We are the followers of Jesus Christ.
Proudly being a part of City Harvest's spiritual family.
Read our entries to know more about us!:]
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Thursday, May 20, 2010
Asia Conference
Dearest E462!This week is our very own Asia Conference week! are you looking forward to it? i sure i am! to show our enthusiam for Asia Conference and Church Growth International 2010, let's get busy!#1 busy counting down to Asia Conference#2 busy leaving our house early morning#3 busy topping up our ezlink card#4 busy queueing up at hall 8#5 busy taking the chartered bus to our electives venue for the session#6 busy clapping and singing, praising and worshipping#7 busy copying notes#8 busy saying "Amen!"#9 busy receiving the impartation#10 busy encountering God in the special wayLet's start now!
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Saturday, May 15, 2010
The Struggle To Love
The Struggle To LoveGod's love is sweet only to those who are already saints and to those who do not know what they are talking about. That is true not just of God's love, but of all love.Love isn't easy, except in our daydreams. We do not even need to look at the superficiality of the cheaper romantic novels or movies to see the truth of that. It suffices to go to church regularly: we attend service with good people - who are sincere, committed, honest, and full of faith. We may be gathered in faith, but we are human and we cannot but feel certain things in each other's presence: jealousy, irritation, hurt, paranoia, distrust, the sense of not being fully valued. And so beneath our rhetoric of love we also feel tension, distance, and even hostility sometimes. We sing brave songs that proclaim how open our hearts are and how we welcome everyone into this space, but invariably there are parts of us that don't quite mean those words, at least as they apply to some people.And this isn't an anomaly; it's true for all congregations, of every gathering, except those where everyone is already fully a saint. Love, this side of eternity, is not easy, at least not if we try to actually embrace everyone and not just our own kind. The older we get, the more we sense what love actually demands. It isn't easy to say the words "I love you" and actually back that up. What does it mean to love someone? Maybe I would use just two words, fidelity and respect. Love means keeping your word, staying with a relationship and not walking away. And love means fully respecting someone else, not violating anyone's freedom, and positively blessing and helping others to grow according to their own internal dictates. What we actually feel when we do those things is sometimes less than warm, but love, as we know, is not a question of feeling but of fidelity.And partly that is gift, something from beyond us, from a God who can do for us what we cannot do for ourselves, namely, remain together inside of family and community. In the end, that is what church and Eucharist are meant to do: On the night before he died, Jesus sat down with his disciples and what he found there was what we too find whenever we go to church, a sincere bunch of people struggling to not let the jealousies, irritations, self-preoccupations, and wounds of life drive them apart. We come to church and to the Eucharist to ask God to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves - love each other.Maritain is right: Love is only sweet for those who are already saints and for those who are dangerously naive. Since we are neither, it's good to be humble, admit our struggle, and to go to those places that can do for us what we cannot do for ourselves. source: www.jameslau88.com
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Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Can I Forgive?
Can I Forgive?
We are all hurt individuals in some way. We regurgitate our hurts to our friends or strangers. We imprison ourselves with our hurts by harboring grudges and resentment. Some of us have been hurt by: · bosses who intimidated us · teachers who called us stupid · parents who abused us emotionally or physically · spouses who abused us · older children who bullied us · merchants who cheated us · friends who proved to be false · enemies who would give no quarters · self abused with addiction or alcoholism
What this means is that we live in a world of hurts: hardly a day passes without news of abuse, addiction, alcoholism, or broken marriages, ill health, cases of cruelty or desertion, death, disease, divorce or depression. So, when someone does something against us, our immediate and natural response is one of hurt, anger, or resentment or bitterness, or harboring grudges or fear or sadness or revenge.
What others do to us, we often have very little control of. But we have much control in our responses to the hurt they inflict on us. Yes, we can concentrate on our responses to try to ensure that we are on top of the unhappy situation. Yet, we find that we are so human and that we often succumb to our emotions of anger or revenge or hurt. We imprison ourselves with our hurts. Is there a way that we can set ourselves free from this prison of our own making?
Yes, there is one possible way to free ourselves:
1. TAKE our RESPONSE and go to our Heavenly Father and say,
a. Talk to our Heavenly Father as though we are talking to our friends BUT with one difference. Admit that: I know this anger is not doing me any good, it is wrong and it is a sin. [This is confessing my sins]
b. Sincerely say, God I am sorry for my anger. [This is repenting of my sins]
c. Please forgive me.
d. Please help me to forgive him/her for his/her offence towards me. [Only God can forgive his/her sin, which he/she has to account with God.]
e. I receive Your forgiveness based on Your Word: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9 NKJV).
2. ACCEPT His forgiveness with faith: “When He saw their faith, He said to him, ‘Man, your sins are forgiven you’" (Luke 5:20 NKJV). [This is my faith in acceptance]
3. MAKE A LIST of the grievances and go through this prayer over each incident.
4. TEAR up the grievances.
God Himself will begin to act on behalf of both parties. On our own we cannot forgive him/her. But, we need to forgive him/her and he/she needs to forgive us also. So, with the knowledge that, “God has poured out His love into our hearts” (Romans 5:5 TEV) and with His love in our heart, He will enable us to forgive. We will succeed in one instance and fail in another. But we continue to practice this way with faith. Ultimately, we know that His love is always stronger than our anger or hurt or bitterness.source: www.jameslau88.com
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Saturday, May 8, 2010
A.S.A.P
Ever wonder about the abbreviation A.S.A.P.? Generally we think of it in terms of even more hurry and stress in our lives. Maybe if we think of this abbreviation in a different manner, we will begin to find a new way to deal with those rough days along the way.
There's work to do, deadlines to meet; You've got no time to spare, But as you hurry and scurry... ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER
In the midst of family chaos, "Quality time" is rare. Do your best; let God do the rest... ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER.
It may seem like your worries Are more than you can bear. Slow down and take a breather... ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER
God knows how stressful life is; He wants to ease our cares, And He'll respond to all your needs... A.S.A.P. - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER.source: www.jameslau88.com
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Thursday, May 6, 2010
8 'A's of Prayer - part 4
7)Align-ALIGN YOURSELF WITH GOD’S WILL-After we finish expressing what we wanted to say to God, we typically end by saying “Amen.” But what does that word really signify? In effect, it means, “May it be so in accordance with the will of God.” That is, we want to tell God that ultimately we want what he wants. He knows best, he wants the best for us, and so we tell him that regardless of what we have asked of him, everything is contingent on it being consistent with his will. In fact, remember what the apostle John said: “If we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.”Think about Jesus’ prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, shortly before he faced the torture of the cross. “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me,” He said. That was a genuine expression of His heart. But then He also stressed: “Yet not as I will, but as you will.”“We would be in deep trouble if God gave us everything for which we asked,” Hanegraaff said. “The truth is we don’t know what’s best for us.” But we can rest assured that our all knowing heavenly Father does. The Bible says that God “wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth” and he is “not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” At the same time, however, he abides by the spiritual decisions of each person. Actually, the whole tenor of our prayer from the outset should be that we want to align ourselves with God’s will. But as we end our side of the conversation with God by declaring “Amen,” that’s a good time to affirm that it’s God’s will, not our own, that we want to prevail.
That doesn’t end our conversation with God, however. He very well might have something he wants to communicate to us in return. That’s why this final “A” is so vital. 8) Act-ACT ON GOD’S LEADINGS IN YOUR LIFE-Communication with God was never intended to be a one-way conversation. After we talk to God about what’s on our heart and mind, we need to allow him an opportunity to speak to us. He can do that through a variety of ways-through the Bible, through Christian friends, and by giving us an inner impression that is hard to define. “He speaks certain general truths that are true for all time, and he speaks certain specifics that are true for me in my life at this moment,” Cal Thomas told Larry King in his interview.Pause at the end of my prayer time and invite God to speak to you, say to God, “Lord, I need to know what you want me to do, and I’m listening. Please speak to me through my friends, books, magazines, and circumstances." There are people who like to follow up their daily talk with God by scheduling some time when their mind is a little less active than usual. They may wash the car, mow the lawn, or wash the dishes to let their mental rpm slow down so God’s voice might be more evident.The important thing is that you made yourself receptive to him. When you do sense God communicating to you, however, it is important to distinguish between His voice and your own motivations and desires. We are warned by 1 Thessalonians 5:21(NIV): “Examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good.”It is like when you are first getting to know a new friend and he/ she calls you on the phone. You might not recognize his/ her voice at first. After a while, though, you become familiar with how he/ she sounds, and as soon as he/ she starts talking, you know who he/ she is. Similarly, you learn over time to distinguish God’s voice from the background noise of your mind. “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me,” Jesus said in John 10:27(NIV). God won’t ever ask us to do something contrary to Scripture. And he’s consistent; he won’t give conflicting orders to two Christians, so it’s a good idea to bounce everything off of a mature brother or sister in Christ. One test is to ask whether following this particular leading will accrue to your glory or to God’s. If it’s primarily yours, it’s probably a product of your imagination!Many times God will use the Bible to communicate what he wants us to do. The Holy Spirit may illuminate a verse in such a way that it seems to leap off the page to you. Or we may feel especially convicted or encouraged by a passage. Most of all, though, the Holy Spirit would reassure you that you're His child and that He was there for you.When you commit to listening for God’s voice and following him at all costs, watch out! Amazing things can happen. As God told the prophet Jeremiah: “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” Was that promise also meant for us? All I know is that I have endeavored to follow God wherever he leads, inexplicable things happen.to end off:Pray because God wants you to. Pray because God will use that experience to transform your heart. Pray because God is faithful in ways we can’t begin to understand. Pray because you can’t not pray.“Storm the throne of grace,” said John Wesley, “and persevere there in . . . and mercy will come down.”source: www.jameslau88.com
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Tuesday, May 4, 2010
8 'A's of Prayer - part 3
5)Admit-ADMIT YOUR WRONGDOING TO GOD- You give your twelve-year-old son permission to go bowling with some friends. While he’s gone, however, a neighbor stops by and mentions she saw him going into that PG13 movie that you had forbidden him to see. Later you are preparing dinner when your son comes bounding through the back door and opens the refrigerator in a search for a pre-dinner snack. You decide not to tip your hand. “So, how was bowling?” you ask casually. “Urn . . . well, good. It was fine. We had to wait a while to get a lane. But we had a good time.” “Did you beat Jimmy this time?” “Uh . . . I beat him one game out of three. He’s pretty good, you know.” Now, what’s the Number 1 thing you want from your son at this point? You just want him to admit that he went to the movie! You want him to confess that he has deceived you. You just want him to come clean. The longer he denies the truth, the deeper the hole he is digging for himself. And that is how God feels toward us. He already knows what we have done wrong! It is no secret to him. When we obfuscate and spin, when we duck and dodge, when we rationalize and split hairs, when we pretend everything’s fine when it isn’t, he’s just waiting and waiting and waiting for us to ‘fess up. Until then, we are simply lying to him once more by feigning that all’s well. Just as there’s going to be a problem between you and your son until he confesses his wrongdoing, there are going to be difficulties in your relationship with God as long as you cover up the truth by claiming everything’s fine when he already knows it isn’t."While unconfessed sin will not break our union with God, it will break our communion with God,” said Hank Hanegraaff, author of The Prayer of Jesus. In other words, failing to admit our wrongdoing won’t sever our connection to God but it definitely will introduce static into our line. Said Hanegraaff:
The concept of confession carries the acknowledgement that we stand guilty before God's bar of justice. There’s no place for self-righteousness before God. We can only develop intimacy with the Lord through prayer when we confess our need for forgiveness and contritely seek His pardon. The apostle John sums it up beautifully when he writes, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9 NIV) Confessing our sins doesn’t mean vague generalities like, “Well, God, you know I haven’t been exactly perfect.” Instead, it’s the time for painful specificity. It’s when we spell out in agonizing detail how we’ve fallen short of God’s standards. When you began confessing, the Holy Spirit would bring into your mind other sins that you had swept under the carpet and wasn’t even aware that you had committed. It felt so liberating to get those out into the open, to admit them, and to realize that God has wiped you slate clean. You hadn’t even been aware of how those sins had been weighing you down.6)Ask-ASK FOR WHAT YOU NEED FROM GOD- Once we have recalibrated our spirit by worshiping God, paid him tribute for his goodness toward us, and cleared the air by confessing our sins, then it’s finally the appropriate time to bring our requests to God. “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us,” says 1 John 5:14—15(NIV). “And if we know that he hears us---whatever we ask---we know that we have what we asked of him.” We should not shrink back in bringing our requests to our heavenly Father. Jesus told us to ask for our “daily bread,”which theologian Martin Chemnitz said “encompasses all things belonging to and necessary for the sustenance of this body and life.” It can be emotionally difficult to ask God to move in someone’s heart and yet not see immediate or dramatic results. But God’s timing is not our own, and salvation issues are complicated because of the individual’s free will. Yet no time spent in prayer is wasted. Inevitably, there is a difference inside the one who prays. Also, it will your salvation at the forefront of your mind. That made you more alert to opportunities for getting into a spiritual conversation. Praying will bring you comfort. It will remind you that weren’t alone. Our heavenly Father is listening, He cares, and He will soothe your anxieties and fears. It’s true that prayer changes us. It’s the mechanism by which we deepen our relationship with God. We may ask God to give us something because we think we need it, when in God’s wisdom he knows that the very act of praying gives us what we really need. We emerge more dependent on him, more in love with him, more in tune with his Spirit, more committed to his ways, and more tender to his leadings.
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Sunday, May 2, 2010
8 'A's of Prayer - part 2
3)Adore-ADORE GOD FOR WHO HE IS-Making sure you have the right attitude, you should begin your prayer with a time of expressing your adoration of God. You worship him for who he is, for what he has done, and for what he will do in the future. Hebrews 12:28 tells us to praise God “with reverence and awe.” Adds Psalm 100:2: “Worship the Lord with gladness.” Praising God is not only appropriate because he deserves it, but also because it helps recalibrate us. It positions us appropriately as creatures who are fully dependent on our Creator. And it sets the tone for the rest of the prayer. This is where real creativity can flow. We might write a poem to God, sing him a song, meditate on one of his attributes (his holiness, power, goodness, or mercy, for instance), read a psalm, paint a picture, admire his creation of nature---anything to highlight his glory and give him honor.What we are doing is blessing God. You knew how God had blessed you, but how in the world could you bless him? Yet King David knew it was possible for us to bless the Lord. “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth,” he said. “Bless the LORD, 0 my soul; and all that is within me, bless his holy name.” one meaning of the word bless is “to bend the knee”---and that is what David was doing. He was coming before the Lord with humility to praise him. For us to bless God, it means that we call God’s greatness into our minds and then, in response to that, we choose to worship and glorify and adore and exalt and revere him. In sum, we honor God as God. “Sing to the Lord, bless his name,” said David. “Tell of his salvation from day to day.”4)Acknowledge-ACKNOWLEDGE GOD’S GOODNESS TO YOU- It’s also important to acknowledge God’s goodness-in other words, to thank him for all he has done for us. You don’t want to be like the nine lepers who were healed by Jesus but who failed to take the time to come back to thank him, do you? You want to be like the one who went out of his/her way to express your heartfelt appreciation for Jesus’ kindness and mercy. Says 1 Thessalonians 5:16—17(NIV): “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Christian ethicist William Law once speculated about who are the greatest Christians. This was his conclusion: “It is not he who prays most or fasts most, it is not he who lives most, but it is he who is always thankful to God, who receives everything as an instance of God’s goodness and has a heart always ready to praise God for it.” When we stop to offer our thanks to God, it reminds us that all we have comes from his provision. This has the effect of keeping us humble and safeguarding us from worshiping our material possessions as idols. Deuteronomy 8:17—18(NIV) says, “You may say to yourself, ‘My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.’ But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth.” Jesus never gave up on a hard-hearted and hardheaded atheist, but kept reaching out with his gift of forgiveness and eternal life. That keeps me grateful to him. “And give thanks, with joy, to the Father, who has made you fit to have your share of what God has reserved for his people in the kingdom of light,” says Colossians 1:12(NIV). Made a list of the things you were thankful for. It will be of a great reminder of God’s faithfulness---and it will do wonders for readjusting your perspective.
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E462
We are a happy family in Christ who are also faithful followers of Christ!
Our zone supervisor: Pastor Edmund Tay
Our Cell Group Leader: Sister SuTing
Members:
Alexis
Belle Sng
Donnie
Eugene
Jeremy/JianYun, Jerome, Justin Quek, Justin Tan
Kimberly
Maria, Michelle
Nadine
Samuel Ng, Samuel Tng
Vivian
YuTing
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