So as I told you in the last blog I was going to explaining the word “Busy� in the actual recap blog. This month has been filled with change, variety, adventure, travel, and meeting friendly faces. It is hard to believe that we are packing our bags and leaving to head to our next ministry month. This month we worked with Pastor Edwin a minister at a Methodist church here in Kulua Lumpur (KL). He lined up several different ministry sites for us throughout the month. We started in Kajang, then went to Pengkalan Hulu (near the Thailand border), and we ended back in Kulua Lumpur. In each town we had different contacts and different avenues to minister to the people.
We started the month on a bus headed to KL from Singapore. When we arrived we hopped on a train to a location forty five minutes outside of KL — Kajang. There we worked with the Kajang Assembly of God Church. We were there for one week. We started with a much needed day of rest and started ministry the next day.
On Friday morning we ministered with the Super Fun Kids preschool program. We were there for about one hour; while there with did a skit on David and Goliath, sang a few songs, and played a game were they had to act out the animal noise we gave them. It was a very fun morning.
Then we met Chi, who took us to a Burmese Refugee School. There we taught English. I taught the youngest children the ABCs and how to count to ten. It was very interesting to say the least; some of the children were very feisty. We also sang a few songs with motions. We were the first foreigners to visit the school. The kids were so cute.
Chi helps with the young adults and college ministry at the church. She took us to Nottingham University to meet some of the Christian students and to do a prayer walk around the campus. We split up into two groups; my group went to where the Christian organization was practicing for an event that they were hosting. We talked to some of the students, told them what we were doing and then prayed on the event. After that we just walked around the campus with one of the Christian students.
To end the day we again split up into two groups and attended two different cell groups (which are like bible studies). Chelsea O, Mike and I went to the young adult group where most in attending were around our age. They fed us supper, which was very good. Then we worshiped, talked about our trip, and Q&A. They even sang happy birthday to be and served chocolate cake for dessert. I met some really nice people; one girl who scrapbooks and another who does wedding flowers. It was nice to chat with them and share my story and interests with them.
Saturday started bright and early with breakfast with the youth leaders. We were able to encourage them to step out in faith. At breakfast I had my Malaysian birthday cake— Roti Tissue Milo, it was so good. It was a great time of laughter, conversation and fellowship while having breakfast.
Later on in the afternoon we attended youth group also known as Powerhouse. There we worshiped with Genae giving a message on Prayer and then we just hung out with the kids. After that we went to the Young adult service. While there we did a skit on Mold Jesus to be like us, but at the end we wanted to mold ourselves like Jesus. We shared a few testimonies about why we came on the race and what we left behind. Then some of the people took us out to supper at a Chinese restaurant. It was so good. After supper they came back to where we were staying and had some cake with us for my birthday. Here in Malaysia a lot of people can speak five different languages, so I had Happy Birthday sung to be five different times.
On Sunday we lead worship at the youth service (Powerhouse) and did the same skit we did the night before. Then we broke up into groups so that the youth could ask us questions about the trip, general information, and any other things that they are going through. It was a great way to bond with the youth at the church.
Our contacts in Kajang took us sightseeing that afternoon to Putrajaya. We toured around the government, temples, a really awesome bridge, and even went to a mall — a great away to fellowship with our contact and his family.
We attended three cell groups where they feed us 27 plates full of food. We had to each every bit of the food so the people would feel like we liked the meal they served us. It was their way of blessing us for serving and ministering to them while there. It was a great experience that I definitely will remember.
The church just started a graveyard, so one day we helped clean the area. We did some weeding, burning brush, and general cleaning. It was fun to be able to help the members of the church do this project. After the cleaning the graveyard, it was a total transformation.
The most memorable experience of this week was going to the remote village. I have so much to say about this trip that I am going to post a link to the blog I posted about this experience. (http://laurenblack.theworldrace.org/?filename=there-is-a-first-time-for-everything)
The church also had a preschool which we helped with a few morning doing songs, teaching English, and just loving on the kids. One day we split into groups and did flashcards with the kids. It was a great time with the kids.
Pengkalan Hulu, was a great ministry site. We did and tried a lot of new things. Pastor Loh our contact was a sweet lady, who had a lot of determination. When we left Pengkalan Hulu she said it would never be the same.
The last week here in Malaysia was spent helping with three different churches. One a Methodist church in Kuala Lumpur; where we helped with their soccer outreach program. While at the program we gave a little talk about there is no “Iâ€� in team. We helped with practice also– I will not be a soccer player any time soon.
On Easter Sunday, we brought the message at Good Sheppard Lutheran Church. I had the privilege of giving the message, here is the link to my message (http://laurenblack.theworldrace.org/?filename=letting-things-go). Our team also did a skit and sang during the service. They feed us an Indian lunch afterwards which will prepare us for next month —India.
We were able to have cell group with part of his family and a friend of his from Indonesia. We spoke a little bit about our trip and different events that have happened since the race. We also prayed for Pastor Edwin’s brother who has a spot on his pancreas. His friend from Indonesia, Dr. Israel, prayed a very powerful prayer over us.
We wanted to bless this church and we decided as a team to paint a mural on the entrance wall. It was a great team bonding experience and truly blessed the church.
This pretty much sums up the month here in Malaysia—a very busy, interesting, and definitely a growth month.
Until next time, take care and God Bless.
