Difference between giving and sowing

Offering message
15/2/15

"Have you been praying through the booklet? We have been praying through the prayer focus for the church each day of the morning watch.

God speaks to us during the watches and gives us prophecies and visions even as we pray.

We have also been receiving understanding of God's heart and purpose even as we pray through some of the prayer focus.

Just want to share that our friends in the Philippines are also praying for us using the booklet.

This is Ps WR's testimony:

"Hello to all, 

We are praying for HGC using the booklet and while we are praying we felt blessed and encouraged. We could see your hearts filled with much love for the Lord.

We speak blessings to you all and that through you Ampang will be turned upside down for Jesus"

As for me, I feel an increasing love for the church even as I pray through the booklet. The focus is wide and varied - Community Centre, life groups, pastors, full time workers, kindy, children's church, youth, core values of the church, the mission and vision statement etc.

As for praying for the nation, I can sense an increasing peace and assurance that God is allowing all the events for a purpose - to prepare HIS BRIDE.

Difference between giving and sowing

As I was considering this, I realized that there is indeed a difference between giving and sowing.

Giving is a general term to describe an act of taking something from our hands and putting it into the hands of another person.

Sowing is a type of giving but a deeper kind of giving with depth, richness and expected rewards.

Characteristics of sowing:

1. "Sowing" to a church, ministry or work of the Lord with a long-term commitment/perspective in mind.

2. "Sowing" is not just limited to money but also time, resources, energy, natural talents, gifts. The most powerful form of "sowing" is "sowing in prayers"!

3. "Sowing" increases our love for the church, ministry or work we are sowing to. "Sowing" for a prolonged period of time or "continuous sowing" will also bring us into deeper revelation, wisdom and anointing of the Lord with regards to the thing or work or ministry that we are sowing to.

An example of sowing in the Bible is found in the life of Isaac.

In Genesis 26:2-3, God told Isaac not to go to Egypt but to stay at Gerar.

"The Lord appeared to him and said "Do not go down to Egypt, live in the land which I shall give you. Dwell in this land and I will bless you for to you and your descendants, I give all these lands..."

After hearing from God, Isaac stayed put in Gerar in obedience to the word of the Lord.

Isaac then decided to sow in Gerar in obedience to the Lord. He did not just pass his time doing nothing. He was rich to begin with but he became even richer in Gerar. His wealth increased greatly.

Genesis 26:12-13

"Then Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold and the Lord blessed him"

There are 4 principles of sowing from this story:

1. Obedience

Isaac obeyed the Lord to stay in one place even though he had planned to go elsewhere. God has spoken to you to make HGC your home church and you have been coming faithfully because of this.

2. Diligence

Isaac was diligent in his sowing. He planted seeds, tended to his flocks and saw God multiplying his wealth. 

If God has called us to HGC then let us not be lazy in serving Him. Let us determine to sow our money, our time, our resources, our energy, god-given gifts and talents to build up the work of the Lord in this church.

Let us join life groups and participate in the various ministries in order to "sow" our time and energy. Let us fully utilize our gifts and talents to build up HIS GLORIOUS CHURCH (HGC).

The highest form of sowing (to me) is sowing in prayers for our church whom the Lord loves very much.

3. Long-term commitment

The 3rd principle is "sowing for a period of time" in order to see rewards. Isaac sowed for up to a year before he saw rewards.

God multiplied his flocks, his herds and his possessions exceedingly.

Some of us have been in this church since its start, some joined mid-way, some of us are new being less than a year but all of us have answered the call to build the Bride of Christ in this church in Ampang.

In a sense all of us are "spiritual sowers" and builders assigned to do our part to build up the great work of the Lord in this place.

THE BRIDE OF CHRIST THE GREATEST PROJECT ON EARTH.


4. Love for the church

Do you want to have a deep and increasing love for the church? Then "sow" deeply in prayers.

Sacrifice sleep for the morning watches.

Sacrifice time for corporate prayer.

Let us determine to "sow in prayers" for the church by praying through page by page of the prayer booklet.

You will soon find yourself having AN INCREASING LOVE FOR THIS CHURCH, HGC (HIS GLORIOUS CHURCH) in every page of the booklet!

Amen"

Diagnosis & Remedy - Malaysia in review (2014)

This article has been written for the next issue of the church magazine.

The lesson learnt from my knee pain

The other day I saw a really good doctor who correctly diagnosed my knee problem. 

All the previous doctors I have seen said I had broken cartilages and spurs thus causing me to suffer from osteoarthritis but not this third doctor.

He said “Before I can prescribe you the treatment, I need to diagnose the actual source of your problem.” As it turned out, he said that the pain was not due to my cartilage or spurs but due to the tendons surrounding my knees. 

With that, he proceeded to treat me with his own patented treatment and immediately after the injection on the tendons (not the knees), I could squat, run, walk up and down the stairs without any pain! 

It was a miracle to say the least as I had not been able to straighten my left knee for about a year without feeling pain.

The Lord also asked me the same thing when I pondered on the question why our nation had to go through so many tragedies in 2014 “do you really know the source of the nation’s problems? Have you made the correct diagnosis? Like the doctor who gave you the correct diagnosis and described your pain symptoms correctly, you need to make the correct diagnosis before you can prescribe the treatment to cure the pain”

The Issachar anointing – diagnosis and prescription

During one of the morning watch, the Lord spoke to me and another sister on the Sons of Issachar. The blessing of the Issachar is that this tribe had the grace and the wisdom to make the correct diagnosis of the problems of Israel and what Israel ought to do to remedy the problem (prescription).

1 Chronicles 12:32 

“Of the sons of Issachar who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, their chiefs were two hundred and all their brethren were at their command”

What is the diagnosis of the problem plaguing our nation?

In 2014 the list of calamities has been just tragic – MH370 mysteriously disappeared, MH17 shot down in Ukraine and an Airasia flight crashed into the ocean, floods in the East Coast, our currency crashed in a very short time, falling oil prices thus causing adjustments in the budget, inflationary pressures, dengue scourge, Allah issue, religious extremism.

I believe God is judging the world system which is very much entrenched in our nation just like the nations of the world. The world system is represented by Pharaoh of Egypt. Pharaoh represents the god of this world.

God had to judge the religious, political, financial, social and military systems of Pharaoh so that He can draw His people’s attention back to Him.

Pharaoh’s gods

Have I been bowing down to Pharaoh in my working life?

Indeed I have to check myself to ensure that I do not become enraptured with this world and all the materialism, pride, pleasures, accolades, position, power and privilege that this world offers. 

For too long I have become captivated with money, position, assets, possessions and fame – pursuing them like that these goals were the be all and end all of my life in this earth. 

In my bowing down to the gods of Egypt, I have lost sight of the eternal purpose for which God has created me for, to worship Him and Him alone and to love Him with all my heart, mind and soul!

Remember the judgments of God upon Egypt:

1.       Religious – magicians and diviners were powerless to turn back the plagues/tragedies

2.       Political – Pharaoh could not hold back the children of Israel from leaving Egypt

3.       Social – drought, floods, diseases, sicknesses, natural disasters

4.       Financial – monetary system of the nation suffered a turn for the worse when the Egyptians gave their gold and silver to the children of Israel

The diagnosis

God is allowing all our trust in this world and the systems and values of the world to be broken to give us a reason to run to Him in Goshen. 

No more idolatry of looking to the world for our provision and security. No more looking to the government to fix the economy or the weather, the rising extremism or racial rhetoric or to solve our problems for us.

Our allegiance has to be in God and God alone. 

God is jealous for us and He will shake everything that can be shaken in this nation so that we would have no choice but to look to the One who cannot be shaken.

This kind of judgment is mercy towards the Bride of Christ. How precious is His church to Him that He wants His church to come back to their first love. 

For out of the failure of the world’s system will come the greatest salvations the world has ever known. 

People will become desperate in looking for the meaning and purpose of life. Darkness will increase but so will the light of Jesus in us.

One sister was sharing how the tragedy of the East Coast brought the light of God to many families affected by the flood. They came with cars and convoys to clean up homes, bring gifts and offer help. They came to clean up homes irrespective of race or religion.

The prescription

This is the church greatest hour, filled with the Holy Spirit, with supernatural provision and supernatural power to fulfill the Great Commission through good works. This is the time for us to stretch ourselves in prayer and fasting, worship and meditating on the Word of God. 

It is time to draw near to God in our spiritual Goshen.

The picture of the prayer booklet speaks to me of Goshen, a place of everlasting light and the wonderful presence of God. 

As we dedicate ourselves an hour a day or an hour a week to fast and pray for our church and nation via the 24/7 NECF call to prayer, we will bring not only ourselves to Goshen but also our church members and all our loved ones.

God is raising up His Church to save the world.

God is raising up His church to be powerful and to move in great authority and wisdom even when others are running helter-skelter seeking for answers.

Let us prepare ourselves in prayer and fasting, worship and meditating on the Word of God by participating in the morning watches, corporate prayers, small group prayers and family altars.

The divine providence of Goshen

Do not fear. The Lord has set a pattern in scriptures. Whenever He judges the world, He will provide for His own. 

When He judged Egypt with famine, Joseph was sent ahead to provide.

When the wells were dry, Isaac dug wells overflowing with water to the point that he prospered a hundredfold. 

When the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness, God gave them manna from heaven.

We need to see this pattern so that we can have confidence in the God of our eternal covenant, who through Jesus Christ has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.

While you will see people losing hope, losing vision, losing purpose, confused and lost, the church will have such abundant supply that when the world is suffering lack, we can provide for those who come our doors with a little oil or a bin of flour that will not run out!

God will make a distinction so that those who are oppressed by the gods of this world will see the difference in us who live in the spiritual Goshen. They will be in a position to make the choice for salvation in Jesus!

Spiritual Goshen in our soul is a place of HIS RADIANT LIGHT AND GLORY

May the Lord lead us everyday to dwell in the land of everlasting light as we seek Him in the morning watches

Good works - 6 principles

Date: 1 Feb 2015

This year the church theme is "Discipling the community"

The idea of discipling the community is kind of overwhelming to me.

However when I pray over it, I realize that this theme is indeed achievable.

It is achievable in this manner.

"Touch my community, not just the or any community"

1. I cannot possibly disciple an entire community but I can certainly disciple "my" community i.e. people whom I touch base day in day out. My community consists of my colleagues in the Bank and legal practitioners. In small little measures, I can look for ways to "disciple my community".

Testimony (Wednesday): On Tuesday, I helped a lawyer from SP find her way by train to Pudu. It was her first time taking the monorail and LRT and she was completely lost. Even the machine kept spitting out her RM!

I took her all the way even to the interchange of the trains.

She was very grateful and we made plans to keep in touch. My small action in this manner is touching "my" community in a small way. It may not appear to be such a big thing but I really felt good about it.

Testimony (Friday): I helped a blind man board the monorail. After speaking to him, I realized that he was related to an ex-colleague of mine. I asked him why he wanted to remain a Hindu and be subject to karma and reincarnation when he can easily receive Jesus by faith and be assured of a place in heaven. He kept quiet but told me that he had been to church.

Again, God showed me that it is possible to touch "my" community very easily. Those whom I meet on a daily basis. Just be obedient.

2. To me, the second aspect of this theme is all about doing good works:

-       Good works prepared beforehand that we should walk in them

-       Maintain good works

-       Stir up love and good works

-       Zealous for good works

-       Keep  pattern of good works

-       Full of good works (like Dorcas)

The above are six wonderful principles from God's Word why we should be involved in doing good works. 

Some good works I can think of is visiting the sick in hospitals, praying for them, buying food for the needy, giving money and provisions whenever there is a need, giving/visiting flood victims, sowing our lunch money during prayer and fasting month, visiting my good friend and god-sister in India and sowing to her ministry in taking care of orphans and widows, helping my friend when she is out of job by giving her money and food and sowing to the work of Nekson Balang to cut a children's CD for the suku wana.


Good works in the context of my family would be be giving my mother a call to ask about her welfare, praying for her, going back to Penang to see her, sending her money every month for her expenses.

When doing good works from my children it is to be Christ-like in dealing with them. For e.g. not lodging false police report to help them escape being charged for a traffic offence and not bribing the traffic policeman (pattern of good works).

The truth is that the world tells them to bribe and to lodge false police report in order to get insurance to pay (tow-truck operators, car-repair workshop reps all of them speak the same lingo) but as Christian parents we must tell our children to tell the truth and not to lie even if there are consequences such as penalties and fines to pay.

That was what we told Samuel when he banged the Honda on the kerb. He got fined by the police but it is better that the fine be paid then create lies in the police report as one lie will lead to another lie.


1. Good works is what we are created for and what we are born to do

Ephesians 2:10

"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them"

2. Good works are meant to be done openly to show the world the goodness of our heavenly Father

Matthew 5:16

"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven"

Acts 9:26

"At Joppa there was a certain disciple named Tabitha, which is translated Dorcas. The woman was full of good works and charitable deeds which she did"

Dorcas reminds me of my dear sister Lata.

1 Peter 2:12

"Having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation"

3. Good works starts with godly thought patterns 

This is immensely interesting because I suddenly realize that there is such a thing as meditating on God's Word and developing "good thought patterns" being a "good work"!

I realize that good works starts with having the right kind of thoughts in the mind. What better way to have the right kind of thoughts than mediating and memorizing the Word of God!

That's why meditating on God's Word is super-important. 

There is a godly thought pattern being built up while meditating on the Word of God. 

This godly thought pattern will incline us towards doing good works.

Those who meditate on God's Word will also be sober-minded in their actions, reactions and their speech. People will not be able to find anything wrong with them. In the end instead of cursing them, they will have to praise them!

Titus 2:6-8 

"Likewise exhort young men to be sober-minded, in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may not be ashamed, having nothing to say of you"

4. Zealousness for good works will not lead us into unproductive and rebellious activities

If we are zealous for good works, we will not be wasting our time being involved in rebellious activities.

Titus 2:14

"Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify Himself His own special people, zealous for good works"

5. It is always profitable for us to maintain good works

It is always profitable and beneficial to maintain good works. Affirm this constantly to yourself and to others.

Titus 3:18

"This is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men"

6. Love and good works go together hand in hand

We cannot have good works without love or love without doing good works. If we say we have love for the brethren, we will want to do good works for others. Both are indispensable. Both are like two peas in a pod.

When good works is being stirred up, love is being stirred up. When love is being stirred up, good works is being stirred up.

Hebrews 10:24

"And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works"