A Singaporean Christian's Concept of Gospel - Liddat oso can

By Sharon Mah

Last night I felt called out… Not in a bad way… A familiar sensation of the Divine eyebrow being raised in my direction with an affectionate smile. "I see ya and no worries you're still My gal."

Hearing faith friends drop truth bombs like…

Our lack of margin could actually be repeated attempts to validate ourselves…

We fall into busyness maybe because we believe Jesus will love us a little more for being productive…

There's a story in the Bible about a father with 2 sons, who couldn't be more different. The younger son demands his share of the inheritance and runs off to squander it in decadence, only to return back in poverty, tail between his legs. Dad is ecstatic at his choice to return and throws him a huge homecoming party, no recriminations. It's the elder son's reaction that hits me every time.

‘Look how many years I’ve stayed here (working for you, being productive, bringing in results) never giving you one moment of grief, but have you ever thrown a party for me and my friends? Then this son of yours who has thrown away your money on whores shows up and you go all out with a feast!’

Look what I did. See what I’ve done. I did the job. I was the one.

See me.

Notice me.

The corporate clamor. The professional push. 

Even the religious rush… I read that faith without works is dead, but when does faith in action start to become slavish striving? Ouch…

But it’s a good ouch. A reminder to me that my own faith journey is a perennial onion-peeling of masks (productive and otherwise) accumulated over years of validating myself through what I do. 

"The way of the Christian leader is not the way of upward mobility in which our world has invested so much, but the way of downward mobility ending on the cross,” according to Henri Nouwen. The cross where there’s no hiding from all the ways in which I am broken.

But I need this, for here is where I begin to grasp why Christians call the gospel ‘good news’.

Tim Keller explains it so well. "The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.”

And God knows I need this, so that I can hear dad’s reply to the elder son… “My boy, you and I are very close, and everything I have is yours.” 

You have everything already. Not because of what you do.

I see you. Broken pieces and all. And I love it all enough to still give you everything. Gospel. Good news.

In Singlish (Singaporean English), we have a local phrase, “Liddat oso can!?” (English - Like that also can?) It is usually in “response to feats of achievement or actions which are almost impossible, or unexpected. Usually with a tinge of awe, sarcasm or scepticism.”

Gospel. Good News. Liddat oso can!? Can.  :)

Sharon Mah is a Senior Consultant at ROHEI Learning & Consulting in Singapore. She is a part of our Resource Global Family as staff, teacher, and mentor.

Durian and the Gospel: Stinky Stench or Appealing Aroma?

By Sarah R.

Have you ever visited Asia and seen the “No Durian” signs in hotels and airports? Or have you had the chance to taste this “King of Fruits”, as it’s belovedly called here in Malaysia? It seems for those of us living in lands where this spiky fruit grows high up on trees, and falls to the ground only between 12midnight - 4am, one either clearly has an aversion to the smell and taste, or an addiction, never getting enough. In our own family of 7, we have 3 hard core durian “LOVERS”, and 4 that would prefer the fruit to be kept outside of the house when it’s consumed. One could go as far as to say that the aroma of durian is either an aroma that brings life, or an aroma that brings death.   

When we first left our hometown for a predominantly Muslim, metropolitan city in Asia 15 years ago, a friend prayed that we would “spread the aroma of the knowledge of Him” among those we befriended and did business with. Our friend was referring to Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 2:14-16, “But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere.  For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ amongst those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. And who is equal to such a task?”

As we assist Resource Global this year in exploring what God may have for the capital city of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, we are praying that future cohort members would carry the aroma of Christ amongst the leaders and influencers of this diverse and strategically poised land.  Recently in a conversation with a top Malaysian marketplace leader here who has worked high up in one of the most prestigious and powerful companies of this country, he made the comment that too often “faith and work initiatives in Malaysia can use the lingo of conquering the marketplace for Christ.” He went on to share how he feels this perspective could be a mistake.  Instead of aiming for conquest, should we instead ask for God to make us an aroma?

In this very religious country, what is needed is not necessarily simply preaching of the gospel but living out the gospel in our daily lives, before our co-workers, neighbors and friends.  It means showing with our actions, more than with our words, the love of One whose love never fails. It means having the aroma spread out in unexpected ways, pointing to an integrity, a sense of character, small choices that speak loudly.  To some the gospel will always be a stench, perhaps like durian is to those who don’t like durian.  But to others, the gospel shown and “smelt” through devoted lives, will be the aroma of life.

Sarah and Jesse R. are our City Directors in Malaysia to see if we can start a Resource Global Cohort in 2020 or 2021.