About a week ago, I went for my appointment at CGH for my eye. I thought of an appointment last year for my eye when I heard the nurse calling for PJ Thomas to see the doctor. ‘That’s someone I know, when I was on board the Doulos where my brother, Andrew Lerh and his family were BC’s missionary on Doulos.’ We finished our appointment at about the same time and decided to have lunch together to catch up. Then, I literally bumped into a lady who looked troubled and had just seen the doctor because of her heart condition and was also going to have her lunch. I apologised, we introduced ourselves and chatted. PJ started telling some jokes.
Then the lady said that she feels happy being with us. We had waited for more than 2 hours to see the doctor, and sharing the Gospel was not on our minds. But we did. To cut the long story short, on the way out of the hospital, prompted by the Holy Spirit, we asked if she would like to give her heart to Jesus. She said ‘yes’, and I led her in the salvation prayer. All glory to God! Visibly happy, she then said PJ stands for ‘Praise Jesus.’ After she left, PJ and I felt indescribable joy and we had to calm down before we could go home.
This also reminds me of our meeting Mr Wee, the boss of a shop in Kuching (after visiting Living Waters Village), where we bought pepper and stuff after eating the famous Sarawak laksa and kolo mee. He commented that we are so happy. I said that it is Jesus who gives us real joy! We were not able to share very much but prayed for him.
Blood
During our trip to Living Waters Village December 2018, I recall the true story of a boy from the Dayak tribe who said that he ‘shot two children through the head and killed them.’ They were from the enemy tribe, ‘Madurese and not worth living’ and that they will do anything to protect their tribe. If we do not kill them, they will kill us.
Worse was to come. He continued that they ate their flesh and drank their blood so that they would become stronger than their enemies (tradition of ‘sakti’). When Ronny heard this, he nearly vomited. Then the boy started to cry as guilt and remorse set in. Through sessions of ministering to him, including Jesus’ blood can cleanse sinners of the bondage of sin if they repent, he was delivered and set free and made peace through the blood of Christ shed on the cross (Col 3:20). Today, he is a fine young man married to one of the ladies at LWV.
It is blood flowing through the heart that enables us to live. It is the cleansing power of the blood of Jesus Christ (Zec 13:1, I John 1:7, Eph 1:7), the life-giving blood of Christ that gives us eternal life when we receive Him.
There is a fountain filled with blood Drawn from Immanuel’s veins
And sinners plunged beneath that flood Lose all their guilty stains.
These words definitely meant a lot for the boy at LWV and for us. There is a turning away from the horrific rituals to the wonderful grace of Jesus. And, as the chorus of another hymn goes, ‘There is power, power, wondrous working power, in the blood of the Lamb’ (lyrics by Lewis Edgar Jones 1899).
What is our response to the bump and the blood? We could make evangelism our lifestyle and respond positively to ‘Would you do service for Jesus your King? There’s power in the blood, power in the blood; Would you live daily His praises to sing? There’s wonderful power in the blood.’
Deacon Dr Vivien Ler
