Listen to His voice calling out to you...

Reconciled

Monday, 23 April 2007

There is a moving and true story of a little girl whose parents were unhappily married and were going through a period of temporary separation. Although the parents had lost their affection for each other, their love for their young daughter, their only child, was strong and deep. One day, as the little girl was playing in the street, she was knocked down by a car and seriously injured. Rushed to hospital, she was examined by several doctors who soon realised there was nothing they could do for her.

The parents hurried to the hospital and stood, one on either side of the bed, looking down helplessly at the daughter they loved so dearly. As they were standing there, the child's eyes suddenly opened and, seeing her father and mother leaning over her, she tried to greet them with a smile. For a few moments she lay quite still, then, pulling her arms out from underneath the blanket, she held them out to her parents. They both put one hand in hers and slowly she drew them together. Within minutes she was gone. Following the little girl's tragic death, the parents were fully reconciled to each other and within a few years had another child - a beautiful son.

What a picture this is of what Christ did for us on the cross. All illustrations of what God has done for us in Christ are inadequate and imperfect, but this one serves to make the point that on the cross our Saviour took the hand of sinful man and placed it in the hand of a loving heavenly Father. At Calvary our wonderful Saviour reconciled us to God.

"But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself." John 12:32

(Taken from Every Day With Jesus 22 April 2007 entry, written by Selwyn Hughes)

giving thanks at 10:48 :)

Psalm 23:5

Sunday, 22 April 2007

Psalm 23:5 indicates that Jesus Christ will not only supply whatever it is we need whenever we need it, but also feed us even in the midst of a threatening people and threatening circumstances:

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

It is true that the responsible shepherd is always on the lookout for new fields that can nourish his flock. But the good shepherd never sets the sheep loose in a new field without first looking it over carefully. The shepherd knows what the sheep don't: Not every inviting field is harmless. Charles W. Slemming wrote extensively about the work of shepherds in Palestine. He describes a shepherd examining a new field:

"The shepherd inspects the [new] field closely, walking up and down the field looking for grass that could poison the sheep. He also inspects the field for vipers. These tiny brown adders live under the ground, and they have a way of popping up out of their small holes and nipping the noses of the sheep. Their bite is poisonous, and sometimes the inflammation from their bite will kill the sheep.

The shepherd leaves the sheep outside any such infested field. Then he walks up and down the field until he finds the vipers' holes. He takes from his girdle a bottle of thick oil. Then, raking over any long grass with his staff, he pours a circle of oil at the top of every viper's hole he can find. As he leads the sheep into the field, he anoints the head of each sheep with the oil. When the vipers beneath the ground realise that the sheep are grazing above, they come out of their holes to do their deadly damage. But the oil keeps them from getting out. The smooth bodies of the vipers cannot pass over the slippery oil - and they are prisoners inside their own holes... literally, therefore, the sheep are allowed to graze in the presence of their enemies."

With that background in mind, the familiar words of Psalm 23:5 take on even greater significance:

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil.

(Excerpt taken from the book "Getting There" by Steve Farrar)

giving thanks at 15:17 :)

Children's Camp

Thursday, 12 April 2007

During the long weekend of Good Friday to Easter Sunday, our church organised a children's camp for the Sunday school kids. We played games, tried to keep the kids out of trouble, and had fun overall. It was interesting to see the kids run around and reminding us that we are old and do not have so much energy. It was encouraging to see so many of the youth coming down to church to help out in the camp even though it was a long weekend, and they could have chosen to do something else. During the night, it was not only the same few youth who stayed in church, but also those who usually did not hang out with us, like Chad and John. It was funny seeing them play Winning 11, conceding goals and still making a laugh out of it. I was glad that Candice enjoyed herself too, as it was her birthday and her wish was to be happy for the day. There was this morning when all of us went down to Labrador Park, and we brought along a soccer ball. As predicted, everyone played soccer together, kids, youth, as well as adults. Uncle Lester can still run and kick the ball around, i doubt if i can still move half that speed when i reach his age. In the end, everyone had fun, and i think that is the most important thing.

Recently the youth have been going out a lot together, not just on Sundays or Saturdays. It's a good sign, but somehow it's funny, because we have not been so enthusiastic about going out during the week with one another last time. Previously, it seemed that we had already had enough of seeing one another once a week. It's nice to see everyone putting in the effort to meet up, have dinner, and fellowship with one another. It will definitely seal the bond which we already have with one another. However, the thing is that i myself have not been meeting up with them, at least for the past few times, due to preparation for exams and assignments etc. Not that i feel left out or what, but i hope i do not end up drifting further away and eventually not going to church often, just because of work or other commitments. Well, with the Nobodies around, i know that we will always keep a lookout and check regularly on one another (i hope).

My love for the electric bass guitar has been reignited following the meeting with Manson, and also after watching some stunning bass videos. i start to believe that i can actually practise and do some of the stuff which the leading bassists do, which i thought was out of my league last time. i guess that as long as i do not give up on myself, and keep putting in effort to try and to practise, the hard work will pay off one day, even if it means i can only do some impressive bass solo after 50 years of effort. i must also guard myself against any pride or complacency, and always remind myself of what is the chief reason why i started on playing bass. It is to glorify God, not myself. Of course, i once aspired to be a full-time musician, but i thought that might put the focus too much on myself and less on Him. It's like stressing the importance of technique without putting any importance on the heart of worship. Then again, my desire to always give my best to God will help to push me to want to keep on improving. i guess there's a delicate balance between wanting to achieve my own objectives and putting the focus on God at the same time.

i think most likely i'll go for VIP (Vacation Internship Programme) next holidays, instead of going for IA (Industrial Attachment) during Year 3 Sem 2. But it also means i can't go for Gen12ii or mission trip with the church. In Year 4 i'll want to apply for TURT again, and hopefully i'll be accepted into the team by then. i'll definitely need to brush up on my bass technique. Oh well, no point worrying too much at this point. i'll just concentrate on what's in front of me now, and leave the future to God.

giving thanks at 12:08 :)

Gen12ii

Tuesday, 10 April 2007

haha my newsletter is out~ for those who do not know, i'll be going to North East Thailand (Khon Kaen) in June for mission trip with Campus Crusade for Christ! Here are some excerpts from my newsletter:

Gen12ii
Gen12ii is a Campus Crusade Missions Project. As a team, we will be heading to Khon Kaen University to share God's love with all who are willing to listen. Each of us have been blessed, and we seek to be a blessing. (I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing... Genesis 12:2)

The People
Isan - North East Thailand is the poorest region in Thailand and most of the residents are farmers. Khon Kaen is the business centre in Isan and in it is situated one of the top 5 universities in Thailand: Khon Kaen University.

What We Will Be Doing
Students reaching students. As students, we have a unique and precious opportunity to connect with fellow Thai University students. We will be doing street witnessing on campus together with the Thai Campus staff, building friendships with the local students through evangelistic parties, doing follow-up with the Christian students, leading them to know Christ and integrating them into the Christian community there.

Being Thai
The Thai people see Christianity as a foreign religion and being a Christian sometimes translates into them losing their Thai roots. Buddhism is deeply rooted in Thai society, and being Thai often means being a Buddhist - 95% of Thais are Buddhists. Pray that God will help them see that being Thai and being a Buddhist is not the same.

Prayer
- Pray that we will go as a team in the love of the Lord.
- God will place in our hearts a love for the students.
- A prayerful, attentive and obedient heart that seeks to serve the Lord.
- Pray for the Thai students, that God will prepare their hearts to receive the Gospel message.

Our Needs
Our trip will be from the 4th to the 25th of June 2007. For this mission trip to be possible, each of us will be trusting the Lord to provide a total of $1200 per person. We would also be needing prayer support from you, to be interceding on our behalf, for us and for the students in Khon Kaen.

giving thanks at 08:59 :)