FROM THE HEART OF ERIC FUNG

Executive Director of Asian Outreach Malaysia.

Prov 31:8-9 “ Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.”

God’s heart for the poor, the widows, the orphans, the marginalised and the oppressed cannot be denied or ignored. His cry for justice rings out loud and clear throughout the Scriptures. We are confronted daily with the growing human needs of the world. Poverty, injustice, disease, oppression and slavery, religious persecution, and many other issues are headline news on a daily basis. The world is crying out desperately for solutions to these problems. Christians in particular want to make a positive difference in people’s lives and are becoming aware of the clear biblical mandate to care for widows, orphans, foreigners, poor, and the forgotten who live in our midst and around the world.

We are the hands and feet of Christ’s presence in this world. We create partnership with God through Jesus Christ and it is His Spirit that takes the initiative. God’s love has flooded over the world, but He needs people to express His love.He needs YOU…

Deuteronomy 10:17-18 (NIV)

“For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the alien, giving him food and clothing”.

The census defines a slum as "residential areas where dwellings are unfit for human habitation" because they are dilapidated, cramped, poorly ventilated, unclean, or "any combination of these factors which are detrimental to the safety and health”. Lack of proper sanitation often leads to outbreak of diseases and most of the slum dwellers are in poor health. Every country has its slums. As the Lord Himself says:

   

Deu 15:11 “There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be  openhanded towards your brothers and towards the poor and needy in your land.”

AO mission partner in Kathmandu informed me about a slum in Kathmandu and the sufferings of these people. After much prayer in November I flew to Kathmandu to visit this slum. As we arrived nearby and as I surveyed the scene before me, I was appalled at what I saw. I saw about two hundred over shacks made up of cardboard and all sorts of discarded materials, huddled together. As we walked nearer’ the stench hit me. I was told by Ram, our co-worker in Kathmandu that the smell came from the river which ran alongside the dwellings and where the city’s human excrement, factory waste, rubbish and dead animals were dumped. In this river the slum dwellers took their bath, washed their clothes and occasionally used this water to cook.  The Lord did a strong stirring in my heart for these unfortunate people and there itself I made a commitment asking God to use me to raise help for them where 75% of them are Dalits, the outcaste in Nepal as in India.

Most affected by this, as in all slums, are the children. Even though schooling was free they could not attend school as their parents could not afford the bus fares or the money to buy books, stationaries and uniforms. These slum children roamed around, playing in the dirt and scavenging for food and other recyclable items to sell. The slum dwellers lived without hope for a better future, just existing from day to day.

We read about the lives of people living in the slums and we shake our heads at the conditions they live in but they are far away and we are not really stirred to do much. We are too comfortable in our own lives to think much about these people and our own everyday trifle concerns take priority. We cannot sit back any longer.  The cries of these people ring in my ears and I cannot keep silent anymore. I challenge you to join me to show the world that God’s love is more than words and make a difference in the lives of these slum dwellers. We cannot reach everyone of them but if I do good to those He leads me to then I know I have fulfilled what God has called me to do. Will you join me to partner with God to make His love tangible?

Gal 6: 9-10 “ Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.”

Wishing you and your family a blessed and fruitful New Year.

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Prayer Points

1. We pray that the Lord will use AO Malaysia to touch and change lives in the slums.

2. We pray that we will be able to bring hope and be the ‘light’ for the slum dwellers as we show them the

    tangible love of God through our giving and sowing into their lives.

3. *join us to pray for the right candidate to work with me and to be mentored by me in preparation of my 

      retirement. Any individual who feels he has a calling to serve in missions please do contact us.