A Busy Week Passed

(this post was meant for last week, but i dint had time to complete it too. haha. So while I chase up on tutorials last week, I'll finish this last bit of blog post this week :D. FYI, the title for this blog post was supposed to be "A Busy Week Ahead", but since the week passed, I had to change my title as well as some of the way i phrased stuff, e.g. "I have to meet one deadline" became "I had to meet one deadline."LOL)

**WARNING** Long post ahead.

I've gotten the back the results of some of my tests and written assignments. Didn't do very well. For last week, I had to meet one deadline for a formal laboratory report, study for a mathematics test, and play chasing up with tutorials which I have lagged behind. That's really quite a hard list of things to do. To add to all those, I had to miss this year's VBC camp because of school.

Amidst all these, I've to try my best to be conscious to give praise to God in all circumstances. Really hard, but once it becomes a habit, it gets one into a better mood as compared to plain complaining. I've gotten bad results before, but God had always seen me through, and university is definitely not an exception.

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks to God in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." 1Thes 5:16~18

I remembered when I was still under the wings of John Lam in YPMS. There was this duscussion about praising God, whether it is 'in' all circumstances or 'for' all circumstances. Through the years, when I read this verse, I always ponder upon it. Giving thanks to God for all circumstances sounds ok if if its a passing phrase, but when really thought through, how can we give thanks to God for all circumstances? We would probably go,

"God, I thank You for the pile of homework that I have to complete tomorrow. I also thank You for the irritating friend in class who keep borrow 50 cents a day from me and have never returned. Oh yes Lord, I want to thank You that I got grounded by my mom today because she found out I failed my maths test."

Dosen't this sound wierd? Logically, if someone thank me for anything I've done, that person must have really enjoyed or appreciate my effort. Honestly, if I were given divine power(just for argument sake), and someone thanks me for things like these, I'll give that guy more of what he thanked me for. haha

However, thanking God in all circumstances is far more different than that. Thanking God in all circumstances helps shifts our focus from our own incapabilites, to God's ever sufficient power, grace, and love for us. A thanksgiving to God probably sound like this;

"Lord, You are great and awesome. You made the earth and the skies, and you watch over me. You are all knowing, omnipotent and omniscient. No power in heaven on earth or under the earth can rival yours. Without your word, nothing can harm me, and even now that I am having so much troubles, I know that you are the God who will see me through. I thank You and I praise You for Your faithfulness."

God did not promise us a life free of trouble. In fact, the world hates us christians, and we will find our lives so much harder to live, if not for the grace of God. In Col 3:2, its says to "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.", and as the song goes, "And the things on earth, will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace." Only when we fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, will our problems seem like nothing. That is why we have to give thanks in all circumstances, to remind us of the one we fixed our eyes on.

Recently, I went the extra mile to help some of my friends for their written assignment, giving them pointers and constructive feedback. Felt really good, its like I'm living out my calling as a christian to help those around me. The assignment was marked and graded. Prior to revealing to us the marks, the teacher started the lesson by telling us that some of us wrote out of point, and as such did not do well. My group members started to panic, but I had a peace within me. I used that opportunity to share with them why they should not think too much about it, that these results wont count much next time in life. When we got the marks back, it turned out that three out of the five of us had at least an 'A- ' grade,which was good, but alas, I got the worst out of the whole group.

I tried my best to keep composure, but to be honest, I was really disappointed with the marks. However, on hind sight, I was glad that it was I who got the worst instead of any of them. Sure, the world tells us that results matters, but what I am interested is this; how God can place me in a better position to reach out to those around me. Since I got the worst, I had every right in people's eyes to whine about things, but by God's grace managed to keep myself in check. I am very sure of this: that if God determines my life's journey, who am I to let such earthly disappointment take control of me?

1st Born Plant

(This post was mean for 1 and a half month ago, but only managed to complete it today. haha)

I recall last august, when I first watered the seeds of the chilli plants, nothing grew. For 21 days, I continued watering it, hoping to see a tint of green rising up from beneath the soil. Still, nothing happened. I was at the verge of giving up, but for ritual sake, I continued watering, without much hope left. Then, something amazing happened! One fine day, when I woke up and as usual, glance at the little pot, I saw one tiny shoot trying to make its way for the sun. I was so excited!



Its the first time I had successfully grown any plants ever since the green/red bean plants in primary school! Subsequently, other shoots began to appear, but I realised that I was not as excited about them as my first shoot.

From this photo, might not be able to see the other 2 plants. (4 mths ago)

To prevent overcrowding, I transplanted the plants into individual pots. This is my first born plant. I'm so proud of it for making it out of the soil. Its kinda like a 'plant' of promise, and is so far, my favorite plants.

When the semester ended, I was faced with a crazily packed holiday, no thanks to my special ability to unknowingly overcrowd my schedule. So, knowing that Taiyong's grandmother has magical green fingers, I called Taiyong to ask for permission to place my 4 babies there for the whole of the holidays. Permission was granted. With the help of Daniel Li and his truck, my plants were sent for a one month exile away from NTU hall 7.

After one month. I went to collect my plants.

Look, my first born had grown into such a big and leafy plant.

Take a closer look. There should be 3 fruits(chilli).

There you go, the (almost)ripe chilli.

Why was I only excited when the first plant grew as compared to the rest? I would think its a happy thing to see hope being turned into reality; the first seedling of hope. Subsequently, the maintainence of the plant is a much harder task. I have to make sure that I watered it everyday, keep it free from pests, and also use the right kind to fertilizers(which I used the wrong kind).

When I first went to a church camp and went on my first 'spiritual high', I could never forget it. Its the children's camp at St Margaret's, when I was (un)fortunately in the same group as Jeshua. I couldn't get enough of knowing God. Subsequently, after the camp, the longing died down. How so? The maintainence just got hard.

Like my plants, these days, I've been more conscious of who I let 'water' and 'fertilise' my life. If I choose to hang around people who use abusive language, it will show slowly in subtle way, through my thoughts, then my speech, and lastly actions. If I so choose to hang around people who make excuses for having dysfunctional relationships (with people or God), I end up learning these excuses and might even use them. However, if i so choose to set my heart on God and allow the edification of fellowship to build me up, no matter how slow I grow, I will definitely become stronger.

This I learnt, is a choice. It does not mean to completely block off from such friends. I do have a burden for them. I want to see them saved, and how else to talk to them but to spend time with them? That's a burning question for me, and I guess now, the model answer would be, do it with the strength of the Lord. He will keep us from stumbling.

In ending, an interesting question I often ask myself is, 'In whose hands have I placed my life?" I ask myself this question when I am down, feeling lonely, unjustified etc. It is a rhetorical question, yes, but the level of conviction I say 'yes' determines how much I really trust my creator. Like plants, we need to be in the right hands; the pair of hands which knows when to water us and what fertilisers we grow best is. I know whose hand's I'm in. Do you?