SubangLah

Christ died for the ungodly

2011-11-29T23:52:00.000+08:00

Christ died for the ungodly

by Justin Kang

Romans 5:1-11

¹ Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ² through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And weboast in the hope of the glory of God. ³ Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴ perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵ And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

⁶ You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷ Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. ⁸ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

⁹ Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! ¹⁰ For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! ¹¹ Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

If you may ask, what is ungodliness? Well, to be ungodly is primarily, to neglect God, withholding from Him all that He rightfully deserves, which is worship, love, adoration, faith, obedience and much more.

In the scriptures at verse 6, the word powerless or without strength means that we are utterly condemned forever in our situation which is sin and that we have no way of escape other than to rely completely for someone capable to save us. And that someone is Jesus.

To be justified is to be made right. Jesus made you right because you were wrong. But even more so you are saved from God’s wrath and reconciled to God. From enemies of God, you become friends of God.

This is THE TRUTH –CHRIST DIED FOR THE UNGODLY

Jesus. Who is He? The Son of The Most High God. Without blemish or spot. Sinless. Perfect. Full of Light. In whom has no sin. He cannot tolerate sin for He is Holy. Destroyer of sin.

All these are just a small glimpse of who Jesus really is, yet He took our cause of ungodliness(sin) , when He Himself had no part in our fall or sins that arise due to our fall(note: Adam and Eve was tempted by Satan, NOT God).

Jesus Christ. ‘Christ’ means ‘Anointed One’. This is a title given by God to Jesus because Jesus was sent by God on a special mission. He was set apart to do God’s work and was qualified for His whole ministry here on earth by the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

Some may ask, ’Why did God have to send Jesus to die for us? I am just fine now. I don’t need help. I do a lot of good works’. Well, my answer to that is God is a holy God and He demands justice. Romans 5:12 - Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man(Adam), and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned— . God’s wrath is destined against all man for all sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:10-12).

God viewed men as ungodly people, far from God, wicked by thoughts and actions, dead in their sins, corrupted, enemies of God. Jesus died for us out of pure pity at our helpless state, which was repulsive and grotesque to Him because He is holy. Why did I state it this way? Why did Jesus pity us? Because how can He love us out of our character, or actions or thoughts when all that we do is wicked and completely opposite of who He is? There is nothing in us that can attract Him, only repel Him. BUT He loved us in spite of us being fallen and miserable creatures, He loved us according to His loving kindness and tender mercies. He viewed us as scum and disgusting and ungodly, yet He still loved us.

Romans 5:8

⁸ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

This shows that when we are saved, we have lost all rights to boast about ourselves or our efforts.

Eph 2:8-9

⁸ For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— ⁹ not by works, so that no one can boast.

Now, how can we say that ‘Jesus died for the godly’ as some people do? What good is there for Christ to die for a just person? Do just people need reconciliation with God? Can a just person die for another just person? Would a just person need the blood of Jesus and all the pain and suffering that He went through? If being honest was a condition to be saved by Jesus, how would the thief at the cross be saved? If purity, how would the woman that loved much be saved? If courage, how would the disciples be saved when they all except John fled when Jesus was crucified? The gospel of Christ did not come as a prize for being good, but it presents us forgiveness of sins, it didn’t come because we are healthy, it came to be a medicine for the sickness.

For instance, let’s say that there is a perfectly innocent from actual sin and an unblemished man on this earth, without any tendency to sin and. And I told him that Jesus died for his sins, he would have the right to say ‘What use do I have for a Saviour? Can’t I make myself just without Him?’ So it is certain that Jesus died for the ungodly, the just don’t need to be justified and reconciled to God, only sinners.

Now how about us? What are we going to do since we know that Jesus went so far for us even till death for our sins to be upon Him and Him being punished by the whole wrath of God till God was satisfied and our sins put away forever. FOREVER!

In my life at certain points, I was so depressed and down until I felt that life became meaningless and even contemplated that suicide is the only way to end this nightmare. Satan had managed to plant many suggestions into my mind. But this was what I felt in my heart in the dark days, Jesus told me that He came exactly for people like me, scared, fearful, in despair, helpless and without hope. His Word was life giving and life breathing in the darkest time of my life. It still is today. I urge you to read His Word everyday and experience His love to you daily as He leads you on to paths of grace.

Jesus was separated from the Father, scourged, whipped, spat at, mocked, pierced, suffered in the hands of you and I, the very people He came to save. Now that we know that Jesus paid a huge price for us, how can we take sin lightly? We would be appalled by the thought of sinning because it was sin that caused our Saviour to be nailed to the cross. Imagine that your family or close friend was stabbed to death by a knife. Would you play with the knife drenched in your loved one’s blood? Impossible! You would throw it away! Sin is like the knife that pierced the heart of our Redeemer. Flee from sin and rely on His Spirit to teach you to deny all unrighteousness and teach you His ways of life.

Luke 7:36-50

³⁶ When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. ³⁷ A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. ³⁸ As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.

³⁹ When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”

⁴⁰ Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”

“Tell me, teacher,” he said.

⁴¹ “Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii,^[a] and the other fifty. ⁴² Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”

⁴³ Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.”

“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.

⁴⁴ Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. ⁴⁵ You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. ⁴⁶ You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. ⁴⁷ Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”

⁴⁸ Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

⁴⁹ The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

⁵⁰ Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

I encourage you my brothers and sisters, in spite of circumstances and feelings and emotions, always keep in your mind the love of our Saviour and thank Him daily for all He has done for you. For it is the knowledge of how much your sins worth, that was fully paid by Jesus that determines how much you love Jesus. And I want to say, your sins is so big that it required God’s only begotten Son to come to earth to die for you. Look to Him now and live.

Amen.

For non-Believers

If there has been anyone ungodly, not Christian that read this article, it is plain that you are in grave danger. Jesus would not have to go through all the sufferings if there wasn’t an imminent danger. You will be under God’s judgement and wrath of God will be against you. God sent his only begotten Son for you. This shows that the eternal death and hell that will be awaiting you is something God doesn’t want you to go through forever.

Only Jesus can help you escape from this danger. But rejoice for Jesus Christ died for the ungodly. I urge that you do not reject the forgiveness of sins that Christ offers to the people of this world.

If you have decided to believe in Jesus, visit this website to know more http://www.intothelight.org/answers/sinners-prayer.asp

Tithing (not by me)

2011-03-24T00:13:00.001+08:00

By Voon-Cheng Tiang

TITHING

Preamble

This is my first Knol. Thank you for visiting and I welcome your comments for areas that can be improved. This Knol is specifically about Biblical Tithing. As tithing is an ordained privilege of a person who is already a Christian, it gears this Knol to present its message to, primarily, Christians; although, of course, it is also an open and cordial invitation to one and all.
For Christian readers, I shall assume that you are already familiar with basic concepts of Christianity - hence, one may not find detailed explanations for sin and salvation within these texts.
For readers in general - I must say that I, myself, am pleasantly surprised at how much can be written on a simple 5-letter word 'tithe' - therefore, please note that there shall be numerous, numerous spiritual truths and tenets that may not seem the most logical according to secular reasoning. We know that GOD's Words can be mysterious to the intellect.
Most of what is written here, if not all, except for a few vignettes of personal voice, is sourced from The Holy Bible and Pastor Joseph Prince's sermons. (I attend New Creation Church in Singapore, of whom Pastor Prince is the Senior Pastor). However, this Knol is not representative of Pastor Joseph Prince or New Creation Church.
And, even before I begin - I wish to emphasize that the act of tithing always flow from The Source, which is The Abundance Grace of our ABBA Father, and His neverending Love. The Grace of GOD is a Person. The Love of GOD is also a Person. That Person is The Person of CHRIST JESUS Himself.

Introduction

A tithe can be defined as the tenth part of, say, a personal income, that is set apart as an offering to GOD. If it is in the form of agricultural produce, it can sometimes be referred to in The Bible as the firstfruits of the harvest.
In the book of Malachi, chapter 3, verses 8 and 14 (Mal 3:8,14) - GOD exhorts His children (i.e. Christians like you and I) to refrain from being doubtful and cynical about tithing. We can see from the verses that when one becomes doubtful and cynical about tithing, one may not tithe, or stop tithing according to the actual meaning of the word 'tithe' - which is one-tenth of the gross original lot. The reason why GOD is exhorting this can be found in v.9, where He said that there is a curse for robbing Him of His tithe.
Notice that GOD did not place the curse on them. When Adam sinned, the whole earth became fallen, and the fallen earth carries a curse. When one does not tithe, one removes oneself from GOD's canopy of grace, and thus opens oneself to the curse. Basically, the original curse is that the ground is cursed, there is sorrow and sweat in the consumption of the produce of the hard ground, and then finally, there is death.
All this may seem dreadful - but take heart. GOD is simply exhorting us not to refrain from tithing, and then He tells us how not to be cursed. He isn't trying to frighten or threaten us. He is throwing His light on the situation in order to save us.
You may have already noticed that I used the words "the tithe" instead of "my tithe or your tithe". GOD has instituted that the tithe belongs to Him, so it is rightfully "His tithe". We bring (Mal 3:10) to Him the tithe. As the tithe is not ours, it sounds presumptuous to say: "We give our tithe to GOD"; or, "I pay my tithe to Him".
In the past, there have been church leaders who have abused the usage of GOD's tithe, but the failures of men and women cannot and never will tarnish the sanctity of the tithe.

Consecrating Your Income

To consecrate is to set apart; to sanctify, to dedicate something as sacred and holy to GOD.
Rm 11:16 gives the key to consecrate our income. Why would one want to consecrate one's income? - you ask. Remember that our income is tainted by the curse of this fallen world:
- The food that we eat, as well as the money that we receive, are all directly and indirectly derived from the earth - such as vegetation, plants, and trees.
- JESUS Himself declared money as "unrighteous mammon" (Lk 16, 9,11).
- When we consecrate our income, we 'un-taint' it and make it holy unto GOD.
Rm 11:16 says: For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy. You can see how gracious GOD is. He does not require us to give Him all our income for Him to make it holy. His principle is that we only need to give Him the 'firstfruit' tithe (the one tenth) of our total income, and He is able to bless the rest of the nine tenths as holy.
Hence, by giving Him only one tenth, our total income (the lump) becomes consecrated to Him. And when our income is set apart unto Him - no curse, no devil or his demons can touch it!
90% of consecrated income far, far exceeds 100% of income that is vulnerable to the curse of the earth and the schemes of the evil one.
Isn't it wonderful to know that by tithing 1/10 of your income, you are 'securing' all your income from the curse of the fallen world and from the clutches of the evil one?

Does GOD Need Your Tithe?

GOD created and owns everything in the universe. He is The One who gave you life and He is The One who blessed you with a job and income. Surely The GOD of all the universe does not need your tithe. The reason for the tithe is His 'Esc button' for you to permanently shake loose the grip of the curse on your income, all your life!
Our tithe is for our gain - great gain, I should say. I am tempted to add here that - in the same principle, when you tithe one day of the week (setting aside Sunday to celebrate and worship Him and to rest from worldly labour) - the entire week is then set apart unto GOD. When you tithe a segment of the day (having quiet moments to be with Him) - your day is consecrated unto GOD. When we tithe a portion of our mind (spending moments to meditate on His Word, to worship Him, to thank and praise Him) - the rest of our mind and brain is sanctified.
It had been said that when GOD created Adam and Eve (only two of them) and gave them the vastness of the riches of the Garden of Eden - GOD required them to tithe only one thing - only one tree - unto Him: the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
However, GOD's Word about His tithe is about our tangible gained substance. Hence, I shall refrain from going off in a tangent to generalize tithing to other concepts, although I believe it is a scriptural and sound principle.
Solomon, in Pro 3:9, says that honouring GOD means honouring Him with "our substance" (another version says 'wealth') and with the firstfruits of all our increase. It is clear that the tithe that honours GOD refers to monetary terms.
I believe that GOD chose our income to concretize tithing because it is one of the things close to our heart and desires; and therefore when one, by volition tithe to Him, it reflects the person's priority to put GOD above this precious thing called 'money'.

Evidence of GOD's Blessing

Many times I have heard it said, and it includes myself too: GOD has blessed me because I have good health, a happy family and a stable job. Is GOD's blessing evidenced by good health, a happy family and a stable job? Yes, it is. But GOD's blessing on a person is not, in all its entirety, evidenced solely by tangible manifestations. (Please read on and do not get me wrong here)
I believe that a Christian, in faith, should be able to declare that he or she is blessed solely because of the Altogether-Lovely Person of JESUS abiding in him or her - and - because of The Finished Work of CHRIST JESUS appropriated in his or her life - no matter what state or status the person is in, and no matter what possesions or manifestations he or she has. Although I believe it will not be long before tangible manifestions of blessings swiftly begin to surface.
Note the word 'appropriated in his or her life'. By that I mean that the Christian is active in believing. It is in contrast to a fatalistic faith that bemoans, "oh, OK, if GOD wants to bless me, He will bless me" - and the person continues to live in poverty, sickness and bondage.
My friend, our ABBA Father GOD is everlastingly in desire to bless us with good health, prosperity and an abundant life. If something goes awry even though one is a faithful tither, does it justify one to protest, "hey, I tithe faithfully, how is it that this thing happens?"
GOD is always sovereign over our lives and His grace is ever on us. The evidence of His love for you and I is not that there will not be anything that goes wrong, but that of The Finished Work of CHRIST JESUS at the cross for us already, and forever.

Tithing is Under Grace

Tithing is under Grace - do not turn it into a law.

It is easy to come to a conclusion that in order to receive GOD's blessing, I'd better tithe.
No, it doesn't work this way. Instead, we tithe FROM blessing - we do not tithe FOR blessing.
If we tithe to get GOD's blessing, it is tantamount to twisting GOD's arm and say: Father, I've tithed to You - now, bless me. It would like keeping a law based on our own merits in order to obtain GOD's blessings.
The truth is that by the Finished Work of CHRIST JESUS at the cross for you and I - GOD has already and will always love and bless us. Our tithe arises from this love and blessing that we already have. This is what tithing under Grace means.
The Grace of GOD is freely and abundantly given to you and I without conditions of what we ought to do, or what we ought not do. We cannot earn GOD's love and blessings. It is by His Grace, through the Perfect Work of CHRIST JESUS at Calvary for each and every one of us who believes. We are already blessed.
One of the many promises of GOD that we are already standing on blessed ground is found in Deu 8:18: In CHRIST JESUS He has given us the power to get wealth. It is a blessing already bestowed to us through the death of our LORD JESUS at the cross. You can see that we do not need to tithe to obtain this blessing. We tithe because we already have this blessing in CHRIST JESUS.
One of GOD's blessings is His prosperity. It is not a vulgar word. Otherwise GOD would't have blessed Abraham, David, Solomon and many, many of His children with His prosperity.

Strengthening The Ties

Tithing is not only under Grace, it is before the Law of Moses. To keep the Law of Moses is to say that by one's own merits, one can keep the Law and obtain GOD's blessings. (The Law of Moses was actually given to the people of Israel - who boasted to GOD that they are excellent enough to keep His Laws - to show them that they cannot keep His perfect Laws, and have to depend on His Grace).

The first mention of tithing occurs in Ge 14:20 - and this was about 400 years before GOD gave the Law at Mt Sinai. Melchizedek King of Salem - The Precarnate Manifestation of JESUS - met Abram and offerred Him The Pre-eminence of The Broken Body of CHRIST JESUS - and The Shed Blood of CHRIST JESUS - symbolized by the bread and wine in his hands. These two elements depict The Finished Work of CHRIST JESUS at the cross. Melchizedek proceeded to bless Abram and declare the triumphing power of GOD. Then, Abram tithed to Melchizedek.

What is interesting here is the coming together of 5 divine entities:

'JESUS', in Melchizedek,
His Finished Work at the cross (the bread and the wine),
His blessing and His declaration of GOD's victory and power,
The first-time mention of 2 of GOD's Names being invoked: El Elyon (GOD Most High) and El Shaddai (GOD Almighty), and,
Tithing!
- Can you see the relationship? - the context of these links?
- Because of CHRIST JESUS' Finished Work at the cross for you and I - that which brings the blessings and victorious power of GOD Most High and GOD Almighty into our lives - we tithe.
- Not only this - do you realize that the blessings and victorious power of GOD Most High and GOD Almighty is a perfect mirror image of His awesome protection over our lives?
- Psalm 91:1 says that in CHRIST JESUS, we dwell in the secret place of The Most High GOD, and we abide under the shadow of The Almighty GOD. Psalm 91 is GOD's declaration of His Might and His Protection for all His children. "El Elyon" and "El Shaddai" are, as you can see, mirror-mentioned in this verse too, like Ge 14:20.
- It is truly blessed to commit Psalm 91 to memory, to personalization (replacing the beneficiary-pronouns in the psalm with your name), and to meditation (meditation is not simply quiet thinking about the verses, but a prayerful recitation).
- During the 2003 period of SARS in Singapore, thousands of GOD's children claimed Psalm 91 as GOD's protection canopy over their lives and the lives of their loved ones (v.10 - no evil shall befall me, no plague shall come near my dwelling).
- Do you think I've finished with this section? There's more to follow.

The Finished Work of CHRIST JESUS

Strengthening another divine link is this: The Finished Work of CHRIST JESUS at the cross for you and I celebrates 2 of GOD's wonderful truth in our lives permanently:

1) The Bread

The bread signifies The Broken Body of CHRIST JESUS to the cross.
The full scourge of our past, present and future sicknesses and diseases were emptied on His Divine Body.
Today, the Broken Body of CHRIST JESUS to the cross had already declared in the highest heavens that - therefore - there is now no more sickenesses and diseases. No more past congenital afflictionss and no more genetic defects and deformities in us. There is no more present deficiencies, disabilities, ill-constituencies and allergies. There is no more future degenerative illnesses. No more future dreaded diseases. No more ageing process! And if you think this is magnificent enough, there is more.
GOD did something immeasurably more than this - He proceeded to input into us, His glorious, unchanging, unconditional, eternal SPIRIT of His Resurrection Life! His Resurrection Life is full of His divine health, wholeness and soundness of mind. Full of His dunamis vigour, His blessing of being a daughter of beautiful Sarah (for ladies), His youthfulness renewed like the eagle's until we are restored to our teenage years, His rest and peace, His length of days and long life, and His preservation and prosperity for our body.
Do you know that by the Broken Body of CHRIST JESUS to the cross for you and I - every step that we take - we walk in His Eternal Resurrection Life?

2) And The Wine

And the wine symbolizes The Shed Blood of CHRIST JESUS at the cross.
The complete penalty and punishment for our past, present and future sins and wickednesses were exacted on His Life. He shed His Precious Blood and died - as you and I - and for you and I. He gave Himself to be hung as a curse on our behalf in order to totally redeem us from every curse of the law - so that from now and forevermore, no more curses can alight on us!
And today - The Blood of CHRIST JESUS continues to declare in the highest heavens: Therefore, there is now, no more condemnation, no more accusation, no more shame or guilt, no more penalty and punishment, no more fear or trepidation, no more sin-consciousness, no more judgement-mentality for us. There is also, no more regrets - no more 'kicking of ourselves' for the things that we should not have done, and for the things that we should have done. No more "if-only" I've done that, and no more "if-only" I've not committed that. No more damning of the self for utter failures in the past. No more haunting of our pasts. The Blood of CHRIST JESUS sets us totally free, and we are free indeed. And again - if you think this is awesome enough - there is more!
GOD did something exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we can ask or imagine: He inputed into us His unconditional, unchanging, everlasting Gift of His Righteousness!
Do you realize that by The Shed Blood of CHRIST JESUS at the cross for you and I - every breath that we take, we breathe His Everlasting Righteousness?

I believe that the twin helix strand in the DNA of every cell in our body is actually made up of The Resurrection Life and The Righteousness of our ABBA Father in CHRIST JESUS. I believe that when Adam sinned, his spirit-man died - so did the divine twin helix strand. When one receives JESUS as Saviour, one's spirit is regenerated by The HOLY SPIRIT. Similarly, when one rightfully discerns that 'The Bread' is for healing, and 'The Wine' is for forgiveness, the then mortal twin helix strand becomes spiritually regenerated by The HOLY SPIRIT.
All of the above, my friend, is The Finished Work of CHRIST JESUS at the cross for you and I. Nothing less!
And all of the above is favourably and significantly corelated to tithing!

Tithing Impacts Our Children

Levi was the great grand-son of Abraham. Heb 7:9,10 illustrated that although Levi, the tribe appointed by GOD to carry our priestly duties, was receiving tithes from his brother-tribes, he was actually already bringing tithes to GOD via Abraham - being in his ancestor's loins. The tithes that we bring to GOD shall impact our children and our children's children.
Here in Heb 7:4-10, there is a spiritual contrasting of the tithe brought to GOD in law, and the tithe that is brought to GOD in grace. Levi typifies the tithe that is brought to GOD in law - that is, ritualistic tithing in order to achieve merit, or, tithing to prove self sufficiency in fulfilling the law. There is no 'life' in this type of tithing.
Abraham typifies the tithe brought to GOD under grace - looking to JESUS (Melchizedek) and His Finished Work, not to self works. Verse 6 describes Melchizedek's blessing on Abraham, who had the promises. The promises are GOD's Righteousness and Resurrection Life through The Finished Work of JESUS at the cross - not through the rigid obedience of the law.
Obeying the law cannot save us. The law is perfect, hence no one, except JESUS, could fulfill it. There are two powerful verses in Ac 13: 38,39 that demonstrate this: "... through JESUS the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through Him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses".
Do we therefore tithe so that our descendants are blessed? I believe it is the other way round. In believing the Grace of GOD through The Finished Work of CHRIST JESUS at the cross, we know that our descendants are under His favour even as we tithe.

Who Receives The Tithe?

Before we answer the question, Heb 7:4 says that the tithe shows how great JESUS is in my belief of Him.
Verse 8 says that although mortal men physically receive the tithe here on earth - it is GOD in heaven who receives it. He sees, He knows, and He receives it "there" in heaven.
Verse 8 continues to say that the received tithe by JESUS will witness that He lives - that He is alive in your life and in my life. How will people see that JESUS is alive in our lives? Through visible manifestations of His love, His blessings, His prosperity and His abundant life. Yes, tangible manifestations alone should not determine GOD's love and blessings in our lives, but it is a real and eventual outcome.
Joseph is a Type of JESUS. After he had revealed his identify to his brothers, he sent them back to tell his father Jacob that he is alive, and for them to bring Jacob to live in Goshen, Egypt (Ge 45:21-24). When they had reached home, they told Jacob that Joseph was alive. Jacob was too stunned to believe - until he heard the words of Joseph (through his other sons) and saw the carts filled with all the prosperous gifts that Joseph had sent. The Bible recorded that Jacob's spirit was revived, and he knew that Joseph was alive. Manifested blessings testify that JESUS is alive in our lives for others to see. And then the name of Jacob was changed to Israel, whose 12 sons will be the ancestors of the nation of Israel.
1 Co 15:20 says that CHRIST rose from the dead, and became The Firstfruits of those who have passed on. Now, because The Firstfruits live, we live - and so does the tithe!

Try GOD

GOD invites us to try Him regarding the tithe (Mal 3:10). He says to try His way: Bring all the tithes into the storehouse. Some of us may have more than one source of income. He reminds us, for our good, not to forget all the tithes from all our income. I believe it also means to tithe gross rather than net.
He mentions "the storehouse" - singular, which is your church and my church. Trying GOD's way means trying not to divide the tithe into various ministries. Tithe it to our home church for it to channel it to the various ministries.
And GOD promises that He'll open the windows of heaven for the tither - and pour out His exceedingly abundant and overflowing blessings.
When we try GOD's way - He promises in verse 11, that He Himself will rebuke the evil force that is poised to steal, kill and destroy. And the people around us will see and speak about our blessedness - because it is GOD who will transform us into "a delightful land" (v.12)
What is a delightful land? Ge 27:27-29 list the blessing of Isaac on Jacob. He described his son as having the fragrance of a LORD-blessed field. And he blessed him with GOD's favour (dew of heaven), the rich provisions of the earth, and with abundant grain and wine. Isaac added that peoples will revere Jacob, and foes who try to curse him will in turn be cursed, while friends who bless him will be blessed.
Do you think that your income is meagre, and find it a challenge to tithe? In Ge 26:1, Isaac was in a land afflicted with famine. Did it stop him from sowing seeds? No, the Bible recorded that he sowed even though the land was difficult. And he reaped abundantly because GOD's blessing was upon him. So he experienced three increasing levels of GOD's blessings: he began to prosper, then he continued prospering - until he became very prosperous.
Also, do you think that GOD treats the tithe lightly? In Ge 28:22, Jacob emphatically vowed to GOD "I shall surely give a tenth to You". Later in chapter 31, as he was being instructed by GOD to escape from Laban's bullying ways, GOD declared that He remembered Jacob's vow of the tithe!

Seedtime and Harvest

In Ge 8:21, after the flood, Noah built an altar and made a sacrifice to GOD, and He accepted the sweet aroma of the sacrifice - and, He said that seedtime and harvest will be as sure as the seasons, and as the day and night. When one sows, one can expect a harvest. GOD principled it.
GOD Himself sowed The Seed - JESUS. The Seed died and produced a glorious harvest. 2Co 8:9 revealed that in the grace of GOD, JESUS, though He was rich, became a sacrifice of poverty for us - so that through His poverty, we became rich. This demonstrated that we are already rich in CHRIST JESUS.
Several verses later, in 2Co 9:6, it shows us the key as to how many folds we want our riches to be. If we sow sparingly, we shall reap sparingly; and when we sow bountfully, we shall reap bountifully. (By the way, v.7 informs us that the climate of this seedtime is a cheerful, willing heart).
Now, we come to 2Co 9:8 - and it shows that GOD has already promised that in CHRIST JESUS, He has made all His grace to abound toward us, so that we - having all His sufficiency at all times and in all things, have His abundance for all works in grace.
We do not seed to get His harvest. We seed because we know His harvest is sure already.
Do we give in order to be given to? Rather, we give, knowing that it has already been given to us: good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over - it has already been put into our bosom (Lk 6:38).
Do we tithe to get His blessings? Rather, we honour GOD with the tithe - believing that He has already filled our barns with plenty, and overflowed our vats with new wine (Pro 3:9,10).
Truly, we cannot 'over-tithe' to GOD. Throughout the Bible, GOD richly rewards (no, these people did not do it in order to get His rewards) those who gave to Him:
- Hebrew midwives who refused to comply with Herod's instructions to kill babies that they have helped delivered (Ex 1:21).
- The woman who anointed JESUS' head with expensive spikenard (Mk 14:3); and Mary who likewise used costly perfume to wipe JESUS' feet (Jn 12:3).
- The Israelites who gave generously to the furnishings and fixtures of the Tabernacle of GOD during the exodus - such as, gold, silver, bronze, linen, ram skins, badger skins, etc (Ex 35, 38) - for 40 years - their clothes and their sandals did not wear out, their feet never became swollen from all the walking, and they lacked nothing (Deu 8:4, Deu 29:5, Neh 9:21).
Do log on to the web-page below to read a Time Magazine article dated Mon, 30 July 1945 - on how Quaker Perry Hayden proved that tithing worked.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,801686,00.html
Prominent Christians are James L. Kraft, William Colgate, Henry J Heinz, J.D. Rockefeller, F.W. Woolworth, and many others. Pastor Rick Warren, author of the bestseller 'A Purpose-Driven Life', as you may have already known, practices reverse-tithing - i.e. giving a 90% tithe.
Indeed, glory to GOD who in CHRIST JESUS - did, is doing, and will continue to bless us exceedingly, abundantly, and above all that we - with our earthly logic - can ask or imagine (Eph 3:20,21).

The 'aaser' and the 'maaser'

In Hebrew, the word for rich is "aaser" and, for tithe is "maaser". You can see that the root word "aaser (rich)" is in the "maaser (tithe)". We tithe (maaser) because we already have His prosperity (aaser) in us.
Because we are already rich in CHRIST, we tithe.
GOD's aaser (rich) in us is like a divine bank vault, out of which we tithe. We do not tithe so that GOD can make us rich.
Many people, like myself included, invest money in the bank or businesses, hoping to get rich.
GOD's way is that our aaser is in the maaser: Our rich is in the tithe. I'll repeat: We do not tithe so that GOD can make us rich. Rather - our rich is already in the tithe.

The Aaser and The Maaser

There is a much higher divine parallel to the "aaser" and the "maaser". Our GOD is a GOD of all prosperities. You can say in a way, among one of the many glorious attributes of GOD, that GOD is Aaser (GOD is The Prosperity). He tithed His only beloved Son JESUS for you and I. JESUS is The Maaser (The Tithe).
Because GOD is The Aaser, He blessed us with The Maaser. When we opened our hearts to receive JESUS as our Savior, we received not only The Maaser - but also The Aaser (because The Aaser is in The Maaser). That is to say, because of JESUS, we have received all the fullness of GOD's riches. And in turn, we tithe because we are rich in Him.
Now, moving one up on "our rich is already in the tithe" - we can now say: GOD's Rich for me is already in His Tithe.
When GOD gave His Tithe (JESUS) for us, we crucified Him on the cross, and offered it back to Him. Any earthly father would be furious if this sort of events would have happened. But was GOD angry at us? No. Instead in His grace - He honoured the tithe, and, The Tithe. And He opened the floodgates of heaven to bless us, and exceedingly bless us.

Meta-Analysis

When we sum up all the above, it shows GOD's awesome desire and power to bless us through the tithe, and through The Tithe:
GOD gave His Tithe for us. He tithed JESUS to Himself. In His exceedingly great grace and His everlasting love, He tithed JESUS for us, and as us:
- To completely bear all our sicknesses and diseases;
- To fully pay for all our sins and wicknesses;
- To be perfectly afflicted with all our curses;
It demonstrated how great He is;
It testified that He is alive;
It is He who receives it in heaven;
It honours Him;
GOD fills our barns with plenty, and overflows our vats with new wine;
GOD blesses us and declares His victory and power over our lives;
It invokes His Names: El Elyon (GOD Most High) and El Shaddai (GOD Almighty);
It brings forth His might and His protection in Psalm 91;
It celebrates The Finished Work of CHRIST JESUS at the cross for you and I;
It declares that we are The Righteousness of GOD in CHRIST JESUS by His shed Blood;
It declares that we are The Resurrection Life of GOD in CHRIST JESUS by His broken Body;
It blesses His 'descendants', i.e. His children - you and I;
As The Tithe is sanctified, so is the rest - and we are 'the rest' who are made holy because The Tithe is holy;
GOD opens for us the floodgates of heaven and pours forth to us so much blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it;
GOD rebukes the devourer from our lives;
The devourer will no longer be able to destroy the fruit of our ground;
The vine in the field will never again fail to bear fruit for us;
All nations will call us blessed of The LORD;
We shall be a delightful land;
GOD blesses us so that our smell is like the smell of a field that He has blessed; and He gives us the dew of heaven and of the fatness of the earth, with plenty of grain and wine. Peoples will revere us. Our enemies will not be blessed and our friends will be blessed.
In our lives, seedtime and harvest is a sure phenomenon;
He has made all His grace to abound toward us, so that we - having all His sufficiency at all times and in all things, have His abundance for all good works in His grace;
... and much, much more blessings.
And all we have to do is simply rest and believe.

What Soil is It?

In closing, I hope we will let The HOLY SPIRIT prepare our hearts as 'good soil' - to hear and to understand the Parable of the Sower (Mt 13:3-23) - to receive GOD's Word and to produce an abundant crop.
Prophetically, we live in the times of the Parable of the Lost Coin (Lk 15:8). The woman signifies the church - and we are looking for the revelation of the 1/10 tithe. Only The HOLY SPIRIT can give us the light of understanding. And there will be glorious rejoicing when one finds the revelation - hearing and understanding the unveiling of GOD's awesome power to bless him or her limitlessly via the tithe, and The Tithe.

Thank You

My heartfelt appreciate to you if you've been able to follow this Knol. I commit this Knol to CHRIST JESUS and acknowledge that it is only by His grace that I can pen this. I look forward to your constructive criticisms, advice, and feedback.

Some people may say: With today's inflation and recession, I cannot afford to tithe. I'd like to borrow the phrase: Can you afford not to? However, I do not wish to end with this question, which can sound negative. Rather, I like to borrow another phrase:

Tithing - we don't need to. We get to!

Hallelujah! Praise JESUS and GOD bless you!

References

Joseph Prince, Joseph Prince Resources CDs, Singapore.

www.destined2reign.com

15 Oct 2000 - The Benefits of Tithing

17 Feb 2008 - God's Best-Kept Secret on Tithing - Can You Take It?

13 Apr 2008 - God's Amazing Generosity for Your Harvest

20 Apr 2008 - When God Outgives Us

ebible.com

www.ebible.com

New International Version

New King James Version

edictionary.com

www.edictionary.com

Time.com in collaboration with CNN

www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,801686,00.html

CD: Songs for Communion. Hillsong Church, Sydney, Australia.

Hillsong Music Australia, PO Box 1195, Castle Hill, NSW 1765 Australia. Email:

hillsongs@hillsong.com

Acknowledgments

My thanks, praise and worship go to my loving ABBA FATHER, my altogether lovely Saviour CHRIST JESUS, His Finished Work at the cross for me, and as me, and THE HOLY SPIRIT of The Life of GOD who dwells in me.
My gratitude to Pastor Joseph Prince and New Creation Church's Team of Pastors - especially Pastor Mark Ng, Pastor Lawrence Lim, Pastor K.E. Mathews - Leaders and Guest Speakers who unveiled, and are continuing to unveil JESUS to me in all His Grace, Glory, Lovingkindness, Tendermercies, Wisdom, Shalom Peace, Righteousness, Resurrection Life, Joy, Hope and Everlasting Love.
The love of all my Siblings and their families in the past, present and future: Ros, Pat, Ing, Paul, William, Jack and Jimi.
The love and company of my sister in grace Prudence and my niece Andrea especially on Sundays; and Prudence's Care Group led by Sis Karine Chew.
Brothers and sisters in CHRIST whose fellowship, encouragement and prayers I appreciate very much - especially New Creation Church Care Group @ Blk 550 Ang Mo Kio, led by Bro Suresh Joseph, and coordinated by Mrs Kathy Lim.
Many, many Beloved Friends - too many to name, but GOD bless them all. I have openly thanked some of these friends and sisters in CHRIST in my Blog: http://aredialwistiang.blogspot.com
A few persons whom I find challenging to relate to - but GOD bless them all the same - because He has shown me that in CHRIST JESUS, I do not wrestle against flesh and blood (Eph 6:12) - but against spiritual dark forces that oppress these persons to behave how they behave. Praise be to JESUS for The Armour of GOD, especially praying in The Spirit.

Postamble

My above formal writing on Tithing is completed. This postamble - and what follows - is on a personal nature.
Can I share how I initially felt about posting a Knol for the world to see? I felt really inadequate. And intimidated by the anxiety of potential nasty comments (read some of the comments of some of the Knols - some of them can be sarcastically piercing!), and the fear of self-glory.
GOD's Word in Rm 1:16,17 delivered me.
His encouragement to me is, personalized: "In CHRIST JESUS - Voon-Cheng am not ashamed of The Gospel of CHRIST, for It is the power of GOD to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Gentiles. Because in It, The Righteousness of GOD is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written: Voon-Cheng, righteous in GOD's eyes, by faith will live".
GOD's Word comforts me not to be ashamed of The Good News of CHRIST.
As I share in the physical realm, His power is at work in the spiritual realm.
Salvation, "sozo", encompasses the meaning of not just salvation unto eternal life, but also, being saved from a physical threat, protection, preservation, and well-being.
And it is all about JESUS - The Righteousness of GOD. And always about JESUS - Altogether Lovely and His Finished Work at the cross for you and I.
Because of CHRIST' righteousness in me, by faith I live.
Friend, if there is a chance that you are reading this and have not opened your heart to receive JESUS as your Saviour - He wants to let you know that He loves you.
I saw this beautiful invitation in a CD booklet: Songs for Communion by Hillsong Church.
It says: Our Prayer for You ... Our prayer is that you would discover The Author of Love ... JESUS. His life and death represent the greatest gift of love the world will ever see ... a gift for you. All you need to do is accept it ... a brand new start to a life lived in relationship with GOD. Meeting GOD is as simple as praying a prayer ... asking JESUS to meet you right where you are. If you are not sure that you know GOD, and that you are going to Heaven, then make this your prayer today ...
"Dear Lord JESUS, I need You. I need Your grace to forgive me and I need Your love to change me. Thank You for Your amazing love. Thank You for giving me life and eternity. But above all, thank You for dying on the cross for me. I accept You as my Lord and Saviour. Now I'm a Christian, which means You live in me. I belong to You. I will live my life for You and I will love You forever ... Amen."
(The CD invited persons who have prayed this prayer to contact Hillsong Church in Sydney, Australia via email: prayer@hillsong.com.)
Or you may contact a local church to find out more about growing as a Christian. As I attend New Creation Church in Singapore, I welcome you to attend my church. Please visit the church's website at www.newcreation.org.sg or call 6338-4565 (Tue-Fri, 10am-6pm) for more details.
It's my heart's desire that this Knol brings glory to GOD and blessings to the Church..
GOD bless you! :)

Here's to a Great Year ahead!

2011-01-18T13:49:00.003+08:00

Hello all, its been like super long i haven't visited this site and i begin to feel nostalgic and reminisce about the past. i realized a lot has change all around us and especially in my life since i last posted here. But I thank God that He is always the same and He is the one that guides us through our lives. He knows the way to the depths of our hearts. i believe since I last posted, God has really poured His abundant blessings upon Touch and upon all my life. I thank God for such a wonderful youth camp we had recently and we had lots of fun and bonding, but most of all, we grew spiritually. I'm so very glad to see that we have now so many new faces in our Youth service and pray with me that it'll only get more. I'm thrilled to see the BM and chinese service youth and English service youths being bonded and being so close friends. Therefore, I'm looking forward to the rest of this year and I can't wait to taste and see what God has in store for all of us in 2011!

So let us all continue to live out loud for Jesus cos He is the only reason we are here in this earth today! always continue to comfort one another and be there for one another cos the bible says everything would mean nothing if we do not love one another.

Hey Hey..

2010-09-27T19:43:00.002+08:00

So coincidental that i happened to be browsing through the Blogger Dashboard and saw a new post in Subanglah.. haha... its been a long time, really.. Like Jez said, nope we haven't backslided at all. LOL!

Having said that, let's continue to keep writing and writing. Each and everyone of us surely has something to contribute.Doesn't have to be long pieces of texts, etc. Let's make this blog active once again, as much as we can. Let's write from our hearts, let's share our life stories, things that can edify and encourage others.

And just like Jezreel, i too, thoroughly enjoyed the Worship God Conference 2010. I've gained so much more than just skills and techniques. Most of all, it pertained to my walk with God and learning to enjoy Him once again, and also putting Jesus as the center of my life, where everything else revolves around Him.

He must be the center-piece, the most valuable treasure in our lives, where everything else in our lives just exists to give God the glory.

Indeed He is changing us from glory to glory. So let's continue to offer up our lives as a living sacrifice and dedicate our all to Him!

To Him be the glory forever and evermore.Amen.

Hey Y'all!

2010-09-26T22:08:00.002+08:00

As the person who suggested to start this blog in the first place, I felt responsible for this blog's 'well-being'. Yea, there's no post at all for the past 9 months, that means I've been neglecting it's 'well-being' anyway.

So to the point, there aren't any post, but that doesn't mean we've back-slided from our faith-lah. It's just we're too 'busy' with everything that had been going on. Ignoring the fact that I, Jezreel Kang wasted my three months break after my spm, and recently a 5 weeks semester break, Daniel Soo's eight months break after his stpm, and Benjamin Soo's super long public university's semester breaks.

I hope this post will kick start this blog again.

Recently, FCC's worship team attended a worship conference, WorshipGOD Conference, held by DUMC. I wasn't a big fan of conferences all this while, being a student, conferences are expensive and I have much better things to do during my holidays. However, church subsidised for our fees(woohoo!).

At first, we were expecting to learn more skills in leading worship, more about technicality matters of playing in a band, band dynamics and such. However, what we received was far greater than those. It was a beautiful, beautiful reawakening for me, personally. I went there in frustration and disappointment, blaming other people for everything else.Though I met people with greater gifts and talents in worship leading, I wasn't intimidated nor discouraged, but I was humbled.

I returned with an enlightened heart, a stronger will do worship Him, no longer putting up a show every Sunday, no longer pissed about the slightest mistakes people make, and with a big anticipation of His blessings upon me, as I put Him first, read His word, and being the 'salt and light' to the world.

God-sent

2009-12-30T19:19:00.006+08:00

I truly believe that this isn't just mere coincidence- the very fact that the last few sermons our dear Pastor Geoffrey preached centered on this LIFE CHANGING statement:

"When Jesus died and rose again, He NOT ONLY paid once and for all our whole lifetime of sins and transgressions, He had, MOST OF ALL, done away with our SINFUL NATURE."

Now, the second part of that statement has been very much forgotten and neglected by the Christian World today. We all need to wake up and realize once again that when we are in Christ, "we are a new creation, the old is gone, the new has come."

Until this truth sinks deep and takes root in our hearts, we'll continue to sin and excuse it as part of our fallen nature, as something unavoidable.

Until the FULL TRUTH of the MAGNITUDE of Jesus Christ's forgiveness for us and how much we've been forgiven really sinks into our soul, we're gonna inevitably continue our old lives.

Our sinful nature was a result of Adam's fall and it actually refers to our "old man" or our "urge to sin". When we sin, it doesn't make us a sinner. Instead, we sin BECAUSE we are sinners! The word "SIN" is therefore both a verb and a noun. We were sinners by birth (noun). Therefore, as a result, we sin(verb).

But then Jesus came. He paid it ALL and gave us a NEW nature. HIS very nature. We are no longer obliged to sin, because sin has lost its power in our lives and has no more control over us!

ROMANS 6:1-4

¹What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? ²By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? ³Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

I'm so thankful to God that Pastor stressed on this point over and over again!!

I don't know about you, but I'm truly blessed!! Praise Jesus!!

Vocal Exercises

2009-11-05T19:47:00.005+08:00

Yo everyone,

Here are a few vocal exercises for you guys. These were done by Dakri Brown..If you know Israel Houghton and New Breed, Dakri is one of New Breed's singers. He used to come to church here alot to help us out with our vocals and what not, and man, his voice is suuuper good..haha..

So yea, practise these everyday, and you'll be friggin amazing as well..

Pass this around to the vocalists so they can practise too.

If you're looking for more, you can go online and search, i'm sure there are many free ones you can download.

(What a lot of singers do, is they put these mp3's on their iPod or mp3 player, and just sing along. This can be for warming up before singing on Sunday, or just as an exercise anytime) (watch this http://vimeo.com/4922343 )

love you guys!

there are 4 files, download them quick, coz they only last here for 7 days or 100 downloads..

https://www.yousendit.com/download/TzY2ZEV5d0lxRTBLSkE9PQ

https://www.yousendit.com/download/TzY2ZEUzcVh1Yk5MWEE9PQ

https://www.yousendit.com/download/TzY2ZEUzcVhUME1LSkE9PQ

https://www.yousendit.com/download/TzY2ZEU2eFhTSUJMWEE9PQ

Precious Promises - For Students

2009-11-04T01:10:00.002+08:00

Psalm 23
The Lord is my Tutor, I shall not worry
He maketh me to settle down in strange libraries
He leadeth me to reference materials
He restoreth my wakefulness in class
Yea, tho' I walk through classrooms and sleepy lectures
I will fear no failure: for Thou art with me
Thy whispers and Thy encouragement, they comfort me
Notees and formula before me in the imminence of my examination
Thou anointest my mind with oil, my preparation runneth over
Surely goodness and merciful results shall follow me
All the days of my course, I will serve in the fellowship
of the Lord in school and forever more

BEFORE EXAMINATIONS
I am so worried about this particular subject...Phil 4:6,7
My mind cannot concentrate during revision...Isaiah 26:3
I can't even sleep peacefully nowadays...Psalm 3:5
I am physically and mentally fatigued...Isaiah 40:31
There is no hope for I'm to far behind t catch up...Psalm 43:5
Will everything go wrong?...Isaiah 46:4

DURING EXAMINATIONS
I don't understand the questions:
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths." Proverbs 3:5,6

I'm too nervous to think properly:
"Peach is what I leave with you; It is my own peach that I give you. I do not give as the world does. Do not be worried and upset, do not be afraid." John 14:27

The questions need much wisdom and I don't have it:
"If any of you lacks wisdom, he should pray to God, who will give it to him; because God gives generously and graciously to all." James 1:5

This question is really impossible to answer:
"All things are possible to him who believes." Mark 9:23

AFTER THE EXAMS
What will my results be like:
"Seek your happiness in the Lord, and He will give you your heart's desire." Psalm 37:4

Doesn't God care if I fail:
"Leave all your worries with Him, because He cares for you." 1 Peter 5:7

No I din write those. Just found it in some old folders when I was clearing my stuffs. Hope they'll bring some encouragement.

Faith

2009-11-03T20:37:00.001+08:00

I don't know where am I heading to. But I darn know who am I following.

S(T)PM

2009-10-21T22:58:00.002+08:00

Remember,
God is great,
God is good.

Remember,
He will be there for you.
Do what you need to do,
He will bless you.

Remember,
Let not yourself be distracted,
Let not hardship bring you down,
It might be impossible for you, but not Him.

Remember,
Our future is decided because of Christ,
Shine His light.

Remember,
Focus on Jesus,
We'll have strength.

Remember,
Christians,
We have every reason to rejoice and be glad.
Because of Him, we can.

Remember,
when you take up your text books,
Know that when you put your effort,
You'll be blessed by Him.

Remember,
We're not alone in this.
He is right beside us.
We'll have His peace.

Peace out.

It Is All Jesus!

2009-10-18T21:55:00.001+08:00

How easy indeed it is, I realized, for us to be sidetracked by the busyness and demands of our everyday lives. Life seems so mundane sometimes, so monotonous. And if that isn't enough, life catches us by surprise with unexpected trials and twists and turns; hurts, a broken heart, a dampened spirit, a dreadful feeling of being alive, a depressed state of mind.

People hurt people. People feel hurt.People hurt other people back in return.PERIOD.Nothing more to add to that. This is a fact of life that we all can't evade so as long as we're still living on this planet. Our emotions are like a rollercoasters. The very moment you're feeling up, be prepared for a drop back to earth. This statement by pastor is so true. This begs the question: Do we let our emotions dictate how we are to live? Do our words, thoughts, and actions flow along with the rise and fall of our emotional state? Or... Do we live out our lives with a Peace that is free and independent of our emotions?

The Bible says, "as a man thinks, so he feels". I find this extremely true and paramount in my understanding of human nature. Do we let circumstances change us or do we change the circumstances? Are we a thermometer or a thermostat? The former is completely different from the latter.

Hurt is REAL. Pain is REAL. I know. Believe me, I do. But now I realize, Jesus IS MORE REAL! Jesus just floods our hearts with His love when we come to Him. And suddenly, you find the pain is gone, the hurt has vanished, and is replaced by His ever-abounding love, joy, and peace.

This weekend, God has refreshed my soul by speaking to me through the youth service message and this morning's Sunday preaching. I learnt that once we know our identity in Him and Who loves so much, we needn't worry bout' a thing no more. So what if we're misunderstood? So what if we're accused wrongly? The KING OF KINGS, the only one whose opinions about us really matter, thinks the BEST of us! All this seems so puny compared to the very fact that Jesus LOVES you for who you are. And boy, did He really show it without holding back! He gave us His everything on that Cross! WOW, suddenly all insecurity is gone! All concerns of life, all hurt, all sorrow, is replaced by His love, favor, and immense Joy! I learnt that Jesus is my reality and HE has blessed me with ALL blessings!

An excerpt of the song, The Stand clearly echoes the cry of my heart:

You stood before my failures,

And carried the Cross for my shame,

My sin weighed upon Your shoulders,

My soul now to stand.

So what could I say,

What could I do,

But to offer this heart Oh God,

Completely to You.

I pray you guys are blessed reading this just as I am blessed by the revelation of His love for us!

We need to be constantly reminded of His amazing, unfailing LOVE.

As Christ is, so are we in this world!

The Look Alike Contest

2009-10-16T18:48:00.003+08:00

Jason, no offense to Simone k.

Joash told me over gtalk saying Jack went to Rome. I was like, huh? what Rome?

Here:

No, Jack din go to Rome, she and Simone just so happened to look alike XD

Your Unfailing Love (Cover)

2009-10-12T19:11:00.002+08:00

A headphone mic, a free sound recorder, a guitar, two bored siblings, and half an hour of spare time. What can we do? =)

It's an amateur recording with only simple tools and a laptop. We made a cover of this song, currently my favourite song. Enjoy there. =)

London Update

2009-10-12T16:41:00.003+08:00

Hello hello everyone!..

How's things?..Well, its a Monday morning here, and I have approx 20mins before i have start leaving to go to work, and i was thinking of you guys and FCC..actually, i've been thinking about you guys quite a lot this week..And so, i thought it would be nice to give you guys an update about how things are going here with my life in London...

Oh where do i start? haha!

So, Uni's started again for me, and i'm in my second week, of my final year here. Yes, my time here in London is down to a matter of months. This time next year, i'll be complaining already about how hot it is in Malaysia, and really really missing my life, friends and church in London. So my time here now is super valuable.

With church, wow, there has been so many things happening recently, its crazy!..
Just this week, we've had Hillsong Conference, and that's been amazing. Ps Joseph Prince, Craig Groeschel, Brian & Bobbie Houston, Christine Caine, Joel Houston, Reuben Morgan, Israel Houghton and New Breed...super sweet as!..
I didnt manage to go for the whole conference though, just for one day, and that was cool enough..(coz last year, i went for the full conference, and this year, i had classes..)
Also, not sure if you guys know, i'm on the worship team now, and since a few weeks back, i started singing what we call 'frontline'...if you watch most Hillsong stuff, they usually have 5-6 vocals singing side by side with the Worship Leader, so yea, started singing frontline, and i think its the biggest stage i've had so far. Yesterday, Israel and New Breed sang at our church, and it was really cool watching them do their thing, and the guys (and girls) of New Breed are friggin funny!..haha!..most cool was, Joel Houston was worship leading yesterday, and I shared the stage with him..no photos or videos unfortunately, but man, it really was a dream come true. I remember the many times sleeping over at Joseph's house, or Joash's house, listening to a United cd, and trying to figure out what Joel is singing, or how he's worship leading, and just really having a super small thought at the back of our minds, would be cool to see him personally.

So yea, i'm really grateful for how far i've come since i've been here. So many dreams have come true, and so many new dreams have been birthed. What was once so amazing, like singing in Hillsong, or even being a part of the church, is now a reality. I've really been blessed by his amazing love and grace over my life. He's been friggin amazing!

This picture was taken at Young Adult's Live, an event we have every 3 months or so, at another venue, and the worship leader here is Jay, and the crowd is, you guessed it, Hillsong's Young Adults. (I didn't sing here)

These photos were taken last year at our album recording, but just to give an idea of the church.

Also, if you guys dont know yet, i've got myself a girlfriend here. Yes, i caved...haha!
Her name's Simone, and she's Brazilian. But don't start generalizing coz she doesnt look anything like Gisele Bunchen, or Ronaldo or Ronaldinho (thank God!)..(one thing London has taught me, is that i cant generalize about ppl at all!...) She's Brazilian Japanese, just like there are so many of us who are Malaysian Chinese, except that she's 3rd generation, meaning her grandparents went over to Brazil from Japan.
If you're wondering what she speaks, no, its not Brazilian, its Portuguese, coz they were a Portuguese colony as well, but the difference with them compared to us is, it became the main language there. In fact, I think the only thing that's Japanese about Simone is her looks, everything else about her is very Brazilian!..She's loud (although she's small), crazy, and loves life! She's really an amazing girl and i cant wait for you guys to meet her one day..

Simone's the little girl on my left. Don't be fooled by her size, she's really a chili padi!

Woah, i've gone waaaay over my time, and i'm late for work!..

Come say hi to me on facebook guys, we can catch up there!...

Hope everyone's doing fine yea?..and i really wana hear from you all...tell me what's been happening at FCC, good or bad alright?..

Later!d

Church Guitar

2009-10-05T19:59:00.003+08:00

The Joy Of The Lord

2009-09-18T21:32:00.003+08:00

It's funny how even when going through a tough time, we are still able to smile and be happy.
But don't ever think for one moment that it is by our own strength. The bible says the joy of the Lord is our strength! when i see our new blog picture, it really reminds me of continually delighting ourselves in the Lord and He'll grant us the desires of our heart. It reminds me of hope in God.

In Him, we'll never lack anything. I mean, just look how far we've come. We would have never made it this far if it wasn't by the grace and mercies of God. Every breath we take take, we depend on God's mercy. But praise be to God, the bible says He is Good and His mercies are new every morning! Let us always find rest in the fact that circumstances may change, but God will never change and He'll never fail us.

Ps:

Justin loves McDonald's playground.

Youth Camp 2009 - Get Life! (preview)

2009-09-03T20:56:00.000+08:00

Youth Camp!!!

2009-08-25T14:50:00.002+08:00

Youth camp is finally here after so many years of its absence. Well, nothing can stop it from being fun. Keep praying for it!!! I really do hope all shitty things that happened like exams, lack of holidays, relationship problems will be forgotten during the whole camp. For all those who have read this, please ask your friends not to bring any book to study because you won't have time anyway. YEAA!!!! WOOHOO!!!

Do Not Despair

2009-08-24T18:45:00.002+08:00

Life is not an easy thing to go through by ourselves. Without a solid and lasting reason to live, there's basically no point living. Suicide cases, people jumping from buildings, into the sea, onto a busy highway, their excuses are quite simple. " I don't have a reason to live anymore..."

As a human being, we always depend on something or look forward to something to make our lives more exciting, more 'worth living'. But later on, we found out that everything we once looked forward to goes to past. Events, concerts, activities, missions. "Wow, sounds fun attending one, let's look forward to it.." But what's next after that? This will go in a cycle, because, nothing in this world will last. No event, no love, no nothing will ever last. We are too imperfect and too vulnerable to this harsh community and society.

However, do not despair. Really, because there is still one thing that you can look forward to.

God.

This God of mine, not like any other God, he didn't just appear and leave some notes or advices to his followers, then dies and immortalized by statues or paintings, or his radical followers. My God, is great, he did leave his word behind, made disciples to tell the world about Him. But he didn't die. He lived. While other gods are immortalized by statues, JESUS was immortalized by His great Love and Grace he promised us.

Instead of looking to the world for something to look forward to, Look to Jesus. Human love wouldn't last, but when this love fails you again and again, always remember, even when you get dumped, you are not alone. Jesus won't stand behind your back and says,"told you so, silly." Jesus always loves you. When your heart is broken, do not despair, remember Him, His love is free. You don't need to buy Jesus a teddy bear during Christmas, nor treat Him a costly dinner at Eden or Vic's Station.

Remember. Do not put anything of this world as your ship's anchor. It will rust and be crushed during a storm at sea. Try Jesus, and he will stay with you in the midst of a storm, comforting you throughout the journey.

If other fails you, try my JESUS

Exams

2009-08-20T21:37:00.006+08:00

WE HATE EXAMINATIONS!

spmstpmpmrupsrsatfinalsentrytrialsmidtermaugu
sttestenglishbahasaaddmathsfurthermathsbiology
sciencephysicsmodernmathsmathematicseconomics
chemistrymoralagamapjkaccountsbkenglishinscie
nceandtechnologyblablablablablablablablablabla

Subanglah will be back soon!

Its been awhile..

2009-08-03T01:15:00.005+08:00

I would say its been awhile since I last posted on this blog. Kept saying to myself that i wanted to post something but in the end i never did till now.. Hmm..speaking of "its been awhile-s", here are a few:

1.Its been awhile since i last picked up my guitar to come up with a melody(or a song for that matter), since before Mother's Day months ago.(Note: my passion for music is still as strong as ever.)

2.Its been awhile since i last read a good book (other than the Bible of course, how can i live without it?).

3.Its been awhile since we had our last sleepover in church..

And the list goes on...

My point is, I guess in one way or another, we all do fall prey to that fleeting pleasure called "procrastination". Its kinda inevitable, something we all love to do, though we know its like..wrong..haha..

Anyway, my long 6month plus break after STPM is over and i'm in a new phase of life..university life. So, i guess I've no more luxury of procrastination anymore..? I guess there still is, but i gotta minimise it.Haha. =p

Oh, since we're on that, i'd like to add a #4: Its been awhile since i last sat for an exam, and in just a blink of an eye, I'm gonna face exams in uni soon.Wow, time flies! Gotta buck up.

Back to where i left off. Yeah, those 6months of near idleness flew by so quickly, though i won't say i was IDLE. There were seasons of productivity too along that time frame. But before i know it, I'm in UPM doing my Bachelor in Instrumentation Science. When i got that offer, my initial reaction was, WHAT ON EARTH IS THIS COURSE ABOUT?? I got the university that i wanted but the course I didn't apply for.I guess you need a CGPA of 4.00 in STPM to secure a spot in the course you desire, though come to think of it, that's not even 100% guaranteed.

Initially i hesitated to take up this offer as i felt it was like "lelong". But after seeking God and talking to people wiser than i am, I felt this is a door God has opened up for me. And indeed it is! I found out more about this course and i realised its actually rather good. And throughout all this, I've seen His hand at work and His favour so real in my life! I couldn't thank Him more!

Campus life is a new experience for me. It taught me to appreciate the simple, yet vital things in life.

1.Privacy. No private bathroom/toilet. Instead, the bathrooms/toilets are located at the end of the row of rooms of each floor. Gotta get used to the idea of seeing strange hairs that belong to someone else, on the bathroom floor sometimes, for example.

2.Chinese food and PORK! HAHA.. yeah, most of the food in UPM are Malay food and all are halal. So yes folks, pork meat is a luxury. I thank God i come home every weekend.

3.Huge living space. My room in campus is rather basic and small. A bed, a study table and a cupboard, that's about all. But its cosy though. The air in Serdang is quite fresh.

But these are just small prices to pay. I really thank God for giving me this opportunity to further my education. Good deal you know? The whole course for 4years cost around RM90k, but the govt. a.k.a. tax payers' money is sponsoring around RM83k of the total fees, so I only need to pay around RM7k..that's less than 10%!! SWEET..

I'm now starting to enjoy uni life and God has been and IS so awesome! His mercies and favour are new every morning! Great is Thy faithfulness O God! Amen! =)

Tribute to Yasmin Ahmad

2009-07-28T17:43:00.002+08:00

You will always be remembered.

2009-07-27T17:13:00.000+08:00

This is the card made by my sisters, Jacklyn and Josephine and I, Jezreel for our parents. (My brainchild!) =P

Once again, dad, mum, WE APPRECIATE YOU!

Church Service Today

2009-07-27T00:40:00.000+08:00

Today if anyone agree with me was the best church service so far. The worship was good and the sermon was superb.

Christ is our all sufficiency for our Salvation. Salvation that Jesus brought to us command from us Nothing...Nothing!!!!!! Wooh!!!

Furthermore, in the new testament, the fullness of God's Grace came and fulfilled the law for us. For now we are no more slaves to the law and are complete and whole in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The question to ask ourselves was ,

How much of Jesus do you literally depend on today?

Signing out,

Justin Kang.

Parent's Appreciation Day

2009-07-27T00:07:00.002+08:00

What a day it was. It was a really exciting and fulfilling day! One of the best days so far! It would be an understatement to say that this event was a success. It was superb and wonderful!!!
Thank you Joseph Teng and Daniel Soo for organizing the games.
Joseph Teng and Joash Chan for recording the whole event.
Caleb Raj for preparing the place and doing the sound systems.
Bryan Ng, May Chan , Benjamin Teng, Lynn Yen and Anndrea Lye for being the kitchen people.
Thank you to all who contributed with the food!!!

Muffins made by Josephine Kang,
Punch made by the kitchen staff,
Benjamin Teng for buying the ice-cream and other stuffs,
Salad made by Jezreel and family,
Spaghetti with carbonara sauce made by May Chan while the spaghetti with the tomato sauce made by Rachell Yee,
Nuggets and fishballs made by Allynna Lye,
Fruits by Sabrina Tan and mother,
Brownies by Justin Kang,
And all the kitchen staff especially those who spent their time washing the dishes and doing the odd jobs.Especially SARAH!!!!! Who asked a guest to wash the dishes!!! Even if she wanted to wash, no one should let her wash the dishes!!!!!!! SHE'S a FREAKING GUEST!!!!
Anyway, Thank You Sarah like a Lot!!!

Thank You Jacklyn for making the whole event happen.

Thank you all the performers,
Rabeeka Raj with Joash Chan for their song
Jezreel Kang and Jacklyn Kang for their song
Josephine Kang for the excellent masterpiece of a video
And Benjamin Soo, Daniel Soo, Jezreel Kang and Justin Kang for their song.

Furthermore thank you to all the speeches by,
Anndrea Lye
Dawn Ng and Esther Ng(absent)
Justin Kang
Joash Chan for the finale speech

Thank you for those who came and made the event more colourful!

It was a blast!!!

After the event, Mc Donald's was our dinner. Had nice fun here. Girls playing with water and got all wet while the guys talked...

Anyway, it was a God-given day.

Let us all hope that day's like this would continue next time.

Thank you for all those involved.

Signing out,
Justin Kang

Subang Rally 2009

2009-07-26T18:04:00.003+08:00

I hate procrastinating. But, i love to do it. =)

Session 1 warm up

Anyways, there might not be anyone reading this post, but this could be my personal diary and journal.

Jenn Sze Yun

Being involved in a CF Rally might be one of my life's most memorable experience. Basically, CF Rally is an annual gathering of Christian Fellowships of schools around this region of Subang Jaya. From SMK Subang Utama in SS18, all the way to SMK USJ 23 and so on.

My Pre- Rally, bestest, friendliest friend ever! MEshell, MC

All this while I looked at these events and always have a misconception like, "oh no. Not again. Another 'show off' session for "Christians"." Maybe because when i look at the people, some my friends on the stage, performing, praising, and playing their instruments, i felt a very strong feeling of them being 'show offers'. I was judging the people, commenting their praise and worship sessions.

Ps. Daniel Raj, FGA
(session 1)

What i didn't notice, is the effort each and everyone of the committee, the worship teams, and the volunteers put in to make the rally a success, to tell the world bout the Truth, sharing Christ with them. So, yes, I'm a hypocrite, because i finally got involved with the worship team, as their backup singer and worship leader. (i wanted guitarist! Thank you esther very much! hmp!)

Ps Andy Yeoh, Acts
(session 2)

This was my first ( and last chance) to serve and see how a rally was run, planned, and executed. When i was being offered the position of a worship leader by my friend, Esther Lim, the worship coordinator for this year's rally, I hesitated, gave a lot of excuses. ANYWAYS, I prayed about it, and I'm very sure, that I heard a voice saying, "Take it, and glorify my name". I straight away called up Esther after a Wednesday prayer meeting. (Btw, Esther, if you're reading this, I also accepted it in behalf of you. You were really stressed at that time. =))

Hui Tingy

It turned out good. I received one of my most memorable experience i could have as a student, as a worshipper dedicated to serve Christ. For your information, I'm not a experienced worship leader, and I only lead my cell group of bout 15 people in worship before this. The rally was attended by at least 400 people. (AH!)

Joben

I also got a chance to work with random people from random schools. All this while, I only played with my church band. Always the same people. Now, these random people became my friends and brother sisters in Christ!

My asst leader : Chan Tong! thank you for supporting me throughout the practises!
My vocalists : Evon! continue to sing for Jesus, he will bless you well. =)
Ei-Lene! I will still be your guitarist in CF meetings, no worries. HAHA!
EiLeen! really, always rejoice and sing for Him!
My pianist : Jade! stay cheery and believe that He will multiply your talents and skills! SMILE!
My keyboardist: ESTHER! thank you for believing in me even when i don't believe in myself. =)
My drummer : Nehe! my God, get professional lah!
My A. guitarist: Michelle! Thank you for putting in so much effort during practises! hahax!
My E. guitarist: Ian! I need to learn from you dude! =)
My bassist! : Benjamin! hmmm. speechless la. xD

Michelle was offered to be the MC for the rally. great success!

Now, for the concert session, the committee expected at least 1000 people attending, however I'm not sure bout the number attended, but the hall was full. Lead by Joben, or Joseph Benjamin Steward, (what a name!), and Hui Ting, the session was definitely a blast! after months of practices and stress, we finally worked out the song arrangement and parts well!

Subang Rally 09 concert team.

I learnt that we should not look down on any effort put in by anyone in bringing Christ to the world, eventhough, its a small event, or gathering, because when we believe, we as Christian youth and teenagers can make an impact to the society, God will be with us.

p.s : thank you! Fennie and Ah Chi for attending the event! =) mwahhaha

Jerald Leg Kantoi

2009-07-14T10:24:00.001+08:00

Transformers : Revenge of the Fallen

2009-07-01T19:13:00.004+08:00

I like the part when Bumble Bee burst into tears when Sam told him he's not bring him to college. Imagine Ben's Iswara burst into tears when Ben tells him that he can't bring him to college.

Trivia: Who is Transformers' parent?

Meeting stars

2009-07-01T18:41:00.004+08:00

Alvin Wong @ McDonalds, Mont Kiara.

Looks like T0uch will be meeting more artist in the future at our dinner places.

Cleaners 2

2009-06-06T12:41:00.004+08:00

Yea. Watever Justin said. So, Pastor Geoffrey will be shifting down to KL on next Monday. So, we helped them to shift their belongings and furniture and books, and more books, bibles, kbkk books, SAT books, Joshua's books, Rachel's books, Ruth's books, Aunt Felicia's books, Pastor Geoffrey's books (shelf 1), Pastor Goeffrey's books (shelf 2) and so on. xD

But, it was all good.Here's some of the snaps.

On Teusday:

On Friday:

10 tonnes lorry

I was almost decapitated

Scary to look, right?

Cleaners

2009-06-02T22:08:00.002+08:00

Today was a fateful day, Benjamin, Daniel, Jezreel and I went to clean up Pastor Geoffrey's empty double story house. We worked hard and in a short moment of about 1 hour we managed to clean it up. While we were waiting for Uncle Gary to pick us up we "blessed" the house by playing 'Cho Tai Ti' in the biggest bedroom which most probably will be Pastor Geoffrey's room. We then had great lunch and went home. Hmmmm, I hope that Benjamin, Daniel and Jezreel will have a fun time in Shogun tomorrow......Signing out.

Look how far we've come...

2009-05-24T23:54:00.003+08:00

Desert Song

2009-05-19T22:41:00.004+08:00

This song speaks of real life situations where sometimes we may literally feel like wandering in the desert, distressed, tired, lost... But yet we can always look to God, knowing that He is sovereign. When we are weak, He is our strength, when we are sick, He is our healer, when we feel defeated, God is our Victor!

Romans 8
35 Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? 36 (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”[n]) 37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

This is a powerful testimony of Jill McCloghry on how she lost her child and God putting the pieces of her heart back together.

This is my prayer in the desert
And all that's within me feels dry
This is my prayer in my hunger and need
My God is a God who provides

And this is my prayer in the fire
In weakness or trial or pain
There is a faith proved
Of more worth than gold
So refine me Lord through the flames

And I will bring praise
I will bring praise
No weapon formed against me shall remain

I will rejoice
I will declare
God is my victory and He is here

And this is my prayer in the battle
And triumph is still on it's way
I am a conqueror and co-heir with Christ
So firm on His promise I'll stand

All of my life
In every season
You are still God
I have a reason to sing
I have a reason to worship

This is my prayer in the harvest
When favor and providence flow
I know I'm filled to be emptied again
The seed I've recieved I will sow

Hearing God’s Voice

2009-05-13T14:39:00.001+08:00

Hearing God’s Voice — Adam’s Angle

When you finish up school and get to your twenties, you might ask yourself, “Now what do I do with my life?” If you’re a believer and want to follow God, you might phrase the question differently: “How can I know God’s will for my life?”

It’s a question worth asking, whether you’re 21 or 71. Here’s the answer I e-mailed to one of the young adults in our church who asked me this question recently.

A Word From God

Much of God’s will for our lives is already revealed to us in His Word. We know from Scripture that it is His will that we become holy, that we love others, that we flee from sexual immorality and so on. There’s a lot that is already clear in the Bible. My suggestion to you is, first, master His Word. Dig deep into your Bible studies. Pray that the Holy Spirit would give you understanding.

As you know God’s Word better, you will understand Him and His character better. The pieces of the puzzle will start coming together, but we need to invest time in understanding His Word. Start there.

Just Do It!

Next, put what you do understand into practice. Look at Romans 12:1-2: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

We offer ourselves, our lives, and our actions to God. We apply His Word to our real-life situations so we change. The end result is in verse two: to test and approve what God’s will is. In other words, when we become more like Him, we’ll be able to see things from His perspective.

It Takes Time

Accurately hearing God’s leading is something that comes with discernment and practice over time. Here is a Scripture to think on:

“In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.” (Hebrews 5:12-14)

The context of this passage is that the writer (possibly the apostle Paul or perhaps some other church leader) was rebuking certain believers for not progressing beyond the basics of the faith. The key to this passage is verse 14. The idea here is that as these believers constantly used and applied the “basics” (God’s Word) they would gradually get trained in discernment: telling good from evil. The same is true for us, as we use and apply the basics of our faith, we grow in discernment. Then we’ll know when to say yes and when to say no to things that come our way.

Take a Chance

Consider Ecclesiastes 11:1-6: “Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again. Give portions to seven, yes to eight, for you do not know what disaster may come upon the land. If clouds are full of water, they pour rain upon the earth. Whether a tree falls to the south or to the north, in the place where it falls, there will it lie. Whoever watches the wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will not reap. As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things. Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let not your hands be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether both will do equally well.”

This passage talks about taking a chance. Sometimes we want to hear God’s voice so much that we freeze ourselves: “God, do you want me to call so-and-so? God do you want me to go to the summer retreat? God, do you want me to eat a peanut butter sandwich? God, do you want me to inhale?” (and this last question is usually followed very quickly by, “Lord, do you want me to exhale?).

My point is God doesn’t give us neon signs in the sky for every little thing in our lives. He’s given us His Word; He’s given us responsibility, too. He wants us to make choices. Sometimes that involves taking a risk, even if you don’t have a “direct” word from God.

For example, do you want to do missions? Great! You have good grounds to pursue it: God desires his gospel to go out to the farthest corners of the earth. Unless God tells you otherwise — as you prayerfully proceed forward, or He drops circumstances in your lap that prevent you from going — start pursuing it. Research on the Internet some groups that do mission trips to Asia (or wherever). Try going on a short-term mission trip to see if that is a fit for God’s call on your life. Wisely, and in a godly way, take chances.

Don’t just sit on your rear waiting for God to give you a clear sign that you should get out of your chair.

— Adam Pivec
4/19/09

Mother's Day Poem

2009-05-11T23:02:00.002+08:00

This is a poem that was written by me for Mother's Day

When we are naughty,
Your patience increases greatly,
To make us better when we grow,
You discipline us the best ways you know,

Forgive us when we make you mad,
We know that that makes you sad,
After that, it definitely makes us feel bad,
Please be patient, we need time to adapt,

Mother's are a gift from God,
You are so very dear to us,
Maybe because you are our nurse,
When we are sick or worse,

Thank you for your presence,
You always give a soothing fragrance,
Love is of your essence,
Your whole being is of an importance,

Please know that we always love you,
You who taught us, disciplined us, cared for us, listened to us, loved us and have done so much for us,
We can't comprehend your love for us until we've become parents,
But we really appreciate you for all you are,

To all the mothers,
The seeds you've sown will one day grow,
The roots dig deep that's why its slow,
Continue with your work because time will show,
Through your love and care, fruits will flow,

I'd like to end this poem by saying,
We really, truly, deeply, seriously, earnestly, sincerely love you,
And have a Happy Mother's Day.

Installation And Appreciation Sunday

2009-05-07T19:24:00.005+08:00

Last Sunday, May 3 2009, was a special Sunday and a memorable one. We had a special service to officially install our newly ordained senior pastor, Reverend Geoffrey Yee and the newly elected church board.

It was also an event to appreciate our previous but not forgotten beloved shepherd, Rev Luke Chan and also the interim pastor, Ps Erwin Ong. Also appreciated were the outgoing church board for their faithful service and also for those previous church board members who were re-elected into the current board. Last but not least to be appreciated were the church workers, who have laboured unceasingly and with sheer dedication.

This event made us reflect on how far we've come as a church all those years and of the long but exciting journey ahead. The sermon by Rev Michael Ho was truly inspiring with hints of humour and laughter added in for good measure. His sermon was entitled, "Equipped For Creative Impact-God's Way" which well suited the theme of the day.

Thanks Jezreel for the pictures!

All in all it was a great service.

Now, we would like to take this opportunity to welcome you, Pastor Geoffrey as one of us!
To Pastor Luke, thank you so very much from the bottom of our hearts for your years of tireless service and love and passion for FCC!You will certainly not be forgotten.
To Ps Erwin, thanks for your tenure of service to FCC as interim pastor.

It's been awhile

2009-05-01T18:06:00.002+08:00

It has been awhile now, since SubangLah was founded. And the trademark of this blog, of course, the SubangLah picture up there. Every time anyone visits this blog, he or she will surely see the picture of four emo guys up there. (from left to right, Benjamin Soo, Justin Kang, Daniel Soo, Jezreel Kang)

I can recall when the idea of making a blog first came out, this picture was set to be the "headline " or "title" for the blog. Maybe because most of us were really down and "emo" during that time, because of various reasons and circumstances that changed our attitude towards life.

Our catch phrase, "Owh, the last time I came here, I was still happy.."

It meant the previous time we did something, or been to somewhere, we were still happy. And everytime that phrase was used, it means that we manage to over-write the past experience, replacing it with new ones.

I wanna believe that life is still worth living for, although sometimes situations may fail you, again and again. We always have chances to redeem ourselves.

For the pass 4 months, living without someone that is important in my life isn't easy. Seriously. But there's this verse that brought me through it all...

Psalms 23

A Psalm of David
¹ The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

² He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,

³ he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.

⁴ Even though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

⁵ You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.

⁶ Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.

David, even before Christ came to die for us, believed in the grace of God. He could see that with the Lord by his side, he could win battles, he will have so much resources, so much that he have to give away. Even verse one explained it all..

I SHALL NOT BE IN WANT

It means that all is provided for us. We will not wanna ask for anything extra.

Furthermore, now that we have Christ, who died for us, so that we could be one with Him.

We just have to set our hearts on Jesus, and everything will find it's way. Any financial crisis will be solved, every sicknesses be cured, and every broken heart be healed.

For my case, I believe good love is on the way. There's someone out there waiting for me. I might see that the previous is so perfect, nothing can be better anymore, but hey! When God really holds your future, he will set one who will be the most suitable for me... ever! So good, that it will BLAST YOUR MIND.

Always believe that Jesus could, and Jesus would. And as the time goes by, let it pass with a clear mind, Jesus.

In The Spur Of The Moment

2009-04-27T10:13:00.004+08:00

This is a short musical piece that i wrote in the spur of the moment when a little inspiration suddenly came my way two nights ago. After a few rounds of practice, here it is.Though not in top quality and there may be some wrong notes here and there as this is a raw version. So
please bear with me.I hope you enjoy it though.Haha.

Blog!

2009-04-26T22:10:00.003+08:00

We, the SubangLah commitee apologize for not updating this site for some long time due to busy schedules and final exams coming in near. (We have life too you know! xD) Anyways, since this blog is about Subang, I would like to present you, SUBANG RALLY 09!

Subang Rally is an event held annually by Christians Fellowships in the schools in Subang Jaya. Basically, a gathering of Christian students in SJ, under the name of Jesus. And as you see, this year, the theme is PUSH.

____________________________________________________________________
Why PUSH ?
As we came together and seek God for a theme for this year's rally most of the leaders and representatives in the room was both desperate and also inspired for a CHANGE. If you followed Barrack Obama's : Change we can believe it Presidential Campaign, you should know by now that everyone is asking for a change, hey even in Malaysia we went through our own changes didn't we, March 8 2008? So yeah, we aren't desperate to change for the sake of changing but we were thinking of having a change for the benefit of the CF and the world around us.

Did you know that God created Adam & Eve
Did you know that Moses led the people out of Eygpt
Did you know that Jesus Died and rose on the 3rd day?
Did you know that as believers we are suppose to pray?
Did you know that as believers we have authority over the devil?
Did you know we should be spreading God's word?
Did you know we are called to be salt and light to the world?
Well I bet most of your answers were like duh or yes yes yes, but I would like to throw this back at you SO WHAT IF YOU KNEW ALL THESE THINGS?

What are you actually doing about it? Our CFs in Subang Jaya have grown and slack and grown and shut down many times through out the years, its either some of us are just couldnt be bothered or as a CF we have totally lost our edge!

Thats why the leaders of Subang Jaya this year wants a PUSH, we want to literally Push Christians to rise up, urge believers to STAND UP, SHOW UP AND SPEAK UP. We need to start engaging our generation we need to start putting our knowledge into full use, we need to start behaving like Real Believers.

THATS WHY WE WANT TO PUSH PUSH PUSH GOD'S WORD FORWARD TO OUR GENERATION THIS YEAR
____________________________________________________________________

Adapted from www.subangrally.blogspot.com

Rep in near attack

2009-04-16T14:12:00.002+08:00

Rep in near attack

PETALING JAYA: Subang Jaya assemblyman Hannah Yeoh escaped a possible attack while driving along USJ11/1G yesterday morning.

The DAP rep said in her blog that she was slowing down towards a speed bump on the road at 9.30am when a motorcyclist suddenly appeared on her right.

“He was about to take a weapon from underneath his shirt to attack me. I could not see if it was a pistol, a knife or a hammer, and all I could do at that time was to honk continuously,” she said, adding that she was shocked by the incident.

Yeoh said that blaring her horn probably scared off the motorcyclist, who promptly rode away.

She later lodged a report at the USJ police station and sent out an alert to inform Subang Jaya residents of the danger and for them to look out for suspicious motorcyclists following their cars.

Yeoh said she hoped that the attack was not “politically motivated” and believed that it was purely criminal.

Dear all, please be careful when you are driving, leaving house, or going back home....Look around you before you get out from your car, if you are fetching people home, make sure that the person get into the house before driving off. Honk to alert if you see something fishy.

SICK

2009-04-13T11:58:00.002+08:00

As all of you know, I was sick for 1 whole week and more. Some virus came and infected my body. Through the whole ordeal, this was how I felt.
Why is God not healing me?!!! He has all the power in the world why is He so silent!!!! Why can't He just take away the symptoms in my body that was making me suffer because He already healed me 2000 years ago. That time was a BAD DAY from the devil. It was all down and shit. Couldn't even go to church for prayer meet and Youth. SO SAD!!!!!

But praise the Lord for His Mercies endures forever. His Love is so good. For now I'm healed and free from all diseases and symptoms in my body that the devil was trying to do.

HALLELUJAH!!!!!AMEN!!!!!

From,
Justin Kang

VIA DOLOROSA

2009-04-10T14:46:00.002+08:00

I can never watch a video like this. How can a man take all suffering upon himself and to die on behalf of the world who dun even have a slight idea why did he do that for.

Down the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem that day
The soldiers tried to clear the narrow street
But the crowd pressed in to see
The Man condemned to die on Calvary

He was bleeding from a beating, there were stripes upon His back
And He wore a crown of thorns upon His head
And He bore with every step
The scorn of those who cried out for His death

Down the Via Dolorosa called the way of suffering
Like a lamb came the Messiah, Christ the King,
But He chose to walk that road out of
His love for you and me.
Down the Via Dolorosa, all the way to Calvary.

Por la Via Dolorosa, triste dia en Jerusalem
Los saldados le abrian paso a Jesus
Mas la gente se acercaba
Para ver al que llevaba aquella cruz

Por la Via Dolorosa, que es la via del dolor
Como oveja vino Cristo, Rey, Senor
Y fue El quien quiso ir por su amor por ti y por mi
Por la Via Dolorosa al Calvario y a morir

The blood that would cleanse the souls of all men
Made its way through the heart of Jerusalem.

Down the Via Dolorosa called the way of suffering
Like a lamb came the Messiah, Christ the King
But He chose to walk that road out of His love for you and me
Down the Via Dolorosa, all the way to Calvary.

A New Dawn!

2009-04-06T11:10:00.003+08:00

I'm feeling a sense of great joy, hope, and liberty! Finally FCC is on course to recovery and reconciliation. The past few months, perhaps even the past year or so has seen much discord and strife among members of FCC. It came to such an ugly state that members were hurtling accusations at one another and backstabbing each other. The church was splitting, from the leadership right down to the members. The situation was so ugly I believe i don't have to deliberate on it once more.We all know how bad it was.

I don't know bout you guys but i feel so relieved after hearing the results of the two elections.Firstly, Pastor Geoffrey was voted in by a super strong majority(can say 90% strong)!! That alone is miraculous, considering all the negative rumors spreading around like wildfire plus all the spoilt votes.

It reminded me of the showdown between Elijah and the prophets of Baal on Mt Carmel. Elijah had all the disadvantages on his side, ie: he had water poured over the sacrifice and the wood not once, not twice, but 3 times!! And yet, God showed Himself in such a convincing manner that His fire consumed the sacrifice and even licked clean the water too! All the hardship and opposition we've been going through reminded me of that story. It looked like we were fighting a losing battle and that all the odds were against the truth but God prevailed in the end! I learnt that the battle is the Lord's and we just have to trust Him fully without wavering or interfering with our human works ! Considering all the odds, a huge sweep in favor of our new Pastor is indeed a sign that God has ordained him.

Secondly was the election for the new Church Board.That is also a miracle.Our God is so gracious that He put only those whom He knows can work hand in hand with our new Pastor. We have a good new Board.

Now is just the beginning of many more great things to come. FCC has just only begun her process of reconciliation and healing. We have a long but promising road ahead of us so lets continue to be an encouragement to one another and stay strong in the bond of love for perfect love casts out ALL fear. Let us all move forward together starting from now.

Indeed, we all can be a Family Church once again!

I also really thank God for our Subang Cell and how close knitted we are! You all are(present continous tense) really an encouragement and a God-send to me! You all are true friends and brothers and sisters in Christ! I love you all and appreciate you all alot!! =)

1 John 4:18
There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

Philippians 1:6
being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus

Hebrews 10:24
And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.

I Will Never Leave You, Nor Forsake You

2009-04-06T10:01:00.004+08:00

'I will never leave you, nor forsake you'

During yesterday's worship, that line smacked into my face. I dunno why it suddenly happen that way, maybe because in my heart I was doubting God, I was preparing for the worse to come. Just like Peter doubted when he saw the wind, and he fell. "I will never leave you, nor forsake you", not only that, the word "Miracle" came out of nowhere, then I know, God is at work. He heard us. The best part is, someone confirmed that. I forgotten who said it, was it the preacher?

No matter how bad a situation is, or how hopeless it seems, always remember that God will not leave us just like that. He did a miracle.

Miriam
Many nights we've prayed
with no proof anyone could hear
In our hearts a hopeful song
We barely understood
Now we are not afraid
Although we know there's much to fear
We were moving mountains
Long before we ever knew we could

There can be miracles
When you believe
Though hope is frail
It's hard to kill
Who knows what miracles
You can achieve
When you believe
Somehow you will
You will when you believe

Tzipporah
In this time of fear
When prayer so often proved in vain
Hope seemed like the summer birds
Too swiftly flown away
Yet now I'm standing here
With heart so full I can't explain
Seeking faith and speaking words
I never thought I'd say

Miriam and Tzipporah
There can be miracles when you believe
Though hope is frail
It's hard to kill
Who knows what miracles
You can achieve
When you believe
Somehow you will
You will when you believe...

Hebrew Children
A-shi-ra la-do-nai ki ga-oh ga-ah
(I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously)
A-shi-ra la-do-nai ki ga-oh ga-ah
(I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously)
Mi-cha-mo-cha ba-elim adonai
(Who is like You, oh Lord, among the celestial)
Mi-ka-mo-cha ne-dar- ba-ko-desh
(Who is like You, majestic in holiness)
Na-chi-tah v'-chas-d'-cha am zu ga-al-ta
(In Your love, You lead the people You redeemed)
Na-chi-tah v'-chas-d'-cha am zu ga-al-ta
(In Your love, You lead the people You redeemed)
A-shi-ra, a-shi-ra, a-shi-ra...
(I will sing, I will sing, I will sing)

Hebrews
There can be miracles
When you believe
Though hope is frail
It's hard to kill
Who knows what miracles

You can achieve
When you believe
Somehow you will
Now you will
You will when you believe

Miriam and Tzipporah
You will when you believe

Vision Rescue

2009-03-31T06:43:00.002+08:00

Here's something Hillsong as a church is involved with.
Vision Rescue is a ministry in Mumbai, India, founded by Ps Biju Thampy.
For more info visit http://www.visionrescue.org.in/

(Joash)
This video was made by a friend of mine from church. He's a professional videoman (duno what you call it these days), but he went to Mumbai and stayed with Biju for 2 weeks, shot and edited this video. He's 23. Be inspired.

Hillsong - All

2009-03-29T21:00:00.000+08:00

You're the one who give shelter
And you're the light that leads me home
You're the love that gave forever...
Lord you're all that I know

And all that I am...unto you I surrender....
Lord there is none like you
And I know that I stand....in the arms of forever...
Lord there is none like you

There is none like you

With the world upon your shoulders....
Lord you gave your life away
If the world I know was over....
I know I'd have life in the price you paid

And I will stand....and I will worship you forever...
For all you are
And I will stand.... and all to you I will surrender...
I'll worship you forever

Singing in Hillsong London

2009-03-26T00:31:00.002+08:00

This sunday, i'll be going on stage for the evening (3rd) service, (the most packed and most happening service) at Dominion Theatre. And next sunday, i'll be on for the 1st and 2nd service.

Its gonna be a dream come true for me.

Pray for me guys!

(I'll try to ask Simone to take some photos/videos and i'll upload them here)

Here's a photo of church.

Something Beautiful

2009-03-24T23:20:00.005+08:00

I was pondering on these particular verses and this song came to mind. our God is a God who saves. And like the hymn, because our redeemer lives, we can rely on Him alone and trust that we shall not lack.
I fix my eyes on You Lord, rescue me and deliver me from my misery, heal me and make me whole again. I rely on You and my hope is in You. Make me all You want me to be and bring me anything that brings You glory.

Romans 9:21
Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for noble purposes and some for common use?
Romans 9:20-22 (in Context) Romans 9
Romans 8:28[ More Than Conquerors ] And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.Romans 8:27-29 (in Context) Romans 8 (Whole Chapter)
²Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. ⁴Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. ⁵If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. ⁶But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. ⁷That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; ⁸he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.(James1:2-8)

Something Beautiful- Jars Of Clay

If you put your arms around me, could it change the way I feel.
I guess I let myself believe that the outside might just bleed it’s way in.
Maybe stir the sleeping past lying under glass.
Waiting for the kiss to break this awful spell.
Pull me out of this lonely hell.

Close my eyes and hold my heart.
Cover me and make me something.
Change this something normal into something beautiful.

What I get from my reflection isn't what I thought I’d see.
Give me reason to believe you’d never leave me incomplete.
Will you untie this loss of mine, it so easily defines me.
Do you see it on my face.
That all I can think about is how long I’ve been waiting to feel you move me.

Close my eyes and hold my heart.
Cover me and make me something.
Change this something normal into something beautiful

Because He Lives

2009-03-24T00:16:00.002+08:00

To all who are feeling restless, aimless, defeated, depressed...

Here's a little encouragement for you. Hope that you are blessed.

Move on brother!

2009-03-22T22:52:00.002+08:00

1 Peter 4:7-11

⁷ The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers. ⁸ Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins. ⁹ Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay.

¹⁰ God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. ¹¹ Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.

Untitled

2009-03-21T01:57:00.005+08:00

Suddenly last night this song came to mind. The song that a group of us Subang youth wrote for the very first Experimental Grounds. Its actually the first song we composed as a cell. It was composed by Jacklyn, Daniel, myself and not to forget Mun Teng(who was still with us at that time). Pls forgive me if i left any names out. This song is truly still meaningful to me everytime i hear it. Too bad it doesn't have a title. Any suggestions for a title?? Anyway here's the lyrics of the song that still touches me everytime i listen to it. We should probably do a recording of this song. :)

Untitled

When life tries to make me bend,
And I don't understand,
You are there to hold my hand,
Your love helps me stand,
Though my friends condemn me,
Though its hard to be accepted,
I will never turn my back,
On the One whose love never ends

Chorus:

You're the air that I breathe,
You're the song that I sing, (You're the One that I need)
Unto You will I bring,
This humble offering of praise.

And love your neighbours as yourself

2009-03-20T21:05:00.000+08:00

Love the Lord with all your heart,soul,might.

2009-03-20T00:16:00.001+08:00

You

2009-03-16T18:14:00.008+08:00

Years have gone by,
Many a season have passed,
Yet your beauty so divine,
Still remains unsurpassed.

Like a summer's day,
I shall never compare you to,
For you are more lovely and temperate,
And summer is but a fleeting passage,
A momentary visage,
Which ends as soon as it begins.

Your beauty encompasses your entire being,
Much more than what is seen,
Much more than what is perceived,
More than all I could ever be.

At a great loss is anyone,
Who doesn't see you,
The way you should be seen,
Who doesn't love you,
The way you should be loved.

For who can ever know you,
And yet not love you?
And who can ever gaze at you,
And yet not be mesmerized?

Written by Benjamin Soo

Earth Hour 2009

2009-03-16T17:44:00.006+08:00

It only takes 1 hour. 1,508 cities and towns in 80 countries have already committed to VOTE EARTH for Earth Hour 2009, as part of the worlds first global election between Earth and global warming.

What can you do in support of this campaign?
Turning your lights off for an hour from 8.30pm to 9.30pm on 28th March 2009!!

For more information please refer to Earth Hour Official Website or Earth Hour Malaysia

Beauty

2009-03-14T01:12:00.003+08:00

In the dawn of the morning
When the breeze is blowing
Birds chirp and start singing
And school bells ringing

The dew then evaporates
As the night abates
Insects crawl from their slumber
Come out dozens by the number

Sunlight pierces through the night
Nothing can stop its might
Thus everything in sight
Begins to get bright

Afternoon comes blazing fast
And its intense heat will last
Until evening quickens her pace
And take her place

Clouds turn orange in the sky
People look at them and say "Oh my"
It's so beautiful some would even cry
In a while more, will evening pass by

Night arrives with all its splendour
The starry sky gives off its light and valour
Challenging each other to shine brighter
These are the creation of Our Creator

Written by,
Justin Kang

TOUCH

2009-03-13T18:34:00.003+08:00

Our youth are all grown up.... *sob* *sob* ~emo~

lol. 1 of the videos I did for last year's TOUCH event - BROTHER'S DAY. A day to appreciate our brothers in our youth group. What we did? We cooked them a good meal, made them dance and had fun, handmade gifts....

The Road Not Taken

2009-03-12T22:14:00.000+08:00

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that, the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
two roads diverged in a wood, and I --
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Robert Frost.

Firm Foundation + We Rejoice

2009-03-12T13:17:00.002+08:00

Firm Foundation

Jesus you're my firm foundation
I know I can stand secure
Jesus you're my firm foundation
I put my hope in your Holy Word
I put my hope in your Holy Word

VERSE 1:
I have a living hope (echo)
I have a future (echo)
God has a plan for me (echo)
Of this I'm sure, of this I'm sure

VERSE 2:
Your Word is faithful (echo)
Mighty in power (echo)
God has delivered me (echo)
Of this I'm sure, Of this I'm sure

We Rejoice

We are free from the law, and from the power of sin
We are no longer bound, by the fear of men
So spirit come draw us in
And fill our hearts with joy again

As we rejoice in Your presence
Giving thanks for Your goodness
Singing praise for Your loving kindness
Fill our hearts with joy

As we rejoice in Your presence
Giving thanks for Your goodness
Singing praise we rejoice in You

Was listening to random songs playing on my ipod, and this song popped up. Very very old song but our God is never too old for us!

“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.” Jeremiah 29:11

2009-03-12T12:56:00.001+08:00

For all those who sat for SPM
These are my results

BM 5C
BI 1A
Moral 4B
History 5C
Maths 1A
Add Maths 5C
Physics 4B
Chemistry 5C
Biology 4B
EST 2A
Bible Knowledge 7D

Just to say I'm not sad at all. They are just results only .

AGM-D DAY!

2009-03-10T16:28:00.006+08:00

Yes folks, AGM is just a few weeks away and is on the 5th of April. Have you signed up to come and vote??

If not, please do so A.S.A.P! Excercise your constitutional rights to vote so you CAN play your part in the future of our church. I urge you therefore brethen, do not be misled nor swayed by anyone trying to influence you not to vote, lest you lose your chance to make a difference in FCC.

To not vote is directly implying that you do not care about what happens in FCC and her welfare. To not vote is a sign that your heart is leaving(or left) the church.To not vote is a sign of apathy for what we are going through as a church, youth, and cell groups.

This AGM will be unlike any other in recent FCC history as a lot is riding on the outcome of this coming meeting which will either MAKE or BREAK FCC! (seriously!) For one, it is the voting in of a new senior pastor.

Lets pray carefully!

Next important thing in the coming AGM is the voting in of a new Board. Again, please pray and vote wisely! God knows who should or shouldn't be in the Board so be very sensitive to His voice.

So folks, exercise your rights to vote and don't regret if you didn't have a chance to(or forgot).Lets pray for this day that God will have His way and His Will will take precedence in everything.

-Ben-

Just a glimpse..

2009-03-08T20:11:00.005+08:00

Following is a short documentary video about a community service done by Tabernacle of Praise, Penang, when Ps. Geoffrey was the church's senior pastor.

This might be one of our ministries when this man of God, who fears Him, and hears Him, and is willing to walk with us,shepherds of the flock of FCC. =) (seriously)

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-US&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;playlist=videoByUuids:uuids:b088678e-42df-4519-b6ad-f4625b1450e5&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;showPlaylist=true&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;from=msnvideo" target="_new" title="Monthly Charity Big Party At Tabernacle Of Praise (Church)"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Video: Monthly Charity Big Party At Tabernacle Of Praise (Church)&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Everyone

2009-03-08T15:35:00.003+08:00

JESUS LOVES YOU
Isn't that enough? =/

Joash's Super Best Sermon

2009-03-04T22:42:00.004+08:00

It was 28th Feb 2009, where I, Jezreel Kang, finally full heartedly listened a sermon, keeping my mouth shut, opened my pencil box, took out a piece of paper, in a youth service! *great success*

Anyways, this week, Joash shared about forgiving, refering to 1John 4:7 - 21.

God's Love and Ours

⁷ Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. ⁸ Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. ⁹ This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. ¹⁰ This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. ¹¹ Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ¹² No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

¹³ This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. ¹⁴ And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. ¹⁵ If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. ¹⁶ And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. ¹⁷ This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. ¹⁸ There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

¹⁹ We love because he first loved us. ²⁰ If we say we love God yet hate a brother or sister, we are liars. For if we do not love a fellow believer, whom we have seen, we cannot love God, whom we have not seen. ²¹ And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love one another.

In this text, John describes how big and how great the love of God is for us. This passage is an evidence of the presence of God in us, and the great love that completes our life.

Joash separated his message into four parts, to enable our lowly minds understand the passage better.

1. Love even your enemies! (1John 4 :9)
Imagine this. One little man commits a sin, and God is angry, disappointed. But because of love, he apeaces himself and forgives the little man. So, why can't we try to forgive others who wronged us, if God himself forgiven us for our wrong doings and sins?

2. Initiate reconciliations! (1John 4:10)
In life, we have to learn to give and take, like forever! in 4:10, John states that even if mankind are the ones who pissed God off by eating the stupid fruit, and sinned, but why did God would wanna send his beloved Son to die for OUR sins? Not logical right? Well, theres no logic in love, He love us. Even he would'nt get any benefit out of it, he INITIATED RECONCILIATION first.

3. Love as much as you are loved! (1John 4:11-18)
Well, this point is well composed. God loves you, you know? So, love others as much as you are loved, by God. Understanding God's love, is by loving others.

4. If you love your brothers and sisters, DON'T GIVE UP ONE THEM.
What else is to be said?

-Jez-

My Personal Experience With One Canopy

2009-03-03T00:32:00.008+08:00

I'm gonna share about my own experience with OC. It may not be much but the fact that its not much is good because God took me out of the pit before i fell deeper. I hope the little that I share here will be of help and to paint a clearer picture for you all, especially those who still think the OC is a bunch of harmless people who pose no threat to our church. Lately, i feel concerned about those of our youths who frequent OC and what they are being fed there; though some may not share my concerns.

Though officially the OC is no longer welcome in FCC and you all don't see them anymore, the fact is they are still infiltrating(or trying to) our church via a group of members who still keep in contact with OC and attend their leadership training and bible studies on Saturdays and Sundays.

Back to my story. Remember the "special" service or "prophetic act" the OC did in FCC last Sept? Yes, it was one heck of a service and I don't need to remind you all how bad it was.Plus,we were literally starving coz the service ended super late, around 2pm! Anyway after the service, Ps Erwin approached me and Brian Ong and told us to stay back because Joyce(from OC) wanted to talk to us.

So there we were, Ps Erwin, Joyce, Brian and myself.Before she began, she made us vow solemnly not to disclose any part of the following things she was about to share with me and Brian.But i'm gonna do so anyway now.

Joyce started by telling us that during the service, she saw Jesus and He pointed me and Brian(and a 3rd person whom she could not get a hold of) out and said that He loves us very, very much, especially much. Then she told Him that it wasn't enough and that she wanted Him to love us even more still. She warned us again not to tell anyone else coz ppl might feel "offended".

She then asked me to go back and read and focus on the book of 1John coz she claimed God will reveal some revelation to me that same week(which never happened). After that, she asked me if I would allow OC to love me as one of their own.Being naive then, i simply agreed. She was saying the benefits of being one of them.For instance, they will pray for me 24/7 and if i was in a potentially dangerous situation, my image will flash on their minds and they will start praying for me. They asked me to be like a "little brother" to them. In retrospect, I'm glad I never followed up on them and vice versa; so there was no real "bond" with them, praise Jesus!

Now after sharing with me those stuff, she excused me. Brian was asked to stay some more for his part, which she claimed is exclusively P&C. Anyways, after we both rediscovered the Truth of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, our freedom in Him, and the finality of the cross, and after we knew how deviant OC is, he shared with me his part and has allowed me to disclose it.

Joyce was sharing with Brian that the fate of FCC lay in his hands and that he was the only one who could restore FCC. She asked him to really seek the Lord for guidance.

Now, we've since come to realise that all these were nothing but fallacy and a snare just to lure innocent victims into their trap of submission and loyalty. From what i can percive, the OC uses this tactic all the time but to different people to "recruit" followers. Their trick is to make those they target feel "special" and "exclusive" in God's eyes compared to other Christians. Also, they use the promise of secrecy to bind their followers and keep their mouths shut. However, I've just come to know that Joyce herself told what she shared with Brian to another youth(s) in FCC. How ironic? One end she asks for secrecy and the other hand she discloses the info. Contradictory.

So here's my conclusion. If me and Brian could be exposed to such junk and lies even in a short time with them(less than a day), just think how much more those who are following their bible studies could be exposed to.

Friends, the sure and unmistakable mark of a cult is EXCLUSIVITY and SECRECY. Exclusivity as in the cult believes and teaches that only they are the "right" and "genuine" ones and the rest are corrupted and defiled. Secrecy as in they bind members to keep their mouths shut and even worse, track their members' every movement.

I fear the OC is trying to build friendships and repos with some of our youths. And i fear they might brainwash them and demand loyalty from them. I fear these youths might give in to them in the name of friendship; and because they want to "maintain friendships", they just compromise.You see, its easy to reject a cult from the onset but its HARD to severe ties with them once friendships are already built.

What I wanted to say this morning but didn't have the chance

2009-03-01T21:09:00.003+08:00

Therefore since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, on whom our faith depends on from start to finish. He was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy He knew would be His afterward. Now He is seated in the place of highest honour besides God's throne in heaven.(Hebrews12v1-2)

The bible exhorts us in Hebrews to run the race God has ordained for us with perseverance. And that we can only run with perseverance when we have "stripped off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress" Now, how could we possibly do that? By keeping our eyes on Christ! Therefore, when we look to Jesus, sin wouldn't even be an issue anymore. In fact, the more we look and stand in awe of the awesomeness of our God, we don't even have to worry about having faith because faith just springs out and then and only then, in Christ, we will have the faith to persevere in this race.

Ps. This race that we run doesn't mean that the person who finishes or ends the race 1st wins. If that was the case, the suicide rates will definitely increase drastically. .....Think about it. Haha.

Context, context!

2009-02-28T02:36:00.009+08:00

Romans 8:1 ;
"For there is therefore now NO condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus."

Yes, we've read that verse a zillion times but do we still see it as a fresh each time we read it? Or has it become a cliche.

Why can't so many Christians see the obvious fact- that there is therefore now no condemnation for us who are in Jesus.PERIOD.

As people get more "advanced" in the faith, they tend to re-interpret this verse by saying that sin can separate us from His love. Yes,someone had actually said that statement during one of the Wednesday's prayer meet. How blind could that person be? Go figure. Isn't it so crystal clear from the verses below?

Rom 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Rom 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

So friends, lets continue holding on to our faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour and lets read and digest His word without adding our own twist to it.

Lets not try to be smart and add to or subtract from His Word. I shall end with these verses dedicated especially to those people who twist the Word of God to their own liking and add some "juice" in here and there.

Pro 9:6 Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.

2Co 4:5 For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.

It's amazing

2009-02-25T21:08:00.002+08:00

It is amazing,
In these times of trials,
One could find peace.
Not in one's spouse,
Not in one's friends,
Not in one's family.
But in God.

Everything will surely fail one,
Will turn their backs on one,
Will disappoint one,
Will betray one,
But in these times of trials,
One could find peace in God.

One will find rest,
One will find peace,
One will feast,
Even when the enemies roar,
Even when the enemies charge,
Because one knows that God will be one's lead.

Better is a day in His presence,
Than thousands elsewhere.
He will hold one in His arms,
He will dress one in white robes,
He will be one's everlasting peace.
Surely, one will rest in the House Of God forever.

Even now,
Trails still prevail ,
Thunders shake,
Oceans rise,
Earth collapses,
Sky falls,
But one shall not be afraid,
Because one knows,
That He is with one,
For the rest of one's days

It's amazing,
It's amazing.

-Jezreel-
-2009-

Our State

2009-02-25T16:18:00.002+08:00

Many things about tomorrow i don't seem to understand
But i know who holds tomorrow
And i know who holds my hand

Wow!what a brilliant hymn. there are many things or events in life that we don't understand why we have to go through. And those things ain't no fun. It's Painful! But one thing we know 4 sure. The One who holds us is strong and He never lets us go. And He causes all things to work together for our good, however small it may be. Do not give up. Choose to be strong and courageous today. Ok, thank you

Subang

2009-02-25T00:08:00.005+08:00

Hmm.....I've been wondering.....Why is it that the Subang youth are being targeted by the church people? Why are we more despised (or given more attention) than the other youth's? Are we that great? Are we that special? Is it because Uncle Gary is in our cell? Is it because my father talks too much for their liking during meetings? I suspect that the ones that are mainly being targeted are Benjamin, Daniel , and I.What have we done to receive such rude and crude comments? Is it because we know too much?Is it because we talk too much? Is it because we move around during service too much? What have we done to receive this kind of prejudice? The looks on peoples faces when we are up on the stage. Or even when we go to the toilet we get mean and weird stares. Anyone would stare if we went to the toilet together at one time but that only happened once. However , we get the weird looks eventhough we just reply to nature's call.Why is this injustice happening? I do pray that I am just overreacting and that everything is a product of an overactive mind. Anyone reading this please post a message or comment to identify this issue.

Anyway,
All Glory and Honour and Praise be unto Jesus Christ the Lamb that was slain for you and for me to give us a life full of LIFE!!!

Love,
Justin Kang

Where is the love?

2009-02-21T01:23:00.005+08:00

I've watched this video many times and each time I watch it, there's a smile on my face. I love the band, I love the crowd, I love the moving out, I love the moving in. There's so much memories, joy and laughter.

People were feeling sad because we had to leave a very comfortable place but yet all of them were feeling even more excited of the new things that are going to come. Everyone had a heavy but hopeful heart. Everyone pray and hope that things will change for the better. Uncle Richard: When the old is gone, the new will come in.

Question: Has this 'change' make a 'change'?

It grieves me this time when I watch this video again. It seems that too many things have shadowed us from having the pure joy we had in Christ. Has people forgotten the excitement? Has people let human intelligence rationalize God's wisdom? Has people given up hope? Has people loose heart?

Will people die to themselves and just allow God to show His sovereignty? Will people just trust and put all their hope in God? Will people be willing to be a part of the new heights that God is bringing us to? Will people unite and experience the good things that God promises?

Joash: We'll make it great, we must move forward, and we need to do this together. Unite in prayer, seek God together, serve together, hand in hand we move out from our comfort zones, explore new terrain, break new grounds, conquer together, fly together.

Ken: Put the past behind, move on man!

ps - Thank you Joash for this lovely video. It worth a million dollar!

25 Random Things

2009-02-10T00:58:00.002+08:00

Is this suppose to be random? Here it goes:

1. I'm enjoying working life. No homework, no quizzes and no exams!

2. I spent most of my free time on the internet, basically doing nothing.

3. I wish to be a musician and song writer. But I realized singing is actually the easiest.

4. I plan to buy a super nice present for myself each year. Let's start with hand phone, piano, car, trip to London, zzZZZzzzZZZ.....

5. I never regretted going to form 6 although I ended up in private college. In fact it was the time where I get to loose weight for free!

6. The best part of form 6 is self declared study leave, go to the library, lunch at Nanking, back to libray and sleep, wake up and it's time for dinner!

7. People say I'm perfectionist, but I think idealist suits me more.

8. My colleague describes me as meticulous: extremely careful, with great attention to details. Well, i guess it's a compliment.

9. I have many friends, but very few close one.

10. Like my sister and brother, I have friends since I was very young and we are still good friends now.

11. I just met up with my long lost primary mates yesterday. It has been 12 years since we meet. We had a great time together.

12. I don't enjoy reading. Especially anything in Mandarin. Sorry lao shi...

13. Lunch at the same stall every weekday is torturing! Anyone wanna fetch me out for lunch? I work in Kelana Jaya.

14. Why wouldn't the traffic in Subang be better? Has it been good at all?

15. Minus the jam, Subang is a super nice place to stay. With lots of parks and fields, convenient stalls and banks, unlimited makan place... what can you ask more?

16. There are 6 Mcds within the radius of 5km from my house. I'm Lovin' It!

17. There are 3 shopping complexes, 3 hypermarkets and 3 karaokes within the radius of 5 km from my house.

18. I have a sponsored child. He is a 7 year old boy from Vietnam. To join me, visit www.worldvision.org.

19. One of my biggest dream is to travel to 3rd world country and feed the poor. Any sponsor?

20. I enjoy playing badminton. I've been playing it since standard 6. My dad is my trainer. It's the only sport I can play.

21. I'm a very loyal person. I was in badminton club, girl guide and SLAD for straight 5 years in secondary school.

22. By the way, SLAD stands for Skim Lencana Anti Dadah. Geng leh?

23. Remember to pay your tithes and offering. God will bless you abundantly. I'm speaking from experience.

24. The message of grace is the greatest love story on earth! and heaven too!

25. I'm proud to be a Christian! Yeah...

God Is Indeed Good

2009-02-09T16:08:00.003+08:00

Last week has indeed been a week of sorts for me.
Was involved in a hit and run accident, felt depressed the whole week coz of church situation and last sun's preaching.
Like many FCC members, i fell sick too.
Couldn't sleep the whole night last friday coz my stomach hurt and i had fever and headache and vomiting.Food poisoning.
Thanks be to God on Sat morning i was much better and by Sun morning i was completely healed.
It occured to me that many of us may have went through a spiritual attack last week because the enemy is clearly not happy with us being ambassadors of the truth.But then again, the enemy can't touch us.Those were just lying symptomes.
I was talking with Rachel Yee on fri and she really encouraged me and lifted my spirit.She says all these are a lie of the devil to throw us off course. All the more we need to be abiding in The Vine, Christ!
In Jesus Christ, we are more than overcomers!

Thank You God

2009-02-06T19:04:00.002+08:00

I have a testimony .
God really is GOOD!!!
Ok , so I'll start from start
It was this Monday
I started getting sick during volleyball
So I started feeling very sucky
Then by night I realised that I was coming down with a fever
It was torture trying to sleep that night
It was as if I was going to die
I was even thinking how people would respond to my death as I was feeling like my body can't take it anymore
(Thanks for praying for me Daniel)
So , somehow I managed to sleep
On Tuesday , was feeling tired and fatigued , all the muscle was superbly tired and aching
Then I slept that day easier
On Wednesday , Hallelujah!!!!!!
I woke up without any side effects and it was like I never felt sick before!!!
All this is thanks to Jesus for His work on The Cross!!!
My evil day was over in 2 days
But I know GOOD DAYS IS FINALLY HERE!!! AND IT WILL BE LONG AND LASTING!!!
Wednesday was already a GOOD DAY

All Praise and Glory belongs to Christ Jesus Our Lord!!!

25 Random Things

2009-02-04T21:45:00.005+08:00

These are the 25 Random things about me and stuffs that are running in my head now...

1. Living is simple, but why is it so hard?

2. Will homeworks stop coming for once?!!

3. Why my girlfriend dumped me!?

4. I don't mind watching Hannah Montana.

5. I like to take photographs, but ain't got a proper camera!

6. I always wanted to be an architect, then design and build my own house.

7. I love my scar on my right hand.

8.I'm a scout, and plans to be a King's Scout someday. (if not, a rover)

9. I want to travel the world with my beloved. First to Venice, then Dubai, then Japan.

10.The last time I had a barbeque, I was still happy...

11.I love my friends, love to talk to new people, as long as they aren't arrogant.

12.What people would think about me?

13.I LOVE SWITCHFOOT!

14.Same as my sister, I have friends even before I was born, and they are still my friends now. *rock!*

15.I want to buy a superbly good guitar once I get my job.

16.What is the feeling on the first night after marriage?

17.I want to travel under the Rovers to help the needy world wide. And collect Scout scarfs, Wogels and uniform from all nations.

18.God heal my broken heart quickly! So I can learn to love unconditionally!

19.If I have a super ability, I want to be Peter.

20.Will this ever end??

21.I want people to read my blogs!!

22.I've been dreaming of a true love's kiss.

23.Words are so cheap, and I wanna learn to use them wisely so to not hurt other people again like what has been done to me.

24.Why wouldn't she treat me as a friend??

25.I wanna learn to see the past as an experience rather than a bad dream, so i wouldn't repeat the same mistake again.

26. There no 26... =.=

I'll be waiting for all SubangLah members to post their 25 Random Things

Things God Will Not Say

2009-02-04T00:14:00.002+08:00

Found this video.

Read from The Message:
Galatians 2

19 -21What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn't work. So I quit being a "law man" so that I could be God's man. Christ's life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not "mine," but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.

Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God's grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily.

Crossed Ref from New Living Translation:

21 I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die.

25 Random Things

2009-02-03T13:27:00.004+08:00

Since it's so quiet here, let's play a game I got from Facebook.

Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you it's because I want to know more about you.

(For Facebook users, to do this, go to "notes' under tab on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type 25 random things, tag 25 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.)

Alot of people think I'm quiet when they first met me, but when they get to know me, they say I'm loud and noisy.

I like cute stuffs. I squeak when I see cute stuffs:"EEEEEeeeeeee......so cute!!!!!!"

My communication skills sucks. I don't know how to talk to people especially first meet.

I like to take photo. Not as the model, but as the one holding the camera.

Losing weight is what I have been saying I wanna do for the past 10 years, but when u look at me, u know I failed badly.

I hate it very much when people do not listen or pretend that they are listening. It gets on my nerves alot.

I like stories. I read them, watch them, listen to them and if they are really good, I'll read them or watch them over and over again.

Travelling is what I wanna do when I got money. I want to see the world especially the beautiful beaches.

I'm a Scoleciphiobia (fear of worm). Other than that, I'm afraid of heights, dark/narrow/crowded places and more to discover.

I like to sit at a corner looking at people. Always wish to be invisible so that people cannot see me looking at them.

I have friends since I was still baby, and they are still my friends.

Uni life was the best time I ever had. Study during odd hours, go yum cha with friends, climb up some hills in the middle of the nite, sleep overs...

I cannot rear pet, because I tend to forget them.

I'm a clean freak. I can be messy but cannot be dirty.

I always think I have split identities. I talk to myself sometimes.

The best birthday I had so far is a treat to Bukit Tinggi.

When I was young, I wanna become a teacher. Dad sent me to study IT, and now I'm in logistics.

I like pastel colours. Light blue is my fav but I adore pink too.

It's easy for me to dislike a person, but hard to hate someone. The one person I hate the most is the jerk who dump me because I was not up to standard.

I wanna have my own room. Next time when I get my own house I wan a room all by myself. It will be my workstation, my hiding place, and I'll deco it my own way.

I'm easily fascinated. Show me some tricks I'll go "Wooohhhh....."

I dun like to ffk (fong fei kei) as much as ffk-ers.

I get bored easily. But I always know how to keep myself entertained.

My instincts are accurate most of the time.

If I'm granted a super power, I wanna read minds.

Tagging all members of SubangLah

God is Good

2009-01-28T23:39:00.002+08:00

Well , this week God is good .

He made the ang pow's
To bless the crowds
And gave money to adults to give us
And He took away our curse

More to come .....

Psalms 23

2009-01-24T23:52:00.002+08:00

Today, while I was chatting with Daniel, Benjamin, and Justin over lunch at Mc' D, we were talking about personal issues and "all that comes with it". Then we came to this verse, Psalms 23.

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

He makes me rest in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,

He restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.

Even if I walk through the valley of death,
I will not fear,
for you are with me;
your shepherd staff comforts me

You are my feast
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.

This will be a very good verse to apply in our daily or rutine struggles in life. It really applies to me now. When we struggle through struggles and trails in life, and we have lost all hope, there is still something that we could look forward for... GOD, and His "know no limit" love and grace he provided for us.

Even the first line of this verse holds a great deal of meaning...
The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

When the Lord became your guide and your leader, everything has been provided for you. In all sense.(including girlfriend)... and you wouldn't want any extra. His love is SO ABUNDANT that you will start giving it away, so much, that you couldn't contain.

The version up there is basic and easy enough to understand. So, always remember, when all things fails, GOD remains by your side.

Peace Out!

Wednesday , 21st January , 2009

2009-01-22T10:17:00.001+08:00

Well somehow that day was a weird one
Because we all didn't go to church for prayer meetStupid Jam
We would have been in church for prayer if it wasn't for the jam
But the Soo family came to my house anyway for prayer meet
It was like a cell meeting
Except that it was very short and sweet
However we had a good time talking and being pissed at the same thing's
Well Daniel and I had a good time talking about the stuff that we have to go through
Anyway we just have to live on and pray for Wisdom and hope that God will carry us through.

Peace Out

Hillsong Church London, 5pm Service

2009-01-22T03:32:00.004+08:00

Peter Wilson song leading, singing Hail to the King. (Great song, from our latest album, Hail to the King)

Senior Pastor, Gary Clarke making announcements.

Me and Eliana. Eliana is a friend i made from Brazil. Turns out it was her last Sunday that day, and she gave pairs of the Brazilian flip-flops, Havaianas, to ppl that touched her heart here in London.
The writing on the Havaianas "Querido Jason, obrigada pela sua amizade. Fique com Deus e todo meu carinho"...translation: "Dear Jason, thanks for your friendship. Be with God and all my affection".

Woah, what happened?

2009-01-21T00:34:00.002+08:00

Woah, no activity for a few days now..what happened?...you guys slowing down?

Anyway, here's a teaser...

Coming up,
Photos of my life here in London. church, friends, places.

so, look out for that!

J

Changes Made

2009-01-19T01:09:00.002+08:00

1. I have decided to change the template as the black background is making me @_@

2. Widen the blog size so that the words at the side panel won't stick at the main, and more viewable area.

3. Edited the 'container' for the main pic because the photo used to spill out of the frame.

Don't like it, talk to me

Suggestions:
1. The hit counter seems useless because we checked too many times a day....by just changes the template I've hit at least 3 counts.

2. Use the 'justify' function to keep the posts neat.

3. If your post gonna be looooong....use paragraph, and space for each para.

4. Tambah sendiri

Sleep time~

A logo?

2009-01-18T22:59:00.002+08:00

What do you guys think of this as our blog's logo?

Comments comments...

J

Youth Service 17th Jan 2009

2009-01-18T15:06:00.006+08:00

Since this is the first week of this blog, everyone is kinda excited about it. So we are snapping pictures and clips everywhere we could to fit inside SubangLah. These are clips about this week's youth service and our dinner!

Joash was sharing last week.( duh..)

What you looking at huh?

At McD's Mont Kiara

Sabrianna

Anna playing at the fountain

and me soaking wet..

I think the next time we have our dinner here, it is advisable to bring extra clothes..

Photos! Coming soon..

2009-01-18T01:51:00.003+08:00

Photos! like stated on top... is coming soon. The editors just have to water-mark and edit the photos.. just not now... now everyone is sleeping. So for those who live in Malaysia, GET A LIFE and GO SLEEP NOW because tomorrow is approaching fast! (Including me) Come back tomorrow night!

Right. Signing out

Welcome to reality

2009-01-17T23:10:00.003+08:00

Here's to my first post here!

Yesterday, i went for a casual interview to work at Harrods. Briefly, here's how it went.

It was for a job at a sushi restaurant in a Harrods owned building (hence, recruitment was under Harrods)

Went for the interview prepared, (eg. shaved head, shaved face, wore nicely ironed black shirt, tie, smile).

Said hi to the restaurant manager, and she gave me this one look, for like half a second, and said, "ok, i'm having my break now, if you would take a seat, i'll be with you in 5 mins"

Came to me and asked me to tell her about myself, and so i did, for like 30 seconds.

Then she looked real serious and said, alright Jason, i'm gonna be honest with you, because you're Simone's friend..(Simone's the friend that works there and recommended them to me)

Basically, she said that she didnt wana waste my time, because the Harrods interview is a long process, and i should be alright for the whole thing except the last part which is the medical exam.

I was thinking, er ok, i should be fine for that hey, its not like i have parkinsons or something right?

And she went, i'll be honest with you and tell you now Harrod's won't accept you because you havent got a nice complexion. They are very strict, you cant have stuff like plmples, spots, scars bla bla.

OUCH.

She was really nice about it though, saying that its really not her place to say, and she felt it was super stupid and unfair how Harrods judge ppl on that basis bla bla bla, and i was like, dont worry, its not your fault..fair enough..

She gave me her email, asked me to send her my CV for jobs at other branches of this restaurant, said thanks, shook hands, left the place.

i didnt think too much about it, and i didnt think i'd be affected by it, but i was.

I've never really been rejected like that before, and more so, on such a basis. Never flunked an interview before, and this one only lasted like 5-10mins.

Well, i'm feeling much much better now, really not affected by it anymore, but hey, it was a good experience that goes to show that we live in a messed up world of falseness.

But what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and i'm definitely stronger now.

Ironically, you can say that i got rejected coz of 'face-problem'. Heh.

Through The Cross

2009-01-17T13:08:00.002+08:00

Through the Cross @ Yahoo! Video

Now, finally a perfect place to show this video.
Through The Cross, written by Benjamin and Daniel Soo, presented by Subang Youth Cell, on FCC Easter Sunday, 2008.

Untitled Title

2009-01-15T17:49:00.003+08:00

Hello to all.I think this is a great plan to have a blog for us Subang peeps.We should even have our Logo in this thing.That i leave to Jason to design one.Well good idea,good people,good God,good friends.......what else do you need that isn't in Subang?Oh yeah,may all our problem's and shitload of shits disappear as we all continue to come together to be together and to be in Christ together.How should I end this???Well.......

THE END/FIN

Hi There!

2009-01-14T01:08:00.002+08:00

As I enter the 20th year of my existance here on planet Earth, these are the things that crossed my mind :

Time really flew, i still remember my childhood quite vividly. Believe it or not, I still remember bits and pieces of my 1st birthday party. I was crying and screaming(like most infants would) when my parents lighted up the candle on my birthday cake.

We Subang FCC youth have come a long way from the days of tagging along and just following our parents to church. Many of us have since assumed various positions and roles in FCC, including forming our very own Subang Youth Cell Group, more fondly called Empty Cross Bearers. Boy, how far have we come, but yet there's still a long, exciting road ahead!

Never in my entire Christian life, have I been more sure and certain about my salvation and my identity in Christ than now! The many events(some tragic and hurting) that unfolded last year in our church and in our lives served to bring me to the realization of my identity in Christ and the finality of the Cross. What the enemy meant for evil, God turned it around for good. Yes, I firmly believe FCC is headed for great and phenomenal things this year onwards. Starting with a new senior pastor, perhaps.Aha! God's been placing and emphasising this fact in my heart over and over again that He is moving in FCC, who can stop Him? Those who attempt will see their vain efforts go up in a huge plume of smoke! No human futility or foolishness or even blunder can interfere with God's plan, purpose and destiny for FCC! The huge potential of FCC, specifically the youth, has been confirmed many times over by many people, the latest and most impactful one being Pastor Geoffrey Yee. So yeah, I believe this church is headed for greater things ahead!

I've never had a girlfriend before, ever. No, i'm not gay, its just that every attempt I made (not many attempts actually, because I don't go around falling in love with every girl I meet..haha) so far failed miserably. In retrospect, I think this is actually a blessing in disguise.Why? Because now I'm learning to trust God that He already has my future life partner in mind. Its just a matter of time before this unfolds. Then hopefully I can say to her, "You are my first." Anyways, this past few weeks have been a season of heartbreaks for many of us guys.Mere coincidence? Well, in all of this, we learnt to abide in Jesus and rest in Him, the ultimate source of love. Because in Jesus Christ, we have everything we need for life and godliness!

My Stupid Neighbour

2009-01-14T00:49:00.000+08:00

Can't believe my first post dedicated to my stupid neighbour.

I have a stupid neighbour, whoever stays with me will agree with that statement. Why? Because they are the most inconsiderate neighbour I've ever met!!

They moved in few months back, since then, there was no peace to us.

First, they almost burnt down the neighbourhood!! Ok, might sound a little too exaggerate. Anyway, this was what happened. They have a tree, quite a huge one, and the woman decided to sweep the dead leaves into the longkang. Ok fine. Then one night when I was still awake, I smelled burning stuffs. The whole house was very smoky, so I decided to go out to check it out. In my horror, outside was full of smoke like something was on fire badly. I thought something caught fire so I woke my family up. We checked for the source and found out the smoke came from the longkang. The leaves were catching fire very fast. Dad pulled the water host and put out the fire. We thought maybe our neighbour was smoking and threw the cigarrate butt into the longkang. The whole street were fogged by the smoke caused by the burning.

Then, this is the stupid part. That woman suddenly appeared and we told her the leaves caught fire. She said something like she was the one lighted up the fire!!! Everyone should know that open burning is illegal. My mom told her that it's illegal, she actually asked,"Really ar?" Then she tried to divert our attention to some thieves trying to get into the house, and she was angry at them that was why she decided to burn the leaves! Oh my gosh!!! She threw the leaves into the longkang, then set fire on it, with the tree so huge it actually covers part of her roof. Which means, if I wasn't awake, we have most probably died in an unknown fire.

Second, same neighbour, decided that they wanted to rear some fishes to do business. Mom said it's call Tong Sat whatever the english name is. Not 1 or 2 tanks, few tanks, and man the fishes stink!!!! I wonder if they ever change the water or do proper cleaning process because the smell was so bad it will probably kill anyone by breathing the air. Then, to keep the place away from mosquito (I guess), they will burn some incense or whatever it is, mixing with the smell of fish, it's disaster. That's not all, sometimes the brother of the woman so she claimed will drop by, and they will chit chat at the porch, smoking cigarrate. So, the smell of stinking fishes + incense + cigarrate smoke = imagine yourself. Every morning when I go out from my house, instead of breathing the fresh morning air, I have to hold my breath and get into my car before the stink kills me. Dad tried to talk to them, the stink went off for awhile, and come back not long after that.

I wonder if there's any organization or neighbourhood committee can do anything about this kinda neighbour. I doubt...

Woah

2009-01-13T22:46:00.001+08:00

Fuisheh..i like the photo..whoever did it..good job!

Let's see where this blog goes hey? Pretty excited..

Jason