harvesters ministry

MISSIONS REPORTIssue: I

SPRING 2014off to malaysia

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction

Ministry Time

— Kuching

— ULC

— Orang Asli

— Other

Testimonies

Thank You

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INTRODUCTIONHarvesters Ministry sent a team of passionate lovers of Christ into Malaysia in March 2014 with a vision to touch the entire southeast region of Asia with the gospel and hope of Jesus Christ. This trip was just the beginning of building a long-lasting relationship with ministries in the SE Asia region and contending for the revival that God wants to bring forth in the land!

THE MALAYSIA MISSIONS TEAM

Andrew Whang Arnold OhCarrie LeeEunice ShinJoongGul YoonJoyce ChungMegan BeachemPatrick Chung

Paul ChangRuth LeeSam ChoSarah LimSharon HanShinae LeeYoung Eun Lee

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MINISTRY | KUCHING

In early 2012, Pastor Arnold was invited to speak at a Methodist Youth Convention in East Malaysia. Excited by the opportunity for overseas missions, Pastor Arnold gladly accepted. In December 2012, he was joined by Paul Chang and Young Eun Lee to minister to over 200 youth at the 2012 Sarawak Methodist Youth—it was one of the most powerful moves of God ever experienced in that region. The power of the Holy Spirit broke loose and young people were returning to the Lord, committing themselves to full time ministry, being healed and delivered from oppression. These youth were so incredibly hungry for a greater experience of God. We truly believe that the 2012 Methodist Youth Convention sparked a revival through the region that would only grow. Pastor Arnold then began to envision a circuit in Malaysia of young people getting trained, equipped and sent out into the missions field; in other words, creating a Harvesters missions base in Malaysia. However, due to the controversy that was created with such a powerful outbreak of the Holy Spirit (the charismatic), the door closed very quickly for us. So it was quite a surprise when Pastor Arnold received another invitation to speak at one of the larger local Methodist churches in East Malaysia a year and a half later. Our friend said, “Things are changing in the churches here.” Since the dates coincided with our short term trip and we believed God was opening a door again, we agreed to revisit East Malaysia to minister to the Faith Methodist Church (FMC) youth in Kuching. When we arrived in Kuching, Pastor Arnold and the Harvesters team met with the senior pastor Pau and his wife at FMC. Pastor Arnold approached the meeting with hesitance, but it turned out that Pastor Pau and his wife had known Pastor Arnold from ten years prior in the mission field of Cambodia! A dear friendship was quickly formed and we felt freedom to minister to the youth without reservation. Again, the youth responded to the message of the Father’s heart in a powerful way. Many hearts that had been turning away from the Lord quickly returned, and hearts of the youth were revived.

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The rest of our time with FMC youth was incredible—youth committing to follow Christ, letting go of idols, amazing worship and fellowship. We also ministered to FMC’s sister church, Trinity Methodist Church’s youth, and had an amazing time encountering God together. Then one morning at breakfast, Pastor Pau began to joke about Young Eun coming to work for the youth at FMC. We had a few good laughs and it ended there. Initially, Pastor Arnold thought, “No, of course not.” However, he was reminded of the vision of creating a missions circuit in East Malaysia, especially after meeting a YWAM couple who had tried to start a base for over a year and a half, but couldn’t because they had no ‘in’ to the local church. Pastor Arnold then thought, “What if Pastor Pau was serious about hiring Young Eun? Having someone carrying Harvesters’ DNA on the inside would allow for us to begin creating a launching point for missions into Southeast Asia and the Muslim World by training the local youth.” When he asked Pastor Pau whether he was serious about hiring Young Eun, Pastor Pau said that he was very serious. Things progressed very quickly from this point; Young Eun had an informal interview with Pastor Pau and his wife on views, vision, compensation, and much more. By the end of it, the offer was for Young Eun to come for two years as a missionary youth worker at FMC with full support, housing, and additional theological training. She would also be free to work with other ministries in the surrounding area. FMC will be presenting the proposal of bringing Young Eun in as a missionary youth worker at the local Methodist committee meeting on May 23, 2014.

PLEASE PRAY:+ For wisdom and discernment in the decision to release Young Eun to Malaysia+ For revival to break out in the youth of Kuching that would spread to the nations+ For Harvesters, as we move into church planting and mission base planting+ For God’s will to be done and for Him to receive all the glory

Pastor Arnold preaching at FMC. Our team with some of the Kuching youth.

The United Learning Center (ULC) is a Burmese Refugee School and Home for children in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was a divine appointment that our team connected with this school. During our first day in Malaysia, we met a Chinese Malaysian man named Keith Law who volunteers at the ULC. We met in passing and exchanged contact information just in case we had free time to visit the ULC. As our week went on, we felt a desire to go deeper in our relationships and ministries, and we began asking our ministry partners if we could home-stay with their families. Every last one of them said ‘no’ due to various reasons. However, around this time, Keith reached out to us and asked us to please come to the ULC. The very night Pastor Arnold arrived in Malaysia (a few days after our team), we met with Keith, Pastor Jonathan and his wife Grace to arrange for us to teach, play, and home-stay with the ULC children. It was the forming of a relationship that changed all of our lives and an open door to missions in SE Asia. Our brother Keith later invited us to join him in his travels to Cambodia and Myanmar (which will be taking place this summer). We will follow the leading of the Holy Spirit to vision and scout these nations to plant churches in the future.

ABOUT THE BURMESE REFUGEES & CHILDREN:

Malaysia holds the largest population of Burmese refugees–more than any other country. The refugees (adults and children) come from Burma (Myanmar); many of them are from the China State, which has a large Christian population. They had to flee the country due to persecution and political unrest. The journey to escape is long and dangerous; they travel on foot with their families, risking separation, arrest, and death along the way. Some of these children spent time in jail with their families because they were caught fleeing from the country. The hardship doesn’t end once they reach Malaysia. They are marginalized

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MINISTRY | ULC

in the society, living among the people but unable to function in society. Language is another barrier; they only speak their native dialects, unable to speak English or Bahasa Malay. Because they are not citizens, the Malaysian government does not provide schooling or benefits for them. They depend on ministries such as the ULC to educate and house their children and orphans. Refugee families are overcharged by their landlords to rent one-bedroom apartments, and they find work wherever they can—assuming that they hold a registered refugee ID card. Without an ID card, they face deportation or imprisonment. Burmese refugees are in Malaysia temporarily until they are relocated overseas (typically to the United States or Australia). There is a long, confusing process they must undergo to get relocated, which often includes blood tests and interviews. It is not uncommon that family members are relocated separately. They wait for their assignment, not knowing when they must leave (we met with a family that has been waiting for seven years to come to America). Burmese families don’t keep many belongings so they can pick up and leave as soon as they are called. For the children, if they turn 18 years old while waiting for their transfer, they are no longer allowed to stay at centers like the ULC.

The ULC in Kuala Lumpur has been open for about 2 years. They usually have consistent volunteers who come to teach, but there is still high turnover. About 140 children attend the school, ranging between the ages of 2-16. About 40 of those children actually live there. ULC is run by Pastor Jonathan and his wife Grace, who is currently pregnant with their second child. The kids wake up at 7:30 every morning, clean the house and outside, and then get ready for the day. Devotions are at 9:30 every morning, where the children line up by age and sing worship songs. School then starts around 10am and ends around 1pm. The classes are mostly English and Math. They also have extracurricular lessons such as Music and Drawing. We spent most of our time just living life with them and playing. It was amazing. They are always serving us—making sure we eat first, making sure we have a seat, and always massaging us.

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ULC children playing with puppies. ULC children lining up for a meal.

The encounter we had at the ULC with Jesus was amazing. We had one time of worship where all the children prayed for the teachers. Our sister Sarah kept hearing the Lord say that these kids are the Hope of Glory. What’s amazing is that our brother Keith had been praying specifically for American missionaries to come to ULC, and then he found us (we were the first missionaries to serve at ULC). It’s so incredible to be a part of God’s movement and plan. It is hard to deny that He has amazing plans for these children. They are truly prayer warriors and lovers of Christ.

PLEASE PRAY:+ For these children at ULC! That they continue to grow in the Lord. + Pray for their families (which are big! like 6 kids), especially for their parents. + Ask the Lord to quicken the process, and that they would be released as

missionaries into the new land that God calls them to.

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ULC children encountering the Holy Spirit during a time of worship.

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MINISTRY | ORANG ASLI

While we were in Malaysia, we had an opportunity to visit an indigenous people group who were first native to West Malaysia: the Orang Asli. As an indigenous group, society has marginalized them more and more as the country has been developing. We had the privilege of meeting families, worshiping with the church, teaching the children, and doing house visitations to bless the people. Pastor Mohan is an Indian pastor who dedicated his life to be a missionary to the Orang Asli people. He visits one home after another to spread the gospel, discipleship, and training. His vision is to contextualize the gospel and empower the locals into leadership within the church so that the church may stay established and grow in the people group.

PLEASE PRAY: + For the gospel to spread to the Orang Asli people despite resistance (the Malaysian government is trying to assimilate the Orang Asli people into Malay Muslims, ridding the indigenous people altogether).+ For Pastor Mohan’s ministry to bear fruit and raise up leaders in the church.

Sign for the Orang Asli people.

Pastor Mohan (in white) leading us in worship.

One of the nicer homes in the village.

Ballet lesson during a house visitation!

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MINISTRY | OTHER

Our new sister in Christ, Susely. The street evangelism ministry team.

FEEDING THE HOMELESSThe Homeless Food Sharing Ministry provides food every Saturday in an alleyway of the city. The homeless are presented with the Gospel message in two languages before they receive food and medical attention.

STREET EVANGELISMA few of our team members joined another ministry for street evangelism in a tough area of Kuala Lumpur known for its prostitution, drug addicts, and homelessness. We split into two small groups, each with a translater. In the two hours of ministry, we had two salvations and a healing! Praise God. Pictured below is our new sister in Christ, Susely. She is a homeless Indian woman who has lost all contact with her family. She explained how even though she was one of many children in her family, she always felt like an orphan. After receiving Christ, Young Eun explained the hope and the new family we have in Jesus. Before we left, she called Young Eun and Megan her new daughters.

PLEASE PRAY:+ For a church community for Susely and for her to grow as a disciple. + That she would see her 21-year-old daughter again (hasn’t seen her in 20 years).

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OUTREACH Our team led a church youth group on their first evangelism outreach into their city. Because it is illegal to evangelize to Malay Muslims, there were many fears that had to be shattered. We broke into small groups and spread out throughout one of the large shopping areas in Kuala Lumpur.

Right: Shinae, Eunice and a youth are caught on camera evangelizing.

PRAYER WALK AT TWIN TOWERSOur team was led around the Twin Towers (Petronas Towers), which is one of the most iconic areas of Kuala Lumpur—you may recognize it from the movies! This is one of the largest tourist and business centers in Malaysia and we prayed that the love of Jesus would be the center of all the paths crossing in the area. We also prayed against the work and strongholds of the enemy. While our team was in Malaysia, the plane MH370 went missing. There were many prayer walls set up around the area. As our team was writing on a prayer wall, national news TV crews were around taping us and asked if Sarah want-ed to do an interview. On Malaysian national TV, Sarah proclaimed the name of Jesus five times. We know that the feed was not only aired nationally but worldwide as our friends from America and East Malaysia confirmed they saw our team on TV.

Above left: the Twin Towers. Top right: a team member writing on the prayer wall. Bottom right: Sarah proclaiming the name of Jesus on national TV!

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Above: the first part of our team.

Above: our entire team united! (Minus Pastor Arnold...)

TESTIMONIES

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Andy WhangThe mission trip to Malaysia illuminated many things about myself in the context of Galatians 5:22-23. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Those whose lives are marked by the virtues in Galatians 5:22-23 cannot be condemned by any law because the purpose and central design of the moral law is fulfilled in those who have the Spirit of God. All of the ministries that we connected with proved to be anointed, great workings of God in Malaysia but it was my time with the Burmese refugees that changed my perspective of what it means to be a child of God. God revealed to me that people who have the

indwelling Spirit look like children. The world that we adults have created is in much need of God’s redemption. However, we are called to live as children – children who are simple and pure in their love, who live without worries, who do not wrestle with ideas of emptiness and powerlessness because we have a Father in Heaven who is all good and all powerful. When I compare myself to these children, I can truly understand the depth of my brokenness. Contemporary men and women like myself feel helpless and insignificant in the face of so much political unrest, war, crisis, disease and death. My impotence led to anxiety and repression, leading in turn to apathy, which is a form of protection. In other words, the only way I knew how to deal with powerlessness in the face of all that is wrong with the world is to become indifferent to it. Impotence and apathy however, also breed violence and hostility that further alienate us from one another and only serve to increase our isolation. Furthermore, anxiety is intensified in our competitive culture by interpersonal isolation that has emerged out of a pattern in which one’s self is viewed as an object and self-validation depends on winning others over. We live in an empty condition with a need for something to fill the gaping hole in our heart, be it a destructive authority, drugs, or alcohol. This deep internal alienation is also manifested through various other forms of physical stimulation such as premarital sex, which breeds other

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social problems such as abortion. Essentially what all this reduces down to is the orphan spirit that characterizes our culture today. The orphan spirit was there at the beginning with Lucifer when he desired something else other than the love and affirmation of the Father. It was there in the Garden as well when Adam and Eve were deceived. It made its way down into modern society, and this belief that life and identity exists outside of the context of a Father is the greatest deception of mankind. It is a part of my life as well but God, the author and perfector of my faith is breaking me free. What it means to live as a child of God means to live as one who has a perfect Father who is characterized by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. In Him we have our identity and receive unconditional love and favor. Hence, while the love that I received from the Burmese children is tearing away my apathy and isolation, the love that I received from the Father is chipping away at my orphan spirit. The love inside both the Burmese children and from God is so pure and it fills the earth with its light. Against this, there is no law.

Me praying with a student. Sharing a meal with some of the Burmese children.

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Eunice Shin

Hi, my name is Eunice! I’m excited to tell you about what happened in Malaysia. The opportunity to go the Malaysia first appeared to me at my church. I was interested in going to Malaysia to experience what it was like to go to a mission trip. While we were there we went to a learning center for Myanmar refugee children called United Learning Center. At the United Learning Center, there was a 6-year-old boy named Zion. From the first time I taught there, Zion never let me go and was very protective of me.

At first I thought it was just him being selfish, but when I got back to America and Pastor Arnold asked us to think of something that God had given to us as a present in Malaysia, I thought of Zion. Thinking of him and how he clung onto me, never letting me go, reminded me of when I first experienced God and His love. When I first experienced His love, I remember that I never wanted to let go of Him and that I was so desperate for Him. It brought me to tears when I thought of it and how much of my desperation that I had lost. It made me realize that I need to pray for that desperation to come back.

Me hugging one of the students. Me with Zion!

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JoongGul Yoon

The mission trip to Malaysia was a life changing event for me. The presence of God in Malaysia and His love for the people is so strong. I’m proud and confident to say that I am a witness of His greatness. Being my first mission trip, I learned a lot about myself. Putting myself temporarily in the underprivileged shoes, I can look back at my life and realize how it is. For instance, when I was building relationships with Myanmar refugee kids at the United Learning Center (ULC), I was shoe-less, not caring if I sweat a lot, I didn’t have

worries about ‘responsibilities’, and I was actually happy and worry-free. I learned that I live in a society where I have to do certain things to survive in it. I have to go to school, I have to work, and I have to do certain tasks that I think will keep me happy to live. But, sharing my life with ULC kids for a few days made me realize that my life should not circle around responsibilities that I created. Instead, my life should be centered on God. I learned that the greatest gift that God gave me is that I can give someone my ‘time’ that was provided by God. Because when I do give my time, I am giving up a portion of my life that I will never take back. From the trip, I learned about God’s presence and His never-ending love for his work. I learned and felt God’s hard working powers in Malaysia. It is true that God never will give up on anybody. From drug addicts, homeless, refugees to privileged individuals, God will never stop giving his love for all of them. I learned that the people of God are not separated or distinguished by language, physical looks, or cultural barriers. The church and the community are all the same and equally loved by God. Under God’s household, we are all brothers and sisters. The way we pray, praise, cry and smile under the name of God may be in different languages, but we are all from the same heart and origin. The cultural barriers that were present in my mind were shattered when I prayed and praised with the indigenous folks, orphans and the ULC children. The presence of God was so strong that you just can’t deny the fact that God is real and He is sharing his love to make you realize that you are one of the key players in His ultimate plan. Honestly, I used to judge the homeless, drug addicts and alcoholics. I never, ever felt sorry for those who had the same opportunities as me, but failed. There are many homeless near my campus and drug rehabs everywhere, but for some strange reason, I never opened my heart to folks who are less fortunate than I am. But I learned that God is very responsive. He is very quick. No 4G LTE or greater can compete with his response. If you really desperately call or ask Him, He will answer very quickly. For example, I asked God to open up my heart so I would feel and love

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others like He would. I asked Pastor Arnold and my crew to help me in prayer. The single prayer answered my desire and made my heart finally beat. I thought this was a life changing experience. My perspective and mindset changed. I was able to pray for the homeless, blind, orphans, refugees, drug addicts and etc. out in Malaysia without any hesitation. So, why can’t I live my life back in the States the way I lived in Malaysia for a week? I realize I am one of God’s harvesters no matter where I live. I believe now I can see the world through Jesus’ eyes and feel things the way He would feel. So, I will evangelize and share the love of God, no matter where I’m at.

I decided to evangelize on NCSU campus. It is place where I spend most of my time and there are so many potential interactions with other students. By doing so, I will start by reminding everyone that Jesus really does love them all. The color of their skin, their age, physical traits and gender do not matter when it comes down to God’s love. Following Jesus is the greatest decision I’ve ever made, and I got to taste a little bit of relying on God in Malaysia. I have worked in many different places in our society, anywhere from restaurants to golf courses. I have also worked for many different managers. But, I have never worked for anyone who is greater than Jesus. The Son of God is such a great role model and a great leader. He never discourages me and only motivates me to work harder for Him. It was the greatest decision I’ve ever made. I experienced God in Malaysia and it was so real and alive. He called me there to revive me as His worker. He proved that everyone He created has purpose and He will walk along with their happiness and struggles. God does not judge, whether you are privileged or not. Everyone is purposefully created and I learned about my purpose and mission in the land of Malaysia. God showed me that we strive to help Jesus’ revival spread on earth, taking us all back to heaven. In the process, we as ‘Harvesters’ share the love of God, His words and His lessons to others who do not know God. As a church, team and family we have to pray more and be active on our discipleships to find new teammates. I fell in love with the people so quickly and I can never forget their warm hearts. I will always pray for the Malaysians and go back to make more God-centered relationships. I want to sincerely thank Pastor Arnold, a great leader of this generation, Pastor Stephanie, a loving mother, Young Eun Nuna, impossible to possibly describe her greatness in words, and the Harvesters’ team for turning my life around.

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Through this mission trip, I learned how strong and powerful the love of God is. Although we did many activities and met many groups, the love that we received from them was indescribable. I thought that with missions, we go to give (not to receive) but it was the total opposite. I started to question myself, “What is love?” and realized I didn’t know. Then the day before we left, I heard God say “I love you, Joyce” and I realized this was the answer. It didn’t matter about giving or receiving, but just knowing and focus-ing on God’s love is all I really needed to do. Because when you let God’s love

be the focus, you remain in it and everything you do, say, and think is filtered through His love and that is true love.

Joyce Chung

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I was raised in the Church. My mom would take my brothers and me every time she was able. We went to Sunday school every Sunday and to vacation bible schools every summer. I began learning about God at a very young age. In my mind, I knew everything there was a God. But as I grew older it didn’t take long for me to realize that while I knew many facts about Him, I didn’t understand God. For many years I struggled with trying to wrap my head around just who my Creator was, but I just didn’t connect with His heart. My own heart wouldn’t comprehend what my head knew about God. It all began to seem so foreign to me. Even calling God ‘Father’ just seemed strange. God began to feel more and more distant. I knew He wasn’t but my heart saw it as that way.

I went into Malaysia with so many different feelings and emotions that they were hard to keep track of. All I knew was that I didn’t want to come home unchanged, so I tried to stay as open as possible to what God was offering. I have never been met with a love so powerful; I mean you could see it everywhere we went. It was especially evident at the Burmese refugee school. These kids had no idea who we were or where we were from—just that we were there to teach them. Even before we reached the gates of the school they came running to us, jumping into our arms, greeting us with so many hugs and the biggest smiles you could imagine. They hung on every word we said, even though there were many times they had no idea what we were saying. They would bring us water and food and would put our shoes on for us even before we could bend down. Three little girls even washed my feet for me when they saw how dirty they were. Words don’t describe how remarkable these children were. As we were flying back home to the US I began praying for the kids and I suddenly realized that the love that we experienced from them was the same love of that of the Father. The same way we were greeted by these children, God our Father greets us, with enthusiasm and joy no matter who we are or where we’ve been. God provides for us without us even having to ask. It doesn’t matter to Him what we say, as long as we are calling upon His name, He is so overjoyed. Every time, every single time, we are dirty He washes us clean. My head knew all of these things, but after experiencing the love of these Burmese children, my heart began to know them as well. It’s absolutely incredible how children bring us to the Father. Jesus says “…the kingdom of God belongs to such as these” (Mark 10: 14), referring to little children, and I see why. These children helped connect the heartstrings between me and God and I feel like a true daughter. I am forever grateful to these Burmese children.

Megan Beachem

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Wow! Honestly, it’s kind of hard for me to put all that I received through this trip into words, but I’m going to try. Everything always starts with love and I feel like throughout this trip, in every single moment I was reminded to just purely love. No matter the situation or circumstance or person, I was constantly prompted by the Holy Spirit to love. Whenever I was with the little children, God opened my eyes to see through His perspective as a Father and how he longed to just

embrace His little ones, to bring over them this comfort and peace that they matter and they have not been abandoned. I was shown the depth of how much love speaks so much greater than just mere words. When this love was placed into action, you could see the person let down their walls and reveal to you who they truly are because of the peace this love establishes that they don’t feel the need to cover themselves up. I became more aware of how God really uses me to be His vessel of love. Without people even realizing it, all their fears would be melted away and love would begin building this foundation of trust in every relationship for the person to share their heart. Also, it was pretty sweet to see how love would boost a man’s faith to be healed of physical disabilities. I saw a man who couldn’t use his right hand become fully restored. Another man who suffered from serious eye irritations was completely healed the second we spoke of the Father’s deep love for him. Something I was so honored to partake in and be a witness to was the way the Father adopted so many orphaned children in Kuching into the family of Christ, uniting us all as brothers and sisters. After their eyes were opened to a whole new world, they threw off the burdens of religion and began to walk a new journey of freedom in a relationship with our beloved Jesus. The greatest lesson that I took from all of this was being reminded again to imitate the love that Christ displays in 1 Corinthians 13 and to always put others above yourself. That through this, people would see the greatness and compassions of our Yeshua and His awesome glory would be unveiled to them.

Patrick Chung

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I’ve never really had a chance to fathom the beauty of how people live around the world quite like this. The culture, tradition, and also the struggles of this land immersed me and I began to wonder how beautifully God has custom made life for each and every one of us. As we kept meeting more people, going into their living conditions, eating their food, and speaking their language (or at least trying to), my heart was happy to simply spend a moment in life with these brothers

and sisters. The awkward moments when communication across a language barrier seems impossible and you simply have to resort to improvised sign-language are the moments I will never forget. Although every experience had its full flavor of culture, there was one moment that really stuck out to me. On the first ministry day, we encountered the Orang Asli people, an indigenous people group in a village about an hour away from where we were staying. We walked around the village and saw that these large families live in what we would call “tree houses” in America. Their dogs were dehydrated and looked like they were dying, and random chickens would come out of nowhere and scare us. The values of life couldn’t have been more different here, but there was one major thing we had in common—we both loved Jesus. During our worship time, the oven-like heat from my thick khakis hugging my sweaty legs was quite distracting, but thankfully it did not distract me from this priceless moment of glory. I looked up as we were circled around singing and there, I saw Heaven. I felt that the desperate cries of our hearts were going straight into God’s ear as we worshiped together and it was glorious. It was truly a Revelations 7 moment where all nations, tribes, and tongues worshiped God together; where the cultural differences amongst us came to nothing. As I gazed upon this moment, I knew that this is what it would look like when we get to Heaven, where there would be no pain or tears or language barriers. This worship changed my life and it showed me how common our lives are when we simply worship Jesus in spirit and in truth. After worshiping and praying with these loving brothers and sisters, I found myself at complete peace, knowing that life was supposed to be this way—loving and praising God with one another. For me, this was a true experience of real-life, heaven on earth.

Paul Chang

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Thank you so much to all our loving supporters who diligently cared for us through prayer and finances. This mission trip and fundamentally life changing moments could not have happened without you. Thank you! While doing ministry, the people in Malaysia kept reminding me of Job. They had so little, but were able to love and praise God so wholeheartedly. To better understand, I decided to read Job. As I read, the life Job led didn’t seem so foreign anymore. The Malaysian people embodied the characteristics of Job and threw their lives into God’s hands to praise His

name. However, I struggled to follow their example. One morning as our team worshiped, God began to speak so clearly and loudly. My whole head filled with His voice. He asked, “Ruth, even if I take everything away, will you still praise my name?” Over and over again. With the question pounding in my head, I didn’t have any time to think. I knew my spirit longed to say yes, but in that moment, I couldn’t answer. A fear was uncovering itself—a fear of persecution. Stuck between the fear and the desires of my spirit, I began to weep. I was upset that I couldn’t love God with all my life. When I shared this with the team, they encouraged me and told me to answer God as time went on. Now we’re in America and time has passed. I didn’t know God would be so quick to show me a way and that I would be testifying. But I know I am only able to because God loves His children. You know how God’s perfect love casts out all fear? It really does! Through the crazy amount of love the people of Malaysia surrounded us with, my fear began to melt away. No, it didn’t just disappear, but it’s gone away in the sense that it all seems so minuscule and weak compared to how great our God and how powerful His love is. I don’t want the love that God and my Malaysian brothers and sisters poured into me to all be for nothing. I want to be a witness to them and others that Christ’s love has the power to change lives.[Philippians 3:7-14]

Ruth Lee

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Hello! I am Sam Cho and I was part of the team that jour-neyed to Malaysia. I was so excited for this opportunity to go on missions. Right when I heard about the trip I said, “yes” immediately in my mind. “I will go Lord.” From there God was faithful and I was able to raise all my funds in a period of two weeks. Prior to flying overseas, there were mandatory trainings we had to attend. I remember once Pastor Arnold asked us to pray for a person in Malaysia—someone God would have us meet. So a couple days later, I prayed in my

apartment asking, “Lord, highlight a name for me; someone I will meet in Malaysia.” At that instant, the name Robert came to mind. In the beginning I was quite doubtful because I thought the names there would be something more “Asian”. However, I managed to write it down in my journal. After the long plane ride, I finally landed in Malaysia. I felt as if I had lived there before and felt as though I was one of them. The first couple of days I did not really think of the name I got. Things were not going the way I wanted; for example, my desperation for the Lord was not quite there. So I decided to fast with JG, Paul, and Andy. The next night God moved so incredibly. The guys decided to evangelize out in the streets (at 11 pm at night). We came to this one alley and there were some homeless people. We approached them and presented our love towards these people. At first they weren’t so responsive because they were lying down, but slowly they became alert to what we had to offer. Paul and I decided to go off a little farther while the rest continued to minister to them. There Paul and I greeted three other homeless guys that were digging through the trash for food and cans. We asked if they needed food or any-thing and they said no. I was so confused because they were homeless people who did not bother to receive free food. I really felt like I needed to give them something though. I had forgotten to introduce myself so I did and Paul did. They responded too with their names and one of them happened to be Robert. At first it did not dawn me that his name was Robert and I was about to leave but it clicked. I had to pray for him. Next thing you know I am praying for not only Robert but also the other two guys. It was incredible how God showed me Robert. I was in awe. I desired more, so Paul and I prayed for two blind men. One of them managed to see light more clearly. It was an amazing night. God really moved that night. God will always meet you when you become desperate for Him, when you spend all your energy before him.

Sam Cho

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Malaysia has changed my life. It’s amazing how God can turn my life upside down in just one week. I went to Malaysia thinking that I will be helping these people know God more, but I have come to know more of our God’s love and grace through Malaysia. I received the most love from a Burmese Refugee School called the United

Learning Center in Kuala Lumpur. I’m confident to say that those children know how to love and serve far better than I do. Although they don’t have much, they offer me the best of what they have. I was so humbled. How could I receive so much love? How could I serve these children when they serve me twice as much? How can I share the love of God to these children who know better than me? In moments of questioning and struggling with myself, God revealed his heart of grace for me. What allows me to be sent to Malaysia to represent Jesus? Who am I to receive the pure love of the ULC children? It is only by the grace of God that I was able to go and experience such things. He reminded me of His love, not only for the ULC children, but for me. Knowing God’s grace and love in a deeper level has transformed me. I have adopted Malaysia and Burma in God’s spirit and commit to pray for the ULC children and hope to return soon to continue the work God has started. Please pray with me as I take more steps into a missional identity. Thank you so much for your love, prayers, and support! To learn how to partner with me, please contact: sarahlimmissions@gmail.com

Sarah Lim

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I had never gone on a mission trip before, so everything was such a new experience. For the first few days, I couldn’t escape the feeling that I had to do more and give more. However with everyone that we encountered in Malaysia, we were the ones who were constantly receiving from them. It was when we met a group of Burmese refugee children that my heart was melted. They didn’t even know who I was, and yet they loved me so easily. This shook me because I couldn’t understand why. I had grown up thinking that you had to “give some to get some.” But this mentality was quickly shattered as the children and the people

kept giving us love, without even asking for anything in return. I saw how they gave their all in everything that they did, in loving and in worshiping God. So, I started to reevaluate why it was so hard for me to do the same. In those children, I saw the heart of the Father. God overcame all language and cultural barriers and allowed us to worship and pray together in the name of Jesus. It didn’t matter that we were so different by worldly standards, we were still able to worship the same God together. We were still able to love one another regardless of those things. Never before had I experienced that kind of freedom in Christ love. This summer I’ll be returning to Southeast Asia for a longer mission trip. Please visit www.youcaring.com/sharonmissionsp2 to find out more and how you can partner with me!

Sharon Han

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I was born and raised in South Korea until our family moved to the US in 2000. I’ve been a “(Sunday) Christian” all my life and going to church was no different than going to school. Although I described myself as a Christian, I never took it seriously. I looked at it as one of my characteristics that described me: such as me being a Korean. However, these last few years have been an awesome journey where I learned to have an intimate relationship with Jesus and He has opened my eyes and helped me to see through His eyes and to care for people

on a different level. This spring, I was given an opportunity to go on a short-term mission trip to Malaysia with wonderful brothers and sisters at our local church. I was excited to see my God work through people of different cultures and backgrounds, and see how they worshiped God. There were so many things I’ve learned through this mission trip but mainly, Jesus taught me what it means to love and receive love through the refugee kids we met. It wasn’t in our schedule but through God’s provision over us, we were given an opportunity to work with the Myanmar refugee kids. This place is called the United Learning Center (ULC) and because the kids can’t go to school in Malaysia, they would come to places like this to learn English and other subjects. When we walked in, all the kids would run to us and hug us as if they didn’t care where we were from or what we looked like or how sweaty we were. I have never been welcomed by so much unconditional love and care. I was in awe trying to grasp the love that they were giving and pouring out. I couldn’t help but ask myself what drives these kids to love like that and care for people who they have never met. If you looked at their faces and the joy that they bring, you would never guess the pain and turmoil they have gone through to be where they are. Ever since I could remember, I had a hard time opening my heart to people and receiving their love. However, after I started walking with Jesus, he has been taking me step by step in helping me open my heart up and able to receive his love. When I walked into ULC, their unconditional love penetrated deep into my heart even before I could understand what was happening to me. Their love was genuine, and although they might not have a lot of things of this world, or have suffered in different situations that I couldn’t even imagine, one thing was sure: that they knew how to love. This love was not perverted by anything of this world. I believe this is a duty for all of us as Christians: to carry this love and share it. I pray that I may go deeper in God’s love and in his understanding like the kids in ULC, being able to love in a pure gentle way that Jesus is teaching me.

Shinae Lee

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THANK YOU

To everyone who supported us through prayers, finances, and friendship, thank you! With your

support, we’ve partnered together to sow into God’s Kingdom. May He continue to empower us and

flow through us with His love and power to be His witnesses—to the ends of the earth!

With love,Spring Missions Team ‘14