I want to thank God for guiding me through a wonderful time of preparation for this Sunday's 11:15am service. Since yesterday I have been thinking and asking the Lord to give me the songs relevant to the sermon that will be preached. The title is "Endless Mercy."
Though many have come to know of God's grace and mercy, it has sometimes reached a stage where we also take them for granted. I was struggling whether to just choose songs that only give the congregation an opportunity to praise God or should I also choose songs that speak of God's wrath on those who keep choosing to sin against Him time and again.
Well, I decided to include both in. The praise segment will be a time for all to give thanks to God for all that He has done for us. The more difficult songs to sing (as in not the tune but mouthing the lyrics) will be after the sermon where it is my prayer that all who will be present at the service will seriously consider the consequences of our constant rebellion. I think it is important to paint both sides of the picture when it comes to God's mercy on mankind. Yes, we are always told that He is good and patient but we also should know that it is also a reality that one day all of us will be standing in front of Him, accounting to Him for what we have done.
Not an easy preparation for me. Though tough, I praise the Lord that He has given me and all on earth a second chance to live through the death of Jesus on the cross.
I basically took lunch-time to be away from the crowd and went to Fort Canning Park to consider the songs to be sung. Though a little humid but I had a fruitful time of worship and communion with my Saviour.
I carried on when I ended work around 4pm. I went to Ngee Ann Coffee Bean to write my thoughts of the songs I have decided with the Worship Team members who will be serving alongside me. I pray the sharing has encouraged them and also allow them to see how the flow of the service will be like.
It has been a while since I visited this cafe but I am glad all the staff remembered me. I am a little concerned for Chin Chuan because of the pain he is experiencing around his left knee-cap. He showed me the Chinese herbal plaster that he pasted where the affected area is and said it was uncomfortable. I suspected it could be due to the long hours he had to stand and walk constantly to serve customers and also to clear all the plates and rubbish on the tables.
Well, I said a prayer of healing upon his knee and I believe God will heal this young man in His time.
We caught up quite a bit each time he passed my table. When he first saw me as he arrived at the joint for his shift, he gave the such a wide grin. I hope the Lord will give me an opportunity to reach out to him - I am thinking of inviting him to the church's healing service. I shall see how I can do that.
I went next to Carrefour in Plaza Singapura to buy groceries for the family. As I was on my way to the train station with my bags of stuff, I was stopped by this lady from an insurance agency. She called me "James" and I looked at her with this "huh" look. She then went on to say it has been a long time since she last saw me. I replied that she has mistaken me for someone else and she smiled. After a short pause, she apologised and said I really look like a friend of hers from secondary school. I "forgave" her (haha) and walked on. I wanted to turn around to see whether it was her kind of tactic to stop passers-by from listening to the product she was promoting but I decided not to as she did not do that to me.
Haha. I think I am getting a little sick saying this again but I shall because it is the truth. I AM DRAINED!
In fact, yesterday when I got home from dinner with the running gang, I was too tired to even blog. That is why I decided to give it a miss. I was also tempted to skip watching the Liverpool-Arsenal match. In the end I did though once in a while I was dozing off. Well, it was a mistake to watch it - again the Reds played badly. They scored an early goal, held it till the last 10 minutes and then conceded a goal due to the boo-boo made my a defender and the goalie. Well, much to be desired, I say.
Alritey, I shall attempt to sleep now! Haha. A bit too tired based on my sleeping habit but I must, if I want to have sufficient energy for tomorrow. I have a presentation in campus and after that it was off to church for second round of the Missions Policy review.
Thanks be to God for this day!
"Seek good, not evil, that you may live. Then the LORD God Almighty will be with you, just as you say he is. Hate evil, love good; maintain justice in the courts. Perhaps the LORD God Almighty will have mercy on the remnant of Joseph. Therefore this is what the Lord, the LORD God Almighty, says: "There will be wailing in all the streets and cries of anguish in every public square. The farmers will be summoned to weep and the mourners to wail. There will be wailing in all the vineyards, for I will pass through your midst," says the LORD. Amos 5:14-17
(The full passage for the sermon is from Amos 5:1-17)
Though many have come to know of God's grace and mercy, it has sometimes reached a stage where we also take them for granted. I was struggling whether to just choose songs that only give the congregation an opportunity to praise God or should I also choose songs that speak of God's wrath on those who keep choosing to sin against Him time and again.
Well, I decided to include both in. The praise segment will be a time for all to give thanks to God for all that He has done for us. The more difficult songs to sing (as in not the tune but mouthing the lyrics) will be after the sermon where it is my prayer that all who will be present at the service will seriously consider the consequences of our constant rebellion. I think it is important to paint both sides of the picture when it comes to God's mercy on mankind. Yes, we are always told that He is good and patient but we also should know that it is also a reality that one day all of us will be standing in front of Him, accounting to Him for what we have done.
Not an easy preparation for me. Though tough, I praise the Lord that He has given me and all on earth a second chance to live through the death of Jesus on the cross.
I basically took lunch-time to be away from the crowd and went to Fort Canning Park to consider the songs to be sung. Though a little humid but I had a fruitful time of worship and communion with my Saviour.
I carried on when I ended work around 4pm. I went to Ngee Ann Coffee Bean to write my thoughts of the songs I have decided with the Worship Team members who will be serving alongside me. I pray the sharing has encouraged them and also allow them to see how the flow of the service will be like.
It has been a while since I visited this cafe but I am glad all the staff remembered me. I am a little concerned for Chin Chuan because of the pain he is experiencing around his left knee-cap. He showed me the Chinese herbal plaster that he pasted where the affected area is and said it was uncomfortable. I suspected it could be due to the long hours he had to stand and walk constantly to serve customers and also to clear all the plates and rubbish on the tables.
Well, I said a prayer of healing upon his knee and I believe God will heal this young man in His time.
We caught up quite a bit each time he passed my table. When he first saw me as he arrived at the joint for his shift, he gave the such a wide grin. I hope the Lord will give me an opportunity to reach out to him - I am thinking of inviting him to the church's healing service. I shall see how I can do that.
I went next to Carrefour in Plaza Singapura to buy groceries for the family. As I was on my way to the train station with my bags of stuff, I was stopped by this lady from an insurance agency. She called me "James" and I looked at her with this "huh" look. She then went on to say it has been a long time since she last saw me. I replied that she has mistaken me for someone else and she smiled. After a short pause, she apologised and said I really look like a friend of hers from secondary school. I "forgave" her (haha) and walked on. I wanted to turn around to see whether it was her kind of tactic to stop passers-by from listening to the product she was promoting but I decided not to as she did not do that to me.
Haha. I think I am getting a little sick saying this again but I shall because it is the truth. I AM DRAINED!
In fact, yesterday when I got home from dinner with the running gang, I was too tired to even blog. That is why I decided to give it a miss. I was also tempted to skip watching the Liverpool-Arsenal match. In the end I did though once in a while I was dozing off. Well, it was a mistake to watch it - again the Reds played badly. They scored an early goal, held it till the last 10 minutes and then conceded a goal due to the boo-boo made my a defender and the goalie. Well, much to be desired, I say.
Alritey, I shall attempt to sleep now! Haha. A bit too tired based on my sleeping habit but I must, if I want to have sufficient energy for tomorrow. I have a presentation in campus and after that it was off to church for second round of the Missions Policy review.
Thanks be to God for this day!
"Seek good, not evil, that you may live. Then the LORD God Almighty will be with you, just as you say he is. Hate evil, love good; maintain justice in the courts. Perhaps the LORD God Almighty will have mercy on the remnant of Joseph. Therefore this is what the Lord, the LORD God Almighty, says: "There will be wailing in all the streets and cries of anguish in every public square. The farmers will be summoned to weep and the mourners to wail. There will be wailing in all the vineyards, for I will pass through your midst," says the LORD. Amos 5:14-17
(The full passage for the sermon is from Amos 5:1-17)
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