Beyond Expectations

My experience at the May Encounter Camp far exceeded my initial expectations. The truth is that I went to the Encounter with a heavy heart and many misgivings on whether I will encounter God. After all, I did encounter Him in the G12 Conference as I wept continuously and after that, doubted that experience will ever come again. I was so wrong

I went to the encounter with Christian, Zhen Rong and Ashlegh. Not surprisingly, we bonded easily with Alvin as our Guide. We did have our fair share of fun and laughter but we gathered there mainly for one sole purpose and that was to encounter God.

For me, I did not see many miracles materializing on the first day. However, the presence of the Holy Spirit was there touching our hearts but I only encountered God on the second day. From young, I have a low self-esteem and have been fighting a losing war with my inferiority complex. I was constantly compared to others in the past and words like how unworthy I am have been said to me. This continued for more than six years and this low sense of self-worth kept growing that I was so certain for a fact that I was inferior. Whenever someone praised me, I would think that he/she is lying. But it all changed at the Encounter. When Alvin prayed for me, he said something that really caught my heart: “You are worthy of His love”.

Jesus will not die for an unworthy person. Otherwise, His death will be in vain. That was the last thing I wanted in this world. I cried and asked for His forgiveness, realizing that every time I condemned myself, I am slapping Jesus in the face and telling Him that He died for the wrong person. I felt that I could not live my life like that anymore.

One the most memorable moments of the encounter was nailing our sins to the cross. Through the cross, we have already won the battle against Sin. A lot of demons were cast out during ministry. And the presence of the Holy Spirit was so strong that many of us fell under the power of the Spirit. Ashlegh and I thought how fun it was and so we kept accepting its presence again and again. God definitely touched everyone’s lives that day.

Even though the Encounter exerted a heavy physical and mental toil on us, God gave us so much strength that Zhen Rong and I were energetic enough to run to Sentosa Bridge and back to Siloso beach. We were still able to stand and worship God throughout the Encounter sessions despite all that physical exertion.

Lord, I am grateful that all of us who were at the Encounter could commit three days for You without any distractions from work or studies. I am even more grateful that through this procedure, we grew spiritually and still there’s so much more for us to learn. Finally, thank you Father for clearing my sins through Jesus and banishing the inferiority complex within me.

You truly are a God of change and of miracles, capable of destroying the walls and moving the mountains in our lives.

Written by:

Sky Kwah

Josh's 12