1 May 2008, KL, Malaysia - Sulene
I visited Subang Jaya Gospel Centre in KL, Malaysia with the family on Sunday. This fellowship of believers created a warm, welcoming experience for me and among them, I sensed a lot of what God intended the church to BE. Church is not about a building or a social club, but it is all about obedience to the great commision of being and making disciples! Church is being one body with many parts that reflects the glory of God.
On the same morning, all the GCX08 teams were also visiting 5 different churches in and around KL as part of their Malaysia challenge. It was great to hear the wonderful praise reports from each and every team of what God has invested in his church in Malaysia and how He is raising up a generation of believers that impacts the earth.
I experienced Sunday's service as the coming together of believers to celebrate the glory of our risen Lord, Jesus Christ. And what struck me most and challenged my thoughts and behaviour, were the words of two of the songs we sang. It was songs from Spectrum of Praise and I was not familiar with the words or the melodies before - maybe this is why God could use them to truly touch my heart! With the songs we know so well, I often catch myself singing along without reflecting upon the true meaning and implications of the words...
MAKE ME A CHANNEL OF YOUR PEACE
(Sebastian Temple, from Francis of Assisi)
Make me a channel of your peace
Where there is hatred let me bring your love
Where there is injury, your pardon, Lord
And where there's doubt, true faith in you
O Master, grant that I may never seek
So much to be consoled as to console
To be understood as to understand
To be loved as to love with all my soul
Make me a channel of your peace
Where there's despair in life let me bring hope
nWhere there is darkness, only light
And where there's sadness, ever joy
Make me a channel of your peace
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned
In ginving to all men that we receive
And in dying that we're born to eternal life.
I OFFER MY LIFE
(Claire Cloninger and Don Moen)
All things that I am, all things that I have
I lay them down before you, O Lord
All my regrets, all my acclaim
The joy and the pain - I'm making them yours
Lord, I offer my life to you
Everything I've been through
Use it for your glory
Lord, i offer my days to you
Lifting my praise to you
As a pleasing sacrifice
Lord, I offer you my life
Things in the past, things yet unseen
wishes and dreams that are yet to come true
All of my hopes, all of my plans
My heart and my hands are lifted to you
What can we give that you have not given
and what do we have that is not already yours
All we posess are these lives we're living
And that's what we give to you Lord