Wedding Ticker
Thursday, April 29, 2010
| Exercising Faith |
how does God build FAITH in us?
you know how we always talk about "having faith in God" but we don't actually know how to exercise that faith. so last week's sermon came very timely, especially what i'm going through in my personal life right now and i thought its only right to share :)
6 Ds of what happens from the time we are called to be His children.
1) DREAM
firstly, God plants a DREAM in our hearts and minds. He gives us that dream, a picture of what He wants to paint in our lives. This dream is usually impossible to reach (because if it were possible then it wouldn't be called a dream, DUH heh ;p).
2) DECISIONS
decisions - the most important part in the 6-steps process as our dream would usually cost some investment of time, money and energy on our part in order to pursue it. this is also the part where God wants to teach us to let go of the security and comfort zone of what we have known all along and to look only to Him for security. this is also where OBEDIENCE and WILLINGNESS comes in place.
"obedience is more costly than sacrifice"
what God wants to see is how obedient are we to His calling.
3) DELAY
after we have obediently done what the Lord has called us to do, step number three is the season of delay, dryness and drought. :/
this is the most trying time and i believe currently, Seven Dresses and myself are in this situation. and the funny part is, there are people around us that are prospering and somehow those people whom we thought were friends, are somehow supporting other blog/physical shops. and you can only wonder to yourself if this is the right path that the Lord has set out for us? YES without a doubt, it is!
this dry season is where most people lose the DREAM as it is a test of our faith. and this is the time where all the more, we have to look to God and shut our mouths in case we are whiney and complaining. easy to say but hard to do. i for one am guilty of that. :S and if we do open our mouths, it should only to be agreeing to the word of God because its only when we do so, that we are setting the thermostat of what will eventually happen.
"...if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." (Matthew 17:20)
this step is vital because God needs to take away the ugliness and to purify as well as beautify the DREAM that He gave us in the beginning; and this takes time.
4) DIFFICULTIES
things will still not be improving and in fact, MORE difficulties and obstacles will come our way and the only thing we should do is still to look to the Lord - very similar to what we should do in Step 3.
5) DEAD-END
in this context, the meaning of a dead-end means no U-turning, no going back and there is only 1 way left. where God's hidden treasures are found, things here will start to look slightly better.
"only God can turn cruxifiction into resurrection"
6) DELIVERANCE
once the Potter has moulded us into the clay that He wants us to become, painted the DREAM to what He had in mind right from the start, then things will finally begin to pick up. He will finally come to deliver us and that, my friends, is God's way of teaching us how to build faith.
"faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ" (Romans 10:17)
hope you learnt something here because i certainly did.
things sure ain't easy with Seven Dresses but ultimately, it is a test of faith. we know that as long as we stand firm with God, we can overcome this drought that we are facing now. Amen!
you know how we always talk about "having faith in God" but we don't actually know how to exercise that faith. so last week's sermon came very timely, especially what i'm going through in my personal life right now and i thought its only right to share :)
6 Ds of what happens from the time we are called to be His children.
1) DREAM
firstly, God plants a DREAM in our hearts and minds. He gives us that dream, a picture of what He wants to paint in our lives. This dream is usually impossible to reach (because if it were possible then it wouldn't be called a dream, DUH heh ;p).
2) DECISIONS
decisions - the most important part in the 6-steps process as our dream would usually cost some investment of time, money and energy on our part in order to pursue it. this is also the part where God wants to teach us to let go of the security and comfort zone of what we have known all along and to look only to Him for security. this is also where OBEDIENCE and WILLINGNESS comes in place.
"obedience is more costly than sacrifice"
what God wants to see is how obedient are we to His calling.
3) DELAY
after we have obediently done what the Lord has called us to do, step number three is the season of delay, dryness and drought. :/
this is the most trying time and i believe currently, Seven Dresses and myself are in this situation. and the funny part is, there are people around us that are prospering and somehow those people whom we thought were friends, are somehow supporting other blog/physical shops. and you can only wonder to yourself if this is the right path that the Lord has set out for us? YES without a doubt, it is!
this dry season is where most people lose the DREAM as it is a test of our faith. and this is the time where all the more, we have to look to God and shut our mouths in case we are whiney and complaining. easy to say but hard to do. i for one am guilty of that. :S and if we do open our mouths, it should only to be agreeing to the word of God because its only when we do so, that we are setting the thermostat of what will eventually happen.
"...if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." (Matthew 17:20)
this step is vital because God needs to take away the ugliness and to purify as well as beautify the DREAM that He gave us in the beginning; and this takes time.
4) DIFFICULTIES
things will still not be improving and in fact, MORE difficulties and obstacles will come our way and the only thing we should do is still to look to the Lord - very similar to what we should do in Step 3.
5) DEAD-END
in this context, the meaning of a dead-end means no U-turning, no going back and there is only 1 way left. where God's hidden treasures are found, things here will start to look slightly better.
"only God can turn cruxifiction into resurrection"
6) DELIVERANCE
once the Potter has moulded us into the clay that He wants us to become, painted the DREAM to what He had in mind right from the start, then things will finally begin to pick up. He will finally come to deliver us and that, my friends, is God's way of teaching us how to build faith.
"faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ" (Romans 10:17)
hope you learnt something here because i certainly did.
things sure ain't easy with Seven Dresses but ultimately, it is a test of faith. we know that as long as we stand firm with God, we can overcome this drought that we are facing now. Amen!
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
| TX-5 |
before i talk about the TX-5, can i tell you how much i am lovin' my new blog layout? haha!
simple and clean - my type of blogskin. hehe
so back to the TX-5, we are finally gonna get it after work today and i just cannot contain my joy and excitement of finally owning a camera that does not require us to stop breathing when taking night shots. ;p i have nothing against my old nikon, after all it did serve us well for the past 5 years i think. BUT fact is, its old and its gotta go and i'll definitely miss her!
and our purpose of getting the TX-5 now instead of any other time is because:
1) we're going REDANG ISLAND soon! (realised i haven't blogged about it yet *oops)
2) and to the ZOO as well for some Decisive Force thingy
3) and because i just want to..*lolx*
will be back with MORE pictures that will be super clear and sharp and pretty! *muack*
simple and clean - my type of blogskin. hehe
so back to the TX-5, we are finally gonna get it after work today and i just cannot contain my joy and excitement of finally owning a camera that does not require us to stop breathing when taking night shots. ;p i have nothing against my old nikon, after all it did serve us well for the past 5 years i think. BUT fact is, its old and its gotta go and i'll definitely miss her!
and our purpose of getting the TX-5 now instead of any other time is because:
1) we're going REDANG ISLAND soon! (realised i haven't blogged about it yet *oops)
2) and to the ZOO as well for some Decisive Force thingy
3) and because i just want to..*lolx*
will be back with MORE pictures that will be super clear and sharp and pretty! *muack*
Friday, April 23, 2010
| Again |
a heavy stone that weighed down,
a careless word that hurt.
a shout that broke hearts,
i am the damned one again.
its tough, its hard,
waging a spiritual warfare.
the Holy Spirit diminishes,
and human nature takes over.
discipleship - the cost of carrying the cross,
not many could withstand.
the spirit is willing,
but the flesh is weak.
disappointed again,
discouraged again.
how to pick myself up?
i try to trust again.
Jesus oh Jesus,
only You know me,
only You see right through me,
only You understand me.
my tears are diamonds in Your sight,
only i mean that much to you.
a careless word that hurt.
a shout that broke hearts,
i am the damned one again.
its tough, its hard,
waging a spiritual warfare.
the Holy Spirit diminishes,
and human nature takes over.
discipleship - the cost of carrying the cross,
not many could withstand.
the spirit is willing,
but the flesh is weak.
disappointed again,
discouraged again.
how to pick myself up?
i try to trust again.
Jesus oh Jesus,
only You know me,
only You see right through me,
only You understand me.
my tears are diamonds in Your sight,
only i mean that much to you.
my heart is in pain,
my eyes tear,
my lips start praying,
grant me self-control,
help me be more like You,
so that people may see You in me.
Amen.
my eyes tear,
my lips start praying,
grant me self-control,
help me be more like You,
so that people may see You in me.
Amen.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
| Sick |
i'm down with sore throat, fever, pounding headache, runny nose, body ache and cough AGAIN. this is the second time this year that i'm taking MC. if i continue to skip work tomorrow (wed), i would be left with 8 days of MC for the rest of 2010!
this is even worse than when i was studying part-time. *sigh
what is wrong with me?!
anyway, the time now is 12.57am and i am still debating if i am well enough to go work tomorrow or just skip it altogether? i went back to work in the morning today to process all our salaries which would be paid out this friday, and i was coughing and sneezing and blowing my nose NON-STOP. then i felt feverish and decided i HAD to go HOME and so i did and went to the doc AGAIN.
speaking of the doctor, pls let me complain.
i went to the clinic on monday morning and it was the lady doc on duty. she's a lil strange and she always seemed extremely UNSURE of what medicine to give. and i thought that since i was dying of a burning sore throat and runny nose, i'll just let her talk to herself. so she gave me 1 day MC. to be honest, its not that i'm so hard up for the MC, but if she had given me 2 days MC right from the start, she would have saved me LOADS of trouble having to go back another round today.
so i managed to rush down after work today and this time round, it was a male doc. i like him better. even though he's a young guy, he talks really SLOWLY. but at least he's more certain of himself - that i am positive. so he said that i caught the FLU BUG and i had to stay home to rest and not go round spreading the VIRUS to my colleagues which i totally agreed given my earlier experience in the morning. then he said i was RUNNING A TEMPERATURE i.e. FEVER. ah this was something NEW that the female doc FAILED to diagnose on monday. *major eyeroll* so finally he said another 2 MORE days of MC to STAY HOME AND REST.
and that was what i had been doing the whole day. thing is, i am feeling better. but i'm not so sure of the runny nose, sneezing and coughing part tomorrow. i really feel bad if i'd passed my virus to my colleagues, which by the way, happened before and even though my colleague and boss didn't say it that time, i knew that the WHOLE WORLD knew it was ME.
back to my earlier point, so should i go to work or should i stay home?
now before you start accusing me of faking MC, allow me to clarify that i am on this medication that is STRONGER but gives me INSOMNIA. :S
this is even worse than when i was studying part-time. *sigh
what is wrong with me?!
anyway, the time now is 12.57am and i am still debating if i am well enough to go work tomorrow or just skip it altogether? i went back to work in the morning today to process all our salaries which would be paid out this friday, and i was coughing and sneezing and blowing my nose NON-STOP. then i felt feverish and decided i HAD to go HOME and so i did and went to the doc AGAIN.
speaking of the doctor, pls let me complain.
i went to the clinic on monday morning and it was the lady doc on duty. she's a lil strange and she always seemed extremely UNSURE of what medicine to give. and i thought that since i was dying of a burning sore throat and runny nose, i'll just let her talk to herself. so she gave me 1 day MC. to be honest, its not that i'm so hard up for the MC, but if she had given me 2 days MC right from the start, she would have saved me LOADS of trouble having to go back another round today.
so i managed to rush down after work today and this time round, it was a male doc. i like him better. even though he's a young guy, he talks really SLOWLY. but at least he's more certain of himself - that i am positive. so he said that i caught the FLU BUG and i had to stay home to rest and not go round spreading the VIRUS to my colleagues which i totally agreed given my earlier experience in the morning. then he said i was RUNNING A TEMPERATURE i.e. FEVER. ah this was something NEW that the female doc FAILED to diagnose on monday. *major eyeroll* so finally he said another 2 MORE days of MC to STAY HOME AND REST.
and that was what i had been doing the whole day. thing is, i am feeling better. but i'm not so sure of the runny nose, sneezing and coughing part tomorrow. i really feel bad if i'd passed my virus to my colleagues, which by the way, happened before and even though my colleague and boss didn't say it that time, i knew that the WHOLE WORLD knew it was ME.
back to my earlier point, so should i go to work or should i stay home?
now before you start accusing me of faking MC, allow me to clarify that i am on this medication that is STRONGER but gives me INSOMNIA. :S
Friday, April 09, 2010
| Seven Dresses |
since monday night, i've had troubles falling asleep. this is very unlike me because being the pig that i literally am, i've never had such problems!
maybe i'm still convalescing from tummy flu that we were down with last weekend.
or maybe i've just been stressing out over my new blogshop which by the way is open. do visit http://sevendresses.livejournal.com/ to get yourself one dress for each day of the week and for a good cause! from now until our big day which we are targeting May 2012, we are pledging 20% of our profits to the missionary work that is going on at Cornerstone Community Church; while the remaining 80% will go to our wedding fund. :) after which, we hope to faithfully commit at least 50% of our profits to missionary work. so help to SPREAD the word yah? *winks
why Cornerstone? hmm because we had been very blessed by the services since day 1 we attended CSCC and with our lil efforts, we hope to do something for the Lord; to give something back to Him.
why a blogshop? hmm because i feel that its not without reason that i can't stop shopping online or in physical stores or have an eye for fashion and all things beautiful ;p and i figured there must be some way i can channel this passion or compulsive disorder into something useful and before i knew it, one sunday during the sermon by Karen Dunham, she talked about taking back what rightly belongs to God's people, specifically about Launching, i knew it then that it was God speaking to me.
you see. prior to that service, i had been corresponding with a supplier/wholesaler whom had gotten my email address from one of the bazaars where we participated under my other blogshop, Missy Hand Me Down (will talk more about that another time but you could also shop there ;D). and it was cool because she opened up the possibility of me owning a blogshop sellling first-hand clothes. however, with the capital that was needed to start and how business would be very slow in the beginning (which i hate to agree), i was very hesitant and procrastinated for quite a bit, almost to the point of giving up this idea completely. BUT it was that sermon which woke me up. i knew what i had to do, i knew what God has called me to do, i knew i had to launch and start this blogshop soon and credit it to His name. and instead of keeping all the profits to myself, why not give a portion to help others, for the extension of His kingdom? and so, that's how Seven Dresses was born.
maybe i'm still convalescing from tummy flu that we were down with last weekend.
or maybe i've just been stressing out over my new blogshop which by the way is open. do visit http://sevendresses.livejournal.com/ to get yourself one dress for each day of the week and for a good cause! from now until our big day which we are targeting May 2012, we are pledging 20% of our profits to the missionary work that is going on at Cornerstone Community Church; while the remaining 80% will go to our wedding fund. :) after which, we hope to faithfully commit at least 50% of our profits to missionary work. so help to SPREAD the word yah? *winks
why Cornerstone? hmm because we had been very blessed by the services since day 1 we attended CSCC and with our lil efforts, we hope to do something for the Lord; to give something back to Him.
why a blogshop? hmm because i feel that its not without reason that i can't stop shopping online or in physical stores or have an eye for fashion and all things beautiful ;p and i figured there must be some way i can channel this passion or compulsive disorder into something useful and before i knew it, one sunday during the sermon by Karen Dunham, she talked about taking back what rightly belongs to God's people, specifically about Launching, i knew it then that it was God speaking to me.
you see. prior to that service, i had been corresponding with a supplier/wholesaler whom had gotten my email address from one of the bazaars where we participated under my other blogshop, Missy Hand Me Down (will talk more about that another time but you could also shop there ;D). and it was cool because she opened up the possibility of me owning a blogshop sellling first-hand clothes. however, with the capital that was needed to start and how business would be very slow in the beginning (which i hate to agree), i was very hesitant and procrastinated for quite a bit, almost to the point of giving up this idea completely. BUT it was that sermon which woke me up. i knew what i had to do, i knew what God has called me to do, i knew i had to launch and start this blogshop soon and credit it to His name. and instead of keeping all the profits to myself, why not give a portion to help others, for the extension of His kingdom? and so, that's how Seven Dresses was born.
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