2 week hiatus

[Update: Prayer Request: In danger of losing my voice and am concerned about ability to emcee at my friend's wedding this Sat. Do keep my health and voice in your prayers and that suitable solution will be found very soon.]

Due to commitments in the offline world, I'll not be updating this blog for the next 2 weeks until next, next Monday (12th Sept). Am involved in preparations for a wedding (Yay!) so I *think* God will be teaching me invaluable lessons through it and prayerfully it'll lead to an interesting entry then.

In the meantime, feel free to look through my past entries, you may see it from a totally different perspective?

To spammers, I'll still be reading my blog for comments periodically and deleting commercial/inappropriate messages.

Immanuel.

How Romance Changes People

I just can't stop laughing (still trying to figure out why) when my brother and his beloved came home with 2 hamsters yesterday and found out that their names are 'Lenoil' and 'Leira' (Oh dear! It suddenly just struck me that I hope he remembers how quickly these creatures proliferate!) My kid brother, taking care of dependant, young things!

A previously somewhat ascetic, simple and no-frills man, I remembered it took me sometime to reconcile the new discovery of a pink dolphin on his bed with the fact that it belong to him. That definitely did not go with his room decor!

It's amazing how romance can change a person. Within a very short span my brother had grown gentler in speech, more proactive in care and more tolerant in nature.

This made me witness the power of love to change a person, and its implications on what love of Christ should bring; it should naturally lead to a transformed life and a changed attitude as I seek to please Him, to work for the pleasure of seeing His approval at my change, His acceptance of my effort and His delight at my offering to Him.

The very first commandment God calls us to obey is 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and all your soul, and all your strength and all your mind', so shouldn't our love for Him far exceed any loving relationship (husband-wife, kinship, romantic, friendship etc) we have on this earth?

For example, in a dating couple I'm close to, I have seen how she, changed from being previously inept in the kitchen to becoming a cook of (erm hmm) mediocre skills because she takes pleasure from making food for him, who prides himself on being a good cook. Or how he was able to develop charisma and stage presence from developing an interest in what she's passionate about and how he made a switch in his career plans after he had seriously considered her sharing of direction in life and decided it is good for him.

If such noticeable changes are observed in a couple who is only dating, what more if we truly love Him? Some examples could be the willingness to seriously consider insights shared in His word in our decision making, allowing what He says to influence our direction, taking effort to develop skills in previously uninterested areas (e.g giving to the poor, the widows and the orphans). Do such changes taken to please their beloved require effort? You bet, but that great driving force should be derieved from great affection for our Beloved.

So if our increased knowledge of Him and what pleases Him does not lead to changes in our lives, could it be from lack of love for Him? Or are we, in our heart of hearts, actually pharisees who aim to gain the adoration of man with our puffed-up knowledge?

The true answers to these questions could mean the difference between '...the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.'(John 16:27) or 'I don't know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!' (Luke 13:27)

Quick Tips for spending time with Him during the Busy Season

http://christhacks.blogspot.com/2005/08/quick-tips-for-busy-season.html

Conversations with non-believers

Unbeliever: "Do you know what's a psychic?"

Me: (Just knowing that it's going to be a theological debate... again, whether I like it or not) "It's a person who is somehow deceived into thinking that they have extra-ordinary powers." (Started praying for appropriate answer)

Unbeliever: "You know ah, I've just been reading this book, "(Some name), a biography of a psychic (or something along these lines), and it's very interesting. He's a psychologist who does hypnotherapy and it's amazing how people, who never knew each other are involved in past lives, how 1 person had killed another in a previous life and how this affect their current lives............"

Me: Erm..... Oh is it?...... That's interesting....... (Mind complete blank as to giving an appropriate answer)

The person probably walked away thinking that this Christian is in agreement with him that people have past lives.

Don't you just get really frustrated when you are trying to vegetate and people spring these spiritual issues with you? I've since stopped being surprised that these conversations only start when I'm either down, trying to relax, vegetating etc....

I mean can't these conversations start right after my quiet time or something?!?!

On the other hand, when I do have appropriate answers or if I'm the person who starts these conversations, phrasing my answers as gently as possible, the other person will feel offended that I'm being a "pig-minded Christian who refuses to accept that their point of view could be equally valid".

You just can't win.

Alot of them walk away thinking that if you have 'lost the debate', this once and for all proves Christianity is 'wrong/not the only way to God'. (Sometimes, even the Christian feels the same way too after the above 1 of the 2 outcomes happen).

Thank God that the truth of salvation is not dependent on how well the debate went (although it sure feels like that!), feelings or what the other person thinks. The foundation is Christ and Christ only - his life, deeds, death and resurrection that shows the acceptability of His sacrifice for our sins and proves Him to be the only way to the Father. How an individual responds does not prove or disprove the truth, but rather whether he/she is safe and under cover from the implications of this truth.

So yes, it's important that we are aware that we do not need to be responsible for how the debate went and how the other party react. Yet at the same time, I think there are definitely actions a Christian can do for His glory:

i) Memorise scripture (What great advice for myself :D ) I've found that at times of stress, it's things that are internalized that will come to the tip of my head. "Out of the fullness of your heart, your mouth speaks" (Think it's somewhere in proverbs, anybody have any idea which part of the bible it comes from?) This will also enable us to "be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. " (1 Pet 3:15)

ii) Always respond gently and with respect but to do it with wisdom, even if engaging in debate is the last thing that you want to do. Sometimes, the person truly just wants to connect with you by sharing what he/she has come across, perhaps the love of Christ may be experienced when we took the time out to connect with them - even if discussing these issues is the last thing that you want to do.

iii) Steer the conversation towards a discussion of Christ as early as possible. This is good for 2 reasons: Firstly, it's impossible for us to be experts in every topic under the sun. Secondly, even if we are experts in the area that the unbeliever is discussing (e.g in the example above, it'll be reincarnation and past lives), debating on that, even successfully will cause the other person to feel wrong ->negative ->Tendency is not to listen anymore. Now that I have some time to think about it, 1 appropriate way I could have gone about the above example is "How will knowing more about psychic powers and past lives bring you closer to God?" It's natural then to discuss with them objectively the possibility that Christ is the only way to Him.

Any other thoughts?

Ecc 5:1-7

Yesterday, on Sunday, the necessity to choose a song to practise my chords prompted my notice of the song 'Let my words be few'. What started as pure finger practise soon led to zealous singing as I immersed myself, a little desperately, in need of self-assurance, in the emotion that God is a great God, high up in heaven, almighty and powerful.

"You are God in heaven
And here am I on earth
So I'll let my words be few
......
And I'll stand in awe of You
Yes I'll stand in awe of You
And I'll let my words be few
...."

I'd like to think that my brother hovering round the piano with his fingers poised as if trying to figure the melody I'm singing, and then walking away whistling the tune and my mom insisting that I press the muffler means that the music and the fact it's a Christian song is affecting them a bit.

Today, stressed out at the situation that I'm imagining is ahead in my day, I turned to Ecclesiastes, hoping to gain comfort, and lo and behold, I read the exact same passage (in Ecc 5:1-7) that I was singing so enthusiastically the day before (although right now with the realization that my understanding was not complete).

While I had thought while singing, the emphasis was on God's greatness (and thus the implication He is in control in each of our situation (and here I got it wrongly) and will be my helper, my vending machine), I read the passage with the understanding that because He is great, our King, our rightful response is not to go to Him and blabber our hearts out, insisting on justice (unconscious of the fact that this means I myself am rightfully condemned) but to listen to Him - to His command, to His rebuke, to His rightful correction in my life which should be my concern alone.

Often, I am tempted to protest "But I'm behaving so much better than my neighbour, who condemns me even when she herself magnifies my wrong". Yet who am I, in comparison to God's holy standard?

For me, it's a good reminder, that when things get even worse than normal, when there doesn't seem time enough for my commitments, all the more, I must immerse myself into what He says and let His Holy standard transform my life so that He may truly be Lord of my life.

But will I truly strive to work out my salvation with fear and trembling? I don't deny I feel tired (What right do I have to say that? Have I really that many worries, concerns? Do I have dependants who need me?) and often resent God for making life so difficult (Did He really?) I'd truly like to say "yes, I can do it" but I know I can't.

Yet who knows what God can do and the good that He will bring to those who love Him and who persevere in this love?

P.S For some reason today, whenever I need help physically today, a RI alumni (including *surprise of surprises* my brother), would be around to help me carry this/that stuff. They really broke my mindset that they are incorrigible atheists especially since for some reason, our conversation would be steered towards our spiritual journey which helped me discover them all to be Christians (all whom I've encountered today believe for less than 5 years although they are in their late 20s-late 30s). That really gave me hope that my brother can be saved, although he has always struck me as being indifferent, relativistic and having great belief in himself.

Time and Predestination vs Free-Will

I was in a group of girls sharing the lessons which we've learned in Malachi. On listening to S' sharing, I acted on my impulse to ask her if she is a Calvinist.

I immediately knew that it was an unhelpful question when another group member asked what a Calvinist is. Seeing that I was not articulate verbally, S took on the responsibility of treading carefully in giving a summary of Calvinism vs Arminianism while emphasizing that the truth of salvation lies solely in trust in Christ rather than the position we take on this debate.

It was when S was expressing the idea that although it often looks like we are making the choice to believe in Him, from God's perspective, it's really His sovereign choice which chooses us first which enabled us; that a thought struck me.

From God's perspective, this emphasizes how differently God sees things from us. No matter how capable, effective and efficient we are, we are still bound by the dimensions of this world: limits including time and space.

CS Lewis makes the point more clearly than I ever could in his book "Mere Christianity", Chapter "Time and Beyond Time":

"God is not in Time. His life does not consist of moments following one another. ... Every moment from the beginning of the world is always Present for Him. ......

Suppose I am writing a novel. I write Mary laid down her work; next moment came a knock at the door!" For Mary who has to live in the imaginary time of my story there is not interval between putting down the work and hearing the knock. But I, who am Mary's maker, do not live in that imaginary time at all. Between writing the first half of that sentence and the second, I might sit down for three hours and think steadily about Mary. I could think about Mary as if she were the only character in the book and for as long as I pleased, and the hours I spent in doing so would not appear in Mary's time (the time inside the story) at all.

... God is not hurried along in the Time-stream of this universe any more than an author is hurried along in the imaginary time of his own novel. He has infinite attention to spare for each one of us. He does not have to deal with us in the mass. You are as much alone with Him as if you were the only being He had ever created. When Christ died, He died for you individually just as much as if you had been the only man in the world."

Are you beginning to see as I had glimpsed that beginning of an idea of how the concept of predestination can be counciled with the concept of free-will? Every moment that comes to us one after another that becomes our Past, Present and Future is NOW to Him. If we try to put on His shoes (which are much too big for me), it is because He chooses us NOW, therefore in the book of our lives, we were able to surrender ourselves totally to Him from that Moment we chose to believe.

Free-will and the choice it allows can only be meaningfully made in each moment, within the dimension of time. Outside of time and space, when we are in the absolute NOW (as we one day will when He comes again), there just cannot be a choice - it's either eternal goodness or unending suffering.*

Both concepts, of predestination and free-will, can be correct. It just depends on which angle we look at, the perspective of chronos, within time, or of kairos, outside of time in God's reality.

The question is where are we choosing to live in the absolute NOW with every decision made in each moment as we live now in chronos? In eternal goodness expressing characteristics of our citizenship of heaven or in unending suffering?

*: Haven't you experience the timelessness of moments when we have intense experiences and how it seems to colour the rest of your life?

Intense pain: Betrayal by your best friend (How could she? I trust her so much...); the awful realization that the person on the pedestal you've trusted totally is actually nearer the spawn of the devil (How could I be so blind? I even have had $1,000s/$1,000,000s loaned to him/her/I nearly want to marry him/her); the constant repression/nagging/abuse from your beloved where your life becomes repetitive suffering and you look back with horror when 'yes' was given to marriage (That was the biggest mistake of my entire life....)

Intense bliss: Seeing a child rocking on a baby rocking chair, with sunlight pouring in and drinking milk from a bottle (so safe, so secure); the moment you realize the love of your life reciprocates your feelings (so beloved); the moment you realize God's love when he took on your punishment so that we may always be in the stronghold of Someone absolutely loving, just and merciful (so precious).

Funny Question

Eve is 夏娃 in Mandarin which literally translates to 'Summer Doll', which I take to mean 'Summer Babe'.

Why is her name 夏娃?

P.S Do you sometimes feel too tired to care about people and stuff?

God, Lord of our Lives

Was not thinking of blogging but absolutely must get this idea recorded.

In the book 'Your work matters to God' by Doug Sherman and William Hendricks, Chp 13 'Living for the Weekend' has this idea that blows my hierarchical mind:

"If you've been around Christian teaching in our culture for very long, you've undoubtedly heard reference to a hierarchy of priorities. This hierarchy says that in your life you should put Christ first, your marriage and family second, your church third, people fourth and so on.....

While this hierarchy has some value, let me suggest that it is both unbiblical and inadequate as a model for life. Its value lies in its usefulness for tradeoffs. For example, if your choice is between achieving a major career success but losing your family in the process, then biblically you would need to sacrifice your career success and give preference to maintaining a healthy family. Thus the hierarchy is somewhat useful.

.....

The point is that Jesus must be brought in on everything we do- our family lives, our jobs, our friendships with neighbours, our play, our hobbies, our sex lives, our conflicts, our politics, our financial decisions- everything! He is not simply the first of many demands to be satisfied. He is a Person who intends to walk through life with us.

.....

I mean that we need to live every aspect of our lives purposefully, with an eye toward how it might be affected by something He has said, and how it will please or displease Him. We need not be neurotic about this, but simply reflective and intent on carrying out what He wants.

So if we're going to have a list, then Christ shouldn't even be on the list. He should be the Lord over everything on the list."

I don't know about you, but wow, this was something new to me.

Sing to the Lord a New Song

I've not been living the Christian life for quite some time already.

2 Simply cruising along with the bible knowledge I had acquired in the past; parroting the doctrinally correct answer during bible studies; finding it difficult to think about the real application of God's truth in my life; the increasing numbness of my heart towards the increasing number of people lining up along Orchard Road asking well-off Singaporeans to contribute towards worthy causes; the loss of all passion (that characterizes the 2nd and 3rd years of my Christian life) to pursue God's way and will in my life made worse by my apathy to even think about this loss.

3 This post (and the reflections above) wouldn't have happened if not for yesterday.

4 I and a few Christians, from varied churches, were singing together when we came to this song (my response as I was singing are in normal font below, where my response echos the song's lyrics, it'll be in red):

"Think about His Love, think about His goodness
Think about His grace, that brought us through"
Dear God,.... thank You for choosing me....

"For as high as the heaven's above
So great is the measure of our Father's love
Great is the measure of our Father's love"
Dear Jesus, thank you for descending from your rightful place in heaven to be us.

"How could I forget His love?
How could I forget His mercy?"
That's where Para 2 above came to my mind, how could I dear Lord?

"He satisfies, He satisfies,
He satisfies my desires.........."
For that ONE brief moment, I really understood how petty my daily concerns are for my material/physical gains, and why God's will should be my priority

"Even when I've strayed away
His love has sought me out and found me......"
Thank you for calling me, thank you for saving me, thank you for bringing me to you

"He satisfies, He satisfies,
He satisfies my desires.........."
Thank you for being my provider in every need.

5 By the conclusion of the song, my song partner was in tears and I was deeply moved.

6 Thank God for songs, which ideally should unify the truth our mind grasps with rightful responsive emotions. People (or more specifically, I), being creatures of emotions rather than logic can only be inspired, or moved to action when our emotions are aligned with the truth our mind knows.

7 This led me to consider the place of songs or the so-called 'Charismatic' songs in our personal worship time.

8 I'm sure most people realise the importance of a focus on doctrinal/historical songs in church services - because the physical church has a responsibility to ensure that the flock is constantly reminded about the truth of Christ's life, death and resurrection.

9 It's also to give the unbelievers in the midst a chance to realize - Christ is not fiction unlike other religions' folklores. His life and death are factually true and His resurrection had been seen by many witnesses whose testimonies were not overthrown so that people may be turned to seek the truth - especially important since the implications of this decision is so huge.

10 As Christians though, our primary responsibility is to do our best, with help from the Holy Spirit, to be increasingly made into the image of Christ. In my case, knowing the truth mentally only was not enough. It took the rightful response of my emotions to even start thinking about what is going wrong with my Christian walk, and I've found that songs is a good way for that.

11 If like me, you've found that the response of our emotions no longer matches the height, and width and depth and length of what God had done for us, perhaps singing (and thinking about the lyrics) about what He has done and your rightful response will help (in addition to your daily bible study)?

Conclusion: On the bus trip back after the singing session, the bus driver's negligence led to sudden braking which caused a passenger to lose balance and hit a seat very hard. I could just see the pain in her expression. I simply looked at the incident dispassionately then turned back to my thoughts. It was only a few seconds later that my then newly awakened conscience realized that something seriously wrong had just happened. Why didn't I offer her comfort and help? It looked like the longer we were stuck in apathy and hardened hearts, the harder it will be to pull ourselves out of the pit of deceit and sin. Dear God, give me the strength to will to move quickly in the right direction in your will.

Response to 'Letter to Christian Girl' / 回应‘致：我心仪的信女’

The original 'Letter to Christian Girl' can be found here

Preface: Although my sinful pride likes to imagine that 'Letter to Christian Girl' has me as one of its intended audience, my imagination of the response of the 'Christian Girl' will have me expressing characteristics that will be scoffed at by people who know me. Thus I have the vicarious fun of putting myself into the shoes of godly girls I know (yes, a couple of them are in my mind as I was writing this), to write a hopefully adequate response to this very touching letter.

Dear Christian Guy,

Thank you for your courage in sharing the truth of how you feel and and for your example of humility. It must be so tough for you to open your heart and risk rejection. Your letter makes me want to cry as I realize how much I am treasured and protected and I thank you for doing your best to guard my heart.

I am just an ordinary girl, who is blessed enough to have the privilege of being called to follow God; with my own personal struggles against sinfulness, in singleness and to simply live for God's glory. It concerns me that I'm placed on such a high pedestal: Will your efforts to grow in godliness diminish when you realize that like you, I am human? Will your attraction fade when you perceive I'm not as good as you had thought I was? Will you do your best for me and the people around us when you see I am not perfect? That pedestal is our Lord's.

How do you know I am not already attracted to you? My heart might already have been moved by your servant-heartedness as you committed to serving our Lord, His people or your neighbour He has made in His own image, not neccesarily through official church ministry, but in your life. Perhaps I am made to be your helper and not called to a lifetime of singleness, and as a result temptation is all around me: the unsaved who is only attracted by my looks or pure chemistry; the people who only call themselves Christians who have no qualms for pursuit; the knowledge that other good, godly girls are attracted to you and your character and thus the possible desire to extinguish my feelings that I will not compete with them.

I know that you are not perfect and will be more than happy to have us mutually support each other in our walk with God as long as your heart is fully set upon pleasing Him. Don't worry about being super-godly. However, how can I give you a chance when you don't pursue?

I will be glad to know you better as my brother-in-christ and will be open to gradually increasing degree of pursuit as you continually pray and grow more certain. Will you be patient to hold and wait when I am genuinely unsure and working out my understanding of feelings towards you and God's will for me? Will I know should you decide to end your pursuit? You will know when it gets to the point where the answer is a clear 'no'. Even if results don't work out as planned, friendship is possible.

I feel so precious at your consideration of so many issues. Thank you for caring to think through your options and for your efforts in guarding my heart. I thank God for the blessing of been in the thoughts of so devoted a man, who is pursuing His own heart. Until you are ready to take that leap of faith, I remain only as


Your sister-in-Christ

Christian Girl

Afterword: Truly humbled by 'Letter to Christian Girl' which makes me re-examine the triggers of feelings of attraction in me. It's only God who can cleanse us from worldly standards that define attractiveness and to pursue what He says are valuable in our choice of a beloved. I guess it's time that we start encouraging (interestingly, doesn't this word remind us of 'giving courage'?) godly brothers-in-christs whom we know are keen on a particular girl to move forward if the season is right, shouldn't we sisters?

And to the 'Christian Guys' among you, what are you waiting for? The stars (or clouds depending on the time of the day) to re-align themselves into the words "(Name) will definitely accept you."? ;) He mostly does not work this way, instead He asks us to simply trust Him as we take one baby step of faith forward at a time. If you truly mean it as expressed in 'Letter', I feel that you are definitely already godly and thus not unworthy of so equally godly a girl.

That's of course unless you are called to singleness for the glory of his kingdom.

华文版：

“致：我心仪的信女”能在这里取得。

序言：虽然我贪婪的心存希望这封信标准读者包括我在内，但是真正认识我的人肯定会发现我与这封信作者表现的性格有很大的差异。所以我有这快感，想象出真正跟随他的姐妹们对“致：我心仪的信女”的回应。

善男：

读了你的来信让我非常地感动。谢谢你分享你真实感受的勇气以及这封信显现的谦卑。这毫不隐瞒的分享以及冒着被拒的可能性很困难吧！你让我感觉到被呵护、疼爱。谢谢你守护我心房。

我只是一个普通的女孩，很侥幸的被我们天父呼召跟随他；有我自己个人罪过、单身生活的挣扎，凭圣灵的力量尽力为神的天国取得荣耀。你这么的高估我让我增添了些许顾虑：当你发现我像你只是凡人时，你会停止向着基督耶稣的标竿追逐吗？当你发现我没有那么好，你还会继续疼惜我吗？当你发现我没有那么完美，你还会为我以及周遭的人尽你所能吗？这最高位置只属于神。

你怎知我对你没有相同的好感呢？也许我已对你显现出服侍人的渴望深深吸引。我已注意到你 - 在生命里，不一定在教会里 - 对我们主、他的子民以及（他照着自己形象的）其他人付诸的努力。或许神指定我会成为你的配偶而不是单身，因此我生活里潜伏着许多诱惑：单凭容貌被吸引的非信徒，那口是心非、自称是信徒毫不思考的追逐以及为了避免与（那些同样被你敬畏耶和华的心态深深吸引的）其他姐妹们争执的可能性。

我知道你并不完美也很乐意彼此在这属灵的道路上互相扶持 - 唯一条件是你的心完全向着我们的天父。不要为自己的不完美担忧。如你不追逐，我怎能给你机会呢？

非常乐意逐步慢慢认识你，因你是我基督里的弟兄。也愿意接受你藉着祷告，祈求逐步展开的追求。当我举棋不定、发掘我对你的感情以及神给我的旨意过程的时候，你会耐心的等待吗？当你停止追逐时，我会知道吗？要是我答案是否定的，你肯定会知道。就算结果不如预算的，友谊还是可能的。

谢谢你考虑得这么周详以及守护我的心房，让我感到非常疼惜。我在这么追求神的喜悦、有挚爱心的人的思念里，真是我的福气，感谢主。直到你愿意冒险向我表白，我只单是你

基督里的姐妹
信女

致：我心仪的信女(Letter to Christian Girl)

The original 'A letter to Christian Girl' can be found here.

信女:

我想我真的被你吸引了。我承认以前，只以貌取人。我已尽力改了，因知道取悦神的心才最重要。箴言31已说明了。但要我跟随这原则，我得更深入认识你；知道你的嗜好；知道你的喜好；了解你与神的关系，因我知道这些才是最重要。

但我不知从何开始。虽然你的虔诚吸引着我，它也让我犹豫。让我不自觉会自问，“我的虔诚能与你的相比吗？”或“我配得上你吗？”教会有这么多女孩是因为女孩子通常比男孩更重视耶和华。没有外来因素，我其实倾向于被动，主动带领并不是我的自然风格。所以，当我目睹你对神的热忱，会使我不安。它使我犹豫应不应该主动认识你，因要胜任箴言1-30并非易事。我有30章去奋斗，你只有1章。

我不是要你减缓虔诚。像你，我其实也想成为合耶和华心意的人。这需要时间。如你愿意给我机会，我愿意去尝试。虽然我能力有限，但神是万能的，他会改变我，让我更上一层楼。有时，他可能使用像你这样的人来改变我。

所以，请你给我一个机会。我无意让你或其他人误会，只想更认识你。我希望你也想更了解我。如果我鼓起勇气邀你和其他朋友出去，你能顺我意吗？毕竟，这不是求婚。

祝你万事倚靠耶和华。


善男 上

Bible Difficulties

Reading Proverbs 27 today gave me the below difficulties which I hope you'll be able to help me with:

What do v14 'If a man loudly blesses his neighbor early in the morning, it will be taken as a curse.' and v21 'The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but man is tested by the praise he receives.' mean literally (and if appropriate) in light of what we know about Christ?

Also, it will be great if you will share with me how you study biblical passages every day and what you do to ensure that you understand fully what the passage is trying to tell you?

On a side topic, the verses that speak to me today are:
v9: Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart,
and the pleasantness of one's friend springs from his earnest counsel.

v17: As iron sharpens iron,
so one man sharpens another.

'And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.' (Phil 1:9-11)

Sing to God

Received this in my email from Ron Hoh a few days ago that resonates with me. Here is an excerpt of it:
Singing is indeed a way of letting the word of Christ
dwell in us richly (Colossians 3:16) besides teaching.
So, this ministry is indeed important and what a
privilege it is to be blessed by God in giving us the
spiritual gifts in this ministry to build up the body
of Christ.

If we can sing so passionately about another human
being (eg Sara) or animal (eg Ben) or global healing
(eg we are the world), then what more if we are
singing to and about God himself...the very Creator,
Sustainer, Giver, Savior and Lord of our lives!!

I would lift all of my voice...because it's God!!! My
God, our God. :)

Indeed it is when we feel most uplifted, that most of us will want to express ourselves through songs. It happens to me, read about my wacky, burst-into-song episode here and I'm sure it is the case for you too.

So let's lift our gifted voices to our creator to praise and thank Him through songs.

Thoughts of a Gentleman to 'Men Pursue and Women Shop'

[Post moved up for same reason as 'Men Pursue and Women SHOP']

For people who are too lazy to read through my previous entry, this is the summary:

What is the wisest thing a woman can do in the domain of relationships especially if she is obsessively attracted to a man?

Serve all (including her intended) as siblings-in-christ
Hope in the Lord
Staying Open to all - including people who are not her intended
Entrust all to the Lord in Prayer

In addition, a very articulate, very deep thinking and very eligible brother-in-christ (he calls himself 'DipStick' to which I disagree) has this to add for women. For me, it was another reminder to treat all equally as siblings-in-christ (and not to put on my running shoes from attractive people ;-) ):

Just wondering... what is soo wrong (if at all) to let the guy know that you are also keen? I mean why the need to be self-restrained when relating to a guy who is interested in you? That is something I don't understand. I have spoken to several older married Christian couples and they are people whom I admire greatly and have wonderful marriages, they too think that this hot cold business should be dispense with bec it is just not helpful esp when we are older. The reasons being that the older you are, the more you don't want to push around and impose on others...particularly a woman's feelings and emotions. I have seen many good guys turning away bec they really don't know what the girl is about! They respect the girl and her wishes and trust that she knows what she is doing. So in indicating otherwise, the chasing process is cut short.

The older you are the less likely you will let your youthful high low emotions rule your heart - which is not a bad thing cos that is where stability comes from - but yet the girls in not reciprocating doesn't even give the guys the chance to build up the chasing process such that when the interest is reciprocated, the emotions will usually follow. Emotions are good and totally necessary for a healthy courtship and marriage but dictating that the guy must have X level of emotions to qualify and using the intensity of his chase as a measure of this X level of emotion is perhaps inaccurate and misleading to say the least. All girls and definitely guys as well wants to be accepted and loved. And it is a seriously scary process to open up your heart to another. Seriously scary. So girls, why do you want to make it much harder for a guy to open up by pounding on them with hot and cold treatment?

Don't get me wrong, the guy is still to do the chasing, but girls, please react la! Hahaha

That is my point. Nothing else. As for leaving it in the Father's control, yes definitely. Bec for myself, I realized that I have little wisdom when it comes to choosing who I want to have as my helper. Butyou know what... for many people, there isn't always that one singular person for that guy/girl. Usually it is a class of people to choose from and God by His grace permits this freedom, but being cautious and asking for his guidance is an excellent move.

Do I feel strongly about this whole thing? Yes, bec I see one too many people jeopardise their chances bec they are too restrained and or too careful and don't give the other person a chance to even get to know the other person since 90% of the person can only be discovered in deep lengthy conversations and daily actions so judging the guy/girl up front, unless you are a superduper psychologist its beyong most people - this goes for both guys and girls =)

Men Pursue and Women SHOP

[Initially posted on 24th Jul, but want it to be easily seen by the Christian couple mentioned below so moving it up]

Met a married Christian couple for dinner today and it was sweet to see the amount of love and adoration that is still evident from their relationship. From the way they were free with their physical affections and in their communication - a mutual respect that does not come from fear or deadened self-restraint but from a rich love that does not shy away from expressing their personal thinking lovingly, it was abundantly felt that they are a couple still very much in love - even after at least 15 years of marriage.

Their interraction prompted my curiosity and probing questions were asked about their early courtship days. Their answers supported my viewpoint - that a long-term loving relationship has more probability to be established if the man feels the stronger attraction and pursues the woman from the beginning.

As a woman, it is observed that we normally fall into 1 of 2 mistakes that are in 2 different extremes. Either:
1) We give far too much of our time, effort and consideration to the object of our affection, living in the promise of getting his love.

This is sometimes prompted by the fact that we sense (accurately) that he is similarly attracted to us. What we fail to acknowledge is that he can be attracted to many different ladies at the same time and we may not be as much an apple in his eye as we like to think. The natural consequence is that when this promise is not fulfilled, we will be disappointed and may think that all men are scum who leads us on. The truth is it's not their fault and neither is it ours if we're not able to see it, it's just that men and women are made differently and generally we come to attraction through 2 different routes.

2) We siam (or run in the opposite direction) as quickly as we can.

In this case, generally, we are afraid of losing control especially over how our hearts and minds are racing when in their presence. The heart beat doubles and the mind fumbles so that stupid things come out of our mouths which we can kick ourselves privately at loooooooong leisure and we are terrified that this attraction we are feeling is just going to show. So we run, that nobody'll ever know. (Which is so stupid when we come to think of it, do we really want to be married to a person whom we are not attracted to as is the natural probable result that comes from this choice of action?)

So what's the wise thing that a gal can do if it's best that she don't pursue and she don't run? Easy, we SHOP!

Shopping is the attitude of browsing and looking, not being too anxious to "sell ourselves" or be too eager to present ourselves in the best light, but to be receptive and open to good people and things, although not placing our hopes in them with the full awareness that all people are sinful by nature and thus will possibly disappoint us. It is the freedom to be ourselves, serve and to have fun in the process.

Serves all Christians as siblings-in-Christ.

This is the far more precious relationship in God's sight than our human's natural instinct to relate to them as 'potential husbands', 'Eeeks! Not him!' or 'nice guy'. After all, it's only through Christ's suffering and death on the cross that brought about our adoption as His Sons and Daughters. Everytime we relate to them as a brother or to a female Christian as a sister, we are reminding ourselves of our true status with God and be able to rejoice and give thanks.

The amazing thing is treating the object of our affection this way will bring about the natural result of deepening the friendship and knowing his character so that if the attraction persists and something does come out of it, it will be supported by the strong foundation of friendship. If it's not meant to be, you did have a good time of fellowship and to know him at a deeper level.

Having said this, there are occasions where it may be loving to have distance. When the guy in question persists in pursuing a closer relationship, even friendship than is expected of normal, after you've expressed clearly that dating/courtship is out of the question. As one Brother puts it, "He wouldn't be pursuing a closer/more exclusive friendship with you if he's still not interested." In this case, it may be better to give each other space so that he may learn to depend on the Lord to fully get over you after a long time before the friendship is initiated again on a clean slate.

Hope in the Lord.

Isa 54:5 'For your maker is your husband, YEHWEH SABOATH (LORD of all hosts) is His name'. We are already given the most precious thing in HIM himself, which comes with it eternal life that will be free from sin, ultimate delight and joy. He is our ultimate bridegroom and husband and we should be working at our assigned task of presenting ourselves as spotless brides to him.

Unlike humans, who are often buffetted by the winds of emotions and circumstances, God will always love us by His covenant so He must be the ultimate place we place our affections.

1. Bring to His altar the best and most precious gift of our heart and its affections and all the feelings we have towards our intended to Him.
2. Thank Him for the opportunity of showing how much we should be loving Him by the example of how much we want to love and give to our intended.
3. Serve Him with the motivation that we want to serve our intended.

Trust that whether or not He brings our affection to us, it is all for our ultimate good (Rom 8:28). It is human nature though that we covet not just Him but also a human beloved who loves us exclusively and we sometimes fall into the trap that God had given us something less when we see Christian couples together. Doesn't this ring of Eve with the serpent?

So what if by our own wiles and machinations we bring our intended to us and lose Him and His purpose? "What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world yet forfeits his soul?" (Matthew 16:26)

The key is to be contented with what He has given us for He has already given Himself, will he withhold any other thing if it is good for us?

Staying Open.

Rather than following our natural instinct of running away, stay. Thank God for giving us these natural reactions and desires that come to the average woman and entrust these feelings to Him. Then relate to him as a brother.

Also, know that when we're having those fickle feelings of attraction, it is not a sure sign from God that He is the one God plans for us (no matter how many coincidences happen that make you think it's a match made in heaven! You can bet that unless he's interested in pursuing a relationship with you (where he'll ask you sooner or later anyway), he'll not see it).

Stay open and not be too quick to say 'no' to guys whom we do not feel an attraction to at the moment when they propose courtship. Generally, for gals, it is possible for attraction to be nurtured. Our task is to pray and ask God for direction only after a guy pursues. Even if we should have feelings for someone else, stay open to the possibility that this may be the guy God means for us to have and simply assess him by God's standard without comparison and without the worry of "What if my intended were to ask me later?" Trust that God knows how to do His job as God.

Pray everyday.

About anything and everything, especially about the willingness to give our intended up to Him, to do with these feelings as He will. Everyday, to remind ourselves that he is not ours but the Lord's, about staying open and loving our brothers and sisters in Christ. To depend on God to fulfill the tasks he means for us to do during this period and not to waste our effort and time pining after or talking about him who God did not means for us to have - at least for the moment.

"Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him?

Let him who accuses God answer him!" -Job 40:2

Sometimes it's really difficult to trust that God is really for us when I see:

- A sister-in-christ struggling to put her life in His hands when facing health problems that potentially can affect her entire life
- A sister-in-christ struggling with her single mom and other friendship/relationship issues
- A sister-in-christ - who had prayed so earnestly for my salvation for 3 years - disappointed by her previous church and afraid to commit to another.
- My grandma, in her post-stroke days, unsaved, unreachable through words, how much of what I'm saying can she understand?
- The unrighteous prospering while others with equal ability languishing away
- Being denied of what I want (Dear God, are these wants ungodly? Can't they be used for your glory?)

It's times like these that I question God: Are you really for us? Why must good, godly people people go through so much? Aren't who we are right now and our earnest pursuit of you good enough for you? Why can't you love us as who we are right now and bless us with all good things - wouldn't it bring glory to Your Name?

Of course I know about Hebrews 12:10-11 "Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." but God, isn't there an easier way to reach the same goal? I am so tired, God why must my decisions right now be filled with Your scruples? I feel so limited by them.

C.S Lewis puts it into perspective for me:
"God has landed on this enemy-occupied world in human form ...-... the inconceivable, the uncreated, the thing from beyond nature, striking down into nature like lightning.... And what was the purpose of it all? He came to earth to suffer and be killed.... Christ was killed for us, that His death has washed out our sins, and that by dying He disabled death itself..... The perfect surrender and humiliation were undergone by Christ: perfect because He was God, surrender and humiliation because He was man. If we share the humility and suffering of Christ we shall also share in His conquest of death and find a new life after we have died and in it become perfect, and perfectly happy, creatures."

What of our personal concerns? He has already proven His love for us in history - without any need on His part to. The magnitude of what He had done is greater than a human being having to justify to a whole colony of cockroaches that he loves them.

Yet I must confess my discontented human heart does not want to fully appreciate it. Job could be brought to the humbling realization of his unworthiness with evidence only of our Lord's greatness. What of our witness of God's greatness meeting His love based on what Christ had done? We should have even more reasons to exclaim as in Job 42:

2 "I know that you can do all things;
no plan of yours can be thwarted.

3 You asked, 'Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?'
Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me to know.

4 "You said, 'Listen now, and I will speak;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.'

5 My ears had heard of you
but now my eyes have seen you.

6 Therefore I despise myself
and repent in dust and ashes."

God help me to really understand and appreciate it.

(Latest update from previous entry)P.S This point was further reinforced and a nail to my heart in tonight's DG study when we were studying Malachi 3:5-7. The context was of the Israelites' complaint that God is not dealing with the unrighteous people around them, having the implication that they think they themselves are righteous people-and therefore worthy of His exclusive blessings.

Yet God's very next verse 6 bluntly brought home the point that they themselves have turned away from His decrees and have not kept them and thus also condemned by right to His judgement. His call to them is my call too, "Return to me, and I will return to you," says the LORD Almighty.

Dear God, help me to trust you despite not understanding why you permit certain things to happen in this world.

Myers Briggs Type Indicator

Just read a web-site where it describes my personality eerily accurately.

To find your own Myers Briggs Type, you can get it tested for free here:
http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp

Then come here to find out what it says about you: http://www.personalitypage.com/portraits.html

If you're interested in my personality type, let me know your type first. :)

Doxology / 诗体荣耀颂

For some reason, when I bumped into my sister-in-christ in the toilet today, we both blurt out "Thank God it's Wednesday!" and then broke into the doxology together.

"Praise God from whom, all blessings flow,
Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts,
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
A-MEN!"

The crazy thing is that there is 1 other lady in the toilet - she must have thought we have gone insane.

What had happened in there? Your guess is as good as mine. But I and my sister-in-christ sure are synchronised.

不知为何，今天碰巧在厕所里碰到我的姐妹，我们异口同声的呼叫“今天是星期三，感谢主！”然后一起唱出诗体荣耀颂：

"Praise God from whom, all blessings flow,
Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts,
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
A-MEN!"

可笑的是厕所里还有一个陌生人，她一定以为我们疯了。

我们为什么不约而同的一起赞美主呢？我也不知道，但是我们真的心有灵犀哟！