God has been awesome and He's awesome! God absolutely blew our mind and showed us that He is God. That no matter what, He's always in control. He worked everything out in His own perfect timing and poured His grace and favour abundantly. Praise Him! We love you, Lord and we will hold on to you. You are the Rock on which we stand and help us to grab hold of every word and promise that comes from You. You're our Lord and King forever.
It's 9:13am in my office currently. The outside weather is still very cloudy with a slight drizzle. However, it's already feeling like it's gonna (and will) be an awesome day. You just somehow have that gut-wrenching feeling in your spirit if there's something wonderful brewing and you're filled with great anticipation. Having said that, one doesn't need something awesome to happen to him/herself only then he/she will feel good. Most of the times, when something really good is gonna happen to someone you love, you can't help but rejoice too!
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My dearest girlfriend arrived yesterday evening at 7.40pm and there's always the 'some-kind-of-wonderful' feeling happening, whenever she's around anyway! hehe. I love you, S k y e T a n and you'll rock out this very day, 'cause today Friday the 24th is the day that the Lord has made and we will be glad and rejoice in it. I'll be praying and I know that God will exceed every imaginable expectation that we already have and multiply it by ten and a hundred times!
Came across this comic strip in the Sunday paper yesterday. It's amazing how God can even speak to you through comics :)
Are you the crowd that speaks of negativity and doubt, or are you Seymour? The one who puts his faith in action, even when others label him as stupid. However, we know who is the victorious one in the end. The Next Wave today talks about how to see things from God's perspective when we face trials in our lives.
I can do everything through him who gives me strength. - Philippians 4:13
I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustardseed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." - Matthew 17:20
Here I am Humbled by Your majesty Covered by your grace so free
Here I am Knowing I'm a sinful man Covered by the blood of the Lamb
Now I've found the greatest love of all is mine Since You laid down Your life The greatest sacrifice
Majesty, majesty Your grace has found me just as I am Empty handed but alive in Your hands Majesty, majesty Forever I am changed by Your love In the presence of Your majesty
Here I am Humbled by the love that You give Forgiven so that I can forgive
Here I am Knowing that I'm Your desire Sanctified by glory and fire
Taste and see that the Lord is good. - Psalms 34:8
In a world that leaves a bad taste in your mouth, God invites. Things that stink up the spirit. Words that may sound like honey, but kills like poison. People who have a veil of godliness and freely con the world around them, even within the Christian community. They come in sheepskin, but darkness lurks underneath them. They seek to devour the innocent and the lame, people who succumb to their fancies. They lurk around wanting to steal, kill and destroy every beautiful thing God created and said it was good. Bitterness clouds their thinking, they go through the day-by-day toil, and their only goal is to find ways of how they may be lifted up higher among the rest. Where is God in the whole scheme of things? Probably somewhere left out and neglected. They become more and more numb and senseless to the things of God. They may have even forgotten how His voice sounds like. Because even when He calls out, voices of fame, glory, richness shouts louder and they don't know how to tune in anymore. They lurk in churches (if they ever go). They may speak the language of teachers, prophets and preachers, but they're never one. Integrity is the last thing on their agenda. Backbiting and the ruthless tactics of climbing the corporate ladder continues. Yet they don't feel a thing. The Word says don't grieve the Person of the Holy Spirit. Do they ever take heed in the words of wisdom? No. All they care about is not grieving the bosses, colleagues, the one who pay their monthly salary, yet where is God in all these? He's sitting at a dark, cobweb and rat-infested corner of their depraved being. How could they! How dare they! The King of Kings and the Lord of Lords!
The King of Hosts invites. Come, taste and see that the Lord is good.
No, we're not talking about brand or corporate positioning. Every marketer will definitely come across the word and been in the process of marketing a product or service if you're a businessman, or if you're a consumer, you're the end-user of that process of positioning. I mean why do we use certain product over others. Why do we subscibe to certain services over others? Is it really because Brand A has better qualities than Brand B? Possibly. Or is it just because you simply see Brand A more often and dominates word of mouth everywhere you go and everyone you see? More likely.
However as I was driving to work one morning, I usually put a worship CD and worship, I felt God tap me and asked the question, why does the corporate and secular world understand positioning so much, and put so much priority into it but Christians don't seem to understand the power of position?
Friends, don't let the devil rob you of your status in Christ. You're a prince and princess. You're seated in the heavenly places with God. He has called you His own. What honour and priviledged to be sitting together and dining together with the CEO of the universe! He's sent out an invitation for you and me to be invited into His house! I don't know about you, but if that doesn't do something to your heart.. get it checked! I was predestined-determined by God-to be adopted as God's son. - Ephesians 1:5
Yes, you. Sons and daughters of the Most High God. Don't let no one and nothing trick you that you're anything less. 'Cause in every right you're given the position and authority to be God's children! However, the cutting edge is this: A good product without good positioning is just another product sitting on the shelf gathering dust at the end of the day. It's not impacting anyone 'cause it's just sitting there doing nothing! Having said that, the biggest trap is to fall into the device of the devil that makes you think you're doing a lot of other things, but they're just things that don't matter. Stuff, as I like to refer them as. They're just stuff! They're not the real deal!
Friends, as shall I say, fellow sons and daughters of God, you're the secret weapon that God is waiting to unleash. You're the ace in His hands, and God knows how to play the cards right, He is on to the biggest victory the world has yet to behold. But He doesn't force you. You gotta position yourself right. Like the example that Ps Russell used to say often. If you're in the footy, you gotta position yourself right so that when God throws you the ball, you're there to catch it!
Don't miss the opportunity.
Position yourself! As you're one who has been positioned by God as His children, now position yourself to be His secret weapon. He's passing the ball to you, but you gotta be in position to catch it!
Here I am, thinking about how God absolutely blew my mind. Almost exactly 1 month and 3 weeks after coming back from Melbourne, God has landed me on this job. Absolutely a miracle. Why? Because I didn't even apply for this job! Was meeting the president of the group, had a few chats, and now, I'm working in an absolutely perfect position whereby, I could not only do what I had always loved, but I could also use the gifts He's given me in the first place, to serve in a Christian ministry!
There's so much to give God the glory: right from the bosses, who are passionate Christians, to the colleagues who create such an amazing atmosphere to work in. The location of the office, just 15 minutes drive from my house (even at peak hour). The opportunity God gave in serving in a Christian ministry. To even the littlest things! I wake up every morning feeling so overwhelmed by thankfulness that He has blessed me with this job. And that's something new, simply because the first 2 jobs that I had wasn't really the best of experiences. But now, as I'm in this job full-time, I couldn't thank God enough!
Today, the Properties Department rang us asking us to join them for lunch. According to one of my colleagues, they always do that. A group of them take turns to cook and will even bring them to the office. So, there we were eating together like a family! :) I love that! There were at least 25 people there, and everyone was just mingling around. So, nobody would ever need to go out for lunch, unless there's a function. The atmosphere was like a very down-to-earth office party, food was great, conversations wasn't just limited to work and it was like a big family dinner! :) Very cool.
Thank You, Lord!
But I know this is not the end. This is just the start of greater and bigger things to come. You're paving the way and prepare us, Lord. There's still so much more! I and we wouldn't wanna be found anywhere else but here, right in where You've called us. We will follow You, Dad.
And I will continue to declare that this is the day that the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it. Even when times and tough, I wanna declare this over us for You've given us the power and authority. We will therefore be dangerous Christians. God, You're our Banner forever and ever!
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.... So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised. For in just a very little while, "He who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him." But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved. - Hebrews 10:23-39 [NIV]
Word of God, our Mentor.
Precious God, our loving Father, You have not only wiped our past clean of every sin, but You've given us a hope and a future that overflows in abundance. You have not only took away the guilt and shame of our past, but You've assured us a future that's filled with Your glory.
You have not only given us gifts, but You've given us You.
For that, we cannot contain our praises and we cannot justify the holding back of our worship, because You and You alone deserves our all. And when we're in You, there is no lack. You have given us a Hope and a Future. Direct our paths that we will not lose focus of the Destiny set before us. But more than the Destiny, help us to fix our eyes on You. For there is Hope that awaits and there is just too much in the future. How could we ever let You go?
No!
But in everything, we acknowledge Your sovereignty in our lives. For when we surrender of ourselves to the Most High God, we are declaring eternal victory over the accuser of men's soul.
My introduction to the Godfather series could be traced back to while I was a 20 year old college student. My lecturer was an American who is really into politics, culture and arts. Having said that, it's no surprise that he wass also an environmental activist (He used to break into a nuclear power plant with a team to shut it down!). In those years, we were made to watch the Godfather series and had to write an essay on it. It didn't struck me as very arty other than just a movie about a bunch of Italian mafia going on a killing rampage. I wasn't really arty then too, anyway.
Fast forward 2 years, I was working as an intern in a production firm in PJ. In the office of one of the producers, he had a framed up poster of the Godfather movie - just like the one here. I was really intrigued by it. I ventured to find out more about it and decided that it's time to get one, when I find out where to get one!
Fast forward to 2003, the first year RMIT university student, I was happily minding my own business when I saw an amateurish made-up sign that says RMIT is having a poster sale in its cafetaria. I took a stroll into the cafe, much to the delight of my urge to see if I can get a good deal. It wasn't long when I stumbled upon this poster. I quickly pulled it out, made a beeline to the cashier and paid for it. Suddenly, I was a very happy first year uni student!
I figured that I need something on my bland off-white wall in the student residency I was living in. And I've always made sure that if it's something that I wanna put on the wall, I better make sure it's something that's worth putting up, 'cause I'll be staring at it everyday. It took me a year to put it up, kinda figuring that wall at the student residency didn't deserve to be adorned with the Godfather poster. haha :P
I started having it up when I shifted to Bouverie Close and it's been up for 2 years plus now. It's right now on the wall in my room, right behind the door. OK, now let me tell you why I was intrigued by this violence-exalting, trigger-happy mafia movie poster... tsk tsk... very badd isn't it? What am I thinking?! haha. I know what you're thinking right now. For the record, I'm not a big fan of the movie, although it's widely recognised as one of the 'greats' in film history.
To start with, it's a movie poster that is well-photographed and nicely art directed. It has always served as a reminder to me that I am the young man in the poster, bowing down before my Father in heaven. The father and son is looking eye to eye, reminding me that I must always look at Jesus, never ever losing sight of Him. The light that comes from the right side of the poster, shining brightly on the face of the son, tells me that if I were to walk in God's favour, His light which represents His grace and glory will always be upon me. When we look at the position of the father and son, the son is most probably assuming a position of kneeling down. It's a picture of humility and submission to the will of the Father. And with His hands upon your shoulder, it communicates to me that He's saying "You can do all things through Christ that strengthens you" a gesture that saying a million words, like "Son, I trust and believe in you." Now, that's the reason why I have that poster up for such a long time.
We have a greater treasure in Heaven. We have a more loving and gracious Father. We have a Dad in heaven to will never stop believing in us. We have a Father in heaven who only wants the best of the best for His children, us. He will never let go, even if sometimes we drift away from Him. He's the Father of the prodigal son that stands at the courtyard looking out to see if His beloved is coming home. To wait and search in great anticipation of wanting to clothe His children with royal garments and to put the signet ring on their finger, uttering the words of love "Welcome back, my beloved son, welcome back, my beloved daughter."
Our dear Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name, forever and ever.
The story is told of a rich young man who asked Jesus what must he do to get eternal life. Jesus answered in 2 parts. One, "Obey the commandments" and two, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give them to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." (Matthew 19:21)
That was the last thing the young man expected to hear. And so, crestfallen, he walked away. He was holding on tight to a lot of things, and he couldn't bear to let go. (Matthew 19:22, The Message). God is looking for people who are willing to pay the price. Jesus, the Lamb of God, was the ultimate price that our Father paid. He paid it in advance for the Destiny of you and I. Would you pay the price?
So no matter what the cost I'll go for You No matter what it takes I'm Yours. Because You paid the price at Calvary I give You my whole life I'm Yours - I'm Yours, Planetshakers.
Planetshakers 06 taught me something that is firmly deposited in my spirit now: Spiritual battles are won by some graphic acts of violence (in the spirit). It's by killing the dogs in your life, it's won by cutting the thumbs and toes of the enemy, it's won by killing everything that stands in the way of you and God. In short, there is a certain element of violence in the spirit of the fighter that is required. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline (2 Timothy 1:7). Enrolling in the army of God doesn't mean you wake up, make a cup of English Breakfast tea, sit around under the banyan tree and fret about the issues bothering the world today. There are some pre-requisites that need to be met. Some qualities and characters that don't necessarily come from you but from God. There's a certain tenacity and spiritual blood-thirst that needs to be deposited in the spirit. An eagerness to see the downfall of the enemy and the glorious victory of the One you're fighting for. There's a line that has resonated from Planetshakers 05: I will fight for the heart of my King.
God, is looking for warriors and champions, for princes and kings who are willing to endure the perils of battle. Who are not afraid to see violence upclose. Who does not shrink back at the sight of blood. Who builds the Kingdom with a hammer in a hand, and a knife in the other. Who craves to see the banner of God flown from every territory. God has drafted the masterplan of the lifetime, but He's waiting... for one who is willing to take up the sword, engraved with the Name of the One Himself, and fight. Like David, the man after God's own heart, who did not stop and celebrate when Goliath collapsed to the ground, but he cut his head off.
Now, to all who are called sons and daughters of the Most High God, the sword is presented to you. Will it stay clean and shiny in the sleeve, or will it be stained by the blood of enemies slain and defeated by the power and authority of the King?
When you fight for the heart of your King, He fights for you. When He fights, there's nothing in heaven or hell who could stop Him. There has been so much happening in the past month and a half that doesn't cease to amaze me how God is placing every jigsaw puzzle in its right place, at its right time. It's often not enough for God to speak, when we pray for Him to speak. It's only made complete when we step in obedience to the things He spoke to us about. Thank God for placing the right people at the right time! Last Saturday, I had the opportunity to meet with the president of a large properties group in Malaysia at his house. He was also my mom's cell group leader and he attends the same church as our family. We had a great chat about some of the thing he wanna see happening in his company. Almost out of the blue, he brought up that he's also the chairman of a ministry started by Dr. Brian Wilkernson called WorldTeach. And he was asking me if I would be interested in serving in something like that. I responded almost instantly that I certainly would! I shared with him how I felt God has called me back to Malaysia for now and how I would love to be a part of something that is impacting churches in Malaysia.
We met again at his office in Damansara Perdana yesterday with a young man, who is the CEO of the technology branch in the group of companies. We chatted for about 15 minutes and the president of the company offered me a job within the company right away. And he said that this means I would be able to be directly involved with the marketing of WorldTeach as well! Praise God! I was really happy with the outcome of the meeting as this person who runs the company, he is a man of God who is currently discipling a few men in the business world and actively serving in the church and WorldTeach. So, starting from Monday next week, I'll be working full-time.
Praise God! :)
Today, I had the chance to have a look around at the 1-Utama MPH. It's really encouraging to see heaps of Christian resources decked out, together with Bibles, commentaries and theology materials presented on its shelf; while Delirious was playing in the background! Well done MPH! haha. I bought myself a compilation of 2 books by Bishop T.D. Jakes. After that, I was just browsing through and I have to say, I've only read a few lines but they were powerful! I just wanna share a paragraph of what I read (and re-read again and again since then):
"Brother, there is a demon on assignment that has come against you. He has been tailor-made for your destruction. He has assessed your childhood and your past, and he knows where you limp. He knows where to hit you to bring you down. He's after you. If you, and those who really know you, don't pray for you and strengthen you in your weak place, you won't be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. He already knows where you have been wounded, and he is coming after you.
Right now you are wrestling. You wrestle to know yourself. You wrestle to know your place. You wrestle to know the power of God. The Spirit of God is waiting for you. God has a warrant for your arrest. The Spirit of God wants you. Only the wound of your Friend can deliver from sin. Tonight, you wrestle until the break of day...."
- Loose That Man & Let Him Go!, Bishop T.D Jakes.
Now help meput on the full armor of God so that I can take my stand against the devil's schemes (Ephesians 6:11).
Does a fifty dollar note look bigger in the church or in the shopping mall? (quote from Ps Ben Fewster from internship)
Are you claiming the 'life more abundant' that Jesus promised or are you pre-occupied with your own lifestyle?
Mal Fletcher discussed life versus lifestyle in the Next Wave devotional and was reminding us that Jesus did not come to give a lifestyle but life, and life to the fullest. Although it could be argued that one's lifestyle is included and a part of life, it does not and should never be life itself.
God wants us to learn this lesson so much that he repeated in Matthew 6:25 that "Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?" How true! And so often we missed the point! David, who was called a man after God's own heart understood that even if he had all the gold and riches in the world but without God, it would have meant nothing. Therefore, he pleaded with God "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts" (Psalms 139:23).
I want to follow But what does it mean To live in world And keep everything clean Nothing I own here Is ever my own When I live in the mercy And blessing You've shown I lay down my rights, See the world through Your eyes And fight for the hungry Who pay for our lives I want to have You In all of my world So Jesus consume me Flow through me Cos now is the time for us to shine
Jesus, Jesus, Precious Jesus, King of Lights Jesus, Jesus, raise a church that's shining bright.
- Now Is The Time, Delirious? Jesus, when he was choosing His 12 disciples, did not present a 50-page thesis on why and how the men would be His disciples. He did not give them a 10 step plan on how it's gonna be. But He went to them by foot, looked them in the eye and called them out with two very powerful words that came with a Promise:
My introduction to the Godfather series could be traced back to while I was a 20 year old college student. My lecturer was an American who is really into politics, culture and arts. Having said that, it's no surprise that he wass also an environmental activist (He used to break into a nuclear power plant with a team to shut it down!). In those years, we were made to watch the Godfather series and had to write an essay on it. It didn't struck me as very arty other than just a movie about a bunch of Italian mafia going on a killing rampage. I wasn't really arty then too, anyway.
