Success for 2018

Rev Lawrence Seow

Joshua 1:1-9 

After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, it came to pass that the LORD spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, saying: “Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore, arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you, as I said to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the River Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your territory. No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant gave you. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

MOSES IS DEAD       

Leave the past behind

Israel knew Moses was dead (Deut 34:8)

The Israelites grieved, mourned for Moses 30 days

Many people are still trapped in their past, they cannot lay hold of the future

They have no future because they cannot let go of what happened in the past

Past hurts…relationships…failures…disappointments (we all have them)

Past success…glories and achievements…laurels and reputation…seniority…education and experience

Life can get very complicated and sometimes we become confused and conflicted

Here are a few real-life scenarios:

A woman is in a loveless marriage...it’s a toxic relationship...but she has 2 young children...wants to walk out on the marriage but has to consider the kids

A man suffers a stroke...he was very active before...now immobile...considers ending his life (conflicted)

A husband whose wife is more successful...she is busy...has no time for him...he feels neglected...meets another woman...a young divorcee...begins a relationship

A man with elderly parents...he has failed in life...wants to migrate and start a new life elsewhere...but his duty to his parents holds him back

We are conflicted souls...a bundle of contradictions...a paradox of inconsistencies, even among the very best of us

Conflicting thoughts...emotions...beliefs and passions (full of contradictions)

Psalm 90:10    our years are 70 or 80...the best of them are but trouble and sorrow

Moses is dead!

Break that fixation…paralysis that results from always looking back

This applies also at the church-level…forget the past – people who have come and gone, great times, bad times…highs and lows…what you’ve accomplished OR failed to do

CROSS THIS JORDAN       

Cross Over – A New Start

The River Jordan is below sea level – deep and turbulent during rainy season, but slow and sluggish during the summer

Where Jesus was baptised…

Israel had to cross this river to enter the Promised Land…it was in their way

There will always be obstacles and hurdles in the way of The Promised Land

Giants were waiting for them across the Jordan

There will be daunting challenges ahead, intimidating situations and uphill tasks

The devil will even send roadblocks and distractions your way

God never promised it would be easy or smooth sailing…if you don’t cross this Jordon you’ll never enter the land of Promise

Diamonds are formed after undergoing tremendous heat and pressure...deep under the earth’s crust...carbon material

BE STRONG & COURAGEOUS

Go the distance – boxing parlance for finishing the fight

Do not quit or stop half-way – no matter how tough or bad it gets

Heard it before, and you need to hear it again – the Christian race is not a 100 meter dash; it is a marathon

It’s not how well you start but how you finish that matters

A pastor was preaching one Sunday when he spotted an old friend in the service. He asked a deacon to invite this man (obviously very wealthy and successful) to lunch after the service. During lunch, the man broke down and sobbed. He told the pastor how they had both grown up as teenagers in church, and while the pastor answered God’s call, he had pursued his career and achieved success. But after so many years, he knew deep inside he was not where God wanted him to be. And all his secular success and accomplishments could not make up for it.

Sad truth is many Christians start out well but they relax along the way…get complacent and stop pressing on

Story of the man who found an eagle’s egg

This is why we need God’s Word – meditate on it day and night, keep us focussed and strong (read text again)

Your mind is the control tower

When we think God’s thoughts we think the most powerful thoughts

Sermon notes courtesy of Rev Lawrence Seow

Dawning of a New Season

Rev Wong Yin Ming

Sr Pastor of Subang Jaya Assembly

I'd like to share with you on the topic the dawning of a new season.

I believe we have different seasons in life. And in Malaysia we have only one season, the hot season and the hot season. And in life we also have different seasons and in organisations, they have what they call life cycles. And the church also have life cycles. God can lead a church from one season of growth to the next season of growth.

And the transition period is very important. I've gone though two churches where they merge to become one. The transition period is crucial and determines the success. If the transition went well, there's a lot of excitement, a lot of joy and a lot of unity. But if the transition didn't work out so well, there is going to be a lot of challenges. But even so, when we go through transitions, we believe that it will be good.

I want to bring to you a historical passage that talks about a transition of leadership and also thr transition of the people of a nation.

1. God is in control of every season.

Joshua 1:1-2 (NIV)

1 After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide: 2 “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them —to the Israelites.

God spoke to Joshua, Moses my servant is dead. And when he talked about Moses being dead, he was talking about the passing of an old era. Moses is dead and God now is bringing forth a new leader. The children of Israel was also going through a transition. They have been wandering in the wilderness for 40 years and they are about to now enter into the promise land.

The children of Israel was going through a new season after they left the wilderness. There is also a new leader that is coming. The new season is a season for the new leader. Moses has served his time. In the last 40 years, he has served his time. It's not that Moses was no good, it's just that his era is over. 

I believe the Israelites wanted Moses.  But in God's wisdom he did not allow them to find the body of Moses. Joseph was embalmed but not Moses in God's wisdom. If not they will always look back on Moses. God wants them to look at the glory of the new leader.

When a new leader comes in, there will be uncertainty. They would probably prefer Moses to lead them into the promise land because they are familiar with him. To let Moses bring them in then only appoint a new leader. Now there are two transition, a new leader and a new place.

In the midst of uncertainty God is in control of every season.

God told them to get ready to cross over. It signifies the beginning of a new era. Joshua will be the one to bring upon them the plan and purposes of God. God's presence will be with them.

And God told them that he is the same God of Moses that led them out of Egypt and is the same God that will lead them into the promise land. The leader may change but the plan of God has not changed. Moses is not the one that planned the future of Israel but God.

I want to share something personal. The senior pastor of Subang Assembly announced his resignation after 16 years. It was a very unique situation. He resigned and took on our outreach so I became the sole senior pastor. I came before God and said I do not know how to lead this church and I felt the weight of responsibility.

I remembered God used this passage where Jesus spoke to Peter that he will built his church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. But God spoke to me that I will build my church and the weight just left me. It is he that will build his church, not me and I knew that I will not journey alone and God is in control.

Churches will have good seasons and bad seasons but he is still in control and will lead the church through the seasons of change. Before God can move the church he has to prepare the leader. And equip the leader.

2. God will raise up a new leader for the new season.

Deuteronomy 31:7-8 (NIV)

7 Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the presence of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the Lord swore to their ancestors to give them, and you must divide it among them as their inheritance. 8 The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

Just as God was with Moses, God was with Joshua.

Deuteronomy 34:9 (NIV)

Now Joshua son of Nun was filled with the spirit of wisdom because Moses had laid his hands on him. So the Israelites listened to him and did what the Lord had commanded Moses.

The people listened to Joshua. God himself personally encouraged Joshua. Three times. Be strong and courageous. Joshua is much younger and they have not seen Joshua done any miracles yet. They were not so sure but the leader himself must show courage. If the leader is not courageous the people will be shaken in fear. Just like any army, the General must be strong. They will follow. God is encouraging your new pastors to be strong and courageous.

When the leader had to go like Moses, God will raise new leaders. When Elijah had to go the mantle fell on Elisha. Elisha split the water just like Elijah and when the people saw that they recognised him because he did the same miracle as Elijah. They accept not because Elisha told them about Elijah but because they saw him doing what he was called to do. He did it himself. Then the people recognised.

Pastors come and pastors go but the church will remain. Because the pastor is not the church. The people is the church. Pastors are there to equip the leaders to do the work of the ministry.

God chose Moses to lead the people out of Egypt but God chose Joshua to lead the people into the promise land. Not that Moses is no good. And God did not intended the people to compare. It is God who decides.

I had high respect for the founding pastor of my church. I never speak ill of our founding pastor because he laid the foundation. But all pastors will be different. You cannot please everyone. When I first took over the church we had two pastors. They must be wondering whether these two jokers can do it. He was so relational while I'm tasked oriented. But together we build the church and the church grew. Together we embarked on our first building we called our own.

One of the debate in church is the gender of the leader. The spiritual gift God has given is never based on gender. There were lady judges and pastors. The spiritual gifts are given to the leaders to his pleasure. It has never been gender biased. The gifting and calling has always been there.

How I became a senior pastor was orchestrated by God. I seldom share this story. I've shared only once in Romania because it was a man-led church.

I had no idea that the founding pastor was leaving. We were both BCM lecturers so we helped teach. We were there with the church before we took over the church. We did not get involved with the church ministry and administration. One day when I went to the church, the Sunday morning a clear voice spoke to me, I want you to take over the church. I could not believe what I heard. I was thinking maybe it's the devil. I brushed it aside and buried it at the back of my mind. I thought it's just a crazy thought.

It was months before the pastor announced his resignation. When he announced that thought came back to me. I told God it was not possible. We are in an urban setting and many are professionals. Well educated professionals. This is a man's world. For them to accept a lady senior pastor is something that will not happen. But there was this stirring within me. The search committee started searching and invited some pastors but none was accepted.

They then called Pastor Lim and he approached me and asked why don't you come in and we do it together. There was a lot of uncertainty and praying. The church was searching for one pastor and how to say we have two? The church called an EGM and we were both voted in. Pastor Lim's wife is also a credentialed minister but Pastor Lim called me and not the wife so it has to be God.

We enjoyed our ministry together to build the church. Of course there are differences but it does not split the church. Because we are different but in the end we worked together.

After Pastor Lim left to lead an outreach, we embarked on the second building. Pastor Lim handled the first building because as a man he knew more. I knew nothing about building a building but when it was decided I went ahead. I didn't know what I was getting into but we successfully completed the building and is enjoying it. No one left the church after the new building was completed.

When God affirms you he will also open doors for you. I moved into the EXCO and also the Council.  During our time a lot of Bible students married each other. But it's rare for a pastor to marry a layman. We had to go for counselling but after us now many lady pastors also marry laymen.

We have a Love Pastor Fellowship just like Penang. When the Chairman wanted to leave they were looking for someone and everyone was looking at me. All of them are men pastors except for another lady also from AOG yet they accepted me as chairman. YB Hannah Yeah of Subang Jaya looked at me and said you lah.

The calling and the gifting of God is not gender biased. Bil Hybels who runs one of the top churches in America recently appointed a lead lady pastor and a pastor/teacher for Willow Creek.

I just shared with you my journey and it is over 20 years and I'm still doing it. Whenever people talk about Subang Assembly, people just say it's a church with a lady pastor. The church has to affirm the new leader.

3. God will bring you over to the new season.

The people had to know that this is the new season. The people must not dwell in the past because Moses is dead. To cross over to Jordan the people has to be prepared.

Be prepared.

Be committed.

Be supportive.

Joshua 1:16-18 (NIV)

16 Then they answered Joshua, “Whatever you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go. 17 Just as we fully obeyed Moses, so we will obey you. Only may the Lord your God be with you as he was with Moses. 18 Whoever rebels against your word and does not obey it, whatever you may command them, will be put to death. Only be strong and courageous! ”

Now they support and affirm Joshua. And they say what God said to Joshua. Only be strong and courageous. I pray that you all will be likewise. And Joshua led them into the promise land. Do not be like the people of Moses. They complain and murmur. Joshua generation was different. They supported their leader and crossed the Jordan as a united force.

Affirmation and encouragement motivates our leaders. Give them your ultimate support. Not just verbal but practical. Walk alongside. Not support from behind.

New season bring new changes. New pastors will have new approach. We must engage the younger generation and raise them to be part of the team. The church have to change with the times. A new leader can bring about new change. But not just new leaders, but the churches now must engage the younger generation.

My encouragement to you is to engage the younger generation to be in the team. To be a part of the team. The church at large must change and we must change with the times. Help the young generation to embrace the new season by involving them and empowering them. You must trust them and have confidence in them. Allow young leaders to have a say. We have a team of young pastors and assistant pastors. Age 29, 30, 36 and 37. All very young. Our church is in a season where we want to empower younger people.

Our young pastors take turns to preach and conduct communion. They do everything we do. But we also wants to embrace the younger members. Because our pastors are young, they see from the millennial point of view. And we baby boomers are trying hard to understand the millennials. We learn from the younger generation. We learn from them how to reach the young.

I took them to a Hillsong event at Subang Jaya and there they talked about how you prepare the people for the service. From the beginning, the moment the visitor enters into the church, right until the service starts and everything has a checklist. And we went back and walked around our church and I asked what do you all think about our church and they say, it's not warm enough. Because our church is a factory building even though it was renovated. The wall is beige colour and after about 7 years you can see patches, more of a very formal environment.

They say young people don't like these kind of colours. They say we don't have a hospitality lounge and our library is under utilised. So I said okay, I give you all a project, you come up with something new. And do a facelift. So I empowered them. Together with a team of youngsters, they came out with a concept that blew my mind.

Their proposal was that the library was under utilised so get rid of the library. They said move the library elsewhere and they said your books will not attract people but your setting and environment will attract people. So the hospitality lounge will take centre stage and the library and visitor's room which nobody want to go is moved to the side.

So I told the young assistant pastor, I said you come and share the concept with the board and I told the board I empowered the young to do this so don't give them any ideas, because our ideas are old ideas. I said let them tell us what they want. I said I empower them but I am not involved because they have a chat group. All the 3 young pastors are in but I am out.

And these are what they came out with. (PowerPoint slides). This is to show you what young people are capable of doing.

I let the young people make changes to attract the young. Like our library and hospitality lounge. We empower them and they come out with ideas. They come out with ideas and we have to foot the bill. And now our young people are excited. And now they are discussing about a mural wall. Another team of young people are on that. I don't even know. And many of them are only college students. They want to make the place vibrant. If not they said looks like factory. All plain colours, white colours. We empower them but we just have to control their spending.

I am encouraging you that even as your church enters a new season with a new pastor, think of embracing the younger generation. You'll be surprised that with a little bit of guidance, young people can do a better job than us. May the Lord bless you.

Stand Firm

Pastor Daniel Loh

This is where we desire to worship him with all our heart and I believe as we leave this place we will be inspired and be glad we attended this service.

This is not a farewell sermon even though Ps Ronald has done much in Malaysia and going down under. But I believe he is not finished in terms of ministry.

You heard I mentioned two words, complete and finish. It's different. Let me give you an example. When you married the right woman, you are complete. And all the women say? Amen.  When you marry the wrong woman, you are finished. See the difference now? When your wife catches you with another woman, you are completely finished. Now all the young guys better listen. But when your wife loves going shopping all the time, you are finished completely. I thank God that my wife and I have been in ministry together and often we conduct workshops. I work she shops.

I want to look at the last chapter of Nehemiah and the key word is stand firm.

Nehemiah 13:4-12 (NIV)

4 Before this, Eliashib the priest had been put in charge of the storerooms of the house of our God. He was closely associated with Tobiah, 5 and he had provided him with a large room formerly used to store the grain offerings and incense and temple articles, and also the tithes of grain, new wine and olive oil prescribed for the Levites, musicians and gatekeepers, as well as the contributions for the priests.

6 But while all this was going on, I was not in Jerusalem, for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I had returned to the king. Some time later I asked his permission 7 and came back to Jerusalem. Here I learned about the evil thing Eliashib had done in providing Tobiah a room in the courts of the house of God. 8 I was greatly displeased and threw all Tobiah’s household goods out of the room. 9 I gave orders to purify the rooms, and then I put back into them the equipment of the house of God, with the grain offerings and the incense.

10 I also learned that the portions assigned to the Levites had not been given to them, and that all the Levites and musicians responsible for the service had gone back to their own fields. 11 So I rebuked the officials and asked them, “Why is the house of God neglected?” Then I called them together and stationed them at their posts.

12 All Judah brought the tithes of grain, new wine and olive oil into the storerooms.

Nehemiah 13:15 (NIV)

In those days I saw people in Judah treading winepresses on the Sabbath and bringing in grain and loading it on donkeys, together with wine, grapes, figs and all other kinds of loads. And they were bringing all this into Jerusalem on the Sabbath. Therefore I warned them against selling food on that day.

Nehemiah 13:17-18 (NIV)

17 I rebuked the nobles of Judah and said to them, “What is this wicked thing you are doing—desecrating the Sabbath day? 18 Didn’t your ancestors do the same things, so that our God brought all this calamity on us and on this city? Now you are stirring up more wrath against Israel by desecrating the Sabbath.”

Nehemiah 13:23-25 (NIV)

23 Moreover, in those days I saw men of Judah who had married women from Ashdod, Ammon and Moab. 24 Half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod or the language of one of the other peoples, and did not know how to speak the language of Judah. 25 I rebuked them and called curses down on them. I beat some of the men and pulled out their hair. I made them take an oath in God’s name and said: “You are not to give your daughters in marriage to their sons, nor are you to take their daughters in marriage for your sons or for yourselves.

Nehemiah 13:29-31 (NIV)

29 Remember them, my God, because they defiled the priestly office and the covenant of the priesthood and of the Levites.

30 So I purified the priests and the Levites of everything foreign, and assigned them duties, each to his own task. 31 I also made provision for contributions of wood at designated times, and for the firstfruits. Remember me with favor, my God.

Nehemiah himself is a first rank character study. A man of prayer. A man of faith. A man of courage and action. You realise that his heart is always for God and the nation of Israel. He wanted to rebuild the temple of God. The Book of Nehemiah falls into two sections, Reconstruction and Reinstruction. The theme of this Book talks about God's security, protection and strength. When you study this book of 13 chapters, first chapter talks about concern, second to third chapter talks about construction, fourth to six talks about conflict, seventh to twelve talks about consecration and now coming to the end of chapter thirteen, it's about cleansing.

After Nehemiah completed the task of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, he kept his promise to the king and returned to Babylon where he resumed his duty as the king's cup bearer.

Twelve years have passed. He found that in his absence many things have changed. Not for the better but for the worst. Like this country many who may have left the country and came back expecting the country to be better but it was worst.

He came back and saw the people were sinning once again. Once again. It is not just to the people of Israel, but it can also happen to us. If we are not moving forward we are sliding backwards. I call it spiritual decay. Temptations are increasing and everything is more difficult. It's tougher following Jesus Christ everyday.

I tell my children at home that as a disciple of Jesus Christ we must fly high and aim high. Fly high last long. We may start off very well and fly high but how long can you last? All of us are on the same team. We fly high and last long. Then we meet Jesus at the end of the day, he will say well done my faithful servant.

In the midst of internal and external circumstances Nehemiah was a man who stood firm. He dealt with the difficulties. We may be like Nehemiah. Where we want to turn the community and believers back to God.

1. Stand firm when you are in the danger of compromise. V1-9

Compromises was happening within Israel. They have defiled and forsaken the temple of God. They allowed an Ammonite into the temple of God. Tobiah who was an evil man against Nehemiah is now given a room in the temple of God. Imagine how Nehemiah felt when he returned after twelve years. To find his enemy staying in the temple. He acted immediately and threw Tobiah out of the temple and cleansed the temple. Compromise.

Christianity Today magazine has pastors and elders of the church as subscribers. And the statistics were bad and discipline of church members are low. Our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and we are to keep our purity.

Compromise is a very dangerous evil. If we allow the Tobiahs to stay in our heart.

2. Stand firm when you face the anger of selfishness v10-14

He rebuked the leaders for the lack of faithfulness in giving. They stopped maintaining the temple and teaching the people. They stopped giving to God. A misuse of finance and selfishness and found its way into the people. He acted immediately.

He made sure that the rulers were paid. Imagine the lead pastors and leaders are not paid. Because the people of God are not giving they have no choice but to stop and go out to find work to support their families. This was what happened during those times.

Giving tithes to the church was no longer their responsibility. God has his way to run his organisation. And we have to look into Scripture and stay responsible in terms of the duty that we have. I have been thought during early days of my life about tithing. If you go online there are many articles that do not believe in tithing. I believe tithing is a matter of the heart. It is not about blessing. That is not the idea. If we think God bless us back by monetary wise then we will put all our money into church.

Many wants to be a millionaire by 30 but what is wealth without health? Work so hard that they neglected their health and they put all their money back to the hospital. We have to be responsible and pay our tithes. If we stay to the principles of tithing we do not need to raise funds for building.

Here the people of God has been so called poisoned in their minds that they neglected the house of God. Our finances speak volumes about our relationship with God. When our heart is not there we find it difficult to support the work of God. This morning we have to ask ourselves this question. Are we a giver or are we a receiver? Are we generous or selfish? Just a poem to remind us to not let money be our God.

Money will buy you a bed but not sleep.

Food but not appetite.

A house but not a home.

Medicine but not good health.

Luxury but not culture.

Entertainment but not happiness.

Religion but not salvation.

A Visa to anywhere on planet earth, but not heaven.

Friends, always remember that the only way to be free of the tyranny of money is to give back to God. Obey God's principles of tithing and be generous in offerings. I pray your whole Christmas tree will be overflowing with ribbons. Stay free from the danger of selfishness.

3. Stand firm when you face the danger of conveniences v 15-22

They did not observe the Sabbath. A time of rest and the Israelites focused on God instead of other things. That was the day of the Lord. Many no longer practice the Sabbath but instead compromised by doing all kinds of business wanting to make more money.

They had plenty of excuses like all of us. They were making knowingly and unknowingly wealth their idols. Nehemiah handled this promptly. He stopped working on Sabbath and banned the merchants from bringing their products on Sabbath.

Convenient Christianity. Well if it's convenient I'll come to church. If it's convenient I'll let my children come for special services. If it's convenient I'll come to prayer meeting. If it's not convenient I'll not come to church. It's not convenient for me to come because God has blessed us with a big house by the sea but it's not so convenient because it's now far away.

A parent ask a young girl do you want to go to church? So young girl of 12 say she's tired so don't go to church. We cannot ask a young girl whether to come to church. We cannot give them that choice. Young teenagers are at a time where they want to rebel and when you tell them to come to church they ask why? Church is boring. Convenient Christianity have creeped into the church. I'm glad all my church families and their children come and serve in church.

A lot of Christians today come to church to want to be blessed. When they see they are not blessed they hop to another church because they were not blessed. We should instead ask what can we do to bless the church. This is the church God has placed you here.

I pastor a church where there is so much pressure. I started to pastor a church with only 30 people. I'm not competing with another church because it's his church. I was associate pastor in a big church doing everything. Worship pastor, youth pastor and I grew there. I did everything in that church. I love going and serving in church.

Sad that today there is this convenient Christianity. Spiritual decay of if I feel like coming I'll come. How is your daily and weekly commitment to church? Are you busy making money God is blessing you but you neglect your commitment to church.

4. Stand firm when you face the danger of wrong relationships v 23-31

There were mixed marriages then. I'm not talking of inter-racial marriages. The Israelites compromised by marrying pagan women. It was so bad that many of the children of Israel couldn't even speak Hebrew. If they cannot speak Hebrew the next generation and generation to come will not be able to read Scripture and learn from the teachers and  Levites.

He called for curses to come upon them and beat some of them up and pulled out their hair. Can you imagine the lead pastor do that to us today?

Because of inter-marriages, many gods entered into the lives of the Israelites. That was the reason he was so angry. Paul talked about being unequally yolk with an unbeliever. How many think that when they fall in love with an unbeliever thinking that later they can become a believer. I can say that many of those end up no longer going to church. Or no longer a Christian.

They were so committed in church but the parents ask them whether there are any in church. If not they'll ask why not look for someone outside of church. And they even recommend someone from outside. He look like a Christian, sound like a Christian but is not a Christian. After a while, they stopped coming to church.

This is where many out of desperation decided to venture in that direction. Sad. But that's the reality of the situation nowadays. Getting married is not the best thing in the world. Being single can also be God's will.

There are three things for a good marriage. First is physical attraction. That's true. Even though you see some marriages and you see their physical appearance so far apart yet they love one another. You ask what do you see in the person, but it's only the person knows. Second is emotional compatibility. The third to me is most important and that's spiritual unity. It's so important to have the same faith. Husband and wife cannot pray together. Nehemiah saw this and immediately handled this situation. It affects us and the people around us.

We are most affected by the books we read and the friends we have. Wrong relationships can spiritually damage us. Do they draw you closer to God or do they draw you away from God? This is where Nehemiah say stand firm when you stand in danger of being lured away.

We can learn from this man Nehemiah. He had nothing in his heart but his love for God and his desire to please God.

That's why he ended with this prayer. Remember me with favour, my God. Have you ever prayed that kind of prayer? God will remember us. Why? Because he loves you. But to pray for God's favour, be willing to come back. To remember us with favour. He desires us to draw near to him and to stand firm. He is ever ready to guide and lead you. And you can stand and declare yourself a child of God to fly high and last long.

Better is One Day in your Court

Pastor Bryan Ranjan

Senior Pastor of Putera Aman Assembly

God is a good God. I came many years ago under Pastor Geoffrey's time. I'm from the state of Selangor and raised in Selayang. It's a Chinese area even though I'm an Indian. I knew God led me there and God has been good.

Ps Ronald and Ps Jasmine are my spiritual parents. When I had my girlfriend Pastor Ronald was the first person I showed her photo to. He also dedicated my three kids.

This morning I want to do a little stress test to see if you need a holiday.

I'm going to be showing you a slide. I don't know how exactly this works, but it is amazingly accurate. The picture I will show you are 2 identical dolphins and was used in a recent case study on stress levels at St. Mary Hospital, London.

Look at the two dolphins jumping out of the water and the study shows that although both dolphins are identical, a person under stress would find differences in the dolphins. The more differences the person finds, the more stress the person is experiencing.

If you see a difference, you need a holiday.

(Slide of a dolphin and cow jumping out of the water.)

Psalms 84:1-11 (NIV)

For the director of music. According to gittith. Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm.

1 How lovely is your dwelling place,

Lord Almighty!

2 My soul yearns, even faints,

for the courts of the Lord;

my heart and my flesh cry out

for the living God.

3 Even the sparrow has found a home,

and the swallow a nest for herself,

where she may have her young—

a place near your altar,

Lord Almighty, my King and my God.

4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house;

they are ever praising you.

5 Blessed are those whose strength is in you,

whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.

6 As they pass through the Valley of Baka,

they make it a place of springs;

the autumn rains also cover it with pools.

7 They go from strength to strength,

till each appears before God in Zion.

8 Hear my prayer, Lord God Almighty;

listen to me, God of Jacob.

9 Look on our shield, O God;

look with favor on your anointed one.

10 Better is one day in your courts

than a thousand elsewhere;

I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield;

the Lord bestows favor and honor;

no good thing does he withhold

from those whose walk is blameless.

12 Lord Almighty,

blessed is the one who trusts in you.

My forte has always been worship and this passage is on temple worship. We can meet God anywhere and anytime but going into the temple allows us to step inside and worship the living God.

It is a Psalm not written by David and it talks about the significance of stepping into the house of God. There are now online sermons and people may say you don't need to go to church.

There is something about being in God's house. He has made known the reason why we go into the house of God.

1 How lovely is your dwelling place,

Lord Almighty!

2 My soul yearns, even faints,

for the courts of the Lord;

my heart and my flesh cry out

for the living God.

3 Even the sparrow has found a home,

and the swallow a nest for herself,

where she may have her young—

a place near your altar,

Lord Almighty, my King and my God.

Verse one the Psalmist made it known that God dwells in his house. That is the only reason needed for us to be in his house.

The Psalmist is consumed by the intense desire to worship God in the temple.

Even the creatures made their home near to God's altar.

Everybody needs their own home. Everybody had their own activities or their own passion. That is where you'd put your time in. The Psalmist is saying his passion is to be in the house of God. He yearns to be in the presence of God.

The creatures has found the temple their home. What about us? People are a bit restless. Moving from one church to another, especially in KL. But the Psalmist is saying these birds found their home. We need to find a home to belong to. Where we can place ourselves close to God's house. 

It allows the people to come in to encounter God. To worship God in God's house.

My friends in Australia said the Catholics used to have a one hour service while the Pentecostal churches have two hour services. But now it's the other way around. The Catholic Churches are having two hour services while the charismatic and Pentecostal churches has one hour services.

4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house;

they are ever praising you.

5 Blessed are those whose strength is in you,

whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.

6 As they pass through the Valley of Baka,

they make it a place of springs;

the autumn rains also cover it with pools.

7 They go from strength to strength,

till each appears before God in Zion.

If you are found in the house of God you are blessed. Period.

Then the next verse it shifted gear. The harsh journey to Jerusalem. Along the way some will give up. Some may even die. But then as they pass through the Valley of Baka, means the valley of tears. Physically this journey was draining. This is where they get refreshed and rejuvenated and revived. Because of this pool of water.

And they will go from strength to strength before they go into Zion. We are on a pilgrimage. We are on a journey. Carrying our cross is about suffering. It is not easy. We go through one challenge after another challenge. Life is not easy at times. We are going through this spiritual walk.

Then God brings you to the valley of Baka. Water revives us. This is what the Psalmist is trying to tell us. When we come to the house of God, this is our Valley of Baka. It is not ritual or tradition. God's presence is here and he sees your challenges and burdens.

These Israelites were on their journey to Zion. Our journey is to the New Jerusalem. Some people are making their pilgrimage to Jerusalem but ours is the New Jerusalem.

The house of God is where you get refreshed week after week.

We have a Myanmar service that meets at midnight to two in the morning. Because most of them work at restaurants and they come after work. After working you normally need their rest. But it is where they get their strength. We sometimes say the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak, but here they get their strength.

8 Hear my prayer, Lord God Almighty;

listen to me, God of Jacob.

9 Look on our shield, O God;

look with favor on your anointed one.

10 Better is one day in your courts

than a thousand elsewhere;

I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield;

the Lord bestows favor and honor;

no good thing does he withhold

from those whose walk is blameless.

12 Lord Almighty,

blessed is the one who trusts in you.

This is the last part of Psalms 84. He is talking about divine protection, favour and shield. Verses 11 and 12 says those who walk blameless gets divine protection.

I experienced this once. I was sending my son to kindergarten and was on my way to work. As I was driving I saw what was like a landslide. And I stopped and saw a crane crashed down in front of me and when I got out of my car the people told me I was fortunate. So I made a police report. It came out in the papers.

A few days after that I spoke to a Baptist pastor and he asked me if it was me. He asked if I'm okay. And I said I was reading Psalms 91 that morning and was very alert. He said what! Because that morning he was reading Psalms 91 and he wanted to call me. God's divine protection.

I want to end with verse 10.

10 Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere;

I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

Spurgeon puts it together for us.

"One Day" - Days in God's courts. Days of hearing, of repenting, of believing, of adoration, of communion, of revival.

"in your courts" - To feel his love, to rejoice in the person of the anointed Saviour, to survey the promises and feel the power of the Holy Ghost in applying precious truth to the soul, is a joy which the world cannot understand.

"Door Keeper" - Depicts Humility and the zealousness to serve in the House of the Lord. The lowest station in connection with the Lord's house is better than the highest position among the godless.

• Charles Spurgeon

Young people what are you doing this morning. The elderly what are you doing today. You are making your memories and make them good.

I remember I went to the Doulos ship and I was all fired up. A white man made a call if anyone would want to join this mission.  And I put up my hands but this man behind me tap me and said brother, you are taking your SPM exam.

I loved going to the house of God. What was I doing? I was making memories. We will declare this morning what the Psalmist declared. Better is one day in the he courts of God and a thousand elsewhere.