Monday, January 28, 2008
@1:12 AM
Today, I received a revelation that blew me away. And kept me thinking, thinking, thinking...check it out, especially the end part. It's worth the length. ;)Our ministry should always strive to have a
long-term positive effect on the people we touch.
Being in a position of leadership, what will really empower our ministry and serving lies in the joy we recieve from being in a relationship with the love of our life, the reason why we serve.
When Jesus was in the garden of Gethsamane,
His soul was in constant conflict between his destiny and his humanity, to take the path of least resistance.Jesus was the one Himself who asked Simon Peter to bring with him a sword, yet He was also the one who re-attached the soldier's ear that was cut off by Simon Peter. Imagine how unjustified Simon Peter must have felt: after all, the bringing of the sword was Jesus' instruction! Yet,
time and again, Jesus put His disciples through the most difficult tests, so that they could have the revelation that it will never be done through human effort, but ministry is going to entail spiritual work, period. During the last supper, when Jesus washed the feet of His disciples, what went through His mind? Was He serving or leading them in His actions?
Was He a leader who was serving, or a servant who was leading? If your
identity is a leader, you will find yourself choosing the who, when and what of the people you lead. Yet, if your
identity is a servant, there will be nothing beneath you.
Leading is what you do, but a servant is who you really are. That's our identity.
Jesus led the disciples by washing their feet.
Abraham Lincoln once said
"Any man can withstand adversity, but if you want to test him, give him power." How do you handle leadership positions and authority? Do your actions communicate or command pride?
Everything that Jesus did had a reason. There never failed to be a message he wanted to deposit into the spirit of his disciples. Likewise, everything He tells us to follow today has a reason.
Have you taken the lesson home yet?
Sunday, January 20, 2008
@4:00 AM
Confidence. In the great "I AM". In what has already been done more than 2000 years ago on 2 wooden planks roughly joined together.
Confidence that we do not have to prove anything to anyone. We do what we do b'coz we know who we do it unto, and that's enough.
Confidence says "I know I have to and will choose to do what God has called me to do, even if it may upset you."
In
quiet confidence, there is strength that has been found in the secret places.
As a leader of God's people, I am someone who has high expectations of myself. My expectations motivate me, but at the same time, the fear of failing these expectations will make me work extra hard. Sometimes, ministry can enter work-mode. Even as Christians in our marketplaces, the same goes. Yet, like what Pastor shared today, our reading the bible should not be so that we gain a better knowledge to preach to the people around us, our praying should not be so that we can have a better revelation to share with our people, our keeping strong should not be so that we do not stumble the people around us. There needs to be a greater intimacy, a greater reason to do what I do, b'coz I want to swim deeper into the secret places, I want to have the quiet confidence, knowing my place with and in God.
That will take me higher.On a sidenote, I thought of a few people today and it brought to mind the reason why I chose to a enter CG ministry and stay on in this path. I've always been someone who simply adore children and music. Put simply, they never fail to bring new meaning into my life, generating new revelations time and again. The pure innocence of the little ones is revealed in their eyes, and when they say they love someone, they simply mean it. No complications, no explanations whatsoever. And yes, I did think
alot about joining them. As for music, that came as a greater pull: I love to sing, I love to write songs, I feel much like a fish in water whenever I lead praise and worship. To see a congregation lifting up their hands in worship in one accord, to see people weep in His presense satisfies me. Yet, why did I still make a firm decision to choose to serve as a cgl?
Dealing with people is no menial task. Dealing with people expecting you to lead them somewhere higher in their walk with God proved...challenging. Dealing with
interesting, quirky (nicer way of putting
complicated) people sure beats the cool out of me...many times. Yet, having the wonderful opportunity to see lives transformed despite difficulties and struggles adds tremendous value to my life. Knowing that the destinies of great people can be influenced by my words motivates me to want to give my best.
And knowing that what I say, or do, has an impact on people's lives, that it meant something, that it contributed, despite my weaknesses; that never fails to show me how God loves to work His miracle in my life. Yes, children may show me the pure innocence and music may make me feel like a fish in water, but there is no place like leading future history makers into their destiny, and witnessing how God can work through my inadequacies to transform lives...directly.
That makes it all worth the stay. Despite of all.Shared on Friendships in CG today and this is a topic so close to my heart, coz besides family, friends are the people who have left the deepest imprints over my life (of course, God's words are auto-opted in, no doubt about it). Their actions and comments can leave me flying on cloud nine, being in a pensive mood the whole day, or having cloud thunderstorm and rain accompanying through the times I will think and think and still...think through what they have said.
Alot of times, I love to take the path that seeks to please people. My closest friends know that I do not like to confront, and I will end up talking myself out of that very act of telling the truth by telling myself that I need to to be more understanding towards them. Yet, I know I need to be more open in telling the truth in love.
True love has the courage to empower someone with a gentle-prodding that they may have been wrong, but it does not stop there. When gentle-prodding does not work, true love takes it beyond to a place where one can give the hard knock-on-the-heads and wake our friends up. Yes, we all love gentle-proddings, but I have to admit that without the hard knock-on-the-heads from my close friends, I would not be what I am today. Of course, the hard knocks sure proved a bitter pill to swallow, caused me much zzz time thinking through and feeling unjustified, but I knew deep inside that they had a point and I had to stop being difficult. I had to stop blowing up my justifications bigger than the truth. And that will take me higher as a person.
Thanks pals for being so patient with me and encouraging me time and again to stop being so po2 po2 ma1 ma1/ guai3 wan1 mo4 jiao3 about things. I know you all are people who want the
truth undecorated, just as I want it too; coz practically, it saves lotsa time and effort, and the truth undecorated does serve as a good wake-me-up that you care too much for me to leave me nuah-ing the same old way. On the outside, I am upset at why the truth can't come in milder doses; but when I come home and think through, I thank God for the bitter pill, the potent one-time shot, coz it never fails to mark my life, and provoke me to want to change. Fast.
Okay, I promise I will try to be someone more confrontational and be less of a suo1 tou2 wu1 gui1 with my words! ;)
Friday, January 18, 2008
@12:28 AM
A nutcase consists of...walnuts, hazelnuts, peanuts, brazilnuts, camel-brand nuts, farmer-brand nuts, and imanut.
The lattermost referring to how I may have joined the nut family.
People really do come in all shapes and sizes, just as nuts do.
I'm speaking in parables.
Must be the stress from all the weekly tests and exams and expectations and...(no, I'm not still in NUS).
Phoebe, can I scream like you do? Maybe we could head to Labrador Park together, that's an awesome place to do so. Haha!
Alright, just in case the 1st post of the year seems too irrelevant, I'll share something more in-the-face, not needing any form of intepretation.
Have been on attachment at Centrepoint and Toa Payoh this week, at the Xndo Centres. An interesting discovery I've made is that even around the 230-530pm window, there are still throngs of people walking down town, and sometimes, I have a habit of observing people and their habits around me very closely. I love to think about what may be going through people's minds, why they do what they do. I love to put a voice to the thoughts of people. Yes, I too wonder why I did not choose to major in Sociology in Uni. Perhaps I may have stood a chance at ace-ing my FYP if I did. ;)
Anyway, for the 3 days that I've walked past Centrepoint in the day, amidst the many people selling their art through painting and songs, selling lottery tickets, watches, and the likes; I noticed a very small-build granny with a seemingly benign disposition sitting in her wheelchair selling tissue paper. Yes, we all had our fair share of meeting people wanting to sell us tissue packs. But yet, something about her caught me through the 3 days that I kept walking past her. She sat there the whole day, even till the time I knocked off @ 730pm. Even though I havn't spoken to her, yet I guess it was her gentle and loving spirit that attracted me to her: she really reminded me of Popo. I remembered someone telling me that if giving someone a simple dollar note could make their day and you could see them smile, then how willing will you be to do that?
As Christians, we mostly have no problems to give to God. And yes, probably some of us are starting to learn to give to the people around us. But yet, notice how often was the last time you gave to a complete stranger? And when you give, what is the motivation? To avoid being bugged further down the road to give again, or simply to look good in front of others?
On 31st Dec 07, when everyone was out partying, I was in my cosy home reflecting on the year past and my goals for the new year. My guiding verse for 2008 comes from Rom 8:28, where it says that ALL things work together for the GOOD of those who LOVE God. As I wanted to live a life under the will of God, under His umbrella, overflowing with blessings, God spoke to me that the only way for all things to work together for my good was for me to love Him. And loving Him simply meant...loving the thing that was most important to Him: people.
I've not really taken time aside to share this, but as I looked back on 2007, after listing down all my victories, I decided to single out my greatest victory of 07, and it really moved me to tears when I realised how important relationships was to me.
I used to believe in "the power of one", and by that I meant the power of being a lone ranger in life, but when I finally decided to resurrect certain relationships in my life then did I realise how much people meant to me. And you are right, my greatest victory was the resurrected friendship. Thanks for being so big-hearted to accept me into your life again.
Back to Centrepoint Granny: and so I decided to put a smile on her face by giving her a dollar note through my days there. And though we still did not say again through the 3 days, her cheery smile spoke volumes. And it made me feel very good, very happy, very blessed.
I feel less nutty already, after saying all these. =)