Forward by Benson Chia, Publicity Secretary (Aug 1995 - Aug 1996)
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Think twice about chucking that newsletter! Lena Leow speaks.
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Christine Soong 'accidentally' ends up in Kaiapoi...
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All about Siew Lian. And conference AGM.
When Ben asked us all to write an article
regarding what we had learned from Conference, I thought to myself
Gosh! Where do I begin? I've learned heaps from Conference!
To save everyone from boredom, I will just share the most significant
thing that I've learned. Some of you might have heard of this
already but please, bear with me because I think that this is
really important.
At the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of NZOCF,
something Andrew said hit me and it hit me really hard. He was
sharing from Ephesians 6:13 to 17 "Therefore put on
the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you
may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything,
to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around
your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and
with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel
of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith,
with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil
one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit,
which is the word of God,"
When I heard that, I could almost imagine
myself in that holy outfit. I had on my 'belt of truth', my 'breastplate
of righteousness', my sandals 'fitted with the readiness that
comes from the gospel of peace', my 'shield of faith' and my 'helmet
of salvation'. I was ready for battle, or so I thought. Andrew
continued with his illustration and he reminded all of us that
yes! Indeed, most of us have that part of our armour on. But,
most of us are going out to do battle without the most important
thing our sword and that is the word of God. Somewhere along the
line of our walk with God, we seem to have forgotten the importance
of studying, not just reading, the word of God.
He carried on by sharing that the evil one
is always trying to attack us. Without our sword, we cannot fight
back. All we can do is to defend with our part armour and sooner
or later, our belt and breastplate will fall off, our sandals
will wear off, our shield will be dented and our helmet will just
fall into pieces! You might find this amusing but if you think
about it, it is actually very serious. When we become children
of God, whether we like it or not, we are at war at a spiritual
war with the devil who will try his best to snatch us away from
the loving hands of our Father in Heaven. Therefore, we must be
prepared to fight back and to defend the Kingdom of Righteousness!
I challenge all of you, just as I have been
challenged at conference, to really study the word of God. Please,
make use of every Bible study sessions, Impact Team meetings,
speakers or any other activities organised by your Church or by
any Christian Fellowship that you are attending. Fill yourself
with the word of God. Believe me, this is one thing that will
definitely be not a waste of your time. We are all so blessed
to have studies organised for us by Church and fellowship. Think
of the underground Church in China, they have to do their studying
in secrecy. We on the other hand, have so much resources at our
disposal and yet we fail to make full use of it.
I pray that once this have been brought to
our attention, that we will all make an effort to really do it.
At this moment, you might find that the Bible is boring ( I once
thought that too, may God have mercy on me!), but I encourage
you to pray and ask God to reveal Himself to you through His word
and I guarantee it, you will find that the Bible is the most exciting
book in the entire universe!
So, my brothers and sisters, let us get busy
and start studying the word of God together.
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A parachute, a purse, and a peace within myself. Ai-Lin tells all!
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We see when we make an effort to turn
around....Mei Fern
The number of times I have shared this, is
beginning to reach the uncountable but I guess there is no harm
in sharing it here again. Who knows, there might be some innocent
chap out there whom I have not snared to tell of my experiences
at Conference!
You see, I think I actually saw what it really
means to be serving in OCF. I think God reminded me again the
reason I was put into OCF. I think God has indeed given me a heart
for OCF as never before!
Thinking back, I started serving as the Secretary
of OCF not really because I had the burden for OCF. The period
last year was quite critical. The Fellowship's numbers were dwindling,
especially with 17 people graduating. No one had stepped out to
serve in the Committee nor had anyone offer to Impact Team lead.
It came to the point when the previous Committee decided that
AOCF should probably R.I.P. for sometime, until there are sufficient
personpower (we have to be politically correct, don't we?)
to revive it.
Anyhow, I decided to take up a portfolio,
mainly because I wanted to serve and could settle for any avenue
of doing that. It still took heaps of prayer and I only confirmed
it when I got a firm answer from God. Nevertheless, as I started
and continued with my portfolio, it became at times, boring, tiring
and just plain frustrating. I could not see how Chung as the President,
could continuously have that love for AOCF. I remember that I
used to tell resignedly to a fellow Committee member that Chung
has the VISION but I do not have it. I guess feeling that way
made me consider my own service as unimportant. I was just there
to make sure the plans were carried out, rooms were booked, minutes
were written and speakers were called. I could not connect that
with the joy that God promised to those who serves Him. And I
think that was the reason why He made me turn around that night,
It was during one of the items in the Concert
held at Conference. The people involved in the drama asked everyone
to sing along with them, to the song 'Have Faith In God.' It was
late and I was tired but I sang along. Suddenly there came this
urge for me to look back, as I was sitting in one of the front
rows. It was just a clear need to look back and I did. And that
changed everything! Finally, after one whole year of serving in
Committee, I saw! I saw the amazing plans God has for not just
AOCF, but for the whole ministry of OCF nationwide! I saw
people from different cultures, ethnicity, nations and languages
stand up and praise God! They could all sing the same song and
praise the same Lord. And the expression on their faces was just
staggering! Admittedly, there were a lot of tired faces and sleepy
eyes, but it was the same expression of love for our Lord that
was evident on their faces! I praise our mighty and loving God,
that He had to bring me all the way to Christchurch to show me
the privilege of serving in OCF! I thank Him for showing me the
reason for such a ministry, to unite people from all nations!
And I thank Him for giving me the same VISION that the founder
of OCF had 35 years ago!
For all of you people who are thinking of
serving, and even those who had never thought of it before, serving
is not optional but compulsory. Our Father is good, and if you
ask Him for the heart for AOCF, He would give it to you. If you
also ask Him for the faith and the courage to serve, He would
give it to you too. Be encouraged that the Lord has CHOSEN to
give YOU the honour of being part of AOCF. That YOU are PRIVILEGED
to have a chance to serve in AOCF.
I do not know how to express myself any better than this on paper.
I just pray that I had passed on to you even a little of my excitement
and joy of serving in AOCF. Please pray for yourself, that you
might know God's plans for you in serving. It brings great joy
and gee, it sure helps your walk with Him!
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Priscilla screams 'FIRE!' but find out
why doesn't she put it out....
Wow, What can I say but "praise God".
You know I really believed that God was going to do some awesome
things at conference, even months ahead of time. But nothing could
have prepared me for what God did do at conference, not just to
me personally but to all of those brothers and sisters who travelled
down to Christchurch.
All the speakers and worship sessions were
anointed big time ! ! ! There was not one session that God did
not speak to me, in fact I have never said so many 'AMEN' 'Praise
God' or 'Hallelujah' so many times in a session of 1.5 hours,
especially when Edmund Chua spoke hahaha.
Move to the beat, the heart beat of god was
such a challenge. Where is my heart'? Who is holding my heart'?
All of these questions, I believe challenged everyone into examining
their own lives and to where they stood with God.
Don't let the fire die down brothers and sisters.
Let us pray that God would fan the fire of our heart each and
everyday so that we may rise up as one body to make a difference
in our homes, churches and especially in this campus mission field
that our God has called each and everyone of us to.
B A S I C Priscilla
r n i n h
o d s i
t t r
h e s
e r t
r s
s
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Picking up the pieces...Noel shares his experiences
Well what can I say about Conference '96?
It was really good. I don't know about the rest that went but
I felt that God really spoke to me about certain areas in my life
that needed changing. I was at my lowest point in my Christian
life before conference( What Christian life?). I was like everything
that I was doing was pointless and meaningless. I had problems
that I couldn't share with anyone, not even with my parents. It
is like having to carry such a heavy load on my own. My priorities
were all mess up. I played around more than I should be studying.
Didn't feel like doing quiet time cause I felt that it was such
a waste of time.
At one point I was thinking of buying a oneway
ticket home and just to go home a failure. I definitely wasn't
going for Conference. But then, God send a brother to talk to
me.(Well actually, it was more like a stern remainder.) He reminded
me of the Cross. Got me thinking seriously for once. What in the
world was I thinking? Where was my priorities? But most importantly,
where was my heart? He practically told me to go for Conference.
So I went. I just finished the exams. I know was going to fail
a paper. No big deal, I'm not that bright anyway. I was glad exams
was over. The exam period was filled with problems of its own.
Is like having to concentrate on the tests with a mountain of
nagging thoughts behind your mind.
But even as we flew down there, I felt that
God was preparing my heart. I just knew that God was going to
meet me in my hour of need. Well He did. Never in my entire life,(not
that I can say 19 years is that long anyway) have I ever hear
God speaking to me so clearly. I was reminded of my conversion.
How young I was then and the simple faith that I had. He reminded
me of the promise I made that day. Then I was ask "Who held
my heart?" I never realised that by becoming a Christian,
you no longer live your life but it's Christ that lives through
you. Edmund Chua spoke about priorities where they should be.
I learned a lot during Conference. Made right with God first and
then with others.
Well, I came back change. Made a covenant
with God; that my life is not mine to live but for Him to use.
God really showed me that by completely trusting in him all the
little worries in life will be taken care off. I also learnt that
Getting to know Him will be the greatest journey in life that
I will ever embark on.
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God walks with Khim...through a storm.
Storms hit us when we least expect it and
when we least need it. It always seems that storms hit us in the
darkest times of our lives and we lose hope of ever seeing the
sun and blue skies again....
We as Christians face times in our lives when
we encounter problems and troubles that we think are too big for
us to handle. When this happens we simply push it to the back
of our minds pretending that it never happened or we even harbour
the thought that of dealing with them later. It is altogether
easy to forget that God is ever present in our lives. He longs
for us to turn to him, to trust him and to wait patiently upon
Him. In the flurry of our daily lives we forget to seek shelter
in God.
There always comes a point in our lives where
nothing you do can help you anymore. No matter how many people
you talk to or how many hours you spend thinking about it, nothing
helps. Slowly as everything you have held on to all your life
is stripped away and our hearts are restless, never forget that
God loves you and that you can indeed find rest in him. Don't
think that God is unconcerned about what happens to you. He cares
about what happens in you so that He can accomplish His purposes
through you. God does not shield us from the pain of our lives
and the things that happen, for if He did how could we know his
depths of wisdom, love and grace?
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Yeow Hoong summarises what conference means to him.
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A graduate ponders her happiness....
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Drama (as performed during Cultural Concert Night, NZOCF Conference)
[In order of presentation during Cultural Concert Night]
Act 1: Scene 3
[Andrew and Tida watching television]
[Andrew switches on the TV:]
Gerald: Good evening. And here are the headlines: (i) Cease-fire is Bosnia broken for the twentieth time. Fugitive president on the run; (ii) Alien abduction: man claims that he was impregnated with alien object; (iii) Widespread famine in America - 100,000 estimated dying each day. And here are the news in full.
[Ching Yi reads news in full]
[Phone rings. Andrew answers the call.]
Hospital: Good evening.....is that Andrew Wilson?
Andrew: yes...speaking.
Hospital: This is Dr Warner of Shortland Street A&E.....
Andrew: Hello.........is this about my dad?
Hospital: Ummm.....and also about your mum. Your mother was admitted at about 10:35pm last night with breathing difficulties and sharp chest pain. at about 1:12am she passed away.
Andrew: And my dad....
Hospital: He suffered a cardiac arrest at about 1:15am and could
not be resuscitated.....
Act 2: Scene 1
[This scene shows the congregation, Yang Yang and Jamie amongst many others, actively worshipping in church. Following the worship session comes the speaker.]
Pastor: And yes, my fellow brothers and sisters, I have a vision for this church.....I want 20 percent of all of you....yes....twenty percent of all of you, my brothers and sisters, to be committed into full time ministry...
Congregation: Hallelujah!!! Praise the Lord!!!
Act 2: Scene 2
[Church service ended, and Yang Yang and Jamie goes home. In the meantime, Jack and Yit Sim were at home, the former reading the papers, the latter knitting.]
[Yang Yang and Jamie opens the house door and enters:]
Jack: How was church?
Yang Yang: Ai yah!!! You know...the usual....Pastor going on about twenty percent to be committed to full time ministry.... Achee sin@ lah that pastor!!!
Jamie: Yah!!! Twenty percent....
Yit Sim: Jamie, ah......could you please do the washing later?
Jamie: What?! Me again??? I did it last week!! It's Yang Yang's turn...
Yang Yang: What my turn?? I did it last week....
[Yang Yang and Jamie squabbles]
Jack: Yang Yang, you do the washing, okay?
Yit Sim: What?! [cough! cough!] I asked Jamie to do it...how dare you undermine my authority....
Jack: Didn=t the Bible say Awife submit to your husband...@
Yit Sim: Didn=t THE Bible say Ahusband love your wife...@
[Parents squabbles]
Yang Yang: Ai yah!!! Those two again....arguing all the time....
Jamie: Ya loh! What to do....come on....lets go...
[Much later, Winnie comes over for a visit.]
[Winnie knocks at the door:]
Jack: Yang Yang....open the window*...
Yang Yang: Haaaaaaa.....me again....wonder who could it be....
[Yang Yang approaches the door and opens it slightly and remarks to Jamie:]
Yang Yang: Ai yah! It=s Winnie.....
[Yang Yang lets Winnie in:]
[Yang Yang and Jamie complains to Winnie about their house chores and how busy they are with their studies. After hearing what Yang Yang and Jamie has to say, Winnie goes to Jack and Yit Sim. Jack tells Winnie to ignore what Yang Yang and Jamie just said, but Yit Sim had other things in mind and so allows Winnie to do the house chore allocated to Yang Yang and Jamie. Winnie does so without complaint and does so wholeheartedly.]
[* In the actual drama, Jack said "open the window",
which was a slip of the tongue. It was suppose to be open the
door. There was a huge roar of laughters, and the actors and actresses
retained their composure....]
Act 2: Scene 3
[It=s night time. Jack and Yit Sim are sitting out in the lounge, this time Yit Sim reading the papers and Jack knitting.]
Yang Yang: We=re going out.....
Yit Sim: Going where....
Jamie: Out.....
Jack: When will the two of you be back?
Yang Yang: When we want to.....
Jamie: Bye bye and don=t wait for us.....
[Yang Yang and Jamie hurries out of the house before Jack or Yit
Sim could say anything.]
Act 2: Scene 4
[While Yang Yang and Jamie is out, Winnie drops by for a visit. Winnie knocks at the door. Jack opens the door and lets Winnie in:]
Winnie: Where=s Yang Yang and Jamie?
Yit Sim: They went out....don=t know where or when they=ll be back....
Jack: Those two....hya yah! very troublesome....especially when their mummy and daddy is very ill......they=ll send us to our grave early than expected....
Winnie: Aunty....uncle....please be patient with them. I just had a homegroup and it showed me....
[Winnie tells Jack and Yit Sim about patience and putting their
prayers to God, about using Godly ways to deal with their children...]
Act 2: Scene 5
[Yang Yang and Jamie comes home very late. Yit Sim waited up for them. Yang Yang and Jamie sneaks in buts wake Yit Sim from slumber.]
Yit Sim: Yang Yang....Jamie....what time is it.....
Yang Yang: It=s time for you to go to bed....
Yit Sim: Coming home so late....ahhhh....make me worried....
Jamie: Don=t worry about us....go...go to bed...
[Jamie urges and pushes Yit Sim towards the direction of her bedroom.]
Act 2: Scene 6
[It is now at University. Jamie and Yang Yang walks around, hanging their head down, sad about their exam results. They find no comfort in each other. Lynley, a long time friend, passes by and seeks to counsel them.]
Lynley: Yang Yang...Jamie...what=s the matter?
Yang Yang: Haaaaaaaa.....failed my exam.....
Jamie: Same....what kind of God is this? We go to church....worship.....give money....
Yang Yang: Ya! And see what he gives us....NOTHING!!! Is there a God?!
Lynley: Look....why do you believe in God? Are you only interested
in His blessings? Where is your heart in this? Are you moving
to the heartbeat of God? Remember: ASeek
ye first the kingdom of God and of his righteousness, and all
will be added on@....
Act 2: Scene 7
[Yang Yang and Jamie decides to visit Andrew.]
Yang Yang: Come Jamie....we=ll be late.....
Yit Sim: Wait....take Abak quah@ for Andrew.....
Jack: And here=s some money....
Jamie: Wah!!! So much!!! Don=t need so much....
[And so with the many hugs and kisses, Yang Yang and Jamie leaves
the house, off to the airport.]
Act 1: Scene 1
[Andrew and Tida watching television]
[Andrew switches on the TV:]
Gerald Ford: Good evening. And here are the headlines: (i) South Africa reverts back to Apartheid: Mandela assassinated; (ii) Wheat area in America devastated by locust: widespread famine expected; (iii) Terrorist hijacked a plane full of lawyers: they threaten to release one lawyer every hour until their demands are met. And here are the news in full.
[Ching Yi reads news in full]
[Phone rings. Andrew answers the call.]
Andrew: Hello.....Andrew here.
Winnie: Hi Andrew! How are you?
Andrew: Good....who=s this?
Winnie: Oh! It=s me, Winnie....
Andrew: Hi Winnie!
[Long silence]
Andrew: Winnie....you still there?
Winnie: I don=t really know how to say this but.....something terrible happened....
Andrew: What....is everything alright?
Winnie: Well....it=s about your father....
Andrew: What=s wrong?
Winnie: He...earlier on today suffered from a heart attack when your mother was diagnose with terminal lung cancer....
Andrew: Is this a joke?!
Winnie: I wish it was......
[Scene now shows Andrew walking away from the phone, moving towards Tida with a sullen face.]
Tida: Andrew....what=s the matter?
Andrew: It=s dad...and mum....dad=s had a heart attack and mum had terminal lung cancer....
Tida: Let=s pray....
[The both of them get on their knees and pray.]
Act 1: Scene 2
[Andrew and Tida watching television]
[Andrew switches on the TV:]
Ching Yi: Good evening. And here are the headlines: (i) Plane from Auckland crashes north of Kaiapoi: there have been no reported survivors; (ii) Mice claims to be superior living creature on Earth: claimed that Earth was their experiment; (iii) New AIDS strain discovered: leaves scientist baffled. And here are the news in full.
[Gerald Ford reads news in full. Full news item on plane crash, going life to Benson Chia at the scene of the plane crash: flight from Auckland to Christchurch on Broken Wing Airlines crashed near Kaiapoi at about 6pm. It appears that the wings fell off, and is located about one kilometer away from the crash scene.... [Full speech omitted brevity sake.]]
[Phone rings. Tida answers the call.]
Police: Good evening....is Andrew Wilson there please?
Tida: Yup....hang on to your pants.....
[Tida passes the phone to Andrew:]
Andrew: Hello?
Police: This is Inspector Morse of the New Zealand Police.
Andrew: What has Yang Yang and Jamie done now?
Police: Oh! Nothing at all....its a different matter. At about 6pm today, a plane from Auckland, Broken Wing Airline, crashed somewhere north of Kaiapoi. It appears that among the victims are Yang Yang and Jamie......
[Scene now shows Andrew walking away from the phone, moving towards Tida with a sullen face.]
Tida: What=s the matter?
Andrew: It=s Yang Yang and Jamie....there=s been a plane crash....they were on it....
Tida: Let=s pray....
[The both of them get on their knees and pray.]
Act 1: Scene 3
[Andrew and Tida watching television]
[Andrew switches on the TV:]
Gerald Ford: Good evening. And here are the headlines: (i) Ceasefire is Bosnia broken for the twentieth time. Fugitive president on the run; (ii) Alien abduction: man claims that he was impregnated with alien object; (iii) Widespread famine in America - 100,000 estimated dying each day. And here are the news in full.
[Ching Yi reads news in full]
[Phone rings. Andrew answers the call.]
Hospital: Good evening.....is that Andrew Wilson?
Andrew: yes...speaking.
Hospital: This is Dr Warner of Shortland Street A&E.....
Andrew: Hello.........is this about my dad?
Hospital: Ummm.....and also about your mum. Your mother was admitted at about 10_35pm last night with breathing difficulties and sharp chest pain. at about 1;12am she passed away.
Andrew: And my dad....
Hospital: He sufferred a cardiac arrest at about 1:15am and could not be resuscitated.....
[Scene now shows Andrew walking away from the phone, moving towards Tida with a sullen face.]
Tida: What=s the matter?
Andrew: It=s mum and dad....they died earlier this morning....
Tida: Let=s pray for us to always have faith in God....
[Andrew and Tida sings "Have Faith In God":]
[Andrew: Verse 1]
O Lord you lead me,
By the still waters,
Quietly restoring my soul.
You speak words of wisdom,
The promise of glory,
The power and the presence of God.
[Tida: Chorus]
Have faith in God,
Let your hope rest on the
faith he has placed in your heart.
Never give up,
never let go of the
faith he has placed in your heart.
[Andrew: Verse 2]
O Lord you guide me,
Through all the darkness,
Turning my nights into day;
And You=ll never leave me,
Never forsake me,
The power and the presence of God.
[Andrew and Tida: Chorus]
[Piano solo. The rest of the crew comes into the scene.]
[Everyone: Chorus, Verse 1 and Chorus]
Explanatory notes:
Jack and Yit Sim are the parents of Yang Yang, Jamie and Andrew. The parents and sisters are in Auckland, whereas Andrew in Christchurch. Andrew flats with Tida. Winnie is a friend of Yang Yang and Jamie.
There is no real chronological order in this drama. That=s the way it was intended to be. Probably that=s why it confused so many people.
The character Andrew plays is based on Job. He suffers a lot,
but yet remains faithful to God. Winnie=s
character was based on Micah 6:8. As for Yang Yang and Jamie,
it was a reflection for some of us: are we moving to the heartbeat
of God?
Acknowledgment:
I would like to thank the entire crew for this drama: Andrew Wilson, Gan Yang Yang, Jamie Teo, Winnie Law, Tida Sopit, Kong Yit Sim, Benson Chia, Gerald Ford, Loke Ching Yi, Irene Chan, Yanti Kijono and Jack Tie. Without them, this drama would not have existed. The script above is an abridged version, mainly because many of the speeches were spontaneous. Thanks guy...you were wonderful! Also, many thanks to Stephanie Han and Pei Shei for their encouragement and confident in me putting this drama. Thanks be to God for His inspiration.
The song "Have Faith In God" © 1994 Hillsongs Australia. Written by Geoff Bullock.
Boon Li
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© 1996 Auckland Overseas Christian Fellowship