Devotional Thoughts: Loosing & Finding Love

We all rejoice when we hear that a couple in the YA! is pairing up. :)




But it saddens me when another couple breaks up after many years of relationship. One choose to remain single, the other moves to a new relationship (seen from the Facebook photo and status). The single remains hurt; the other is probably enjoying the new relationship.

Yah! Can sense it mah! Read and see their FaceBook posting, lah.

We who are friends are still wondering, questioning, and learning from the episode. And praying for them also.

Do you?
Well, at least, I am

Aaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh! Lost and found … emotions are often triggered when I loose or find something. Just a few days ago, I picked up a ten cents coin early in the morning while walking to the HDB car park. It is not the amount, but the sudden small impulse of hilarious feeling is enough to brighten the outlook of a new day. (naïve feelings?)

As I turn to today’s Daily Bread devotion, http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread/2009/10/29/devotion.aspx
(Luke 15:4-24)

my mind just wanders to those couples who have lost or found love, relational love.

In the 3 parables, what cause the shepherd to loose a sheep, the lady to loose a coin, and the father to have a prodigal son? Perhaps they are careless?

But the point of the parables is to rejoice when a sinner repents and come to Heavenly Father, whose name is LOVE.

So when you find something, treasure it and don’t loose it again, especially love.


TREASURE the things that you have found, especially LOVE! :)

Claustrophobia? !#@ :((

It was so cramped!!

Like craps all squeezing inside a basket.

I guess the youth themselves feel it. All 25 of them (or more?) cramp into a room meant for 10!!

This was my first visit to the BCPES youth sing-piration yesterday since they shifted to this place. And got a shock!

Why is it that the youth has never given a proper place to fellowship and run-wild, and be creative with their time together?

If I were to invite my lecturer, Dr. Koh who taught me on Christian Education from SBC to give a talk to these youth, I will surely get a scolding from her.

“Mark, didn’t I teach you that facility and environment is important to learning?”

“The size of the room is inversely proportional to the age of the student.”


Our youth need space!!


OK, just abit Kay-Poh here.

Mask?

It's kind of hard to see through people, ... until the mask is down :(

People see us as goody goody and maybe spiritual when we start serving in church ... BSG leader, Sunday school teacher, committee member, worship leader... but really are we getting right with God?

Serving in church becomes our mask! Recently heard something sad. Had to pray really hard.

If it is true, it is scary.

Very likely, it is true, from my own discovery.

How sad, the mask is there and I miss it.

Devotional Thoughts: Having my Sword ready at all times

“Every good Christians bring along their swords!” My Bible study and follow-up leader used to tell me when I was young.

Indeed, the sword of the Holy Spirit which is the Word of God (Eph 6:17) is the only offensive weapon that Scripture tell us how Jesus Christ defeat the temptations of Satan during his 40days fast in the wilderness. If the LORD uses Bible verses to overcome temptation, how much more I need to follow in HIS steps.


Today’s Quiet Time from the Daily Bread (Psalm 119:33-40): http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread/2009/10/22/devotion.aspx

reminds me again of Scripture Memory and its power to shape my life. I remember when I first started Bible study with my leader, the first thing he did with me was to memorise Bible verses. We did that for one year, covering over more than 60 verses. These verses are the pinnacle of my Christian foundations which become my sword ready for all times of need. Since then, I have moved to keeping important passages like Psalm 1, Psalm 23, Psalm 121 and 1 Cor 13 into memory. They are in my sub-conscious mind. Often times, they surface in my thoughts unknowingly and suddenly to remind me to take a certain cause of action. I take this as the Holy Spirit using His word to prompt me to move towards His direction.

It is a pity that I see the younger generations of Christian not being trained in Scripture memory. In our Singapore education system, every students must memorize the 26 alphabets, the multiplication tables, the periodic tables (Chemistry), and if you are good at mathematics all the differentiation and integration in Calculus. I still remember them till these days.

How much more as Christians, we need to memorise the names and order of the 66 Books, important verses like John 3:16, 1John 1:9, Prov 3:5-6 and many more.

Have your sword ready at all times – in the head and heart!

Are there any Nazirite youth in BPCES (Amos 2:11)?

Does today's sermon speak to you?

Not much. But the sermon passage on Amos 2 showed me that maybe God is still working in Bethany PCES. Or was it just my imagination? Wonder how many of the congregation felt as I did?

When the Scripture reader was reading the passage, a verse seemed like leaping out of the page to me:

"And I raised up some of your children to be prophets and some of your youths to be nazirites. Is it not indeed so, O people of Israel? Says the LORD" (vs 11, NRSV)

Perhaps the NIV version uses "young men", so those who are reading in NIV may not feel as deeply as I do. I was anticipating that the speaker would speak abit about these nazirites youth that God has raised in Israel and how we Bethany can also raised some nazirites youth. But it was totally pass off :(

You see, for the whole week, I was thinking and praying about why we didn't reproduce our own disciples. I remember when we were studying the book on "Experiencing God" we learnt that God is always at work around you. So shouldn't we be on the look out how God is working at Bethany PCES? My prayer is "Lord, are there any youth who want to give themselves to you?" No answer for the whole week.

Then this morning, this verse in Amos leap out of the page to me. Nazirite (Number chapter 6) is someone who consecrate himself (or herself) to serve God.

Can we find any of our Bethanians who will set apart themselves for God??

Devotional Thoughts: Preparing For Christ’s Returns (1Thess 4:15-18)

“How prepared are you to face Christ Jesus at His 2nd Coming?”

Last Saturday, three of us turned up at the Drifter’s BSG. That was a question in our BSG on 2Timothy chapter 4. Both of them shake their heads.

“I don’t think I am prepared. :( “

As we sit there in silence for a minute or so, my mind was pondering: “How do I measure my preparedness for Christ’s return?”

This morning as I look into the Daily Bread website: http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread/2009/10/16/devotion.aspx

The passage is definitely talking about Christ’s return and not about victory in death. (Perhaps the writer of the Daily Bread has gone a bit off tangent, but, never mind.) Christ can come even when we are still alive! Am I ready to meet Him in the air (1Thess 4:17)?

As a Boy Scout, who live by my motto: “Be Prepared”, I know I am ready to meet my master and Lord. I stand free of guilty conscience, doing what I believe a faithful Christian should do – obeying what the Bible commands as sins, helping the need of others, sharing Christ with unbelievers …, Moreover, I strive to live a Christ-like character of love. But I am still a sinner, with occasionally clashes with the old self within me. I believe all Christians face the same struggle. And so, we and I need the prompting of the Holy Spirit day by day in our daily routine, controlling our emotions, creating that awareness that HE is there to counsel us (John 16:7).

This preparedness is never ending.

BE PREPARED for Christ’s Coming!

Devotional Thought: The Handbrake in my Life (Psa 46:10)

I was quite agitated, yesterday.

Max, the new technician seemed hard on learning. I had to repeat a simple instruction a few times. And he showed doubt on my explanations.

“Frequency is inversely proportional to wavelength. This is PHYSICS. IF YOU DON”T KNOW THIS YOU CAN’T BE A MIROWAVE or RADIO FREQUENCY ENGINEER!”

He is on probation. We had a few clashes before and he does not take my instructions easily. Is this an obedient or teachable problem?

As my feeling was boiling inside me, suddenly something within me whisper: “Cool, man!”

Last night, I had a soul-searching time evaluating my emotion and the whole situation. God has gotten my attention. Or was it just my imagination that He is restraining me? Am I just trying to spiritualize the whole incident? Not sure who stop me, but it is good to have a handbrake that when “an accident” is going to happen, someone just pull that handbrake.


This morning, as I turned to the Daily Bread for my quiet time (Psalms 46):

http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread/2009/10/14/devotion.aspx

The passage just hit right on to my thought that still linger from last night.

10 "Be still, and know that I am God;

I will be exalted among the nations,

I will be exalted in the earth."


Thank you, LORD for pulling the handbrake in my life. Amen!

Devotional Thought: Thankful or Complaining?

We Singaporeans like to complain!

Parents are again complaining about the PSLE examinations questions!

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/cna/20091010/tap-464-parents-arms-psle-mathematics-pa-231650b.html


And it is usually the top students who are complaining when they stumbled on a few difficult questions for fear that they will miss out the top few position. This is the Singaporean “Kiasu” mentality.

There was this problem sum posed:

According to posts on an online forum for parents, one example of the problem sums given was: "Jim bought some chocolates and gave half of it to Ken. Ken bought some sweets and gave half of it to Jim. Jim ate 12 sweets and Ken ate 18 chocolates. The ratio of Jim’s sweets to chocolates became 1:7 and the ratio of Ken’s sweets to chocolates became 1:4. How many sweets did Ken buy?"

I tried solving this question. Usually, it takes a while to understand the question. Once I know what the question is talking about, the solution comes easily.

Top students can solve it easily, lah!

Why Complain ah? If cannot solve, cannot be top students already lah, so no need to complain.

This brings me back to Yesterday Devotion from the Daily Bread on Col 3:12-17.
http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread/2009/10/11/devotion.aspx

In this passage, I learn about 4 things:

(1) The Love of Christ (vv 12-14)
– my actions and behavior towards others

(2) The Peace of Christ (v15)
– be in harmony and at peace with others.

– BE THANKFUL in all situations.

(3) The Word of Christ (v16)
– dwelling in me richly

(4) The Name of Christ (v17)
– whatever I do, I carry it out in the LORD’s name

Be Thankful, not complain-full.

Things don't turn out the way it is!

I woke up early these morning and discovered that my crop in my "farm" in farmville was blue berries instead of tomatoes!! Moreover, they have all withered. Tomotoes take 8 hours to grow but blue berries take only 4. I felt very cheated because farmville changed my crops and killed them all.

In life, there are many instances that things happened to us beyond our control, even though we are very meticulous and do things carefully. I know very clearly I planted tomatoes because tomatoes like grapes, need sticks to support their climbing branches. Also, the coins are doubled - tomoto cost 100 coins each, while blue berry cost only 50 coins.

Even though it is just a game, it reminds me that we cannot be fully in control of our life, the environment can also change our course in life.

Only God is full in control.

Different sexes solve problems differently

When a man encounters a difficult problem, he will analyze and think about how to solve it. When a woman faces the same problem, she will ask for help. In the end, the woman find the solution, while the man is still thinking of the problem!

I see this happen many times in Amplus. I have ladies engineers - Yang Ling and Xu Fan, and guy engineers - Resmond, Andrew, and now Max. All of them do the same thing. The guys will not approach me for help and will always try to show that they can do it. The ladies will almost immediately come to me for help and learn how to solve the problems.

Man has a big ego! He trys to show that he can do it without help :(
This apply also to me. It taught me to ask and be open to discuss. I don't need to show that I know everything and so I usually ask around from those who have done or experiment with certain engineering areas before, to get some knowledge.


Presently, only Max is now working under me. All the other engineers have left the company. After 3 weeks, I still see him struggling with his project. And I am still waiting to see if he will approach me to ask for help. Before him was Xu Fan. The moment she faced some problem, she would ask me for help, just like Yang Ling.

I always tell my engineers - "There is no penalty in askig questions." "Always ask if you don't know." (For those who are Christians, you will know Matt 7:7 - Ask and it will be given to you)


Watch my ego!!

BPCES Church Planning retreat briefing

Does it really make any difference year after year to this church even if we don’t have any planning retreat?

After last Sunday (4 Oct) briefing by Pastor, which was more like assigning what job to which people (hope I am wrong), I feel like “here we go again, looking for people to get things going”. The church is like going on a “maintenance mode”.

We have nearly come to an end of year 2009. But, do we see any transformation of people lives? Do we see more people getting more eager to know God – Bible study, talking about spiritual things, … Do we see more care and concern for one another? Do we see an increase in church attendance? Or do we see more slackers, more people not coming for BSG, same old people doing the “job of the church”?

The answer is - yes, and no to some extent.

Which boil down to one thing more personal to me (since I am being appointed to be the BSG coordinator), have we achieved what we want to see in the BSG in 2009?

Sorry, ah, what is the objective for the BSG in 2009? (forget already lah!)

Ok, in 2008 BSG planning retreat, I talk about this:

It has been said:
A leader is a person with a magnet in his heart and a compass in his head.
- Vance Hainer.

If this is true for a leader, then,
A Christian leader is a person with a Cross in his heart and a Bible in his head.
- Mark Lim

(1) Have our BSG leaders develop the Cross Mentality?
(2) Have they grown in the knowledge and love for the Word of God?
(3) Have we found the “Mary” – who have a heart to learn, the “Martha” – who have a heart to serve, the “Lazarus” – spiritually dead or lethargic but can be made alive ; the “Zacchaeus”, the “Bartimaeus”


Think about these 3 questions as we move into year 2010.

The most difficlut relationship

In life we have many relationship. The most difficult one is the husband and wife relationship. We see each other everyday. We even sleep at the same bed, that is how close the relationship is.

Last night, a relative talked to me about her daughter's Boy-Girl Relationship. This relationship has intertwined to the extend that both the familys are very much closer. They had been receiving gifts like moon-cakes and festive goodies from one another, attending family dinners and special occasions. However, the boy friend is not a Christian, and is just not ready to consider Christ at this moment.

The daughter is talking about breaking up. This hurt her family.

Marriage is like putting two very different people into a burning furnace. Either they slowly burn to ashes or being purified.

Don't rush into it if you are not ready!!

Study in SBC

I really need to seek God's direction whether I should go ahead and apply for the MABS at SBC.

After seeing the application form, I realized that I need to seek approval from my wife and employer. These are the two most difficult criteria for me. Also, I need to get my employer to assess my character. This really put me off.

Today, as I spend time in devotion and reading on Col 4:2, I am somehow led to be more cautious in making decision. Rather, I need to be Prayerful, be Watchful and be Thankful in all situations.

Ok. I will pray about this for 40 days and 40 days whether to pursue my study on MABS in SBC. If the fire is quenched or re-kindled as each passing day, then I will know.

Today is the first day and night praying for this decision. :)

Amplus 10th Anniversary - Family Day

Last Saturday, my company, Amplus Communication Pte Ltd celebrated her 10th Anniversary at the Big Splash Playground at East Coast Park.

We had a good time and fun together. Euodia came along with us and she really gone all out to win prizes and volunteered herself in the magical performance.

Having my portait and shadow traced out. The artist just took about 2 minutes to sketch out my face. He also did paper cutting by tracing my face's profile.

That is Euodia, enjoying her golf at Liliput!

I joined this company since her beginning. Received my gold coin for the 10th Anniversary. This is also the first time I won a lucky draw - 6th prize; Cannon Power Shot Camera. Maybe, it is because my wife is attending this Company Family Day, the first time that family members are invited! :)

It has come a long way for me.... to stay in this company. Not sure how far more I will continue. Must wait for God's timing. :)

Everything has its timing

Yesterday, the boss said, "A date line is a dead line!"

Ok, Actually he meant, "a date line is a date line". But when he said it, it seems to imply that we need complete the work in time, so a date line is like a dead timing for us. When we can't fulfill the schedule,we are dead.

Yes, in life, everything has its timing. Time is Life. Which leads me to think of Ecclesiastes chapter 3. If I learn to walk in HIS time, He will make everything beautiful (verse 11). He controls everything of my life, if only I learn to walk in HIS PRESENCE.

A date line is a .... line.

Why Blog? - Journeying Through Life

It has been a week since I close down this site, and just keep it to myself. No sure when will I open up to others. Maybe, never.

My initial plan to set up this site was to promote interaction and sharing. At least, I start a topic and keep the ball rolling. But it turn out that only one or two are commenting, abate only once in a long while. Others attitudes are just "Great, now I know!" without a single comment on this blog. They take this site as peeping into others lives without sharing or disclosing their thoughts. Such a selfish attitude. That is the last thing I want to avoid. This blog has promote selfishness, so I need to close it.

"Hey, my blog is not for people to come and "know" about things :( " It is about sharing and connectng with one another. Mute readers are not welcome!! :( Go, start your own blog.

But seriously, blogging has taught me to glaze at every moment of life more intimately and reflective. Reflective of what God is doing in my every moments. I became more observant of things around me, more careful in listening to some remarks, more proactive to some actions. All these so that I can blog about it and learn from the journeys through life.

So, blogging will continue. ...

Going back to School!?

After much thoughts and prayers, I sent an email to the School of Theology (English) of the Singapore Bible College to ask for the application form.

I want to apply for the MA (Bible Studies). If I can get into SBC again, I will study Hebrews and learn to read the Bible in Hebrew.

This is still preliminary. Let’s see how things turn out to be.

Closing Blog

Two nights ago, Euodia said to me, “Your blog is very boring!” Looking at her expression, I know she said it from her heart. This is the only feedback I got for my blog. The response and comments are also very few.

I have written about 21 devotion thoughts. Except from Wei Lin's sporadic comments, no reader is interested in devotion, which is my primarily objective of writing this blog - to help people to be more regulare in their devotions. The devotion thoughts are a FAILURE.

I don’t like to do things that continue in failure. I like to win. Everything that I do must have a “winner” feeling. I don’t go for mediocre or lukewarm. It’s either hot or cold. Since the readers decide to let it be “cold”, the blog is now officially closed.

It is now a diary.


PS: A blog has many readers, followers, comments and reactions. A diary has only one reader.

Devotional Thoughts: Lying to the Church

How often do we lie to the church?

In today Daily Bread devotional passages (Acts 5:1-11):

http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread/2009/09/11/devotion.aspx

We sometimes behave like Ananias and Sapphira, giving a portion of what we have and pretending that we have given our all so as to look good in front of others.

Have you and I done a similar thing like them? Dare to be honest?

I have.

One similar situation would be giving Tithes. A tithe is actually 10% of our incomes. Imagine if the Holy Spirit will to strike down all who offer their money as Tithes that is less than 10% of what they received for that month? I would be long dead. I usually give less than 10% as Tithes and the rest to missions' organizations and missionaries in need, adding up to about 15% on average. That is about the best I can give away each month. I just feel that BPCES is not doing enough for the money collected and so members are talking about putting them into fix deposits instead of investing into lives of missionaries and Kingdom works.

Still, it is not an excuse for me to give less than 10% and write it as "Tithes". As such, I have changed it to "Thanksgiving" instead of "Tithes". Yeah, I think I have again put it as tithes for the past two months. So this devotions is a good reminder for me to put things right as be honest.

Beside money, there are other areas. Our talents, our services ...

Is giving excuses not to do something for the church when we can, considered lying?

Forever Friends

Meeting a long lost friend and having some wonderful time together is always a joy and delight to the soul. All thanks to Facebook.

It was through Facebook that I found my old buddy and room-mate during NTI students’ days. Last Tuesday during lunch, we had a wonderful time talking about those days and how our lives have been.

It’s amazing to know that we remained as room-mate for the whole 3 years, a feat no students would do. Most broke up after a year or two. With him, we can almost talk about anything, no secret! I remember the time when he was interested in another girl in our Christian fellowship group. He told me all about his struggle. People use to say that guys don’t talk about personal feelings. But with him, we talk about almost anything. Best of all, we encourage one another spiritually. We even make a covenant that whoever got married first, the other person would be the best man. Guess who got married first?

Then we got married, have our own family, stayed oversea and slowly we lost contact.

It was through facebook that I found him. Thankfully, his photograph was in it.

Yah! Forever friends.

I am back!

Hi! I am back.

Whether you are a Sunday friend, an acquaintance or even a stranger passing by this blog, feel free to check it out.

And drop a comment, others may like to know your thoughts also.

Adios, amigo! :)

The “Cannot Make It” Kid

Being in the elite group also has its struggle. They measure against one another whether they “make it” or “cannot make it”. Those who can’t are called the CMI kid.


Last Friday night, I had a gathering with 2 of my closest friends in one of their house. We know each other since NUS graduate school days more than 19 years ago. No, we don’t meet every Sunday, only once or twice a year. Still, I consider them best of friends. Even though we rarely meet, I know that I can count on them when I am really in need or help. And they are from the elite group, very successful in their careers and lives. They are also evangelical Christians. However, they see themselves as the “Cannot Make It” - CMI kid.

You see, one of these friends came from the elite schools – RI and ACS. There is a saying among the elite that “The RI boys rule Singapore and the ACS boys own Singapore”. So this elite group measure themselves by whether they rule Singapore – politically successful or own Singapore – successful bankers and wealthy businessmen. This friend has classmates like the Law Minister, the Transport Minister and the Minister in the PM offices to measure and compare to. As such, he sees himself as the CMI kid, even though he has a big house, and is a top civil servant.

I spent the 4 hours listening to their “elite” talk, mostly in silence. The phrase - "CMI kid" kept repeating didn’t know for umpteen times.

As I left the big 5,000 square foot, 3-storey house almost before mid-night, the CMI kid thingy was lingering in my mind. If I were to compare to them, I am nothing, just an alumni of a neighborhood school and living in a HDB flat. Probably worse than a CMI kid.


Driving in the still silence of the night, I heard my serene spirit whispering to me:

“You are a CMI kid – Certainly Make It (to heaven) kid”. What a blessed assurance.

Devotion Thoughts: What is Friendship?

Every time I read about David and Jonathon, I think about their friendship. Then I think about my friendship. Or are they really my friends?

I was reading the Daily Bread online today (2Sam 1:11, 17-27)

http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread/2009/08/25/devotion.aspx

Saul and Jonathon had died in battle. David laments for them, more so for Jonathan, his friend whom he greatly loved.

What then is friendship? Isaac Lim says it right – the bottom line of friendship is trust. http://izinmid.spaces.live.com/?lc=18441

(1) Friends trust one another
Read what Isaac wrote:

Who can we talk to? Who can we trust? Sometimes we want to talk to new people, to connect, to help them know more about us, but yet some of the things we tell them can be easily used against us. We want to have friends whom we can trust with the going ons of our lives, we want to share our struggles and pain, and yet sometimes, even people we think we know and can trust aren't exactly who we think they are. I guess sometimes we need to take a little risk to know if someone can be trusted. It isn't easy to open up; clamming up is so much easier.


David trust Jonathon that he will not betray him to his father, after Jonathon visits David while he is on the run from his father (1Sam 23:16-18). Without that trust, David might be wondering whether Jonathon is going home to tell Saul of David’s whereabout.

Without trust, there is no friendship.

(2) Friends rejoice and weep with one another.
When someone says (or blog) it’s their birthday, we greet, “Happy Birthday!” When she blogs about her good results, we congratulates her. When I read others' blog, I also like to know whether people care to comments on their blog. It is the comments arena that reveals how strong the bloggers’ friendships are. There was this simple blog with just ordinary postings - joy and pain that she goes through. But, everytime she share some things, her friends will write comments to encourage her. Blogging has become her motivation. In this aspect, of encouragement, I think non-Christian's blog fair better. Maybe I am wrong ...

(3) Friends are tolerant with each other
Not too long ago, a person from the English congregation called me and voiced displeasure at me because I did not do something. Maybe it was because I am an English Committee member in BPCES, I am expected to do what other can choose not to do. OK, so much about friendship! I began to see church members as … just church members, not friends anymore. Hence, I need to scrutinize who is reading my blog.

What then is true friendship?

Devotion Thoughts: Check my Attitude

I am thinking about this question: “What does it take to be a good Christian?”
Perhaps some answers will be:

A good Christian worships God every Sunday in worship service.

A good Christian does his daily devotion.

A good Christian talks to others about Christ regularly.

A good Christian gives his tithes.
…

If you ask the Lord Jesus Christ this question, what will HIS answer be?

In today’s Daily Bread’s devotion on Matt 5:3-12

http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread/2009/08/21/devotion.aspx


Jesus’ answers would be: “your attitude towards God and towards people” Hence we call this passage the Be-attitude.

Our attitude towards God:
(1) poor in spirit v3
(2) mourn v4
(3) humble v5
(4) desire to get right with God v6
(5) purity v8

Our attitude towards people:
(1) humble v5
(2) doing what is right – morally and integrity v6
(3) merciful v7,
(4) purity v8
(5) peacemaker v9

Poor in spirit – seeing our spiritual situation as what God would see (we are spiritual bankrupt in God’s sight, Isa 64:6)

Mourn – to mourn for our sins and sinful nature.

Once we are able to see ourselves just as spiritually bankrupt and as sinful as anybody else, no matter how much I know the Bible, how much tithes I give, or how regular I come for Sunday worship service, then my attitude towards the common people will be more amicable and friendly.

Many months ago, my company employed a part-time middle age Indian man as a cleaner. He either comes to work after office hour or very early in the morning before anybody comes to the office. From the look, I suspect he was an ex-prisoner, with tattoo all over his hands (and body also?). He doesn’t talk to us. He just does his work and went off.

When he first came to work one late evening, I was perhaps the only one to greet him, he appeared surprised. Usually, people keep away from such a person. Now, when he sees me, he would smile a bit.

Likewise, there is the Ah Soh (auntie) who cleans the pantry and clears the office's rooms. Showing some respect to such people by greeting them daily help to build our way of getting along with people

It is not the things we do that make us a good Christian;
It is the Be-attitude inside us.

Is there such a thing as CONSCIENCE?

Integrity – that’s the word that I keep thinking for a quite a while now.

Living in truth and honesty don’t mean much to people so long as they can get what they want, sometime at the expense of others. Wonder how their conscience feel?

Well, about 4 months ago I recruited a fresh poly graduate as my Engineering Assistant after the previous staff tendered his resignation. So far, all these young workers just can’t persevere in engineering work. Engineers live a dog life, at least mine is like that. I fight problems almost everyday.

This fresh grad was a China scholar. I thought she has a desire to do engineering as I asked her during the interview. Now that she has gotten her Permanent Resident (PR) pass, she tendered her resignation immediately. So her intention to get a job is to qualify for the PR status.

I have spent a lot of time teaching her and training her. At first, I was wondering why a bright student (with good results) can be such a slow learner. I have to keep teaching her the same thing. Now I know, her intention is just to get the PR. That is why she is not interested to learn. Also, she is so prone to take medical leaves and go on leaves; it becomes a liability to the company.

We all like to put on a false front (like this staff), but how does one conscience feel?

Song Humming in my head

Lord, my heart is prone to wander
Prone to leave the God I love
Here's my heart
Lord take and seal it
Seal it for
Your courts above.

I woke up this morning with this song humming in my head.
Maybe, I was reading Brother Lawrence’s book:
“The Practice of the Presence of God”
and was deeply immersed in his writing.

Every time I pause in what I am doing,
this song just come back by itself,
as if somebody is singing behind my ears.
It just sticks in my head the whole morning,
even as I am writing this.
…

Lord, my heart is prone to wander
...

Sowing & Reaping

Everyone needs to understand and learn the meaning of sowing and reaping.

It all started when Auntie Lily invited us (my daughter and me) to join her in FARMVILLE in facebook. Euodia then started clicking on the icon, “play Farmville”. It was just a small plot of land. And so we planted eggplant and strawberry. Nothing much, looks boring.

After many days past, she again went into the farm, only to find that all her plants had overgrown and withered. She was sad but learnt a great lesson. Living things can die. We learn the lesson that what we sow, we will reap. So, we got more meticulous and pay more attention to what length of time each plant takes to grow, bear fruits and wither if we fail to harvest them.

Farmville gets interesting when we make neighbours. We can also send and receive gifts from neighbours. We also visited our neighbours’ farm and took pictures. The children love to visit Auntie Lily’s farm. We also learnt from her farm; how she arranged the animals and the decorations she had. It’s very beautiful. Farming becomes a community affair! Harvesting time is always an excitement for the children. Some plants take days, others a few hours before fully grown. We need to know them well or else they will wither. I am also thinking about who I should invite to start a farm in Farmville.

There are many more things we’ve yet to explore. But we will.


Spiritual life is also about sowing and reaping.

Is your spiritual land (farm) vacant? Do you visit it daily? How about getting more “neighbours” to help you spiritually? Or maybe visit your neighbours’ spiritual farm and see how they grow theirs? We need to send spiritual encouragement to one another also. There are friends who have no Spiritual life yet. Shouldn’t we also invite them into this Spiritual Farmville (Kingdom)?

Each time I lock into Farmville, I am reminded to also tend my spiritual farmville.

Come, join me in “FARMVILLE”, …

to learn about sowing and reaping,

and be a community of “spiritual” farmers…

“A man reaps what he sows. … for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

PS: This will be my last post. I rather be a farmer than a blogger. See you at FARMVILLE.

Adios!! :)

20th Anniversary of BPCES

What changes do you see after 20 years in Bethany PCES?

I was pondering over this question for a long time. Should I or shouldn’t I blog about my thoughts on this? I shelved the idea …, until I happen to read about another church who is also in her 20th anniversary.

http://www.konghee.com/www/2009/08/what_chc_is_all_about/#more-4793


In 1989, we formed the "new" Bethany PCES with a sad beginning. There was a church division. It was not that we wanted to grow for the LORD. We just wanted to stay in Bethany while the other group wanted to build their own church. I had just returned from the United States and was not fully aware of the issue. I was free to join any groups or to go to another church.

I came to Bethany in 1986, after attending another church for 10 years. So, it was not appropriate to move to another church again. All my close “working” church friends joined the out-going group, Bethany Emmanuel, except David Lim who remained in BPCES. Ever since I came to Bethany, they were my regular partners during street evangelism. However, I was not comfortable to be under the leaders of Bethany Emmanuel. Whether the church will grow or die depends on the leaders. “But they have taken all the ‘working’ people and the youth.” That was my parting thought.

In 1989, we started with less than 30 people. In 2009, we had about 89 members and probably about a 100 worshippers each Sunday. In 20 years, we increased less than 4 times, many of these are biological. We were waiting for our kids to grow up and take over. When they reached their late teens, we were already talking about handling the church leadership to them. They are now playing active role in worship, Bible Study and even as committee members of the English service.


Bethany PCES is never strong and dedicated to prayer, Word and evangelism – the pillars for spiritual revival and growth.

We started that way, we will continue to move in that way.

We just wanted to stay in Bethany. ...

Devotional Thoughts: Be an evangelist?

“That person doesn’t behave as if he is a Christian” my General Manager / boss blurted out after we were talking about dealings with people issue.

The passage today from The Daily Bread brought back thoughts of my conversation with my General Manager last Friday:

http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread/2009/08/09/devotion.aspx


Seizing the opportunity to talk about Christianity, I emphasized that we are sinners and that is why we all need Christ as our Saviour. But when we are pardoned from our sin, we need to develop a life changes toward Godliness. It is sad that sometime, Christian don’t display a life that is required of our faith and so stumble unbelievers.

While our ministry may not be that of an evangelist, like Timothy (2Tim 4:5), what we can do as a Christian is to look out for opportunity to share the Gospel, not forcefully, but help others see the need to put their faith in Christ.

There are a few ways to create opportunities for sharing the Gospel. First of all, we need to make our faith in Christ public. If we are ashamed to be identified as Christians, there is no way we can be Christ’s witness. Praying before meal is a good practice. Wearing a cross round your neck (for ladies) is another testimony. Some Christian put Bible verses as screen-savers on their computer. For me, I usually leave my Bible on my desk.

Be a witness – by word and by behaviour.

Devotional Thoughts: The Input & Output of our lives

People know us by our output, not by our input.

Today’s devotion from The Daily Bread triggers the following thoughts:

http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread/2009/08/08/devotion.aspx


Input = listening (by our ears), seeing & reading (by our eyes), thinking (by our hearts and minds)

Output = Doing (by our hands), talking (by our mouth & body languages)

It is our inputs that shape our lives. It is our outputs that will shape others lives.

The inputs are our private lives. My daily inputs are the books (including the Bible) that I read, the internet websites that I surf, the conversation that I heard, the thoughts that came suddenly to me, the nature that I observe, the newspaper, … Are these inputs healthy nourishment or pollution to my life (Jas 1:27b)?

You don’t know what my inputs are until, I blog or talk about it. Are my writing and talking timely that lessen stress to you, or encourage you? Or are they words that rub salt to your wounds? Likewise, when I do something, you evaluate them and see whether they are in line with Biblical teaching. Am I a doer of the word (Jas 1:22) and so prove that I am consistent with what I read from the Bible? Do my actions bring about blessing to the needy (Jas 1:27a)?

Beware the input and output of our lives.

Devotional Thoughts: Changing of Mentality

I see my children grow from having a mom’s mentality to herd’s mentality.

Today’s devotion from the Radio Bible Class, The Daily Bread brings my thoughts to my family and my youthful days.

http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread/2009/08/07/devotion.aspx

When they are toddlers and in their primary school, it’s usually, “Mom says this …, mom says cannot do this …”

Now that they are in their secondary schools, decisions are made usually by following their friends. The mobile phone is a very important item in their lives. They switch from mom’s mentality to herd’s mentality and do things in groups. Friends’ decisions take priority.

This is the process of growing up.

It also happened to me when I was young. It was the herd’s mentality that I chose to go to the polytechnic instead of staying in the Junior College.

Hopefully, they will grow up from this herd’s mentality and move on to … Cross mentality. One day, when they grow towards spiritual maturity, they will learn to make decision base on the Cross of Christ.

Mom’s mentality … Herd’s mentality … Cross mentality.

Whether they have reach the Cross mentality or not, they will know it themselves.

Paying 60cents for a 10cents share

Pardon my ignorant, but can someone explain to me this ...

Why would people want to buy a share for 60 cents that is value at 10 cents?

My company has been offering me share at this price and state that its value is 10cents per share. It happened so many times and no, I have not bite it yet. Is this a bait or what? Yet, I don't see the logic of this.

I try to ask someone in the company and the answer is: "It's like that what!"

I have not buy any share (except SingTel share which the government do it for me) so I am really blur in this.

Travelling in the bus … reading …

It just brings back fond memory of those times when I used to read in the bus. …

I sent my car for servicing early this morning. It’s such a long time since I took a bus. So I took out my Bible and read the Psalms. When was the last time I read the Bible in the bus? Those were the days when Bible reading and scripture memory done in the bus was common to me. Ever since I started driving, this habit has long gone.

I use to think that driving a car can buy me time, at least I can reach home earlier or waste less time travelling. But this morning, I seem to have a more fruitful time reflecting and reading. So it is not time wasted in the bus. No, money does not necessarily buy time.

This verse in Psalm 55:22 that I read this morning, seem to give assurance of what happened last week in work (see previous post):

Cast your burden on the LORD,
and he will sustain you;
he will never permit
the righteous to be moved.

This verse sound familiar (1 Pet 5:7), but I was much encourage by what I read this morning.

Sermon Reflection: 1Sam 28 & 31 – How to live/die well?

Sunday morning …

To live or die well – listen to the voice of God. That was the gist of the sermon as the preacher said it loud and clear.

But how does one listen to the voice of God?

Have you heard God or the Holy Spirit speak directly to you?

Maybe the preacher was talking about obeying the commandments in the Bible? For Saul, God’s voice is through the Prophet Samuel. So does it mean listening to the voice of God is from the Pastor’s sermon? Or is it, to listen to the voice of God means whatever you learn from the Bible, just follow and do?

Doesn’t sound right, leh. :(

If I can listen to the voice of God like King David, using what they call a Urim, or have a prophet like Nathan, then easy lah!

But no such things already - no prophet, no Urim, cannot hear God speaking directly to me, only the Bible.

Ai yah, why the preacher never tell the congregation how to listen to the voice of God?

Maybe she did, I was not attentive.

So this good sermon has a difficulty… How to listen to the voice of God in order to live well?

That set my sermon reflection as I left the sanctuary yesterday morning.

******

Sunday afternoon …

Thinking about what was going on through the week …

I was supposed to finish 10 pieces of a subsystem before the month end of July. At room temperature, all the pieces were working perfectly. However, as I tested over the temperature range of -30 degree Celsius (or Centigrade, if you like) to +70degC, I noticed that 4 pieces failed marginally at -27degree. I could conveniently brush it off and “just close one eye” so to say, as it will not adversely affect the overall system when this subsystem is used.

But, I felt that I should do things right. It was a matter of having a right conscience and listening to that small still voice.

As a result, I kept trying to find what caused the faults, and repeated the testing at -30degC. It was very tiring and finally, at the last day and last minute, I completed the 4 pieces.

Praise the LORD! Trying to maintain a clear conscience has its price.

Is listening to my conscience also considered as listening to the voice of God?

Be alert – the sin that cling to us

This evening, I saw a man in a T-shirt with the following words:

REMEMBER LOT’S WIFE:
AVOID THE BACKWARD GLANCE

Clearly, only Christians with some Bible knowledge will know what happened to Lot and his family. The story in Genesis 19 flashed through my mind. The Angel of God wanted to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah and told Lot and his family not to look back. His wife’s, still lingering over the lavish life in Sodom, looked back and was turned into a pillar of salt.

What are something that I still cling on to so tightly that it became a hindrance for me to flee from destruction?

Is there any bad habit, bad influence, petty sin that I toil with?

Time for some soul-searching …

“Let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, …”

Encourage an environment for Growth

Sharing of information and knowledge is vital for growth.

This is what happens in my workplace.

Every Wednesday, 5:30pm, an engineer will do a half-hour presentation on any topics of his interest or expertise to the company. They will be assessed for their presentation. An award will be given to the best presenter. I am one of the judges. Last Wednesday (29 July), a mechanical engineer gave a talk on SCREW. Like he said, we need to know about screws and how they screw up our lives.


In a working environment, we can enforce compulsory learning and training. But can we do that in a church?

In my younger days as a Christian with the Polytechnic Navigators, studying and reading the Bible was normal. Not memorizing Bible verses was abnormal. Everyone who was with the Navigators for one year would have memorised a minimum of 60 verses. It is common to ask one another, “How’s your Quiet Time?” This is what we term a discipleship environment.
We can never survive spiritually alone; there is a tendency to follow the crowd. It is very easy to memorise Bible verses when everybody is doing it. Even in every Bible camp, we had Bible quiz and memory verses quiz. So that created excitement and encouragement.

BPCES does not have a tradition of Bible reading and memorizing Bible verses. Very seldom do we hear or read about each others devotion (except my blog, maybe). So I would say there is no discipleship environment in BPCES. As such, you don’t expect worshippers to be excited about bringing friends to evangelistic events.

How the church grows and move will depend on the leaders and committee members to set an example. They need to lead by example. How the BSG moves will also depend on the BSG leaders. They need to create a learning environment by sharing their lives openly, how they integrate their spiritual learning with their daily life.

In order to grow, it all starts with a healthy discipleship environment.

Create one. It is never too late.


It is him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone in all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ (Col 1:28 NRSV)

You too have your story! :)

We all journey through this world.

Each one has his story, whether he likes it or not.

I love this poem. It brings me down to earth … and helps me in my journey.

Desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,

and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender,

be on good terms with all persons.

Speak your truth quietly and clearly;

and listen to others,

even to the dull and the ignorant;

they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons;

they are vexatious to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others,

you may become vain or bitter,

for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;

it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,

for the world is full of trickery.

But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;

many persons strive for high ideals,

and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.

Neither be cynical about love,

for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,

it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,

gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.

But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.

Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,

be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe

no less than the trees and the stars;

you have a right to be here.

And whether or not it is clear to you,

no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,

whatever you conceive Him to be.

And whatever your labors and aspirations,

in the noisy confusion of life,

keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,

it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

Fitting into the mould of Society? – Just Be myself

Different people climb the corporate ladder differently.

Some make it rich by shrewd investment – like Warren Buffet. A few by backstabbing. But most may be by ways of engaging the society, like what Wei Lin’s comment on my 16 July’s post. There is nothing wrong in that mould so long as our faith in Christ is not compromised.

On reflecting about myself …

I am not exactly a likeable person.

I am probably that person whom Wei Lin commented: “people don’t exactly care two hoots about you”. I am OK with that.

Yah, I don’t try to make an impression, not outspoken, not confident. Just ordinarily, very ordinary. If there is a mould that society wants me to fit into, I would probably be a square peg trying to fit into a round hole.

Why?

I try to live as transparent as I can and let other see me as I am – my strength and also my ugly sides. I don’t intrude into people’s private space or engage in strategic talks. But if you share, I’ll listen with confidentiality.

I don’t have many friends, not even a few.

What I value most is trust. “A Scout is to be trusted.” That is the first Scout Law I learned and obeyed.

Faithful are the wounds of a friend;
Profuse are the kisses of an enemy
(Prov 27:6 RSV)

H1N1 Imagination?

I started to have running and stuffy nose on Wednesday morning. Then it just dripped non stop.

Then I started to cough. And it got worse.

I remember reading somewhere in The Straits Times about the symptoms of H1N1 – fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, fatigues ….. “It seems that I am having it now.”

Suddenly began to feel cold. Then, feeling tired / fatigue.
The more I thought and analyzed, the more I coughed. Maybe it was psychological.

So I hid in my office and work on documents and computer simulations instead of mingling with others. Better be social responsible, just in case.

Went home early and drank a lot of honey lemon. Took a panadol and slept early.

Yesterday, I still had running nose and a mild cough but no fever. Maybe it was not H… Anyway, I had come to the office with a big container of honey lemon and a pack of strepsils.

OK, I still had a lot of work to do in the laboratory. “Just keep away from people”, so I thought.

Today, I woke up perfectly all right, except with a sore throat. It happened since Saturday, when I talked too much.

Well, just thinking too much!!

Legalism - right or wrong?

Can a Christian smoke?

No, lah!

Why not?

Bad for health, Christian should take care of his body.

Added to this were some other rules that I learnt when I first became a Christian in 1976. Here are some of them:
- Christian should not patronize a discotheque.
- Christian cannot go to a night club
- Christian cannot gamble
- Christian cannot get drunk
- Christian cannot marry a non-Christian
- Christian cannot go to a cinema!!

The last one may have shock you. But that was what my pastor would nicely encourage us to keep away from such places.

From what I understand, legalism then is the adherent to a system of rules and regulations (similar to the above) so as to protect us from sin. It is similar to the way of the Pharisees where they set up rules and regulation to protect the Mosaic Laws..

So should Christian abide by these legalism?

I remember many years ago when my wife and I are holidaying in Rome during the cold autumn. We saw 2 men dressed in priestly gowns drinking coffee and smoking. My wife was shocked and said to me: “How can Christians smoke?”

But honestly, there is no rule in the Bible that literally says that we cannot smoke or dance. Avoiding such things does not make us more holy. But indulging in them may lure us further and further away from the LORD. Our only commandment is Love God and Love others (Matt 22:37-40).

How then do we draw the line?

For me, I usually follow this principle, the 6-8-10 principle (from 1Cor 6, 8, 10):

1Cor 6:12 (NASV)
All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything

Avoid anything that will addict me.

1Cor 8:9 (NASV)
But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak

Avoid anything that will stumble another Christian.

1Cor10:31 (NASB)
Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

If it glorifies God, then it probably OK. If it is neutral, then check the other 2 principles.


These are my personal principles and not to be imposed on anybody. If others opinion differs from mine, then I need to act in grace. Remember the story of the woman caught in adultery by the Scribes and Pharisees in John 8? Clearly, the woman has committed a sin but Jesus Christ has gracefully pardoned her. Likewise, I don’t condemn Christians who marry non-Christians – deliberately or due to circumstances. They did nothing wrong (that is my view), but hopefully they can live godly lives and influence their spouses to Christ one day.

My final principle in life

Let all that you do be done in love. (1Cor 16:13)

Gal 5:13 (NASV)
For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.

(freedom in Gal 5:13 mean free from the Law or legalism)

PTL :)

Why so Busy, ah?

Man is a mere phantom as he goes to and fro: He bustles about, but only in vain; he heaps up wealth, not knowing who will get it.
(Psa 39:6)

A few nights ago, I saw an elderly couple running toward a bus stop as the bus was approaching. I guess they wouldn’t want to miss the bus and had to wait for another 10 minutes or so. I believed the bus driver might have noticed them (like me) running and was kind enough to wait for them at the bus stop.

My first thought was: “Why the hurry?” It was about 9:30pm. I was taking my usual stroll and reflection.

Yes, why so busy ah?

Am I bustling about in life, only in vain?

Anger kills feelings :(

The boss was very angry this very morning. :(

He called for a meeting at 9.30am through email. Not sure when he sent the email but I didn't receive it. Double check, yeah, no email.

The meeting started with a firing squad. Firing at everyone and nobody in particular.

That's how the day started :(

Death is the beginning of another New Life

Attending a funeral wake is better than going to a birthday party.

Although there are tears in a funeral, the emotions can be much deeper than just the fun and laughter in a party. The impact is more lasting.

Each time I attended a funeral wake, I am reminded of my earthly journey. One day, it will be my time to go. I must make use of the time left for me here, to do my master’s will.
Attending a non-Christian funeral always leave me very sad, sad that another soul has lost in eternity. But a Christian funeral is always a joyous occasion. We know that death is not the end of life, but the beginning. It is the beginning of a new journey in heaven with the Creator LORD.

Last night, at Jenny Lim’s mother funeral wake, this verse kept ringing in my mind: “For me to live is Christ, to die is gain”. Yes, death for a Christian is gain because it is a passage to a better place where there is no pain, sorrows and tears. Thank you, LORD, for Jenny’s mother who has known you and gone to be with you.

Thank you, LORD for being my Savior.

It is better to go to a house of mourning
than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of every man;
the living should take this to heart.
(Ecclesiastes 7:2)

Never Too Old to Learn

I have finally done it!!

For the past few weeks, I was busy preparing the power point. Hence, all the focus is on doing this Understanding Biblical Narratives Power point.

Spend alot of time reading and searching the web sites for good illustrations. Also, I have studied many Bible passages for using as examples in the power point.

So no time to update this blog.

Never too old to learn :)