LONG LASTING LUTHERAN HOUR
By Christopher Quah
Lutheran Hour Ministries (LHM) is a Christian radio station which is more than a century old which is based in America. Starting from its flagship ministry, The Lutheran Hour®, the station has grown into a powerhouse for the Christian media airing on more than 1,800 radio stations weekly, expanding even to the American Forces Network. On top of that the LHM is also has gone international, reaching to more than 60 countries worldwide, and passionately proclaiming the Gospel to more than 100 million people worldwide each week. Yet it has never had a branch here in Malaysia until now.
On 8th October 2018, Lutheran Hour has successfully launched its first ever branch here in Malaysia at Jalan Alam Sutera 10, Alam Sutera, Bukit Jalil. Malaysia is one of the very last few Asian countries to have a Lutheran Hour office, making its establishment a significant milestone for the station.
The launching event saw not just the opening of its first office here in Malaysia but also for the inauguration of Erik Lai as the National Director of the Lutheran Hour radio. Present at the event was President of Lutheran Hour Ministries USA, Kurt Buchholz and the Lutheran Hour Asia Director, Mrs Gunya NaThalang, who had come to grace the occasion.
Kurt, the LHM USA President for about 5 years, explained his great joy for LHM to be established in Malaysia.
“We have come a long way since we started in St Louis Missouri, Milwaukee, Illinois around a hundred years ago. It began as a shared vision to help the church by raising money. Lutheran Hour@ was founded in 1917, when a group of 12 men attending a convention of The Lutheran Church at Missouri Synod in Milwaukee came together to settle some debts incurred by the church body. These people weren’t pastors, just ordinary members from the congregation that came together to help the church. Yet from these humble beginnings came a radio programme that is one the oldest Christian radio programmes in the United States and the whole world. We have work going on in 65 nations, Africa, Europe, Latin America, Asia. We have actually started new ministries in Afghanistan, Egypt and North Africa – these are some of the new places,” Kurt explained after launching the event with the cutting of a ribbon.
He added that he felt very confident that Lutheran Hour would do very well here as the churches here in Malaysia based on his observation are very strong and united as a Christian community.
“Even before we opened Lutheran Hour here, we already knew and because of that we already had some contacts with the Malaysian Christian bodies here in Malaysia. So, we were already much welcome before even planning to start here,” Kurt explained adding that he had known Erik the newly appointed National Director for LHM Malaysia for some time.
Erik himself, also had a few things to say to Asian Beacon in regard to the establishment of Lutheran Hour in Malaysia.
“This office is the first one in Malaysia for Lutheran Centre which is something to be proud of. After so many years with offices all over Asia, Malaysia finally has a Lutheran Hour Radio ministry of its own. If you are interested in tuning into the channel you won’t find it on the local radio station. Instead you must tune in for our local podcasts. For you see, Lutheran Hour has evolved over time from radio, and now also does online broadcasting. As such, the Malaysian Lutheran Hour will be working with other Christian based radio stations such as Rhema radio to further the kingdom of God,” Erik Lai explained.
On his inauguration as Director, Erik explained that he had been working closely with his American colleague in order to help start the Lutheran Hour Ministry in Malaysia. When they had succeeded, he was cordially invited to lead this ministry.
“It was a great honour for me. Indeed, it was a huge breakthrough that on August 2018 we managed to be registered through the proper channels, so we can operate here in Malaysia. One of the reasons why it took so long to establish Lutheran Hour in Malaysia was because of the paperwork. It was a challenge to get the approval from the government, and we had to be especially careful with materials that were translated into Bahasa, since this was all ministry and evangelism work. But praise be to God that the authorities finally approved of us. Right now, besides the radio channel, we also have printed materials, which are in Chinese, English, Bahasa, and Tamil,” Erik explained.
He also encouraged those people who were reached through these ministry efforts to respond by contacting his staffs or volunteers if they would like to contribute or help.
“Lutheran Hour Ministries, ultimately hopes to cultivate relationships with listeners and churches. We hope to ultimately facilitate a relationship between the Christian communities, thus helping grow the kingdom of God,” he says.
He ends on a high note, hoping that with the support of the local Christian community, Lutheran Hour Malaysia would be able to achieve the same success as well as longevity its parent ministry in America has.
