Eros + Phileo + Agape Love = Successful Marriage

I am very tired now. I was unable to blog yesterday as I had to coordinate a wedding till past midnight. Then today I have to do another one which ended in the evening at around 6pm. The banquet will be held on New Year's Day evening.

It is no joke having to deal with two major events back-to-back. Well, thank God all went fine for both. All glory to Him. :) I had jitters for both but God has been good to have guided me through them all.

I pray the couples and their families enjoyed themselves and I also hope they were pleased with the services rendered. It was truly an honour and a joy to have served both families. Hallelujah!

Though I had to run around doing things throughout, I am glad that I also learnt more about love and marriage.

The couple I served yesterday did not see the potential of the both of them coming together when some friends tried to matchmake them. As time goes by though, they began to be attracted to one another and from there the relationship develops. I praise the Lord that now they are one as husband and wife. I was reminded that love can still attract even though one party may be different from the other. What matters is the binding factor which is God Himself.

Today's exhortation truly sums it all. There are three kinds of love - Eros, Phileo and Agape. Though God created man and women to experience erotic (Eros) love as in sexual love, there need to have the Phileo love where both parties are attracted to one another. But attraction itself cannot last. What binds both parties together is the Agape love - God's love basically. When these three types of love are put in action, the bond in the couple will never be broken because it is a holistic kind of relationship. Many marriages have failed simply because one of these love was missing or not practised.

Well, I am not in a relationship currently. If it is God's will, maybe someday I would love to put these lessons I have learnt into action.

It is always so interesting that whenever I coordinate a wedding that either the parents of the couple or elderly members of the church would ask whether I am married or attached. When I told them I am not, they would tell me to press on and not give up. Hee.

The experience in planning the entire process of yesterday's wedding has been quite funny as I was nudged by a few friends to consider someone they think may be a potential for me. Of course I was flattered. Haha. But I guess going into a relationship is not about just succumbing to these nudges but to consider where and how God is leading both parties. Frankly I do not know where this is leading to but I shall let God lead and guide me accordingly. Even if I were to make a move, it has to depend whether the other party will reciprocate. Hee.

No matter what, even at the end of the day if the Lord wants me to remain single, then thanks be to Him. Life goes on and I will still serve my God Almighty and His people with the love He has taught me to put into action.

It has been an eventful weekend for me. I shall sleep soon. I have this feeling I am going to fall sick - maybe because I did not have enough rest that I am sniffing now. I guess I shall see how tomorrow after waking up. I have also popped two Vitamin C tablets. Hope they would increase my immunity. Haha.

Time to go! Good night!

"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality." Romans 12:9-13

(Passage for yesterday's wedding service)

"Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us." 1 John 4:7-12

(Passage for today's wedding service)

Serve The Lord And His People

I just came home from a Youth Ministry Mentors' (YMMs') Get-Together. Tonight's gathering has been very meaningful in two areas especially - one was the sharing of each YMM's desire for the ministry and also his or her commitment to the youths; two was the renewing of every YMM's commitment to the ministry. There were also the mentors to the YMMs who were present to affirm in each of the youth leaders their strength and gifts.

We ended by signing a covenant with the Lord and partaking of the Lord's Supper. I am encouraged by what we did tonight as I saw a group of willing servants, ready to touch the lives of their younger siblings-in-Christ. They were also excited about their service and I look forward to serving the Lord with them in the new year.

I am very tired now as I have been in church the whole day preparing for tomorrow's wedding. I had to open the sanctuary for two wedding helpers who came to do some decorations to the altar area.

After the farewell lunch for the Assistant Pastor with the church staff, I came back to do some physical work - setting up the tables and arranging the chairs. I also needed to tidy The Plaza area to ensure that there are no unwanted equipment lying around.

I also had to do some printings of signages and also the name-lists for the tea ceremony. I also had to prepare the unity candles and also other items needed for the reception table.

Well, I am thankful to God that I was able to complete all of the above-mentioned in time for me to attend the YMMs' dinner cum renewal service.

I am very tired but at the same time excited about tomorrow. I have been told by the bride that the groom is down with diarrhoea. I pray he will be well when he wakes up. I know the Lord will heal and sustain my dear brother.

Okie, time to sleep. The Lord will be our guide tomorrow! Amen to that! :)

"You, my brothers (and sisters), were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love." Galatians 5:13

United We Stand; Divided We Fall

I brought my God-daughters out today. They came over to my place first to play with Sasha. All three went ballistic. Sasha was running around like a mad dog - sometimes I think she is; my older God-daughter was licked all over and she even went into the dog's cage to see how it felt to be in one; the younger one was running around to avoid the doggy as Sasha kept nibbling her toes and fingers.

Anyway, we went to Orchard Cineleisure next to watch "Alvin and the Chipmunks" movie. For those of you who think it is a childish show and it is only suitable for little ones, think again. For entertainment value and the cuteness of Alvin, Simon and especially Theodore, it was all worth the $7 I paid per pax. They are just so adorable. Comparing this show with "I Am Legend" and "Warlords", "Alvin and the Chipmunks" tops them all! Haha. This is coming from an adult, mind you. :) If you have not watched it, please do so soon! :) Someone had better pay me commission for having said so many good things about this movie.

The show ended at around 1:30pm and it was off to Suki Sushi for a buffet-lunch. The two kids can really eat. Well, I am glad they did that. I thank God they enjoyed themselves thoroughly though it was only about 6 hours that we spent together. Well, I cherished the time spent with my dear God-daughters because next year they will be posted out with their father to another church. Though we will not be worshipping God in the same church, I know the bond of love is so tight that it cannot be broken. Thanks be to God for that!

I do not know why - though I enjoyed myself, at the corner of my mind, there was this sense of anxiety in me regarding the two weddings that I am coordinating for four of my siblings-in-Christ this weekend. I know I have not put my all in helping them prepare because of my busyness at work and in church. Well, like I said, I guess I will have to trust God in the road ahead especially on the wedding day itself. May the Lord be our help!

I learnt something from the movie actually - it was about family. It is a unit where love must be freely expressed so that we are constantly reminded that we are not alone in this world. This can also be applied in the spiritual family. There is a need to support one another because like it or not, we are not created to be hermits. I am where I am now because of the support I received from my families both at home and church. Yes, some of the members in these units may not be perfect but still, knowing that I have people I can depend on is really comforting to the heart and soul.

Well, I have said enough. Time for me to sleep as I need to be in church early to prepare for the Saturday's wedding.

"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful." Colossians 3:13-15

Resolutions Work! Just Add Action To Them!

Four more days and the old year of 2007 will come to past. How has this year been for all of us? Is 2008 going to the same or is there going to be something different? Again I am in my reflective mode.

I have to and I want to be in this state because I know the baggage I carry in me from this year will definitely be carried over to the next if I do not consider how to deal with them before entering into another 365 days of a new calendar. Then next year if I do not deal with this same baggage, it will be accumulated to the next with another set of baggage and it goes on and on and on till one day I cannot take it anymore and totally give up on life. This can happen to anyone. The result - some will become skeptical; angry; frustrated; pessimistic; etc.

I know many have given up on making resolutions for the new year because they say these goals do not work. Of course they will not work if we do not do anything about them! Resolutions work! I shall confidently proclaim that! I see the effectiveness because this year I made sure I stick to what I have planned to do and God showed me so many sides of life that I am actually enjoying living it.

I am not sharing this to put people down but to affirm in all that if we have the desire to overcome certain weaknesses or struggles in our lives - with God's help and our determination, they can be conquered and our lives liberated!

I have set countless resolutions since I became a Christian some 21 years ago but it is only in recent years that I see the power of making a pact with God to deal with certain areas of life.

Try to offload all our baggages whenever possible - what is the point of carrying them all the time when they could have been dealt with if we have set our hearts to it?

Recently I have read a couple of blogs which filled my heart with heaviness because of the negative outlook of life in these writers. Have they given up on overcoming the obstacles of life hence they are in the current state? Perhaps.

If any one reading this blog feels you are in this situation, let us give ourselves all a chance to make a breakthrough. The formula to follow is simple: God's Help + our Resolutions and our Desire for Repentance - our Fickle-Mindedness and Fears = Breakthrough.

Do not believe the above-mentioned will work? Why question something you have not tried? Live it out first and then give me your comments at the end of 2008. We will then evaluate this formula and decide whether there is a need to tweak it.

What 2008 will be is how you and I see it to be now? Include God in the picture and the perception of this coming new year will be different altogether. I hope this paragraph makes sense. :)

Anyway, I had a great day yesterday - I woke up rather late as I was so exhausted. Then a dear friend came over and we chatted for a while before she left to meet another friend of ours for lunch while I went to town to settle some stuff for the two weddings this weekend. Then I met this same friend again for a time of shopping. As she needed to buy some stuff urgently, I prayed and asked God to provide us with where to go and what to buy.

Well, He heard my cries. At Far East Plaza, we got all the items needed at a reasonable price. We left the place satisfied and very happy! She went on to meet another friend of ours for dinner while I had a Christmas meal with the MacRitchie Running Fellowship.

All thanks and praise be to God!

Time to sleep now as I need to bring my God-daughters out for an outing later. :)

Oh yah, I am anxious about coordinating four of my siblings-in-Christ's big day - well, may God lead and guide all of us!

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. Only let us live up to what we have already attained. Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body." Philippians 3:12-21

What Was Christmas To You And Me?

The last time I blogged, I mentioned Christmas was here. Now it is over. How time flies. It is quite interesting how most of us were busy preparing for this day and now it is over. Was it worth the while to be so caught up with all the hustle and bustle to now sit down and realise everything about Christmas has come to past?

Well, I sure hope I have learnt something this year about this day commemorated by all Christians. I guess one lesson was to pray for those who might not have the means and desire to celebrate because they just could not to.

I have been out since this morning. I went for the Christmas Day service where the sermon reminded me of the significance of baptism and the need to nurture those who are younger than me. If the older siblings-in-Christ do not do that, who would?

I was also challenged to serve the Lord without having to worry too much about pleasing man. I have been struggling with that. This morning I told the Lord that I want to just do what He requires me to. If I do face any obstacles especially with people, I would share with them the deep desires of my heart and not be moved by the expectations of others. This may sound extreme but if I know deep down that this is where God wants me to go, then I should have the courage to share that with others. Why be afraid?

Anyway, may the Lord's name be glorified at the end of the day.

I came back not too long ago from a Christmas get-together with some friends. It was a pot-luck gathering. As I was requested to cook something more substantial, I made two dishes - one was a baked marcaroni with cheese and the other was beef lagsane. Well, thanks be to God that the two turned out well.

After watching a movie, "I Am Legend" with a big group of youths (15 of them) at Ang Mo Kio Hub, I went to buy all the ingredients. I am thankful to God for providing me a transport through a sister-in-Christ. Her dad was sending her to our friend's place and they came by the shopping centre to pick me up. It was a great favour for me as I was carrying many bags of groceries.

Well, all had a great time as we ate and fellowshipped.

I guess that is all. I praise the Lord and thank those who have showered me with presents though this year I deliberately did not buy for most. I have set aside the money that I would have used to buy presents for other purposes and I pray they have brought blessings to some.

I am drained to almost empty tank - time to sleep. Long week ahead as I have to prepare for two weddings running back to back this coming weekend. Looking forward to them but at the same time I also have my anxieties. May the Lord use me to lessen the loads of the couples so that they can concentrate on the whole purpose of their coming together as husband and wife. May the Lord be our help.

As for now, good night!

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6

Christmas Is Here!

It is past midnight. Merry Christmas to one and all! I am blogging this at my friend's place. A couple of us are here to chit-chat though I am very tired. I was awake till around 4am writing Christmas cards. Thanks be to God that I managed to complete them.

I thought I covered all till I was in church and realised I have not written to a few more. Well, I managed to jot a few more cards when I was in church.

Well, yesterday I made a boo-boo regarding the rehearsal time for the Christmas pageant for the Candlelight service. I thought it was to be held at 4pm. In the end I was informed that it was at 7pm. Sigh. I was supposed to be at the airport to welcome a friend back but in the end I could not.

Last night, Christmas Eve service was real short. We started at 8:30pm and it all ended within 45 minute. Though some asked why it was so short, I thought it was good. The simple presentation of the Christmas story allowed me to reflect on the reason for the season.

Well, I shall end here for now. I am actually not thinking much as I write.

Anyway, I will write further when I have gathered my thoughts.

The Reason For The Season Is Jesus

Ever considered this contrast - more than 2000 years ago, Jesus came into this world quietly. He was given birth in a manger as there was no room in the inn. He slept with the animals in a probably smelly environment. His purpose of coming? To eventually die for all so that the sin of man will be wiped clean.

Now, 2000 years later, the world has made Christmas such a noisy and celebrative occasion that sometimes I wonder whether the majority know the true meaning of this season. We are so caught up with the shopping and feasting and spending to the point where some, in the hustle and bustle, become frustrated because they have to buy things for this and that person; wrap the presents; write Christmas cards; attend this and that party; etc.

At the end of it all, there is no time to contemplate on the day when God sent His one and only Son, Jesus. into this world to become man and bring about redemption.

This afternoon I was in Orchard Road with the youths as they were doing their last-minute shopping. In fact, they were not alone. The whole stretch of road lined with shopping centres were filled with a sea of human beings. The place was so crowded that there were traffic officers present - not to control vehicular but human flow. I saw a lot of agitated looks as they were stuck in a sardine-packed tunnel. I was one of the sardines. :)

When I was in Ngee Ann City after having left the group, I encountered a few sad scenes - one was this lady who was so angry with not having bought enough presents that her face was fuming red and as long as that of a papaya. Two was this observation I made where there were those with shopping bags in their hand (people with money) walking past beggers who had either no arm or leg (people with no money).

What has Christmas become? Even amongst the youths, they were frantically looking for things to buy for their friends. Christmas is a season of giving but it has gone beyond it where some have begun to demand from their friends what they want. Some of the requests were exhorbitent. Why must we demand for the kind of presents we expect to receive? Should we not accept all gifts alike? What happens if we were to receive a simple present like that of a scribbled note on a piece of teared out paper? Would we despise that kind of gift though it was given with all sincerity?

When we start to expect, there is no more joy in receiving because we know in our hearts that our friends have bought the gift out of obligation. The joy of receiving is always about receiving anything (even if there is no value) with joy. In fact, allow me to correct the part where I mentioned this word, "value." Anything we receive, given out of sincerity from our loved ones, is invaluable - please cherish them!

I have not written any Christmas cards yet and they are right in front of me now. If I cannot finish writing them, then so be it. Why should I be flustered when writing a note to a friend should be one of joyful feeling? :)

Anyway, let us be careful as we commemorate Christmas Day - it is not about the lights, the shopping, the feasting, the singing, the service - it is about this Person called Jesus. Where is He right now in your life? Has He been and will He be chucked aside?

The reason for the season is Jesus and Christmas isn't Christmas till it happens in your heart!

“Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” Luke 2:11-14

God Still Talks To His Children Daily

I am tempted to go and sleep now but I shall endeavour to finish writing this blog first before heading for Slumberland. I want to write my thoughts down now as there are a couple of things to share after going through this day.

I was with my Accountability Group this morning. We met at 7am and we headed for Maxwell Road market for breakfast as one of my brothers-in-Christ needed to be in office early for a planning meeting. His workplace was closed to the hawker centre.

While we were eating and fellowshipping, one elderly person came by to clear some plates on our table. We all thought that the individual was a lady so we basically thanked her for her effort. It was the reply that made us realised that we had mistaken the person's gender. He is actually a man but small-built.

Anyway, we continued with our sharing. Though I was listening to the accounts given by my brothers-in-Christ on their lives lately, there were thoughts running in my mind about the man we encountered.

I was led to buy some bread for him as an apology for having mistaken him for a lady earlier. I told the group I needed to do that and went on to purchase them. I went to the elderly gentleman and passed him the buns. I also apologised for the boo-boo made. He smiled to thank me and also to tell me it was alright.

I felt better after that. I needed to do the above act as I did not want to affect the man by our remarks made initially. It is easy to shrug it off and take it as if nothing serious happened but I felt that the mistaken identity we had of the uncle may have affected him to wonder why he was created to look like a lady and I believe there are others who might have also made the same mistake.

By the mere fact that I called him, "Uncle" was to also affirm in him his identity. Well, I am glad all went fine after that. Thanks be to God!

In the course of the group's sharing, there were two main topics being brought to our attention: one - what is God's calling in our lives? Two - how can we hear God in our daily living?

I do not have the theological answers to the above-mentioned but just this one year of learning to practise God's presence in my life, I know His general call for all Christians is firstly, to live a life of godliness and holiness and secondly, to make disciples of all nations.

We always tend to find our lives a little mundane especially when we keep going through the same motion as in the area of our work or study and then home and then sleep. The cycle goes on and on and on. When this happens, we begin to question what life is about or what God is trying to do with our lives. Doubts begin to fill us and there may also be a sense of anger against Him.

I guess what breaks all these is how we press on to let God transform our lives accordingly. In order to do so, we cannot let the vicious cycle of life to control us.

For the past many years as a Christian, I found my walk boring but this year itself when I told myself I want to make a difference in the lives of those I encounter daily, I realised going through each day can be exciting and fruitful. Frankly I now look forward to every brand new day as I know I will experience something or someone different.

I know the above two callings cannot really go that wrong because everything else revolves around them. Perhaps in answering to these two generic callings, God may lead different individual to a more specific direction but still not going off course in these two areas.

I hope I make sense. As for listening to God's voice, I cannot discount that He can do so audibly but there are definitely other ways He speaks to us - His Word; prayer; silent retreat; siblings-in-Christ; sermons; admiring His creation; serving Him and His people; trials; celebration; etc.

Well, I am glad the Accountability Group touched on these topics as they allowed us to evaluate where does God stand in our lives.

I guess that is all I want to share - with these precious reminders and lessons learnt, I cannot leave these thoughts till tomorrow.

Friends, God still talks to His Children daily but the question is - are they listening? Many times we fail to because we let voices of frustration, anger, disappointment and accusation block us from knowing what our Father in heaven wants us to do. It is sad that many times, the voice of the devil is louder than that of God's. It is up to us how we can let God be more audible in our lives.

Glory to God!

"Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us." 1 Peter 2:11-12

"But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." 1 Peter 1:15

"I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time." 1 Timothy 2:1-6

Every Act Counts

Last night I was out with more than 15 of my siblings-in-Christ to Timbre where this local band called EIC was performing. I must say that they are a really good team of musicians as I enjoyed every song they played. I was observing the drummer as one can learn a lot from another just by the drumming sequence.

The place served alcoholic drinks. Though I did not mind having a drink or two, I decided not to order any yesterday as there was a brother-in-Christ who is under the age of 18. Instead I ordered a mocktail. He was tempted to get a mug of beer himself but a few of us forbade him from doing so as it was against the law.

I did not stay all the way with them as I was quite tired and wanted to go home and rest. Well, rest I did. After washing up I slept but I woke up at 3:40 this morning to watch the Chelsea - Liverpool Carling Cup Quater-Final match. Well, it was one of the worst matches that the Reds have played. They lost 2 - 0 and one of the players, Peter Crouch, was sent off for a two-footed foul. I do not know what he was thinking when he did that.

Anyway, I went back to sleep after the second goal was scored. I would rather sleep than to get frustrated with a club which had a rich history in winning trophies to play so badly. I doubt they will ever return to their former glory which for more than 10 years they have been bragging that they would make a come-back some days.

I went out to have brunch with my parents. We had a good meal of dim-sum and also catching up with one another. We did a bit of Christmas shopping where I got a couple of stuff for them. By the way, talking about Christmas gifts, I am not buying any for friends this year as it is a practice for me on alternate years that I give whatever amount I would be spending on gifts to people who are in need. I am not sharing this to boast about my giving but for us to consider those who are hungry and struggling while many are feasting and celebrating. I guess celebration can be in the form of sharing blessings with those who really need some and not to those who already have enough.

I was planning to go home and do some preparations for my friends' weddings next week but when a couple of youths called to ask me to join them for a game of pool, I decided to meet them. Though there were only three of them, I thank God for the time spent together. I got to know a brother-in-Christ in the process.

Talk about getting to know a person - after I was done shopping with my parents, they went on with their other errands while I went to Sim Lim Square to buy a phone-pouch. As I was taking a bus to a MRT station to grab the train to Ang Mo Kio Hub to meet my brothers-in-Christ, I got to know briefly a young woman. She was on the phone while boarding the bus - as I noticed she did not tap her card properly as there was a error-message, I informed her about it when she was done with her conversation. She went to have it re-tapped and I was right. In the end we started talking to one another in the short bus-ride. Well, glad to have known the person.

Well, I guess that is all. Thanks be to God for a fruitful and foodful public holiday commemorating Hari Raya Haji - the celebration of the conclusion of the Haj pilgrimage to Mecca, at which pilgrims are given the title of Haji (for men) or Hajjah (for women). Goats or buffaloes are sacrificed and the meat distributed to the poor.

"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God — even as I try to please everybody in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved." 1 Corinthians 10-31-33

"Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality." Romans 12:13

Disappointments In Ministry Will Not Put Me Down!

Today has been a bitter-sweet day for me. I shall share the bitter part first. It has to do with ministry. I am saddened that sometimes certain decisions are made based on logical considerations without ever adding the faith factor in which the church should just trust the Lord to provide on those needs that sometimes we find it hard to meet in a short period of time. It sounds illogical but as I have mentioned in my previous blog - sometimes the Christian faith has to do with going against the norms. I wonder how many are willing to take that challenge.

I always believe this - if God directs, He will surely provide but how many times have we forgotten about that? We based the provision on our own human abilities and wisdom and when we think it is impossible, we shelf plans or the needs of God's servants.

How sad it is to see this happening. Is God's work going to be dwarfed by limited resources?

Anyway, I am sharing the above-mentioned with no intention to put the church down but with the deep desire for all of God's children to go on our knees to pray when needs need to be met and not just conclude that they are impossible tasks.

Now to the sweet part of the day. I met my God-sister to help her do some stuff. After that we went to Bugis Junction for lunch. It was a good time of catching up with her as I have not seen her for a while. She also gave me a Christmas present and I have not even shopped for one for her due to my busyness.

A brother messaged to ask whether we could meet for lunch but I told him I could not due to my appointment with my God-sister. I dared not even suggest an alternative date to meet - looking at my schedules, they are going to be filled till the weddings are over. There are so many people I want to meet up but so difficult to find time to do so. :( I guess I shall make plans one day at a time and try my best to meet most, if not all, whenever possible.

In the morning I helped another sister-in-Christ with her essay and I am glad she was able to complete them when I enquired about it not too long ago.

In the evening I had to assist four of my siblings-in-Christ with their wedding rehearsals. They were held back to back. Well, I am glad all went as well as they could be. There are still a couple of things that I need to work out with two of them.

I was reminded of something just now - just as much as I, as their wedding coordinator, want to make the whole wedding plans go as smoothly as possible, at the end of the day it is not me who will determine the success of the events but God. Hence all the worries and burdens I initially felt were lifted as I submitted them to God in prayer. Hallelujah!

Well, I sang for the Processional for the first rehearsal - I have to memorise the lyrics which is not as easy now especially when my brain cells are slowly dying away. Haha. I also enjoyed the two song items of the second rehearsal - one by the couple's sisters and the other by the couple themselves. Very nice, I must say.

It is amazing how God sometimes allows things to happen in my pilgrim's journey where the sweet experiences over-ride those which are bitter and I could go home with a smile still.

All thanks and praise be to God! :)

"Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." 1 Peter 5:6-7

Pain Is Not Always Bad

I had such a long day yesterday that when I finally came home, I slept like a log all the way till this morning. I was too tired to even blog.

After church, I went out with some siblings-in-Christ to Suntec City to buy some foodstuff for a pot-luck get-together at a brother-in-Christ's place. It was actually a gathering of soccer fanatics to watch the Liverpool - Manchester United match where the latter team won. Sigh. I brought my Liverpool scarf and flag but they were not enough to garner the Reds to win. :(

Anyway, I went to office in the morning for a major meeting to submit all the proposals on behalf of my team. All of our past 2 1/2 months of research work were presented to the top management. It felt good to have cleared and pulled through this project. All glory and thanks be to God!

From tomorrow onwards, I am clearing my leave till 26 December with an option to extent it till past the New Year. I have not decided yet but probably I will do so since I have so many days of leave. Finally I can sleep all I want and wake up as and when I feel like it. Haha.

Anyway, I will not be that free actually as I have the Missions Policy to finalise and also the two weddings that I am coordinating for four of my siblings-in-Christ on 29 and 30 December 2007. Well, I shall trust the Lord to lead and guide me accordingly.

After the meeting, I left for a friend's aunty's place to check on her notebook. Over the phone, I was told that the machine was making a strange noise. When I heard that, I thought it was due to the hard-disk but when I checked just now, I concluded that the hard-drive is okay. It was actually the speakers that were giving problems. As the laptop is old, I suspect that the speakers' cones have given way. When I turned the volume to zero, the crackling sound stopped.

Well, I am glad that the storage drive is safe as my friend's aunty is actually writing a book to share about her physical struggles and how God pulled her through. I was very encouraged when I heard her testimony. Before I left, I prayed for this dear sister-in-Christ.

I headed for Plaza Singapura next to reward myself with a new handphone. I was given a voucher by the telephone company and I used it to buy a Motorola smartphone.

I was looking for new pillows for my parents as mum has been complaining of back-aches lately. In the end I found one suitable for her and bought another for dad as well. They seem to be enjoying their sleep - I went to their room just now and they were both sound asleep. Praise the Lord!

I guess I shall stop here.

A day of release for me, I must say. God is good, all the time! All the time, God is good!

"Unless the LORD had given me help, I would soon have dwelt in the silence of death. When I said, "My foot is slipping," your love, O LORD, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul." Psalm 94:17-19

It Is Never Strange To Know A Stranger

I met two siblings-in-Christ to finalise with them their wedding plans which is just two weeks away. Though it was a rush discussion as one of them needed to report for work, I praise the Lord we were able to get the wedding schedules for the service and also for the banquet done.

I have planned more than 20 weddings in the past 7 years and I have to confess that the present two that I am doing, which will run back to back on 29 and 30 December 2007 respectively, are the worst prepared for me. Because of my busyness at work and in church and having to take care of family matters, I have failed to give more attention to these four of my siblings-in-Christ's preparations for their big day! :( I feel bad because a marriage is not to be taken lightly as it happens only once for a couple. That is why whenever I coordinate a wedding I would like to give of my best so that the couple will enjoy this experience that God has given them.

Well, it is not too late to do so and I pray the Lord will lead and guide me accordingly. It is a lesson learnt for me and I have no qualms sharing my struggles because I learn as I fumble. Well, I hope whatever I have learnt can be applied in another four weddings that I will be coordinating. The last being April 2008.

After the meeting, I took a train from Bishan to Orchard. During the ride, I was standing in front of this lady with her son. The carriage was packed like sardines but it did not stop me from playing with the boy. He started to play peek-a-boo with me using his baby bolster and was smiling from end to end.

Anyway, they alighted at the same station. While taking the escalator up, the boy's mother commented that if I have not been smiling while playing with her son, she said I was actually very fierce-looking. I laughed when she said that as I know it myself. I guess I cannot change my face that God has created but I shall endeavour to smile more so that people will not find me scary. Before we departed our separate ways, the lady thanked me for entertaining her little one and I told her it was my pleasure.

Well, I am glad that though I am fierce-looking, I was able to bring joy to two lives this afternoon.

I wanted to buy a couple of stuff but in the end did not as I could not find them. I headed next to Starbucks Cafe in Cathay Building to send out a few emails to the wedding helpers of the other wedding that I am doing. It was quite irritating that I was unable to send out the emails because of some connection problems and there were more than 20 over emails in my outbox. My irritated look was very obvious as there was this guy sitting at the next table facing me who kept staring towards my direction each time I tapped the table out of frustration.

In the end I decided to pray about it and a while later, I realised I could change the network. I did just that and thanks be to God all the mails were sent out! Hallelujah!

All over my table were strewed with papers - contact list of helpers; wedding schedules; service programme; etc. One lady, in her mid-twenties sitting behind me, actually asked whether I was planning for my wedding and I explained to her that I do wedding coordination. She was interested to know more and I kind of shared with her how it all started. After that we exchanged name-cards and it was here I realised that she does advertising and promotion. Before she left, she told me she would recommend her friends to me should they need a wedding coordinator. Haha. I thanked her for having so much confidence in me though it was the first time we met.

It never occurred to me that I would be speaking to three strangers but they were pleasant encounters. Praise the Lord for that!

I met two good friends, their son and one of their mothers for dinner. We went to a Japanese restaurant in Esplanade and basically feasted. I enjoyed the fellowship. After that we headed for Ikea in Pasir Ris area to shop for some household stuff. I got home around 11pm and I am very tired now.

Anyway, I shall sleep soon. Tomorrow will be a long day as I will be joining some youths for a soccer party where we will watch the Liverpool - Manchester United match. You Will Never Walk Alone, Liverpool! :)

Good night, everyone!

"Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it." Hebrews 13:2

Sufficiency In God

Today has been a day filled with struggles. In the afternoon when I was in campus preparing for lunch, I received a call from dad to ask me to head for Bugis Junction to assist mum with a matter which I am not at liberty to share on this blog. As the distance between campus and the shopping centre was really far, I needed to grab a cab down. I thank God the situation was resolved eventually.

I was planning to follow up on some matters pertaining to a meeting I attended at work in the morning but all that had to be shelved. By the time I accompanied mum home and made sure all were in order, I was too exhausted to want to go all the way back to the west side of the island.

I decided to go to church instead to prepare for the Missions Policy Review Committee meeting. I just came home from it and I have to confess that I kind of lost it as in my composure and cool when there was a confusion on one of the points discussed. I have to admit that lately I have been unstable especially in dealing with stress at home, in office and with church ministries.

Though I am aware of the presence of God in my life and having the need to submit all my anxieties to Him - when it comes to putting them to practice, I failed in doing so. As a result, I depended on my human wisdom and strength and of course that led to disappointments, frustrations and anger.

I think I am going to be down with flu as I have sneezing the whole day through and I have been blowing my nose constantly. I think I caught the bug from a couple of people during the Youth Camp and also in office. Anyway, I pray the Lord will sustain me as I cannot afford to fall sick during this period.

Actually the frequencies of my falling sick in the past one and a half months are clear indication of how my body has been subjected to stress. The immunity to fight the bugs has been on an all-time low.

Anyway, I apologised to the Committee for not chairing the meeting well and shared with them the above struggles. Some of them prayed for me and I hope I will continue to trust God to see the Committee through the review and also other aspects of the ministry that I need to deal with.

Even as I write all these down, I am simply reminded of this one fact - that I am a human. If I continue to depend on my own abilities, I will fail but if I could just lean on my God Almighty, I will surely be able to do mighty things through His guidance and providence.

For those of you who are reading this blog, I covet your prayers.

No matter what, thanks be to God for pulling me through all of the above-mentioned that I can have this opportunity to blog my struggles.

I shall stop here and spend some time in prayer with God.

"... "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

Be Original; Not Modified!

After work I went to Ngee Ann City to visit some of my Coffee Bean friends. I also decided to head for the cafe to do some stuff for two of my siblings-in-Christ's wedding at the end of this month - the couple whom I met last night. I was supposed to meet another couple tonight but it has been postponed to Saturday.

Anyway, in the midst of doing my work, I needed to answer nature's call and off I went to the restroom. As I entered the toilet, I noticed one individual standing in front of the mirror which kind of made me wonder whether the person was a he or a she.

Out of curiosity, I decided to pay more attention to that individual. The first thing I tried to observe was the Adam's apple and I found none of that. The person was above the age of twenty and by right, the Adam's apple should be rather obvious. The next thing I took notice of was the breast area and they are bigger than a normal male's. The individual is definitely not a body-builder as the size of the person was slim.

With that, I approached her and she was startled when I asked her a couple of questions about her gender. She then went on an offensive mode and said it was not my business whether she was a male or a female. I said it had to be my business and the business of the rest of the guys in the loo if she was really a female. Already her voice gave her away.

She wanted to leave the restroom. Before she could do that, I gave her a very stern warning never to enter a male toilet again. She kept quiet and walked on. As she was just about out of the loo, I told her to love herself as who she was originally born to be. She may be a butch but she is after all a lady.

I made the above confrontation because first of all, it is wrong for the opposite gender to use the toilet of another. The offence is the same as that of a male using a female toilet. I also wanted the lady to be reminded of who she really is. She may try to be a male but like it or not, she can never be one for several obvious reasons. I made the statement on loving herself because she has to. If not, she will always try to be someone she is not and that is not healthy for her in the long run.

I prayed for the lady as I headed back to the cafe and it saddened my heart to have encountered the above incident. Lately there have been many news on gays and lesbians in Singapore. When I read about them, my heart was heavy. There are the majority who are against these practices and there are some who are supportive of them. Every one can argue for all they want on this topic but to me, I basically have one thing to say - every individual must love the him or her that he or she is originally designed to be.

It is as simple as me accepting the look I have now as I stand in front of the mirror. If I do not love the me I see, then I will always be insecure. I can change the appearance of Andy Chew by going for plastic surgery and all but if I do not love the original me, I will always be living in the shadow of the facade I have created.

There were many times when I lost confidence in myself or felt lousy of myself when I hear from friends commenting about my size or about my receding hairline or heard from someone else telling me of what another person said of my built. There were a couple of times when I decided to do something about it by exercising and trying to lose weight and applying some hair lotion. After trying so hard to gain the acceptance of others, I felt it was wrong.

Yes, it is good to lose weight for the sake of health but if I am doing it for other reasons, then it is not healthy (spiritually and mentally) anymore as I am pursuing something to please the people who made those remarks. Whatever happened to the inner me? Isn't that more important? In the end, I realised the pursuit to be a more handsome Andy Chew was futile and decided to put a stop to it.

All said - we simply just have to love ourselves. Period. I hope I make sense.

Anyway, Chin Chuan, whom I shared before in my previous blogs, came by my table and have a chat with me. He was about to go home after finishing his shift. In our conversation, he updated me about his eye infection and the eye-drop that was prescribed to him when he visited the doctor. He said it is better now. He then told me that he was very tired and that tomorrow will be a long day as he had to work from 11am to 11pm. I advised him to rest well tonight and he smiled at me. Anyway, I prayed for him when he left.

I also had a couple of chats with the rest of the staff. One of the managers also came by to say hi. I was quite curious for having not seen her for a while. I asked her about it and she told me she was in Japan for a month to attend a course. She shared with me about her experience during the stay - it was interesting to listen to her account.

Well, after I was done with the wedding stuff, I headed for Plaza Singapura Shopping Centre to visit a pet-shop. I needed to buy some supplements for my doggy. This princess is really more fortunate than some human beings I have come across.

Anyway, I thank God for today's pilgrim's journey and the lessons I have learnt in all the encounters I have shared above.

To God be all thanks and praise!

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you." Psalm 139:13-18

Food Are Meant To Be Eaten, Not Criticised

I did something just now that showed how spoilt I can be. After I came back from a meeting with two siblings-in-Christ who are preparing for their marriage at the end of the month, I decided to eat the nasi lemak (rice cooked with pandan leaves) that grandma made for the family.

After I took the first spoonful of rice with the sambal (chilli) prawn, immediately I commented that it was the worst dish that I have ever tasted. It was very hot and it did not taste like the usual kind that grandma cooks which is less spicy and sweeter.

I did not finish the rice and threw them away after a couple of mouthful. Though grandma was not in the kitchen when I made a fuss, it did not warrant me to criticise her cooking especially when she took effort to cook for the family even at the age of 83. I wonder how she would have felt if she had heard my remarks.

Anyway, I did not feel good after that. I sought the Lord's forgiveness and prayed that He will teach me to be contented with what I have. Even if the food is not to my liking, I should just shut up and consume them. Already I am blest with food served before me daily and yet I am not thankful for them.

I guess this is a part of my pilgrim's journey that I am learning to overcome especially in being less of a spoilt brat.

It has been a long day for me. I was in campus the whole day. I had to attend a meeting where my team submitted our final proposal. The work is almost done once the green light has been given by the top management.

Initially it was not planned that I met the couple to discuss about their wedding plans but since their small group meeting was cancelled, they decided to meet today. Well, time really flies and in 18 days' time, they will be tying the knot. I am glad most of the planning is completed and now we just have to leave it to God to make all things flow accordingly.

Tomorrow I am meeting two other siblings-in-Christ to also plan for their wedding which is also at the end of the month - one day after the above couple. Haha.

Well, thanks be to God for the rebuke I received and also for guiding and sustaining me through the day.

"For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that." 1 Timothy 6:7-8

I Am A Child Of God!

I think I just got MSG attack. I came back not too long ago from a day-trip to Johor Bahru and had a sumptuous seafood dinner. One of the dishes probably had a lot of MSG in it because a while after I ate, the headache came. I just had two panadols - I hope it will go away soon as I have to go back to work tomorrow.

The six of us from church had 2 kinds of crab-dishes - one in the normal chilli sauce and the other cooked with salted eggs; crayfish cooked with cereals; butter prawns; deep-fried baby squids; tou-fu with vegetables; fried you-tiao (dough sticks) stuffed with minced fish; barbequed sting-ray with chilli; and chicken cooked with Chinese herbs over hot clays.

Well, thanks be to God for the food and the shopping that we did at one of the shopping centres. I did not buy anything though. Nothing caught my eyes actually.

Anyway, I have not blogged the past few days as I have been away at the Youth Camp. It was held in Anglo-Chinese School (International) located opposite Holland Village. I had a great time with a total of about 75 campers (including leaders). I enjoyed the time of fellowship with them and I am glad I got to know a couple of youths better.

I was the Camp Medic. It was quite trying as I had to deal with some minor injuries (sprains, cuts, etc) during game-times; treat a few who are down with flu, sore throat, stomach cramps, gastritis, headaches, fever, etc. There were two cases of asthmatic attacks where one was quite bad but thanks be to God, He healed the dear sister-in-Christ. I also had to carry her from the field to the toilet so that the other sisters-in-Christ could change her wet clothes with dry ones.

The camp theme was "WAY - Who Are You?" I am glad through the speaker sessions, many of the youths now understand better their identity in Christ. They were also challenged to know God deeper by reading His Word, in prayer and in fellowship with one another.

On the last night, there was an activity where the youths had to go through three stations where their faith was put to test. A couple of them were traumatised but at the end of it all, many of them were challenged to hold fast to their faith even during times of persecution and trials. They also learnt the power of Christian fellowship where it was easier to go through a testing of their faith together than being on their own. At the end of the session, there was a ministry-time made by the Assistant Pastor. Many came forward to recommit their lives and to be prayed for. Glory to God for that!

Well, I am sad that the camp has now come to past but I am at the same time joyful that the bond of love in the Youth Ministry has grown deeper and tighter.

During the activity conducted on the last night, I played an anti-Christ. Frankly I did not feel good "torturing" the youths but it was definitely easier to be the persecutor than the persecuted as I did not have to go through the trials and pain. A scary thought came to mind though - will I really be one of these persecutors should one day Singapore be an anti-Christ country? I prayed and asked the Lord for mercy that I would not. I was challenged at that point to make sure God's Word will be the voice speaking to me when such thoughts come to mind and that I will always stand by my faith. I also need to always be reminded that I am a child of God and that is basically my identity.

Not a pleasant thought I had to entertain, I have to say.

Anyway, I am glad I had a good rest when I got home from the camp. I slept from 2pm to dinner-time. After that I slept again till this morning. I am more refreshed now... I need it as I have to be back at work tomorrow.

Well, I shall end here.

All thanks and praise to God for the experiences I had the past few days. :)

"It is the LORD your God you must follow, and him you must revere. Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him." Deuteronomy 13:4

"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." Philippians 1:21

Do Not Become Poorer to Get Richer

I actually had plans to travel this month but I have to shelf the idea due to work and ministry commitments. I really have no idea when I can plan my next trip - I guess I shall wait for the next window of opportunity and hopefully I will be able to go somewhere then.

I am thankful to God that I was able to come home early from work this afternoon after my team went to Sentosa to meet some people. We managed to secure a verbal agreement for a joint programme and hopefully a Memorandum of Understanding would be signed soon to officially seal the deal.

I had the best sleep ever. I cannot use the word "nap" because I was in dreamland for close to two hours. When I woke up, it felt good - so good to the point where I decided to go town and shop for some shirts but to my disappointment, I could not find what I wanted. For those that caught my eyes, I was unable to get the size I wanted. Anyway, thanks be to God that I did not manage to spend any money this evening.

One of the shopping centres I went to was Centrepoint. As I was walking towards the mall, I had to pass two makeshift stalls where the Big Sweep tickets were being sold. Apparently the draw is tomorrow and the vendors were shouting towards my direction, asking me to buy some tickets. One of them even told me not to miss the chance to get rich and that my lucky stars are shining brightly.

He was flashing this envelop in front of my face which contained 5 tickets and told me it was only $15. I was just wondering to myself - how can one be richer when he actually becomes $15 poorer buying 5 pieces of papers that give a very low probability of striking it rich? $15 may not mean a lot to many in Singapore but it may be for some who cannot even afford a simple meal.

Just imagine the same sales pitch is used on someone who is actually hard-pressed for money and in turn used whatever he has to buy the lottery slips, thinking that his "lucky stars" are really shining. The draw opens; he checked the numbers of his tickets against those printed on the newspapers and realised he did not strike any. Instead of becoming richer, he became poorer and now he has no more money to buy food to feed himself. Who became richer? The company that sells the Big Sweep tickets. Yes, the first prize is $2.2 millions - I doubt every month there is a winner because not all tickets are sold completely just before the draw date. Even if there is a winner, the company makes no loss because all they need to do is to sell $2,200,000 divide by $3 (price of each ticket) equals to 733,333 pieces of papers which probably does not cost much to print.

Anyway, just sharing my heart out since I had this encounter earlier.

Well, I am looking forward to Thursday where I will be with my younger siblings-in-Christ at the Youth Camp. I am looking forward to a great time of fellowship with them and of course, fun!

Tomorrow should be quite an easy-going day with only one meeting in the morning.

I hate to say this but I shall go and sleep soon!

"Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint." Proverbs 23:4

"People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." 1 Timothy 6:9-10

Worship Refreshes!

My left shoulder is sore. It must have been due to using too much of the computer. I just reached home from office. Not much this week - thank God for that! Just doing some reading up and correspondences with overseas universities, specifically in the U.S. and the U.K.. I decided to stay on after office hours because I reported work only after lunch.

In the morning I needed to meet a sister-in-Christ to do some stuff for her before she leaves for Australia this Thursday. Thank God we managed to get the work done in an hour.

I did not blog yesterday as I was too tired by the time I arrived home. I had to lead worship at the 11:15am service. Praise the Lord all went well. I am not saying that being unprepared is good but I was not ready to lead yesterday due to the manic schedules last week. I spoke to the Lord just before service started that only He can guide me through the service and guided He did! I just praised the Lord with the rest of the congregation in songs and I was refreshed through it all. Hallelujah!

I am not saying this to boast but a brother-in-Christ messaged me later in the afternoon to inform me that he was touched at the service. Glory to God for that!

I also want to thank my Pastor-in-Charge for sounding me off after the service to widen my repertoire of songs. Though I chose the songs (sometimes commonly used by other worship leaders) based on the theme of the sermon, I guess I should begin to listen to more worship songs. I have been unable to do so because of my busyness. Hopefully I will get on it soon.

I am always grateful to the Lord for using others to prompt me - it allows me to learn and seek new avenues in which my scope of ministry can be widened. Thanks be to God for that.

I am looking forward to the Youth Camp commencing this Thursday. I hope through the 4 days together I will be able to get to know my younger siblings-in-Christ better. I have been tasked to be involved in one of the programmes - it is my prayers that the youths participating in that activity will learn precious lessons from it.

Well, I guess that is all. Nothing much but praise the Lord for seeing me through the day.

"The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song." Psalm 28:7

It Is Only When You Choose To Lose That You Will Win!

I am going to sleep soon - tomorrow I have to attend the 8:45am service. The missionaries of my church will be commissioned and I praise the Lord 4 of the church members have taken that step of faith to serve the Lord in the mission fields.

I am also thankful to God that I managed to complete printing 400 sets of Missions Ministry Newsletter yesterday to be distributed to the congregation after both services. I was touched by one of the Lay Ministry Staff sacrificing her off-day to come back and help me fold and staple the booklets. Two church office staff also put aside their work and helped me. Praise the Lord for every one of them.

I attended my good friend's wedding this morning at 11am and all glory to God that the song item went well though the group only started rehearsing about two weeks ago. We even had another sister-in-Christ joined us and we all blended in well. I enjoyed the singing and it brought back lots of good memories of the times when we were all young and doing things together like going on carolling during Christmas, being involved in musicals, giving song items at weddings or other special occasions. Well, praise the Lord we had this opportunity again to do so today.

Well, I am glad another close friend has tied the knot. At the service, the Officiating Minister was giving an exhortation and during that time he shared a joke which I want to include in this blog - I hope it will still be funny even in writing. Sometimes jokes told the second time round may not be funny anymore but I shall give it a shot.

Anyway, here goes. "A pastor at a wedding service asked a boy how many wives can a husband have? The boy replied that he can have 16 wives. The pastor was shocked when he heard that and asked the young lad where in the world did he get that idea. The chap told the pastor that it was in the wedding vows - "fo(u)r better; fo(u)r worse; fo(u)r richer; fo(u)r poorer = 16!"

I hope you got it. Haha. It was hilarious. When it was told to the congregation, every one laughed.

That aside. I learnt an important lesson from the sharing by the Officiating Minister who was the pastor who made a big impact on my life. He shared that in a relationship, if both parties fight to win in everything they do, both will lose because no one gives way. He also shared that if one party gives way and the other does not, both will still lose because then the relationship will be lop-sided. What is the most important is for both parties to choose to lose that both will win as grace is being shown in that relationship. How true that is. I shall try to live by this principle from now onwards.

Please pardon me if the earlier joke was not funny at all. Well! Well! The church also had a Christmas Bazaar at the Serangoon Garden Village. A couple of ministries were putting up song items in the evening. I wanted to join them but because I had to prepare the praise and worship session for the 11:15am service and also attend a birthday gathering by a close friend of mine, I was late and missed the performance. By the time I arrived, other churches were giving their items. In the end I just fellowshipped with my siblings-in-Christ at the booths where we were selling certain products from Cambodia for the church.

Okie dokes, I am tired and shall sleep now. It will be a long day but thanks be to God for the busyness tomorrow in church.

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

Strife Is Meaningless!

I reached home not too long ago from the Worship Team rehearsal. I am leading worship this Sunday. Due to all the busyness and physical exhaustion I have been going through lately, it was quite difficult to really focus and give my all. Thanks be to God though for pulling me through the practice. Everything went well actually.

Usually I would look forward to Sunday but when I left the Worship Hall just now, it was more of I wanted to rest than being excited about what the team and I are going to do in two days' time.

Yesterday I shared about how meaningless life can be sometimes trying to meet deadlines and going through the routines. Interestingly one of the team members shared a passage which will be used for this Sunday's sermon and it was a warning.

It is taken from Luke 21:34-36 and it reads, "Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man."

When I read the above passage I was basically admonished to not let the strife of life put me down especially in this age of the end-times where Christians await the coming of Christ. Sadly I am not being watchful but it is a timely reminder and I shall take time soon to reflect and evaluate . Anyway I am due to go on a personal retreat since the last month of the old year of 2007 is just three minutes away.

What I am struggling now shows very clearly how easy one can fall into the hustle and bustle of life that if not kept in check, the individual will sink deeper. By the time he realises it, it would have been too late to get out and naturally the person will just drown and slowly die struggling.

Today a sister-in-Christ passed her driving test and she encouraged me to re-take mine. I will, eventually, but passing a driving test is not really at the top of my priority list as there are so many other important things to consider. Anyway, I cannot bring my driving license when I leave this world so I guess that can wait.

I was singing one song during the rehearsal that I will be using for the 11:15am service. I was touched by the words and I guess the needs mentioned in there should take precedence. Anyway, I need to let go of a lot of things in my life that are no longer as important as they were in the past. So be it. Life goes on and I believe God has more for me to look forward to.

I need to wake up early tomorrow as I have a good friend's wedding to attend. She is one of the few Christian friends I first got to know when I went to church as a 12-year old boy. Since then we (4 of us) grew up in church and still maintained our friendship till now. Thanks be to God that she is getting married.

I doubt it will be a restful weekend for me but I shall look forward to it anyway.

AS BREAD THAT IS BROKEN

VERSE 1:
Many hearts are hungry tonight;
many trapped in darkness, yearn for the light;
so many who are far from home, and many who are lost;
O Lord, Your wounded children need
the power of the cross.

CHORUS:
As bread that is broken, use our lives;
As wine that is poured out, a willing sacrifice.
Empower us, Father, to share the love of Christ.
As bread that is broken, Lord,
use our lives.

VERSE 2:
Help us to begin where we are.
Help us to love the people near to our hearts.
Then give our faith a mission field
wherever You may call,
Lord, love Your world through each of us
until we've touched them all.

Do Not Disturb - Man Resting!

A scary thought just came to mind - I may soon die of a heart attack. I am not kidding because this kind of thing is nothing to joke about. I came home, tired and what I saw was this pile of creased up clothes. Though I needed to get a few other things done, I decided to get the ironing over and done with first.

On top of that, many things are calling out to my attention - at work, top management expects my team to meet deadlines (some running concurrently) for the sake of getting the organisation going; in church, I have been told to handle some matters pertaining to the personal needs of few individuals who have made plans which require immediate actions; at home, I have to meet the needs of grandma, mum and dad.

My chest is feeling tight, my head is a little light, my diarrhoea is still there and I am very sleepy because I only arrived home from work at three this morning and left for office again at 7am. Who is going to meet my needs then? I know God is and I am thankful that He is - otherwise I would have collapsed long time ago. But really? Who has ever spared a thought for me in what I am going through now?

It does not help when I received remarks from people (mainly friends) that I should not be experiencing burnt-out syndrome when I have just returned from my sabbatical. It hurts when I hear this - as if one year of being away from work means I have been shaking my legs and eating grapes fed to me by several waiting maids; as if I am not supposed to feel exhausted because I have been perceived to have received one year of rest.

Have any one considered that during that period, I had to deal with mum's cancer; that I have been doing a course; that I have been on an attachment; that I have been giving my time to church to deal with the ministries I have been entrusted with; that I have been spending time with certain individuals, ministering to them? Surely all these require energy!

It is not really a journey that I want to experience but I have to. At the same time, I also need to rest. If not, I cannot go on any further. Will every one be gracious enough for me to do that without telling me that I have to deal with this and that; that I should not rest because I have rested enough for one year?

I am not going to hide my feelings; frustrations; pains; struggles; exhaustion - whatever you may want to call it - on this blog.

As mentioned in the earlier paragraph, I have to do a few things but I am not going to care anymore. I am going to sleep after I am done with this sharing. The top management; the church leaders; my family can penalise me for all they want but I need my rest. I am not a robot. I have reached my limit and I need to recharge.

I know my blog is read by individuals who are both mature and young in their Christian faith; some may not even be Christians... I am not apologetic in what I have written because in this pilgrim's journey that I am on, there are ups and downs and I guess I am in the latter state now. So be it. All I know is this - I will be on my up again after I am rested enough.

Well, I shall leave the worries of tomorrow to tomorrow. What I am going to do now (today; tonight) is lie on my comfortable single-size bed and sleep!

Good night, world!

"The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever." Psalm 23

Start Early Before It Is Too Late

I happened to walk past the Supreme Court while on my way back from lunch. I noticed a family of five gathered at the entrance and I could hear the commotion between the mother and her son. Her son was no more than 18 years of age and from what I gathered, the teenager was charged for an offence he committed. She was saying things like how she was so disappointed; how she has been humiliated; etc.

As I walked on, my heart went out to this family. I prayed for them and I hope things will eventually get better.

Then a few troubling thoughts came to mind. I am one who loves to play with infants and kids. At this age, many of them are very happy-go-lucky individuals. They are adorable and huggable. As I remembered the family I mentioned above, it just dawned upon me whether the parents of that teenager ever wondered how their child would turn out to be when he was still a baby. Of course now they know it and it may have been a little too late especially for a crime already committed. How then will parents know how their child will be like when they grow up?

I guess they will never know but what these young lives will be learning in their growing up years is crucial in shaping their thoughts and characters. Though I am still a single but loves kids a lot, I think I can also play a part in making a difference in helping mould these lives especially in the way I live my own life.

The youths I am in touch with in church now, many I saw them grow up since they were babies. Some have grown to be God-fearing individuals whereas some I have not seen them for a while already. There are yet a few whom I know are struggling in finding who they are and how they should be fitting into society. Some have become bitter and angry.

Well, the next time I see a boy or a girl, I will say a word of prayer for him or her and just hope that one day they will all grow up to be godly men and women.

Anyway, time for me to get back to work. It will be a long night for my team as we have many things to prepare for a meeting tomorrow.

"Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." Proverbs 22:6

Live A Life Against Logic

It has been 6 days since I last blogged. I have been away on a mission trip to Cambodia. Throughout my stay in this land that my church has adopted, I was unable to get internet access. Well, I guess it was good not to have it available - at least I could concentrate on the plans of the two teams: one a Mission Team and the other a Vacation-With-A-Purpose (VWAP) Team.

I was supposed to be on last night's flight back to Singapore but I was told that the flight was overbooked. Initially there were two of us who were unable to secure a seat home but just before the gate closed, the staff managed to find an available business-class seat.

Initially they wanted us to pay the difference but after telling them that this is not a fault of the passengers for the airline adopting an over-booking policy so as to maximise profits (by minimising chances of empty seats), they agreed to upgrade my sister-in-Christ for free. Praise the Lord for that!

I had no choice but to stay on for another night at a dear sister-in-Christ's place. It did not help that I was unwell. When I got to the missionary's home (thanks to a lift I got from a dear Khmer brother-in-Christ who came all the way from his office to pick me up), I took my temperature and it was running at 39.1 degrees Celsius. I was also down with food poisoning where I purged several times. The fever is gone but the diarrhoea is still there, though not as bad. I sponged myself the whole night through with several cooling gel pads that I bought from a pharmacy before I left. I pasted them all over my face and that caused the fever to subside. It would have been so funny if someone got to see what were on my face. Anyway, thanks be to God that I am better. This is the first time I have fallen sick in the many trips I have made to this country.

Initially I was angry with the airline (which I will not name) for being so irresponsible but as I reflected on it, I saw God's hand in it. I guess it was better for me to stay over in Phnom Penh last night due to my weak bowel. If I had been on the flight, I probably would have to go to the toilet several times.

Moreover the two ground staff working for the airline tried their very best to secure for me a flight back this morning. One was a Singaporean and the other a Khmer. They were very apologetic for the inconvenience caused and it was for this reason that I decided not to name the airline responsible for the delay of my return. It is sad that a company regards profits more than the welfare of its customers. Well, I guess that is what the world is about.

Anyway, the trip throughout went well. Praise the Lord for that! Members from both teams had a great time ministering to certain groups of people: two orphanages and a church that mine is supporting. I am glad some expressed interest to serve further in the mission ministry and I pray the Lord will move these persons to encourage others to go into the harvest fields.

While I was talking to a sibling-in-Christ regarding this ministry, I was reminded that missions is for every Christian and not some. Many times, the majority feels that they are not up to it when in actual fact, they have been commissioned by Jesus to go and make disciples of all nations.

Missions is not about being ready. It is about being available. Once that individual avails himself to God, he will be equipped accordingly. Many times, we did not consider the faith factor where God can work wonders through someone who is willing to just take a step of faith and says, "Lord, here I am, use me." It may sound illogical for someone to go to an unknown land if he is not ready but I guess the Christian faith is about going against human logic. I mean, who in the world would have expected God to send His Son to die for the sins of man when He could have wiped out the whole world just by a snap of His fingers?!

Well, four children went for this trip. One in the Mission Team and the other three in the VWAP Team. God used them to touch the lives of both the young and the old and in a debrief session that I attended, they shared about how God has ministered to them. They were also able to share what are some of the other things that they can do in future when they go again. Yes, these four young lives want to go again because they saw God moving throughout the 5 days.

I also thank God that the members of both teams got to know each other better through doing things together and also through conflicts. Yes, there were conflicts but they were resolved through honest sharing and these situations allowed one party to understand the other deeper. All praise to the Lord for that!

Oh yah, the extra night I spent in Phnom Penh also allowed me to understand the pains of the life of a missionary - remarks made by fellow Christians which were unedifying; the red-tapes of the leadership in churches; financial issues where churches sometimes focus too much on money matters rather than the human needs.

Anyway, I left Cambodia with a tinge of sadness - missing all the friends I have made in this beautiful land once torn by atrocities created by their own people.

I was also affected when I heard about the news of the tragedy faced by the Singapore's Dragon Boat Team who lost 5 of their rowers to a freak accident caused by strong undercurrents. They were in Cambodia to participate in the dragon boat competition - part of the country's Water Festival Celebration. Yesterday I was at the river (Tonle Sap) where the accident happened and I said a prayer for the families of the 5 victims. May the Lord comfort them at this time as they mourn the deaths of their loved ones.

After touching down, I headed straight to church to settle the items I bought for the Christmas Bazaar this weekend. I also needed to prepare the songs for this Sunday's praise and worship at the 11:15am service. Praise the Lord I was able to get both done. I just need to send the songs out to the Worship Team by tomorrow.

The next few days will be very busy for me, both at work and in church. My project team updated me of the things we need to do - just reading the email overwhelmed me. I also need to prepare for this Sunday's commissioning of the missionaries that my church is supporting. This includes a newsletter that I need to do.

Anyway, one thing at a time and eventually all would be completed with God's help.

All glory be to God for the time spent in Cambodia!

"Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20

"Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." Matthew 21:21-22

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." Hebrews 11:1

All Things Will Come To Pass

I wanted to blog after work but I did not. I got home past midnight as I was preparing for a meeting today with my team. I could not even go for the rehearsal for the song item that some friends and I are putting up for another friend's wedding. From the look of it, I may not be able to be involved at all. Next Thursday there is another rehearsal but I am able to attend again due to the Missions Policy Review Committee meeting.

I just finished my team meeting - a super-long session where we started at 9am and ended at around 3pm. We even ordered in lunch and continued discussion as we ate. Though long, the top management has given the team the mandate to decide on the curriculum but we have been told that they may or may not be implemented on the proposed date initially given to us.

Frankly, that is the least of my concern because once we have put the curriculum in place, there is no concern as to when it will be executed since the framework and materials are already there. What the team needs to do now is to continue with the guidelines given to us and just work accordingly. Some of my team members were affected when they heard about the delay but I encouraged them not to feel that way as we still need to do the remaining part of the project. The curriculum will be implemented eventually, just not as initially planned.

I tried to sleep as early as I could but was unable to as I was troubled over some thoughts regarding the review of the Missions Policy that I am currently doing with some leaders of the church. Sometimes I feel it is a waste of time putting in so much effort when eventually the contents will still be questioned by the leadership at large. If that is going to happen, why form a sub-Committee to look into this and waste the time of the members currently involved reviewing the policy? We might as well involve every leader so that every one will have their say.

I am just frustrated. I am not saying that feedback is bad but if I have been entrusted to form a sub-Committee to look into this matter, then give the Committee and I the trust that due considerations and thoughts have been given to the Revised Missions Policy.

I spent some time in prayer when these thoughts came to mind. The peace I got was to continue to give my best for the Lord and let Him deal with other concerns which I have no control of. I guess I will continue to be burdened by this till the Revised Policy is approved by the leadership. That is if it gets approved in January.

Anyway, again that is beyond my control and I shall leave it to God to speak to the rest.

I hope I do not sound critical of the leadership (frankly I am not) - just that lately there are so many things that I have to do to the point where I am weak emotionally, mentally and physically. Spiritually I am still ok - thank God for that.

I am blogging this as it is a real struggle that I am going through now. I need a break soon but I guess it will only come after January.

In order to keep my actions in check, I have decided to take several pit-stops daily to reflect by reading God's Word and in prayer. I need to do this. If not, I will definitely be going through the motion and if not careful, I may stumble the people around us.

Already this morning before I slept after washing up and entertaining certain negative thoughts which I shared above, I was already on the verge of veering off-course. Praise the Lord for His Word to bring me back on track. I hope the Word will continue to be a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.

Well, I am going home immediately after I am done with this blog. I will probably nap before I take some time to prepare for a sermon that I will be preaching on Sunday at Takhmao Trinity Methodist Church in Phnom Penh. I am leaving for Cambodia tomorrow morning. That reminds me that I have yet to pack for the trip. Haha. :)

Anyway, all these will come to pass. I just have to deal with all of the above-mentioned one at a time. I like to remind myself of this as it brings comfort that all these busyness are not permanent but temporal. They will be over eventually!

No matter what, I am looking forward to meeting my Khmer siblings-in-Christ and also the missionaries. I pray the Lord will speak to me as I spend the next five days in a land where He has called me to since Year 2000.

May the Lord go ahead of the two teams going!

"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path." Psalm 119:105

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." Colossians 3:23-24

Thank You For The Food We Eat!

My team and I went to Katong to have Peranakan food for lunch. The craving was triggered off when my Pastor-in-Charge (PIC) messaged to inform me that the Trinity Annual Conference meeting that she is currently attending is catering lunch from this place called Guan Hoe Soon which serves nice Peranakan cuisines.

When I read her note, I told myself that I had to eat the delicious food too. I had my favourite dish called "Buah Keluak" - a kind of nut cooked in spicy sauce. I ordered a bowl all to myself. The last time when I went with my PIC to this restaurant for food-tasting for a couple's wedding reception, I was not satisfied with the amount I consumed for the above dish. This time round I do not want to be disappointed again and indeed I was not as I chomped the nuts - digging out the contents from its shells and mixing them with the sauce and rice. Haha.

I am now back in office very contented and full.

The day so far has been rather busy actually. The whole morning my team had to attend this briefing and it lasted three hours. The team was commended and rewarded for a job well done so far in the curriculum-planning. Glory be to God for that! We were given some new tasks to research on. They are not as bad as what we did in the past one and a half months but still effort needs to be put in.

I have another meeting later at 6pm and it is going to be quite long. I actually have a rehearsal for a song item for a friend's wedding. I am crossing my fingers I am able to attend it. Quite slim a chance from the look of it. Sigh.

Anyway, I shall deal with one matter at a time and if I can go, thanks be to God! If I cannot, praise be to Him as well.

I shall get back to work now.

Weaknesses Can Be Overcome

Tomorrow is my doggy's first birthday. Mum wants me to buy Sasha a cake or something that she will enjoy. I am totally clueless as to what sort of treat to give to this little princess of the household. She has been having good stuff every day - what other goodies are there for her? Man, I don't think the phrase "A dog's life" is applicable to her!

Anyway, I went to office in the morning for a meeting and headed home just before lunch as I was on half-day leave in the afternoon to meet a dear friend. She was assisting me with a project and since she is free today, we met up at around 1:30pm to complete the task. She also gave me a super-belated birthday treat. Haha. My birthday was in June. I guess it is good to know that after 5 months, celebration still goes on. Hee.

After finishing the recording, we went to Ngee Ann City Crystal Jade for a very late lunch at around 4pm. As we were both unwell, we had each a bowl of porridge. She also ordered this delicious pot of bean-curd cooked with diced century eggs and salted fish. Other dishes were three varieties of tim-sum and several cups of Chinese tea that this waitress kept pouring when our glasses were empty.

I enjoyed the time of fellowship with my friend as we caught up with one another about work, ministries in church and also our personal lives. I also shared with her some struggles related to people as in how I sometimes feel that humans tend to always look at the weaknesses and shortcomings of an individual to the point where they cloud the good side of him or her. We tend to always think that the person would never change when in actual fact, every one who has some kind of character flaws would want to overcome them and be a better person.

Anyway, it was good to let that out as I have been rather troubled by this lately.

After our meal, we went on to buy a pair of cuff-links. I needed them for my new shirts. We went to Tangs Store to check out the many designs. My friend helped me choose and we agreed on one which I like a lot. I cannot wait to use tomorrow when I go to office.

We went home after that as she needed to meet her family for dinner and I had to meet another friend.

Well, no matter how sometimes I feel burdened in my heart over a few matters, I still thank God for allowing me to pull through the day.

I shall stop here now and head off to bed. I was told by a colleague of mine that there will be an important meeting tomorrow.

"But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:9-10


"Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:14-16

God Does Not Short-Change Us

It has been 4 days since I last blogged. This shows how busy and tired I have been but all these busyness have now come to pass! Thanks be to God for that!

My second presentation on Thursday went very well and the panel has approved my team's proposals. With this and Tuesday's approvals, my team has been given the green light to carry on with the planning of the curriculum with the resources we have gathered in the past one and a half months.

We gave ourselves a day off on Friday but it was not really a break for me as I needed to prepare for the Mission and Vacation-With-A-Purpose (VWAP) trips. I was in church the whole day printing devotional guides, prayer letters, contact cards of all important numbers in case of an emergency, buying of first-aid items, etc. I also had to meet two of the accountability groups I am committed to. In the morning, I met with the older ones and in the evening was with the younger ones. I had to also prepare for the Local Church Executive Committee (LCEC) meeting where I had to seek the approval of two proposals that I had to make for the Missions Committee.

Yesterday's LCEC meeting was a scary one as I was asked numerous questions regarding the proposals I made. Though I was drained after answering all the queries, I am grateful to God that both were approved by the leaders present.

Three-quarter way through the meeting, I had to rush off to conduct a wedding service for a couple from the church. Though I do not really know them, I decided to assist in their wedding preparations and service when my Assistant Pastor requested of me to guide them. Praise the Lord all went well from the start to the end of the service. I was so happy to see another two lives coming together in holy matrimony.

After the wedding reception, I went home to wash up and change to a more comfortable set of clothes as I needed to go out again to buy a birthday present for a good friend's son's birthday. I went to Forum Galleria Shopping Centre. On my way to Toys R Us, I met a sister-in-Christ. I got a shock when someone tapped my shoulders. It was a pleasant surprise to see this dear sister. We did not chat for long as she was rushing to attend a debrief for a course that she was doing yesterday.

I spent about an hour looking around for a suitable gift. I was lost among the thousands of toys - there were so many varieties to choose from. In the end I settled on this educational table where a child can learn phonetics, alphabets and numbers. It was really high-tech, I must say. My good friend and I were so intrigued by it that after fixing all the parts, we were playing and fingering all the functions available. The birthday boy stood there and looked at us. He must have wondered why these two grown-ups were playing with his present. Haha.

Anyway, we had pizzas, chicken wings and dips. Yummilicious. We also had a very nice chocolate cake from Shangri-la Hotel. By the time everything ended, it was already almost 11pm. After washing up when I got home, I had to prepare for today's Mission and VWAP teams' packing of donated items and also other administrative matters pertaining to a briefing that I had to conduct for all the members going.

Well, thank God all went well just now in church for the packing and briefing. Time really flies - another four more days and the teams are off to Cambodia to fellowship with our Khmer brothers and sisters-in-Christ. I cannot wait to meet up with them again and also to minister to those who have yet to know who God is.

After this morning's sermon where the guest preacher shared about God's greatest gift being the salvation He has given to all mankind, I am even more excited to share this to the Khmers. I am also reminded by the message to be grateful for what I have and that I should not complain about life. The preacher said something which made a lot of sense to me - that the bad things we experience are always relative. It is just how we perceive situations and in turn deal with them. God always gives good things to His creation but it is always how humans, like us, like to compare what we have with others and when we see them as better, we think that our own lives are lousier or worst than them. It then affects us and our views of life become miserable.

I want to share this message with the Khmers especially when they have gone through atrocities like the Pol Pot Regime where millions of Cambodians were killed. I hope the message of Jesus will bring about healing and allow them to be delivered from the past and move on with peace and joy in the future.

I hope I made sense in what I have written so far. :)

Well, the past week has taught me to trust God in many ways. Initially I thought I was unable to pull through so many things that I had to do but when I prayed, I felt at peace, knowing that no matter how long or rough a road I had to trod in my life, it will eventually be over. Now as I look back, it is so true. The difficult and tideous path is now easy again. Was it my doing and effort? Nope. If it was based on my ability, I would have felt frustrated and probably given up but with the knowledge that God would be helping me and also the need to glorify Him in all I do, it was actually a pleasant experience! In fact, I sang and praise God with so many songs that one task after another was accomplished without much complaints. There were struggles at times but not so bad to the point where they caused me to stumble the people around. Glory be to God!

What else can I say? One word basically - Hallelujah!!!

Okie, I have written too much for this blog - there are just so many good things to testify. Haha.

Dinner time - Thai Express, here I come. I cannot wait to eat my favourite soft-shell crab curry.

Alright, till I blog again, the Lord bless and keep you all!

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" Matthew 7:7-11

"Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good. His love endures forever." Psalm 136:1