December 24, 2008

An A-OK KK Christmas

I liked Malaysia so much last year that I decided to return again this year for the school's Christmas and New Year break. Of the near three week break, I was privileged to spend one week in the Tawau area with the Mukri family visiting churches in the jungle and 12 days in Kota Kinabalu (KK) relaxing at the Sutera Resort before the start of another semester.

Christmas in the tropics is definitely colorful and exciting in a way that only the southern islands can experience. Let's face it, it wasn't exactly like bundling up and taking a horse-drawn sleigh to the church in the woods on Christmas Eve. OK, so Christmas in Canada may not be quite that romantic anymore but there was a part of me that missed the white stuff this season.


Christmas in 30C/90F temps, however, is not exactly a hardship or difficult adjustment to make =) It doesn't even strike me funny anymore to hear Winter Wonderland and Sleigh Bells over the department store PA, Christmas decorations on palm trees or to walk around in shorts and sandals this time of year.

One thing I wasn't planning on: the open references to Christ by the Malay people. This is interesting to me because Malaysia is predominantly a Muslim country! It was sure great to listen to choirs singing Christmas carols (like Joy to the world, the Lord has come and The First Noel) in public restaurants and the vast majority of residents greeting one another with Merry Christmas. I was told that Malaysians in Sabah don't play the 'political correctness' game but rather choose to respect each other, even when disagreeing on issues of religion and politics. How refreshing!


Of course the commercial side of Christmas remains alive and well in Malaysia. Beautiful Christmas decorations surrounded us as did retailers offering Christmas discounts -- not quite to the fever pitch as in North America, but enjoyable all the same.


And some of you will be happy to know that Santa Claus hasn't forgotten about Malaysia. I saw him up close! He took time out of his busy schedule to come greet us at our dinner table on Christmas Eve. I guess I wasn't very good this year because he just gave me a small chocolate =) The Malaysian Love Bear also made an appearance spreading love and peace to everyone -- no chocolates, just hugs.


December 10, 2008

Warm Days and Warm Hearts

Let me introduce you to this year's mission team: both the Armentrouts and I were 'repeats' from last year but added a fellow Canadian (Johnny Wong) and fellow Coloradans (the Dewey family) this year. It was great having them along cause they added their own flavor to our trip! The young Dewey boys integrated well with the Malaysian kids and helped keep us 'older kids' on the team entertained with tickle fights, travel games and lots of inquisitive questions. Pictured from left to right: Jim Armentrout (Trout), Marco Dewey, Johnny Wong, Jacob Dewey, yours truly, Sandy Armentrout, Aaron and Rachel Dewey; Grant Dewey was taking the picture.

Either it was hotter this year than last or I just didn't find many breezes: our days in the jungle were scorchers. Hot temperatures and sweat-soaked shirts aside, it was absolutely wonderful visiting seven churches in some of the remotest and poorest regions of the jungle. Our first day was especially exciting because the local village waited for us to join them in celebrating the opening of a new church in Kalabakan.



The people of the village patiently awaited our arrival and were prepared for the celebrations to start as soon as we exited our vehicles. We stepped out to the sounds of three men playing typical Malaysian music with gongs and the rest of the villagers lined up to direct us into the church building. It was evident they worked long and hard to get their church building ready for this opening. A picture storyboard of the construction was posted outside the front door – so many people contributed, often slugging away with hand tools since electricity is not available in the village and generators are expensive!


This year, compared to last, we spent time doing crafts and games with the children of these churches. I must say these kids are so incredibly well-behaved and attentive! Amazingly we didn't have to 'entertain them' or exercise 'crowd control' even when some kids were waiting for others to finish their crafts.

And boy can these kids sing! They must follow the example of the adults in the church services who raise their voices with fervor, sincerity and assurance. It is something you really need to experience firsthand. When you hear the stories how so many of the villagers' lives were radically changed because of their new found freedom in Christ and how they literally risked their lives to become Christians (often fleeing homes and attempts on their lives), it is no wonder they sing their praises with passion!











We typically got together with the kids outside the church building, usually nearby in someone’s home or an outdoor pavilion. The Malays prefer we take off our shoes while in church (including sanctuary) but we always took off our shoes when entering someone's home. Hence the wisdom in wearing slip-on sandals because you are constantly putting on and taking off footwear.

Our last day we had a bit of a challenge when we realized we didn't have electricity in the outdoor pavilion for our evening session! Good thing someone found candles so the kids could do their crafts by candlelight. Of course, I just about blinded the poor kids with my flash when I took this picture but it sure is nice to have the memory =)


From an architectural perspective, it still strikes me how windows are always open and often without glass; no real reason to have windows since the temperature is always warm (never below 27C all year). Also interesting are their rooms limited of furnishings so the family and guests can occupy the floor –- typical of most Asian cultures. Quite a contrast to the extra-insulated windows and walls containing furniture-filled rooms in our dwellings back in North America.



The generosity of these people is truly humbling. The efforts taken to hunt and prepare a main dish (usually wild boar, venison, crocodile, ostrich, shrimp) along with local fruit (such as jack, langtan, papaya) and a number of other vegetable dishes (rice rolled in banana leaves, fern, palm tree mushrooms) is heart-warming, especially since they can barely afford to feed themselves at other times. Actually, I never saw a wild boar before it hit my plate so when given the opportunity I had to agree with Trout that "this is a face only a mother can love" =)




When it's time to eat, the villagers simply refuse to approach the buffet table until the guests go first which is something I really don't like. We are treated like royalty and I would rather fit in with the crowd. Then again, this is their custom and there is a definite rhythm to the way things are done around here; not going first would be rude on our part.

Notice how we are to place our dirty dishes under the table when we're done eating and then rinse our hands with cold water from a tea pot. I learned that silverware is never used here in Malaysia –- everyone eats with their hands including rice and messier sauce-type dishes. Fortunately our gracious hosts found silverware for us so we weren't challenged with the task of changing our eating habits!



One part of the service I absolutely love is meeting the entire congregation at the front of the church after the service is over. It really doesn't get much better when so many shake your hand, look in your eyes and their faces light up. It is obvious that they, along with me, are encouraged to share this moment as fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

December 08, 2008

Between Visits

Over the six days we spent visiting churches in the south of Borneo, we put in a good amount of time in our van driving from one village to another. Needless to say, it was always fun to stop along our journeys for a stretch and a change of scenery.




Sometimes this change of scenery involved driving out golf balls in the city of Tawau while at other times we were able to visit the more touristy sights. The kids on our team sure loved going to the zoo to see the indigenous animals up close and Pastor Fred found a beautiful waterfall along the route to the village of Jeleta Berni. We all enjoyed (I say sarcastically) traversing the swinging bridge over the canyon and loved discovering the waterfall buried in the jungle.




December 06, 2008

Video of Mission Trip to Malaysia

Click below to view a video of our mission trip to Malaysia. It has sound so turn up your speakers! It's best seen with a hi-speed internet connection; you may want to start then pause for a few minutes to fully load before playing.

December 04, 2008

Refusing to Leave

I am always thankful for the time spent with the Mukri family in Tawau; not only do I love hanging out with them at a personal level but their generosity and passion for the ministry simply fuels our missions trips. Unfortunately all good things come to a close and our team needed to let the family get back to their regular routine. But that doesn't mean we have to leave the island =) Spending another week in Kota Kinabalu seemed like the perfect solution before heading back to South Korea for the start of another school semester.

This year I stayed at the Sutera Resort with the Armentrouts while the Deweys decided to hike Mount Kinabalu.

The resort is located on ocean front property and spreads over 380 acres, hosting everything from a golf course to marina to waterfall swimming pool to sandy beaches. The resort also offers shuttle buses every hour to take you to downtown Kota Kinabalu (about a 15 minute drive) if you want to do some shopping and peruse the local Filipino and Fish Markets. Here are some pictures from last year's trip. On the days you're feeling like getting off the big island of Sabah (Borneo), you can find a boat at the marina to take you to one of the neighboring islands that offer more beaches and snorkeling.

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves but I have to say this is the first resort I've stayed where all lobbies and restaurants are completely open to the outdoors! This, of course, is possible since Malaysia is located near the equator. Who needs walls when you've got warm tropical breezes all year round?










Most of the 1000 rooms in this resort offer a balcony with a view of the South China Sea; a perfect setup for morning quiet times! All in all, a perfect place to relax and rejuvenate.