GOD IS LOVE

first week of school

2009-04-24T23:20:00.004+08:00

it has been my first week at nyp only, but i must say it feel like ages. so so much new things to embrace:D and yes,it has all been VERY VERY exciting. i have never enjoyed school so much before. maybe its because it is only the first week, maybe. but i like the idea that there is a rationale behind every module, every lecture, every lab session that i attend. it is not blind learning.
however, i got too caught up with all the excitement and also fear of entering a new chapter of my life, wondering if occupational therapy is IT for me, that i lost sight of the big picture. God then asked me through some events and incidents, what am i going to do in my 3 years at nyp. make merry, get a bunch of close friends, obtain good grades and that it? i must admit that was what was on my mind before i entered nyp, and for the first 2 days of school. also, when i become a clinician, how am i going to integrate God into the rehabilitation for my patients. a good and timely wake up call indeed, to set the right tone for my nyp years.
i guess basically it can be summarised into how can i prioritise God's work as first, of highest importance. and this will probably be my prayers for the weeks to come:D

Prayer Partners Update - For Internal Reference

2009-03-22T20:16:00.002+08:00

JAN
Weiting-Lishien Jie
Han En- Jinghui
Liyun-Shuqi
Sihan-Sining
Xinhui-YiQi
Yiyin-Zhiyan

FEB
Jinghui-Liyun
Shuqi-Sihan
Sining-Xinhui
Yiqi-Yiyin
Zhiyan-Weiting
Han En-Lishien Jie

MAR
Han En-Liyun
Jinghui-Shuqi
Sihan-Xinhui
Sining-Yiqi
Weiting-Yiyin
Zhiyan-Lishien Jie

APR
Liyun-Sihan
Shuqi-Sining
Xinhui-Yiyin
Yiqi-Jinghui
Han En- Weiting
Zhiyan-Lishien Jie

MAY
Han En-Shuqi
Jinghui-Sihan
Liyun-Sining
Xinhui-Zhiyan
Yiqi-Weiting
Yiyin-Lishien Jie

JUN
Shuqi-Xinhui
Sihan-Yiqi
Sining-Yiyin
Han En-Zhiyan
Jinghui-Weiting
Liyun-Lishien Jie

JUL
Liyun-Weiting
Shuqi-Yiqi
Xinhui-Jinghui
Sining-Zhiyan
Han En-Sihan
Yiyin-Lishien Jie

AUG
Shuqi-Weiting
Liyun-Xinhui
Zhiyan-Lishien Jie
Jinghui-Yiqi
Han En-Sining
Sihan-Yiyin

SEP
Sihan-Weiting
Shuqi-Zhiyan
Xinhui-Lishien Jie
Jinghui-Sining
Han En-Yiyin
Liyun-Yiqi

OCT
Sining-Weiting
Shuqi-Lishien Jie
Han En-Xinhui
Liyun-Zhiyan
Jinghui-Yiyin
Sihan-Yiqi

NOV
Xinhui-Weiting
Shuqi-Yiyin
Jinghui-Zhiyan
Han En-Yiqi
Sihan-Lishien Jie
Liyun-Sining

DEC
Weiting-Zhiyan
Han En-Jinghui
Liyun-Shuqi
Sihan-Sining
Yiqi-Lishien Jie
Xinhui-Yiyin

Sorry for the unfancy list, I really have no idea how to post this actually.
The changes were made LIVE during Cell meeting in January 2009, which are not accounted for in the new G12 schedules, so do take note. Main changes are in April, July and September, and only affects certain people. It's fine to have the same prayer partner for more than once due to scheduling difficulties. I'll find a fixed corner to chuck the list soon.

God bless you, cha.
Yi Qi.

Way Back In Love

2009-02-24T02:36:00.003+08:00

okay i know this is like eons ago but hey its MEMORIES!
:) yeah so shweet huh, awwwwwwwww.

jingHui(:

Confirmed by Others

2009-02-22T15:31:00.002+08:00

"The LORD was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba recognized that Samuel was attested as a prophet of the LORD" (1 Sam 3:19-20).

When I was 14 years old I was an exceptional junior golfer. This is not pride on my part, but merely a fact. I had already broken 70 several times and had three hole-in-ones. I competed in the US Junior Amateur and eventually turned pro after attending college on a four year golf scholarship. Those who knew me affirmed the gift and calling that appeared to be on my life. I turned professional for about three years, but God later redirected my life into business and vocational ministry. All of these experiences have combined over many years to contribute to the calling I am living out today.

As we mature in our natural and spiritual lives, God uses our parents, teachers, uncles, coaches and pastors to affirm the gifts and callings that are on our lives. At the time, it often seems like these people are trying to get in the way of what we want to do. However, God uses authority figures to provide key direction during the early teen and twenty-something years. He is using these people to help guide us to the ultimate destiny He has for our lives.

When we are young, we are often more impressionable than at any other time in our lives. The young person who can allow wisdom to rule over immaturity and impatience is a rare individual. However, if you are able to receive from the people God puts in your life at this stage, you will be so far ahead of your peers and you will be amazed.

"God is continually preparing His heroes, and when the opportunity is right, He puts them into position in an instant. He works so fast, the world wonders where they came from," said A. B. Simpson.

Let God do the foundation work so that he can advance you to His ultimate destiny He has for your life.

TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman02-22-2009 (Weiting)

p/s: I'm praying for everyone of you as I was reading this. You know who you are. Love.

“Our lives are defined by opportunities, even the ones we miss.” - the “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”

The False Self - Someone shared this and thought of sharing with you...

2009-02-16T11:35:00.001+08:00

For most of us, me included, we find it easier to live from this false self. The self that is more acceptable to people around us.

The self that keeps us in with our current friends and what people would consider … nice.

This false self is what keeps us going on our daily lives; keeps us moving along with everyone else. In truth, we’re afraid that people around us will not accept us for who we really are.

We’re afraid that when we show our true self, people will laugh at us, mock us, or even call us weird.

I remember one time I was at the beach with a really good friend. I share with this friend of mine something that was in my heart at that very moment, and my friend looked at me like I was just a weirdo.

I didn’t think my heart was handled very well at that moment, and although was a really good friend of mine, I felt this sense of hurt and disconnect. My friend didn’t know how to handle my heart and as a result, we didn’t make that deep, rich connection that we otherwise would have.

Yes, the greatest gift you can give a person is to want to know the person for who he/she really is. His/her hopes, dreams, desires, fears and all.

And all day we live like that; we talk about work, about projects and all, but at some point we feel something is missing in the relationships we’re having. When we’re among people in a crowd, a certain sense of loneliness creeps up to us. Yet we think we’re strange, how come we feel alone among people? Even people close to us?

In truth, I am an extremely playful, opinionated and sometimes stubborn person. But most people don’t see this side of me because I also sometimes see this need to be more ‘acceptable’ to the people around me.

Have less of an opinion. Be more mild.

But yet, Nelson Mandela once said,
And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

When we have the courage to start being ourselves, subtly we give permission to other people to be themselves too. And people will like being around us as a result.

I don’t know if you’ve heard this before, but secure people are attractive for this reason. By being secure enough to be themselves, they allow others to be themselves too.

Have an outrageous dream? Share it. Your real friends will encourage it.
Has somebody hurt you but you feel embarrassed that it seems to matter more than it should? Talk to someone who can handle your heart well.

Because you are important.

Not because of what you can do, but because of who you are.

Love - weiting

2009-02-13T22:47:00.003+08:00

i yiyin the mugger is here to thank God for the week!

this week as all of u noe (u all noe right? =p) that my exams start this week. and yea, lots of stuff happened and as usual i hv lots to say. =p

i usually go out of the exam hall aft a paper and discuss answers. AND get panicky AND worried. i realised that it wasnt getting me anywhere by saying 'argh i shouldnt have cancelled off my method! it WAS correct!' or something similar. cos once i hand my papers over to the teacher the module is OVER, there's nothing i can do to the paper anymore right? SO this time i decided to be e first to leave (at least e convo) if i get involved in a answer-discussing inferno.

and thank God, although i was tempted to join in, i managed to withdraw fr e convo, mostly cos i was hungry. (heeehee.) and i went home happy and ready to slack for e rest of e day (unless i've a paper e next day.)

that was number one.

number 2.

i used to get all panicky if i dun understand some calculations or theories, or if it seems tt nothing is going into my brain. on this, i wanna thank God for my mum. =)

right on e evening b4 my first paper, she got me in a convo with her abt mine and my bro's study methods. i mostly panic. my bro can still play his invisible drums when he dont understand stuff. that, exactly was e difference.

my mama said 'look. if u dun understand something and u panic, u still dont understand. when u relax, u also dun understand. why not u relax, and slowly think again. when ur brain is relaxed, maybe it works better? and, dun give urself too much stress lah. u get top so what? i rather u be happy and be average academically.'

aft hearing this i sorta..... became v happy. fr young i wanted to get good results for my parents to be proud of me. =) so i make sure i know everything. ahhhhh u know wad i mean. =p

so, just 2 hours later i was studying, AND humming songs. =p and it really helps to relax me AND absorb facts. e test next day went great. =)

and i wanna thank u gals for praying for me too! =)

really, this week went great. =) thank God. =))

They are always watching and listening

2009-02-12T14:50:00.001+08:00

"About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them" (Acts 16:25-26).

It didn't take long for non-believers to realize I was different in the secular workplaces where I've worked. I didn't participate in the jokes, the dirty language, or criticism of management. I didn't judge them for their behavior because they were merely acting the way they should act as one who does not have Christ in their life. I viewed them as prisoners awaiting their salvation and that I might be the instrument to lead them to my Savior.

I would often be known as the "religious guy." It wasn't because I was particularly vocal or I tried to separate myself; it happened naturally. The Christ in me naturally made me stand out. Jesus called us to be the "salt and light" of any life situation. The secular workplace economy is contrary to the Kingdom of God economy so we should naturally stand out in any situation.
When Paul and Silas were in prison their lifestyle of worship and prayer in the midst of the horrible conditions of a dirty prison stood out in stark contrast to their circumstances. They didn't pray and sing to impress their cellmates, they simply did what was natural to them. Still, "the other prisoners were watching and listening."

No matter where you are, others are watching you to determine if your faith is real or if you're an imposter. The world is looking to discredit your faith. You are a witness always whether you choose to be or not.

"The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, 'Sirs, what must I do to be saved?'" (Acts 16:29-30). When you begin to reflect the love and power of Christ in your life you won't have to have an evangelism program to win others into the Kingdom. It will be a fruit of your life. The "fish" will actually jump into the boat!

Beware how you conduct your life today. Because the prisoners are watching and listening.

cheers - weiting

When the Future Seems Uncertain - Rick Warren

2009-02-11T14:52:00.001+08:00

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans … to give you a future and a hope … You will find me when you seek me, if you look for me in earnest.” Jeremiah 29:11, 13 (LB)
*** *** *** ***
No matter what the pollsters, pundits, and prognosticators claim, no one can accurately predict all that is going to happen in the next year, let alone the next few days or weeks. Our best forecasts are just educated guesses.

Change is not only increasing in speed and intensity, but also in unpredictability. How can anyone succeed when the future is so uncertain? The Bible suggests three timeless principles for facing an uncertain future:

1. Set goals according to God’s direction. It’s foolish to make plans without first consulting God. He’s the only one who does know the future – and he’s eager to guide you through it.
The Bible says, “We may make our plans, but God has the last word” (Proverbs 16:1 GNT). In other words, planning without praying is presumption. Start by praying, “God, what do you want me to do in 2009?”

2. Live one day at a time. While you can plan for tomorrow, you can’t live it until it arrives. Most people spend so much time regretting the past and worrying about the future, they have no time to enjoy today!

John Lennon once wrote, “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.” Decide to make the most of each moment this year. Jesus said, “Don’t be anxious about tomorrow. God will take care of your tomorrow too. Live one day at a time” (Matthew 6:34 LB).

3. Don’t procrastinate. Do it now! “Don’t boast about what you’re going to do tomorrow, for you don’t know what a day may bring forth” (Proverbs 27:1).

Procrastinating is a subtle trap. It wastes today by postponing things until tomorrow. You promise yourself that you’ll do it “one of these days.” But “one of these days” is usually “none of these days.”

What did you plan to get done last year that you didn’t do? When do you intend to start working on it?

Cheers! Weiting

What is love? Baby, don't hurt me!

2009-02-10T10:24:00.001+08:00

Can you raed tihs? Olny srmat poelpe can. I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig, huh? Yaeh, and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!*

What an incredible mind God gave us humans - eh? Scientists estimate that the human brain calculates roughly 100 trillion calculations per second! So no wonder we can burn through a paragraph without even needing all the letters. We actually have the mental capacity to 'fix' the letters in each world so it ends up sounding right in our minds.

Ah - but then there are the times when we often turn off our brains because a word or concept comes along that we just can't get our minds around.

And that word or concept would be...
Trigonometry? Nope.
Physics? Nah.
Rocket Science? Piece of cake actually - compared to this subject:
Love...

Wouldn't you agree? Like the paragraph above, it oftentimes is a jumbled mess...but one that even our awesome brains can't figure out.
Think about it. I love Monster Drinks, I love Rock-n-Roll, I love sunny days, and I love my wife. If you google 'definition: love,' you'll get around 50,900,000 returns.
Huh?

Exactly. That's why the extremely smart folks called the Ancient Greeks had four different words for love - so they could tell the difference and not end up in an emotional ditch because of all the confusion. They made sure that when you said you 'love' someone, there were clear lines between sexual attraction, friendship, or even a non-emotional commitment to seek someone's highest good.

Have you ever been in the emotional ditch? Yeah, me too. Probably because you said you loved someone - meaning you had strong feelings for them as a person and you wanted the best for them. Then they said they loved you - meaning as long as you made them happy, were good looking, or put out physically for them.
Am I wrong?

As Valentine's day 2009 puts love up on the big screen of society, let me offer the true definition of love from the Author of love:

This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you (John 15:12, NLT).

Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God's law (Romans 13:10, NLT).

For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don't use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love (Galatians 5:13, NLT).

The picture of love that the Bible paints is radically different than what we see in movies or hear on our iPods. The world tells us that love = sex. As if this amazing, awesome, life-giving combination of attraction, connection, and commitment can be reduced to 'hooking up.'
No, the Bible tells us that love is demonstrated by what Jesus did for us - which was sacrificing himself for our good. True love doesn't hurt others just to satisfy a desire or look good in public.
So is sexual love bad? Of course not. God invented it - remember? But He is very clear about when it's OK, and when it will murder a part of your very soul:

'This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.' Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together (Matthew 19:5-6, NLT).

God's will is for you to be holy, so stay away from all sexual sin (1 Thessalonians 4:3, NLT).
Sexual activity and sexual union were created by God to enhance a committed marriage, not to be toyed around with in casual acquaintances and under the excuse of being 'in love.'

It obviously doesn't take a genius to see that incredible good AND incredible harm can be done when the words 'I love you' enter the picture. So my loving advice to you would be -
Change the culture around you. Help people see the difference between an honorably motivated commitment of love and a hormonally driven expression of 'love' that just wants to selfishly satisfy a desire designed for fulfillment in marriage.

And most importantly, remember the greatest act of love ever demonstrated on planet earth:
For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16, NLT).

Love - weiting

Forgiving Ourselves

2009-01-29T12:01:00.002+08:00

Hey girls, thought this is a good reminder coz sometimes when we do the wrong thing or felt guilty about something, we may tend to hold it against ourselves. As easy as it may sound, this is the ONLY way we can be freed. Let's LIVE for God today!

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

The murderer was condemned to life in prison. Then one day something amazing happened. The guard came and opened the jail cell. "You are free to go. Someone else is taking your place," said the guard. "How can this be? I am still guilty!" said the prisoner. "Your debt has been paid. You are free to leave," said the guard once more. The prisoner decided not to leave. "I cannot allow another to pay my debt," said the prisoner. Because of his pride he chose to remain in bondage.
Imagine the guilt Peter must have felt when he betrayed the Son of God three times by saying he never knew him. Imagine what he must have felt the moment he reunited with Him after the resurrection.

The hardest person to forgive sometimes is ourselves. It is especially hard for high achievers to forgive themselves. We think we are above such failure. However, the Bible says we all sin and it is impossible to remedy that sin by ourselves.

"If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives?" (1 John 1:8,10).

The question is not whether we will sin, the question is what we will do when we do sin.
There is only one thing for us to do. Go to the cross. Jesus paid for that sin by dying on the cross. Picture yourself writing your sin on a white piece of paper, then pinning it to the cross. Now, leave it there. The cross is for sinners. When Jesus looks at you, He no longer sees your sin. He cannot see the sin because He can only see the cross.

When you come to Jesus with your sin, there is nothing more you can do besides confessing and renouncing your sin. Sometimes it may require restitution with others. However, once you confess your sin and ask forgiveness, it is no longer on the ledger of debts.
Why not choose to walk free.

The cell has been opened.

posted-weiting

REVAMPED

2009-01-23T02:42:00.003+08:00

It's a revamp!

well kinda.

The layout's not exactly new, but I'm working on a new one now. Don't know how long it takes, so we'll stick to this for now, okay?

If you have a blog, or a google account, please inform me so I can add you in as an author. That would mean that you won't have to log in separately. Wordpress and LJ should be able to post here too using OpenID, I'll see what I can do about it ASAP.

There're a few glitches with this skin, but I've covered most of them, if you're uncomfortable with anything like privacy, or if you have any serious and nagging technical issues, feel free to approach me.

And erm the photo album will take some time to be sorted out. I mean, I wouldn't want to just upload everything, including all your unglam pictures right? Selection selection woe woe to selection.

There, as promised. They are originals so go edit them yourselves.

And of course, to celebrate the belated grand revamp of our G12 blog, we have this:

With that, happy Chinese New Year, all the best to everybody in 2009.
All glory and honour to God.

Cha.

2008-05-27T10:00:00.002+08:00

heys, here're my common test dates! do pray for me ya! =D

2nd june --> Indoor air quality

3rd june --> maths (paper starts at 8.30 am! pray for discipline to wake up early!)

4th june --> wastewater technology

23rd june --> workplace safety and health

thx gals! =D

2008-04-09T21:55:00.005+08:00

Heyy peeps!!!
Here r the pics of u guys & me at my birthday chalet...take a look at US!!!

The flower ur gave me!!![soo nice!]

2008-04-01T09:02:00.012+08:00

hey! here's yiyin again! i wanna share abt my trip to Sabah, where i've experienced stuff tt i never dreamt i'll experience in my lifetime! And thank God, i'm back in one piece! =p

DAY 1 (11th March)

Met the others at Kranji MRT where we took a public bus to Johor Bahru ---> Kota Raya bus terminal (i saw e hotel where we stayed in during e church camp last yr!) ---> Johor Senai Airport

Then from Senai airport we took AirAsia plane to Kota Kinabalu (shall call it KK subsequently. =p)

By e time we reached KK, it's 9+pm already. We checked into a backpackers' inn and spent e night there. We din really expect much fr e backpackers' inn but it really was above our expectations. There were air-con n water heaters! =p

Couldnt really sleep tt night due to e anticipation and excitement. =.=

DAY 2 (12th March)

Woke up quite early (everyone did too.) at 7am to get ready for the 6 hour bus ride to the village (Kampung Batu Lunguyan). I never rode a bus ride SO long, with 2 hours worth of rocky, sandy AND very bumpy roads inclusive! Reached e village at 3+pm.

We were very welcomed by the villagers, they took out their gongs n played them to welcome us! They only play their gongs on very special occasions yea.

It's very nice music, although the different gongs have their own rythmn to play with, they blend in so well with one another! This reminds me of the church, everyone of us are of different personalities, but we get along so well with each other too! =)

The children there are much more innocent than those in Singapore. They are very friendly and they brought us around their village. We went to their school n church. Oh, the community there is mainly catholic. So they dont work on Sundays too.

Oh ya, the kids are very adventurous. they can just run up a cliff barefooted. On e 1st day we all were shocked and told them to come down, but later realised tt they grew up like that and must have done that thousands of times.

Oh, i have to mention. Due to the large number of cows there, there were a lot, and i say A LOT of 'landmines' on the roads. We were very conscious NOT to step on them but.. u noe, people get careless sometimes. =p

We were introduced to our newly built toilet (the villagers built it specially for us! how nice!) and our bunks. Our bunks were big, but once we are done with the mosquito nets, there were very little space to walk. I din take a photo of the whole bunk. There were pink mosquito nets, blue ones, green ones. The whole bunk looked like an obstacle course lah. My mosquito net is at the back of the bunk so i've to bend down and walk thru e strings of the other mosquito nets, tied to the window of the bunk. Hard to imagine w/o photos eh. Paiseh. =X

I forgot to mention, we bought our own mattresses n pillows. and they were literally STUFFED into our bus when we set off from KK. And this was how e bus looked like.

Okay enough of day 2.

DAY 3 (13th March)

We thought construction works would start but the in-charge gave us the day off. day off w/o working 1st! That's why i say ppl there are very nice! =p

We interacted with the villagers there, played with the kids, eeked at the cows, hid from the dogs, shouted at the chickens there to shut up (heh.) and played in the river! The river there is not very clean (expected.) but it wasnt as dirty as wad we expected. The water was yellowish, but when it's clear, u can see the stones underneath. It wasnt very deep lah, or i wont even step in at all. The kids, as usual, jumped into e river and did stuff tt our parents will never allow us to do (like go into the current of the water to the big rock downstream to play, jump down from a very high bridge into the river where the current is VERY strong).

It gets dark over there at 6pm. 7pm there looked like 8pm in Singapore. The electricity there is very unstable. The lights may just go 'poof!' anytime. So there werent any stuff to do at night. Some ppl go to sleep at 8.30pm even. But in the girls' bunk, other than sleeping we had other stuff to do.

Screaming at insects/flies/how big there mosquitoes are.................................... (haha)

After all those 'eeks' and 'ahhs' we still went to sleep.

It was an eye-opener already on the 1st full day in Batu Lunguyan. There were more eye popping stuff after that.

DAY 4 (14th March)

1st day of constructions! In case u were thinking wad i'm doing in Sabah, i'm there to lay water pipes for the villagers.

We trekked 1hour in the forest to the source of the water. 1hour of trekking even before the start! All of us were quite whiny abt e fact at the start.

Because it's e 1st day, we were very slow in our movement, scared of our shoes getting dirty and wet, scared of losing our balance, scared of this and that..... But aft seeing the villagers stepping into mud w/o any hesitation, we thought we were gonna get dirty anyway, so we just did wad they did.

when we (finally) reached the part of the river which is the source of the pipes, we made a gravity dam so that the water level upstream is increased to let more water go into the pipes. A little bit of hydraulics here, so ya. we built a dam.

so 20+ ppl stood in one line, passing rocks n stones of different sizes into the wire cage that the

And so this was day 1 of constructions.

DAY 5 (15th March)

Day 2 of constructions! We were more comfortable about the trekking part already, so it din take as long as the 1st day. This time we divided into 2 groups. One group will go downstream and move the water pipes back to the route, because some of them rolled into the river when it rained very heavily a few days ago. It is very hard work cos one pipe is quite heavy, and there were many pipes waiting for us to move them back to where they belong.

The other group stays upstream and move more rocks n stones into the dam.

As usual, i wanted to do something more physically demanding so i joined e 1st group. We walked downstream in the river till we see the 1st pipe. den we moved it back. then the second one, then third, fourth.............

And we went back to the village with aching backs n arms. =p

DAY 6 (16th March)

It's Sunday! So we din have to work. So we went to the nearest town to buy stuff + get handphone reception. Er, e latter is mostly wad we went to town for. But for a good reason! Our results were released on friday. The school will sms us our results. So... ya. Received my msg and it sorta made me emo e whole day cos my results werent good. But well, i thought i should enjoy my time in Sabah 1st, and worry abt my results when i come back. So i became back to normal v fast.

DAY 7 (17th March)

My rest day. The others have to go work though. everyone has a day when they can rest lah, i'm not slacking. =p

Its a rest day but i'm SO bored! aft sending the others off to the jungle, i washed my clothes in the river (another once in a lifetime experience), played with the kids there, played the guitar (lousily), stoned, chatted with the other ppl who were having their rest day too.........

And finally e others came back and proceeded to our daily activity, THE RIVER!!!!!! hehe. i din really play inside lah, just sat inside, feeling the current going into my back. a very soothing feeling. Better than a spa some more, cos it's free. =p

DAY 8 (18th March)

Same as day 2 of constructions. Except that everyone were to move pipes. Starting to get boring i know. =p oh, i broke my glasses that night.

DAY 9 (19th March)

Ahh. Finally the last day of constructions. Joined the pipes together using this flat circular thing with a handle (called the hot plate). The villagers are very pro eh. They carried a gas cylinder into the jungle and a stove to heat the hot plate up. Then we had to push the two pipes together towards the hot plate, for the hot plate to melt the sides of the two pipes, then pull the pipes away from the hotplate, then quickly push them together again.

So we were like 'PUUUUUUUSSSSHHHHH!!!!!!' 'PUUULLLLLLLLL!!!!!' 'PUUUSSSSHHHH!!!!' e whole day. as if we were giving birth. =p

then the villagers made use of the gas cylinder and the stove, and bbq-ed some pupa (i dunno wad it will become, moth or butterfly) for us. of cos we freaked out, but some of us ate it still. not bad, tastes exactly like bbq-ed chicken wing skin. heheh. another once in a lifetime experience.

DAY 10 (20th March)

No construction to be done cos we completed wad we had to complete! we divided into two groups again, one to visit their padi field, and the other to rubber tapping. i thought rubber tapping was lame so i went for the padi fields one. its high up on a hill next to e village, n the way up is very steep. i was panting halfway up, but the scenery at the top of the field in breathtaking. no photos again. now i'm regretting not bringing my phone up to take photos. =.=

DAY 11 (21st March)

Good friday! the villagers brought us to a picnic! they caught fishes and prawns n crabs to cook there. oh, no more gas cylinders lah. they used a huge bonfire (like those u see in a campfire), i've no idea how they managed to start a huge fire. =p the way there was like our normal trekking, but fun-er. there were bridges, broken ones. we gals screamed and walked (as usual)

after that all of us splt into 3 groups to prepare our item for the farewell party. my group sang. others acted or danced.

once e farewell party started, all went very high. the villagers presented us their rice wine. i din really dare to drink it, cos i dunno if i've got allergies or not. but still drank a bit. it was...... bitter. then we and all e youngsters there took photos. lots of them. then it was all the speeches and items by us and the villager kids. i've to say, the kids really can dance. =)

See that carlsberg can in my friend's hand?? all e way at e left!

then aft that dance, all went crazy, the villager played karaoke songs, then we youngsters danced and played. we were constantly offered rice wine, but after that bitter sensation i din wanna try again. so i just.. danced. =p but my frens got drunk n was blabbering and walking zigzag. yeah. so some of us brought them to the nearby provision shop/coffeeshop for a milo. oh, that uncle who runs the coffeeshop can speak chinese!

aft all the fun n milo we bathed for the 2nd time of the day, at 12am. slept at 1am.

DAY 12 (21st March)

Woke up at 5.30am to get ready to leave the village. ahh. 10 days go by so fast. my very emotional best friend teared as the kids sang a song for us.

okay, then we left the village, sadly.

then we went to Poring Hot Springs and got conned. Poring Hot Springs are oni for soaking of legs and are always full. i paid RM3 to enter this place which looked v fun, but it's cold water inside. =.= Service there quite bad some more. =(

then we went to this Long House to stay for the night. Let me say this, Long House is REALLY long. the whole structure is made of bamboo. floors, walls, everything. sorta felt unsecure walking on it but luckily it went okay. and i broke my shades.

DAY 13 (23rd March)

went to see the sunrise and visit their tea plantation. then went for snorkelling in Manukan Island. honestly there wasn't anything to see in such shallow waters, but the view is nice enough. clear waters, white sands and.. pollution. =/ Okay lah, there are rainbow fishes, corals and some small small random fishes lor.

then went for banana boat. capsized twice. not bad. lost my left contact lens in the middle of nowhere. =/ i became cyclops fr then on.

walked back to the backpackers' inn where we stayed for the 1st night (remember??) and went out for dinner at KFC. ahh, civilisation. went shopping at the mall. some frens asked me if i wanna watch Manchester united VS liverpool that night, venue to be confirmed. knowing tt my bro couldnt watch it, i decided to watch it for him.

BUT! aft dinner my frens told me tt they're watching the match in a pub, i backed out. not that i'm a wet blanket or sth, but i dun plan to go to that kind of place even in Singapore. i can opt out about the alcohol but.. i've nv been there b4, and who noes wad'll happen there? even till now i still feel v happy tt i din step into that place, because some of my frens came back to the inn drunk. i felt i've glorified God in a way or another in this case. =)

DAY 14 (24th March)

LAST DAY.

we headed to the sabah airport in e morn. reached Senai airport at around 1+pm. reached johor customs at 3 something and go home at 5.30pm.

THINGS I WANNA THANK GOD FOR:

~ letting me experience things that i've never experienced before

~ letting me give thanks for things that i've been taking for granted for (electricity, for example)

~ strengthening me up mentally and physically thruout this trip

~ bonding everyone of us together, although not very closely, but i came to know more people and maybe i could bring one or two to Christ! =)

~ constantly reminding me that i should BE a christian, not only ACT like one

~ helping me discipline myself when i was there

~ helping me appreciate nature

~ the hospitality we recieved from the villagers

~ bringing me back to singapore safe and sound

~ everything! =D

yep that's it gals. sorry if i was boring u yah. =p will share more if u ask me! =D

2008-03-10T11:03:00.002+08:00

forget it, i will just post it here.

Here are some men and women who mocked God :

John Lennon (Singer):
Some years before, during his interview with an American Magazine, he said: 'Christianity will end, it will disappear. I do not have to argue about that. I am certain. Jesus was ok, but his subjects were too simple, Today we are more famous than Him' (1966). Lennon, after saying that the Beatles were more famous than Jesus Christ, was shot six times.

Tancredo Neves (President of Brazil ):
During the Presidential campaign, he said if he got 500,000 votes from his party, not even God would remove him from Presidency. Sure he got the votes, but he got sick a day before being made President, then he died.

Cazuza (Bi-sexual Brazilian composer, singer and poet):
During A show in Canecio ( Rio de Janeiro ), while smoking his cigarette, he puffed out some smoke into the air and said: 'God, that's for you.' He died at the age of 32 of AIDS in a horrible manner.

Builder of Titanic:
The man who built the Titanic After the construction of Titanic, a reporter asked him how safe the Titanic would be. With an ironic tone he said: 'Not even God can sink it' The result: I think you all know what happened to the Titanic .

Marilyn Monroe (Actress):
She was visited by Billy Graham during a presentation of a show. He said the Spirit of God had sent him to preach to her. After hearing what the Preacher had to say, she said: 'I don't need your Jesus'. A week later, she was found dead in her apartment .

Bon Scott (Singer): The ex-vocalist of the AC/DC. On one of his 1979 songs he sang: 'Don't stop me, I'm going down all the way, down the highway to hell' On the 19th of February 1980, Bon Scott was found dead, he had been choked by his own vomit.

Campinas (IN 2005): In Campinas , Brazil a group of friends, drunk, went to pick up a friend.....The mother accompanied her to the car and was so worried about the drunkenness of her friends and she said to the daughter holding her hand, who was already seated in the car: 'My Daughter, Go With God And May He Protect You..' She responded: 'Only If He (God) travels in the trunk, cause inside here.....it' s already full ' Hours later, news came by that they had been involved in a fatal accident, everyone had died, the car could not be recognized what type of car it had been, but surprisingly, the trunk was intact. The police said there was no way the trunk could have remained intact. To their surprise, inside the trunk was a crate of eggs, none was broken.

Christine Hewitt Jamaican Journalist and entertainer Said:the Bible (Word of God) was the worst book ever written. In June 2006 she was found burnt beyond recognition in her motor vehicle .

Many more important people have forgotten that there is no other name that was given so much authority as the name of Jesus. Many have died, but only Jesus died and rose again, and he is still alive .

sihan.

2008-02-28T14:00:00.002+08:00

Hey hey! yiyin postin' here! =D

just to update abt my scholarship thingy. okay i din get it, although i think i did not bad in the interview on tues. maybe it's my results, bad results which caused me not to get it lah, but it's over so.. ya. =)

i think u all would prefer to see me act out how i went thru e interview if i had a chance to, and tell u how 1 of e 4 interviewers shoot me abt my interest in human resource while pursuing an engineering diploma now, but i'll give a small sneak preview here ya.

thank God my interview was near noon so i din have to wake up early, or i'll oversleep. okay then FAST FORWARD........................

when e time was here i went in n e 4 interviewers were there, with a laptop in front of each of them, n they started with my very mediocre results.

'what happened to your results for e previous semester?'

'assuming we only require Bs and Cs for our scholarship, and we have candidates who get straight As. why do you think we should give you the scholarship, instead of the straight As ppl?'

'what do you do in church?'

'what quality do you think you have, for us to give you the scholarship?'

and many many more.

and at last, two of my friends got into e next round, among many of us. so far la. so i dun hv e updated figure of who got it.

i'm just a lil' sad abt it, but basically i'm fine. =) not getting into e 2nd round doesnt mean i'll never get anymore scholarships from elsewhere rite? =D

let me get chinese a lil' bit: 塞翁失马，焉知非福？

tis may not be a bad thing aft all. God could have got better stuff for me. =)

oh it's New Year.

2008-02-07T08:58:00.000+08:00

Yi Qi here this morning with your "oh! Happy New Year!!!!" greetings. Yeah, I'm not totally into it, but for the sake of some red fluffy paper containers which could determine how I live my life for the rest of the term, hey, I could put on as many smiles as I have to.

I do realise this is a tad too late, sorry. My com's full of untitled pictures and untitled videos right now, so it'd take me more than just a while to sort 'em all. I wanted to go with dailymotion, but my account there is private, so I went ahead with youtube. Youtube's quality is a little worse, but nevermind, it tells the same story, shows the same truth. If you want the original copy, email me or something and I'll pack it your way.

This is the raw copy that I had filmed. Yes, raw (which kinda means I didn't even convert or edit or modify it [well but of course youtube converted]). I was taken by surprise when the cake came out so my cam started recording a 'lil too late. And I was kinda distracted when she blew the candles so it wasn't image-perfect. But oh well, you get the idea. Happy Chinese New Year, gets lotsa red packets, lotsa love. then when you're in good mood, consider treating me to dinner.

Gers.... this is for you...enjoy!

2008-02-05T10:02:00.000+08:00

Top 10 Things Not to Say on a Date
If you ever want to go out with him or her again, you'll definitely want to avoid these lame lines!

1. ) "Nice haircut! We used to do something like that with my mom's poodle!"

2) "Oh, an '81 Pinto. How nice. My last date drove a brand-new Porsche 911 Carrera. Way too showy."

3) "Is that your perfume or did we just walk past a dead skunk?"

4) "I've got a great idea! Let's sing some camp songs while we wait here in line for the movie. Kum Ba Yah, my Lord! Kum Ba Yah! Everybody! Kum Ba Yah, my Lord! … "

5) "That's so cool how you make your voice crack like that in the middle of a sentence! Most guys are self-conscious about it. But not you!"

6) "All right! All-you-can-eat pizza! Last time I scarfed 36 slices before I got sick. Wonder if I can beat that tonight?"

7) "Um, there must have been a mistake. The costume party isn't until next Friday night."

8) "Did you know I'm ambidextrous? I can pick wax out of my ears with BOTH pinkies at the same time. Watch!"

9) "Rats! It looks like I left my wallet at home again! What's that, nine times in a row? I'm sorry. You don't mind paying again, do you?"

10) "I still can't believe you said yes when I asked you out! The last 38 I tried all said no. I was going for a Guinness World Record!"

Copyright © 2002 by the author or Christianity Today International/Campus Life magazine.Click here for reprint information on Campus Life.

ting

Creating a Memory

2008-01-31T15:45:00.000+08:00

Creating a Memory

TGIF Today

God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman01-31-2008

"The greatest among you will be your servant" (Matt 23:11)

Ken Blanchard, the author of the One Minute Manager, once shared a story about what can happen when individuals in a company model servant leadership, no matter where they are on the totem pole.

A business consultant was training more than 3000 employees of a mid-western grocery chain to approach their jobs with a goal of creating a memory for their customers. She stated that "this is what will distinguish your store from all others."

Johnny was a 19-year old bag boy that had down-syndrome. His first response to the consultant's suggestion was "I'm just a 'bag boy.'" Nevertheless, he went home and shared what the consultant said with his mother. They began to ponder the consultant's words about how he could create a memory for his customers. Johnny had a habit of collecting inspirational thoughts that he would often read. He decided he would begin printing these sayings and place one in each of the bags of his customers. When customers came through the line he would place the sayings in their bag and say, "I've included some of my favorite sayings in your bag in hopes it will encourage you today. Thanks for shopping with us."

After just a few weeks, an amazing thing began to happen. One day the store manager noticed that all the customers were lined up at only one cashier station when there were other stations open. He began to panic, thinking the other stations were broken. After further investigation he found this was not the case. Actually, customers wanted to come through Johnny's line in order to get his saying of the day.

One woman came up to the manager and said, "I used to come to the store only once a week, but now I come everyday!" Johnny's example spread to other departments in the store. The florist began giving a flower to each florist customer. The meat department put Snoopy stickers on each meat order with a special greeting. This one act by a bag boy changed the entire climate of the store.*

How can you create a memory for someone in your workplace today? Jesus was all about creating memories.

ting

Believing Your Uniqueness

2008-01-28T00:50:00.000+08:00

Believing Your Uniqueness

by Jon Walker

“The most important thing is that I complete my mission, the work that the Lord Jesus gave me – to tell people the Good News about God's grace.” (Acts 20:24 NCV)

God gave you a unique role to play in his Kingdom.

You’re the only person in the world who can live your particular life for the glory of God. There is no one else in the world with your unique mix of spiritual gifts, passions, abilities, personality, and experiences. God shaped you for a very specific ministry, and no one else can fulfill your mission.

Paul writes: “The most important thing is that I complete my mission, the work that the Lord Jesus gave me – to tell people the Good News about God's grace” (Acts 20:24 NCV). God doesn’t want us to waste a precious minute of our lives doing things that don’t matter – if the most important thing we can do is left undone.

It’s never too late to move faithfully into your mission for God. You may think you don’t have any skills God can use, but the truth is God would never send you on a mission without making sure you had everything you needed – including your unique S.H.A.P.E.

He sends you with his Spirit, the Holy Spirit, inside you to guide you.

What does this mean?

· Let’s not waste God’s grace – The apostle Paul writes, “But because God was so gracious, so very generous, here I am. And I'm not about to let his grace go to waste. Haven't I worked hard trying to do more than any of the others? Even then, my work didn't amount to all that much. It was God giving me the work to do, God giving me the energy to do it.” (1 Corinthians 15:10 MSG)

· What if it’s true? – How would you live differently if you really believed God had created you for a unique mission, one that only you could accomplish?

ting

Greek versus Hebraic

2008-01-28T00:44:00.000+08:00

Greek versus Hebraic

TGIF Today

God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman01-25-2008

"I will bend Judah as I bend my bow and fill it with Ephraim. I will rouse your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and make you like a warrior's sword" (Zech 9:13).

In the early church there was an emphasis on developing a heart toward God. This was the Hebraic way. The scriptures were not accessible like they are for us. So, the relationship with God was the key focus. God related to his people on a personal and intimate level. And obedience was the key to a healthy relationship with God. Decisions were not made based on reason and analysis, but by obedience. "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom" (Ps. 111:10).

This is why many of the miracles performed in the Bible went against natural reason, (i.e. feeding five thousand, crossing the Red Sea, retrieving a coin from a fish's mouth, walking around Jericho to win a battle, etc.) God constantly wanted to check the leader's obedience, not his knowledge.

Knowledge and reason came into the early Church with the Greek scholars in subsequent centuries. This is when the church began to affirm oratory skills among Church leaders. Gradually, over many centuries the focus on knowledge and reason has become more accepted in the Church.

Loss of intimacy with God has been the fallout as a result of the influence of the Greek spirit. The primary focus has been teaching and discipleship instead of the development of a personal and intimate relationship with God. This has resulted in a form of religion, but one without power.

In the early church, the rabbi was there primarily for quality control, not as the primary teacher and speaker. He did not even address the people from an elevated platform. The whole congregation was in a more circular format, each sharing what they believed God was saying. The focus was on the power of God working through each individual, not one individual (1 Cor. 14:26).

Is your focus on gaining more knowledge or growing in intimacy and power with Jesus? He desires to know you intimately.

ting

Out of Your Comfort Zone

2008-01-28T00:27:00.000+08:00

Out of Your Comfort Zone

TGIF Today

God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman01-26-2008

"And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work" (2 Cor 9:8).

Have you ever been given an assignment at work that was beyond your perceived ability?

When I was in my late twenties I made a career change which necessitated a job change. I decided to apply for a job that involved selling advertising on golf score cards. Usually this meant going into small towns and making sales calls to small business owners in that community. Not an easy job for a rookie in his first sales job.

At first the two non-Christian owners refused to hire me because my answers to their questions led to me discussing my faith in Christ. They felt I should be in the ministry, not sales. However, they reluctantly decided to take a chance on me and sent me to small towns in Kentucky to sell golf scorecards in the middle of winter. Little did I know that they were trying to set me up for failure and did not think I had any chance of success.

I got into my Volkswagen bus and headed for the hills of Kentucky. As I took on my new job I told the Lord I was not qualified for this and He would have to help me to be successful. After a week of selling and sleeping in my car at night, I returned with a full inventory of sales from several cities. When I walked into the office and met with the owners, they looked at me with total surprise. They could not believe I had been successful. I would go on to work two years at this company, become an executive with them, and play a key role in leading one of the partners to Christ.

Do you have a major challenge in your work life? Ask God to help you be successful in your assignment. God delights in showing His children His power so you can abound in your good work.

ting

Father, Son and Holy Scriptures?

2008-01-28T00:16:00.000+08:00

Father, Son and Holy Scriptures?

TGIF Today

God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman01-27-2008

"Jesus answered: Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time?'" (John 14:9).

The disciples had been with Jesus for three years. They'd seen miracles - dead men came back to life, the sick were healed, and water was turned to wine. These were but a few of the hundreds of miracles they saw Jesus perform. However, even after these experiences, they lacked one important thing - intimacy with Jesus. They didn't really know Jesus.

This must have been a great disappointment to Jesus. He'd invested so much into developing a close and intimate relationship with the twelve. Consider that they spent three years with their Master. They learned about Him during those years. However, they had knowledge without intimacy. They experienced God's power individually and He even performed miracles through their own lives. Sometimes it is easier to do the work of God without the intimacy with God.

A friend once commented about the current condition of much of the mainline churches today: "You'd think the trinity was the Father, Son and Holy Scriptures versus the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. There's never been a better description of the Church today.

But, alas, this is a challenge to my own walk with God. It is easy for me to fall into this trap of working so hard for Jesus that I forget to work with Jesus. Jesus desires intimacy more than works. He tells us in John 15:5: "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned." Whatever works we do must be a fruit of our intimacy with Him.

Lord, help us not to just know about you. We desire to know you.

ting

2008-01-26T22:50:00.000+08:00

hey gals, yiyin here. here're my exam dates, do pray for discipline and a motivated mind to mug. thx! =D

Land Surveying --> 1st Feb 10am to 12pm

Math --> 15th Feb 9am to 11am

Fundamentals of Civil Engineering --> 21st Feb 9am to 11am

Chemistry --> 22nd Feb 2pm to 4 pm

i seriously muz mug!!

Dying to be Faithful

2008-01-17T20:10:00.000+08:00

Dying to be Faithful

Persecution brought out the best and worst in the early Christians.

by Jennifer Trafton

"Come fire, cross, battling with wild beasts, wrenching of bones, mangling of limbs, crushing of my whole body, cruel tortures of the devil—only let me get to Jesus Christ!"

Hardly the stuff of Sunday morning conversation in the 21st century. Ignatius, a bishop in Antioch, wrote these words in a letter to the Roman church in the early second century. He had been arrested for being a Christian and knew that a grisly death probably lay before him. Yet he looked forward to it almost joyfully. Why?

Ignatius and many other believers in his time were dealing with dilemmas most American Christians will never have to face: "Should I go to the local executioner and volunteer to die for my faith, or should I try to avoid being arrested at all costs? Is it okay to offer sacrifice to the pagan gods just once, if it means staying alive? Does martyrdom bring me closer to the sufferings of Christ? Are martyrs more special than the rest of us?" Questions like these shaped early Christianity.

The unpopular crowdDespite what many people imagine, the early church was not constantly on the run from wild beasts, torture chambers, and fiery deaths. For the first three centuries of its existence, Christianity was an illegal religion in the Roman Empire. But at first it was only a tiny sect, hardly worth the notice of the emperors.

This began to change with the emperor Nero. In A.D. 64, a fire destroyed 10 of the 14 city wards in Rome. Though Nero probably wasn't playing the fiddle at the time, as the legend goes, he was unspeakably cruel and perhaps even insane. To deflect public suspicion that he had ordered the fire to be set, Nero blamed the Christians.

The historian Tacitus (who called Christianity a "deadly superstition") said Nero had believers killed in a kind of circus in his public gardens: "Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to flames. These served to illuminate the night when daylight failed." The apostles Peter and Paul probably died during this time.

Fortunately, torturing Christians for amusement wasn't the usual practice among Roman authorities. Persecution happened from time to time in various places, but there were also periods of relative peace and toleration. Some officials tried to make sure Christians were treated fairly.

But the suspicions Nero aroused damaged the Christians' reputation. Public hostility towards Christians grew. Rumors spread about their secret practices. They were seen as superstitious, anti-social, and disloyal to the emperor. They undermined Roman society, in which pagan religion played a crucial role. They became scapegoats. The early Christian writer Tertullian complained, "If the Tiber floods the city, or the Nile refuses to rise, or the sky withholds its rains, if there is an earthquake, famine, or pestilence, at once the cry is raised: 'Christians to the lions!'"

Bearing the nameAround the year 155, persecution broke out against the Christians in Smyrna in Asia Minor (present-day Turkey). Believers were being fed to the wild beasts in the arena and burned alive. The crowd began to call for the Christians' leader, so the authorities brought in Polycarp.

Polycarp had been a disciple of the apostle John and was a revered elderly leader of the church. The proconsul pled with him: "Curse Christ and I will release you." Polycarp's reply is classic: "Eighty-six years I have served Him. He has never done me wrong. How then can I blaspheme my King who has saved me?"

The church in Smyrna wrote an account of Polycarp's death and sent it to believers throughout the region. This was the first Christian martyr story, and it influenced how Christians thought about martyrdom ever afterward.

"If you suffer as a Christian," the apostle Peter had said, "do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name" (1 Peter 4:16). Indeed, in the first centuries of the church, Christians often suffered not for any particular accusations but because they bore the name. When pagan sacrifices were demanded of them, martyrs responded (like Polycarp) with a simple statement: "I am a Christian."

This was no time for lukewarm, half-hearted believers. Becoming a Christian was deadly serious. Two of the most famous martyrs of the early church, young women named Perpetua and Felicitas, were new converts during a period when conversion to Judaism or Christianity was against the law.

Christians held those who stood firm in the face of death in the highest honor, because they were literally imitating Christ's death. Churches celebrated these deaths annually as the martyrs' "birthdays." Some believed that martyrs went straight to heaven, while the rest of the church had to wait until the final resurrection. And some Christians wanted so badly to achieve this highest honor that they deliberately sought death. When the future theologian Origen was a boy, he was so eager to be martyred that his mother hid his clothes in order to keep him from going to the authorities. It worked. He wouldn't turn himself in naked.

The true martyrsIt's difficult for us to understand this attitude today when we read about the horrific sufferings some martyrs underwent. In 177 in Lyons, Gaul (modern France), the Christian community faced mob beatings and prison conditions so horrible that many died before they could be thrown to the beasts. Some were chained to a hot-iron seat where their flesh was burned—making them literally a human barbecue.

Blandina, a young female slave, inspired the others with her courage: "After the scourging, after the wild beasts, after the roasting seat, she was finally enclosed in a net, and thrown before a bull. And having been tossed about by the animal, but feeling none of the things which were happening to her, on account of her hope and firm hold upon what had been entrusted to her and her communion with Christ, she also was sacrificed."

Unlike Blandina, those who volunteered for martyrdom were often the very ones to buckle under pressure, bringing shame upon the church. And as the persecutions grew more intense, many Christians surrendered their Scriptures and sacrificed to the pagan gods.

So the martyr stories had to get across a very important message: Don't go seeking wild beasts and torture chairs! But if you are forced to suffer for your faith, here is how to act and what to say—be like these brothers and sisters in Christ who did not give in when persecuted, but trusted God.

And Christian leaders like Clement of Alexandria reminded believers that it is not only those who literally die for their faith who are "martyrs." The word means "witness," and being a faithful witness to the gospel is something every Christian is called to do, in every circumstance.

Christianity Today: Christian History & Biography

Beyond Prayer Requests

2008-01-17T19:54:00.000+08:00

Beyond Prayer Requests
Groups should consider whether their requests line up with what God is doing.

By Wayne Jacobsen

You'd have thought I'd just cussed by the way the mouths around the table soundlessly fell open. And all I'd said was "I don't think I can pray that for you."

The woman who had just asked us to pray was perhaps the most shocked of all.

My home group had just finished eating dinner, and we were sharing prayer requests. With obvious distress, Kris had told of her daughter's plan to move in with a boyfriend that weekend, and asked us to pray that God wouldn't allow it.

I usually try not to take exception to people's prayer requests, but I have a low tolerance for requests I think God clearly will not answer. On this occasion, I didn't keep quiet.

Once they all caught their breath, I explained. "I think all of us here can understand why you want God to stop her from doing that. If anyone here feels that's what God wants, you're free to pray that way. I'm wondering, however, whether asking God to override someone's ability to make moral choices isn't akin to witchcraft."

I could see Kris was near seething at my bluntness, so I hurried on. "What I suggest we pray for is that God would reveal himself to your daughter. That he would let her see clearly the choice she is making. And that God will show you how to trust him and love your daughter, even if she makes the stupidest mistake of her young life."

I had hardly finished before Kris blurted out through tears, "That's exactly what I need."
We gathered around her to pray. Instead of praying for the situation not to take a distressing turn, we prayed for Kris. What could have been a sympathetic but shallow exercise in prayer became a marvelous discovery of how God works in difficult situations.

Prayer Snares
At most prayer meetings a host of requests are made, then a handful of people offer quick prayers until the list is covered. Rarely do we stop to ask if a particular prayer request is in line with what God is doing. Rarely do we follow up to find out if God answered.
We are often left praying a list of wishes, as though if we throw enough darts at the balloons on the wall, we're bound to hit one of them.

My young son awakened me to the folly of this. We were reading John 15 one morning for a family devotion when he suddenly blurted out, "That's not true!" I had just read the verse about God giving us whatever we ask of him. But my five-year-old was already aware that most of what we prayed for as a family didn't happen. I wondered if our prayer practices were teaching him, whether we liked it or not, that prayer is only wishful thinking.

While the exercise of prayer itself offers comfort for the moment, I'm afraid many prayer requests teach us to use God like a genie in a bottle. I don't want my son, or my brothers and sisters, to get that impression. I'm no longer comfortable praying for things that I'm not convinced are in sync with God's heart.

Here are certain types of prayer requests that reflect more our human desires than the desires of God. Do these sound familiar?

The trivial: "Let's pray I can get over this cold" or "Give us a rain-free day for the church picnic." Our comfort and our plans seem important to us, but might God have something larger in mind? Might the farmers around us desperately need the rain? Our requests need to reflect things we truly expect God to do, not just our thoughtless hopes and whims. I don't want my requests to trivialize the awesome gift of prayer.

The self-motivated: "My brother's unit just got called up to go to Iraq. Let's pray he won't have to go." While I can understand the emotion behind the request, it is still misplaced. If he's in the military, why shouldn't he go? God's purposes frequently include hardship and risk. Should we ask him to trump his purposes for our convenience?

The controlling: As with Kris' request, I think we're spitting into the wind if we ask God to make other people act according to our will. He doesn't even force people to adhere to his will. Why should he make them act according to ours?

The manipulative: Not all prayer requests are directed at God. We're usually more diplomatic about it than Charissa, who was only four years old, but knew what she wanted. "Jesus, would you help Bob and Laurie learn how to spank their children, so their kids won't hit me when I come over?" I'll admit it worked for Charissa, but I don't think prayer was intended to send subtle (or not so subtle) messages to the faithful.

The blaming: A group in my former church was praying for an infertile woman. They thought she wasn't getting pregnant because her husband wasn't godly enough be a good father. So they asked God to change him. She blamed him and tried to manipulate him to change, and by the time she came to see me, she was incredibly frustrated. I told her I thought they'd missed the point. None of us qualify for God's gifts. If God waited until everyone was ready to have a baby, no one would ever give birth.

The mass-produced: I don't know why we think we have a better chance of getting prayers answered if more people are in on it. Like many of you, I receive prayer requests on the Internet begging me to pray for people I don't know, about needs I'm not involved in. God's answers to prayer are not based on a tally sheet. Prayer was designed for two or three faithful believers to focus on, agree, and fervently intercede, rather than enlisting large numbers of uninvolved people.

Prayer Pointers

Prayer enables us to discover what God is doing, to trace his hand in the circumstances of our lives. Through the vital communication of prayer, he transforms us in the process. Prayer, therefore, is not so much a means of manipulating the master plan, but of being shaped by the master's hand.

Not all prayer groups are conducive to that kind of prayer. Not all requests follow that understanding. Consider five guidelines to direct your prayer times to foster a transformational, ongoing walk with God.

1. Focus prayer on the people involved. The temptation at "prayer-request time" is to narrow the request to action points we want God to undertake or gifts we want him to give. That misses what God considers most important.

When the news arises of a brother sent to war, the opportunity for prayer is not to ask God to keep him home. That limits the scope of prayer to events, when it should be focused on people. It also limits the other pray-ers to a specific request, without offering an opportunity to discern God's heart in the matter.

Instead, address the fears of his sister, the worry of his mother, and the faith of the soldier himself. We can pray that God will mold our courage and our ability to trust, that he will help us overcome fears, and that the brother will recognize God's presence. These are the evidences of God's work and the kinds of prayers he answers.

I've discovered that smaller groups give us time to process someone's struggle and help identify God's work. Even home-sized groups can be too big for this kind of prayer. I have always found it more effective to break down in groups of two or three where people really know each other and give them the time to explore the situation together.

2. Seek God's perspective. Most prayer requests fit what we think is best, and often run counter to what God is actually doing.

I love how Peter and John responded to the Pharisee's threats that they stop proclaiming Jesus or face punishment. When they gathered later with other believers to pray, they didn't pray for what would be easiest. They could have prayed God would convert the Pharisees or wipe them from the face of the earth. But they didn't see either of those options as fitting God's design. Instead, they prayed for boldness to continue to do what God asked, even when they knew they might be beaten, imprisoned, or executed for it.

A primary step in prayer should include asking God to reveal what he is doing in the situation and pausing long enough to let him answer. One of the things I most appreciate about Henry Blackaby's Experiencing God is that it invites us to trust God to show us what he is doing in our lives. Prayer should be directed by talking together to see if anyone has a specific insight about how to pray for the people involved.

3. Let trust, and not fear, fuel your prayers. Fear is the death of prayer because it is the opposite of trust. Most of my prayers, even well into midlife, were driven by my anxieties and fears.

I remember praying through our finances, and though we had enough to supply our needs for the present, I was concerned about the long term. I trusted him enough for today, but kept praying that he would do something to take my anxiety away for tomorrow. But God didn't want me to trust in my IRA or the state lottery for security, he wanted me to trust in him.

What most enhances my relationship with Jesus is my ability to trust him, no matter what circumstance I'm in. He rarely answers prayers that ask him to fix my circumstances so that I can trust him less. His desire has always been that I would trust him more.

Prayers permeated with a faith-filled security in God's love and confidence in his character will be more effective than petitions for him to appease me.

When I'm fearful, I've learned to pray first for my fear and for a fuller revelation of God's love before I pray for the specific outcome I might want. When I'm praying for others, I do the same.

4. Pray in agreement. I learned this fascinating aspect of prayer from a group of Christians in the Australian Bush.

The man leading the prayer meeting offered some unusual instructions:
"Tonight as we pray, we're only going to pray for what we agree upon. If one of you feels led to pray over something, ask the group if that's something we all sense. If it is, we can pray in agreement. If not, we'll pass over it for now and move on to other requests." I asked him later why he gave the unusual instructions. He said they had learned that praying for someone can become a subtle form of manipulation.

"If a man is depressed, then others pray for him to be happy. He's pressured then to smile at the end of the prayer and say, 'Thanks. I feel better,' whether he does or not. Maybe he doesn't need to 'feel better' right now. Maybe he needs to learn to cling to God in the midst of suffering. You don't know unless you ask."

If the person being prayed for didn't agree or understand the insight, the prayer group would set it aside and see what others might have on their hearts.

Often, they told me, two or three weeks after someone had declined to be prayed for in a certain way, he or she would return convinced that was just the prayer that was needed.

By asking permission of one another to pray in certain ways, these Australians were able to maintain a more authentic and honest form of prayer. They also had a chance to share insights and see what God might be saying. It gave them the freedom to pray with boldness when they knew that all were seeking the same thing.

5. Follow up. Nothing expresses our concern to someone in need more than following up with a phone call a few days later to see how they are doing and what might have happened after our prayer.

I'm convinced we do too little of this because we have so little hope that our prayers will affect much. But if the goal is to zero in on what God is doing and see him accomplish his will in our circumstances, then our initial prayer only begins the process.

If nothing has happened since, we can ask God for wisdom. Is he doing something else in this situation than we thought? Is he teaching us to persevere in what we started?

Staying in the process until something is resolved will not only be a blessing in that instance, but will train us for future opportunities in prayer. This invites us to make any request of God, but it does not tell us to expect him to answer them the way we want. God is not our fairy godmother who waves a magic wand to conform every circumstance to our whim. Real prayer is the process of getting involved with someone's need, praying as best we understand God's work, and then staying in the situation until we see God act.

It is a risk to pray in that expectant way, but it can lead to some incredible prayers. One of Henri Nouwen's spiritual directors once prayed over him:
"May all your expectations be frustrated. May all your plans be thwarted. May all of your desires be withered into nothingness that you may experience the powerlessness and poverty of a child and sing and dance in the love of God the Father, the Son, and the Spirit."

While I don't recommend praying that for someone you don't know well, here is someone who understood God's heart in prayer. Teaching people to move beyond their own agenda to touch the heart and passion of God will be a challenge, but it will deepen and enliven your prayer life.

Tell God: Whatever It Takes, Anytime, Anywhere, Anyway

2008-01-10T13:54:00.000+08:00

Tell God: Whatever It Takes, Anytime, Anywhere, Anyway.

by Jon Walker

Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13b-14 NIV)
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
When Saddleback Church celebrated its 25th anniversary, Rick Warren called for a radical commitment from God's people — all over the world — to tackle the giant obstacles that keep people in spiritual darkness.

In this new year, we can “press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called [us] heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13b-14, NIV).

We can, once again, affirm our commitment to the work of the Great Commission. My prayer is that we will view this declaration as a covenant with God, promising him that from now we will do whatever it takes: anytime, anywhere, anyway.

A Call to Radical Commitment
By Rick Warren

Today I am stepping across the line. I'm tired of waffling, and I'm finished with wavering. I've made my choice; the verdict is in; and my decision is irrevocable. I'm going God's way. There's no turning back now!

I will live the rest of my life serving God's purposes with God's people on God's planet for God's glory. I will use my life to celebrate his presence, cultivate his character, participate in his family, demonstrate his love, and communicate his Word.

Since my past has been forgiven, and I have a purpose for living and a home awaiting in heaven, I refuse to waste any more time or energy on shallow living, petty thinking, trivial talking, thoughtless doing, useless regretting, hurtful resenting, or faithless worrying.

Instead I will magnify God, grow to maturity, serve in ministry, and fulfill my mission in the membership of his family.

Because this life is preparation for the next, I will value worship over wealth, “we” over “me,” character over comfort, service over status, and people over possessions, position, and pleasures. I know what matters most, and I'll give it all I've got. I'll do the best I can with what I have for Jesus Christ today.

I won't be captivated by culture, manipulated by critics, motivated by praise, frustrated by problems, debilitated by temptation, or intimidated by the devil. I'll keep running my race with my eyes on the goal, not the sidelines or those running by me.

When times get tough, and I get tired, I won't back up, back off, back down, back out, or backslide. I'll just keep moving forward by God's grace. I'm Spirit-led, purpose-driven and mission-focused, so I cannot be bought, I will not be compromised, and I shall not quit until I finish the race.

I'm a trophy of God's amazing grace, so I will be gracious to everyone, grateful for everyday, and generous with everything that God entrusts to me.

To my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, I say: However, whenever, wherever, and whatever you ask me to do, my answer in advance is yes! Wherever you lead and whatever the cost, I'm ready.

Anytime. Anywhere. Anyway.

Whatever it takes Lord; whatever it takes!

I want to be used by you in such a way, that on that final day I'll hear you say, "Well done, thou good and faithful one. Come on in, and let the eternal party begin!"

What does this mean?

Today, I affirm this commitment to God and submit to his plans and purposes for my life, no matter what it takes.

Making A Difference In 2008 - By Jon Walker

2007-12-29T23:58:00.000+08:00

Making A Difference In 2008

The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant.’ (Matthew 25:21 NLT)
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
God is equipping you to make a difference in his world. Rick Warren teaches that the donation of your life matters more than the duration of your life.

Do you really want your life to be significant in 2008? Then begin investing your time and money into showing people how they can make peace with God. That’s an investment that will make a difference, not for 10 years, or 50 years, or even 1,000 years; it will make a difference for eternity.

Quite honestly, there is nothing more significant you can do with your life. There is no more significant use of your time or resources than to help other human beings learn about Jesus. If you help just one person get into heaven, your life will have been eternally significant.

Charlene, a nurse in the Saddleback Church congregation, says God taught her to give her life to something bigger than just living for herself. “I'm a nurse, and when I heard about the tsunami that struck Indonesia [several years ago], I felt God calling me to help,” she says. “I was nervous because the area we were going to serve in is devoutly Muslim. I wasn't sure how the people would react to us being Christians.

“God gave me so much love for all the people, and we felt the Spirit moving,” says Charlene. “I know seeds were planted, and I believe that someday many of those people will come toknow Christ. God showed me that he would protect and take care of us. It was a wonderful experience. It makes me want to give my life to something bigger than just living for myself.”

What does this mean?

· Ask God about the donation of your life – Ask God what he wants your donation to be in the years you have left.

· Believe God wants to use you – You can change the world, one person at a time.

· Question to consider – What do you need to change in your life so you can begin living for godly significance?

‘Thy’ Salvation - By Jon Walker

2007-12-29T23:50:00.000+08:00

Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. (Psalms 51:12, KJV)
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
Over the years, I’ve misread and misheard Psalm 51:12, thinking it said, “Restore unto me the joy of my salvation.”

Over the years, I’ve seen a lot of people mis-live the verse, too.
The difference between ‘my’ and ‘thy’ may seem like simple semantics, but the chasm between them is actually so vast that the only bridge capable of spanning the gap is the blood of Jesus Christ.

“My” salvation means I do it myself. I earn my salvation. I have a right to my salvation. It is mine, and it’s all about me.

“Thy” salvation is about God – his gift, his promise, his sacrifice, his love. It is his to bestow, because it’s not about you – or me – it’s about God and his grace.

This is important, related to the good news of the Gospel: If our joy about Jesus is based on what we’ve done, then we’ll always wonder if we’ve done enough. That joy is only temporary.

But if our Jesus-joy is based on the grace of God, it’s permanent – “it is finished.” (John 19:30)

If you’re struggling to sense the joy of his salvation, perhaps you’re still seeing it as yours and not his: “Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.” (Psalms 51:12 NIV)

What does this mean?

· Rely on God’s work – God began a good work in you and he will “carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 1:6, NIV)

· God’s spirit sustains you – Your ability to walk as a Christian is dependent upon God’s spirit within you and your willingness to stay close to God. It is not based on your strength and efforts. “Grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.” (Psalm 51:12b, NIV)

· Pray – Father, I pray that you renew a right spirit within me, a spirit not born of fear, or from self-sufficiency, or from an ungodly independence. Fill me with your spirit of love and grace, as I rely upon you to restore unto me the joy of your salvation.

The Gospel of the Kingdom

2007-12-23T23:58:00.000+08:00

TGIF Today God Is First, by Os Hillman

This, then, is how you should pray: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." - Matthew 6:9-10

Imagine that you have never driven a car. You are not aware of all the features of a car. Up to this point, you have had to walk everywhere you go. All you are told is that you are about to receive something that will get you anywhere you need to go. The day arrives and you are given a brand new car. You get in and drive the car. However, the emergency brake is on, preventing you from going faster than 20 miles per hour. No one tells you that you should unlock the brake. Regardless, you are excited because you no longer have to walk to your destination. You are not told that the car has lights, which would allow you to drive at night. Neither are you told about the many other wonderful features of the car. You just know you have a new car that will get you anywhere you want to go at 20 miles per hour. For the rest of your life, you drive this incredible car during the daytime only at 20 miles per hour.

Why would Jesus pray that things in earth would be like they are in Heaven if it were not possible? When Jesus came to earth, He came in order to penetrate the very kingdom of darkness with light. He came to bring healing to sickness, replace sadness with joy, and fill meaninglessness with purpose. He came to change things for the better for a world that had no hope outside of God.

Using the illustration above, Jesus did not come to merely give us a ticket to Heaven (a car that you drive only in the daytime at 20 miles per hour). He came to bring us much more-the Kingdom of God on earth. Nowhere in the Bible will you find the term, gospel of salvation. The Church does not exist for Heaven, but for earth. If it existed only for Heaven, then each of us would immediately be taken to Heaven. There would be no reason for us to remain on earth. So why has God allowed us to receive this new birth and remain on earth? It is so that we might bring the Kingdom of God into our world-our families, our workplace, and our communities.

God wants you to bring the Kingdom of God into the territory He has given you so that His will can be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Your domain is your schoolplace, family, and community. Ask God to show you how He wants to penetrate the darkness of your domain with His light. Then you will see and experience all the features of this gift that has been given to you.

Living for a Cause Greater Than Yourself

2007-12-21T17:38:00.000+08:00

TGIF, Today God Is First, by Os Hillman (12-21-2007)

He who is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and He will reward him for what he has done. Proverbs 19:17

If you were God and you wanted to send one of your servants to help the less fortunate in the world, how would you train your servant for this task? Our ways are not God's ways. We find an interesting story in the case of Brigid, a woman born in the early 400's in Ireland.

Brigid was born from a sexual encounter between an Irish king and one of his slaves. She was raised as a slave girl within the king's household and was required to perform hard work on the king's farm. From the beginning, Brigid took notice of the plight of the less fortunate. She would give the butter from the king's kitchen to working boys. She once gave the king's sword to a passing leper-an act about which the king was enraged. The king tried to marry her off, but to no avail. One day, Brigid fled the king's house and committed herself to belonging only to Christ.Brigid sought other women who also wanted to belong only to Christ.

Seven of them organized a community of nuns that became known as the settlement of Kildare, a place where many thatch-roofed dwellings were built, and where artist studios, workshops, guest chambers, a library, and a church evolved. These and other settlements became little industries all to themselves, producing some of the greatest craftsmanship in all of Europe. Many of the poor had their lives bettered because of Brigid's ministry to them.Brigid became a traveling evangelist, helping the poor and preaching the gospel. When she died in 453, it is estimated 13,000 people had escaped from slavery and poverty to Christian service and industry. Her name became synonymous with the plight of the poor. She was a woman who turned a life of slavery and defeat into a life lived for a cause greater than herself. She became a nationally known figure among her people, and the Irish people still recognize her each February 1.

God has called each of us to live for a cause greater than ourselves. If God asked you what you had done for the poor, what would you say? Jesus had a special place in His heart for the poor. Ask God how you might use your gifts and talents to improve the plight of the poor in your community.

2007-12-21T11:16:00.000+08:00

read this in an email and i was totally awed.

The Awesomeness of God!!

IN CHEMISTRY... HE

TURNED WATER TO WINE

IN BIOLOGY...

HE WAS

BORN WITHOUT THE NORMAL CONCEPTION.

IN PHYSICS...

HE DISPROVED THE LAW OF GRAVITY WHEN HE ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN

IN ECONOMICS...

HE DISPROVED THE LAW OF DIMINISHING RETURN BY FEEDING 5000 MEN

(not...INCLUDING the WOMEN and CHILDREN)

WITH TWO FISHES & 5 LOAVES OF BREAD;

IN MEDICINE...

HE CURED THE SICK AND THE BLIND WITHOUT ADMINISTERING A SINGLE DOSE OF DRUGS,

IN HISTORY...

HE IS THE BEGINNING AND THE END;

IN GOVERNMENT...

HE SAID THAT HE SHALL BE CALLED WONDERFUL COUNSELOR, PRINCE OF PEACE;

IN RELIGION...

HE SAID NO ONE COMES TO THE FATHER EXCEPT THROUGH HIM;
SO.
WHO IS HE?
HE IS JESUS!

JOIN ME AND LET'S CELEBRATE HIM;

HE IS WORTHY.

THE EYES BEHOLDING THIS MESSAGE SHALL NOT BEHOLD EVIL, THE HAND THAT WILL SEND THIS MESSAGE TO EVERYBODY SHALL NOT LABOR IN VAIN, AND THE MOUTH SAYING AMEN TO THIS PRAYER SHALL SMILE FOREVER. REMAIN IN GOD AND SEEK HIS FACE ALWAYS.

AMEN

IN GOD I'VE FOUND EVERYTHING!

The Greatest Man in History

Jesus had no servants, yet they called Him Master.

Had no degree, yet they called Him Teacher.
Had no medicines, yet they called Him Healer.

He had no army, yet kings feared Him. He won no military battles, yet
He conquered the
world.

He committed no crime, yet they crucified Him.

He was buried in a tomb, yet He lives today.

I feel honored to serve such a Leader who loves us!

If you believe in God and in Jesus Christ His Son .. send this to all
On your buddy list .. if not just ignore it.

If you ignore it, just remember that Jesus said ... 'If you deny me before man, I will deny you before my Father in Heaven.'

God's Blessing is Over Flowing!

Have A Blessed Day

and pass this on.

The Next Person Just Might Need It!

HE loves YOU :D

One Flock, One Shepherd

2007-12-20T23:47:00.001+08:00

TGIF Today God Is First, by Os Hillman

I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to My voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. - John 10:16

A friend of mine told me a story about an experience he had in Israel. They were in the country visiting some of the famous biblical sites when they saw a group of sheepherders. A shepherd brought his flock of sheep into a round pen for the night. Then, a few minutes later, another shepherd brought his flock into the pen. Then, a few minutes later, yet another shepherd brought his sheep into the pen. There were three groups of sheep in the pen with no identifying marks among any of them. My friend wondered how in the world they would separate their sheep the next day.

The next morning, a shepherd came over to the pen and made a comment to his sheep. One by one, the sheep filed out to follow him. Only his sheep followed his voice. My friend said it was an amazing scene to see only that shepherd's sheep follow him and the others remain in the pen. What a picture of Jesus' words spoken centuries earlier.

Hearing and responding to Jesus' voice is the key to having a two-way relationship with God. It is the difference between having religion and a relationship. Can you recognize God's voice in your life? Are you listening to the Shepherd's voice? Do you respond when He calls? Ask Jesus to help you increase your ability to hear. Give more time to spending quiet moments in His presence to hear His voice. He wants to be your Good Shepherd.

The Time Came For Her Baby

2007-12-18T23:42:00.000+08:00

And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. (Luke 2:6 NLT)

We manage time; we waste time. We spend time, and we save time. We wish the time would come; we wish the time would pass. We see time fly, and we feel time drag. We watch clocks and carry calendars, creating the illusion that we somehow control time, yet all the while moments flow forward like a mighty river that cannot be stopped, harnessed, or re-routed.

Yet God controls time. He created time and we, his creations, are fenced by his time, directed and guided by his holy and loving hand. Do you think God was surprised that “while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born?”

We're often surprised by unexpected developments in our lives, yet the Bible teaches that God is never surprised, even in the most disastrous turn of events. How would your faith differ if you believed God was not surprised by your current circumstances and that he's working, at this moment, for a holy and healthy conclusion?

What does this mean?

· God is always on time, at just the right time – George Mueller, the great prayer warrior from the 19th century, once waited on a dock for a special chair to be delivered. He had a bad back and needed the chair for the ocean voyage ahead of him. When the departure time grew close and the chair still had not arrived, Mueller’s friends offered to buy a substitute chair, but Mueller said no – “Either God will provide the chair, or he’ll give grace to do without it.” Like a Hollywood ending, the chair arrived just in time, right on time. Mueller noted, “If the chair had arrived earlier, we might have dismissed the provision of God.” This Christmas, point out the provisions of God when you see them.

· What if you were certain God would provide? – How would you act, think, and live differently if you were absolutely certain God was at the end of the deadline? That is, even if there were mere seconds left, you still believed with certainty that God was working through your circumstances? Believing he’s there and about to provide is the essence of faith. Tell God, “I believe; help my unbelief.”

· Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. (Hebrews 13:8) – Time cannot diminish Christ’s love for you or his power to work within your life. He is there in the past; he is here in the now; and he is there in your future.

· A thousand years are like a few hours to God (Psalm 90:4) – God is working to bring you into eternity, not just to get you through the end of next week. Praise God for his grace and for a love so strong that he wants you to spend an eternity with him.

© 2007 Jon Walker. All rights reserved.

regarding the calendar and G12 Dec plans

2007-12-01T16:38:00.000+08:00

some minor updates.

If you scroll a bit down, you'll see that I added a lil' calendar. It's a google calendar for all you who are familiar with it (as I once was). I've only updated till 1st jan, since the orders that came down only requested for such. I know it looks weird, because it was unjustly resized until its layout had gotten too unhealthy. Still, No choice for that, the sidebar's kinda small. Not that I mind since I've great eyesight, but thinking of the majority...

Okay, that wasn't being very nice. For that, I'll offer to update the calendar with any of your stuff... holidays... blah and exams blah and such. It'd be great if you know how to update it yourself, and it would be most desirable if you know how to update it w/o me having to teach you, but since I highly doubt the possibility, if you want to update it just send me an offline msg, email, or sms.

Because of the resized calendar I've set it to 'agenda' as default, which basically lists down the events instead of the ever so typical boxed format. It's less fancy, but serves the purpose.

A good thing about Google is that you won't have to sign up using the given username to update this calendar. If you want to (learn how to) update the calendar yourself, give me your email address (that is a google account, preferably) and I'll get things done.

Similarly, as you can see from this post of mine, you don't have to use the 'weitingg12' account to post here. It's something I tried to tell some of you almost a year ago, but I guess you need some visual aid. Drop me your email address (preferably a google account, if you're using blogger give me that email add) and I'll set things for you. Then you can post from your own account. Trust me, it makes things easier, and it makes you post here more often.

If you have any technical difficulties, email me. You should be able to see red words that look like events within the calendar instead of a msg that says 'you do not have the permission to look at the events' or something like that.

"Teach us to number our days aright,

that we may gain a heart of wisdom."

NIV Psalm 90:12

Divine Setups

2007-11-07T00:01:00.000+08:00

Simon, Simon, satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers. - Luke 22:31-32

Have you ever perceived yourself to be at one place spiritually only to discover that you were actually far from this place? Peter perceived himself to be so spiritually strong that he was prepared to suffer greatly for his Master.

Yet Jesus knew where Peter really was in his own pilgrimage. He knew that Peter's enthusiasm did not match his reality. He was suffering from an attitude of self-righteousness. So, how did Jesus help Peter match his perception to his reality? Peter was the object of a divine setup.

First, notice that satan asked permission to sift Peter as wheat. Jesus determined that satan would be used to bring Peter to the maturity level both Jesus and Peter really desired. And Jesus was praying that Peter would pass the test. Jesus told Peter that he would deny Him three times that very day. Peter could not believe what Jesus was saying.

Sometimes the lessons we must learn are very painful. This experience was necessary in Peter's life. It was necessary to purge Peter from his sin of self-righteousness. This very lesson would allow Peter to come face to face with his own misperception of where he was in his relationship and devotion to Jesus. When he was forced to confront this, it nearly broke him apart. He wept bitterly once he realized he had done just as Jesus had predicted.

This confrontation with reality is necessary at times in our lives. Do not be surprised if Jesus allows you to experience some painful circumstance. You may be the subject of a divine setup designed to bring you to a greater maturity level in your walk with Jesus. It may not be a fun experience when you go through it, but you will, like Peter, become a leader whom God will use to lead others.

TGIF Today God Is First, by Os Hillman

our dear sining's O level time table =))

2007-10-13T10:20:00.000+08:00

hey gals, on behalf of xinhui i shall post sining's o level time table, let us lift our dear sister up into our Lord's hands! =) this post is a little late though. =p

22 oct: A maths paper 1

23 oct: A maths paper 2

24 oct: chemistry paper 2

25 oct: geography paper 2

26 oct: history paper 3

29 oct: english paper 1 + english paper 2 + E maths paper 1

30 oct: E maths paper 2

31 oct: higher chinese paper 1 + higher chinese paper 2

2 nov: physics paper 2

5 nov: social studies + biology paper 2

7 nov: geography paper 1

12 nov: chemistry paper 1 + physics paper 1

13 nov: biology paper 1

YY =D

2007-09-30T17:54:00.000+08:00

Hello everyone! Shuqi msged me yesterday asking if there's a calendar that i can put up in our blog so that everyone can put your exams dates up. But i don't think there is so i was thinking if you guys can send me all your exam schedules so i can put them all up nicely here for eveyone =)

do send them to double5six@yahoo.com. thank you! and gambatte to all!! =D

Love,

Clara

（：

2007-09-28T15:31:00.000+08:00

hey dont say i didnt post kay.
took time out of my EVER busy schedule just to do this.

you guys are very 荣幸.
哈哈~

shall i blog in chinese or english?

ok i shall be different, special..

大家好！本人是黄思涵。很多人都说我爸是作文，我妈是应用文，我弟是公函，也许吧。
我很高兴能够抽出宝贵的时间来与大家讲话，是一件很难得的事。

我要在这里感谢我们的元帅，万军之耶和华，因为他对我太好了，他也很宠我，你们一定很 jealous.
哈哈。

我就不多说了。要keep the suspense吗。明天见才告诉你们。我要去睡觉了。拜拜。

Sand & Stone

2007-09-16T15:18:00.000+08:00

Two friends were walking through the desert. During some point of their journey, they have an argument and one of them slapped the other on the face. The one who was slapped was hurt but without saying anything wrote in the sand, "Today, my best friend slapped me in the face."

They kept on walking until they found an oasis where they decide to take a bath. The one who had been struck was struck in the mire and started drowning, but the friend saved him. After he recovered from the near drowning, he wrote on a stone, "Today, my best friend saved my life."

The friend who had slapped and saved his best friend asked him, "After I hurt you, you wrote in the sand and now, you write on the stone, why?"

The other friend replied, "When someone hurts us, we should write it down in the sand where winds of forgiveness can erase it away. But when someone does something good for us, we must engrave it on the stone where no wind can ever erase it."

Learn to write your hurts in the sand and to carve your benefits in the stone. DO NOT VALUE THE THINGS YOU DON'T HAVE IN YOUR LIFE, BUT VALUE WHO YOU HAVE IN YOUR LIFE.

jobs.

2007-08-27T21:07:00.000+08:00

heys! YY here! here's wad i've been experiencing these days, n i feel i MUZ share.

since my hols started i've been wanting 2 get a job. so hv been applying for many online but so far 2 companies replied. i've rejected one cos i must work on weekends.

the stress has been increasing cos i'm getting very bored at home, while controlling myself not to touch e comp. and e constant 'reminders' my mum gives me adds to it. (i should say its a reminder cos she wasnt really nagging.)

received a call just a few hours ago, and it really did pick my moods up. e job agent said tt she'll update me again while she discuss with her client (which is e actual company who wanted 2 hire)whether to hire me. hours has gone but there were no more calls. den my mood went down again.

i feel tt God's training my patience. i thought things are as fast as i thought. like my dad said, 'i'm sure u r gonna get a job, its only a matter of time. in the outside world u hv 2 learn to wait.' thank God for this statement, i'm more calmed down now.

and one more thing. i was starting to doubt myself. as tis job is an admin job, i hv no experience in it at all. i've only worked in a retail shoe shop before. (clara, any difficult customer u've met before, surely i've met some of them before too. =p) so i was honest wif e job agent tt i'm not v good at MS word and excel but i'm willing to learn. she sounded rather positive in e call, bt i'm not sure if it was the case at all. i dunno if i can take the job (if i get it).

so gals i noe u all r kind souls, pls pray for me, especially for the doubting myself part. i shouldnt be doubting myself, i have God's strength in me, n i believe in it!

yea, thx for reading thru. hv a gd week ahead! God bless! =))

Matthew 14:22-32

2007-08-26T22:33:00.000+08:00

Matthew 14:22-32
Jesus Walks on Water
22 Immediately after this, Jesus insisted that his disciples get back into the boat and cross to the other side of the lake, while he sent the people home. 23 After sending them home, he went up into the hills by himself to pray. Night fell while he was there alone.
24 Meanwhile, the disciples were in trouble far away from land, for a strong wind had risen, and they were fighting heavy waves. 25 About three o’clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the water, they were terrified. In their fear, they cried out, “It’s a ghost!”
27 But Jesus spoke to them at once. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Take courage. I am here!”
28 Then Peter called to him, “Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water.”
29 “Yes, come,” Jesus said.
So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified and began to sink. “Save me, Lord!” he shouted.
31 Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him. “You have so little faith,” Jesus said. “Why did you doubt me?”
32 When they climbed back into the boat, the wind stopped. 33 Then the disciples worshiped him. “You really are the Son of God!” they exclaimed.

shuping laoshi shared this during children today. usually i wont think so much of the meaning behind bible stories. however this touched me.
we all do know that god has a fabulous and perfect plan for each and everyone of us. yet many a times, we stray away from the path, away from god. it maybe due to the lack of faith, the temptations around us and the voice of the world. this story promises us that it is possible to see miracles and to do the impossible, if we keep our focus on god. ignore all e disturbances around us and keep that faith alive. even if we do fail, god's help will b sent down from heaven IMMEDIATELY. also, do believe that miracles do exist and dont mistake it for a ghost. and dont, at the end of the day then realise that it had also been god's work in you. give thanks always. do be courageous and take that first step out of the boat with faith.
god bless. and happy mugging:D yes, we will see a breakthorough in our result.
xin-

How to spread Gospel to my difficult friend

2007-08-21T10:33:00.000+08:00

Who are they?

Difficult people are people who stand against the basic truths of Christianity. The issues can vary from the reliability of the Bible, to the identity of Jesus Christ, to the way of salvation, etc.

Witness with love!
Intentionally ask 4 key questions!
Take the common ground!
Negotiate the terms of your talk!
Explain you story!
Stick with the issues!
Stay dependant on the Spirit!

What do they believe?

Anything and/or everything that stands contrary to the Bible.

How to witness to them:
- Witness with love! (2 Timothy 2:23-26)
- Remember that they are victims of Satan! Apart from God's grace, you, too, would be an unbeliever.
- LOVE THEM! Let the last thing they remember about you be your Christ-like attitude of compassion.
- Intentionally ask 4 key questions! (Matthew 21:23-27)

There are 4 basic questions you can ask:*
- "What do you mean by that?" (This makes them define the terms in their argument.)
- "How do you know that to be true?" (This makes them explain the logic of their argument.)
- "What difference does it make?" (This makes them defend the value for their argument.)
- "What if you're wrong?" (This makes them think the unthinkable about their argument.)

*Used by permission from Bill Jack & Andrew Heister

How to use these questions:

For instance, if they say, "I am an atheist," you can ask these questions:
- "What do you mean by 'atheist'?"

- "Do you mean there is absolutely no God?"

- "Do you mean that you don't know personally if there is a God?"

- "How do you know that there is no God?"

- "Have you been everywhere in the universe?"

- "What solid evidence can you produce to prove your position?"

- "What difference has atheism made in your life?"

- "Has it given you a purpose to live for?"

- "What fulfillment has it brought you?"

- "What if you're wrong and the God of the Bible is real?"

-"If you're right, I have nothing to worry about, do I?"

-"But if you're wrong, what are the consequences?"

These questions can lead someone to the logical "end" of his/her system of thinking.
If a person doesn't believe in the truth of the Bible, then push him/her to be consistent with his/her own belief system. For instance:

-If they say: "I don't believe in God." You may say: "Then why do you believe murder is wrong?"

-If they say: "I don't believe in absolutes." You may say: "Do you believe that absolutely?"

-If they say: "I don't believe in a God I've never seen." You may say: "Have you ever seen your brains?"

Take the common ground! (Acts 17:22,23,27,28)
In this passage, Paul uses a religious shrine as a conversation starter and quotes a secular poet to gain common ground with his audience. If the person believes in the truth of the Bible, take the common ground by showing him/her passages that differ with his/her beliefs. If the person doesn't believe in the Bible, try to use things that they believe in to support your position.

Negotiate the terms of your talk! (James 1:19)

"You talk for a few minutes and I'll listen without interrupting. Then I'll do the same. OK?"

- Let them start. (Remember to keep the terms of the talk yourself and make sure they do, too!)

- Listen to their viewpoint. Don't just listen to argue. Listen to understand. Restate their viewpoint back to them with terms like, "so what you are saying is this...".

- Once you understand their viewpoint (and they feel you understand it), then you are ready to evaluate what they believe Biblically. James 1:19 reminds us to
"...be quick to listen and slow to speak and slow to become angry."

Explain your story! (Acts 26:1-29)
Your salvation story (testimony) is personal and powerful!
There are 3 elements to a testimony:
- What you used to believe you had to do to get to heaven.
- What you found out you had to believe to get to heaven.
- What you believed and how your life has been since.

Stick with the GOSPEL!
God created us to be with him.
Our sins separate us from God.
Sins cannot be erased by good deeds.
Paying the price for sin, Jesus died.
Everyone who trusts in Him has eternal life.
Life that's eternal means we will be with Jesus forever in heaven.

Note: Remember that your ultimate weapons are prayer and the gospel message! Don't get distracted from the gospel message! Your goal is not to win an argument, but to win a person! Pray for them as you share the gospel!

Stay dependant on the Spirit! (Ephesians 5:18)
As you witness, trust in the Spirit to give you wisdom! (Matthew 10:19,20) Remember that only as you yield fully to the Spirit of God can He truly take control of your mind and your mouth! Keep in mind that it is the Holy Spirit who convicts people of sin and converts people to Christ.

taken from: http://www.dare2share.org/my-difficult-friend

sihan needs help.

2007-08-19T21:03:00.000+08:00

hi hi hi hi hi.

sihan here.

my prelims exam timetable goes as follow (AHHHHHHHH!) :
28 AUGUST: ENGLISH 1, HIGHER CHINESE1.
10 SEPTEMBER: EMATHS2, GEOGRAPHY 2.
11 SEPTEMBER: SOCIAL STUDIES, ELECTIVE LITERATURE.
12 SEPTEMBER: A MATHEMATICS 1
13 SEPTEMBER: ENGLISH 2, BIOLOGY 1, BIOLOGY 2.
14 SEPTEMBER: CHEMISTRY 2, HIGHER CHINESE 2.
15 SEPTEMBER: ART 2.
18 SEPTEMBER: A MATHEMATICS 2.
19 SEPTEMBER: E MATHEMATICS 1, CHEMISTRY 1.
20 SEPTEMBER: GEOGRAPHY 1.

my (oh my gosh) O levels timetable:
22 OCTOBER: A MATHEMATICS 1.
23 OCTOBER: A MATHEMATICS 2.
25 OCTOBER: GEOGRAPHY 2.
29 OCTOBER: ENGLISH 1, ENGLISH 2, E MATHEMATICS 1.
30 OCTOBER: E MATHEMATICS 2, ART 2.
31 OCTOBER: HIGHER CHINESE 1, HIGHER CHINESE 2.
5 NOVEMBER: SOCIAL STUDIES.
6 NOVEMBER: ELECTIVE LITERATURE.
7 NOVEMBER: GEOGRAPHY 1.

please. help me God.

2007-08-19T17:55:00.000+08:00

HEY GIRLS!

SHU QI HERE!!

THIS IS MY PRELIM TIMETABLE! IMPT IMPT!

DO PRAY MANY MANY!:)

28TH AUG : gp

29th AUG: LIT PPR ONE

30TH AUG: CHINESE PPR ONE AND HISTORY PPR ONE

THE REST OF THE PPRS ARE IN SEPT...WILL UPLOAD LATER!:)))))

THANKS MUCHIES!

DREAM BIG

2007-08-17T12:48:00.000+08:00

" If there were ever a time to dare,
to make a difference,
to embark on something worth doing,
it is now.
Not for any grand cause,
necessarily-but for something that tugs at your heart,
something that's your aspiration
,something that's your dream.
You owe it to yourself
to make your days here count.
Have fun.
Dig Deep.
Stretch.

Dream big.

Know, though, that things worth doing
seldom come easy.
There will be good days.
There will be times when you want to turn around,
pack it up,
and call it quits.
those times tell you
that you are pushing yourself,
that you are not afraid to learn by trying.

Persist.

Because with an idea,
determination,
and the right tools,
you can do great things.
Let your instincts,
your intellect,
and your heart guide you.

Trust.

Believe in the incredible power of the human mind.
Of doing something that makes a difference.
Of working hard.
Of laughing and hoping.
Of lazy afternoons.
Of lasting friends.
Of all the things that will cross your path this year.

The start of something new
brings the hope of something great.
Anything is possible.
There is only one you.
And you will pass this way only once.

Do it right."

Macintosh ad from 1991

Paka River Expedition 8-12 Aug 07

2007-08-16T13:55:00.000+08:00

INTRODUCTION OF THE PAKA RIVER EXPEDITION THAT I EMBARKED ON

It all began with me poking my head over to see what one of my volunteer (Chor Ming) was doing one fine day. He was surfing the net and was looking through this website about a trekking & kayaking expedition and asking Yinghui (another volunteer) if she was aware of it and it caught my attention. EXPEDITION... I had my share of expeditions in

- 2000 to Mount Kinabalu (Ok, I didn’t conquered the peak and got the black and white cert)

- 2002 Mount K again (making sure that I get the colored cert, this time I reached the peak. Adding to my collection of Mount K certs.)

- 2004 Cycling expedition to Kuntang

- 2006 Cycling expedition to Cheranting

After that my exercise routine just died down….no motivation and a goal to move on. So when I saw that Chor Ming is organizing an expedition to Malaysia and the cost was affordable, I decided to join him.

Instead of a group of 12 people, only 6 confirmed in the end. As our group became too small, we had to crash in with Dunman High Sch Sec 5 ODAC group – 25 of them with 3 teachers which we had no idea who they are at all. But we had a pretty good deal, so none of us minded that. The 6 of us decided to meet up a few days before the trip in TCC Bugis. There were me, Chor Ming, Hui Jing (Y Volunteer), Alan (Y Volunteer), Shawn and Yi Hung. And I cannot believe that Chor Ming think there was no need to meet up initially, it’s like, we did not know one another and he thought it’s all right to go for an expedition together without knowing one another…hmm… that’s my volunteer…never mind, we still love him.

I don’t really know what to expect for the trip. My previous trips with TOUCH group usually have prior trainings half a year before and we were usually well prepared physically and mentally. This trip is entirelly different from the ones I’d went. A few concerns

a) I just crash in with someone whom I don't really know very well without thinking of the consequences about what will happen to me if something happens (my condition).

b) I havent excerise for a year plus

c) I am not fully aware of the intensity of the expedition.

However, I had 1 star canoeing experience (1000 years ago) and Mount K experiece twice…thus I thought that would have prep me for what I was going to face next…

HISTORY OF PAKA RIVER CAMP

Before I move on, let me share about the background of the camp that we embarked on. Paka River campsite exploration started in 1994. The land was originally a 27 acre rubber plantation, it has remained as a family possession despite the WW2 and Communist Insurgency of the early 1950's .

Khee Wei fell in love with the natural setting when he first visited this area in 94. He spent most of his family time with his 2 sons Marcius and Marvin there and they trek the jungle as well as kayaking in the many rivers surrounding the area many times through the years.
With the love of the place, he bought the land in 1996, cleared and transformed into a tropical fruit orchard. The camp facilities came later in 2002. Eventually there consist of natural obstacle courses, a longhouse, dining area, field kitchen and such.

The name of this campsite came from a river situated at the edge of the campsite (Paka River). Thus Paka River Camp became the start and end point of kayaking expeditions as well as a base camp to facilitate activities into the wild hinterland.

DAY 1 (8 AUG 07)

Woke up in the late morning to catch up with a few eps of One Tree Hill Season 3. Then starting packing around 12pm and ended around 4pm. My normal packing for church camps were usually an hour long, so I was quite surprised by this time round. Anyway after that, started to made my way to Holland V to meet the rest of the gang and we proceded to meet the rest in Dunman High Sch Sec 5. Met up with the guides and Khee Wei, but we were not introduced to DHS people. So there was a barrier between us as we board the bus together. When we reached Johor, we switched to another coach to take us all the way to the camp site. The journey was super long (8.30pm – 6.30am), 10 hours! Our initial plan of chatting and playing card on the bus was discarded when everybody decided to sleep the minute they boarded the bus.

Anyway, this is my 1st long bus ride…had never have to sleep on buses that long and the experience was new and intersting.

DAY 2 (9 AUG 07)

Finally after 10 hours on the bus, we reached the campsite. The sun was not fully out yet but we saw several structures around in the campsite and the 2 main ones were the headquarters where the guides live and the long house where the campers are staying. Thank God that at least we have sheltered area instead of sleeping in tents for 3 days. There is also a structure - the communal bath for guys. And I heard that it’s actually quite exposed. Hmm…I shall not elborate on that.

We were told to change into out kayaking clothes after breakfast, we will head down for our 1st challenge. I thought it was a bit too fast pace for me as maybe I’m used to TOUCH way of doingthings…that they would usally give prep talks to prepare us, bonding session so that we can get to know each other and thus the group dynamics will be there – act as a support to one another and such.

We (6 of us) and DHS group were sorta together in this and yet seperated from each other in terms of sitting area as well as the rest of the activities as we dunno how to fit in and we dun wanna interrup their agenda. Anyway, they were friendly people. By the way, there were 3 distinct group: persist persevere and prevail. The DHS group were seperated into persist and persevere. We were called the prevail group. And weird enough, we were not informed till late morning and thus during some moment, we did not respond to their group calls. But we thought of various 'P' names to make ourself sound intersting like preserve, pai seh, pan seh, peng sung...

After breakfast, we boarded the bus again, had an hour ride before we reached the start of the Paka river where the kayaks were launched. The students took doubles and we had 1 double and 4 singles. All the ODAC students had 3 stars. I had 1 star. Hui Jing and Alan had no experience at all. Thus Huijing and Chor Ming took double and the confident me as well as the rest took the single. It was a totally new and interesting experience for me and a few others as none of us kayak in a river before. We packed our sleeping bags and barang barangs into Shawn’s mega big plastic bag and dump it at the fishing boat. The rest of the DHS seemed to be quite well prepared with long sleeve shirt as well as long tracks. One of the guy actually wore a shirt (formal) because he doesn’t have a long sleeve tshirt I think. Quite furnie. Later he intro himself as the Fashion Icon. Haha. I didn’t remember his name.

Back to the river, it was quite shallow when we started out and the river was moving quite smoothly down stream. Thus we had no difficulties in moving through the initial phrase. The process was the most intersting part. We had to overcome fallen trees, go under the logs (like cha cha'ing in the kayaks), move in single lines to move inbetween the branches and such. And at some parts, the river were moving at a fast pace that one has to row harder to get into the direction that you want. Some of our kayaks capsized once and others a few times. Mine capsized once and it was quite a challenging incident.

As we were kayaking together, one juction, there was an obstacle and suddenly all kayaks crowded at that area and couldn’t move out. With the help of the rushing river and the kayaks crashing into mine, it capsized and I fell into the rushing river. I struggled for a while as my leg couldn’t touch the ground and I CANNOT SWIM! There were a few underlying sharp branches that cut my legs when I struggled but I couldn’t care much more, just thought of getting up into the kayak. The rushing water pushed me towards a blocking trunk and the kayaks were crashing into me, thus there was no way I could get out. Thus imaging underneath I was struggling with the sharp branches and finding something to step on and above, I got banged by oncoming kayaks and thinking of ways to get up of my kayak. After that, someone finally managed to pushed the other kayaks away and I climbed over the trunk to the other side. Yihung came to my rescue and helped me to get up to my kayak again. Thank God for him! Along the way, I will be speaking more about him and his kind & furnie deeds.

We had more of this kind of experiences but I was determined to stay at the back of the team so that I won’t have to be strucked again if the same thing happens. I call it the obstacles of my lives as to parallel to the problems that I faced. Despite that, I had my fair share of laughter too during the trip. Chor Ming started it first. As he likes to venture to new areas to avoid the obstacles, thus he’ll try to take different route from the others. It can be both good and bad. Some of them are what we call unneccessary risks but it’s what he calls challenges and excitement. Huijing was completely at his mercy and I had a good laugh when the rest made funny comments about Chor Ming.

Halfway through, I changed to a double and Yihung offered to do it with me. I was glad. Throughout, he was quite sweet and would ask me to stop if I was tired and he could go on. It was nice. The scenery, nature, people, river…arggg….i missed it!

We started to kayak from 10am till 4pm I think and we camp the rest our night on a sandy beach in Tenggol island. Basically it's in front of "Tenggol Resort" which is essentially this brown hut-like structure with an open balcony in front and a kitchen behind. We had to pitch the tents in the beachfront where we had a forest view just opposite the river and behind. Before we knew it, the DHS guys set up the clothes lines that made the drying of clothes possible. Thank you peeps!Before the night falls, besides pitching tents, we had to set up fire, try to prepare the vegetables and changed into our dry clothes (yupz, no bathing!). I had a surprised when we were asked to wash our vegetables in the river (which we kayaked and jump right into it after that and do whatever we want in). Anyway I thought they must have done it before and since history has proved everyone to be all right, this would be ok too. It was an eye opener and quite cool I thought. Very native and a raw experience. Dinner was rice, fried vege (the ones we washed in the river) and deep fried fish. The piece of fish practically covered my whole mass tin and I have to fiddle with the rice underneath. After that, we washed the mass tin in the same river… with sand. Hmm… something new again!

During night fall, we gathered around (6 of us) and the rest of the DHS had their own debrief session. Our session was great! Had a good laugh over everything and I totally enjoyed their presence! And the stars…they were countless and so bright. It was simply amazing! The only stupid thing about the gathering were the sand flies and insects flying around us while we were talking. We shared about ourselves, but loved experiences and the teasing of each other in the midst of nature. I haven’t had that kind of fun since poly days, during my canoing days.

Then at about 9.30pm, we crept into out tents to sleep. I wanted to chat more but my eyelids and body asked me to take out my sleeping bag and go rest.

DAY 3 (10 AUG 07)

Woke up 3 times in a row by people chatting outside, silence, silence again. I dreamt, that I was home taking something, intending to go back to camp, but I decided not to go back so to indulge in the comfort of my bed. But then good things must come to an end and eventually I woke up.

It's another day of kayaking, but I heard that the distance was shorter and obstacles were lesser. So had more confidence that morning but decided to go ahead with a double. This time round, Shawn offered to partner me and Yihung with Hui Jing. Alan and Chor Ming took back the singles. I think Alan is very brave, the day before he capsized 3 times and he still willing to take the single.

Had good fun chatting with Shawn, he seemed to be quite knowledgable about a lot of stuff, but maybe due to age, still need to gain more wisdom. And I feel safe kayaking with him…coz he’s quite good, so he would guide and I would just follow. Halfway through, we were told that Huijing had an accident and I was quite worried. Later when I saw her and Yihung emerging from a distance, I was gald. She told me that she got hooked unto a fishing hook by the neck and it was RUSTY. I was quite distrubed and really prayed for her…but along the trip, she didn’t develop fever, thus I reckon that there was no infection and thank God for that. But it showed that this was very dangerous and could cost lives.

During a break, Shawn changed into single with Chor Ming, when asked later he said that coz he thought Chor Ming was struggling in the single, so he changed with him. Thought that was quite considerate. Anyway, many times in the trip, he kept emphasing that he’s the kind of person that works hard to keep his friends coz he don’t wanna take them for granted.

Anyway, kayaking with Chor Ming nearly bust my lungs out laughing non stop. Yea, he would guide too, like venturing to areas that the group would steer away from and I like that. Though I laughed at Huijing and him the day before about ‘taking unneccessary risks’ but when I was doing it, it was not really the case. It was quite adventurous and fun! Maybe I would not have done it alone…but with another, I would go for ‘risker’ stuff. Hmm… something that I’d discovered about myself. Along the way, saw a leech stucked unto Alan’s side of the kayak, wanted to shove it away but failed. It was there for a few hours, bobbing in and out of water. But after that, it was gone and we thought it dropped into the water.

There were 2 breaks along the way while kayaking with Chor Ming. And actually that day’s scenery is like ‘paradise’ - the formation of the trees, it’s like going through the Lord of the Rings scene. You know what I mean? Simply amazing! I still can picture it in my mind as I was typing…anyway, during the first break we had some banana pancake and local malay snacks. It was quite cool, something for a change I thought (from Singapore). Durnig the 2nd break, the guide told us that we were near to the destination, so DHS teacher challenged the students to race back. Chor Ming was so excited! I was totally against the idea and call him CRAZY! Both of my legs were totally burnt with pain coupled with no strength to row and he wanna do that? But he did not gave up that idea. Anyway, when we started rowing I thought, “what the heck, just do it for the thrill, since he wanted so much, just go along.” So and yea, when the green light goes on, we paddled like we have never done before. BUT, I was LAUGHING so much that I couldn’t concentrate. Chor Ming was practically behind shouting like there’s war coming and he’s chion-ing for it. It was SUPER amusing! Kept laughing non stop and finally, we reached the camp site. So that was the end of the kayaking session for this trip BUT not for the day.

While bathing halfway, I heard Alan and Yihung’s voices. Apprantely I heard something like Alan has ganna a leech on his body and Yihung is helping him. So after showering during dinner time, I asked where was the leech and Yihung looked super amused. He took 2 mangosteen, joined it side by side to illustarte that as Alan’s buttocks, and with legs slightly apart (as he said), he saw blood there and the leech was already on the floor when he arrived. He added that there were two things that shocked him that moment. 1stly is how fat the leech is on the floor and 2ndly, where the leech sucked. It was SUPER HILAROUS lah!!! So he had to put a plaster on Alan’s asses to stop the blood from flowing. Wah seh!!! I had the laugh of my life! “Maybe he had menses?” I added and the laughter just rocked the whole place even more. Alan was so cool about it and throughout the rest of the trip, that became the core joke.

So after dinner, it was the night walk. There were 2 parts to it, group and single. So 6 of us we were the 1st to go. We were to move as a group and to look out for orange cloth tied to trees. When we reach a beam of fire, then we have to move seperatly in darkness. So with only 2 torch lights to one group, we started out. We went uphill to an enclosed area where wild trees and leaves were everywhere. So with Shawn as the front guy and me the 2nd followed by Huijing, Alan, Yihung, Chor Ming and a guide, we managed to find every clue. When we reached the beam, we pass our torchlights to the guide and started to walk alone. Chor Ming was the first brave soul, followed by me, then I cannot remember who else was next.

I remember that it was super dark. Imagine the sky was covered by a canopy of trees, there was a straight path but we cannot see all that when we walked. I wasn’t afriad because God was there and I don’t know if my eyes were playing tricks on me, I could actually see the path. So I just walked, concentaring on the path ahead. Suddenly, the path was gone and I was surprised. But when I looked up, I saw the sky filled with starry starry stars. I had passed the canopy trees and now is open area and I just followed the stars as I walked. It was totally a awesome experience. So the walk led me back to the camp. As I was slowly walking back to the camp site, from a distance I saw someone and I knew it was Chor Ming coz he was wearing white. So I spoke to him and he was surprised that I knew it was him. Haha…fun!

The whole place was PITCH DARK. Yea, the guides switched off ALL the lights and we cannot on them unless the whole night walk was done. Me and Chor Ming were the 1st 2 to get back. So we spent 15 mins looking at the stars and chatting. It was nice and I really enjoyed it. After a while, the rest of our members came back together. Apprantely Huijing and Alan got lost along the way and the pass the main gate without knowing, so the guide has to chase them back. As the rest of the DHS were not back yet, we had potato chips in the dark with a light stick. It was weird but fun again.

Eventally when everyone was back, the lights were on and a few DHS students got leeches on them. I assumed that perhaps they stopped along the way, that’s why the leeches have opportunity to climb unto them. By the way, in this trip, I realised that there are 2 main kinds of leech – the river leech and the forest leech. River one is bigger and meaner look and forest leech is much much smaller. So back to the students, a nunmber of them ganna the leeches and one of them even had it on his stomach. Gross! I checked my legs and arms and did not feel anything. So I felt quite safe. But then, as the number of students with leeches started to increase, I checked again. Rolled up my pants on the right, nothing. Rolled up pants on the left and I saw something on my socks. SCREAMED, i tried to shoo the leech away. After a few attempts, it was was on the bench and was aggressively crawling away. Apprantely it was on my sock and had partially touched my skin and sucked my blood. I wondered if it enjoyed it coz it is sweeter. But there was no pain at all, weird. After that, I began to feel uneasy the whole night…thinking that there must be a leech someone on my body that I don’t know. Hehe…quite an interesting experience!

By the time it ended, it was around 12.30am. Had a good sleep that night…

DAY 4 (11 AUG 07)

The DHS group woke up at 6am and were ready at 6.30am for a short walk in the forest where we had the night walk. The guide told us that our group could rest more and do not have to join them and I was elited! Yea, more sleep. Anyway, we were so awake by the students that I didn’t manage to catch more rest. But we did not join the group out.

After breakfast, we started packing and somehow I was sorta confident of conquering the cemerong waterfall climb as I went up to Mount K before. TWICE some more. But the experience was more than expected.

The route was all right at first, with concrete routes, steps and such. The initial scene was beautiful. But shortly, we reached the challenging part and it was literally UP, UP and UP. The steps were unlike anything like Mount K, this was more raw an undefined. Mount K at least there were well defined steps, for this it was climbing over fallen trees, stepping on thick roots, pulling on dead and rotting roots to get myself to the other side of the landing. And for a moment, I wondered why was I there. Finally when we reached the first checkpoint which we can see the whole of the waterfall, it wasn’t that fantastic to me any more. I wonder why. Anyway, I dipped myself into the cold water and it was good. Shortly we moved off and my leg started to ache. But I sorta ignored it and apply some deep heat to move on.

The climb seemed never ending and it was touger than before. We practically have to squezze through branches, duck under trees, step on roots and the worse thing is the up factor. But halfway through, DHS sang songs (whatever, from national day songs to camp fire songs) and that helped me not to concentarte on the strain on my leg. If they can do it, I can do it too! So we went all the way up until we reached a clear landing. The whole distance was 750m and the mountain was around 5000m high (I think). We had our lunch and snakcs there. Refilled our waterbottles with the waterfall water. Nobody minded as we were all so tired and the water looks super clear.

After lunch, we tried the water and were warned to dip ourself slowly first as the water was icy cold. I didn’t know how cold it would be until I dipped my legs into it. It was really ICY cold. Haha, but we all enjoyed it, had to hold on to a rope to swim towards the waterfall, and just park myself on a rock and stopped moving. It was great fun…but along the way, cut myself against the rocks and had abrasion on my sunburnt legs. Ignored that at that point. Just wanna enjoy that moment of experience.

After 30 mins be splashed by the icy cold water, we have to head back down, otherwise it’ll turn dark soon. Thus we head back down at around 4pm and 1/6 way through, my leg started to gave away and started to tremble badly. A few times I slipped and fell so in the end, I had to use a walking stick to help me move down the mountain. But that didn’t helped as well coz I still kept missing my steps or tripped over roots. Then my prince came..haha…no lah…Chor Ming offered to hold me hand along the way. That was kinda good coz I concentarted on the steps he went on and I had 2 support. This time round, we went on faster (I think). Along the way, the stupid guide kept asking me to walk faster, making me guilty about it. But I knew I couldn’t help it and ignored him. So our group became the last and we were moving quite slowly because of me. The guide even asked how heavy am I so that he could try to carry me down. CRAZY! I will never give up….i just need time….but time is not on my side as well as it was nearly 5pm and we have not reach half yet. Along the way, Huijing, Hui Yun (facilitator), Yihung, Alan and Shawn also encouraged me to take my time and ignore that stupid guide. Halfway through Yihung assured me again to take my time and said that his passport expires only in 2012 (or something) and the rest started to talk about their passport expiry date too. That moment really touched me and i teared. I felt really loved and protected by this group of people that I hardly know. And I know that if something were to happen to me, I would be in safe hands. So I was more determined to move on, not giving up. But the climb down was really a tedious one. Each step I made, I had to limp as I cannot control my legs anymore. It was shaking uncontrollable non stop. No muscle cramp, just pain now.

The walk down was endless. Just down and down and down. Finally after hours, we managed to cross 2 rivers and we were near to the end. That wasn’t bad. At least Chor Ming’s hand was always there. It was really ALWAYS there coz when let go to grab on to the branches or roots, the next moment, his hands would be there to offer again. I guess this is how God works isn’t it. “He will never leave you nor forsake you even in your deepest moment or trials.” God had used Chor Ming and the rest to demostrate His love for me. After the whole climb down, as I sat at the bottom alone (when others are bathing), tears just rolled. I was touched, very touched.

The one thing I really thank God, besides my friends were the weather. It drizzled a bit on the way up but it stopped all the way until we came down. Then it rained heavily when we were all on the bus on the way back. Amazing isn’t it. It must be HIM!

We had dinner at the caterer’s restaurant and the food was not really fantastic. Just had 2 pieces of boiled chicken, curry on rice and bandung drink. During the ride back, we just chat throughout the 1 hour. By the time, it was around 8 something when we reached back. The 6 of us decided not to bath and packed our bags. During evaluation time, we sat around the long house and played stupid games. Haha, had a good laugh over Yihung and Ismail (one of the guide) when they made funny expressions. It was really fun!

Then we were invited to go over to the guide house for some durian before we leave for the night. Yummy!!! Had a few seeds and 2 mangosteens.

And so that was the last we saw of Paka River Camp Site.

DAY 4 (11 AUG 07)

Slept throughout the bus ride back to Singapore. We left around 12.30am the night before and had breakfast around 7am and reached DHS around 9am. After bidding our goodbyes, we made our way back home. And that was the end of the whole expedition. Came back with all the physical injuries and itchness but totally filled with gratitude.

Cheers to my Abba Father!
ting

Something to read in the midst of exams and stress

2007-08-16T13:50:00.000+08:00

Commentary on Matthew Chpt 6 (Interesting)

Jesus' message here picks up his earlier discussion of secret charity (6:1-4). If many prosperity preachers err in urging Christians to seek material gain (see vv. 19-24), many of us err by doubting God's power to provide. Yet in this passage while Jesus emphasizes God's power, he also stresses that God guarantees only what we need. If God sustains life and protects our bodies, will we complain if he does it differently from the ways our culture values (v. 25)? If he feeds us like the birds (v. 26; compare 1 Kings 17:6) or clothes us like the flowers (v. 28), he will have provided us more than what our culture values, not less (v. 29). Yet if God provides for birds and flowers, he will also provide for us (v. 30).

God promises the basics. This theme is important to the passage (vv. 25-26, 28-30). Jesus twice uses a standard type of Jewish argument traditionally called qal wahomer-"how much more?" (vv. 26, 30). If God cares for birds and for perishable flowers, how much more for his own beloved children (compare vv. 8, 32)!

We generally expect biologists today to examine and classify data without making many ethical or theological pronouncements. But ancient naturalists were sometimes also sages who regarded all God's creation as a legitimate field for inquiry. Wisdom sayings often addressed nature (for example, 1 Kings 4:33; Ahiqar column 6; Sirach 43:33).

Jesus draws a lesson from God's care for birds and flowers (Mt 6:26, 30). Some other Jewish teachers also recognized that God provides for creatures (compare Ps 104:24-27) and that people are worth much more than birds (compare m. Qiddusin 4:14). Jesus, who regards God's original creation purpose as still valid (Mt 19:4-6), believes that the God who cares for unemployed animals will care still more for his children, regardless of their economic situation.

People in Jesus' day considered their cloaks essential, and the law in fact took this for granted (Ex 22:26-27; Guelich 1982:339). Paul (less given to hyperbole than his Palestinian Master) declares that Christians need nothing more than food and clothing (1 Tim 6:8). But Jesus declares that God can provide for us adequately even if we lack clothing (Mt 6:25)! He then goes on to assure us that God will supply covering for our bodies, pointing to the splendor of the fields, whose vegetation is nevertheless used as fuel for baking bread. Solomon's splendor had become proverbial (for example, CIJ 2:83, 837; m. Baba Mesi`a 7:1), but it remained minuscule compared to the splendor of God's creation (compare Ps 8:1-9). In the end, wealth does not matter, but God will supply what we genuinely need.

Jesus again shames his hearers by reminding them that even Gentiles(non-Christians) seek material things. Pagans seek (NIV run after) their own needs (Mt 6:31-32; compare Ep. Arist. 140-41); God's children should seek instead God's agendas, assured that God will also care for them in the process (6:33). Even in Jesus' model prayer, disciples seek God's kingdom first (vv. 9-10). Faith is not an intricate ritual to get what we want for ourselves; faith is obeying God's will with the assurance that he will ultimately fulfill for us what is in our best interests. That kind of faith grows only in the context of an intimate relationship of love between the heavenly Father and his children.

Some people today associate faith with being able to obtain possessions from God, but Jesus did not even associate it with seeking basic needs from God. Pagans seek those things, he warned (v. 32; compare 5:47; 6:7); we should seek instead God's kingdom and his righteous will (6:33). It is when his people care for others in need among them that God supplies the needs of his people as a whole, perhaps because then he can best trust them to use his gifts righteously (Deut 15:1-11; Blomberg 1992:126). In our lifelong plans and each day as we decide what to do with our life and resources, we have fresh opportunities to prove to God our love for him-or our lack of it.

Anxiety does no good. Jesus highlights this theme in Matthew 6:26, 34. Anxiety will not add even the smallest unit of time to one's life. Not only is it true that we cannot extend our life by worrying, but daily experience in our comparatively fast-paced culture confirms the wisdom of an earlier Jewish sage, who observed that worry and a troubled heart actually shorten life (Sirach 30:19-24). If much study is wearying to the flesh (Eccl 12:12-undoubtedly many a scholar's favorite verse), worry about wealth also banishes sleep and destroys the flesh (Sirach 34:1).

Unlike some ancient philosophers, Jesus never condemns people for recognizing their basic needs; their Father knows they need food and clothing. Yet he calls them to depend on God for their daily sustenance. Those who can trust their heavenly Father to care for them (as most first-century Jewish children could depend on their earthly fathers) need not be anxious concerning clothes or food.

Jesus paints his point in graphic word pictures. Like a typical sage, he finally notes that one has enough to worry about for the day without adding tomorrow's worries (Mt 6:34; compare Prov 27:1). Employing the typical rhetorical technique of personification (Kennedy 1984:60), Jesus further admonishes his hearers to let tomorrow worry about itself. Yet when Jesus forbids us to worry about tomorrow, this does not mean that concerns will never press upon us. It means instead that we should express dependence on God in each of these concerns. We should pray for our genuine needs (v. 11), provided we pray for God's kingdom most of all (vv. 9-10; most of Paul's "concerns" fit this category: 2 Cor 11:28; 1 Thess 3:1-5). The part of the future we must concern ourselves with and work toward is what he has revealed to us and called us to do (compare Mt 10:5-25).

Maybe most of us are so worried and stress coz we cling on to the things that we have in life (good results, winning and such). That we lose sight of the giver and concentrate on the gift. So today, after reading this...let's shift our focus on the giver and not on the gifts. Lift up all our worries and stress to Him, knowing that we can afford to rest in Him.

So let us put our hope in Jesus and live in His divine love which will last forever!

Hugz!
ting

rush hour3

2007-08-11T23:12:00.000+08:00

weiweiwei x)
opps. forgot sihan u no fone, no receive weiting msg. sry>< today me sining yiqi shuqi went for movies. rush hour3. i tink its e best rush hr sho far. e 91min felt like a zoom. story is tight& funny& action packed. pretty pretty scenes of paris too. wells den we went simei BK to mugg. i noe we r such guai bao baos. we had fun& did work too. wad a weird combi. lolx.
18aug combine youth
25aug cell at sining hse
sihan- jiayous drawin. just dont go nutty okays. must show us e end product ye.
jinghui- god ll grant u peace. ni ke yi de. dont worry.
clara- sho far me yiyin yiqi& shuqi shld b can go b ur la la dui x) happy practisin.
zhiyan- takecares. do ve a gd rest okays.
sining prelims starts on e 13th. do keep her in prayer as she aint in e best of health.
oh i realise all our g12 ppl ve I. e DISC thingy, rmb? talkative& attention seekin ppl=/ lolx.
xin

2007-08-07T17:42:00.000+08:00

Hello everyone! Clara is finally here to blog! =D

Thank God that i managed to get in to the semi round!! wow i didn't expect that i could go this far, but i did with the help of God!

well i believe if it weren't for him i don't think i even have the courage to step into the audition room. or even to have gone this far achieving so many things which not many can.

i remember i used to have stage fright, so afraid that i would even think of giving it up. i will start to have cold feets/hands, shiver like nobody's business, butterflies in my stomach causing me to screw up my own performance. like so terrible! not that now i totally gotten rid of stage frights, but everytime i start to panick i will turn to God. asking him to give me strength, courage and confidence. With him, there's nothing to be afraid of =)

during competitions i always tell myself not to compare, not to look down on and not to criticize. you know as human beings we'll always tend to start criticizing ppl if they are bad/lousy sometimes even w/o ourselves knowing it just comes so naturally. den i'll tell myself this "girl, give your best, sing all you can and enjoy this great voice God has given you. How others perform is non of your business, you have no right to judge or criticize. you know you've done your best and you should be content." =)

another thing is i'll tend to 胡思乱想(how u say that in eng? anyhow think?). L0L~ yah ok. i'll start to think "how many chance do i stand? did i perform well? got so many strong competitors.. die liao lor.. cannot get in one.. there's nothing special in my voice.. etc etc." this always happens. ALWAYS. i suppose its a sign of no confidence. right? yeah. no confidence in myself. as soon as i realise my mind was full of all these negative thoughts i began to start fighting against it "stop thinking of all these nonsense. it'll only make yourself feel worse. leave everything to God and have faith in Him. if its meant to be its meant to be" can't help it. i always like to think of all these nonsense. like to 胡思乱想. my imaginations very wild. haha ;p

gosh! i realised ive typed quite alot! kinda shocked? cause i always seemed so quiet to you guys ;p muhaha~ have you all fallen asleep already? dont ok! =D just bear with me a little.

so where was i? ohh yah.. so im lack of self-confidence. do help to pray for me! and now i have trouble choosing song for the next round. i don't know whether to sing fast song or a slow one. absolutely no idea. choices of songs.. currently got a-mei, jolin(fast songs), zhou hui(the song i sang for TQ finals).. ive left with less than a week to decide! ahhh!

this competition is very tough as we have ages ranging from 16-35 and its regardless of race as long as you can sing chi, eng or cantonese. imagine how many thousands of ppl O.O! so choice of song very important. and im so glad i could come this far! and still fighting for the semis. way to go~ woooot! ^^

Details for my semi

Competing on 28th Aug, Tuesday

7pm @ Party World KTV International Building

$7 for entry fee inclusive of one drink and lucky draw.

this time round there'll be voting so i seriously need votes!

let me know if any of you can make it k =))

ohh! and best of luck to those who's having exams! =DD jiayou!!~

God bless all!
Love,
Clara

the simpsons movie

2007-08-06T11:20:00.000+08:00

heys all.
do keep 11august free. we r gonna watch the simpsons movie at GV tampines. e movie is 88min long.
sho tentatively lets meet at 1430h, tampines mrt station. i ll confirm w u all again wen e timeslots for e sat shows r out.
after e movie, we can go makan dinner together. combine cell starts at 1900h.
do tell me whether u r goin, latest by thurs.
thanks.

18august cell ll b at sining's hse.

bon voyage to weiting& enjoy ur national day holin in malaysia. im seriously jealous.
oh jinghui, i meant it wen i say our G12 ll b rootin for u, wavin our poms poms outside ur examination venue. wells at least mentally we ll b doin sho. JIAYOUS.
all those muggin for upcomin tests/exams/prelims, lets all do it for god ye.
god bless ur wk x)

xin-

YY's exam timetable

2007-08-05T22:42:00.000+08:00

8th aug --> fundamentals of engineering (my worst subject!)
10th aug --> ecology (okay, but e memorising part is very tedious!)
17th aug --> math (having a little prob in it...)
20th aug --> hydraulics (my fave but having little probs here n there..)
21st aug --> biology (best subject so far, but pray for humility when studying..)

thx gals for ur prayers! =D

Yi Yin

heylo!

2007-08-03T14:13:00.000+08:00

harlow! ok....i hope that all of us manage to remember God's words thsi week about James 1:2-3 eh... not easy but it's definately rewarding...."Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops patience.

God really spoke to me through this short and simple sentence...am gonna share with you on Sat...someone please remind me if I forgot eh...=)

Yea, i think this week got quite a lot of happening for some of us... so this sat (tomorrow), here are some of the things that we will be looking at:
- Zhiyan and Xinhui sharing about the images (bring your pictures along eh)
- Plan for our G12 upcoming activities (movie outing cum makan outing)
- Share about how God speaks to us in James 1:2-3

ok, jia you for all eh! Let's continue to ask God to expand our terrority eh! Dun dun give in to mecrocity eh!

cheers!
ting

2007-08-03T11:07:00.000+08:00

hey guys

glad to see everyone posting!

to yiyin:
contd to jiayou k...in yr sch work and all...as james said...in all our trials...we must PERSEVERE!
and abt the gift thing...no worries...we have our whole lives to get to understand it better!

to xinhui:
your locker issue ...though sad and angry for u...was quite hilarious :) sorri...:)
but...thank God tat you got yr stuff back!
Praise the Lord for His love endures 4ever!
woohoo...missing locker stuff nt a problem 4 him

to si han:
hoped yr interview went well...contd to jiayou for yr prelims and final yr! run the last lap man!

to jinghui:
jiayou jiayou! we are always here for u to lean on k!!:)

to si ning:
hope to see u at cell soon and in the mean time...have a blessed time!:)

to clara:
we miss ya lots ! will pray for yr competition and all...contd to sing for the Lord ya!
hope to see you soon!

and to everyone i missed out (sorri...in sch now..have to hurry)
many loves and remember to do your 15 MINS Quiet Time

and pray for all the ppl who r invited to come for FOP K!!!

GOD BLESS!

many loves,
Shu Qi

locker

2007-08-02T23:32:00.000+08:00

e adventure of lockers
went back sch on mon only to realise my locker was BUSTED. all my belongins (bio text, me& shunwei pipette filler &testtubes, tie, umbrella, charcoal) GONE. feel pretty nth at first, den e more i tot abt it, e angier i got. approached zhiquan to ask whether its CT's doin. he said he ll help me check, but doubt its done by civics tutor (smt like student council, ey r e class reps& saikang warriors in sch. lockers r part of eir responsibities)as dere shld a warnin note, sho it mayb random bustin. wells sho i waited. realised tt i din keep my bio TYS in locker, which i usually ll do. was thus able to do my hw. thank god.
tue on way to chem lect, i saw tt my locker has a new locker. gosh. i was seriously PISSED& cldnt reli concentrate on e lect. btw e lecturer lost me durin e last few lectures too, sho i dont reli understand. lolx. meek attempt to self assure myself its alright to not pay attention. on e way hm was formulatin wad shld i do to e locker buster. suggestion given by my frens were- superglue up e locker, use a lock to lock up e locker sho e buster cant open. well i was tempted to paste "YOU SUCKER" on e locker.
wed i came up w a note to paste on e locker. here it goes;
Dearest locker "owner" of #51,
This is the previous owner of locker #51. I have decided to approach you in a civilised and mature manner. I do not understand why you have to do this. The situation is either
1 You bust my locker, removed all of my belongings and claim the locker yours.
2 You randomly chance upon a locker that has been busted and is using it without paying.The matter here is that you removed my belongings. I do not mind a busted locker. Please kindly return me my belongings namely my biology textbook, tie, 2sets of pipette filler& test tubes. Hope to hear from you soon.
Thank you.
was intendin to make it more sacar, like oh i noe u r lookin for cheap thrill bustin locker. lolx. gosh its e best essay &easiest i ve ever written. wells e situation turned out to b no2, e random person who chanced upon my busted locker got a random rantin by me. on e note, she apologied& removed her thingys frm my locker. received call frm zhiquan say tt it was CT's doin& i can get my thingys back x) fortunately it aint some random ppl& its i can get my bio text back just in time for bio SPA.
sadly, my dear lock died in e process. e lock tt saw my thure my 4yrs of sec sch education. e loyal lock tt without fail ll protect my belonging, keepin em safe& sound. e marvellous lock w a lovable password 25-35-25. he/she/it ll b happy tt it died a honourable death. 1min of silence pls.
whee. god is gd& faithful, answerin my prayers. THANK YOU peeps for bein sho patient to hear my rantins& for bein sho carin. guess i had e faith (tho it did wreaver at times) thurout tt i ll get my thingys back. realise i can pretty much handle my anger now, to tink b4 i act& not to let it overconsume me.

lovelove

2007-07-31T18:27:00.000+08:00

hi. read my blog for my aero details. BY THE WAY ITS AERO N-A-U-T-I-C-A-L! not space. haha.
life's fine, just that im hating art more and more each day.
tmr shall be my experience design interview, and yes, i see it as another chance to pon school. I AM SO HAPPY!

i totally embarrassed myself at the interview today man AGGGGGGGGH. shall pour out my sorrows in person, gosh. but nvm, im still one happy idiot.

ok. shall not be lorsuo. LOVE YOU GUYS. did quiet time. and love myself. ta!

Heys!

2007-07-31T17:44:00.000+08:00

Hey yiyin: keep on believing, keep on asking... I thank God tat He had used me to speak to ya...He desires us to have great gifts so that we can serve His people... so let us start with our daily lives 1st... to draw close to Him and love the people around us and to fulfill the GREAT COMMISSION!

Xinhui: Unfair things happens to us once in a while... dun let that dampen your spirit and kill the joyful self eh! Remember the lesson of James that Jasper taught, give thanks IN all circumstances and not FOR all circumstances eh.

Sihan: Hey woman, how's your interview for aerospace today?

Clara: All the best to you singing competition (quarters) today eh! You can do it man! Jia You and give all glory to God!

All: Hey, let us continue to mediate on the verse on James 1:2-3 eh.... let me recite from memory "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, to face trials of all kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perservance." Ok.... i peep on the last part...but i'll memorise by end of the week!

Cheers to Jesus!

prayer request

2007-07-31T00:06:00.000+08:00

hi gals, Yiyin here ya. got a very impt thing tt i need u all to pray for me abt, so bear wif me n read on ok? thx! =))

on sunday pastor soh announced tt we r gonna accept speaking of tongues in church. well, tts a good news for those who have this very special gift.

anyways, would lk to share how i feel abt this. in the past encounter camps, i've 1st been exposed to this wonderful gift. but, somehow i have a great fear for it. i dunno why, i just integrate tongues to the charismatic church. n i din really have a good impression on them. ijust dunno why. n i think such VERY spiritual stuff shouldnt be in a traditional church lk Agape. i mean, i used to.

1. pray for God to change my impression on the charismatic church, to love these christians as well, they are God's creation and our brothers and sisters too.

on sun when pastor soh said tt he's gonna talk abt these gifts, a small sense of fear started to come to me again. but i still sat there, praying silently tt this will not be lk an encounter camp, with ppl slain n stuff. i continued to listen. until he announced the big news. by then e fear grew. until the altar call when he asked for ppl who wants the gift to go up front, i'm totally filled with fear n confusion. i've been told tt i shouldnt b afraid of this, as this is a gift from God AND, fear is from satan. but then, i dun understand MANY things abt this. i started to panic n feel uneasy.

i told myself, i'm not ready. bt i dunno why, my lower lip was trembling. i dunno if this is a sign of something, but i just know something's gonna happen.. was starting to feel a little dizzy.

after the whole service i decided to tell weiting my confusions and my fears. was crying so bitterly. honestly i was very angry at myself tt i din have faith. i dunno why faith, but faith in God, in general.

2. if any of you somehow knows what faith i need, pray 4 tt particular faith pls. if u dont, like me, pray tt God will show me what faith i'm lacking.

weiting answered my questions, esp abt e charismatic church one. and abt whether i'm ready, and assured me that it's okay to not have the gift yet. God has His time plan in me. suddenly was feeling so happy and calm and maybe joyful? yep i know tt i'm not tt afraid of tongues anymore, and i've cleared most of my doubts. now the thing is, wait for God's timing to give me the gift. but before that i must continue to seek Him to know His plan for me.

3. pray for my QT. has been irregular since forever. =/ sometimes it was so bad tt i dont feel God in my life at all. pray tt my spiritual eyes and ears be open, tt i can see and hear wad God wants me to see and hear. thank God for weiting too. =)

(weiting, thank you so much for the talk tt time n for praying for me!)

yup. thanks for enduring thru e limited vocab ya. =) pray for me! thanks!

FOP

2007-07-30T22:23:00.000+08:00

weiweiwei x)
sihan; since ur fone is a gone case, i shall make use of dis blogg as a mean of communication. JIAYOUS! for ur art piece. hope ur eyes r stil intact frm all e pia-in overnight.
yiqi; pls let ur body take a gd long rest. u can take it but ur body cant.
i guess all of us r inspired& motivated to make a difference. lets not slacken as god has started his work among us (all along he has been mouldin us) may our hearts knit together as one& ve e same heartbeat. let be proactive &no longer conform to sins of passivity. let get up &RARR RARR (in such conditions, to me, this word mean to get thingys started).
rmb to SEARCH, CREATE& GRAB any opportunties u c. FOP is one such opportunity.

Festival of Praise (3-5August, 1930h) Mike MacIntosh, Don Moen and Delirious. e youth net ll b goin on 4aug, meetin 1600h at kallang mrt station. rmb to b punctual. do pray for widsom& invite ur frens to FOP w courage& faith. reminder to get back to me (XINHUI!) by thurs.

anws my locker got busted. was horribly upset. my bio textbk (which contain notes i managed to make wen im not aslp in bio lectures), my fren& my pipette filler& test tube, tie &umbrella (not tt i reli use it) is ALL gone x( one thingy gd is tt i realie my bio TYS (whichi i tot i left in my locker) is safe& sound at hm x) my TYS has all e copied model ans (frm teacher durin tutorials lah, i nv cheat de. even more handwritten stuffs den my textbk. thanks god at lest e TYS aint gone). do keep dis in prayer. i mean e other missin stuffs& tt dis ll not dampen my wk. especially my fren's belongin.

god bless ur wk x) cyas on sat. RARR RARR!

<3 xin

2007-07-30T20:32:00.000+08:00

HELLO EVERYBODY! shu qi with an impt update !

New resolutions which we have made:

1) FIFTEEN MINS OF SOLID QUIET TIME (to improve spiritual life of everyone in the team!)

2) Punctuality and Priority of Cell (primary priority!)

3) Verse and Scripture Snippet (we aim to encourage one another - show how God's word have the power to shape us ...slowly but steadily)

4) Create opportunities to serve!:)

Monthly Plan:
1 week----si ning's place (fellowship+encouragement)
2 week----combined
3 week----intense cell / bible study!
4 week----combined

let us not grow weary in doing good...in doing things pleasing to God...let us continue to do our
quiet time!!! :)

have a blesssed week!

and post gd stuff here okayy!!!

loves

Somebody do up the tag box!

2007-07-30T18:04:00.000+08:00

Alamak!! I cannot view the tag box at allllll!!! Can some one do something!

Sihan, wanna share why are you 'so dead'? So that we can have a better understanding and keeping you in prayer?

And hmm... let's be more posivite in what we say eh! Didn't Pastor Soh just mentioned over the sermon that cos there's power in our words, we should be careful in what we say? So let us be conscious about it eh! It's a good reminder for moi too!

Have a blessed week eh!

cheers
ting

2007-07-29T16:18:00.000+08:00

HI! was here. haha im so dead. doing arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrt! pray for me!
SIHAN

Confidence, Trust & Love

2007-07-26T16:49:00.000+08:00

Thanks Shuqi for the sweet note...actually things at work has been good... God has been good to me... the thing for me is that i don't like to stick to routine coz I can rot away with boredom..sheeze! And i know that if people stick to routine, they tend to get complacent with God too and then spiritual life will plunder. And I am fore-seeing this and I don't want it! So pray for break through... i like a roller coaster life.. thanking God for all the blessings and holding tightly to him and trusting him when 'problems' come. I've been reading a book 'Failing Forward' by John Maxwell. And it talks about how God ALWAYS uses our problems to fulfill His plans and turns it into our blessing WHEN we stay close to Him. So gers, let's put away the mind of passitivity and put on the mind of Christ eh! The following is something that always encourages me when i read over and over again. Love you and love God!

CONFIDENCE:

1 Day all villagers decided to pray for rain.

On the day of prayer all people gathered & only one boy come with umbrella. THATS CONFIDENCE.

TRUST:

Trust should be like feeling of a 1 year old baby, when you throw him in the air, he laughs....

Because he know you will catch him...

HOPE:

Every night we go to bed, have no assurance to get up alive in the next morning

But still we have many plans for coming day...

KEEP CONFIDENCE, TRUST IN GOD AND NEVER LOSE HOPE

2007-07-15T20:57:00.000+08:00

Hello guys....Shu Qi here to revive the blog! :) muahahahahahahahahahahahahaah

i guess this is the stressed period for all of us as everyone is facing the harsh reality of having

examinations and for Wei Ting issues at work......

but i guess lets PERSEVERE through all our different difficulties and challenges together...

and at the same time work at all our relationships with every single member of the g12 and the

church!

i know its difficult and kinda guilty of neglecting stuff as well...but i guess things require us to

make a conscious effort and to persevere in working twds our goal to be more like Christ!

Let's be conscious of the work of the Spirit in us and arnd us this week...and also spread

the msg of love and salvation to the people arnd us... a msg a day i guess won require much...

but the thought of someone remembering you and thinking of you is a great motivation...

let us continue to be united in the face of the stress and work coming our way...

we'll become stronger ppl through Christ who will give us strength to do all we need...and even

more!

Have a blessed week!

with many loves,
ShuQi

Spider-Man's Black Goo and You

2007-05-08T18:20:00.001+08:00

Spider-Man, Spider-Man
Does whatever a spider can
Spins a web, sweet surprise
Catches thieves just like flies
Look out
Here comes the Spider-Man...

Here he comes indeed...to the tune of $250-500 million dollars worth of cinematic magic that has more thrills, chills, spills, and even black ills to satisfy our ever increasing eye-candy appetite.

Seriously, when a single movie has a bigger budget than many countries on the planet, you should go in with just a few expectations.

What kind of expectations? Well, for the girls who just love to see their favorite hunk-o-matics on the larger than life screen, you have Tobey Maguire, Thomas Haden Church, James Franco and Topher Grace all convenietly wrapped into one battle scene so as to satisfy every preference in the pretty boy universe. And for the guys who mainline the adrenaline straight from the action scenes to their bloodstream, there's - oh I don't know - maybe a few dozen dazzling effects and 'intense sequences' that will leave you believeing that a boy can fly! Wait, I mean that a man can shoot webs!

But make no mistake, this movie is more than a treat for the eyes. There are thoughtfully developed plot points that strongly parallel divinely developed spiritual truths...and that's where I come in!

I'm pretty sure this isn't a plot spoiler, because if you've caught even a short part of the previews you've probably picked up on the whole 'black goo' deal. In Spider-Man technical terms, it's essentially an outer space tar baby that Dr. Connors identifies as a symbiote - which is also what we call a bad thing. This mysterious murky mire infests Peter with a serious 'tude that not only leaves him with droopy bangs, but also troll like behavior that cyles through aggression, jealously, and just good old fashioned Spidey- schmuckness.

So I was thinking about how glad I was that this is just a movie...you know - the reel world, not the real world. We don't have to be too concerned about moon droppings falling from the sky and giving us a terrible , horrible, no good, very bad day...*

Or do we?

Well, yes and no. No, we don't need to worry about an outer space substance that attaches to our bodies, but we do need to be aware of a dangerous and deadly entity that is already fastened to our souls. It is called your sin nature: the inherited and ingrained part of you that rebels against God and pulls you towards self-destructive behavior...and make no mistake...it poses a greater threat than anything Marvel Comics could ever dream up. Here's the way the Bible describes the sickness of our soul:

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9)

The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. (Galatians 5:17 )

Slithering through the chambers of your spirit is a black goo that sets itself against loving God and loving others. It was passed down to you through a thousand generations from your original parents - Adam and Eve. When they disobeyed God, a chain reaction of disobedience was unleashed on the human race, and we have seen the results of disease, destruction and death ever since.

OK, now you know what's behind the evil inclinations of your heart and the hateful actions of your life...so what are you going to do about it?

Funny I should ask, because it's the same question that one of the greatest Christians in history asked. The man who wrote the majority of the New Testament and helped Christianity spread across the civilized world in the first century was also a person who desperately clawed at the sin nature in his soul which infested and polluted him like a terminal cancer. Feel the intensely furious plea as he penned these words:

Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? (Romans 7:24)

Don't you feel the same? Like Spider-Man, we would love to defeat the monster inside us by our own efforts, but for the Christian, that is impossible. So impossible, in fact, that only God could make it possible.

And He did. Jesus' death and resurrection is the only cure for our sin nature. That's why Paul wrote these words right after his cry for help:

Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord . (Romans 8:25)

When you trusted Christ as your only hope of salvation, you were given a new power though the Holy Spirit to overcome the rebellious and destructive nature inside you.

The question is...will you? Will you wake up each day and ask God to give you the power to defeat your sin nature? Will you commit to avoiding the people and places where the venom of sin seems to saturate your life the most?

There is one scene in Spider-Man 3 I'll leave you with. At one point the black symbiote is trapped under a glass, but when freed it quickly slithers towards Pete r. Dr. Connors responds by saying, "It seems to want you..."

And so does your sin nature... the question is - what are you going to do about it?

Head: What you need to know about this truth

Every Christian has a sin nature inside him/her that is constantly trying to pull us towards rebellion against God and a self-destructive lifestyle. We can only defeat our sin nature through the power of the Holy Spirit on a moment by moment basis.

Heart: What you need to feel about this truth
Once upon a time an Indian had two dogs – a black one and a white one. They were both the same size and weight. The Indian loved them both, but the two dogs did not love each other. They would often fight each other so brutally that the other Indians knew that eventually one dog would kill the other. They had a running bet as to which dog would win the final fight. One day, the owner of the dogs showed up around the campfire and explained that one of his dogs had killed the other. His friends asked which dog won the fight. The Indian replied, "The one I fed the most."

The two dogs are like the two natures living inside you...which one are you feeding the most?

Hands: What you need to do about this truth
Make a list of the weak areas of your life where your sin nature seems to get the best of you. It could be pride, lust, anger, etc. After you make the list, find Bible passages that will help you in your fight against temptation. For example, if you are hypersensitive, remember this verse:

Sensible people control their temper; they earn respect by overlooking wrongs. (Proverbs 19:11)

Or if you struggle with gossip/cussing/dirty talk - remember this command:

Don't use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them. (Ephesians 4:29)

Remember, there is more than enough Scripture to defeat the black goo every time!

The Jezebel Spirit (TGIF Today God Is First, by Os Hillman)

2007-04-09T16:34:00.000+08:00

Let us learn from this and pray against this spirit...

"Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols." - Revelation 2:20

One of the major ruling spirits opposing the Kingdom of God today is the spirit of Jezebel. It has dominion over many aspects of society including the workplace and the entertainment industry. It predominantly lives in females, but is not always gender specific.

The spirit of Jezebel seeks to destroy true worship, the family, morality, and the God-ordained leadership. It misleads and corrupts the Church and seeks to neutralize the lives of prophets, pastors, and other leadership.

The spirit of Jezebel is best seen in the story of Naboth's garden in First Kings 21. In this story King Ahab desires to purchase some land next to the king's palace. Naboth refuses to sell. When Jezebel hears of this, she embarrasses Ahab, telling him he should be ashamed because he is the king and has every right to the land. She promptly plots against Naboth to get the land for the king. This leads to Naboth's murder. Ahab does not know of this plot by his wife, but when the king shows up to claim the land, the prophet Elijah shows up too and pronounces judgment on Ahab and his wife. In this passage we see that God held Ahab ultimately responsible for the death of Naboth.

Jezebel's ultimate goal is always control. Jezebels cause fear, flight, and discouragement. They are often natural leaders. Often subtle and deceptive, they are proud, independent, and rebellious. Jezebels cannot live without Ahabs who allow them to be effective and operate unchallenged. Ahabs fail to operate as godly, loving leaders. Rather, they give in to pressure from the Jezebels, often due to their own insecurities and sexual needs.

The answer to defeating the Jezebel spirit for the person who is influenced by it is true repentance, humility, and brokenness before God. The person who is "Jezebeled" must firmly stand against the sexual exploitation of this spirit.

If you find yourself confronting this spirit, ask the Lord to give you discernment and wisdom. You will need fasting and prayer to win this battle. Men should not use this knowledge as a license to lord over or control women, but understand that this spirit opposes God's design of the two equal but distinct roles for men and women.

Image 5 - The Fun House Mirror

2007-04-03T14:04:00.000+08:00

Carnivals often have mirrors that distort how we really look. Poor leaders do this, pretending or posing to be better than they really are. Our character is the true reflection of who we are.

Most carnivals have a fun house somewhere on the premises. Inside the fun house, there is usually a mirror. The mirror isn’t flat, so it cannot give you an accurate reflection of yourself. It is purposefully curved and shaped so it will distort your height or your size in some way. Short folks can look extremely tall and skinny people can look fat – due to the contour of the mirror. It’s designed to make you laugh because you look so different than you do in reality. Sadly, this is a picture of a great temptation leaders face: to project a false image of themselves. Sometimes, leaders don’t even possess a realistic view of who they are.

Nathan desperately wanted to be elected to the student government at his college. Unfortunately, he knew his chances were slim. He wasn’t well known, and tons of popular students were on the election ballot, “Why did so any popular students suddenly run for office? He wondered.

Two weeks before the election, he grew frantic. He wanted this position badly, and he was willing to pay almost any price to get it. During the mandatory debates between candidates, he feared he would come across as inferior. After all, there was so much talent up there next to him. He was at a crossroad when one of the judges asked him what qualified him to hold office. He was intimidated.

He thought for a moment. Then, he did something he never planned on doing. He lied. It was just a little, white lie. No one would notice. He told his sophomore classmates that he had served as a student government officer before. He paused and looked out at the audience. He had their attention. His answer seemed to please everyone. So he went further. He announced that in high school he raised money to purchase video games for the school dining hall. Some from the audience applauded. He was on a roll. After a spit second of thought, he decided to go for it. He told everyone tat before he transffered to the university, he stood up to his community colledge president and got some of the policies changed.

Each time he ventured out with another white lie, he seemed to gain in stature and popularity. People were finally noticing him. He was somebody. That is, until later when his friends confronted him on it. They asked him why he had never shared all those things with them before. He started to lie somemore, but decided to come clean. He admitted he’d made up most of what he said. He laughed nervously, hoping they would join in with some laughter, too. They didn’t. He had not only betrayed them, he was pretending to be someone he wasn’t. They began to wonder what else he had lied about in his past. They friendship began to slowly unravel.

This was only the beginning of his trouble. He got enough votes to tie with another student he was running against. Now, it was showdown time with the faculty advisors. He was asked detailed questions about his past experience in student government. He wasn’t ready for this. He didn’t have an answer. Suspicious that he was making things up, Dr. Rayburn, Dean of Student Life, asked to talk with him during study hall. He asked Nathan about how he went about “standing up” to his last president, as he mentioned in the debate. Dr. Rayburn’s eyes were penetrating. Nathan’s mout grew dry. He was out of ideas on how he could wiggle out of this one. He finally confessed that he didn’t exactly stand up to his president…and that he had made up a few things that he shared at the debate. This began a long conversation between the two of them about why Nathan felt he was now in trouble with his friends, with the entire sophomore class and with the school administration. All because he felt that who he really was – wasn’t good enough.

Leadership can be scary. Most of us feel that we don’t measure up. We have this quiet fear that if people really knew us, they wouldn’t want us as their friend, not to mention their leader. George O’Leary was a great football coach at Georgia Tech during the 1990s. When Notre Dame invited him to become their new head coach, things crumbled. Fro some reason, O’Leary felt he had to distort who he was. He lied about his education to make himself look better. When t his was discovered, he lost his chance at the job. Unfortunately, when we start to distort our image of who we are, it always comes back to haunt us. The Bible is right again – eventually, your sins will find you out. In the end, the damage is always worse than anything negative you experienced in the beginning. Shortcuts to fame and influence don’t pay off in long run.

You may remember a movie that came out early in 2003, called, “Catch Me IF You Can”. This film was based on a true story. I read the book years ago. It’s the story of Frank Abagnale Jr. and his wife and crazy life as a doctor, airline pilot, banker, investor, attorney and celebrity. The irony behind his story is that he wasn’t any of these in reality. He deserves an Academy Award for his portrayal of these professions. He was an international fake. A fraud. He was a pretender.

It all began quite early in his life when he realized he had the uncanny talent to convince people that he was “somebody” through his sheer confidence and acting ability. He began to make money at this “game” and soon found himself addicted to role playing. Before it was over, he’d helped perform surgery in an operating room; conned banks out of thousands of dollars; flew in an airplane as a pilot and gone places most of us only dream of going. The only problem was – it was all a show. It wasn’t a reality. A few years into it, he wanted out. The glamour was gone. He was desperate to come clean, but he had created such a web of deceit, it wasn’t easy. The FBI was on to him, and he ended up spending years in a federal prison. Frank had legitimate talent, but he wasted it pretending to be someone else.

FROM THE BOOK
Check out the passage in Matthew 23:25: Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish. But inside you are full of extortion and self indulgence.

In Matthew 5:37, Jesus said to “let your Yes be Yes and your No be No; anything beyond this comes from the evil one” (NIV). In other words, talk straight. Don’t swear. Don’t exaggerate. Don’t get preoccupied with impressing others. Just tell the truth about who you are and what you do. But why is this so difficult for us as leaders?

GETTING PERSONAL
I believe each of us carries around 4 images of ourselves. We are conscious of all 4. We feel their weight. 3 of them can be excess baggage. The outer layer represents the image of others has of us. The next layer represents the image we project to others. The 3rd layer represents the image we have of ourselves. Finally, the 4th layer represents the truth about who we really are. It is God’s image of us. If you access yourself, which 4 images consumes most of your time? Why?

PRACTICING THE TRUTH
For 1 solid week, make a commitment to not lie, exaggerate or distort the truth. IN your conversations, speak honestly about yourself. If you accidentally exaggerate something, commit yourself to return to that person and apologize, then correct the statement you made to reflect the truth. At the end of the week, evaluate how difficult this was.

God's abundant blessings

2007-03-29T22:29:00.000+08:00

Despite the many odds I face in my new surroundings, it is also through the same place that I experience God’s love and blessing.
Firstly, VJC had always been my dream junior college and yes, I am finally given a position in the school. The Olevels results really came as a surprise to me. I thank God for all the wonderful friendships and bonds formed between my classmates and OGmates in a mere 3months’ time at TJC. It was difficult to leave all of that behind and plunge myself into an unfamiliar situation and start afresh. i even doubted whether VJC is where I want to be. However I am sure and certain that this is where God want me to be. One of the many confirmations is that there are some with the same score as me are not posted to VJC.
Secondly, most of my best friends, Serene, Gao Yan and Julia are in VJC. In fact, it is three of them altogether. How often do you get such a lovely scenario? At least when I am down I know that God had already placed these three fabulous people in my school to comfort me.
Thirdly, I wanted to join hockey but VJC’s hockey girls are very good. They were champions last year. Furthermore they import talents. 8of them are already confirmed in school team, meaning there is only 3spaces left. But still, I left my contact with them, waiting for them to inform me of trials. I received no calls at all. I was disappointed, yet did not do anything about it. It was my best friend who helped me to find out about hockey trials. Thank God for Serene’s help. I then approached the hockey teacher in charge and I joined their training on Tuesday. Oh man, it was good to hold a hockey stick again, though I was like a clumsy bear holding a walking stick and attempting to use it in the correct manner. The teacher said that there will be trials for the 2nd in takers. From a zero hope to at least a 50% chance.
Fourthly, there was also youth sports day on Tuesday and God’s presence was really there, leading us (Li Juan, Kai Qi, Aaron and I) through the discussion. Aaron and I had a much picture of what and how to go about carrying out this event. It also reminded us that in all we do, the ultimate goal is to serve the Lord and glorify Him. The discussion ended late and I had quite some tutorial left undone. However realization dawned on me that Wednesday is VJC Arts Day, in which mean that there will activities held in the morning and lessons will only resume in the afternoon. I will only have PW and math tutorial the next day. Our God is indeed gracious.
Fifthly, my many years long desire has finally been fulfilled. My neighbour fetches me to school every morning. I will reach school at 7am, in which normally I will still be dragging my feet to the MRT station. School starts at 740am and I have tons of time to finish my tutorial or use the time to catch up with my friends.
Sixthly, I finally found a girl in class that I can click rather well with and we are both in First Aid Club. I was being pulled by her to join FA as they lack qualified first aiders.
Seventhly, during lectures and tutorial I had the wisdom from God to be able to understand what was being are taught and to catch concepts rather quickly, whic is something miracoulsy.
Eighthly, I passed my 1st ever test at VJC. Some of the 1st in takers failed. It is a big morale booster, not in the negative way, although the teacher said that it is a rather easy test.
This list of how blessed I am goes on and on. I still miserable at times, trying to adapt and cope with present tutorials and past tutorials, attending lectures every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday that are from 5-630pm which will last till week7. I do not know whether God want me to join hockey or First Aid Club or Interact which I had signed up for. I do not know whether I will pass my upcoming Biology test in the following Tuesday which include two chapters that I did not learn in TJC. I do not know how the youth sports day will turn out to be.
But I do know he is in control and that I have to lift everything up to Him before He can make things turn out right. The very important lesson that I learnt over the past few weeks is to depend on God’s strength and I will then be able to do all things in Christ who strength me.
xin-

When Prayer Stopped Bullets

2007-03-27T10:30:00.000+08:00

So...how is your prayer life?

I don't know if you remember much that happened in October of 2002, but the people in Washington DC will never forget. For three weeks two men with high powered rifles went on a terrorizing killing spree in and around our nation's capital that left 10 people dead and three others critically injured. For millions of people, it was a time of paralyzing fear and feelings of terror were triggered just by walking out their front door. These two evil men evaded police and capture seemingly without effort, and it looked as though the nightmare might never end.

And it might not have - until a group of 50 Christian truckers got together and begged God to bring an end to the crimes and death.

One of those truckers was Ron Lantz. He believed that when believers pray, God answers. In fact, his faith was so strong that he told others that God would use him to catch the killers.

A few days later he was driving through the region where the shootings occurred when he felt compelled to pull off the road at a random rest stop. Random to him I guess...but not random to Him - as in God. As Ron surveyed the parking area, right before his eyes was the car that was being described to his ears on the radio by police!

I'm sure Ron's prayer life got even more active at that point - and so did his quick thinking mind. He called 911, pulled his truck across the exit to prevent possible escape, and waited out for 15 minutes that probably felt like 15 hours. The police arrived, the murderers were apprehended, and the rest is history.

Some might call this story a twist of fate, but I would call it an answer from the Father - wouldn't you? The power of prayer is often unseen, but it is definitely undeniable.

So...how is your prayer life?

From my experience, a healthy and active prayer life is one of the most difficult areas of the spiritual life for most Christians - which really isn't a surprise. After all, if you were Satan, what would be the one focus of your attack on believers? Exactly - prayer. As Samuel Chadwick once said: " The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray."

When we stop praying, Satan starts winning. That's why we are commanded specifically to "pray continually" (I Thessalonians 5:17 ). The original word in the Greek language for 'continually' gives us a word picture of a hacking cough. Ever had a hacking cough? The harder you try to stop it, ignore it, or suppress it, the stronger that little tickle in your throat becomes and you erupt into a coughing fit that sends people running for cover.

Get the picture? Our prayer life isn't limited to a time, a place, or occasion. It is all the time, in every place, for every occasion - and the harder Satan tries to stop it, ignore it, or suppress it, the stronger it should become. We should be constantly breaking into prayer fits (I like this part..) that send the enemy running for cover!

So why do we struggle with a consistent and healthy prayer life? Simple...we don't really understand prayer. We link 'prayer' with 'boring' and 'useless' - when in reality:

Prayer is coming into the presence of God Himself.
Prayer is taking our concerns to the one who cares for me.
Prayer is standing on sacred ground...
Prayer is communicating with the creator of the universe.
Prayer is a child talking to His Father...
Prayer is bringing our hurts to the father of compassion and the God of all comfort...
Prayer is reaching out to our redeemer...
Prayer is crying out to the rock that is higher than we are...
Prayer is calling out to the only one who can save us...
Prayer is touching the one who loves us with an unfailing & unquenchable love...
Prayer is bringing our questions to the one who has the answers.
Prayer is reaching out to the God who is NEVER tired, confused, afraid or taken by surprise.
Prayer is connecting our lives with the ALL knowing, ALL present – and ALL powerful KING of kings...
Prayer is coming near to God...*

And that's just the beginning.

Your prayer life is the key to your relationship with God. Period. When you understand this, your prayer life will be just that... a life. A living existence that breathes through the Holy Spirit and moves to the heartbeat of God. It will be the start and end of your day and the last words on your lips before bed. You'll take each step in the recognition of God's presence and power, and you'll feel the 'tickle' in your soul from the Holy Spirit that your Daddy wants to hear from you.

How many lives did the prayers of the Christian truckers save? We'll probably never know, but I know this, your prayers can change your life and the lives of others in ways you could never imagine.

So...how is your prayer life?

*Source: www.sermoncentral.com

Head: What you need to know about this truth

Our prayer life is the key to our relationship with God - which is why we need to pray continually, like a hacking cough.

Heart: What you need to feel about this truth
Feel amazingly honored that you are able to come before God and talk to Him any time and anywhere. Feel excited about being able to change the world simply by communicating with the Creator.

wherever God came from.

2007-03-24T12:56:00.000+08:00

hey girls,this is zhiyan and i just really felt like sharing this with you all.i dont know how many of you actually ever wondered where God came from.i was idling one saturday morning,when suddenly i began questioning my faith,the roots of christianity.i have a friend who was a nihilist,still is,and according to him,he will always be.so there was this day he asked me on msn,"where did God come from?and how on earth can you base your religion on a thick book filled with tiny words,front page carved with the golden letterings,The Holy Bible,that God created this world?".i looked at the window blankly,my senses and reactions blocked by the sudden invasion of some weird nihilist.so that saturday when i was thinking about this,i couldnt help asking myself,where did God come from?if there wasnt a God,if the world coexsited with the universe in the very beginning of time,if there wasnt God,if God didnt create everything i thought He did,who is He whom i worship today?
so i asked my dad,thinking okay maybe he can tell me something.
this moment,every second that im spending to write this post is after our conversation.
my friend critisized the Church,calling it corrupted,deceived and meaningless.he doesnt hate God or blame Jesus,he just hates the fan club--christians.he couldnt grasp the fact that in the beginning when only blankness existed,God suddenly popped up and created Earth along with the whole universe,the cosmos.blankness itself is a thing right?who created it?God just happened to walk past the blankness and decided to put some colour into it?or did someone else created God to create the universe?did that someone also create that blankness?human minds cannot comprehend the complexity of God,because everything we question,everything we doubt comes from our human frame of mind,a weak fragile lump of flesh.we cannot understand that God is who He is,nobody created Him,He exists only because He does,amd that is why He is God.we can never ever find the answers to confusing questions like "why did He create the world for?" or "why does He exist?" Because we are imperfect,we cannot fathom and grasp His greatness,His complexity.we stand in awe of Him,we worship Him because He is the sole true living "thing" we can find satisfaction in,the only form of comfort we can find in times of turmoil.everything else we try to search for our entire lives to satisfy our everlasting desires just didnt make sense,because we will never find it.only in God we will.sure,some may say that the world is screwed up,that the Church is corrupted,but we cannot deny the truth.here's an example.if a math teacher teaches her pupils that 1+1=2 and some get it,some dont.those who dont can blame the teacher that she teaches bad,that they didnt have time to revise,that they just hate math,but there's one thing they cant deny.1+1=2,and that math does exist,and that math is true.our God is more than math,He is more than mere numbers,more than algebra and simultaneous equations.in Romans 1:20 the bible says "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - His eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen,being understood from what has been made,so that men are without excuse." our God is not an excuse or reason,He does not need to fit in our small human capacity of knowledge.He is our Father,almighty Savior,He is God.
Exodus 3:13-14
Moses said to God,"Suppose i go to the Israelites and say to them,'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,'and they ask me,'What's his name?'Then what shall i tell them?"
God said to Moses,"I AM WHO I AM,This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you."

God is who He is.i am so honoured He loves me.i dwell in His powerful presence,i find peace in Him,i find perfection in a perfect God despite my imperfections.He is the beginning and the end,the Alpha and Omega,He is God.

Image 4: Thermometer Vs Thermostat

2007-03-19T12:11:00.000+08:00

PEOPLE ARE EITHER THERMOMETERS OR THERMOSTATS. THEY WILL MERELY REFLECT THE CLIMATE AROUND THEM, OR TEY WILL SET IT. LEADERS DEVELOP VALUES AND PRINCIPLES TO LIVE BY AND SET THE TONE FOR OTHERS.

What’s the difference between a thermostat and a thermometer? Though both of them have something to do with temperature, they were fundamentally different. The thermostat set the temperature. The thermometer only reflected what the temperature was.

This is a great picture of another leadership truth. Most people are like thermometers. They tend to reflect the culture around them. They buy things that others buy, say things that others say, wear things that others wear and value things that others value. Oh, there are slight variations. But most people don’t set the “climate” for the world they live in; they just mirror back that climate.

Leaders on the other hand are people who decide to take life to the enxt level. They become thermostats and set the social climate in which they are placed. For instance, you may know people who set the spiritual temperature of a group. You know some that determine the attitudes of othes, by their presence in a group. They are pacesetters. They influencem rather than merely allowing others to influence them. My challenge to you is to move from being a thermometer to a thermostat.

Leaders who are “thermostats” have developed values and principles they live by. God calls us to be authentic. The word “authentic” comes from the root word “to author”. It means to write your own story, not copy someone else’s. When someone owns a set of values, it’s like they have a moral compass on the inside that guides them in their decisions. Dr Billy Graham is repected today, not because his preaching is so flashy or insightful. It’s because people know him as a man who lives by his values and won’t drift from them. People repect those who are values driven and principle centered. When leaders fail to develop values, traegy almost always follows. NBA star Kobe Bryant admitted to committing adultery, when a woman accused him of sexual assault in July of 2003. Ironically, just 2 weeks before he confessed to it, he was seen on TV talking about how important it is for athletes to be examples for kids today. Ouch! Talk is cheap.

Years ago, a boy grew up in a Jewish home, watching everything his father did. Evidently, his dad didn’t realize the influence he had. They attended a synagogue nearby. Dad decided to just switch religious beliefs. He admitted it was only a way of meeting business contacts anyway. This father’s failure to live by values outside of his won benefit led his son to question morality, ethics and his faith. As the boy grew, he believed that religion was a “crutch” for the masses. He wrote that money was behind anything meaningful in the world. The boy’s name is Karl Marx, and he led millions of people into a destructive belief system during the 20th century.

The problem was simple. Karl Marx’s father had created a set of values by default not by design. He didn’t think through what was best for his family or his community. He did what was best for himself. Young Karl was a thermometer, reflecting what his dad had modeled. Unfortunately, Karl Marx was successful at making people believe he could be a trusted thermostat.

Regrettably, many leaders share this story today. We influence others, but we don’t have a compass that influences us. It’s the inside that counts.

Check out Luke 6:46-49. Jesus is speaking and He says: Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock: and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house on the ground without any foundation, and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.

Jesus was asking an interesting question: How can we call Him “Lord” but not live by the values He lays for us? Is there a gap between what we say and what we do?

Take a moment to do an honest evaluation on whether you “act” or “react” more often in life. Are you a thermostat, who acts based on principles and values you embrace or do you react to situations like a thermometer, reflecting the temperature in the room?

reality.

2007-03-16T22:55:00.000+08:00

today marks the last day of the longest holiday of my life.a total of 3months and 3weeks break.i have never felt more rejuvenated in my life.after this holiday,reality is gonna hit hard.reality like exams,school,CCA,tuitions.i feel excited about the start of something new,being in a new JC and all.i also feel overwhelmed with fear.what if I screw things up?what if I fail my first test?what if I end up with a boyfriend?what if,what if,what if.at night I try to hand my what-ifs to God,I ask Him to take them away,but somehow they creep back to me everytime the sun comes up.
Sometimes I pray about strength,about faith,then I pray for more strength,more faith.i pray for the things I need to survive another day,to go through a whole new routine.then sometimes when I am really tired I don’t say a thing,I just sit there and I sigh.i read somewhere that God understands and knows our every thought,even before we say it out.i sigh to Him and I know He hears it,He knows I’m tired,drained.
And then when I lose hope,when I’m on the verge of another major breakdown or on the brink of tears,I remember that I have Him,the One that I can always depend on.He may not answer my every prayer,but in my heart I know He will not disappoint my trust.

Image 3 - Stock Taking

2007-03-15T13:53:00.000+08:00

LEADERS CANNOT PERFORM WELL IF THEY DON’T SEE THE STRENGTHS INSIDE OF THEM. GOOD LEADERS TAKE PERSONAL INVENTORY ON THEIR GOD GIVEN GIFTS. THIS IMPACTS BOTH THEIR SELF IMAGE AND, CONSEQUENTLY, THEIR RESULTS.

You are a lot like a store on a cornder street. Despite what the cosmetic commercials tell you, your real value is inside. You have to walk into the store to know what it really has to offer. When you do, even one walk through allows you to take a brief inventory of it. Now you know what’s there. Anyone who’s worked in a retails store knows what the word “inventory” means. As an employee, when you take inventory, it means you begin to list the products that are on the shelves. One by one you count each item until you have an accurate record of what you have and what you need. Most stores “take inventory” once or twice a year. Some do it every month! In fact, you can’t really run a good business without knowing what you’ve got in your inventory.

There’s this guy name Rob, whose first job was to work as a store clerk in a store. His initial task was to take inventory of what was in the store. Rob got angry at being given such a small job as counting products. Little did he know – the task would take him 3 months. It was huge. Taking inventory is no small undertaking and it pays great dividends. Once you know what you’ve got, you can go about your business with confidence.

Case in point. There was a young basketball player who got cut from the varsity team during this 10th grade year. It would have been easy for him to evaluate himself and say, That’s it. I quit.” But he didn’t. He took a hard look at his strengths and began develop them. Many believe he’s the best player ever. Michael Jorden had to do what all of us have to do. He had to take inventory. He had to see his skills and talents as the gold on the inside, despite what his coach teach.

Victor came to the US from Russia when he was 5 years old. His parents immediately thrust him into kindergarten. He didn’t know the language or the culture he was going to face each day. It was all new and scary because he was intimidated, Victor appeared slow to his teachers.

By his sophomore year in high school, he was emotionally devastated by the judgments he received. Victor concluded that he should give up on school and try to get a job. So at 16 years old, he dropped out of school and began to work odd jobs, just to make ends meet. All he did was survive for about 14 years. Then at 30 years old, something interesting happened. Victor took an aptitude test, to discover his I.Q. That day changed his life. He was shocked to discover that his I.Q. was 161. He was a genius. His true story was written up several times. IN fact, Victor Serebriokof began a great career, obtaining two patents for inventions, before marrying and starting a family on his own.

Victor did not suddenly get smart at 30 years old. No one I.Q. changes that much over time. He was smart the entire time. What changed about Victor was the way he viewed himself. He no longer wakes up in the morning, looked in the mirror and saw a stupid idiot. Instead, he saw a genius. What you see is what you get. Once Victor knew what was in his inventory – he was ready to face the world with confidence.

Here’s what’s happening. You can consistently perform in a manner that is inconsistent with the way you see yourself. You will usually perform at a level that reflects your perspective of yourself. If you think you are average, you’ll perform in an average way. Once in a while, you may have a really great day and perform higher tan normal. You’ll think: That was awesome. I really outdo myself! However most people quickly retreat back to the lower level of living, because they don’t think they deserve it. They don’t see themselves that way. And they miss their potential. Ouch.

The IceBerg teachers us tat we need to lead ourselves nefore we lead others. The Starving Baker teachers us we need to feed ourselves before we feed others. Stock Taking teachers us we must read ourselves before we read others.

Checkout Psalms 139:13-15: For you created my innermost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made, your works are wonderful, I know them full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place…

When King David wrote this psalm, he was taking a personal inventory of how God created him and what He out inside, He marveled at God’s artistic ability.

To take your own personal inventory, think about these:
- Qualities (positive stuff about your personality)
- Abilities (gift you possess that “add value” to others; stuff that you can do well)
- Passions (Desires you have inside that you’d love to pursue in your career or personal life.)
- Opportunities (circumstances that present you with a chance to use your potential)

2007-03-11T22:24:00.000+08:00

hey girls..shu qi here...just wanna share

today's sermon : Speak Words of Life

the devil is such a cunning guy...throw me with a situation even b4 the day is over...

well...at least i get a chance to practice what i have learnt...
well...i apparently dumped all my responsibility on one person...

and not do anything..just talk and relay instructions...and also did not stick up for her point... she feels its no longer a grp effort...feels tired...feelsdisappointed...upset and therefore..wrote me a long letter to tell me how sucky she felt...she later send me an sms to apologise if she had made any wrong accusation and said she said those as it was what she felt...

well...i guess its good that this came up...it is a big turning point for me...as i realised i no longersee things the way i did before...and i think i can see God working in my life...

in the past i would be very irritated...i would get all self righteous and defend myself...

but i guess...this time...though it really hurts...i must learn to forgive...
and learn to take up more responsibility the next time...thank God for today's sermon...
and the Spirit discerning power to noe that not everything that comes out of another's mouth is all good....

i make a resolution right now to forgive...
and surrender all my thoughts and actions unto the Lord

i will not make any hurtful remarks or comments...i will only speak words of life and not anger or hatred

i will not receive everything the person had said...cos i noe i still disagreed with her on certain issues...i will not make judgement on her motive and intentions; cos i noe how stressful this situation can be...i will exercise my tongue in a proper manner...

i will no longer lash out at others...and no longer feel that others shld know all that i feel...and no longer feel self righteous...i want to grow humbly in the Lord and truly listen to the opinion of others...

i resolve to grow and mature in the Lord and reject this seed of negativity in me...that it will not hinder me from growing in the Lord and in fellowshipping with my sister...

i will not let Satan make use of this opportunity to attack me and destroy me...i am victorious in the Lord and will win eventually in the battlefield of my mind...

Pray that the Lord will not let satan use my friend as an avenue to carry out attacks...but help her to grow in the Lord as well...

ting's sharing on how God worked in her life tis week...(5 Mar 07)

2007-03-10T15:51:00.001+08:00

Hope that this would encourage you to share yours too!

Wanna thank those peeps who have been keeping me in prayers. Remember one of my prayer request is to have a clear vision and purpose in YMCA...coz the fact that low pay and maturity does not really go together in a pramatic society. So when my mind goes back to why am i in YMCA and what future do i see myself here, i quickly thought of how comfortable and happy i am here in this company. Thoughts going back to the goodness that God has blessed me with this new job, the passion that i have for the volunteers and beneficaries, the fun colleagues that i have and the joy of going to work everyday. All these led me to confirmed that God has indeed placed me here for a reason. As i'm typing this, I am thinking of those gers who will be starting their new school too. I believe that some of you may feel like me...asking yourself, why am i here and what's the purpose...but i believe that God unfolds it in our lives as we walk our small steps in faith. Like when i faced with last minute, critical situations at work, i would usually lift myself in prayers 1sy before seeking for help or doing anything else.

Besides your prayers for moi, reflecting from the Word of God also helped me to understand the mind of God better. It helps me to clear away unwanted thoughts and thus, able to be still to know that God is there always with me. I used to take it for granted about reading the bible and not reflecting on His Words. But now, i do it in awe of who He really is. He is the God that reveals His words to my spirit so that my spirit can reveal it to my mind (Battlefield). With that in mind, QT now holds a special position in my life now...

3rdly, I thank God for battlefield...before i read this book, to me, 'it's another spiritual book' again and i was not aware of how God would use it to impact me or even influence me. I was proud, thinking that i knew everything that was written as all these i've read before. But God amazingly uses this book to once again and again reminded me about my mind, what His Spirit wants and how it contridicts to my human nature. I must still thank God that my foolishness and pride, he did not put down, but over rided with patience and love for me.

4thly, also wanna thank God for Zhiyan's dad that he actually got some eye drop for me from China and did not charge me for it...and i know it must have been quite expensive. Thank for for his kindness and thank God for Zhiyan for actually...indirectly helping me through this. THat's how God works...through people in an amazing manner. I'm utterly grateful for her whole family! =) THough my eye still teared occassionally (morning and evenings only), at least it's better than once every 10mins kind..haha! Hmm.. makes me cherish my tear duct even more...and that i don't take my eyes for granted any more....

Well..despite my busy schedule, i thought it's good to share (like what zhiyan suggested) to all of you about my personal life. Pardon me my england...know that i'm not that fluent in my language, but the gist is there..=)

So... let's continue to keep each other encouraged and updated by sharing about our live with one another eh! Sometimes we cannot share all in cell...so this is the other alternative way to see hwo God works in you eh! Let's not take this kindess for granted....your live is meant to be shared!

Love ya!
ting

Prayer Requests posted for 7 Mar (Wed)

2007-03-10T15:47:00.000+08:00

hola,ladies.this week for prayer let's make sure all of do it! i (Zhiyan) havent been following up on your prayer lives,so it's time we account to each other:) Since we all know that our blog is now in a tad bit of stale and lifeless situation,we will blog about our prayer life.not as in asking you to pray while blogging,but DO BLOG about how your prayers changed your day/week.our minds are in constant battle against Satan,and we need prayers to survive! this is not compulsory,but DO make an effort.and also,please do give me or weiting an sms after you've completed this week's prayer.if you cant do it on wednesday,then do it on thursday/friday/saturday,but do tell me or weiting about it.merci,amor.

PPP project prayer powerful

This is the prayer list for this coming Wednesday, 7th February 2006
- Weiting: Pray that she will have clear vision and purpose ay YMCA. She loves what she is doing, but it is crucial that she must capture God’s vision. Thank God for Zhiyan’s dad, her eye seldom tears now. Pray also that she will hunger for God’s word and stay connected to Him every moment.

- Xinhui: Pray for her cough, it has been a week already. Pray that she will draw closer to God and depend on His strength for each new day.

- Shuqi: Thank God that her exams are over and pray that she will accept her grades no matter what. Pray for her health.

- Zhiyan: Thank God for the amazing faith He has shown her and the blessings that He has granted upon her. Pray that she will have a good start in JC as school starts on Wednesday. Pray for her family members’ safety and that her grandparents will receive the Lord’s salvation.

- Yiyin: Pray for her cousin, secondary 2 this year. His attitude towards studies is really bad as he’s addicted to computer games and he’s disrespectful to his elders. Her whole family worried about him, so pray that God will touch Yiyin’s cousin’s heart, grant him forgiveness & grace and change his attitude. Pray that God’s gentleness will touch him through Yiyin and Yiyong when they try to talk to him about his problems.

- Yiqi: Pray for her skin, it’s getting better but still itching a lot. Pray for her injured left thigh – it isn’t injured, but it is keeping her away from exercise. Next Wednesday is the day whereby she changes her college, she doesn’t really mind where she ends up in, but she will need some getting use to. So pray that God will grant her spirit strength so that she can adapt quickly.

- Clara: Pray that she will be able to find a good job. She is still sleeping rather irregularly. Pray that she can also learn how to spend money wisely and that everybody around her will be in good health.

- Jinghui: Pray for her common tests. Pray that she will have a disciplined mind to manage her time both efficiently and wisely and pray for strength and perseverance for the week ahead, and pray that she will enough rest.

Sihan did not reply. Pray for Serene and Sihan according to the BLESS theme. Pray for their body, labour, emotions, spiritual health and social life. This prayer commitment to one another belongs to each and every one of us and it is our responsibility to make this work. Let’s bless each other! God bless your week!

prayer items!

2007-02-11T15:31:00.000+08:00

hey girls, remember to pray!
oh and i just realised, the next time we pray will be on Valentine's!
even IF you're going on a date, there's no excuse for not prayer. love y'all :)

This is the prayer list for this coming Wednesday, 14th February 2006

Clara: Pray that she will be able to get prepared for her semi finals (been worrying over it somehow, she doesn’t know why) Pray that she will also be able to get a job after Chinese new year, and that she will continue to maintain good relationships – with God, family and friends.

Weiting: Pray that she will have the time to see the doctor for her eye problem. Pray that she will have the self-control to do housework and good time management – honoring God first in everything. Pray also that she will find favour with volunteers and colleagues. Pray that she will have a discerning spirit and wisdom to handle people and that she will understand the heartbeat of God.

Xinhui: Pray that she will be able concentrate during her quiet time and that God will speak to her through her QT, allowing her to apply to her life. Pray that she will also make the right choice of JC and that she will do her tutorials on time as they are starting to pile up.

Shuqi: Pray for her family to grow strong in Christ and thank God for the great week for her! Pray for all the O Levelers that they will make a wise decision as to which school to go to. Lastly pray for the home catch of singers for choir.

Zhiyan: Thank God for her O Level results, and pray that she will make the right decision in choosing her JC. Pray that she will have self-discipline in quiet time.

Jinghui: Pray that she will exercise self-control and be disciplined in her studies and QT.

Sihan: Thank God for all that He has done!

Yiyin: Pray that she will be able to make decisions wisely for the choice of school and pray that she will thank God no matter what happens.

Yiqi: pray for her skin and that she will have enough rest and sleep. Pray that she will make wise decisions, that she will accept whatever that comes. Pray that she will be able to find peace in the Lord at night. Pray also that she will be able to move on and embrace the future.

Serene: Pray for her health, she has been sick lately.

Jieling did not reply, so pray for her according to the BLESS theme. Pray for her body, labour, emotions, spiritual health and social life.

This prayer commitment to one another belongs to each and every one of us and it is our responsibility to make this work. Let’s bless each other! God bless your week ☺

Image 2 - The Starving Baker

2007-02-07T00:08:00.000+08:00

THIS IS A COMMON HAZARD FOR LEADERS. IT'S THE BAKER WHO SPENDS SO MUCH TIME BAKING BREAD FOR OTHERS, HE FORGETS TO EAT AND STARVES HIMSELF. LEADERS MUST FEED THEMSELVES FOR PERSONAL GROWTH.

Imagine if you will. You visit a new bread shop not far from your house. You love going there because the chief baker has created a new recipe for breads, pastries and cinnamon rolls that are better than any you've ever tasted in your life!

Soon, word gets out about this bread shop. Crowds start forming lines each day, waiting for new confections to come from this baker's marvelous kitchen. The baker doesn't have enough help, and ends up trying to serve all the customers himself. He is rushing back and forth, busy with all the requests of the people - but oblivious to what's happening to him. His exhaustion is quickly becoming burnout. What's worse, as you watch him for a few weeks, you see a change. THis man is getting thin. Very thin. It almost seems like he is shriveling up. What's the deal?

You decide to just sit down and observe for a few hours. Suddenly, the problem becomes obvious. This man never stops to eat. The irony is, he is busy serving bread to everyone else but never stops long enough to feed himself. With food all around him, he is starving. Hmmm..

Do you getthe picture? So many leaders fail to tend to themselves, and eventually are unable to really serve others. They are starving intellectually, emotionally and spiritually. When they do read the Bibles or listen to CDs it is always for someone else. They are always preparing some Bible study for a group or message for others. They read for "program", not for personal growth, and neglect to consume the nourisment or apply itto their own lives. Their "talk" is great. Their "walk" becomes fake. They go through the motion, but aren't really spending time eating the "bread of life" (John 6:35). They are spiritually starving...so close to food yet never eating.

The Iceberg reminds us that leaders must lead themselves before leading others. The Starving Baker reminds us that leaders must feed themselves before feeding others.

"Sharpening the axe". This term came fro a little story about two woodcutters who challenged each other to see who can cut down moree trees in one day. At daybreak, the first one began furiously chopping down trees. he worked up a sweat early on, and by noon had cut down sixteen trees. the other woodcutter only cut down four, because he took the first two hours to sharpen his axe. As he sharpened it, his challenger laughed at him knowing he was doomed to lose the bet with all that wasted time.

That's when things got interesting. By early afternoon, the first woodcutter was slowing down. It took him almost an hour to cut down one tree, while his friend was picking up speed. How could this be? Certainly he was as strong as his friend. Unfortunatley, strength had little to do with it. It was all about whose axe was sharper. The sharper the axe - the quicker the trees came down. By late afternoon, the second woodcutter who sharpened his axe had passed up his friend by several trees and won easily. Hmmm. It seemed like such a waste of time to sharpen the axe in the morning, but in the long run, it had saved him time and had brought better results.

A Look at the Book:

Check out Ecclesiastes 10:10 in your Bible. It says:"If the axe is dull and he does not sharpen its edge, them he must exert more strength. Wisdom has the advantage of giving success."

The woodcutter story was inspired by the Scripture above. What is King Solomon saying with this verse? What does he mean?

Getting Personal:

Give youself a score based on how well you practice the following spiritual disciplines:

- Devotions (reading the bible just to connect with God relationally)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

- Prayer (talking with God and getting to know Him better through conversation)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

- Simplicity (simplifying your life by clearing out mental and physical clutter)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

- Worship (taking time to honor Gidf, to tell Him all He's worth; to thank Him; to enjoy His presence)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Practicing the Truth:

Read a short Scripture from the Bible, and journal three short paragraphs based on what you read. It doesn't have to be long - just jot down your thoiughts on these issues:

THEIR TIME: Jot a few sentences on what was being said or done by the original audience. You can almost paraphrase the verses. In your words explain what was happening during their time.

ALL TIME: Now jot a sentence or two on what you think is the all time principle you can learn from the passage. Is there a truth that is timeless you can pull from the verses?

MY TIME: Finally, jot down your personal application. What should you do as a result of reading this Scripture? You may want to write out a prayer for yourself.

I suggest you start this discipline by reading one of the Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke or John. Take a story from Jesus' life and journal 3 paragraphs above. It doesn't have to be a whole chapter, just a story. You might be amazed at what you learn from your journaling.

Taken from: Habitudes (Dr Tim Elmore)

photos for chalet

2007-01-08T10:45:00.000+08:00

Image 1: The Iceberg

2007-01-06T20:29:00.000+08:00

THE ICEBERG REPRESENTS YOUR LEADERSHIP. THE 10% ABOVE THE WATER REPRESENTS YOUR SKILL. THE 90% BELOW THE WATER REPRESENTS YOUR CHARACTER. IT'S WHAT'S BELOW THE SURFACE THAT SINKS THE SHIP.

An iceberg is an interesting picture of the 1st rule of leadership. There's more than meets the eye. Most of the iceberg is below the surface of the water. You probably remember the awsome story of the Titanic. The huge and unsinkable ship received 5 iceberg warnings that fateful night of April 14, 1912, just before it went down. When the 6th message came in during the wee hours of the next morning:"Look out for icebergs", the operator wired back, "Shut up! I'm busy!" These were his last words over the wire before it all happened. Exactly 30 minutes later, the great vessel - the one whose captain said even God couldn't sink this ship - was sinking. Hundreds of passengers and crew were drowned.

What was the problem? They forgot the truth about icebergs. What they saw above the water couldn't have sunk the great ship.

Unfortunately - most of an iceberg is below the waterline. They underestimated the power of the iceberg, and overestimated their own strength. What an accurate description of so many leaders today.

The iceberg is a great picture if leadership because so much of our influence comes from qualities we can't see on the outside. It's the stuff below the surface. It was estimated that 90% of our leadership is made up from our character. And our character is the sum total of our:

a. Self discipline

(the ability to do what's right even if you dun feel like it)

b. Core Values

(principles you live by that enable you to take a moral stand)

c. Sense of identity

(a relistic self image based on who God made you to be)

d. Emotional security

(the capacity to be emotionally stable and consistent)

Many people make it to the limelight, and neglect their character. Your skill may get you to the top - but it's your character that will keep you there. If you dun have strong charatcer, you will eventually sabotage your leadership. You can only fake it for so long.

The iceberg. Weak character may begin with lying and cheating on tests. It eventually takes the form of fraud, sex crimes, robbery and scandal.

It didn't start with our generation, though. One hundred years ago, a boy named Schicklewuber grew up in Europe, As a teen, he never learned about character. His parents never taught him right from wrong and he began to come up with his own ideas and values. His father put him down when he talked about becoming a priest and insulted him when he spoke of becoming an artist. He was never valued nor taught values. One night, he heard his mom and dad argue about moving away. He was convinced that they hated him and suspected they would leave him behind. He decided to put up an emotional wall and never let anyone inside his heart. He ran away. This boy grew up to be a man. The man became a leader. You know him as Adolf Hitler.

History proves that Adolf Hitler was a great leader, but he wasn't a good one. He failed to use his influence well. His skill and charisma were huge. His character was horribly flawed. He sabotaged himself - but not until he slaughtered more than 6 million innocent people along the way. While leadership skills are good to have, God doesn't want your skills at the expense of your charatcer and integrity. Lead yourself well before leading others.

The bad news about icebergs is that it's what below the surface that sinks a ship. Weak character will eventually damage our ability to lead. The good news about icebergs is that it's what's below the surface that supports the tip of the iceberg. In teh same way, strong character will hold you up long enough to use your skills.

Check out Luke 6:43-45.

These words, spoken by Jesus are loaded with meaning. We can be sure of at least one conclusion: Whatever is happening on the outside of our life comes from what's happening on the inside. When we see the fruit, we know what kind of tree it is: the outside is only a reflection of what's on the inside.

God puts "being" before "doing". He prioritizes taking care of the inside (our heart) because that will deteremine what takes place on the outside (our behavior).

So why is focusing on the "inside" so difficult for us today?

Take a minute to think about your character. Do you have strong character?

PRACTICING THE TRUTH:

Identify deveral things you really don't like doing. It may be a chore like sweeping the house or some other job around the house. It could be cleaning your room or studying on a daily basis. It may be listening or interacting with someon who seems unlovable. It may be physical exercise or discipline of waiting. It could be simple as eating a vegetable you dun like.

Choose 2 of these "undesirables" and make them disciplines. Deliberately do what you dun like doing. Practice them daily for a week. Put them in your calendar and ask someone to hold you accountable (If you do the, for 2 weeks, chances are they will become a habit!)

Discuss how have you gained personal victory by practicing these disciplines?

Taken from: Habitudes, The art of leadership, Dr Tim Elmore (Weiting)

Cell on 10 Dec 2006 - YBLN Chpt 32(Living with Enthusiasm)

2006-12-30T19:30:00.000+08:00

I know this comes a bit too late...but was real busy from beginning of dec 06...However, I still persist to complete this entry...as a finale for this book - Your Best Life Now...below is a general sharing of what we've shared in cell.

God's people should be the happiest people on earth! Why? Becoz we can enjoy life today! So the question posed: "Do you enjoy life now?"

What is living your best life now? It is living with ENTHUSIASM and BEING EXCITED about the life God has given you. It is BELIEVEING for more good things in the days ahead, but it is also living in the moment and enjoying it to the most!

There will be sometimes when we'll feel 'high', we would enjoy reading the praying, going to church and we can never seems to get enough of God. However, there may be times when you'll be thinking, "I dun know what's wrong with me. I dun have any drive, I dun have any passion. I'm just going through the motions."

The truth is that much of life is a routine and we can become stagnant if we are not careful. We must STIR ourselves up, to replenish our supply. We need fresh enthusiasm everyday. "ENTHUSIASM" in greek means to "inspired by God". So our lives need to be inspired and renewed by God's goodness every new day.

So how can I live everyday with the joy of the Lord in my life? You must understand that you dun have to have something extraordinary happening in your life to be excited. You may live the perfect environment, have a perfect school, a perfect family but you still can choose to live each day with enthu. The bible says, "Never lag in zeal, but be aglow and on fire, serving the Lord enthusiastically."

Wherever you are in life, make the most of it and be the best that you can be. Be in the midst of the ordinary, you can choose to have an extraordinary attitude towards your school. "Do everything with our WHOLE hearts, never to lag in zeal."

Know that when you live with passion and are excited about your dreams, other people will notice. Choose to be happy, live with excellence and integrity and put a spring in your step...So if you want to see God's favor, do everything with your whole heart. Dun live another day defeated and depressed, stir yourself up, rekindle that fire. Dun ever let people water down your fire. Try to overcome negativity by being positive. Thus your attitude should be:"It doesn't matter what anybody else does or doesn't do, I'm going to live my life with enthusiasm! I'm going to stay on fire!"

Quit looking at what's wrong and start thanking God for what's right! One of the main reasons that we lose our enthu in life is becoz we become ungrateful; we take for granted what God has done for us. We let what once was a miracle become common to us. So let us think through wjat in life we have taken for granted...and repent..

We must not take for granted the greatest gift of all that God has given you - HIMSELF! Do not allow your relationship with Him to become stale. No matter what you have gone through, whose fault it is, how impossible the situation may look, the good news is that God wants to turn it around and restore everything that has been stolen from you!

Remeber: It's our faith that activates the power of God. If you obey God and are willing to trust Him, you will have the best this life has to offer...

- Enlarge your vision
- Develop a healthy self image
- Discover the power of your thoughts and words
- Let go of the past
- Stand strong against opposition and adversity
-Live to give
- Choose to be hap-ppy!

*Copyright: Your Best Life Now (Weiting)

A Rhema Word

2006-12-29T23:46:00.000+08:00

Saw this article and thought it's quite cool...won't you like God to speak to both you and your future partner at the same time...tat both of you get a Rhema Word? Keep on praying for yourself for a pure heart and your future partner won't you? =)

For you will have a covenant with the stones of the field. - Job 5:23a

When I first met my wife, I was impressed to do something rather strange. I decided I would send her a rock in a box with a Scripture verse that describes how God used stones in the Bible. I was going to send it anonymously from a company called Significant Moments. I was going to do this for six months. The final month I planned to send the last rock with a note that said, "The most significant moment was the day I met you." I was going to sign my name on the last mailing.

However, before this could happen, the plan was spoiled.I was helping my wife (just a friend at the time) move her furniture. We were exchanging stories about our lives. She began to tell me the story of how she got her name. Her father was an orphan in England, and in England they give orphans different names from their given names. They named her father "Staines." Staines means "place of stones." Not only that, he discovered later that his real name was Malcolm Stones.

I nearly drove off the road when she told me this story. My plan was foiled! But my faith was advanced light years. I told her my plan since it would be too obvious now. We both looked at each other in amazement.

A month later, I went on a trip. She sent a little gift package along with me with a card that quoted a Scripture from Job. "For you will have a covenant with the stones of the field" (Job 5:23a).

It was a rhema word for both of us. God used these times to confirm our relationship.The Bible speaks of the Word of God as living. Rhema is a Greek word meaning "living."

Sometimes the Holy Spirit speaks through the living Word regarding a specific situation in which we find ourselves. It is one of those mysteries that God does from time to time.As you read your Bible, be aware of the rhema Word of God. He may speak to you in specific ways you never thought possible.

Taken from TGIF Today: Prime Time with God (Weiting)

Cell on 3 Dec 2006 - YBLN Chpt 31(Being a Person of Excellence & Integrity)

2006-12-12T13:38:00.000+08:00

Had Children's camp the week before...tat's why this entry was late. 2nd last chapter of 'Your Best Life Now'...note that mostly below are excrepts from the book...

God has called us to be a CUT ABOVE. He has called us to stand out in the crowd, to be the people of excellence and integrity. A person of excellence and integrity goes the extra mile to do what's right.

4 main things to note about EXCELLENCY:

a) She keeps her word even though it's difficult. We represent God in how live, how we conduct ourselves or do our work. Everything that we do is a reflection on our God. We must take pride in what God has given us. We may be in a situation today where everybody around us is comprising their integrity or taking the easy way out. Don't let that affect us. Let us be the one to have an excellent spirit, be the one to stand out in the crowd.

b) People of excellence must get rid of laziness and sloppiness as we are a representative of Lord God Almighty!

c) People of excellence go the extra mile to do what's right not becoz someone's looking at them, not because they have to but because they are honouring God.

d) People of excellence take care of other people's property as if it's their own.

3 main things to note about INTERGRITY:

a) A person of intergity is open and honest. She doesn't have any hidden agenda or ulterior motives

b) A person of intergity is true to her word. She keeps her committments.

c) People of intergrity are the same in private as they are in public. They don't go out and treat their friends and coworkers kindly and then go home and treat their family rudely or disrespectfully. When we have intergrity, we'll do what's riught whether anybody is watching or not.

Note that if we lie about little things, before long, we'll lie abour bigger things. Most people started off with comprising with little things. Remember that comprising with our integrity is a downhill slide. And theft is theft, whether it's 10 dollars or 1,000,000 dollars.

Are we treating other people with respect and honour? If we don't pass those little tests, if we don't learn to do what's right in little areas, God can't trust you with more! Learn to listen to your conscience. God put that inside you so that you would have an inner rule by which to know right from wrong.

The truth is, whether we realised or not, we are all building our own homes. We may cut corners here and there, but it's not hurting anybody except ourselves. Those poor decisions will weaken our foundations, causing all kinds of problnes in the future. So what kind of materials are we putting into our homes?

Our lives are an open book before God. He looks at our hearts. He look ar our motives.

Remember: Don't just do what you have to do to get by. Be a person who goes the extra mile!

Done by: Weiting

Our Deepest Fear

2006-12-05T21:20:00.000+08:00

Saw this a month ago...no one approved it for sometime and I thought it was good....so...here it to share...can someone claim this article? =) (weiting)

Our Deepest Fear

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.
We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.

It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we're liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

Marianne Williamson

Why couldn't I find time for God in my schedule?

2006-11-30T13:41:00.000+08:00

I saw this article in a teens website and I thought of you gers...I pray that God is able to speak to you through this...God bless!

I Took on Too Much

I slammed my fist on the beeping alarm clock and strained to focus on the bright red numbers. It was 5:30. I hadn't slept even six hours. I moaned and flopped back down on my pillow, squeezing my eyes shut.

As I lay there, I remembered my promise to spend 15 minutes every morning praying and doing devotions. This morning, that was a promise my tired body just couldn't keep. Maybe I can just stay in bed and pray instead, I thought.

I started praying, but drifted off to sleep a few minutes later. Before I knew it, the alarm buzzed again—5:45. No time for devos today, I thought as I slowly dragged myself out of bed. Maybe later tonight—after cheerleading and play practice, and once I get my homework done.

But "later" never came. Instead of spending time with God, my nights would be filled with activities and homework until I crashed. My mornings would usually wind up like this one—a battle to even get out the door on time for another jam-packed day.

My over-involvement started innocently enough. I loved playing the saxophone, so marching band was a perfect fit. Practice was early in the morning, which left the afternoons free for another activity. So when I made the cheerleading squad I was ecstatic.

Then, my best friend, Debby, convinced me to try out for the school play. Practice was in the evening, so it wouldn't interfere with anything. After that, my guidance counselor talked me into tutoring grade school kids during lunch. Who could say no to little kids? It all seemed manageable at first, and I knew it would look great on my college applications.

But just a few weeks into my sophomore year, I was burning out. There wasn't enough time to juggle homework, classes and other activities and still leave time for family, friends and God. My commitment to daily devotions and prayer seemed like a distant memory.

One night, after an extra-long cheerleading practice, I slouched over the kitchen table, exhausted. My mom and sister had eaten two hours earlier, so it was another dinner alone.
"Did you have a good day?" Mom asked, taking my plate out of the refrigerator and placing it in the microwave. "No," I said. "It was awful. It was just like yesterday and the whole week before that. There's just not enough time to get everything done."

"Amy, you seem overwhelmed," she said gently. "I'm worried that you're too busy. Could you consider dropping out of something?" "Like what?" I snapped. "I'd be letting people down. Besides, I like everything I'm in." "You do?" she asked, raising her eyebrows. "You don't look happy to me." "I can't think about this now," I said, taking the warm plate from her hands. "I have to be back at school in half an hour for play practice." As I wolfed down my food, I worked on my biology homework. But before I could finish either my homework or my dinner, I had to leave for play practice.

Driving back to school, I couldn't keep the tears from sliding down my cheeks. I was exhausted, overwhelmed, and completely unprepared for play practice. I hadn't had time to memorize my lines. Worse, I reacted harshly when Debby invited me out for ice cream after practice to work on my lines. "I have more important things to do than work on this," I cried, my face burning with anger and frustration. "I'm sorry," she stuttered. "I just thought I could help you."
"I don't need any help," I snapped. "What I need is time to work on important things, like my homework."

As I headed home, I knew something had to give—now. I was physically, spiritually and emotionally drained. It was midnight before I got to bed. My Bible was exactly where I'd left it, and I didn't have any energy to pick it up and read it. I set my alarm for 5:30 again, hoping I'd get up to do devos. But I knew I wouldn't.

The next morning, I apologized to Debby and asked for a rain check on the ice cream. Then, instead of doing homework between classes, I made a list of things that were really important to me: God, family, friends, marching band, cheerleading and grades. I realized that although I enjoyed tutoring kids and being a part of the school play, they weren't things I'd really wanted to do. I'd been talked into them and accepted those commitments even though I didn't have time for them. I cut my tutoring session short that day and talked to my guidance counselor at lunch. "I like tutoring, but I feel overwhelmed," I admitted. "I don't think I can do this anymore. I'm sorry." "We'll miss you," she said. "But we can find someone to fill your spot. Next time, just be honest and up front about your time. No one wants to see you so frazzled."

That night during the break at play practice, I talked to my director. "I know I'm not doing a good job," I told her. "I just got way over-involved and I can't do it all. I don't think I can be part of the play anymore." "I understand how you're feeling," she said kindly. "But the play is only a few weeks away, and I don't think I can replace you." I nodded. I'd made a commitment and I knew I had to stick to it. "But," she said slowly, "You're not in every scene. We can practice your part first, and then you can feel free to go home." I smiled. "Thank you."

It didn't take long for me to settle into my more manageable schedule. Cutting down the number of activities I was in helped me make good on other promises. It also became easier to honor my commitment to reading the Bible and praying every day. I started to feel God's presence in my life in a new way. My life improved in other ways too. I started getting more rest, which helped practically everything—my health, my grades, my attitude. I found time for dinner with my family and I reconnected with my friends.

By the time my junior year rolled around, my commitment to focus on two activities had paid off. I was co-captain of the cheerleading squad and the drum major of the marching band. There were still weeks when life got hectic. But by sticking with the things that were important to me, and not taking on more than I could handle, I knew I'd be able to get by.

*By Amy Adair, Ignite Your Faith, Campus Life, September/October 2005, Vol. 64, No. 2, Page 58 (added by ting)

GOD IS GOOD

2006-11-23T22:40:00.000+08:00

something for you guys to read!maybe some of you have even read it before but hey let us be reminded once again of his everlasting goodness. :))

---INSPIRATION---
Our Turnaround Thanksgiving Ivy Olson from Chicken Soup from the Soul of Hawaii

Who was the grandmotherly stranger that fed us on Thanksgiving--and changed our lives? On Thanksgiving Day, I awoke on the mattress that I shared with my two young children and tumbled into despair. At the time I was 25 and recently divorced. It was three days to pay day and there was no money left. I had a job but was only making $300 a month, and that month's entire paycheck had already gone to pay for the apartment and food for my little boys. I had swallowed my pride and applied for food stamps, but had been turned down because I made two dollars over the monthly limit. On that Thanksgiving Day, there was nothing left to eat in the house but three hot dogs. Perhaps hardest of all was my feeling of isolation. There were no friends to help. No one had invited us to share the holiday dinner. The loneliness was worse than the ever-present hunger. But it was Thanksgiving, and for the sake of the children I knew I had to make the best of the day.

"Come on, boys," I said. "Today's a special day. We're having a picnic!" Together the three of us went to the park and cooked the hot dogs on the grill. We played happily together until late in the afternoon. But on the way home, the boys asked for more food. The single hot dog they had eaten did not come close to being a decent meal. I knew they were hungrier even than they let on. I tried to joke about it with them, but inside, I was very, very scared. I didn't know where our next meal was going to come from. I'd reached the end of my rope.

As we entered our apartment building, an old woman I'd never seen before stepped directly into our path. She was a tiny thing wearing a simple print dress, her wispy white hair pulled up in a bun. With her smile of greeting, she looked like a kind-hearted tutu, an island grandmother. "Oh, honey," the old lady said as the boys and I started to walk past. "I've been waiting for you. You left this morning before I could catch you. I've got Thanksgiving dinner ready for your family." Nonplused, I thought that I shouldn't accept such an offer from a complete stranger. With a word of thanks, I started to brush past. I looked at my boys. Their hunger tore at me. Even though it was against my better judgment, I accepted. The old lady's apartment was on the ground floor. When she opened the door we saw a beautiful table set for four. It was the perfect Thanksgiving meal with all the traditional trimmings. The candles were lit and it was obvious that guests were expected. We were expected.

Gradually I began to relax. We all sat down together to enjoy the meal. Somehow, I found myself talking freely of my loneliness, the difficulty of raising two small boys by myself, and of the challenges I was facing. The grandmotherly woman listened with compassion and understanding. I remember I felt that for that time, at least, we were home. As the evening ended, I wondered how could I possibly express my thanks for such incredible kindness. Eyes brimming, I simply said, "Thank you, I know that now I can go on." A complete stranger had reached out and given our little family such an important gift. The boys were grinning from ear to ear as the elderly lady loaded them down with Tupperware bowls full of leftovers. We left her apartment that evening bubbling with joy, the boys joking and laughing. For the first time in a long time, I felt certain that I could face what had to be faced. I was a different person from the scared girl I had been that morning. I'd somehow been transformed. We all had.

Early the next day, in a happy mood, I went back to visit my new friend and to return the borrowed bowls. I knocked, but there was no answer. I looked through an open window. What I saw shocked me. The apartment was completely empty. There wasn't a stick of furniture. There wasn't anything. I hurried down to the manager's apartment. "What happened to the elderly lady in apartment three?" I asked. He gave me a look and said, "What lady? That apartment's been vacant for the past 10 or 12 weeks. "But I had Thanksgiving dinner last night with the lady who lives there," I told the manager. "Here are her bowls." The manager gave me a strange look and turned away. For many years, I didn't tell anyone the story of that special Thanksgiving.

Finally, in 1989, I felt compelled to speak out. By then, I had become the wife of the Kahu Doug Olson, Pastor of Calvary by the Sea Church on O'ahu. I went before the congregation and told them of my dream: to establish a program to help women in Hawai'i who find themselves in a situation similar to the one I had faced so many years ago. Creating a 'Network' of AngelsNow, over a decade later, the Network has helped over 1400 homeless, single mothers and their children to get back on their feet. After "graduation," a remarkable 93 percent of the families continue to support themselves. Last year's budget, which is funded by state, church and private monies, was $700,000. I really surprised myself by telling the congregation my entire story that day, but I think it was meant to be. In the end helping the homeless with money and food is only secondary. What I learned on that Thanksgiving Day, is that an hour of being loved unconditionally can truly change a life. In the end, it is all that we can give. And the name of the organization? Angel Network Charities, of course.

Ivy Olson from Chicken Soup from the Soul of Hawaii

hope it was as inspiring to you as it was to me. (:

loves;jinghui

Cell on 19 Nov 2006 (Sunday)

2006-11-21T11:11:00.000+08:00

Actually it's not really cell cell...but more on announcement and some discussions..here it goes:

1) Prayer
- Commit to pray for 3 person (non believer / non churched)
- Commit to pray for 3 minutes everyday
- Commit to pray for 3 hours from now till end of 2006
a. 1 Nov (Friday) in SBC from 6-10pm (commit 2 hours of prayers)
b. 26 Nov (Sunday) in A21 from 11-12pm (commit 1 hour of prayer)

2) Choir Concert & Church's Seminar
Though we have long agreed to attend the choir concert (Shuqi & Jinghui), but due to unforseen circumstances, we would not be able to make it to their concert this sunday. It was also understood that if church (overall) event clashes with ministry/personal activities, the main (overall) event would have to come 1st. However if school event and church event clashes, we must weigh the importance of either all.

3) Building Funds & Missions Funds
- Sihan, Shuqi and Xinhui to collect Building Funds leaflet from Weiting

4) G12 Chalet on 26-28 Dec 06
- Purpose of this chalet is to have fellowship with one another and to know other youths better
- Youths invited: Simon's G12, Chengxin's G12, other sec 3s and sec 4s youths, Pastor Lishien's G12 youth (Yixin, Yingdan and Winnie)
- Please make payment to Xinhui asap: $25
- Please inform your parents early about this

5) G12 Cell Changing to Sat by 2007
- Venue: Agape Lor 11
- Agreed cell timing: 4.30pm - 6.30pm
- We may have combined worship with Chengxin's cell before we spilt into sharing
- There'll be combined youth cell with Jasper, Xiuhui and Simon's G12) every end of the month from 6.30 - 8pm

6) Christmas Celebration
- 23th December (Youth Christmas Celebration, to bring friends)
- 24th December (Church Christmas Celebration, to bring relatives or family)

7) Baptism by 2006
- Sihan, Han En, Jinghui, Xinhui, Jieling

8) G12 Tshirt & Blog
- Zhiyan to bring the tshirt design to show us by following week
- Encourage G12 to share on our blog BUT sharing must be edifying and God honouring. Let us continue to use our words and deeds to encourage and spur one another on!

"Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear." Eph 4:29

9) Prayer Requests

a. Physical Health
- Jieling's right ear (infection)
- Shuqi that she'll not be sick as her Prague trip is around the corner

b. Spiritual Health
- Jinghui
- Shuqi
- Yiyin

c. Clara's Singing Semi Finals on 3 Dec 06 in Music Clinic

d. Shuqi and Jinghui's Choir Concert on 26 Dec 06

e. Overseas Trip:
- Shuqi to Prague from 2 Dec - 8 Dec 06
- Zhiyan to Hong Kong from 30 Nov - 5 Dec 06
- Zhiyan to Bangkok from 8 Dec - 15 Dec 06

*done by Weiting

2006-11-19T18:08:00.000+08:00

(pleasepleaseplease dont edit this... please....)

"Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful apart from me. Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing." -John 15:4-5

sounds farmiliar? recall something similiar to the verse Pastor Lishien gave during service today? Yup. you guys would be thinking, oh so i have to remain in Jesus to produce fruits for him. But do you know what i thought of when this verse was read?
i thought i couldnt make it.
i was unfit to be even a branch in Jesus.
because i felt so so unclean, so so unworthy.
and i dont think i bore any fruit for Him.

then there was this camp like when i was P3 for the kids in church that we were supposed to memorise this whole thing abaove and what goes on next, in chinese before. i knew what was supposed to happen if you dont bare fruit. as the scripture reads...

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch that does not produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. You have already been pruned for greater fruitfulness by the message I have given you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and youcannot be fruitful apart from me. Yes I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. Anyone who parts from me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned." John 15:1-6

The Father cuts of every branch that DOES NOT produce fruit.

then i was asking God just to cut me off. i mean hello, i deserved it. thats my punishment. Yeah, just cut me off. how can i even stay in that tree and receive nutrients and water so freely from him and not even bear a single leaf or fruit? its like im a parasite! parasites arent needed here. in fact they are cut off, removed. In the chinese text, the bible says that the branch will be thrown on the floor, stepped, and thrown into the fire to be burned.
cmon i deserved it, i told God. just throw me into the fire.

but you know our God is such a loving and kind God.

he showed me this picture of the story of that three people who were thrown into the fire by the king cos they didnt worship his statue, but God stood by them! even in the fire! i was so gandong can. i mean like here i am not being grateful for Him accepting me even though im such a bloody sinner and yet He still tried to tell me that I still LOVE YOU! oh man. yes, be grateful people, and I just wanna remind you guys that YOU ARE LOVED FOR WHO YOU ARE! and this love is like extraordinary...

okay another story.
i have been wondering for a very very very long time.
whats so great about Jesus suffering for us? i mean like, there are thousands over who have been through crucifixion and many more who have went through worse tormentings for others. like for example, dying for a friend, or maybe a wrongly accused killed equals to dying for someone else. like whats the big deal abt Jesus? i know he died for me, yeah. but people die for their loved ones and friends. and whats up with emphasising how painful the road to crucifixion is? many have been through it. not like Jesus is special case and that he got like 100 whippings instead of the usual 20. and Jesus wasnt the only one who died for nothing, there are people who are wrongly accused and are innocent too. okay, maybe you think im dumb. but i saw the difference today. the very difference that made Jesus God, and the very difference that made Jesus our loving saviour.

firstly, cmon everyone is selfish.
those who died for their friends may have did it willingly, but, they didnt do it with complete love for that person cos no one has complete love. there may be some motives in dying for that person and i dont believe that guy who would die for his friend never had a second thought about doing that. but Jesus was different. He did it with complete willingness and out of true love for us, yes everyone of us.
secondly, the people who are wrongly accused and everything did sin even though they werent supposed to be penalised so heavily for it. but Jesus didnt. he didnt deserve any of that. he really didnt. cos he had never done a single wrong thing in his entire life. moreover, even a small sin as a lie is counted as a sin, and a sin equals death. so you could probably say everyone deserves to die, or put on the cross or whatever in some way. just that we didnt have to do it. cos Jesus did it.
and, talking abt people who have went through worse tormentings, i think Jesus is even worser than them. cos he had to carry the weight of the world, the weight of all our sins. you know how much that is? that is the lifetime of everyone on, has been or will be on this earth. you know how much that is? lol, i cant even count my own bag of sins.

ya so hey, be grateful. you dont have to be the one carrying all that load cos your saviour did it for you.
and i wanna say thanks to God here for making me realise how lucky and blessed i am(: I LOVE YOU GOD!
guesswho(((: bet you know aha.

Cell on 12 Nov 06: Visioneering (Andy Stanley) - Chapter 1

2006-11-14T19:30:00.000+08:00

Announcements to make:

- Commit to pray for 3 persons to know Christ for 3 minutes everyday, to commit 3 hours of extenstive prayer from now till Dec 2006.

- 1 Dec 2006 (6-10pm), make time to go for Prayer Gathering in SBC. (2 hours extensive prayer settled)

- 26 Nov - 2 Dec 2006, our cell to choose a day to commit to pray for an hour together. (3rd hour extensive prayer to be settle)

We had combined cell with Chengxin's G12 on that faithful day. Due to 'O' levels, Zhiyan, Yiqi, Yiyin and Xinhui had to leave for revision. Sihan was sick, Shuqi went to Singtel Trade Show for carolling. Thus the cell was left with Clara, Jieling, Jinghui, Sining and moi.

Initally we shared about the sermon from Pastor Ting, about what is something that we'll regreat if Jesus would to come now...and interestingly, most shared about not bringing friends to know Christ. After which I started to share on the 1st chapter (A Vision is Born) about how to build a vision using the book, "Visioneering" by Andy Stanley.

What is a vision? Where do they come from? "Vision are born in the soul of a man or woman who is consumed with the tension between what is and what could be." Anyone who is emotionally involved (frustrated, brokenhearted, angry) about the way things are in light of the way they believe things could be, is a candidate for a vision. Vision form in the hearts of those who are dissatisfied with the status quo.

Vision is a clear mental picture of what could be, fueled by the conviction that it should be. Vision is a preferred future. A destination. Vision always stands in contrast to the world as it is. Vision demands change. For a vision to become a reality, it requires someone who has the courage to act out on an idea.

Building Block 1: A Vision Begins as a Concern
A God ordained vision will begin as a concern. You'll hear or see something that gets your attention. A thought related to the future will generate an emotion.Something will bother you about the way things are or the way things are headed. Unlike many passing concerns, this will stick with you. Nehemiah's concern over the conditions of Jerusalem consumed him. It broke his heart. Everyone who knew him was aware that something is bothering Nehemiah. THis was vision in the making.

So what did he do? He did nothing at all. He didn't run away from the palace, he didn't think of a reason to leave Persia, he didn't even share his burden with other concerned Jews. But he also did not allow his daily responsibilities to distract him from the burden that gripped his heart. He chose to wait. "What could be and should be can't be until God is ready for it to be." So he waited.

Building Block 2: A Vision does not neccessarily require immediate action
A lot of people, once they feel that their idea is from God, they assume all systems are ready to go and they need to quit their jobs, step out in faith and begin. But the story with Nehemiah and other biblical accounts, illustrates the truth that a clear vision does not neccessarily indicate a green light to begin. A vision rarely requires immediate action. It always requires patience.

Why wait? (1) Because the vision matures and in us. (2) We mature in preparation for the vision (3) God is at work behind the scenes preparing the view

How do I know the vision is from God? (1) A God ordained vision will eventually feel like a moral imperative (2) A God ordained vision will be inline with what God is up in the world.

Of course I did not share so much in the cell...but to be more practical, I asked everyone to write out what they think should be in the 4 areas of their lives: School, Family, Ministry, Financial. Next, since visions are often born in the soul of a man and woman who is gripped by a tension between what is and what should be. Thus, is there any thing in the world or around they that is bothering them? Example: Youth at Risk, poverty, children at risk and such. Write it down. Followed by 3 personal prayer requests.

Ending: Each one is asked to pray for each other and to write an encouragement note to the person they prayed for this week.

*done by Weiting

Widow of Nain - Dealing with Grief

2006-11-08T15:50:00.000+08:00

Widow of Nain - Dealing with Grief

Selections from Luke 12

Jesus was on His way to a town called Nain. His disciples and a large crowd were traveling with Him. Just as He neared the gate of the town, a dead man was being carried out. He was his mother's only son, and she was a widow. A large crowd from the city was also with her.

When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said, Don't cry. Then He came up and touched the open coffin, and the pallbearers stopped. And He said, Young man, I tell you, get up! The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.

Her son was all she had left. Whatever flame still flickered on her trembling candle of hopes and dreams was now nothing more than a colorless trail of hollow smoke. Little did she know that where there's smoke, there's fire. And where there's God, there's hope.

On the surface of your grief, it feels like you're pleading with God, raising your voice in order to get his attention. But he's long been aware of your need. Before the widow even knew that Jesus was anywhere in town, he had spotted her. He wasn't waiting to be asked. Before your heart has a chance to break, his has already gone out to you. Before your tears have begun their bitter journey, he has wept over you. Though you may not notice him, he's already there. Sitting right beside you. Giving you all you need.

Look At It This Way ...
Maybe God isn't trying to tell us anything specific each time we hurt. Pain and suffering are part and parcel of our planet, and Christians are not exempt. Suffering offers a general message of warning to all humanity that something is wrong with this planet and that we need radical outside intervention.

Another story from the Gospels may clarify this approach. In John 9, Jesus refutes the traditional explanation of suffering. His followers point to a man born blind. Clucking with pity, they ask, Who sinned, this man or his parents? The disciples wanted to look backward, to find out WHY? Jesus redirected their attention.

Consistently, he points forward, answering a different question: To what end?

And that, I believe, offers a neat summary of the Bible's approach to the problem of pain. To backwardlooking questions of cause, to the Why questions, it gives no definite answer. But it does hold out hope for the future, that even suffering can be transformed or redeemed. "Suffering offers an opportunity for us to display God's work." - Philip Yancey

A final thought:Seasons of grief reveal where we've placed our hope. If God is all we want in the easy times, he'll be more than enough when we get to the hard ones.

*Souce: One minute of Bible for Women of Character

Ruth - Wisely Seeking a Husband

2006-11-07T13:46:00.000+08:00

RUTH - WISELY SEEKING A HUSBAND

Knowing Ruth's fondness for Naomi, we can only assume that her marriage to Naomi's son had been a happy one. So let's learn from someone who had walked the aisle once and was willing to do it again. There's no man like the right man.

Selections from Ruth 3:7-10 (Holman Christian Standard Bible)

After Boaz ate, drank, and was in good spirits, he went to lie down at the end of the pile of barley. Then [Ruth] went in secretly, uncovered his feet, and lay down. At midnight, Boaz was startled, turned over, and there lying at his feet was a woman!

So he asked, "Who are you?"

"I am Ruth, your slave," she replied.

"May the LORD bless you, my daughter," he replied. "You have shown more kindness now than before because you have not pursued younger men, whether rich or poor."

Look At It This Way

If you still have children at home who are not yet marrying age, begin consistently praying for their wisdom in choosing a godly wife or husband when the time comes. And don't just pray about it by yourself during your drive-time or private devotions, but pray along with them. That's not forcing their hand toward marriage but helping them to see how serious an impact this one choice will have on their life . . . and how much God must love them to be watching out for them so far in advance.

As I stand on this side of matrimony with no potential mate in sight, I still have so many questions. Will I know when I'm walking through the story for the first time? Will I recognize the event that will begin the chapters of my love story with my mate? Will time stand still for one moment to tell me that this person - this one person, out of all the billions bustling on the planet - is the one?

Some questions are probably best left unasked. I know I should push them aside and wait for life to unfold its mysteries. Someday when I'm older and wiser, I'll probably tell some young fool the same things I get so tired of hearing from others. I'll tell him to bide his time, "for it's sure to work out in the end." And, of course, "you can't rush these things."

How will you respond when one day you look back on your love story? Will it bring tears of joy or tears of remorse? Will it remind you of God's goodness or your lack of faith in his goodness? Will it be a story of purity, faith, and selfless love? Or will it be a story of impatience, selfishness, and compromise? It's your choice.
- Joshua Harris

Final Thought
God can transform any marriage at any stage of the trip - and make it better than it was when it started - when we wisely seek to serve Him, and in turn to serve each other.

*Source:LifeWay Newsletter (One Minute Bible for Women)

YBLN-Chapter 29 & 30

2006-11-03T11:36:00.000+08:00

Chapter 29: Sowing and Growing (22 Oct 06 - Sunday)

The Dead Sea is a dense salt lake fed by Israel's Jordan River. The name suggests its characteristics. It is, well, dead, because it has no output. Do we want to be like the Dead Sea? Lifeless, selfish and drained of the spirit of giving? God did not create us to be a reservoir that only collects. If He has given us joy, we pass it on, share the joy with someone else, make somebody else smile. One of the ways to do this is to sow a seed in time of need.

Number 1: stay full of joy

Number 2: go out and sow a seed

By doing so we are not only preparing for our future, we are also practicing good faith. If you have problems giving, remember that we reap what we sow. So go ahead, reap! God is also keeping a record of everything you've done, so don't listen to lies which tell you that little things you've done for other people don't make too much of a difference. Whenever we give, don't worry about what you have left. God promises that there will not only be enough for our needs, but we'll have plenty left over so that we can give joyfully to others!

As Israel's wise man said, "there is one who scatters, yet increases more." (Proverbs 11:24).

Homework: Do something out of the ordinary as an expression of your faith.

Chapter 30: Happiness is a Choice (22 Oct 06 - Sunday)

My life is in the hands of whichever fool who makes me angry. Literally and figuratively. Being happy and choosing to do so is extremely difficult for us human beings, because we get irritated, angered and frustrated so easily.

Who cries out in joy when O levels are just a week away? Who sings, "It's so nice to be Happy, Sha-lalala..." when we get nagged by our parents? But God tells us to be happy! This is no external and ordinary joy, but this is the joy that comes from within our hearts, when our souls dance and unadulterated joy fills our being because we know that we are princesses of God! He has given us enough grace to live through today, so give thanks! Happiness is a decision you make. Remember that the enemy Is always trying to steal away your joy. We are weak and susceptible to temptations when we're joyless.

Even when you're in dire conditions, tell yourself that since this is what God has given you to work with, make the best use of it. Bloom among thorns, thrive beyond horizons!

Be content where you are, and that means you trust God enough that you don't get frustrated when things don't go your way. God is not going to change your circumstances until you change; so pessimistic attitudes are a no-no. God loves you, and He'll never forsake you! (contented sigh) thank God for God.

Homework: just be happy. It's that simple, yet so hard.

*Prepared by Zhiyan

YBLN - Chpt 27 & 28

2006-09-25T12:44:00.000+08:00

Your Best Life Now (YBLN)

Chapter 27: Keep your Heart of Compassion Open (15 Oct 06-Sunday)

Compasion, feeling what other people feel, being concerned, showing that you care, taking time for them, and doing what you can to help; you have a geniue concern

All of us have compasion. When God created us, He put His supernatural love in all of our hearts. He's placed in you the potential to have a kind, caring, gentle, loving spirit. You have the ability to empathize, to feel what other people are feeling. Because you were created in the image of God, you have the moral capacity to experience God's compassion in yout heart. But too often, because of our own selfishness, we choose to close our hearts to compasion.

More than our advice, more than our instuctions, people need our listening ears. Many people simply need somebody they can talk to. sombody whom they can be honest. They just need a friend that they can count on. You can be amazed at what a positive impact you can have if you will just learn to be a good listener.

God may be prompting to you about somebody to whom you need to reach out. If somebody's name keeps coming up in your mind, and you feel compassion toward them, do something about it. It can be just a simple prayer, or even pick up the phone to give that person a ring.

Thoroughout life, God will lead us to people on need. If you are sensitive to it, you will discern His supernatural love welling inside you, directing you towards a person or situation that God wants to help through you. But you must recognise what is happening and follow that love.

"What are we to do when we feel compasionate towards beggars?" Someone asked. Generally, we know that it is not possible that we help each and everyone of them. First, we have to discern whether he/she really needs our help. Secondly, see what kind of help you can offer. It does not neccesary be money. You can buy him/her food if they are hungry. Or else, you can say something encouraging to him/her. Last but not the least, do keep him/her in prayer too.

Keep your heart of compassion open. Learn to be quick to follow the flow of love God puts in your heart. Be sensitive and obedient to do what God wants you to do.

Chapter 28: The Seed Must Lead (15 Oct 06-Sunday)

This chapter is a continuation from the last chapter. However it goes on and says that even in times of trouble, we must have a heart of compassion and extend our help to others. First, we must trust in the Lord and second, we must go and do something good. Go out and sow some seeds. In times of trouble, instead of putting your focus on the problem, see what you can do to bless others.

What does it mean by sowing seed? All throughout the Bible, we find the principle of sowing and reaping. Just like a farmer must plant some seeds if he hopes to reap the harvest, we, too must plant some good seeds in the fields of our families, careers, businesses, and personal relationships. Seeds of love, compassion, patience...

In your times of difficulty, don't sit around feeling sorry for yourself. Go sow a seed, Moreover, you don't need to wait until you have a problem before you start sowing. We should constantly be on the lookout for ways that we can be a blessing, not just when our backs are against the wall. We should be up each day, looking for ways to help others. if you will do that, the Bible says God's blessing will chase you down and overtake you. Make up your mind to be a giver in life, always looking for opportunities to sow some seeds.

And if others bless you with a gift, or a simple complement, accept it graciously and with a humble heart. It is more blessed to give than to receive. Don't rob him/her of his/her blessing. He/She has planted a seed by doing something ggod for you. Don't pull up his/her seed out of the ground and give it back. You will be doing him/her a disservice.

Sowing seed is not a replacement for tithing. In fact, it is usually when you give over and above the first 10 percent of your income that this principle kicks into high gear. Which means, other than your tithe, you give more than your 10percent for thanksgiving offering, building fund and mission fund. Actually, you can rob God and expect Him to bless you at the same time. But you must realise God doesn't need your money nor your time nor your talent. When God asks us to give, it is not because He's trying to get something from us, No, it's because he's trying to get us to put some seed in the ground so we can reap a harvest. This reminds us always to serve with a humble heart and all for His glory.

So, whom can I bless today? Where is a need that I can meet? Whom can I encourage? Whom can I cheer up?

* Prepared by Xinhui