31 January 2011 - Praise and Prayer from Robert & Dara Peh

“THE LORD IS GOOD, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and He knoweth them that trust in Him” (Nahum 1:7, KJV).

PRAISE GOD! Like Moses going up to Mount Sinai alone to meet the LORD, Dara has prepared herself to go to the hospital and spend all her time alone in the ward with her Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ in prayer and in the reading of His Word for the next few days. Besides the Bible, we have printed out some hymns for her to bring along to sing praises unto the God of our salvation. Pray that she will have a wonderful time fellowshipping with the Lord. “O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in Him” (Psalm 34:8, KJV).

This morning (31 January), Dara will be admitted to the Singapore General Hospital for a 3 day treatment for thyroid cancer. She will be given high dosage of the radioactive iodine and her body will be radio active for a while. During this period, it’s better for her not to have close contact with people, especially the pregnant women and children under 5 years old. So, she will be confined to a room to herself. No one could visit her, not even her love ones. Yet, the Lord will always be her companion. Pray that she will be fully healed and physically strong after the treatment. God willing, she will be discharged on Wednesday (2 February 2011).

For those who are interested to know more about the I-131 treatment for thyroid cancer, click the following link: http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/type/thyroid-cancer/treatment/radiotherapy/radioactive-iodine-treatment-for-thyroid-cancer

After her 2 thyroids were removed on 8 December 2010, she is not on any medication and is lacking of hormone in her body. Till today, 8 weeks have passed. The lack of calcium and other chemical in her body has caused much cramp on her body and made her out of breath at times and headache and tired easily. Thank God. The day has come for her to go for the treatment. May the Lord grant her a complete recovery!

“He only is my rock and my salvation: He is my defence; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God. Trust in Him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before Him: God is a refuge for us” (Psalm 62:6-8, KJV).

Thanks for praying.

Cheers,
Robert, Dara, Evangel & Lin
31 January 2011

29 January 2011 - Praise and Prayer from Robert & Dara Peh

“Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:6-7, KJV).

Thank you for your partnership with us in prayer. Thanks for praying with us for our Christmas outreaches last month (Dec. 2010). By God’s grace, everything went on well and smoothly. Many had come and heard the gospel. Have attached a few pictures on this blog for your viewing.

THANK GOD! We arrived safely at Singapore on Tuesday night (25 Jan), with 8 baggage. GOD IS ALWAYS SO GOOD! It was an eventful trip which God used to teach us the lesson of TRUST.

Firstly, at Bangkok airport, we were not allowed to check in because Dara’s passport is less than six months from the expiry date. They knew that if Dara could not go to Singapore, than all of us would not be going too. We told them that Dara would be going for her treatment in Singapore. They asked for the hospital letter from Singapore but we didn’t have it with us. So, what should we do? Prayed and prayed. The Bible says, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7, KJV).

We Knew that we have to call Singapore to fax us the letter. THANK GOD! We managed to get hold of Elder Victor Wee who contacted the doctor for us and had the letter fax over. Thank God for Elder Wee who was always so willing and ever so ready to help us. After calling Elder Wee, we informed them that the letter would be in soon. PRAISE GOD! Somehow, they just believed what we said. It must be the Lord’s doing. They could have let all of us wait until the fax came in then let us check in but God worked in such a way that while waiting for the fax to come in, they allowed us to check in all the baggage first and let Dara, Grace, Evangel and Evangeline to go in. As for me, they wanted me to wait till the fax reached their office. Thereafter, Dara said, “THANK GOD FOR CANCER.” If it’s not because of cancer, she would not be able to come to Singapore on that day. Yes, “we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28, KJV).

We actually arrived at the Bangkok airport quite early at about 2.30pm, slightly more than 2 hours before checking in. We could have gone for lunch first, but thank God that we didn’t. The queue was very, very long. When it reached our turn, it was about 3.40 pm. The departure time was 4.45 pm. When they finally allowed Dara, Grace, Evangel and Lin to go in, it was about 4 pm. I waited for them to call me but they didn’t, though I was just standing in front of the counter. At 4.30 pm, I decided to ask them and tell them that the fax had already reached the office. To my surprise, they said that they had forgotten to inform me about it and that the aeroplane was about to depart. They wanted me to quickly run in before it was too late. Quite exciting wasn’t it?

Then when I reached the airport immigration, know what, the queue was also very long. I knew that it would take quite a while before my turn and I would be late. What to do then? Prayed and prayed. I called Dara to inform the air-stewards about it. They said they would wait for me till 5 pm. If still I could not make it, then they would send someone there to help me clear the immigration quickly. 5 pm finally came and there was still a person before me, but the airplane couldn’t wait anymore. So they sent an air-steward to look for me at the immigration and found me at the counter. Thank God. I finally reached the aeroplane safely being the last person to board the plane. GOD IS SO AMAZING!

After I had boarded, the plane was all ready to take off. They shut the door and in no time, the plane started to move. As usual, I would count all the passports. And since, I was not able to go with them earlier, I told Grace to look after them and their passports. But, something happened again. Lin’s passport was missing. She remembered that she had already given it to Grace. Where had it gone to? The plane was already moving. It was too late to go back now to the airport and find the passport. With the seatbelt on, we tried searching around where we were sitting but the passport was no where to be found. Lin and Evangel was sitting in the row in front of Grace. Grace bended forward to see whether she could find the passport under their seats but couldn’t. What to do now? Prayed and prayed. When the seat belt light went off, Grace bended down to search under her own seat and to her amazement, she saw the passport lying down there. She cried. God was so merciful again. “I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known Thy faithfulness to all generations” (Psalm 89:1,KJV).

However, it was not the end yet. We have not reached Singapore. What if the Singapore Immigration couldn’t allow Dara to enter Singapore because of her passport? We actually told the airline in Bangkok to print out a copy of the letter for us so that we could show it to the Singapore Immigration officer. However, because they had forgotten about me, they had also forgotten to photocopy a copy for me. It was too late for me to rush to the office and ask for a copy now. What to do then? Prayed and Prayed. We hoped that the immigration officer in Singapore would not notice the expiry date. But, guess what? He did. However, God had shown Himself once again to be faithful and merciful. God had soften the heart of the immigration officer to let Dara entered Singapore for a month. Pointing at Dara’s passport, he just reminded Dara not to forget to renew her passport after returning to Thailand. PRAISE THE LORD! “Thy mercy, O LORD, is in the heavens; and Thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds” (Psalm 36:5, KJV).

Through all these happenings, we know that God was teaching us to trust Him ever more, even before we reached Singapore. We know also that it is God’s will for Dara to have her treatment done in Singapore. We went for the hospital appointment on Thursday (27 Jan). The doctor confirmed that Dara has to go for the radio iodine on Monday (31 Jan). She will be admitted to the hospital for three days, until Wednesday (2 Feb). During the treatment, she will be isolated, not because she is carrying any contagious disease but that she will be radioactive. So, no visit will be allowed. To be honest, it is not the treatment that is painful for her but the separation from us for 2 days and 2 nights. But, God is so good. Unlike Thailand, she is allowed to make phone calls in the ward. Thank God for this arrangement. This will definitely reduce her loneliness and longing to see us. PRAISE BE TO GOD!

Thank God again that the timing is just perfect. The doctor said that she will be discharged from the hospital on February 2. So, she will be physically present for our family reunion dinner, though she may still need to abstain from certain food. Besides, she will also be able to join us for the Chinese New Year visitation. GOD IS ALWAYS SO GOOD AND SO GRACIOUS! "How excellent is Thy lovingkindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Thy Wings" (Psalm 36:7, KJV).

Do pray for everyone in the Christian Home of Love during our absence that God will keep them close to Himself. Pray for John our church deacon as he leads the Sunday worship services and preaches the Word of God. God willing, we will return to Thailand on February 10. Do continue to pray for Dara’s recovery.

Wishing you all a blessed Year 2011!

In God we trust,

Robert, Dara, Evangel & Evangeline Peh

29 January 2011