He's engaged, & he's got a beard!

Wooo hooo!! Biggest congratulations must go to a friend of mine, who's just recently returned from a long holiday overseas. He got engaged to his overseas-based girlfriend (Miss A) during the holiday. Superb! Apparently, my friend originally intended to propose to Miss A on top of a mountain, but some unforeseen last minute events & circumstances made that plan "not possible". So, he proposed to her in another setting (in a cable car, if I heard correctly?). Apart from this change of setting, the engagement came as no surprise, as I already heard of his plan to propose from someone else.

Oh, and guess what? He's got a beard, too! Never seen him with a beard before - he grew it while overseas. Who would have guessed it? New look, eh! Hmm, if he can get a beard, does that mean I can get my ears pierced? LOL, joking lah!

Anyway, to this friend of mine - once again, congratulations, I'm very happy for u. I thank God for bringing Miss A into your life. Though I've only met her a couple of times (she's quite good at karaoke!), I know she's a really nice person, & I'm sure she & u will have a blessed future together. May God richly bless your future together, as He surely will.

BT's bapteesmo!!

Today, Saturday, 28 April 2007 is the day my youngest brother BT got baptised. A number of Clayers (& of course, family members) gathered at Sean's residence to witness the baptism. That the weather was a tad gloomy did not prevent a sizeable number of people from turning out (which included Rachel's parents - so nice of them to come).

BT, all clad in a white & blue choir robe, gave his testimony. It was brief & totally off-the-cuff, but it came from the heart. Pastor Steve then gave a short talk - if memory serves me correct, I think it was something along the lines of "out with the old self" & "in with a new transformed person, living a new, God-centered life". Though I cannot remember everything in great detail, his message was moving, so much so that I was left a little teary-eyed (but managed to keep it in & therefore didn't bawl my eyes out....hehe). Yeah, the talk was really good, & I might ask Pastor for the passages he referred to in his talk.

After Pastor's talk, the moment we've been waiting for arrived - the baptism; Pastor Steve dunked BT in the water after BT did his confession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. It was clear from observing both Pastor & BT that the water was cold, & BT appeared like a wet dog when he got out of the pool. And funnily, a handful of people then rocked up after BT was already out of the pool! I won't mention names, but it's the usual "late brigade" ;)

After the baptism, most of the Clayers headed over to Yahoo Restaurant in Sunnybank Hills for lunch. We occupied 2 huge tables & continued our fellowship, & the food was quite good (except for the rendang) & fairly inexpensive. It's my second time at this restaurant, & interestingly, on both occasions (February & today), the sky was gloomy. After lunch, I dropped off Mark & Ivan. I stayed at Ivan's place for a while, played Xbox soccer & got whipped severely in first game but was winning the second before the Xbox froze. Thereafter I departed.

Anyway, it was really fantastic to witness my brother's baptism. Praise God for leading him to take this step of faith, & I pray that God would continue to guide & bless him as he seeks to be live a life pleasing to Him.

NB: April 28 is also exactly 1 year since I secured my professional qualification (the CA qualification). I remembered celebrating that achievement with a little over a dozen Clayers that Friday nite (after Clay), at Coffee Club in Milton. April 28 is also the birthday of my dear aunty in Malaysia. Yay!!

Breaking "news": New terrorist cells discovered

I received this piece of "news" last month from a friend. It's titled "New terrorist cells discovered". It's hilarious - read it, & u will see why:

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NEW YORK - A public school teacher was arrested today at John F. Kennedy International Airport as he attempted to board a flight while in possession of a ruler, a protractor, a set square, a slide rule and a calculator.

At a morning press conference, Attorney General John Ashcroft said he believes the man is a member of the notorious Al-gebra movement. He did not identify the man, who has been charged by the FBI with carrying weapons of math instruction. "Al-gebra is a problem for us," Ashcroft said. "They desire solutions by means and extremes, and sometimes go off on tangents in a search of absolute value.
They use secret code names like 'x' and 'y' and refer to themselves as 'unknowns', but we have determined they belong to a common denominator of the axis of medieval with coordinates in every country. As the Greek philanderer Isosceles used to say, 'There are 3 sides to every triangle'." When asked to comment on the arrest, President Bush said, "If God had wanted us to have better weapons of math instruction, He would have given us more fingers and toes."

White House aides told reporters they could not recall a more intelligent or profound statement by the president.

Not a pointless exercise after all

Just today, Barcelona FC has just thumped Egyptian powerhouse Al-Ahly 4-0 in an exhibition friendly match in the Cairo International Stadium. Scorers: Javier Saviola, Bojan Krkic (penalty), Samuel Eto'o 2.

OK, so Barca won - no complaints from me about that, although it's only a friendly match. However, when I learnt that this friendly match was going to take place, I was not exactly thrilled. Nothing against who they played - Al-Ahly are a prominent, respectable club in their own right. Their contribution to Egyptian & African football warrants honourable mention - loads & loads of Egyptian Championships, African Championships, Arab Championships, even 1 Afro-Asian Cup. It's just that I didn't want Barcelona to play any mid-week friendlies against ANYONE at all.

My principal cause for concern at that mid-week friendly is that Barcelona ran the risk of having players injured & therefore missing the games that really do matter - the weekend Spanish league matches, & the upcoming Spanish Cup matches. Why pile up your calendar with mid-week friendly exhibitions that don't mean too much in the long run, when u want/need players to be in the best condition they can be to chase those Spanish league & cup honours?? Oh, & if u really want to play friendlies, why not schedule them just AFTER the regular Spanish season is over, just before the footballers go on their holidays??

Then, of course there's the travel. Barcelona's squad would have to fly to Cairo, play the match, then fly back to Spain before this weekend's league match. I'm not sure how many hours are Spain & Egypt from each other - but the fact is, the footballers could use that flying time to rest & do some light training at Barca's training ground, or anything else to help them prepare for the weekend league match.

In the event, the fear of players picking up injuries have apparently proven unfounded. That is because Barcelona started the Al-Ahly match with their key players on the bench. Thus the club's youngsters & fringe players get a chance to get some action on the pitch - players such as the Argentinian Saviola & Spanish teenager Krkic, who scored Barcelona's first 2 goals. Barcelona's key players, such as Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto'o & Lionel Messi, were then brought on in the second-half, & the Cameroonian hotshot Eto'o bagged a double to complete the scoring for Barcelona. So, the Barcelona squad emerged from the match unscathed, & nobody picked up any serious injuries.

That is good news. Just as, if not more, heartening is the fact that Barca's youngsters Krkic (who had a great first-half before being taken off) & the Mexican Giovanni dos Santos (who came on in the second-half) managed to showcase their talents to the Barcelona coach. It's really great to learn that these players are emerging (a testament to Barca's youth system), & they will surely feature more prominently in Barcelona's first team next season. I already knew of the talents of G dos Santos, that Mexican born to a Brazilian father & Mexican mother. But not the 16-year old Krkic (Serbian father, Spanish mother), not until today. Against Al-Ahly, Krkic (full name Bojan Krkic Perez) wore the legendary number 14, which was previously worn by Dutch great Johan Cruyff. Apparently, Krkic is a great prospect & is one for the future for Barcelona & the Spanish national team.

So, the Al-Ahly friendly was not a pointless exercise after all. Aside from giving youngsters & fringe players some playing time, the friendly was meant to promote Barcelona's profile to the Egyptian public. And as I write, I just discovered that there was another reason (a big reason) this match was scheduled - it was for Al-Ahly to celebrate their centenary, as Al-Ahly was founded in 1907. It's such an honour for Barcelona FC to be invited to help celebrate the centenary of a club with such rich tradition. So perhaps I was a bit hasty in being disdainful of the friendly match when I first heard it was going to take place. Well, I think the Egyptian football public now know more than ever what Barcelona FC is about, even if Al-Ahly supporters wish the friendly result had transpired differently than it did.

UEFA Champions League semi-final predictions

OK, the UEFA Champions League is now in semi-final stage. The line-up is:

Manchester United v AC Milan
Chelsea v Liverpool

Teams named first play the first leg at home. First leg will be tomorrow & Thursday morning. The second leg takes place in the middle of next week.

English sides have done very well this season, with 3 of them in the semis. Milan will hope to prevent an all-English final. So, how will the sides fare? Here's my forecast for both legs:

Manchester United v AC Milan:

This is seen as a battle between youth (Man Utd) & experience (Milan). Man Utd have been ravaged by injuries in recent weeks, particular in defense. But they will look for inspiration at their spectacular demolition of Roma in the quarter-finals. Playing the first leg at home, they will be expected to take the game to Milan. They will certainly hope to get revenge on the Milanese for their defeat to Milan 2 years ago, when both sides faced each other in the round of 16.

Milan will be more street-wise than the comparatively naive Roma, & will hope to get at least an away goal to take home for the second leg. If they can keep Cristiano Ronaldo quiet, I think they will have a great chance of progressing. And over the 2 legs, I think their experience will make the difference. Verdict: Milan to go through.

Chelsea v Liverpool:

This is a replay of the Champions League semi-finals 2 years ago, which Liverpool narrowly beat glamour London side Chelsea & went on to win the trophy in such spectacular fashion in the final. In fact, since that semi-final tie, relations between both clubs have soured somewhat, particularly as Chelsea have been aggrieved with the manner in which they bombed out (losing to a goal which they feel should not have stood).

This game is expected to be a very close affair, as both sides know each other so well. Liverpool will be confident with their chances of going through, since they've been in good form of late, both domestically & in Europe. Also, they beat Chelsea in the FA Cup semis in 2006, so they feel they the edge when it comes to facing Chelsea in knock-out games. Chelsea thirst for revenge for that semi-final defeat, & I think this extra motivation will spur them on to the final. Verdict: Chelsea to go through. I tipped the Londoners to win the tournament, since Barcelona were eliminated in the round of 16. I will stick to this prediction.
Both semi-finals will be very tough & very competive. But in the end, I think the final will be between Milan & Chelsea, with Chelsea emerging victorious.

Congratulations Olympique Lyonnais

Olympique Lyon have just won a record sixth Lique 1 (French division 1) in a row, with a few games to spare. Their triumph came about because second-placed Toulouse lost 3-2 away to Rennes. Toulouse's defeat meant that Lyon have an unassailable 18 point lead at the top of the French league. That meant that Lyon became champions of France before even kicking off their match away to Auxerre.

In the process, Lyon become the first club from 1 of the big 5 leagues in Europe (Spain, Italy, England, Germany & France) to win six consecutive national championships. Congratulations must got to Lyon for this remarkable achievement, even though they are not my favourite French team - that would be Olympique Marseille, who themselves won 5 in a row between 1989 & 1993 but were stripped of the 1993 after a match-fixing scandal.

Such is the extent of Lyon's domination in French football that their supporters have taken domestic success for granted. Now, what they want to see is success in Europe, which of course will be much harder than winning the French championship. In the last 3 seasons, Lyon have been quarter-finalists in the UEFA Champions League. Their supporters want to see Lyon go further than that. This may well happen if Lyon can make a couple of top-class signings to bolster their already strong squad next season. Olympique Lyon have proven themselves to be a side worth keeping an eye on.


Speaking of handing out congratulations, I must again hand out one to a couple of church friends who today celebrate their first wedding anniversary. Congratulations, again, to you both, & may God continue to bless you richly.

OK, but not what I expected

I was referring to yesterday evening's OMF Discover Asia event hosted by our church, full of Japanese decorations (lanterns etc). The turnout was huge - I think there was more than the 60 we were expecting. The majority were people from other churches. It was good to see so many people turn out to learn about what's been happening on the missions front in Japan.

There were lots of singing. I found the songs unfamiliar, but very good - the songs were so wholesome in praise for God & a lot of them had to do with calling on God to send out people to the missions field. There were some games (which related to Japanese culture), a trivia quiz on Japan, more games, a dance item presented by 2 Japanese guys & a bunch of Asian ladies (not sure if all are Japanese) dressed in kimono, & then more games.

There were some audio-less overhead slideshows of some missionary families in Japan. One guy also talked about the latest happenings of one missionary family (Steve, wife Saeko part-Japanese, if I recall correctly). Steve's still in the process of mastering the Japanese language, & that is one of his prayer points. I think Steve & Saeko have been to our church previously when we had another of those OMF events. Another who also visited our church previously is that Ned Flanders look-alike Gary Weston.

Pastor Peter Chen (the OMF State Representative) gave a message. From what I can remember, he mentioned that Japan is prosperous in terms of wealth & technology, but spiritually there is a need for them to hear the gospel as many people there are not familiar with the gospel (lack of exposure). He also said that missionaries are needed to go to Japan, whether for short-term & long-term stay. Those missionaries could be well among the people present yesterday. There was also group prayer sessions, & then we finished the nite with supper.

While the nite overall was reasonable, it wasn't really what I expected. I was expecting to see videos of God's work in Japan - perhaps a 50-60 minute video that we had in past Discover Asia events, which give a background of the country in focus, & talk about God's work (via the missionaries) in that country, & maybe some interviews with some of those missionaries. But there were no videos! Instead, we got various audio-less slides. I was also expecting perhaps 1 or 2 of the missionary families to come & share their personal experiences in Japan. No missionaries turned up. Instead, as already mentioned, there was someone who talked on behalf of 1 of the missionary families - which is fine & good, but just not the same as hearing first-hand from the missionaries themselves.

But hey, it was ok. It was time well spent learning a bit about another culture, about God's work in another country & praying with fellow believers. And of course, the food. Enoch's noodles were tasty - he flavoured it with miso soup, & included some seaweed which, eaten together with the noodles, made it even more tasty. His noodles were initially untouched, & suddenly were all gone in a matter of minutes. Some of the snacks (Japanese & other Asian) I brought in were not touched, so I took them back.....

Anyway, to finish, I pray that God would continue to look after the missionaries in Japan, also pray that God would send more missionaries over to Japan to assist in efforts to spread His Word.

Meanwhile, here's hoping I get good rest

I'm not feeling great today - haven't been sleeping well over the past few nites. Not too sure why, although that brightness of the light from the VCR doesn't help with my efforts to regain sleep after waking up in the middle of the nite. Ai yah, why do some people fall asleep so easily while others (like myself) struggle to get back into it after prematurely waking up??

Anyway, enough of the ranting. All I'm really hoping is that I will be well enough to attend the OMF Discover Asia nite at our church tomorrow (Friday) evening/nite. The focus is on Japan, & it will be very interesting indeed to learn about God's work in the Land of the Rising Sun. When people talk about the spread of the gospel in Asia, we seem to hear a lot about China. South Korea already has considerable number of Christians - in fact, last time I checked the Operation World book, there are more Christians than Buddhists in Korea. But Japan? I don't often hear much about Christianity in Japan. Hence a great reason to attend the Discover Asia nite tomorrow. I should be well enough to go (getting better as I write), but I really need a rest, so I'll probably not have a late nite tonite.

Right now, apart from doing this (blogging), I'm also uploading my photos into an album at Multiply (this will take a while), & also surfing the internet. It's called multitasking....hehe.

Just found out Argentina drew with Chile 0-0 in a friendly/exhibition match - both teams fielded experimental line-ups. It'd be better if Argentina had won, but oh well, u can't win em all. Anyway, draw in friendly is no disaster, just as long as they win when it really matters. OK, let's move on to another website. Hmmm, where to go?.....

Virginia Tech massacre/ “You will have trouble” - Jesus

I can't go without posting on the Virginia Tech massacre. The tragic events in Virginia was mentioned during my conversation with my 2 friends at Coffee Club yesterday. We didn't know too much of the details of what happened, but the 3 of us were shocked by the mass shooting (some 33 people died). When I first heard about it on Tuesday morning, I was simply stunned & the rest of the day was very subdued & sombre. It's so sad, & it's totally senseless. I feel very sorry for the families, relatives & friends of the victims, as well as the killer's family. May God give them comfort during this time.

I thought I'd also leave here an article ("You will have trouble" - Jesus), which I received today from my dear aunty in Perth. Apparently, she got it from IWJ - I dunno anything about them, but will soon after doing some snooping around. Excellent article - u got to read it:

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Subject: “You will have trouble” - Jesus

“In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 NIV

The massacre at Virginia Tech has millions around the globe asking the same question every human tragedy almost universally evokes: “Why?”

Why. It seems there is a built in need for humans to understand the reasons why someone would coldly murder people they, the murderer, don’t even know. People also want to know why this killing wasn’t prevented in the first place.

Even God, after witnessing the first murder recorded in Scripture, asked a question of the killer. In Genesis 4, The Lord asked Cain: “What have you done?”

In the first verse I quoted, Jesus declared--promised--two things, the first: You WILL have trouble. From the day Adam first sinned, to the world’s first murder, and throughout all of our world’s turbulent history, this statement is proven self-evident.

And this is where the world outside of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ gets hung up. Hopeless people see violence, brutality, tribulation, and trouble all around them and find themselves locked in the endless loop of W-H-Y.

However, the second declaration in John 16:33 provides the answer, the freedom from endless doubt and worry: “But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Such simple yet powerful truths are contained in this tiny snippet of the Bible!

In fact, I ended the Space Shuttle Columbia memorial video (http://www.interviewwithgod.com/columbia/) with this text. It is about the most comforting thing I can imagine--Jesus Christ Himself said that no matter what we are going through, even unto death itself, He has conquered every foe.

"Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" 1 Corinthians 15:55 NIV

The writer of Hebrews asks: “How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?” There is no escape from the endless W-H-Y feedback cycle outside of Jesus Christ. None. We will see an endless media barrage probing into the background of Cho Seung-hui, the apparent Virginia Tech killer. But the world will not be able to provide real answers. How do I know this to be true? Because the next time a terrible human tragedy occurs, the question will remain the same.

A time such as this is time to tell hurting people to, in the words of Jesus Christ, “take heart!” God loves people, and that is why Jesus has already “suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.” (Hebrews 2:9 NIV)

Jesus Christ is the only savior who has experienced every pain, heartache, trial, and temptation you, I, or anyone else will ever endure.

“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” Hebrews 4:15-16 NIV

As we pray for the families and friends of the victims, and yes, those of the killer, we should ask and hope that the Good News of the Great Sufferer AND the Great Conqueror, Jesus Christ, will be shared with those who are hurting, and those who are asking…why.

Saved by His Amazing Grace,

Scott Kinney

www.InterviewwithJesus.com

www.IWJStore.com

Movie & nice long conversation with friends

I rushed to Sunnybank Plaza AMC on Tuesday evening, thinking that I'd be watching the thriller "Disturbia" with a couple of good friends/Christian brothers. But thanks to a last-minute change of plan (by 1 of those 2 friends - the other turned up a bit later), we ended up watching the sci-fi "Sunshine", which started 10 minutes after "Disturbia". The drastic change of plan was, er hem, disturbing (me & those 2 friends had fun over the emails prior to the movies, making a pun out of the words "Disturbia" & "disturb"). Just kidding - the change was actually "necessary" to give us the extra 10 minutes or so to gobble down our dinner & grab our tickets. In the event, I missed the very start of "Sunshine". The movie was passable. I wouldn't say it was superb or magnificent, but it's just ok. Missing the very start (what is that, 1-2 mins I missed?) probably didn't help in my understanding of the movie storyline. Anyway, lesson learnt - get in the theatre as soon as possible after buying your ticket, never assume that movie previews go for 20 mins, because it probably went for only 10 mins. I would have preferred to have seen "Disturbia" - but hey, there's always another day.

Anyways, after the movie concluded, us 3 went over to Coffee Club nearby to have some dessert. We also had a long, interesting & meaningful conversation. No chatting on football, as we often do when we get together. Instead, we talked about all sorts of "serious" stuff, about various matters/issues pertaining to life in general, our lives, our faith & our walk with God. Our issues & struggles are similar & a lot of them were laid out in the open as we chat the night away. It appears that we all want the same thing - to improve in our spiritual walk, to built each other up as brothers in Christ, & to develop a closer relationship with God as well as our other brothers in Christ. One of those 2 friend even mentioned that he wants "to make us uncomfortable". By that, I gather he meant that he wants us to be challenged to change for the better, to always hold each other accountable & ask the tough questions regarding our spiritual walk.

I thank God for the fellowship & interesting conversation that we had at Coffee Club - & also for 1/2 an hour at the parking lot afterwards! I hope that there will be many more similar meaningful conversations in the future. And, I pray that God will help us change in the areas where we need to change, & also help us spur each other (as well as other fellow Christians) to run the race that He set before us.

Table tennis....again

After yesterday's church service, a bunch of us had lunch at the foodcourt in Toowong Village. We chose to eat there, partly for convenience & partly because Pastor Steve's away - had he been around, he would probably have vetoed Toowong foodcourt as it's not his favourite place.

Anyway, towards the end of the lunch, I mentioned to a few people about the upcoming inter-congregational table-tennis tournament that our church will be holding in July. I first heard about this during Saturday afternoon's meeting of Sunday School teachers. Upon hearing me, some of us were up for some table tennis, so we headed over to CCCB Coopers Plains after lunch to play table tennis. Unfortunately, Yuan couldn't make it. I look forward to some rallies with Yuan in the near future, as I heard he's pretty "hardcore" with ping pong. I already had some good ones with Winston last month, when I was last at CCCB Coopers Plains.

Anyway, it was just me, BT & Joyce who headed for the ping pong (J's back in Brisbane from Sydney for a few weeks, then heading overseas for a short stint). I tried to get Sandra to join us, but she could only come a little later. So we initially played among us 3, before Murray (a YFer) & his friend Jack joined us. Then it was down to just me playing singles with Jack. Then later, another dude who attends CCCB Coopers Plains, Jacky Suen, came along & had some rallies with me. Man, he's really really good (his talent later affirmed by his significant other, Noelle). He controlled a large part of our rallies, sending me left & right at will & I had to move a lot to keep up with him. He's better than me! Wow, if the participants at the church tournament play ping pong like Jacky, then I don't think I will go very far in that tournament. I complimented Jacky on his ability, but he was pretty modest about it. I stopped playing just before Sandra arrived (exhausted, especially by Jacky S's rallies), so she played with other people.

Later, I got hold of a copy of that Sunday's CCCB Coopers Plains weekly bulletin. The last page provided more details about the table tennis tournament. It will be held on 14 July (Sat) & 15 July (Sun). And apparently, the challenge was issued by CCCB St Lucia during last weekend's church camp. Obviously, I wasn't the instigator, as I wasn't at church camp! Between now & the tournament, there will be weekly Sunday practice. Hah, we just rocked up to Coopers Plains not knowing that Sunday practice is "official". Well, now we know what to do every Sunday afternoons! I'm very definitely down for that tournament!!!

By next Sunday, Winston & Ivan C would be back from overseas - in fact, Ivan might be back in Brisbane already as I write? Dunno...Anyway, I'll try to drag them along to ping pong next week. I'm sure Winston will be up for it. Hopefully, Yuan will be free next Sunday, too. Anyone else keen to come along??

Simple faith

Simple faith. Uh uh, that's not just a phrase I coined up for the title for this blog post. "Simple faith" is what was emphasized by a Christian brother in his sermon at church today, on Matthew 8 & 9. Well, Matt 8:5 - 9:35, to be exact, although he didn't cover every verse in great detail - he selected a few passages here & there for the purposes of his sermon. I shall elaborate on that "simple faith" thing below (with the story of the centurion approaching Jesus). You will also see below, why I struggle with this "simple faith" thing.

I hope that what I write in this post does not misrepresent or distort the message of the sermon, which I enjoyed such that I will read that Bible passage again & review the notes I took from the sermon. I'm glad to have had the chance to listen to this brother's sermon - I've missed out on some of his past sermons because they always seem to coincide with my Sunday School teaching (the Sunday School roster can be such a lottery....haha).

Anyway, here is what's covered by the sermon (mainly rehashing my notes):

• The Sermon on the Mount (Matt 7:28,29) are Jesus' words of authority. Matthew 8 & 9 show Jesus' acts of authority - authority over the weather, demons, demon-possessed people, healing the ill. Nothing which He did in these chapters is ordinary. After all, those acts are beyond the capacity of normal human beings.
• There is a cost or sacrifice that comes with following Jesus (Matt 8:18-22). It's not always going to be easy, as it may involve foresaking basic security or family commitments.
• The speaker also took us through the passage where a centurion approached Jesus to heal his servant. What's significant/remarkable about this is that the centurion (Roman military officer) belonged to a group that was oppressing the Jews - so we have a member of the oppressor asking help from a member of the group that he is oppressing. The speaker used the analogy of a Nazi oppressor approaching a Jewish person (in times of WW2) for help. So that's not a normal request for help. Nevertheless, the centurion showed real faith in Jesus (His ability to heal), & Jesus was amazed at this. The main point here is that what really matters is simple faith founded on the truth of who Jesus is. We should have simple faith as manifested in trust & dependence on Jesus. The centurion recognised that Jesus acts with authority under the Father, & Jesus marvelled at the simple yet profound faith of a Gentile (the centurion).

In this context, when talking about simple faith, simple does not mean simplistic; rather, simple means plain, clear cut, not pretentious. It connects belief in Jesus with faith in Jesus.

The speaker then concluded with applications, & he did something I can't recall seeing before. He looked at 3 types of applications:

• Necessary (essential to do): Recognise Jesus acts with authority from the Father & submit to Him.
• Possible: Jesus is the one who we put our faith in to transform us. [Speaker said it is who we put our faith in that matters, more so than how much faith we have].
• Impossible (what we should not/cannot do): Do not recognise Jesus & rely on our own strengths to impress God.

Now, that is (especially third point) a new way of looking at applications. I have always looked at applications in "positive terms", i.e. in terms of questions like "What should I do in response to the sermon/study" or "How should I improve this or that". I can't remember the last time I personally looked at applications in "negative terms", as in the "impossible" application above - what we should not do in light of what we have learned. That's interesting, actually. Expanding on the "negative" application, the speaker said that we cannot ignore Jesus' authority in light of the passages covered.

Later on, while chatting with the brother & referring to his sermon, he asked me a hard question "What are you going to change?". Well, for me anyway, it's a hard question. I was unable to muster a response, & it's not the first time he's asked me a hard question - he's done so in the past. I've since reflected on that question, but more in terms of "What should I change?". For me, one thing which I should definitely change is to have more trust & dependence on God, especially in terms of decision-making. I usually rely far too much on my own abilities & judgment when making various decisions on various things, & tend to reduce God's involvement to "last resort".

You may be shocked after reading that. But it's true - self-reliance is a feature of my DNA, & I do sometimes take pride in being able to do things my way. Every now & again, I have been asked by Christian siblings questions like "Have u prayed about it?" or "What do u think God wants?". Questions like these, when they arise, do remind me of my lack of trust or dependence on God (as well as my weak prayer life) - yet I often ignore or brush aside those questions. In doing so, I guess I lack the simple faith of that centurion & certainly not recognise God's authority as Christians should. I pray that I will let God be a significant part of my future decision-making, depend more on Him & less on myself, trust that God (& not me) knows what's best for me, & be submissive to His will & authority.

Reflections on Proverbs

My Bible study group (Clay) has recently finished the series on the book of Proverbs, & we are about to embark on a new series of studies this Friday (dunno much about the new studies, except that apparently it’s going to be topical if I hear correctly – oh well, I’ll probably blog about all this in future). The way we studied Proverbs was that we didn’t cover every single chapter in such great detail – we only looked at key verses selected by Pastor Steve, who designed the Proverbs studies for the Clayers.

We usually split off into 2 smaller groups & each group would look at one of the above themes, dig into the Bible verses that deal with the given theme, & then later both groups come back together where members of each group do a presentation on their group’s topic.

We looked at various themes in Proverbs:

Week 1 - power & weakness of words, justice

Week 2 - authority/politics, sexuality

Week 3 - parents & children, friendship (Not enough people turned up for this study, so we stayed as one group & studied “parents & children”, but didn’t have time to study “friendship)

Week 4 - alcohol, money.

I’m actually going through Proverbs in my own time, at my own pace – very verrrryyyy slow pace, only touched on the first 2 chapters so far. That means that I’m no expert at all on Proverbs – actually, I’m no expert on any book of the Bible. Never mind, I’ll learn a few things ;)

Anyway, I thought it might be an idea to rack up some thoughts & reflections on the studies on Proverbs. Like I said, I’ve only read Proverbs 1 & 2 at this stage. So anything I write here would be based on what I’ve managed to gather from the Clay studies, rather than what I’ve read from those first 2 chapters. One disclaimer: any discrepancies between what I say & what the Bible says would, of course, be due entirely to my errors – the Bible is the truth!

Here are my thoughts & reflections:

# Proverbs is definitely an interesting book. Apparently, it’s meant to be a guidebook for godly living for Christians. To me, the book is full of wisdom & seems a bit philosophical (nothing wrong with that, although I obviously don’t have the mind of a philosopher).

# On the theme of authority/politics, haha….I recalled bagging (poking fun of) the PM Mr Howard during my discussion group. Pastor Steve put a check to the bagging. I obviously need to pay heed to what the advice in Proverbs is to those under authority – respect, do not bag, obey leaders (whether government, church, work) because the authority to govern us is given to them by God, who has ultimate authority over everything.

# I paid more attention during Weeks 3 & 4 than in the preceding 2 weeks (by this time, I was a bit more used to the new study format). With “parents & children”, the passages outline the different instructions for parents & children, but the common instruction to both is to submit to God. Nothing surprising here, but I guess it highlights how important submission to God is, as a lifelong instruction applying to all stages of life.

# The last study was a really big one for me, as it dealt with 2 areas where I have some issues: alcohol & money. I shared these issues with the brothers at Clay, during our discussion time.

# With alcohol, I like to have a drink every now & then, but there have been instances (engagement parties, weddings, even work Xmas function) where I’ve crossed the line & drank too much. Most recent one was the Boys Nite Out a couple of months ago with a friend from Melbourne & other guys. Pastor Steve said he would keep me accountable on this matter. I can argue that I get drunk only once in a while, but Proverbs is clear on the negative effects that alcohol can bring. A couple of passages (Like 22:17-18 & John 2:1-11) give a different, more positive perspective on alcohol – but only if alcohol is used wisely & not excessively.

# On the subject of money, I do give some of it to God’s people (those training up for full-time ministry etc) & also various Christian organizations, & definitely won’t mind looking at a couple more of those organizations to give to. Pastor Steve was encouraged by this. So for me, the giving side is fine. However, not everything’s well & good. Where I really struggle with money is in the area of wealth accumulation. I got this obsession with building up what I’ve accumulated, as I feverishly monitor my investment unit prices & performances, as well as my savings. I check the investment unit prices almost daily. I also am on the constant lookout for more investment opportunities, researching various managed funds to identify the ones which will grow my money so I can put money in. I did the “materialism” workshop at BLT in August 2006, conducted by Fat & her friend Chris. After that workshop, I shared my struggle with wealth accumulation with Chris – we had a lengthy conversation at the beach. He counseled against having this obsession & advised that my priorities as a Christian should be seeking treasures in heaven & not building up earthly wealth. I still am struggling in this area….

# On the whole, I’d say that there are quite a number areas in my life which fall short of the standard set by Proverbs for godly living – such as the areas of alcohol & money which I’ve discussed above.

Now, the above thoughts & reflections is based on what we did cover during the studies. What we didn’t cover during the studies was “friendship” in Week 3 (for reasons outlined above). So, I did the “friendship” study myself in my own time, looking at the passages outlined on the study sheet (Proverbs 17:17/ 18:24/ 27:6/ 27:9/ 27:17). Here are some thoughts on “friendship” (again the disclaimer that these are only my views):

# The first 3 passages say these things about a friend:- loving at all times; available to give help at times of distress or personal struggles; listens, sticks close to & is always there to help other friends when needed; has best interest of his/her friends at heart & will give advice for his/her friends’ good even if his/her friends may not like the advice.

# The last 2 passages say that it’s good to have a friend that we can share & communicate freely with; we should value true friendship. We should associate with good people, people who help stimulate/encourage each other.

# What sort of a friend am I? I’d say I’m helpful, caring & friendly (perhaps this view is biased & self-serving?). I like to make them laugh every now & then. I’d like to think I’ve been good to my friends, but the truth is I’m not always loving & maybe not always kind. To them, I apologise for the times I’ve not been loving or kind, & for the times where I may have said nasty things. I hope you can forgive me & correct me in future when I’m wrong. My hope is that I can be a friend who is loving, encouraging & approachable - all those things that the above passages say a friend should be.

# What sort of friends do I have? All sorts! I have good, nice people – many are Christians, some are not. Some are funny. Some are more serious. Some are very strong spiritually. I thank God for blessing me with these friends.

# What do my friends think of me? Well, I dunno, u have to ask them! Some may say I’m funny & easy going, some will say I’m quiet during the Clay studies, some may say I’m picky with when I choose to hang out with them. I’d like to think their views of me are positive overall ;)

Finally, I’d say that I enjoyed the Proverbs studies, & am grateful to Pastor Steve & Keiyeng for their leadership in Clay St Lucia group. I will continue to look at the rest of Proverbs in my time, & I look forward to the next series of studies in Clay.

NB: Studying with the St Lucia Clayers has been good; however, I do miss the Clayers at Southside. I miss hearing from them & missed the chance to hang out with them as I didn’t go to the recent Clay Social, as it happened the day before Val’s wedding & I had family commitments. Look forward to seeing them at the next Social.

My Easter break

My Easter break was generally quiet (like every other year), apart from Saturday & parts of Sunday when the Wang family was at our place. I didn’t go to the CCCB Church Camp at Currimundi because I wanted to spend some time with the Wangs, plus I think I’m done with camps as I’m not a “camp person”. If church camp is on next year, I guess I’ll have to come up with another excuse then ;)

Good Friday was very quiet, the only notable thing I did was watching a DVD on “V – The Original Mini-series” with Ryan. I first saw the “V” TV series when I was a kid. The original mini-series were set before the TV series. I love the sound effects of the laser gun of the lizard aliens….vvvizzz-pffffff.

What I got up to on Saturday & Sunday is as outlined in the previous post. The Sunday sermon at church was delivered by Uncle Paul. He practically played Robocop (i.e. did everything), as he was also chairperson, prayer person for the communion & did the announcements (not that I can remember anything, apart from a mention of the CCCB Camp that was taking place).

Uncle Paul gave a very good Easter message (I’m a bit biased though – he’s my uncle – but yeah, it’s good). He made some good points, which I’ve previously given little or no thought to. He said that Easter to us Christians is actually more meaningful than Christmas, due to Jesus’ death & resurrection, & what this accomplished for us. This (Easter & Christmas compared) is a point which I’ve not previously given much thought to. His message essentially gave a good reminder of the blessed hope we have since Jesus did what He did on the cross. He also said that while there are lots of Christmas greetings during Christmas (i.e. Merry Xmas), there tends to be no such greetings during Easter. He added that we should celebrate Easter, & perhaps greet each other “Happy Easter”.

I bludged through Easter Monday as it’s the last day of the Easter holiday – did very little apart from blogging & surfing the net. But then, some could say that’s the whole point of a break – to sit back & relax.

Such a short stay

One of the great things about weddings is that you get the chance to catch up with relatives & friends from interstate & overseas. Some of them came to Brisbane in early March & spent some time with my family & Uncle Paul’s family. As for the others, their stay in Brisbane was far too brief. For instance, the Chin contingent from Perth (mum’s youngest brother, his wife, & mum’s second-youngest sister) were here for only 3 nights. I wish their stay could have been a lot longer, as it’s been a while since I saw them & they are such a joyful, laughter-filled bunch. None of them were able to take much annual leave, hence the 3 night stay. Nevertheless, I thank God that they are all born-again believers of The Lord.

Another group that had a short stay is the Wang family (minus James who’s tied up with studies in Canada, & Paul’s wife in US who couldn’t come). It’s great to see them again; again, I thank the Lord that they are part of His family & for blessing us Tans with such great family friends. But their short stay meant that we hardly get to spend much time with them. The Wangs arrived in Brisbane just 13 hours before Val’s wedding (they waited for Paul to get from the US to KL before heading to Brisbane together), & they took off to northern Queensland the next day to see the Great Barrier Reef & spend some time in the Sunshine Coast. The Wangs returned to Brisbane on Friday nite, as the Wang “kids” (Paul, Luke & Eunice) had to depart Brisbane on Saturday evening. That meant we only get to spend one day (Saturday) with them.

Anyway, the Wangs popped by our place on Saturday morning with the Avis rental car. Some of them returned the rental car in Spring Hill, & I drove them back to our place in time for lunch. Thereafter, we (me, my brothers & the Wang “kids”) played a bit of soccer on Playstation 2 & poker. Ahh, poker!! It’s just so fun, that those amongst us who were unfamiliar with the game eventually got the hang of it & really got into it. Often, there would be laughs as the cards were flipped. Interestingly, I managed to receive “A” & “3” as my hole cards on about 5 occasions. Also, in the very last game, I was the first to be eliminated, but not before delaying my demise by betting all-in with one of my hole cards being a “6”; amazingly 3 of the community cards ended up being “6” which meant I won the pot by having 4 of a kind. However, I was killed off in the very next round of betting.

Thereafter, I sent Paul, Luke & Eunice to the airport; their brother Mark came along with me. They head back to KL, & Paul has to catch a flight from KL to LA via Taiwan tomorrow evening. He will stay a day at LA before heading back to Idaho – will arrive there on Monday.

From the airport, I then dropped off Mark at his rented unit in St Lucia. Mark would join me & BT at church the next day. After church, we would then lunch with my parents (& Ryan) & Mark’s parents in Darra (bumped into Nigel & Phuong at one of the shops). In the afternoon, we played poker again!! Then, my parents sent Mark & his parents off to the airport - Mark’s on uni break, so he’s headed to Sydney for a week with his parents before returning next Saturday, while Mr & Mrs Wang would go from Sydney to Melbourne & then return to KL. While I will miss the Wangs, at least they will be back middle of next year for Mark’s graduation (from UQ). And this time, James will accompany them. If I decide to holiday in Malaysia at the end of this year, then I won’t have to wait till next year to see the Wang family again!

The wedding day (part 2 of 2) - the Young couple

Val simply looked gorgeous as she made her way to the front. It’s a shame my pictures of her walk were unclear - also missed out on snapping the couple’s kiss as I accidentally turned off the camera at that point & turned it back on too late.

Anyways, the ceremony went very well. Mum wasn’t as emotional as I expected her to be; Dad was predictably steady & calm.

Just 2 songs were sung by the audience – “Before The Throne of God”, & “I Long for the Day”. But what beautiful songs. And the audience sung it very well. Joey Le & David presented the song “Born Anew”, which I’ve never previously heard of. The Bible reading was 1 John 4:7-12, & Pastor Steve gave his message on this passage at Val & Andrew’s request; in a nutshell, that passage talked about God’s love & God being the source of that love as manifested in His sacrifice of His Only Son. Good choice of passage, I must say. And good choice of songs, too, as family members & relatives I spoke to after the ceremony all noted with approval – the feeling was that the ceremony was very God-centered. The prayers by Hung & Philbert were superb.

Of course, there were the group photos. This took place outside the church. Predictably, the biggest group photos were the ones with YFers past & present & CCCB St Lucia churchgoers. After these, the biggest contingent was the bride’s family (the Tan family!) & relatives (which included the Chin contingent from Perth, Dad’s relatives from Malaysia, Uncle Paul’s family, the Teos & the Lims). There was also one with our very close family friends, the Wangs. I managed to get one shot of the Clayers who came.

After the ceremony, Mum’s Perth relatives & the Wang family joined us at home for afternoon tea, which was simply leftovers from lunch. Despite that, there was still some more food remaining. We simply packed these away before heading for Hilton Hotel, venue for the reception. I brought along the huge batch of flowers for the bridal table.

We arrived at Hilton after the scheduled time for tea ceremony, thinking we were late. It turned out that the wedding couple were also late, as they arrived at the hotel around the same time as us (they seemed to have been held up by their photo shoots). So, we didn’t miss anything at all. As the wedding couple needed more time to be ready for the tea ceremony, I took the opportunity to take some pictures of our relatives. They included a couple of pictures of aunties from Dad’s side wearing the “kebaya”, which is a traditional Malaysian blouse. Apparently, flight attendants for Malaysian Airlines & Singapore Airlines use a version of the “kebaya” as their uniform.

The tea ceremony was a bit rushed as the reception dinner was approaching fast. I took lots of pictures of the tea ceremony. One of Andrew’s sisters tried to speak to Val in Malaysian as Val presented her with the tea cup. At least her attempt was so-so, not bad. Goodness knows how many red packets & gifts were handed over to the couple.

The reception dinner, which included with a hired pianist, was excellent, too. I was seated with Brendan, Ryan, Nicole, cousin Nicholas & the Wang children (who we grew up with before migrating to Australia). It was good chance to catch up with Nick (who’s grown so tall) & the Wangs, although I didn’t talk that much as I drank too much wine between the tea ceremony & the reception. I can say that Table 5, just next to us, was very boisterous & definitely the noisiest of all the tables (noisy, but always respectful towards the newlyweds). That’s not surprising at all, as Table 5 included Aunty Daisy, Aunty Rosie, Aunty Helen, & the 3 Perth relatives, all of whom have loud laughs (now I know where that part of my genes come from). At one point (when I’ve somewhat recovered from my hangover), I can hear some funny things being said in Malaysian, & went over to share in the laughs. It’s really wonderful to see relatives from Mum’s side & Dad’s side all get along very well with each other, catching up & chatting away like long lost friends reunited. For me, that’s one abiding memory of this wedding.

The slideshow put together by Val & Andrew was sweet, even if the old family photos displayed meant that people now know what I look like when I was 8 or 9 ;) I recalled Aunty Carol flashing me a smile when a photo with me as a kid appeared on the projector screen.

There were a number of speeches, of course. The speech delivered by the family friend of the Youngs gave a background of the Young family, but curiously made no mention of the wedding couple (what’s the point if the wedding couple's not mentioned?). Mr Young welcomed Val into the Young family. Mrs Young did likewise, although parts of her speech was in Malaysian, but it was a pretty good try. Dad’s was a bit longer & definitely more humorous – in that sense, it was unexpected in a good way. Of course I’m biased, but I’d say dad gave the best speech of the nite. Welcoming Andrew as son-in-law, he gave “7 reasons why you should not marry my daughter” & referred to himself as a “nazi father”. Towards the end, there was also a blooper – Dad referred to the newlyweds as “Val & Brendan”.

The sight of the couple cutting the wedding cake was the last photo I managed to snap, before my camera “died” (lesson – bring along camera charger the next time I attend a wedding reception). That meant that I had no shots of the couple’s first dance. A bit of a shame, but never mind. Despite camera dying & my mediocre photography technique, I managed to get some good pictures. This was certainly one of the most enjoyable days in my life – I’m very proud that my beloved sister is married & happy to have gained a good brother-in-law. God will surely bless this couple.

NB: Interestingly, all of the overseas relatives & family friends who attended the wedding are born-again Christians! The relatives on Dad’s side & the Wang family are Protestants, while Mum’s Perth relatives are Catholics. It’s a shame that our non-Christian relatives could not come to the wedding, as they would have learnt something about the Christian faith had they attended.

The wedding day (part 1 of 2) - mad scramble

Saturday, 31 March 2007, was a significant day for my family - my dearest sister got married to one Andrew Young (NZ born Asian dude). So she moves from Miss Valerie Tan to Mrs Valerie Young (but always remember your Tan roots, sister!). Val & Andrew have been together for some 3 years, & thanks to the Lord, 2 became 1 on Saturday. Of course, needless to say, I'm very very happy for them. I love Val to bits like a big brother would his little sister, especially if she's the only sister he's got.

While there were no disasters, the lead-up to the wedding ceremony wasn't totally "smooth sailing". It was a real scramble (maybe it’s just me making heavy weather of everything):

--] Sleep was interrupted every couple of hours - kept waking up & then doze off again; turned out Alice also had "trouble" with her sleep in Val's room (with Val & Fat).
--] My brother Brendan & myself did the flower collection after breakfast, but were held up at the Rocklea Markets by flower miscalculation - florists were a couple of wrist corsages short, so we had to wait for them to be done up (I was flustered).
--] After rounding up all my wedding gear, I waited for the lunch to arrive (relatives were bringing some Malaysian noodles & cakes/delicacies). And waited. And waited. Approaching 11:30am, the food still haven't arrived. Wedding ceremony would start at 1pm, I had to be at church say 12:15pm to 12:30pm to give the flowers to the Young family & usher with Mikey & Rachel, yet lunch is not here yet, & I'm not even changed & haven't shaved! (flustered again)
--] Then, people started arriving to our home: Val (hair done up), the bridesmaids (Fat & Alice), the photographers, Mum (hair done up at different place). Relatives from Malaysia (Dad's side) staying with Uncle Paul & Aunty Daisy arrived, together with all those food (Dad got some Eagle Boys pizza). Relatives from Perth (Mum's side) were already at our place.
--] I hastily changed & shaved.^^ Lunch started just before 11:45am - just a bit over 1 hour before ceremony starts! I rushed through lunch - food's so delicious, but I couldn't stay on & pig out. So a few minutes after 12pm, BT drove myself & Mum to St Andrews Church, South Brisbane.

At church, I had more anxiety, this time with handing out the flowers while at the same time trying to carry out ushering. I can't recognise the Young family members save Andrew's parents, & I struggled to keep up with who's getting what (luckily, I got help). Keiyeng kindly helped me pin my corsage. Funny how stressed I was, & as some pointed out to their amusement, it wasn't even my wedding!! The wedding man himself appeared very calm; so was Val when I saw her at home. Yet, here I am doing all the worrying. I'm not really a worrier by nature - it's just that I wanted the best for Val & Andrew.

At least some complimented my appearance - one friend even said it looked like I was the one getting married (guess I did well, considering the rushed change of clothes at home). Also, thank God that fellow ushers Mikey & Rachel did a great job, & likewise the greeters Melina & Thu. Thank God also for everyone else who helped out (Mikey later modestly downplayed his contribution - Mikey, u da man, big up for your help).

Then, Val & the bridesmaids arrived in a Rolls Royce (kindly driven by Uncle Philip Oh). I was outside taking pictures of their arrival & made way to my seat, just before the bridesmaids entered. Then, Dad walked Val down the aisle. The ceremony is underway!

^^ Some point during the changing, someone saw me without pants, only for a split second - I tried to sneak between bathroom & bedroom thinking no one would see, but I was wrong. To quote the Greek lady from the 90s show Acropolis Now, "How embarassment".