Home Thoughts From Abroad

We have been engaged in pursuing our Master’s in Intercultural Studies with Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, California for the last year. We looked long and hard for a program at the Master’s level that would be useful in our ministry in Southeast Asia; something that would allow us to deepen our understanding of the people that we work among and provide a forum for an exchange of ministry ideas with others who were likewise engaged in other corners of the Lord’s kingdom. The program at Fuller’s has a terrific online platform that contains video and slide lessons of great depth and quality.

What it doesn’t have – except on the rare occasions when we can be in Seattle where Fuller’s has a campus – is face to face interaction with other students, and the privilege of asking real time questions of the professor giving the lecture. So it was with great joy that we discovered there was a Bible College in Kuala Lumpur whose courses would be accepted for credit with Fuller. This past week we have been engaged in a course called Sharing the Gospel with People of Other Faiths, which was taught by Dr. Ajith Fernando (the tall fellow in the blue shirt, pictured above).

Dr. Ajith (everyone in Asia uses the friendlier first name in addressing others) is a Sri Lankan Christian who has been country director for Youth for Christ for many years. He is the author of two dozen books and has been engaged in a teaching ministry in his native Sri Lanka and internationally. His own books formed the core of our study, and it was a great privilege to be in a classroom setting with him and listen to him illustrate his teaching points with a wealth of stories from his own ministry over the last forty years. He had a warmth and humility that in the words of scripture ‘adorn the gospel of Christ.’

It was a great joy as well to interact with Malaysian believers both in the classroom and in the meals that we would share together between classes. Malaysia is not an easy country in which to be a Christian these days, as fundamentalism is on the rise and restrictions on the Christian faith seem to be increasing. Recently the appeals court overturned a ruling by the Supreme Court regarding the use of the name of God, an issue that has led to the banning of Bibles being brought into the country by less intolerant countries such as Indonesia.

Yet Christians remain steadfast in their faith and joyful in their fellowship. They are also extremely gracious to those who come from other lands to help them. It was our joy to share with them in learning to be better equipped to serve the God of Glory in this part of the world and we look forward to taking other classes locally in the New Year that will make it possible to reduce our costs and speed up the completion of our Master’s degrees. It also allows us to share our walk in the Lord as we seek to share our faith in love and encourage others to do the same.

Visit Dr. Ajith’s website at: http://www.ajithfernando.org/

Or listen to him speak at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsXYCG7WED8

This a school break week for CPU which means that Steve is off half days, but it is not a break for the University so he still needs to do that portion of his job.  However Tuesday was an off day for the Islamic New Year so we decided to take a short break away and booked ourselves a room at a lovely hotel in Putra Jaya. Putra Jaya is the new administrative center for the country and is located about a half hour drive out of town.  There is not much out there but exceptionally gorgeous administrative buildings on essentially a man made island surrounded by a man made lake. On holidays and weekends it is pretty much deserted.

The hotel was pretty much deserted too which worked well for us as we had a very quiet little tapas restaurant all to ourselves for the entire evening. It wasn’t even staffed so the servers from a nearby bar just brought us our food and let us be. After a light meal we took a stroll along the lake to see the lights on the bridges and water and settled into our own private wing of the hotel and slept.

It was only when we woke up ten hours later that it dawned on both of us that we actually live in an incredibly noisy part of the world. It being a major Indian festival this week, the firecrackers have been going off all night for probably the last three weeks- sometimes multiple little ones at a time and other times single explosions that echo through the building and shake the windows. We get a nice early start with the call to prayer. No wonder we feel exhausted at times.

In spite of the fact that we have been to the north and south of Thailand on multiple occasions and loved it, we have not had much interest in seeing Bangkok. Every time we did consider a visit there the city was in a uproar, it was flooded or the airport was shut down by protesters. However, this past week everything lined up for us to see what our friends George and Deb describe as their favourite  place on earth.

We had a wonderful weekend getting caught up with our friends Gary and Kveta who have now moved on to a teaching position in Pakistan. The hotel was lovely and very reasonably priced for a great little suite. We did make some effort at sightseeing but mostly we just sat around the hotel or the pool chatting.

Bangkok has endless malls, some quiet green spaces and incredibly beautiful temples, one with a solid gold Buddha that sits about four meters high.  We struggled through JJ Market which is supposed to be the largest such market in the world and walked forever to see the waterfront. Steve had to head back on Monday for work so he did some touring around on his own while the rest of us hit the pool.

I stayed on to attend the 4/14 Window Movement Global Summit which was attended by almost 1000 missiologists, theologians, church and mission leaders and practitioners representing 70 nations. Hosted by Compassion Thailand and the Christian Broadcasting Network, and Promise Church in New York, it was an organizational marvel, especially considering that the organizing team only actually met face to face twice due to their geographical challenges. The 4/14 refers to the demographic of children aged four to fourteen who are our future leaders, and are marginalized by the world and the church yet have a significant role to play. The speakers and children themselves challenged us with the need to ensure that they are solidly “Rooted” and then “Released” with support to do the work they are being prepared to do. It was a very intense learning time but a privilege to hear the heart of so many who have dedicated their lives to serving “the least of these”.

After a two hour drive and a quick tour of the village, we started work Thursday at noon with a cleared site and  eight prefabricated concrete blocks.

By the time we broke for dinner at 5:30 the frame was constructed and we, the roofing team, had most of our pieces measured and cut.

An 8:30 start in the relative coolness of Friday morning enabled us to make some real progress before lunch.

By the end of the day, in spite of a break for a heavy downpour mid afternoon, we definitely had a house taking shape and had even begun the roofing. There is a kitchen with built-in cupboards, a living area, two bedrooms and a verandah, it is really quite spacious.

On Saturday we began again at 8:30 and worked straight through until we celebrated the placement of the  final cap on the roof at 2:00 p.m.

Sadly we had to leave early to make the drive north but we were on target to finish by the end of the day. The team had the painting well in hand, the doors were ready to hang and the interior walls were partially clad in plywood. It was really rewarding to look back at our little house in the forest as we made our way to the car, knowing that at least Juri and his family have a safe place to live.

We know that this is a long way from the type of holistic community development that we would like to see happening but it is a start and we are so grateful for the relationships that are beginning to develop.

When Juri and his sixteen year old bride married  there was no more land available in the village for them to build a home. They were forced to build a one room bamboo and woven grass structure suspended on stilts over a gully behind her parents’ one room house.  Now five years later they have three little boys aged four, three, and one and a few months ago the floor in their tiny home had rotted to the point it was no longer safe to remain. With no other options, they all moved into the house with her parents.

Juri’s Dad owned some land in the nearby forest and this is where we were able to build their new home.  Once the materials for the home arrived on site two days before the build, Juri built a small lean-to and moved there to protect his property and the building materials that had arrived. In order to get his new house, Juri is required to work with the team and then to go on and assist with the build of at least two further homes.  After participating in three builds, he will qualify as a master builder and could potentially earn some money for his family by working on other projects.

Once we began the build, his family joined him in the lean-to to watch the progress on their new house. His dad was also happy to help as much as possible.  It was really neat to watch them proudly working alongside the team.  It is rewarding to know that this little family will, at least be safe from the elements. I also know that this is still a long way from holistic community development and I long to see that happening in Orang Asli villages some day.

Epic Homes is a modular house developed by young Malaysian entrepreneurs to meet the need for housing among the indigenous people of Malaysia. These people, known as the Orang Asli, have been left behind in the rush to modernization that has occurred since this country gained its independence from Britain after WWII. The Orang Asli still live on the land of their ancestors, who predate the Malays who pushed into Borneo from the Philippines a thousand years ago, and then into the mainland about five hundred years ago. Marginalized by their lack of education and access to health care, many are among the hardcore poor of the nation.

More than simply a solution to the problem of sturdy housing, a significant need in and of itself, Epic Homes has designed their project as a team leadership building opportunity for local companies who sponsor the house and then send their management team out to the remote villages where the Orang Asli live to construct the house over a weekend. This past weekend Taylor’s University sent 45 of its leaders to a tiny village two hours north of Kuala Lumpur to build a house for a needy family.

A lot of thought has gone in to the design of this house. The intention was that anyone, not matter how little they understood construction, could assist in the build in some way. Some had quite literally never picked up a hand tool in their lives. Some, like Pam and I, had renovated several houses and knew what we were doing. No one was injured; everyone learned the value of teamwork and the importance of sequence in a project this size.

Pam and I were chosen to work on the roof; somewhat of a surprising selection, given our age. But we gamely set about to do what we were assigned in good spirits. It turns out that we still have both the skills and the endurance to take on such a physically demanding assignment. From lifting the heavy tile panels to installing them head down on the slope of the roof suspended only by a safety harness and my partners grip on my belt, we acquitted ourselves far better than we would have thought possible.

With a wedding in Penang to attend and a dinner engagement on the Saturday before the wedding, our goal was to finish the roof by noon, if possible, so that we could leave in good conscience with our task completed. Not far off our goal, we were done by 1:30 and on our way by 2 pm, threading our way through unnamed backroads to the main highway, and dashing north through a tremendous downpour to reach Batu Ferringhi in time for a shower and supper at 7:30. The thought that our colleagues had a dry place to shelter from the veritable deluge of rain was a great comfort.

We find it nothing short of amazing that we can still do this kind of thing at our age, and credit the Lord for His goodness in preserving our health and strength so that we can continue to serve Him in whatever way He directs. We thank Him also for keeping us safe from injury in what easily could have been a number of accidents that simply never happened. It was our joy to be of help to a needy family.

We count it a real privilege to have the opportunity to join the university leadership team to build a home for an Orang Asli family living a few hours north of the city.  This little family of five had been living in a one room house until the floor fell through and are desperately in need of a home.  In order to be part of the building team, we were required to attend a six hour workshop designed to familiar I with standard tools and yes, we learned how to use a hammer, screw driver and a drill.  For many of our Malaysian colleagues this was the first time they had ever used a hand tool, they hire workers to do those things.  We even built the windows of the house to practice using the tools.

We Steve having taught shop for 18 years and the two of us completely renovating three houses, we didn’t have much that was new to learn.  However the key purpose of the workshop introduced us to the underlying goals of the “Sojourn to Batang Kali”. We will certainly support a family and be an encouragement to a community but the vision of the university is that this will be the first step in forming a core group of leaders with a desire to change the culture by their own personal involvement as their example to the students to become compassionate members of society.

In preparation we were asked to read a book called  Barefoot Leadership,  an interesting read of ordinary Malaysian individuals who have gone barefoot into their own journey of bringing about profound change in the lives of others.  We even had the joy of meeting one of those individuals, Brother John D’Cruz and to hear his life story, which is well worthy of a separate post. We left excited, having begun to build relationships with some amazing people and looking forward to three days in the 35 degree heat of a rain forest, building a house in the rainy season. We will keep you posted!

Yesterday I hit one of those mornings when you just don’t want to do it anymore. I’m sixty-four. I can retire now. How nice it would be to stay home and work on my Master’s. I could read, I could write. I could sit down and have a nice cup of tea. I shared this with Pam on the way out the door and she smiled and gently remonstrated. She knows how tired I get some mornings, especially when I am restless and get up at three.

There was not a lot on that day. I stopped to talk to my supervisor about the weekend’s activities and how the center in Raub where we visited yesterday could be the focus of the kind of community outreach we are trying to develop. He was interested, but he has many more things on his plate than what I am trying to do.

So when he mentioned that he wanted me to be part of a meeting that was happening that morning I was more than a little surprised. I gathered my iPad, grateful that I had spent the 150 ringgit for a bluetooth keypad and the ten bucks for the Pages app that makes taking notes with this device a little easier to do, and headed out.

We met in the library with about a dozen others and I soon found out that the key speaker was the young man who had developed a modular housing unit that I had heard so much about since our return. His project group, Epic Homes, has been the focus of a lot of attention, not only here at the university, but nationally as well. These homes can be constructed in a weekend using a minimum of tools and expertise and are much in demand among the Orang Asli.

There is much I could say about the meeting; how pleasant it was to have my contribution to the development of community service acknowledged and recognized; how important it was to meet so many key players in this process in one room. But the key ingredient for me was the take away at the end. I stayed for a moment to talk to the young man who is behind Epic Homes; Johnson is his name. I offered my help to him as one who had some experience in hand and power tools, having taught the subject for 18 years in the early part of my career.

To cut a long story short, it looks as if my expertise in this area is going to be useful in the development of this project among the Orang Asli. He asked me to come on board as a technical advisor. I don’t know how all this is going to work out at this point. All I’m thinking of at the moment is how very indicative of the nature of God to have built these experiences into my life so many years ago. Perhaps the Lord doesn’t want me to retire just yet!

This is my new gig: Taylor’s University. I have to giggle at the thought that it took me 32 years to ‘graduate’ to high school and another 6 to ‘graduate’ to university. I am not teaching here (yet), though I do not rule out the possibility that I will be someday. I am working on developing ‘student service modules;’ that would be learning outcomes within the curriculum that have a community service component.

I am not teaching at all at present, although because of the requirements of my work visa I have to do a couple of hours’ tutorial assistance in the program where I used to teach. But my new job requires me to help teachers to design curricula to enable them to teach. I suppose that will have to do for now. I am not actually writing much curriculum either at the moment as I am pretty busy just getting to know the players and see what they are already doing. As with any new position there is going to be a steep learning curve in this one.

You might be inclined to wonder why we would want to put ourselves through this at our age. We ask ourselves the same thing from time to time. The Lord isn’t saying much through His word except to direct our attention to passages that speak of rejoicing in the opportunity to make His name more widely known. That will have to do for now until His makes His purpose more clear. I have never known Him to be reluctant to do so, although He has shown Himself more than passingly adept at choosing His time to coincide with our requisite understanding.

We also continue our outreach and mentoring of new staff and support for those who have been here for a while. Pam is preparing new ministry initiatives in East Malaysia and we are both continuing with our Master’s. It is a full dance card, no doubt about it. Right now, still tired and dealing with separation from our families, it feels more like effort and less like joy. But serving the Lord is a privilege that we don’t take for granted. Psalm 30:5 says: “weeping may last for a night, but joy comes in the morning.”  Dawn is coming.