Defining GREATNESS

The Top 10 Greatest Canadians of all time.

In the course of my work, I frequently research into interesting trivia about Canada.
I found a story that will touch your heart. This is the story of someone, made famous not by his talent, but rather, by his perseverance. His name is Terry Fox, and most of us are familiar with his name as we in Singapore also have the Terry Fox Run.

But apart from seeing blurry images on our television screens about a man running, or limping along, a racetrack, we do not know who Terry Fox is, what he lived for, and why he is so great, today.

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In the fall of 1979, 21-year-old Terry Fox began his quest to run across Canada. He had lost most of his right leg to cancer two years before. Fox sent letters to various companies soliciting their sponsorship. The final sentence of his letter was: "…I'm not saying that this will initiate any kind of definitive answer or cure to cancer, but I believe in miracles. I have to."

With that dogged spirit, Fox would begin his dream --- one that would take him half way across Canada and touch hundreds of thousands of lives at home and abroad.
Terrance Stanley Fox was born July 28, 1958 in Winnipeg, Manitoba to Rolly and Betty Fox. He already had an older brother, Fred. Another brother, Darrell, would be born four years later and sister Judith in 1964. In 1966, the family moved to Surrey, B.C. and then to their last destination, Port Coquitlam, two years later.

Fox's parents remember him as a determined little boy who never liked to miss a day of school. Fox blossomed into an athlete during junior high school, the same time he met his friend Doug Alward. The boys played baseball, rugby and basketball. By grade 12, Fox and Alward would share the Athlete of the Year Award. Fox graduated from Port Coquitlam High School with distinction.
Fox wanted to be a physical education teacher and enrolled in Simon Fraser University (SFU) in Vancouver. There, he tried out for the SFU basketball team. Player Mike McNeill said Fox outshone players who were more talented because he showed more drive.

Discovery of cancer
Terry Fox's bright future turned a corner in March 1977. He came home complaining of a searing pain in his right knee after running around the track. His mother took him to the Royal Columbian Hospital in New Westminster. X-rays confirmed he had osteogenic sarcoma, a cancerous tumour that makes the bone go soft. With his family at his side, doctors gave him the news. As his family wept, Fox said: "I'm not ready to leave this world."

To stop the spread of cancer, doctors amputated his leg - six inches (15 cm) above the knee. Fox learned how to use an artificial leg, and three weeks after surgery, he was walking. Soon after, he played pitch-and-putt golf with his dad. Always a competitor, Fox kept raising the bar. He said he felt fortunate to have beaten cancer. What he didn't know at the time, was that stray sarcoma cells often end up in the lungs and don't show up on scans for some time.

In July 1977, Fox joined the basketball team of the Canadian Wheelchair Sports Association, and met Rick Hansen, who ran the program. Hansen was impressed by Fox's energy, not knowing at the time that he was undergoing chemotherapy. Fox would go on to play in three national championship victories with the team.

Fox never forgot an article he read the night before his surgery. It was a feature about amputee Dick Traum, who had run the New York City Marathon. At the start of 1979, he devised a training schedule. His prosthetist developed a better running leg using a pogo stick with a motorcycle shock absorber. Even with an improved artificial leg, his stump would be covered in cysts and bleeding sores after every run. In August, his friend Doug Alward, also a runner, took him to a marathon in Prince George. Fox finished last, 10 minutes behind the last two-legged runner. The other runners watched him, crying and clapping as he crossed the finish line.

The Marathon of Hope begins
That fall, Terry Fox hatched a plan to raise money for cancer research by running across Canada. His goal: $1 for every Canadian. Betty called it a crazy idea but knew her son could not be stopped. The Canadian Cancer Society said they would help him but only if he had corporate sponsors. Fox sent out letters describing his dream. Ford donated a camper van, Adidas provided the shoes, Imperial Oil the gas and Safeway, food vouchers and cash. Fox's plan was to start in St. John's, Newfoundland on April 12, 1980 and to finish on the west coast of Vancouver Island on September 10. With more than 3,000 miles (5,000 km) of running under his belt, he was ready.

On the morning of April 12, as a cold mist hugged St. John's, Fox dipped his artificial leg in the Atlantic and began his Marathon of Hope. As Fox reached the outskirts of the city, Mayor Dorothy Wyatt decided to join him, outfitted in a polka-dot pantsuit and her robes of office. Doug Alward would drive the van one mile (1.6 km) ahead and stop to wait for Fox, giving him some water when he passed by.
The people of Newfoundland were welcoming and generous. Fox and Alward were treated to many meals at people's homes. The town of Port aux Basques, with a population of 10,000, raised $10,000. Unfortunately, Alward and Fox started to fight and sometimes, spent a day without talking. Fox wanted Alward to set up media interviews; however, Alward was reluctant.

In early May, Fox arrived in Nova Scotia and few people greeted him. In one harrowing incident, a freight truck hit a CBC vehicle with a film crew inside, forcing it off the road. Fox was just running ahead of the truck. One of the crew fell out of the truck and was seriously injured.

Around the middle of May, Fox and Alward were not getting along. Fox called his parents, who flew out to Halifax. Betty said it was better to yell at each other than to stop talking altogether. It helped a lot. In his May 29 diary entry, Fox referred to a speech he made in Dartmouth: "I couldn't help but cry when I said how Doug had to have courage to put up with and understand me when I'm tired and irritable."

At the end of May, Darrell joined his big brother in Saint John, New Brunswick. He was a prankster and helped to lighten up the mood of the Marathon of Hope. Around June 7, Fox would hit his all-time high of 30 miles (48 km) a day.

Breakdown in Quebec
Crossing into Quebec on June 10, Fox was charmed by the pretty little towns along the St. Lawrence. But none of the boys could speak French. They had no idea how to ask for a shower and went five days without a wash. In mid-June, as he neared Quebec City, Fox hit bottom. Drivers ignored him, speeding past. In his journal entry, he would vent: "… people are continually forcing me off the road. I was actually honked off once … It is wearisome. Mental Breakdown." Things improved considerably when he arrived in Montreal. The boys stayed at the Four Seasons Hotel courtesy of company president Isadore Sharp, who had lost his teenage son to cancer. The boys relished the luxury; Fox took an hour-long shower. On June 23, after 73 days of running, Fox would have his first day off. The Ontario wing of the Cancer Society told him to hold off on his entry into Ontario; they were preparing big things.
On the last Saturday in June, Fox entered Ontario at the town of Hawkesbury on the Ottawa River. It would be the start of a fundraising avalanche. The town held a welcoming party with a brass band and thousands of balloons. In early July, he arrived in Ottawa. He met Governor General Ed Schreyer. He enjoyed a standing ovation from fans at the CFL game between Ottawa and Saskatchewan, kicking the opening ball. On July 4, Fox had a date with then-Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. Unfortunately, no one had prepped Trudeau, who was just back from an Italian trip; the meeting was awkward. Fox asked him to run a ½ mile (0.8 km) with him, but Trudeau declined.

As Fox headed to Toronto, momentum soared. A singer had crafted a song -- "Run, Terry, Run" -- and donated all proceeds to cancer research. Crowds lined the streets and roadways. NBC's "Real People" TV program did a piece on him. At a mall in Oshawa, girls screamed as he walked past. As Fox ran towards Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto, he was joined by Darryl Sittler, the former Toronto Maple Leaf hockey captain. A crowd of 10,000 was waiting. Actor Al Waxman introduced Fox and Sittler presented him with his 1980 all-star NHL sweater: "I've been around athletes a long time and I've never seen any with his courage and stamina." The Cancer Society estimated it collected $100,000 that day.

Fox made his way through southern Ontario hitting Oakville, Hamilton, London, Kitchener and Guelph. Despite the 38-degree temperature, he kept to his 26 mile (42 km) a day pace. During his southern Ontario stretch, he was kissed by British actress Maggie Smith at Stratford; a musician gave him his $500 guitar; and Bobby Orr presented him with $25,000 from Planter's Peanuts. Fox said the Orr meeting was the highlight of his trip.
Fox celebrated his 22nd birthday on July 28 in Gravenhurst, two hours drive north of Toronto. After his brother Darrell presented him with a cake, Fox started throwing handfuls of it at him and began a food fight. The people of Gravenhurst (pop. 8,000) raised $14,000.

Darkness on the horizon
As Fox headed towards Georgian Bay, his health changed. He would wake up tired, sometimes asking for time alone in the van just to cry. In Parry Sound, Bobby Orr's father gave him his son's Canada Cup sweater. He passed the half-way point of his journey just before Sudbury. By August 12, Fox had raised $11.4 million.

On August 31, before running into Thunder Bay, Fox said he felt as if he'd caught a cold. The next day, he started to cough more and felt pains in his chest and neck but he kept running because people were out cheering him on. Eighteen miles out of the city, he stopped. Fox went to a hospital, and after examination, doctors told him that the cancer had invaded his lungs. His parents came out to Thunder Bay the next day. Fox, holding his mother Betty's hand, held a news conference and told reporters he had to go home. He had run 3,339 miles (5,376 km).

"How many people do something they really believe in?" said Fox at the news conference. "I just wish people would realize that anything's possible if you try. Dreams are made if people try."

Fox flew back to B.C. and to the Royal Columbian Hospital, where his cancer fight has started in 1977. Darryl Sittler and the Maple Leafs offered to finish the run for him, but Fox declined. He wanted to finish it himself.

He wore his Marathon of Hope t-shirt for the first few weeks in hospital. The tumours had spread; one was the size of his fist. He had a 10 per cent chance of beating the cancer. The country rallied. A fundraiser was broadcast with such celebrities as John Denver, Elton John and Anne Murray. This broadcast put another $10.5 million into the Fox Fund. All over the country, people raised money through walk-a-thons, stitch-a-thons - even Ontario strippers donated a day's proceeds.

As he endured chemotherapy, Fox would be given many honours. Governor General Ed Schreyer flew to B.C. to make him the youngest Companion of the Order of Canada. B.C. Premier Bill Bennett also granted him the province's highest honour: the Order of the Dogwood. Canada's sports editors gave him the Lou Marsh trophy for outstanding athletic achievement. Fox also appeared in educational films for the Cancer Society.
By the new year, Fox's health worsened. The tumours had spread to his abdomen. Thousands of letters and telegrams from Canada and around the world flowed in to his hospital room. By February 1981, Fox had raised $24.17 million, equaling Canada's population of 24.1 million at the time.

Looking back at his run, Fox would reflect: "People thought I was going through hell. Maybe I was partly, but still I was doing what I wanted and a dream was coming true."

Terry Fox died, with his family beside him, on June 28, 1981. That September, the first Terry Fox Run was held in Canada and around the world. More than 300,000 people participated, raising $3.5 million. Terry Fox Runs are held yearly in 60 countries now and more than 360 million have been raised for cancer research. His legacy lives on.


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And from his story, we learn.
We have the courage to face daily obstacles. We have the spirit of compassion to help others not so privileged as us, in our midst.

In a poll on "Which characteristic do you think is the most important in defining 'greatness' in Canada?"

The people responded:
Legacy (39%), Passion (31%), Leadership (23%), Genius (5%), Humor (2%).

What stands between YOU and GREATNESS?

The story of Terry Fox touches me because he believed he could make a difference. He set out to do an impossible goal. He touched many lives. Most importantly, his life made a difference to so many others, after his death, his legacy still lives on. And that's why he is great, to me.

PRAYER!

Prayer unleashes God's power so that he is able to work in our behalf.
Prayer opens the channels of God's blessing.
Prayer is how God accomplishes the things that he wants to see happen in our lives, and in the lives of others.
Prayer opens new doors of opportunity for God to move in.

WHAT

Definition: Talking to God (Communication)
Reason: Build a Relationship with God

7 Things To Ask Ourselves when Praying

God’s Purpose or Own Purpose
Let God take Control
Will Result honor God
Will it Help Others
Will it Delight God
Will Request Conflict w/h God’s Word
Does it bring me Closer to God

WHY

He speaks to Us

Fellowship w/h Us
Give Us Directions
Give Us Comfort
Want Us to Know Him

We should Trust God
Always there for Us
UnConditional Love
Gives listening Ear
Gives Help
Give Peace Solve My Problems
Keeps His Promises

We should Pray
Open the Channel of God’s Blessings
[(MAN – DOOR – GOD) Prayer = Opening Door]
Free Will

We don’t Pray more?
Busy – Procrastination
Prayer as Inactivity – Instant Gratification
Don’t Feel Prayer’s Effectiveness (God’s Will not = Our Plans)
Unwilling to give up on pleasures that Sins give Us

Prayers are not Answered
Problem-Centered vs God-Centered
Negative Aspect of Problem vs Positive Aspects & Power of God
Praying to Problem vs Praying to Solution of Problem

HOW

How To Talk to God

As if God is Our Best Friend
Pray from Heart
Don’ keep Repeating

4 Basic Steps
Bring Problem to God’s Attention
Supplication-Confession telling God we need his Help
Focus on God, not Problem
Thanksgiving

God Speaks To Us (Through our Hearts by)
His Word
Holy Spirit
Other Believers
Divine Circumstances

MISCELLANEOUS

Fears & Worries Paralyse Us
Prayers Changes Us, Not God
Through Prayer, we trust in God’s Control in things beyond Us

Author: Jonathan Chua Kian Aik
By the way, this is ONLY a summary of what he shared in GO.
=) Let's learn about prayer together!

jaena's birthday #1

Going down the escalator of Terminal 2... a candid shot! Kinda nice though...

This was taken, moving...I was at the top...

Very funny expressions... all having unusually... if I can say, 'posed' natural look. We are such a vibrant bunch man...

Our verrrry first cell photo! Light.payalebar

Unfortunately it looks a bit disgusting... Jon's idea right...

More to come when I download them =)

Last Christmas...

Last Christmas... did you give your heart away?
Some overdue photos.
Praise God for the 30+ oikos, 7 friends and 15 Sunnydalers who came.


Very scary photo of the pirate on his horse.

The Lee 'family'...hey where's Frank?

Movie extras for "Scary Movie 6"

Which group has the longest row of hats...wahh...

Ooh, handsomehandsomehandsomeandbeauty...

The army boys used to sing christmas carols to train their lungs for combat...

Kenneth led the crowd in singing...

My old friends...Frank is a bit confused. Either he is trying to shoot Kenny (Who killed Kenny?) or...coming up with his own sign?... no one can decipher it...

The Red Indian girl hat won best hat. =)

My oikos - Alvin and Sam. Singles!

Jaena and colleague Sabrina plus family! A lovely bunch.

Rajesh "The King" actually helped with the decorations...

Light*payalebar: vision casting

You are the LIGHT of the world...
A city on a hill.

It was with great anticipation that we traveled to our first cell!
There were lots of surprises - Everyone was open in sharing about themselves, introducing themselves deeply, even sharing in the small group about hopes and disappointments.

We warmed up quickly with a wonderful time of GEL - getting to know each other's favorite food, fruit, sport, color... and trying to remember them in a bingo-style. Lor mee and durian, anyone? And then, the cell was introduced to their new name - Light (snap) payalebar. We realised some could not snap... heh.

==

In Matthew 5, we as christians are called to be SALT and LIGHT to the WORLD.
An often quoted verse, those of us who have been long in the faith have probably read and discussed the passage many times.

But focus on the LIGHT.
Without light, there is darkness. But Darkness cannot exist - or co-exist with Light.
To shine in the darkness.
To give someone warmth - with a listening ear.
To help with musically inclined skills of leading Glorify for cell.
To be there, a blessing.
To help people find their destiny. To motivate them.
To shine in the darkness... ...no matter what happens.

LIGHT.payalebar!
Even as we are near the "city on a hill" (ie our church building, designed to look like one of the mountains in the Bible), let's be the light that encourages people to look for us.

Loving People who are Difficult to Love

Loving God is easy. God loves you, you love Him back. No problem. Reciprocal love. End of story. Period.

However, it's the 'loving thy neighbour as yourself' part that is a challenge. Love for people who make lives difficult for us is not easy. Because what you give may not be returned back to you. At least, you don't see that happening anytime soon. We admit THAT kind of love is not within us. How can we show love to someone who hate us and don't appreciate your kindness? We need help... we require a love that's out of this world... from an outside source. A love transfusion (like a blood transfusion) from the One who proclaimed,"I AM love." The perfect, agape love God has for Mankind is the standard we should be striving for. Now that's easier said than done. Not for you. Certainly not for me.

Not even for Jesus. Listen to his frustration in Mark 9:19, "You people of little faith. How long must I stay with you? How long must I put up with you?" Knowing that Jesus asked such a question reassures us that loving people is an uphill task, even for the Son of Man.

"We love because He first loved us. If anyone says,"I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And He has given this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother."
1 John 4:19-21

The secret of relationships is NOT thinking of ways and means of how to find out the good points, the 'positives' out of a person in order for you to accept, even love him/her. It is loving, in spite of all the person's nastiness and bad attitude and behaviour towards you. It's not thinking of how the person will return your favour.... it's giving without expecting a return.

It was when I became a re-born Christian that I realise the joy of giving of yourself, and expect nothing in return. The Christmas of 2003 that I couldn't think of anything that I wanted or needed for myself. I felt full and couldn't take in one more gift! That Christmas I learned what true gift-giving is - it is when giving a gift feels like getting a gift. It happened when I gave with reckless abandon, deep love, and the desire to give joy to another. The joy of giving filled me up and has become my modus operandi - I call myself the selfish giver. Because of this technique, each time I give I feel the wonderful pleasure of receiving a gift. Every time you give, you also receive something. I remembered in a Rick Warren seminar when he said that in all the years as a Christian, he ALWAYS loses in the game of giving that he played with God. Outgiven in all arenas. I was just sitting there and thinking," Wow! That's a powerful thought." And I started to think about the ways in which I could give. Still, I still have a long, long way to go from the agape love God has for us... that is, loving without expecting a positive response... selfless and unchanging.

Love is a package deal. Meaning, you take the whole package.... the good and.... the bad as well.

Wouldn't it be great if you can pick and choose the good qualities that you like in a person and throw away the bad points... like in a buffet queue. I'll take the buffalo wings and potato wedges. Asparagus? Nah. And I'll skip the lady fingers as well. Yucks. Wouldn't it be wonderful? Choosing what you want and pass on what you don't.

What if parents could do this with kids? I'll take a plate of good grades and obedience and I am passing on teenage identity crisis, BGRs and tantrum throwing.

What if kids could do the same with parents? Pls give me more allowance and just 2 hours daily of playing PS2 but no more piano lessons and curfews. Thank you.

And spouse to spouse? Hmmm... how about a bowl of good health and good moods. But laundry, in-laws, fetching the kids back from Grandma's and going to the market on Sundays are not on my diet.

Wouldn't it be great if love is like a buffet line? Easier, neater, painless and peaceful.

But you know what. It wouldn't be love. Coz love doesn't accept just a few things. Love is willing to accept ALL things. "Love... bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." 1 Cor 13:4-7

God's view of love is like my mom's view of food on the dinner table. You finish off everything on your plate. No picking. No choosing. No large helping of the good and passing on the bad. Love comes in a package.

But the question is, how then can we love those who are difficult to love?

Looking at the Sciptures... Paul, too stared at the same question above.

In 1 Corinthians, the church in Corinth which Paul started, has gone haywire. The congregation were disunited and at loggerheads at one another. Things are getting out of hand. 1 Cor 10 shows them to have their favourite leaders of whom they followed. In 1 Cor 5:1-2, Paul was lamenting an incident that a man was having an affair with his father's wife and no one bothered to voice this out. In chapter 6, there were lawsuits among the believers. Later in chapter 8, there was a conflict between the pro-meats and anti-meats with regards to food offered to idols. As you can imagine, it was messy and Paul had a huge problem on hand.

You can correct them. Paul did. You can instruct them. Paul did. Or you can even reason with them. Paul did. They didn't really work. At some point in time, you give up talking to the head and start appealing to the heart. For 12 chapters in 1 Corinthians, Paul fought to untangle the knots of disharmony. The last 3 chpaters, he try to make sense of their conflicts by aligning them back to God's will. But chapter 13 is where Paul says, "All right. Enough is enough. I'm tired of all this squabbling. Deep in your hearts, you need to first love one another." He sees only one way to solve all this. L.O.V.E is the magic potion that Paul prescribed for the Corinthian church.

We have the hardest time dealing with people who makes things difficult for us. We try to reason. We confront. We try to teach and understand where he/she is coming from. But most of all, we need to love. To accept the fact that we are all fundamentally different in the way we perceives the world. A glass can be both half-empty or half-full. Either way you see it.

Only when we tried to put ourselves in Christ's postion and try to love unappreciating people, can we truly understand what our Father has done in kind for us. Jesus died for the ungodly. The unworthy. The most sinful and filthy. The undeserved. You and me. "But God demonstrates His love for us in this: When we are STILL sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

How long must I put up with you? Jesus asks a rhetorical question, of which he himself answered later on the Calvalry.

Until your place in heaven is assured.

Until you are made whole.

How long? Until my warm blood cover your body totally and completely. So that when the day of judgement arrives, the Father will see me instead of just you and your naked sinfulness.
To put others before oneself is the greatest love of all. Out of the overflow of His love for you, may you extend that joy and gratitude to those who are difficult to love. But you will need a constant, regular deposit of His love so that whenever your patience wears thin and stress level is max, you have something to withdraw from your love account.

"We love, because He first loved us." 1 John 4:19

May our doors to each other always remain open. And our mouths only to speak words of encouragement and language of love.

Blessed are they who give without expecting even thanks in return, for they shall be abundantly rewarded.

Blessed are they who translate every good thing they know into action, for ever higher truths shall be revealed unto them.

Blessed are they who do God's will without asking to see results, for great shall be their recompense.

Blessed are they who love and trust their fellow beings,for they shall reach the good in people and receive a loving response.

Blessed are they who have seen reality, for they know that not the garment of clay but that which activates the garment of clay is real and indestructible.

Blessed are they who see the change we call death as a liberation from the limitation of this earth-life, for they shall rejoice with their loved ones who make the glorious transition.

Blessed are they who after dedicating their lives and thereby receiving a blessing, have the courage and faith to surmount the difficulties of the path ahead, for they shall receive a second blessing.

Blessed are they who advance toward the spiritual path without the selfish motive of seeking inner peace, for they shall find it.

Blessed are they who instead of trying to batter down the gates of the kingdom of heaven approach them humbly and lovingly and purified, for they shall pass right through.