yea, exam tmr morning! bring it on! haha confidence from God and faith in Him. Gonna need to rely on Him once more :) Im too blessed to be stressed..looking forward to the better times ahead in the holidays haha. These exams are nothing in the hands of God, phew so no need to worry. Praying for a good nights sleep, and a bright and early refreshing start tmr morning with a day where God is just in full control. Divine wisdom, peace, and understanding will be with me :)
Pick it up!! count down to spiritual encounter.
sooo sick of studying >.<>But great sermon at church this morning, on true rest.. haha hopefully i wont get too 'rested' that i totally forget about my studies, and still see my role as a student is to study and do well in exams! It is waaay easy to put study as the top priority, especially in this exam period, where all that is on our minds is our exams. I need to remember, to be aware of my state of mind, and not let the exams lord over me. To put God first, but at the same time putting my heart into studies.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
|
Php 1 27 Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel, 28 and not in any way terrified by your adversaries, which is to them a proof of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that from God
v27 seems like such a 'Paul' thing to say haha.. after reading a lill on his lettters to the corinthians, and ephesians, there's some stuff which he repeated or had the same idea in the letter. v27 is like combination of various verses i know of in ehpesians, but i guess it is relevent to all, and by repeating it this shows us the importance of it. v28 seems more like a verse that i can relate at this moment.. to be 'not in any way terrified by your adversaries', yea i read that and felt like it was talking about me..haha. It served as a good reminder to me, to really recognize who i am. I am the redeemed of the Lord, who has the greater one living in me. A son of God that cannot be easily shaken because i am from God, and my God is not shaken! and if im not making any sense, itll because of studies + lack of sleep..
there is freedom in submission, and bondage in rebellion. yea! got bored of studying so decided to listen to undercover.. had this headache the whole day, which made it really hard to study, and its all because i had this crazy dream this morning, which made my head feel soo heavy when i woke up. Didnt even feel like i had any rest at all. Staring at the computer screen and fine text all day also didnt make it any better :(
Php 1 19 For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
hmm im not liking studying for exams, especially when im studying for one that im not particularly interested in, and isn't very interesting itself.. but yes, after listening to yesterday's sermon, it made all the problems and exams seem like such a simple thing. Simply just having faith and believing in God, the master of breakthrough! haha.. but i know that for this to happen we ourselves need to give our 100%. There's still a few more days before my first exam, which is on sat.. definitely counting on God to pull me through! Lots of preperation that is still needed to be done, and im gonna be needing lots of stamina and good memory, with divine wisdom and understanding. With God all things are poosible :)
It was pretty cool how yesterday while i was reading my Bible in the morning, i was reading Philippians 1, and v6 was one of the verses that just caught my eye, and stuck in my mind.. the whole thing about God completing the good work which He begun in us.. and even more amazing, Ps anne preached on it as well! Feel so relieved that ultimately God is in control, and that He has a plan for our lives, and promised in His word to complete that good work, and cause that plan to come to pass as long as we let God do his thing in our lives. To give our live to God once more, to be utterly sold out to Him! Really i pray for God to have his way, to just barge into my life.. i give Him permission to!
knocking some sense into myself once more! started looking at the bigger picture with a 'tunnel' vision once more. Gearing up for spiritual encounter, and to be at my best (spiritually)! I realised for myself that it takes me a while to get back up there, it's like my engine needs a while to fully warm up.. to be able to totally flow with God's presence and just to be at one with the Holy Spirit. So to get the most out of this spiritual encounter, in order to have all my expectations met, i need to prepare myself. Especially being in the worshipnet, i need to be even more focused and on fire! can't expect to lead others to a place where i haven't been before, can i? it's not jsut about me, but those around me as well. Need to completely rid myself of myself, so that God can fill me up with all that He has planned for me once more. I've been blessed to be a blessing, so im gonna do my best to be a clean and pure, totally unblocked open channel for God's use.Worshipnet this morning was good :)
spent the last 2 days going through a whole smester's worth of recorded lectures..which was about 18hrs? so now my head feels like its going to explode with all the info that has passed through, at the same time retention rate can also be said to be very low. Well i guess that was just to mainly refresh my memory, so that when i go through the workshop questions after this none of them will seem new or foreign. Not to mention work tonight, which i really shouldnt be going because of the time constraints, it isn't really doing me any good! And because of the timetable i set myself, in the process of trying to keep up with it, i havent been spending time with God, or really little.. not good as well..suddenly 24hrs a day seem so short o.O I need to get through a certain amount of work each day in order to be ready for the exams, which in this case is already pretty hard to achieve.. and even more importantly i have to spend even more time with God, which should be really natural. But when i focus my mind on my studies i cut everything else off, not finding it possible to think of the answer to the question and to think about God at the same time.. And im gonna need to cut back on more sleep! hmm don't think im doing things the right way, gonna have to change my method a little bit more to incorporate God much more during the day. To put Him first..seems really impossible right now, but it actually is possible!
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
|
feeling so unmotivated to study, even if i sit down with just my books and nothing else, my mind always tends to wander haha.. just cant seem to concentrate :S Time is running out, with a week and a bit to go, i still have 3 subjects to revise for.. my body isn't feeling that stress or push so i just have to force myself to. No work tmr night, so i have to full day..gonna try to get much more work done, and not sleep in like i did this morning! can't keep digging my grave deeper and deeper..eep! eph 3:16 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, eph 6:10 10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
Verses of strength and might that i've read recently! Gonna use these verses to keep me going, both physically and mentally. Can't afford any depressing thoughts or mental breakdowns haha. Battle is won in the mind!
church this morning was a surprise with Ps Nick preaching to us! His way of preaching was different and i think like everyone else, i was pretty amazed at the teaching on the covenant. That was new info for me, not the regular stuff that is normally taught at our church but im not sure if the international students got as much out of the sermon as some others might have. Lots of reminders, like the two sides of the road that we have to be careful not to fall into, which is legalism and license(i think). Especially being brought up in an asian culture where from young we have been taught to do good in order to be loved or approved by someone else, legalism would definitely be one of the stronger walls that would be holding most people back and hindering them in their walk with God. And once again we cannot expect God to bless us, and fulfill all His promises if we first don't submit to Him, and live our lives the way we have been taught. Many people go off i guess quoting the Bible and claiming all of the blessings and promises, while at the same time living in sin.. don't think it works that way. I also really like how Ps Nick tried making each and everyone of us feel 'important', by giving the example of the whole unvierse having been created just so we could live. Really reminded me on the magnitude and large scale of God's love for us, and i always find it hard to remember because its just too much to even imagine!
Nothing to worry about with God in control, all we have to do is to trust in Him, and have faith in Him. Our future is secure in His hands, and each one of us is important to Him..something which is took me a very long time to actually absorb, and still shocks me whenever i think about it. God is just on a level that is waaay above us, higher than we can ever imagine! What are our tiny little problems and issues when compared to the greatness of God. We are fools to even loose our standing and our peace to the lie and deceit of the devil. I thank God for the people that He has placed around me, and i love each and everyone of them.. i pray daily that God would give me a soft heart that would just hurt and ache caring not about myself but those around me who have played a big role in my life. It's funny how the devil puts negetive and demoralizing thoughts in your mind, and one thought leads to another, with each picture getting dimmer and duller, with the final outcome of us having like no hope at all. We often tend to overlook that all the thoughts we have were just lies based on our emotions and how we feel at that moment, and that Christ is our everlasting hope who never fails. Never give up going onwards, pushing aside every hindrence and worry that stumbles us. Our lives revolve around Christ and not around what others think about us. May we never ever forget the One who gave His one and only son, and the Son who gave His life for ours.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
|
so i havent posted anything the past 2 days because ive been doing my take home exam, which i handed in today.. also due to the fact that i had rather irregular sleeping patterns, which wasn't good. Gonna get back into the habit of early morning devotions, and ending the day with recaps here. Must admit, that i havent really been doing proper devotions due to the thoughts of exams and studies, and life hasnt been as great as its meant to be because of that. Was reminded of this tonight at life group. which was led really nicely by sam.. the things he taught really got my mind thinking a bit and made me realise that i have in the midst of all these events, i did slide back a bit and got so caught up in things that i kinda forgot some of the very basics on faith and obedience. But all's good now, recharged!
James 1:12-16 12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. 14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. 16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
|
yea first exam tmr! technically in 8hrs time haha.. but it's a take home exam over a period of 2 days, but i still don't think its gonna be easy and i know that im gonna be needing every single hour! hehe gonna do it with God's widom, knowledge, understanding, and some superb memory haha. Expecting great results!
Ehp 5 1 Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 3 But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints;
To be imitators of God, and to see ourselves as saints! To live the live we were meant to live, and not what we want. eph 4:1 always gets me - to walk worthy of the calling with which we were called. I have to keep that at the front of my mind all the time, must not forget!
today i reckon church was pretty epic, well at least i found the morning service sermon really different, but it spoke to me sooo much. I was more shocked when Ps Chris started preaching, mainly because last night before i went to bed, i was praying and the thought of hell and what would happen to me if i died right there and then, or if i went to sleep and never got up again! It was one of those moments where you suddenly reflect back, and start seeing how scary hell really is, and that our sin has so much weight, that one tiny sin can drag us all the way down to that horrid place where once we enter we will be stuck there for all eternity.. Well this morning we finished off with mighty to save, which i think went pretty well..all pumped and excited to hear the message, and then Ps Chris started talking about 'The place where we don't want to be'. And that just freaked me out, coz it was such a coincidence and it was like God was trying to tell me something. Even freakier because i seldom ever think about such things, and when i do, the next day it becomes the sermon. But because of that, the message sunk much deeper into my heart, and i was definitely more alert than i would have been, and the impact was much greater.. I'm sure God has a reason for everything He does, and i know that God is telling me something through this.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
|
i found prayer meeting tonight really good, not sure how everyone else found it..might have been just me hahas..think im getting used to the corner that im in, because of the loud speaker that is right in front of me.. makes its easier to worship without being able to hear myself haha. but yeh, i wished it had gone on for much longer becuase i was enjoying every single moment of God's presence, and just the unity of the church i guess. It just brings you to such a high that you literally just forget about everthing around you, and things that were once on your mind is just washed away completely erased with the mind just being filled with just the greatness and awesomeness of God! haha.. makes u feel like exploding, and gives you the sense of power and confidence that you could literally do anything e.g fly! Prayer meetings usually tend to bring me to this peak, where it gives me the strength to move on in another month. Like a recharging of batteries where you feel so refreshed and re-energized just after one night of corporate prayer and worship! I don't think i'll be able to spiritually survive a year without going to prayer meetings, coz it's just too important to miss out on. That for me would be life changing in its own way.
eph 4:26-28 26 “Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, 27 nor give place to the devil. 28 Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor,
Lord i pray that my actions will speak louder than my words, not only that, but that i will walk the talk and live the life that i say i will live. I want to be a person that has substance, and has a reason, that serves a purpose.. "to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called".. very big words. I thank God that everyday is a new day, and i am just glad that each day we have new beginnings and new choices to make. I aim to live each day better than the day before, and to be better than the day before.. to do justice to myself, and the greater one that lives in me. One of the more important things that i need now in this period i would say is discipline!
just finished work and its almost 2, and ive got uni at 9 tmr! mhmm gonna be fun trying to keep myself awake and getting out of bed tomorrow.. Pentacost Sunday yesterday :) Filled with a new measure of the Holy Spirit!
Eph 4 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—
haha, i read this and i thought of worshipnet on sat morning, and i guessed just refreshed my memory on the growing up part, and that we should no longer be children..because it is said there specifically in v 14. 'tossed to and for' would be how this world may treat us sometimes, or well for me at least.. a lot of it would be because of studies and work, but a part of it would also be because of poor time management i would say. You just get the feeling like your circumstances like exams and certain commitments that you have made are controlling your life.. instead of you. But this shouldnt be the case, and we all know that haha.. God is in control at all times, we just need to believe in Him. Guess it all boils down to us growing up into the position that we have in Christ, and knowing our identity.. to realise who we are meant to be in this world! because we are more than conquerers! we don't just conquer, we go above and beyound all situations.
|
|
