Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV)
JALAN COSMOS
Editorial Welcome
Message by Presiding Elder, Richard Ngau
Ucapan dari Rev. Libat Labo
Greetings from Rev Brian Michell & Lois, New Zealand
Greetings from Pastor Dr Ray Foster & Edith, Australia
Legacy of Faith & Resilience by Rev George Ngo Epoi
Greetings from Elder Pankyes Michael Hirse, Nigeria
Parting Words - Late Dato’ Sri Joseph Balan Seling
Remembering BEM: God’s Amazing Vessel by Libat Langub
The Bario Revival of 1973 by Osart Jallong
Christian Education (CE) Ministry
The Birth of Pelita Creatives
Rural Evangelism - Zone 4
Greetings from Pastor Emang Wan Ngau, Long Urun area
Welcome by Editorial Team
Greetings to and from the family of BEM Pelita Church in Miri.
2024 is our 40th Anniversary landmark. It seems like it was just yesterday that we produced our 25th and then our 30th Anniversary magazine. What a memorable and exciting journey it has been with our Lord; HE is forever Faithful & HE Never Fails.
In 2011 the Lord led us to “enlarge our territory” into Long Urun where we witnessed a revival among the young Penans. More details of this work are in the report in another section of this magazine.
In 2020 the world experienced the Covid-19 pandemic. For us at BEM Pelita, the ensuing MCO (Movement Control Order) was a game changer; our Media Team had to scramble hurriedly to develop and make available our online services. In a matter of weeks we started our online Sunday services through the YouTube platform with the live streaming under “Pelita Creatives”….
Praise the Lord!
Soon other online applications such as Zoom and WhatsApp were introduced and heavily used throughout both the English and Bahasa Malaysia congregations to have everyone stay in touch and maintain communication.
40 is a significant number in the Bible; for BEM Pelita, the past 40 years have been a season of preparation and building.
We must now be ready for bigger roles in the Lord’s kingdom in the coming next season to be the salt and light in the world.
So dearly beloved Brothers and Sisters, “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”
Phil. 3:14
Amen.
Editorial Team Roland, Osart and Adrienne.
The following pages show how the Lord has guided and blessed us in our Vision and Mission at Pelita. The Church leadership would like to express their utmost thanks and appreciation to all members and friends for their constant sacrifices and support.
May God bless you all abundantly.
With a hunger to serve the Lord, members volunteered to serve as Council Members Others volunteered to pick students from Dato Permaisuri and Lutong Secondary Schools to join the ground floor worship service. Soon the MIM dining Hall was too small for us and we had to move to an open space underneath one of the MIM staff quarters. The rain and the sun were at times a discomfort and this spurred us to start our first project; to wall up the place to give our members a more comfortable worship hall.
We were blessed with a number of qualified engineers, accountants, doctors from big corporations joining us as members With the help of people like Ting See Lock, Lee Ming Tiong, Wong Ing Tiong, Dr. Roland Mattu, Lea Raja, Dr Sheryl Mattu, Puan Freda Kedung, to name a few, the church expanded rapidly. Later more young and dynamic leaders join the council. Natural and gifted leaders like Jerry Siran, Thomas Kuud, Alfred Ritikos, Agan Bala, Jim Nigging, David Melai, Pastor George, Bulan Racha, Rose Taris and Chia Yip Lan are just some of the names I could recall
Using their experience in corporate operations, they set the path for KEC growth We applied to Pusat be registered as a full church on 7th December 1984
Inaugural service in dining room
Open ground floor
ang students, together with our am, lead by the late Brother Epui and n started BEM/SIB Entulang In order out to all the long houses and for God, BEM Pusat divided Miri zones. Zone 4, which starts from ir to Ladang 3 was allocated to us. ai Liam, BEM SOP, BEM Rumah w Rumah Philip), BEM Bekenu, BEM nyit, BEM Ladang 3, BEM Rumah BEM Jabatan Pakut and BEM Rumah came under our care Our outreach ported by our Home Fellowship, owship, Youth and Sunday School e longhouses and settlements almost ur team also went as far as Sebatang, in Tinjar, to build a pastor house for ai Belingau and Paya.
onghouse folks knew that we had a ur team, people flocked to see him; ne other than our dear Dr Roland e latest church that we planted ith church building and pastor house Grace at Rumah Juliana We are not hese churches regularly now, but we ned with support full-time pastors and namely, Pastor Saran, Pastor Avit ng and Pastor Joshua to minister to urches
t occasions, two men of God visited at different times. Both gave us the hat BEM Pelita will impact, Miri, Malaysia and beyond spiritually. This appening. We have impacted the d physical life of the Penan in the . Due to the remoteness of the place, he Penan children from the three at Long Jaik attend school. We built nd a pre-school there and supported ool teachers and a pastor
Walled up worship hall
Our young Richard and Puyang
Ucapan Penghargaan daripada
Reverend Libat Labo
Syalom
Salam didalam kasih Yesus Kristus dan SELAMAT MENYAMBUT HARI ULANG TAHUN KE-40 BORNEO EVANGELICAL
MISSION PELITA dengan tema “40 YEARS OF GOD’S FAVOR” (Mazmur 100:5), saya ucapkan kepada semua Jemaat Tuhan BEM Pelita. Segala kemulian, hormat dan pujian kita kembalikan kepada Allah Bapa di Syurga diatas
Kasih Setia-Nya kepada kita semua
Terlebih dahulu saya ingin mengucapkan jutaan terima kasih kepada Ahli Jawatan Kuasa HUT ke-40 BEM Pelita, barisan Pastor dan Pemimpin Gereja kerana memberi penghargaan, ruang dan peluang untuk saya memberi Ucapan Penghargaan sempena HUT ke-40 BEM Pelita 2024.
berkat dan penyertaan Tuhan didalam hidup kita sebagai anggota gereja, sehingga kita dapat berdiri pada hari ini untuk mengembalikan kemuliaan, hormat, pujian, penghargaan dan ucapan syukur kita kepada Allah Tritunggal, seperti yang dikatakan dalam Mazmur 121:1-4; “Aku melayangkan mataku ke gununggunung; dari manakah akan datang pertolonganku? Pertolonganku ialah dari TUHAN, yang menjadikan langit dan bumi. Ia takkan membiarkan kakimu goyah, Penjagamu tidak akan terlelap.
Sesungguhnya tidak terlelap dan tidak tertidur Penjaga Israel…”
Syabas dan Tahniah saya ucapkan kepada barisan Pastor, Penetua, Diaken, setiap pemimpin Pelayanan dan seluruh keluarga besar BEM Pelita diatas kejayaan dalam mengadakan sambutan Hari Ulang Tahun ke-40 BEM Pelita 2024 ini
Oleh anugerah Tuhan, kita dapat menyambut HUT ke-40 ini, kerana dalam masa 40 tahun yang sudah lalu ini, pasti kita diperhadapkan dan melalui bermacam rintangan dan tentangan dalam kita bertumbuh maju secara Rohani dan fisik, namun oleh Kasih dan Anugerah Allah, kita ada seperti mana kita ada pada hari ini.
Maka itu di HUT seperti ini adalah kesempatan bagi kita untuk melihat kembali anugerah, kebaikan, kasih, kemurahan,
Kesempatan ini juga saya ingin mendorong semua jemaat Tuhan untuk terus maju dan bersemangat didalam pertumbuhan Iman didalam Tuhan Yesus, sekalipun kita berhadapan dengan banyak rintangan dan cabaran
Sesuai dengan tema gereja kita BEM 2024 “GEREJA YANG TERLIBAT SAMA: MEMENANGKAN. MEMURIDKAN. MENGUTUS,” saya menyeru agar kita jemaat Tuhan terus menjadi saksi Kristus dimana pun kita berada, kerana itulah panggilan Tuhan kepada kita semua dan membawa kepada pertumbuhan gereja secara Rohani dan keanggotaan
Terima Kasih
“SELAMAT MENYAMBUT HARI ULANG TAHUN KE-40 BEM PELITA.”
Tuhan Yesus memberkati Rev. Libat Labo.
Greetings from Reverend Brian Michell & Lois, New Zealand
Our very glad greetings to all the BEM Pelita family as you celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the church! We rejoice with you and thank God for all that he has done in and for and through the church!
It was an exciting time 40 years ago when about 30 of us were set apart and commissioned by the SIB Canada Hill English congregation to pray and work together for the commencement of a new congregation in Krokop. Before that, we had been praying and negotiating for the grant of the current piece of land for over a decade. Then, with much rejoicing, we received notification of the grant of the land and were able to proceed with plans for the division of the land at that stage between the ‘BEM/SIB Headquarters’ and ‘Miri Evangelical College’, and with hopes for a branch church to commence on the property
Extra soil had to be added to the land to raise the level of the whole property, our own access road made and then the initial buildings of HQ (Pusat) and Bible College erected In those early days we saw biawak sunning themselves in our road, monkeys in the trees on the property and I remember seeing a cobra up and poised, looking right at me beside the road as I passed (in a hurry!)
Krokop Evangelical Church (now BEM Pelita) started meeting in the dining room of the Bible College – a space we thought would be large enough for a few months But within a few weeks we were overcrowded!
So we moved to the ground floor of the College staff flats, at that stage a wide-open void deck, which meant we were vulnerable to the elements and met in the centre of the space away from sun or wind or rain! But God was at work and blessed the life and witness of the young church and it grew!
We rejoice with you now in all the subsequent growth and influence of the church, in those who have come to faith in Christ and developed in their discipleship and service, in the establishment of daughter churches, and pray for all who are currently part of BEM Pelita. May God continue to bless and use the witness and work of the church and its people in all the days and years ahead!
door that no-
evelation 3:8
Lois Michell , BEM/OMF)
Greetings from Pastor Dr Ray Foster and Sister Edith, Australia
With his consent and blessing we repeat the message from Pastor Ray on the occasion of our 25th Anniversary in 2009 Although he was not able to make it for that occasion, he and his wife managed to visit us in June 2014 - Editorial Team.
It is both a joy and a privilege for me to contribute to this booklet on the occasion of the 40th Anniversary of the BEM Pelita Church
Praise and thanksgiving to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ for all the good things that have happened, for all the blessings experienced, and for all those who have been saved and for all who have grown more Christlike, during these years since the church was planted in 1984.
The vision for an BEM/SIB church at Krokop began in 1982 At that time, I was pastor of the Miri Evangelical Church at Canada Hill and the number of people attending the services had doubled in two years. The question arose in my mind: should this congregation be allowed to continue to grow or should we be looking for a place to plant a daughter church? I shared this with the church leaders and as the matter was prayed about and discussed, the conviction grew that we should plant a daughter church. This conviction became even stronger when attendances reached 450 or more and we realized that we had great difficulty in noticing who was not present (and maybe needing pastoral care), and also in spotting all the newcomers (so we could welcome them personally).
The welcome increase in numbers was hindering our follow-up and pastoral care ministries There were other factors that added weight to this conviction. These were that a church at Krokop would facilitate outreach in that area leading to increased church growth; greater opportunity for more members to be involved in ministry
So, in 1984, thirty members of the church were commissioned to plant a church at Krokop having a four-member interim church council. Services were held in the dining hall of the Miri Evangelical College until a more permanent site could be found Numbers attending soon grew to over 100 and six new members were added to the council.
Early in 1985 there was mention of the need for a pastor for KEC and soon afterwards I was invited to become the first pastor. This was a part-time position as I continued to pastor the English-speaking congregation at Canada Hill.
For a church to grow successfully it is vital that a good foundation is laid first.To that end we sought to ensure that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was preached clearly to all who came, that the Word of God was expounded, and any who had questions were followed promptly
There were capable and able people in the church from the start, but it was essential that the ministry was centered on the Lord Jesus Christ and carried out in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Hence it was essential to have a regular church prayer meeting as well as ensuring that prayer played a major role in the life of the home fellowship groups when they started up.
During these past 40 years, KEC has also experienced times of trial and difficulty. But through perseverance, and through repentance, faith, humility and love, the congregation has continued to grow and mature My wife and I pray that, speaking the truth in love, you will in all things grow up into Him who is the Head, that is Christ. He is faithful and He will bring us all to glory as we continue to trust Him and obey Him.
Praise His glorious Name!
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men. ”
Col 3:23
Pastor Dr Ray and Sister Edith reside in Perth in full retirement and spending time with their children and grandchildren between Perth and Geraldton. We are praying for God’s providence for them always
Legacy of Faith and Resilience
Reverend George Ngo Epoi
BEM Pelita: A 40-Year Journey
In the year 2024, BEM Pelita celebrates its 40th anniversary. Looking back over these four decades, we encounter a tapestry of remarkable experiences, significant events, and countless lives touched by God. From the perspective of one of our original members, this journey began as a battle - a struggle against trials and challenges.
Yet, time and time again, we witnessed the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit.
The Genesis of BEM Pelita
BEM Pelita was planted in 1984 as a daughter church of Miri Evangelical Church at Canada Hill The decision to establish BEM Pelita arose when the attendance at Miri Evangelical Church Canada Hill surged to “450 or more” within just two years. Several compelling reasons drove us to plant this new church:
Church Growth: We envisioned growth beyond the existing congregation
Leadership Opportunities: Creating BEM Pelita allowed more members to actively participate in leadership roles.
Care: We aimed to provide better pastoral care for our members
Involvement: BEM Pelita offered increased opportunities for members to engage in ministry.
A New Beginning
As we step into 2024, BEM Pelita faces a “new beginning.” It is essential to start this phase on the right footing. Just as a traveller selects suitable shoes for a journey, BEM Pelita must clothe itself with godliness and holiness. (see 2 Peter 3:11-12) Pleasing God becomes our compass.
We recognize that God despises sin and commands His people to be holy. (see Leviticus 20:7)
Thou Shalt have no other gods before me : We prioritize God above all else.
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image: We avoid idolatry and false representations of God
Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain: We honour God in our speech and with reverence
Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy: We set aside time for worship and rest
Honor thy Father and Mother: We value family relationships.
commit
Thou shalt not bear witness against thy neighbour: We speak truth and avoid
God-Centered Priorities
Putting God first remains our top priority BEM Pelita seeks to know the triune God the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit. Our existence revolves around worshiping God, following Christ, and living lives controlled and filled by the Holy Spirit Within families, fathers take the lead, nurturing an environment of God’s love. Together, as a family, we embrace the Great Commission, leaving no room for racial prejudice or pride within our church.
Worship, Fellowship, and Maturation
When BEM Pelita gathers for Sunday services, our desire is twofold: to worship God collectively and to strengthen the bonds of friendship and fellowship in Christ. As members, we commit to growing in love and maturity together No longer merely a daughter church, BEM Pelita now assumes the role of a mother, birthing new daughter churches - a legacy of faith and resilience.
Greetings from Elder Pankyes Michael Hirse, Nigeria
Thank God and congratulations to BEM Pelita for 40 years of God’s faithfuln
We thank God for allowing journey in building BEM P years, remembering Matthe will build His Church and the never prevail) and the purp which is to make disciples Jesus Christ in the power of 28:18-20, Acts 1:8)
40 is a significant number in are the key messages for years.
40 represents a generation years it was time for change Moses Generation to the BEM Pelita needs to mak change if not done already
Jesus, after being baptised wilderness where he fasted nights (this was the bigges Jesus’s ministry) 40 is t preparation for the bigger ta 40 years for BEM Pelita has for bigger things in God’s Pelita must expect and be exploits for God (National a this new season of the next 4
Our entire family send their God’s perfect will to be don the next 40 years
Regards from Rebecca,
Mups, Zugs, Nancin and Pankyes
Parting Words from
the Late Dato’ Sri Joseph Balan Seling
Written for BEM 80th Anniversary, 2008
Long ago your fathers, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the River and worshipped other gods. But I took your father Abraham from the land beyond the River and led him throughout Canaan and gave him many descendants. Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your fathers worshipped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. Throw away foreign gods that are among you, and yield your hearts to the Lord” (see Josh. 24:2,3,14, 23). “If your presence does not go with us do not send us up from here” (Ex.33:15).
In 2008, we are commemorating the 80th Anniversary of the BEM/SIB church. We give thanks and praise and glory to the Lord God Almighty for redeeming our forefathers from the kingdom of darkness and death under the cruel bondage of the power of Satan and brought them into God’s kingdom of light and life and freedom
It has been a spiritual journey of almost a century now. Thank God that we, their descendants, are still faithful and true to the Lord - and thus we are able to happily and “proudly in the Lord” celebrate such a great and miraculous event Had we not been faithful to the God who saved our forefathers – had we moved back again to the old gods they worshipped beyond the river – had we moved over to the many new strange gods we have come across along the way – we would not be able to celebrate such a great and important event today Now, we can exclaim loudly and confidently “EBENEZER”.
We must also record our deep gratitude to the white missionaries for responding to God’s call to leave their countries and professions and homes and comfort, to come and spend the prime of their life in the wild jungles of Borneowalking on foot for weeks over high mountains and difficult terrains, traversing for days through dangerous rivers, enduring hard life living among primitive tribes with strange languages and cultures - persevering on in their high and most noble calling to bring the gospel of salvation and light to our forefathers.
Through all hardship and difficulties they toiled on and did not give up We are the fruits of their labour and sacrifice. Some of them died here in our lands. Some grew old and retired back to their countries They were ambassadors for God in foreign lands for many long hard years. Unlike the case of ambassadors of earthly kingdoms, no red carpets and large crowds waited to welcome them home.
The world seems not to bother to pay attention nor appreciate such highest calling and most noble vocation on earth. I read of a story of a missionary who had spent all his life serving the Lord in a foreign land. When he was old he returned to his own country. On the same ship were some high ranking colonial officials who also had served long in the same foreign country who, like him, were returning home When the ship arrived at the pier there was a large crowd of people waiting to welcome the government officials
The missionary felt lonely and sad. He felt in his heart, “No one welcomes me, no one appreciates my service in the foreign land”
In his heart the Lord reassuringly responded, “My child, you are not home yet”. Actually, many of our missionaries would have liked to stay on and labour and die in this country But due to Government rules they had to leave. But the fruit of their hard labour as ambassadors of the kingdom of Heaven will continue to grow and to bear much more fruit to the glory of God
The decision by our ancestors to accept the gospel and follow the Lord was the most important and the wisest in the entire history of their tribal lives That decision has brought great changes in the life of our indigenous communities. The greatest change, of course, was in the spiritual aspect of our life But that
One thing we all know – which no one can deny – is that God has been with BEM/SIB all along and has richly blessed BEM/SIB, and that the Holy Spirit has been working through BEM/SIB in a dynamic and effective way all these years
From and through our simple rural tribal communities in the remote interior of Sarawak and Sabah the gospel has now reached many other communities in Sarawak and Sabah and Semenanjong Malaysia - and even beyond the shore of Malaysia
BEM/SIB is like a river. It started far up in the mountains and began to flow slowly and steadily down to the plains and the coastal regions –spreading into the towns and cities of Malaysia and beyond the shores of Malaysia.
However, let us to be always reminded – even warned – that BEM/SIB has been able to succeed well in this spiritual journey because it was the Lord’s doing at the very beginning and because the Lord is present all the time all the way Moses pleaded with God, “If your presence is not going with us do not send us further from here” The merciful God accepted Moses’ pleading and agreed to go on with his peopleand only on that basis the journey was all the way victorious and successful
During one Persidangan Agong in Lawas many years ago, before we moved our Headquarters to Miri, there was a strong notion among some delegates that BEM/SIB was “fundamentally wrong in respect of spiritual and theological structure and in respect of organizational system of church governance and that “BEM/SIB should be completely overhauled and changed”; that the spiritual head of BEM/SIB should be “a prophet directly appointed by God”
I had a bit of a hard time to privately convince my delegate friends that BEM/SIB was alright both spiritually and organizationally
BEM/SIB is not perfect – the same is true of all churches; BEM/SIB has limitations, weaknesses and has much room for improvements – the same is true of all churches But it is not correct to say that BEM/SIB is “fundamentally wrong” in respect of spiritual and theological structure and in respect of organizational system of church governance - and therefore must be “completely overhauled and changed”.
To find ways and means to improve the spiritual quality and administrative efficiency in BEM/SIB is a good thing But to think of making a drastic and complete departure from the existing spiritual and doctrinal foundation and administrative structure of BEM/SIB as a church is dangerous and harmful to our future spiritual journey
BEM/SIB was founded and established by the Holy Spirit through godly and Spirit-filled and Spirit-anointed men and women of the BEM/SIB missionaries BEM/SIB has been continuously led and managed by Godly and Spirit-filled and Spirit-anointed indigenous leaders and pastors all the way SIB has been led and managed by godly and spiritual people all along. BEM/SIB must be careful not to allow itself to shift from the hand of spiritual men into the hand of what I call “worldly wise and clever men but unspiritual”.
The churches must make sure that delegates to the Persidangan Agong and elders and deacons in local churches must be chosen primarily on the basis of their spiritual qualification and spiritual quality and not merely on the basis of their academic qualification or social status in the community. If they have both, better still.
But the prerequisite must not be reversed. The spiritual and theological basis of faith and doctrine in BEM/SIB is biblical and balanced So far we have had no serious problems with either liberalism on the one hand or extremism on the other.
True to its name, the BEM/SIB church is “evangelical”. Personally, I like to think of BEM/SIB as an “evangelical charismatic church” and a “charismatic evangelical church”.
The system in BEM/SIB of choosing and appointing church leaders (President, elders, deacons and so on) by consensus within the body of Christ (the church) is correct. There is no better alternative No church in the world has a spiritual head (whether we call them “ArchBishop”, “Patriarch”, “President”, etc.) appointed by God’s verbal proclamation – all are appointed by consensus within the church.
Paul appointed elders in many churches he founded during his missionary journeys – but no elders or bishops were self appointed In more recent times there were some Bible swinging preachers who proclaimed they were “prophets directly appointed by God”; people like James Jones, David Coresh and others, who exercised strong autocratic possession over their followers. And all of them were found to be immoral in their life and behaviour, and clashed with Government Authorities, and ended in sad tragedies of mass destruction forced by their “prophet” leaders.
But BEM/SIB must strictly uphold the spirituality of the system - whether at the Persidanagn Agong or at the local church level We must not emulate the world’s way of politics to campaign and create cliques. Each delegate or each church member (as the case may be) should pray privately and seek the mind of the Holy Spirit and then make his or her choice reverently and sincerely before God.
During one Persidangan Agong in Miri a few years ago, there was a small beginning of the world’s way of politics trying to creep in We must avoid that.
We are dealing with spiritual matters – and “be ye not conformed to the world’s way”.
The system of church governance by a Central Council - like we have in BEM/SIB - is biblical The first churches in Judea and in Asia Minor were governed by a Central Council based in Jerusalem. Top apostles (like Peter and John and Paul) and great prophets (such as Agabus, Barnabas and others) were willing and happy to submit to and work with the Central Council. Each apostle and prophet played their special role under the leadership of the Central Council. All churches in the world are using the system of church governance by synods and councils –as there is no better alternative.
Let us be very careful Let us continue to uphold our church which God established for our forefathers and for us.
As we move on it is very important for BEM/SIB to continue to practice “moderation” like all this while – and to guard against falling into liberalism on the one hand and extremism and cultic tendency on the other.
Paul and Barnabas disagreed so strongly on certain principle that they agreed to part ways to serve the Lord but they did not part church Paul strongly disagreed with and publicly rebuked Peter on certain principle But they remained good friends in the same one church, and Peter all through later years continued to admire and respect Paul as a man with truly deep spiritual knowledge and wisdom, and did not claim spiritual superiority as “the top leader among the original twelve apostles” or “the most anointed by the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost”.
Whatever constructive ideas we have for the improvement of BEM/SIB we are encouraged to bring such to the attention of the Central Council or the Local Church Council. But any move to drastically overturn or change the spiritual and doctrinal foundation of BEM/SIB and the existing system of church governance is dangerous and harmful
Secondly BEM/SIB must learn to be “accommodating” with regards to members who have different spiritual views and opinions – so that all such members can remain in fellowship and unity.
We are happy to invite unbelievers into our worship – why is it that we cannot accommodate fellow believers with different views in the same church?
The BEM/SIB church has journeyed well for quite a long way She has been safe and successful because God is always present. We are full of confidence and assurance that “He who has begun a good work in you (in the BEM/SIB church) will bring it to completion” May the good Lord continue to guide and bless the BEM/SIB church at all times.
Amen.
Dato’ Sri Joseph Balan Seling General Advisor to BEM/SIB
“The New Testament holds up the model of a church whose activities are for the sake of outsider.”
- Philip Yancey, Church: Why Bother: My Personal Pilgrimage
desire to share the saving gospel of Christ. To the unreached people a thousand miles away across the vast ocean in the remote jungles of Borneo.
China to Borneo
Why Borneo? I have always wondered. The origin of BEM can be traced back to Hudson Southwell who was deeply convicted by God to become a missionary in a foreign land. China was his initial and main focus He had contacts with the China Inland Mission's (CIM) missionaries But his focus later turned to Borneo. Thanks be to God.
Gospel To The Natives
A few more BEM missionaries from Australia, New Zealand and England followed suit and came to serve God among the native people of Sarawak and Sabah. Patrick Sookhdeo in his book, The Death of Western Christianity, wrote:
“Until the 1950s, missionaries were often ‘one way’ missionaries. They left for their mission field with a few meagre belongings... expecting never to return home They gave up comfort, health and sometimes their own lives to spread the Gospel They anticipated, faced and even welcomed great danger and trials.”
This best describes the early BEM missionaries and how God used them so mightily.
We are clearly beneficiaries of the selfless acts of these men of God Only a love for God and compassion for their unsaved fellow human beings could have spurred these missionaries to undertake such sacrificial decisions
Growing up as a rural village kid back in the 60s, I never thought for a moment that BEM would ever be able to establish its church in a town setting. BEM was then so very indigenous, rural and native. It seemed to only fit in the headwaters or the interior jungle areas
BEM's main objective in its 1928 Constitution was after all very native oriented. Article 1 of the said Constitution states:
"The Borneo Evangelical Mission is a company of believers in the Lord Jesus Christ associated on a common basis of faith and practice for the purpose of giving of the Gospel to the native races in Borneo with a view of the formation of a Christian Church among them".
Looking To God Alone
The story of BEM is truly amazing Looking back, one can only conclude that it was Almighty God who was touching lives and at work among the indigenous tribes of Sarawak and Sabah
BEM did not have much money or finance to boast The early BEM missionaries and pastors and their families were paid meager salary or no salary at all But they soldiered on against all odds. They depended on gifts from fellow believers.
This is a result of BEM's integral faith principle then enshrined in Article 3 of its 1928 Constitution and held sacred:
"The Mission looks to God alone for all the needs of its members, no appeals for financial aid or collections being made by or authorized for this Mission. No more is expanded than is received by the Mission, going into debt being considered inconsistent with the principles of entire dependence on God."
Any departure from this policy was tantamount to questioning God's faithfulness. In human terms, a total sacrifice for BEM's heroes of faith in every sense of the words.
BEM Is His Story
Today, after 96 years, BEM or Sidang Injil Borneo (SIB) church has grown exponentially in Malaysia. Contrary to what I thought many years ago, BEM/SIB churches are now found in all the cities and towns in Sarawak and Sabah and even in our capital city of Kuala Lumpur. You now worship with all races, natives and nonnatives, in BEM/SIB churches.
Unlike many mainline Christian denominations, BEM/SIB churches spread its wings from the ulu jungles to the towns and cities.
When asked on the secret behind the phenomenal church growth, Alan Belcher (fondly known as Pendita Meripa), the second Chairman of BEM who was based in Lawas Mission, would always humbly reply:
“All of us missionaries felt like we were spectators! The Lord was doing all the work.”
(excerpt from Dr Moy's testimony at Alan's Funeral service, St Andrews Church, Benalla, Vic, Australia)
In the mid-80s, as Southwell, Alan and Madge Belcher (Alan’s wife, fondly known as Pendita Ganit) were reminiscing about the past days during a seminar, Alan said something that struck a particularly responsive chord in Southwell’s heart:
“Hudson,” Alan said, “when I think about all the amazing things we’ve seen in this country, I some times feel as though God made it all happen in spite of us”
- Unchartered Waters
The journey of BEM/SIB is truly His Story i.e God's Love reaching to us in that "while we were still sinners Christ died for us"
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
All Praise To God Alone
We will be celebrating Merdeka Day come this 31st day of August 2024.
Should we, the redeemed of the Lord, not take time or moment to pause and recall the goodness of our Lord and to praise Him and rejoice in Him as we remember the founding of BEM 96 years ago on the 31st day of August 1928?
Let’s pray that above everything else, God’s name only be glorified in and through BEM/SIB.
Hallelujah! Puji Tuhan! Ngubur Ngadan Neh!
Libat Langub BEM/SIB Legal Advisor.
The Bario Revival of 1973:
Reflections On My Journey After The Event
by Osart Jallong
“It is a folly to talk of revival apart from a deep participation in the Cross ” – F J Heugel, Bone of His Bone
For the purpose of this article, I propose to give a brief account of the Bario Revival as I witnessed it, give my understanding of the place of the revival in its historical context and share some thoughts and lessons I learned on my life journey since the event.
An Account of the Revival
I was studying together with Idris Jala (now, Datuk Sri Idris Jala) at their house in Ulung Palang, Bario in early October 1973 We were preparing to sit for our Form 3 qualifying examination at the end of the month. Having both, but separately, been under some conviction of our need for forgiveness and for God, it was natural for us to agree to set time in our daily study timetable for prayer We started our study routine including prayers in between One morning, we adjourned to pray in one of their rooms. As always, we asked God to help us in our studies and our exams. But unlike our previous prayers, this time we confessed our sins to God, asked for His forgiveness and invited Him to come into our lives We were truly contrite
Immediately God’s presence was in the room and in and around us, in a way we both could not fully describe - even until now. We became bolder in our prayers knowing something extra-ordinary had happened to us We prayed not only for ourselves but also for every one that came to our mind including our family members and our schoolmates. We both agreed that we would not tell any one about our experience, perhaps, more because we did not fully understand what we were going through Since that day, we did not study any more until we sat for our exams.
On the weekend of that week, we went back to school to join the ISCF Committee meeting, which Reverend Solomon Bulan and Lillian Bulan Dorai recounted well in their book, "The Bario Revival" and Shelley Lees in "Drunk Before Dawn" In that meeting, all the students including the Teacher-incharge of ISCF (Rev. Solomon) experienced the same thing as we did. From there it spread like wild fire as those of us who were in that ISCF meeting went out to pray and preach to our friends, teachers, parents and other community members Within a period of a few weeks, the whole of the Kelabit community in Bario was in a "Revival Mode” –praying, singing and fellowshipping with one another
It was such an extra-ordinary time It felt like the plain of our earthly existence merged with that of the spiritual so that those present could not resist His call on their lives. They readily confessed their sins to one another and to God and opened their hearts to Him This is in contrast to what I later learnt about how in ordinary times, even the most eloquent and persuasive preaching could not get a person to believe in the gospel of God’s saving grace. Remembrance of the event always fill me with deep gratitude; and even more so now as I see the bigger picture and the place of the revival within God’s larger redemptive plan for us.
“Understanding the place of the revival within that larger context gives us a glimpse into the heart and plan of God for us, namely, that He already planned our redemption from ancient times.”
The Revival within The Historical Context of “The Story of God Among Us in BEM”
As marvellous as the Bario Revival was, it is even more awesome when seen in the larger context of the redemptive plan of God in saving us From long ago, God already prepared and sent His missionaries to bring the Gospel to us in NorthEastern Borneo around the same period starting in 1928 and across national boundaries The BEM missionaries from Australia came to Northern Sarawak and the missionaries from the Christian and Missionary Alliance (C&MA) to South-Eastern Kalimantan Without any prior agreement and consensus between them, both missions focused their works on the Orang Ulu tribes in the deep interior of Borneo.
Understanding the place of the revival within that larger context gives us a glimpse into the heart and plan of God for us, namely, that He already planned our redemption from ancient times
Reflecting on the work of God among us, C. Hudson Southwell in his memoir, Unchartered Waters, observed that there were three distinct periods during which God in his grace poured out his Spirit in a “special way” among our people. The first was the massive conversion of the Lun Dayeh/Lun Bawang people living on both sides of the international border between Kalimantan and Sarawak in the mid-1930s He called it “a great turning to God resulting in completely changed lives”. The second was at the end of 1940s among the Kayans and Kenyahs of the Baram The third was in 1973 and 1974 starting with the Bario Revival in the Kelabit Highlands
It is also evident from events after the revival that He continued to carry out His redemptive works, although unlike the manner of the revival, to save many people of many races in towns and cities in the country A clear testimony of this is the establishment of the BEM Canada Hill Church in 1974. Ever since, it expanded its membership exponentially so that it became necessary to establish other sister churches in other locations in Miri That included BEM Pelita, BEM Airport Road, BEM Lutong and many others. BEM is now the largest church in Malaysia. Clearly God continues to work to gather His people into His Kingdom God determines His redemptive purpose and plans and executes them according to His sovereign will Based on this understanding, I firmly believe that God will continue His redemptive work in ways and places and through people in a manner He chooses. He cannot be constrained to work only within the setting and manner of a revival That is, the diaspora of His redeemed and yet to be redeemed people in our modern setting allows God to touch and save them in their particular situations according to His infinite wisdom and plan
My Personal Journey
Looking back 51 years after the event, it seems possible now to tell a fuller story - a story of a relationship which started with God "courting" us in a whirlwind and us caught in a romance with the Divine. God brought us into an eternal union with Him, or, in biblical language, a marriage to Him. That extra-ordinary experience we had, which ushered us into this eternal relationship, was just the beginningthe beginning of a new life to be lived in union with the Triune God.
It is my testimony that God has demonstrably been faithful, loving and kind through out my journey as He patiently weaved His desired purpose into the fabrics of my life
Life was tough Like others, I was still young at that time Coming down - literally from the serene life in the mountains to town, and emotionally from the revival experience (I am reminded of Moses coming down from Mount Sinai after encountering God in a flame of fire), I had to now live my life in the wilderness and realities of my own humanity
Despite our not studying at all for our Form 3 examination, our class scored a 100% pass Certainly this was the work of God Thus, together with my classmates, I went for my upper secondary education in Marudi for Forms 4 and 5 and thence, to Miri at Tanjong Lobang for Forms 6. Most of the Orang Ulu students including myself, came from far away and barely had any money We were often hungry We were growing from adolescence to adulthood. We had to live with people of other races and cultures. We had to survive and do well in our studies Essentially, we didn’t have the comforts of home and the immediate support of our families Additionally, we had to contend with pressures from peers and appeals of other life philosophies as we became exposed to modern thoughts through schools and social interactions.
These challenges stood in stark relief against the experience I had in October 1973. Where was God when I most needed Him? Why didn’t He make His presence known as nearly as I felt Him during the revival? Did I commit any sin which I didn’t confess? Many other questions were being asked over the years as I moved on in my life.
The truth is, as I came to realise later, I did not know Him well as to trust Him fully with my life. I did not understand His ways, His thoughts, His works, His plans and His words Even if I knew Him and His Words, or even if I said I believe Him and tried to obey Him, in truth, my heart was often bent towards unbelief and ungodliness. Basically I had a trust issue because I now came face-to-face with my own sinful nature
Despite all these, God had faithfully kept me desiring, yearning and thirsting for Him over the years That drove me to put in a lot of effort into studying the Bible, its doctrines pertaining to salvation, sanctification, forgiveness and the faith generally I read the Bible from the beginning to end many times and many books written by Christian writers on Christian living and various theological topics. I spent the first few years practicing my faith according to the Charismatic teaching. From there I moved on to a more strict doctrinal approach to studying the Word And then I moved on to read books on victorious Christian living, Christian psychology, theologies, apologetics, expository teachings and many other subjects written by well known Christian authors
After years of learning and living life, I came to some understanding of myself: that I would go to great length to improve myself and be a better person, often on my own terms. In my practical life, my natural constitution and nature at its deepest level, detested God’s declared truths and refused to accept the sentence of death obtained by Jesus for me The new life which God gave me 51 years ago was equally hard to know and realise in my actual experience in spite of the many struggles I had in trying to live it I came to learn that I could only know and experience the truth when in circumstances of God’s choosing, His Spirit reveals the reality of these truths to me.
I find that such is the nature of Spiritual truths, which may be mentally understood, but could only become real when revealed to one by the Holy Spirit, often within and through the circumstances and events of one’s life. For instance, I knew the promise of Jesus in Matthew 28:20 where He said, “And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age” Even then, I often found myself acting and not believing in His immediate presence with me. He often seemed far away. Only when I looked down through my life and see the patterns and flow of events and how God weaved His purpose into these events to bring about His desired end, did I see and have a fuller understanding of the promise.
One of such event is when in 1977, I failed my Form 6 examination. I was utterly broken, sad and angryangry with God and myself It was as if my world came to an end How could He let me fail when I studied so hard? Has God abandoned me? Was I supposed to do and bear all things by myself and that He no longer cared? At that time, His ways and His care for me were far from visible and discernible The future was starkly hopeless
But God actually really cared and provided for me beyond measure. Just that I didn’t see it whilst I was on the journey. My focus was on the immediate detail and not on the long-term purpose God had for me And He worked across time and events to demonstrate that love and care
The next year I re-sat and passed the exams Just then, MARA Institute of Technology in Shah Alam (ITM) started a new Diploma in Law program, which I joined and graduated from. A friendship developed between a professor at the Melbourne Law School in Australia and one of our lecturers in ITM so that they developed a twinning program to enable graduates of the Diploma in Law to complete their degrees at Melbourne University. As a result, both Libat Langub and I (both Legal Advisers of BEM for the last 22 years or so) and later, YB Baru Bian and Sam Laya, who are members of BEM, graduated from Melbourne University with qualifications we could not afford and obtain on our own merit or in any other way. God changed the course of my journey, opened another door, provided for the way through many people and events and enabled me to walk the journey He planned and thereby, realised His desire and purpose for me
Such has been God’s dealings with me, demonstrating His love, faithfulness, kindness, goodness, abounding providence, care and friendship Most of all, He gradually reveals to me without coercion but in love, Who He is, who I am in myself, who I am to Him and in Him and the certainty and immutability of His truths and promises.
I am deeply and eternally grateful to God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit - my Truine God, who did and continues to do everything necessary for me so that I share in His glory and the blessed fellowship of my Heavenly Family Amen!
“Only when I looked down through my life and see the patterns and flow of events and how God weaved His purpose into these events to bring about His desired end, did I see and have a fuller understanding of the promise.”
Christian Education (CE) Ministry
Submitted by: Elder Lau Nai Kwong, Brother Dr Samuel, Deacon Staphen Raja
We want to congratulate the church in this 40th Anniversary celebration. It is a great celebration of the faithfulness of God As we look back the last 40 years, it is with humbleness and gratitude, because we see the hand of God working in BEM Pelita.We are where we are, not by our strength, not by our wisdom, but by the grace of the Lord He is not only a faithful God; He is a merciful God and He loves BEM Pelita! And He has provided all we need, and will continue to do so!
The idea of the Christian Education in BEM Pelita was mooted in 2009 by Pastor Solomon Bulan as a ministry for Discipleship training In those days, there were many classes at different levels catering to the members. Many leaders led this ministry, including bro Tan Kok Peng, who is still a member of the church today. In 2010, Pastor Jasbir joined the church and led the lessons in the present-day Sunday School room Later Elder Pankyes was brought in as a Teaching Elder and the Christian Education Ministry was formally established. At the following year Church Council Election, bro Stephen Raja was elected as Deacon of the Ministry
In recent years under Pastor Agan Bala, Elder Lau and bro Dr. Samuel were appointed to lead the lessons every Sunday
The church leadership felt it is good to start with first books of the Bible. So, we started with Genesis. Below are the books we have studied since then:
1 Genesis
2.Exodus
3.Leviticus
4 John 5.Acts
6 James 7.Romans
When we started the Christian Education, the classes were done in classroom. During the COVID-19 period, we continued but using Zoom. Today, we continue to use Zoom. Indeed, this is also a blessing of the Lord
We do not need to stop classes if the teachers are travelling. And anyone can still attend the class regardless of where they are in the world!
Church’s Vision and Mission Statement, and Theme
As we look forward into the years to come, we believe the Word of God and knowing it is key to achieving the Vision and Mission of BEM Pelita (what God wants us to be and what God wants us to do).
Church Vision
Growing deep in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 3:18)
Church Mission
Study, teach and apply the word of God in our life in order that we be firmly established in our faith and well equipped to share the gospel to the world (see 2 Timothy 2:15; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:45-47; 2 Peter 3:18).
Church Theme
We are the salt and light in the world (see Matthew 5:13-16; I John 1:7).
Looking into the future
The weekly Christian Education is a special platform from God for us to fulfil the Church theme, mission and vision statements by growing in the knowledge of the word of God and apply the word of God to our daily Christian living (see John 5:39). We encourage our beloved brothers and sisters to join Christian Education class every Sunday morning.
Appreciation and Doxology
We are privileged to serve in this Ministry We want to thank all the members who have supported us. We want to thank in particular the Elders and Pastors who regularly join and supported us with their knowledge, experience and wisdom
May the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Thessalonians 5:23)
Now to him who is able to establish you in accordance with my gospel, the message I proclaim about Jesus Christ To the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen (Romans 16:25,27)
The birth of “ P E L I T A C R E A T I V E S ”
The Celebration Ministry in BEM Pelita always had plans to record songs and also to expand and make an online presence We always thought about this as a slow but steady process, one where we would have time to learn along the way; one that we would have time to have extended periods of break in between. We sort of had an idea of how this would pan out So some of us would explore using various DAWs (Digital Audio Workstations) and buying Audio Interfaces for recording purposes. A lot of these items were bought personally by the team which shows the team members’ sacrifices for the Lord’s work.
But we were just learning on our free time and not really putting much thought into when we would use those skills.
No one anticipated the seriousness of the pandemic and the start of the MCO on Wednesday, 18th March 2020. It was at this time that we had to use whatever knowledge we had acquired to full use There was no time to sit down to have a roundtable meeting. Things needed to happen fast, decisions needed to be made because Sunday was coming.
Looking back at how the Pelita Creative’s has grown, we often joked that during the pandemic time, what we had was just a skeleton crew who had to adapt fast to changes We slept late because the editing process on a weekly basis was time consuming when we were also learning new things in the process of producing online content every Sunday.
We had weekly debrief meetings every Sunday evening to discuss areas we needed to improve, praise when we met our targets, and plan ahead for the next Sunday.
There’s a quote by Erwin McManus that resonates, thinking about how Pelita Creatives is what it is now, “No one will know you’re a leader until there’s a crisis.”
It is exciting to note that, Pelita not only has young people but we have leaders
The team decided to just focus on audio recording, and the platform we chose to publish the first few online services was on Soundcloud (https://on.soundcloud.com/6a3SGBraxm86j6Qd9).
This was during the time span of 22 3 2020 to 5 4 2020, the early phase of MCO
The transition from producing just audio and moving towards video production was made for the Good Friday service 10.4.2020 (https://youtu.be/ejSaNWHlrlo?si=XNfGFuIYPJgke0lB).
It was still predominantly focused on audio but we added wordings for the praise and worship segments as well as during the sermons We were still fine tuning our skills to shoot video and made the full transition to full video integration on 13.12.2020 (https://youtu be/VH4Cm35Y8do?si=yzJaGLV80zyaIonV)
As the church was allowed to meet together physically for our worship services, the Pelita Creatives’ team also embraced the change from preproduction to doing live-streaming on 29.5.2022
Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
EPHESIANS 3:20-21 (NIV)
Rural Evangelism BEM
Bekenu
BEM Bekenu church is presently using a rented house. However, the owner of an adjoining lot has donated an area of 1240 square metres of his own land to BEM Sarawak for BEM Bekenu Church construction. The Church Committee and appointed Pelita members are in the process of executing the design and planning the construction of a church on this site.
PresentchurchpremisesonLOT687
JalanTusan,Bekenu
BEM Sg. Entulang
The current Entulang church is suffering severe structural decay due to ground subsidence The village committee has extended their lot to an area of 73 metres x 54 metres (3942 square metres as per locality plan). Pelita leaders are working together with Pastor Avit and committee members from Entulang church on the rebuilding of a bigger Church
Current church location on Lot 687
Rural Evangelism BEM
Grace at Rumah Juliana
In 2018 Pastor Saran was transferred from Entulang to Rumah Juliana. Soon she identified it to be a suitable place for a church to be built to serve several longhouses in the area of Sg Mallang Atas
Pelita Church leadership was approached and a committee was formed to manage the project
Work started in late 2018 and the first church service was on Christmas Eve 2019.
The Church was officially declared open in December 2023 after the Covid pandemic.
Rural Evangelism
FOR THIS IS WHAT THE LORD HAS COMMANDED US: " 'I HAVE MADE YOU A LIGHT FOR THE GENTILES, THAT YOU MAY BRING SALVATION TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH.
ACTS 13:47
PASTOR AVIT DING - BEM SG. ENTULANG
PASTOR JOSHUA TIMBANG - BEM SOP
PASTOR EMANG WAN - BEM LG. URUN
Greetings from Pastor Emang Wan Ngau
Shalom Puji Tuhan atas pemeliharaanNya di dalam kehidupan ini Terima kasih atas kesempatan yang telah diberikan untuk saya memberi sedikit ucapan dalam majalah ini
Saya Pr Emang Wan ingin mengucapkan ribuan terima kasih kepada BEM Pelita, yang mana tidak kenal lelah dalam memelihara kami di dalam pelayanan di Lg Urun semenjak 2016 Kami dapat bertahan di tempat pelayanan ini adalah berkat sokongan doa dari Jumaat Tuhan
Walaupun hari-hari tidak selalu cerah namun Tuhan tidak pernah membiarkan kita sendirian Pelayanan kami meluas sampai ke Samling Plantation dan Data Beraan, itu bukan siapanya kami tetapi itulah kerana campur tangan Tuhan, dimana kami di jemput oleh mereka untuk melayani mereka sejak tahun 2022
Perjalanan ke dua tempat ini, mengambil masa satu setengah jam bergantung kepada keadaan jalan. Pr Jasbir pernah membuat pelayanan ke tempat ini bersama kami Doakan kami supaya ada hikmat dan kekuatan dalam meneruskan pelayanan
Sekali lagi saya ucapkan terima kasih kepada BEM Pelita, Tuhan memberkati semuanya.
Long Telepei, Long Sebau, Data Sengalang, Long Tengah & Long Jaik
Zone 4 Long Urun Long Jaik
PastorJasbir @LongUrun
PastorEmang@LongUrun
Mission & Evangelism at Long Urun
Long Urun area covering Long Telepei, Long Sebau, Data Sengalang, Long Tengah and Long Jaik
How it began -
In 2009 Rev. Solomon Bulan heard from Sina Raja in Bario that there was a revival movement among the Penans from Pa Tik in the Bario highland region near Bario Asal In the following year he met a group of young Penans in Bario and indeed they were spirit filled and eager to do outreach in the other Penan areas - moving southwest into the Long Urun areas. These teenagers were so inspired and received much support for their travels from the Penans they touched.
In July 2011 Rev. Solomon and Pastor Jasbir participated in a Kebaktian Kebangunan Rohani (Revival Service) at Long Sebau and witnessed to many of the attendees. Many came to know the Lord
The region of Long Urun was under the jurisdiction of the BEM Daerah of Belaga. However it was unable to cope with this development and Pelita Church was allowe carry on the work there.
Rev. Solomon and Pastor Jasbir and sev members of Pelita Church started visiting villages there.
In the second half of 2011 our team made m mission trips to meet Penans showing g interest and hunger to know God Praise Lord! 127 young believers were baptised!
Pastor Jasbir was assigned in May 2012 to be fully dedicated for the development of Long Urun mission He was supported by a group of Pelita members and volunteers and constant visitations were carried out over the following years
The Lord’s work expanded and Pelita Church was enabled by Him to carry out the following developments over these years:
1.
Arrangements and support for training of younger leaders from Long Urun area at FLTC (Faith Life Training Centre) in Miri;
2
Installing a gravity fed water supply system to Long Jaik;
3.
Support for Pastor Emang and his wife Pastor Fatimah to be stationed in Long Urun;
4.
Construction of a Preschool/ Church building at Long Jaik - officially opened on 28 October 2017;
5.
Construction of a church at Data Sengalang, Long Urun - officially opened on 28 October 2023.
BEMDATASENGALANG,LONGURUN
Pre School and Church Building at Long Jaik
After more than 3 years of working among the Penans at Long Jaik in the Long Urun area in Murum, Pelita Church leadership and the village headman identified the need for a pre-school for the children there Long Jaik at that time had over 60 families and some 50 over children will benefit from such a school; the village is very isolated and there were no schools nearby to meet their early education needs
Pastor Jais who had past experience of working with the Penans was assigned to Long Jaik to start a preschool program. She was assisted by two teacher aides Initially the headman allowed our people to use two of the small houses built there for the school and teachers’ housing.
In 2016, Pastor Jasbir and team proceeded to build a school/church for the village.
Pastor Paulus, who had construction experience, joined us with two other builders Praise the Lord, the building measuring 24 ft by 60 ft was completed in 2 and a half years … It provided a large hall, a function room, 3 bedrooms, a bathroom and a kitchen. The pre-school cum Church was officially declared open in October 2017
BEM Pelita continue to lead to provide support for Long Jaik till today. At times our brothers and sisters from a Brunei Church also contribute financial and visitation support.
Water Supply at Long Ja
Pipingthroughthejungle
Excitement at getting piped water for the first time. Sourceofwater
Checkingwaterflow Layingoutthepipes
PRAISEANDWORSHIP
APPRECIATIONLUNCH
VER YOU DO, WORK AT IT WITH ALL YOUR AS WORKING FOR THE LORD, NOT FOR N MASTERS, SINCE YOU KNOW THAT YOU RECEIVE AN INHERITANCE FROM THE LORD REWARD. IT IS THE LORD CHRIST YOU ARE NG.
SHARINGWORDSOFENCOURAGEMENT
CHILDREN
EMPOWERED YOUNG ADULTS
TEENCLASSWITH PASTORJONATHAN
I PRAY THAT OUT OF HIS GLORIOUS RICHES HE MAY STRENGTHEN YOU WITH POWER THROUGH HIS SPIRIT IN YOUR INNER BEING.
