It's the last day of the year! Yes yes, some may say it's just another day, that may be true, but it's also the end of 2008, tomorrow will be 2009, another year that brings new things to learn, to experience. I dunno about you, but I'm excited.
To all who sat for the PMR exams, your results are out! Congratulations are in order, I believe. I do hope you are all happy with whatever results you got, because it was through your hard work, dedication and perseverance that you got those results. I thank God for you all, and I pray you will continue to work hard in the coming years. Being a student is one of the best things in life. You may not feel it, with the endless homework, assignments, projects and exams, and you may think I'm mad to say things like that. But wait till you work.. haha.. then you know that work sucks.. haha.. and studies suck less than work.. hahaha.
Today, we will be having a Thanksgiving Service at 7.30pm in church. This is the time when all those who are involved in ministry will be recognised for their hard work and dedication, a time to honour them, and also a time to honour God for His blessings upon us. Come and attend the service everyone. Even if you're not serving in any ministry, come and encourage those who are, and perhaps make a decision to serve next year. Those who are in ministry, make sure you dress nicely tonite.. haha. See you all.
Happy New Year everyone!
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Monday, December 29, 2008
Christmas Photos
Ho Ho Ho Merry Christmas... eh, it's past and it's almost countdown time to the New Year! Ooops.. Happy New Year then! But I was thinking about Christmas because we took some photos during our Christmas Party on the 20th (combined with Chinese youths) and also the party at my place on the 27th, these photos are on the web, so check them out huh?
We also have our new tee shirts out and I know some think it's the cartoon network we're promoting, it's not lo.. haha.. so come and get your new youth tee shirts.. only RM25 ..
This year is almost closing to an end, and the new year will soon begin... how exciting!
We also have our new tee shirts out and I know some think it's the cartoon network we're promoting, it's not lo.. haha.. so come and get your new youth tee shirts.. only RM25 ..
This year is almost closing to an end, and the new year will soon begin... how exciting!
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Christmas is Here
Sorry haven't updated this blog for a while, things have been busy. Let's see, what have we done so far... ooo, the Gaya Christmas play went absolutely like clock work, nobody missed their lines nor their cues, it was a great performance guys, proud of you all. But it's not yet time to rest, as we still have to perform tonight during our church's Christmas Eve celebration, and also tomorrow morning service. I am really proud of you all, in that you didn't complain about the endless practices you had to go for. The Lord sees, and will bless you for your hard work.
After Gaya, we had our Christmas party combined with the Chinese youth, we had 56 youths turned up for a night of fun and celebration. I think the Christmas tree game was the loudest, absolutely, as the audience kept shouting out to the contestants to fix their star correctly. Haha, what an absolute din! But we all had fun, I almost lost my voice that night. We also had the company of Vincent, who came back for holidays, it's so good to see you again, man! We ended the night with gift exchange and even though some of us got err, not so nice gifts, but it was the thought that counts and not really the gift itself.
Christmas day is tomorrow and I pray that we will remember to share God's love to all, in words, thoughts and deeds. God bless.
Merry Christmas and Blessed New Year!
After Gaya, we had our Christmas party combined with the Chinese youth, we had 56 youths turned up for a night of fun and celebration. I think the Christmas tree game was the loudest, absolutely, as the audience kept shouting out to the contestants to fix their star correctly. Haha, what an absolute din! But we all had fun, I almost lost my voice that night. We also had the company of Vincent, who came back for holidays, it's so good to see you again, man! We ended the night with gift exchange and even though some of us got err, not so nice gifts, but it was the thought that counts and not really the gift itself.
Christmas day is tomorrow and I pray that we will remember to share God's love to all, in words, thoughts and deeds. God bless.
Merry Christmas and Blessed New Year!
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Christmas Series
I gotta say the Christmas series of sermons we're hearing every Sunday are very interesting. We started off with John the Baptist, how he paved the way for Jesus to come and how he served God in his own way. Then after that came Joseph and Mary, and their willingness, faith and determination to carry through God's plan even though it must have blown their minds away, for Mary to see the angel appeared to her, for Joseph to hear such news, for Mary to give birth to her baby in such terrible conditions that health and safety officers will shudder. Yet, they were faithful to the end.
Last week we heard about the shepherds, and one thing that struck me was that God used such unimportant and lowly people to spread the good news about his son's birth. In today's equivalent, it's like using construction workers to spread the news of the birth of the king. It makes me think about ministry, when we're only sweeping the floor, or doing refreshment, or counting money, or flipping light switches in the back room during drama times, when we feel unimportant, unknown, and maybe we think it's nicer to be on stage where everyone can see you and you feel important, God can use us. We may be doing some seemingly unimportant job, but God sees, and he will use us.
What is important isn't what job or area we're serving, it isn't important that we're out in front for everyone to see, what is important is our heart, whom we serve and why we do what we do. If we have been serving only for recognition and glory, then we should check ourselves. If we have been feeling unrecognised and unappreciated, know that God sees and will reward. It's always good to check our hearts and attitudes every so often so that we walk the correct path.
Last week we heard about the shepherds, and one thing that struck me was that God used such unimportant and lowly people to spread the good news about his son's birth. In today's equivalent, it's like using construction workers to spread the news of the birth of the king. It makes me think about ministry, when we're only sweeping the floor, or doing refreshment, or counting money, or flipping light switches in the back room during drama times, when we feel unimportant, unknown, and maybe we think it's nicer to be on stage where everyone can see you and you feel important, God can use us. We may be doing some seemingly unimportant job, but God sees, and he will use us.
What is important isn't what job or area we're serving, it isn't important that we're out in front for everyone to see, what is important is our heart, whom we serve and why we do what we do. If we have been serving only for recognition and glory, then we should check ourselves. If we have been feeling unrecognised and unappreciated, know that God sees and will reward. It's always good to check our hearts and attitudes every so often so that we walk the correct path.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Character
Taken from God's Little Devotional Book for Teens
When Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes moved to Washington, DC to take up his duties on the Supreme Court, he transferred his church membership letter to a Baptist church in the area. It was customary for all new members in this church to come to the front of the sanctuary at the close of the worship service, so they might be officially introduced and welcomed. The first person to be called forward that morning was Ah Sing, a Chinese laundryman who had moved to Washington from the West Coast. He took his place at the far side of the church. As the dozen or so others were called forward that day, they came forward and stood on the opposite side of the church, leaving Ah Sing standing alone.
Finally Chief Justice Hughes was called forward, and he immediately made his way to the front and proceeded to stand next to Ah Sing. The minister who welcomed the group into church fellowship said, "I do not want this congregation to miss this remarkable illustration of the fact that at the cross of Jesus Christ, the ground is level."
Your character is shown in many ways, but one of the most obvious is the way you treat people. You will grow in character and reputation if you treat others with kindness.
"Till I die, I will not deny my integrity. I will maintain my righteousness and never let go of it; my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live." Job 27:5-6
When Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes moved to Washington, DC to take up his duties on the Supreme Court, he transferred his church membership letter to a Baptist church in the area. It was customary for all new members in this church to come to the front of the sanctuary at the close of the worship service, so they might be officially introduced and welcomed. The first person to be called forward that morning was Ah Sing, a Chinese laundryman who had moved to Washington from the West Coast. He took his place at the far side of the church. As the dozen or so others were called forward that day, they came forward and stood on the opposite side of the church, leaving Ah Sing standing alone.
Finally Chief Justice Hughes was called forward, and he immediately made his way to the front and proceeded to stand next to Ah Sing. The minister who welcomed the group into church fellowship said, "I do not want this congregation to miss this remarkable illustration of the fact that at the cross of Jesus Christ, the ground is level."
Your character is shown in many ways, but one of the most obvious is the way you treat people. You will grow in character and reputation if you treat others with kindness.
"Till I die, I will not deny my integrity. I will maintain my righteousness and never let go of it; my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live." Job 27:5-6
Monday, December 1, 2008
Youth Retreat
I know we didn't have a retreat last year, which was due to time constraints and we had the IG camp in December. I know many of you still think about having a Feeding Frenzy 11 camp but I hate to disappoint you, we won't be having that.
Oh, don't get me wrong! We will be having a youth retreat all right, just not Feeding Frenzy lah. But rest assured it will just be as fun and we will have challenging games for you crazies out there! Games are my favourite, and my personal challenge when I prepare games is to make them as challenging and disgusting as possible. It always amazes me that when you're in a group, eating yucky and disgusting stuff seems fun rather than well, yucky and disgusting. Do you know how I gauge the 'success' of these games? When you actually shake your head in disbelief what you have to eat/do/perform. That's when I know I've stumped you all. Hahaha.. Of course some of my games have backfired on me, when you ask for more disgusting food! You know who you are!
So everyone, get ready for our retreat.. more news coming so keep your ears on the ground!
Oh, don't get me wrong! We will be having a youth retreat all right, just not Feeding Frenzy lah. But rest assured it will just be as fun and we will have challenging games for you crazies out there! Games are my favourite, and my personal challenge when I prepare games is to make them as challenging and disgusting as possible. It always amazes me that when you're in a group, eating yucky and disgusting stuff seems fun rather than well, yucky and disgusting. Do you know how I gauge the 'success' of these games? When you actually shake your head in disbelief what you have to eat/do/perform. That's when I know I've stumped you all. Hahaha.. Of course some of my games have backfired on me, when you ask for more disgusting food! You know who you are!
So everyone, get ready for our retreat.. more news coming so keep your ears on the ground!
Travelling
Holidays have been going on for half a month already and it's now December.. I think many families will be travelling for their holidays near or far. Even as I write this, I think some would be in foreign countries, and some are spending Christmas elsewhere.
We pray for journey mercies for all those who are travelling, that God will grant them safe journey and bring them safely home too.
p/s Don't forget to bring some gifts home for all of us who are not travelling! Hehe..
We pray for journey mercies for all those who are travelling, that God will grant them safe journey and bring them safely home too.
p/s Don't forget to bring some gifts home for all of us who are not travelling! Hehe..
Monday, November 24, 2008
Pop Corn
Everyone loves pop corn. I read somewhere that there are 4 types of corn, and only 1 can pop. And the thing that makes it pop is water. Huh? What? Water? you don't put water to pop popcorn.. ah.... but it's true. Inside the seed of corn is a small amount of water. And surrounding the water is a hard shell that protects it. When you put the corn inside the pot, the heat makes the water expands and that in turn pushes against the shell. When it gets hot enough, the hard shell explodes (hence the 'pop') and the corn turns inside out, the water turns into steam and vaporise, and you get pop corn.
Everytime I think of memory verses, I think of pop corn; it's light, very easy to eat, but eat enough of it and you will get full. Memory verse are like that; it's light to read, easy to memorise and have enough of it, it will make you spiritually richer. Memorising verses aren't just for little kids, they're for everyone. How many of us have gone through some troubling issues or periods and suddenly we remember one comforting verse which makes us feel better? That is when memory verses come in handy. I am not saying we don't have to read our Bibles, but memory verses are important when we can't remember the whole Bible. Break it down into little verses and we tend to remember the Bible more. And like the light pop corn, memory verses pack enough punch to sustain us.
I used to work in Lintas and it'd be a 20 minute drive from my house. During that time, when I was stuck in the jam, I'd memorise a verse. I had a memory verse box in my car and everyday I'd memorise one. Make some effort to print out some verses and commit 2 minutes everyday to this.. what's 2 minutes right? 2 minutes a day in this life makes for an eternity, believe me. Make this your aim for next year.. or start now.
Everytime I think of memory verses, I think of pop corn; it's light, very easy to eat, but eat enough of it and you will get full. Memory verse are like that; it's light to read, easy to memorise and have enough of it, it will make you spiritually richer. Memorising verses aren't just for little kids, they're for everyone. How many of us have gone through some troubling issues or periods and suddenly we remember one comforting verse which makes us feel better? That is when memory verses come in handy. I am not saying we don't have to read our Bibles, but memory verses are important when we can't remember the whole Bible. Break it down into little verses and we tend to remember the Bible more. And like the light pop corn, memory verses pack enough punch to sustain us.
I used to work in Lintas and it'd be a 20 minute drive from my house. During that time, when I was stuck in the jam, I'd memorise a verse. I had a memory verse box in my car and everyday I'd memorise one. Make some effort to print out some verses and commit 2 minutes everyday to this.. what's 2 minutes right? 2 minutes a day in this life makes for an eternity, believe me. Make this your aim for next year.. or start now.
Holidays
Ah.. the holidays are here, and the key operative word is sheer enjoyment! I can feel every head nodding (for students, anyway) with agreement. Holidays are the times where you don't have to wake up at the crack of dawn, drag yourself to the toilet, get dressed, pack into school buses or sleep in your parent's car sending you to face annoying and dreadful teachers (unless it's your fav teacher la). Holidays are times when you can play Dota till your eyes pop out, or your brain drops out, or stay up late just for the heck of it and going shopping or movies.. I don't know about you but I'm in envy city right now! Argggggggggghhhhhhh..
But yesterday in church before the service, I had a chat with some of the guys and I heard something I never thought I'd hear... someone said Dota was boring! Oh.. the shock! hahahahah.. And that, my dear friends, is life. We need variety, it's the spice of life. No matter how nice something is, like Dota, or fast food, play or eat it long enough you will get bored. Hahaha.. but do enjoy your holidays cos soon it'll be time to start school again! Hahaha..
But yesterday in church before the service, I had a chat with some of the guys and I heard something I never thought I'd hear... someone said Dota was boring! Oh.. the shock! hahahahah.. And that, my dear friends, is life. We need variety, it's the spice of life. No matter how nice something is, like Dota, or fast food, play or eat it long enough you will get bored. Hahaha.. but do enjoy your holidays cos soon it'll be time to start school again! Hahaha..
Friday, November 14, 2008
Tis The Season
With a blink of an eye, it's now November and the start of Christmas season. Well, perhaps a bit early for some of us, but school holidays are almost upon us and we've already started practising for Christmas plays and plans are in place for parties. Plus, church sermons have already started on the Christmas series, which I find really great because it prepares our hearts for Christmas.
Too often and too easily we become wrapped up in the festivities of Christmas; the presents, parties, carolling, Christmas plays, singing, food (who can forget that?), setting up the Christmas tree, shopping, fairy lights, the list goes on and I bet you can add a few more items. These things are all well and good, but let's not forget the actual reason for Christmas; peace on earth, goodwill towards men. When we actually participate in the festivities, do we actually think about God? Where is God in this?
When we are practising for our Christmas play, do we do it for God? Is there that gratitude in our hearts, that we are able to be a part of the Christmas message to people, that our little part in the play will touch a non-believer? Or do we grumble with tiredness about practising? When we practise our carols, do we sing for the sake of singing, or do we sing from our hearts that God came down to earth to save us from our sins?
Let us remember God this Christmas, in the midst of the merriment of the season, and let us intentionally reach out to other people who may be less fortunate than us. I'm not just talking about people we don't know, but our friends, who may have less food on the table than us, who may have less presents than us. Let us remember others more than we remember about ourselves and our comfort.
Too often and too easily we become wrapped up in the festivities of Christmas; the presents, parties, carolling, Christmas plays, singing, food (who can forget that?), setting up the Christmas tree, shopping, fairy lights, the list goes on and I bet you can add a few more items. These things are all well and good, but let's not forget the actual reason for Christmas; peace on earth, goodwill towards men. When we actually participate in the festivities, do we actually think about God? Where is God in this?
When we are practising for our Christmas play, do we do it for God? Is there that gratitude in our hearts, that we are able to be a part of the Christmas message to people, that our little part in the play will touch a non-believer? Or do we grumble with tiredness about practising? When we practise our carols, do we sing for the sake of singing, or do we sing from our hearts that God came down to earth to save us from our sins?
Let us remember God this Christmas, in the midst of the merriment of the season, and let us intentionally reach out to other people who may be less fortunate than us. I'm not just talking about people we don't know, but our friends, who may have less food on the table than us, who may have less presents than us. Let us remember others more than we remember about ourselves and our comfort.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Condolences
Our condolences go to our dear friends Mark, Moses and Matthew for the passing away of their cousin, who were very close to them. Our thoughts and prayers are with them at this sorrowful time, and we pray God will comfort them and grant them strength and peace.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Away From Home - Leon : Maturing / Growing up
Note: Terribly sorry Leon, I only managed to post this up now...
Have you ever asked this question
Why do I need to grow up??
Why do I need to mature??
Can't I choose not to grow up?
I know I've asked this question when I was way way little (but still older than most of you )
Why is it we need to grow up?
Well, I have the answer. Because growing up tells us that we are ALIVE AND KICKING !
The only thing that does not grow is a DEAD thing. You may argue and say well grown ups don't grow.
Yes they do... just not in height hehehehe (maybe in "wideness") but they do grow, mostly in maturity in their mind.
Consider this verse
James 1: 4 (NIV) Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
In this context, the verse is not refering to our physical body, for if it was then we would have been "complete" when we finally reach adulthood. This verse instead point towards our spiritual body. Is your spirit man the same as it was before 3 years ago??
Another question .. what does it mean to be "mature and complete"?
Is it to seek perfection?
No.. because if we were to seek perfection.... we'll always come short because
Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
But we should try our very best to follow in the foot step of Jesus. That is one of our goals in life.
How do we do it?
1. Spend time with God
You can start by spending 15 minutes a day reading your Bible and praying and slowly build it to 30, 40 even 1 hour.
Jesus often spend hours on end praying to God in the quietness. If Jesus needed to pray to God the Father.. I'm guessing we pretty ,uch should do the same
2. Get a devotional book
Ask your parents or Caroline for a good one like daily bread of the like.
These books are tools to guide you as you read the Bible.
3. Meet in Youth often
I know most of you are doing this but remember the objective of going to Youth is not only to meet up with your friends but also to meet up with GOD. Remember your objective is to worhsip Him.
Well that's all for now.
Remember God wants you to grow up not only in body but also in Spirit. God bless!!
Bro in Christ
Leon
Have you ever asked this question
Why do I need to grow up??
Why do I need to mature??
Can't I choose not to grow up?
I know I've asked this question when I was way way little (but still older than most of you )
Why is it we need to grow up?
Well, I have the answer. Because growing up tells us that we are ALIVE AND KICKING !
The only thing that does not grow is a DEAD thing. You may argue and say well grown ups don't grow.
Yes they do... just not in height hehehehe (maybe in "wideness") but they do grow, mostly in maturity in their mind.
Consider this verse
James 1: 4 (NIV) Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
In this context, the verse is not refering to our physical body, for if it was then we would have been "complete" when we finally reach adulthood. This verse instead point towards our spiritual body. Is your spirit man the same as it was before 3 years ago??
Another question .. what does it mean to be "mature and complete"?
Is it to seek perfection?
No.. because if we were to seek perfection.... we'll always come short because
Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
But we should try our very best to follow in the foot step of Jesus. That is one of our goals in life.
How do we do it?
1. Spend time with God
You can start by spending 15 minutes a day reading your Bible and praying and slowly build it to 30, 40 even 1 hour.
Jesus often spend hours on end praying to God in the quietness. If Jesus needed to pray to God the Father.. I'm guessing we pretty ,uch should do the same
2. Get a devotional book
Ask your parents or Caroline for a good one like daily bread of the like.
These books are tools to guide you as you read the Bible.
3. Meet in Youth often
I know most of you are doing this but remember the objective of going to Youth is not only to meet up with your friends but also to meet up with GOD. Remember your objective is to worhsip Him.
Well that's all for now.
Remember God wants you to grow up not only in body but also in Spirit. God bless!!
Bro in Christ
Leon
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Hello From New Zealand!
Hiya guys! I'm in Dunedin, New Zealand right now accessing internet in my motel. While I did bring my laptop over here, lugging all 3kg of it (mom tells me to trade it in for a lighter model, I might just do that!) the wireless isn't working and as a result of that, I have to resort to using lousy keyboards etc.. but then, beggars can't be choosers huh? So here am I.. writing once again.
Sorry I didn't have a chance to log on and post something.. but if you're interested in what I'm doing on my trip, you can log on to my personal blog and check out all the stuff there. But in the meantime, have you guys been enjoying yourself without me around? Hehe.. have you driven Jenny and Vanessa and the rest of the leaders up the wall? I trust not (if you do want to drive them up the wall, wait till I get back lah.. haha.. I want to see also mah!)
Know that I do miss you all, hope to find some nasty black jellybeans for you guys to try when I return home. Until then, see ya... God bless!
Sorry I didn't have a chance to log on and post something.. but if you're interested in what I'm doing on my trip, you can log on to my personal blog and check out all the stuff there. But in the meantime, have you guys been enjoying yourself without me around? Hehe.. have you driven Jenny and Vanessa and the rest of the leaders up the wall? I trust not (if you do want to drive them up the wall, wait till I get back lah.. haha.. I want to see also mah!)
Know that I do miss you all, hope to find some nasty black jellybeans for you guys to try when I return home. Until then, see ya... God bless!
Monday, September 22, 2008
Growing Up
Last week Leon asked me about you guys. He asked how is your spiritual level/maturity and that got me thinking. How is our spiritual level as a youth group? Somehow I am always stumped for an answer when people ask this question. Or when they ask "what do the youths want to hear/learn". It's so sudden and so wide a question. Of course I then put myself on a guilt trip for not knowing what you guys need, being your leader I also don't know blah-blah-blah and the thing goes on.
Seriously though, back to that question. How is our spiritual level.. how do you measure our spiritual level? By how well we know the Bible? By the amount of time we spent in prayer and quiet time? By living out the Christian lifestyle? By serving in different ministries? By our commitment in those ministries? By all of the above? I think when I break it down like this, you see my problem in answering the question "How is our spiritual level as a group?"
Sorry, this may seem like a rambling post to you (it feels that way to me!) but well, I think one way of looking at the spiritual maturity of our group would be through our service and commitment in ministries. Let's see, we have an average of 20 youths every week ya, plus leaders. Now, about 10 of us are involved in the youth, music, server, multi-media, tambourine ministries. So that would mean our maturity is about average lah, half of us are involved. It means we have room for improvement, guys! So, for those of us who are not yet in any ministry, let us try to do more!
Seriously though, back to that question. How is our spiritual level.. how do you measure our spiritual level? By how well we know the Bible? By the amount of time we spent in prayer and quiet time? By living out the Christian lifestyle? By serving in different ministries? By our commitment in those ministries? By all of the above? I think when I break it down like this, you see my problem in answering the question "How is our spiritual level as a group?"
Sorry, this may seem like a rambling post to you (it feels that way to me!) but well, I think one way of looking at the spiritual maturity of our group would be through our service and commitment in ministries. Let's see, we have an average of 20 youths every week ya, plus leaders. Now, about 10 of us are involved in the youth, music, server, multi-media, tambourine ministries. So that would mean our maturity is about average lah, half of us are involved. It means we have room for improvement, guys! So, for those of us who are not yet in any ministry, let us try to do more!
Thursday, September 18, 2008
The Last of The Horses
Many months ago, on a hot night, a few boys sat in CB having their yc. Oh.. many things were discussed during that night, and laughter was heard often throughout their time there. (Please correct me if I am wrong). I shall not tell of the many things they talked and laughed about. But of the many things, one thing came out of that night, and that was the formation of a group, which naturally consisted of them all. In fact, I think they shouted that name, the name of their group, they shouted it for the whole world to hear! Didn't ya guys?
The Horses were formed that night, and I shall also not tell why, of all names, horses was chosen, although I must say it was chosen well (gosh, I can't believe I'm writing this!). Now, the original gang of horses, must have been.. Vincent, Thomson, Douglas, Waltson. I believe others were added on later, and there were some honorary members too, but the original 4.. they were tight. But they suffer the fate of all teenagers.. separation. One by one they left for further studies and tomorrow, the last of the original 4 will be departing for his studies.
Our bro Doug will be leaving for UK tomorrow to continue his tertiary education. He will be reading Law and will be gone for 4 long years... Doug Doug Doug.. if we were to talk about you, we'll be continuing till you land in UK 14 hours later, checked in your uni, find your dorm etc etc.. hahaha.. (sorry, couldn't resist that) so we won't lah. We will just remember all the fun times we had with you, the laughter, the joy, and we look forward to continuing our friendship when you return home. So take care of yourself, remember God, enjoy your experience and study hard! Bon voyage my friend. We will remember you.
The Horses were formed that night, and I shall also not tell why, of all names, horses was chosen, although I must say it was chosen well (gosh, I can't believe I'm writing this!). Now, the original gang of horses, must have been.. Vincent, Thomson, Douglas, Waltson. I believe others were added on later, and there were some honorary members too, but the original 4.. they were tight. But they suffer the fate of all teenagers.. separation. One by one they left for further studies and tomorrow, the last of the original 4 will be departing for his studies.
Our bro Doug will be leaving for UK tomorrow to continue his tertiary education. He will be reading Law and will be gone for 4 long years... Doug Doug Doug.. if we were to talk about you, we'll be continuing till you land in UK 14 hours later, checked in your uni, find your dorm etc etc.. hahaha.. (sorry, couldn't resist that) so we won't lah. We will just remember all the fun times we had with you, the laughter, the joy, and we look forward to continuing our friendship when you return home. So take care of yourself, remember God, enjoy your experience and study hard! Bon voyage my friend. We will remember you.
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Exclusive Preview
Hot off the press! Check out the exclusive preview of the newest youth dance captured on video! You rock guys! But after you have viewed it, make sure you will come to the Mooncake Harvest event to be held Monday 15th Sept ok? We gotta support them! Make sure you cheer as loud as you can!
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Head Vs Heart
I've a lot on my mind these few days, no doubt because of the inner healing seminar I went to last week. I learnt that as we go through life, we suffer hurts, setbacks and disappointments, besides the happiness, of course. And we keep those feelings with us, both the happy and the sad. The sad ones we will put into the dark store room in our hearts, hoping that we never have to open the door (except only to store more hurts). But you see, by putting them in the store room, they are still with us and they do affect us, even though subconsciously. Jesus doesn't want us to be bog down any longer with all these rubbish (I always believe, keep something long enough and it becomes rubbish) because believe you me, they are rubbish to be thrown away. The longer you keep them, the harder it is to throw them.
And over the years, you become loaded with all the rubbish you can't really focus on where you're going. It's funny why we don't bring all our hurts to Jesus, instead, we store them in the store room. Why ah? It's not like we don't know that he's there for us. The pastor mentioned in last week's sermon that the longest journey in this world is the one from the head to the heart. We know why Jesus came to this earth, to save us. That knowledge is in our heads. But sometimes it's not in our hearts, and that's where it is important. Many people know about Jesus what (head knowledge) but not many choose to accept him (heart knowledge).
If you know Jesus in your head, may I encourage you to know him in your heart too, cos that's where it's most important. May God give you the courage to journey together with him.
And over the years, you become loaded with all the rubbish you can't really focus on where you're going. It's funny why we don't bring all our hurts to Jesus, instead, we store them in the store room. Why ah? It's not like we don't know that he's there for us. The pastor mentioned in last week's sermon that the longest journey in this world is the one from the head to the heart. We know why Jesus came to this earth, to save us. That knowledge is in our heads. But sometimes it's not in our hearts, and that's where it is important. Many people know about Jesus what (head knowledge) but not many choose to accept him (heart knowledge).
If you know Jesus in your head, may I encourage you to know him in your heart too, cos that's where it's most important. May God give you the courage to journey together with him.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Condolences
Our condolences go to our dear friends Simpson, Thomson, Waltson and Hannah for the passing away of their grandma last week. We are sad for the loss of a dear one, but we rejoice that she is now with Jesus, away from pain and suffering. Our thoughts are with you all.
Friday, August 29, 2008
New T-Shirt Design
After much help from Clement and Vincent T, our new tee shirt design is out! I've posted the two colours at the bottom of this page.. so check them out. You all need to vote on this ok? So check out the little poll on the right hand side of the page. Happy viewing!
Monday, August 25, 2008
Away From Home - Thomson
THE father of fallen pastor Michael Guglielmucci, Danny, read this brief statement to a packed congregation to explain his son's actions.
"Today is a very sad day for our family and church family. For many years our son, Michael has suffered from unexplained illnesses. We have been worried as we have seen him suffer and spend periods of time in hospital. Two years ago our lives were totally turned around by the sad news of our sons' cancer diagnosis. The love and support shown by our local church and all of our many friends around the world helped us get through a very difficult situation. During the last two years we have experienced the favor of God, his love and grace, and also the constant pain of the possibility of losing a son.
On Tuesday 12th of August we received a call to come and meet with Mike and Amanda but weren't ready for what we were about to hear. Mike began to share how he has lived a lie for the last 16 years of his life because of addictive behavior he couldn't break free from. He loved God and would throw himself into prayer, worship, and serving God with full energy and enthusiasm but still couldn't break free. In September in 2006, Mike had an accident and went to hospital. It was at this time, because of his torment of living a double life, Mike thought he could escape the pain by creating a diversion from his addiction to adult pornography, so he created the cancer scenario. The pain of this addiction was so deep that he started something he couldn't stop and proceeded on a downward spiral that led to him experiencing pain and suffering that resulted in constant vomiting and many other symptoms of a genuine sufferer.
Sharonne and I witnessed these episodes and pained and wept over his suffering. Michael wrote the song Healer because he wanted God to set him free from his addiction but hid it behind the lie of a fabricated illness. Once he had started down this track he felt he couldn't stop so he continued to act out this sickness, feeling he had gone too deep into the lie. I can't begin to tell you how much this is hurting us on the inside. A few weeks ago Mike had a dream of Jesus on the cross looking down on him saying, 'the truth will set you free' and so he decided to confess and bring everything out into the open. I immediately contacted our National Executive and submitted to their advice and council.
Church, our family needs your prayers at this time. We are so, so sorry to bring you into this. I have lead you with openness and integrity and declare that we have not lived a lie before you. We fully understand the questions, shock, disbelief and even anger you may feel over this announcement. Please pray for us and we will pray for you. Michael is struggling with a different kind of illness and is receiving professional help and will do so as long as is needed. On the council and advice of our executive and board, after our up and coming Edge conference, we will take time to be with Mike and get him all the professional and spiritual help he needs to come to full recovery. We have an amazing team. Thank you, executive, board, staff and church, for your love and support. We will do what is right before God and man and see this situation turned around for the glory of God. We love you. "
Guys, continue keeping him and his family in prayer. After reading this latest statement ( i just read it not long ago), you probably would understand now why he did all that. Right now, we cant do anything but pray...and continue to trust in God, that He is our healer...Amen!
your super senior youth(hahaha again...lol),
Thom
"Today is a very sad day for our family and church family. For many years our son, Michael has suffered from unexplained illnesses. We have been worried as we have seen him suffer and spend periods of time in hospital. Two years ago our lives were totally turned around by the sad news of our sons' cancer diagnosis. The love and support shown by our local church and all of our many friends around the world helped us get through a very difficult situation. During the last two years we have experienced the favor of God, his love and grace, and also the constant pain of the possibility of losing a son.
On Tuesday 12th of August we received a call to come and meet with Mike and Amanda but weren't ready for what we were about to hear. Mike began to share how he has lived a lie for the last 16 years of his life because of addictive behavior he couldn't break free from. He loved God and would throw himself into prayer, worship, and serving God with full energy and enthusiasm but still couldn't break free. In September in 2006, Mike had an accident and went to hospital. It was at this time, because of his torment of living a double life, Mike thought he could escape the pain by creating a diversion from his addiction to adult pornography, so he created the cancer scenario. The pain of this addiction was so deep that he started something he couldn't stop and proceeded on a downward spiral that led to him experiencing pain and suffering that resulted in constant vomiting and many other symptoms of a genuine sufferer.
Sharonne and I witnessed these episodes and pained and wept over his suffering. Michael wrote the song Healer because he wanted God to set him free from his addiction but hid it behind the lie of a fabricated illness. Once he had started down this track he felt he couldn't stop so he continued to act out this sickness, feeling he had gone too deep into the lie. I can't begin to tell you how much this is hurting us on the inside. A few weeks ago Mike had a dream of Jesus on the cross looking down on him saying, 'the truth will set you free' and so he decided to confess and bring everything out into the open. I immediately contacted our National Executive and submitted to their advice and council.
Church, our family needs your prayers at this time. We are so, so sorry to bring you into this. I have lead you with openness and integrity and declare that we have not lived a lie before you. We fully understand the questions, shock, disbelief and even anger you may feel over this announcement. Please pray for us and we will pray for you. Michael is struggling with a different kind of illness and is receiving professional help and will do so as long as is needed. On the council and advice of our executive and board, after our up and coming Edge conference, we will take time to be with Mike and get him all the professional and spiritual help he needs to come to full recovery. We have an amazing team. Thank you, executive, board, staff and church, for your love and support. We will do what is right before God and man and see this situation turned around for the glory of God. We love you. "
Guys, continue keeping him and his family in prayer. After reading this latest statement ( i just read it not long ago), you probably would understand now why he did all that. Right now, we cant do anything but pray...and continue to trust in God, that He is our healer...Amen!
your super senior youth(hahaha again...lol),
Thom
Away From Home - Thomson
hey guys! okie, this is Thomson here...haha. This must be like my first post here. To be honest, I am never a fan of blogs in the net, and probably never will. Nonetheless, this is something I wanna share with you guys, that you guys might benefit from this.
As you all know, Pastor Mike Gugielmucci is a pastor of the Planetshakers church, he is among the pastors of the Australian Christian Churches (formerly called Assemblies of God, (AOG)), in Australia, which is really big there. He is also part of the planetshakers band, which is popular among young people. In the band, he usually plays the bass guitar, but also plays the acoustic guitar occasionally, and also leads worship sometimes. He composed alot of songs for Planetshakers. Songs like "Running After You", "Big", "Follow", "Always and Forever", "Jump Around", "Evermore", "Never Stop", "Majesty, "Arise", "Healer"....this are juz some of the mand songs he wrote and composed throughout his lifetime. I am sure some of you know that 2 years ago, he was diagnosed wif cancer. His story was that after the doctor told him he had cancer, he went home, sat on the piano, and just started singing a song. There was no composing of verse and chorus or whatever, but it was juz a spontaneous worship, a "gift" given to him by God, as he said. That song is called "Healer", a really meaningful song with powerful lyrics and strong verses. Here is the lyrics of the song:
Verse: You hold my every moment, You calm my raging seas, You walk with me through fire, and heal all my disease
Pre-chorus: I trust in You, I trust in You
Chorus: I believe You're my Healer, I believe You are all I need, I believe You're my portion, I believe You're more than enough for me, Jesus You're all I need
Bridge: Nothing is impossible for You, nothing is impossible, nothing is impossible for You, You hold my world in your hands..
This song really touched people all over the word, because it tells of our Lord as our Healer, He is all that we need, He heals all our disease,Nothing is impossible for Him, and all we have to is to trust Him. He was dying. Doctors told him he did not have long to live. Yet he went on praising the Lord, singing songs of praises to Him. At the recent Hillsong live concert "This is Our God (2008)" in March 2008, he walked up the stage, oxygen tube connected and all, and sang the song "Healer", touching the hearts of many. Many people has been touched and moved by his faith in the Lord, and many gave donations and contribution to him for his cancer, and they were really touched and moved by the Spirit. However, a few days ago, (around 20th and 21st August 2008), news came out that Pastor Mike Guglielmucci was never really ill. He confessed to his parents that he never had cancer, that he has been faking his terminal illness. It was all a lie and a fraud. He is now seeing a psychiatrist, and accordiing to reports from the internet from the Australian news, even his family and his parents never knew that he had no cancer. He has now been stripped of his credentials as pastor by the Australian Christian Churches. Church officials are urging him to go the police, who will investigate that has happened to all the money raised during his cancer deception. Reports also said that he hung around in doctors' waiting room as part of a web of lies to convince friends and followers that he was dying of cancer.
If all this news and reports are true, it is a big blow to the churches in Australia as well as christians throughout the world. I dare not confirm that all the news I have read so far are 100% true, until time passes and more information surfaces. But let's assume that all this is true. What impact does it have on us christians? and even on unsaved souls! Will this make it even harder for us to share the gospel wif our unsaved frens, that a pastor and planetshakers worship leader this big, can fall flat on his face, deceive people of their money, and dealt a cruel blow to those who were so touched by his "fight" against cancer through his faith in God. As devoted christians, we know that God's grace is sufficient for us. His grace is in abundance, and God has already forgiven Pastor Guglielmucci for everything he did. Whether he confessed after being convicted of the HOly Spirit, we do not know. We can only pray for him and his family. Personally, i wanna pray that all this news are not true, that none of this is true.
I wanna hope that all of this are juz someone makin it up, Nonetheless, I urge you all to pray for him and his family, they need prayer the most now. If the reports are true, do we have the right to judge Pastor Guglielmucci? Absolutely not! We are all sinners and unworthy men, and we fall in life everyday, they may not always be portrayed in public, but we fall nearly every day of our lives. So for all those who has already heard about him, please keep him and his family in prayer. Our God is a gracious God, and He is our Healer, both physically, emotionally, and spiritually. There is no such things as "I did something too terrible that God can never forgive me...I am too sinful to be accepted by Him". No! He is a gracious and wonderful God, and no matter how many times we fall and fail Him, He will always hold out His hand, ready to pull us up. All we need to do it reach out and grab His hand. All we need to do is to repent, and His grace is more than enough for us.
About the song, some people say that anything that is brought out of a fraud or lie cannot be used a tool to spread His word, to reach out. Personally, I am not sure myself, I do not know whether Pastor Guglielmucci has different motives when he composed the song "Healer". And i dare not judge him. Perhaps, when we want to use a song that has been composed by someone who said that God inspired Him to write that song, yet in the end it was a lie, as in he wasn't ill and all that, we must pray and consult the Lord before deciding whether to use that song to minister to others. But I have a verse to share with you guys. In Philippians 1: 15-18 : "It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. So brothers and sisters in Christ, no matter what, what matters is that Jesus Christ is preached. The song "Healer" is a powerful song, and if you are thinking of using it in your p&w session, do pray about it first, and let God lead you to decide. The important thing is we can continue lifitng up His name, living up to His good name, and use every opportunity to preach His word!
As for me, I am nothing without God. I won't be where I am without Him. And till now, He has truly been a light unto my path, He has shown time and time again how wonderful He is, that the best thing to do is to trust in Him, for His wil for us is the best. So put Him first in your life, do not let any other thing distract you, and you see the wonderful things He can do in your life.
Last but not least, please pray for me. Studying medicine 3rd year is really tough, and i really need constant prayer. Also, pray for me, as the cf president of the CF here made up of AIMST University students. As our cf is not an official one (we are not allowed by the university to have any religious activity or gathering), the Lord has provided us all we need to touch students of the campus and to use CF as a tool of campus ministry. We are having an upcoming christian concert (Levites concert) either in September or October in Kampar, Perak, please keep me in prayer, that many more lives will be touched and souls saved through this event.Thanks guys!! Keep serving Him whole-heartedly! God bless!
your super senior youth (hahaha),
Thom
As you all know, Pastor Mike Gugielmucci is a pastor of the Planetshakers church, he is among the pastors of the Australian Christian Churches (formerly called Assemblies of God, (AOG)), in Australia, which is really big there. He is also part of the planetshakers band, which is popular among young people. In the band, he usually plays the bass guitar, but also plays the acoustic guitar occasionally, and also leads worship sometimes. He composed alot of songs for Planetshakers. Songs like "Running After You", "Big", "Follow", "Always and Forever", "Jump Around", "Evermore", "Never Stop", "Majesty, "Arise", "Healer"....this are juz some of the mand songs he wrote and composed throughout his lifetime. I am sure some of you know that 2 years ago, he was diagnosed wif cancer. His story was that after the doctor told him he had cancer, he went home, sat on the piano, and just started singing a song. There was no composing of verse and chorus or whatever, but it was juz a spontaneous worship, a "gift" given to him by God, as he said. That song is called "Healer", a really meaningful song with powerful lyrics and strong verses. Here is the lyrics of the song:
Verse: You hold my every moment, You calm my raging seas, You walk with me through fire, and heal all my disease
Pre-chorus: I trust in You, I trust in You
Chorus: I believe You're my Healer, I believe You are all I need, I believe You're my portion, I believe You're more than enough for me, Jesus You're all I need
Bridge: Nothing is impossible for You, nothing is impossible, nothing is impossible for You, You hold my world in your hands..
This song really touched people all over the word, because it tells of our Lord as our Healer, He is all that we need, He heals all our disease,Nothing is impossible for Him, and all we have to is to trust Him. He was dying. Doctors told him he did not have long to live. Yet he went on praising the Lord, singing songs of praises to Him. At the recent Hillsong live concert "This is Our God (2008)" in March 2008, he walked up the stage, oxygen tube connected and all, and sang the song "Healer", touching the hearts of many. Many people has been touched and moved by his faith in the Lord, and many gave donations and contribution to him for his cancer, and they were really touched and moved by the Spirit. However, a few days ago, (around 20th and 21st August 2008), news came out that Pastor Mike Guglielmucci was never really ill. He confessed to his parents that he never had cancer, that he has been faking his terminal illness. It was all a lie and a fraud. He is now seeing a psychiatrist, and accordiing to reports from the internet from the Australian news, even his family and his parents never knew that he had no cancer. He has now been stripped of his credentials as pastor by the Australian Christian Churches. Church officials are urging him to go the police, who will investigate that has happened to all the money raised during his cancer deception. Reports also said that he hung around in doctors' waiting room as part of a web of lies to convince friends and followers that he was dying of cancer.
If all this news and reports are true, it is a big blow to the churches in Australia as well as christians throughout the world. I dare not confirm that all the news I have read so far are 100% true, until time passes and more information surfaces. But let's assume that all this is true. What impact does it have on us christians? and even on unsaved souls! Will this make it even harder for us to share the gospel wif our unsaved frens, that a pastor and planetshakers worship leader this big, can fall flat on his face, deceive people of their money, and dealt a cruel blow to those who were so touched by his "fight" against cancer through his faith in God. As devoted christians, we know that God's grace is sufficient for us. His grace is in abundance, and God has already forgiven Pastor Guglielmucci for everything he did. Whether he confessed after being convicted of the HOly Spirit, we do not know. We can only pray for him and his family. Personally, i wanna pray that all this news are not true, that none of this is true.
I wanna hope that all of this are juz someone makin it up, Nonetheless, I urge you all to pray for him and his family, they need prayer the most now. If the reports are true, do we have the right to judge Pastor Guglielmucci? Absolutely not! We are all sinners and unworthy men, and we fall in life everyday, they may not always be portrayed in public, but we fall nearly every day of our lives. So for all those who has already heard about him, please keep him and his family in prayer. Our God is a gracious God, and He is our Healer, both physically, emotionally, and spiritually. There is no such things as "I did something too terrible that God can never forgive me...I am too sinful to be accepted by Him". No! He is a gracious and wonderful God, and no matter how many times we fall and fail Him, He will always hold out His hand, ready to pull us up. All we need to do it reach out and grab His hand. All we need to do is to repent, and His grace is more than enough for us.
About the song, some people say that anything that is brought out of a fraud or lie cannot be used a tool to spread His word, to reach out. Personally, I am not sure myself, I do not know whether Pastor Guglielmucci has different motives when he composed the song "Healer". And i dare not judge him. Perhaps, when we want to use a song that has been composed by someone who said that God inspired Him to write that song, yet in the end it was a lie, as in he wasn't ill and all that, we must pray and consult the Lord before deciding whether to use that song to minister to others. But I have a verse to share with you guys. In Philippians 1: 15-18 : "It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. So brothers and sisters in Christ, no matter what, what matters is that Jesus Christ is preached. The song "Healer" is a powerful song, and if you are thinking of using it in your p&w session, do pray about it first, and let God lead you to decide. The important thing is we can continue lifitng up His name, living up to His good name, and use every opportunity to preach His word!
As for me, I am nothing without God. I won't be where I am without Him. And till now, He has truly been a light unto my path, He has shown time and time again how wonderful He is, that the best thing to do is to trust in Him, for His wil for us is the best. So put Him first in your life, do not let any other thing distract you, and you see the wonderful things He can do in your life.
Last but not least, please pray for me. Studying medicine 3rd year is really tough, and i really need constant prayer. Also, pray for me, as the cf president of the CF here made up of AIMST University students. As our cf is not an official one (we are not allowed by the university to have any religious activity or gathering), the Lord has provided us all we need to touch students of the campus and to use CF as a tool of campus ministry. We are having an upcoming christian concert (Levites concert) either in September or October in Kampar, Perak, please keep me in prayer, that many more lives will be touched and souls saved through this event.Thanks guys!! Keep serving Him whole-heartedly! God bless!
your super senior youth (hahaha),
Thom
The Story of Bob - Conclusion
Terribly sorry about keeping everyone waiting for the conclusion.. here goes...
I don't know about you but this story really touched my heart and taught me lessons that I need in my Christian walk. What are the lessons that can be learnt in this story? My previous pastor used to ask this, "how do you eat an elephant?".. Bit by bit.. so let's go through this bit by bit.
1. Bob - Ah.. the star, the culprit, the naughty one, the repentant one. He really took the roller-coaster ride, didn't he? Only to land 'splat' on his face. Repentance is the first step towards his reconciliation with his dad, there is joy waiting at the end of that. Repentance means you're really sorry about what you've done, you admit your mistakes and you don't do those mistakes again. Of course being humans we might end up doing the same mistakes, but I believe it's the issue of the heart this. That in our hearts, we don't harbour that thinking of "oh, God is ever merciful, ever forgiving, he will forgive me next time I sin again", even though that's God's nature as well. You get what I mean, right? Repentance comes from the heart, not just lip service. And I learnt that repentance isn't about punishment, it's about accepting God's love.
When we come back to God, he doesn't desire us to 'pay' for our sins, like Bob's approach (remember, he wanted to come back as a slave instead of a son?). God just desires us to come back, period. He doesn't want us being away from him. Besides, you realise we can't possibly pay for our sins. How can we possibly repay God for the death of his beloved Son? No way, right? And that is grace, given freely, not by works, that no man might boast.
2. Art - How many of us ever felt like Art? Righteous, proud of his achievements? He was earning his inheritance through hard work. He had pride in him, and he was not going to get anything free, no sirree Bob! He was going to work his butt off to earn it, that no one can say he was a free loader. He didn't want to receive the grace of his dad. He wanted things in his control, through his hands.
Both the sons had the same problem, they wanted control in their relationship with their dad. Art by working for his inheritance (me? I rather just inherit it, thanks! hehe) and Bob by also trying to earn his way back.
3. Dad - The thing that amazes me about dad, and still do, is his love. His son rejected, insulted and shamed him, and he still had the capacity to continue loving him. And he received Bob back without any punishment! How many times have we had to 'earn' our way back to people's good books? But not dad. He's a cool operator, he doesn't act like other dads. Amazing love. Dad will not violate our will or our decisions, whether right or wrong. He will let us have that freedom to make choices. But if it is the wrong choice, he is always there waiting for us.
So.. I think often times we are like Art and Bob combined. Sometimes we see people committing wrong then we're Art, on our high horse, judging people. Other times we're like Bob, making the wrong choices, then trying to earn our way back to God's books. AD JY taught us our spiritual lives are like a spiral, when we sin and fall away from God, we spiral downwards. Then we repent, learn our lesson and come back to God, we spiral upwards. Certain lessons are hard to learn so we spiral round and round (no wonder I feel dizzy and a sense of deja vu! groan) till we get it into our thick heads then we spiral upwards. Ah.. the narrow road, it's difficult, challenging, demanding, but man, is it worth it! I hope this story has encouraged you, strengthen your faith and may you continue to journey on the narrow road with perseverance and joy!
The End.
I don't know about you but this story really touched my heart and taught me lessons that I need in my Christian walk. What are the lessons that can be learnt in this story? My previous pastor used to ask this, "how do you eat an elephant?".. Bit by bit.. so let's go through this bit by bit.
1. Bob - Ah.. the star, the culprit, the naughty one, the repentant one. He really took the roller-coaster ride, didn't he? Only to land 'splat' on his face. Repentance is the first step towards his reconciliation with his dad, there is joy waiting at the end of that. Repentance means you're really sorry about what you've done, you admit your mistakes and you don't do those mistakes again. Of course being humans we might end up doing the same mistakes, but I believe it's the issue of the heart this. That in our hearts, we don't harbour that thinking of "oh, God is ever merciful, ever forgiving, he will forgive me next time I sin again", even though that's God's nature as well. You get what I mean, right? Repentance comes from the heart, not just lip service. And I learnt that repentance isn't about punishment, it's about accepting God's love.
When we come back to God, he doesn't desire us to 'pay' for our sins, like Bob's approach (remember, he wanted to come back as a slave instead of a son?). God just desires us to come back, period. He doesn't want us being away from him. Besides, you realise we can't possibly pay for our sins. How can we possibly repay God for the death of his beloved Son? No way, right? And that is grace, given freely, not by works, that no man might boast.
2. Art - How many of us ever felt like Art? Righteous, proud of his achievements? He was earning his inheritance through hard work. He had pride in him, and he was not going to get anything free, no sirree Bob! He was going to work his butt off to earn it, that no one can say he was a free loader. He didn't want to receive the grace of his dad. He wanted things in his control, through his hands.
Both the sons had the same problem, they wanted control in their relationship with their dad. Art by working for his inheritance (me? I rather just inherit it, thanks! hehe) and Bob by also trying to earn his way back.
3. Dad - The thing that amazes me about dad, and still do, is his love. His son rejected, insulted and shamed him, and he still had the capacity to continue loving him. And he received Bob back without any punishment! How many times have we had to 'earn' our way back to people's good books? But not dad. He's a cool operator, he doesn't act like other dads. Amazing love. Dad will not violate our will or our decisions, whether right or wrong. He will let us have that freedom to make choices. But if it is the wrong choice, he is always there waiting for us.
So.. I think often times we are like Art and Bob combined. Sometimes we see people committing wrong then we're Art, on our high horse, judging people. Other times we're like Bob, making the wrong choices, then trying to earn our way back to God's books. AD JY taught us our spiritual lives are like a spiral, when we sin and fall away from God, we spiral downwards. Then we repent, learn our lesson and come back to God, we spiral upwards. Certain lessons are hard to learn so we spiral round and round (no wonder I feel dizzy and a sense of deja vu! groan) till we get it into our thick heads then we spiral upwards. Ah.. the narrow road, it's difficult, challenging, demanding, but man, is it worth it! I hope this story has encouraged you, strengthen your faith and may you continue to journey on the narrow road with perseverance and joy!
The End.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
The Story of Bob - Part 6
Art felt sick to his guts that Bob was back, never mind that he hadn't seen Bob for ages. He was furious that dad actually threw a party for Bob. He knew that the fattened calf was for honoured guests.. and dad slaughtered the calf for that good for nothing Bob? "To think that I slaved and toiled for that old man? To earn my inheritance, to earn my keep, but dad never said anything, never appreciated my hard work!" thought Art as he left the building.
He heard hurried footsteps behind him as he continued walking. "Art, wait," shouted his dad as he ran after his eldest son. This again is mind boggling, that a parent would run after his son. It is just not the norm in Jewish households! "Don't go, Art, come and join us, Bob is back and we must rejoice!" said dad as he caught up with Art. Art lost his temper as he turned back to face his dad and with a raised voice said, "Everyday I've been slaving in the fields, tending to the livestock and never once, NOT ONCE, did I complain, yet you never even gave me a young goat to celebrate with my friends, " Art was livid now. With veins popping in his face he continued, "yet when that no good son of yours came back, after wasting his inheritance on sex, booze and party, you didn't scold him, nor did you even rebuke him, but you THREW A PARTY FOR HIM?" Art was practically foaming in the mouth as he shouted at his dad! "Where is the logic in that, dad?"
"My son," Dad said, with compassion in his eyes, "you are always with me, and what I have is yours, but we had to be glad because we lost Bob, now he's found again."
To be continued...
He heard hurried footsteps behind him as he continued walking. "Art, wait," shouted his dad as he ran after his eldest son. This again is mind boggling, that a parent would run after his son. It is just not the norm in Jewish households! "Don't go, Art, come and join us, Bob is back and we must rejoice!" said dad as he caught up with Art. Art lost his temper as he turned back to face his dad and with a raised voice said, "Everyday I've been slaving in the fields, tending to the livestock and never once, NOT ONCE, did I complain, yet you never even gave me a young goat to celebrate with my friends, " Art was livid now. With veins popping in his face he continued, "yet when that no good son of yours came back, after wasting his inheritance on sex, booze and party, you didn't scold him, nor did you even rebuke him, but you THREW A PARTY FOR HIM?" Art was practically foaming in the mouth as he shouted at his dad! "Where is the logic in that, dad?"
"My son," Dad said, with compassion in his eyes, "you are always with me, and what I have is yours, but we had to be glad because we lost Bob, now he's found again."
To be continued...
A Breather
I wanna say sorry to all of you who have been following the youth blog faithfully and also the Story of Bob. You must be on your toes wondering and waiting for the conclusion to this story. I have been bogged down by work this week and simply can't log on to continue. There is only 1 or 2 parts left. I will try to finish it before the Youth Camp starts ok, else it'll be another week before I can get to blog!
Saturday, August 9, 2008
The Story of Bob - Part 5
Now dad really know how to throw a party.. it's party with a capital P. The tables are groaning under the load of food, and the cooks are still doing their job inside the kitchen! There is a full band on the dance floor, the best one in town. No expenses were spared in decorating the place, dad got the hostest with the mostest for the job. The finest wine was free flowing and the guests were just enjoying themselves. What about Bob? Well.. Bob stil wore that stunned look to get such an unexpected welcome. He was prepared for sweeping the stables, shovelling dung, dirty looks, but this?... Party time? Succulent lamb instead of pigs pods? Finest silk and linen robes instead of lousy coarse cotton? Wouldn't you be stunned too?
And dad.. well.. he looked like the cat that caught the burung pipit, contented and so happy. He was going around making sure the guests were well fed and their cups were constantly filled. He was also telling everyone that Bob is back, in case they hadn't noticed. Haha.. Dad was happy, which is actually an understatement! happier than he had been for a while. He had lost his son, and now he had found him again. So, it was a happening party (on the history books to be THE party of the year) .. when suddenly BANG.. everyone jumped.
There standing at the door of the hall was Art, Bob's eldest brother. Oh.. if looks could kill, Bob would be dead, and then some. Art was furious to see that the party was in Bob's honour. He had asked the servants when he came back to the house after tending to the animals, the reason for the music in the air and the smell of food wafting out, and found out that Bob is back. That no good son of his father is back, after all the pain he put the old man through, the shame his family had to endure, the snide remarks his friends, family and neighbours had thrown at them, his father throws a welcoming party for Bob? "I knew it, the old man is getting senile," thought Art. "I should start thinking about retirement homes, before he gets worse." He continued thinking as anger rolled over him, at the injustice, the shame.
He couldn't bring himself to go to the party, but he just had to see it, hardly believing it could possibly be true. But it was. There was Bob, in the best robe (did I even see dad's ring on his finger?) eating the fattened calf, the animal that He, Art himself had fed everyday? Bob Bob Bob.. Dad's thoughts had always been about Bob! Art felt sick in his guts. He just turned and left...
So.. which person can you identify with most? Bob? Art? Dad?
To be continued...
And dad.. well.. he looked like the cat that caught the burung pipit, contented and so happy. He was going around making sure the guests were well fed and their cups were constantly filled. He was also telling everyone that Bob is back, in case they hadn't noticed. Haha.. Dad was happy, which is actually an understatement! happier than he had been for a while. He had lost his son, and now he had found him again. So, it was a happening party (on the history books to be THE party of the year) .. when suddenly BANG.. everyone jumped.
There standing at the door of the hall was Art, Bob's eldest brother. Oh.. if looks could kill, Bob would be dead, and then some. Art was furious to see that the party was in Bob's honour. He had asked the servants when he came back to the house after tending to the animals, the reason for the music in the air and the smell of food wafting out, and found out that Bob is back. That no good son of his father is back, after all the pain he put the old man through, the shame his family had to endure, the snide remarks his friends, family and neighbours had thrown at them, his father throws a welcoming party for Bob? "I knew it, the old man is getting senile," thought Art. "I should start thinking about retirement homes, before he gets worse." He continued thinking as anger rolled over him, at the injustice, the shame.
He couldn't bring himself to go to the party, but he just had to see it, hardly believing it could possibly be true. But it was. There was Bob, in the best robe (did I even see dad's ring on his finger?) eating the fattened calf, the animal that He, Art himself had fed everyday? Bob Bob Bob.. Dad's thoughts had always been about Bob! Art felt sick in his guts. He just turned and left...
So.. which person can you identify with most? Bob? Art? Dad?
To be continued...
Friday, August 8, 2008
The Story of Bob - Part 4
It was just about dawn when dad woke up. As he lay on his bed wriggling his toes, he stared at the ceiling, wondering what this new day may bring. "The chickens are starting to lay their eggs, we better fix the chicken coop today." he thought, as he slowly got up and out of his bed. He stretched his body and almost automatically, he walked to the window, towards the telescope that has been stationed there for a long time now. "What will this new day bring," dad mused as he peered through the telescope. He noticed the sun was starting to come up over the olive trees near the gates, birds were flitting through the trees. He was just about to straighten his body when he stiffened. He had noticed a speck appearing at the end of the road that leads to his estate. He quickly rubbed his eyes as he fiddled with the telescope, trying to get a sharper focus on the speck. "Is it moving? Could be the neighbour's goat again." His heart started fluttering as he slowly observed the shape getting bigger on his lens. "It's too tall for a goat," he muttered, "Who is coming so early in the morning?"
The shape continued getting bigger as it got nearer to his estate. Then dad knew, in his heart, way before his eyes confirmed it, that it was Bob. Bob has come back. With trembling hands, he reached for his outer coat and wrapped it around his shoulders and opened the front door. He almost stumbled over the front porch in his eagerness to walk to the front gate. The sun is shining warmly as he strides along, all the while fixing his eyes on the shape that is beyond his gate. He reached the gates before Bob did, for Bob was a long way away, and dad's telescope was pretty powerful, so he saw Bob before Bob knew he was seen.
Dad started running towards Bob, his heart overjoyed to see his son once again. He can't believe that it's really Bob, true, he is thinner than before, but it's Bob! Tears came into his eyes as he gazed upon his son, as he continued running to cover the distance separating them. Bob had also seen his dad opening the gates and walking towards him. When Bob saw his dad started running, his steps faltered, unsure what his dad was going to do to him. He started gathering up courage to talk to his dad, to say sorry for all the hurtful things he said before, the pain he saw in his dad's eyes when he left the house. It seemed so long ago.
"Dad," Bob stammered, "I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son"... that was all he could say before his dad reached him and gave him a bear hug! His dad kissed him on both cheeks as tears ran down his face. Bob had tears in his eyes too as he hugged his dad. Then they started talking non-stop, Bob trying to say sorry, and his dad trying to ask how he was. They had started walking back to the main house and as soon as his dad saw a servant, he quickly told the servant, "Quick, bring the best robe and put it on Bob. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. The fattened calf? slaughter it, cos we're going to have a party!" dad beamed. "This son of mine was dead and is alive again: He was lost and is found." Bring out the best wine, sharpen the carving knife, decorate the hall, call the musicians, it's party time! Yeah.. partaaaayyyyyyyyy... but this time the theme wasn't sex & booze, but instead forgiveness & love, and what a great party this is going to be.
There are so many lessons and significant moments in this part of the story and they each blow my mind. First, the hope the dad has that Bob will return, waiting day by day for the son's return, just as how God waits for us to come back to him. Secondly, the love dad had for Bob, in running towards his son. Fathers/parents do not run to their children, it's the other way round, ooo.. this dad is unpredictable, just like our Father God. We expect a big stick when we do wrong, He gives us a hug instead.. tears in my eyes, and my heart when I think of God's love.
The garments also symbolise many things. The robe signifies honour, something that you adorn honoured guests. Bob did wrong but dad welcomed him back as a honoured guest. The ring signifies that Bob belongs to dad's family, his house, that sense of belonging that dad gave Bob. The sandals on Bob's feet signifies that he is welcomed as a son, not a slave. Remember Bob wanted to return as a servant, but his dad welcomed him home as a son.
So.. the party is in full swing, it's happening, and swinging man! Nobody saw a shadow crossed the threshold of the front door and suddenly, BANG! Everyone jumped out of their recliners.
To be continued...
The shape continued getting bigger as it got nearer to his estate. Then dad knew, in his heart, way before his eyes confirmed it, that it was Bob. Bob has come back. With trembling hands, he reached for his outer coat and wrapped it around his shoulders and opened the front door. He almost stumbled over the front porch in his eagerness to walk to the front gate. The sun is shining warmly as he strides along, all the while fixing his eyes on the shape that is beyond his gate. He reached the gates before Bob did, for Bob was a long way away, and dad's telescope was pretty powerful, so he saw Bob before Bob knew he was seen.
Dad started running towards Bob, his heart overjoyed to see his son once again. He can't believe that it's really Bob, true, he is thinner than before, but it's Bob! Tears came into his eyes as he gazed upon his son, as he continued running to cover the distance separating them. Bob had also seen his dad opening the gates and walking towards him. When Bob saw his dad started running, his steps faltered, unsure what his dad was going to do to him. He started gathering up courage to talk to his dad, to say sorry for all the hurtful things he said before, the pain he saw in his dad's eyes when he left the house. It seemed so long ago.
"Dad," Bob stammered, "I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son"... that was all he could say before his dad reached him and gave him a bear hug! His dad kissed him on both cheeks as tears ran down his face. Bob had tears in his eyes too as he hugged his dad. Then they started talking non-stop, Bob trying to say sorry, and his dad trying to ask how he was. They had started walking back to the main house and as soon as his dad saw a servant, he quickly told the servant, "Quick, bring the best robe and put it on Bob. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. The fattened calf? slaughter it, cos we're going to have a party!" dad beamed. "This son of mine was dead and is alive again: He was lost and is found." Bring out the best wine, sharpen the carving knife, decorate the hall, call the musicians, it's party time! Yeah.. partaaaayyyyyyyyy... but this time the theme wasn't sex & booze, but instead forgiveness & love, and what a great party this is going to be.
There are so many lessons and significant moments in this part of the story and they each blow my mind. First, the hope the dad has that Bob will return, waiting day by day for the son's return, just as how God waits for us to come back to him. Secondly, the love dad had for Bob, in running towards his son. Fathers/parents do not run to their children, it's the other way round, ooo.. this dad is unpredictable, just like our Father God. We expect a big stick when we do wrong, He gives us a hug instead.. tears in my eyes, and my heart when I think of God's love.
The garments also symbolise many things. The robe signifies honour, something that you adorn honoured guests. Bob did wrong but dad welcomed him back as a honoured guest. The ring signifies that Bob belongs to dad's family, his house, that sense of belonging that dad gave Bob. The sandals on Bob's feet signifies that he is welcomed as a son, not a slave. Remember Bob wanted to return as a servant, but his dad welcomed him home as a son.
So.. the party is in full swing, it's happening, and swinging man! Nobody saw a shadow crossed the threshold of the front door and suddenly, BANG! Everyone jumped out of their recliners.
To be continued...
The Story of Bob - Part 3
Ah.. "I see the light," says Mulder. Oops, it's not only Fox Mulder that can see the light in X-Files, seems that Bob could see the light as well. Perhaps Mulder had a forefather called Bob? "I see the light," says Bob. As his stomach grumbled and rumbled while the pigs snorted and gobbled, he thought how nice if he could eat the pods that piggy was eating. Suddenly a million gazillion lightbulbs went off in Bob's head, as he suddenly thought of his dad. Perhaps he has not thought of his dad for quite a while now; after all, sex, booze and party were big important stuff in Bob's life until the pigs spoilt it! Perhaps it was the pong coming from the pigs that somehow woke him up from his wild living. And not only did he suddenly think of his old dad, he actually spared a thought for the kakaks and pekerja kebun that his dad employ. He remembered that the servants back home ate better food than what he was thinking about eating. "Man,.. I've sunk so low," thought Bob. "I had it all, great food, great life, great dad and I ruined it, and I actually wanna fight with these pigs for food?"
It begins; this realisation that he has just blown everything away, ran through Bob like a cold morning shower, hitting him in the face and rudely awakening him. "I will go back to dad's place, ask him to take me on as a servant, at least I can eat better, and I don't have to fight with pigs," Bob kept thinking. So he bid sayonara to those pigs and clambered asap to the highway.
So our young punk, smelly and light-seeing Bob started the journey home. Hitchhiking from kind travellers who don't mind the unshaven "Giorgio Armani underwear model" look that Bob is sporting, he travels homeward. Thoughts went through his mind on what to say to his dad; "should I ask for wages?, can I get a room of my own? would he actually take me back? I'm gonna be so killed, I'm sorry dad, can you take me back?" went on like a broken CD as he got nearer and nearer to home. He started sweating and getting butterflies in his stomach as he saw familiar sights ambling past.
In his father's house there is a telescope. The telescope is in dad's room, and it points way out to the fence that surrounds the border of the land. The focus is on the big gates at the entrance of the property, and some distance beyond those gates. Everyday, the first thing dad does when he wakes up is to walk to the telescope and peer through the lens. Everyday, like clockwork, dad peered through the telescope, then he'd go to work.
Many times we are separated and estranged with our family through anger, misunderstanding, pride etc. God gave us a family for a purpose, not some random acts by God. God doesn't do random, ever.
To be continued...
It begins; this realisation that he has just blown everything away, ran through Bob like a cold morning shower, hitting him in the face and rudely awakening him. "I will go back to dad's place, ask him to take me on as a servant, at least I can eat better, and I don't have to fight with pigs," Bob kept thinking. So he bid sayonara to those pigs and clambered asap to the highway.
So our young punk, smelly and light-seeing Bob started the journey home. Hitchhiking from kind travellers who don't mind the unshaven "Giorgio Armani underwear model" look that Bob is sporting, he travels homeward. Thoughts went through his mind on what to say to his dad; "should I ask for wages?, can I get a room of my own? would he actually take me back? I'm gonna be so killed, I'm sorry dad, can you take me back?" went on like a broken CD as he got nearer and nearer to home. He started sweating and getting butterflies in his stomach as he saw familiar sights ambling past.
In his father's house there is a telescope. The telescope is in dad's room, and it points way out to the fence that surrounds the border of the land. The focus is on the big gates at the entrance of the property, and some distance beyond those gates. Everyday, the first thing dad does when he wakes up is to walk to the telescope and peer through the lens. Everyday, like clockwork, dad peered through the telescope, then he'd go to work.
Many times we are separated and estranged with our family through anger, misunderstanding, pride etc. God gave us a family for a purpose, not some random acts by God. God doesn't do random, ever.
To be continued...
The Story of Bob - Part 2
Ok.. where were we? Let's recap, Bob - rich young punk, donkey racer through family property, give parents whole load of problems, ask dad for half share of dad's moolah, dad gives in, the story continues...
Bob was loaded! literally and figuratively. And who's willing to bet that he has no problems carrying all those money bags? I am absolutely certain Bob's friends were most willing to help him carry those money bags and spend some coins! Isn't it funny how 'friends' seem to come out of the woodwork, attracted by the sight and smell of money, but when the money dries up, the friendship also withers. Choose our friends wisely! So Bob & Co. headed overseas to spend his money. Nope, he didn't use that money to invest and earn more money, he splurged! He spent it on sex, booze and parties! Partaaaayyyyyy.. whoo whoo whoo! Easy come, easy go, ain't that the life?
So while Bob was partying happily, he failed to see that a recession was going on in that country he was in. And one fine day, he woke up from his sex, booze and party session to find that not only did he have a massive headache and hangover, his money was gone, his friends also deserted him, and the country was in recession. Man's gotta eat, you know, and Bob didn't have any money to eat. What a rollercoaster life Bob was in! One minute it was steak and vodka, the next it was.. nada, nothing, zip, kosong! Kacang putih pun taada lah..
It was crunch time. What was a man to do to find some food? Remember, Bob was a rich young punk .. now he's just a young punk. So this young punk called Bob started getting desperate and he was even willing to work.. oooh, the horror, the shock.. rich kid working? What will the neighbours say?.. But Bob was too hungry to care what his neighbours might say, and at last, he found a job.. a nice little job looking after cute little pigs.. NOT! Do you know that Jews do not eat pork? They won't go near a pig to save their lives, it's against their religion and everything about pigs is detestable. So Bob got himself a taboo job, not the kinda job any self respecting Jew would grab at.
As I write this, I'm amazed to find that Bob fell so low, to get a job tending pigs, the lowest of the low, (is there any job lower than this? perhaps not oh).. what did I say about rollercoaster? Let us learn a lesson here, that we must have wisdom in living our lives. God gave us a brain, let us use it.
Just as I thought Bob was about to throw in the towel, I continued reading the story and find, suddenly, a million gazillion lightbulbs went off in Bob's head! Booom... "I see the light," says Bob...
to be continued....
Bob was loaded! literally and figuratively. And who's willing to bet that he has no problems carrying all those money bags? I am absolutely certain Bob's friends were most willing to help him carry those money bags and spend some coins! Isn't it funny how 'friends' seem to come out of the woodwork, attracted by the sight and smell of money, but when the money dries up, the friendship also withers. Choose our friends wisely! So Bob & Co. headed overseas to spend his money. Nope, he didn't use that money to invest and earn more money, he splurged! He spent it on sex, booze and parties! Partaaaayyyyyy.. whoo whoo whoo! Easy come, easy go, ain't that the life?
So while Bob was partying happily, he failed to see that a recession was going on in that country he was in. And one fine day, he woke up from his sex, booze and party session to find that not only did he have a massive headache and hangover, his money was gone, his friends also deserted him, and the country was in recession. Man's gotta eat, you know, and Bob didn't have any money to eat. What a rollercoaster life Bob was in! One minute it was steak and vodka, the next it was.. nada, nothing, zip, kosong! Kacang putih pun taada lah..
It was crunch time. What was a man to do to find some food? Remember, Bob was a rich young punk .. now he's just a young punk. So this young punk called Bob started getting desperate and he was even willing to work.. oooh, the horror, the shock.. rich kid working? What will the neighbours say?.. But Bob was too hungry to care what his neighbours might say, and at last, he found a job.. a nice little job looking after cute little pigs.. NOT! Do you know that Jews do not eat pork? They won't go near a pig to save their lives, it's against their religion and everything about pigs is detestable. So Bob got himself a taboo job, not the kinda job any self respecting Jew would grab at.
As I write this, I'm amazed to find that Bob fell so low, to get a job tending pigs, the lowest of the low, (is there any job lower than this? perhaps not oh).. what did I say about rollercoaster? Let us learn a lesson here, that we must have wisdom in living our lives. God gave us a brain, let us use it.
Just as I thought Bob was about to throw in the towel, I continued reading the story and find, suddenly, a million gazillion lightbulbs went off in Bob's head! Booom... "I see the light," says Bob...
to be continued....
The Story of Bob - Part 1
Ever since I attended Rebecca Pippert's seminar last week, I've wanted to share about what I learnt, but I couldn't quite decide which, or what to share, until now. It was after a conversation I had with my dear friend that I decided on sharing this, the story of the prodigal son.
Many of us are familiar with this story. A man had two sons, and the second son, for ease of telling the story, let me call him Bob, k? (although pls don't quote me on this lah, hehe) So Bob.. he was a rich young punk and I think he pretty much didn't have to do anything. He has servants to cater to his every whim, I mean, his dad was loaded. One day, Bob decided to ask his dad for his share of the inheritance.. ooo.. (the start of the big journey/big mistake) this being a Jewish background, dads are honoured and respected, so you just don't go up to dad and ask for a share of the fortune! Plus, inheritance are given only after the dad has passed on, so to ask for it while dad is living is pretty much saying.. "what? dad, you're not dead yet? come on, get a move on!"
The story goes on to tell that his dad gave Bob his share of the inheritance. I'll bet Bob really gave his dad a near heart attack for his audacity to ask for his fortune, or maybe not. Dad would have seen Bob's wild living right? Racing donkey carts through the family property (hey, there weren't Ferraris then) and pretty much creating problems for everyone. Now what was amazing to me is that his dad didn't smack Bob or kick Bob out of the house, but he gave Bob what he wanted. He could have gone to the papers and put an ad out to disown Bob!
Oo.. let's not forget about Bob's older brother.. since Bob has a name, let's name the older brother Art. So Art, he's the eldest bro, and by right, he gets the lion's share of the wealth as Jewish customs go by. So Bob, the young punk, is trying to elbow Art out of his fortune by demanding his share first.. oooo.. doesn't he need a kick to the backside?
So.. what lessons can we learn here? That dad in this story is like God, who doesn't stop us making decisions, foolish or otherwise. He gave us a will and he will not stop us making foolish decisions. Doesn't mean he doesn't love us, in fact, he loves us so much, more than we can ever imagine.
To be continued....
Many of us are familiar with this story. A man had two sons, and the second son, for ease of telling the story, let me call him Bob, k? (although pls don't quote me on this lah, hehe) So Bob.. he was a rich young punk and I think he pretty much didn't have to do anything. He has servants to cater to his every whim, I mean, his dad was loaded. One day, Bob decided to ask his dad for his share of the inheritance.. ooo.. (the start of the big journey/big mistake) this being a Jewish background, dads are honoured and respected, so you just don't go up to dad and ask for a share of the fortune! Plus, inheritance are given only after the dad has passed on, so to ask for it while dad is living is pretty much saying.. "what? dad, you're not dead yet? come on, get a move on!"
The story goes on to tell that his dad gave Bob his share of the inheritance. I'll bet Bob really gave his dad a near heart attack for his audacity to ask for his fortune, or maybe not. Dad would have seen Bob's wild living right? Racing donkey carts through the family property (hey, there weren't Ferraris then) and pretty much creating problems for everyone. Now what was amazing to me is that his dad didn't smack Bob or kick Bob out of the house, but he gave Bob what he wanted. He could have gone to the papers and put an ad out to disown Bob!
Oo.. let's not forget about Bob's older brother.. since Bob has a name, let's name the older brother Art. So Art, he's the eldest bro, and by right, he gets the lion's share of the wealth as Jewish customs go by. So Bob, the young punk, is trying to elbow Art out of his fortune by demanding his share first.. oooo.. doesn't he need a kick to the backside?
So.. what lessons can we learn here? That dad in this story is like God, who doesn't stop us making decisions, foolish or otherwise. He gave us a will and he will not stop us making foolish decisions. Doesn't mean he doesn't love us, in fact, he loves us so much, more than we can ever imagine.
To be continued....
Monday, August 4, 2008
Something Interesting
In the 1400's a law was set forth in England that a man was allowed to beat his wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb. Hence we have "the rule of thumb".
Many years ago in Scotland , a new game was invented. It was ruled "Gentlemen Only...Ladies Forbidden"...and thus the word GOLF entered into the English language.
The first couple to be shown in bed together on prime time TV were Fred and Wilma Flintstone.
Every day more money is printed for Monopoly than the U.S . Treasury.
Men can read smaller print better than women can; women can hear better.
Coca-Cola was originally green.
It is impossible to lick your elbow.
The State with the highest percentage of people who walk to work:Alaska.
The percentage of Africa that is wilderness: 28% (now get this...)
The percentage of North America that is wilderness: 38%
The cost of raising a medium-size dog to the age of eleven: $ 16,400
The average number of people airborne over the U.S. in any given hour: 61,000
Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair.
The first novel ever written on a typewriter: Tom Sawyer.
Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great king from history: Spades - King David, Hearts - Charlemagne, Clubs -Alexander, the Great, Diamonds - Julius Caesar.
111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321
If a statue in the park of a person on a horse has both front legs in the air, the person died in battle. If the horse has one front leg in the air the person died as a result of wounds received in battle. If the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes.
Q. Most boat owners name their boats. What is the most popular boat name requested? A. Obsession
Q. If you were to spell out numbers, how far would you have to go until you would find the letter "A"? A. One thousand
Q. What do bulletproof vests, fire escapes, windshield wipers, and laser printers all have in common? A. All were invented by women.
Q. What is the only food that doesn't spoil?A. Honey
Which day are there more collect calls than any other day of the year? A. Father's Day .
In Shakespeare's time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by ropes. When you pulled on the ropes the mattress tightened, making the bed firmer to sleep on. Hence the phrase......... "goodnight, sleep tight."
It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years ago that for a month after the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a honey beer and because their calendar was lunar based, this period was called the honey month, which we know today as the honeymoon.
In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts... So in old England , when customers got unruly, the bartender would yell at them "Mind your pints and quarts, and settle down." It's where we get the phrase "mind your P's and Q's".
Many years ago in England , pub frequenters had a whistle baked into the rim, or handle, of their ceramic cups. When they needed a refill, they used the whistle to get some service. "Wet your whistle" is the phrase inspired by this practice.
At least 75% of people who read this will try to lick their elbow!
Many years ago in Scotland , a new game was invented. It was ruled "Gentlemen Only...Ladies Forbidden"...and thus the word GOLF entered into the English language.
The first couple to be shown in bed together on prime time TV were Fred and Wilma Flintstone.
Every day more money is printed for Monopoly than the U.S . Treasury.
Men can read smaller print better than women can; women can hear better.
Coca-Cola was originally green.
It is impossible to lick your elbow.
The State with the highest percentage of people who walk to work:Alaska.
The percentage of Africa that is wilderness: 28% (now get this...)
The percentage of North America that is wilderness: 38%
The cost of raising a medium-size dog to the age of eleven: $ 16,400
The average number of people airborne over the U.S. in any given hour: 61,000
Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair.
The first novel ever written on a typewriter: Tom Sawyer.
Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great king from history: Spades - King David, Hearts - Charlemagne, Clubs -Alexander, the Great, Diamonds - Julius Caesar.
111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321
If a statue in the park of a person on a horse has both front legs in the air, the person died in battle. If the horse has one front leg in the air the person died as a result of wounds received in battle. If the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes.
Q. Most boat owners name their boats. What is the most popular boat name requested? A. Obsession
Q. If you were to spell out numbers, how far would you have to go until you would find the letter "A"? A. One thousand
Q. What do bulletproof vests, fire escapes, windshield wipers, and laser printers all have in common? A. All were invented by women.
Q. What is the only food that doesn't spoil?A. Honey
Which day are there more collect calls than any other day of the year? A. Father's Day .
In Shakespeare's time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by ropes. When you pulled on the ropes the mattress tightened, making the bed firmer to sleep on. Hence the phrase......... "goodnight, sleep tight."
It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years ago that for a month after the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a honey beer and because their calendar was lunar based, this period was called the honey month, which we know today as the honeymoon.
In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts... So in old England , when customers got unruly, the bartender would yell at them "Mind your pints and quarts, and settle down." It's where we get the phrase "mind your P's and Q's".
Many years ago in England , pub frequenters had a whistle baked into the rim, or handle, of their ceramic cups. When they needed a refill, they used the whistle to get some service. "Wet your whistle" is the phrase inspired by this practice.
At least 75% of people who read this will try to lick their elbow!
Rest Day
What did you guys do last Saturday night when we had no youth meeting? Some of you might have gone for the evangelistic meeting at All Saint's Cathedral, or not. I'm guessing most of you didn't go. I also didn't go, hehe.. I had gone for 3 nights straight of the meeting so I decided to stay home Saturday night.
Well, let me tell you that I felt strange being at home Saturday nights, because Sat nights are spent with my friends in youth, where we laugh, play and learn together. So it was weird watching tv at home. I keep thinking it's Sunday night instead. This means I miss youth lah.. haha.
I hope you all had a great weekend and may you have a good week ahead huh?
Well, let me tell you that I felt strange being at home Saturday nights, because Sat nights are spent with my friends in youth, where we laugh, play and learn together. So it was weird watching tv at home. I keep thinking it's Sunday night instead. This means I miss youth lah.. haha.
I hope you all had a great weekend and may you have a good week ahead huh?
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Minor Hiccups
If you guys haven't noticed yet, I've just added pictures onto the blog. These were taken during the HS weekend last Saturday, so enjoy viewing them. However the blog isn't showing all the pictures.. hmmm. Going to sort that out, hopefully will be settled today.
I have also put in youth videos at the bottom of the page but they don't seem to be loading onto the blog as well.. minor hiccup which I'm sure will be overcomed. So have patience, my friends as I sort out these problems.
Oh ya.. this Saturday no youth meeting k? I do encourage you to come for the seminar currently going on in church!
I have also put in youth videos at the bottom of the page but they don't seem to be loading onto the blog as well.. minor hiccup which I'm sure will be overcomed. So have patience, my friends as I sort out these problems.
Oh ya.. this Saturday no youth meeting k? I do encourage you to come for the seminar currently going on in church!
Monday, July 28, 2008
Holy Spirit Weekend
HS Weekend started at 1pm Saturday and our youths started trickling in within that time. I unfortunately didn't include Rachel's name (sorry Rachel! I missed out your form) but it was a minor hiccup. We combined with the chinese youth and we all started with an icebreaker. Ps Jonathan was a good speaker and what he said all made sense, didn't it?
The ministry time was also a real experience, when we invited the HS to come into our midst and minister to us. People cried, saw visions, received gift of tongues, ministered to. Wow! Praise the Lord for his grace and goodness. It was really amazing. I know the games were less fiesty and mild compared to the usual crazy games we usually play, but we had to cater for the chinese youth too. Never mind lah, we'll play those 'usual bien tai' games in our retreat, ok?
The guys slept in Alpha Hall while the girls slept in the rooms upstairs. I must admit I was really glad to see that mattresses were provided and that was really great! Although the mosquitoes were biting, there weren't as many as I dreaded. I don't know how the guys slept downstairs, which was pretty stuffy, but they were more troubled by the noise more than anything, I think. Some of the younger boys in chinese youth were noisier than others.
I was really glad to see Waltson, Mark and Douglas coming to join. It is truly wonderful to see them back again, and even though Waltson's holiday was short, he did come back to spend time with us (that's great of you, man!) and Mark.. Mark was able to get a day off to come spend it with us and get ministered to too. And to receive a gift from God tops it all, doesn't it? I am glad he was with us also, we've missed you, Mark!
It was really a wonderful time together, even though it was only for a day and night, it was still a great time. I hope everyone learnt something over this weekend and that you learn to apply those lessons in your lives!
The ministry time was also a real experience, when we invited the HS to come into our midst and minister to us. People cried, saw visions, received gift of tongues, ministered to. Wow! Praise the Lord for his grace and goodness. It was really amazing. I know the games were less fiesty and mild compared to the usual crazy games we usually play, but we had to cater for the chinese youth too. Never mind lah, we'll play those 'usual bien tai' games in our retreat, ok?
The guys slept in Alpha Hall while the girls slept in the rooms upstairs. I must admit I was really glad to see that mattresses were provided and that was really great! Although the mosquitoes were biting, there weren't as many as I dreaded. I don't know how the guys slept downstairs, which was pretty stuffy, but they were more troubled by the noise more than anything, I think. Some of the younger boys in chinese youth were noisier than others.
I was really glad to see Waltson, Mark and Douglas coming to join. It is truly wonderful to see them back again, and even though Waltson's holiday was short, he did come back to spend time with us (that's great of you, man!) and Mark.. Mark was able to get a day off to come spend it with us and get ministered to too. And to receive a gift from God tops it all, doesn't it? I am glad he was with us also, we've missed you, Mark!
It was really a wonderful time together, even though it was only for a day and night, it was still a great time. I hope everyone learnt something over this weekend and that you learn to apply those lessons in your lives!
Dota Revisited
I wrote about DotA 2 months ago with the aim of understanding this game the guys love to play every chance they get. And as Luiz nicely announced in the chat box, Jenny, Soo Man and I went to CX yesterday after lunch to watch 5 of the guys play their favourite game. Let me refresh your memory on what DotA is, which I extracted from Wikipedia last time and pasted here now.
Defense of the Ancients (often referred to as DotA) is a custom scenario for Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, based on the "Aeon of Strife" map for StarCraft. The objective of the scenario is to destroy the opponents' "Ancient", a heavily guarded structure in each corner of the map. Players use powerful units known as heroes, and are assisted by allied heroes and AI-controlled fighters called "creeps". As in role-playing games, players level up their hero and use gold to buy equipment during the mission.GameplayDefense of the Ancients pits two teams of players against each other: the Sentinel and the Scourge. Players on the Sentinel team are based at the southwest corner of the map, and those on the Scourge team are based at the northeast corner. Each base is defended by towers and waves of units which guard the main paths leading to their base. In the center of each base is the "Ancient", a building that must be destroyed to win the game.
So.. let me tell you my ten minute exposure to DotA. The first thought that crossed my mind when I went in CX was "wow.. this place is so systematic and clean." The screens are all flat screen monitors, with earphones attached to every computer. Then we saw the guys all seated and playing their game. Waltson wasn't too happy cos he was losing, as was Edwin. So they started another round and I saw ugly animated creatures running around the screen (these ugly creatures are heroes, I think?) followed by other smaller ugly creatures (which Klement kept telling me are creeps, I believe that, man.. what an apt name for those things) and they were fighting each other. Then there was another bigger troll hurling stones at all the creatures running around the screen, which nobody seemed to be able to kill. Then I saw Waltson breaking and 'eating' some trees.. what is that all about?
Are all the guys groaning over my description.. have I just spoiled the fun of the game? Hahaha.. ok, we girls lost interest pretty quickly. Waltson tried to explain the game to me... but all I saw was little ugly creatures running around, some throwing stones.. lots of stones.. I think Jenny and Soo Man didn't even try understanding the game.. haha.. can't blame them also lah.
Well, I left CX no wiser than when I first went in what this game was about. My brain can only categorise and shelve this experience under "The things that guys do but girls don't understand." Hahahaha
Defense of the Ancients (often referred to as DotA) is a custom scenario for Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, based on the "Aeon of Strife" map for StarCraft. The objective of the scenario is to destroy the opponents' "Ancient", a heavily guarded structure in each corner of the map. Players use powerful units known as heroes, and are assisted by allied heroes and AI-controlled fighters called "creeps". As in role-playing games, players level up their hero and use gold to buy equipment during the mission.GameplayDefense of the Ancients pits two teams of players against each other: the Sentinel and the Scourge. Players on the Sentinel team are based at the southwest corner of the map, and those on the Scourge team are based at the northeast corner. Each base is defended by towers and waves of units which guard the main paths leading to their base. In the center of each base is the "Ancient", a building that must be destroyed to win the game.
So.. let me tell you my ten minute exposure to DotA. The first thought that crossed my mind when I went in CX was "wow.. this place is so systematic and clean." The screens are all flat screen monitors, with earphones attached to every computer. Then we saw the guys all seated and playing their game. Waltson wasn't too happy cos he was losing, as was Edwin. So they started another round and I saw ugly animated creatures running around the screen (these ugly creatures are heroes, I think?) followed by other smaller ugly creatures (which Klement kept telling me are creeps, I believe that, man.. what an apt name for those things) and they were fighting each other. Then there was another bigger troll hurling stones at all the creatures running around the screen, which nobody seemed to be able to kill. Then I saw Waltson breaking and 'eating' some trees.. what is that all about?
Are all the guys groaning over my description.. have I just spoiled the fun of the game? Hahaha.. ok, we girls lost interest pretty quickly. Waltson tried to explain the game to me... but all I saw was little ugly creatures running around, some throwing stones.. lots of stones.. I think Jenny and Soo Man didn't even try understanding the game.. haha.. can't blame them also lah.
Well, I left CX no wiser than when I first went in what this game was about. My brain can only categorise and shelve this experience under "The things that guys do but girls don't understand." Hahahaha
Friday, July 25, 2008
Eve of Holy Spirit Weekend
Our Alpha course is coming to an end. We have covered ten lessons and starting tomorrow, we will cover 3 more which deals with the Holy Spirit. We will hv Ps Jonathan sharing with us instead of AD JY. We will be combining with the Chinese youth group for this Weekend and this will be a chance to get to know them and make new friends.
So don't forget guys, we will be registering at 1pm so come with expectations ya!
So don't forget guys, we will be registering at 1pm so come with expectations ya!
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Youth Camp Update
Hi guys... just an update on the youth camp happening in All Saint's Cathedral on 18 - 23 Aug 08. So far throughout the whole diocese, we have 191 youths signing up, let me just pass along the info I received just off the press as to the breakdown of youths according to churches;
FCC 9
St Patrick 44
All Saint's 70
CCL 12
G. Sam 6
Holy Saviour 13
Christ the King 2
G. Shepherd 2
Indah Church 1
St Michael 14
D'stream 2
St Mark 8
St Margaret 8
So that's the count so far.. 191 youths. Another news is that they have extended the deadline from 15th Jul to 31st Jul for camp registration. So, for those of us who are still considering going.. I urge you strongly to sign up for camp! It will be interesting.. I hear also that some workshops are maxed out.. wow! So sign up sign up everyone!
FCC 9
St Patrick 44
All Saint's 70
CCL 12
G. Sam 6
Holy Saviour 13
Christ the King 2
G. Shepherd 2
Indah Church 1
St Michael 14
D'stream 2
St Mark 8
St Margaret 8
So that's the count so far.. 191 youths. Another news is that they have extended the deadline from 15th Jul to 31st Jul for camp registration. So, for those of us who are still considering going.. I urge you strongly to sign up for camp! It will be interesting.. I hear also that some workshops are maxed out.. wow! So sign up sign up everyone!
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Away From Home - Waltson
Hey guys. Long time no see yea?Hehe. Well, the past two or three weeks have been somewhat undescribable. Work has been really tiring. So last week there was a bunch of vietnamese here to learn baking. They are a group sponsored by the RICH brand.This company sells whipping cream and many other products.So the people who came were all bosses of their own bakery. So the pressure is there for sure.We have to teach them very profesionally and not make any mistakes.Surprisingly,they have no idea how to make bread or cake.They only specialise in cake decoration.So we had to teach them from scratch. Which is gud in a way. But their cake deco is GODLIKE.Yes!Thats how i describe it!They can produce a cake thats worth so much in just 3-4 minutes!N the way they do piping is just......my goodness,just BEYOND GODLIKE!They can pipe out dragons,puppies...u name it in less that 2 mins!!!!MY GOSH!!.
Okay so u see,we have to teach them d whole day.9am-6pm.N our break is merely to rush a 5min lunch then continue work.So its really tiring.Wait, tiring has no meaning in my dictionary already.Im serious.After we teach them we stil hav to do baking,packing and lots n lots n lots n lots of cleaning!!Washing trays,equipments n so on.D worst part is these crappy vietnamese dont bother to wash the equipment they use.Crap la!!!!SO we hav no choice but to wash 4 them.So the whole week from sunday to sunday it was that way.N d worse part it was during my study week,which im suppose 2 b at home studying.So sadly i cudnt.Then on mon was exams...which is 2days ago.This whole week is exams.But left 1 paper la on fri.Tmr off.But i have to say, teaching the vietnamese was a worthwhile experience.We learn alot of things la tats for sure.N we got 2 c for ourselves the expertise of vietnamese bakers.This is one experience that i wil remember always.But that whole week was truly exhausting n hectic.
I was lucky i controlled my temper,honestly it wasnt easy. But i did wonder abt sumtin.Coz i havent gone 2 church for d past 3 weeks ald.N i actually realised that whn i missed church,i tend 2 feel tat work is extremely tiring n crappy.So i dunno la but i feel weaker la.N thn recently one of the FCC members msged me asking y i disappeared for a few weeks.So i told him tat i was reli exhausted n all.Then he did advice me.He said that God is the centre of our lives n he comes first in evrything.I admit that I haven't been doing that lately.So i will now try my best to get bak on trck.I hope you guys are learning something from this post.God bless all of u=)
Okay so u see,we have to teach them d whole day.9am-6pm.N our break is merely to rush a 5min lunch then continue work.So its really tiring.Wait, tiring has no meaning in my dictionary already.Im serious.After we teach them we stil hav to do baking,packing and lots n lots n lots n lots of cleaning!!Washing trays,equipments n so on.D worst part is these crappy vietnamese dont bother to wash the equipment they use.Crap la!!!!SO we hav no choice but to wash 4 them.So the whole week from sunday to sunday it was that way.N d worse part it was during my study week,which im suppose 2 b at home studying.So sadly i cudnt.Then on mon was exams...which is 2days ago.This whole week is exams.But left 1 paper la on fri.Tmr off.But i have to say, teaching the vietnamese was a worthwhile experience.We learn alot of things la tats for sure.N we got 2 c for ourselves the expertise of vietnamese bakers.This is one experience that i wil remember always.But that whole week was truly exhausting n hectic.
I was lucky i controlled my temper,honestly it wasnt easy. But i did wonder abt sumtin.Coz i havent gone 2 church for d past 3 weeks ald.N i actually realised that whn i missed church,i tend 2 feel tat work is extremely tiring n crappy.So i dunno la but i feel weaker la.N thn recently one of the FCC members msged me asking y i disappeared for a few weeks.So i told him tat i was reli exhausted n all.Then he did advice me.He said that God is the centre of our lives n he comes first in evrything.I admit that I haven't been doing that lately.So i will now try my best to get bak on trck.I hope you guys are learning something from this post.God bless all of u=)
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Extraordinary Stuff
Last Sunday we celebrated Youth Sunday, and even though this year we didn't do many duties like in previous years, we still performed a dance. And AD Yeo said nice things about us.. yeah! Plus Ps Jonathan sang some rocking songs and many youths jumped and sang.. you all enjoyed that, didn't you? It was a fun time.
14 youths were in the dance.. let me see if I can name them all.. Hannah T & K, Steph, Jenny, Jacqueline, Slyvia, Adriel, Clement, Doug, Joel, Rachel, Moses and last but not least, Mark. Matthew was in the prac but not in the actual dance.. hmmm...what happened? and everyone.. you were all extraordinary! You all did a great job! Proud of you. Thanks and praise must go to those who choreographed the dance and those who taught (I think they are the same people, right? Mark, Stephanie & Hannah T) and also Jenny who oversee everything. Sorry if I missed out anyone, you all did really well. And you all smiled! Hahahahahaha... (the smiley worked, didn't it?) I had made a smiley and flashed it at them from the back of the church so that they would smile while they danced. There is already another dance request for Mooncake Harvest Event on 15th Sept so keep those dancing shoes on!
I received ten camp forms and this falls short of the target of 30! Hmm.. we're not very good in following targets this year huh? But I understand many are in PMR and SPM year, and the camp falls in the middle of the year. Still, I'm glad these 10 youths are joining and it will a cool camp! So look forward to camp ok, and to meeting up with your friends from other churches!
14 youths were in the dance.. let me see if I can name them all.. Hannah T & K, Steph, Jenny, Jacqueline, Slyvia, Adriel, Clement, Doug, Joel, Rachel, Moses and last but not least, Mark. Matthew was in the prac but not in the actual dance.. hmmm...what happened? and everyone.. you were all extraordinary! You all did a great job! Proud of you. Thanks and praise must go to those who choreographed the dance and those who taught (I think they are the same people, right? Mark, Stephanie & Hannah T) and also Jenny who oversee everything. Sorry if I missed out anyone, you all did really well. And you all smiled! Hahahahahaha... (the smiley worked, didn't it?) I had made a smiley and flashed it at them from the back of the church so that they would smile while they danced. There is already another dance request for Mooncake Harvest Event on 15th Sept so keep those dancing shoes on!
I received ten camp forms and this falls short of the target of 30! Hmm.. we're not very good in following targets this year huh? But I understand many are in PMR and SPM year, and the camp falls in the middle of the year. Still, I'm glad these 10 youths are joining and it will a cool camp! So look forward to camp ok, and to meeting up with your friends from other churches!
Friday, July 11, 2008
Youth Tee Shirt
Ok.. after half a year thinking over the details of our new youth tee shirt.. we finally have a design. But don't jump out of your chairs in excitement just yet, there is still work to be done. Thanks goes to Clement this time for coming out with the design (the first tee shirt was designed by Charis), which resemble that of our 1st tee. It is also flame-based, if you get what I mean, hehe, and we're thinking of reusing the pattern of the back.
Well, I know we will be able to see it better with pictures than just me talking about it, so be patient, we'll post the designs out on the blog and you can take a vote which one you like better, ok? So keep logging on to check this out!
And one last thing, we've also posted a new thing on the blog.. birthdays! So.. if I miss out anyone's.. please give me a buzz k? I noticed people like to use the chat box more.. hehe.. keep it up!
Well, I know we will be able to see it better with pictures than just me talking about it, so be patient, we'll post the designs out on the blog and you can take a vote which one you like better, ok? So keep logging on to check this out!
And one last thing, we've also posted a new thing on the blog.. birthdays! So.. if I miss out anyone's.. please give me a buzz k? I noticed people like to use the chat box more.. hehe.. keep it up!
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Second Wind
After the flurry of postings in May when we started our blog, we seemed to have lost steam, no thanks to me being away and also being sick for a period in June. But I guess life sometimes is unpredictable, and sometimes when you're so busy you just don't have the mood to blog. But never fear, we're not going to let our blog die, are we? So do continue with your support by viewing and dropping comments ok? I know many of you are also having finals at this time so you've cut down on surfing, it's cool. Just remember to come back to view the blog k?
Ok.. let's see what has happened since a few weeks ago.. let's start with Alpha. Ah.. Alpha, we're on the last leg of Alpha now, so far we've covered about 8 topics ranging from Who is Jesus, Why should I read the Bible? Why should I tell others to How to resist evil. I've attended 2 Alpha course so far and the one in youth is the first that I'm actually sharing the word and this has been an interesting journey for me. Why? Because I find myself challenged to share the word of God every week. Of course it's made easier with the Alpha manual that was provided and all the powerpoint clips all ready. Still, it was scary at first but coming to the end of Alpha, I am glad we went through Alpha. We set ourselves a target of 10 friends but we only managed 3 friends. I hope we will do better next time round.
Speaking about friends, I think we need to be more mature and less selfish in our behaviour and attitude. Why do I say this? Well, Joel brought a friend along, a girl, but all the guys did was to tease him that it's his girlfriend. It didn't help that the girl is a shy girl, and honestly, if I was the girl, I won't come again with all the teasing! I admire Joel for actually bringing his friend, which is really a cool thing, but he got 'sabo' by all of us who tease and alienate the girl, supposedly so that Joel can spend time with her. Please lah, if you want to date a girl, or a guy, you won't bring them to youth for a date, would you? Honestly? Please, grow up guys. Let's welcome new people and stop with the teasing.
And talking about admiring, I have to salute Waltson lah, when he was here, he would always scold us for not talking to new friends.. haiya Walt, we miss your face.. I mean your scolding oh. Because we forget too easily that we should go out of our comfort zone and talk to new friends. And think about it, they are already out of their comfort zone by coming to join us, strangers in a strange place, but we, who are in our comfort zone, do not actually draw people in. Then we wonder why our youth never grow? Hmm.. there are many reasons also lah, but our friendship and warmth towards newcomers is a reason.
Something to think about huh?
Ok.. let's see what has happened since a few weeks ago.. let's start with Alpha. Ah.. Alpha, we're on the last leg of Alpha now, so far we've covered about 8 topics ranging from Who is Jesus, Why should I read the Bible? Why should I tell others to How to resist evil. I've attended 2 Alpha course so far and the one in youth is the first that I'm actually sharing the word and this has been an interesting journey for me. Why? Because I find myself challenged to share the word of God every week. Of course it's made easier with the Alpha manual that was provided and all the powerpoint clips all ready. Still, it was scary at first but coming to the end of Alpha, I am glad we went through Alpha. We set ourselves a target of 10 friends but we only managed 3 friends. I hope we will do better next time round.
Speaking about friends, I think we need to be more mature and less selfish in our behaviour and attitude. Why do I say this? Well, Joel brought a friend along, a girl, but all the guys did was to tease him that it's his girlfriend. It didn't help that the girl is a shy girl, and honestly, if I was the girl, I won't come again with all the teasing! I admire Joel for actually bringing his friend, which is really a cool thing, but he got 'sabo' by all of us who tease and alienate the girl, supposedly so that Joel can spend time with her. Please lah, if you want to date a girl, or a guy, you won't bring them to youth for a date, would you? Honestly? Please, grow up guys. Let's welcome new people and stop with the teasing.
And talking about admiring, I have to salute Waltson lah, when he was here, he would always scold us for not talking to new friends.. haiya Walt, we miss your face.. I mean your scolding oh. Because we forget too easily that we should go out of our comfort zone and talk to new friends. And think about it, they are already out of their comfort zone by coming to join us, strangers in a strange place, but we, who are in our comfort zone, do not actually draw people in. Then we wonder why our youth never grow? Hmm.. there are many reasons also lah, but our friendship and warmth towards newcomers is a reason.
Something to think about huh?
Monday, July 7, 2008
Sacrifice
You know you had a good holiday when you don't want to come home. Holiday is a great escape from reality, where you don't have to worry about your work, or studies, exams, assignments, meetings with the boss, or ministries, practices. And the only thing you have to look out for is taking care to cross the road, or which sights or shopping complexes you want to go to. But unfortunately, or fortunately, reality starts when holiday ends. So there you have it, my feelings all summed up in a paragraph after my short holiday to Kuching last weekend (That's why I wasn't in youth last Sat!)
So yesterday evening while in my room, I was praying and telling God, "you know God, I'm tired. I wish I was still on holiday and I don't have to think about ministry and church. It's not like I don't like youth ministry, Lord, but.. I'm tired." So with that in mind, I did my quiet time.. and God nicely reminded me that "it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then..." Galatians 5:1 It is for freedom that Christ came to set you and I free. I have forgotten that fact, when I was complaining about being tired of ministry. Christ suffered so much for me, and I'm complaining about tired? Christ suffered so much for me, and I still continue sinning? Err... "Lord, I take all those words back."
I guess I was still on holiday mode when I prayed that, but well, I'm back in reality and am aware once again of God's sacrifice for me. So... back to business! Heheh.. And.. if that wasn't enough to snap me back to reality, let me tell you a little story.
When I was holidaying in Manila in May, I bought myself some cute little angels, and they seemed to be the favourite of my nephew too. And like all little boys 3 years of age, they are pretty clumsy. So last night, when I was about to go to bed, I happened to glance at my angels and to my horror, one of the angel was headless! HEADLESS! Argggggggggghhhhhhh.. I could hardly believe my eyes! And then I spotted the head lying beside the figurine. My nephew had come into my room while I was in Kuching and snapped the angel's head off! It was traumatic to see a headless angel, believe you me. Sigh. I managed to reunite the parts with glue and now my angel is back to normal, aka scarface. How's that for a reality check!
So yesterday evening while in my room, I was praying and telling God, "you know God, I'm tired. I wish I was still on holiday and I don't have to think about ministry and church. It's not like I don't like youth ministry, Lord, but.. I'm tired." So with that in mind, I did my quiet time.. and God nicely reminded me that "it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then..." Galatians 5:1 It is for freedom that Christ came to set you and I free. I have forgotten that fact, when I was complaining about being tired of ministry. Christ suffered so much for me, and I'm complaining about tired? Christ suffered so much for me, and I still continue sinning? Err... "Lord, I take all those words back."
I guess I was still on holiday mode when I prayed that, but well, I'm back in reality and am aware once again of God's sacrifice for me. So... back to business! Heheh.. And.. if that wasn't enough to snap me back to reality, let me tell you a little story.
When I was holidaying in Manila in May, I bought myself some cute little angels, and they seemed to be the favourite of my nephew too. And like all little boys 3 years of age, they are pretty clumsy. So last night, when I was about to go to bed, I happened to glance at my angels and to my horror, one of the angel was headless! HEADLESS! Argggggggggghhhhhhh.. I could hardly believe my eyes! And then I spotted the head lying beside the figurine. My nephew had come into my room while I was in Kuching and snapped the angel's head off! It was traumatic to see a headless angel, believe you me. Sigh. I managed to reunite the parts with glue and now my angel is back to normal, aka scarface. How's that for a reality check!
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Youth Camp
As of today, I have received only a total of 4 camp forms, Hannah T, Sylvia, Jacqueline and Joel. The rest are..... ? where are your forms guys/girls? I expect at least 20 people to sign up woh.. and you know what, we have no excuse not to go. Let me list out the reasons..
1st.. it's in KK so there's no roller coaster bus ride to east Sabah, vomit inducing journeys that ain't pretty. It's in ASC, which is just downtown KK ya!
2nd.. it's affordable too. Only RM30 and it's for 4 days! Where can you get such affordable camp, that you can have 400 friends around, dynamic speakers, luxury accommodation, great concerts, smashing games (eh, gotta promote ba this.. ) did I say it's in KK?
3rd.. I'm going for the camp so you better not leave me alone with only 4 friends as listed above and 400 other friends.. you this.. you can't do this to meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!! -.-
So.... sign up sign up.. hurry hurry hurry!
1st.. it's in KK so there's no roller coaster bus ride to east Sabah, vomit inducing journeys that ain't pretty. It's in ASC, which is just downtown KK ya!
2nd.. it's affordable too. Only RM30 and it's for 4 days! Where can you get such affordable camp, that you can have 400 friends around, dynamic speakers, luxury accommodation, great concerts, smashing games (eh, gotta promote ba this.. ) did I say it's in KK?
3rd.. I'm going for the camp so you better not leave me alone with only 4 friends as listed above and 400 other friends.. you this.. you can't do this to meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!! -.-
So.... sign up sign up.. hurry hurry hurry!
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Finally... Photos
I did intend to post youth photos on this blog but didn't know how to do so, until now! Yeah.. I have managed to set up an account with Flickr.. sorry for the delay, I'm a slow learner, so sue me... hahah.. Anyway.. I will set up more photos asap ok?
The next two weeks will see new faces sharing Alpha.... (haha.. cool, don't have to see Caroline's face!) as I have to attend a wedding this Sat and go for another trip the following Sat. Sorry about this guys but I'm sure you will do fine without me.
One more thing I wanna bring your attention to is the Holy Spirit weekend scheduled for end of July. This is a Saturday away so you gotta pack your bags for an overnight stay. This will be fun and I'm looking forward to it. More details will be coming soon..
The next two weeks will see new faces sharing Alpha.... (haha.. cool, don't have to see Caroline's face!) as I have to attend a wedding this Sat and go for another trip the following Sat. Sorry about this guys but I'm sure you will do fine without me.
One more thing I wanna bring your attention to is the Holy Spirit weekend scheduled for end of July. This is a Saturday away so you gotta pack your bags for an overnight stay. This will be fun and I'm looking forward to it. More details will be coming soon..
Friday, June 20, 2008
A Sight for Sore Eyes
You know, when God created us, he knew we would need someone to be around us, to help share the load, to laugh and to cry with, to share secrets and jokes with, that's why he created friends for us. Ah... friends, most of the time we can get along fine, we laugh together, learn, cry and hang out together. Sometimes friendship can get a bust up, fur will fly, tempers will be lost and harsh words spoken. But, if that friendship is forged strongly, then time will recover and smooth over the hurts and friends are friends again.
So anyway, I made a few tight friendships over the years in youth, and now, most of them are away from home and I'm missing them. This week has not been exactly the greatest week, I've been carrying around worries and burdens, workwise and other stuff. But thank God he knew that, and I got a sms from a dear friend a few days ago, she was also feeling moody and depressed so we got to sms-ing, updated each other on 'gossips'.. haha.. nolah, on what's been happening with our lives. And you know what, tight friendships ah, you can be separated by distance, but just a short sms, or msn do wonders to your spirit, and I was cheered up!
This afternoon, I again got a sms from her with an encouraging verse, then I bumped into two other buddies online.. and my day suddenly got better.. ah friends... I MISS YOU GUYS! Here's the encouraging verse that I received, may it encourage you as well.
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." Matthew 11:28-29
So anyway, I made a few tight friendships over the years in youth, and now, most of them are away from home and I'm missing them. This week has not been exactly the greatest week, I've been carrying around worries and burdens, workwise and other stuff. But thank God he knew that, and I got a sms from a dear friend a few days ago, she was also feeling moody and depressed so we got to sms-ing, updated each other on 'gossips'.. haha.. nolah, on what's been happening with our lives. And you know what, tight friendships ah, you can be separated by distance, but just a short sms, or msn do wonders to your spirit, and I was cheered up!
This afternoon, I again got a sms from her with an encouraging verse, then I bumped into two other buddies online.. and my day suddenly got better.. ah friends... I MISS YOU GUYS! Here's the encouraging verse that I received, may it encourage you as well.
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." Matthew 11:28-29
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Forgiven
We all make mistakes, don't we? If I asked, "hands up all those who have never made any mistakes in life", and if you put your hand up, I would have to say "liar, liar, pants on fire!" to your face! So, the truth is, we all make mistakes in life. I'm not talking about mistakes we make in our exam question papers, but rather, mistakes like... cheating, swearing, stealing, being unfaithful to your bf/gf (although I would advise you not to have a relationship while you're still studying!), disobedient to our parents.. the list goes on.
I have been thinking about this ever since I heard Archdeacon John's sermon last week, about the prodigal son. You know the story; the son went to his father and asked for his share of his inheritance, which is like rude, cos normally inheritance is given after the death of the father, but in this case, the son couldn't wait for the dad to die before getting his hands on the moolah! So the story continued; the dad gave him the money, and the son went off to live wildly; booze, sex, outrageous parties, name it, he did it. He spent money like water, like nobody's business and was up in the air! And he was up in the air until the money ran out and thumped, he fell to the ground. I bet all his friends deserted him like his money did because when you have money, all those friends and relatives seem to come out of nowhere, but when you have no money, they disappear just as fast! Hehe..
The main point of the story is, the son came to his senses (could be from the fall to the ground that resulted from the realisation of no more money.. hehe), realised his mistake and decided to go home and ask for his dad's forgiveness. AND... he decided that he's no longer fit to be called the son but instead just wanted to be a servant, makan gaji lah. That is repentance. So he got on the journey, the dad saw him from afar, was so happy he asked the servants to bring the best robes, the fattened calf and threw a big party in celebration. Reconciliation! Yea!
How many of us need to come to our senses about our mistakes? If you have, then come back to Jesus, ask for his forgiveness and be reconciled to him. If you haven't and are still in denial, well, don't wait any longer. When you're sorry for your mistakes, there is always one person who will accept you. Jesus.
I have been thinking about this ever since I heard Archdeacon John's sermon last week, about the prodigal son. You know the story; the son went to his father and asked for his share of his inheritance, which is like rude, cos normally inheritance is given after the death of the father, but in this case, the son couldn't wait for the dad to die before getting his hands on the moolah! So the story continued; the dad gave him the money, and the son went off to live wildly; booze, sex, outrageous parties, name it, he did it. He spent money like water, like nobody's business and was up in the air! And he was up in the air until the money ran out and thumped, he fell to the ground. I bet all his friends deserted him like his money did because when you have money, all those friends and relatives seem to come out of nowhere, but when you have no money, they disappear just as fast! Hehe..
The main point of the story is, the son came to his senses (could be from the fall to the ground that resulted from the realisation of no more money.. hehe), realised his mistake and decided to go home and ask for his dad's forgiveness. AND... he decided that he's no longer fit to be called the son but instead just wanted to be a servant, makan gaji lah. That is repentance. So he got on the journey, the dad saw him from afar, was so happy he asked the servants to bring the best robes, the fattened calf and threw a big party in celebration. Reconciliation! Yea!
How many of us need to come to our senses about our mistakes? If you have, then come back to Jesus, ask for his forgiveness and be reconciled to him. If you haven't and are still in denial, well, don't wait any longer. When you're sorry for your mistakes, there is always one person who will accept you. Jesus.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Why & How Should I Read My Bible?
Our Alpha journey continued last Sat with a study on why and how should I read my bible. First thing new that we saw when we first got into Omega Hall is Luiz's arm. It was in a sling and he had his arm in a cast! Too much dota, I think, but I was wrong, he fractured his wrist while playing football and now is in a cast for 6 weeks. He told me he had a jab of morphine that made him high and funny for a while! Glad you're ok Luiz, and anyone, he needs a long stick in order to scratch his arm.. hahah.. so do him a favour huh?
We had also saw a new friend Kimberly, brought by Hannah T, and we also saw another friend, Natasha, Joel's friend. I am greatly encouraged that they are bringing friends and may I continue to call the rest of the youths to bring your friends to Alpha, to youth and if you see any of the youths in church who doesn't attend youth meeting, go talk to them, make friends with them and invite them to our youth meeting! Come on, let's rise up and reach out!
So last Sat we learnt about the Bible, how it's an amazing book, the best seller of all times, it's a life changing book cos it's so powerful. We have all had amazing experiences when we read the Bible, haven't we? It's God's way of communicating with us, the Bible, so isn't that amazing already? And it also helps us build a relationship with God so we know what is his will for us.
I think Alpha is really cool because we learn new things and relearn things we've forgotten so I hope everyone pays attention when the sharing is being done, huh? Oh yeah.. and we ended with refreshment, Aaron brought tuna buns and they were great! Absolutely great. I understand it has something to do with 'toes'... hahahahah... sorry, just a little joke. I'm sure he didn't make it with his toes! Kidding, kidding! Man.. youth is fun, and it's all because of you! Yup, YOU! So continue to make youth a fun place to be k? I know those away from home are sure missing us! We miss you too!
We had also saw a new friend Kimberly, brought by Hannah T, and we also saw another friend, Natasha, Joel's friend. I am greatly encouraged that they are bringing friends and may I continue to call the rest of the youths to bring your friends to Alpha, to youth and if you see any of the youths in church who doesn't attend youth meeting, go talk to them, make friends with them and invite them to our youth meeting! Come on, let's rise up and reach out!
So last Sat we learnt about the Bible, how it's an amazing book, the best seller of all times, it's a life changing book cos it's so powerful. We have all had amazing experiences when we read the Bible, haven't we? It's God's way of communicating with us, the Bible, so isn't that amazing already? And it also helps us build a relationship with God so we know what is his will for us.
I think Alpha is really cool because we learn new things and relearn things we've forgotten so I hope everyone pays attention when the sharing is being done, huh? Oh yeah.. and we ended with refreshment, Aaron brought tuna buns and they were great! Absolutely great. I understand it has something to do with 'toes'... hahahahah... sorry, just a little joke. I'm sure he didn't make it with his toes! Kidding, kidding! Man.. youth is fun, and it's all because of you! Yup, YOU! So continue to make youth a fun place to be k? I know those away from home are sure missing us! We miss you too!
Monday, June 9, 2008
Away From Home - Leon
To DOTA or Not to DOTA??
Now some of you may have faced with this question before and I must say asking the "rationale" of it would be your parents (more often that not). And then there's the age old question of wether Christians should be restricted from certain games, books, movies etc etc.
For me, frankly speaking I clock in to DOTA an average of 2-3 hours a day .. more so on the weekends and to me, DOTA is just a GAME. Period.
Then what about all those "news" of people being possessed or evil influences from these so called games (i would say games that have a cultic influence or references to the bible like Diablo or even Constantine). The only thing I can say is that IF you are OBSSESSED with the GAME then it is possible that it can be a door for evil spirits. Now evil spirits here does not only point to the "nasty" ones so to say, but even the spirit of laziness, distraction or even procrastination are also spirits...if somewhat lesser.
But for more "practicle" reasons, don't want to scare you all about spiritual stuff ... just yet hehehehe.
"Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us" (Heb 12:1)
This verse takes about every WEIGHT and SIN that ensnares us. Now I'm not saying that playing DOTA is a sin but is playing DOTA WEIGHTING you down on the more important things that require your priority? Be honest now.
Like I shared at the youths, good priorites in your life help you make good decisions. If it is taking too much or your time (and money) i'm pretty sure you are dangerously close to being obsessed with the game and I would advised you to step away from it and set your priorities straight.
I have 3 friends that used to be OBSESSED with DOTA. 2 of them spend like almost RM 400 a month just on DOTA alone and had to be transfered to a different collage to continue to pursue their studies because their results were too bad in the previous college. One had a blood clot in his brain and needed a operation because the blood clot caused a minor stroke due to the fact he was playing DOTA for 2 months without getting much rest.
You might be saying but these cases are a bit too extreme what ...that's so not me. Well, have you ever thought "when I finally leave for my uni/collage I'll have FREEDOM to do anything I want". If you cannot manage your priorites even with you parents around, chances are your priorities would be pretty much screw up when you reach uni/collage without your parents supervision. And well maybe you won't get a blood clot like my friend did or transferring to another collage because you fail too many subjects, but you'll certainly not live up to your full potential like only doing assignments and projects at the last minute or skipping classes because of a DOTA session that went too late.
We have to be honest with ourselves. Yes I do agree that DOTA is a good session for bonding with friends as well as a good relaxation tool, hey even I use it often enough to start a conversation with friends that I don't know too well. BUT like I said earlier, what are your priorities?
"PLAY the game but don't let the game PLAY you"
I hope all of you (especially the guys) do some thinking and reflecting because all in all I want all of you to grow up to be equip to face the "challanges and pleasures" that this world we throw at you .. and no doubt we will fall at times, but don't let the fall be permenant but conitue on each day knowing that in whatever you do, you are glorifying the Lord. God bless you all !!
"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." (Mat 5:16)
Bro far far away
Leon
Now some of you may have faced with this question before and I must say asking the "rationale" of it would be your parents (more often that not). And then there's the age old question of wether Christians should be restricted from certain games, books, movies etc etc.
For me, frankly speaking I clock in to DOTA an average of 2-3 hours a day .. more so on the weekends and to me, DOTA is just a GAME. Period.
Then what about all those "news" of people being possessed or evil influences from these so called games (i would say games that have a cultic influence or references to the bible like Diablo or even Constantine). The only thing I can say is that IF you are OBSSESSED with the GAME then it is possible that it can be a door for evil spirits. Now evil spirits here does not only point to the "nasty" ones so to say, but even the spirit of laziness, distraction or even procrastination are also spirits...if somewhat lesser.
But for more "practicle" reasons, don't want to scare you all about spiritual stuff ... just yet hehehehe.
"Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us" (Heb 12:1)
This verse takes about every WEIGHT and SIN that ensnares us. Now I'm not saying that playing DOTA is a sin but is playing DOTA WEIGHTING you down on the more important things that require your priority? Be honest now.
Like I shared at the youths, good priorites in your life help you make good decisions. If it is taking too much or your time (and money) i'm pretty sure you are dangerously close to being obsessed with the game and I would advised you to step away from it and set your priorities straight.
I have 3 friends that used to be OBSESSED with DOTA. 2 of them spend like almost RM 400 a month just on DOTA alone and had to be transfered to a different collage to continue to pursue their studies because their results were too bad in the previous college. One had a blood clot in his brain and needed a operation because the blood clot caused a minor stroke due to the fact he was playing DOTA for 2 months without getting much rest.
You might be saying but these cases are a bit too extreme what ...that's so not me. Well, have you ever thought "when I finally leave for my uni/collage I'll have FREEDOM to do anything I want". If you cannot manage your priorites even with you parents around, chances are your priorities would be pretty much screw up when you reach uni/collage without your parents supervision. And well maybe you won't get a blood clot like my friend did or transferring to another collage because you fail too many subjects, but you'll certainly not live up to your full potential like only doing assignments and projects at the last minute or skipping classes because of a DOTA session that went too late.
We have to be honest with ourselves. Yes I do agree that DOTA is a good session for bonding with friends as well as a good relaxation tool, hey even I use it often enough to start a conversation with friends that I don't know too well. BUT like I said earlier, what are your priorities?
"PLAY the game but don't let the game PLAY you"
I hope all of you (especially the guys) do some thinking and reflecting because all in all I want all of you to grow up to be equip to face the "challanges and pleasures" that this world we throw at you .. and no doubt we will fall at times, but don't let the fall be permenant but conitue on each day knowing that in whatever you do, you are glorifying the Lord. God bless you all !!
"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." (Mat 5:16)
Bro far far away
Leon
Friday, June 6, 2008
Recipe - Lemon Cheese Cake
Hey everyone, here's another recipe to try out. And guys, if you think baking is sissy, well, talk to Waltson, he'll put you straight, hahaha.. and, in my house, my brother is the expert in making this cake, really! (He's certainly more passionate about it than I am) And it's yummy too!
A tip; feel free to cut or add more sugar to your liking and taste ya? I always believe recipes should be tweaked and changed to suit your own taste. Cooking isn't rigid lah, but that's just me.
Ingredients
200 gm Marie biscuit
8 oz Butter
1 Lemon
1 cup Hot water
1 packet Lemon or Lime flavoured Jelly (Large packet)
1 tin Evaporated milk
¼ cup Sugar
1 packet Philadelphia cream cheese
Method
1. Crush the biscuit in a blender, or use pestle and mortar. Sieve the crumbs.
2. In a saucepan, melt the butter then add the biscuit crumbs in, mix well.
3. Put the biscuit mixture into pan, press down firmly.
4. In a mixing bowl, put in the cream cheese. With a mixer, beat the cheese till it’s creamy, slowly add the milk, mix well.
5. Add the sugar to the cheese mixture and mix well.
6. Grate the lemon rind, set aside.
7. Squeeze the juice from the lemon. Add the lemon rind.
8. Add the jelly to the hot water and stir to dissolve completely. Add the lemon juice. Pour the jelly into the cheese mixture. Mix well.
9. Pour no. (8) mixture over biscuit base and chill in fridge until firm.
Try not to pig out on this by yourself k? At least call me to taste some lah!
A tip; feel free to cut or add more sugar to your liking and taste ya? I always believe recipes should be tweaked and changed to suit your own taste. Cooking isn't rigid lah, but that's just me.
Ingredients
200 gm Marie biscuit
8 oz Butter
1 Lemon
1 cup Hot water
1 packet Lemon or Lime flavoured Jelly (Large packet)
1 tin Evaporated milk
¼ cup Sugar
1 packet Philadelphia cream cheese
Method
1. Crush the biscuit in a blender, or use pestle and mortar. Sieve the crumbs.
2. In a saucepan, melt the butter then add the biscuit crumbs in, mix well.
3. Put the biscuit mixture into pan, press down firmly.
4. In a mixing bowl, put in the cream cheese. With a mixer, beat the cheese till it’s creamy, slowly add the milk, mix well.
5. Add the sugar to the cheese mixture and mix well.
6. Grate the lemon rind, set aside.
7. Squeeze the juice from the lemon. Add the lemon rind.
8. Add the jelly to the hot water and stir to dissolve completely. Add the lemon juice. Pour the jelly into the cheese mixture. Mix well.
9. Pour no. (8) mixture over biscuit base and chill in fridge until firm.
Try not to pig out on this by yourself k? At least call me to taste some lah!
Thursday, June 5, 2008
RSVP
(Taken from God's Little Devotional Book for Teens)
The letters RSVP stand for the French phrase repondez s'il vous plait... or, "please respond." This phrase on an invitation asks that you let the host or hostess know whether you plan to attend the function. Every invitation marked with RSVP requires that you call or write the host to let them know that you either will or will not be there.
Occasionally, a handwritten invitation will say, "RSVP, regrets only." In this case, you are required to notify the host only if you will not be attending. However, a truly thoughtful guest who plans to attend will call or mail a note to the host to thank them for the invitation and to confirm that he or she will attend.
Imagine that you planned a catered party for fifty guests and you were paying RM25 per guest. Then imagine that half your guests failed to respond, and ten of them did not show up. You would be spending RM250 for people who simply were not considerate enough to let you know that they could not be present. Would you consider those people to be thoughtful friends?
The most important RSVP in all of life is our response to God's invitation to spend eternity with Him in Heaven. Have you sent your RSVP?
If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9
The letters RSVP stand for the French phrase repondez s'il vous plait... or, "please respond." This phrase on an invitation asks that you let the host or hostess know whether you plan to attend the function. Every invitation marked with RSVP requires that you call or write the host to let them know that you either will or will not be there.
Occasionally, a handwritten invitation will say, "RSVP, regrets only." In this case, you are required to notify the host only if you will not be attending. However, a truly thoughtful guest who plans to attend will call or mail a note to the host to thank them for the invitation and to confirm that he or she will attend.
Imagine that you planned a catered party for fifty guests and you were paying RM25 per guest. Then imagine that half your guests failed to respond, and ten of them did not show up. You would be spending RM250 for people who simply were not considerate enough to let you know that they could not be present. Would you consider those people to be thoughtful friends?
The most important RSVP in all of life is our response to God's invitation to spend eternity with Him in Heaven. Have you sent your RSVP?
If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9
Down & Out
Hey everyone, sorry for not writing these few days, I've been sick as a dog and didn't feel like writing anything.. have sore throat, cold and cough all roll in one.. a 3 in one illness, I guess. Urgh.. went to see the chinese doctor this morning and she said I have throat infection and gave me this vile tasting black liquid to take twice a day and four little red pills. Seems to be doing the trick, my cough is lessening but the sore throat is still bugging me. Hope I will get well before the weekend!
How is your holiday so far? Been fun? Or still attending classes like some schools are prone to do? Hope it's been a nice two weeks for you all.
How is your holiday so far? Been fun? Or still attending classes like some schools are prone to do? Hope it's been a nice two weeks for you all.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Away From Home - Waltson
Hey guys.....sorry havent been writing much lately,been vry busy with assignments n work.Well,i went 2 church yesterday which was a sat night.And what Rev Khee Vun(FCC pastor) preached really opened my eyes.
Offering or tithing has somewhat become a law in some of our eyes.We feel that it is an obligation to give to the Lord.But let's look at it in one angle.Lets say u r married.The concept is this,after u get married.Men,your money is ur money,ur money is also ur wife's money.Haha.sorry i had 2 poke abit of fun here.Lol.But it is a fact.So practically we can say that a wife would get abt half of what her husband has.isnt that alot??50%!!!But yet we still give.So lets look at tithing.10% am i right?Of what you have.Isnt that considerably such a small amount?God only ask us for 10% of what we have,unlike wives who get 50%.Haha...this is just a comparison la.But can u guys see my point?We do not give out of obligation,but out of love.For God loves a cheerful giver.
I would just like to take a simple example....my mum.Eventhough she's only a teacher,yet she never fails to give her tithings,or even more than that.That is 1 thing I truly respect her for.As much as my family is not very rich,u noe la have 2 support thomson who is studying med which aint cheap,my mum by hook or by crook would give her tithe.Why?Because she loves God very much.Yes,for those who aren't working,we may not be able to give tithes.But what about offering?I remember when I used to be in youth.I remember seeing the offering bag going round and coming back with almost nothing at all.Yes,youths aren't rich n all.But even RM2 woould make a diff.There was once when I looked into d offering bag and I saw a RM50.Whoever gave that offering,I said a little prayer in my heart."God,bless the person who has given you out of love".So I really do hope that we would start giving regularly not because we're obligated,but because we love God and we want to help in His work.God Bless~
Offering or tithing has somewhat become a law in some of our eyes.We feel that it is an obligation to give to the Lord.But let's look at it in one angle.Lets say u r married.The concept is this,after u get married.Men,your money is ur money,ur money is also ur wife's money.Haha.sorry i had 2 poke abit of fun here.Lol.But it is a fact.So practically we can say that a wife would get abt half of what her husband has.isnt that alot??50%!!!But yet we still give.So lets look at tithing.10% am i right?Of what you have.Isnt that considerably such a small amount?God only ask us for 10% of what we have,unlike wives who get 50%.Haha...this is just a comparison la.But can u guys see my point?We do not give out of obligation,but out of love.For God loves a cheerful giver.
I would just like to take a simple example....my mum.Eventhough she's only a teacher,yet she never fails to give her tithings,or even more than that.That is 1 thing I truly respect her for.As much as my family is not very rich,u noe la have 2 support thomson who is studying med which aint cheap,my mum by hook or by crook would give her tithe.Why?Because she loves God very much.Yes,for those who aren't working,we may not be able to give tithes.But what about offering?I remember when I used to be in youth.I remember seeing the offering bag going round and coming back with almost nothing at all.Yes,youths aren't rich n all.But even RM2 woould make a diff.There was once when I looked into d offering bag and I saw a RM50.Whoever gave that offering,I said a little prayer in my heart."God,bless the person who has given you out of love".So I really do hope that we would start giving regularly not because we're obligated,but because we love God and we want to help in His work.God Bless~
Member's Blogging - Jenny
This was the write-up about the trip to Telupid on 30th May.
7.00am: Prayer Meeting at ASC. We prayed for almost everything.
8.00am: Stomach started to growl and food was just there for us. hehe.. Breakfast time. We had fried mee and fried mee hoon.
9.30am: Departure to Ranau. I was the assistant for our Bus 4. I think everyone had a great time except me.. hehee... well, thank God that everything went well. We also prayed for safety journey.
11.30am: Before reaching Ranau, we prayed some more...
12.15pm: Lunch at Ranau...
1.30pm: Some entertainment from 'Set Apart' team. We sang some songs to relax ourselves.
2.00pm: Departure to Telupid. Not forgetting to pray. Important.
4.00pm: We reached Telupid, and AD John Yeo treated us to aftenoon tea before going into Valley of Blessing... Yummy... hehe...
5.00pm: Inside Valley of Blessings. The guys wanted to find the river but ended up searching for 'dry river'.. hahahahhe.The girls... well, I think they prefer something less tough.....hahah.. so we ended up sitting there and looking pretty... =)
6.10pm: Dinner. The food tasted really nice. Yummy.
7.00pm: The event began. Started off with praise & worship, followed by Bishop's Message, thereafter, programme presentations by 4 tribes, gifts presentations, ending.
11.00pm: We ended at this time and due to traffic, we had to walk for about 5min to our bus outside.
11.10pm: Departure to KK and we also prayed for journey mercy.
3.00am: Home sweet home.
7.00am: Prayer Meeting at ASC. We prayed for almost everything.
8.00am: Stomach started to growl and food was just there for us. hehe.. Breakfast time. We had fried mee and fried mee hoon.
9.30am: Departure to Ranau. I was the assistant for our Bus 4. I think everyone had a great time except me.. hehee... well, thank God that everything went well. We also prayed for safety journey.
11.30am: Before reaching Ranau, we prayed some more...
12.15pm: Lunch at Ranau...
1.30pm: Some entertainment from 'Set Apart' team. We sang some songs to relax ourselves.
2.00pm: Departure to Telupid. Not forgetting to pray. Important.
4.00pm: We reached Telupid, and AD John Yeo treated us to aftenoon tea before going into Valley of Blessing... Yummy... hehe...
5.00pm: Inside Valley of Blessings. The guys wanted to find the river but ended up searching for 'dry river'.. hahahahhe.The girls... well, I think they prefer something less tough.....hahah.. so we ended up sitting there and looking pretty... =)
6.10pm: Dinner. The food tasted really nice. Yummy.
7.00pm: The event began. Started off with praise & worship, followed by Bishop's Message, thereafter, programme presentations by 4 tribes, gifts presentations, ending.
11.00pm: We ended at this time and due to traffic, we had to walk for about 5min to our bus outside.
11.10pm: Departure to KK and we also prayed for journey mercy.
3.00am: Home sweet home.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Defence of the Ancients
Defense of the Ancients (often referred to as DotA) is a custom scenario for Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, based on the "Aeon of Strife" map for StarCraft. The objective of the scenario is to destroy the opponents' "Ancient", a heavily guarded structure in each corner of the map. Players use powerful units known as heroes, and are assisted by allied heroes and AI-controlled fighters called "creeps". As in role-playing games, players level up their hero and use gold to buy equipment during the mission.
Gameplay
Defense of the Ancients pits two teams of players against each other: the Sentinel and the Scourge. Players on the Sentinel team are based at the southwest corner of the map, and those on the Scourge team are based at the northeast corner. Each base is defended by towers and waves of units which guard the main paths leading to their base. In the center of each base is the "Ancient", a building that must be destroyed to win the game.
Each human player controls one Hero, a powerful unit with unique abilities. In Allstars, players on each side choose one of ninety heroes, each with different abilities and tactical advantages over other heroes. The scenario is highly team-oriented; it is difficult for one player to carry the team to victory alone. Nevertheless, some heroes, given enough time, can change the outcome single-handedly, while countering the opposing team's heroes. Defense of the Ancients allows up to ten players in a five versus five format and an additional two slots for referees or observers, often with an even number of players on each side.
Because the gameplay revolves around strengthening individual heroes, it does not require one to focus on resource management and base-building, as in most traditional real-time strategy games. Killing computer-controlled units earns the player experience points; when enough experience is accumulated, the player gains a level. Leveling up improves the hero's toughness and the damage it can inflict, and allows players to upgrade their spells or skills. In addition to accumulating experience, players also manage a single resource: gold. The typical resource gathering of Warcraft III is replaced by a combat-oriented money system; in addition to a small periodic income, heroes earn gold by killing hostile units, base structures, and enemy heroes. Using gold, players buy items to strengthen their hero and gain abilities. Certain items can be combined with recipes to create more powerful items. Buying items that suit one's hero is an important tactical element of the scenario.
The above is taken from Wikipedia. The guys must think I'm a hero for publishing this, and the girls think I'm mad. I'm neither and this isn't an endorsement nor approval of the game. I posted this up for the benefit of the girls, actually, as an information on what is DotA that drives the guys to go to cyber every week or what that glues them to their computer screens. Maybe this would be a piece of entirely senseless information, haha, you be the judge, ok?
And for the guys, I will not debate on whether this is a good game to play (it may be challenging, exciting and thrilling) and many of your parents will probably be on either side of the argument. I will however say this; don't let the game be addictive that you only think,eat and sleep it.
Gameplay
Defense of the Ancients pits two teams of players against each other: the Sentinel and the Scourge. Players on the Sentinel team are based at the southwest corner of the map, and those on the Scourge team are based at the northeast corner. Each base is defended by towers and waves of units which guard the main paths leading to their base. In the center of each base is the "Ancient", a building that must be destroyed to win the game.
Each human player controls one Hero, a powerful unit with unique abilities. In Allstars, players on each side choose one of ninety heroes, each with different abilities and tactical advantages over other heroes. The scenario is highly team-oriented; it is difficult for one player to carry the team to victory alone. Nevertheless, some heroes, given enough time, can change the outcome single-handedly, while countering the opposing team's heroes. Defense of the Ancients allows up to ten players in a five versus five format and an additional two slots for referees or observers, often with an even number of players on each side.
Because the gameplay revolves around strengthening individual heroes, it does not require one to focus on resource management and base-building, as in most traditional real-time strategy games. Killing computer-controlled units earns the player experience points; when enough experience is accumulated, the player gains a level. Leveling up improves the hero's toughness and the damage it can inflict, and allows players to upgrade their spells or skills. In addition to accumulating experience, players also manage a single resource: gold. The typical resource gathering of Warcraft III is replaced by a combat-oriented money system; in addition to a small periodic income, heroes earn gold by killing hostile units, base structures, and enemy heroes. Using gold, players buy items to strengthen their hero and gain abilities. Certain items can be combined with recipes to create more powerful items. Buying items that suit one's hero is an important tactical element of the scenario.
The above is taken from Wikipedia. The guys must think I'm a hero for publishing this, and the girls think I'm mad. I'm neither and this isn't an endorsement nor approval of the game. I posted this up for the benefit of the girls, actually, as an information on what is DotA that drives the guys to go to cyber every week or what that glues them to their computer screens. Maybe this would be a piece of entirely senseless information, haha, you be the judge, ok?
And for the guys, I will not debate on whether this is a good game to play (it may be challenging, exciting and thrilling) and many of your parents will probably be on either side of the argument. I will however say this; don't let the game be addictive that you only think,eat and sleep it.
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