Participants:
Series Code: NOW
Program Code: NOW019035A
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00:15 This is 3ABN Now
00:17 with John and Rosemary Malkiewycz. 00:21 Hello and welcome to 3ABN Now. 00:23 So good to have you watch these programs each week. 00:26 And if you're watching the first time, whether you're on VAST 00:29 or some other network or on your Internet 00:32 or your mobile phone we want to welcome you especially. 00:36 Today we are very privileged 00:37 to have someone from a part of the world that we've never 00:41 interviewed anyone before 00:43 and his name is George Kwong. 00:46 George: it's a real pleasure to have you here on the program 00:49 because... Where do you come from? 00:51 Thank you, John. I'm so happy to be here. 00:53 I come from Fiji... the island of Fiji. 00:56 It's in the South Pacific 00:58 and it's about four hours' flight from Sydney. Yes. 01:03 So you were here for a health convention, 01:08 is that right? I came down to attend the... 01:12 the Lifestyle Medicine Summit 01:15 that was run by the South Pacific Division. 01:18 And I was happy to be a resource personnel in that Summit. 01:24 So let us... Before we get into the program, 01:27 George, there's a text that you have chosen 01:30 with us... to share with us and that is Isaiah 58:12. 01:35 And Rosemary, would you read that? I certainly will. 01:38 Isaiah 58:12 says: 01:42 "And they that shall be of thee 01:45 shall build the old waste places. 01:47 Thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations 01:52 and thou shalt be called the repairer of the breach, 01:56 the restorer of paths to dwell in. " 01:59 That's a very optimistic- sounding verse, isn't it? 02:05 I like Isaiah 58. 02:07 Isaiah 58... you know, it's a... 02:12 it's a chapter that's speaking to me. 02:15 Um-hmm. And if you look at the very first verse 02:19 it says: "Cry aloud. " Um-hmm. 02:21 It's like you have an amplifier and it's telling me 02:24 as a SDA that we have this very special message. 02:29 That somewhere along the line we have lost it 02:32 and we are called to be the repairer of the breach. 02:36 That's right! I like that. 02:38 Ones that "restore the paths to dwell in. " 02:42 Exactly. Very good. 02:44 We have this calling and that is my passion. 02:48 That's the verse that drives me, 02:49 that keeps me working and working and working 02:53 because I know I have a special responsibility. 02:56 That's right. For thousands of years the Bible tells us 02:59 the devil has been busy confusing people 03:02 and turning people actually away from God. 03:05 He said he's come to "kill, maim, and to destroy. " 03:08 But the Bible tells us that God has given us Jesus 03:12 to give us life more abundantly. 03:14 More abundantly... yes. So it's a very important thing 03:17 that we are called to do and that is to let you know 03:20 that there is a God in heaven who really wants to do 03:23 all He can for you to enjoy this life 03:28 and the life that is after this life. Amen! Amen. 03:31 And so that's the purpose of our existence is to help others 03:34 to know. Is that right, George? That is why we are here for. 03:37 That's right. We are here to continue the work that Jesus 03:41 Himself came to do. That's right! 03:42 Jesus helped the sick. Jesus helped the sick. 03:45 He healed. You know what amazes me? 03:49 You know what amazes me, George? 03:50 Jesus would go through a village 03:53 and when He had left there was not one sick person 03:58 left in that whole village. Everybody was well. 04:01 That's why they followed Him. He healed everyone! 04:03 I just find that amazing when I read that in the Bible. 04:07 It's an amazing... it's an amazing work that He came to do. 04:11 Yeah. So we're going to be talking about that type of thing 04:15 today... about the healing of the sick 04:17 and how that can actually be achieved. 04:19 So if you are someone who is unwell 04:23 maybe today we've got something that can help you. 04:27 Um-hmm. So stay tuned. 04:28 Yeah. So George Kwong. Now that name 04:32 doesn't sound like for me a Fijian name. 04:34 So tell us about your parents and background. 04:39 Well the Kwong, of course, is, 04:42 you know, is a Chinese-origin name. 04:46 My father... my grandfather - sorry - came from China. 04:53 He was one of those that stowed away in those early boats 04:56 out into the islands. 04:58 I think the story was that he ran away from China - 05:01 um-hmm - during the war or something like that happened. 05:05 He came and they got stranded in an island in Fiji 05:11 south of the main island and he set up his new family there. 05:17 Well, there could have been worst places in the world 05:19 to be stranded. He loved it there. He set up 05:23 the first bakery store there. 05:25 OK... so he was the industrious type. 05:28 He was industrious like many Chinese that came to Fiji. 05:31 And he met a local woman 05:34 and there were seven of them in the family, and my father 05:39 was the youngest in the family. OK. 05:43 My father grew up and of course 05:47 he went from the island to the main island. 05:51 And that's where he met my mother. 05:54 On the other side my mother's story is 05:57 my mother's father also went on a boat 06:02 and he went to Samoa... and island in the Pacific. 06:06 Um-hmm. That's where he met his wife. 06:11 And my mother plus another seven were born in Samoa. 06:17 OK. And my grandmother - my maternal grandmother - 06:22 heard about the message of the SDA church. 06:26 Umm! And while she was in Samoa 06:29 she got converted into the SDA church. 06:32 So she accepted what she heard. 06:35 She accepted the message; she accepted what she learned; 06:38 and she converted the whole family including 06:42 my grandfather who had come from Fiji was a staunch Methodist. 06:46 He got converted. He was so excited with the message. 06:49 So they left Samoa and came back to Fiji 06:54 as Seventh-day Adventist missionaries. 06:57 And they went right back to my grandfather's island 07:01 where they set up the first SDA church on that island. 07:06 Is that right? So you're Samoan/Fijian - 07:10 Samoan/Fijian/Chinese - and Chinese-Fijian. 07:14 So that's an interesting mix, isn't it? 07:18 So you know it's interesting to think that your family 07:22 accepted Jesus. What do you think? I know this is going to 07:25 put you on the spot. What do you think it was 07:27 that they got excited about when they heard? 07:29 In the Bible was it that excited them to make 07:32 a commitment? You know, they were always talking about 07:35 how the SDA's in Samoa had a hospital 07:39 that cared about the people in Samoa. 07:43 And I think they were excited about the seventh-day gospel 07:49 of healing and teaching and preaching. 07:52 They were excited about the fact that they had found something 07:57 that they've never never ever heard about before 08:00 in the islands. The London Missionary Society was the 08:03 predominant church in Samoa at that time. 08:06 Um-hmm. And when the SDA faith came in 08:09 they were excited about it... especially about the Sabbath 08:12 also. That was something very special to them. 08:16 Tell us: how many brothers and sisters have you 08:21 in your family? I have two sisters and three brothers. 08:27 Three brothers. So... three of us. 08:30 Three brothers, two sisters so there's 5 of us in the family. 08:34 So did you grow up? You grew up. What school did you 08:38 attend? Tell us a little bit how it was like. I was 08:41 born on the island, and my grandmother was the only 08:46 go-to person there that could deliver babies on the island. 08:49 OK. So they'd been medical missionaries. 08:53 The had an obligation to whoever 08:58 that needed to be attended to. 09:01 Anyway... she delivered me way back more than 60 yrs. ago. 09:07 OK. And we were all brought up in the island. 09:11 A very simple life and we were brought up within the SDA faith. 09:17 Um-hmm. And we had to move to the main island 09:20 to the urban center where there was school and education. 09:25 OK. And I went to Fulton College 09:30 when I was very young. So in fact I left my family 09:34 when I was about five or six years old - 09:36 umm - to go to a church school. 09:38 Is that right? You know, the belief of those days 09:42 that Christian education - especially SDA education - 09:46 was something that all families upheld in those days. 09:49 So they sent me to Fulton College very young. 09:54 So Fulton had a primary school and high school then? 09:57 They had a primary. So did you get to go home 09:59 and visit with your family? During the holidays 10:02 I was always ready to go home. 10:04 And then from Fulton College I went to a boarding school. 10:07 Umm. So I spent a lot of my life away from home. 10:10 And went to the boarding school, a quite prestigious boarding 10:15 school where they trained future leaders of Fiji. 10:19 OK. So I graduated from there then I... What did you 10:23 graduate in, George? I graduated from high school 10:26 and I had a scholarship to go to New Zealand. 10:29 So I came down to New Zealand and studied education. 10:32 OK. So actually I have a 10:37 a school teaching background. 10:39 High? High school? 10:43 Secondary school? Primary school and high school. 10:47 So I often think about you know young people 10:51 leaving their families and going off. 10:53 Your mother must have had a good influence upon you 10:56 to keep you doing what was right. 10:59 Did you live all your life doing what was right? 11:01 All those letters kept coming reminding me about 11:04 the Sabbath, reminding me about the church, about the faith. 11:08 But you know, like many many young Adventists 11:11 somewhere along the line you drift off. 11:14 But the faith is still in you. 11:17 You know you still believe this is the true way to go. 11:22 I left the church for a little while and then 11:25 things happen in life that bring you back a better SDA 11:29 and become a better Seventh-day Adventist. 11:32 Yeah, there are some that don't come back. Some don't come back. 11:33 Yeah, yeah. I was quite fortunate that my upbringing 11:37 was strong within the faith. Yes. 11:40 There's a good saying in the Bible that says: "Train up 11:42 a child in the way he should go 11:44 and he will not depart from it when he is old. " 11:47 And that's a very true saying and it's very encouraging one 11:50 for maybe parents who have been praying for their children. 11:53 But God always hears and answers prayer. 11:55 Maybe not in exactly the time you want but 11:58 in the overall plan of things God is in charge 12:01 if we allow Him to be in charge. 12:03 You mentioned that you teach... Did you teach anywhere, George? 12:07 Yeah, I taught in Fiji for... 12:10 I actually did some teacher training and taught for a little 12:12 while in New Zealand and I taught in Fiji 12:14 for about 4 or 5 years. 12:17 Then somebody pulled me out of teaching and I went into... 12:20 into the commercial world. 12:23 From there then I went and worked with the government 12:27 in building up the export industry in Fiji. 12:30 OK. So we were in the export of fruits and vegetables 12:35 and local products into the markets into Sydney 12:39 and into other world markets. So I was quite fortunate 12:43 to have that experience. 12:44 Then we started a family business. 12:49 OK. We actually set up the first 12:53 health food store in Fiji. 12:56 Is that right? Selling health food, so 12:58 my family... my mother's upbringing and my grandmother... 13:03 they brought us up in the church message about 13:08 food and plant-based foods. 13:09 So I had that inside me all the time. 13:12 So I converted that into something 13:16 that we could make a living out of. 13:19 I was wondering how much of a demand 13:21 there would be for plant based? 13:24 At that time? No, wasn't much in Fiji. 13:27 This was way back in the 1990's. 13:29 It was a bit premature at that time. 13:32 But now? Things have changed a lot now. 13:34 Yeah, we are going to be talking a little bit about that, 13:36 aren't we? I have found when we've gone to New Zealand 13:39 there isn't very much that you can find of health food. 13:43 It's very hard to find things to eat. 13:46 It's hard. You have a lot here in Sydney 13:49 so you've got everything in terms of health food. 13:54 The choices that you have... you have a lot. Yeah, yeah. 13:57 You are blessed. It is good. 14:00 So you obviously met a lady? A lady came into your life? 14:05 Tell us a little bit about that. Oh yeah! 14:08 She went... When I was working in the commercial world 14:14 she was in the office, so you know how things happen. 14:18 And we got married and three children were born. Uh-huh. 14:25 We brought them up in the church. They are all big now. 14:27 They are all in New Zealand and they're all doing well. 14:31 They are all doing well in New Zealand 14:32 and we have grandchildren. 14:34 OK. We are so blessed with grandchildren. 14:36 Let's look at a photo. There we are! You are a young man there! 14:42 Your children are young? The oldest one, right at the 14:46 back there, I think he's just become a daddy after 34 years. 14:52 Yeah, yeah... I was a young man, and of course 14:56 the youngest one in the middle is now a dairy farmer. 15:02 He looks after a big dairy farm in New Zealand 15:04 and my daughter which is the family "driver. " 15:08 She drives everything in the family. 15:11 Yes, she is also in New Zealand. 15:16 This was a good time; it was a time when... 15:19 when you have everybody together in the family. 15:22 It's always good to look back at a photo and remember. 15:27 I often look back. You know, God has really looked after us. 15:32 There's a lot of things that happen in this world 15:34 but to be together still as a family and have grandchildren 15:38 that's a special blessing from God. 15:40 It is a special blessing. Definitely! 15:43 So you're retired now, George. Is that right? 15:46 I am retired now. I spent all of my time or most of my time 15:52 in the work of the Lord, the medical missionary work 15:55 especially in Fiji in a place where 15:59 we have so much going right now in terms of lifestyle diseases. 16:04 Hmm! Non-communicable diseases. 16:07 There's just a big need for it out there, especially for 16:10 the church. What can we do to help those out there? 16:15 And these become the chronic diseases... not acute. 16:18 Things that have been taking from... from doing things 16:23 incorrectly for a long period of time 16:26 these things become apparent 16:28 that have been slowly building up in the body until finally 16:33 they're chronic. You know, there are basically two... 16:37 two disease problems in Fiji. 16:39 One is communicable disease - um-hmm - 16:40 and one is non-communicable disease. We call it 16:44 NCD's in short - um-hmm - 16:46 which is really chronic lifestyle diseases. Yes. 16:50 Well, the balance has tipped now where non-communicable disease 16:55 is much much more and the communicable diseases 16:58 you know they've managed to phase that out - yes - 17:02 with modern technology. But non-communicable diseases 17:07 it's hard. It's something that you bring it on yourself. 17:11 So you've been involved since you opened up the health food 17:14 shop, the first one in Fiji as you mentioned, 17:16 you've seen a change, George? A big change? No. 17:21 There is no change for many reasons. 17:25 On one side we see the change in technology 17:28 increasing all the time; 17:30 new medicine and lots of money invested in medical work... 17:36 and on the other side we see increases in non-communicable 17:39 diseases also. So there is no change for the better 17:43 but change for the worse maybe. Yes! Um-hmm. 17:46 Keeps going up. These non-communicable diseases 17:51 are on the increase and that's related to what? 17:55 Is that lifestyle? 80% of people who die in hospital 18:00 die from non-communicable disease in Fiji. 18:02 Eighty percent? Eighty percent! 18:04 Right now it's 80% in Fiji. 18:07 There's a big plague sweeping across the Pacific islands 18:10 right now. Diabetes: number one. 18:14 Heart diseases. All this from... food. 18:18 There's four major reasons: 18:19 food, lifestyle changes, 18:22 lack of exercise - um-hmm - increase in alcohol consumption, 18:26 and cigarette smoking. 18:28 These are the four main reasons. 18:30 You know, you kind of think of the expense of cigarettes 18:32 and alcohol - and alcohol. They're expensive, and so how... 18:36 you know, how do people afford those things? 18:38 But yet they always seem to have something! 18:40 They always seem to have something. 18:42 Government keeps increasing duty, but lately we've seen 18:46 a decrease in it. It is where the church 18:49 comes in to try and quell this smoking problem 18:54 and alcohol problem in society. Yeah. 18:57 So just looking at the infor- mation that you've got with us 19:02 we've got a graph here of what's happening in Fiji. 19:05 Can you just talk to us about that? 19:07 Well this was a survey done by Deakins Invest in Melbourne. 19:13 It's a survey that relates to consumption... 19:16 food consumption and diseases. 19:18 You can see on the blue side the preferences... what people 19:24 prefer. They prefer processed foods. Fifty-seven percent - 19:28 yeah - of the people in Fiji prefer processed foods 19:32 for reasons... especially those that are in the higher 19:37 echelon of society, those that worked - um-hmm - 19:39 processed foods are affordable. It's easier for them. 19:43 Convenient. Yeah, convenient. 19:46 And you have the fast foods: 29% fast foods. 19:52 Easy to get hold of. So easy to get hold of. 19:54 But I think this is typical in a Western society which is 19:59 slowly creeping into the Fijian society. 20:02 And the fresh fruits and vegetables right down. In fact, 20:05 I was reading a report the other day. It says 20:09 90% of people in Fiji do not eat 20:16 the required amount of fruits and vegetables daily. 20:20 Yes. I would say it's very similar in Australia. 20:24 It's so easily available in the shops. 20:28 And if you look per kilo, it's so much cheaper than other food. 20:33 But people don't buy it because they want the other "stuff" 20:38 that maybe has a different flavor or something. 20:41 Whereas the fruit today often is picked too early 20:44 to get it to market 20:46 and so it hasn't produced the sugar intake for the flavor. 20:51 And so it doesn't taste necessarily very good. 20:53 That's the same problem we have back there. What else could 20:57 be compounded more by the pocket, what a person can afford. 21:02 I think everybody has got that! Yeah, this is where government 21:06 plays a major role. I think government should put a lot more 21:08 taxes into imported food. Say fifty years ago... 21:11 fifty years ago diabetes was unheard in Fiji. 21:15 It was really down there. Not many heart problems. Um-hmm. 21:18 But with increase of importation - yes - 21:21 flour, wheat, processed foods come into the country 21:25 diabetes has just gone up right away. 21:28 The fast food restaurant. Fast food. 21:30 We are chopping... Sorry, we are amputating 21:34 one leg every eight hours which is three legs a day. 21:39 That's a lot! Three legs a day which is quite a bit. 21:42 In the whole Pacific. One toe... one toe... 21:48 Sorry... sorry. It is about 21:52 20 toes in every 20 minutes or something like that. Umm! 21:58 What you're saying is there is a real problem. 22:01 You know, I just want to mention that when you look at 22:04 that little graph, food plays a really important part 22:09 as to your health. And you've got a burden to help people, 22:13 haven't you George? You know, in what you're doing. 22:16 You want to reach people with good health: 22:18 good practices for eating, drinking, exercise. 22:24 And we call that, and I'm sure you know, NEWSTART. 22:28 They are the fundamental things that build a person's health. 22:32 And so you could avoid having things like diabetes too. 22:36 And so there's a whole lot of issues, and you are really 22:39 out there in your retirement age 22:41 trying to help people to live a healthier life. 22:45 Is that right? It is so pivotal 22:47 that everybody has to get in together 22:51 from outside of the church. 22:53 Trying to... you know, we have a major role to play. 22:56 This is where government and the SDA church in Fiji 23:00 are working together trying to put things together. 23:03 And of course we need a lot of education for the schools 23:09 from the other organizations that are there to try and 23:11 teach people - educate, educate, educate - 23:14 on the right choices of food so that we could fight against 23:18 these diseases. 23:20 There's a lot of different acronyms that are used for 23:23 the health... the ways to keep healthy. 23:26 NEWSTART is one of them though there are more. 23:30 And just for our viewers who don't know 23:34 the N stands for nutrition. Um-hmm. Right? 23:37 E for exercise. 23:39 W for water. 23:41 S for sunshine... sunlight? 23:43 Yep! T for temperance. 23:46 Then you've got A for air; R for rest; 23:50 and the last T is for trusting God or a higher power 23:53 where we say God because we believe in God. 23:55 We look after our body because God has given us 23:58 this body. How we treat it and what we do with it 24:02 impacts our lifespan, what we can do to help others, 24:06 our quality of life. There are so many things. 24:09 Sometimes we forget about sunlight. 24:12 Water. Water is so essential you know. Over 70% of your body 24:16 is water, so why not have your 8 glasses of water a day? 24:21 And in winter we're less likely to drink very much because 24:24 we don't think about the fact that our body is dehydrated. 24:27 Exactly. The cold air actually dehydrates us 24:32 but we only think about drinking on a hot day. 24:35 And yet we should be drinking all the time. 24:37 That is the beauty of our health message. 24:40 It is a holistic message. That's right. 24:42 There are many health messages out there. Ours, I think is 24:47 the holistic approach with mental, social, spiritual - 24:51 that's right - and the physical outlook & the person as a whole. 24:55 I think one of the problems just going back to water 24:58 is that people think: "Oh well I drink tea and I drink coffee. 25:02 I'm getting water. " But is that good enough? 25:06 No. No it's not. Better not to drink... 25:09 Tea and coffee actually are - dehydrates - diuretics and they 25:13 take the water out of our bodies. 25:14 So you need to drink water... good water. 25:18 So George, tell us a little bit. In Fiji when you 25:23 look at what you are trying to accomplish 25:26 are people ready and open to receive it now? 25:29 Now that we are seeing these diseases increasing that are 25:32 lifestyle related are people willing to listen to you? 25:36 I think the time is right right now. 25:39 Everybody is out there. Everybody is talking about it 25:44 like government. There are agen- cies and especially the church. 25:48 The church has come out in a very big way. 25:50 Thankfully the South Pacific Division 25:53 they rolled out a lot of programs 25:55 specifically dealing with the non-communicable diseases 25:59 that we are experiencing. Yeah. 26:01 Are they working with the government now? 26:03 Working with the government... we are working with 26:05 the government. The govern- ment has kind of gone to 26:07 to the stage to say: "Hey, you know, we've gotten to 26:10 the stage that whatever you can do we'll do. " 26:12 So we've got this program going with the 26:15 CHIP Program - um-hmm - and of course we've got 26:19 this program: a contextualized version of the CHIP Program 26:22 which is rolled out to villages. 26:26 It's an intervention program for diabetes. 26:29 And we are quite happy that the government has accepted 26:32 that program to be the go-to program for villages in Fiji. 26:37 That's exciting! Yeah, that is exciting! We've got a picture 26:40 here of you? Who is that in the middle there? 26:45 That is the president of Fiji. 26:47 That is the president of Fiji. You know, it shows how... 26:51 how the church has connected to the highest authorities 26:54 of the land. And we brought down Dr. Hans Diehl 26:59 who was in Fiji for about seven days. 27:04 And we had the opportunity to go up there, and to the right 27:08 of the president we have Sharon from the Sanitarium, 27:12 Australia. Um-hmm. 27:13 And Dr. Paul Wood of Trans-Pacific Union Mission. 27:17 And of course church officials to the left 27:21 with our church secretary and our health director 27:25 on the far left, Dr. Alipate, who is the leader of 27:28 the health ministry in Fiji. 27:31 So there we have the president. 27:32 He's in favor of what you were doing? 27:35 The president is so much in favor of what we are doing 27:37 and the government is in favor of what we are doing 27:39 that they have come on board and partnered up with us. 27:43 They see that this is going to benefit the people of Fiji. Yes. 27:47 Bring back some health? 27:49 Bring back. We need programs to educate the people. 27:53 It's so expensive for govern- ments to be looking after 27:57 sick people. 45% of the health budget 28:00 is for non-communicable diseases only. 28:04 And that's quite a lot. 28:06 But then you look at how much of the government's budget 28:10 is for health - exactly - paying for hospitals 28:14 and other medical things to help people who have got 28:17 diseases that something can be done about. 28:20 And if you are going to introduce bypass surgery 28:26 into Fiji then that will drain a lot more, wouldn't it? 28:29 Oh! You know, those procedures are so expensive 28:32 and we just can't afford it. 28:34 So really we have to start turning the tap off 28:38 instead of mopping the floor all the time. 28:41 I like that, I like that George. Very good! Very good. Yeah. 28:44 And so you've got 10,000 Toes is another thing the church is 28:49 doing there? 10,000 Toes is a big project going on now. 28:53 We are trying to work with the churches 28:55 and with the villages in creating awareness 28:59 amongst the people on what we can do 29:03 and what we shouldn't do 29:04 to have this disease under control. 29:08 And the stubble of legs and toes from being amputated? 29:11 That's a big problem. We have a challenge in front of us. 29:15 We want to save 10,000 toes. 29:17 Umm! You know, the thing is, George, 29:19 and I'm talking with George Kwong here and John, 29:24 diabetes type II doesn't have to happen. No. 29:30 And yet we bring it on ourselves 29:34 by eating all of those processed foods and those fast foods 29:39 instead of eating fresh food: 29:42 things that have been grown which God gave us to eat. 29:46 Back in Genesis in the Garden of Eden 29:49 it was a plant-based diet. 29:52 And He only introduced animals after the flood 29:56 because it would bring down the lifespan of men. 30:01 Men were living so long they were becoming so evil - 30:03 right - through their long life 30:07 that He need to decrease the length of their days 30:11 so He allowed them to eat meat. Meat was not meant 30:13 to keep us alive. Meat we meant to cut our life short. 30:19 It's fruit and vegetables and other plant-based food 30:23 that we should be eating as well as the air, the water, 30:26 the exercise, etc. Exactly! 30:28 Proper amount of sleep. And so diabetes 30:32 is something that can be changed. And the CHIP Program 30:35 works with heart disease and things like that as well 30:39 to make us healthy. Unfortu- nately we have this paradigm 30:43 that you cannot change diabetes, that you cannot reverse 30:46 diabetes. And I think we have a message out there 30:52 to tell the people: "Yes, you can do something about it. " 30:56 We can do something about it. 30:58 And there's lots of health issues that changing your 31:02 lifestyle will totally clear up... others that it will help. 31:06 Isn't that true? I'm so grateful that this lifestyle medicine 31:11 concept is beginning to explode. 31:14 It's getting some momentum now. Getting a lot of momentum. 31:17 which really is to me I'd like to say it is a SDA 31:21 health message. Yes! 31:23 It is something that was given to us way back there. 31:27 It's a God-given health message because it's in line with 31:32 what He said in His Word, in the Bible. Right. 31:35 So George, you are pretty much immersed in this 31:39 concept of teaching people about the health message. 31:43 What are you actually doing yourself 31:45 in this work in Fiji? Tell us a little bit about that. 31:49 I'm actually working with the church in Fiji, so 31:53 I have the Western Division in Fiji which is where 31:57 the international airport is. Nadi Int'l. Airport. 32:00 So if you fly into Fiji, the first place you would land 32:05 is Nadi International Airport. Um-hmm. 32:07 OK. In the Nadi Division we have 20 churches... 32:10 20 SDA churches. 32:13 So what we try to do is to strategically 32:17 strategically place ourselves 32:22 where we could become centers of influence wherever we are. 32:26 So we are using the zoning model 32:30 where we zone one church to take care of this particular area. 32:36 So we've got places zoned out, the 20 churches zoned, 32:41 and I've been working on setting up the churches 32:44 to become wellness centers - OK - in their various respective 32:48 zones. Teaching them; giving them the equipment 32:54 like the BP monitor, the sugar diabetes 32:58 glucometers - um-hmm - and so on. 33:02 And we had a plan to have 10 wellness centers by the end 33:06 of this year. So far we have seven up and running. 33:10 OK. Very good! So that's where people come from the community 33:14 around that church area? People come from the community 33:16 and the church becomes the wellness center. 33:20 The church becomes a place where they can 33:23 come to and learn about nutrition. 33:26 They learn about exercise. 33:27 They learn about how to prevent diabetes. 33:30 How not to have a heart attack. 33:32 And we have programs like Forgive to Live programs 33:36 that's running in the churches. Umm. 33:38 So it is working very very effectively. 33:42 Now just... You mentioned the Forgive to Live. 33:44 Now that's a program on teaching people about being able to 33:48 give forgiveness for their health's sake. 33:50 For their health's sake. Because being unforgiving 33:53 and holding a grudge and bitterness towards someone 33:56 can have a terrible impact on your physical and mental health. 34:00 Isn't that true? Your attitude can affect your health. 34:03 It's... I think it's been scientifically proven 34:06 that various things that hold you back 34:10 affect various organs of the body. 34:12 High blood pressure and your mental ability. 34:17 Mental ability... so it's a very good program. 34:19 So it's a holistic approach again. Very good! 34:22 So you've seen some changes in people, 34:25 and we've got a slide of before and after, 34:27 and I think it'd be good to have a look 34:30 at the impact of what you are doing and the church is doing 34:33 in helping people with their health. 34:35 Now tell us about this one. Well, this guy 34:38 he is Ilatea. His name is Ilatea. He is... 34:41 he's an auditor in a big bank, the VSP Bank. 34:44 One of the big banks in Fiji. 34:46 And he got to the stage where he was having sleep apnea 34:52 and he was overweight and all kinds of problems. 34:55 And the doctors told him: "You'd better go to India 34:57 and have a stapled stomach. " 35:01 Yeah, stapled stomach. But he was so concerned 35:05 that he couldn't even walk his daughter to school 35:08 and the daughter started crying because he couldn't go... 35:10 even though she couldn't go with her father. 35:13 So he decided that he'd do something. 35:16 He's heard a lot of programs - 35:18 but he was skeptical - um-hmm - until somebody told him 35:22 "You'd better try the CHIP Program, the SDA CHIP Program. " 35:25 Um-hmm. And he went along to one of the information nights 35:29 and he attended a CHIP Program. 35:32 And he followed it? He was 140 kilograms. 35:35 I'm not surprised. 35:37 140 kilograms. He invested $6,000 35:40 in a sleeping machine because he had sleep apnea. 35:44 You know, those oxygen bottles. Yes. 35:46 And one year later look at a picture: there he is. 35:52 You're kidding! He came down to about 90 kg. 35:56 And he says he's full of energy. 35:58 He's got to get up in the morning and go swimming 36:01 and go running. For his family! And enjoy his family. 36:04 He is now a CHIP facilitator in the Methodist church 36:08 in his church. And I bet he runs his daughter to school! 36:11 He runs his daughter to school! 36:13 Yes. Physically runs! So that's one of the things 36:16 that's why the government is on board. 36:19 "Hey, you know, you people have the answer! " 36:22 And what happened to his sleep apnea machine? 36:24 Gone! He says: "I shouldn't have bought 36:28 a sleep apnea machine because a week later I did CHIP 36:31 after buying it, but now it's sitting in the corner at home. " 36:35 A reminder! A reminder, yes... a reminder. 36:40 Sometimes we need a reminder. A $6,000 reminder. 36:43 So do you have any other stories that you can tell us 36:47 of the success of what you're doing? You know, you said 36:49 you've got up seven wellness centers? Yes! 36:53 We've got a couple of pictures that we'll have a look at. 36:59 Yes, this is... you see at the background there: that's what 37:02 they call the Sleeping Giant. 37:04 The huge mountain = the Sleeping Giant. 37:07 And there's a village out here called Sabeto Village. 37:11 Um-hmm. This is in the west of Fiji again 37:14 and that's their church. Strong traditional Methodist group. 37:20 And that's the chief's house right there or part of the 37:22 chief's house. And some time ago, say about 7 years ago, 37:27 SDAs wanted to build a church there 37:30 and they weren't allowed. They were told to... to go away. 37:34 Um-hmm. Each church has basically got their villages? 37:39 Haven't they? Yeah... yeah... yeah. 37:41 But we were told: "You cannot build your church here. 37:46 We have a very big Methodist church in here. " 37:48 So they wanted us to go out, so we went out until 37:53 we started this health assessment program. 37:56 We go to villages assessing people, telling them 37:59 "You have high blood sugar... diabetes. " 38:03 And then the chief heard about it. Um-hmm. 38:07 They invited us back into their village. 38:10 Invited us into his home. 38:13 I think there's a slide... a slide there of them there. 38:17 Another slide there. Yes, there it is! Yes. 38:20 Now that man is who? That man: that's the chief of the village. 38:24 And that's the wife on the left side. They wanted us to come in 38:28 and do health assessment. They have their health problems. 38:31 Um-hmm. And we spent two hours 38:34 inside the chief's house. That's not usual in Fiji 38:41 for anybody to just go into a chief's house 38:44 and have a chat with him. 38:46 But he invited us into there and we spent some time 38:49 in there and told him NEWSTART. 38:53 Exercise, water, sunlight... rest. So taken back! 38:59 "You could do this to help you with this problem. " 39:04 One week later he called us back again and he said: 39:07 "I want you to come into the village 39:12 and run some health assessment programs for my people. " 39:16 So we went back in there 39:18 and we found out the problems that people never knew they had. 39:22 So we had NEWSTART lessons going on in the village. 39:26 And then he asked us again: 39:28 "Can you have one person in this village 39:32 to take care of the sick families in the village? " 39:35 So we assigned two medical missionary workers 39:38 husband and wife. And they go around to the homes 39:43 and just using simple, natural remedies 39:47 repairing the breach, you know... treating people. 39:51 Treating people. Out of that we have five families 39:55 doing Bible studies. I'm very encouraged that 39:59 he was prepared to listen. You know what it tells me? 40:02 That people are really concerned for their people. 40:04 Yes. For their health. If you have it cheap like this, 40:07 he can do a great thing and help these people 40:11 that he lives with. So you were able 40:14 to do that in that village. 40:16 And I'm encouraged by that because that's happening now. 40:19 You said, you are setting up these wellness centers 40:22 in, around, Nadi? Nadi is it? Nadi. Yeah. 40:26 and it's been successful. 40:28 Just imagine if that model 40:31 can be replicated or replicated to another ten churches! 40:37 I am hoping that by the end of next year 40:39 we'll have the whole 20 churches all wellness centers. 40:42 That will improve the lives of the people there. 40:46 Yes, definitely! So then you can move it on to another district 40:50 and move it on to another district - 40:52 exactly, yes! and on to another district. 40:55 So generally you are saying it is successful, right? 40:58 So what's the response? You know, how are the people 41:01 responding to what you are trying to share with them? 41:04 When you have people... villages that 90% of the people 41:09 have high blood pressure, people are dying, 41:14 you know, this has become the "norm" in the villages, 41:17 I think naturally they would like to say: "Hey! 41:21 this is life! These are some people that care for us. " 41:26 And we haven't seen opposition. 41:30 We used to see opposition before. 41:32 "Oh, that's a Seventh-day Adventist church. 41:34 We have a barrier with SDA churches. " 41:38 But now it's the opposite. 41:40 People see the need that they have to do something 41:44 about themselves and their families. 41:46 I think it's even more than that, George. 41:49 When you're going to help the people 41:53 you show the people that you have a care for them. 41:57 You have a concern for their welfare. 42:00 And you've got social as you said before, 42:04 social health, mental health, physical health, 42:08 and spiritual health. 42:10 And you show that you have a care and concern for people 42:13 and they're more willing to open up in other areas 42:17 because they actually see you as people who care. 42:21 They no longer see you as people we don't want here 42:25 because we don't want to know what you know. 42:27 Now they have a need and you fulfill that need 42:31 for their health benefit 42:34 and they actually see who you are. 42:38 They see you at work. 42:40 They get to know you 42:42 as people who are caring and loving. 42:44 Yes. And they are more willing to let you tell them 42:48 about God. We like to use Christ's model. 42:53 Umm. Christ's model is you mingle with the people. 42:57 Yes. Right? Um-hmm. 42:59 He showed He cared. And showed He cared for them 43:02 & then He got their confidence, He gained their confidence. 43:07 And then He said: "Hey, there's one more thing left: 43:09 follow Me. " Follow Me! 43:12 And with the health message you are able to go in 43:15 and start to mingle. 43:17 Because without that, you haven't had an opportunity 43:20 to go into many areas. These NCDs... 43:22 we believe it's the way the Lord has provided a wedge - 43:28 entering wedge - where the health message could go through 43:33 and bring people to God. 43:38 It's the right hand of the gospel. 43:41 And there's another point to it all, too, that I see 43:46 and that is the third that 43:52 is from the Western diet 43:54 is something that the people in the islands 43:57 and in Fiji we're talking about specifically 44:00 at this time but we know other island nations are the same 44:04 is food that they are not used to... 44:08 And we know in Western society that we have had these... 44:12 this type of food for a long time now. 44:15 Fast food; processed food, etc. 44:19 And we know about genetics 44:22 and the impact that that has. 44:25 And so when we bring 44:28 the wrong type of food to people who are not used to 44:32 that type of food it is going to change your genetics. 44:37 Yes. So that different... the next generation 44:41 is going to have the wrong genes turned on. 44:44 Because we know in epigenetics genes can be turned on and off 44:47 through lifestyle. Right. 44:49 And so you have the wrong lifestyle the wrong genes 44:52 will be turned on... the good genes will be turned off. 44:56 And so it's going to have an even greater impact 44:59 on society and nations like yours. 45:03 As the parents partake of these foods as children, 45:07 they grow up, they have children, 45:09 and their children are born to people who've already 45:12 started having these impacts. 45:14 So then through genetics it actually affects them even more. 45:18 I think we are beginning to pay for the price 45:21 of what happened 20-30 years ago when we started 45:24 to change our diet. Yes. I think this is 45:27 the result of it. And it will continue if we 45:32 don't do anything about it. 45:33 I mean, we see so many obese children 45:36 in our society in Western countries. 45:40 I know in Canada, the US, Australia, and probably England 45:44 and other European nations, too, 45:46 obese children is one of our big problems. 45:50 Young people having heart attacks because of the wrong 45:55 food that their parents and their grandparents ate 45:57 and the lifestyle that they've taken on. 46:00 They say there's a lot of things that are genetic 46:01 but they're genetic through the fact that 46:04 the genes are impacted but also they live the same lifestyle. 46:10 It is only when you break that cycle and change your lifestyle 46:14 that you can actually do something about fixing it. 46:18 So that's what you're teaching people to do. 46:21 Repairer of the breach. Yes! 46:24 Yes. So the long-term plan? And I know as a Fijian 46:29 what would you want for all your people in Fiji? 46:32 What is that you are trying to accomplish? 46:34 Is it just that they live better? Or what else? 46:38 What is it? I want people to be saved. 46:41 Yes. People to be saved physically and spiritually. 46:45 That is our long-term plan: that we have a lot more people 46:49 that will not be... succumb to the present circumstances 46:54 that we have. Hmm. They don't fall victim 46:58 to this plague that is sweeping across the Pacific 47:02 through ignorance and through wrong lifestyle. 47:06 A lot of them don't know what to do. 47:09 A lot of them don't know I have high blood pressure. 47:11 A lot of them don't know why do I have high blood pressure. 47:16 That's' right. And what can I do to stop this HBP? 47:21 I don't have to go and get medication for HBP if I do 47:25 this from now... if I start changing my lifestyle. 47:30 I think that's... It's an education process - yes! 47:33 which you've embarked upon, isn't it? to make people aware. 47:37 Yes. And those wellness centers are good 47:39 because they actually... When people come to a wellness 47:42 center, what happens George? What do they normally do? 47:45 When they come to a wellness center we give them 47:47 the very basic assessment of a health assessment. 47:52 They have a questionnaire they fill in about their lifestyle. 47:56 And then we try to... 47:58 The Division has this thing called My Wellness Snapshot 48:02 that they fill in. And you put it into a database 48:05 and it comes up with your answers and what you can do. 48:08 So we do have an education process. 48:10 So it gives a result and then something to change. 48:14 Something can change... what you can do to change 48:16 and offers them the back-up programs that they can come to 48:22 and be part of. So they can come back to the wellness center 48:25 and ask: "How am I going? " "How am I going? " You know? 48:29 "Am I doing right or do I need to do more? " 48:32 We need to review them. We have programs like 48:35 Five-Day Jump-Start Programs - 48:38 OK - the CHIP Program... depend- ing on their circumstances. 48:43 So are they learning how to cook good food, going back because 48:47 I know when you buy that processed food it's like 48:49 open a packet, put it in water, boil it, or some process 48:53 and that's it. But is that an art that has sort of disappeared 48:58 a little bit? Yes. Because the next generation are 49:02 learning from this generation who you are trying to reach. 49:04 Is that right? Right. We are trying to reach 49:06 you know the new generation using a lot of young people. 49:10 OK. A lot of young people to teach them to prepare food. 49:15 Prepare holistic foods and prepare healthy foods. 49:18 Hmm. That's one of the main thrusts that we have. 49:21 Because everything boils back to food and exercise. 49:26 So Fiji is a volcanic environment, is that right? 49:30 No active volcanoes. No? 49:33 There's a saying, you know... Oh, in terms of growing food! 49:38 Yes, yes, yes. We call it organic volcanic. 49:41 No... volcanic organic. Yes. 49:43 So you know, the food there must be good. 49:46 It must be good if you grow... It grows well there, doesn't it? 49:49 Food grows very well there... food grows very well. 49:53 But there is a problem. You know, the problem is that 49:56 imported foods are a lot cheaper and tastier. 49:59 Uh-huh? You know, like noodles and rice. 50:02 And has all those food enhancers. Yes. 50:05 Some of these foods the government has to step in 50:07 and say: "Hey, we are going to increase taxes on these" 50:11 so that it's a deterrent for people to keep buying that 50:16 and to turn them back into the basic plant-based foods. 50:20 And the younger generation... do they know how to grow 50:23 their food or have they just become reliant on buying things? 50:26 One of the programs that we are trying to implement 50:30 to follow-up in these wellness programs is a gardening program. 50:33 Um-hmm. Getting people back to producing their own food 50:37 in their own gardens. 50:38 Not to rely on supermarkets. I think that's very important. 50:44 I believe it is, too. Yeah. 50:46 I think also it's very impor- tant... you mentioned before 50:49 a lot of people are ignorant. They don't know 50:52 what... that this type of food is giving them these illnesses. 50:58 That it is actually the cause - 51:01 that's it! of what they don't know. 51:04 They're not told until people like yourself 51:07 come and say: "Let's give you some information here 51:12 and we will help you to know how to get well. " 51:16 The other thing is doing the cooking classes. 51:18 You mentioned, you know, teaching people how to cook. 51:22 That is SO important because we can go and tell people 51:25 "Oh, you need to change your lifestyle. " 51:28 "You need to get back and eat some other sort of food. " 51:31 Or whatever... and James in the Bible, he writes: 51:35 You know, "If you see a person who has not got 51:39 enough clothing... they're cold, they're wretched, 51:43 they're miserable sort of thing and you say: 'Oh, be 51:47 warmed and fed' and you walk off and don't supply their need 51:51 what good have you done for them? " 51:53 So you can tell them: "Oh, you need to change your 51:55 lifestyle and you need to change what you're eating" 51:57 but you have to give them the resources, the information on 52:01 HOW to do it. You have to instruct them 52:04 on how to cook healthier food; what to eat. 52:08 What is better for their health. 52:11 And things that are not hard to do 52:13 'cause people prefer to do things easier. 52:16 People are so busy these days. 52:18 So doing that is such an important point 52:21 or part of the lifestyle changes they have to make 52:24 and what you are doing for them. 52:26 Interesting you brought resources up in these lessons. 52:30 I think it's important for us to develop our own resources - 52:33 hmm - in terms of using local foods. 52:37 Make local foods more palatable; make local foods more accessible 52:41 and teach them how to USE local foods. 52:44 A lot of these resources that come out here are from America 52:48 or from Australia - hmm - 52:49 with broccoli and strawberries and all that that we don't have. 52:56 You know I'm talking about menus and recipes that come out here. 53:00 So we are working hard in trying to get our own... 53:04 our own resources. You've got good food, George. Yes! 53:06 And we've got to go out. We're going to take a moment 53:08 for a moment. We're talking with George Kwong. 53:10 He's from Fiji. He's involved in the health work. 53:13 But... And I'm sure there are some people out there 53:16 who think: "It's interesting it's happening out there. 53:20 It should be happening HERE. " 53:21 And if you are enjoying these programs, 53:24 we'd love to hear your comments about this program 53:27 and others, and we'd encourage you to continue 53:30 supporting us as you are able to. 53:33 And if you want to do that you can contact us at this address: 54:32 Thank you for all you do to help us light the world 54:34 with the glory of God's truth. 54:39 We love to hear from you so don't forget to contact us. 54:42 We also have a website address for the 10,000 Toes... 54:49 what do you call it? program that is being held 54:52 out in the islands by the Seventh-day Adventist church 54:55 to try and help people who have diabetes 54:58 to save their limbs and not have them amputated 55:02 by getting well. And it is: 55:17 So go there if you want to find out more about that program 55:21 and support it, too, if you want to. That'd be helpful. 55:25 We are talking with George Kwong from Fiji. 55:28 Bula! Bula. 55:31 I've never been to Fiji but it's somewhere I would like to go. 55:36 Now we're talking about the health programs that are being 55:39 run out there. Just run by us the story of a patient, 55:44 a diabetic patient in the village of Namaka. 55:49 Namaka. Yes, yes, yes. 55:51 Yeah. When we open up wellness centers one the things 55:54 we do is have a little health expo with the churches - 55:58 hmm - to reach out to the community. 56:01 And we had this man walk in. 56:05 You know, he had just been back from hospital 56:08 and they wanted to amputate his leg. 56:12 He was an Assembly of God pastor. 56:15 And he came in then he told the hospital people 56:19 "I have heard about this place in Namaka that they 56:24 can help or they do health screenings. 56:26 I think I will pass the amputation. 56:30 I won't have the amputation but I will go to them. " 56:34 Anyway, he came there 56:35 and we checked his blood sugar out and everything. 56:39 And he was really in pain. So he went home 56:43 and we sent two medical missionary young ladies there. 56:46 One of them it sitting at the back there. 56:48 And we sent these medical missionary ladies 56:53 in to work on his limb. 56:57 They changed his diet; they started and exercise program. 57:02 Complete plant-based diet. 57:05 And in three weeks there was an amazing change. 57:10 I was sitting at his workplace when I saw him walk 57:15 to come back to work. 57:17 He was bedridden, and as a result of that 57:21 he's telling all his people about this wonderful thing that 57:25 you can do to change your lifestyle 57:27 by changing your diet and just following the very simple 57:32 principles of health. 57:33 You know, that's a terrific way to conclude our program. 57:36 What we've been talking about WORKS! 57:38 And you can be involved in it too by eating right 57:41 and following God's principles. Thank you, George. 57:44 Until next time may God bless you. |
Revised 2021-03-29