Listen to His voice calling out to you...

Soccer Match

Monday, 29 January 2007

Soccer is a game which lots of guys like to play and watch, and needless to say, i'm 1 of them. Be it playing soccer in school, watching matches on TV, or playing soccer games on the computer and PS2, it's all enjoyable. That said, i found it surprising that my church youth were asked to play a friendly soccer match against another church some time ago.

Just a brief history, a soccer ministry was started by Andrew Tang back in 1999. At the time, there were a lot of guys in the Agape Youth who were interested to play soccer, and Andrew saw the opportunity to use soccer to reach out to the lost around us. Hence SMFC (St. Matthew's Football Club) was formed, and during the 1st few months and years, it seemed to be reaping benefits. There were new faces apart from the usual youth who go to the fortnightly training sessions, the Chinese congregation youth joined us as well, and we had the opportunity to play some friendlies against other people, both churches as well as school teams. We did not win all of those matches, in fact we were thrashed quite a few times, but we did have fun, and there was team spirit.

Alas, all good things must come to an end. Andrew Tang left the youth and moved on to the young adults, and subsequently to another church. His departure spelled the demise of the soccer ministry, as it did not last long after that. Gradually, we met up less and less often for soccer, and nowadays we only meet up once in a while to play street soccer at Tanjong Pagar which was nearby our church. A few of us thought of restarting the ministry, but we needed a committed guy to do the coordination and planning. Then, the invitation came.

Alvin Chee had been attending our youth services until he decided to move to COGS (Church of Good Shepherd) to join his parents and to have more opportunities to serve God in a bigger capacity. So he was the 1 who arranged for COGS to play SMC, and he asked Jason Goh whether we would like to play a friendly with them. Jason, being on about soccer, gamely said yes, but in the end he had a hard time getting the people to play and looking for a venue. By God's grace, we got the field at St. Andrew's School (Junior), and the weather held out despite looking menacing and having some slight drizzles here and there.

So the match was played yesterday. The final score was not important, i would say that in the end all of us enjoyed ourselves, despite the weather and muddy field. More details of the match can be found at Jason's blog: http://koinoniaz.blogspot.com

Give thanks to God for all the wonderful things He has done and provided! The weather was fantastic, cooling but not raining. We were fretting about the venue until uncle Anthony helped us to book the field at SAS. God protected us during the match, as there were no serious injuries throughout. And also for the many many other things He did!!

Now Chaw Shing has agreed to be the coordinator for the soccer ministry, starting from where we left off the last time. Hopefully we can use this soccer ministry to glorify God and as a platform where we can reach out to the lost around us. Yay!!

giving thanks at 11:37 :)

Giving Thanks to the Lord

Monday, 22 January 2007

i'm a musician, so i'm greatly influenced by songs which i listen to. There's this song called "Forever" by Chris Tomlin which goes like this:

Give thanks to the Lord, my God, my King
His love endures forever!
For He is good, He is above all things
His love endures forever!

Sing praise, sing praise!

Forever God is faithful, forever God is strong,
Forever God is with us, forever...

This song reminds us of the faithfulness and unchanging character of God, and it is so real to me in my life, as i recall what He has done and is still doing in me, with me and through me.

Recently i have been "bogged down" by a lot of things and commitments, and only when the people around me notice the difference in me and tell me about it, then i realise it myself. Personally i really felt that God intentionally arranged for people to care for me and pray with me and for me, and i see His hand at work, and i realise that He cares for me. Not that i do not know that already, but i think it's easy to forget such things when we are going through good times. Only when we go through difficult times do we fall at the feet of God and seek His counsel and help. That is why i hope that from now on i can make it a point to really appreciate the goodness and blessings that God has put in my life and the lives of people around me, and give thanks in all circumstances (1 Thes 5:18), be it good or not so good.

i give thanks for a supportive family, parents who raised me up in the ways of the Lord, and a brother who affirms, encourages and cares for me. i really feel that my family members have been very tolerant of me and my disrespectful ways, my tantrums and my childishness, and that is something which i cannot take for granted. God has really blessed me with this family, and time and again i must give thanks to Him and appreciate my family members for who they are and what they have done and sacrificed for me.

i give thanks for close and supportive friends, brothers and sisters-in-Christ who grew up with me since we were 4-year-old kids in the church Sunday school. These friends are really placed in my life by God, and we have seen one another grow up, become mature, make mistakes, go through all the different phases of life, and we have stuck together through everything. Even though we know one another's weaknesses and have seen many letdowns, mistakes made, we still love one another as brothers and sisters, and this is really very precious to anyone, to have friends who accept you for who you are.

i give thanks for the Engine crusaders, for this group of fervent and passionate Christians who share the vision of reaching out to the lost in campus. i have absolutely no regrets participating and joining crusade in their activities, as it really gives me a sense of purpose in my 4 years in campus, that i'm doing something for God, and fulfilling His Great Commission. i have also received much training in various aspects, and i would say that this phase is definitely a turning point in my life. i am humbled by the people around me, and i have learnt so much from them. i have definitely matured a lot in terms of my walk with God and the way i think during these 1 and a half years alone. Even now i'm being stretched by God, but i know that this is so that i can grow in Him, and if i do not step out of my comfort zone, i will not learn much. In crusade, i really learn how to put what i already know into practice, and to dare to do new things and learn from my experiences.

Enough about me, i realised that there are a lot of "i"s in the paragraphs above. It's time to focus on God, and on His character and works. God has given me so much in my life, that the only way i can repay Him is to give myself to Him, to be used by Him, to be moulded into the person whom God wants me to be. All these may sound cliched, but unless we personally experience God's presence and work in our lives, we will not fully understand and appreciate what those words mean.

Thanks be to God!

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good.
His love endures forever.
To Him who alone does great wonders,
His love endures forever.
With a mighty hand and outstretched arm,
His love endures forever.
To the One who remembered us in our low estate,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of Heaven,
His love endures forever.
Psalm 136:1, 4, 12, 23, 26

giving thanks at 20:27 :)

The Story of Varun

Friday, 19 January 2007

As the late Selwyn Hughes mentioned so many times in his daily devotional "Every Day With Jesus", God never fails to surprise us in our lives, be it in big ways or small. Personally, i have encountered God's work in my life so surprisingly and so unexpectedly in so many instances, that i am constantly reminded of His presence. 1 special moment when that happened was when i met Varun.

i was with the other crusaders last Wednesday after Life Meeting, heading to Fong Seng for a late dinner/supper. As we boarded the internal shuttle bus for the short ride to Arts faculty where we could walk to the eating place popular with NUS students, a voice behind me shook me from my thoughts. "Excuse me, are you from the Guitar Club?" i turned around to see a young Indian student looking at me and gesturing to the guitar i was carrying. "No, no, i'm not from the Guitar Club," i replied. Then, after some thought, "Is it that you want to join the Guitar Club?" The student was happy to continue the conversation with me, saying that he wanted to join the Guitar Club because he wanted to learn how to play the guitar, and as he saw me holding a guitar, he thought i might be from the club. After a quick thought i suggested to teach him the basics of playing guitar, as i was already having guitar lessons with Yi Xin, a crusader from Engine region.

His eyes immediately lit up, and i got his handphone number just as i reached my destination. From that short conversation lasting not more than 30 seconds, i gathered that his name was Varun (Arun with a V in front, that's easy to remember), and he's a Year 1 student doing Business. He's also not a local, having come from India a few months ago. After alighting from the bus, i shared my experience with David Mak and Janice Choo, and the 3 of us prayed and thanked God for opening up to me such a wonderful opportunity. Later that night, as i slowly mulled over what had happened during that 30 seconds, i realised how wonderful God's ways are, that He can even make use of that short amount of time to reach out to a lost soul through me. Of course, i'm not seeking to force Varun to accept Christ, but it is still an opportunity which God has given me, and who knows, God can work miracles in Varun's life.

i have subsequently met up with this brother and arranged weekly guitar lessons with him, so i'll have more chances of engaging in spiritual conversations with him, when i feel that it is appropriate. He has agreed to go for the mass evangelistic event "Victim, Villain or Valentine" this coming 7th February, and i know that God will use that event to touch him in His own special way. i really give thanks to God, for He is good, and His plans are for the best. i only need to trust in Him, and to just do whatever He says. Isn't that wonderful?

Oh the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgements, and His paths beyond tracing out!
Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been His counselor?
Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him?
For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things.
To Him be the glory forever! Amen.
Romans 11:33-36

giving thanks at 20:29 :)

My 1st Post

This will be my 1st post since my last blog, which i deleted some time ago. i hope to dedicate this blog to God, making it a point to post my daily reflections here, hence somehow forcing myself to spend time every day thinking of how God works in my life and thanking Him every day. The new sem has started, and there are actually a lot of things which i want to give thanks to God for. When i have time i'll slowly write everything here.

Thanks be to God!

giving thanks at 10:54 :)