27 Feb 2014 by Adeline Lum CM-
The New Life Restoration Church (NLRC) in Petaling Jaya recently held an annual welcome dinner on Feb 23 for more than 30 newcomers in church, inviting concert pianist Enoch Fernando to perform for the first time.
Up to date, Enoch has performed in over 50 countries in 4000 concerts, where two of his songs were nominated for the Grammy’s. He has started performing in Malaysia since the last decade, and has performed in Malaysia and Singapore for ten times in the last year alone.
“I want to support the Christian artistes… The quality of his music was very enjoyable,” said Sr Pr Ron Hee of NLRC PJ. “Enoch travels to every nation, spreading the love of God through music.”
According to his official website, Enoch called his music as the ‘Unique Worship Experience,’ which is ‘a combination of great hymns, worship songs, classical music, contemporary world themes along with his own combinations… His remarkable natural gifts and talent accompanied with rich orchestration and multimedia video touch the heart and move the soul.’
The evening began with emcee Albert Lee sharing that the purpose of the annual welcome dinner is to celebrate the new friendships of the church newcomers.
“I remember when I first stepped into the church, I was also searching like the newcomers here. I was not sure who is my friend. So I kept wandered. I kept searching. I kept probing,” said Albert who has been coming to NLRC PJ in the last four years. One of the factors that drew him to NLRC is the openness and acceptance of their pastors, who are willing to embrace each other in a common cause despite differences.
In that evening, the newcomers got acquainted first by a handshake, followed by a dance, and a game of stacking up toys signifying our treasures in life, before adjourning to dinner. Through this game, Albert shared that only Jesus Christ can bind our treasures together (John 14:6) and all of us are on the same journey in pursuing Him.
During dinner, Sr Pr Ron Hee shared the 365-concept of NLRC PJ, which include 3 visions, 6 cultures through 5 generations of people.
Firstly, the 3-fold of NLRC PJ include bringing up people, building the church, and blessing the nations. He believed that if the Lord has brought a person to NLRC, he or she would be able to find his or her fit easily in the body of Christ, akin to a piece of puzzle fitting into a larger picture.
“If God has brought you to this church, I would like to help you grow to be closer to the Lord Jesus Christ. The foundation of Christianity must be the Lord Jesus—as much as we focus on prayer and mission—everything you do must bring you to the Lord Jesus,” said Pr Ron Hee.
He shared that when you are plugged into the body of Christ, we as believers can enjoy the cleansing of sins, fellowshipping, and discipleship through cell groups. Also, a defining culture of NLRC PJ is how everyone in church would hold hands while praying, representing how they are one spirit and one body.
Pr Ron also shared about the 6-faith culture NLRC PJ of A to F, NLRC PJ wished to perpetuate, which are the Acts of the Holy Spirits, Blessing one another, Confessions of God’s Word, Divine health and healing, Evangelism as a way of life, and Financial blessings. And finally, this vision and culture must see its fruition through the 5-generational groups in the church including men, women, children, youths, and young adults.
Joanna Patrick who has been going to NLRC for 17 years now, recalled how touched she felt from the love and warmth of the church who extended their help to her and her husband during their move here from Kuching. Celine Low who recently joined NLRC also shared how the church is important in offering her spiritual coverage for her involvement in her street ministry. She was also drawn to NLRC PJ wide coverage of missionary work of an average of 50 trips annually to other countries.
After the presentation over dinner, Enoch Fernando performed his self-composed pieces of Concerto, Joyful Praise and Harmony. Other popular pieces played included Have I told you lately by Rod Stewart, Close to you by Carpenter, I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor, Wind beneath my wings by Bette Midler, Love me with all of your heart by Engelbert Humperdinck, The windmills of your mind by Noel Harrison, Will the Circle be Unbroken by Medley and finally, Look of Love, adapted with Christian lyrics.
“The Holy Spirit gives me the inspiration to write… the inspiration He brings to me, I pray that it will bring healing, comfort, and inspire other’s,” said Enoch. “Music is such a powerful medium that sometimes, words cannot move people like music.”
He shared how his music set a demon-possessed woman in San Francisco free from the evil spirit that immediately calmed her appearance, akin to how young David would play the harp to calm King Saul’s oppression by an evil spirit. He also recalled how a young lady was healed from being deaf in one year, and how a man was delivered from alcoholism having his desire to drink ceased after hearing the music.
“When people are in tune with the Spirit, they can pick up on the vibes and they can feel the presence of God. That’s my prayer. That’s communication. It cannot be done by some kind of prepared speech or even a prepared message. It comes from the heart and the Spirit of God and I can’t dictate that,” Enoch said.
The evening ended with a sense of belonging amongst the newcomers and church leaders to the NLRC PJ, as one body in Christ.
About Enoch Fernando: Growing up performing in a rock band in India, Enoch felt that God was calling him to study music in United States. He later went to United States to study music, having the opportunity to even study piano with Lazlo Lack, piano teacher for Richard and Karen Carpenter of ‘The Carpenters.’ After years of concert touring in United States with his wife, the Lord led them to start ‘Children for India’ (CFI) ministry, a sponsorship orphan program in partnership with pastors in India. Today, children in CFI ministry have grown up with skills such as trading, carpentry, and sewing. Some children even went as far as graduating from colleges, earning professional degrees. Help a child today at www.cfichildhelp.org.
Note to all Churches: Enoch Fernando will be having concert openings in KL on APRIL 27 (Sunday) and MAY 4 (Sunday). Please contact him if you would like to invite him to perform in your church. Visit http://www.enochmusic.com/index.php and contact him through http://www.enochmusic.com/contact.php
Reference for pictures
All pictures are accredited to NLRC Petaling Jaya
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