Sunday, July 30, 2006

Today at Heartland Mall...

we bought:

Bread
Biscuits
Belgium chocolate
Batteries
Bible
Bubble tea


and this is the complete list haha.

Sunday, July 23, 2006

Les Choristes

today's my second official practice with PLMC choir, and we sang during the service! we wore white robes and this nice christmas-coloured sashes.



all robed and excited. doesn't matter if the photo's blur and off-center. nothing can hide the smiles.


He's the Kind of Friend You Need
- Tina English

Maybe you're in need of a friend,
I've got someone you should know.
He's the kind of friend who's there through thick and thin,
He's the kind of love that won't let go.

Whether you live on the top of the world,
Or on the bottom of the sea,
You need a hand, and I've got your Man,
He's the kind of friend you need.

And when the world's been unkind,
And life's been to blame,
He's always there for you,
Jesus is His name.

What a friend we have in Jesus,
All our grief and pain to bear.
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer.

O, what peace we often forfeit,
O, what needless pain we bear.
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer.

So maybe if you're in need of a friend,
I've got someone you should see.
You need a hand, I've got your Man,
He's the kind of friend you need.




Are we willing to offer our lives and substances to God, and stand back and behold what He will do in our midst?

Life's little surprises - all in one day.

Today at YG we had a really sweet boy, J. he lives at the block behind us and next door to wenshan's friend. that friend told us that J is always left at home alone, so we decided to inform his mother and brought him to our program. all he eats at home is bread and biscuits, and his mum comes home late at night. a very sweet pri 1 boy, and very independent for his age. its sad that he's a latchkey kid, locked up at home with nobody to play with. he brought a plain card home and told us that he's gonna make a birthday card for himself on his birthday this coming wednesday. it's one of the saddest things i've heard.

on a lighter note, the rest of the day was full of mini heart attacks. bro and i went to meet our dad, and accompanied him to the cheung cheng alumni dinner at expo. we walked past this hall on our way and i saw this AHS logo on the placard at the entrance.. lo and behold, it's also AHS' 50th anniversary celebrations! on the same day! at the same place! i felt like a traitor. (heart attack 1)

then at the dinner, this uncle went on stage to sing a karaoke song.. the song was from the 50s..... yeah it's really quite a sight. (heart attack 2)

then this other uncle went on stage to play harmonica. he introduced the song to us, telling us that its a classical italian song. apparently the only one i know of is O Sole Mio, so when he mentioned a title i've never heard of, i just assumed that i've never heard of it. lo and behold, he played a song i heard on veggie tales!!!!!! so the tune of that veggie tales song, "High Silk Hat" was adapted from this italian song..... (heart attack 3)

heart attack 4 was the best one of all.......... when we took the cab home. i counted. the meter jumped after every 5 street lamps. one day it will jump according to your heart rate until you get cardiac arrest.

Wednesday, July 19, 2006

a trip to SKS often ends up with me coming out with several books and cards.. really had a great time with the PTYG ladies when we went there after staff meeting.. drove past the other Galicier bakery on our way there too! there's one in serangoon central that's been around since i last lived here when i was 4.. they sell kick-ass doughnuts! and its still the same auntie there..

jasmine really surprised me when she gave me the study bible i wanted as an advanced 21st bday present.. it's an expensive gift.. really touched jas. thank God for your generous heart! He always sends people to provide for me in ways that surpass my expectations..

bought the VeggieTales Jonah movie too! they've got this really silly "Credits Song" when the credits are rolling.. hilarious.


"Do not fight, do not cheat, wash your hands before you eat. There is nothing quite as sweet, a message from the Lord...." lalala....

Thursday, July 13, 2006

tree and tomodachi just left my place.. we had a blast here! though it was just a short 45 mins..



we had kickass iced lemon tea from the kopitiam here.

tree spilled my blender alarm clock's styrofoam balls all over the floor behind my bed!!

we played a bit of mika and tifa's theme on the piano.

i strummed the veggietales theme song on the guitar.

they saw how skinny i was in the old pictures.

they were taken aback by dragoon's size. (they tot it was smaller.)

we had very sweet oranges and pessimons.

we laughed a lot.. a lot..




i think we did quite a lot in 45 mins.

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

Lazy Day

woke up this rainy morning and received sms from yokes.. what came out of it was that we both agreed to reach office only by 10. i sat on my bed and played guitar for a good hour..

work was.. needless to say.. pretty relaxing. only edmund, she and myself were at the office. we even went jalan jalan-ing after lunch at Popular.

we.. erm.. left office at 4:10pm. walked to the library to return some Baby Blues and Dilberts, and borrowed some more. (and a Calvin and Hobbes)

reached home at 5pm while yokes left for band practice.

mum: "why today you leave late and come home early ah? tou1 lan3 ah??"










=x

Monday, July 10, 2006

Everyone's gotta do it

ok guys, i'm gonna let you in on something special tree and i have shared for awhile. it wasn't that we were ashamed people might know or what.. in fact we're pretty proud of it.

some people just don't know how to appreciate what we have.

we discuss about toilet issues.. especially on the topic of excrement. our principle is that if we don't share about it with anyone.. how will we really know we're normal anyways? tree and i have been faithfully updating each other on what goes on behind closed toilet doors.. even when she's been away in Adelaide we've kept a rather active email thread with the subject "plops".

which leads me to my next point. tree's gonna flip when she sees this. tomodachi has breaking news? so do i!

i had purple poop today.

yes you saw that right. PURPLE POOP.

my mum bought these dragonfruits from the market yesterday. from the outside they looked no different, but when she sliced off the skin she realized the meat was even purple-er than the skin itself. it was absolutely SOAKED with magenta colouring.. we got out tongues purple eating it.

yes, and we all had purple poop today.





we have one more purple dragonfruit in the fridge. fun!!

Sunday, July 09, 2006

STOP SELLING CHOU DOU FU AT PASAR MALAMS!!!!!!!!

it's not the right place. go somewhere with better ventilation and most importantly, FOREWARN those around you first. you made me bypass the cute-stuff stall before i could check out the Keroppi air freshener and Cars stickers.

Stranger In The World

i do not have to look at too big a picture to realize this world is falling. ever noticed that commuters on the mrts look more glum than they used to? everyone is materially more satisfied, but when i look into their blank faces, i see a little bit of weariness, indifference and emptiness all rolled together. do they not know that someone is knocking on the doors of their hearts, waiting to be invited into their lives and offer so much more than they ever dreamed of?

God is waiting for those who are willing to accept His unconditional love.

as i grow in my faith i also noticed how my blog entries have changed. "more about God" now as tomodachi mentioned. as God grows in my heart i realize i begin to open more doors into places i have never let others venture into. He has taken His place in every aspect of my life. how can He not? with someone like God in control, i gladly let Him take over. living our lives without Him is like driving a car in Flinstones era - propelling the vehicle with our feet. it is only when we hand it to Him does He have the keys to start the engine. He drives, we ride along.

some friends get a little freaked out when they see how "religious" i am. they have conjured biased opinions about my faith and my God based on what they have heard from others, without really finding out for themselves who God is. to them Christians are just fanatics who go around proclaiming the name of Jesus. when i try to talk about God, i know just that they're thinking. "wah this person.... so religious wor! whole day talk about her God.. but quite no life.. sometimes i also don't get her.. so religious for what? relac la.. God is somewhere but i don't really care."

maybe i have become one of those people they have decided to shun from.. but i will always ask them "if i want to introduce Jesus to you, what have you got to lose?"

to the world i'm fanatical, but i consider it joy. i do not mind being a stranger in this world, as long as you don't mind this stranger-friend of yours. "religious" (this term has somehow become derogatory) as i am, this is the new and improved Jean. it may mean that you will have to know me all over again, and i really hope that you can take the time to do so. because God made all of us, we can never see ourselves as we really are until we see Him as He really is. i guess that's the most useful truth you can learn today.



"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." - Galatians 2:20

Thursday, July 06, 2006

i feel like i've been gone for a long time. (the one-liner entry is just a cameo.) i haven't been particularly busy but just too brain-dead to blog.

but yay the friends are back! with their thick jackets, pale skins and unhealthy enthusiasm for the local food they haven't had for four months. some will be around for long enough, but others for only a short time. meet up! catch up! celebrate birthdays! hug! hang out! shop! eat! laugh!

there's lots to be done. =)

i hope everyone's been having an equally, if not more fruitful time. but just remember to get enough sleep.

Sunday, July 02, 2006

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." - Jim Elliot

Saturday, July 01, 2006

Death cannot defeat me

Yokes blogged about the day when an elderly man jumped from the 7th of the block where our office is situated. we found him barely alive at the drain downstairs and watched his life slip away before our very eyes. as they carried him away on the stretcher i wondered if he would make it.

he didn't.

on that same day after lunch someone hanged himself in his home at the block behind our office.

i thought about what could have driven these people to such a state of hopelessness and desperation.. most of all i wondered how things would have been so different if they had God in their lives..

i'm not saying all christians don't commit suicide, or are immune to devices like depression, but people take their own lives when life has lost its meaning and purpose. if only they knew their Creator, who held the answer to the purpose of our lives, what a big change that would have made.

a close friend's grandfather passed away on that same day.. and he never received Jesus into his life as well, despite having heard the gospel many times. the thought of him not being in heaven probably brings deep hurt to his loved ones who have been saved. one wrong choice led to an eternal consequence.

why do christians get so upset whenever someone leaves this world without accepting Jesus? its not so much about threatening others with the truth about hell, but even in the time we are on earth Jesus turns our lives around. salvation is a ticket to heaven, but more importantly it is the assurance that we no longer have to work so hard to prove ourselves to those around us. in a world that tells us "you're special IF......", Christ's death for everyone on earth tells us that "we are special just because." because God loved us too much to be separated from us eternally, and in Jesus' death He solved that dilemma.

we might have heard this "you can only go to heaven if you are a Christian" thing many times. some don't buy it, and believe that as long as you're lived a good life you'll be somewhere better. (who decides whether you've lived a good life or not?) others just accept it with respect but are equally optimistic about other opinions pertaining to the afterlife. (how can you accept conflicting doctrines? they can't all be right.) yet others hear it, thinks it makes sense and do not internalize it into their lives. (i know it in my head, but i dont' wanna do anything about it) even yet others do not even care, and live as though they'll never die.

no one lives forever, and its important to ponder about such issues, cheem or irrelevant as they may seem. we can avoid it temporarily, or occupy ourselves with short-term goals, or pack our lives with too much busyness to think about it, but the question will always remain. If you die today, are you so sure you'll go to heaven?

Descant

Will your anchor hold
In the storms of life?
When the clouds unfold
Their wings of strife?
When the strong tides lift
And the cables strain
Will your anchor drift,
Or firm remain?

We have an anchor
That keeps the soul
Steadfast and sure
While the billows roll
Fastened to the Rock
Which cannot move
Grounded firm and deep
In the Saviour's love

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