I met the Chuas after church. They visit our church English service once or twice a year when they are in Singapore. They are Malaysians. I was preaching in the deaf congregation. So I went up to the English congregation hall and met them. And they were so excited.
Over a long lunch, I chatted with Chua and he was talking about the exciting, stunning election win of the opposition party alliance, Pakatan Harapan (“Alliance of Hope”), over the then ruling Barisan Nasional party. The unexpected had happened. It surprised a lot of people. It was like Trump beating Clinton – nobody saw it coming.
Chua said, “The Malaysian Christians have been praying for the downfall of the tyrannical and corrupt government and the installation of a righteous government. God has answered their cries.” I rejoiced with the Chuas, and all my friends in Malaysia.
This is wonderful news and I hope that positive and powerful changes would be made to make Malaysia a great country where corruption and injustice is stamped out, the economy produces jobs for all, and all races and religions are respected without favour to any particular one. May the opposition alliance stay together and be united for the long haul and bring about a renewed Malaysia.
Over this week, besides “arsenal news” I often typed, “Malaysian news” on Google search, to see what else God is doing in Malaysia to overthrow injustice and corruption and establish peace, order and honour.
So what is it like to preach to the deaf congregation?
This year, I made myself available to preach in the other congregations’ services. So I was given a date to preach in the deaf church. I would have a sign language interpreter. So I got the sermon on prayer ready and sent it to her so she could familiarise herself with the vocabulary. Actually, Mui Kheng was so good it was not necessary.
I found this out because at the last moment (on Saturday) I felt I needed to change the sermon and quickly sent her the new script. However she did not receive it but it did not affect her interpretation at all. She was that good.
The deaf worship is unlike what anyone would imagine. Its not silent worship. Its almost an energetic dance with hand actions and loud drum rhythms. It awakens you. It shakes you up. You are amazed and puzzled: if they cannot hear why such loud drumbeats. I found out they can feel the vibrations and rhythm. Hmmm.
I preached about how Jesus cast out evil spirits from a man in the synagogue and how he came to heal and deliver people under attack from evil spirits. After the message, I read out a list of illnesses and ailments that I believed the Lord wanted to touch and heal. Many came out to the front for prayer. They were so open and hungry.
We took our time to patiently pray for each one, working with translators. I had requested Rev Mary and Ginny to be present to pray for the sick and they were gracious and eager to minister to the sick with faith and compassion. We formed three prayer teams, each of us with a sign language interpreter, and it took us 45 minutes to pray for everyone.
At the end of it we felt satisfied and glad to be used of the Lord to bless the deaf congregation. Even if all were not healed and some felt only some percentage of progress, we pray the healing work will continue in their bodies, and that at least they had felt somebody cared, and God cared for them.
Monday, 19th March 2018 – Ine fishing village funaya
We set off to have breakfast at this featured cafe called “Syphon Coffee & Teahouse” – but it was closed on Mondays. As a result, it was breakfast at MacDonalds again. I did not know whether I laughed or cried or both – with a muffin in my mouth. It was a cold wet day but we were determined not to let the drizzle deter our plan to visit Ine, a fishing village with houses that incorporated boat “garages”. I had seen this on Japan Hour. Now I was to visit and see it. It was a drab day but we made the most of it as the photos we took showed. After hundreds of shots, we walked along the edge of the bay, passing by the homes that housed fishing boats. We finally landed at lunch time at a restaurant with a great view of the bay. The fish there was so fresh you could taste the sea. Freshest yellowtail sashimi I have tasted!
Lovely Ine fishing town by the bayA beautiful spot for photosPeople and houses all inColourful ladies with drab backgroundIt was cold and wet – the fire was welcomePanoramic view on the upper floor of cafeYellow tail sashimi set lunchChill and relax and enjoy the view – we had the cafe to ourselvesDaniel enjoying his mealJacob YeoLeaving the shore to see the ocean – posing with a boat
We shopped and had dinner at Mipple shopping center, close to the ryokan we stayed in. I was looking for a pair of canvas sneakers. One caught my eye but did not have my size. Ended up buying one for about SGD$70. Later, I checked online and it was selling at SGD$163. Made my day!
Tuesday, 20th March 2018 – Kyoto Higashiyama district
The Syphon Coffee and Teahouse in MiyazuWaiting for our set breakfast.Better than MacDonald’s of courseWee Khoon and Karen reading while waiting for breakfast to be readyEunice and Peter standing beside many vintage clocksThe old English background is better than any commercial photo studioJabez ChanBy the barWe stayed a long while but finally its time to go
We had an English breakfast at the Syphon Coffee and Teahouse at Miyazu. This is a quaint place with an English feel, full of leather sofas and English looking furniture and antique clocks. We were happy to take pics while the food was prepared. I managed to get a studio standard shot of me in serious thought reading a magazine. The breakfast and the coffee were good and value for money.
Musashi sushi restaurantContentment is a stack of platesEat as much or little as you can or want – that is sushi!Wet and cold whets your appetite
We drove to Kyoto and returned the rental cars before taking a bus to the popular Musashi sushi restaurant. After lunch we explored Higashimaya District, which Jasmine described as a Lijiang old town like area. We walked around the vastly commercialized streets with shops that target tourists. It was crowded even though it was drizzly. We went up to the Kiyomuzedera and Yasaka Shrine after a coffee fix in Starbucks – a place we could shelter from the cold drizzle. Later a walk along Gion street led to an udon dinner at a restaurant before we retired to the excellent MyStay Hotel Kyoto Shijo.
One cherry blossom appeared prematurelyThe pink cheers up the dreary skyThe two shrines at the top of the old townThe wefie is a mustThe evening falls like grey shadesThe night lights shimmer on the damp street
Wednesday, 21 March 2018 – Wet wet day
We searched for a famous organic vegetable restaurant Miyokoyasai Kamo that only serves the first 100 customers for its buffet restaurant. Google led us astray and we were to hungry to object to the Mosburger in front of us. Please, it’s not funny. The rest of the day was directed by the wet weather. We were supposed to go to a tea plantation and visit the Imperial Palace but ended up in shopping malls: Daimaru, Takashimaya, Vivre at the bus terminal, Daiso. No regrets – no complaints. The weather is not in our control. Make the best of time as best we can. We were beginning to feel the blues as the trip was ending.
As it was Wednesday, we were still working on hitting our AIA Vitality remaining target of 50 points – which is about 10,000 steps. We had been walking 20 to 30 kilometres these past few days.
Thursday, 22 March 2018 – the final day
We located the restaurant we missed yesterday. Today we were eager. The restaurant was closed. We were too late. They had counted their 100th diner and he was waiting in a queue of four persons. We settled for a nearby Yoshinoya Japanese fastfood joint for breakfast.
Breakfast at Yoshinoya jointThey do not serve this set in Singapore’s YoshinoyaIt ended as it began – taking a train ride
At 11 am we checked out to make our way to another of those shopping streets for a final blitz and a goodbye lunch of Unatoto eel. After this we rode the train to the Premium Outlet one train stop before the airport. The branded goods even at outlet prices were generally still expensive. There were many young people with huge luggage bags which I am certain are full of their happy purchases. But not for me, though quite a few manage to sniff out bargain Nike, Adidas and New Balance shoes at good prices. The plane was a night flight. Cannot wait to be back.
