It’s a Friday night, and the crowd is heading into the Dream Centre at Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC) in Petaling Jaya. Everyone has come seeking answers to the same question: “Why does a loving God allow me to be entrapped by anxiety?”
On 27 September 2019, 800 people packed the sanctuary to hear speakers Jose Philip, Yutaro Kato and Dr. Wong Sum Keong from the Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM) Asia-Pacific, address the tough questions of life with thoughtful answers. Kuala Lumpur was the last stop, after Singapore and Melbourne, for an apologetics event series entitled “YMI Examining the Faith” that had been organised by YMI, which stands for “Why Am I?”, the young adults arm of Our Daily Bread Ministries geared towards reaching millennials with God’s Word.
Dr Wong, who has a background as both a medical doctor and a pastor, kicked off the evening with a 20-minute sermon addressing the definition and causes of anxiety as well as a view of it from a biblical perspective. This was followed by a lively Q&A session, where a few brave souls asked their questions directly from the floor, whilst others took to their mobile phones to submit their questions electronically using a live interactive online Q&A platform.
That night, the audience asked a total of 175 questions—demonstrating that young people are desperately seeking answers and hungry to know the truth, and that believers need to engage them in such discussions, armed with a firm grasp of God’s Word. Though the panellists did not manage to answer every single question due to time constraints, they did manage to cover the main topics of mental health, suicide, demonic oppression and God’s sovereignty and omniscience.
A member of the audience asking a question during a Q&A session
To listen to audio recordings of the event
The next day, the event resumed in the morning with two other pertinent topics: “What if all I believed about Jesus wasn’t true?” and “Why does God care about my sexuality?” The questions were addressed respectively by Jose, Director for Itinerant Ministries with RZIM (Asia-Pacific) and Yutaro, an Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics (OCCA) Fellow with RZIM (Asia-Pacific).
Jose Philip (centre) from Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (Asia-Pacific) addressing the audience
A lively Q&A session followed, with honest questions such as:
- “Is there such a thing as sexual orientation?”
- “Are homosexuals born that way?”
- “Can I serve in church if I am an LGBT?”
- “Why should I go to a Christian counsellor if I can seek professionals outside since I’ve had bad experiences with pastors?”
Many of these questions pointed back to the foundations of the gospel and the core of Christian living—having a personal relationship with God and fully embracing His love for us.
Evidently, there’s plenty of work to do in engaging young adults with God’s Word! Indeed, as Jesus said, “the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few” (Matthew 9:37). However, we are to be always “prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15). We are truly blessed that such an apologetics event has opened doors for many to come forward with their questions. This is a sure sign of the good work ahead that we as Christ’s disciples are privileged to be a part of.
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