Too many news of deaths! And of young people, too! People younger than me. And one of them, someone I know...
News of accidents also! In a place where social security and so livelihood is not guaranteed.
Annoyed greatly that I was lost for words... Annoyed greatly that I was so disturbed that I couldn't think of what to say!!!
Very disturbed! VERY disturbed...
------
A few more years shall roll,
A few more seasons come,
And we shall be with those that rest
Asleep within the tomb;
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that great day.
O wash me in Thy precious blood,
And take my sins away.
A few more struggles here,
A few more partings o’er,
A few more toils, a few more tears,
And we shall weep no more:
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that bright day.
O wash me in Thy precious blood,
And take my sins away.
by Horatius Bonar, 1842
Monday, 18 August 2008
Sunday, 13 July 2008
A fruitful day...
Thankful to God for a quite fruitful day! =)
Passed on a book that I helped bought for a brother to him.
Gave a good book to another brother - 4th copy of the book I gave away within these three weeks! =)
Passed on two hastily scribbled notes to two brothers (or three brothers and a sister - depending on how one looks at it), which were of slightly different natures - one of encouragement (or so I hoped =)), while the other one of reminder / sharing.
Had a helpful conversation with a sister after lunch in the afternoon - not an easy conversation but thankful to God for her reminders and listening ears.
Altered / shortened two work pants by hands! (i.e. without sewing machine and used my new kitchen scissors to cut the pants =P)
And one thing I'm most happy about - restarting my offline journal!! =) - Looking forward to writing many many more things offline! =)
Planned to actually did a lot more... But I guess I need to keep reminding myself that those limits have been placed by God for own good - and so, I need to work within those limits! =) (and leave those things for tomorrow or another time.......)
Passed on a book that I helped bought for a brother to him.
Gave a good book to another brother - 4th copy of the book I gave away within these three weeks! =)
Passed on two hastily scribbled notes to two brothers (or three brothers and a sister - depending on how one looks at it), which were of slightly different natures - one of encouragement (or so I hoped =)), while the other one of reminder / sharing.
Had a helpful conversation with a sister after lunch in the afternoon - not an easy conversation but thankful to God for her reminders and listening ears.
Altered / shortened two work pants by hands! (i.e. without sewing machine and used my new kitchen scissors to cut the pants =P)
And one thing I'm most happy about - restarting my offline journal!! =) - Looking forward to writing many many more things offline! =)
Planned to actually did a lot more... But I guess I need to keep reminding myself that those limits have been placed by God for own good - and so, I need to work within those limits! =) (and leave those things for tomorrow or another time.......)
Tuesday, 1 July 2008
Neither Poverty nor Riches...
As my current status line says, I am looking forward to do a slow reading of Neither Poverty nor Riches...
I know it won't be an easy reading... But I am looking forward to learning about what the whole Bible has to say on the whole issue of responding to the poverty around us...
I am not looking for an easy answer, and so am hoping that what the books says about itself in its back-cover will really be what I will find as I read it...
Why do I want to know more about this?
Partly just wanting to know more about what God has to say on this issue, I guess...
Partly because I feel that Sydney has become more and more like my home-country with more homeless and poor people around...
Partly, because I do want to know how to deal with this... and maybe even help others get a better idea on how they should see and respond to poverty around them - especially if they plan to go back to our home-country and make a difference there - as Christians...
This is what the back of the book says:
"Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. (Proverbs 30:8)
One of the most difficult questions facing Christians today is that of the proper attitude toward possessions. In wealthy nations such as Britain and the USA, individuals accumulate much and yet are daily exposed to the plight of the poor, whether the homeless on their own city streets or starving children on their TV screens. What action should we take on behalf of the poor? What should we do with our own possessions?
In Neither Poverty nor Riches Craig Blomberg asks what the Bible has to say about these issues. Avoiding easy answers, he instead seeks a comprehensive biblical theology of possessions. And so he begins with the groundwork laid by the Old Testament and the ideas developed in the intertestamental period, then draws out what the whole New Testament has to say on the subject, and finally offers conclusions and applications relevant to our contemporary world.
Neither Poverty Nor Riches is one book that all should read who are concerned with issues of poverty and wealth."
I know it won't be an easy reading... But I am looking forward to learning about what the whole Bible has to say on the whole issue of responding to the poverty around us...
I am not looking for an easy answer, and so am hoping that what the books says about itself in its back-cover will really be what I will find as I read it...
Why do I want to know more about this?
Partly just wanting to know more about what God has to say on this issue, I guess...
Partly because I feel that Sydney has become more and more like my home-country with more homeless and poor people around...
Partly, because I do want to know how to deal with this... and maybe even help others get a better idea on how they should see and respond to poverty around them - especially if they plan to go back to our home-country and make a difference there - as Christians...
This is what the back of the book says:
"Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. (Proverbs 30:8)
One of the most difficult questions facing Christians today is that of the proper attitude toward possessions. In wealthy nations such as Britain and the USA, individuals accumulate much and yet are daily exposed to the plight of the poor, whether the homeless on their own city streets or starving children on their TV screens. What action should we take on behalf of the poor? What should we do with our own possessions?
In Neither Poverty nor Riches Craig Blomberg asks what the Bible has to say about these issues. Avoiding easy answers, he instead seeks a comprehensive biblical theology of possessions. And so he begins with the groundwork laid by the Old Testament and the ideas developed in the intertestamental period, then draws out what the whole New Testament has to say on the subject, and finally offers conclusions and applications relevant to our contemporary world.
Neither Poverty Nor Riches is one book that all should read who are concerned with issues of poverty and wealth."
Monday, 30 June 2008
the memory that I don't have . . .
Finished reading a good book on the life of a godly 'saint' recently and been challenged in many aspect of my life through it.
One of the things that I was encouraged to do is to be more diligent in keeping my offline journal.
Doesn't mean that I will cease writing and posting things online. I will still post things online. However, I do believe that offline and online journals are of different nature and so they could serve slightly different purposes...
I think, an offline journal - is a journal you keep to yourself (and God)... No one else is an audience to what you are writing... Sure, there are times when you write something and think - maybe one day, someone will be reading this and trying to make sense of things etc. But that day usually happen in the far away future... At a time when the things noted down has become a part of history... or maybe even you yourself, has become a part of history...
And that's why an offline journal encourages honesty.... You get to be more open and honest about what you are actually thinking - knowing that what you write is not subject to anyone's judgement but your own - and God... And it does actually make a big difference whether you are writing "to be seen" - and for an audience - or whether you are writing for yourself/God.
When you know that others won't get to read what you think - you have more freedom to write down your current thoughts and ways of thinking... You say / write things that you would otherwise never say / write in front of other people - for various reasons - and not always bad reasons...
Sometimes, there are just things that it's not wise for you to say out loud or publicly - just because of who you are or who others perceive you to be, for example - or simply because things can be easily taken out of context... or maybe because others don't understand a situation as much as you do - or don't have the background knowledge that you have, or even - not having the Christian maturity and knowledge - that might be required in making judgement over certain things said or done...
And so, there are times when things are better kept to yourself and God...
Of course, there are also times when secrecy safeguards sincerity...
Another thing, I guess... is the fact that "time" is just a unique entity that might change the way we (and others) see things as it passes us by...
There are things that seem to be "black and white" to us at a certain moment in life - maybe because of the situations that we face at that time - or the emotions - or anything else - but as time passes... what we think "we saw clearly" took different forms altogether... and they look slightly or very different now... Time has reinterpret the way that they are seen...
And that's why I think an offline journal has this benefit of things not being made public or known to others, until we have decided that the first interpretation wasn't a wise one after all... It has that benefit of "time"... It keeps things in secret until things have withstood the test of time...
But of course I know all the benefits of an online journal... All the encouragement that you get from people... All the incentives to write as you know that others - at least a few people - are reading what you are writing... And just to feel that you have done something - and something others can see! It is satisfying!
And of course it is true that an online journal can be something that's done with the purpose to encourage and build others up. Or to share something with them... Or just to pour your hearts out... After all, this is an age where things are shared with others over the world wide web... =)
I guess... both offline and online journals have their own benefits... As long as we are clear what it is that we are trying to do when we write them.
Who is our target audience? What's the purpose of my writing? Will anyone be encouraged by this? Am I hoping to challenge someone through this? Am I setting an example? Sharing a struggle? Do I just want to be encouraged at the moment? Or am I just showing my human/personal side to others - so they can have a fuller picture of myself?
Would what I write benefit others? Should I write and post this online? Who would be reading this? Would they benefit from reading this? Or would they be stumbled instead?
We can't, of course, be responsible for the way others respond to everything we decide to post online... but I do think that we should exercise a duty of care...
Anyway, I know, most 'saints of old times' I know keep offline journal only because for them, an online one was simply not an option. =) And in today's world, there are many godly people who are keeping an online journal...
But yeah... just thinking I guess... and reflecting... =)
I think, for me, personally - at the moment - I know that an offline journal is something that I plan to work on a bit more... A journal to write down my personal reflections of the Bible passages I am reading... of the questions I have... of the things about people that came to mind as I read certain Bible passages, etc... So yeah, things that are mainly to do with my own personal communication with God or things that might be related to others, but might be better kept to myself or as a topic of conversation with God only...
I will of course, keep working on my blog... Just because I love writing... But yeah, it's been good for me to be reminded that when I do write a blog post (like this) - I'd better have a clear goal in mind...
I guess, for the "saints" in the past - "blog posts" are more like their letters to the people they ministered to? Like McCheyne's letters, or John Newton's letters... or Ryle's letters... Letters they wrote to either encourage or challenge people's ways of thinking or actions...
Although as I said, acknowledging the time I live in, sharing a bit of life - personal but not important - might also be done... =)
Anyway... the sentence that keeps coming back to me from the book - as I reflect on the things I chose to write/not write and also on the things I choose to say/not to say in my conversations with others now - is this:
"As I look back on life with Mum and Dad, perhaps the one thing I recall most vividly is the memory that I don't have. Try as I might, I cannot recollect one time when either of them spoke negatively about another person. Although Mum was an extremely astute judge of character, her analyses were well seasoned with grace and the latent potential for redemption."
I certainly needed the rebuke and reminder! =)
One of the things that I was encouraged to do is to be more diligent in keeping my offline journal.
Doesn't mean that I will cease writing and posting things online. I will still post things online. However, I do believe that offline and online journals are of different nature and so they could serve slightly different purposes...
I think, an offline journal - is a journal you keep to yourself (and God)... No one else is an audience to what you are writing... Sure, there are times when you write something and think - maybe one day, someone will be reading this and trying to make sense of things etc. But that day usually happen in the far away future... At a time when the things noted down has become a part of history... or maybe even you yourself, has become a part of history...
And that's why an offline journal encourages honesty.... You get to be more open and honest about what you are actually thinking - knowing that what you write is not subject to anyone's judgement but your own - and God... And it does actually make a big difference whether you are writing "to be seen" - and for an audience - or whether you are writing for yourself/God.
When you know that others won't get to read what you think - you have more freedom to write down your current thoughts and ways of thinking... You say / write things that you would otherwise never say / write in front of other people - for various reasons - and not always bad reasons...
Sometimes, there are just things that it's not wise for you to say out loud or publicly - just because of who you are or who others perceive you to be, for example - or simply because things can be easily taken out of context... or maybe because others don't understand a situation as much as you do - or don't have the background knowledge that you have, or even - not having the Christian maturity and knowledge - that might be required in making judgement over certain things said or done...
And so, there are times when things are better kept to yourself and God...
Of course, there are also times when secrecy safeguards sincerity...
Another thing, I guess... is the fact that "time" is just a unique entity that might change the way we (and others) see things as it passes us by...
There are things that seem to be "black and white" to us at a certain moment in life - maybe because of the situations that we face at that time - or the emotions - or anything else - but as time passes... what we think "we saw clearly" took different forms altogether... and they look slightly or very different now... Time has reinterpret the way that they are seen...
And that's why I think an offline journal has this benefit of things not being made public or known to others, until we have decided that the first interpretation wasn't a wise one after all... It has that benefit of "time"... It keeps things in secret until things have withstood the test of time...
But of course I know all the benefits of an online journal... All the encouragement that you get from people... All the incentives to write as you know that others - at least a few people - are reading what you are writing... And just to feel that you have done something - and something others can see! It is satisfying!
And of course it is true that an online journal can be something that's done with the purpose to encourage and build others up. Or to share something with them... Or just to pour your hearts out... After all, this is an age where things are shared with others over the world wide web... =)
I guess... both offline and online journals have their own benefits... As long as we are clear what it is that we are trying to do when we write them.
Who is our target audience? What's the purpose of my writing? Will anyone be encouraged by this? Am I hoping to challenge someone through this? Am I setting an example? Sharing a struggle? Do I just want to be encouraged at the moment? Or am I just showing my human/personal side to others - so they can have a fuller picture of myself?
Would what I write benefit others? Should I write and post this online? Who would be reading this? Would they benefit from reading this? Or would they be stumbled instead?
We can't, of course, be responsible for the way others respond to everything we decide to post online... but I do think that we should exercise a duty of care...
Anyway, I know, most 'saints of old times' I know keep offline journal only because for them, an online one was simply not an option. =) And in today's world, there are many godly people who are keeping an online journal...
But yeah... just thinking I guess... and reflecting... =)
I think, for me, personally - at the moment - I know that an offline journal is something that I plan to work on a bit more... A journal to write down my personal reflections of the Bible passages I am reading... of the questions I have... of the things about people that came to mind as I read certain Bible passages, etc... So yeah, things that are mainly to do with my own personal communication with God or things that might be related to others, but might be better kept to myself or as a topic of conversation with God only...
I will of course, keep working on my blog... Just because I love writing... But yeah, it's been good for me to be reminded that when I do write a blog post (like this) - I'd better have a clear goal in mind...
I guess, for the "saints" in the past - "blog posts" are more like their letters to the people they ministered to? Like McCheyne's letters, or John Newton's letters... or Ryle's letters... Letters they wrote to either encourage or challenge people's ways of thinking or actions...
Although as I said, acknowledging the time I live in, sharing a bit of life - personal but not important - might also be done... =)
Anyway... the sentence that keeps coming back to me from the book - as I reflect on the things I chose to write/not write and also on the things I choose to say/not to say in my conversations with others now - is this:
"As I look back on life with Mum and Dad, perhaps the one thing I recall most vividly is the memory that I don't have. Try as I might, I cannot recollect one time when either of them spoke negatively about another person. Although Mum was an extremely astute judge of character, her analyses were well seasoned with grace and the latent potential for redemption."
I certainly needed the rebuke and reminder! =)
Friday, 27 June 2008
Find Us Faithful
Finished reading a book recently, which made a reference to a song, which was introduced to me by a brother sometime ago.
The person in the book - in whose funeral the song was sang though, did live a life that reflects the lyrics of the song...
Also saw a very old couple who came to my workplace to attend friday fellowship and very encouraged by them also... and by the fire of their devotion - even to their old age...
My prayer is that even if my life will be pale compared to these people's lives, the lyrics of the song will still be true of me to a certain extent... =)
Find Us Faithful
(from: http://www.stevegreenministries.org/lyrics/index.php?song=402)
We're pilgrims on the journey
Of the narrow road
And those who've gone before us line the way
Cheering on the faithful, encouraging the weary
Their lives a stirring testament to God's sustaining grace
Surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses
Let us run the race not only for the prize
But as those who've gone before us
Let us leave to those behind us
The heritage of faithfulness
Passed on through godly lives
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful
May the fire of our devotion light their way
May the footprints that we leave
Lead them to believe
And the lives we live inspire them to obey
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful
After all our hopes and dreams have come and gone
And our children sift through all we've left behind
May the clues that they discover
And the memories they uncover
Become the light that leads them
To the road we each must find
Repeat Chorus Twice
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful
Words and Music by Jon Mohr
Copyright 1988 Birdwing Music/Jonathan Mark Music (admin. By The Sparrow Corp.) All Rights Reserved. International Copyright secured.
The person in the book - in whose funeral the song was sang though, did live a life that reflects the lyrics of the song...
Also saw a very old couple who came to my workplace to attend friday fellowship and very encouraged by them also... and by the fire of their devotion - even to their old age...
My prayer is that even if my life will be pale compared to these people's lives, the lyrics of the song will still be true of me to a certain extent... =)
Find Us Faithful
(from: http://www.stevegreenministries.org/lyrics/index.php?song=402)
We're pilgrims on the journey
Of the narrow road
And those who've gone before us line the way
Cheering on the faithful, encouraging the weary
Their lives a stirring testament to God's sustaining grace
Surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses
Let us run the race not only for the prize
But as those who've gone before us
Let us leave to those behind us
The heritage of faithfulness
Passed on through godly lives
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful
May the fire of our devotion light their way
May the footprints that we leave
Lead them to believe
And the lives we live inspire them to obey
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful
After all our hopes and dreams have come and gone
And our children sift through all we've left behind
May the clues that they discover
And the memories they uncover
Become the light that leads them
To the road we each must find
Repeat Chorus Twice
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful
Words and Music by Jon Mohr
Copyright 1988 Birdwing Music/Jonathan Mark Music (admin. By The Sparrow Corp.) All Rights Reserved. International Copyright secured.
Thursday, 26 June 2008
Skills
One of the things I've been thankful to God for during these past few weeks is the fact that as a child, I was given a chance not only to learn how to make simple clothes for my Barbie dolls, but also to make simple furnitures for them - like chairs, bed etc! =)
Some skills do come in handy later on in life! =P
Some skills do come in handy later on in life! =P
Sunday, 8 June 2008
Tomorrow... =)
It is amazing how much you can hide from those around you....
It is amazing and yet worrying at the same time...
Looking forward to a good quality alone time with my Lord and God tomorrow!!! =)
Looking forward to be reminded of His love and kindness and sovereignty over everything... And just looking forward to enjoy "being" who I was created to be! =) Someone, who's created to enjoy a perfect relationship with my sovereign Heavenly Father, through the sacrifice of my loving Lord! =)
Looking forward to tomorrow!! =)
It is amazing and yet worrying at the same time...
Looking forward to a good quality alone time with my Lord and God tomorrow!!! =)
Looking forward to be reminded of His love and kindness and sovereignty over everything... And just looking forward to enjoy "being" who I was created to be! =) Someone, who's created to enjoy a perfect relationship with my sovereign Heavenly Father, through the sacrifice of my loving Lord! =)
Looking forward to tomorrow!! =)
Saturday, 7 June 2008
Saying goodbye... again...
Said goodbye to another person yesterday... Another family to be exact...
Another sad day for me...
Kept thinking... four years from now, things would have changed! Their little baby will no longer be little and the next time he sees me, he won't approach me and ask me to give him a cuddle and carry him up...
He will be 5 at that time... And he will act like any other 5 yo boys and not a cuddly toddler...
How do you do goodbyes well??? How can you get used to it???
But I guess, it is better to have even the short time with them than none at all... It is better to be thankful for what we can have than not taking the chance because we are afraid of having to end it one day...
I'm missing all my friends at the moment... They are all over the world... in different places... and they are all far away from each other! And it's just... hard...
I don't know... I guess, I'm just missing all of them at the moment...
Another sad day for me...
Kept thinking... four years from now, things would have changed! Their little baby will no longer be little and the next time he sees me, he won't approach me and ask me to give him a cuddle and carry him up...
He will be 5 at that time... And he will act like any other 5 yo boys and not a cuddly toddler...
How do you do goodbyes well??? How can you get used to it???
But I guess, it is better to have even the short time with them than none at all... It is better to be thankful for what we can have than not taking the chance because we are afraid of having to end it one day...
I'm missing all my friends at the moment... They are all over the world... in different places... and they are all far away from each other! And it's just... hard...
I don't know... I guess, I'm just missing all of them at the moment...
Friday, 6 June 2008
A good choice! =)
I knew that they chose him for a good reason - or even a few good ones...
Now, though... I know that they indeed made a really good choice! =)
An interesting sms reply... A very interesting one... =) But a good one for me to learn from! =)
That's what I need to learn to do better! =) An art of encouraging and comforting people, while challenging and helping them to focus on Christ at the same time! =)
Now, though... I know that they indeed made a really good choice! =)
An interesting sms reply... A very interesting one... =) But a good one for me to learn from! =)
That's what I need to learn to do better! =) An art of encouraging and comforting people, while challenging and helping them to focus on Christ at the same time! =)
Tuesday, 27 May 2008
Losing the battle...
He asked me how I was coping and if I was winning the battle.
I told him, I just want to win in godliness. I don't care if I lose that particular battle - or even other battles....
Sadly, I think I lost today... More than once...
I told him, I just want to win in godliness. I don't care if I lose that particular battle - or even other battles....
Sadly, I think I lost today... More than once...
Sunday, 25 May 2008
Memories...
Going through some of my old stuff - part of packing up and all - and found quite a few things which show how set I was towards China...
Maps of China...
Notes from my uni courses on Chinese culture and civilisation... Not all, just some I thought were good to understand the people and culture...
Pictures and dolls of Chinese minority people groups...
Books / biographies of missionaries to China...
Books and notes on Chinese national language...
Lots and lots of prayer points and news on China and the Chinese...
A very thick prayer book on China...
So many things on and about China and its people!
It wasn't until 2003 that I started to have a "divided heart" - which was shown more clearly later on through the two prayer groups that I was actively involved in... One for China and one for my home country...
Something in my visit back to my "second world" early last year made me decide that I probably wanted to focus on my second world...
Something that happened "back there" during that year "helped" me set my direction...
Mid last year - I asked to be taken off the China group's mailing list...
I don't know what I - or someone else - will find among my stuff - should we go through them a few years from now... =)
Wonder where I will be at that time...
Home - and by that I mean heaven - would be a nice place to be in, I guess... =)
But if not... even if it is not "my second world" or this "third world"... I pray that my desire would still see Christ glorified wherever He has placed me.... =)
Maps of China...
Notes from my uni courses on Chinese culture and civilisation... Not all, just some I thought were good to understand the people and culture...
Pictures and dolls of Chinese minority people groups...
Books / biographies of missionaries to China...
Books and notes on Chinese national language...
Lots and lots of prayer points and news on China and the Chinese...
A very thick prayer book on China...
So many things on and about China and its people!
It wasn't until 2003 that I started to have a "divided heart" - which was shown more clearly later on through the two prayer groups that I was actively involved in... One for China and one for my home country...
Something in my visit back to my "second world" early last year made me decide that I probably wanted to focus on my second world...
Something that happened "back there" during that year "helped" me set my direction...
Mid last year - I asked to be taken off the China group's mailing list...
I don't know what I - or someone else - will find among my stuff - should we go through them a few years from now... =)
Wonder where I will be at that time...
Home - and by that I mean heaven - would be a nice place to be in, I guess... =)
But if not... even if it is not "my second world" or this "third world"... I pray that my desire would still see Christ glorified wherever He has placed me.... =)
Wednesday, 21 May 2008
Time for rest...
Have you ever wondered how our body is able to take in SO much, and even carry on a very heavy load when it needs to, and yet it also knows when it finally can "break down" and get some time for rest?
Feel that a heavy burden has just been lifted off me... It's not really solved, but I've passed it on... and so the responsibility is no longer mine...
And so feeling VERY tired at the moment...
I guess, finally, my body is catching up with its need for rest - after being forced to carry so much, for so long...
Thankful to God for a chance to have an early rest! =)
Other responsibilities, would just have to wait until I recover... =)
Feel that a heavy burden has just been lifted off me... It's not really solved, but I've passed it on... and so the responsibility is no longer mine...
And so feeling VERY tired at the moment...
I guess, finally, my body is catching up with its need for rest - after being forced to carry so much, for so long...
Thankful to God for a chance to have an early rest! =)
Other responsibilities, would just have to wait until I recover... =)
Friday, 16 May 2008
Dot to Dot
Bought two Dot to Dot books two days ago, and finished all the pictures on the thinner book that same night.
Spent a few minutes doing some alphabet tracing yesterday, too. Wanted to do it for a bit longer, but didn't have the time.
You might be wondering what's the big deal about doing those things, right? =)
Well, I'm learning to write using my left hand now.
I can write using my left hand already. But it's VERY slow and the writing is a bit messy and you can see that I don't have a firm/stable hold of my pencil/pen when writing...
Anyway... why am I doing this?
Well, partly for fun. =) (It's been fun re-learning the process of writing and drawing etc - and then come to appreciate better the learning process that kids have to go through =)); partly, to give my right brain a bit of work-out =P; and I guess, partly in anticipation of the future that I might not be able to use my right hand as freely as I can at the moment... =)
Spent a few minutes doing some alphabet tracing yesterday, too. Wanted to do it for a bit longer, but didn't have the time.
You might be wondering what's the big deal about doing those things, right? =)
Well, I'm learning to write using my left hand now.
I can write using my left hand already. But it's VERY slow and the writing is a bit messy and you can see that I don't have a firm/stable hold of my pencil/pen when writing...
Anyway... why am I doing this?
Well, partly for fun. =) (It's been fun re-learning the process of writing and drawing etc - and then come to appreciate better the learning process that kids have to go through =)); partly, to give my right brain a bit of work-out =P; and I guess, partly in anticipation of the future that I might not be able to use my right hand as freely as I can at the moment... =)
Thursday, 8 May 2008
Just Around the Riverbend...
What I love most about rivers is:
You can't step in the same river twice
The water's always changing, always flowing
But people, I guess, can't live like that
We all must pay a price
To be safe, we lose our chance of ever knowing...
What's around the riverbend
Waiting just around the riverbend
I look once more
Just around the riverbend
Beyond the shore
Where the gulls fly free
Don't know what for
What I dream the day might send
Just around the riverbend
For me... Coming for me...
Just around the riverbend...
(from Pocahontas by Disney, lyrics by Stephen Schwartz)
You can't step in the same river twice
The water's always changing, always flowing
But people, I guess, can't live like that
We all must pay a price
To be safe, we lose our chance of ever knowing...
What's around the riverbend
Waiting just around the riverbend
I look once more
Just around the riverbend
Beyond the shore
Where the gulls fly free
Don't know what for
What I dream the day might send
Just around the riverbend
For me... Coming for me...
Just around the riverbend...
(from Pocahontas by Disney, lyrics by Stephen Schwartz)
Tuesday, 6 May 2008
=(
It's hard when you feel that you can't really relate to people around you.
Hard when people don't understand the concerns that you have.
Hard when you think they are only concerned about trivial matters or that they don't understand real world problems...
But then, maybe, those trivial things are real world problems to them! - in their real world anyway!
Annoying though, when they seem to be so occupied with things that are just... to me... I don't know...
I guess I'm just tired of people whining or people feeling sorry for themselves - instead of being thankful - without realising that they have SO much to thank God for! I mean, quit winging! Enough! Don't you know how much you have compared to many others?!
Anyway, I know, I know... not everyone has an idea of how real life can be for some people... so it's OK...
Besides, God has had to put up with me... Surely I can put up with them!
Hard when people don't understand the concerns that you have.
Hard when you think they are only concerned about trivial matters or that they don't understand real world problems...
But then, maybe, those trivial things are real world problems to them! - in their real world anyway!
Annoying though, when they seem to be so occupied with things that are just... to me... I don't know...
I guess I'm just tired of people whining or people feeling sorry for themselves - instead of being thankful - without realising that they have SO much to thank God for! I mean, quit winging! Enough! Don't you know how much you have compared to many others?!
Anyway, I know, I know... not everyone has an idea of how real life can be for some people... so it's OK...
Besides, God has had to put up with me... Surely I can put up with them!
Saturday, 3 May 2008
As Oft, with Worn and Weary Feet
Words: James Edmeston, Fifty Original Hymns (Northampton, England: 1833), number 4.
Music: Bremen, Georg Neumark, 1641
As oft, with worn and weary feet,
We tread earth’s rugged valley o’er,
The thought, how comforting and sweet:
Christ trod this very path before!
Our wants and weaknesses He knows,
From life’s first dawning to its close.
Does sickness, feebleness or pain
Or sorrow in our path appear?
The recollection will remain,
More deeply did He suffer here:
His life, how truly sad and brief,
Filled up with suffering and with grief.
If Satan tempt our hearts to stray
And whisper evil things within,
So did he, in the desert way,
Assail our Lord with thoughts of sin,
When worn and in a feeble hour
The tempter came with all his power.
Just such as I, this earth He trod,
With every human ill but sin;
And though indeed the very God,
As I am now so He has been.
My God, my Savior, look on me,
With pity, love and sympathy.
Music: Bremen, Georg Neumark, 1641
As oft, with worn and weary feet,
We tread earth’s rugged valley o’er,
The thought, how comforting and sweet:
Christ trod this very path before!
Our wants and weaknesses He knows,
From life’s first dawning to its close.
Does sickness, feebleness or pain
Or sorrow in our path appear?
The recollection will remain,
More deeply did He suffer here:
His life, how truly sad and brief,
Filled up with suffering and with grief.
If Satan tempt our hearts to stray
And whisper evil things within,
So did he, in the desert way,
Assail our Lord with thoughts of sin,
When worn and in a feeble hour
The tempter came with all his power.
Just such as I, this earth He trod,
With every human ill but sin;
And though indeed the very God,
As I am now so He has been.
My God, my Savior, look on me,
With pity, love and sympathy.
He Knows It All...
A friend once told me that whenever she wanted to cry but couldn't, she would watch a very sad movie / drama, to make herself cry...
That is what I want at the moment... a really sad movie to watch... so that I'll be able to cry with the main characters in the movie...
My only comfort at the moment... is only the fact... that my Father knows it all(!) . . .
He Knows It All
Words: Ophelia Adams, 1905.
Music: C. M. Davis (MI DI, score).
I love to think my Father knows
Why I have missed the path I chose,
And that I soon shall clearly see
The way He led was best for me.
Refrain
He knows it all, He knows it all,
My Father knows, He knows it all;
Thy bitter tears how fast they fall!
He knows, my Father knows it all.
I love to think my Father knows
The thorns I pluck with every rose
The daily griefs I seek to hide
From the dear souls I walk beside.
Refrain
I love to think my Father knows
The strength or weakness of my foes,
And that I need but stand and see
Each conflict end in victory.
Refrain
from: http://cyberhymnal.org/htm/h/e/k/heknowsi.htm
That is what I want at the moment... a really sad movie to watch... so that I'll be able to cry with the main characters in the movie...
My only comfort at the moment... is only the fact... that my Father knows it all(!) . . .
He Knows It All
Words: Ophelia Adams, 1905.
Music: C. M. Davis (MI DI, score).
I love to think my Father knows
Why I have missed the path I chose,
And that I soon shall clearly see
The way He led was best for me.
Refrain
He knows it all, He knows it all,
My Father knows, He knows it all;
Thy bitter tears how fast they fall!
He knows, my Father knows it all.
I love to think my Father knows
The thorns I pluck with every rose
The daily griefs I seek to hide
From the dear souls I walk beside.
Refrain
I love to think my Father knows
The strength or weakness of my foes,
And that I need but stand and see
Each conflict end in victory.
Refrain
from: http://cyberhymnal.org/htm/h/e/k/heknowsi.htm
Tuesday, 29 April 2008
Pieces of a jigsaw puzzle...
Reading a very interesting book at the moment! =)
It's been good to be able to understand better some of the things that were just jigsaw pieces to me so far...
I guess, it's like all these time, I have been given different bits and pieces from a jigsaw puzzle, without ever being given a chance to see what the complete picture will look like... And now, finally, after such a long time, I am given a chance to see how the complete puzzle looks like and so all those pieces are seen in new light! =)
I know where they fit in the puzzle and I know what they are parts of - why their colours and shapes and shades etc are the way they are! =)
It's been good to be able to understand better some of the things that were just jigsaw pieces to me so far...
I guess, it's like all these time, I have been given different bits and pieces from a jigsaw puzzle, without ever being given a chance to see what the complete picture will look like... And now, finally, after such a long time, I am given a chance to see how the complete puzzle looks like and so all those pieces are seen in new light! =)
I know where they fit in the puzzle and I know what they are parts of - why their colours and shapes and shades etc are the way they are! =)
Saturday, 26 April 2008
Buah simalakama...
Somehow, at the moment, gua ngerasa kalo gua tuh sedang di-suguh-i buah simalakama...
Bingung gitu loh... Ngga tau mo diapain...
Dimakan... salah!
Ngga dimakan... juga salah!
Tapi ngga diapa2in juga ngga bisa gitu loh... Soalnya kalo ngga diapa2in, jadi sama ama ngga dimakan... which is salah juga! =(
Bingung... =(
Bingung gitu loh... Ngga tau mo diapain...
Dimakan... salah!
Ngga dimakan... juga salah!
Tapi ngga diapa2in juga ngga bisa gitu loh... Soalnya kalo ngga diapa2in, jadi sama ama ngga dimakan... which is salah juga! =(
Bingung... =(
Friday, 25 April 2008
When words fail you...
There are times when words fail you...
When you feel so much is going on inside of you and/or around you that you no longer know how to process everything or how to express them with words...
When those you care about seem to be going through troubled waters and yet even your extended arm isn't long enough to reach them...
When you feel so overwhelmed by it all that you almost feel paralysed...
And yet I know that the LORD my God is still in control even in all this. That His arms are long enough to reach those across the distance, and that He does care for them much more than anyone in this world could!
And so even though words fail me... I know Him who would understand my broken prayers!
To the choirmaster. Of the Sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. A Song.
God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way,
though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble at its swelling.
Selah
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy habitation of the Most High.
God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved;
God will help her when morning dawns.
The nations rage, the kingdoms totter;
he utters his voice, the earth melts.
The LORD of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Selah
Come, behold the works of the LORD,
how he has brought desolations on the earth.
He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
he breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
he burns the chariots with fire.
"Be still, and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!"
The LORD of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Selah
Psalm 46
When you feel so much is going on inside of you and/or around you that you no longer know how to process everything or how to express them with words...
When those you care about seem to be going through troubled waters and yet even your extended arm isn't long enough to reach them...
When you feel so overwhelmed by it all that you almost feel paralysed...
And yet I know that the LORD my God is still in control even in all this. That His arms are long enough to reach those across the distance, and that He does care for them much more than anyone in this world could!
And so even though words fail me... I know Him who would understand my broken prayers!
To the choirmaster. Of the Sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. A Song.
God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way,
though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble at its swelling.
Selah
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy habitation of the Most High.
God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved;
God will help her when morning dawns.
The nations rage, the kingdoms totter;
he utters his voice, the earth melts.
The LORD of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Selah
Come, behold the works of the LORD,
how he has brought desolations on the earth.
He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
he breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
he burns the chariots with fire.
"Be still, and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!"
The LORD of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Selah
Psalm 46
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