Gems

Was looking at the archives of friends' blog, and somehow i always seem to find a gem.
This really touched my heart. When i read it, it simply just resonated within me.

Are we happy plastic people
Under shiny plastic steeples
With walls around our weakness
And smiles to hide our pain
But if the invitation‘s open
To every heart that has been broken
Maybe then we close the curtain
On our stained glass masquerade

Is there anyone who has been there
Are there any hands to raise
Am I the only one whose has traded
In the altar for a stage

The performance is convincing
And we know every line by heart
Only when on one is watching
Can we really fall apart

But would it set me free
If I dare to let you see
The truth behind the person
That you imagine me to be
Would your arms be open
Or would you walk away
Would the love of Jesus
Be enough to make you stay

Nearly had a dose of our own medicine.

We led 2 nil at half time. At one stage it was 3 nil. Then Galatasaray struck back and the fight back began. Thankfully it ended Pool3 Gala2.

"iSTUNbul" replay it nearly became.

Anyway, 3 more points in the bag. The Reds go marching on! 3rd consecutive home win!! Anfield fortress indeed!

Consumed by the world or word?

She: "Why dont you just dont do masters and just go to a bible colleage? And have the faith that God will provide?"

He:"Well, i guess.. i am at the stage where i cant still exactly trust God to provide my finances entirely. And besides, my family will kill me.. dont think its a wise move for now."

Guess today i was reminded by a friend over a conversation on msn and how simple her child like faith is and how attached i am to the world's concerns , worries and responsibilities.And it reminded me of :

The Parable of the Great Banquet(Luke14: 15-24)
When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God. Jesus replied: A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, 'Come, for everything is now ready.' But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, 'I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.'
Another said, 'I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I'm on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.' Still another said, 'I have just got married, so I can't come.' The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, 'Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.' 'Sir,' the servant said, 'what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.' Then the master told his servant, 'Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, so that my house will be full.I tell you, not one of those men who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.'

And it got me thinking as to why Jesus mentioned that the little children are the ones who enter the kingdom easiest and that the rich will find it hard. And how adults are overly concerned and get bogged down with the worldly matters, mind you good responsible stuffs like getting married, working to bring the bread home for the family etc...Scary thought.

Have i started to be like that??

By the way, my fren is no little child, she is blossoming into a beautiful lady-to-be.

Church and life groups

So what do you look for in a church or cell/lifegroup?

The Preaching? The Worship?The 'presence' of God?

Over the span of nearly 3 years in Hobsons Bay CityLife Church, i witness many comings and goings. Various people are drawn to my church and others leave for a whole host of reasons.

This year, i shifted from living in the heart of the city to the suburbs of Clayton. As a result, it takes nearly and hour to drive to church as compared to 30mins in previous years. This also meant that i will require to wake up much earlier especially on days that im serving in the hospitality team.

Many people ask me, "why, why do i stay on?"

I guess, the initial reason i decided to commit to the church was that i found the Pastor to be a very real person and i truely appreciated that. The hardest part of being a christian is that we faced so much pressure from the community secular and religious to conform to this preconcieved standards. And the church, instead of being a retreat for people to come to and be who they are, becomes a place of showing forth a facade. Standard small talks without any sincerity are common placed.

Once someone admits to be struggling with some sin, everyone would give the poor guy the look and "oohs". I like the story of Jesus and the woman who committed adultery where the pharisees wanted to trap Jesus and make him punish the woman for her sin. However, Jesus, just bended down and drew something on the ground and said "Let the sinless cast the first stone".

In my opinion, the church or cell/lifegroups should be a place of refuge, where all should feel comfortable in expressing themselves, in being who they are. Else why would Jesus say " Come onto me, all who are weary, i will give you rest" ? The reason is clear, Jesus loves us as we are now and forever. He loves because he is love, not because of who we are.

Back to the reason i stayed on... I stayed on because i made alot of friendships that were way deeper than the superficial. These are the people i want to do my life with.

Hobsons Bay Citylife is MY Church.

Have you committed to a church? or a cell/life group? If not maybe its time to start sharing your life with other christians abit more and stop visiting the church or cell/lifegroups and start being a part of the community.

The Blood of the Lamb

It was indeed a good feeling i had today in church. Never worshipped so hard, so in sync, in a long while. I was almost literally touching heaven.

Since friday, i was thinking about the topic of "justification" and why some of us feel so defeated and unworthy to do anything. I was fustrated at the apparent lack of willingness to take on new roles and guts to try new things.

And i concluded to myself, that we always feel unworthy, because we want to be in control. We want to be able to earn our right to lead, our right to live, our right to be respected, our rights to be... And we only think that certain people are worthy to do certain things because they seem to know more, pray more...etc

And in the process, we have forgotten about the cross, forgotten about the blood he shed, that we are cleansed because of his blood. We are covered in righteousness. There should be no feelings of guilt. Rather there should be confidence; not in ourselves and out abilities but in God and what he has done for us on the cross. Only hen can we break out and step out of our little hole of "i don't think im good enough" even without first trying .

And what Pastor Ted spoke on today about prayer touched on similar themes. It has been awhile since i last pondered on a theme and the exact theme was discussed in service. I guess i took it as a sign, a sign that i am flowing with God and in touch with the vision and heart of Pastor Ted.

Coolz

Tomm: Monday nite is Drawing Near nite..cant wait.

Knowing what you want

Prayers got to specific, you got to know what you want.
However, one common problem i face, is that im not sure of what i want.

Sometimes i think, we do not recieve what we pray forbecause we are not sure of what we want and are just praying for it anyway. And i suppose God knows, and as a result withholds, for he knows that you do not really want what you are praying for.

Just like a spoilt child who would simple demand his parent for the toys that he had his eyes on and cast the toy aside once the novelty disappears. God knows better than to give us something that we will not cherish and throw away in the future.

The new Anfield Idol

Liverpool 3 Spurs 0

The tune in my mind

From The Inside Out
by Hillsong United
album: United We Stand (2006)

A thousand times I've failed
Still Your mercy remains And should I stumble again
I'm caught in Your grace
Everlasting
Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending
Your glory goes beyond all fame

Your will above all else
My purpose remains
The art of losing myself
In bringing You praise

Everlasting
Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending
Your glory goes beyond all fame

In my heart and my soul
Lord I give You control
Consume me from the inside out

Lord let justice and praise
Become my embrace
To love you from the inside out

Everlasting
Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending
Your glory goes beyond all fame
And the cry of my heart
Is to bring You praise

From the inside out
Lord my soul cries out

Fears and pitfalls in life

Something which we discussed in detail during camp.
It is just interesting to note the list of fears that everyone came up with.
The False Evidence Appearing Real list:

1. of people's expectation
2. of disappointment
3. of regret
4. of rejection
5. of failure
6. of loneliness
7. of pain
8. of loss of control

And that list is not exhaustive.. rather thats all that i can remember which stood out for me.

From the list, it is obvious that both christians and non christians alike suffer from the same deception of FEAR. So how do we overcome FEAR?

The answer lies with 2 words: Magnify, Focus

Just like the song:Oh magnify the lord! Oh magnify the lord! For he is worthy to be praise!

We need to magnify the God in our lives for the knowledge of God in us is directly proportionaly to our ability to combat FEAR. ie the need to continue to feed ourselves spiritually.

Focus! Look to Jesus. Like Peter who was focused on Jesus, he was able to walk on water! Matthew14:22-36

Also we can draw strength and hope that God has a specific plan in our lives. Jeremiah29:11-14 states, For I know the plans I have for you, declares the lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. then you will call upon me and come and pray to me and i will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you", declares the lord, " and will bring you back from captivity.

And that no FEAR will hold us back.

Amen!

September! the Month of Babies.. or Should i say January the month of...

So many birthdays this month!
And today is my sister's birthday! Happy birthday! And God bless you richly and overflowingly till you can't contain them youself.

Just to give an idea of why i said September to be the month of babies, i will list the people that i know who are born in this month.

Michelle Sng 10/09
Joanne Lee Hui 15/09
Wee Liwei 17/09
Nick Kok 19/09
My sister 20/09
My 'xiao mei' Teo Wanting 21/09
Lim Meisze 29/09

That is 25% of the entire month!

Happy birthday to my brother in christ!

To my fellow drawing near brother in Christ, the arguably best soccer player Melbuni OCF has(now that SoonSeng is going back): Nick Kok

Passions follows commitment

I must admit, when i made the hard decision to leave my cell group in ocf last year, it was really hard. I had been in OCF since my first year, my entire social life in melbourne revolve round this organisation call OCF. As a christian that I am today, I owe almost everything to OCF. From a boy who only knew Jesus as his saviour and that he must start going to church, to one who arguably knows much more in terms of doctrine and life application; OCF was a major part of his life.

In addition, the friendships he made are invaluable, they are his family in Melbourne. They are infuse into his life. Each an everyone of them plays a distinct valuable part of his life. He yearns to see them grow and mature. He wants to protect them and make sure they are alright. His desire is to see them discover their potential and max it out. His heart cries out to those who suffer from low self esteem and confidence in self and God. He wants to nurture them, tend to them.

Like the dying potted plants, he made a commitment to water and give it sunshine(love and care), with the ultimate aim that one day, he can transplant them into the ground where they rightfully belong. Where their roots will grow deep and they will be able to draw nutrients independently and they will reflect the blessing of God. And that they will also start to be shelters, refuge, hideouts to those who are weary and tired from the daily hassles and routines of life. I see the picture that each and everyone of them are like massive trees, with branches spreading far and wide, with leaves thick and spotting bright green. That they will be reliable sources of rest and comfort to the world.

And now, after spending nearing a year with his new life group from church, he starts to feel that the hard commitment that he made without much of a passion, has this notion call love starting to develop. His passion for this bunch of people, his new friends, his new family members, has began to take root.

I dare say, i love you guys, each and everyone of you. My vision that i had for my family in ocf is now expanding, expanding to you guys too.

Passion and love do indeed follow commitment.

The question is, do we dare to commit ?

of injustice in the world...

Liverpool lost to Chelsea.. 1 nil..
Sighzzz.

It's especially hard to swallow when Liverpool dominated the game! Argh plus the goal was a moment of brilliance not a mistake by the defence.

Cie Le Vie.

Still praising him.

STEPPIN' OUT !!! Are you?

Camp was simply amazing..
I guess it really ministered to me. Garry Rocks!
I think i finally met someone who thinks alike with me in terms of ministry.
Integrity, doing the right thing, purpose, direction, fears, reaching out, servanthood heart, one body in christ.
All traits that i hold tightly onto. And i was shown abit of the new level,a depth of which i can aspire towards , a new height which i can strive for.
I was affirmed in camp, i am(was) on the right track, so "KEEP AT IT JI!!!"

GTG, need to ride fast and furious into the city to watch Chelsea vs Liverpool! Come on!!

will talk more in my next post!

What is love? 问世间情是何物

问世间，情是何物，直教生死相许？

天南地北双飞客，老翅儿回寒暑？

欢乐趣，离别苦，就中更有痴儿女。

君应有语，渺万里层云，

千日暮雪，双影向谁去？

Artsy? am I?

Never thought that i was artsy. I don't read much. I don't know how to play any instrument. I don't know how to appreciate paintings and stuffs.

At best i enjoy watching artsy films.But ask me to analyse and critque.....

Recently, i been watching a fair bit of "The Return of the Condor Heroes " or in simplified chinese: "神雕侠侣", a chinese classic "wuxia" novel written by Jinyong, first published on May 20, 1959The story revolves around Yang Guo the son of Yang Kang, and his lover Xiaolongnü in their struggle of finding their own destiny in an unfamiliar world.

And it just sparked off memories of my youth, which i read the novel and many other novels writtened by Jinyong.

Indeed, i realised that my values and ideas on romance was heavily influenced during such a time in my life. Notions of honour, chivalry, love, brotherly bond, valour are all indoctrinated into me.

For more detailed information by wikipedia click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Return_of_the_Condor_Heroes

Fear

I fear alot of things.

I fear crockroaches.
I fear heights.
I fear snakes.
I fear bugs.
To a certain extent i fear my mum.
I'm learning to fear God

But above all fears, i fear PUBLIC SPEAKING!!!!

ARRRRGH! CMI!

Indicators of knowing that i am FAT

1. Pants get tighter
2. Mates greet you with " yo yo yo, been going gym huh"
3. Friends puting their hands on the tummy and rub and ask "how many months?"
4. When the t-shirt somehow shifts up during sleep

Turkish delight? or God's delight (A sermon by pastor Micheal Sim)

God spoke to me in church today, like a double edged sword it peirced right through to the deepest level of my relationship with him: my heart.

"The reason we keep sinning is because we are not satisfied with God!", the pastor boomed.

Psalms 37:4: Delight yourself in the lord, and he will grant you the desires of your heart.

It is so important to take delight and pleasure in the LORD our God. It is not about earning brownie points from God, or serving like a mad cow. It is just so simple, take delight, take pleasure, enjoy GOD!!Such a revelation!

Captivating

" It is so easy to be seen as confident, it is so much harder to be weak! JX i am not a strong woman, really i'm not..."

He pulls the laptop across to her, thinking that she will stop whatever she was doing to type her password into the computer... Instead, she whispers: "Princess", trying her very best not to tell the world that was before her..

"It's just weird that you liked my friend first then me..., i hope you understand..."

It just dawned upon me yet again, that despite the differences in personalities, these girls(all girls), have the same insecurities and a soul yearning to be captivated, to be a princess , to be love consistently and faithfully and not feel like second best(cause they deserve the best).

Love that i believe(guesss) only God can provide.