Thursday, September 23, 2004

Song: I Will Follow Him

Wah... it's 4 am already... I've been taking the past 2 hrs reading and writing blogs... ha... been trying to understand lambda calculus in preparation for my test...



(Actually, I have three tests on 30 Sep... and they are all my famous 'killer' modules... haha... but seriously, I'm not scared... and I really want to thank God for His presence that gives me peace in my heart... 'cos something I've been learning is to "practise the presence of God" as what Hanhui shared during CG this week.)



Ha, back to the point... right now I'm alone in S16 level 5 (East's famous "study room"), so was feeling a bit alone... played some songs, and I remember this song that our dear sister from Mexico (Ana Bonilla) taught the Uni district during our church camp 2000 - A Visionary Church:



"I Will Follow Him"



¡Lo amo! ¡lo amo! ¡lo amo!

(I love Him! I love Him! I love Him!)

Y donde vaya yo voy, yo voy, yo voy...

(And where He goes, I'll follow, I'll follow, I'll follow...)

Siempre mi amor sincero, sincero, sincero

(He'll always be my true love, my true love, my true love...)

Ahora y por siempre, por siempre, por siempre...

(Now and forever, forever, forever...)



No han oceano tan profundo

(There isn't an ocean too deep)

Ni cima tan alta que

(A mountain so high it can't keep)

Que he majenga, lejos de he... [can't remember the Spanish for this...]

(Keep me away, away from His love...)



I will follow Him

Follow Him wherever He may go

And near Him I always will be

For nothing can keep us apart

He is my destiny...



I will follow Him

Follow Him wherever He may go

Ever since He touched my heart I know

There isn't an ocean too deep

A mountain so high it can't keep

Keep me away, away from His love....



(Ha... think Sijia knows this song too... I've checked Google, and found this link.)

A visit to NUH...

Yesterday, Jan and I visited Kangwei in hospital. We had a great time chatting together. Really so glad to see this dear bro recover... =)

Really thank God for Kangwei... 'cos it wasn't easy for him, but he hung on and has made it through.

Throughout this experience, my heart really goes out with thanksgiving to God, seeing how this time of crisis has deepened our hearts in love, and has brought out the finest in our bros and sisters...

I remember that Thursday afternoon, when we found out that KW had been transferred into the ICU due to an infection. I recall Sijia rushing down to comfort Kangwei's mum, who was crying, and how Fengqi, upon seeing KW's father weeping, silently put his arm around his shoulder...

Kin Wee, when he heard about Kangwei's hospitalisation, went down to visit him. We saw that Kangwei couldn't talk much, so we sat down, put our hands on Kangwei's hand and simply prayed for him silently.

Something wonderful about this is that when we walked out of the ward, Kin Wee and I found out from each other that we had prayed the same thing for Kangwei even though we hadn't told each other what we had prayed for!

Wow... really got to thank God for His grace and power!

So many things to write about... but in a nutshell, thank God, on the same day that we fasted and prayed for Kangwei's recovery, God answered our prayers, and we heard from his parents that he would be moved out of the ICU the next day, and Kangwei himself said that he would be discharged at the end of this week, if nothing goes wrong.

When Benaiah heard this good news, he SMSed back, "Wow... God really answers prayer fast! To God be the glory!"

Thank God so much... think through this time, God has deepened many of our hearts and affections for one another as a family, and I'm so glad that the church of Christ, can really be Christ's witness on earth through the way it shows such love, care and concern for its members and even for those who don't know Him yet.

And I don't have enough time to write about all the other bros and sisters who rallied so readily around Kangwei and his family, when we heard about the crisis...
Sijia, Fengqi, Zewei, Claramae, Shirley, Benaiah, Li Siong, Peter, Hanhui, Jiexian, Meiyan (haha... remember the heart monitor, sis? ;) hen3 funny...), Marcus, Robert, Kim Chun, Ellson, Su San, Jiayan, June, Huiqi, Doreen (ah yes! she lent her MP3 player to Kangwei... earphones included!), Kin Wee, Mich (her reminding Kangwei to eat more and put on more weight... haha... really thank God for this dear sis...), Jan, Chi Yen, Sukfern, Yuhui (our radio man), Shiming and the USM bros and sisters... really sorry if I left any names out, but God knows who you are... =)

Monday, September 13, 2004

Thought about Global Awareness...

Just a personal thought related to yesterday... Shirley shared with some of us before service about her feelings over the recent terrorist attacks... e.g. the Russian hostage crisis, and the extremely cruel things that some terrorists did to the children...



Was very touched by her heartfelt sharing, and something that she shared with us made me think... that after 9/11, we start getting more and more de-sentitised (sic?) to a crying world that is dying.



Help me, Lord, look beyond my own little world, and renew in me a heart of love and compassion for the lost...



To think about what I do to my fellow brothers and sisters... to my neighbour, the person next to me... and to do what is good in Your eyes, Lord... I know this is the starting point...



Mmm... also, was thinking, not just local awareness, but to start having a global awareness. We can't deny that increasingly, we are becoming more and more a part of a global community, and for us young Singaporeans, we tend to be pretty apathetic to what's going on with the outside world.



I remember what my church loves to say: "Think Globally, Act Locally!"



And it's a good slogan, 'cos God Himself is God of the whole wide world... frankly, globalisation was on His mind even before the world began - He who gave us the Great Commission: "...and you will be My witnesses... to the ends of the earth."



Help me, God, get out of my own little sandbox, my immaturity and to start acting upon what I know of You, Lord...



In Jesus' name,

Amen!

Wednesday, September 1, 2004

Prayer of St. Francis

Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy.



O, Divine Master,grant that I may not so much seek

to be consoled as to console;

to be understood as to understand;

to be loved as to love;

for it is in giving that we receive;

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

(St. Francis of Assisi)