthew 25, where Jesus compared sheeps and goats and in fact most of the Gospel, you will see one thing. 

 ⁶ “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: 

to loose the chains of injustice 

   and untie the cords of the yoke, 

to set the oppressed free 

   and break every yoke?  (is 58:6)

Sheep will always have a need to be part of a body and close to its Shepherd. In John 10:16-17

¹⁶ I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen.

 I must bring them also. 

They too will listen to my voice, 

and there shall be one flock 

and one shepherd.

 ¹⁷ The reason my Father loves me is

 that I lay down my life—only to take it up again.

A goat is like the prodigal son and like the one that received the 1 talent and very much like the people that fast by afflicting their hungry stomachs and forgotten about mercy. We do not serve God for the sake of profit or self-enrichment neither is it to be richer or smarter or stronger. He did not give His only begotten Son so that we can do whatever we want and go wherever we want. 

Adam and Eve took and ate a fruit from the tree that they were not suppose to do. They like lucifer, disobeyed because they wanted to be like God or even be God. Creation cannot control the Creator. Neither can creation be worshipped as the creator.

It is because we are mere human beings. When we die, we become dust. When we pass on from this world, whatever we had before cannot be brought to wherever we go. Whatever or whoever we are on earth, matters nought on earth. That's why Jesus said, without HIM, we are nothing.

Yet Christ showed us one thing (see John 10:15)..which is also said in Isaiah 58 and also in Matthew 25:45 

¹⁵ just as the Father knows me and 

I know the Father—and I lay down 

my life for the sheep. (John 10:15)

⁴⁵ “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, 

whatever you did not do for

 one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

The Gospel and who Jesus is and what Jesus does for mankind is God love in us and thru us to love people. You see Jesus goes to the lonely, the broken, the rejected, the one who sits alone,. He laid His life down in obedience to God because God thru His Son wants to tell the world, HE LOVES YOU.

So Fasting like everything else that God wants us to do..which is the message of the Cross - the Great Commandments of God (Mt 22:37-40). Love God and Love People. 

Fasting is not to just deny ourselves of food and to look so super religious. Fasting takes you out of yourself and into what God see. God see the end of this world and the return of His Son, the first fruit over all that love Him. Fasting is us telling God, I will not eat meaning God I am man. I must obey my master. I am not God. God you be God ! isn't that awesome truth.

Remember the Holy Spirit cannot take you into the Kingdom of heaven, if you are full of yourself. We die to self daily.

When you face problems you cannot overcome, don't go and try to solve it by getting another job..by borrowing money, by getting yourself deeper and deeper into messes. Pray ! pray that you cannot do anything about this, but you want God to intervene. Then rest don't try to help God. Then you will see God open doors and make the impossible possible for you !

Let Him be the Shepherd of your life today.

Be Blessed

Luv Edwin

TSUNAMI

 Tsunami 2006

Way back in August 2006, when I was closing the metal gate of our newly rented premise for our Church, I was electrocuted. To cut the long story short, there was a power leakage that infact short circuited and damanged electrical appliances of our neighbor above our shop. It broke my left shoulder blade. I knew I would have died but somehow, I believe till today God intervened. 


Anyways, my thoughts immediately that following week was where to have church services after this as we decided to return to that shop was dangerous. The owner could not give us a guarantee that the problem was rectified properly. So in much pain and difficulty...the thought of giving-up the Church work did cross my mind as we were facing some difficult challenges up to this point too.


It was when one afternoon that I was praying and seeking God for a word, that was when He drop the word TSUNAMI into my spirit. I asked God what He meant. Suddenly it was like a quick lesson on what a Tsunami is. In the natural Tsunami brings untold destruction wherever it hits and untold lost of lives. It was not a good things.


But God then said, the Tsunami He is going to bring will not bring destruction..but it will bring GOOD change and LASTING change. With that word I believed, God was talking about the Church work we were doing is going to see GOOD growth. So we continued. In fact I shared that revelation with our members in the service at Tropical Inn ..the service we did immediately after the electrocution.


This week after the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami...I remembered that word God gave me. When I was on Facebook this week...I read a blog update by this Evangelist - Shyju Matthew..it intrigued me because of this Title - Holy Spirit Tsunami. When I read it, I got the shock of my life.


Word for word, it was literally what God said to me in 2006 !!! ..Then I tot it was a word for our church work..but over the past weeks..with visiting Pastors coming to our church..I believe that word is not just for us..but it is what God is going to do..A final REVIVAL HARVEST of souls before the end time events unfold ? ..but all I know is, with every new generation...GOd always does something awesome ..so that that generation WILL HEAR the GOSPEL.


I believe Word of Life Church, JB (our church)..is going to be a strong end time ministry. And I believe it will not just be a local ministry but an international one. And I believe and know, just like all other God's works today, the Tsunami that God is going to bring soon will be a great move of GOd thru the workings of the Holy Spirit for all of God's body.


So exciting to be living in the end times..where truth that was foretold..is unveiled for the final time.


Check out Pastor Shyju Matthew's article.


Luv
Edwin Koh
17/3/11

POWER OF 1

 <sup>POWER OF 1

8</sup>And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.

 ⁹And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

⁸And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.

 ⁹And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. (Gen 2:8-9,17)

 I shared this sermon yesterday (6/3/11) in Church. It came so suddenly and truely a revelation as I was reading through Malachi 3 and 4 especially on tithing and offerings. God showed me something else and tot I shud share the highlights of the Power of 1.


As I was reading through Malachi 3:8-10...I know tithing is 1/10 or 10%  of our income. Suddenly God was telling me about the 1 hour of prayer that Jesus said to His disciples to do at the Garden of Gethsamene. But the  consequences are there if we don't. If you don't tithe, and don't pray for 1 hour, the consequences are what we have to face. With every law there's are boundaries. Basically the boundary stops us from crossing over to take what the devil failed to do be life God.


Suddenly God took me back to Adam and Eve. He told them to not take the tree of the knowledge of good and evil ..(it was a good tree)...but what is God trying to get at ? It lies in what I call the POWER OF 1.


The tithes, the 1 hour of prayer, the 1 tree of the knowledge of good and evil even our 1 life that belongs to Jesus...belongs to HIM !. You and I belong to Him.


You see tithes teaches us to obey Him. Usually people have issues with tithing its because they have no confidence in a God that can provide. 


One day Jesus (Mt 4) was walking along the shore, He saw the fishermen..He knew they worked  hard but caught nothing. He decided to step into their boats and teach them to fish. When the fishermen saw their nets overflowing and breaking with tonnes of fish, their eyes were open to Jesus Christ. They followed Him, because He could do more than they could ever do.


Tithing, prayer is about our trust in Him. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil really is a wisdom and the mind of God. Only God knows what is right and wrong..Only God knows what is good and what is evil. Only God knows what tomorrow will bring.  Jesus saw the fishermen forward..as in the Book of Acts extending His Kingdom throughout the world. He didn't see them as failed fishermen..He saw them as increasingly fruitful and effective because they positioned themselves in Him.


The power of 1 is a reminder and a gauge of the quality of our devotion and relationship with God. You see many always try to do good works and to do right works. Yet Righteousness in God is right believing and right standing. It is only in abiding and devoted relationship..that the fruits of that relationship is the right works can come to past. Depend on the Holy Spirit and not what is right or wrong (Romans 8:1-2)...there's no more condemnation in Jesus.


So stop taking what belongs to God..and start planting yourself in prayer to love God more..and let God work more in your life. God will bring change and blessings into your life !


with luv,
Edwin Koh

Difference Between Grace and Guilt

Difference Between Grace and Guilt

Its something God just said to me while reading a status of a Pastor on facebook. When we based our live on the Law (the last 3/5 of the Commandments)...alone and forget that the mercy giver is on the mercy seat above it, we based our faith on performance and not relationship. There's no grace in performance / works. There's only grace in relationship because JESUS IS not your healer..but your healing..not your provider, but your provisions (providence)..not the giver but IS.
 

The Gospel is the Gospel of Grace..not judgment and guilt. Jesus never made us feel bad about our mistakes and He never sowed guilt into our lives (Romans 8:1). Perfect love covers a multitude of sins..I always believe, if that's how God behaves, we too much behave that way..if God calls us into prayer all the time, it shows He loves spending time with people ..etc..so we too must love spending time with people and not be afraid of them. ..you see if we love out of condition (phileo)..then the agape (unconditional) love of God is not in us...How often when someone hurts us, we want to prove them wrong ? or someone made a mistake, we keep on harping on that mistake hoping that person GETS IT..

esp parents with kids (I know I got 2 boys). Nagging changes nobody.

Can you imagine God picked on every mistake we made ? on the other hand He did not. He loved us inspite of (Romans 5:5). Keeps on forgiving us today.

Grace is all about being in Him..not working to get more of Him. Thank God He did not picked on us. So being Christians (little Christ), that's how we shud behave too. I think Rom 13, love does not harp on past issues (keeps records)..Yah..I hope this helps.

The Gloved One

 The Gloved One

Theme Scripture Passage :- Mt 4

If you have time read 1 Samuel 25..the account of David's encounter with a wealthy sheep shearer called Nabal. David just came from a mighty victory over Goliath and he was the talk of the town. Many of us think walking with God is always glorious and magnificient...void of the pits and the falls. David probably thought the same way too...anointed as heir to the throne, defeated Goliath, cheered on by the citizens, loved more by the people. However from victor, he became a fugitive and a marked man. 

In our walk with God, there will be tough times or challenging times where things just don't go the way or work out the way that they shud. When David approached Nabal for help, he assumed his fame will precede him. Instead, Nabal scoffed at David and ridiculed him. In anger and frustration, he sought to kill Nabal instead. Thank God for His intervention...using Nabal's wife to put sense into David.  What lesson can we learn here ? When we are in situations where things don't go well for us, debts mounting, problems never-ending, and you believe in God..how come all this things are happening ?

Who do people turn to the most in problems ? Others and themselves is probably the most popular choices. That's what David did. In the wilderness, God is still with us ...remember Psalms 23..eventhough we walk through the valley of the shadow of death..we fear no evil ..because God is with us...A shadow of a snake will not kill you likewise...a shadow of death will not harm you. You can see the shadow, because Jesus is with you. He is your light and your life. God has a purpose for you. What is that purpose..Let me tell you this, how long you stay in the wilderness is determined by how well you respond to 3 questions.

The most important lesson we must learn is this. NEVER TURN TO PEOPLE FOR THE ANSWERS TO YOUR MISERY...remember Job and his "wise" friends. Turn to God.

3 questions the devil asked Jesus. This 3 questions must be founded in your hearts not just your lips. God is after only one thing....TO BLESS YOU ! His plans for you is to prosper you and to give you life and life more abundantly ! 

Question 1:-  (Mt 4:3-4)And the tempter came and said to Him, If You are God's Son, command these stones to be made loaves of bread.    ⁴But He replied, It has been written, Man shall not live and be upheld and sustained by bread alone, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.

ANSWER :- GOD MUST SPEAK

 Jesus answered - Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that God speaks. What does this mean ? How many times we chose to rely on our abilities, qualifications, credentials, money, other people, instead of waiting on God, we grab and take whatever we can see. Friends, if we need to take and grab and fight for something, its probably not ours in the first place. You see, God is about restful increase. He adds to us..He gives us the very very best (Psalms 23). Wait on God !Let Him speak into your life ! How does God speak to you ? Through His Spirit. Our communion is with the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that will give life to our mortal bodies  and lift us up ! When God wants to lift us to a new level, it takes one thing..empty the old wine skin..renew the wineskin and let God pour new wine in to you ! ONE WORD..SURRENDER 100!

One word of advice, if you turn to people, everyone has 101 advice for your issue. Even your pastors. You need to know what God is saying and stand steadfast regardless and keep on believing. You may need to correct your steps as your walk towards your victory..but weigh each advice and let God's still small voice guide you through. 

Question 2 :    ⁶And he said to Him, If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, He will give His angels charge over you, and they will bear you up on their hands, lest you strike your foot against a stone.   ⁷Jesus said to him, On the other hand, it is written also, You shall not tempt, test thoroughly, or try exceedingly the Lord your God.

ANSWER :- Don't Test God, Let Faith Arise

 

Satan always wants to cause us to doubt God's word to shake our faith, so that we will fall again at question 1. Are you sure, you can trust God's word ?Are you sure, that's good enough ? Friend the mistake we make here is to argue with satan. We always pray, I resist you devil, flee from me...and we use Jesus' name like a M16 riffle..and yet the devil does not run. Why ? You see God does not do miracles to prove He exist. He does not need to prove to anyone who He is. Even if nothing happens in your life, He is still Yahweh ! He is still the Lord. Instead of arguing with the devil and being so devil focused, be grace focused and pray like this...

"Yes eventhough I know I've made alot of mistakes in the past, yet I am not disqualified before God because Jesus, You saved me and redeemed me and by Your blood I stand right before God. Jesus You are my righteousness and by your grace I stand. Fill me with your love and grace again"..Amen ! 

At the end of the day, if God is for you, who can be against you right ! Hallelujah !

Question 3 :- ⁸Again, the devil took Him up on a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory (the splendor, magnificence, preeminence, and excellence) of them.

    ⁹And he said to Him, These things, all taken together, I will give You, if You will prostrate Yourself before me and do homage and worship me.

    ¹⁰Then Jesus said to him, Begone, Satan! For it has been written, You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him alone shall you serve.

ANSWER :- WORSHIP GOD FOR WHO HE IS.

The devil wants to give you everything at one price..Worship goes to him. Everytime I hear people wanting to help us say, do this for me...I will make the way for you...or the only thing they care to help you is to give you this or that...I am not interested. I'm not after cheap trills and earthly riches. I want to know how to obey God and how to recognise His leading more. I want to love Jesus more ! People have asked me to give up pioneering the church..How can I, when it is God that spoke to me to do this directly. Stay the course. The only place you need to be to get out of the wilderness well, is lift Jesus higher in Your lives !...There was awhile I was afraid of losing my relationship with Jesus when things gets better...Then God said to me, nothing can separate me from His love ! How awesome...I just yielded 100% to the Holy SPirit. My mouth is His, my all is His...The breakthrough really came when I just yielded to the HOly Spirit .

This was my prayer that started the ball rolling forward and upward .

Lord Jesus, my body is the temple of the Holy SPirit and the members of my body belongs to You. I pray, fill me with the Holy Spirit and take over my life. Amen

Do you know, God will anoint your head with oil and your cup will runneth over ! Wait in God . He will lift you up. When you surrender, you can laugh at the NOW problems..because they will become yesterdays problems ..whereas your today onwards is going to be glorious. That's how you get into glorious restful increase ! the Key is flow with the Holy Spirit ! 

You are the glove, He is the hand. A tight fit !

Luv

Edwin Koh (22/8/10)

GOD CAN AND WILL CANCEL DEBTS !

 GOD CAN AND WILL CANCEL DEBTS !

I have been wanting to share this testimony as I realise debt is such a problem with many people today. It is a major factor of strive in relationships and nobody likes to live indebted and pressured . Debt is a problem many people go through it silently...because to many its an admission of guilt and mismanagement of finances. This is where the devil will win if we stay silent and try to fend it off our way. 

You see, since October 2009 when we were forced to take time off to pray and seek God, my wife and I had accumulated debts amounting to nearly RM13,000.00.. This was from the unpaid renovation cost of the previous church premise + carelleslly using our credit cards + owing supplier for our booktable ministry etc. This was where denial came in. Oh it's the Church's debt...not ours. So God will deal with it. 

From then on as God was dealing with us, I had to admit, the debt problem was our own fault and not anyone else's. You see DEBT in the first place is NOT of God. In fact scripture discourages (Rom 13:8) us from owing anyone anything but to love. Why do I say debt is sin ? Matthew 6:12 in the NIV translation interprets Sin as Debt..Forgive us our DEBTS (SIN) as we forgive those..

It showed me one thing. Like unforgiveness, we take on something that is not our right to take in the first place. When we do not forgive, we are no longer doing what God would want us to do..to forgive. We do what we want and how we want it. Debts are like that. We make decisions without instruction and revelations from God. We buy, purchase, deal rashly...we just CAN'T WAIT ! or we Think God CANNOT or UNABLE TO HELP. That's where we went astray...using our credit cards to purchase Church material, petrol etc..thinking it WILL be alright. Or going ahead to rent instead of waiting to hear from God where to rent. Or you sense God's leading, but you rush ahead..instead of letting God go infront to lead. This is where debts come into place..too greedy...too foolish...too impatient...too anxious...SIN.

This is where debt becomes the legal claim of the enemy over your lives as it was over us. Try to pay try to pay..but just does not go away. Now this is where the breakthrough came when I finally admitted to God of my SIN and repented never to repeat the mistakes...but at everytime to seek God first and learn to wait. Manage finances properly.

So how, it was a long drawn out war and determination to get the victory over debts. BTW, my wife and I have not had a proper salary for 6 years now..there was a time when I asked God if I shud work in the early days of ministry, He told me no..learn to trust Him. Through many many experiences, I know Jehovah Jireh in my Heavenly Father. We've learn to pray harder and harder and harder at the same time open to His command if He wanted us to receive the miracle thru normal work or in another way.

It was this year in this battle, I've come to know Bishop Daniels Benny from South Africa. I shared with him our predicament..amazingly found a man that BELIEVED God for miracles.It stirred me to know that someone from South Africa is praying for us and told us that God is going to see us through.

By the way, the Banks, the creditors have been calling and calling and sending us mail after mail. I knew God will do something great...but QUICKLY LORD ! Bishop told me , Hang in there..God will deliver. So we kept on praying and praying and kept on delaying the creditors..amazingly God gave us favour with the creditors too. Some off them just extend the period for us to sort things out.

Through enough, God delivered again and again and again. Not in my timing or in my way..but He did. A friend of mine asked me to help her buy something for her in Malaysia...she is living in SIngapore. So I did. She repay me and even bless us more than enough...WOW..we were making headway with the debts. She blessed somemore...and at the right time too...one debt down !

The word that God gave me when we were praying was " God will make a way where there seems to be no way"...and Psalms 103 - He forgives out iniquities (Sin = Debt) and delivers us from destruction..and will crown us with lovingkindness and mercy...To break the legal claim of the enemy..is Rev 12..we overcame the enemy by the blood of Jesus ! and God has indeed forgiven us..and cleanses us from sin (1 John 1:9)

You see debts are the enemy's way of holding people back and people just cannot go forward. Debt in our lives was hindering us from stepping out to do new things. So when God showed me Debt was sin, and we confessed and repented..wow the change started to come. Instead of using money just for our own purpose...we determined to use whatever resources God gives us to bless others. We become stewards and not owners.

Today (18/6/10)...I receive a legal letter of demand ...demanding me to pay the overdue outstanding on my credit cards or else further action will be taken. Just one day before, a pastor told me asked me if it is right to trust God to cancel our debts knowing debts are not off God and etc...he said from his own experience we cannot trust God for this. I was stun ! How can ! Has God been lying to me and the progress we made thus far..just a mirage ? Its like saying sin cannot be forgiven. God cannot do certain things.

God reminded me of how the Israelites in Exodus cried out to Him..and He delivered them. Whenever people cry out to Him for help...He always comes to their deliverance ! Scripture is full of stories of God forgiving debts / sin and setting people free ! He advice me to get a job to pay it off...but even with a job I will only be paid at the end of the month. The banks want my head now !..Strangely too in a good way..when I was praying few nights ago..God told me alot more money is coming and He even told me how much. I just have to make sure..the monies come, I put it to cancel the debts.

So yah..today..I had to deal with the immediate demand..don't know what to do. So i just prayed and felt led to just ask my parents if they could help. They gave me more than enough. So went to the bank payed off the cards. Now its all up to date.

I came back...look at my wife..and testified to her..God does cancel debt ! Just trust Him and do what He says. God always act for those that trust Him. So from here on..don't be rash with finances ..manage properly and wait.

I believe and love the local Church.

I love and believe in the purpose God birth the local church. I believe she is the hope of our world today. When she functions in the power of the Holy Spirit and lives on the Word she will thrive.