I will sing of mercy and justice;
To You, O Lord, I will sing praises.
I will behave wisely in a perfect way.
Oh, when will You come to me?
I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.
                                                            – Psalm 101:1-2 (NKJ)

THE song Approved in Every Way was written in 1982. I was 22 years old then. The song was specially written for Full Gospel Tabernacle’s (FGT) annual camp in Cameron Highlands.

I can vividly remember writing the music and scribbling on a piece of paper the draft lyrics of the song and passing it to Pastor Voon Yuen Woh. Pastor Voon rewrote part of the lyrics and this song was introduced to the church for our camp. It became an instant hit.

There were only about 30 people in FGT at that time. Most of the church leaders were in their 20s and were considered young and inexperienced. However, there was something common among all of them. They all knew how to sacrifice and serve the Lord with all their hearts.

So this song reflected the hearts of the pioneers of the church. The lyrics of the song go like this:

     I want to be Your servant Lord,
     To serve You each and every day
     I want to give my best to You
     Approved in every way,
     Make my life a living sacrifice
     The way you want me to be
     To serve You with all my heart
     Whatever the cost to me
     Take me, break me, mould me, Lord
     As the Potter shapes the clay
     Pleasing you in all I do
     Approved in every way

At our first meeting in FGT in 1981, we needed to raise RM12,000 to pay for the fixtures of our rented church premises. This looked like a small amount today. But at that time, with 30 people who were mostly students, this was a large amount.

So many of us emptied our bank accounts. Even with this, we managed to raise only RM6,000. So we had to pay the balance by instalments. It was in those years that we learnt how to sacrifice totally to God’s purposes.

This song Approved in Everyway is a true reflection of the lives of the pioneers. They gave their all for God.

As the years passed by, one by one of the pioneers of the church left their high salaried jobs to serve God full time. Our Senior Pastor, Rev. Dr. Eu Hong Seng was a senior manager in a finance company. Pastor Voon Yuen Woh was a financial controller in the Arab Malaysian Group and Pastor Goh Hock Huat was a manager in Credit Corporation Malaysia.

They all left their jobs and are now serving God in full time service. Pastor Voon, in particular, relocated to Seremban with his family to plant a church there. This was our first daughter church outside the Klang Valley.

Later in the years, other pioneers like Pastor Cheng Yoke Poh, Pastor Clarence Chan, Pastor Yapp Gaik Sim also reponded to the call of God.

In 1998, I received my call to full time service. At that time, I was the senior general manager at the Soon Seng Group. It was a struggle to obey God because of the financial sacrifices. Nevertheless, I obeyed. In 1999, I came out full time and became the principal of Tung Ling Seminary.

Today, most of the pioneers of the church are in full time service.

Another significant event happened between the years 1997 to 2000. FGT had embarked on a building programme. Our land had been purchased earlier for RM1.5 million and was fully paid.

However, we needed to raise approximately RM5.5 million for our church building. In 1999, we commenced building with only RM2 million in the bank. There was a shortfall of RM3.5 million.

Over the next two years, the church members rallied behind the vision to build the church and covered this financial shortfall. Some sold houses and cars to pledge to the building fund.

By early 2001, the entire building was paid in cash. We raised almost RM7 million for the land and building.

This is a financial miracle for the church as FGT has only 500-600 members. Most of our members are from the average working class. There are no multi-millionaires in the church.

We praise God that the next generation of church members also had chance to make their lives as a “living sacrifice” for God.

In year 2001, we celebrated our 20th anniversary. By this time, the church has grown to over 600 members, with services in English, Mandarin, Bahasa Malaysia, Tamil and Filipino.

We have several branch churches across the country. Our Senior Pastor is now a national leader. He serves as the Vice-chairman of both the National Evangelical Christian Fellowship and Christian Federation of Malaysia.

Voon Yuen Woh pastors a thriving church in Seremban and is Chairman of Evangelism Explosion Malaysia. Goh Hock Huat pastors our main church in Petaling Jaya and is an outstanding worship leader.

I am thankful to God for raising these leaders in the nation. I am often humbled that such a simple song written from our hearts can have such an impact on the destiny of a church. In the end, all lives are “living sacrifices” for God.

Approved in Every Way is sung by Pastor Aris Siew, the Senior Pastor of Praise City Church. Aris Siew is one of Malaysia’s leading worship leaders. He has a passion to worship God and believes very much in church planting.

Those who have heard the recording of the song have told me that he “sang from his heart”. I am grateful to God that he managed to capture the true “spirit” of the song as he sung under the anointing of the Holy Spirit in the recording studio.

Pastor Ng Wah Lok
20 May 2001

“Approved in Every Way” is recorded in Ng Wah Lok’s debut album entitled “Every Time I Pray”. The CD is available in the following bookshops – Salvation Book Centre, Glad Sounds, Canaanland and Chosen Treasures. You can also buy the CD via the Internet at his website Tabernacle Music. A song book of all the songs in the CD is also on sale. The lyrics of the 12 songs with chords are also available free from the website. Do take some time to visit the site. Also available are some teaching materials on worship written by Ng Wah Lok. These articles can be downloaded free. Ng Wah Lok can be contacted at ngwl@pc.jaring.my. SUPPORT MALAYSIAN CHRISTIAN MUSIC!