Chin Ai and Guna invited us for a snack tonight. They brought traditional Malaysian deserts for us to try. It’s like a farewell get-together because Lelan and I are leaving early morning tomorrow for Manila. I’m grateful we found new friends here. They are very kind to us. They modeled Christlike hospitality to us.
Malaysia is clean. Not 100% clean but you won’t see a lot of trash. Their MRT is also faster and colder than the MRT/LRT in the Philippines. It’s nice to experience another country’s culture and see how we are different and similar at the same time.
Chin Ai called me this morning and offered to take us to Genting Hinglands. However, Lelan already booked a tour. Chin Ai and Guna are very kind. Their hospitality is something we should emulate.
Anyway, the tour driver was supposed to pick us up at 10:30 but it was already 10:03 and no one had contacted us yet so we called the company and the customer service assistant said that the driver couldn’t pick us up because our AirBnB is an hour away from the area. So, we decided to cancel the booking. Lelan called the National Elephant Conservation Centre in Kuala Gandah and the lady who answered said that there is no entrance fee. We only had to give a donation. So we booked Grab to go to Kuala Gandah from Bandar Baru Bangi and back to Bandar Baru Bangi from Kuala Gandah. We got to the conservation center at 1:30 and we finished at 3:16 pm.
We asked for a tour guide to walk us through. Our tour guide, Uda, was very nice. I learned a lot about elephants today. Apparently, there are 25 elephants in the conservation center — 4 of which are male. You can differentiate a male elephant from a female elephant by the tusks. Male elephants have long tusks. Female rarely have tusks and if they have, they’re only short.
I also learned that elephants eat A LOT not because of their size but because they absorb only 20-40 percent of the nutrients. And because they absorb only 20-40 percent, their poop, which has 60-70 percent of nutrients is beneficial to other animals and the environment. Elephants are important because they help other animals. It’s amazing to know that animals are created not only to consume but also to help with symbiosis.
Our Grab driver recommended nasi lemak to us so when we stopped by at KFC and we saw they have nasi lemak, we tried it. It was okay. We went back to Chinatown after, then we went to Little India to have dinner.
Started our day with God’s Word
National Elephant Conservation Center (Kuala Gandah)
With our nature guide
Elephant food
Our nature guide demonstrating how to feed the elephant
We got to the airport in Kajang at almost 10 p.m. but we got to our AirBnB around 1 a.m. because we had to get some cash and a sim card. The first Grab driver we booked cancelled after waiting for him for about 15 minutes. We booked another Grab and the driver came around midnight.
It’s nice to connect to locals. The people at church were very welcoming. Lelan showed them the letter from one of the elders in his church in Kansas. He also mentioned about the Malaysian guy who used to go to their church. They really made my husband and I feel at home. It’s good that Lelan and some people there have friends in common. We were 15 minutes late for the service. (It started at 8:45 a.m.) They were already having their breakfast fellowship when we got there. They offered us some bread and coffee.
Some of them approached us and spoke with us. Before we left, Chin Ai and Guna Lim asked us about our itinerary and we said we haven’t really pinned down our schedule but my husband mentioned about smoked ducks and they offered to take us there. Since it was already lunch time when we got to the restaurant, they decided to have lunch with us. They paid for the smoked duck and the coconut milkshakes.
They also offered their place for us to rest before taking us to Chinatown. They lent us their socket for our phone charger because the sockets here in Malaysia are different from what we have in the Philippines. At around 2:30, we left Kajang to go to Kuala Lumpur. They first drove us to Chinatown on Petaling Street.
The weather was nice. It was sunny and warm. It rained for a while and then it was sunny again. We walked to Petronas Towers from Chinatown. We inquired if the viewing deck is open tonight. (The tickets were sold out for tonight, unfortunately.) There were a lot of people in Petronas. Guna said that he’d never been to Petronas with that much people. It’s probably because of the New Year’s Eve celebration. We walked back to the parking lot to return to Chin Ai and Guna’s house to fetch the kids.
They took us to an Indian restaurant in Kajang (their treat!), went back to their place to freshen up (long day!), then went back to church for the Watch Night at 9 p.m. It lasted for an hour and then we hung around a bit to talk to other believers there. Some of them gave recommendations about places to visit and food to try here.
It got dark at 8 p.m. I remember it gets dark at 8 p.m. in Hong Kong, too. In the Philippines, it’s already dark outside at 6 p.m. It’s just nice to see the difference. 🙂 I noticed that the roads here are wider and people drive faster (compared to my country). The driver’s seat is on the right side of the car and they drive on the left side of the road. It’s the opposite in the Philippines. Malaysia was colonized by the British for over 100 years so that explains their road system. Malaysia is also kind of a melting pot because there’s a mix of Malays, Chinese, and Indians. The major religion is Islam.
It’s Sunday today and Chin Ai and Guna should be relaxing but they chose to spend their whole day with us. They were very generous with their time and resources. They drove us around and served as our “tour guides” — for free! I think they gave us much information than we could learn from a hired tour guide. We are beyond grateful. I’m glad we connected with believers here.
Kajang Gospel Center
Lunch
To Chin Ai and Dagu’s house
Petaling Street
To the train station
Petronas Towers
Back to the parking lot
Dinner c/o the Lims
roti canai w/ egg, lentil soup, fish curry soup
oven-baked tandoori chicken
oven-baked roti nan w/ cheese + lentil soup, fish curry soup, & mint sauce
murtabak with mutton
warm massala tea (w/ cardamom & cloves)
Watch Night (Kajang Pusang Gospel Center)
Back to our AirBnb
Called my family in the Philippines to greet them a happy new year
Lelan and I got back home late (around 12 midnight) from giving food and gospel tracts to street people here in Cubao. We started late (almost 9 p.m.) because we had to wait for my godmother’s and sister’s food delivery. (My family in Naga also sent food early today.) We started in Araneta Center, then walked to the other side of EDSA. When we reached Robinsons Magnolia, we returned to Araneta.
We only saw a few street people but when we returned to Arayat, we saw many sleeping on the side of the street. We prayed before starting the food distribution and asked God to lead us to those who really have nothing to eat. I kept praying while walking back to Cubao because I thought we wouldn’t be able to give everything tonight. Surprisingly though, we were short of two packs! Praise God! Lelan suggested that we buy sandwiches in a 24/7 convenience store so we’d have something to give to the two who saw us distributing food, and we did.
It was tiring because we just walked but it was worth it. It’s all for God’s glory. I don’t want to die not doing anything for the Lord. It’s not because I want to earn points in heaven because it’s not a point system in heaven but because I don’t want a purposeless life. It’s not what I do that makes me righteous. It is God’s goodness that makes me righteous before Him. I am saved not because of anything I’ve done, but because of the Lord’s grace for me through my faith in Him (which is also from Him).
I want to leave this world busy for His kingdom even in small things. I want to use the resources that God has given me for Him, for the people that He loves dearly. I want to use this life that God gave me to serve Him. Service is our response to God’s goodness in our life. Out of our gratefulness for His salvation, we worship and serve Him.
It’s 1:22 a.m. as of this writing and I should hit the sack but I just want to write about God’s goodness in my life. I wouldn’t be able to do this ministry if not for His provision. I am grateful for my husband. My husband helped me prepare the food, pack, and carry them using a trolley. It was already late when we went out and he has back pain but (because of a bulged disc) but he did it with me anyway. He didn’t complain at all. I am grateful that my husband and I have the same goal, which is heaven. I understand that marriage can be difficult but it’s less difficult when your spouse’s mission is aligned with yours.
I can’t believe I’m 39 already. One more year and I will have been living on earth for four decades! Sometimes I find it hard to believe how time flies. I am grateful for all the prayers that God answered. Some did not come right away, but God answered. I believe that God answers our prayers when we are ready.
I am grateful for my family. They are the best support system. I am grateful for my friends who wish the best for me, and pray for me. I am grateful for friends who do not see me as a competition.
I am grateful for the Lord’s humbling this year. I had to learn the hard way but if it takes painful times to keep me close to Him, I will endure — with His help, of course.
I am grateful for His protection. The other day, I was pondering over how God has protected me and my family since I was a young child up to today. He is so, so, so, so good.
I am grateful for His forgiveness, for His mercy, for His compassion to me. I give Him all the glory, honor, and praise. There is nothing I can boast to God, and I won’t. I like being in awe of seeing God’s hand in my victories and defeats. He is just…amazing! I will run out of adjectives to describe His greatness and his majesty. He is everything to me. He has been carrying me all these years and I am grateful.
Breakfast
Short visit of the Tans
We won’t finish all the cake, for sure!
My forever ministry partner ❤️
We stopped at Dunkin’ Donuts to get some juice because we were so thirsty.
