I think what makes Job stand out in the bible is one of these phrases that he said:
Job 1:21
And he said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.
It inspired (I think) this song, which we sang during service last week. And it stayed in my mind, cos the first time we sang, I was in tears.
Blessed Be Your Name
by Matt Redman
- - -
Blessed Be Your Name
In the land that is plentiful
Where Your streams of abundance flow
Blessed be Your name
Blessed Be Your name
When I'm found in the desert place
Though I walk through the wilderness
Blessed Be Your name
Every blessing You pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name
Blessed be Your name
When the sun's shining down on me
When the world's 'all as it should be'
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be Your name
On the road marked with suffering
Though there's pain in the offering
Blessed be Your name
Every blessing You pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name
You give and take away
You give and take away
My heart will choose to say
Lord, blessed be Your name
I think basically what Job is saying is that- these riches that I have, are from God anyway, and I came in naked on this earth, and there is nothing that I can retain. In my bible, there is a reference to another verse wrt "The Lord gave"- it is in Eccl 5:19
As for every man to whom God has given riches and wealth, and given him power to eat of it, to receive his heritage and rejoice in his labor--this is the gift of God.
Wow! I know that I am living in this upper middle classy life (hmm? Am I?) in Singapore because I know that it is God who has given it to me.
At the same time, couldn't help remembering another verse that says that God causes the rain to fall on both the righteous and the unrighteous. Sometimes we wonder why some people are unrighteously rich? Why, we really will never know.
Basically what I am trying to say is that, be thankful when the Lord blesses u. Yet at the same time, this needs to be balanced with the heart for others, as well as to remember that the possessions that we have should not be held in such high esteem. Learn to be like Job, to praise God inspite of all. To be like Paul- to abase and abound. Power is in the hands of those whom God has blessed with plenty to learn to share, and redirect wealth.
A nice comment by someone, he says we shd give thanks IN all things. And as that thought seeped in- yes, we should be thankful to God whether we are rich or poor. We are not thankful FOR the wealth, but rather being thankful IN the wealth.
In all circumstances yes, blessing God, and praising Him.
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Saturday, October 21, 2006
Grappling with God
"Like Abraham, I approach God at first in fear and trembling, only to learn that God wants me to stop groveling and start arguing. I dare not meekly accept the state of the world, with all its injustice and unfairness. I must call God to account for God's own promises, God's own character."
Philip Yancey, Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference
Philip Yancey, Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Seeing a bigger picture
Today a director from a local bank came to share during CF. He shared his testimony on his encounters and experiences with the Holy Spirit. He was from a methodist background, and was a very lukewarm christian. But his spiritual life took a turn when he went to Canada. God spoke to him while he was driving in his car and reminded him abt the importance of His word. He also shared of his baptism in the Holy Spirit, how someone told him that there was such a thing. The heat he felt when someone laid hands on his chest and how he felt God just wrapping His arms around him when he got slain.
All the things he shared was so familiar to me, for I have encountered such experiences with the Holy Spirit as well! Laying hands on people and seeing them fall under the power, at the mission trip in china- feeling my hand tremble with electricity vibes running through, prayed for deliverance with girl manifesting even before I laid hands, cg member sharing that she felt heat all over her and light when I prayed for her, moments where I felt His anointing and it was just me and Him alone.
Haha...yeah...God is so real in such supernatural encounters, and my faith is encouraged during those moments, and u just feel as if that it is not you, but it is Him doing the work through you.
I remember that when I first took part of Roy's cg, and saw him laying hands and people getting slain, I was all awed. Heh. I wanted "that" too. The "power" from God to do supernatural things. Yet when I tried and prayed for people, it was as if it was in vain. Nobody moved. I ended up with lengthy prayers, and sometimes gave a word to people that were not really sharp...I wasn't sure abt what to share when I prayed for them too. But I wanted "that" and I asked God....
It was during Benny Hinn's meetings I think when I saw the way he ministered and I understood the importance of waiting. Waiting on the Holy Spirit to come. Inviting Him and making Him feel welcome in the place. And this yearning for Him. A trusting in Him also that it is He who works in and touches people's lives. And so during cg session we just sang worship songs during ministry, very simple songs, and we just sang softly and we waited for His presence. I didn't say much, didn't have to. And it was so glorious, just feeling His anointing fill the place. It is wonderful wonderful. And laying of hands was just a matter of being a steward. Having the trust that it is He who works through me.
Going to China in April this year, during one of the worship sessions that Grace led, everyone just broke down into tears. It was the Holy Spirit touching many hearts, melting many hearts, speaking to people in areas that are so deep that nobody knew. And it was so sharp that when He spoke, people cried. Me too. I remember He spoke to me abt Hebrews, coming boldly into His presence. And then the next days when we had ministry...really all ready to go. Laying of hands and people just fall one by one....and then had inner healing as well. :)
I love the presence of God, and I love to minister the presence of God. I wished somehow that Covenant had more ministry sessions after services. Or that the worship style could be more charismatic.
And yes, I think that for me, I am so deeply convicted that God is real because of these experiences.
However I also remembered some times when I squirmed in the seat of the church because the interpretation of the word was just not contextualised. Today's lunch time sharing as well, I feel that it was not a very accurate interpretation of the Word. It is quite typical of charismatics to have "revelational" truths from reading the Word, and hence sometimes interpretations that are not exactly true to the Word. And how I wish that we can have both! A balanced Word and also a move in the Holy Spirit.
The wonderful amazing thing is how God uses us in our imperfect ways. Given that it is so impt for the Holy Spirit to move and hence we can't quench that...it is the arm that gives power.
Anyway was really good talking to this colleague who was from Church of our Saviour and then went to ARPC after a long long transition journey. And tho ARPC doesn't talk much abt the gifts of the Holy Spirit, these are things he believed in. Yet, he can stay in ARPC and accept these things cos these are not core to him. And one statement he made- if you agree with the church all the time, u don't have yr own relationship with God, cos having yr own r/s means that u seek out and go back and see if what is spoken is true.
And this is so true, there is no perfect church, no perfect humans. Only fallen creatures like us.
If the director was God-sent to speak to traditional christians w/o fresh revelations of who the Holy Spirit was, then I pray that for me- He will use the experience I have and help me speak truth into overly zealous and one sided charismatics.
All the things he shared was so familiar to me, for I have encountered such experiences with the Holy Spirit as well! Laying hands on people and seeing them fall under the power, at the mission trip in china- feeling my hand tremble with electricity vibes running through, prayed for deliverance with girl manifesting even before I laid hands, cg member sharing that she felt heat all over her and light when I prayed for her, moments where I felt His anointing and it was just me and Him alone.
Haha...yeah...God is so real in such supernatural encounters, and my faith is encouraged during those moments, and u just feel as if that it is not you, but it is Him doing the work through you.
I remember that when I first took part of Roy's cg, and saw him laying hands and people getting slain, I was all awed. Heh. I wanted "that" too. The "power" from God to do supernatural things. Yet when I tried and prayed for people, it was as if it was in vain. Nobody moved. I ended up with lengthy prayers, and sometimes gave a word to people that were not really sharp...I wasn't sure abt what to share when I prayed for them too. But I wanted "that" and I asked God....
It was during Benny Hinn's meetings I think when I saw the way he ministered and I understood the importance of waiting. Waiting on the Holy Spirit to come. Inviting Him and making Him feel welcome in the place. And this yearning for Him. A trusting in Him also that it is He who works in and touches people's lives. And so during cg session we just sang worship songs during ministry, very simple songs, and we just sang softly and we waited for His presence. I didn't say much, didn't have to. And it was so glorious, just feeling His anointing fill the place. It is wonderful wonderful. And laying of hands was just a matter of being a steward. Having the trust that it is He who works through me.
Going to China in April this year, during one of the worship sessions that Grace led, everyone just broke down into tears. It was the Holy Spirit touching many hearts, melting many hearts, speaking to people in areas that are so deep that nobody knew. And it was so sharp that when He spoke, people cried. Me too. I remember He spoke to me abt Hebrews, coming boldly into His presence. And then the next days when we had ministry...really all ready to go. Laying of hands and people just fall one by one....and then had inner healing as well. :)
I love the presence of God, and I love to minister the presence of God. I wished somehow that Covenant had more ministry sessions after services. Or that the worship style could be more charismatic.
And yes, I think that for me, I am so deeply convicted that God is real because of these experiences.
However I also remembered some times when I squirmed in the seat of the church because the interpretation of the word was just not contextualised. Today's lunch time sharing as well, I feel that it was not a very accurate interpretation of the Word. It is quite typical of charismatics to have "revelational" truths from reading the Word, and hence sometimes interpretations that are not exactly true to the Word. And how I wish that we can have both! A balanced Word and also a move in the Holy Spirit.
The wonderful amazing thing is how God uses us in our imperfect ways. Given that it is so impt for the Holy Spirit to move and hence we can't quench that...it is the arm that gives power.
Anyway was really good talking to this colleague who was from Church of our Saviour and then went to ARPC after a long long transition journey. And tho ARPC doesn't talk much abt the gifts of the Holy Spirit, these are things he believed in. Yet, he can stay in ARPC and accept these things cos these are not core to him. And one statement he made- if you agree with the church all the time, u don't have yr own relationship with God, cos having yr own r/s means that u seek out and go back and see if what is spoken is true.
And this is so true, there is no perfect church, no perfect humans. Only fallen creatures like us.
If the director was God-sent to speak to traditional christians w/o fresh revelations of who the Holy Spirit was, then I pray that for me- He will use the experience I have and help me speak truth into overly zealous and one sided charismatics.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Will we enjoy heaven?
"We might think that the 'virtues' were necessary only for this present life- that in the other world we could stop being brave because there is no danger. Now it is quite true that there will probably be no occasion for just or courageous acts in the next world, but there will be every occasion for being the sort of people that we can become only as the result of doing such acts here. The point is not that God will refuse you admission to His eternal world if you have not got certain qualities of character: the point is that if people have not got at least the beginnings of those qualities inside them, then no possible external conditions could make a 'Heaven' for them- that is, could make them happy with the deep, strong, unshakable kind of happiness God intends for us."
CS Lewis
Mere Christianity
Have u ever pondered what heaven will be like? I have...
I think it was Brian McClaren who suggested that afterlife it may be the same place- but to the sinner walking in darkness, he wouldn't like the brightness in heaven- and hence heaven is like hell to him.
What abt those people who said the sinners prayer 1 min before they passed away, what will heaven be like for them?
Randy Alcorn suggests that we shd invest our treasures in heaven. When we get to heaven, different people will receive different kind of rewards/crowns. This sounds strange to me though. Cos heaven doesn't seem like a place with distinctions to me. Imagine someone who has been a spendthrift on earth, and ends up in a atap house in heaven, while someone else stays in his magnificent 3 storey mansion. That'll be strange wouldn't it? Hence I couldn't really agree with it. Then how does God differentiate people and is there differentiation? Really don't know!
Just some preliminary thoughts...
CS Lewis
Mere Christianity
Have u ever pondered what heaven will be like? I have...
I think it was Brian McClaren who suggested that afterlife it may be the same place- but to the sinner walking in darkness, he wouldn't like the brightness in heaven- and hence heaven is like hell to him.
What abt those people who said the sinners prayer 1 min before they passed away, what will heaven be like for them?
Randy Alcorn suggests that we shd invest our treasures in heaven. When we get to heaven, different people will receive different kind of rewards/crowns. This sounds strange to me though. Cos heaven doesn't seem like a place with distinctions to me. Imagine someone who has been a spendthrift on earth, and ends up in a atap house in heaven, while someone else stays in his magnificent 3 storey mansion. That'll be strange wouldn't it? Hence I couldn't really agree with it. Then how does God differentiate people and is there differentiation? Really don't know!
Just some preliminary thoughts...
Saturday, October 14, 2006
God's absolute goodness and the fix we are in
"And it is no use saying either that if there is a God of that sort- an impersonal absolute goodness- then you do not like Him and are not going to bother about Him. For the trouble is that one part of you is on His side and really agrees with His disapproval of human greed and trickery and exploitation. You may want Him to make an exception in your own case, to let you off this one time; but you know at bottom that unless the power behind the world really and unalterably detests that sort of behaviour, then He cannot be good. On the other hand, we know that if there does exist an absolute goodness it must hate most of what we do. That is the terrible fix we are in. If the universe is not governed by an absolute goodness, then all our efforts are in the long run hopeless. But if it is, then we are making ourselves enemies to that goodness every day, and are not in the least likely to do any better tomorrow, and so our case is hopeless again. We cannot do without it, and we cannot do with it. God is the only comfort, He is also the supreme terror: the thing we most need and the thing we most want to hide from. He is our only possible ally, and we have made ourselves His enemies. Some people talk as if meeting the gaze of absolute goodness would be fun. They need to think again. They are still only playing with religion. Goodness is either the great safety or the great danger- according to the way you react to it. And we have reacted the wrong way."
Mere Christianity
C.S. Lewis
Mere Christianity
C.S. Lewis
Saturday, October 07, 2006
Friday, October 06, 2006
Conversion
When I was around primary 1 or 2, my maid was a catholic who shared with me that Jesus loves me. She taught me how to pray and say grace before my meals. Though I don't really understand this Jesus then, I said good night to God before I slept everyday, and whenever I was upset, I went into the room and cried and prayed to God.
When my friend brought me to church, that was in 1997, december. With eyes closed and heads bowed, Pastor Kong asked if anyone would like to know God as her Lord and saviour, and with the encouragement of Vene, she walked with me down the altar call with her arms around my shoulder.
Well, I think I believed in God but it was a struggle to really believe, I was doubtful and unsure. Hence even after "receiving" Christ, I went down to the altar call a couple of times more subsequently, until Vene told me that it was by faith, and that I didn't have to respond so many times.
I never "felt" God when I first converted, hence I doubted if He existed. Esp when my sister shared with me how she felt rivers of water moving in her tummy when she was prayed for the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Or how ple had holy laughter but not me.
My faith was sealed though when I experienced the touch of God. It was a warm feeling that surrounded me, and I knew God was so real then. And I realised that it was not about seeking the presence, but it was about seeking Him and His presence came naturally. Though people say that charismatics are an emotional lot- I think that emotions are important, for it is that touch that humans relate to. And we can't dismiss everything as being emotional. I remember many lovely times when I just dwelt within His presence, understood His personhood, and the Holy Spirit being so close to me, encouraging me. And it was those times when I had the breakthroughs in my spiritual life, having new revelations from God.
However, I never really understood what conversion meant until much recently. Receiving Christ, yes I did, I received Him into my heart, His love. But most recently I realise that conversion includes repentance. Didn't I know that? Perhaps just the conviction and true realisation of how unworthy I am, and how needy I am of Him. I never understood repentence cos I am not sure what I had to repent of. I didn't steal, kill, have bad attitude. I tithed regularly, went to church, loved my parents and did well in my exams.
I'm thankful for the recent spate of events that took place, and though it was a very painful time for me, I learnt repentance and humility. For the first time, (though I'm sure it was there all along) the impure things hidden in my heart came out in anger, bitterness, loneliness and lust. And I cried out to God in desperation, because there was just no way I could fix this or move on. And then this self righteousness had to go and I come to realise how much I need Him. And repentance-being a giving of our lives. Conversion, not just knowing God loves me, but conversion-is surrendering all of me to Him.
And I am thankful to also understand that christianity is not just an emotion. It is not just abt feeling God. But it is IN SPITE of how we feel, we have faith that God is there, ever present for us.
For a while I swung to the other extreme, being very skeptical and labeling many stuffs as "emotionalism". Because I finally understood also that it can be very very dangerous to be telling people that "God says...", "God is telling you...", "God gave me a vision to...", and in the name of what He spoke to me, I ask others to follow me. Because of that a lot of people dare not question what is really preached at the pulpit-afterall who am I to challenge what "God" has said. But I think it is not like that. It is not just the feelings of high we receive when we jump up and down or shed a few tears.
For true conversion, which includes being touched by God, but also a conscious decision to change our lives. For God is not just a lovely dovey Father or santa claus who comes to hug u when u are wounded. He is also a very Holy God. Hence it is not just giving God a chance in yr life. It is a giving of yr everything.
I'm not sure if u can identify with what I have written. But I am thankful for His love for me. And I know that I mess up, I am so unrighteous, but upheld by His love for me, and I am thankful.
When my friend brought me to church, that was in 1997, december. With eyes closed and heads bowed, Pastor Kong asked if anyone would like to know God as her Lord and saviour, and with the encouragement of Vene, she walked with me down the altar call with her arms around my shoulder.
Well, I think I believed in God but it was a struggle to really believe, I was doubtful and unsure. Hence even after "receiving" Christ, I went down to the altar call a couple of times more subsequently, until Vene told me that it was by faith, and that I didn't have to respond so many times.
I never "felt" God when I first converted, hence I doubted if He existed. Esp when my sister shared with me how she felt rivers of water moving in her tummy when she was prayed for the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Or how ple had holy laughter but not me.
My faith was sealed though when I experienced the touch of God. It was a warm feeling that surrounded me, and I knew God was so real then. And I realised that it was not about seeking the presence, but it was about seeking Him and His presence came naturally. Though people say that charismatics are an emotional lot- I think that emotions are important, for it is that touch that humans relate to. And we can't dismiss everything as being emotional. I remember many lovely times when I just dwelt within His presence, understood His personhood, and the Holy Spirit being so close to me, encouraging me. And it was those times when I had the breakthroughs in my spiritual life, having new revelations from God.
However, I never really understood what conversion meant until much recently. Receiving Christ, yes I did, I received Him into my heart, His love. But most recently I realise that conversion includes repentance. Didn't I know that? Perhaps just the conviction and true realisation of how unworthy I am, and how needy I am of Him. I never understood repentence cos I am not sure what I had to repent of. I didn't steal, kill, have bad attitude. I tithed regularly, went to church, loved my parents and did well in my exams.
I'm thankful for the recent spate of events that took place, and though it was a very painful time for me, I learnt repentance and humility. For the first time, (though I'm sure it was there all along) the impure things hidden in my heart came out in anger, bitterness, loneliness and lust. And I cried out to God in desperation, because there was just no way I could fix this or move on. And then this self righteousness had to go and I come to realise how much I need Him. And repentance-being a giving of our lives. Conversion, not just knowing God loves me, but conversion-is surrendering all of me to Him.
And I am thankful to also understand that christianity is not just an emotion. It is not just abt feeling God. But it is IN SPITE of how we feel, we have faith that God is there, ever present for us.
For a while I swung to the other extreme, being very skeptical and labeling many stuffs as "emotionalism". Because I finally understood also that it can be very very dangerous to be telling people that "God says...", "God is telling you...", "God gave me a vision to...", and in the name of what He spoke to me, I ask others to follow me. Because of that a lot of people dare not question what is really preached at the pulpit-afterall who am I to challenge what "God" has said. But I think it is not like that. It is not just the feelings of high we receive when we jump up and down or shed a few tears.
For true conversion, which includes being touched by God, but also a conscious decision to change our lives. For God is not just a lovely dovey Father or santa claus who comes to hug u when u are wounded. He is also a very Holy God. Hence it is not just giving God a chance in yr life. It is a giving of yr everything.
I'm not sure if u can identify with what I have written. But I am thankful for His love for me. And I know that I mess up, I am so unrighteous, but upheld by His love for me, and I am thankful.
Saturday, September 16, 2006
Fix yr eyes on Jesus
I'm beginning to appreciate this journey that I am going through, God meant everything for good. ;) Listened to a Charles Spurgeon audio sermon just now, and he was talking abt how the law brings sin- cos with the law, we realise how sinful we are, and we cannot meet the requirements of the law without God! And hence when we are convicted of our sins, we realise how really sinful we are, and how in need of mercy we are.
In CHC, I've learnt that we are not "worms" but we are children of God, and we walk in righteousness and boldness. The latter is true of cos. But I think that a contrite heart, and the realisation of how in need of God we are, are necessary ingredients of conversion. For only with repentance comes salvation.
During this period of time I can't tell u how often I feel so condemned and unworthy. It may be a natural process when we realise we are sinful in nature. Yups, and it is probably part of the christian journey, of having our prides broken, and asking for God to be merciful.
Afterall, why did Paul say that of all people he was the chief sinner!
The circumstances are not perfect, but we all have to get on with our lives. Thoughts come into our mind like torrents. We have to filter them, protect our mind, and shield it with all our might. Let it be that even in the midst of the storm, we fix our eyes on Jesus. So the storms may take place on the exterior, but the interior is always still & peaceful, cos it has its eyes on Christ.
People may not be perfect, and offenses WILL come, that's what Jesus said. But guess what, anger is satan's bait for us to sin. Not that we cannot be angry, but we must learn daily not to take offenses personally, and learn to release our pain to God.
Just went to Church of our Saviour. There are things that I liked about it, cos I am used to the charismatic kind of worship, as well as the cell group format. ;) There were ofcos, other things that I am unused to. Hence when my friend asked me how I find it, I could only say "okay". The word "okay" to imply many things. One of which is that a church will never be perfect. If u want to find your fair share of offenses, there will be plenty in the church. That is because God is perfect, but the church is not.
Going on this journey has made me realise how impt it is to fix my eyes on Jesus. No matter what happens, or what christians I meet. These can be said to be peripherals. Because nothing on this earth is perfect. I am more and more critical these days, and I get mad at people for their apathy, or practises. But I must say, be angry if I want to, ultimately, it is to fix my eyes on Jesus, and nothing in this world can shake this relationship between u and the Maker.
Most of all, the time taken to resolve conflicts or quarrel with another christian or ruminating over doctrinal issues could sometimes be better utilised by just walking the talk- doing it, serving people, meeting needs, and helping lives. :)
It will take time for us to figure out what we should do, which ministry to serve in, which occupation to take up. Whatever it is just do something! Do not worry about tmr, live each day as it is, being precious. Each day be a blessing to someone. Start something, do something. We may not have our future all mapped out in front of us, but surely opportunities will come as we take each step of our lives. I must believe this. I have to hold on to this.
Dear God, let me fix my eyes on You. No christian is a lone ranger, for U have called us into a Body. Help me, Help us, as a church, to walk right with You. And make me a blessing to those around me. Thank You Lord. Amen.
In CHC, I've learnt that we are not "worms" but we are children of God, and we walk in righteousness and boldness. The latter is true of cos. But I think that a contrite heart, and the realisation of how in need of God we are, are necessary ingredients of conversion. For only with repentance comes salvation.
During this period of time I can't tell u how often I feel so condemned and unworthy. It may be a natural process when we realise we are sinful in nature. Yups, and it is probably part of the christian journey, of having our prides broken, and asking for God to be merciful.
Afterall, why did Paul say that of all people he was the chief sinner!
The circumstances are not perfect, but we all have to get on with our lives. Thoughts come into our mind like torrents. We have to filter them, protect our mind, and shield it with all our might. Let it be that even in the midst of the storm, we fix our eyes on Jesus. So the storms may take place on the exterior, but the interior is always still & peaceful, cos it has its eyes on Christ.
People may not be perfect, and offenses WILL come, that's what Jesus said. But guess what, anger is satan's bait for us to sin. Not that we cannot be angry, but we must learn daily not to take offenses personally, and learn to release our pain to God.
Just went to Church of our Saviour. There are things that I liked about it, cos I am used to the charismatic kind of worship, as well as the cell group format. ;) There were ofcos, other things that I am unused to. Hence when my friend asked me how I find it, I could only say "okay". The word "okay" to imply many things. One of which is that a church will never be perfect. If u want to find your fair share of offenses, there will be plenty in the church. That is because God is perfect, but the church is not.
Going on this journey has made me realise how impt it is to fix my eyes on Jesus. No matter what happens, or what christians I meet. These can be said to be peripherals. Because nothing on this earth is perfect. I am more and more critical these days, and I get mad at people for their apathy, or practises. But I must say, be angry if I want to, ultimately, it is to fix my eyes on Jesus, and nothing in this world can shake this relationship between u and the Maker.
Most of all, the time taken to resolve conflicts or quarrel with another christian or ruminating over doctrinal issues could sometimes be better utilised by just walking the talk- doing it, serving people, meeting needs, and helping lives. :)
It will take time for us to figure out what we should do, which ministry to serve in, which occupation to take up. Whatever it is just do something! Do not worry about tmr, live each day as it is, being precious. Each day be a blessing to someone. Start something, do something. We may not have our future all mapped out in front of us, but surely opportunities will come as we take each step of our lives. I must believe this. I have to hold on to this.
Dear God, let me fix my eyes on You. No christian is a lone ranger, for U have called us into a Body. Help me, Help us, as a church, to walk right with You. And make me a blessing to those around me. Thank You Lord. Amen.
Sunday, September 10, 2006
Nice quote!
"God has richly blessed us financially not so that we can show ourselves to be his children by living above the standards of others, but so that we can show ourselves to be his children by coming down a few rungs on the ladder of affluence and bringing others up a few rungs, that there might be true, from-the-heart equality."
Money, Possessions & Eternity
Randy Alcorn
Money, Possessions & Eternity
Randy Alcorn
Sunday, September 03, 2006
The other side of the story..
I've been talking so much abt finances and money, and opposing the "prosperity" gospel. But to be fair, I have to talk abt the other side of the story. I'm not really going to be quoting any verses, but these are just some of my thoughts from what I've experienced.
CHC is indeed a very giving church, and I know that in the years where I've been there, when it came to building fund and missions fund, a lot of us gave our very best. Some of us give so much that our bank account only had a few dollars left- trusting that God will honour us back as we give to Him.
In order for ple to give a lot- they must have the faith that God will provide. And I think that ple really do need to know that! To learn to trust in God's provision.
I believe that God works through our faith. I also believe that as we give, He will always provide for us. Though the part that I am uncomfortable is emphasizing on the blessings that we will get if we give. I think emphasizing on what we can receive seems a bit transactional to me- giving so that u can receive. As opposed to, I know God will provide for me even as I give, but most of all, I give because I love Him.
I am also uncomfy with the question "How many of u want to be rich?" Pastors always a link we want to be rich to be a blessing, but sometimes it is so hard to draw the linkage.
Most of all, I think God sees our hearts. Whether we are dumping our money in the offering so that we can be rich (smtimes it seems to be implied that way from the sermons), or whether we really give with the right hearts/attitudes.
CHC is indeed a very giving church, and I know that in the years where I've been there, when it came to building fund and missions fund, a lot of us gave our very best. Some of us give so much that our bank account only had a few dollars left- trusting that God will honour us back as we give to Him.
In order for ple to give a lot- they must have the faith that God will provide. And I think that ple really do need to know that! To learn to trust in God's provision.
I believe that God works through our faith. I also believe that as we give, He will always provide for us. Though the part that I am uncomfortable is emphasizing on the blessings that we will get if we give. I think emphasizing on what we can receive seems a bit transactional to me- giving so that u can receive. As opposed to, I know God will provide for me even as I give, but most of all, I give because I love Him.
I am also uncomfy with the question "How many of u want to be rich?" Pastors always a link we want to be rich to be a blessing, but sometimes it is so hard to draw the linkage.
Most of all, I think God sees our hearts. Whether we are dumping our money in the offering so that we can be rich (smtimes it seems to be implied that way from the sermons), or whether we really give with the right hearts/attitudes.
Saturday, September 02, 2006
I've to let this go..
Hello hello..yr Target?
Yr Forecast?
Attendance is low, can u all try to bring more...?
"Hello...hey check with u something, what is yr average prayer hour?"
A: "Hello...hey, are you going for the prayer meeting?"
B: "Nope, I'm not... I gotto take care of my mum at home."
C: "Er...hmm...try and go la. Have faith. The prayer meeting will be good."
Communication is an art.
If u miss that, it is going to come out as pressure and not love.
Fang says that mature christians/ leaders will know what is the heart of the pastor. It is not for numbers, but it is for souls. For individuals to come to know God.
Question is, when systems are in place, numbers are to be submitted, how can one ensure that he keeps his heart on the right focus?
I failed. It wasn't me at all, to lecture ple for their legitimate reasons for not going for cg/service. I don't have a conviction in my heart that attendance measured a person's spirituality. But then in my heart, when someone told me he couldn't come, naturally I would think.. sigh, attendance dropped.
I started to dislike myself for thinking that way. Its shdn't be that way at all. What are are concerned about and who are u working for, XJ???
In my search for perfection in everything I did, I was angry with myself for a long time. My conscious bugged me. Is this what being a christian is all about?
What makes a man a christian? Is it by his attendance for activities?
Who can judge a man but God.
Leaders are mere facilitators, mere servants of God.
We are nothing. When we begin to think we are something, we are finished.
When we begin to apply man-made traditions on ple, and man-made judgements/rituals to follow, we put bondages on people.
Man-made systems are not perfect, and neither is man. I am ashamed to say, I've done things wrongly. But thank God for the grace to step down, to start all over again. :)
I care a lot about how ple view me, abt how they view my "spiritual condition". That's because I think ple judge others by what they do on the outside. I know I am not perfect, and I try hard to prevent myself from bitterness. I almost try and justify myself and wanna shout it out- I am doing spiritually okay! But what defines spiritually okay anyway?
I have to be true to myself, and I am who I am. There are things I love that others don't. There're preferences I have that make me unique. And this is me.
Yr Forecast?
Attendance is low, can u all try to bring more...?
"Hello...hey check with u something, what is yr average prayer hour?"
A: "Hello...hey, are you going for the prayer meeting?"
B: "Nope, I'm not... I gotto take care of my mum at home."
C: "Er...hmm...try and go la. Have faith. The prayer meeting will be good."
Communication is an art.
If u miss that, it is going to come out as pressure and not love.
Fang says that mature christians/ leaders will know what is the heart of the pastor. It is not for numbers, but it is for souls. For individuals to come to know God.
Question is, when systems are in place, numbers are to be submitted, how can one ensure that he keeps his heart on the right focus?
I failed. It wasn't me at all, to lecture ple for their legitimate reasons for not going for cg/service. I don't have a conviction in my heart that attendance measured a person's spirituality. But then in my heart, when someone told me he couldn't come, naturally I would think.. sigh, attendance dropped.
I started to dislike myself for thinking that way. Its shdn't be that way at all. What are are concerned about and who are u working for, XJ???
In my search for perfection in everything I did, I was angry with myself for a long time. My conscious bugged me. Is this what being a christian is all about?
What makes a man a christian? Is it by his attendance for activities?
Who can judge a man but God.
Leaders are mere facilitators, mere servants of God.
We are nothing. When we begin to think we are something, we are finished.
When we begin to apply man-made traditions on ple, and man-made judgements/rituals to follow, we put bondages on people.
Man-made systems are not perfect, and neither is man. I am ashamed to say, I've done things wrongly. But thank God for the grace to step down, to start all over again. :)
I care a lot about how ple view me, abt how they view my "spiritual condition". That's because I think ple judge others by what they do on the outside. I know I am not perfect, and I try hard to prevent myself from bitterness. I almost try and justify myself and wanna shout it out- I am doing spiritually okay! But what defines spiritually okay anyway?
I have to be true to myself, and I am who I am. There are things I love that others don't. There're preferences I have that make me unique. And this is me.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
On the Cross again :)
But who would be the first to comfort? Why, the first to suffer! Who would be the first to speak of the cross with great power and great conviction? (That is, who would be able to speak of the cross with words firmly set in reality?) Who would be the first to declare resurrection? Only one who had died. Who would comfort, except the comforted? Who would heal, except the healed? Who would wield power? None, except those who had been made terribly weak. Who would shield us from legalism and law, except he who had had that beast broken in the depths of his very own nature? Who would pour out his life in long hours of counseling, guidance, direction, except the one who had gained a great deal of counsel, guidance and direction...slowly, painfully, richly...
But why does God permit such suffering to befall his bride?
This suffering produces gold in the lives of those individuals who suffer. That gold, in each life, is then blended into the body of Christ to make the bride what she ought to be.
Careful, Chris, the very thing that you are now rebelling against just might be in perfect harmony with the Lord. What you see and feel so painfully may be the Lord's effort to polish a stone.
Greatly rejoice
Right now you must suffer a little bit.
But these sufferings
These tests of your faith
Are worth a great deal more than gold.
Survive this
And your faith will be proven genuine
And the result will be praise and glory and honor. (1 Pet 1:6-7)
....
It has been given to you,
Not only to believe on him,
But also to suffer for his sake (Philippians 1:29)
One day you are going to look back over your life to recall to mind many an incident. I trust that most of what you remember will be the joys. But remembrances of dark sorrows will surely be included. Whichever tips the balance, remember you will never know how much you owe to suffering. You may even be surprised at just how little the rich blessings and joy have contributed to your growth in divine life. Be sure, some of the greatest blessings yr life will ever know, some of the deepest revelation you will ever peer into, some of the most cherished works the Lord will ever do in your life, yes, the things you hold most dear, were but the child of your greatest sorrow!
One day you will make a chance remark to another believer and be very surprised to discover that your remark deeply blesses and enriches his life. On another occasion, with another Christian whose heart is about to break, you will share something that will change his night to die. You will pause, wonder, and then remember where it was you found that word of wisdom, that oil of comfort.
If you could trace the source, you would find that virtually every help you have ever received- whether it has been from the hands of some brother, or from some word in Christian literature, or perhaps from the scripture- was passed on to you from out of sorrow's fiery furnance and from beneath the bludgeoning blows of suffering's hammer.
Sorrow does have its compensation.
We comfort others, With the comfort that came to us (2 Cor 1:5)
Imagine a distraught, perplexed and broken hearted Paul imprisoned in Rome and addressing a church in a city hundreds of miles away. It is a church he has never seen, and this is what he tells them:
You are rejoicing and filled with praise. You are doing well in Colossae. Why? Because I, Paul, here in Rome, Am taking suffering that was actually meant for you. I am taking that suffering into my very own body, and that has freed you. You are not suffering; you are rejoicing. The pain destined for you lies here in Rome And is now in me.
Suffering meant for believers in Colossae was being absorbed in Rome by Paul. He agonized while they gloried.
But even these are not the last of his mind boggling words. He pressed on to say, 'For this, I was made a minister.'
Paul saw himself as one who was to take up part of the sufferings that really belonged to the church. For this purpose- this incredible purpose- he was made minister....
Now I rejoice in my sufferings. They are for your sake. In my body I am doing my part for his body to complete what is not finished of Christ's afflictions. (Col 1:24)
[24 I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church, 25 of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God ]
CHrist did not finish his sufferings while here on earth? There is more suffering for him to complete? Is this what Paul is telling us? And is he saying that he, Paul, could complete those sufferings? Or at least play a part in seeing that those sufferings are completed? The mind drowns in the idea.
Jesus Christ did not complete his early sufferings- incredible!
...
It has been given to the church to complete the sufferings of Christ.
There is Christ who is the Head...that is, he who lived upon the earth, who was crucified, rose and ascended and now reigns. But there is another part of Christ. There is a part of Christ that is right here, right now, upon the earth today- visible-potraying Christ daily before the entire world. I speak of the physical, visible body of Christ. You see, the body is also Christ. The body, which is the church, is part of that Christ. ..
There is one aspect of the cross that none of us will ever know-praise God! We will never know what it means to be the sin bearer. That is one thing I will never experience, nor will you.
The Inward Journey
Gene Edwards
----
Now I understand better what these verses means:
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ. 6 Now if we are afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effective for enduring the same sufferings which we also suffer. Or if we are comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation.
7 And our hope for you is steadfast, because we know that as you are partakers of the sufferings, so also you will partake of the consolation.
-2 Cor 1:3-7
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written: "For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter." F22 37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
-Rom 8:35-39
In case u get the above wrong, its not suffering for suffering per se, or the mentality of a victim. We are victorious in Christ. Though, we will go thru persecution for His name's sake, or He allows us to go thru the fire to build our character. :)
But why does God permit such suffering to befall his bride?
This suffering produces gold in the lives of those individuals who suffer. That gold, in each life, is then blended into the body of Christ to make the bride what she ought to be.
Careful, Chris, the very thing that you are now rebelling against just might be in perfect harmony with the Lord. What you see and feel so painfully may be the Lord's effort to polish a stone.
Greatly rejoice
Right now you must suffer a little bit.
But these sufferings
These tests of your faith
Are worth a great deal more than gold.
Survive this
And your faith will be proven genuine
And the result will be praise and glory and honor. (1 Pet 1:6-7)
....
It has been given to you,
Not only to believe on him,
But also to suffer for his sake (Philippians 1:29)
One day you are going to look back over your life to recall to mind many an incident. I trust that most of what you remember will be the joys. But remembrances of dark sorrows will surely be included. Whichever tips the balance, remember you will never know how much you owe to suffering. You may even be surprised at just how little the rich blessings and joy have contributed to your growth in divine life. Be sure, some of the greatest blessings yr life will ever know, some of the deepest revelation you will ever peer into, some of the most cherished works the Lord will ever do in your life, yes, the things you hold most dear, were but the child of your greatest sorrow!
One day you will make a chance remark to another believer and be very surprised to discover that your remark deeply blesses and enriches his life. On another occasion, with another Christian whose heart is about to break, you will share something that will change his night to die. You will pause, wonder, and then remember where it was you found that word of wisdom, that oil of comfort.
If you could trace the source, you would find that virtually every help you have ever received- whether it has been from the hands of some brother, or from some word in Christian literature, or perhaps from the scripture- was passed on to you from out of sorrow's fiery furnance and from beneath the bludgeoning blows of suffering's hammer.
Sorrow does have its compensation.
We comfort others, With the comfort that came to us (2 Cor 1:5)
Imagine a distraught, perplexed and broken hearted Paul imprisoned in Rome and addressing a church in a city hundreds of miles away. It is a church he has never seen, and this is what he tells them:
You are rejoicing and filled with praise. You are doing well in Colossae. Why? Because I, Paul, here in Rome, Am taking suffering that was actually meant for you. I am taking that suffering into my very own body, and that has freed you. You are not suffering; you are rejoicing. The pain destined for you lies here in Rome And is now in me.
Suffering meant for believers in Colossae was being absorbed in Rome by Paul. He agonized while they gloried.
But even these are not the last of his mind boggling words. He pressed on to say, 'For this, I was made a minister.'
Paul saw himself as one who was to take up part of the sufferings that really belonged to the church. For this purpose- this incredible purpose- he was made minister....
Now I rejoice in my sufferings. They are for your sake. In my body I am doing my part for his body to complete what is not finished of Christ's afflictions. (Col 1:24)
[24 I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church, 25 of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God ]
CHrist did not finish his sufferings while here on earth? There is more suffering for him to complete? Is this what Paul is telling us? And is he saying that he, Paul, could complete those sufferings? Or at least play a part in seeing that those sufferings are completed? The mind drowns in the idea.
Jesus Christ did not complete his early sufferings- incredible!
...
It has been given to the church to complete the sufferings of Christ.
There is Christ who is the Head...that is, he who lived upon the earth, who was crucified, rose and ascended and now reigns. But there is another part of Christ. There is a part of Christ that is right here, right now, upon the earth today- visible-potraying Christ daily before the entire world. I speak of the physical, visible body of Christ. You see, the body is also Christ. The body, which is the church, is part of that Christ. ..
There is one aspect of the cross that none of us will ever know-praise God! We will never know what it means to be the sin bearer. That is one thing I will never experience, nor will you.
The Inward Journey
Gene Edwards
----
Now I understand better what these verses means:
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ. 6 Now if we are afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effective for enduring the same sufferings which we also suffer. Or if we are comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation.
7 And our hope for you is steadfast, because we know that as you are partakers of the sufferings, so also you will partake of the consolation.
-2 Cor 1:3-7
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written: "For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter." F22 37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
-Rom 8:35-39
In case u get the above wrong, its not suffering for suffering per se, or the mentality of a victim. We are victorious in Christ. Though, we will go thru persecution for His name's sake, or He allows us to go thru the fire to build our character. :)
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Remove and Replace
Had a good service today at Covenant. Really blessed by the sermon today by Ps Edmund Chan. :) Praise and Worship was good too, haha..cos they sang Hillsongs! Yay!
I guess what I really like about Covenant is the emphasis on being "in" Christ. Being a christian not as a performance driven kind of thing, but really, it is God who moulds us and grows us and makes us change. It is a gift! It isn't so much of our own labour or achievement to be more and more spiritual. So the emphasis is not on recruiting ple to ministry, or to attend this or that, to make ple give money, but rather, the emphasis on changing ple on the inside- leading them towards radical change in their behaviour.
He made a statement that really convicted my heart, that "God's work in us, must preceed His work through us". Really true! Its not about starting with the mindset that I (capital and bold- emphasis on self) am going to slay goliaths, do great things for God...I me and myself. But it is abt starting with the mindset that God- I can do nothing except IN You!! Hence it is of utmost importance that God works within our hearts first, whereby we come to this place of surrender, obedience, and where we may lay down our pride...all glory goes to Him. Its not about the goliaths that WE have slain. Its all about obedience toward Him, and being His tools.
Really exciting, met up with Benny, ex-chef of Goshen Restaurant just now too. He is going to start a Fifteen Restaurant equivalent in Singapore! :) Genuinely very happy for that to happen. Youths must be given a direction and purpose. That is so impt! One day I hope that the model will include depressed kids as well.
I guess what I really like about Covenant is the emphasis on being "in" Christ. Being a christian not as a performance driven kind of thing, but really, it is God who moulds us and grows us and makes us change. It is a gift! It isn't so much of our own labour or achievement to be more and more spiritual. So the emphasis is not on recruiting ple to ministry, or to attend this or that, to make ple give money, but rather, the emphasis on changing ple on the inside- leading them towards radical change in their behaviour.
He made a statement that really convicted my heart, that "God's work in us, must preceed His work through us". Really true! Its not about starting with the mindset that I (capital and bold- emphasis on self) am going to slay goliaths, do great things for God...I me and myself. But it is abt starting with the mindset that God- I can do nothing except IN You!! Hence it is of utmost importance that God works within our hearts first, whereby we come to this place of surrender, obedience, and where we may lay down our pride...all glory goes to Him. Its not about the goliaths that WE have slain. Its all about obedience toward Him, and being His tools.
Really exciting, met up with Benny, ex-chef of Goshen Restaurant just now too. He is going to start a Fifteen Restaurant equivalent in Singapore! :) Genuinely very happy for that to happen. Youths must be given a direction and purpose. That is so impt! One day I hope that the model will include depressed kids as well.
Saturday, August 26, 2006
Prosperity and Provincialism
"I've thought a lot about prosperity theology. I thought about it as I walked through the streets of Cairo's Garbage Village, shaking the grimy hands of Christians living in abject poverty. I thought about it when I worshipped along faithful believers on a rough backless bench in a dirt-floor church in Kenya. I thought about it again when I sat in a dim room with pastors behind the Iron Curtain. I thought of it when I walked down muddy backstreets in Cambodia and squeezed into tiny homes in China. I thought about it as I was flown across the United States, put up in a plush hotel room, and picked up in a limousine that drove me to a Christian television studio for a twenty minute interview...
My novel Safely Home is the story of a U.S. businessman and his Chinese roommate who graduated from Harvard together twenty five years before. They haven't communicated with each other for two decades but are suddenly reunitied in China. The one who has followed Christ is experiencing adversity and joy. The one who turned from Christ is experiencing prosperity and emptiness. The contrast between these two old friends is the contrast between biblical Christianity and prosperity theology...
In America, a sharp looking businessman stands up at a luncheon to give his testimony: 'Before I knew Christ, I had nothing. My business was in bankruptcy, my health was ruined, I'd lost the respect of the community, and I'd almost lost my family. Then I accepted Christ. He took me out of bankruptcy and now my business has tripled its profits. My blood pressure has dropped to normal and I feel better than I've felt in years. Best of all, my wife and children have come back, and we're a family again. God is good-praise the Lord!'
In China, a disheveled former university professor gives his testimony. 'Before I met Christ, I had everything. I made a large salary, lived in a nice house, enjoyed good health, was highly respected for my credentials and profession, and had a good marriage and a beautiful son. Then I accepted Christ as my Saviour and Lord. As a result, I lost my post in the university, lost my beautiful house and car, and spent five years in prison. Now I work for a subsistence wage at a factory. I live with pain in my neck, which was broken in prison. My wife rejected me bacause of my conversion. She took my son away and I haven't seen him for ten years. But God is good, and I praise Him for His faithfulness.'
Both men are sincere Christians. One gives thanks beacause of what he's gained. The other gives thanks in spite of what he's lost.
Material blessings and restored families are defintely worth being thankful for. The brother in China would be grateful to have them again; indeed, he gives heartfelt thanks each day for the little he does have. And while the American brother is certainly right to give thanks, he and the rest of us must be careful to sort out how much of what he has experienced is part of the gospel and how much is not. For any gospel that is more true in America that in China is not the true gospel."
From Money Possessions & Eternity- Randy Alcorn
Dear God,
If I am wrong about this pls correct me and speak to me. If this is the truth then pls convict my dear brothers and sisters who are reading this. Protect us from the evil one and any distortion from Your truth.
Thank You Lord.
My novel Safely Home is the story of a U.S. businessman and his Chinese roommate who graduated from Harvard together twenty five years before. They haven't communicated with each other for two decades but are suddenly reunitied in China. The one who has followed Christ is experiencing adversity and joy. The one who turned from Christ is experiencing prosperity and emptiness. The contrast between these two old friends is the contrast between biblical Christianity and prosperity theology...
In America, a sharp looking businessman stands up at a luncheon to give his testimony: 'Before I knew Christ, I had nothing. My business was in bankruptcy, my health was ruined, I'd lost the respect of the community, and I'd almost lost my family. Then I accepted Christ. He took me out of bankruptcy and now my business has tripled its profits. My blood pressure has dropped to normal and I feel better than I've felt in years. Best of all, my wife and children have come back, and we're a family again. God is good-praise the Lord!'
In China, a disheveled former university professor gives his testimony. 'Before I met Christ, I had everything. I made a large salary, lived in a nice house, enjoyed good health, was highly respected for my credentials and profession, and had a good marriage and a beautiful son. Then I accepted Christ as my Saviour and Lord. As a result, I lost my post in the university, lost my beautiful house and car, and spent five years in prison. Now I work for a subsistence wage at a factory. I live with pain in my neck, which was broken in prison. My wife rejected me bacause of my conversion. She took my son away and I haven't seen him for ten years. But God is good, and I praise Him for His faithfulness.'
Both men are sincere Christians. One gives thanks beacause of what he's gained. The other gives thanks in spite of what he's lost.
Material blessings and restored families are defintely worth being thankful for. The brother in China would be grateful to have them again; indeed, he gives heartfelt thanks each day for the little he does have. And while the American brother is certainly right to give thanks, he and the rest of us must be careful to sort out how much of what he has experienced is part of the gospel and how much is not. For any gospel that is more true in America that in China is not the true gospel."
From Money Possessions & Eternity- Randy Alcorn
Dear God,
If I am wrong about this pls correct me and speak to me. If this is the truth then pls convict my dear brothers and sisters who are reading this. Protect us from the evil one and any distortion from Your truth.
Thank You Lord.
Monday, August 21, 2006
Joy in prayer
Found this link in a friend's blog, quite blessed by it:
http://gregscouch.homestead.com/files/Quiet_Time_Guilt.htm
It's so true, I often feel guilty or like a "bad" christian when I don't spend enough quiet time with God. But this author challenges us to seek God, not out of legalism. :)
http://gregscouch.homestead.com/files/Quiet_Time_Guilt.htm
It's so true, I often feel guilty or like a "bad" christian when I don't spend enough quiet time with God. But this author challenges us to seek God, not out of legalism. :)
Sunday, August 20, 2006
This is me...
Yup. U came to the right blog. I figured that the old skin was too tough to read all my long blogs, and hopefully this is more reader frenly. :) I'm not sure who comes here anyway.
I went to Covenant instead today. Cos yup, I didn't want to face the pain of disagreeing. This is me- sometimes when something bothers me, it can sit in me for hrs and hrs, and it goes around in a loop in my mind, and makes me feel bad. This lingering feeling from yesterday night..yes, it remains and it bothers me.
Covenant was okay today. One thing I really miss is the worship at CHC, and yup, it just brings me right into the presence of God. Whereas at Covenant, most ple are comfortable putting their hands behind their backs of just clasping them together, or putting them at the side, I instinctively reach out my two hands- and this to me feels like worship. Don't be mistaken here, I am not saying that is the right way, but it is more of a comfort thing.
There are lots of possibilities in this world. And ple who make things happen are not those who indulge in the negative. But they look beyond the negative and see the possibilities. That's what I am trying to do. Focusing on the negative= church-less, relationship-less, and blurred future. But focusing on the positive- reminding myself that yes, God is bringing me to a new place of closeness with Him thru this season, and there are so many doors that He is opening up for me wrt work. :)
Did a google on Dr. AR Bernard, and discovered some interesting things, like how he stood up for truth and talked abt the white church failing wrt racial equality (smthing along that lines). His church building is a big complex complete with cafe and garden and all. Yet, the church also build schools, and helps the poor in New York. So yep, I've come to the realisation that there can be beliefs A, B and C. Person X may believe in ABC, but person Y believes in AC, and Z in AB. And that creates a whole lot of spectrum of differences wrt how XYZ views life, and how he shd live as a christian. Nevertheless, there are always things to learn from each other, and different aspects of each church that are strong and we can be encouraged by. I hope this makes sense.
So looking at possibilities, its just exploding all the way. :) Dear God lead me in Yr truth. Help me to focus on the major and not the minor. Help me to do what is right, not being distracted or losing energy on the things that go around me.
Today's sermon on finishing well...on the test of reality. Whether or not we are satisfied in God or in other stuffs. Ya, there are still so many things that are holding me back in my heart...there's portion that still needs to be surrendered to God. And it is so difficult to find total satisfaction in Christ alone. Afterall, God said it was not good for men to be alone. ;)It is within our nature to feel lonely etc. I really hope that I can seek Christ first over and above all other things that I desire.
I went to Covenant instead today. Cos yup, I didn't want to face the pain of disagreeing. This is me- sometimes when something bothers me, it can sit in me for hrs and hrs, and it goes around in a loop in my mind, and makes me feel bad. This lingering feeling from yesterday night..yes, it remains and it bothers me.
Covenant was okay today. One thing I really miss is the worship at CHC, and yup, it just brings me right into the presence of God. Whereas at Covenant, most ple are comfortable putting their hands behind their backs of just clasping them together, or putting them at the side, I instinctively reach out my two hands- and this to me feels like worship. Don't be mistaken here, I am not saying that is the right way, but it is more of a comfort thing.
There are lots of possibilities in this world. And ple who make things happen are not those who indulge in the negative. But they look beyond the negative and see the possibilities. That's what I am trying to do. Focusing on the negative= church-less, relationship-less, and blurred future. But focusing on the positive- reminding myself that yes, God is bringing me to a new place of closeness with Him thru this season, and there are so many doors that He is opening up for me wrt work. :)
Did a google on Dr. AR Bernard, and discovered some interesting things, like how he stood up for truth and talked abt the white church failing wrt racial equality (smthing along that lines). His church building is a big complex complete with cafe and garden and all. Yet, the church also build schools, and helps the poor in New York. So yep, I've come to the realisation that there can be beliefs A, B and C. Person X may believe in ABC, but person Y believes in AC, and Z in AB. And that creates a whole lot of spectrum of differences wrt how XYZ views life, and how he shd live as a christian. Nevertheless, there are always things to learn from each other, and different aspects of each church that are strong and we can be encouraged by. I hope this makes sense.
So looking at possibilities, its just exploding all the way. :) Dear God lead me in Yr truth. Help me to focus on the major and not the minor. Help me to do what is right, not being distracted or losing energy on the things that go around me.
Today's sermon on finishing well...on the test of reality. Whether or not we are satisfied in God or in other stuffs. Ya, there are still so many things that are holding me back in my heart...there's portion that still needs to be surrendered to God. And it is so difficult to find total satisfaction in Christ alone. Afterall, God said it was not good for men to be alone. ;)It is within our nature to feel lonely etc. I really hope that I can seek Christ first over and above all other things that I desire.
Saturday, August 19, 2006
It's really tuff...
Just went to Dr. AR Bernard's session at CHC, and will go again tmr. Was really blessed once again by his wisdom on social order and how God wanted to restore social order again...on earth, so that the world can function as what God originally inspired. Truly very inspiring. :) And he talked abt how God will use us to speak to men in authority, so that these men in authority can also influence and change culture. Reminds me of how God is opening doors for me in the co. to speak to the director.
But at the end of the msg, I think I couldn't identify with Pastor Kong's conclusion on the sermon cos I kinda had a diff conclusion about it. I think Dr. Bernard wasn't trying to get at us being the top lawyer/business person etc, but really abt the wisdom of God in diff situations in reaching out to individuals. How God can use us to influence ple in authority, so I may just be a small secretary in the office yet, God will open doors for me to speak to my boss in authority. Its really abt wisdom of God and this awareness that God is working in every person's life, and we are partners with Him. Its not really about us being the best this and top that in our industry.
It's really tuff thinking differently from other ple, its like u got some disease or something, or u ate some pills that makes u see the world in different colour. When I went back home and discussed with my sis, she said I was quite skewed in my thinking, and that after a while we stopped discussing cos it got uncomfortable. I really don't know why I have to go around explaining to ple my stand. And it is really tuff and painful to be different from the rest. I am really not very secure I guess. It gets lonely being different. :( And tiring.
But at the end of the msg, I think I couldn't identify with Pastor Kong's conclusion on the sermon cos I kinda had a diff conclusion about it. I think Dr. Bernard wasn't trying to get at us being the top lawyer/business person etc, but really abt the wisdom of God in diff situations in reaching out to individuals. How God can use us to influence ple in authority, so I may just be a small secretary in the office yet, God will open doors for me to speak to my boss in authority. Its really abt wisdom of God and this awareness that God is working in every person's life, and we are partners with Him. Its not really about us being the best this and top that in our industry.
It's really tuff thinking differently from other ple, its like u got some disease or something, or u ate some pills that makes u see the world in different colour. When I went back home and discussed with my sis, she said I was quite skewed in my thinking, and that after a while we stopped discussing cos it got uncomfortable. I really don't know why I have to go around explaining to ple my stand. And it is really tuff and painful to be different from the rest. I am really not very secure I guess. It gets lonely being different. :( And tiring.
Saturday, August 12, 2006
2 interesting posts
1. What Would Jesus Buy?
Hur hur....what would He buy?
Hmm..Prada? Armani?
2. Possessed or Obsessed?
Haven't really read this article, cos it is so long! But its quite interesting in providing the background and different views on deliverance. :)
Hur hur....what would He buy?
Hmm..Prada? Armani?
2. Possessed or Obsessed?
Haven't really read this article, cos it is so long! But its quite interesting in providing the background and different views on deliverance. :)
Monday, August 07, 2006
The Cross
Long time since I blogged here, but I was so touched and challenged by a sermon that I downloaded from Cornerstone, that after listening to it, I wept in conviction of my sin, and how I've misinterpreted what the cross means.
http://www.cscc.org.sg/cornerstone/spiritualfood/spiritualfood4.htm
The msg was by Pastor David Ravenhill, titled "The Cross". Do download it to listen if u have the time to. Its such a vastly different msg from those I've heard, I wish that I could type it out. But mainly, the gist of it, was that God sent Jesus so that He could bring us to Himself. It was not so that we could dump our sins with Him, and then have a tkt to heaven, and that was that. But now that we are saved, we become slaves/servants to God.
And he said..many of us christians, after we have been saved, we don't ask God what our purpose was. But instead, we continue on with the plans that we have. E.g. a person who aspired to be a lawyer, is converted some time when he is 16, and he just continues on to go to law school, cos thats what he always wanted to do. But how can it be after conversion, that this person's life remains the same? Planning and going about doing what he wanted to do all his life, even before he became a christian.
Ahh..u must listen to the sermon! I was so convicted that I cried, cos I told God, if He wanted to send me to somewhere in the world to preach, I would go. And then I thought of my parents angry with me. But I felt something broke tonight. And I surrendered control of my life to God.
http://www.cscc.org.sg/cornerstone/spiritualfood/spiritualfood4.htm
The msg was by Pastor David Ravenhill, titled "The Cross". Do download it to listen if u have the time to. Its such a vastly different msg from those I've heard, I wish that I could type it out. But mainly, the gist of it, was that God sent Jesus so that He could bring us to Himself. It was not so that we could dump our sins with Him, and then have a tkt to heaven, and that was that. But now that we are saved, we become slaves/servants to God.
And he said..many of us christians, after we have been saved, we don't ask God what our purpose was. But instead, we continue on with the plans that we have. E.g. a person who aspired to be a lawyer, is converted some time when he is 16, and he just continues on to go to law school, cos thats what he always wanted to do. But how can it be after conversion, that this person's life remains the same? Planning and going about doing what he wanted to do all his life, even before he became a christian.
Ahh..u must listen to the sermon! I was so convicted that I cried, cos I told God, if He wanted to send me to somewhere in the world to preach, I would go. And then I thought of my parents angry with me. But I felt something broke tonight. And I surrendered control of my life to God.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Fellowship
I've been thinking about 2 things recently: Fellowship and Salvation
First of all, what does fellowship mean?
I like what Charles Colson & Ellen Vaughn write in Being the Body
As the book of Acts depicts so beautifully, the Christians of the first churches were of one heart, sharing their material possessions and caring for their brothers and sisters in need. Surrounded by a hostile culture and convinced that Christ was returning soon, they enjoyed the intimacy of shared lives, common cause, and deep friendships that crossed the social and economic barriers of their day. Ordinary believers whose lives had been transformed by the power of Jesus, they truly were what they called themselves; the communio sanctorum-the communion of saints....
Surveys show that the number-one thing people look for in a church today is fellowship. But what most modern Westerners seek is a far cry from that the Bible describes and what the early church practiced. No term in the Christian lexicon is more abused than fellowship...
But the word for "fellowship" in the New Testament Greek, koinonia, means neither punch and cookies nor cookie-cutter Christians. It conveys something richer. Literally it means "a communion", a participation of people together in God's grace. It describes a new community in which individuals willingly covenant to share in common, to be in submission to each other, to support one another and "bear one another's burdens,"as Paul wrote to the Galatians, and to build each other up in relationship with the Lord.
You see, what makes people see the difference in us? We as a group of people who live our lives differently and sacrifice for each other- that is love that God called us to have for each other, and how ple know that Christ is alive in us. A community...a new community of believers.
I've also been thinking about salvation and repentance. Out of curiosity that Jonathan Edwards was mentioned many times in the books that I was reading, I went to google for his sermons- and the most famous one being "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God", preached at Enfield, which stirred the hearts of mean and women. People repented of their sins, came to God and revival broke thru the land. That was in 1739-1740, the start of the Great Awakening in America.
How does revival come about? I believe that revival comes when there is repentance. People come to God and say that they are sorry for their sins, and there is a contrite heart, and a fear of God because He is so Holy. I was scanning thru the sermon by Edwards, and the whole sermon was filled with hell fire & God's judgement on sinners, and yet how He is merciful to keep us alive. And I was pretty shocked. Esp when I compare it with today's evangelistic sermons that focus mostly on God's love, come to Him...He loves u, and if you are a sinner He will forgive u etc. Don't get me wrong, I am sure God is a loving God. Its just that sometimes the sermons can get so watered down that even if people respond, there may not be genuine repentance...a genuine contrite heart that recognises one has sinned. Because receiving Christ, is not just coming to blessings and God's love, but these come, as we repent of our past and sins, and acknowledge that we need God. So its not just about lovely musicals or sermons on the prodigal son. But impt-that ple realise that God is Holy and that we are so in need of Him.
And yes, when we talk abt evangelising to people, we mustn't be afraid to speak to them abt Christ. And sometimes we may even be offensive to them. I believe that whatever Peter and Paul said were offensive to the jews. Repent of yr sins!! Those that u worship are idols! They are lifeless! And they dared to share boldly of Christ. And then the Word cuts thru the hearts of the people, and we realise how wretched we are without God.
First of all, what does fellowship mean?
I like what Charles Colson & Ellen Vaughn write in Being the Body
As the book of Acts depicts so beautifully, the Christians of the first churches were of one heart, sharing their material possessions and caring for their brothers and sisters in need. Surrounded by a hostile culture and convinced that Christ was returning soon, they enjoyed the intimacy of shared lives, common cause, and deep friendships that crossed the social and economic barriers of their day. Ordinary believers whose lives had been transformed by the power of Jesus, they truly were what they called themselves; the communio sanctorum-the communion of saints....
Surveys show that the number-one thing people look for in a church today is fellowship. But what most modern Westerners seek is a far cry from that the Bible describes and what the early church practiced. No term in the Christian lexicon is more abused than fellowship...
But the word for "fellowship" in the New Testament Greek, koinonia, means neither punch and cookies nor cookie-cutter Christians. It conveys something richer. Literally it means "a communion", a participation of people together in God's grace. It describes a new community in which individuals willingly covenant to share in common, to be in submission to each other, to support one another and "bear one another's burdens,"as Paul wrote to the Galatians, and to build each other up in relationship with the Lord.
You see, what makes people see the difference in us? We as a group of people who live our lives differently and sacrifice for each other- that is love that God called us to have for each other, and how ple know that Christ is alive in us. A community...a new community of believers.
I've also been thinking about salvation and repentance. Out of curiosity that Jonathan Edwards was mentioned many times in the books that I was reading, I went to google for his sermons- and the most famous one being "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God", preached at Enfield, which stirred the hearts of mean and women. People repented of their sins, came to God and revival broke thru the land. That was in 1739-1740, the start of the Great Awakening in America.
How does revival come about? I believe that revival comes when there is repentance. People come to God and say that they are sorry for their sins, and there is a contrite heart, and a fear of God because He is so Holy. I was scanning thru the sermon by Edwards, and the whole sermon was filled with hell fire & God's judgement on sinners, and yet how He is merciful to keep us alive. And I was pretty shocked. Esp when I compare it with today's evangelistic sermons that focus mostly on God's love, come to Him...He loves u, and if you are a sinner He will forgive u etc. Don't get me wrong, I am sure God is a loving God. Its just that sometimes the sermons can get so watered down that even if people respond, there may not be genuine repentance...a genuine contrite heart that recognises one has sinned. Because receiving Christ, is not just coming to blessings and God's love, but these come, as we repent of our past and sins, and acknowledge that we need God. So its not just about lovely musicals or sermons on the prodigal son. But impt-that ple realise that God is Holy and that we are so in need of Him.
And yes, when we talk abt evangelising to people, we mustn't be afraid to speak to them abt Christ. And sometimes we may even be offensive to them. I believe that whatever Peter and Paul said were offensive to the jews. Repent of yr sins!! Those that u worship are idols! They are lifeless! And they dared to share boldly of Christ. And then the Word cuts thru the hearts of the people, and we realise how wretched we are without God.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)