Enter Moko – a 10-year old boy from Indonesia heavily anointed with the gift of preaching. On the outset, he looks and behaves like any regular 5th grader. Unassuming and a tad reserved, he commands a huge appetite that seems to need quenching every 2 hours. Perhaps such a large reserve is needed for the   thousands of people who flock to hear him and be ministered to at each service.

The heavy interest in this kid hailing from Poso, Central Sulawesi, is understood the minute he takes to the stage. His first words are confidently loud and clear coupled with tack sharp articulation that reeks a noticeable Indon accent. He focuses the audiences’ attention to Scripture almost immediately, cheekily chiding those who did not bring their Bibles. A short passage is read from Matthew – about a woman who touched Jesus’ cloak. Moko wastes no time in getting to the heart of the matter. His excitement and charisma show no signs of dwindling as he delves into the main points of the sermon, beckoning all to realise the importance of faith, hard work, and sincerity in claiming healing by the power of prayer. Dynamic facial expressions and intonation are infused as the petite preacher paces the length and breadth of the stage.  

Tonight is a rather formal church service with the biggest turnout the host church has ever seen. Crowds overflow unto the walkways and car park where a projector linked to live video feed has been set up so that more can be privy to the proceedings inside the building.

The service ends with Moko’s pastor reiterating that while Moko is indeed a gifted preacher, all glory should rightly go to God; the Giver of all spiritual gifts. To some, Moko may be a celebrity in his own right. However it is reassuring to know that the young boy himself has got his feet planted on the ground and sights set on heaven. As quoted when asked about his (relationship) status: “ Bujang; Tuhan empunya” (single; belonging to God).

Photo credits: tomcw ©

All was well taken care of in terms of food and lodging. Personally I enjoyed the controversial BTN more than the induction..though we were served 3 buffet meals and 3 tea breaks a day during the latter. Maybe it was because lectures only lasted for a day compared to the induction where several 2-hour lectures were held almost everyday. Some lecturers were understanding and said we could sleep during their lectures as long as we didnt fall off the table for good reason. I didnt quite see the rationale here and decided it was better to sleep in my cosy hotel bed instead…so off i went. Plus point was meeting various other hospital people from ard Sabah including many former batchmates.

Apparently i can’t reveal too much about what transpired at BTN, but on the whole felt that we were treated with respect and not forced to do anything too controversial…except however for a few exam questions that seemed imho to encourage the very thing BTN claimed it was trying to discourage. Something along racial lines la.

Took the opportunity to travel abit after all those courses. Destination: Sandakan!

Stayed a night at the Le Meridien, KK. Price was reasonable and within claim-budget for a twin sharing room. Thanks to Alan for introducing this idea…and for the rest of the Sandakan trip too! The Le Meridien was a class of its own naturally. However, our room for the night had safe-box & horribly disgusting plumbing issues. The hotel did their best to rectify them though i reckon the toilet in Room 1135 was still blocked when we checked out. We took comfort in the hearty buffet breakfast the following day. The sumptuous spread included salmon and 4 varieties of juices as well as choice condiments available for the binging. Joy.

Think Sandakan, think Seafood. Think also Sim-Sim. A jetty market-restaurant on stilts serving up daily fresh catches. How fresh you ask? Fisherman rides boat out to sea-fisherman brings back fishies-customer choose what they want -customer eat. Well, the restaurant will cook your pick for you for a fee of about Rm10/dish should you require their services. First thing that caught our eyes upon entering the jetty was an amazing Guitar Ray (or Guitarfish)! Amazing because well, i’ve never seen it before. Have you?

Seems almost like a shark but really is a ray. Guitar bcos the head resembles a guitar body. Though i don’t think guitars of that shape will be too appealing.

Sharking – if there exists such a word. There exists such an activity here. Baby sharks caught by the buckets each time..usually via longline fishing. Shark meat don’t fetch much, but their fins do. Often made into exquisite delicacies commonly served at Chinese wedding dinners. Check this out on how it may impact the environment.

Yup. You got that right – RM48 for a kilogramme of fresh lobster. We had 2..each weighing about 500gms.

Truly delightful. Lobster thermidor anyone? Make your own for under RM50.

Darn.

Perhaps my IP has been recorded too many times already.

Perhaps because only yesterday i was learning how surfers access restricted sites at work, and tried out a few anonymous proxy sites – most of which were detected and resulted in my IP being recorded again.
Well, at least someone’s doing their job efficiently here at work. If you IT dept. people who seemed to have slammed tighter internet security in my face today are reading this, i say ‘tahniah’ for being on your toes…or fingers.

Will conduct another test again soon. Good for us to be accountable yea.

My current lodging premises:

[ awesome pic here]

darn…my office network seems to have blocked all uploads.

And facebook too of course.

Was hoping to just survive on office connection.. not so sure now…hmm

Waited for 2 and a half hours in a cold air-conditioned room while my future posting was being discussed by officers.

There seemed to be a possibility that i might end up working in Kota Kinabalu.

After preparing to go to Ranau, wasn’t sure if i was happy about it or not.

In the end… its Ranau afterall. Hmm…wonder what transpired in the 2 hours.

My comfortable hotel bed…which magically somehow gets done (with fresh sets of linen) every morning.

Gonna miss it when i leave tomorrow.

Hopefully somehow the magic will carry on in my new place.

last meal at KK – had to make sure it was something.. maybe abit modest still… i could’ve ordered lobster.

City Mall – where my hotel is situated

From Kluang to Tenom…the coffee never ends.

Japanese – Oldtown kopitiam – Big Apple

Ranau got ba?

Celyn hotel – my home in KK.   farewell…

Receipts – proof of purchase – proof for claims.

Mighty important these…

Cab fare here is exorbitant! A 7min drive sets u back RM20 easily.

]]> http://tomcw.wordpress.com/2009/03/13/the-posting/feed/ 0 tomcw sabah lovely white sheets last supper City Mall Tenom station Uptown Celyn receipts! http://tomcw.wordpress.com/2009/03/12/the-arrival/ http://tomcw.wordpress.com/2009/03/12/the-arrival/#comments Thu, 12 Mar 2009 16:21:52 +0000 tomcw http://tomcw.wordpress.com/?p=49 ]]>
]]> http://tomcw.wordpress.com/2009/03/12/the-arrival/feed/ 0 tomcw http://tomcw.wordpress.com/2009/03/10/45/ http://tomcw.wordpress.com/2009/03/10/45/#comments Tue, 10 Mar 2009 17:02:10 +0000 tomcw http://tomcw.wordpress.com/?p=45 Continue reading →]]> How do you turn

the cheek from boiling temper

to a courteous calm

for another simply because he’s less familiar

..what about the former other?

How do u mince

your words sharper, faster

than a quick katana slice

because to be true through and through

will be the bigger vice

..what about them lies?

How do u choose

suddenly to take control

forget u were loose

never mind the rules

its all right, its all good

..how did u choose in the first place?