my journey in 2007

John 16:33
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

yes let's overcome the world together!
yesterday's 2008 planning was good
I feel excited abt the year of sabbath
coz i find that questions abt hearing GOD's voice has been disturbing me lately
i look forward to hearing fr him more next year...to be more intimate with him like a boyfren! kiss..hug?
I really thank GOD for PD n mel's prayer of restoration
this year has been really tough for me...it feels like a never ending battle
actually it doesnt really feel like a year of victory to me at all...the word discouraged is like plastered over my forehead
but I believe next year there will be some closure...rainbows will appear after the storm
afterall he will not push me beyond wat i can bear
but its really when I ve reached the end of myself, i finally found not only answers but i found him again! that is a victory this year!

Appreciation fr mel is that I m open n receiving when somebody prays for me...
i feel the warm sensation running down my spine when sb prays for me....i feel really touched by their words..its makes me cry
she feels like sometimes she is simplifying my problems..but i hv been open to her encouragements n advice
she also mentioned abt the use of "mummy" in my emails to her.....an effort to be more expressive n more intimate with her

my turn now
Thank you mummy mel for walking thru the storms in my life. ur advice n encouragement have always been very objective, allowing me to make decisions on my own by seeking the Lord's favour
Thank you also for building me up spiritually n in character...i hv grown fr the shy, low self esteem gal to the one standing before yah
Thank you my dear sisters for ur one word description of me today as virtuous like proverbs 31 except the part abt cooking n washing clothes. yes even when i dun truly believe coz it sounds like a housewife! i will work on the speedy gonzales attitude... i need more patience!
Thank you guifang for ur presence is a big encouragement to me! i hv lots to learn fr ur childlike faith in GOD.
Thank you gwen for all ur support, prayers n encouragement! yes i enjoy the movie dates with yah!
Most importantly thank you everybody for bringing so much joy, laughter n colour into my life. I luv u all very much!
love fiona

MNG retreat

mastermind a game that requires serious concentration
i wonder who recorded this...val sounds funny


gift exchange search - von finally found her pressie!

the Shepherd and the Sheep

We all know Psalm 23.
We quote it a lot.

But do you truly understand what it means?

Sometimes, when verses become so known, we may lose the true meaning of the word or become desensitised to it.

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want."
-> It literally means I shall not lack fullstop. I shall not lack in anything.

Does the sheep keep the shepherd? Or does the shepherd keep the sheep?
I think one will know the obvious answer:
The shepherd keeps the sheep.

Here comes the next question we should ask ourselves:
If it is true that the shepherd (God) keeps the sheep (Us), why is it that we still worry?

It is the shepherd's responsibility to provide for His sheep, be it food, clothing, work, studies...
The shepherd will not look good if His sheep is not provided for.
The sheep does not worry about their meals but simply trust in their shepherd because the sheep knows that the shepherd will bring them to "green pastures" and "waters".

Truth be told, how do we truly follow the shepherd? Because as we all know, saying is one thing and obeying is another.

"He makes me lie down in green pastures..."
-> Ever seen a sheep lie down on green pastures? It tucks in its feet and stop running around being so busy.

Okay I can see some of you scratching your heads now...

Though we do our devotion each day, how many times do we actually spend time with Him in a relaxed environment, all comfortable to wait on the Lord? And how many times do we instead read His word in a hurry, because we have to. Or read and fall asleep? I will say that I'm guilty of doing so... Haha.

When the sheep tucks in its feet, it knows that it can trust in its shepherd to fend off any dangers. And so it simply sits still and wait on its shepherd.

God likes us to do so... Simply lie down in green pastures and wait on the Lord.
Mary sat at Jesus' feet and listened to His word.

Hey if we are sheep, lying down on green pastures is good news! It means we have abundance of food! :)

"He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake."
-> In Israel there are lots of grazing pastures.
And on these grazing pastures you will invariably notice a mount or a small hill. There are tracks on these grazing pastures which you will see which the sheep are fond of trailing and the tracks go up and up till you reach the top.
These footpaths of the sheep is called Paths of Righteousness by the Israelites.
The interesting thing is the name of the top of the mounts, the Apex, it means HOPE. Which means that in all that we walk, we will ultimately be led to the top. And paths of righteousness will bring you to hope.

Cool isn't it? The way God works... :)

John 10:11
"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep."
-> When I read that I was overwhelmed. How amazing is God huh? To give His life for us! And when 1 goes astray, He leaves his 99 to hunt for the 1 who left on its own accord. What more us, His children? We never did find God on our own. He found us when we were lost and gave us hope to live with purpose again.

How does God gives us His forgiveness? And how do we forgive one another?
When we humans say we forgive another, what do we say?
"Yah, I forgive you, but don't do it again."

Whereas God forgives simply, "I forgive you."

No conditions given. He will abundantly pardon. The way He forgives leaves no room for guilt. Only man makes you feel guilty. We can come back unashamed into His arms with no questions asked.

That's the difference between us and God.

Have you noticed that great leaders are great sheep themselves? The only reason why King David is a good leader is due to his ability to be a great sheep himself who knew his shepherd's voice, and obeyed God's calling. The Lord took David from following his sheepfold to shepherding the Lord's people. That's why he became a great shepherd of his people.

To be a good leader, we have to be a good sheep.

"Surely goodness and mercy me will follow me all the days of my life!"
-> 'Follow' what does it truly mean? I just read recently in the Hebrew context. It means that surely goodness and mercy will HUNT me down.. double wow...

We all want to enjoy God's word in the absence of our symptoms. But God wants us to have joy in the midst of our stress.

If goodness and mercy is hunting for me, it is coming from the back, following me...
Who am I following then?

The Lord says in John 10:4 "And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice."
-> As long as we keep Jesus in front of us, goodness and mercy will hunt us down!
As long as we pursue Jesus, goodness and mercy will pursue us!

The devil tries to prevent us from knowing the word...

Don't let any weapon formed against us prosper!

relying on symbols

I read His word today and was enlightened about some things that we are dependent on in the days of our walk with God.

In 1 Samuel, the Israelites put their trust and hope in the Ark, believing that it will lead them to victory because it represents God's favour on them. But not only did they lose the battle, their ark was captured...

Eli upon hearing that the ark of God was captured, died with a broken neck.
His daughter-in-law was so upset that she died in her labour.

Does losing the ark signify the loss of God's favour?

Many a times, we put our trust and hope in the symbols of God just as the Israelites did. Like wearing the cross, WWJD wristbands... Even unknowingly believing in signs that are supposedly godly or from God.

In times like this, when hope seems bleak, we tend to forget that we are to seek a first hand relationship with Him instead of looking for signs that show His favour.


"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though... the fields produce no food... yet... I will be joyful in God my Saviour."

He is always with us if we seek Him wholeheartedly. :)

Mel & Fiona's taiwan trip

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Get your own

It's Elaine's Birthday!!!

Elle's yummylicious homemade brownie cake...topped with Ben and Jerry's ice cream afterwards. Don't the rest of u regret not coming? *Hehehe*



More food...than my hp camera could capture. There was curry chicken, yellow rice, and desert too!



Elle's lovely family (plus Gideon the dog behind, blocked)



Mel, Jen and Fio!

Cheers!! We had red wine and...Moet. =)

It was a great time, seriously. I really enjoyed myself. Elle i will miss u when u go overseas, really. Esp during go-service times and Christmas-time. Love u loads hope u enjoy urself over there. *HUGGS*

Plopped onto earth again

Hi
I don't know how long it has been, but it sure feels like it has been a thousand years since I step into this side of the world.

Yes I am still alive!

I've never been so good at going missing, I aced it. SMSes were sparse too, I think everyone thought i might have chewed my phone in my stressed and confused agonized mind. Anyway i thought i should correct a popular belief that I am stressed. Actually i dun get that. I just get sad.


So, it definitely helped to have great colleagues and that God is always only a conversation away. I don't pray, I just whined. Like "Oh GOD...why like that......." to.. "OH DEAR GOD...I am so tired....... " to..."GOD, I want to give up...." and "Father, please bring me the taxi....."

Yes, I have been down and out... dealing with exasperating stuff at studio.. re-do re-do to infinity..a simple thing until it made me feel like crap that I can't even do a simple thing..in fact, a simple yucky stuff that I am utterly ashamed of but I just couldnt seem to change it.....and so someone (anyone) will say of cos my self-worth is not based on a simple stupid paper design...but still trust me..at those times..u just feel like crashing your head into the monitor screen in front of you and just die there. And the auntie sweeping the floor the next day will just think " joy to the world! she finally decided to stop killing so many trees printing so many urgly designs." Maybe you dun understand but at least, my monitor will agree with me. oh maybe my boss too.

Then came a bout of... dealing with machines that are 3 times bigger than me... machines that can saw off your fingers and drill holes into your palms..machines that can chew off your head... yes.. I am good with using all these.. tell me if your house needs renovations.. and don't be surprised I can hammer nails into walls like a man. Yet, this whole nei nei prototyping process is killing me cos' I am just not good enough! I can't build a good model without faults without having something go wrong. They just have to break down on me..and my stubborn hands simply can't craft the material into what I need them to be! I just jinxed all machines that I work with... well done pris. well done. *faints*

So..... work is tough for stupid people like me. I need a new brain.

But thank God, a small battle is over for me and I came out..not totally unharmed...in fact quite bruised on both my ego and my fingers..but when the dust settled and the exhibition opened....there was a small frame of time to reflect. I didn't go hide out at lil india, my pensive lil' room. I just stood at my exhibition place and looked at it all. So much to be done better..so much that can be done better.

This time it didn't get me down as much. I understood something. That i really need to kick my lazy laidback blur negative nei nei attitude aside and take some positive actions. And so i always talk and no action and that is no good.

A lil bit of sincerity, a lil bit of focus, a lil bit of purpose.

It was actually hilarious and at the same time alarming, that I dreamt of pastor deb. one night and she just said, "you are selfish." haha. wierd. but got me thinking. yes maybe.

So, in a few days' time..it's another battle. This time a goliath all the way till January end. I hope to be ready then. And I hope to be like David.

Before that, a lil advertisement, our team's exhibition is at

Sculpture Square,
located along Middle Road,
Opposite Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, walkable from the Central Library at Bugis/ City Hall there...
Near Laselle... opposite Fortune Centre
It's till 6th December.

Entitled "Object as Architecture, Architecture as Object"

do drop by to be a lil bit inspired!

The Singapore Design Fest is simply getting better and better... so.. maybe we can organise a trip to go around the different venues that will be exhibiting if you all are keen on sunday after service..designs..art installations..architecture... all things you can identify with even if u r not a designer.

The opening party was over for our exhibition at sculpture square so there are no longer free drinks and cocktails..but there are other party venues throughout this week still. I am sorry for not notifying anyone. I didn't realised I didn't informed anyone cos' my stupid brain couldn't multi-task.

Meanwhile take care and see you all cos i have landed on earth again finally.
I hope I bought a one-way ticket this time.

:)

Our humble lil' celebration at...The Deck!!

Chng's bday wish...What could it be? It's gotta be...World Peace! Lol.



And our gorgeous lady of 21 poses with her tiny lil' cake. Cheong aren't u glad she went off on Sun so u could have the big big cake to yrself?! Hahaha.

Happy Birthday Cheong!!

The delicious cake--we just couldn't wait to get our hands on it. Every crumb was devoured.

Our beautiful sister getting ready to cut the cake...or us? *trembles*

more of the Princess of God!!

Emmanuel our wonderfully cute Tribe Baby. May u have one soon Cheong, for us to play with! *Hee*

Nick is coming..

HEY..Let's all move together to invite our friends who needs an affirmation today! =)

Updates...

Just Some random Pics!

Dear family...

First of all... "HOW ARE YOU?" It's been an exciting season with a number of us embarking on new journeys (new relationship, work, etc). But.. hmm... it seems real quiet here.. :P It'd be really good if we all start blogging yeah.. cos in the midst of our own lives, it is still important to stay connected.. So that we can remember that tho' we are on different journeys, we all run the same race for Christ. As a family, we are here to spur each other on in this race.

As for me.. i have recieved my new posts and class deployment.. it sure is tough.. I had a few nights where i just work up at 5 plus am..as if it's normal school teaching days and started thinking abt lesson planning.. :( For the new year, i will be teaching (sec 1Express, 3 express, 5 normal acad, 3 normal tech-supposedly t the most challenging in school.)Most English teachers quota is 3 classes.. this plus other duties (sec 3 level coordinator/cip coordinator) make me rather fearful.. After i have talked to my head.. she said that she understands my apprehension, but cos of shortage of manpower.. so no choice.. heh.. But i still believe that the Lord will bring me thru this and that His grace is ALWAYS sufficient..so praise the Lord.. i have resumed my normal sleep hours. How about you all? how are things on your side.. post up ok, so thaat we can be praying for each other. Please keep me in prayer too.

For our tribe, it is also a new year coming.. the year of sabbath.. i am praying and seeking Him on how we can move in His presence. I am also projecting how i will be able to balance my various priorities. I understand that for meeting in groups, it might take some time to adjust, but i believe that it will really anchor us strong in fellowship in the Father and each other. Meanwhile.. continue to love one another.

The upcoming dates have been given via calendar and gone thru during the last cell.. hope that you all have taken note and will take greater effort to rem the mtg dates.

These are the remaining meeting dates:

25th nov-congre mtg

2 Dec- Nick service, cell time after service

13 Dec- Cell gp

19-21 Dec: Family retreat

24 Dec: Christmas party+carolling

27 Dec: Youth Marketplace training

29Dec: Presentation of Plans for 2008 (TCT consol room)

30 Dec-congre

31 Dec- Countdown party

Could you post up in your groups by 30th Nov the names of your friends you are inviting, so that we can all be praying, let's not waste this opportunity... cos i believe that Nick's testimony will really impact lives..lt's be exciting in seeing our friends blessed.

Also i need to know who cant make it for the family retreat on the 19-21Dec, other than elaine... otherwise it is taken that you are cmg yea..=)

Meanwhile let's keep Peng in prayer as she does the exhibition end of this mth.. also pray for the NUS pple who are taking their papers.

Hope to hear from u all..

Mummy mel

the GIANTS in my life

Ever since school started in aug, i felt as if i lost my sense of joy and happiness. i felt more strongly during the middle of the midterm break (which is last week), where i just couldn't help but feel directionless.

suddenly, it seemed as though my life lacked purpose. all i did each day was just Go to sch, Come back home, Do work, Sleep. how tiring it was when i saw no purpose behind all these. even though i could go out, i somehow felt like any sense of joy was robbed from me and i didn't want to even hang out much with my friends.

no idea why, but i began to reject connections with my friends and the many times they asked me out diminished to not bothering to ask me out at all, knowing full well that i'll reject them. i felt guilty, but i did not do anything about it. i kept telling myself that i have to go home and finish my work. perhaps then, when i've accomplished doing them will i spend time with my friends. i don't want to neglect my work. but work never ends... that i sadly learnt recently.

during the midterm break, i promised myself that i will accomplish my work well before school starts again. so, i will have time to go out and truly spend time with my friends - without any burdens of work on my back. somehow, temptations crept in and when the holidays were nearing an end, i panicked. i felt useless as things did not go as i planned. my purpose of life revolved around school work. and so when my plans failed, it seemed that my purpose in life was lost. although it seems dramatic now, but i truly felt so lost back a couple of days ago that i refused to do anymore work. "what's the point when work never ends anyway?" that's what i thought to myself.

then back on monday, upon the start of sch again, i entered my class and i mentally told myself to believe that i've done sufficient work in the holidays, and i did not waste my entire week. cliques from around me started asking one another, "Eh! You did your assignments already anot? Next week must hand in leh!", "Sian lor, next week got so many work to hand in!" Seriously, when i heard that, i freaked out. i've always thought that the essays were to be handed in much later... This time i really panicked.

Just yesterday, I was led to read a previous letter that my friend in JC gave to me just before the As. i was quite surprised at myself as i seldom looked back on my old letters. But i just felt this prompting and this desire once again to read the letter, as if it was just given to me, i wanted to know the contents.

It wrote,
"This is supposed to be a letter of encouragement, but i think you need to relax instead. (._.''') see you like very stress, later go crazy how...?? studying isnt wrong la, but sometimes too much pressure can backfire too ya know? Just tell yourself you can do it -
YOU NEED CONFIDENCE!"

It's funny how God speaks sometimes. The words spoke so vividly to me that i teared upon reading it. Simple words of encouragement, similar scenario. It never occurred to me that i pressured myself. I realised now that I do, even though I always thought that stressing myself is for my good.

Throughout the whole of last week, I kept asking God to show me my purpose once again.
"I'm lost Lord! Guide me, will you?"
Yes, I know, surrender to the Lord and He will answer and help me find what I seek. But i still wasn't able to hear from Him. I went to church that week asking Him to speak to me. "Lord I want your assurance today. Take away my burdens plz!"

Today, He spoke to me. Through quiet time.
And so here I am, speaking to you too.

In times when things go bad, I am used to people saying, "I'll pray for you."
This is what I say to others too.
But many a times, we quickly turn to the Father when we have problems.
How about times when we have joy? Shouldnt we practise turning to Him too?

He gave me my sense of direction and my purpose in life again.
Although living in this material world often overwhelms us, our sense of direction should be to Him.
To look and trust in Him, and believe that He truly has a purpose for all we are going through, no matter the pain we are feeling right now. Simple as it is, I often struggle with it.

I'm sharing with you right now of my JOY that things are finally going right for me!
Will you pray for me?

:)

Fiona Banana and Guifang's birthday

Happy Birthday!!

Erm. Nice cake. The knife is stuck in the cake.

Nothing to do with birthdays. Sik trying to be funny.
Never die before, mess with a DreamTeam jacket person.

Updates and dates =)

Hey hey.. how have you all been?? Just some updates on the upcoming mtgs so that we will not be too confused.

22/29 Sept: Re-encounter (Val, jen gg)
23 Sept: Ps Debra congre (to pray for exams and careers) + Cell mtg after tat (the agenda will be further decided)
20-21 October: Upcoming leaders retreat. Theme "ratatouille" (did i spell it right?). This will be open to cell leaders and people who have been serving Gb (the officers).

For Our family time aka mel's G12.. i let you all know the dates again when i finalise stuff k.. It might or might not stay on fri. So it will either be a fri or thurs.. thanks for all ur understanding.

Please pray for Fiona's lesson observation +des, regina and nuanyi for directions in job. The family seem to be facing common obstacles esp in the aspect of work.. Keep posting yeah.. Prayer request/testimonies/updates.. heh.. crap can do too..

Love u all! DO encourage each other to keep reading the blog.. Don't miss out yeah!

it's us~

goliaths in our lives

El: has fears of rejection and hence the burden of having try getting people's acceptance. The fears come in the forms of having to make friends with strangers in classes, speaking up during lessons and initiating conversations with people she do not really know well, and ultimately, affecting serving in church to have (if) a cell of people she didn't begin as friends.


sik: has fears of having to make a time-termed commitment and being responsible for serious matters cos of burdens to meet expectations of consistently being able to do so.(often personal-induced)

regina...will share soon (:

Mel's fears and burdens to not carry

dear daughters..

I think i have share most of it at cell.. For me i have a tendency to carry the responsibilities of the walk of you all, kai , my family and even the lives of my students which become really overwhelming, cos in school, as i was just looking at their profiles.. it pains to see their famiy backgrounds. i really realised that we are very blessed with our families.

For me, i have to over come my fear of gg back to teach and facing unresponsive pple in my life, cos the kind of people whom i fear most are angry people and unresponsive people.

it's great to know that we are spurring each other on in this race.. for those who haven got the posts up.. do keep it gg.. to stay connected.. hope that all in the family is viewing the blog.

love ya

Our Giants -that we need to face

hi there, i'm blogging our burdens on behalf of our group (fiona, des, guifang and me)

Guess its really a transitional period of the three of us in our work.

Pray for guifang that she will learn to conquer her maths problems that seems difficult to solve.
Pray for fiona, that she will be bold and courageous to face the giant in her life. her evaluation, that she will pass this evaluation and go to NIE happily. That she will persevere on to hang on to this dream of being a teacher.
Pray for Des, that she will be patient with herself in picking up the skills and training in her new working environment. That she will not put so much pressure on herself and that there will be favor between her and her colleagues and boss. That she will hang on tightly to God during this period of time.
Pray for me, that i will learn to let go of people who are close to me. Let go of cell members and surrender to the Lord knowing He can carry my burdens better than i do, letting go of them knowing that they do not belong to me.

Thats all i remember, p.s. please correct if there are any more that i mite have left out.
Let us be overcomers in Christ!

-val

Not by might.

Here's what we have shared on Sunday, do keep us in prayer!

Xue Mei - feels burdened to do more for her grandma, but encounters guilt because of her own limitations. Grandma is really sick and doctors' prognosis isn't optimistic.

Gwen - feels that she should do more to spread Christ to her family members, worries that her family members will pass away before knowing Christ.

Yvonne - sometimes I feel responsible for the GB girls and the way that they have turned out. I feel bad that maybe I could have done more, and I feel guilty sometimes for not caring more about them.

Our homework assignment

OUr burdens

We feel that we are responsible for the growth of our members and friends..like mel said, carry other people's monkey....
At times, when we dont see them grow, we feel unsure whether are we doing enough, are we good enough
We feel unappreciated at times....just felt prompted to share with u all something..hee..Working at uwc really taught me a lot..
There was once where i help a kid to get the ball from a steep slope..was really scared..though i am big..yup haha....
The next day, i tried to smile at the kid.but he didnt response..felt like he had forgotten what i did for him..because all he cares for was his ball...feel unappreciated...but God reminded me that He knows what i did...
Just wan to affirm u all that God sees all your effort...all the things that u have done..and He wants to say a big THANK YOU...hee..ok hope u all understand what i am trying to say..haha..

OUr fear

We fear losing the people we know..we are not afraid of death..but afraid of seeing our loves one dying especially if they dont know the Lord yet..Please pray that our family will be saved..pray for nuan yi's grandpa..he is very old already..pray that He will believe in God.

Pray for jen. She fears that she will go back to her old ways
Pray for me. I fear rejections, afraid of losin the people i know.
Pray for nuan yi that she wont fear failures.

By Cheong =)

Free Spirits

Been a rocky week, with ups and downs. Thank God sch is really getting better, and i'm so blessed. Being heckcare like always, i didn't bother to print lecture notes, but somehow 3 diff ppl in my 3 diff lectures happened to print extra/had to print for themselves last min so helped me print. In any case, i just went to class empty-handed and always ended up with lecture notes from a friend. And one lent me her RBR notes to photocopy--those in NUS shd know these are like rare treasures, plus i bumped into a yr 3 friend who lent me her book for this sem so i need not buy/hunt it down somehow. Praise the Lord! =)

Free Spirits. It's always a controversy, whether God's laws liberate or restrict. If the latter were true, wouldn't that make all Christians Dead Spirits? If one were to be too caught up in the rules, then i believe it would kill our spirit. But that was not what God intended, for it is truly impossible for us to abide by all the laws. Yet it is the Heart of the Law that matters, it is this that liberates. It's a matter of perspective, and maturity. It's a matter of wisdom. The difference btw seeing a law as liberating/restrictive lies in how far you see. For many of us in our infancy see only the immediate future. We want to yield to our pleasures. Now. But if we were to look into the crystal globe, the consequences of these temporary pleasures yield much destruction. Initially, it may appear liberating to be able to do whatever u want to, whenever. You could get into all sorts of nonsense and feel in control. But after awhile, who controls who? I'd think the nonsense controls you. And that hardly seems liberating.Still there were times when i was close to embracing something i know will not have a future. Sometimes it seems, even education can confuse you. Learning to be critical bout everything makes one wonder sometimes, who's to say what's wrong? Sometimes excessive knowledge, when mishandled, can cause destruction. It's like in the Garden of Eden, when Adam and Eve ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, God said they would die. While they did not die in the way they'd imagined, which was what the evil serpent manipulated to cause them to doubt God, they died to innocence, they died to purity, they died to that intimate closeness with God. Once they'd everything they needed and wanted, a perfect utopia, now they were cursed and had to endure suffering in the world. God knew that they would not be able to handle the Knowledge of Good and Evil, so He commanded them not to. But they disobeyed, and while there remained traces of good in men, it was the evil that proliferated. So much obscenity in the world today, so much suffering and agony, because of that Fruit our ancestors couldn't resist. I'm not saying that we should thus quit studying, but that along with greater knowledge comes greater risk of stumbling, and we should hold on tight to Wisdom in those times.

But it is certainly Folly speaking when you know deep inside what your conscience, or the Holy Spirit, says and choose to drown out that small, still voice anyway. Sure your flesh will fight, you'd try to justify your own ends, and of course the devil will take the chance to join in and fan the flames. But i've chosen to yield to my flesh too many times and reaped the undesirable consequences, and no longer will i do that. I choose wisdom, i choose to listen to the small, still voice that is always right. But that does not mean i am thus a Dead Spirit. On the contrary, when i made the decision i felt free. Cos i may not be in control, but God is. And better Him than me, cos i trust Him more than i trust myself. I am a Free Spirit, because my Lord Jesus, He sets me free.

FAREWELL.... WE MISS YOU DEBBIE & SUET...+VONNE CONVO

VONNE's SPECIAL DAY!

At the airpot, where we bade farewell to suet and debbie.. i remember that it was an eventful day.. with yvonne's convocation and the send off... OUR family had some new additions..

Val +reg family.... Pray that they will grow strong together, regardless of distance.. God will close all distance, physically/spiritually and emotionally. Welcome back liling and mabel..

DEbbie.. a grandaughter i will remember, of that time at the beach where she shared something with me and i know that she is one after God's heart, and one who is steadfast in her values and will not settle for God's second best for her.

Suet.. One i will miss.. She often adds laughter, being herself, so candid and true.. ENcouraged by her emails to keep us updated.. Hope to see you back soon!! Moo moo ~

The prelude to the macs birthday celebration.. Peng puts together her secret invitation.

With much help, it was done...

PENG's BIRTHDAY

OUR FAMILY PARTY


OUR SPECIAL BIRTHDAY GIRL

ONE BIG FAMILY... SPOT YOURSELF =)

PRAYER WARRIORS AT WORK

BIRTHDAY GIRL AND HER BLESSEE

WE LOVE YOU PENG PENG!!

Fiona Banana

Lyrics:
Fiona nananana My banana
Fiona nananana My banana
Not mangoes, not cherries, not papaya
Fiona nananana My banana

And we'll go to Swensen's to have a Banana Split but we will probably just order everything~

Fiona nananana My banana
Fiona nananana My banana
Fiona nananana My banana (auto fade away)

Ah. The song that I wrote during network camp.
The annoying song that got stuck in everyone's mind.
Fiona, if you want me to sing this at your wedding please book me in advance.

WOAH

A friend(pre-believer) has a WOAH moment during one of our random rants and I thought I should share it with everyone. :)

Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate,
but that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness, that frightens us.

We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant,
gorgeous, handsome, talented and fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.

Your playing small does not serve the world.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking
so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.

We were born to make manifest the glory of God within us.
It is not just in some; it is in everyone.
And, as we let our own light shine,
we consciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our fear,
our presence automatically liberates others.


I was being lazy to find and ask where he got this from.. but it doesn't matter isn't it? I just thought the last lines were especially liberating. :)

F is for my beloved Family

(From my blog)
This entry is dedicated to one of my most cherished gifts from above-my spiritual family. Keluarga saya. You all mean so much to me.

To Mel Mummy...Thank you so much for guiding me through life in these difficult growing up years. You're one of the only people in this world i'd tell practically everything to, and be sure that you'd give me the best advice, out of love, and you would most certainly keep my secrets and not judge me. I've grown a lot less dependent, but i still delight in the comfort that you are there to help me make decisions and encourage me along, i think i've truly grown to trust you, even in times when you're busy and don't reply me, i know you're praying for me, and that is enough.

To Yvonne...All these years that we were in the same family i've never expected us to be able to clique so well, like we have in recent months. Like we could crap together and all last time, but now i really feel so comfortable sharing with you, spending (so much) time together, being silly and having fun together. I still remember you were my angel. Haha.

To Valerie...I think God put us in the same cell for a reason, really. Though we are so diff (eg. taste in music), we are so alike in so many ways. There are things that i know only you can relate to. Recent days have brought us closer, thank you for putting your trust in me. Haha i think you're the kind of friend i can just sit at a cafe with and yak and yak for the whole day.

To Regina...The most significant phase of our friendship has to be when i was still in your cell, and i was going through the worst phase of my life. You were so supportive and encouraging even though i was truly wayward. You accepted me for who i was, and instead of condemning me and disciplining me you gave me comfort, which was really what i needed then. Though i struggled with your ways at first, that period of time i truly felt your love, and i will never forget.

To Elaine...Haha God brought us back in each other's lives in such an unimaginable way. And i am truly glad to have you in this family. You're such a gem to me. Everytime i see you i feel so comfortable. Just wanna pull u along to skip down the path with me or mess up your hair. Hee. Really do enjoy being around you.

To Cheong...I think God really brought us closer, through UWC, Egg camp, SOL, GB. Haha. I think our friendship was a bit awkward at first, but it has really grown. As i get to know u better i really appreciate your helpfulness, you're always the first one to volunteer if anyone needs help, or company. And your child-like faith and humbleness never fails to inspire me. Really enjoyed tt day out with you, learnt so much bout u tt i never knew before. Like how u're scared of birds. Lol. Thank you for trusting me, and i know you will keep my secrets well too. =)

To Peng...I really enjoy those late-night talks we have going home together. Somehow it's always kinda surreal, sitting at the bus-stop in the middle of the night sharing our thoughts, passions and dreams. You're someone i feel comfortable around. Thank you for the joy u bring. =)

To Desiree...Thinking back i really think u changed a lot. Haha. I remember years back u were quite shy, but now u're so much more confident. Wonder if u remember this but you prayed for me once, years ago, and the song "Holy holy holy" was playing. I remember i was really touched, and we hugged or something. Till now the song reminds me of u. I always think of u as the Prayer Warrior Princess. Hee. Your prayers are always so powerful and accurate.

To Chng...Your crazy "hey girls!" side of you brings out the nutty side of me. Hahaha. Actually i think you're a very funny person. Capable of making me laugh a lot. Love doing insane things together, like marching like penguins behind the girls just now. And bullying you. Lol. Yupp and i think you're a very caring and selfless person, though u might not realise it yourself.

To Gwen...Hahaha our taste in books is amusingly opposite. Love your easy-going ways, somehow i feel you take delight in little things, like a child would, and i really admire that. Love that u're always smiling and laughing, looking at u makes me wanna smile too. =)

To Fiona...I didn't really know u back then, when we were in the same cell. But upon coming back to become sisters again now, i feel that u've become a much happier person since last time. And a lot stronger, too. You might think u're weak, we all do, but i really do see God displaying His strength through u. Really v proud of u, how u go out of your comfort zone to mother your girls without complaint. I think u're doing a great job.

To Nuanyi...I've known u since bp netball times, though we weren't very close. That's...7 years. Haha. Think u've become a lot more talkative hee. Which is good. I really do think you're very talented, i know God has great plans for u to use this God-given gift. Be strong and very courageous, and go out there and do your best. We'll always be your greatest fans.

I love you all. =)

Bless bless and bless

Dear daughters...

Just want to thank you for all ur support and understanding even in this time of my adjustment to work. It's really encouraging to see how you all are really rising up to do things out of your comfort zone and taking the initiative.Keep it up! Hope that you all have enjoyed the retreat as much as i had. =)

Just want to post up the groupings for the 100 K challenge:
1) Cheong, grace, charis, kai
2) val, beiqin, suet
3) Nuan Yi, Elaine, Victorette
4) Jen, yvonne, Xinyi
5) Melissa, Gwen, Fiona
6) Peng, reg, des, debbie

For my group, i met up with fiona today and we prayed tog, our gp's daily synchronised prayer is at 11pm. So do go abt arranging ur times in ur gp.

Also some clarifications. The pastors will not contact ur friends, but they will mail sth to them, nth offensive, just to let them know that they will be kept in prayer, in fact till the end of the year. Though we are sent out to find pple to bless for one mth.. The prayer will carry on till the year end which is also part of consolidation by faith.

Beyond all these... may blessing be a lifestyle of ours.

Please keep me in prayer, cos i have a vision to see a church set up in my workplace.. starting this thurs. PRay that GOd' presence will visit and the pple will find rest. That the church will be a place of rest.

Love you all in His love.. Do keep testimonies cmg in!

Mummy

Are you part of the 100K blessing?

Extracted from my blog.

We went back home after taking of photos and i am pretty much excited about going out to bless the nation with this 100K blessing. Especially along town area and in hospitals, but have to check out though, nurses might not want strangers to intrude esp after visitation hours. Like Fiona, i was counting the number of people i want to bless, whether or not there's already 20. But while walking home along the ulu bangsa street, God spoke to me, 'Val, its not the numbers that i want, its not about meeting the quota of 20 that you have to start searching your hp contacts for people to bless. I will bring to you these people, at the right place, the right time and the right people, all you have to do is to tune in to my voice.' I'm taken aback and am really enlightened. I repented and immediately obeyed His words.

And after i got home and bathed, nisa came to my room, wanting to teach me to make recycled paper, and i asked her about the blessing. Immediately, she said she wanted. And praise God! She's the 1st person that God wants me to bless. =)) After that, i felt prompted to ask my mom also. I asked her if she wants to be part of this 100K blessing, and she said 'ok, but i dont want 100K, i want infinite blessings from God!'. As usual la, i gave her the ?huh? look. After she saw the 12 blessings, haha she said she wanted all of them! -_-'' Boy, she hungry for God's blessings. then she said 'You ah...ALWAYS ENTICING ME ABOUT SUCH STUFF!!!" ahha but in the end she chose no.10 and she shared with me the book she was reading. It was about Forgiveness and she has reached the last chapter, its about 'how to lay down your burdens and how to release forgiveness!' She was so shocked that everything came so timely and believed it's indeed his works and not mine! Praise God man..

Dear sisters and brothers, i pray that this testimony will be able to let you grow more in faith and trusting the Lord. Things can never go wrong with God.

to Mel, thanks for your affirmation and encouragement. thanks for always being there for me and helping me out in the cell group. Your presence was sufficient.

to Regina, we will grow this cell together. Thank God for your willingness to always help people around you. I was one of those blessed by your acts of kindness. I miss supper times, this time round i will initiate to organize.

to Von, thanks for being such a wonderful listener and all the times of sharing we had. Thanks also for enduring with me at cambodia. Haha (sshh our secret, though i tink the whole cell knows already) Your humor has indeed brought me a lot of joy.

to Des, i miss those times we chatted over msn, just sharing our ups and downs. Please do come n click on me, coz my msn contacts r all gone.

to Fiona, thank God for your faithfulness. As you continue to mother tricia, gf and the rest of the cell, i pray that you will learn and understand the heart of a mother. If you need advice on bgr, just ask me ok? i'm not super pro la, but at least been thru enough to be able to help you through i guess. We will go massage together.

to Chng, i miss those times preparing singspiration in Sci Canteen and leading worship with you in gb. As you take up the role as an officer in gb, i pray that faith and trust will rise up in you, that you'll learn how to surrender to the Lord.

to Gwen, thanks for your prayers and chatting over msn. It was indeed a time of bonding and getting to know you better this year. The Lord just wants to say to you 'He's really proud of you'. To the things you do, I just want to affirm you that its really good enough. We appreciate it and the Lord appreciates it as well.

to Cheong, as you mother claris and grace, the Lord is faithful to provide. Know that He is your provider and you will be blessed. He will never short change you. Jia you in spiritual mothering, we are running this race together. Thank God for you, for always taking the time off on fridays to help me and regina lead worship and play the guitar. I really appreciate it loads. You dont know how much it means to us.

to Nuanyi, thank God for all the times we chatted over msn in the mornings when i had nothing to do at work. thank God for the times we had in cambodia too, i pray for more chances to be able to know you better. Let's continue to run on this race, towards our goal where Jesus is awaiting us.

to Elaine, i enjoyed your cookies and chocs and rice that you cooked. You muz teach me how to do so in the future! I want to cook for my husband as well. haha! And i know you will also take delight in preparing food for your other half in the future. Be still and know that He is God.

to Jen, thanks for all the sharing. We shall keep each other accountable. Just want to let you know i'm here if you need a listening ear. Remember, we will not settle for the 2nd best.

to Sik, thanks for being there as a friend when i started cell, your support really did make a difference, if you do not know. Thanks for bringing so much joy and laughter to us too.

to my dear daughters, i just want to tell you that i'm proud of you all. Dont ever think that you are running this race alone, coz i'm always here with you. God is always here with you too. We will wait patiently for the rest to come back, coz Love is patient. Let's continue to run on this race together. I'm excited seeing each one of you growing slowly but surely. Love you always.

photos!

goodbye debbie and suet ming...
may the Lord's angels be with you always.
we will see you guys soon.

convocation at bugis mrt? cool.

and this is the newly elected miss bugis.

haha. no la. why did i ask her to take with the station signboard and the bouquet? because it shows the love of the family. though we couldn't make it in time for the convocation at nus, we still made it for convocation at bugis mrt. it's really the heart behind it. glad that you know, we love you yvonne.

miss bugis with last year's winner. wahaha.

the beautiful moo moo card. everybody say thank you gwen for making the beautiful cards. it's really nice and even though it's a bit torn, but even its imperfection shows our love. because we were too enthusiastic with passing the card around to sign our blessings. haha.

not everything in life is perfect, it's the experience and journey through it that matters. the card has been through alot, hours of construction and design, hours of filling it with blessings. it's really what goes on behind the final product. at the end, it is really beautiful.

and that's not just about the cards, but about what we all are. hours of handcrafting, hours of design, hours of planning, hours of joy, hours of tears, hours of molding, hours of refining, hours of discipling. the most perfect of imperfections.

Announcement- Cell Retreat aka Chalet

To my dear cell group sisters, as we all know the day of our chalet is nearing. (so exciting right?!haa) So now, we have to go into intense preparation. For what? for the BBQ of course. We are there to EAT! So, all the people who are having holidays and free, let's plan the foooood. As you can tell, even as i am working, i am quite free so i have done some research. Firstly, some updates.

Date: 13-15 July 2007 (Fri, Sat, Sun- check out by 10.30am)
Location: Costa Sands Downtown East (which is in Pasir Ris, not East Coast, take note!)

Now for the BBQ food, which we were deciding to buy on our own or to order online, as most techno-savvy people are doing.

http://www.ezb.com.sg/index.asp

I have found 2 websites, but have decided that this one wins the other. and is slightly cheaper. However, i do not know what would the price be like if we were to buy from a supermarket. BUT, i think this website is pretty affordable (i think) and got delivery (which is like sooo convenient, we will not have to take the shuttle bus out to white sands to buy and carry back then). however, this will need to be discussed with everyone first, so please take a look at the website and we shall discuss on sunday!

That's all for the BBQ.

p/s: the sambal stingray looks good. and chocnana or something, which i know some people will like.

the pretty daughters of God

Gwen's birthday in camp and her lovely bouquet in her hand!

Jennifer at 6am - the beauty doing sentry duty for the GB girls

Cheong - The shy Swedish milkmaid

fresh from cell on 7/6/07

Don't know who switched off the lights, so half of the video was taken in darkness. Oh well, you get to enjoy my lovely one octave higher singing. Oh, sik might not be able to hear it...

Mdms..mdms..

Hey!

We had a very good trip to Cambodia and now, some photos are ready~ :P

http://www.flickr.com/photos/prizzelated/sets/

For full commentary, click on slide show and the [i] button right in the middle of the photos and let the photos run!

There are also more photos with the rest. :)

Para Para Showdown

it was a challenge she couldnt refuse
a battle of the hands & dance
she put on a fierce fight
in the face of our black belt expert (watch our illegal video)
our jaws dropped when his rapid hand + body movements became a blur
predictably, she was defeated in the extremely difficult stage
but we still love u
n will cheer u on always

Para Para showndown

我發瘋了。。。

我想我大概是瘋了。一口气內寫了兩篇entry，還是用中文寫的。

anyway，我是想對大家說的是我們敬愛的天父想對大家說：
“親愛的女兒們，我要親自的祝福你。我要那麼神奇班的賜福與你，讓我的恩典由你流入你的住家、家庭、屬靈、教會和國家。”
羅馬書 ８：３２ ﹣“神既不愛惜自己的兒子為我們眾人捨了、豈不也把萬物和他一同白白的賜給我們麼。”

aiya... i give up typing in mandarin la...
in english, this is what i think our Heavenly Father wants to tell us:
"Dear daughters, I want to personally bless you so supernaturally that it will flow into your home, family, ministry, church and nation."
Romans 8:32 - "He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?:

the Lord wants to bless us, yet unless we as believers claim the rights God has given us, He cannot freely bless... so my dear sisters, just want to encourage you to claim your blessings even before they happen... have faith, that simple faith to just believe... the Lord will surely bless!

是時候停止了。

昨晚和适萍吃晚飯。晚飯後，潔淋也和我們一起在她家附進的macs閑聊。
我們談著談著，就說到我們這一家的一個坏習慣 ﹣把別人的crush拿來開玩笑。
我們三個決定了，要把我們cell的這一個惡習給改掉。讓cell成為一個安全的環境 for sharing。
要不然，我們大家會有點辛苦。有心事，但不能說出口，因為不安全。
往往在我們的宣鬧中，受傷害最大的因該是旁觀者。
看到別人受到嘲笑，不想同樣的事發生在自己身上就干脆不說也吧了。
我們希望，由我們開始把這個環境t換掉。
讓大家都感覺得到這個家庭是安全的。
我希望大家可以一起把不好的給換掉，不讓沙蛋（satan）有机可成。
我們一起努力吧！

He goes with me.

Ever wonder how often you see a toddler scurrying like she's in a 10m race all.the.time.? *wah, how scary to be running for the whole life*
It seems no toddler will stroll at the same painful speed as us walking out of expo every sunday. hmmm, actually no sane person will. Oops, ya. That's not the point. No no regina I am not talking about you laaa. *Haaaaa*

Ya, I am talking about the story behind the drawing up there.
The point, of course, is not about the speed. But really, it is about myself always wanting to walk away. To walk my way. Sometimes obviously intentional, sometimes, I didn't even realise.

I used to think that it is so amazing that "He goes with me". But as I pondered on an original sketch (I had initially drew the Big Giant leading the lil' girl), I thought of sth else. Like a baby who just learnt to walk, the father will always hold on to her from the back. He runs when she runs. He slows when she is tired. He goes where she pulls him to. The growing up girl is bursting with excitement with this whole new world. And the father never let go of her hands. With strong and firm fingers, he had stopped her from running into the edge of the table that reaches her head above her sight. He had subtly pulled her back when he heard her pants. He had amazingly steered her away from the pile of dog shit that just missed her beautiful shoes by 1 nano-meter even though usually he cannot see his Fei Yu Qing's mtv subtitles .

He has to be slow because every step he takes is one giant incomprehensible step for her. He never expects her to keep up, but really just letting her go and be herself. But all this while, she is ahead and oblivious. Running and running.

In her journey, when she falls, the father will stand behind her, dust her butt and egg her on. When she trips, the father will still not lose sight of her. He makes sure she gets up before he continues to walk. Sometimes, she feels lost and far, only because she is always looking ahead. And when she finally remembers, she will look back and will know He is still holding her fingers, leading her.

So how far can the Lord be, when He is always holding my hand *unless His hands very-the-long-like-you-really-think-He-will-hold-you-from-where-He-is-sitting-in-heaven*?? So can I ever be far from God if He is never far from me?? Can't be lor~ Distance is relativity. *waaaah my physics very zai*
Only if I choose to look in front and at the mess ahead and forget that my head can rotate.

But..the lil' girl will 'think' she is far...when she lets go of him. That's when strangers and friends along the way will squat down beside the crying baby and ask her..."Where's daddy?" She will cry and be defiant. Her tears will blur her vision and she will not see. She will think her dad has forsaken her. She will alternate between quietness and wallowing, searching and waiting . But strangers and friends will be with her. P a t i e n c e. Slowly, she will take that first step to find back her daddy. Remember how the lost babies, whenever they are back in the arms of the parent, they will cling onto them like kualas? Remember how the lost babies, when they found back their daddies, they just somehow stop crying? But I guess what struck me most the more I thought about it...is how willing the babies are to entrust themselves in this temporal care to guide them back.

As I grow up, I also ceased running like mad babies into table edges because I know it hurts when I buang my head into table edges like how regina buang car poles *oops*. But I forgot I have already out-grown table edges and I have forgotten that my Father will never let me run into table edges. Maybe he will, but he will never let me bleed until I die you see. Running to victory is not easy, I guess it probably means running into many table edges.

oh no, I very luo shuo...To cut the long story short...
My story would be *still not very short*

In order that God go with me, I must first hold on to him. Then I run. If I run before even holding His hands, I would miss the whole point of wanting to share where I am running to with Him. I will probably run into more table edges too.
If I had really ran stray, I must realise when I am 'crying' and need help.
And when I am back, I must not let go again. Be strong and courageous!

Of course, the drawing above might just tell u a different story today la :)

saturday great kids

Saturday Great Kids

yesterday met up with Jen at 3.10pm

coz she got the timing mixed up plus the location

we would have crucified her if the event was cancelled

ha Jesus would be so chio

ate at the foodcourt

chatted happily

at first it was quite awkward with the kids

but they warm up after the games

there were joel, emmanuel, marcus, zared, renee, hannah, gary, zachary, dilan, ginny, amanda, sabrina

the games as one of the boys put it was kind of chaotic n disorganized

the kids were running around especially emmanuel

anyway the crucifxation scene is really quite drama n real

its really classic to see daniel as the satan - muahaha he looks more like count dracula..face so white like ghost

n lai huat as jesus in diapers. muhaha - he really looks very skinny...a starved jesus

but their acting is great. satan was really scolding jesus

but some of the kids were laughing as the jesus keep walking in n out then lie down again.

its really quite comical with the extra commentary

went home tired but happy

the kids enjoyed themselves alot

it was good spending time chatting with Jen

jasper is a lightbulb.

Kept this in my handphone for a while...figuring when is a good time to post it up.

Enjoy! Our mel making beautiful music with HC!

things we do after sunday service

Here's what we did on Sunday. We discovered Desiree's secret talent.

Now for song no. 2!

Also, we discover Von's and Peng's hidden talent. Tap dancing! (well, i promised you'll be on youtube.)

thanksgiving

mm... i always get spiritual attack everytime i give thanks. things juz goes wrong. ha. but i still want to do so.

i wan to give thanks to God that He has blessed me with a great talent. a talent to visualise. hopefully it will be greatly used to bless people and not for self-ambitions. i do take pride in my work, sometimes too much. And i become defensive. thus, often i feel upset with my boss coz he picks on the smallest mistakes and details in my work.

my boss/mentor is another person whom i want to thank God coz he takes time and effort to sharpen my talents. at the same time, he builds my character. both are painful processes but it's for the betterment. many times i take him for granted. i question his instructions and say mean things to him without second thought. ya, im aware and i repent.

i leave all of you with this verse, proverbs 4:23. "Above all else, guard your heart for it's the wellspring of life."

finally, i thank all of giving me the freedom to share my deepest thought and darkest secrets.

appreciate all. nitez =)

We sing mel a birthday song (again).

"改次不要生太多..."

we sing mel a birthday song.

matrix for download!

happy chinese new year to all. cny was pretty boring. oops, anyway, i am not here to post a entry but to make available the link for matrix downloading on behalf of melissa.

http://www.fcbc.org.sg/service_news.asp?newsID=130

bring your matrix (filled in one) on sunday! let's praaaactice our daaance move this thursday at tct, 7.30pm.

deep deep lub

Hello! I know it's 2.30am now. But I have a 12pm class tomorrow so I can afford to sleep later haha.

Anyway today's leader's meeting Pastor Eugene talked about going deep with one another in the family. I think it's so true ya? He mentioned 3 points, namely: 1) Remaining in Christ 2) Remaining in His word 3) Remaining in His love. (John 15)

These are 3 points that we must take note in order to be as one in this family. Actually these 3 points are kinda abstract, like what does it mean to "remain"? Hmm, that's worth a thought.

Ok, my purpose of this post is to tell you guys that a GB blog has been set up. Do go visit it if ur free and keep us in prayer!

http://www.46thcoy.blogspot.com

The UWC, Broadrick, Bukit View or anyone who has prayer request do post it up here to let all of us take note too~ We are all one family and it doesn't matter what we are doing because we are all serving God in whatever ways that we can ya?

Let us go reaaallllly deep with one another~ =)

A leap of Faith

As I walk to the edge

I know there is not turning back

Once my feet have left the ledge

And in the rush I hear a voice

That's telling me it's time to take the leap of faith

So here I go

(Song: Dive by Steven Curtis Chapman)

im a procrastinator. i din self-declare. i earn the 'title'.

"i want to setup my own website!" that was what i said 5 years ago. not being ashame of my procrastion. i tell my friends that every year. until they gt the (-.-) face. i always plan to do sth and end up still planning it....for years. dont laff at me. some of you out there are guilty of this too! hmpp!

this year, im going to apply for my studies. (yes i know some of you wan to throw banana skins at me coz this is the hundreth times you hear this) but this time im serious ok~. i gt my plan A, B and C out already. (typical 'C' trait)

Plan A: NTU art, design and media
Plan B: Nafa or SIM
Plan C: Continue to be a church-worker

it's a step of faith for me becoz i dont like school. 13 years of tests, exams and projects practically drive me away from education. i like working life. there's money. there's space to explore and use other pro equipments. what's more. there's a LED screen + 2 graphics walls + 4 screens to display my very own work. (yes i know all of you are bored by the graphics use every weekend. so pls pray for me. i nid lotsa creativity and wisdom to create breath-taking graphics. if nothing happen for the few weeks means all of you are not praying hard enough for me!) it has been a comfort zone for me. but deep inside me, i know i nid to go back to sch coz im starting to feel stagnant.

i tot this year is a gd year for me to go and study. coz it's a year of VICTORY!! and i have fulfilled the 3 years service in the church by july. ah~ this is sth i have kept it to myself for years. a secret of mine revealed~! when i 1st join my dept, my boss challenged me to serve at least for 3 years. and so i did. it's not an easy process even though i like working in church. i almost change my job last year becoz i had disagreements with my boss. den again i stayed on... things gt better. the love-hate relationship has gtten better to a love-wah-lau-you! relationship. Praise the Lord!

the closing date for ntu is 21feb. it requires alot of portfolio. and alot of work nids to be done. (darn gov uni!) so nid to start working now. pls help me pray for the same things again - creativity and wisdom. i nid lotsa it. ohya...and also to be able to hear God more clearly.

i have also started bible study with my one and only precious bukit view girl called Kristen. fiona also started her bible study with boardrick girls. mayb she can update all of you by posting in the blog.

kk. it's 2am. yet to finish my work. God bless all and cya~.

everyday before food

for three days, i've heard about the power of God's word and the importance of reading His word. from sanctification day 3 where ps eugene shared about the importance and power of His word and encouraged us to have a new passion for His word, to ps debra's congre where she too emphasized on reading God's word and being intimate with Him, then to the audio bible session where God showed me the wonder of His word, that indeed His word is amazing and holds truth and wisdom. and i believe it is not by chance that i am making up my post encounter session which too taught about the word of God.

by the grace of God, i have received a new conviction in my heart that reading His word is indeed important and that His word is powerful and a sword of the spirit. i learnt that it is a powerful weapon and a delightful gesture when we pray God's words back to Him. like a child learning to speak, mimicking his parent's words to them, God delights in us speaking to Him what He taught us and spoke to us.

and i was just thinking about this just now, the Holy Spirit revealed to me that though sometimes we think that word and worship are two separate things, they are actually connected. sometimes as i lead worship, i just feel like i am repeating the same things and the words that come out just hold so little power. to be even more anointed in worship, it is important to read His word and as we lead worship, learn to pray using His words and speak His words instead of just our own words, because God's word carries much weight and power.

honestly, i really struggle to do quiet time in the morning and before food somemore. i really find it so difficult because sleep means so much to me. haha. but as i finally decided to stick the 'everyday before food' sticker on my bible, i will discipline myself to read God's word every morning. from discipline to habit, from a habit to a lifestyle. let us encourage each other and spur each other to read His word and know Him more this year! so next time you see me, can ask me how's my everyday before food practice going. haha. let's fight this spiritual battle with the sword of the spirit!

=)

cell group last night was really good. though it wasn't of great music, great band, great preaching or anything of that sort at all, it was filled with the Holy Spirit.

i felt really encouraged as we shared about our quiet time, what God spoke to us and as we prayed for each other. even as we share, just felt that we are not running the race alone. and when we are dry or down, we can know that there is someone, there is a family here to depend on and to draw encouragement from. we've never really shared outright just how we felt our christian walk is with each other. feels kinda weird to just say it out, but as we share, it allows us to have insights into each other's lives and even to encourage each other with His words more.

and even as we sang, the heart of worship without the guitar, i just wanna say, don't you think it sounds beautiful just as it is? simple and from our hearts. sometimes we just need to recognise that worship at the end, stripped off of the guitar, the drums, the keyboard, the bass and all, is all about Jesus and us worshipping Him with our souls.

so i'd just like to encourage my sisters, do not fear to lead worship even if you feel that your guitar skills or vocals is inadequate, because what needs to be adequate is God's presence, not us.

let us continue to encourage each other and even edify each other that we may grow together in Him in this victorious year!

it's all about you. it's all about you jesus.

Gratefulness

its been ages since i blogged here. As i read through the entries, i cannot help but be amazed at how much God has done in each and everyone of our lives. The times when we were down and out, the times when we shared our happiness together as well, i really thank God for this spiritual family.

some may ask.. 'arent you sick of hanging out with your church friends?' even my mother asks me that. yea, and the answer is a no. Being with them and just simply rotting and stoning away is something so comfortable that i wouldnt even be sick of it.
though occasionally there may be outbreaks of arguments here and there, but it never lasts long.

i really look forward to growing deeper with this family and spend the lifetime growing old together.

Dear Lord, thank you for this family. I pray that as we together build a closer bond that this anointing will flow downwards and i will be able to see the girls bond as well. That it is not just purely a friendship, but more than that, a closely-knitted relationship between siblings. Knowing that everyone shares the same blood -the blood of the lamb. May you even remind us that unless You, Lord build the house, we will labour in vain. Not our kingdom that we are building, but yours.
thank you Lord.

i love you.