My Jesus is better than anything in this world!~

Hip hiP huRray! Thank God my organic chemistry paper went well! =) haha. Truly My God is a God of miracles... There were 20 chapters in all for our test and I only studied till chapter 16... and if you know how organic chemistry is like, you will know that if one doesn't study all the topics, it's very very dangerous. It's not like social studies or geography or history where we can just spot a few topics.

But thankfully, by God's grace... there wasn't much about carboxylic acids that was tested! haha. and even if it was tested, it probably came out in the 3rd question, which almost everyone didn't know how to do. And a whole long question came out on the topic that I liked best! wow. what can be better than that? haha. Thank God! Indeed, if my God is for me, who can be against me?

As I claimed God's word that "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" - [Philippians 4:13] for my exams yesterday, I see God working miracles today. Indeed, The Word of God is living and has power... all it calls for is for us to apply it in our lives.

Isn't our God amazing?

May you be lost in wonder at the amazing, indescribable love of the Lord Jesus Christ.

My Dream

It is my dream to be a doctor.

Deep in each of our hearts, we all have a dream. And God, our dream-giver will surely help us fulfill that dream! And because I want to be a doctor, I applied for NUS medicine. Last year, I was rejected but they sent me a letter to tell me that I can apply again this year. So, I decided to apply once again! haha. And guess what? I received an email to tell me that my application was unsuccessful.

Honestly, I am disappointed. But I wasn't as disappointed as I thought I would be. Instead, there's a certain part of me that's thankful that I didn't get in. Cos I know that God has the best plan for me!

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose."
[Romans 8:28]

"For I know the plans I have for you," declared The Lord. "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." [Jeremiah 29:11]

And I sincerely acknowledged before God that being a doctor is my dream and will always be a dream of mine. But I choose to surrender this dream to God... whether I can fulfill it in this lifetime or not, it doesn't really matter. Because there is a greater desire within me - the desire to honour God in all that I do. My prayer is that as long as I can glorify His name wherever I am, it is all that matters to me.

As I made that prayer to God, I sensed God smiling down from heaven, telling me that I have passed the test. I have passed the test of choosing to give thanks in all circumstances, of choosing to rejoice and dwell on His truth regardless of the situations I'm in. And I believe that I have grown stronger emotionally as well - to not place my significance on whether I pass/fail but to place my significance in Him who loves me for who I am. =) So I thank God for not getting into medicine this time. hehs.

I will continue to place my HOPE in Him who loves me. Because He who loves me is a faithful God. =)

"But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently." {Romans 8:24-25]

Pictures!

Haha... okae... these are just some pictures that i've uploaded so that my dear friends will not kill me for being so slow at sending them pictures. haha! there's more to come!

Kekek Quarry

"Singapore is looking at re-opening a granite quarry on Pulau Ubin, according to Minister of State for National Development Grace Fu. Singapore's supply of granite and sand from Indonesia had been affected recently when Jakarta announced a ban on sand exports and later detained some barges carrying granite to Singapore.

Ms Fu said that while Singapore has sourced and received imports from other granite sources, efforts will be made to ensure that the supply line is further diversified to enhance resilience for the local construction industry.

She said that while Singapore looks to buy from as many sources as possible, to build its stockpile and work with the industry for more sustainable construction methods, one other alternative is to look into the local granite sources."

Haha... Gosh... That's tianchi! The homeland of Hwa Chong's OAC-ians where we have been camping at for OH and YLTC over the many generations... ah... i hope we can still go there! haha. =)

There are certain people, I called them my friends

Who would you consider your 'friend'? It is important for us to recognise these special people in our lives because with these people, we
- have personal connectedness (give us strength to move on)
- have synergy to create something special (Multiplication effect)
- are challenged to do our best (make us better than ourselves)

Friendship doesn't need structure to hold it together... we need to treasure these "happy-few" who will always be there. =)

Let's begin the search... to identify our "Kairos" Friendships...

1. Who stretches your mind?
- This person probes our minds with different viewpoints and pushes us to grow in our thinking so that we suddenly become more insightful
- The person who benefits the most is me!

2. Who listens to and encourages our dreams?
- Dreams can easily run wild
- But our friends hold us back when the time is not right, although they encourage us to pursue our dream

3. Who will protect you?
- eg. Barnabas who stood up and assured the crowd to believe that Paul had changed and asked them to give him a 2nd chance [Acts 9:26-28]
- This person looks out for our best interests and when people say bad things about us, they will defend us

4. Who are those who share our tears?
- This person will go the extra mile to be there to share our disappointments, exhaustion etc.

5. Who rebukes you?
- We are all capable of making a god called "self"
- These people rebuke us in our best interest and identify our blindspots
- They see our blindspots
- But they are not self-righteous and neither do they judge us

6. Who among our happy few play with us?
- "play" that is good = learning experience
- Recreation is a time of re-creation where we can put aside all our work and burdens and just relax. =)

7. Someone that seeks after God with you
- This person will hold us to a higher standard of Christ-likeness
- We are likely to hear God speak and align to His truth
- Satan is very capable to make us think that certain things are good... but a Christian friend can screen with The Word of God, which has truth and wisdom. A Christian friend will listen to the Holy Spirit and point us to the right direction.

Consistency is seen in our true friends. OF COURSE THEY DON'T NEED TO MEET ALL 7 CRITERIA BEFORE WE CALL THEM OUR 'FRIENDS'... But eventually, allow them to do all seven for us even as we start to do all seven for them. =)

Our ultimate friends is Jesus Himself...
[John 15:12-17]
"My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father, I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you to go and bear fruit - fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. This is my command: Love each other."

Do 'kids' ever grow up?

As we graduate from college and approach our twenties, many of us think that we're old enough to make our own decisions. What right do our parents have to control or dictate our lives any longer? We can do what we want. We're mature individuals approaching adulthood. We should know better. Our parents shouldn't be given the opportunity to mess up our lives. They're just so old-fashioned. We're in a NEW generation already.

Do any of those statements echo your thoughts? Well, that was how I felt... moments ago before God changed my heart and taught me to humble myself. Recently as my cell leader has been encouraging me to go deep in relationship with my family, I've been making it a point to spend time with them and to talk things over with them before I make a decision. So far, it has been exciting and I see how God bridges my relationship with my parents and I find it easier to share with them over the past weeks. But today is the one-in-a-millionth time since I graduated from college, where I decided to ask my daddy for permission to do something 'trivial'. I call it 'trivial' cos it will not affect my future in anyway whatsoever. Anyway, I decided to ask my dad whether I could go for night cycling.

Mustering up all the courage I had, I went to look for him and asked, "daddy, can I go for night cycling please?" And guess what? I received the answer that I dreaded the most - the answer that parents usually give us when we're kids - "NO." Haha. A surge of disappointment welled up within me. I wasn't sad because I couldn't go for night cycling. I mean, I have gone for many night cycling trips before. The truth is, I was sad that at my first attempt to start seeking my parent's counsel once again, I was given the same answer that I feared hearing most throughout all my years of growing up.

After sulking and crying out to God for a while, I finally quietened my spirit to listen to His voice. And The Holy Spirit revealed to me how I always expect things to go my way. But my way might not be God's divine way... for His thoughts are higher than my thoughts and His way higher than my ways [Isaiah 55:6-9]. And that is one of the reasons why He gave us parents. Cos they are instruments that God uses to teach us to be humble before Him.

"Children, obey your parents in The Lord, for this is right. 'Honour your father and mother' - which is the first commandment with a promise - 'that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on earth." [Ephesians 6:1-3]

Then I asked God whether there will ever be a day where we become 'old enough' and no longer need to seek counsel from our parents. And as I sat there talking to God, I realise that perhaps that day will never come. Just as we, children of the Most High God never stop seeking Him for wisdom, regardless of our age; we needa continually seek counsel from our parents! No matter what, being older and having been enriched with many experiences, they can share their wisdom with us!

And those who read [Ephesians 6:4], asking fathers not to exasperate their children... well, it is not up to us to judge our fathers... because God will hold them accountable for the decisions that they have made. All we need to do as children is to obey our parents. And as we do that, we honour God and He will surely bless us. His peace will dwell with us and we can share that peace of God that transcends all understanding with our loved ones. =)