Get Underwaaayyy....

Double Event

2011-05-03T09:59:00.000-07:00

so it has been a really weird day. Cos it seems inappropriate to wish me Happy Birthday at my grandfather's wake.

But i'm thankful for the people who came down to celebrate my birthday with awfully chocolate cake at the food court! That's a first... The location was weird due to obvious constraints.. I was really surprised, didn't suspect a thing! Words cannot express how grateful i was and still am...

thanks for being there and making it so much better...

With friends like these, i can meet Jesus early liao. But not yet la... I haven't experienced the second half of life yet... marriage, kids etc...

And YES!!! I got to eat awfully chocolate cake!!!!!! YIPPEEE!!!!!!!

So when i left and my relatives saw the cake, then they remembered that it was my birthday. at 11.45pm. so they wished me... I still felt weird to be wished happy birthday at a funeral parlour.. Oh well... What are the odds?

Shanghai, baby!

2011-03-14T08:52:00.000-07:00

If all goes well, i might really be going to Shanghai for a workshop training! hahaha. I'm super eggcited!

Anyway, today i was reading sth else, and i literally stumbled upon Romans 12:2 "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will."

And sth struck me. We are all familiar with the first part, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." but we rarely remember the second part, at least, i don't.

It says, "THEN (there is a direct cause and effect there...) you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will."

The writer uses "test and approve" and in other translations, it means about the same thing. It requires us to move before God will move. We always ask God to show us His will, but we don't move. We don't test and approve... We don't discern... And i love it that when we move, God will reveal his good, pleasing and perfect will! AMAZING! PERFECT leh! it's flawless. Which other God will tell you His perfect will? God wants us to know His perfect will!

I love it! I get excited when i read the Word now, cos i'm taking Personal Bible Study class at PBC and i'm finally learning how to study the bible...

FUN!!!!!

Honest thoughts

2011-03-10T09:01:00.001-08:00

Our mission is to reach non-Christians and lead them to be followers of Christ.

If we are reaching church transplanters (exclude other countries), then I think we have a problem.

Maybe I’m wrong. But I believe that God has a plan and a purpose for you in the church that He has placed you in. Unless God calls you out, your job is to stay, get deeply rooted, planted and serve.

That’s why if our reason for changing church is that the worship or the preaching is not up to our standard, then we don’t really understand what worship is or the responsibilities of every Christian.

Worship is not really up to standard? Well, the only standard that God measures our worship on is the obedience to God that is lived in our lives. So if you say worship is not up to standard, you are actually implying that your obedience to God is not up to standard? Who’s to blame? Will changing church change the problem when we are the problem? Same problem, different breeding ground.

Preaching not up to standard? Well, it’s every christian’s job to study the Word of God. The Holy Spirit helps us with what we cannot do, not what we can do. What we can do is study the Word of God. Sure, you can learn from the sermon, but our learning shouldn’t come primarily from Sunday preaching. It should come from Monday to Sunday’s reading and living.

This is not targetted at anyone. It’s just what I’ve been pondering about. About when can we ever reach all people and make them disciples of Christ if all we get are needy church transplanters who need to be fed milk every Sunday.

Christian Apologetics

2011-03-10T07:49:00.000-08:00

I was just youtubing Ravi Zacharias's Q&A sessions about God etc, and i loved it! It wasn't exactly easy to understand the terms, like existentialist etc... but i got the gist of it. ahhaah.

And then i went to look at Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics website and i wanted to register man! But it's 15,000+pounds for one year certificate accredited by Oxford University. It's INSANE.

But i do want to study Christian Apologetics too. Because it's challenging!

Challenges my mind! I LOVE IT! :))

Missions

2011-02-28T06:38:00.001-08:00

There is a season for everything. I think my next season in church is to go out there and reach people...

1) Reach people who are far away from God. ( in or out of my sphere of influence)

2) Give and serve.

I may not have heard an audible voice but I know in my heart that there's something more that God has in store for me and it will happen in the most unlikely situations. I've learnt that because I'm such a high D, as much as I can try to plan it all, the best lessons I've had from God so far, happened in the most unlikely situations.

Musical auditions, CNY dinner... God planned it all beforehand to change me. :))

Argh.

2011-02-21T07:57:00.001-08:00

It has only been the third week of work and I'm starting to get a lil frustrated. Managers keep sending me things to do, but none of them are around to help. As a result, I have a lot of work piled up because I have questions left unanswered. I spent half of the day changing half of a list of things, only to find out that I have to go back and redo! Argh!

I get frustrated because all these are operational tasks which are so time consuming and mundane, and they just keep piling up! Argh! Im thinking of bringing home work to do already. I want to get over and done with these because I want to do analysis. But I can't do it. Because I have all the stupid time consuming operational tasks, that I have so much trouble doing cos i face different issues everyday and the managers are never around for me to ask!

There's just so much expectations and pressure I place on myself to perform and do well. And I recognize that it is so unhealthy. :((

Nepal - 8th to 16th July mission trip

2011-01-29T08:34:00.001-08:00

One year ago, I decided that I had to stop going to hillsong conference. It was more like a holiday and I would never end up having any money to go for mission trip. I decided that rather than wasting money on hillsong trip, I could put the money to a mission trip this year.

The timing of the mission trip is perfect. 7th feb is the start of my new job. 7th jul would mark my 6th month at my new job. 8th jul is the mission trip.

So by faith, I will go, because I know what I prayed for and He has opened the doors.

Investment

2011-01-25T07:34:00.000-08:00

So, i have been investing my time and money into people.

but sometimes, it gets disheartened when i realise that i really mean nothing to friends i thought were close.

ah well, dust it off, stand up and move on. That's all i can do.

------------------------------------------

sometimes i just wish people would tell it to me straight, point blank. if you don't like it, just say it so that i know where i can improve on next time.

that's the only way i can improve. but nope, people just talk about it behind my back.

It has been tough

2010-12-22T21:33:00.001-08:00

It has been a tough 2 months man. I think the biggest thing right now is regret.

Really

2010-12-07T07:29:00.001-08:00

I haven't blogged in a really really long while. I stopped my bob challenge cos I realized a few things.

I have been busy. Really busy. I haven't even had time to wash my clothes in 2 months. Imagine... I totally ran out of work clothes and had to ask my mum who recently injured her wrist to wash my clothes for me. That's how desperate I was.

It's tough

2010-10-19T09:08:00.001-07:00

I have not had a great week. Really.

The only issue that I feel that the Holy Spirit is speaking to me is to humble myself and do whatever is required for the new boss.

When I was on the floor packing, colleagues would say, "wah.. Why so ke lian? You become his personal assistant ah? This kind of thing also ask you to do."

Honestly, I feel a sense that I was being despised and looked down upon. They prob felt that I no longer have my old boss to back me up. So I've been reduced to the lowest level of cleaning his room.

The scripture that kept ringing in my mind was Luke 14:11. "For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

And if my God could be accused, spat on, tortured to his death and take it all, then this is really peanuts for me.

The best part is that if my God could then resurrect from the death and save us all, then I know that in the end, im always on the winning side... :)

The guilt trip.

2010-10-18T08:26:00.000-07:00

So yesterday was my cousin's wedding. It was a joyous occasion. until a certain relative of mine popped in, and literally everyone started leaving one by one.

Let's just say, people love to judge based on the things they see and heard. I used to be very judgemental, judgemental to the point where only the Holy Spirit could change me. I don't know if i'm still as judgemental, but i am made aware of it by the Holy Spirit and i get very cautious these days whenever i speak about things and others. That's because it is so easy to be judgemental.

It is so easy to conclude things about people and assume that they should do this and this, instead of that and that...

But we have not led their lives to be able to ever judge their lives... We have not been through every suffering, every hardship, every heartache, every lesson in their lives.. We don't know where they have been... People are the way they are because of their past experiences, their past hurts etc... Maybe if we only knew what they have been through, we would judge less...

Imagine a colleague is always coming in late and leaving on time. She's always pushing work to you. That's why she is the person you resent most.

But one day, you find out that the reason why she has to leave on time, is because she has to go home to take care of her sickly son everyday. And you also find out that she does not mean to push work to you. She just does more ad-hoc reports which are actually more stressful, that's why she passes you the easier work...

What's the view of her now?

Do we really have a reason to resent her? Nope.

Is she really the mean person we think she is? Nope. In fact, she is actually just a loving mother and a great colleague...

We always just need to know a bit more about people to realise that we have judged wrongly. ONE FACT changes EVERYTHING. So hold your judgement about everyone... People aren't always who they seem to be.

Just my two cents worth.

In case you are wondering.

2010-10-14T20:06:00.000-07:00

Hello, I moved my past blog posts into my old blog account for archival. I will still be praying everyday, but i'll post in that other blog instead.

I think the major thing that God spoke to me this week is "don't run after the person whom God has removed from your life for your protection...". Even though i really do not see it now, but i trust that God knows best.

And i realised this week that i'm not the only one facing changes at work. It's nice to know that i'm not alone in this, and it seems like we are somewhat going through the same seasons at work. There's this sense of comradery and support. :))

We went through the stage of job search where we prayfully sought God. And because we did, we experienced great conquests (Joshua-Jericho) in our lives. Those memorial stones that we can cling on tightly to whenever the going gets tough and we feel like giving up.

About the Youtube channel, i do it cos i LOVE it. I love singing covers. I love radio hits. How i do it could always change... But the vision to reach people through music stays the same.

In the words of Andy Stanley, "MARRY THE VISION AND DATE THE MODEL"