Tuesday, April 27, 2004
Found this cool URL for a different version of the 4SL
http://www.matthiasmedia.com.au/2wtl/index.asp
http://www.matthiasmedia.com.au/2wtl/index.asp
Just got 3 more extras given by my RSM on top of the 3 he already gave. All for seemingly mindless details that probably wouldn't happen to others. I've a feeling that he has something against me and is out to mark me... Ah well, so with 6 extras to serve, thats a number of weekends man... hence, I'm going all out to enjoy myself this weekend with a overnight cycling expedition before I get 'duty-bound' to stay back in camp for 6 weekends...
We're inviting all the Harvester grads as well as peeps from NP and SP... Its gonna be fun, but alas, missing one person lah. One very important person...
We're inviting all the Harvester grads as well as peeps from NP and SP... Its gonna be fun, but alas, missing one person lah. One very important person...
Thursday, April 22, 2004
Things have been hectic as of late. My heart has been on a rollercoaster. I won't publish the specific details here lah, if you're that curious you can always contact me thru mail or mobile.
Went for my UNSW appointment and even though I was expecting to be given bad news regarding my potential application to the school, I was pleasantly surprised when one of their associate deans (or something) whom I spoke to said I would definitely be accepted by the College of Fine Arts (COFA) with my grades which were not that brilliant but acceptable by their standards. I MAY even get an advanced standing of 2 semesters which equates to a full year off the 3 yr program.
So once again, I'm tempted by Sydney and look forward to hearing a favourable reply from UNSW regarding my application. But you know, til now, my mum still insists I apply to NUS or NTU or La Selle because she cannot bear for me to be away from Singapore. Hmm, she just doesn't understand that sooner or later, at some point, ALL parents have to let go. Like arrows in the quiver, we have to be released to find our mark, or we would never be who truly are meant to be.
Went for my UNSW appointment and even though I was expecting to be given bad news regarding my potential application to the school, I was pleasantly surprised when one of their associate deans (or something) whom I spoke to said I would definitely be accepted by the College of Fine Arts (COFA) with my grades which were not that brilliant but acceptable by their standards. I MAY even get an advanced standing of 2 semesters which equates to a full year off the 3 yr program.
So once again, I'm tempted by Sydney and look forward to hearing a favourable reply from UNSW regarding my application. But you know, til now, my mum still insists I apply to NUS or NTU or La Selle because she cannot bear for me to be away from Singapore. Hmm, she just doesn't understand that sooner or later, at some point, ALL parents have to let go. Like arrows in the quiver, we have to be released to find our mark, or we would never be who truly are meant to be.
Wednesday, April 14, 2004
Ever had the feeling when your heart feels as if its constantly working overtime. The feeling you get when you just had a narrow miss/escape and you can still feel your heart pounding through your chest. And it hurts cos it feels like someone has a knife through it and its bleeding constantly... ?
And you feel that it would just break and you're faint and breathless and just when you think you can't take it anymore,. you can a brief respite only to have it come on again, worse than before?
Imagine feeling that all the time.
And you feel that it would just break and you're faint and breathless and just when you think you can't take it anymore,. you can a brief respite only to have it come on again, worse than before?
Imagine feeling that all the time.
Friday, April 09, 2004
DAVID & JONATHAN
Now these guys didn't necessarily have the same interests. One was a prince; the other was a shepherd. They didn't necessarily have the same skills or talents of bents. But they had the same values. That's at the core of all meaningful friendships, particularly man-to-man. At the core level, at the passion level, at the vision level, they were the same.
Now these guys didn't necessarily have the same interests. One was a prince; the other was a shepherd. They didn't necessarily have the same skills or talents of bents. But they had the same values. That's at the core of all meaningful friendships, particularly man-to-man. At the core level, at the passion level, at the vision level, they were the same.
The Macedonian Phalanx was a fprmation, used by the Macedonian army, that allowed a man's weak flank to be protected by his buddy. With his shield in his left hand and his sword on his right, a soldier thrusting with his blade would find his right side exposed, vulnerable to the enemy's spear or sword. In the Macedonian formation, the warrior had a trusted man guarding the area where he was most exposed. Although Alexander the Great came along centuries after David, I think the son of Jesse would have called such a companion, "the man of my right hand." Where I am most vulnerable and exposed, that's where I want the man of my right hand.
All this groveling and self-depreciation done by Christians is often just shame masquerading as humility. Shame says, "I'm nothing to look at. I'm not capable of goodness." Humility says, "I bear a glory for sure, but it is a reflected glory. A grace given to me."
"In you, O Lord, I have taken refuge;
Let me never be put to shame;
deliver me in your righteousness.
Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue;
be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me.
Since you are my rock and my fortress,
for the sake of your name lead and guide me.
Free me from the trap that is set for me,
for you are my refuge.
Into your hands I commit my spirit; redeem me,
O Lord, the God of truth." - Psalms 31:1-5
Let me never be put to shame;
deliver me in your righteousness.
Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue;
be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me.
Since you are my rock and my fortress,
for the sake of your name lead and guide me.
Free me from the trap that is set for me,
for you are my refuge.
Into your hands I commit my spirit; redeem me,
O Lord, the God of truth." - Psalms 31:1-5
At some point in your life, you must decide whether you want to impress people or influence people. You can impress people from a distance, but you must get close to them to influence them, and when you do that, they will be able to see your flaws... The most essential quality for leadership is not perfection, but credibility. People must be able to trust you, or they won't follow you. How do you build credibility? Not by pretending to be perfect, but by being honest.
If you're going to be a servant, you must settle your identity in Christ. Only secure people can serve. Insecure people are always worrying about how they appear to others.
1. Servants think more about others than about themselves.
2. Servants think like stewards, not owners.
3. Servants think about their work, not what others are doing.
4. Servants base their identity in Christ.
5. Servants think of ministry as an opportunity, not an obligation.
1. Servants think more about others than about themselves.
2. Servants think like stewards, not owners.
3. Servants think about their work, not what others are doing.
4. Servants base their identity in Christ.
5. Servants think of ministry as an opportunity, not an obligation.
"If my life is fruitless, it doesn't matter who praises me, and if my life is fruitful, it doesn't matter who criticizes me." - John Bunyan.
Pearls are the product of pain. For some unknown reason, the shell of the oyster gets pierced by an alien substance - a grain of sand - slips inside. On the entry of a foreign irritant, all the resources within the tiny sensitive oyster rush to the spot and begins to release healing fluids that otherwise would have remain dormant. By and by the irritant is covered, and the wound is healed - by a pearl.
No other gem has so fascinating a history. It is the symbol of stress - a healed wound... A precious tiny jewel conceived through irritation, born of adversity, nursed by adjustments.
No other gem has so fascinating a history. It is the symbol of stress - a healed wound... A precious tiny jewel conceived through irritation, born of adversity, nursed by adjustments.
Four Pillars that define a Man:
1. KING - Heart of a King is a Provisionary heart.
2. WARRIOR - Heart of a Warrior is a Protective heart.
3. MENTOR - Heart of a Mentor is a Teaching heart.
4. FRIEND - Heart of a Friend is a Loving heart.
1. KING - Heart of a King is a Provisionary heart.
2. WARRIOR - Heart of a Warrior is a Protective heart.
3. MENTOR - Heart of a Mentor is a Teaching heart.
4. FRIEND - Heart of a Friend is a Loving heart.
God is never in a hurry but He is always on time. He will use your entire lifetime to prepare you for your role in eternity.
God's plan for your life involves all that happens to you - including your mistakes, your sins, and your hurts. It includes illness, debt, disasters, divorce, and death of loved ones. God can bring good out of the worst evil. He did at Calvary.
Nothing shapes your life more than your commitments you choose to make. Your commitments can develop you or they can destroy you, but either way, they will define you. Tell me what you are committed to, and I'll tell you what you will be in twenty years. We become whatever we are committed to.
Peacemaking is not avoiding conflict. Running away from a problem, pretending it doesn't exist, or being afraid to talk about it is actually cowardice. Jesus, the Prince of Peace, was never afraid of conflict.
Peacemaking is also not appeasement. Always giving in, acting like a doormat, and allowing others to run over you is not what Jesus had in mind. He refused to back down on many issues, standing His ground in the face of evil opposition.
Notice Jesus didn't say, "Blessed are the peace lovers," because everyone loves peace. Neither did He say, "Blessed are the peaceable," who are never disturbed by anything. Jesus said, "Blessed are those who work for peace" - those who actively seek to resolve conflict.
Peacemaking is also not appeasement. Always giving in, acting like a doormat, and allowing others to run over you is not what Jesus had in mind. He refused to back down on many issues, standing His ground in the face of evil opposition.
Notice Jesus didn't say, "Blessed are the peace lovers," because everyone loves peace. Neither did He say, "Blessed are the peaceable," who are never disturbed by anything. Jesus said, "Blessed are those who work for peace" - those who actively seek to resolve conflict.
Humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.
Community has nothing to do with compatibility. The basis for our fellowship is our relationship to God: We're family.
Community is built not on convenience but on the conviction that I need it for spiritual health. If you want to cultivate real fellowship, it will mean meeting together even when you don't feel like it, because you believe it is important.
Community has nothing to do with compatibility. The basis for our fellowship is our relationship to God: We're family.
Community is built not on convenience but on the conviction that I need it for spiritual health. If you want to cultivate real fellowship, it will mean meeting together even when you don't feel like it, because you believe it is important.
The best use of life is love. The best expression of love is time. The best time to love is now.
"When you get serious about finding Me and want it more than anything else, I'll make sure you won't be disappointed." - Jeremiah 29:13 (The Message)
"So long as we imagine that it is we who have to look for God, we must often lose heart. But it is the other way about; He is looking for us. And so we can afford to recognize that very often we are not looking for God; far from it, we are in full flight from Him. in high rebellion against Him. And He knows that and has taken it into account. He has followed us into our darkness; there where we thought to finally escape Him, we run straight into His arms. So we do not have to erect a false piety for ourselves, to give us the hope of salvation. Our hope is in His determination to save us, and He will not give in." - Simon Tugwell
When we worship, our goal is to bring pleasure to God, not ourselves. If you have ever said, "I didn't get anything out of worship today," you worshipped for the wrong reason. Worship isn't for you. Its for God.
There is no such thing as "Christian music"; there are only Christian lyrics. It is the words that make a song sacred, not the tune.
The fact that earth is not our ultimate home explains why, as followers of Christ, we experience difficulty, sorrow, and rejection in this world. It also explains why some of God's promises seem unfulfilled, some prayers unanswered, and some circumstances seem unfair. This is not the end of the story. In order to keep us from becoming too attached to earth, God allows us to feel a significant amount of discontent and dissatisfaction in life - longings that will never be fulfilled this side of eternity.
Resentment always hurts you more than it does the person you resent. While your offender has probably forgotten the offense and gone on with life, you continue to stew in your pain, perpetuating the past. Listen: Those who hurt you in the past cannot continue to hurt you now unless you hold on to the pain through resentment. Your past is your past. Nothing will change it. You are only hurting yourself with your bitterness.
"I don't know if we each have a destiny, or if we're all floating around accident-like, on the breeze." - Forrest Gump
"I will guide thee with mine eye" - Psalms 32:8b
How can that be? How can God guide a person with His eye? If the eye is silent and makes no noise, the only way we could receive guidance from God's eye is to be looking directly at Him.
How can that be? How can God guide a person with His eye? If the eye is silent and makes no noise, the only way we could receive guidance from God's eye is to be looking directly at Him.
Wednesday, April 07, 2004
Went to NYP today do some recee (for my LG5 kids going there) and met up with some of the NYP crusaders who were there. Saw me BS leader, Zhihui, but didn't get to catch up with him cos he was busy... So I went round the campus by myself, on bike... I had just changed my tires in the morning and I was trying to get a good feel of them. They're one of those hybrid types, grips roads better I guess... well,, as I was soon to find out, not very well....
It had been raining you see and just as I was coming down a slope in the campus, near the exit to the main road... I skid and fell, and oh my, it was my most spectacular fall in all my years cycling... like one of those crashes you see on TV in Superbike races... I basically skidded, went on my left side... skidded bout 1-2 metres before my bike came out from under me and I was sliding down the slope... Had abrasions on my forearm, hip, knee... Good thing I had me riding gloves on or my palms would have had it when I tried to slow myself down...
But you know what, I was quite thrilled bout it... I mean, my immediate reaction was, "WOAH!" An my adrenaline went up a few notches., I felt so alive man.... I really have to thank God though... It could have been alot worse and hey, like they say, any crash that you can walk away from... =)
It had been raining you see and just as I was coming down a slope in the campus, near the exit to the main road... I skid and fell, and oh my, it was my most spectacular fall in all my years cycling... like one of those crashes you see on TV in Superbike races... I basically skidded, went on my left side... skidded bout 1-2 metres before my bike came out from under me and I was sliding down the slope... Had abrasions on my forearm, hip, knee... Good thing I had me riding gloves on or my palms would have had it when I tried to slow myself down...
But you know what, I was quite thrilled bout it... I mean, my immediate reaction was, "WOAH!" An my adrenaline went up a few notches., I felt so alive man.... I really have to thank God though... It could have been alot worse and hey, like they say, any crash that you can walk away from... =)
Monday, April 05, 2004
Woah, just finished watching "Fight Club"... Hmm, wonder why I didn't catch this film sooner... Its reminscent of "Momento" cept, its even heavier shit than "Momento" was. Lots of heavy stuff to think about in that film. Anyway, 02/03 MCC is finally over and I'm so glad to be rid of them cept the bad news is, 5 of them will be coming aboard as instructors. Including the nice little guy who personally threatened me while he was on course. Anyway, bygones to me. As far as I'm concerned, its 2 down, 1 last batch to go before FREEDOM!
