It's Here... Again...

inevitable, unescapable... exams are once again around the corner... as usual, yours sincerely is relatively ill-prepared, still rushing to complete his reports so that he can start studying... have come to realize over these few years that i simply can't study at home... there are just too many distractions at home: my goggle box, my cozy little den under my blanket, the fridge, the goggle box... oops, i've already mentioned it... anyway, now i m typing this blog in the lib where i can finally get something done...

looking around me, muggers are already at work; 2 weeks before the reading the lib is already half filled... gosh, i really wonder how i m going to get a seat & a power socket next week...well, this is my 2nd last academic exams in my whole life (unless i decide to do my post grad somewhere 10-20 years down the road), can't afford to fail a single module... gotta get back to my work...

oh, by the way, any Sci CFer reading this, i'll be in the lib every afternoon till lib close, so do come & join me in this exam lib fellowship... :)

Prosperous Christian or Faithful Manager in the Bank of God (II)

last night this statement just popped into my head & i just wanna share it here.
Prosperity, in the light of the gospel, is dependent on our faith and our faithfulness.
yup, it has to be both faith & faithfulness, not one less. we must have the faith in God tt He'll give us the finances & perhaps the abundance in finances, & the faith in Him tt He'll give us the wisdom to use His money wisely. yet at the same time, we must be a faithful steward in managing His money & not claiming it to be ours. lacking any one of the two, we will not be as prosperous as God has intended for us to be...

well, i know i m dancing on the fine line between prosperity gospel & the balanced idea of prosperity in the light of the gospel. hope i have not given a wrong idea that i support propserity gospel. the key thing is still faithfulness as a steward...

Prosperous Christian or Faithful Manager in the Bank of God?

i have always known that the elderly (not v old, but certainly older than my parents) who always sits at the 2nd row from the front on the left of the sanctuary near the centre aisle, is some sort of a leader in church, yet i've always thot he's probably a retiree.. today when i opened the papers, i saw his picture there. only then did i know he's not only a elder in church, but also the head of a big company in S'pore. gosh!!! "got eyes dun recognize Tarzan" (translated from a Chinese idiom, with a tongue-in-cheek) the 1st questions tt popped into my head was: how did he manage to do well in the secular world & God's kingdom at the same time? being the head of a big company, he must be very rich, in that case what is God's perspective of prosperity?

these questions would not have popped into my head if my sis had not asked me abt my prosective of prosperity in the light of the gospel some time ago. having this new example for me to think thru, i remembered Matt 25:14-30, the parable of the talents. seriously speaking, i believe God doesn't really bother much abt prosperity in terms of monetary aspects, wat matters more to Him is our stewardship. just like the slave who was given ten talents, this elder faithfully did well with it, not claiming that the "prosperity" belongs to him but sees himself as a steward. just like a manager in a bank, the tons of money passing his hand doesn't belong to him, but he faithfully transacts the money as it is supposed to. therefore if we r "prosperous", we must remember that the money is not ours but God's; we r to be faithful managers in His bank. likewise, if we r not that "prosperous" (like myself), we r to be faithful bank tellers in the bank of God, not to claim that the money in our hands r ours, but to transact the money as it ought to be transacted... & when we r faithful, He'll give us more talents to handle for Him...

Speechless?

have u some time in ur life where u wanna say something, but dunno wat to say; feel like talking to someone, but dun really feel like talking? well, tt's how i m feeling right now... perhaps tt's y i m here by my comp, typing this speechless blog...

was just thinking of the possible reasons y i feel this way... i guess it's likely to be tiredness. had 2 of my mid-term tests last week, having 1 tmr & 1 next thurs, not to mention a whole series of lab reports to be handed in every week for the next 3 weeks...

Lord, how do i study for Your glory & in worship of You when i m tired of studying? Help me Lord, for it is Your creations tt i m studying... grant me understanding of Your beautiful creations...

Letting Go... Letting God...

this has been a common phrase in the Christian world... but often i dun like using cliche phrases (did i spell right or use right?)... more often than not, pple use phrases like these out of context. not only tt, young Christians these days quote phrases like this or song lyrics instead of understanding wat they really mean & which part of the bible do these phrases come from... quite worrying...

however, the past 2 weeks had been a time which God used to teach me to do my part & let Him take care of the rest... james 4:13-17 reminded me how my heart was the last week, & how my attitude shld be... i was like the businessman mentioned by james in his letter, planning this & that for his own personal gain, w/o acknowledging that God is sovereign over him. i planned/calculated my future as if i am really in control of my life... well, all this hussle made me super stressed up, overwhelmed by the future ahead. i mean, i was sheltered by my parents for the past 23 years, i have nvr really given a thot abt housing, CPF, marriage etc... but over the last 2 weeks, all these thots & its urgency (now tt i have a girlfriend who is likely to be my wife, plus my family's financial situation isn't good) just popped into my head & i was overwhelmed... i spent a lot of time doing research, calculating my finances & my loans, literally cracked my head at all these new issues in my life...

on sunday, i really broke down... spent some time in quietness with God... kinda heard Him (not in an audible voice, of cos) telling me wat my problem was, & over this week, He showed me james 4:13-17. i have always believed that God gave us a brain to think & plan... i believe also that james thot so too, but he was clear in 4:15 that as we think & plan, we must not forget that we are dependent on God to bring success. hence, in this 2 weeks, i learnt that i haven't done much wrong when i planned, cos i have to be a good steward of God's gift to me: my brain. yet after i am done with my thinking & research, i have to submit to His sovereign plan, & wait upon Him to bring to pass wat He deem best for me...

as for now, i resolve to stop my planning & calculation until i m closer to graduation, cos i have already done wat i can do, & the only thing i can do now is to pray & wait. in the meantime, i shld get back to serving God in ministering to pple, both in church & in VCF...