Host With Love · No Obstacles

Together We Go & Save · Written by Rev. Andrew Wong

“Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters. Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers …” (Heb. 13:1-2)

In the month of August, Malaysia’s COVID-19 confirmed cases have been increasing steadily, people around us started to get infected too, cries of confirmed COVID-19 family members who needed to be quarantine becoming louder and closer too. By the moving of God, HISTEAM responded by setting up safe quarantine house, foremost we learned how to transform our staff’s quarters into a safe quarantine facility. Meanwhile, we also fasten our pace in sharing Quarantine House’s vision and execution program with Chinese speaking churches. In general, the responds we received from pastors and leaders who attended our Quarantine House Briefing could be either agree with it or totally disagree. Nevertheless, we are very thankful for our Lord’s leading, throughout Malaysia there are 18 churches working together with us, in setting up 21 quarantine houses to host individuals of group B close contact group. We really appreciate our overseas mentor Rev. James Xia for his trust and love to us by setting aside a sum of money from Taiwan CCRA into our Quarantine House startup fund, this is indeed a big encouragement to our team to walk the extra mile. As I looked back at our Quarantine House program, I had never expected that for the past 3 months, churches all over Malaysia had hosted 58 individuals (statistic till end of October). Individuals stayed at our quarantine house came from all walks of life, we gave priority to people of B40 group or financially disadvantage. Thank God that we have the privilege to host friends from other races, foreign workers and ex-drug addicts.

Actually we were just boldly depended on God when we opened up and prepared our vacant premises to take in neighbours who needed a temporary and safe quarantine space. During quarantine period, we provide them with food, company, care and prayers. From the sharing of brothers and sisters who involved in this quarantine house ministry, they found that their faith and boldness has increased in this pandemic as they care for and host quarantine individuals. In the process of hosting, God reminded me that ministry of hosting is an unavoidable ministry that we must adopt in this end time period. This time it was due to a pandemic, that a space was needed to host our neighbours, in the future it could be a natural disaster, war or even persecution that will cause diaspora of refugees. Actually, what we need to prepare is really not a physical space but the space in God’s children hearts, i.e. a heart that willing to host. When time comes, we will either be the one who take in someone or the one who desire to be taken care of. Ungodly lifestyles will be more common during end time, people hearts are becoming more indifferent too, if the church does not wish to be judge by God’s righteousness like lukewarm Laodicea Church, or Ephesian Church that lost their first love, than we end up with only one choice that is to depend on Holy Spirit and turn our indifferent into love, until the unbelievers around us can experience the unforsaken love of our God. Yes! This is the love in Christ Jesus that leap over life, death, time and geographical limitation. Where there is love, then there will not be obstacles.