Monday, April 30, 2012

To be different


Singapore is a constant pursuit of excellence. A constant, constant drive to get better, be better, and account to everyone else how you are better.

The other day we watched a video of a very gifted friend speak about her first two years in teaching. It was painfully real, honest and humbling. And I was so grateful that someone had finally spoken up and described things as they were. Some of my friends were confused how she'd managed to pass her teaching course, having made so all those mistakes she was so honest in sharing. Of course I replied that she was a very humble person and I'm sure she had actually passed with flying colours.

But within, I knew the truth—that none of us is as good as we crack ourselves up to be—and my humble friend had just been honest enough to point out the emperor's nudity.

We create dizzily high standards for ourselves to adhere to, because that's what society expects of us. But we're just human. And if you define human the same way I do, then I think the platter of mistakes is far closer to who we are than the list of achievements we try to scramble together about ourselves for our supervisors to admire.

But rather than admit how flawed we are, we crown ourselves with false modesty and expect praise from others.

I don't think society is ever going to change that though. I don't think we're ever going to move towards a society where it's cool to be wrong. We are told to tell our students that it's okay to make mistakes, but we don't extend the same grace to our colleagues, or to ourselves.

But Christians have a different calling. Christian, don't bow. Don't cave in. Don't blend in with everyone else who's trying to prove what a great teacher or doctor or economic contributor they're going to be. Please. From one Christian to another, I can't do it all by myself. I need you to boast in your weaknesses, so I know it's safe to boast in mine. Please be different. Please be secure in your identity in Christ, and know that your only duty is to act justly, love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. If you really believe you're forgiven, then stop trying to justify yourself. Stop trying to convince yourself you're on the right side of the fence when you hear a sermon, or when you discuss one. Know that you're not, but you're saved anyway. Of all people, Christians should be most unsurprised when receiving criticism, most loving when wronged, and most grateful when praised. Please be those people for me. Because I don't think we're meant to survive this success-driven world alone.

I need that from you.


Taken from http://paper-angels.blogspot.com/2012/04/christian-fellowship.html.

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Thank you! Xie Xie! Kam Siah! Terima kasih! Arigato Kozaimasu!!

Simple things can made one smile.

Words can either build you up or destroy you. BUT today words proved to encourage and build us up=)

With all your encouragement, every efforts seems WORTHWHILE now =)

Thank you!! Thank you!! Thank you!! =))

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Count your blessings

1) Give thanks - You have meals to eat the whole day. Some people struggle even just to eat one meal. Even if they can afford, they eat cheap stuff like nasi lemak RM1. SO give thanks to God especially for those who can spend on sushi bonanza. It's good to just enjoy your meal at  the end of the day after such a long long dayyyy.

2) Give thanks for you are healthy. You can eat, drink, breathe, run, walk, move around freely and etc etc. Some people can't eat and drink due to disease. I heard the other day there's this cancer patient who can eat but can't drink. Whenever he drinks, the water will come out through his nose. He cannot swallow the water. These few days I sprained my shoulder - thus can't move much. SO, give thanks to God that you are healthy. Even if you are sick, but give thanks that it's not so chronic. Some have it worst than you. A girl I knew was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 17 and she has to eat 20 pills a day. So be thankful you don't need to swallow 20 pills a day.

3) Give thanks to God for your family. Some just received news that mom/dad/family members passed away. Be grateful that you still have family. Some orphans wish they have family. Give special thankssss  especially if you still have both parents and both grandparents. Such rare treasure in life.

4) Give thanks for friends. Friends who are there for you in times of hardship... friends who share your joy and sorrow..who encourage and motivates you..Give thanks for those who hurt you because through them, you learn to be a  tough person.

5) Give thanks for lecturers who impart so much knowledge to you.. who work hard to teach beyond their job scope so that you will be a  better student...Such lecturers are getting lesser and lesser.

6) Give thanks for your church members, CF membersss who are also your brothers and sisters  in Christ =) They are your extended big family. =)

7) Be thankful for hurdles and hardships because such situations mould you in some way. There's always something to learn from it.

8) Give thanks for the property that you own instead of complaining.. "Hp tak cukup canggih lah." " Laptop tak cukup high spec lah."  Bersyukur ada handphone! Bersyukur ada laptop! =) Car, motor, ipad, money, etc etc.

9) Give thanks that our God  is JEHOVAH JIREH - GOD WHO PROVIDES ALL OUR NEEDS. Thank God you have  shelter over your head and not sleeping on the streets. Thank God you have clothes to wear even though it's not ESPRIT/MNG/PADINI/BRANDS OUTLET/........... It's ok. So long you have decent clothing to wear. =)

10) Give thanks for everything stated above and not stated above that you can  think of =)



Death2

The other day I went to a Christian funeral... and as I see my church member lie down in the coffin breathless.. so many thoughts run in my mind. This is the ending of human's life. I mean of course we believe after we die, we will meet God in heaven but on earth, yes that's our ending. Lying down in coffin/cremated afterwards.. and nothing left of you. Ashes to ashes.

Still, in this lifetime, "hasad dengki", jealousy, malicious acts and etc etc is COMPULSARY in life. Almost anywhere and everywhere you go, you are bound to meet these people. Sometimes we are one of them with or without realizing.

Yet when the time come, we will be like everyone else be it Prime Minister or beggar, when God take your breathe away, there you'll lye down in the coffin so so so soooo meaningless. It seems like nothing else matters or even if there are things that matters, we are powerless to be in control of it anymore. There, your TIME ENDS.

The borderline between life and death is so thin only. 

I like this verse..

New International Version
 (©1984)

For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. (Phil 1:21)

Someone told me today Attitude will determine whether we go to heaven or hell. Is it true? For u to think about. But I guess it's true to a certain extent. If we are care less to bother about God and think we are God, then well...heaven might not be a place for us. 

Pastor mentioned this the other day.

"ALLAH UNTUK DIPERCAYAI BUKAN UNTUK DIMENGERTI."
"GOD IS TO BE TRUSTED AND NOT TO BE UNDERSTOOD."

It's painful to trust in the progress when the future is not uncertain.. but the other day when my motor was stolen, I was thinking about Job...how he suffered and didn't know what was exactly happening but  he still trust God. I really admire him lah.

Job 2:9
His wife said to him, "Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die!"

Job 2:10
He replied, "You are talking like a foolish woman. SHALL WE ACCEPT GOOD FROM GOD AND NOT TROUBLE?"

In the end..it's stated in Job 42:10, "...the Lord made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before." 

I wish I know what the future beholds. It's painful to be in the midst. But well, God knows best! 

Isaiah 55:9 -  As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." *Some people say whatever we think good, it's also good in the sight of God.* It can't be because there's a thing call HUMAN ERROR but God never make any ERROR =) Beauty of our God. 

So live ur life. It's very very short indeed to just cram in the books! hahaaa

And guess what? Despite my bike being stolen, someone blessed me with a bike unexpectedly =) Blessing indeed!!! =) 


Monday, April 16, 2012

What is Christianity? - Cheryl's sharing-


  1. What is Christianity?
Christianity is a relationship with the true and living God through the person of Jesus Christ by whom we are forgiven of our sins.
Followers of Jesus Christ were first called Christians in Antioch (Acts 11:26) because they believed in Christ and followed His example. *(Antioch is the modern day Antakya, located in Southeast Turkey).
Christians believe that:
a)      There is only one God, the creator of everything that exists (Isaiah 43: 10b - 12), (Isaiah 44: 6b-7), (Isaiah 45: 12).
b)      God is a Trinity God (Father, Son and the Holy Spirit) - (Hebrews 1: 3a) (John 10: 30)
The word “Trinity” comes from the Latin noun “trinitas” meaning “three are one”. The Trinity expresses the belief that God is one Being made up of three distinct Persons who exist in co-equal essence and co-eternal communion as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
We as Christians are called children of God (John 1: 12-14)
c)       Jesus is the Christ (Anointed One) from God the Father who came to this world, (Colossians 1:15-18) fulfilled the Old Testament laws and prophecies (Isaiah 7: 14-15) (Isaiah 9:6-7), died on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins (Romans 5: 8) (Luke 24: 46-48), rose from the dead physically (Luke 24: 39-40) and ascended into heaven (Luke 24: 51).
d)      Salvation is through the grace of God
A definition of the Christian doctrine of salvation would be “The deliverance, by the grace of God, from eternal punishment for sin, which is granted to those who accept by faith, God’s conditions of repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus”.
Scripture is clear that salvation is the gracious, undeserved gift of God (Ephesians 2:8-9) and is only available through faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12).
Why Did Jesus Had to be Crucified?
When Adam and Eve rebelled, man was separated from God through sin. (Isaiah 59:2) God’s holiness and justice demand that sin and rebellion be punished. The only payment for sin is eternal death. (Romans 6:23). However, our death is not sufficient to atone (pay) for sin because atonement requires a perfect, spotless sacrifice, offered in just the right way.
Jesus, the one perfect God-man, came to offer the pure, complete and everlasting sacrifice to remove, atone and make eternal payment for our sins, (1 Peter 1:18-19) thus restoring our relationship with God and removing the separation caused by sin. (2 Corinthians 5:21).
e)      Christ will come again (2nd coming) ( 1 Thessalonians 4: 16-18).


  1. What is Anglican Church?
An Anglican Church is part of the original Church founded by Jesus Christ (Colossians 2: 18a) when He commissioned His disciples to go into the world to preach the Good News.
An Anglican Church is a:
a)      Biblical Church – We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the Word of God (John 1:1-3). As God’s Word to us, the Bible is the lens through which we view and evaluate all other claims to truth.
b)      Liturgical Church – The Book of Common Prayer is the prayer book of our church, which contains the format for how we conduct our worship services. The congregation will participate in worship by reading Scripture, receiving the Sacraments and saying prayers together. The seasons of the Church year (Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter and Pentecost) and sacred music (centuries old and modern) are important parts of our church life.
c)       A Sacramental Church – We believe in the two sacraments (rituals that are highly symbolic): Holy Baptism (administered once to each person either in their infancy or later in life and the Holy Communion, described by Louis R. Tarsitano (An Outline of an Anglican Life) as :
      … the reception by the power of the Holy Ghost of Christ’s Body and Blood, instituted by Christ himself at the Last Supper, for a remembrance of His one sacrifice of Himself once offered as a full, perfect, and sufficient satisfaction for the sins of the whole world.
We recite the Nicene Creed, as a statement of our faith before the Holy Communion. During Holy Communion, we received consecrated bread (symbolizes Christ’s Body) and dip it into the chalice filled with wine (symbolizes Christ’s Blood) and say thanksgiving prayers in our heart.


  1. What is the authority of the Bible?
a)       God-breathed
When Christians say that the Bible is inspired, they are saying that it is "God breathed."  
2 Tim. 3:16-17 says "All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate and equipped for every good work." 
The word for "inspired" is the Greek qeovpneustos, "theopneustos," which means "God breathed."  In other words, this means that the Scriptures are authored from God, and that God moved through the personality and abilities of the biblical writers in such a way that what they wrote was without error and was correct in everything that it addressed.

b)      Uncorrupted
When the Bible is translated, it is translated from the Greek and Hebrew manuscripts (original language) into our language. It is a one-step process and not a series of steps that can lead to corruption. Therefore, the translations are very accurate and trustworthy in regards to what the Bible originally said.

References

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

The Poem - Will I make time??

I knelt to pray but not for long
I had too much to do 
I had to hurry and get to work
For bills would soon be due 
Do I knelt and said a hurried prayer
and jumped off my knees
My Christian duty was now done
My soul could rest at ease
All day long I had no time
To spread a word of cheer
No time to speak of Christ to friends
They'd laugh at me I fear
No time, no time, too much to do,
That was my constant cry
No time to give to souls in need
But at last the time, the time to die
I went before the Lord
I came, I stood with downcast eyes
In His hands, God held a book
It was the book of life
God looked into his book and said
"Your name I cannot find.
I once was going to write it down...
But never found the time."

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Kematian - sudah bersedia atau tidak?

Waahhh!! Sudah lama betul tidak update blog ini sudah. Saya sangat suka menulis tapi sangat sibuk sehingga sekarang mau cuti baru dapat tulis.

Beberapa bulan ini saya dikejutkan dengan banyak berita kematian orang-orang yang saya kenal dan mereka SANGAT MUDA!! Kalau orang tua, mungkin kematian sudah dijangkakan tetapi nampaknya beberapa bulan ini trendnya ialah orang muda mati terlebih dulu dan lebih cepat. Mula-mula, junior saya meninggal. Kemudian, saya dikejutkan dengan berita kakak Paper Logic yang saya sangat sayangi kerna dia amat peramah, sedia membantu dan selalu senyum meninggal dunia secara tiba-tiba. Terasa seakan-akan semalam baru saya bercakap dan bergurau dengannya. Lepas tu, ada lain-lain lagi. Baru-baru ini, bapa kepada rakan saya di gereja meninggal. Beliau sangat muda juga dan telah pergi ke China untuk urusan perniagaan tetapi tiba-tiba kami dikejutkan dengan berita beliau jatuh lantas meninggal dunia. Mungkin akibat sakit jantung kot. Berita ini sangat mengejutkan satu gereja!

Bayangkan bapa kamu baru say goodbye dan pergi ke tempat lain untuk biz seperti biasa. Goodbyenya seperti biasa dan kamu jangkakan kepulangannya. Kawan saya sangat sangat rapat dengan bapanya dan sangat sangat manja dengan bapanya. Saya pun tidak tahu macam mana mereka menerima berita tersebut - mungkin seakan-akan pisau yang menusuk hati mereka...MENGAPA TUHAN??

Kita mungkin nampak sihat dari luaran tetapi apa yang berlaku dalam badan kita - kita memang tidak tau. Tidak semestinya orang yang di hospital akan mati cepat daripada orang yang kelihatan sihat dan menjalankan urusannya seperti biasa. Ada orang sudah menjangkakan kematiannya tidak lama lagi mungkin kerana doktor yang beritau tetapi ada orang yang tidak jangkakan kematiannya dan mati tiba-tiba. Mana satu lebih baik?? Tau akan mati atau tak tau??

Ini membuatkan saya berfikir.. Hey hidup ni hanya satu kali! Kalau kita asyik marah marah, simpan dendam dan sebagainya, apakah yang kita akan jawab Tuhan jika DIA memanggil kita secara tiba-tiba?? Adakah kita mempunyai banyak perkara yang belum diselesaikan dalam hati kita?

Kalau nak hargai seseorang, pastikan kamu nyatakan penghargaan tersebut. Kalau marah, jangan terlalu lama. Cuba jangan benci seseorang kerana yang merana itu ialah kamu dan bukan orang lain. Hidup ini terlalu singkat untuk bermusuh dengan semua orang macam ada kawan saya yang selalu kata... I HATE U I HATE U. Mungkin kita patut meluahkan perkataan I LOVE U I LOVE U lebih banyak dan mendatangkan kegembiraan kepada orang lain =) Apabila kita mati, orang akan mengingati kita sebagai orang yang suka benci, dendam, sayang selalu dan sebagainya. Terpulang kepada karakter masing-masing =)

Saya ingat masa saya ingin buat sesuatu, saya selalu fikir dua kali atau lebih daripada itu! Tetapi saya selalu ingatkan diri saya... HEY HIDUP NI CUMA SATU KALI! Buat jer lah. Bukan buat yang bukan bukan...macam nak appreciate lecturer tapi tak tau pula adakah ianya macam bodek ke..Anyway saya buat jugak sebab saya tak nak menyesal kalau saya tak buat.

So yes! Enjoy! Nak cuba main roller coaster tapi tak berani?? Boleh cuba satu kali =)

Saya pernah baca Chicken Soup for the Soul yang nyatakan ..IF I CAN LIVE AGAIN, I WOULD HAVE DONE....

Apabila kita tua, adakah kita akan pandang balik dan menyesal atas perbuatan yang ingin kita buat tapi tak berani??

Hari tu kawan saya sangat sangat menyesal dan marah dengan dirinya kerana tidak sempat beritahu pak ciknya bahawa dia sayangkannya... dan pakciknya mati tiba-tiba.

Sigh. Life is really really short.

So live life to the fullest. (Everyone has different interpretation to this) But whatever it is, may we appreciate people around us =) We only got one life to live. No turning back. Sebab itu masa sangat berharga! Masa yang berlalu tidak akan kembali lagi. ='(

Di saat saat cerita pasal kematian...Hari ini ialah Jumaat Agung/Good Friday.. Marilah mengingati Kristus yang telah mati untuk kita. THE PERFECT SACRIFICE. Kita yang patut DISALIBKAN kerna dosa-dosa kita tetapi Tuhan Yesus telah menanggung penderitaan tersebut untuk kita. For u and me. Let's remember this.

Thank You LOrd Jesus for dying on the cross for me.
Thank You for the price You paid for our sin and shame.
You paid with your blood.
Thank You Lord for Your unending and unfailing love.

Alright... take care. Happy Holiday and God blesssss.