Listen to His voice calling out to you...

Eventful Days

Monday, 12 February 2007

After the mass E event, i thought things would be slightly better, because i do not have to worry so much about planning and etc, but i was wrong. Not that it was no better, but i did not think that it would be so busy and packed.

First, there was Yi Xin's 21st birthday party. i must say that she was very creative, in terms of the decorations, the cupcake theme, and the program. Too bad the bungalow she booked was at some secluded place at the corner of Changi and Tanah Merah. Then again, most chalets and holiday bungalows are pretty secluded and inaccessible anyway. i think Yi Xin enjoyed herself, seeing so many of her friends together under 1 roof. We crusaders already comprised a quarter of the people who went for the party. In the end, before we left, the crusaders sang a song for the birthday girl, "Still" by Hillsong, which was 1 of her favourite songs. As Raymond shared afterwards, it was a declaration of our faith in front of the non-Christian friends at the place, and also a reminder to ourselves to always be still and know that He is God. It was so wonderful that this song, which was thought of on the spot without any preparation, was so appropriate, and also tied in with a prayer of blessing which Raymond gave after the song. Surely the presence of God was there at the place.

During the party, i received a call from Michelle, saying that her good friend Candice was hospitalised, and in the Intensive Care Unit. The news came as a shock to me, especially when i could hear Michelle's trembling voice asking me to inform everyone to pray for Candice. Immediately after the call, i sent a message to some of the youth in my church who know Candice, to pray and intercede for her health. Later that night, as i was heading home after the birthday party, i received a message from Michelle that Candice was no longer in the ICU. i breathed a sigh of relief and thanked God.

Ironically, later we found out that Candice was never in ICU. She was admitted to National University Hospital only for some observations, and she was in the Isolation Ward all the time "enjoying herself", in her own words. Apparently Candice's mom misinterpreted the information and in the end everyone was unnecessarily worried. Yesterday some of us went down to NUH to visit Candice, and we had a laugh over it. She is due to be discharged today. Well, at least we are glad that she's all right. Thank God!

This weekend i had a few arguments with my dad. On both Thursday and Friday, i was scolded for not going to bed by 12, even though i was doing work. Apparently when my dad sees me using MSN, he regards me as not doing work. So last night i did not sign in to MSN, and my dad did not say anything. On Saturday, i defended 1 of the church youth from my dad's criticism, and got scolded as a result. Also, i blundered when i tried to keep the table tennis table in church, warranting another bout of criticism from him. My dad works in my church, so whenever i go to church i will get to see him. Ultimately i know that my dad loves me, and i love him as well, even though i hate to admit it. =p hopefully our father-son relationship will improve as time goes. i have been praying for him and myself these few days, and i know i should not give up and fall into the trappings of the devil. Thankfully i have a supportive brother and loving mother, who share the same experiences with me, and they always remind me that i can always draw strength from God, as they have been doing. Without them, i do not know how bad things can turn out. So, i truly thank God for them.

i'm still thinking of what God is trying to teach/show me through my TURT audition experience. i guess that now i know where my level is, and as a result i'm being humbled by the experience. Also, Manson has kindly agreed to meet me occasionally to help me out and guide me in my bass guitar playing, so this is also a blessing in disguise. Hopefully i'm able to improve and head in the right direction during this year, and bring my bass playing to another level. It's all for the glory of God! i will always want to serve God with whatever He has given me.

Yesterday the youth leaders had a meeting on plotting the direction of the youth ministry in the church. In the end it was observed that more discipleship was needed, and Pastor has expressed his desire for a young adults ministry to start in 3 years' time. even though there are no concrete plans as yet, i'm excited to be part of God's plan for the church and for the youth. Praise the Lord!

Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.
Ephesians 3:20

giving thanks at 10:44 :)

Thanksgiving for Mass E

Thursday, 8 February 2007

Finally, after more than a month of planning and praying, the mass evangelistic event was held last night at LT27. All of us (the mass E comm members) felt relieved and somehow sad that the event was over. Even though planning for such an event is never easy, it was definitely made a bit more enjoyable and less tiring by the people whom we worked with, that is, one another. As David Mak shared to me last night, he could really see God's hand at work in this whole event, from planning to execution, and i cannot agree more.

All of us in the comm were first-timers, that is, this was the first time we did such an event. i think for the admin, publicity and program comms, it was quite an experience planning and doing all the stuff, but personally, for logistics, it was more of waiting on the Lord and trusting in Him rather than just doing and planning. Last sem, i was helping out in the programs, and that was a lot of planning and doing, but this time, i think God wanted me to learn how to commit everything into His hands. Many times during the planning, i found that things were out of my control, or that of anyone else in the comm, which meant that we really had to trust God and put our faith in Him, for Him to make a way for us. Time and again, God showed us His sovereignty and things turned out well. Every single uncertainty had to be committed to the Lord, and He did not fail us. The whole event had God's handprints all over it, hence the remark made by Mak.

i really learnt much from this experience, and i definitely feel that my faith is being stretched, much more than what i expected or thought. Indeed, God is faithful, and we can just walk by faith and expect Him to do great things for us and through us. Amen!

giving thanks at 10:47 :)

Thoughts of TURT

Monday, 5 February 2007

i looked at the number on my handphone. It looked strangely familiar. i called back to the number, anticipating the reply to be from Forerunner. Sure enough, a familiar voice greeted me, "Hi, Forerunner here, can i help you?" i told Daniel, "Hi, this is David Chow, did someone call me just now?" Daniel replied, "Hold on..." as he passed the phone to someone else.

True enough, this was the call to inform me of whether i would be accepted to join the Ultimate Road Trip, also known as TURT. It is a music missions project organised by Forerunner, the music ministry arm of Campus Crusade for Christ. If accepted, one will go through a 4-week local training before going on the road in Thailand for 2 weeks, going to campuses and holding concerts. Finally, after a few days of waiting, the results of my audition would be revealed to me.

i was not accepted.

Surprisingly, i was not too sad about it. and after being told about why i was not accepted, i actually felt much better. i was told that there were other students who "needed" to go, more than me. That was because some of the applicants were in their final year, and i still have 2 more years to go. In the end, i was told to continue to improve, and to apply again next year. After the call, i sent an SMS to some of my friends to inform them of the result, and also shared to Dillon (Science Crusade staff) about my thoughts about the whole matter.

Actually, David Mak told me before not to apply for TURT so early, but it was due to unrelated reasons. However, i still decided to apply for TURT. Looking back, i think God was speaking to me through him, and it was never in His plan for me to go for TURT this year. In the end, due to my stubbornness, God had to show me the hard way, but i still thank Him for giving me the experience to go through the audition and interview. Because of that, i now know in which areas i need to improve on and also, i have a better idea of what to expect from the trip.

Somehow i also feel that i'm still not ready for TURT, and it's better for me to go for a campus mission for my very first mission trip. i felt that applying for TURT was my way of staying within my comfort zone, doing something i'm comfortable with and used to doing. So, by not being accepted into the team, i'm being forced to do something which i'm not so comfortable with, that is, reaching out to students by using conversational evangelism. i hate to admit it, but i'm still not very comfortable with talking to strangers, especially about the Gospel. Hopefully a campus mission trip will dispel all fears and give me a burden and heart for the people whom i'm reaching out to.

i give thanks to God, for i know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28) Amen!

giving thanks at 23:20 :)