berita necf - march-april 2010

7/31/2019 Berita NECF - March-April 2010

1/16

A bi-monthlypublication of the

National EvangelicalChristian Fellowship

Malaysia

www.necf.org .m y/ htm l/ b erita _f.htm

Ma rch Ap ril 20 10PP5872/ 11/ 20 10 (0 25928)

Inside this Issue

2

3

Be rit a

Chairman: More of Him...

Corruption Destroys NationBuilding

From heart to mouth

Sinking Surreptitiously...

Project for Jehai Kids

Good governance talk

Special Insurance Deal

Allah dispute not about God

Build what nation?

Continued on pg 6..

C hrists compassion wasprophetic. He went to thesource of suffering anealt with it, an often, He ha to

go against the laws of the time toexercise His acts of compassion.

We nd this in an account in theGospel of John where He heale

a man who ha been sick for 38years. The lame man was lying neara pool of water. When the watersof the pool were stirre , therapeuticpowers went into action, an the sick

who entere the water was heale . The man was sick, the treatment was free an within sight, yet hecoul not get it.

Why not? He explaine to Jesus thathe i not have anyone to help himinto the water when it was stirre .No one care for him.

Jesus tol this man who ha notstoo for almost four eca es to pick up his mat an walk. He i ! But it

was the Sabbath. In Jerusalem, youcan forget whether it was Tues ay or Thurs ay, but no one forgets theSabbath, an on this holy ay, it wasforbi en to carry ones mat as it

was consi ere WORK. The Jewishreligious lea ers were too keen to

enforce the Sabbath legislationbecause they wante to please Go .

It was not by mistake that Jesus usethis powerless lame man to challengean uncompassionate society by adeliberate act of de ance. God hadprovi e the stirre -up pool of

water for the healing of this man.

It was the social pool of stagnant,sel sh society that needed to bestirre up for the mans healing.Stirring the pool was precisely

what Jesus i .

Jesus sought to open His iscipleseyes by a brilliant act of civil

isobe ience. The healing inci ent in the above was notan isolate inci ent; it was part of Christs pattern. He knew this woulbe seen as work on the Sabbath antherefore a deliberate act of de anceof the religious laws. Yet, He i it.His compassion pro e Him to

efy the religious laws of His time.

The Ol Testament recor s thestory of Queen Esther who riskeher life in civil isobe ience tosave her people. She signe herown eath sentence when sheapproache the king without being summone by him. The law grante

the eath penalty for entering thekings presence without invitation;Esther knew the law well an yetshe de ed it as it was the only way to get the kings attention.

Esthersresponseto Uncle

Mor ecai was,

When Disobedience

is the higher law

Editorial N EC F

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Please note that Sam Angs handphone no. is now 010-220 5872


2/162 B e r i t a N E C F M a r c h A p r i l 2 0 1 0

When our buil ings are built, oesa-l-l glory really go to Go ?

When our testimonies are spora ic

an our character suspect, then themust element is missing.

For Go s plan is twofol thereis to be a growing an continualcomparison between Christ an us an this is clearly seen in Johns life(John3:3136).

John must iminish an Christmust continue to grow.

Too often, our humble ecreaseis but for a season or occasion. We

focus on Him increasingly but we losesight of our must ecrease. Are we really ecreasing? We seem to

be plague by Hollywoo Christianity. We boast of CEO lea ership (incontrast to servant lea ership); thereis the new generation of workers

who are slow to respon to their calltill the pay package is right; more anmore want to be consulte , thegrowing epen ence on publicity;in ated gures about our churches;the uncontrollable; many who feel they have the right to correct an slan erchurches publicly etc.

This worrying tren clearly showsthat we have yet to learn to live I-must-

ecrease lives. There can be no genuine increase

if there is no ecrease on our part.I pray that 2010 will be a year we

all re-learn humility an walk with thissingle focus He must increase!

1Present active in nitive auxanein (NT:837) Roberstons Wor Pictures in the NT

Chairmans Message

NECF Malaysia CouNCilCh m n

Rev. Eu Hong SengV ce-Ch m n

Elder Kong Yeng PhooiH n sec et

Pr Tay Wah SengH n T e e

Dr Khoo Kay HupCommi ee Members

Rev. Dexter LowRev. Ng Kok KeeRev. Richard Ong

Rev. Peter MutangRev. Foo Moy Peng

Rev. Elisha SatvinderRev. Simon Chandran

Pr Chan Theam LaiPr Alfred PhuaPr Jerry DusingMrs Grace Hee

a v Rev. Tan Sri Prince Guneratnam

NECF Malaysia sTaFFsec et -Gene

Sam AngSenior Execu ve Secretary

Patrick ChengExecu ve Secretaries

Daniel Loh (Tamil)Lucrece Loo (Prayer)

Kathryn Tan (Finance)Eugene Yapp (Research)

Alfred Tais (Bahasa Malaysia)Larry Lee (Youth and Leadership

Development)

Andy Chi (Prayer, Evangelism andDiscipleship)O g Juat He g (Co u ica o s)

Je Chok (I for a o Tech ology)Simon S. Arputham (Administrator)

Confden al Secretary Ching Bee Gaik

Administra ve Secretaries Alice Wong

Yvonne ChinLeong Kit Wah

Sangan MutangAdministra ve Assistants

Sally Tan

Jouslly BuayaExecu ve Advisor

Rev. Wong Kim Kong, j.m.n.

EdiTorialE t

Sam Anga t nt E tOng Juat Heng

addrEss32, Jalan SS2/103,

47300 Petaling JayaSelangor, MalaysiaTel: 603-7727 8227Fax: 603-7729 1139

Email: [email protected],my

Pri ted by Aki ara Corpora o 1&3, Jln TPP1/3, Tmn Perindustrian Puchong

Batu12, 47100 Puchong, Selangor

By Rev. Eu Hong Seng

MORE of HIM,Less of me

HE MUST INCREASE, BUT IMUST dECREASE. (John 3:30NKJV) I cant think of a more

appropriate motto for year 2010. The apostle of love is the only

isciple who eclare this. Heun erstoo that he ha nothing thatGod did not give him (v27), he was notthe Christ, though he ha a powerfulministry an reputation (v28) an thathe ha this privilege of communicating

with the Go of go s (v29).Un erstan ably, John ha this

passion to see Jesus promote . Notice

the must. He must increase.He is to go on growing 1 whilst Igo on ecreasing. These were Johnslast wor s from the ungeon until hisenquiry whether Jesus was the Messiah(Matt11:2ff)

He must this means it is not anoption. There is no choice. It is non-negotiable. We must obey an oall that is necessary to ensure this is

one.Be it Church, job, of ce, school, or

family, Jesus must be glori ed. When our business oes well, when

one gets promote oes anybo y know it is Go who helpe us?

Are we quick to glorify Go ? do wespontaneously give Him the cre it? doour neighbours know we are trusting in Him alone? do we always put Him

rst? Do people of other faiths have abetter opinion of the Church becauseof us?

Please notethat the email address of

Berita NECF has been changed [email protected]


3/16B e r i t a N E C F M a r c h A p r i l 2 0 1 0 3

Corruption destroysNation Building

By Sam Ang and Eugene Yapp

R ecently, The Malaysian Insider reporte thatthe Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission(MACC) will set up a special operations ivision

to handle high-pro le cases to counter allegations thatthe anti-graft bo y is lenient when probing powerful anin uential politicians.

What comes to min when you receive such news?Political patronage? Corruption? Who cares? One canbecome indifferent and say this is not our ght. If this crosse your min , coul it be that churches haverarely a resse such matters an say nothing of how Christians shoul han le an confront such mala ies?

It appears as though the Christian faith has nothing tosay about the ills an estructive forces of corruption.

But is this the case? No, for the issue an mala y of corruption is as much pertinent to Christians as is theissue of conversion an iscipleship.

As Christians, we believe that irrespective of onesstature an wealth an how powerful or politically in uential he/she is, our God searches the hearts of allmen an we stan as equals on Ju gment day. Every actof unrighteousness an injustice will be reveale on that

ay, an nothing will escape His eyes.Lets examine three characteristics of corruption an

its consequences an how Christians may respon tothem.

1. Corruption Turns Every Social InstitutionUpside Down

C. S. Lewis in Re ections on the Psalms ha this to say,In most places and times, it has been very dif cult forthe small man to get his case hear . The ju ge (an ,

oubtless one or two of his un erlings) has to be bribe .If you cant affor to oil his palm your case will neverbe hear .

A evout In ian evangelical lea er once share he woul neither take nor give a bribe for his personalconvenience. However, he sai , I run an orphanage. My chil ren cannot get water unless I bribe. For their sake, Ihave no other option.

This real-life experience epicts how corruptionutterly estroys the very institutions that are meant forthe public welfare of a nation. On the home front, wehave politicians-bureaucrats making public overturesbefore a by-election that shoul the constituency vote forthe ruling coalition, they will get a bri ge or a mosque!Here, we ask the question, Isnt this an in ucement anhence, blatant corruption?

In the a ministration of a nation, evelopmentprojects, whether big or small, can be viewe as work provisions provi e un er the national bu get forbuil ing the nation. Such national evelopment projectsmust always be a national agen a an priority.

However, ue to our so-calle privatisation policy,public functions an assets management have now beenmove into private han s. They are no longer within theboun s of public institutions esigne to cater to thenee s of the many. This has opene the oors for basicnee s in evelopment, such as buil ing bri ges an toilets,

to be use as voting tools for political expe iency anleverage, thereby contributing to corruption. The above illustrates how corruption utterly estroys

the fabric of core institutions of society. The institutionof society is for the protection of in ivi uals an welfareof citizens of a nation. In protecting citizens, institutionsare to cater to justice. But corruption has turne every institution from servants of society promoting fair

istribution to tyrannical masters hoar ing over every resource. Corrupt societies can never ourish for they donot pro uce the sort of values an practices so essentialfor a free liberal emocratic society.

2. Corruption Undermines the Value of Work and Individual Dignity

Meritocracy enables healthy competition. Its value liesin promoting excellence because it places competenceabove connections. It implies righteousness forrighteousness recognises the ue iligence an har work for which one strives to achieve. But when connectionrises above meritocracy, it becomes a situation of whomyou know rather than what you know to earn your placean respect in society. This egra es human ignity an

worth. It is also grossly unfair an unjust to those whohave put in great efforts to learn what they know an

Continued on pg 5...


4/16



how to effect what they know effectively. Theseare the men an women who value merits an

nd personal ful llment in putting premium on such values an thereby contributing to nation buil ing.

Unfortunately, through the auspices of our so-calleprivatisation initiatives, connections have ten e to riseabove meritocracy. The transfer of public functions anassets management into the han s of private in ivi ualsor corporations has resulte in the piratisation of publicgoo s.

This is obvious when privatisation projects lan inthe han s of the select elite who more often than not,comprises members of the political or er. Throughconnections, these projects or planning i eas eventually end up within certain economically- and nancially-

motivate in ivi uals an corporations who woul heaphuge an unjust gains through unfair isa vantages.

When such corrupt practices are allowe to escalatean perva e into all aspects an sectors of society, thoseattempting to live by meritocracy will throw in the towelan subsequently join the ban wagon. It is a viciouscycle that nee s to be broken.

If the corruption cycle is not broken, the nation

will only have incompetent people me iocre men an women at best, an ishonest men an women at worst as lea ers, e ucators an a ministrators.

Our nation is therefore in critical nee of transformation, for our future is at stake!

3. Corruption is an Anti-National Activityand a Sin Against God

Corruption compromises our national integrity an well-being as well. Recently, it was reporte that certainsecrets of national interest were leake to some foreign

countries. Those who were responsible were severely warne .Surveys have reveale that the level of corruption or

the tolerance of it by society has a irect correlation withthe level of economic well-being of the nation.

The Worl Bank estimates that corruption may costa country as much as 4% the Gross domestic Pro uct.In the case of Malaysia, our Gross domestic Pro uct isestimate at RM650 billion. Base on the Worl Banksestimate, our cost of corruption is therefore RM26billion a year! An this is our taxpayers money thatcoul be put to goo use, such as alleviating poverty anuplifting the stan ar of living!

Corruption compromises the integrity of a nationan the people who rule an manage it. It may be argue

that in such instances, corruption will eventually estroy a nation an must be era icate as it is

threat to the national security of the fe eration.

How May Christians Respond? What oes the Bible have to say about corruption?

Corruption violates at least two of the TenComman ments covetousness an stealing.

Go says, You shall not covet.anything thatbelongs to your neighbor (Exodus 20:17); yet allcorruption is roote in covetousness. Corruption also

violates the comman , You shall not steal (Exo us20:15); yet corruption is plun ering that which oes notbelong to you. In short, corruption is anti-national anconstitutes a form of rebellion an i olatry against ourgreat Go .

As Christians, we know that sin is rebellion an

isobe ience against Go . Corruption is therefore anoffence against Go , man, nature an is anti-nation.It goes against the very fabric of responsibility thatGo has place on all human beings as custo ians anstewar s of His creation.

When the Bri e of Christ (the Church) compromises with evil an begins to live in complicity with ancompliance to corruption, it pro uces eath.

The call to stan up against corruption is clear. It isa simple call to the Church to be true to Herself as theBri e of Christ, to bring forth fruits of righteousnessan to give birth to a quality of holiness that is beyonthe natural human ability.

The Church has the uty to e ucate an nurture hermembers to exercise their moral citizenry in a responsiblemanner in accor ance with their faith an conscience inmatters of justice an goo governance.

To o so, the Church must never be spectators butactive participants in imputing the values of truth,

righteousness, integrity an goo governance, both within an without the Church. This is a tall or er but let us become goo examples

as well as goo mo els for society to emulate.Let us also uphol those who are in a vocacy for

righteousness and good governance, ghting corruptionin the very context an places they are in. Their lives willbe mo els for the future generations that esire to beinvolve in Nation Buil ing!

Note: The authors of this article are in ebte to the thoughtsby Vishal Mangaliwa i,Truth and Transformation: A Manifesto

for Ailing Nations. Seattle, WA: YWAM Publishing, 2009 anK.J John, Corruption and Truth in Development at http://www.malaysiakini.com/columns/108937

...continued from pg 3

corruption has turned every institution from servants of society promotingfair distribution to tyrannical masters hoarding over every resource.



An so I will go to the king, whichis against the law; an if I perish, Iperish! (Esther 4:16). Thankfully, thestory en e well when Esther founfavour with the king an he lifte hisgol en scepter towar s her to par onher for her de ance.

Civil isobe ience is a eliberate,courageous an compassionate act of a reformer to expose an con emn theinstitutionalise evils of his ay.

We see this in Jesus healing of thelame man on a Sabbath an Esthersintrusion into the kings presence. Inthe earlier account, Jesus expose theheartlessness of the Jewish laws; in thesecon , Esther went against the law so as to expose Hamans evil plot toexterminate the Jews.

How o we Malaysian Christians

respon to this? Firstly, are there any laws in our system, an even in ourchurches, that go against the characterof our Go or the teachings of our

Scriptures? If there are (an thereare), are we bol enough to imitate ourLor Jesus an Queen Esther?

Our service to ay lacks power becauseoften, it is marke by timi ity. Oftentoo, we cloake our fear with the turn-the-other-cheek excuse, or by quoting Romans 13:1-5 to free ourselves fromthe bur en of having to engage with

the system an society.

We are calle to follow our Lor . May He grant us the courage to be like Him.

...continued from front cover

The remarks were most probably unscripte . Perhaps,they slippe off the mouth as the speaker got heate

in his historical ruminations about the lan ing of theChinese an In ians on Malaysian soil. Perhaps he forgotthe multi-racial crow listening keenly to his wor s.

Then the wor s slippe off hismouth: In ians came to Malaysia asbeggars an Chinese, especially the

women, came to sell their bo ies. Allred up now, he continued his rants

with threats to revoke the citizenshipof Malaysians who ha raise eman sagainst certain government e ucationpolicies.

The crow was stunne , especially when the occasion was the Rapat 1Malaysia seminar inline with the Prime Ministers 1Malaysia pet initiative aimeat forging unity an heral ing progress to the country.

An even bigger irony was that the speaker was datuk Nasir Safar, the PMs special ai e. Imme iately after hisremarks blaze on Internet portals, the Prime MinistersOf ce issued a statement distancing itself from his remarks,an yet apologising for Nasir, saying he never inten e tomake any erogatory remarks.

Nasir also enie making the remarks. In a telephoneinterview with The Malaysian Insider the same ay, he sai , I

i not say the wor pen atang (immigrant). I only sai thecountry has been successful as the Chinese an the In iansfrom those ays until to ay have been coming here to

work and added that he did not threaten anyone. (http://themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/malaysia/51737-pms-ai e-to-quit-over-racist-remark)

Those who atten e the seminar begge to iffer. So, was datuk Nasir aware of what he was saying? di he suffera lapse of temporary amnesia?

Only Go knows but what was obvious was that hespoke off the cuff, which meant that the wor s must have

spille out from within him. This remin s us of a verse in the Bible For out of theabun ance of the heart, the mouth speaks. These wor s

recor e in Matt. 12:34 were Jesussharp observation of the link betweenthe human heart an the mouth. Forthe things in our heart will nd their

way out of our mouths. Thats why the Bible says that we

are to guar our heart above all elsefor it is the wellspring of life an toput away perversity from your mouth;keep corrupt talk far from your lips.

Prov 4:23-24 Whats in our heart? do we secretly harbour a Nasir

within? Or is it a storehouse of compassion an love for thepeople aroun us, especially for those unlike us that are of a

ifferent race an faith?If we esire to reach out to our surroun ing worl an

make a lasting impact for Christ, our hearts must rst be wellsprings that bring life. If our nation-buil ing efforts areto be impactful, our hearts must be clear of preju ice anbias.

As FGA KL El er Khoo Kay Hup share with inter-cessors at the recent NECF Thanksgiving Tea (see pg 8),In the mi st of turmoil an all the negativity that we see,

we nee to have the right spirit when we interce e for thelost. We coul become self-righteous an even call ownGods wrath on situations where we nd injustice, but theheart of an intercessor must rst be lled with Gods love.

Search me, O Go , an know my heart: try me, anknow my thoughts; An see if there be any wicke way inme, an lea me in the way everlasting. Ps 139:23-24

From Heart to Mouth



John an A eline feel they are goo Christians better than most. Its just that since their chil renhave grown up, church has not been quite as importantanymore. They have hear almost every sermon they coul hear an John says he is tire of re-runs.Besi es, they have convince themselves that they havenot left Go ; they are just leaving the church. After all,they are retire .

Woul that be the best excuse for avoi ing church anserving the congregation? Coul they not be involvein a ministry where their spiritual experience willencourage the younger generation?

Betty has been lea ing womens Bible stu y for several

years and nds it the most ful lling thing she has everone in her life. She loves teaching. She knows that

teaching about Go is a goo thing, but she cannothelp won ering whether she is oing it for the rightreason. Sometimes she feels guilty, secretly won ering about her true motivations. She thinks they might notall be sincerely spiritual, but shes pretty sure she oesnot want to know the truth. If no one is complaining atBible Stu y, why shoul she worry? Feeling better, she

ismisses the isturbing thoughts.

Spiritual efection happens slowly an most Christiansare not even aware of it when it happens. It is easier tospot it in others than in ourselves, an since it manifestsitself differently in different people, it can be dif cultto etect. In other peoples eyes, an even in our own,our Christian faith is pure an strong, our motivesunquestionable.

We are not all that we are preten ing to be, an we know it. Often, our go liness is for publicconsumption. Our patience may be plastic. Our publicprayers may be eloquent but our private prayers areoften non-existent or anaemic. An thus, we begina ownwar spiral efection from sincere service to

Christ an His Church.

In time, we become FAKES! Because we are soifferent, we may not recognise ourselves as spiritual

fakes at rst. The deception goes deep in some of us. The problem, of course, is that eception is soingraine in us that the eceit often becomes seconnature not just in church.

di you catch a glimpse of yourself in the escriptionabove? If you i , ont take it personally; you are notalone. In fact the church is lled with spiritual defectors

who come in all shapes, sizes, styles an varieties.

How o we arrest the problem an not become a fake?

Lets start with some soul-searching questions:

What are your primary reasons for serving?

Remember Go is more intereste in why we areoing something than in what we are oing.

Are we secretly attracte to spiritual reputation?

Acts 5:1-10 tells the story of the infamous Ananias an Sapphira. They wante to look goospiritually in the eyes of their fellow worshippers.Unfortunately they were fakes.Is there much joy in our service to the Lor

regar less of whether people notice our work?Sure, we get iscourage sometimes when theministry is tough an nobo y seems to noticeour labour. But o we quickly rise above the

isappointment an press on, rather than quit inresentment?

At the en of the ay, we can fool everyone aroun us,but we worship a Go whose eyes roam the earth foran honest heart. Lets get real with Him.

Note: Much of the content is taken from Faking Church by dan Schaeffer.

Sinking Surreptitiouslyinto Spiritual Defection By Sam Ang



Malaysian Christians mustremain calm, patient an

vigilant while church lea ersengage with the Government for anamicable solution to the current crisesfacing the Malaysian Church.

Speaking to participants at theNECF Malaysia Thanksgiving Teaat FGA Kuala Lumpur in February,NECF Secretary-General Sam Ang urge intercessors to persevere incontinuous intercession for the nation.

FGA El er dr Khoo Kay Huppicke up the momentum by sharing the critical nee for every Christian tobe an intercessor accor ing to Ezekiel22:30, I looke for a man among them

who woul buil up the wall an stanbefore me in the gap on behalf of thelan so I woul not have to estroy it,but I foun none.

However, we nee to have theright spirit when we interce e for thelost in the mi st of the turmoil an all

the negativity that we see, dr Khoostresse , a ing that the heart of anintercessor must rst be lled withGo s love.

Otherwise, wecoul become self-righteous an evencall own Go s wrathon situations where

we nd injustice, hecautione .

dr Khoo remin-e participants that

their role is to engage with Go for thepresent time to builfor the future.

The Thanksgiving Tea is an annual gathering of thoseinvolve in the prayer ministry for thenation.

Jointly organise by the NECFPrayer an Research commissions, thegathering re ects on and give thanks forthe past years events, besi es up ating participants on the critical issues facing the nation an the Church.

The tea gathering was atten e by

170 people from 28 churches. At the gathering, Global day of Prayer (GdOP) Chief Coor inatorEl er dr Tan Nget Hong share that

11,000 of the 12,000 seats at Shah Alam Sta ium Malawati seats have beenbooke . (This years GdOP gathering

will be hel at the sta ium to celebrateits 10th year in Malaysia.)

A mission to the event is by ticket which is free of charge an churchesmust act quickly to reserve theremain er tickets.

In conjunction with the GdOP

sta ium gathering, Run for the Nation(RunNat) le by Victor Chua has

Intercessors are to engage with Go for the

present time to buil for the future.

Keep cool, keep praying

A s part of the NECF MalaysiaNation-Buil ing Agen a, NECFis helping to support a pre-schoolproject spearhea e by dr Paul Chen(see pg 10 book review) at Kg Cuwehin the Temenggor Forest in Perak nearthe Thai bor er.

dr Chen, a me ical octor, isthe senior pastor of River of LifeSanctuary, Puchong, Selangor.

NECFs monetary con-tribution of over RM16,000for two years, to be reviewethereafter, goes towar s thesalaries of a teacher an a

helper.

Pre-School Project for Jehai Kids

Continued on next page...

(Right pix) Music stimulates learning and these Jehai children are giving their

brains a boost by learning songs and rhythm. In the background is a Jehai

house from where mothers listen to what is being taught. The school is in the open,

under a tree. A hut has yet to be built.

(Bottom right pix) Jehai children giving thanks before their meal.

(Right pix) Teacher Jenny Gitom (left) and helper Suriah Raman

(right) preparing the childrens meals.



N ECF Malaysia is hol ing a talk on governance,transparency an integrity an who better tospeak on this subject than datuk Paul Low, Transparency International (Malaysia) Presi ent.

While Paul is heavily involve in pushing for googovernance an combatting corruption in the marketplace,he is also actively serving as an el er in his church.

Following Pauls sharing, NECF will con uct its 12thBGM which will inclu e the election of the NECF CouncilMembers.

Good Gover a ce, I tegrity a d Tra spare cy Talkcum NECF Malaysia 12th BGM

May 22 (Saturday) or i g Petali g Jaya Gospel Hall

Change requires ...the collective action of civil society movement, of

which Christians can be apart of Datuk Paul Low

institutionalise an become a way of life to the extentthat we now have both petty as well as gran corruption.

Any effort to impute signi cant change for the bettercannot be left to a few people, organisations or lea ers.

Change (for the better) requires the involvement of the whole society because ultimately, it is only the citizens whocan make the electe representatives accountable throughelection.

Change requires the collective action of the civil society movement of which Christians can be a part of.Churches are now being mobilise to be concerne

with nation buil ing. While the Church nee s to be non-partisan an politically neutral, it is also its uty to gui e hermembers to exercise their moral citizenry in a responsiblemanner in accor ance to their faith in matters of justicean goo governance.

The Church is part of civil society an cannot remainpassive or inactive on such matters.

What then can the Church o to be a participant ratherthan a spectator in imputing goo governance an integrity

rstly within the Church and then without the Church?

Editors Note : Lets come an humbly learn how we canmore effectively make the Malaysian Church the salt anlight in society. Contact NECF for more information.

Malaysia vote for change in the last election an one of the main issues is that the previous government ha failein its promises to re uce corruption. We all want a clean,accountable and ef cient government regardless of whichpolitical party or parties are in the a ministration.

The nee for change an transformation is recogniseby almost all sections of the society.

The Government has launche the Government Transformation Platform with measurable performancein ices an the emphasis of ealing with corruption angovernance is re ected by the index called corruptionperception in ex as publishe by Transparency International.

Corruption as de ned by Transparency International isthe abuse of entruste power for personal gains.

The Malaysian public has, for too long, tolerate corruptpractices an in many instances such practices have been

organise a charity cum prayer torchrun in every state on the eve of GdOP.

Torch runners from each state will thentravel to Petaling Jaya to complete therun together into the sta ium to launchthe gathering.

Fun s raise from the run will beonate to selecte organisations as

part of the GdOP 90 days of Blessingsefforts.

Another report that greatly stirrethe gathering was by Lei Wah whoshare that almost all the pre-believing chil ren who atten e last years

National Chil rens Prayer Conferenceconfesse faith in Christ. This year,the organisers inten to invite chil renfrom ifferent orphanages throughout

the country to atten the conference. The gathering en e with a time of

fervent intercession for the nation an ,of course, tea.

...continued from previous page

At the BGM, NECF will unveil its nation-buil ing programme an some of the projects in the pipeline.

Among them are:

NECF Foun ation

Goo Times (Internet news portal)

Prayer Vision

Vocational School/Youth Camp



In 2005, the NECF Foun ation initiate a group

insurance scheme, calle the NECF-Great EasternGroup Insurance Scheme. Un erwritten by GreatEastern (GE), the scheme is for church members an full-time workers an exten e to their family members

who are working at or atten ing churches an para-churchorganisations which are members of NECF Malaysia.

GE gives back to NECF two percent of the premiumcollecte an the money is use to help subsi ise thepremium of full-time workers who cannot affor to pay the full premium. Currently, NECF is helping to subsi isethe yearly premium payments of 394 East Malaysian full-time workers.

From May 1 to May 17, NECF and GEare running a special promotion for eligibleparticipants whereby those who sign up will enjoy free un erwriting. This means they nee not gothrough the require me ical check-up.

Un er the scheme, participants will enjoy thefollowing bene ts for a premium of RM30 permonth:

Critical illness coverage of RM30,000 orNatural eath coverage of RM30,000 or

Acci ental eath of RM60,000 or

Total permanent isability ( ue to illness) of

RM30,000 or Total permanent isability ( ue to acci ent) of RM60,000Bereavement ( eath claim) of RM2,000Maturity bene ts at age 65 if there has been noclaim

The maximum amount that can be taken un er thisspecial promotion is RM50 per month. The maximumamount that can be taken un er this scheme (inclusive of such group schemes with GE) is RM250 per month.

Participants must be below 55 years of age. Inor er to enjoy the free un erwriting service, GErequires a minimum participation of 200 membersfor this special promotion.

For further information, contact LauraChongs GE Agency at:

Of ce: 03-4294 7673 (Vivian)Lawrence: 019-338 2687Laura: 013-336 7088Sharon: 012-659 6216

Special Insurance Deal or NECF members NECF Malaysia-Great Eastern Group Multiple Benefts Insurance Scheme

What oes it take to reach an unreachepeople group? Conceptually, it woultake cross-cultural evangelism an

church planting. One woul not escapethe fact that cross-cultural evangelismis only a partner in the overall Christianmission.

In the context of the King omof Go , it is never accomplishe inisolation from the other basic nee sof the people. Reaching the unreachetakes into serious account the pressing nee s of the people, whether it isfoo security, health care, e ucationalopportunity an physical safety.

Reaching the Jehai at the TemenggorForest captures the correct approachin seeing people within a holistic

framework of king om thinking. The Jehai is one of the six ethnic

Negrito groups of the Orang Aslicluster. The work among the Jehai isremarkable because it has emerge outof a holistic framework of king omthinking.

dr Paul Chen has infuse in theframework the cultural un erstan ing of the people along with their health,economic, e ucational an spiritualnee s.

Lest one thinks that this framework is merely a conceptual one, Paul

emonstrates that this framework islled with love, kindness, patience,

wis om an tenacity.It is an exciting story of a peoples

journey towar s faith in Jesus Christ. This is a signi cant contribution tothe missions in Malaysia. It is highly recommen e for every local stu entin missions.

dr Paul Chen was Professorof Preventive Me icine in theUniversity of Malaya an Professorof Community Me icine in theInternational Me ical University KualaLumpur. He has serve in the WorlHealth Organisation in South-east Asiaas hea of its programmes in PapuaNew Guinea.

His book is available at Christianbookstores at RM20 each.

Title: Reaching an unreachedpeople group: The Jehai ofthe Temenggor ForestAuthor : Dr Paul C.Y. Chen

BOOK REVIEWReview by Elder Doraisingam Manikam, FGA KL Missions Director



On the surface, the Allah issue seems to be a ghtover one wor but it is much more than that.

It is not about religion itself or about Go ,but about fun amental issues confronting the nation.

It is about the constitutional guarantee to our civil

liberties such as the free om of speech, associationan religion.It is about our right to seek ju icial recourse when

the Government makes ba ecisions affecting ourconstitutional rights.It is about the uty of the ju icary to overturn any

ba ecision ma e by the Government.Its about ensuring that the Syariah ju iciary

remains subor inate to the civil court accor ing tothe Fe eral Constitution.Its about de ning the boundaries for the exercise

of power by the Malay Rulers an the King ande ning their roles in Islam and Muslims and non-Muslims.

There are continuing attempts to mislea the public with wil an unsubstantiate allegations that both theCatholic Church an the Si ang Injil Borneo (SIB) Sabahas well as Christians in general are being unnecessarily confrontational by refusing to settle their case out of

court. They are also accuse of isrespecting Islam as the

of cial religion and the Sultans as custodians of the faith.Christians are also accuse of trying to convert Malaysby confusing them by using Allah. The opposite seemsto be true. Berita Harian on Feb 24, 2009 quote SabahsGovernor Tun Ahma shah Ab ullah as saying there habeen 117,579 new converts registered with Majlis UgamaIslam Sabah since 1970.

Another silly accusation is that the Governmentshoul not have allowe a Chinese ju ge to hear

the Herald case ( led by the Catholic Church). Thissuggestion is an affront to any ju ges ignity. Following the Catholic Churchs Heral case, Sisters in Islam(SIS) was also successful in its application for a ju icialreview over the Home Ministers ecision to ban theirbook, Muslim Women & the Challenges of IslamicExtremism.

The book was publishe in 2005 an ha been freely sol for over two years until it was banne by the ministerunder section 7(1) of the Printing Presses & Publications

Act 1984. A Malay ju ge hear their complaint ancame to the same ecision as the Chinese ju ge thatthe Government ha excee e its power an ha acte

wrongly un er the same law.Commenting on the ju gment in The Star (Feb 10),

Sha Saleem Faruqi, Emeritus Professor of Law at UiTMan Visiting Professor at USM, sai if one looks at the

Act literally, the ministers iscretion is absolute. despitethis, he sai Justice Mohama Ariff M Yusof hel thatthe ministers discretion is not to be regarded as nal.

There are serious questions of constitutionality aboutthose provisions of the Printing Presses Act that conferon the minister a number of absolute iscretions, hesai .

The Allah wor problem arose after dr MahathirMohama banne the Al Kitab or the Bahasa Biblein december 1981 by a gazette or er. Soon after that,he became Prime Minister. When Christian lea erscomplaine , the Government, by another gazette or era few months later, allowe the Al Kitab to be use butonly in churches.

But then the Home Ministry began their harassmentby con scating the Al Kitab and other Bahasa Christianpublications, apparently because they were founoutsi e church premises at ports an airports on the

way to churches which importe them. Printing of suchpublications locally was also dif cult because printers

were intimi ate . Again the churches complaine an the Government

forme a Cabinet sub-committee hea e by the latedeputy Prime Minister, Tun Ghafar Baba, who attempteto resolve the matter by issuing another ecree in1986. On top of the restricte use of the Al Kitab (inchurches), the Cabinet also ecree that the wor Allahcoul not be use by Christians. Instea of solving theproblem, the ecree create even more problems.

during former Prime Minister Tun Ab ullah Ba awispremiership, the Bup Kudus the Iban Bible which usesthe wor Allah Taala was banne . The Ibans werefurious an the Government relente . despite this,

the con scation of the Al Kitab and Bahasa Christianpublications persiste . Recently, 20,000 copies of the AlKitab were etaine at various entry points to the country.

The ea lock over the Allah wor prohibition thenforce both the Catholic Church an the SIB Sabah totake their cause to the courts. The two cases are still stuck in the court.

In the Heral case, Justice datuk Lau Bee Lan in herju gment (dec 31, 2009) sai the Senior Fe eral Counselscontention that accor ing to S13a of the Printing Pressesan Publications Act 1984, the Ministers ecision shallbe nal and shall not be called into question in any courton any groun whatsoever is misconceive .

By Bob TeohA l lAh dispute not About G od

Continued on page 13...



R ea ing the Bible alone can be a confusing experience.In fact, Go never meant the Bible to be rea insolitu e, accor ing to Project Timothy (PT), a programmethat offers the opportunity to ig eep into Go s Worin a small, tightly-knit community.

designe by Malaysian-born but New-York baseapologist-scholar Rev. dr Ron Choong, PT takes itsparticipants systematically through the Bible in sixsemesters of ve sessions each to cover the entire Bibleover three years.

It oes not matter which particular part of the Bibleparticipants enter in at, for Go inten e His chil ren tohave all of His Wor shape their thinking through a aily routine of rea ing an me itation.

The programme is a eliberately slow, focuse anclose rea ing of the Bible, an is more about an approachthan simply learning a particular bo y of knowle ge. Itemphasises metho ology, that is, learning how to rea anun erstan the Bible an hear it as Go s Wor .

The nal goal is to help each participant develop abiblical worl view by which to un erstan an raw on

Digging Deep for GeHave you ever starte the year making a resolution to rea the Bible from

cover to cover but got bogge own in Leviticus or Numbers?do you feel frustrate trying to get past a surface-level un erstan ing of the

Bible, to see how it ties in to worl history, philosophy, an contemporary scienti c worldview?Have you ever found it dif cult to explain Biblical concepts and worldviews

to skeptical frien s?Have you ever wante a aily Bible stu y practice that goes eep an really

expan s your horizons in or er to know Go better?

If yes, then go for PROJECT TIMOTHY.

the resources of the Bible in a responsible an coherentfashion. Lectures prepare by Rev. dr Choong will be

elivere at special sessions to weave a web of knowle gearound the different elds of inquiry such as archaelogy,history, the sciences an geography with which theBible engages.

PT is a programme of the Aca emy for Christian Thought of which Rev. dr Choong is the Executivedirector. To know more about PT an how you canparticipate in this course, visit www.actministry.com

Rev. dr Choong was originally traine in English law (LLB Hons) an the natural sciences (BA). He turneto philosophy, archaeology, science an theology inpreparation for a ministry in apologetics an evangelism.

An or aine minister with the Presbyterian Church,he has serve in the New York area with an internationalsummer ministry for 15 years. He hol s a octorate inphilosophy of science an theology on the implicationsof the imago Dei (image of Go ) an has three masters

egrees in history, philosophy an theology.Log on to www.actministry.org to know more.

H ave you trie reaching out tosomeone who speaks a ialectthat is completely alien to you?

Perhaps youve trie sharing thegospel with the foreign workers youmeet aily such as the Myanmarese

workers in the coffee-shop or the Nepali

guar s in your neighbourhoo .?Feeling han icappe ? Here

comes help. The Malaysian CampusCrusa e for Christ (MCCC) now stocks the Jesus Film in several

local ialects an foreign languages asfollows:

- Cantonese- FooChow - Hakka- Teochew

- Burmese (Myanmarese)- Hin i- Nepali- Ur u- Vietnamese- Others

Churches are a vise to make bulk purchases of the vi eo iscs. Contactthe MCCC of ce at (tel.) 03-7956 3610(tel.) or (e-mail) [email protected]

Get the Jesus Film in Hakka, Urdu or other alien languages



I nd the Minister in the exercise of his discretion toimpose further con itions in the publication permit has nottaken into account the relevant matters, hence committing an error of law warranting this Court to interfere an I am

of the view the Minister an Governments ecision oughtto be quashe , she sai .

Justice Lau ma e it clear that what was un er ju icialreview was whether the Government ha ma e a wrong

...continued from page 11 ecision un er the printing law. The question of Islamas the of cial religion and the Sultans role in it were notun er review, an therefore it ha nothing to o with theHeral case.

The ispute over the Allah wor is three eca es olan has ragge on through three prime mnisters. Its time

to move on. Like dr Mahathir sai , the matter cannot beresolve by the courts. Such crises can be best avoi ethrough an inter-faith mechanism an not by absolute

ecrees.

Since NECF Malaysia ma enation buil ing a key agen ain its ministry, the folks in the

of ce have talked and breathed nationbuil ing. Its nation buil ing this annation buil ing that, ay in, ay out.(When a colleagues wife recently gavebirth to a girl, he prou ly proclaime he

was contributing to nation buil ing!)From glossy, full-colour powerpoint

presentations of charts an visuals of NECFs plans an programmes forour nation buil ing efforts, we evenhave a nation-buil ing team now,

comprising three staff (see January February 2010 Berita NECF, page 5).

To them is charge the gran task of promoting, explaining an rumming into the conscience of every churchthe critical nee to be involve innation buil ing.

Those in lea ership positions may be able to comprehen the concept of nation buil ing more easily since butI have a gut feeling that for most of

us grassroot Christians, the term isas foggy as our annual June hazy spell when the In onesian forests are on

re. What exactly is eman e of me

when Im tol I shoul contributeto nation buil ing? (Sorry, no morebabies from me.)

Getting OutSometimes towar the en of 2009

when several people in my suburbanneighbourhoo in Petaling Jaya

eci e to start a security scheme tocheck the increasing crime activities,

I volunteere to help with thecommunication aspect of the scheme.

By then, I ha live in theneighbourhoo for nearly six years but,like most city wellers whose gates arelocke an oors bolte , I knew only one han ful of people aroun me.

How coul I be a blessing to my community when I har ly venture

from my forti ed walls? The security scheme presente the opportunity anI jumpe at it, never min that the

ebate still rages on about the legality of closing public roa s.

In no time, I got to know many people from varie races anreligions, men an women, young anol in my neighbourhoo .

Many of them are active membersof the local mosque an working withthem was a rather hea y experience asup to then, I had been largely con nedto my sterile environment of churchan the Christian organisation where

Build what nation?I work.

By venturing out of my forti ed walls to serve my community, I havebecome a participant, albeit a smallone, of nation buil ing.

Recently, I came across The Trouble with Jesus, a post 9/11 book by one of my favourite authors, JosephStowell, the presi ent of Moo y BibleInstitute of Chicago.

Egging Christians to get out ano more to engage their worl , he

says, Authentic Christianity is not justabout keeping an protecting the faith

an keeping the rules. It is even morethan living to eepen yourrelationship with Jesus.

Authentic Christianity, the real deal,is about embracing all of these important elements and using them as a resource toactively and intentionally engage your world with acts of love that show off Jesus (emphasis his).

Engaging my worl with actsof love that show off Jesus (in a

humble, unpretentious way that attractspeople to Him, not rive people away from Him) that much about sums upnation buil ing for me.

My worl coul be my family,my neighbourhoo , my workplace,the gym I work out in, the charitableorganisations I am serving, or even my chil rens school.

My acts of love coul be anything that makes my worl a better place forthe people there. The opportunities fornation buil ing activities are en less.

Now all I nee is a little push to getout more. May Go help me. Juat



ordiNary MEMBErs

Shah Alam Gospel Centre rep. by Lee Voon Siong; GloryCharis, Sela ngor, pastored by Rev. Chok Pui Fong; 611 Breadof Life Chris an Chu rch in Sibu pastored by Re v. Loh SiongLai; Wellspri ng Bap st Sanctuary, P. Jay a, pastored Pax Tan;Pertu buhan Persaudaraan Kris an Kulai, Johor, pastored byElizabeth Lew Mei Fung ; Church of the Zion, Seremban, pastored by Richard De Au gus ne; Skuda i Chris an Church, Johor, r ep. MrTan Fong Nam; and Light of Christ, K. Lumpur, past ored by Patricka/ l Sinnappan.

a ssoCiaTE MEMBErs

Desmond Leong Faang M ing; John Lim Soo Teck; Mrs SeraphineWong; and Mr Cho ng Choong.

NEC F MALA YSIA WELCOME S

N E W M E M B E R S

G dOP turns 10 this year an tocelebrate this milestone, GdOPMalaysia has booke a sta iumto gather over 10,000 MalaysianChristians.

Come an join more than 250million believers from over 200countries to pray for our nation anthe worl at this event.

A mission is free but you nee aticket to get in. To ate, more than11,300 of the 12,000 tickets have beentaken up by churches. Contact yourchurch to get hol of your ticket orcall the NECF of ce.

Come an pray together in

esperation an in expectation thatthe earth (inclu ing Malaysia) willbe lled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lor as the waterscover the sea!

GdOP is an annual worl wi eprayer event which starte in 2000at Cape Town, South Africa. In2005, some 200 million believersfrom 156 nations united for the rstGdOP.

The gathering took place onPentecost Sun ay an the pattern wasthus set that every Pentecost Sun ay,Christians worl wi e woul gather topray for their nations an the worl .

The Malaysian Church joine theGdOP movement in 2006 when theNECF Malaysia Prayer Commissionhosted the rst gathering in the Klang

Valley. GdOP Malaysias vision is tosee GdOP meetings in 40 cities antowns throughout Malaysia every Pentecost Sun ay.

Global Day of PrayerDate: May 23 (Sunday)Venue: Shah Alam Melawati Stadium

T his years camp will kick off at the Global day of Prayer event where Christians throughout Malaysia willgather at the Shah Alam Melawati Sta ium to pray with ourbrethren worl wi e.

The camp aims to alert an inform Christians about thecurrent challenges facing the nation for more urgent anmeaningful intercession. The organiser (NECF ChineseCommission) is targeting younger participants so as toensure continuity in non-stop intercession for the country.

The speaker has been a license clinical psychologistfor the last 26 years an is currently the Senior ConsultantPsychologist of the Subor inate Courts of Singapore.

In 1995, he move to Singapore from the US tominister in Asia. He has plante a church among the homeless an street chil ren in San diego an serve

as a pastor at several churches in the US an Singapore. Ina ition, he has also taught in many nations, especially onthe topics of strategic intercession.

For more information, contact NECF at 03-7727 8227.

NECF Chinese Prayer CampTheme: An Opportunity to TransformDate: May 2325Venue: Shah Alam, Petaling JayaSpeaker: Dr Joseph Paul Ozawa



Frien dly Reminderto NECF M alays ia

Mem bersHa ve you paid y our 2010 subscr iption?

If you have n ot, please do so

immediately.

If you have, than k you for your t imelyac tion which ha s greatly helpe d us

in our fnan cial planning.

A re Malaysian urban churches embroile in issuesof mo erninty fragmentation, in ivi ualism anmaterialism?

Are they too preoccupie with their internalministries rather than looking outwar s to impacting theircommunity an society?

Are they too focuse on prayer, bible stu ies an saving souls without much regar s to social ministries simply because they are too eman ing?

This conference will eal honestly with these questionsan more in efforts to spawn a generation of MissionalChurches. The subject will be ealt with from a Malaysian-

Asian perspective. The term Missional Church was rst used in the late

90s to enote the church as Go s missionary people foreveryone, everywhere an for all things. In short, it meansthat every Christian is a missionary.

The afternoon workshops will propose some of thepractical projects NECF has planne as part of its strategic

action to bringing transformation to the nation. Theprojects inclu e:

Vocational school project near Nilai, Seremban

A community school as an alternative to the

national-type schoolPublic policy think-tank groups how we may

engage with public-policy making Meeting community nee s such as ialysis centres

Speakerdr Paul Alexan er has over 30years ministry experience inthe pastorate in three ifferentnations. His ministry has takenhim on extensive travels to over

fty different nations and today,he continues to motivate lea ersan churches to reach their full,missional potential.

COMING UP . . .

Missional Church ConferenceTheme: The Missional Church - Its Contribution to Transformation of SocietyVenue: Wisma Eagles (Full Gospel Tabernacle, Subang Jaya)Date: 2627 August 2010

T he BM-speaking Christian community has been facing a lot of challenges lately. How shoul they circumventthe use of the banne wor Allah which is affecting thepractice of their faith? What shoul the community o tomeet the shortage of Alkitab an other printe materials?

What is their response to the more than 400 homeless EastMalaysians stran e in Kuala Lumpur (The Star, 25 Feb)?

Wawasan Penabur an the NECF Malaysia BMCommission are therefore organising the East Malaysia

Awareness: Seminar, dialogue & Cultural Performance onMay 1 (Satur ay) to explore strategies for networking an

helping each other in the ministry, an brainstorm solutionsto face the challenges.

The seminar will be from 9.00a..m to 4.00p.m. ancontinue again at 6.00p.m. for a celebration in conjunction

East Malaysia Awareness:Seminar, Dialogue & CulturalPerformanceDate: 1st May (Saturday)Venue: SSMC, Petaling Jaya

with the East Malaysian harvest festivals of Kaamatanan Gawai. There will be a cultural performance with thetheme of Cultural Journey Thru Sabah & Sarawak at thecelebration which is open to the public. Books an Cds inBM will be on sale, together with han icraft pro ucts.

The seminar fee is RM10 an for more information,contact Randy at 012-320 3987 or e-mail [email protected].

Also, check our the website www.wawasan.penabur.org


16/16

CHILEMillions have been affecteby the evastating 8.8-magnitu eearthquake in Chile on Feb 27, oneof the worst natural isasters for theSouth American country in 50 years.

The quake cause tsunami wavesacross the vast Paci c Ocaen fromNew Zealan to Japan, with ozensof nations on alert an thousan s of people eeing their homes.

Wi esprea looting an violencefollowe the quake as esperate victims

waite for ai to arrive. The looting an a growing

perception that government relief efforts have been slow have taintethe countrys har -earne image asLatin Americas beacon of or er anstability.

With tensions high in Concepcion,sol iers were elivering foo an otherbasic supplies house to house. Thegovernment also impose a night to

noon curfew an sent 14,000 trops toConcepcion an its surroun ing areasto prevent the wi esprea looting.

Swift actions to sen ai s to all

affecte areas; Wis om for the government to

handle the catastrophe ef ciently;Police an arm forces to take

control of affecte areas to bring or er an to assist rescue work;Release of resources, rescue work-

ers, volunteers, octors, nurses tohelp affecte victims; anGo s grace an mercy for the

nation that through this shaking,multitu es will turn to Go .

COMOROS The Unionof Comoros is a nation of three

islan s (an a ispute fourth one)in the In ian Ocean, locate off theeastern coast of Africa. It is the thirsmallest African nation by area with a

population of around 700,000 and ispoor an overpopulate .

The Comoros population is almostentirely Muslim an in may 2009, Islambecame the state religion. There aresome hun res of expatriate Christians,mainly from France an Ma agascar .

There are also some ComoranChristian converts, thought to numberfewer than 300. However, there may bemany secret believers.

The Comoran constitution allowsfree om of religion but the pre-existing penal co e prohibits conversion fromIslam. Christians are also prohibitefrom sharing their faith.

In 2006, four Comoran citizens, who ha hoste Christian iscussionsin a private home, were imprisone forevangelising. They were release ina general amnesty the same year.

Go will raise lea ers to encourage

the small number of His people;For the Comoran Christians to

stand rm in their faith;Go will a to their small

number; Against the spirit of religious

extremism an intolerance againstpeople of other faith; anGo to visit those hostile towar s

His people in reams an visions.

EGYPT Last year was markeby a surge in anti-Christian violencein various places, especially in Minyaprovince. Churches, homes, shops ancrops were estoye . Some Christians

were kille while many Christian women an girls were ki nappe anforce to convert an marry men of another faith.

The Church of Egypt is one of the ol est in the worl but to ay, only aroun 10% of the population areChristians.

Though the constitution guaranteesfree om of religion, Christians are

iscriminate against in e ucationan employment. As a result, many Christians are extremely poor anthousan s of them live in garbage

villages, earning their living by sorting househol rubbish.

The law allows conversion toChristianity; yet Christian convertsface severe pressure from either theauthorities or their communities.

Go will bring justice to His

faithful followers;For emotional an physical healing

for Christians who have beeninjure or have lost family, frien san property in the attacks in2009;For ivine provision of foo an

other aily necessities for His

people; anFor ivine goo health for His

people living in the garbage villages.

MEXICO Voice of the Martyrs Cana a an Voice of the Martyrs Mexicoreport of increasing attacks on believersby tra itionalist religious an rebelgroups in Chiapas, Mexico in recentmonths. Reports sai on Feb 28, threeChristians were shot an woun e ontheir way home from church servicesin Mitziton, an rebel sympathizersassaulte some 40 Christians who wereasleep in their homes in Tumbala.

For our injure brothers an

sisters, an their families; anPray for their faith to strengthen

as a result of the suffering; anPray for a equate governmental

measures to the increase violenceagainst Christians in the country.

P R A Y

P R A Y

P R A Y

P R A Y

berita necf - march-april 2010

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