God, I'm sorry that I'm always slipping/sinning with the intention of later asking for your forgiveness. I'm really not used to being such a weak Christian. I guess it's really true what they say, what we choose to fill our minds with will determine the decisions we make. I keep thinking I shouldn't be a leader at this point if I can't even glorify you in these things. But I know I should change instead of stepping down to excuse my mistakes.
I really seek your help to turn things around. I know things are not going well not just for me, but for many of the CG members too. Father, I really ask for your mercy. I pray that you give us all the joy of seeking you and the desire to have you present in our lives. It is not something that can come out of our own will power. Discipline, yes, joy, no. Teach us to delight in you and your word. And father, revive the fellowship that we have as a CG, that we can learn to admonish and encourage one another. Revive our fellowship with you. Help us to want you above else.
Germaine
Friday, June 28, 2013
Sunday, June 23, 2013
Prayer
Today, Sherrie and I were discussing the sermon we'd heard. Long story short, she had her doubts about pastor Edward sharing the story about a non-Christian believing in the power of our God and requesting for prayer. Eventually the prayer worked. She had issues, because she felt that it might not be representative of the Christian life. My challenge to her was that we are, perhaps, are too theoretical (aka theological) centred that we doubt that God can move very practically in our lives. I mean, not that He must answer all prayers, but if we have a God that's all-powerful, His presence in our lives should be manifested in some practical ways. Well, our discussion didn't go very far and even though I had my stand, I didn't believe that that would be characteristic of my walk with God.
A few hours later, we were at sherrie's house and she was searching for more than a thousand dollars that had been left in her care. I ignored it for a quite a while but seeing her search in vain for so long, I casually suggested prayer. She didn't seem very keen so we left it as that. As she got more desperate, I suggested prayer a few more times but she turned the offer down each time. Finally, I was her surprised at her lack of faith and really questioned her about it. It's strange because I'm usually the one lacking in faith. I don't like to pray because I don't believe they will be answered and I hate the disappointment that follows. It was strange but I had a huge conviction to get Sherrie to pray and I knew that we would find it if we did. Come to think of it, I was almost at the point of rebuking her. I told her that she was really doubting that God could help in practical situations. That she only believe God spoke through the Bible. That she didn't believe in the power of prayer. I told her to keep searching till she was at her wits end so that she could believe it was God's work when she finally turned to prayer. Eventually, she gave up and turned to prayer. We prayed.
We searched for about 2-3 minutes after and I was getting disappointed that we didn't find it as immediately as I was sure we would (mind you, I am never sure of these things usually). Just as I started to feel that way, I heard Sherrie on the phone. She had called the friend she was going to travel with and the friend told her that the money was with her. Apparently, Sherrie had put it in some compartment of another bag and had passed it to her. When I heard that, I was disappointed as I thought that the friend had known that all the while and that would sort of discount the effect our prayer. After Sherrie put down the phone, I found out firstly, this was not a place Sherrie would have recalled putting the money, and secondly, her friend, Gracia, had only found the money 5 minutes ago, around the time when we had decided to give up on our own efforts and pray.
We discussed the experience after and addressed how unbeliving we actually were as Christians. I told her that I felt very strongly that God had wanted to use me to teach her the power of turning to God in prayer and the reality of God's power in our lives. This was the first time I felt such a strong conviction to deliver a specific and direct message from God. I am usually the biggest skeptic about these things. Well, today served as a huge lesson for both of us. I guess for Sherrie, it had to be important as prayer is the biggest weapon in the mission field. Perhaps one day I'll read this post and be doubtful of the whole experience again. But for now, while it's all so fresh and real to me, I need to learn to be less doubtful about people's testimonies of God's work in their lives. I need to believe that while the prosperity gospel is to be rejected, God can and does answer prayers in our lives.
A few hours later, we were at sherrie's house and she was searching for more than a thousand dollars that had been left in her care. I ignored it for a quite a while but seeing her search in vain for so long, I casually suggested prayer. She didn't seem very keen so we left it as that. As she got more desperate, I suggested prayer a few more times but she turned the offer down each time. Finally, I was her surprised at her lack of faith and really questioned her about it. It's strange because I'm usually the one lacking in faith. I don't like to pray because I don't believe they will be answered and I hate the disappointment that follows. It was strange but I had a huge conviction to get Sherrie to pray and I knew that we would find it if we did. Come to think of it, I was almost at the point of rebuking her. I told her that she was really doubting that God could help in practical situations. That she only believe God spoke through the Bible. That she didn't believe in the power of prayer. I told her to keep searching till she was at her wits end so that she could believe it was God's work when she finally turned to prayer. Eventually, she gave up and turned to prayer. We prayed.
We searched for about 2-3 minutes after and I was getting disappointed that we didn't find it as immediately as I was sure we would (mind you, I am never sure of these things usually). Just as I started to feel that way, I heard Sherrie on the phone. She had called the friend she was going to travel with and the friend told her that the money was with her. Apparently, Sherrie had put it in some compartment of another bag and had passed it to her. When I heard that, I was disappointed as I thought that the friend had known that all the while and that would sort of discount the effect our prayer. After Sherrie put down the phone, I found out firstly, this was not a place Sherrie would have recalled putting the money, and secondly, her friend, Gracia, had only found the money 5 minutes ago, around the time when we had decided to give up on our own efforts and pray.
We discussed the experience after and addressed how unbeliving we actually were as Christians. I told her that I felt very strongly that God had wanted to use me to teach her the power of turning to God in prayer and the reality of God's power in our lives. This was the first time I felt such a strong conviction to deliver a specific and direct message from God. I am usually the biggest skeptic about these things. Well, today served as a huge lesson for both of us. I guess for Sherrie, it had to be important as prayer is the biggest weapon in the mission field. Perhaps one day I'll read this post and be doubtful of the whole experience again. But for now, while it's all so fresh and real to me, I need to learn to be less doubtful about people's testimonies of God's work in their lives. I need to believe that while the prosperity gospel is to be rejected, God can and does answer prayers in our lives.
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Friday, June 15, 2012
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Monday, January 2, 2012
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Friday, October 21, 2011
A king worth following
The more I study the book of Matthew, the more personal this sacrifice of Jesus appears to me. We've been having weeks of Precepts... one evening a week, it's not been easy. It involves one hour of homework 5 days a week. Yet studying Matthew's gospel, I really feel like I've been walking beside Jesus, watching how He interacts with people, how He serves, how He loves.
His call is getting more personal: Will you come follow me? Will you take up this cross? Will you lay your agendas down and take up mine?
It's been making me consider everything in "Kingdom perspective". Am I building my home on Earth or in Heaven? Do I really believe that the first will be last and the last will be first. All these precious truths have been set before me time and time again. I think it's time for us to take a look at ourselves and ask if we're really disciples of Christ. Do we want to follow this King? It will change our lives completely. It's also the best decision we could possibly make.
His call is getting more personal: Will you come follow me? Will you take up this cross? Will you lay your agendas down and take up mine?
It's been making me consider everything in "Kingdom perspective". Am I building my home on Earth or in Heaven? Do I really believe that the first will be last and the last will be first. All these precious truths have been set before me time and time again. I think it's time for us to take a look at ourselves and ask if we're really disciples of Christ. Do we want to follow this King? It will change our lives completely. It's also the best decision we could possibly make.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
This closes the debate...
None can be used in formal writing with either a singular or a plural verb depending on context. This topic has been amply discussed in the following usage note from American Heritage Dictionary.
Usage Note: It is widely asserted that none is equivalent to no one, and hence requires a singular verb and singular pronoun: None of the prisoners was given his soup. It is true that none is etymologically derived from the Old English word ân, "one," but the word has been used as both a singular and a plural noun from Old English onward. The plural use can be found in reputable sources such as the King James Bible, Dryden, and Burke; and H.W. Fowler described the traditional rule as "a mistake." Either a singular or a plural verb is acceptably used in a sentence such as None of the conspirators has (or have) been brought to trial. When none is modified by almost, however, it is difficult to avoid treating the word as a plural: Almost none of the officials were (not was) interviewed by the committee. None can only be plural in its use in sentences such as None but his most loyal supporters believe (not believes) his story.
Excerpted from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition © 1996 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Usage Note: It is widely asserted that none is equivalent to no one, and hence requires a singular verb and singular pronoun: None of the prisoners was given his soup. It is true that none is etymologically derived from the Old English word ân, "one," but the word has been used as both a singular and a plural noun from Old English onward. The plural use can be found in reputable sources such as the King James Bible, Dryden, and Burke; and H.W. Fowler described the traditional rule as "a mistake." Either a singular or a plural verb is acceptably used in a sentence such as None of the conspirators has (or have) been brought to trial. When none is modified by almost, however, it is difficult to avoid treating the word as a plural: Almost none of the officials were (not was) interviewed by the committee. None can only be plural in its use in sentences such as None but his most loyal supporters believe (not believes) his story.
Excerpted from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition © 1996 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Experiencing God
Walking with God involves a relationship with God, not a method. Throughout the scriptures, God takes the initiative to invite His people to participate in His work. God is more likely to ask us to follow Him one day at a time rather than spell out all the details before we begin to obey. Our primary concern should not be "what should I do with my life tomorrow?" but "what does God want me to do today?". If we follow Jesus one day at a time, we will be right in the centre of God's will for our lives. God then reveals His activity and invites us to participate.
George Muller - in entering a heart relationship with God and discerning His voice
1. Get my heart into a state that it has no will of its own In regard to a given matter. (Instead, ready to follow God's will)
2. Do not leave the result to feeling or simple impression.
3. Seek the will of God through, or in connection with, the word of God.
4. Take into account providential circumstances.
5. Ask God in prayer to reveal His will to me aright.
6. Through prayer, study of the Word and reflection, I come to a judgement according to the best of my ability and knowledge, and if my mind is this at peace, and continues so after two or three more petitions, I proceed accordingly.
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Alpha
I want to say thank you to those who have been putting in effort for this alpha event, ultimate questions, especially those who took the courage to invite their friends. I remember telling you guys that you'd be in charge of the games an that I'd only be focusing on the teaching part, and that's exactly what you guys did, you took care of everything else.
Honestly, I think there's still room for improvement in the way we welcome our guests. I hope that in time, we'll learn to be less shy and more proactive in talking to them. Still, I appreciate the hard work, the planning and execution of the event. Thanks, team, thanks Marcus and Wee Theng.
Let's continue to pray for the friends who came, the friends who wanted to come but couldn't, and the friends we're hoping to invite in the future. Let's also learn to have a passion for God's glory to be spread throughout the Earth.
Father, we hope our feeble attempt at evangelism was pleasing to you. Move the hearts of the friends who came. Show yourself to them and open their spiritual eyes to make them understand their need for your grace and forgiveness. Thank you for using us in all our weakness. Continue to guide us to live for your glory. Use us to lead the people around us to Christ.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Effervescence Yalpha (9th July)
Alright guys, here's the run down of what's going to happen on Saturday! :)
First off though, I'd like to apologize that its so late :/
The day will go on as listed,
Introduction » Games » Dinner » Talk
(Explanation of games will come last, Please read if you have time to familiarise yourself with the games)
1.Introduction (3.30pm to 4pm)
The introduction is basically made up of 3 separate icebreaker games which will be played in the order listed,
a. One Truth One Lie (Patrizha)
b. Blow Wind Blow
c. Musical Chairs (Nadia)
2.Games (4pm to 5.30pm)
Following the introduction is the games section,
a. Quack Quack game (Ian)
b. Dog and Bone (David)
c. Toxic waste
*Edit: Name of GameMasters have been added beside the name of the games!
3.Dinner (5.30pm to 6.30pm)
Dinner will basically be potluck,
The guys will prepare something, the girls will be something else (I am unsure about who does what though)
If you want to find out, please check with Pat(:
Edit: (Pat here.) Basically everyone is doing finger-food.
When we discussed last time, this is the list.
Guys: Burgers, Fries and Soup.
The people in charge of the above mentioned food is David and Zenas.I'm not sure whether you guys are meeting earlier to make it so you all discuss among yourselves.
Girls: Salad, Nuggets and Drinks.
I'm not sure if we're going to add more but we're preparing it at germaine's house before yalpha.
NOTE: Amount depends on how many people are attending altogether so we need to finalise it as soon as possible.
4.Talk (6.30pm to 7/7.30pm)
The talk will be handled by Germaine and Wee Theng,
I believe that a large part of the talk will be answering the questions which have been posted to them, so please get any questions your friends might have about Christianity and refer them to Nadia(:
5.Logistics
With regards to logistics, we have yet to get any of the items we require,
Therefore, we'll be meeting on Thursday/Friday after school to get the items, I'll send out a text later regarding the matter.
Here's the list of items we require,
-Disposable Cups
-Disposable Plates
-Disposable Utensils
-Trash Bags
-Drink Dispenser [Bringing: Pat]
-Snacks/Sweets
-Blindfold x1
-"Bone" / "Bones" (For dog and bone)
-Raffia String
-Plastic Cup/Mug
-Ping Pong Balls x10
-Buckets/Pails x4 [Bringing: Ryan (2), Kai li (1),] *one more required!
-Music (Laptop + Speakers, etc.)
Edit: Hat and writing materials no longer needed(:
6.Game Explanation
Okay, from here, I'll be explaining all the games so that you guys are familiar with them.
*Edit: Name of GameMasters have been added beside the name of the games!
1a. One Truth One Lie (Patrizha)
- We'll be sitting in a circle, One person starts by saying out 2 statements, One being true, another a lie
- The rest of the group will then guess which statement is true, which is not
- After deliberating and guessing, the person will reveal which statement is true, which isn't
- This continues until everyone has had a turn
1b. Blow Wind Blow
- Everyone will still be sitting in a circle, except now, one person will be standing in the center
- The person in the center will start with the statement : "Blow Wind Blow"
- The rest of the group replies with "Blow what?"
- The person in the center continues with "Blow ...... (A fact)" Eg. "Blow all the people who have siblings"
- Everyone to which the fact applies gets off their chairs and looks for another seat, with the person in the center also competing for a seat
- One person will be left in the center and the round starts again
1c. Musical Chairs (Nadia)
-Chairs in a circle less then the number of players
-Music will begin playing and all the players will be walking around the circle
-When the music stops, all players to compete for a seat
-Players left without a seat is eliminated
-This continues until one person is left
2a. Quack Quack Game (Is still a little unsure about this game) (Ian)
- Everyone will be in a circle, with one person in the middle
- The person in the middle will be blindfolded (and spun)
- He/She will approach someone, then will have to guess who that person is through requesting they make the sound of a certain animal (Etc. "What sound does a cow make")
- The game proceeds with someone else being blindfolded
2b. Dog and Bone (David)
- The group will be split into two teams, on either side with a 'bone' in the center
- The members of each group will number themselves off
- The Gamemaster will continue by shouting a number(s) (Through an equation/ Just the number)
- The members whose number corresponds with the number shouted will run for the bone, pick it up, and return to their side of the field
- If in possession of the bone, and is tapped, the person will have to drop the bone and is eliminated
- Once back to their side of the field with the 'bone' in hand, a point is scored
2c. Toxic Waste
- Two separate teams will have two buckets/pails each
- One pail will be filled with water and ping pong balls, the other empty
- Every member of the group will be attached to a plastic cup/mug with the use of raffia string
- The aim is the get from the end with the empty pail, to the one which is filled, collect a ping pong ball into the cup/mug without touching the cup, and deposit it back at the empty pail
- The game will be controlled with a time limit, After time is up, the team with more ping pong balls in the empty pail wins
7. Final points
I will be sending out a message soon regarding Yalpha.
Basically, the message will be about you availability on either Thursday/Friday to get the logistics,
Whether or not you are confirmed coming on Saturday and the number of friends you're bringing,
And lastly, Whether or not you are okay with being a Gamemaster for one/two of the games.
p.s. If there is any error in the post, please feel free to correct me. You can also contact me if you have any queries but I might take a while to reply =x
Remember to keep praying for the friends you want to bring along, as well as for the event itself!(:
Marcus
First off though, I'd like to apologize that its so late :/
The day will go on as listed,
Introduction » Games » Dinner » Talk
(Explanation of games will come last, Please read if you have time to familiarise yourself with the games)
1.Introduction (3.30pm to 4pm)
The introduction is basically made up of 3 separate icebreaker games which will be played in the order listed,
a. One Truth One Lie (Patrizha)
b. Blow Wind Blow
c. Musical Chairs (Nadia)
2.Games (4pm to 5.30pm)
Following the introduction is the games section,
a. Quack Quack game (Ian)
b. Dog and Bone (David)
c. Toxic waste
*Edit: Name of GameMasters have been added beside the name of the games!
3.Dinner (5.30pm to 6.30pm)
Dinner will basically be potluck,
The guys will prepare something, the girls will be something else (I am unsure about who does what though)
If you want to find out, please check with Pat(:
Edit: (Pat here.) Basically everyone is doing finger-food.
When we discussed last time, this is the list.
Guys: Burgers, Fries and Soup.
The people in charge of the above mentioned food is David and Zenas.I'm not sure whether you guys are meeting earlier to make it so you all discuss among yourselves.
Girls: Salad, Nuggets and Drinks.
I'm not sure if we're going to add more but we're preparing it at germaine's house before yalpha.
NOTE: Amount depends on how many people are attending altogether so we need to finalise it as soon as possible.
4.Talk (6.30pm to 7/7.30pm)
The talk will be handled by Germaine and Wee Theng,
I believe that a large part of the talk will be answering the questions which have been posted to them, so please get any questions your friends might have about Christianity and refer them to Nadia(:
5.Logistics
With regards to logistics, we have yet to get any of the items we require,
Therefore, we'll be meeting on Thursday/Friday after school to get the items, I'll send out a text later regarding the matter.
Here's the list of items we require,
-Disposable Cups
-Disposable Plates
-Disposable Utensils
-Trash Bags
-Drink Dispenser [Bringing: Pat]
-Snacks/Sweets
-Blindfold x1
-"Bone" / "Bones" (For dog and bone)
-Raffia String
-Plastic Cup/Mug
-Ping Pong Balls x10
-Buckets/Pails x4 [Bringing: Ryan (2), Kai li (1),] *one more required!
-Music (Laptop + Speakers, etc.)
Edit: Hat and writing materials no longer needed(:
6.Game Explanation
Okay, from here, I'll be explaining all the games so that you guys are familiar with them.
*Edit: Name of GameMasters have been added beside the name of the games!
1a. One Truth One Lie (Patrizha)
- We'll be sitting in a circle, One person starts by saying out 2 statements, One being true, another a lie
- The rest of the group will then guess which statement is true, which is not
- After deliberating and guessing, the person will reveal which statement is true, which isn't
- This continues until everyone has had a turn
1b. Blow Wind Blow
- Everyone will still be sitting in a circle, except now, one person will be standing in the center
- The person in the center will start with the statement : "Blow Wind Blow"
- The rest of the group replies with "Blow what?"
- The person in the center continues with "Blow ...... (A fact)" Eg. "Blow all the people who have siblings"
- Everyone to which the fact applies gets off their chairs and looks for another seat, with the person in the center also competing for a seat
- One person will be left in the center and the round starts again
1c. Musical Chairs (Nadia)
-Chairs in a circle less then the number of players
-Music will begin playing and all the players will be walking around the circle
-When the music stops, all players to compete for a seat
-Players left without a seat is eliminated
-This continues until one person is left
2a. Quack Quack Game (Is still a little unsure about this game) (Ian)
- Everyone will be in a circle, with one person in the middle
- The person in the middle will be blindfolded (and spun)
- He/She will approach someone, then will have to guess who that person is through requesting they make the sound of a certain animal (Etc. "What sound does a cow make")
- The game proceeds with someone else being blindfolded
2b. Dog and Bone (David)
- The group will be split into two teams, on either side with a 'bone' in the center
- The members of each group will number themselves off
- The Gamemaster will continue by shouting a number(s) (Through an equation/ Just the number)
- The members whose number corresponds with the number shouted will run for the bone, pick it up, and return to their side of the field
- If in possession of the bone, and is tapped, the person will have to drop the bone and is eliminated
- Once back to their side of the field with the 'bone' in hand, a point is scored
2c. Toxic Waste
- Two separate teams will have two buckets/pails each
- One pail will be filled with water and ping pong balls, the other empty
- Every member of the group will be attached to a plastic cup/mug with the use of raffia string
- The aim is the get from the end with the empty pail, to the one which is filled, collect a ping pong ball into the cup/mug without touching the cup, and deposit it back at the empty pail
- The game will be controlled with a time limit, After time is up, the team with more ping pong balls in the empty pail wins
7. Final points
I will be sending out a message soon regarding Yalpha.
Basically, the message will be about you availability on either Thursday/Friday to get the logistics,
Whether or not you are confirmed coming on Saturday and the number of friends you're bringing,
And lastly, Whether or not you are okay with being a Gamemaster for one/two of the games.
p.s. If there is any error in the post, please feel free to correct me. You can also contact me if you have any queries but I might take a while to reply =x
Remember to keep praying for the friends you want to bring along, as well as for the event itself!(:
Marcus
Friday, June 24, 2011
Update
Oh well, somewhere in between waiting for Marcus to post a few slightly (ahem) embarrassing videos and dawdling during the holidays (also due to my laziness) this blog has startlingly(or rather, unsurprisingly) fallen stagnant for more than a month.
Lastly but not leastly. Uh. Last but not least, Germaine has finished her tour of duty or whatever you call it in Xi An and is now in Hong Kong, doing some, touristing or visiting a friend, whichever you prefer. She will be back next week, thursday at about 730pm. Anyone free then?
Feeling guilty however I decided to post, not that I have much to post anyway.
In fact I have nothing.
Except a few pieces of information that anyone reading should know already.
But heck, lets have them anyway.
First up, youth alpha is coming, and I suppose we all should be inviting a few people here and there, and praying for those that we find it hard to invite, and for those that we don't find it hard to invite as well actually..
Um, cg this Saturday if I'm not horribly misinformed somewhere along the line should be in Germaine's house in admiralty. So we should be meeting at Admiralty station tomorrow at 2.15 if nothing goes horribly wrong. Yay.
Lastly but not leastly. Uh. Last but not least, Germaine has finished her tour of duty or whatever you call it in Xi An and is now in Hong Kong, doing some, touristing or visiting a friend, whichever you prefer. She will be back next week, thursday at about 730pm. Anyone free then?
So thats it for now, and I hope that none of you have keeled over at my horrible misguided attempts at keyboard humour, Cheers.
Ian
Monday, May 23, 2011
Matthew 16:24
Good day! :)
I was just thinking of this verse:
Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. - Matthew 16:24
Clarke's commentary on this verse:
Will come after me - i.e. to be my disciple. This discourse was intended to show Peter and the rest of the disciples the nature of his kingdom; and that the honor that cometh from the world was not to be expected by those who followed Christ.
The principles of the Christian life are:
1. To have a sincere desire to belong to Christ - If any man be willing to be my disciple, etc.
2. To renounce self-dependence, and selfish pursuits - Let him deny himself.
3. To embrace the condition which God has appointed, and bear the troubles and difficulties he may meet with in walking the Christian road - Let him take up His Cross.
4. To imitate Jesus, and do and suffer all in his spirit - Let him follow Me.
"The honour that comes from the world was not to be expected by those who followed Christ."
I think sometimes we (or at least myself) can get too caught up in trying to find approval from the world.
We want to have people like us, we want to be "accepted" by society, etc.
And sometimes we tend to rely too much on what other people think, but ultimately the "honour" that comes from the world is absolutely, 100%, worthless compared to the honour we'll receive on Judgment Day for living the Christian life, and living it well.
Yes, it's so easy to value the world's opinion because gratification is immediate.
If we behave a certain way (despite the fact that it may not be pleasing to God), we get acceptance from certain groups of people.
As much as acceptance by the world feels good, Jesus calls us to deny ourselves and to follow Him.
On Judgment Day we're going to have to account for all our actions, and all of us stumble at some point, but do we really want to tell God that we behaved a certain way because we valued the world's opinion over God's opinion?
Ultimately (as hard as it is to practise), Christianity isn't about ourselves, it's about God's will, plan and purpose for the world.
Hope you guys have a good week ahead!
Let's all make a conscious effort to choose what God desires over what our sinful nature may desire sometimes, shall we? :)
Love,
Nadia
(If you guys want to read more I got the commentary from here!)
I was just thinking of this verse:
Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. - Matthew 16:24
Clarke's commentary on this verse:
Will come after me - i.e. to be my disciple. This discourse was intended to show Peter and the rest of the disciples the nature of his kingdom; and that the honor that cometh from the world was not to be expected by those who followed Christ.
The principles of the Christian life are:
1. To have a sincere desire to belong to Christ - If any man be willing to be my disciple, etc.
2. To renounce self-dependence, and selfish pursuits - Let him deny himself.
3. To embrace the condition which God has appointed, and bear the troubles and difficulties he may meet with in walking the Christian road - Let him take up His Cross.
4. To imitate Jesus, and do and suffer all in his spirit - Let him follow Me.
"The honour that comes from the world was not to be expected by those who followed Christ."
I think sometimes we (or at least myself) can get too caught up in trying to find approval from the world.
We want to have people like us, we want to be "accepted" by society, etc.
And sometimes we tend to rely too much on what other people think, but ultimately the "honour" that comes from the world is absolutely, 100%, worthless compared to the honour we'll receive on Judgment Day for living the Christian life, and living it well.
Yes, it's so easy to value the world's opinion because gratification is immediate.
If we behave a certain way (despite the fact that it may not be pleasing to God), we get acceptance from certain groups of people.
As much as acceptance by the world feels good, Jesus calls us to deny ourselves and to follow Him.
On Judgment Day we're going to have to account for all our actions, and all of us stumble at some point, but do we really want to tell God that we behaved a certain way because we valued the world's opinion over God's opinion?
Ultimately (as hard as it is to practise), Christianity isn't about ourselves, it's about God's will, plan and purpose for the world.
Hope you guys have a good week ahead!
Let's all make a conscious effort to choose what God desires over what our sinful nature may desire sometimes, shall we? :)
Love,
Nadia
(If you guys want to read more I got the commentary from here!)
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Prayers
Dear all,
I am posting this on behalf of Wee Theng, its a list of friends and relatives that people in the cg today wrote down whose salvation they would like to pray for. I guess as a cg we should and can help each other to pray for these people, who we hold close to our hearts:
Su
Ying Jie
Wang Shen
Jun Yong
Jun Quan
Manfred
Ben
Giem Teck
Syaza
Li Ying
Khoon Hwee
Hanyu
Terence
Michelle
Zann
You Kuan
Zoey
Ming Jie
Shrey
Shadman
Jovi
Soham
Jun An
Hui Yi
Naowed
Daryl
Chandra
Momo
Kuan Wei
Jing Wen
Ci Hui
Mich
Leen
Saman
Sean
Also family members:
Wee Theng's mother - Lim Soo Khim
father - Tan Kee Chai
and brother - Tan Wee Seng
My very own father - Terence Teoh
And also mentioned but not in name, but no less important, Grandparents, Uncles, Aunties and cousins of various people in the cg.
I am so terribly sorry if I have made any errors in the list above. Feel free to edit and add any names that you wish if I, or you have missed any out.
May we never forget these people and never give up on them, no matter how tough it may get. I pray that we will keep praying for them, and that God will give us the strength, wisdom and courage to do what we need in order to win them for Christ.
Amen.
-Ian
Monday, May 9, 2011
Friday, April 29, 2011
The evangelistic message
1. God
- Who He is, His standards
- God created us and has an absolute claim on us
2. Sin
- Man's rebellion (Our rejection of Him as God)
- We sin continually and are sinners by nature
- Sin is an offence against God and has disrupted our relationship with Him
- Nothing we do ourselves can put us right with God again
- We will have to face judgement and punishment for sin
- The emphasis of the gospel is not about making one's life better, but rather, restoring our relationship with God
3. Christ
A. The person of Christ
- Jesus was the son of God, risen Lord and perfect saviour
B. The work of Christ
- Jesus became man
- Lived a blameless life
- Died on the cross as an atonement for the sins of those who receive Him
- Raised and ascended to heaven
We must be careful to present BOTH the person of Jesus Christ as well as his work. Man is called to believe both upon Him and His work.
4. A summons to faith and repentance
- Both faith and repentance are acts, not just feelings
- Faith: casting oneself completely on Christ and the promise of mercy he gives to believers
- Repentance: A change of mind and heart with a new life of denying self and serving God instead
- Conversion can be called a turning: away from sin and to Christ
- We must accept Christ as both saviour and Lord
- Who He is, His standards
- God created us and has an absolute claim on us
2. Sin
- Man's rebellion (Our rejection of Him as God)
- We sin continually and are sinners by nature
- Sin is an offence against God and has disrupted our relationship with Him
- Nothing we do ourselves can put us right with God again
- We will have to face judgement and punishment for sin
- The emphasis of the gospel is not about making one's life better, but rather, restoring our relationship with God
3. Christ
A. The person of Christ
- Jesus was the son of God, risen Lord and perfect saviour
B. The work of Christ
- Jesus became man
- Lived a blameless life
- Died on the cross as an atonement for the sins of those who receive Him
- Raised and ascended to heaven
We must be careful to present BOTH the person of Jesus Christ as well as his work. Man is called to believe both upon Him and His work.
4. A summons to faith and repentance
- Both faith and repentance are acts, not just feelings
- Faith: casting oneself completely on Christ and the promise of mercy he gives to believers
- Repentance: A change of mind and heart with a new life of denying self and serving God instead
- Conversion can be called a turning: away from sin and to Christ
- We must accept Christ as both saviour and Lord
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
5 Things We Can Mistake for Evangelism
1) Imposition
We mistakenly take evangelism to be manipulation. But that's what the world says. In truth, we're not trying to impose our beliefs on anybody. Biblically, we can't impose our beliefs on anybody. Force and coercion cannot finally bring about the change that God demands. You can't expand Christianity by the sword. Evangelism is not some sort of intellectual imposition.
To believe that something is true and to share that with others is not coercion. We don't impose when we evangelize. We freely offer it to all and do not, cannot, force it on anybody.
2) Personal Testimony
A personal testimony is a wonderful thing. The Bible is full of examples of it, and we should testify to the wonderful experience of receiving God's mercy.
But consider John 9 and the man born blind. He gives his testimony but doesn't even know who Jesus is. His words glorify God, but they don't present the gospel. This is not evangelism.
Unless you're explicit about Jesus Christ and the cross then it is not the gospel.
3) Social Action / Public Involvement
Mercy ministries display God's kindness, and they are good and appropriate for the Christian to do. But such actions are not evangelism. They may commend the gospel to others, but only if someone has told them the gospel. They need to have the gospel added to them. Helping others or doing our jobs well, whatever they are, in and of themselves are not evangelism.
4) Apologetics
Apologetics are valuable, but they have their own set of dangers. You can get bogged down in talking about purely intellectual or peripheral matters and never get to the gospel.
It's fine for us to talk with unbelieving friends about questions that they have, but our attempts to try and answer them without setting the gospel as the foundation does no good. Jesus must set the agenda for evangelism.
5) The Results of Evangelism
2 Corinthians 2:15
For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, 16 to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?
Note that the same ministry has two different effects. It's like the parable of the soil: same seed, different results.
We cannot finally judge the correctness of what we do by the immediate response that we get. The need for numbers puts an unnecessary stress on pastors and misunderstands the way that God saves.
We must practice our ministries realizing that some of us will be like Adoniram Judson or William Carey, who had no converts until after seven years of faithful gospel ministry. It's a fact that most people don't believe the gospel the first time they hear it.
Don't let the gospel that you preach be molded by what it is that gets an immediate response. Preach the gospel, trying to persuade--pleading for your hearers to believe--but knowing that you cannot convert a person. And then let God do with it what he will. He alone can call the dead to life. The gospel is powerful, and God is committed to using us to spread this good news.
Source: http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/5-things-that-arent-evangelism
We mistakenly take evangelism to be manipulation. But that's what the world says. In truth, we're not trying to impose our beliefs on anybody. Biblically, we can't impose our beliefs on anybody. Force and coercion cannot finally bring about the change that God demands. You can't expand Christianity by the sword. Evangelism is not some sort of intellectual imposition.
To believe that something is true and to share that with others is not coercion. We don't impose when we evangelize. We freely offer it to all and do not, cannot, force it on anybody.
2) Personal Testimony
A personal testimony is a wonderful thing. The Bible is full of examples of it, and we should testify to the wonderful experience of receiving God's mercy.
But consider John 9 and the man born blind. He gives his testimony but doesn't even know who Jesus is. His words glorify God, but they don't present the gospel. This is not evangelism.
Unless you're explicit about Jesus Christ and the cross then it is not the gospel.
3) Social Action / Public Involvement
Mercy ministries display God's kindness, and they are good and appropriate for the Christian to do. But such actions are not evangelism. They may commend the gospel to others, but only if someone has told them the gospel. They need to have the gospel added to them. Helping others or doing our jobs well, whatever they are, in and of themselves are not evangelism.
4) Apologetics
Apologetics are valuable, but they have their own set of dangers. You can get bogged down in talking about purely intellectual or peripheral matters and never get to the gospel.
It's fine for us to talk with unbelieving friends about questions that they have, but our attempts to try and answer them without setting the gospel as the foundation does no good. Jesus must set the agenda for evangelism.
5) The Results of Evangelism
2 Corinthians 2:15
For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, 16 to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?
Note that the same ministry has two different effects. It's like the parable of the soil: same seed, different results.
We cannot finally judge the correctness of what we do by the immediate response that we get. The need for numbers puts an unnecessary stress on pastors and misunderstands the way that God saves.
We must practice our ministries realizing that some of us will be like Adoniram Judson or William Carey, who had no converts until after seven years of faithful gospel ministry. It's a fact that most people don't believe the gospel the first time they hear it.
Don't let the gospel that you preach be molded by what it is that gets an immediate response. Preach the gospel, trying to persuade--pleading for your hearers to believe--but knowing that you cannot convert a person. And then let God do with it what he will. He alone can call the dead to life. The gospel is powerful, and God is committed to using us to spread this good news.
Source: http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/5-things-that-arent-evangelism
Monday, April 25, 2011
Lady Gaga - Judas
I had the great misfortune of hearing of the song Judas from Lloyd, who told me he was horrified at the lyrics. I went to search for it myself and yep... I see why he had that reaction to the song. So Gaga basically sings about how in love with Judas she is and wants to do things like washing his feet with her hair. See the reference?
I think we really need to be careful about the kind of things we listen to, and even associate ourselves with. I know it may seem a bit extreme to avoid a certain artist just because of 1 song which mocks our faith, but really... how can you allow a saviour who gave his life for you be "cheapened and degraded" in such a way? I cannot stomach it.
I hope we can all start to be more discerning about the kind of artistes we admire. What sort of associations do they bear? What kind of values do they promote? What sort of songs do they sing? Remember our call to be "blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation". Our friends are watching us closely. Are we being witnesses and testimonies of Christ?
I think it's time to take a stand for our God.
I think we really need to be careful about the kind of things we listen to, and even associate ourselves with. I know it may seem a bit extreme to avoid a certain artist just because of 1 song which mocks our faith, but really... how can you allow a saviour who gave his life for you be "cheapened and degraded" in such a way? I cannot stomach it.
I hope we can all start to be more discerning about the kind of artistes we admire. What sort of associations do they bear? What kind of values do they promote? What sort of songs do they sing? Remember our call to be "blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation". Our friends are watching us closely. Are we being witnesses and testimonies of Christ?
I think it's time to take a stand for our God.
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