There are specific prayer items and Bible chapters to read daily and as a Home (cell group), selected persons have been asked to contribute to the chain of daily reflection and sharing. The emails have been a tremendous blessing to me.
It was my turn to write today's.
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Top of the day to you, precious Homies! :)
As I was reflecting on today's prayer item (our church plants in Malaysia and in other countries), I am amazed at the work that God is doing through Acts and my heart is so blessed in knowing that we are fulfilling His mandate (The Great Commission) and living out His purpose as a church, corporately and individually.
When the Holy Spirit came down in The Upper Room on the day of Pentecost, The Church was formed and it was for this purpose: To revolutionize the earth, one soul at a time, by an encounter with the true and living God.
The Holy Spirit saturated the 120 not only as a one-off deal, but did a radical change from the inside out; touching the innermost parts of their hearts, enabling them with courage and equipping them with boldness and wisdom. It was a revival that changed the course of humanity and reversed the mindset of men; that Christianity is not merely a religion but it is an invitation to a RELATIONSHIP of unfailing love.
Fast forward 2000 years later, the methods may have changed, but the message remains eternal.
2 Peter 3 encapsulates in advance the condition of the churches in the Last Days. There will be naysayers, mockers and doubters. Just the thought of it brings to mind the words tragic and solemn.
However, we are reminded to be on guard (by putting on the full armour of God - Ephesians 6:10-18) and NOT "conveniently forget that long ago all the galaxies and this very planet were brought into existence out of watery chaos by God's Word" (2 Peter 3:5, The Message).
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Heavenly Father,
We commit our church plants into Your loving hands, every single one of them now and for the ones to come. We believe in You and all that You are doing in our church. You are faithful from everlasting to everlasting and what You did on the day of Pentecost, you can and are more than able to do it again today. Come down in power upon every leader and person serving, in all areas of ministry. Place in them a zealous desire to commit to the cause of Christ and to give their lives to it. Equip and empower them; in their weakness, You be their strength, in areas that they are lacking, You make up in abundance as their Provider.
As for each one of us, reveal of Yourself in a deeper measure in our lives. Enlarge the capacity of our hearts, stretch our faith.
#1. Woke up and noticed a blue-green coin-sized bruise on my right knee. It must be from that Octo-Woman maneuver (read: the juggling of ALL the ingredients in one's arms to avoid a second visit to the refrigerator whilst using one of the legs to hold off the refrigerator door from closing) I tried to pull off before whipping up dinner yesterday, which failed miserably as the door slammed against my knee and thankfully, none of the ingredients landed on the floor.
#2. Showered and was all ready to head out of the house when I walked into the wall. My left shoulder, this time around.
#3. Crouched down and had a mini discussion with my course mates at MSS. As I was getting up, my back hit the table. Hard. And, loud. My whole tutorial went silent. I went to take a peek (there's a full-length mirror at the ladies'). I got away with a flaming red lower back and a minor graze (which was a MAJOR, stinging pain during my bath).
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Moral of the story #1: The refrigerator door, the wall and the table at D(3)18 are just envious of me.
Moral of the story #2: Always have a large tube of potent Vitamin E lying around.
Moral of the story #3: STOP befriending the refrigerator door, STOP walking into walls and STOP backing into tables.
"Came across this quote and I thought of you - We must accept trials as part of the refining process that burns away impurities and prepares us to meet Christ. As gold is heated, impurities float to the top and can be skimmed off. Likewise, out trials, struggles and persecutions refine and strengthen our faith, making us useful to God."
It is such a timely and divine reminder; that the darkest of nights must give way to the burst of the glorious morning light, that our difficult trials are only momentary.
I learn and am still in the process of learning - discovering His nature, holding on to His promises, believing in His will for my life, trusting in His leading even when I do not see what lies before me but choosing to never let go of His faithful grip.
Right now, it is the toughest part - enduring, persevering and following it through to completion.
Yet, I still choose You.
I am reminded that it was a done deal when I stood up in the hall along with hundreds of other youths, declaring that "I want The Cross" ten years ago.
I am on Day 5 of U-Turn, Acts' annual 21-days prayer and fasting. It is my joy to partner and participate with the church as we corporately seek God for revival (the theme for this year), lift up the Bride of Christ in prayer and petition, as well as for personal breakthroughs.
There are several types of fasts and I have chosen the partial (forgoing breakfast) and Daniel (no meat, vegetables and fruits only) fast.
I so believe in the power of prayer and fasting. Time and again, I have discovered more of Him in ways tangible, amazing and real.
So, staying true to my fasting diet, I cooked aloo gobi (spiced cauliflower and potatoes) as dinner tonight. (Psst, click *here* for the recipe.)
First attempt and it turned out smashing. I see a future for this dish. My satisfied taste buds nod in agreement.
I took out some chicken stock I froze for thawing and made some mushroom soup to have along with bread. A quick dinner fix, before heading over to church for a meeting.
"Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise."
Victor Hugo (Les Miserables)
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I love that quote.
I love it because it captures the law of nature in the simplest manner possible.
This quote sprung into my thoughts as I was thinking about the events that has taken place in the week so far.
It's not easy to take in. It's a bitter pill to swallow.
But, as I read and re-read the quote, something clicked within me. In other instances, it was loud and resounding. This time around, it is gentle; a whisper of hope.
While it is human to feel the hurt and pain, the very nature of He who gave His life to redeem mine (ours) is love, love that is all-conquering; love that heals.
"God is not a human being, and He will not lie. He is not a human, and He does not change His mind. What He says He will do, He does. What He promises, He makes come true." (Numbers 23:19)
It is His nature to heal, restore, redeem and make whole... so much so that His loving arms are stretched wide - again and again, time after time - to soothe, comfort, bind us up and send us on our way; healed, complete and restored.
There was the tiredness, falling sick the night before and the great battle with Sleeping In this AM but thankfully, we overcame it all and completed our planned project.
Backstory: Debra wanted to polish up her photography and editing skills and my Facebook account was in dire need of a new profile picture. So, it was a win-win situation for us both (and, I LOVE win-win; everyone walks away happy and contented).
I feared that the project couldn't materialize today because I was down with a bad bout of flu and was feeling slightly feverish yesterday.
After chugging down two mugs of herbal tea, one Panadol and with the covers pulled over me, I woke up 6 hours later feeling better than I've felt in a few days.
Debra and myself decided to embark on a weekend project. We hope that it'll be a good (albeit brief) break from all of our assignment readings, research articles and brain racking.
One hour and 243 comments later, class was dismissed, at 11.05pm tonight. The beauty of e-tutorial? Critical and creative thinking whilst in COMFY jammies (Simple pleasures...).
I put off cooking for the first two weeks when I came back to KL. I ate out for every meal and I embraced not going grocery shopping, not needing to prepare ingredients and ESPECIALLY not doing the dishes.
Before the two weeks was up, I was hankering for home-cooked food. I wanted to go grocery shopping, I wanted to slice, dice and chop and I wanted to do the dishes. (Alright, for the last one, maybe 'wanted' isn't the most apt of words to use; 'willing' would be more appropriate.)
This was tonight's (and don't mind me saying it) home-cooked dinner PLUS dessert.
P/S: How GOOD is Kinder Bueno? Where have I been all this time? From now on, I'll be alternating between Kit Kat and Kinder Bueno. OR, I could just have 'em both. =p
A rare occurrence, I must say. And, on a weekend? It happens only once every five years. Based on my age now, I'd say that this exquisite affair has taken place no more than 4 times, today being the fourth.
I slipped out of bed at 9.30am, plodded to the kitchen and cooked me-self a quick breakkie.
5 days ago, at 9.07pm, Evie resounded with a familiar tune and it was my dear friend, Tinki Talks. This was what she said:
"Target is La Senza next weekend. La Senza saleeee!!!"
We visited one of the branches yesterday and I came home with my purchases. (FYI, they make THE best and most comfortable sleeping pants and shorts that I've ever worn.)
I love the delicate and girly design of the shorts.
And, I thought the damage was done and over with yesterday.
And then, there's today. We rounded up two malls and I came home with another bag filled with purchases.
We'll be heading for another hangout session tomorrow. My purse needs to be chained up and bolted.
For my 16th birthday, my Dad asked me what I wanted. I was at the age where accessories and clothes were only part of dressing up. The complete process of dressing up and looking (plus feeling!) my best had to include make-up and perfume.
I dabbled around with a little make-up here and there but figured that that could wait. However, my love affair with perfumes began much much earlier. My second favourite bottle of perfume was given to me when I was 15.
We strolled through the mall and the design of the bottle was the first thing that attracted me. It was round instead of the conventional square or rectangle. I picked it up, gave it a quick spritz on the inside of my left wrist, rubbed it against my right one and placed it near my nose for a whiff.
I was sold at that instant. My knees were weak and I handed the bottle to my Dad. "This is THE ONE" was all that I said to him.
7 years later and it is still my favourite of fragrances.
However, now that I'm on my own and getting on again with the flow, I can finally plant my feet on the ground and not feel as though I am walking on eggshells. I take in the day with long, deep breaths and I'm contented.
The pieces do not have to necessarily fit at this point, but within me, I know that all that is needed to complete the puzzle has been placed on the board. Time will determine which piece goes where, Hope assures me that it will be completed on time and Faith reminds me that "ALL things will be made beautiful in His time".
A few of today's sightings...
The sky at 4.48pm today.
I left Taylor's at 5.30pm and while strolling to my car, I saw this:
I was taking the picture above when a group of students passed. I was not within earshot but according to my friend, this conversation ensued.
Girl (while looking excitedly at the car): "Eh, so cool la. Who's PKB?"
Guy (uninterestedly): "Must be that girl taking the photo."
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Debra and I had dinner before returning home and we decided to indulge in (our favourite) red velvet cupcakes and peppermint tea.
There are times when you read a book and it changes you. In the past 2.5 months that I've been on a summer break (I'm doing an Australian degree program), I've read a couple of books like that.
I'm thankful for those books. I'm grateful for authors; people who choose to share their thoughts, experiences, dreams and imagination through words.
I'm not reading (and writing) as much as I'd like to right now, but I'm getting there. I try to put in an hour daily to read the stack of (a mixture between) half-read and new books that I have within arm's reach.
Here are a few of my recent bedside reads...
Hoping to get through this pile within the next few weeks to make way for a new one.
Over time, while hanging out with different groups of friends for drinks or meals, I've been asked this question before (and sometimes after) ordering my drinks; if I was a coffee or a tea person.
I am the latter; a tea person through and through.
Just read some of the posts I've written {here}, {here} and {here}. I even posted a quote about tea {here}!
So naturally, my favourite meal time of the day is tea time. (Additional info: My least favourite is breakfast because I am SO not a morning person. I'm good for breakfast dates in M.I.N.I.M.A.L doses.)
I promised to spend tea time with a friend today and we did; with an accompaniment of peppermint tea (with honey), cakes, stories and laughter to go round the table.
