Good Morning Jesus Day 4

God always meets us as He is the God of Abraham (covenant), Issac (provision) and Jacob (transformation). Just as how He met Moses when Moses felt forgotten by God... the same God is ever there to meet with you.

'Reach out and touch the Lord as he passes by, he's never too busy to hear your hearts cry.' - Reach out and touch the Lord

Mel

Good Morning Jesus!

Transactional Faith

Psalm 86
Acknowledge God
Devote myself to God
Be merciful to others as God is merciful to me
Be joyful!
Call upon the Lord
Exalt God
Undivided heart
God's strength
God's signs

The Poem On Truth

The Poem on Truth

Everything as seen by the eye is His creation.
He who has no beginning and no end, is three persons in one.
The heaven's gate was closed to the first man's sin and reopens through the Son.
Rid of all false religions, we should become real disciples admired by everyone.

The Poem Of The Cross

THE POEM OF THE CROSS by Emperor Kang Xi

功成十架血成溪，百丈恩流分自西。 
身列四衙半夜路，徒方三背两番鸣。 
五千鞭挞寸肤裂，六尺悬垂二盗齐。 
惨动八垓惊九品，七言一毕万灵啼。

When the work was accomplished, blood formed a creek
Grace from the west was thousand feet deep.
He who lowered himself for us stepped on the midnight trip.
Before the rooster crowed twice, betrayed thrice was He.
Five hundred slashes torn every inch of his skin.
Two thieves at six feet high hanged besides him.
The sadness was greater than anything seen by anyone.
This poem is for You, the Holy one.

The Treasure Of Life

Poem by Emperor Kang Xi on his faith in Jesus.

English translation:
THE TREASURE OF LIFE

The treasure of heaven is comprised of Sun, Moon and Stars;
The treasure of earth consists of crops, gold and silver.
The treasure of a kingdom is to have righteous officials;
The treasure of a family is to have descendents with piety.
Yet, Gold, silver and jade are not as precious as one's life.
Hundred years of age is nothing compared to eternity.
Coming and going in life is like a dream.
The best food and clothing don't mean a thing.
It's no exception for someone born in a royal family.
The most important thing in the world is life.
Something that white jade, gold and silver can't buy.
Even plain porridge can be satisfying;
No cloth is fit to wear for a thousand years.
The heaven's gate was closed due to the first man's sin;
The path to salvation is through the Son only.
I would like to accept God, the Son and the Holy Spirit;
And receive from thee my free gift of eternity.

By the hand of KANGXI of Qing Dynasty

Unction Definition

unc·tion/ˈəNG(k)SHən/

Noun:

The action of anointing someone with oil or ointment as a religious rite or as a symbol of investiture as a monarch. The oil or ointment so used.

3 Habits to Help You Grow Spiritually

“But as for me, I will sing about your power. Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love. For you have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress” (Psalm 59:16 NLT).

We all want our relationships to be characterized by persistence and self-sacrifice. But we can never do that on our own. The kind of love we long to show others is only found in a growing relationship with God. Without God's power in our lives, our love will run out.

You don’t build that kind of relationship with God—one that will help you love others when you want to give up—by accident. You do it through habits. Here are 3 habits that will help you grow in your relationship with God.

1. A daily quiet time.
Let God talk to you through the Bible and through prayer. Nothing will help your life more. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 4:16, “This is the reason we never lose heart. Our body does suffer wear and tear, but every day the inward man receives fresh strength” (PH). Outwardly our body suffers wear and tear, but spiritually we can be renewed every day by spending time alone with God. It’s not hard. Read through a chapter of the Bible, meditate on it, and talk with God about what’s going on in your life.

2. Small group.
The Bible says in Hebrews 10:25, “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another…” (NIV). You need to spend time with other believers. I hope you have a church family. Be a part of whatever mechanism they have to connect you with a small group, whether that’s a Sunday School or off-campus small group. You need the prayer support and encouragement of other believers. A Christian without a small group is an orphan.

3. Worship through song.
Psalm 59:16 says, “I will sing about your strength, my God, and I will celebrate because of your love” (CEV). Singing builds you up. The singing time at your church isn’t just the warm-up act; it’s just as important as the message. Don’t miss it this weekend. Also, put some worship music on your iPod or MP3 player this week and don’t be afraid to sing along. It will recharge your soul and give you the God-given strength to love others.

Miao Fang Birthday & Section Fellowship

Sat 4 Apr & Sun 5 Apr 2009

A fully packed weekend of fellowship.

Pastor Bea's What Happens After Palm Sunday's Parade Passes By, all the different factors. Luke 19:28-40 & John 12:12-19.

All thanks to Joshua for our next stop, Beach Road Shaw Towers SOFRA Turkish Cafe & Restaurant for Miao Fang's birthday celebration.


Yet another spontaneous one @ new Bugis Iluma mall Movie: Shinjuku.

We got hungry again after the show, so 8 "high" people @ Liang Seah Street Tong Shui 4 "Supfast". Not in pic: Duns, Rach & camera woman Mel.


Nothing to show for us all catching up on some precious beauty sleep.

Now it was all thanks to Jonathan for the next part.

Sweet (dessert) before the salty (tears), hehe..




One of the top few movies some of us ever watched: Japanese Departures (Okuribito):




Hungry yet again so...





Before heading on back home @ 10pm!~


Blessed week ahead all!~ =)

Of forgiveness, God, and the Holy spirit

Firstly, I've read something online that touched me a little bit so I'd like to post it up here...

Some of my personal deep thoughts this week...

'Can you call yourself a Christian?' - when I have judged someone by my own high/worthless standards.

'Can you call yourself a Christian?" -when I have neglected my own spiritual life, forgetting even that hey, I could... pray in the Holy Spirit...

Food for thought.

== 

'How to forgive someone who has hurt you'

Orginally from Oprah magazine with insight from Dr Ben Kim.

Here's the part that I felt a strong connection to:

My father was a carpenter. He used his hands to pour concrete and hammer nails. He also used his hands to beat me.

I was a tall child, but sickly—I had asthma—and when I went to work with him, the sawdust made me cough. I preferred staying home, writing and drawing. I conjured up other worlds: worlds in which I didn't worry about being poor, in which I was someone else's child, a child who lived in a mansion and had a dog. My father—a man with a third-grade education who was orphaned at 2 and sent to work in the fields at 5—understood only the physical. He thought he could beat the softness out of me and make me hard like him.

When I was 21, I left my house in New Orleans and headed to Atlanta to be a playwright. I got a day job as a bill collector and scrimped and saved to put on my play I Know I've Been Changed— a musical about recovering from an abusive childhood. But even though I was writing about recovering, I wasn't doing it. Every day I felt angry and bitter and terribly lonely. I rarely dated, and if a woman told me she loved me, I headed for the door. My play bombed; 30 people came on opening weekend. I put it on the next year and the year after that, and each time, it bombed again. Finally, 28 years old, out of money and months behind on my rent, I started sleeping in my car. When the car broke down, I asked my father to cosign on a new one, as he had just done for my sister (the light-skinned sister he adored). When he refused, I forged his signature. And when the car got repossessed, he called me, yelling. Sitting in that little room I'd just scraped together enough money to rent, listening to him berate me, something snapped. Something dormant in me woke up, and I began to yell back.

I told him that he'd hated me since I was born, that I didn't deserve the things he'd done to me. Everything I'd ever felt or thought—even things I hadn't been aware of—came out. When I was done, the line was silent for a long time. And then, for the first time ever, my father said, "I love you."

After we hung up, I felt light, empty, and exhausted. I knew that I would never again look at my father in hurt or anger. But in a strange way, I also sensed that something had died. I sat crying for hours, as if I were in mourning. My energy source, my fight, the rage that had moved me every day—it was all gone.

Slowly but surely, I began to fuel my days with joy instead of fury. That year—call it coincidence, call it karma—my play sold out. Then it sold out again, and then again. I began to write new plays, and the theme of forgiveness runs through them all. It's simple: When you haven't forgiven those who've hurt you, you turn your back against your future. When you do forgive, you start walking forward.

I can't get over how powerful his last statement is:

When you haven't forgiven those who've hurt you, you turn your back against your future. When you do forgive, you start walking forward.

I understand and agree with the idea that forgiving others is more about your peace of mind then it is about their feelings. You don't have to make it known to those who have hurt you that you have forgiven them.

The issue is learning how to transcend the hurt, how to get to a place in your heart and mind where the hurt is no longer holding you back from fully caring for others and allowing yourself to be cared for by others.

Is it possible to truly forgive all transgressions?

How do you forgive someone who physically abused you when you were a child?

How do you forgive someone who raped you or a family member?

How do you forgive someone who spread vicious and humiliating lies about you?

How do you forgive parents who put their own needs and egos way ahead of your basic emotional needs as a child?

How do you forgive a parent who left you when you were young?

How do you forgive someone who has sucked the joy out of your life through his or her negative, hypocritical, phony, lazy, selfish, and ill-tempered behavior through decades of marriage?

Maybe complete forgiveness is impossible in some cases. Maybe hurt that you have encountered is so bad that you will suffer to some degree until you pass on because you will always be angry at the people who hurt you.

If you are determined to find a way to free yourself of the burden of chronic anger, no matter how badly you have been hurt, there is one powerful and effective exercise that I can recommend.

It's to sit or lie in a quiet place and imagine your tormentors as they were when they were babies or young children. Visualize these people one at a time, and really take time to feel the realities of their lives as toddlers.

Babies are not born with a distinct desire to hurt others physically or emotionally. They are born craving love and protection. Visualize what your tormentors were like when they did nothing but crave love and protection.

If you work at realizing how pure and innocent your tormentors once were, you may come to a point where it becomes clear that their hurtful acts as older children or adults likely stem from their own wounds.

If you know of another effective way of bringing yourself to forgive people who have hurt you badly, I would appreciate you sharing in the comments section below. Your thoughts on this topic may make a significant difference in another person's life.

Thank you.

Laminin

Margin or Marginless?

From Mimosa cell leader, taken from purposedrivenlife.com


Margin or Marginless?
2009/01/05



God, listen to me shout, bend an ear to my prayer? You've always given me
breathing room, a place to get away from it all. Psalm 61:1, 3 (MSG)


*** *** *** ***


A lot of people are on overload and headed for a crash. Consider these
statistics:


· People now sleep 2½ fewer hours each night than people did a hundred
years ago.


· The average work week is longer now than it was in the 1960s.


· The average office worker has 36 hours of work piled up on his or her
desk. It takes us three hours a week just to sort through it and find what
we need.


· We spend 8 months of our lives opening junk mail, 2 years of our lives
playing phone tag with people, and 5 years waiting for people who are late
for meetings.


At least in the U.S., we're a piled-on, stretched-to-the limit society
that is chronically rushed, chronically late, and chronically exhausted.
Many of us feel like Job did when he said, "I have no peace! I have no
quiet! I have no rest! And trouble keeps coming" (Job 3:26 GWT).


Overload comes when we have too much activity in our lives, too much
change, too many choices, too much work, too much debt, too much media
exposure.


We're stressed by information overload; we're stressed by accessibility
overload ? we're connected all the time. Simply put, we're stressed by the
pace of life.


Is there a solution? Yes. The solution is to put some margin into your
life. Margin is breathing room. It's keeping a little reserve that you're
not using up. It's not going from one meeting to the next to the next with
no space in between.


Margin is the space between your load and your limit. But most of us are
far more overloaded than we can handle, and there is no margin for error
in our lives.


Dr. Richard Swenson, MD says this: "The conditions of modern day living
devour margin. If you're homeless we direct you to a shelter. If you're
penniless we offer you food stamps. If you're breathless we connect you to
oxygen. But if you're marginless we give you one more thing to do.
Marginless is being 30 minutes late to the doctor's office because you
were 20 minutes late getting out of the hairdresser because you were 10
minutes late dropping the children off at school because the car ran out
of gas two blocks from a gas station and you forgot your purse. That's
marginless.


"Margin, on the other hand, is having breath at the top of the staircase,
money at the end of the month, and sanity left over at the end of
adolescence. Margin is grandma taking the baby for the afternoon. Margin
is having a friend help carry the burden.


"Marginless is not having time to finish the book you're reading on
stress. Margin is having the time to read it twice. Marginless is our
culture. Margin is counter-culture, having some space in your life and
schedule. Marginless is the disease of our decade and margin is the cure."


Tomorrow we'll look at four benefits of building margin into our lives.















Four Benefits of Putting Margin in Your Life
2009/01/06



"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in
heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my
burden is light." Matthew11:28-30 (NIV)


*** *** *** ***


Here are 4 immediate benefits you'll receive by building margin into your
life:


1. Peace of mind. When you're not always hurrying and worrying, you have
time to think, time to relax, time to enjoy life. We had a bird come into
the building one evening before service. He started singing, and it was
just like we'd been given an invitation: "Just relax. Everybody except
those sitting directly under the bird, relax."


2. Better health. Unrelenting stress harms our bodies. We all know that,
yet we let it continue day after day after day. Many times we only build
margin in our lives after the heart attack almost happens or does happen,
or the blood pressure skyrockets. Why do we wait until our health plummets
before we make this decision? Why not realize thatwe need to build some
margin intoour lives now? The truth is your body needs downtime in order
to heal. Race cars make pit stops occasionally in order to get repaired.
You can't fix anything going 200 miles an hour. Yet, we try to repair
ourselves while we're still racing through life. Margin builds in time for
better health.


3. Stronger relationships. Lack of margin is one big reason for the
collapse of the American family today. When we don't make relationships a
priority and make time for each other, our relationships suffer.
Relationships take time; and margin provides the time to sit and talk, to
listen and enjoy one another, and to provide the comfort we each need.


4. Usefulness in ministry. When you're overloaded by activity, you can
only think of yourself. You're in survival mode, just trying to make it
through another day. But being available to God for his use makes all the
difference in this world.


When you have no margin in your life and God taps you on the shoulder,
saying, "I'd like you to do this for me," your first response isn't joy.
Your first response is, "Oh, no! Another thing to do! Sorry, God ? I'd
like to do that, but I'm just too busy."


We end up resenting the great opportunities God brings into our lives. But
when you have margin, you're available for God to use.


You don't have to live on overload. You don't have to live in survival
mode. Begin today to build a buffer around your schedule. Then enjoy the
benefits of margin and see what God does next!

Persecution

Some well meaning Christian leaders would like you to believe that Christians are no longer persecuted in China. Chinese Christians like Anna would disagree. At the young age of 11, Anna has been persecuted for her faith. She has been run out of a Christian orphanage and refused admission to public school. She currently lives in hiding and attends an illegal underground Christian school. Anna, like many persecuted Christians in China, remains strong in her faith. She recently told The Voice of the Martyrs "I think God must really love me. He has taken such good care of me."

Repost from Milles

self-reflection

As the year 2008 draws to a close, . . . . in about thirty days time, allow the Lord to search your heart as you do a personal spiritual self-examination. Think about your relationships with God, family and friends as you answer these twelve personal questions.

Spiritual Audit Question 1
Am I walking in habitual fellowship with God and enjoying His favor upon my life?

But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD. Noah was a just and righteous man, blameless in his evil generation; Noah walked in habitual fellowship with God. Genesis 6:8-9 (AB)

Spiritual Audit Question 2
Can I see this in my life - “but God intended it for good” in the grand scheme of things?

But Joseph said to them, "Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. Genesis 50:19-20 (NIV)

Spiritual Audit Question 3
Am I strong and courageous in the face of life challenges, opportunities and complexities?

Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:8-9 (NIV)

Spiritual Audit Question 4
Has God placed you in a position of servant leadership and influence in your family, work, church, community or country for such a time as this?

For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance shall arise for the Jews from elsewhere, but you and your father's house will perish. And who knows but that you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this and for this very occasion? Esther 4:14 (AB)

Spiritual Audit Question 5
Is my present and future God secure?

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," declares the LORD. Jeremiah 29:11-13 (NIV)

Spiritual Audit Question 6
Do I need any more things in my life? Have I learnt the secret of being content whatever the circumstance?

I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through Christ who gives me strength. Philippians 4:12-13 (NIV)

Spiritual Audit Question 7
Have I robbed God in my tithes and offering?

"Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. "But you ask, 'How do we rob you?' "In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are robbing me. Malachi 3:8-9 (NIV)

Spiritual Audit Question 8
Is this true of me - seeking FIRST the Kingdom of God and His righteousness?

But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:33 (NIV)

Spiritual Audit Question 9
Holiness –Do I honor God by keeping my body holy in actions and attitudes?

Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. 1 Corinthians 6:18-20 (NIV)

Spiritual Audit Question 10
Spirit of excellence in words or deeds - am I a man pleaser or God pleaser?

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Colossians 3:23-24

Spiritual Audit Question 11
Is there any area in my life that needs the God kind of healing, forgiveness and restoration?

For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD "— and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Psalm 32:4-5 (NIV)

Spiritual Audit Question 12
Am in faithful in the little things that God has placed in my life?

"His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!' Matthew 25:23 (NIV)

With every blessing to you,

Pastor Pritam Singh Sandhu

Founder, South Asian Connection
Pastor, South Asian International Fellowship

SPREAD THE WORD AROUND
South Asian Connection www.southasianconnection.com

SAGC 2009 Singapore 22-26 July 2009 Theme: "Beyond Boundaries"
3rd International Gathering of South Asian Youth and Young Adults for Mission Mobilization

Life With God Is A Faith Adventure Par Excellence

My One Life Is Maximized To Serve God's Purposes In Our Generation

How to deal with common problems - The Quiet Time

As a child of God, we all desire in the midst of our business to come aside to a quiet place just to spend time with our Father. However in life, there are so many things that can distract us and steals our precious moments with Him and before we know it, we have lost touch with God. Put a person who is trying to get her message across to another person in a nosiy enviroment, the message cannot be heard and received. If the noises were to die down, the message will be loud and clear. Subsequently, if we can eradicate the 'noises' in our lives, we can hear then from God.

Discussion:
Why should we have a quiet time?
- because we need fellowship with God
- because it is our privilege as Christians
- because we gain tremedous benefits from it

Repost from Fy

~Thanksgiving~

My oh my, the cutest babies EVER!!!~ ken =)



If only we can smile at our circumstances like the cute little Huggies boy in the clip! =) Makes you feel like whistling the catchy tune after watching... =D frank

Today's U.S. Thankgiving day (4th Thursday of Nov). But we don't see the usual thanksgiving cheer going around especially with news like the Bombay terrorist bombing, Bangkok's violence, companies laying off staff and cutting bonuses and uncertainties over which financial giant is going bust next, keep occupying the media waves. The mood's somewhat dampened with fear and doubt's lingering at the back of everyone's mind.

I'll have to admit, it's hard to give thanks in tough times when the pain is fresh and raw.

In the wake of all the gloom and doom hovering over this festive season, do you find it hard to find reasons to be thankful for, to be cheerful about?

Sure, everyone can give thanks when life's good, when the party hats are on and the champagne's flowing. It's easy to be thankful people when times are good, all's going well and someone (like me =P) writing you an email reminding you to be grateful. We can give thanks for the love and favour that grace our lives. That's the easy part. But the truly thankful are those who like, Matthew Henry, can give thanks in spite of adverse circumstances, when the chips are down.

Have you ever gave thanks for being robbed (thank god for being the "suay" one?) Which sane person would do that?

Well apparently Matthew Henry did. He's a famous Bible scholar of numerous commentaries on the Scriptures. When he was en route to a revival meeting one day, he was robbed of all his money. He arrived at the meeting and preached his message.

Later that night, he wrote the following words in his diary: “Let me be thankful that I was robbed tonight. Let me be thankful first because I was never robbed before. Second, because, although they took my purse, they did not take my life. Third, because, although they took my all, it was not much. And, fourth, because it was I who was robbed, not I who robbed another.”

What an attitude! Examples such as these cause me to examine my priorities. It also helps me to understand why the Apostle Paul, who often suffered at the hands of others, would write the following: “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

I think that one of the reasons David is such a picture of a man after God's own heart, was that he was constantly writing songs about God's goodness and faithfulness and thanking Him and praising Him. He believed in God's goodness, even in the midst of a very difficult period (eg. when he was on the run, hiding in a cave when soldiers sent by King Saul are after his blood).

But even more, as a king, He led all of the people in giving God the glory due His name. He called all of his people to sing, play instruments, worship and dance before God--he did it with all of His heart - because of a humble and overflowing heart that truly loved and treasured God.


I must admit that most of my prayers are petitions, requests. Yet, I am learning that thanksgiving is an exercise of my character that eventually influences my heart. When I look at my life with thankful eyes, it lifts my heart to see how truly blessed I am and makes all the other issues of my life seem less important. Thanksgiving not only pleases God, but it releases in me all the issues of my life. It gives me a power to be able to believe Him for great things. It causes my soul to soar because it puts me heavenward instead of earthbound. I don't think it is possible to have a truly thankful heart and to acknowledge God's sovereignty over all situations and a bitter heart at the same time--it is one or the other.

God would have us be thankful.

Choosing to be thankful and learning to be content will fill your soul with peace and kindness and in the end, you will be happier and more thankful. It is a choice, a habit of practice, but will indeed create in you a more beautiful soul. Practicing what you want to be and what God wants you to be, just because it is right, will always end up blessing you in the end.

May I end by saying how thankful I am for all you--you work tirelessly every day, serving your family, company and church, you are faithful even when no one knows it--you are indeed the best friends that one can have and I pray that you will know that all those hours of loving, sacrifice and caring are sowing deep into the hearts of the people you meet and interact as well. (My exact sentiments too, thus the repost to all you people out there in cell, section, church. *smiles*)

Can you find anything that you can be thankful for in 2008? You may wanna take some time to remember and be grateful for the grace of God in our lives.

I rem in exactly a year ago, a Malaysian worker whose legs are mangled in a freak paper compactor accident (see report) was thankful he still "has his 2 hands" so that he can still work and provide for his wife and 2 kids.

So you see... we have alot to be thankful for, even in these trying times.... we just need to find out what's it! Have a blessed thanksgiving! =D frank

Oh, I Want To Know You More - Steve Fry, Steve Green, Cadet Sisters

Saturday, November 22, 2008, Trinity@Adam

Sermon by Pastor Gerald from Job 42: 1-6, 10-17 was good. About how we had to understand God's plan by first acknowledging His sovereignty, stop speaking & start listening & to move from hearsay to seeing and affectionately knowing God.

http://www.trinity.net/

Especially the final part about Steve Fry and the background to this song. How he had everything (like Job) but lost it all. Finally realising that above all else, he HAD to know God more.

http://www.stevenfryministries.com/

Steve Green:


Just the time I feel that I've been caught in the mire of self,
Just the time I feel my mind's been bought by worldly wealth,
That's when the breeze begins to blow, I know the Spirit's call,
And all my worldly wanderings just melt into His love.

Oh, I want to know you more,
Deep within my soul I want to know you,
Oh I want to know you.
To feel your heart and know your mind.
Looking in your eyes stirs up within me
Cries that say I want to know you.
Oh I want to know you more.

When my daily deeds ordinarily lose life and song,
My heart begins to bleed, sensitivity to Him is gone.
I've run the race, but set my own pace and face a shattered soul,
Now the gentle arms of Jesus warm my hunger to be whole.


And I would give my final breath to know you in your death and resurrection.
Oh I want to know you more. Oh I want to know you, to know you more.
Oh I want to know you more.

Cadet Sisters:

Let God heal your wounds

"I will...heal your wounds."
Jeremiah 30:17 NIV

Addressing the student body at Virginia Tech after a shooting rampage that left 33 people dead and dozens more wounded, Philip Yancey said: "Peter once said to Jesus...'Lord, to whom can we go?'...You've heard, 'Things will get better. You'll get past this.'...Those who offer such comfort mean well, and it's true what you feel now you won't always feel. Yet...you're a different person because of that day...When three of my friends died I came across these lines: 'Grief melts away like snow in May, as if there were no such thing as cold.' I clung to that hope, even as grief smothered me like an avalanche. It did melt away, but like snow it came back in fierce, unexpected ways, triggered by a sound, a smell, a fragment of memory."

Yancey continued, "Pain is a sign of life and love. I'm wearing a neck brace because I broke my neck in an accident. Initially medical workers refused to give me medication because they needed my response. The doctor kept asking, 'Does this hurt? Can you feel that?' The answer he desperately wanted was, 'Yes, it hurts, I can feel it,' proof that my spinal cord hadn't been severed. Pain offers proof of life, of connection. In deep wounds two kinds of tissue must heal: connective tissue, plus the outer protective tissue. If the outer protective tissue heals too quickly the inner connective tissue won't heal properly, leading to complications later."
Don't attempt healing alone. Real healing takes time. It takes place where God's presence, God's peace, and God's people are. Are you hurting today? Turn to God. His promise to you is "I will...heal your wounds" (Jer 30:17 NIV).

Soulfood Bible Readings
2 Chr 1-5, John 12:12-19, Ps 102:1-11, Pr 27:7-9

Don’t Quit

You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while, “He who is coming will come and will not delay.” Hebrews 10:36-37 (NIV)
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If you’re discouraged because of God’s delay in answering your prayers, understand the delay is NOT a denial. Just because the answer or the miracle hasn’t come – yet – that doesn’t mean God isn’t going to answer or that he’s forgotten you or that he doesn’t care about you. It simply means “not yet!”

Spiritual maturity is knowing the difference between “no” and “not yet,” between a denial and a delay. The Bible tells us, “He who is coming will come and will not delay” (Hebrews 10:37 NIV).

The delay may be a test of your patience. Anybody can be patient once. And, anybody can be patient twice. And, just about anybody can be patient three times. So God tests you patience over and over and over.

Why? To see how patient you are?

No, he does it to show you how patient you are. So you’ll know what’s inside of you, and you’ll be able to know your level of commitment. God tests you so that you can know he is faithful, even if the answers you seek are delayed.

If you’re discouraged, turn it around by remembering God teaches you patience during delay. Ask him to transform your discouragement into patience.

You may be going through difficult times right now and feel like dropping off the planet. You’re discouraged because the situation you face seems unmanageable, unreasonable, or unfair.

It may seem unbearable and inside you’re basically saying, “God, I can’t take it anymore. I just can’t take it anymore!”

But you can.

You can stay with it longer because God is with you. He’ll enable you to press on. Remember, you are never a failure until you quit.

Don’t quit. Resist discouragement and finish the race God has set before you.

© 2008 Purpose Driven Life. All rights reserved.

A Purposeful Life

Rick Warren (REMEMBER HE WROTE 'PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE')
You will enjoy the new insights that Rick Warren has, with his wife now having cancer and him having 'wealth' from the book sales. This is an absolutely incredible interview with Rick Warren, 'Purpose Driven Life ' author and pastor of Saddleback Church in California

In the interview by Paul Bradshaw with Rick Warren , Rick said:
People ask me, What is the purpose of life? And I respond: In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were made to last forever, and God wants us to be with Him in Heaven.One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body-- but not the end of me.

I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act - the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity.

We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn't going to make sense.
Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're just coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into another one.
1) The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort.
2) God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy.

We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness. This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer.

I used to think that life was hills and valleys - you go through a dark time, then you go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't believe that anymore.
Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life.

No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on. And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good you can thank God for.

You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems.
If you focus on your problems, you're going into self-centeredness,which is 'my problem, my issues, my pain.' But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get your focus off yourself and onto God and others.

We discovered quickly that in spite of the prayers of hundreds of thousands of people, God was not going to heal Kay or make it easy for her.
It has been very difficult for her, and yet God has strengthened her character, given her a ministry of helping other people, given her a testimony, drawn her closer to Him and to people .

You have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of life.
Actually, sometimes learning to deal with the good is harder. For instance, this past year, all of a sudden, when the book sold 15 million copies, it made me instantly very wealthy.
It also brought a lot of notoriety that I had never had to deal with before. I don't think God gives you money or notoriety for your own ego or for you to live a life of ease.

So I began to ask God what He wanted me to do with this money, notoriety and influence. He gave me two different passages that helped me decide what to do, II Corinthians 9 and Psalm 72

First, in spite of all the money coming in, we would not change our lifestyle one bit. We made no major purchases.
Second, about midway through last year, I stopped taking a salary from the church.
Third, we set up foundations to fund an initiative we call The Peace Plan to plant churches, equip leaders, assist the poor , care for the sick, and educate the next generation.
Fourth, I added up all that the church had paid me in the 24 years since I started the church, and I gave it all back. It was liberating to be able to serve God for free.

We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for possessions? Popularity? Am I going to be driven by pressures? Guilt? Bitterness? Materialism? Or am I going to be driven by God's purposes (for my life)?
When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and say, God, if I don't get anything else done today, I want to know You more and love You better. God didn't put me on earth just to fulfill a to-do list. He's more interested in what I am than what I do.

That's why we're called human beings, not human doings.
Happy moments, PRAISE GOD.
Difficult moments, SEEK GOD.
Quiet moments, WORSHIP GOD.
Painful moments, TRUST GOD.
Every moment, THANK GOD.

Leave a Legacy - Making a Difference in the Lives that Follow

For this Vision month of September in TCC, we recorded a song "live" written by one of our Trinity members that fitted suitably to the theme of "Build a Lasting Lagacy". And yes, the name of the song is "The Legacy".

I would define it as leaving something behind that blesses others. You die, but your legacy will live on. Essentially, your legacy will outlast you. It'll serve as a reminder that you (Mr/Miss/Mrs/Mdm so-and-so) has ever walked on this earth.

I remembered one fateful day, my primary school science teacher came to the class telling us that she recently signed on a form to donate her organs to any patient who need it at the time of her death. Corneas, kidneys, liver, heart, or anything they find useful and in "working condition" can be harvested so that another human can live as healthily and normal as possible. She told us it's of no use to her anymore when she dies and so it doesn't hurt to give it away. I think the reason she said that was to address the stunned looks on our faces. In our young minds, we just thought it would be terribly painful to remove your body parts, voluntarily or not. I visualized her standing in front of us with holes in her eye sockets. Yucks! The teacher further emphasized that when people die, they can no longer feel pain and their bodies are but empty shells without a soul. Yea, that helps.

What she shared that day left an indelible mark on me today. I think our young hearts were stirred that particular day. Death and organ donation were serious and morbid topics for a bunch of 10 year-olds. Death? It never did crossed our minds. Don't people live happily forever? We were strangely quiet and focussed for once. You can actually sense the heaviness in the classroom air. We feel important that an adult would share something so personal with us. I remembered still thinking about it on my walk home from school. Wow, I've never ponder that long about a classroom lesson. That was the first time I heard anyone doing something so noble and self-sacrificial that is beyond my imagination. The idea is new and it blew us away. No doubt, I had new respect for that teacher since. And seeds are definitely sown.

As I listened to the sermons of leaving a lasting legacy, I was suddenly jolted to memory of this amicable teacher (even though I've forgotten her name... sorry mrs XX!! Her habit of putting her hands on her hip while speaking still linger in my mind). Some snippets about her. Her science garden is a favourite recess time hang-out. Pupils like to fuss around her rabbits and plants. She always loaned out rabbits in her science garden for us to take home. Guess it's to inculcate values of T.L.C for small creatures and tending small pots of plants. As small kids, we always feel big when entrusted with such responsibility. It's a great way to build confidence in the little ones coz grown-ups don't usually trust us with things. So take note, all teachers out there! =D

My science teacher taught me an invaluable lessson on giving beyond myself. You and I were put here on earth to make a contribution. God did not create us in his image to do nothing but sit around on clouds and play harps. He’s not doing that, so why would we ever think of this as a fitting conclusion for us? He created us to share in the ongoing creating and nurturing of his world. We were made in his image to share in his work. We are supposed to do that here on earth, and we will do that in heaven. And we can start today.

The need and capacity to serve was in us from the beginning. Adam was immediately given the job of naming the animals and subduing the earth. This did not change after disobedience took its course and banished him and Eve from the garden; it just got harder to do. Eve was given the job of being his helpmate and that definitely got harder to do! But nonetheless, we all have jobs. Not the job you get paid for, but a job to do in relation to your existence – a job to do in service to those around you.

The more we are conscious of this purpose, the easier it will be to figure out what this job is at any given time. Suffice it to say, it is primarily found in focusing our attention on others. This is in stark contrast to “getting the most out of life,” which has become the modern mantra of a “me” generation. This would be more along the lines of “giving the most out of life.”

Deep down inside, every one of us wants to leave something behind. We want to leave a legacy. We want to be significant. We want an epitaph with substance. God put this desire in us because it is one of our purposes in life.

If your epitaph were written today, what would people write about you?

Who would be better off because of your life?

If you’re anything like me, the answer to that question makes me glad I still have time to change it.

Think today of what you can add to someone’s life, not take away.

Think of leaving situations better than you found them.

Think of whom you can serve – of how this can be a better day for someone because of you. This is important. It’s part of your legacy.

Let’s be careful to give the most out of life today.