Risque

So I hope finishing three assignments and one test in the course of two weeks mean that I am able to slack off abit.



Cos that's all I have been doing today. Readings? Pftttt, so yesterday. Party? Books? Shopping? Chocolate? THICK SHAKES TO BOOT?



Finger twist and split, good bye x

Do you know...

That August is taking far too long to end?

Grapevines

*/so half of this was written a day earlier

"There is no one true reality, only different versions of the real..."


What is the truth? What is real?


As a student, that statement makes so much sense to me. Everything that we believe is real, is real only to us. Such confidence is influenced by ideology. Meaning is not inherrent, not natural. Indeed, meaning is learnt. And I agree.


After all, what you believe might be true, might not be true to someone else. Taking a fine example that dates back to my secondary school days is this : Highly philosophical in those days (lol JOKE) we were questioning if the blue that I see, is the exact same shade of blue that you see, that he sees and so on. And the thing is - we'll never really know, will we? And how we can tell that colour is blue is because of the way we were taught, i suppose our brains learn and remember that that shade of colour is called blue?


So I'm not a med student, and I don't know if what I just said is total bullcrap.

Buttttt, I do believe so. Take a very abstract example, like freedom, and love. We only understand those words as such because we are taught, in schools, at home. And the meaning we all extract from these 'texts' (im being too media-ated arent i) differ according to the values that are instilled in us while growing up, the environment we grew up in etc etc


Even talking about this makes me smart lol


BUT then when I woke up today, every single thing that I thought and agreed on....it split open into fragments and was left wasted.



OF COURSE there is ONE TRUE REALITY.

And that is the Bible - God, Jesus, Eternal Life, Love, Hope, Joy, Faith, Promises.


Every single thing about that is real. And as believers - our perceptions, our versions are all in tuned to each other. Sure, there are different intepretations, but essentially, we believe in the same - the truth.


How do we know the Bible is true? That there exists a God who created the heavens and the Earth? That there is a Jesus who came as the son of God to walk on earth in humanly form, to die on the cross for our sins? That if we believe we shall have everlasting life? That it is because of Love such is available? That we can have hope and joy in things unshakable? Such faith, such promises?



How do we know that what is real for us isn't just a big fat lie/conspiracy theory/new world order (sorry i just like that word) to others?

And then during connect last night, Soo told us about about this korean saying:

There is a guy who sells pills, and he knows every thing about those pills.

And then there's the guy who was cured from taking the pills.

Which is the best person to go to if you wanted to know about the pills?

The person who got cured, of course. It seems very simple, but isn't it true?

People are cynical. They reject what they cannot see, and if they reject it in the first place, they won't be able to feel.


We don't know the A-Zs about every single thing in the Bible, we can't answer all questions, we don't have all the cold hard facts.

So how do we know what we believe in is true?



Because we are the people who have taken the pills and have been cured. We have believed because we have experienced. We have felt and thus we can see.
Everything is a 'logical fallicy'. Nothing makes sense. Not really, it doesn't.

But how can we doubt our own personal feelings? And experiences? They are not dead but alive, and tangible. They breathe, indeed it breathes life, and it moves and acts, and works.


We know it is true, because we Do Know. We Do know - the truth and the real.


So don't let your faith be shaken, believe in what you believe in, in the things worth believing in, and trust with all your heart, might and strength. It is real. Jesus did die and rise again three days later. He did this for us -for you and me. I have no doubts xx

Homesick at Space Camp

I am homesick, and I have no idea why? It's barely half the semester, usually the homesickness sets in during the last lap of the semester.


And it's not even about the food. I just simply miss home. And the family. I find myself lapsing into 5 minutes of 'let's-think-about-what-i-miss-the-most' the last few days :)

I think only of what we lost, and I struggle to figure what is it that's missing. And the silence can only multiply by itself, growing and deepening, the both of us lost in translation.

Oh how He loves us

You ever had that moment? You know, the one where you feel so overwhelmed by the love of God you just want to sing, shout, run, cry and praise Him - all at the same time?

That moment where everything that's happening around you stops and fails, and the only thing that matters is God's presence.





Ever had that? x

It takes some work to make it work

"But the sky is in constant flux as fatty clouds billow by and the upper
atmospheric colors spin through every shade of awesome, from almond to
razzmatazz. As an earthling, living here on the surface at the edge of space,
how can you not be impressed with what’s going on around us? "


-Jason Mraz

A moment might be a thousand different things

"He shrugged off his shirt, but even so, when he
slid his arms around her again, he was thinking, I love you. I love you so
much, and I lied to you...

And the
distance between them, millimeters only, the space of a breath, opened up and
deepened, became a cavern at whose edge he stood."

— Kim
Edwards, The Memory Keeper's Daughter

si,

Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast.






So many things to be done. I foresee a busy rest-of-the-week, with assignments to complete and a test on monday. I wish I could just fastforward to my last semester.... or not.

Can't believe it's already end August. Where did the past 7 months go, they just flew right over my head and out the window ?


Yah, there's nothing on my mind right now actually, except maybe






and




Good day Study hard Buy me some butterscotch and pecan ? x

Love is Blind

And I Absolutely Agree!!


So while I was moisturising myself (lol i forsee comments - i know)(I DO know) itunes was playing and then this line "that my love for you was blind" broke my concentration on applying the moisturiser evenly (the weather is extremely dry, do not judge)

AsI listened to the lyrics of this familiar famous song, I tried to figure out why Jason Wade was singing such lines.

And in that moment of pampering myself, I realised how true that is. Because love is blind.

So many times we take that line and apply it to people around us - subtly, or not.


For example, your best friend fell in love with the ugliest guy/girl you have met as of yet. Over coffee you persuade him/her to break up. He/She refuses, saying He/She loves his/her boy/girlfriend. While sipping your mocha you say "oh well. Love is blind" and shrug dismissively.

Or,

your brother/sister is marrying the clumsiest/rudest/messiest/(insert choice vocabulary) guy/girl you have met as of yet. Over dinner you attempt to persuade him/her to rethink his/her decision. He/She refuses. He/She claims that they are very much in love and nothing is going to stop them from getting married.


(You get my point)


Well, the reality is not everyone's perfect. Yet we fall in love with people and their imperfections anyway.

Don't you see? Love Is blind! That by itself, says a lot.

It says a lot about the person in love with the other imperfect person. It says a lot about humanity. It says a lot about one's ability to love.

And in that moment on my bed, I was kinda blown away. Because being loved is amazingly amazing.
But loving! That's hard and difficult and complicating. Yet, arguably one of the best things in life.


So can you imagine Love so great that death, in exchange for your salvation, is undertaken (?) ?

Can you imagine Love so intense that despite having the ability to show you the truth, freedom to choose is given?


"after all this time

would you ever wanna leave it

maybe you could not believe it

that my love for you was blind

but I couldn't make you see it

couldn't make you see

that I loved you more than you will ever know

a part of me died when I let you go"
-Blind, by Lifehouse



God so loved the world that He gave up His one and only Son.

Simple as that.

That whoever believes in Him will never perish, but have eternal life.


A Gift! Love so great and powerful. The gift that keeps giving :)


We are sinners. We are imperfect. Look around you - we are still able to love each other freely and unconditionally. Agape love.


See? We are but the residue of Our Father's love.

Love is blind - those three words focuses not on the imperfections, but on the perfections. The perfections of the one loving. It is possibly the best kind of love to have.


"that I loved you more than you will ever know"


Sayonara x

The power of Your story

I couldn't get to sleep last night, and my mind was just wandering and wondering, the different parts of my brain acting up at different points of time, skipping and dwelling - that's the way it works, so deal.

But yeah i was thinking about Evangelism, which is a huge focus for the church, especially now.

So during connect last night, we were talking about it, and it was said that evangelism isn't just sharing the gospel. In fact, Our work is only done if we ask that person we are administering to The Question.

The question of decision. Of choice.

Concerning the rest of your life on earth and the eternally long time after.

And it's so much easier living for and in what you believe in, and telling people about it. But how many times have we actually stopped to ask that person if they will believe?

I've had conversations over the years, sharing the gospel, even inviting friends to church. But is that enough? Convincing, yes, but do you ask if they will accept Jesus as their saviour and Lord?

The Great Commission in Matthew 28:16-20 tells us to make disciples. Yes, asking them to make a decision. Believe, Follow, and Obey. Taking up the cross daily, denying yourself. And for us, it's All About Decisions. It's either a Yes, or a No. I doubt there's a maybe shoved in the middle. No sitting on the fence for this.

Anyway, we also talked about practical ways of evangelising. And it all boils down to stories.

Your story. The story of Your life. Your testimony.

As with the blind man who got healed by Jesus in John 9 - He didn't have all the answers. But he did have his story.

And I reckon that's very important. Because people Love stories. Especially real life-changing ones.

And what better life-changing story than your encounter with God?

That's what people can relate to.

You can have a long debate over say, the truth about the Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown (who has a new book coming out!)(i'm a fan of his writing) and the discussion can go on forever.

Well, instead of coming up with a list of arguments to refute your opponent, why not stop and say: "I can't answer all of your questions. But I have encountered Jesus. And that's how I know He's real and alive. Because my life has been changed, and it has and will never be the same again."

And what can they say to that?

"You must be joking" ?

It is hard to ignore and deny that our lives has changed. It is hard to argue against someone's experience. And experiences is what we have in abundance.


The book of John ends saying:

This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down.




So, testify.

High Art

The talk and thoughts of men - they leave such deep scars. The scars, they 'shine like stars'.

But the sun.

Oh the sun, in all it's glory. The biggest star of them all. The sun brings hope. The sun shine hits us and we fall faster and faster and faster. All these happening in the passing, the life we once had will very soon be gone.

And then there will be eternity.

The scars we once prided, they leave but a trace. A fleeting moment of a ripe old age.

The sun is what matters.

Deep breaths

"and when at last you find someone to whom you feel you can pour out your soul,
you stop in shock at the words you utter - they are so rusty, so ugly, so
meaningless and feeble from being kept in the small cramped dark inside you so long"

sylvia plath

Like an open book

"Because, as Saussure pointed out, reality, the world, and material conditions
are not given, but rather are produced as meaningful through signs. What this
means is that there is an important relationship betwen the dominant value or
meaning of the signifier 'woman' and the way women are treated in a cultre. If
'woman' is associated with emotionality, lack of reason, unprofessionalism and
domesticity, then it is very difficult to change the material conditions in
which women find themselves, difficult to help women gain access to different
areas of a culture (government, professions, the public sphere) which supposedly
require qualities such as reason and professionalism, and difficult to get a
culture to revalue those tasks traditionally performed by women (domestic
duties, for instance). This is because, as the (circular and patriarchal logic
would have it, those tasks are performed by women, women are emotional and lack
reason, therefore those tasks are not valuable."

Schirato, Tony and Yell, Susan (1996), 'Signs and meaning', in their Communication and Cultural Literacy: An Introduction, Sydney, Allen & Unwin, pp.22-42





And what the hell are we going to do about that, Seriously, Susan Yell (?) ?!

These dreams they told me...

Okay, so my phone is kaput. It's currently undergoing some tough times, and therefore I am uncontactable. And very very handicapped for that matter, since I use my phone for various reasons like, as an alarm, and to text and call, and to check the time etc!


But whatever, because school starts in 15 minutes (i know why am i still home?) but ends in 3 hours (:


And today.

Today, the sun still shines, and the skies are still blue. And the law of gravity is still fundamental to science. Nothing's changed. Universe's still expanding yadayada..

And. God's still good. And despite all of this, I'm going to keep trusting. And smiling for that matter.

I'm so thankful for everything. Even though it's so terribly hard.


Have an awesome day xx

He Chose You

"I just finished a book by Max Lucado titled "And the Angels were Silent". I understand that every time you purchase a book you are entitled to photocopy or reproduce up to one chapter of the book. So I'm gonna make use of that today, and I hope this speaks to you as much as it spoke to me. Do take some time to read it through if you can?

--------------


Thursday night. Midnight.

The week has been full of finalities. The final visit to the temple. The final sermon. The final supper. And now, the most emotional hour of the week, the final prayer.

The garden is in shadows. The olive trees are knotted and gnarled. They twist five or six feet into the sky. Roots sprawl from the trunks and claw deeply into the rocky soil. The spring moon casts the garden in silver. Constellations sparkle against the black velvet of the night sky. Fleets of clouds float. A breeze cools. Insects sing. Leaves stir.

That's him. Jesus. In the grove. On the ground. The young man. The one in the sweat-soaked garment. Kneeling, imploring. His hair is plastered to his wet forehead. He agonises.

A sound is heard in the trees. Snoring. Jesus looks across the garden at the dearest friends he has. They are asleep. They lean against the broad trunks and slumber. His yearnings don't stir them, his distress doesn't move them. They are tired.

He stands and walks through the shadowed trees and squats before them. "Please," he asks, "please just stay awake with me."

The Lord of the universe doesn't want to be alone.

Jesus knew that before the "war" between God and Satan was over, he would be taken captive. He knew that before victory would come defeat. He knew that before the throne would come the cup. He knew that before the light of Sunday would come the blackness of Friday.

Imagine, for a moment, yourself in this situation. Your final hour. What do you say? What do you do? What words do you choose?

It's worth noting that Jesus chose prayer. He chose to pray for US. "I pray for these men. But I am also praying for all people who will believe in me because of the teaching of these men. Father I pray that all people who believe in me can be one...I pray that these people can also be one in us, so that the world will believe that you sent me." (John 17:20-21)

You need to note that in this final prayer, Jesus prayed for you. He said "I am also praying for all people who will believe in me because of the teaching." That is you. That is me. As Jesus stepped into the garden, you were in his prayers. As Jesus looked into heaven, you were in his vision. As Jesus dreamed of the day when we will be where He is, He saw you there.

His final prayer was about you. His final pain was for you. His final passion was you.

It then talks about Jesus' soul being "overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death". Never has he felt so alone. He confesses that the "spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak". His humanity begged to be delivered from what his divinity could see. Jesus, the man, implores. He peers into the dark pit and begs, "Can't there be another way?"

Did he know the answer before he asked the question? Did his human heart hope his heavenly Father had found another way? We don't know. But we do know he asked to get you. We do know he begged for an exit. We do know there was a time when, if he could have, he would have turned his back on the whole mess and gone away

But he couldn't.

He couldn't because he saw you. Right in the middle of a world that isn't fair, he saw you cast into a river of life you didn't request. He saw you betrayed by those you love. He saw you with a body that gets sick and a heart that grows weak. He saw you in your own garden of gnarled trees and sleeping friends. He saw you staring into the pit of you own failures and the mouth of your own grave. He saw you in your Garden of Gethsemane...and he didn't want you to be alone.

He wanted you to know that he has been there too. He knows what it's like to be plotted against. He knows what it's like to be confused. He knows what it's like to be torn between two desires. He knows what it's like to smell the stench of Satan. And, perhaps most of all, he knows what it's like to beg God to change his mind and to hear God say so gently, but firmly, "No."

For that is what God says to Jesus. And Jesus accepts the answer. At some moment during that midnight hour an angel of mercy comes over the weary body of the man in the garden. As he stands, the anguish is gone from his eyes. His fist will clench no more. His heart will fight no more.

The battle is won. You may have thought it was won on Golgotha. It wasn't. You may have thought the sign of victory is the empty tomb. It isn't. The final battle was won in Gethsemane. And the sign of conquest is Jesus at peace in the olive trees.

For it was in the garden that he made his decision, because he would rather go to hell for you than go to heaven without you. "


God Bless xx

Death: Body failing, spirit expanding

You know what?

It's not enough to KNOW God.


For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse

Romans 1:20

See, "men are without excuse". They do know Him. Indeed, I'm sure almost everyone you've met knows About, or at least has heard of our God. Yes, the 'Christian' God. They have no excuse not too.


But that's not enough, is it? Everyone knows him, yet so many people choose to turn their faces away from the righteous one. Even if "God has made it plain to them" (Romans 1:19)

SIN. The big, three-letter word.
And why we sin...the reason WHY is almost too simple.


"For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened"

Romans 1:21

And therefore, God "gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts"; "gave them over to shameful lusts"; "gave them over to a depraved mind"


It just got me thinking.

Glorifying, is basically giving honour, and praise and worship. It is exalting something or someone.

Do I glorify God?

Yes, I mean, i do.

But.

Do I REALLY glorify God? In all that I do? Do I honour Him, and His name with my actions and words, and thoughts? Do I make Him proud of my ways? Do I exalt Him constantly?

Indeed, do I glorify other things/people?

Do I give thanks? Or is the first thing I do while facing a difficulty/problem, to complain? Do I thank God for all that He has done, for Salvation, for His love and freedom?

For my trials and obstacles? For the hardships and heartache? Do I give thanks for them?

Tough questions. I admit, my answers are mostly in the negative.

Because it's not enough to know God. Actions speak louder than words.

It's not enough to know that I should glorify and give thanks.
I should glorify and give thanks. In all that I do.

So this is my new resolution: honouring and exalting God in all that I do. Even the little nitty-gritty things.

Good day x