Sera speaks: "1% Inspiration, 99% Perspiration."

Sera is a theatre production student from LaSalle, she never fails to inspire others around her with her deep convictions and carefree expression of God's love. She's blessed with a beautiful singing voice too!


Hello Hello lovelies!!!

For the most of us, our term break has started! Yay!! Means more time for each other right? =) School for me is the same as usual, if you've already been listening to my stories from year 1 haha. But it's gotten so much easier to go through even though the modules are getting tougher. With God everything is possible, even me doing well in school. haha Yay!

Lemme go on to my sharing. Was in my rehearsal on day and my director, who is actually a really good and wise person but sometimes abit shout-y shout-y la, he told this to the actors. "It's 1% Inspiration and 99% Perspiration. You can't live with inspiration alone, u don't get anywhere else but under a tree." Haha!! What he meant was, if you're just gonna have vision and day dream under a tree all day, nothing gets done. And what he also meant was, to get what you want, or to pursue God's visions, it's mostly hard work and sometimes suffering a little for it.

In my case, I get an inspiration to lose weight, so I buy a dress 2 sizes smaller than what I would normally wear. The weight doesn't go away just by me staring at the dress and every few hours try it on to see if it fits. It takes a long time, and with exercise and a whole lot of discipline. =)

Lemme share a verse that taught me what it is to be a true disciple. =)

1 Corinthians 4:12
"We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly. We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world -- right up to this moment."

Not so easy huh? We all have dreams as disciples, but do we aspire to be the true disciple or do we just live with the name? It's not all daisies and pretty things, sometimes if not many times we have to break a sweat and work hard for what we believe in. Then our dreams come true. =)

There's a reason why it's called a spiritual battle. It's not just chess. We fight for who we are and we fight for God. Don't just look up to heaven and be inspired. =)

Here's something to encourage you. =)

1 Peter 2:9-10
"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not recieved mercy, but now you have recieved mercy."

Let's give it our all for God. =)

Love you dearly,
Sera

Wilfred speaks: "Insights from Matthew 11 - Fashion Sense."

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I'm counting down the months to ORD (5 to be exact from 18/02/08) and I'm earnestly looking forward to joining you guys in the coming months! I'd also like to ask that you keep me in your prayers as I've re-applied to NUS & NTU to see what options will present themselves and to allow God to make it clear that SMU is His plan for me.

I believe I've received much in terms of the sharing that's been going around this emailing list so now it's time to give something back. I'd like so share from Matthew 11.

Matthew 11:7-9.
"7As John's disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: "What did you go out into the desert to see? A reed swayed by the wind?

8If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings' palaces.

9Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. "

The following introduction is something i gleaned off from my Student's bible; thought I'd give credit where credit is due.

John the Baptist - Something New
Fashion starts with a single purpose: to turn people's heads. At first the new look is a shock. Many say "Wow!", some say "Ugh!" Whether it's shorts skirts or long, nose rings or ear rings, paisleys or pastels, the new must stand out to gain attention.

John the Baptist was something new, and he certainly stood out from his surroundings. Though he could have been a priest like his father, he exchanged those linen robes for a garment of coarse camel's hair. He took to the wilderness, scavenging grasshoppers and wild honey rather than settling in Jerusalem where he could have savored a portion of the offerings people presented to God.

John's unusual style helped direct attention to his burning message: The Messiah was about to arrive, and people must change their ways. Crowds flocked to hear John, and he baptized them in the Jordan River as a sign of their repentance, thus earning himself the nickname 'the Baptist'
Read Matthew 11:7-11 again and you find Jesus challenging the crowd about what they were looking out for.

Now imagine Jesus challenging the friends that we bring to bibletalks and Church. What have they really come to see?

What are we 'presenting' to them to see?

Jesus pointed out that through John's image and lifestyle people were drawn to him.
Take some time to think about our lifestyles and the image we portray to our colleagues and friends and how we are attracting them to get to know God.

Are our lives attractive spiritually? Is are they just just attractive materially?

When I think about spiritual attractiveness, I think of the Fruits of the Spirit and the Armor of God in Ephesians 6:13-17. I'll be focusing on the latter.

In today's fashion sense, how attractive can a suit of armor be? It's medieval for one, and others would probably think of it as bulky and burdensome but I'm grateful that the Armor of God we're to put on can be considered weightless! As disciples we ought to wear it like our second skin.

The 6 pieces of armor are:
the Belt of Truth, the Breastplate of Righteousness, the Sandals of Peace, the Shield of Faith, the Helm of Salvation and the Sword of the Spirit which is God's word.

This suit of armor's purpose is two-fold; it protects us from Satan's attacks and also makes us stand out in our schools and workplaces by being attractive.

Let's take some time this week to examine ourselves and check our armor; if it's rusty let's polish it and let it shine!

Matthew 5:14-15
14"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.

15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.

16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

Let us strive to set an example and live our lives in such a way that it attracts people to God's Kingdom.

Amen that's all I have for you today.

Love & cheers,
Wilfred

Stefanie speaks: "Jesus Wept."

Stefanie, our dear sister from Indonesia, is currently doing her Masters in Civil Engineering at NUS. She's full of life and also full of child-like wisdom!

Dear brethrens,

Just catching up with u all and wanna share some thoughts about what I read today.

John 11:1-44, about how Jesus raised Lazarus from death.

21"Lord," Martha said to Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died.
22But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask."

23Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again."

24Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."
25Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies;

26and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"

27"Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ,[b] the Son of God, who was to come into the world."

28And after she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. "The Teacher is here," she said, "and is asking for you."

29When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him.

30Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him.

31When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.
32When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died."
33When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled.

34"Where have you laid him?" he asked. "Come and see, Lord," they replied.
35 Jesus wept.



Well, it's the first time Jesus wept over someone, before he wept for Peter for going to deny him. He planned the whole scene, since He delayed His journey to Judea in order to show God's greatness. But even though he planned everything, He was still deeply moved and even wept when He saw the sisters' sadness. I feel that it applies to us, too. When God let us faces challenges and trials, He plans it well and He know through it we can learn and grow and glorify God after we conquer it. Nevertheless, He will also moved when we struggle in those challenges, for He feels what we feel. When we weep for the loved one we lost, when we feel why things happen to us in such a bad situation, when we try to persevere in our struggle Jesus is there.



Isaiah 63:9
In all their distress he (note: God) too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and mercy he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.
So, for everyone, who struggle with the yoke God has put to you because He believes you can handle it, Jesus feels what you feel and relate to it. And, just like Lazarus, Jesus will come to save the day (watched Powerpuff Girls too much :P). For men, it may be "too late", but God has His own timing to give the best for you.

Cheers,

Stefanie C.
In a room with her laptop and tons of lecture notes

Jeremy speaks: "Don't worry be Happy."

Jeremy is our brother, full of joy and inspiration. He brings smiles to everyone's faces and glory to God with his excitement for His word.

Was reading Mark 7 - 8 and some other supplementary reading. somehow, i just focused on the man and his dying daughter (or dead towards the end of the chapter).

The man approached Jesus for help, because his daughter was dying. Imagine his feeling. Every second that went away, i believe his anxiety, worries increases exponentially. This is his loved ones we're talking about. Though his daughter died when the man and Jesus was about to reach the man's house, but Jesus was able to heal his daughter back to life again!!! Awesome!!! :)

Coming back to the present, it is true that everyday we are bothered by tons of worries and anxieties.

Worries about school and how well we fare as compared to our peers - Students

Worries about meeting deadlines set by the boss, targets etc... - Singles

Worries about providing for the family, spouse, children and parents - Married

My goodness, our life is all about worries if u look at it.. Sad rite, so gloomy. But... that's if we handle everything by ourselvesor allow ourselves to be weigh down by all these anxieties of the world.

Forget not our heavenly Father. He is always here for us. We can bring our fears/anxiety/worries to Him in prayer.

Just like the man in approached Jesus with his worries.

God's peace will guard our mind and heart -> allow us to tackle any problems with a peaceful and calm mind.

God's wisdom will guide us in making the right decisions.

Let God drives us, not our worries in life.

Of course, pls do not have the idea that God is like our nanny/maid, that we throw everything to Him, thinking that life will be a bed of roses. We do our part, God will certainly do His. :)Nothing is too difficult for God. (I mean He can even raise the dead, what is deadlines, career prospect, exams to him? piece of cake :)To those who worries about donno what to do in the future, exams stress, loads of work, etc.... bring your anxiety to God.

Before i end, just wanna share the following with u all:-

Philippians 4:6-7 :-" Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which tanscends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

No matter what your circumstances are, turn your anxiety over to God and let His perfect peace guard your heart

(adopted from "Experiencing God Day-by-day. Henry T. Blackaby and richard Blackaby)

Have you prayed today? :)

Love

Jeremy

Alfred speaks: "The Rich Young Man."

Alfred is our very cheerful, zealous and fired up brother. He loves children and is always inspiring others with his soft heart towards the word of God.

The Rich Young Man

Mark10:17-22
MK 10:17 As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. "Good teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

MK 10:18 "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good--except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: `Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.' "

MK 10:20 "Teacher," he declared, "all these I have kept since I was a boy."

MK 10:21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."

MK 10:22 At this the man's face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.’

In this passage, we read about a man who did all the rights things and Jesus pointed out the sin in his heart that he didn’t know was there. Perhaps we can learn from his experience.

Jesus was quoted 6 out of the Ten Commandments. They are:
1) Do not commit adultery.
2) Do not murder.
3) Do not steal.
4) Do not bear false witness — don’t lie.
5) Do not defraud.
6) Honor your father and your mother.
I was brought up by my great dad & mum. They have taught me well and they have inculcated the right value in me. I have never steal… never cheat (actually cheated once, but my dad found out and he gave me a good scolding & caning…)… I honor my dad and mum. I never disobey my dad & mum before. (The only time that I disobey is when I make the decision to become Christian). I am a good son and I listen to my parents.

So when Jesus quoted the Ten Commandments, I will probably give the same answer as the rich young man, “All these I have kept since I was a boy.”

When Jesus saw the rich young man, he saw that one major sin that stopped him to inherit eternal life. It is his love for his wealth…

I may have never violated any of the Ten Commandments. However, I do know that there are many other sins that I have fallen into which are not stated in the Ten Commandments.

Galatians5:19-21
GAL 5:19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
MK 10:21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."


Jesus did 3 things here. He looked at the young man. He loved him and then he spoke to him. Jesus knows our heart. He understands all our struggles. He knows our strengths and weaknesses. Jesus cares about us and he spoke the truth in love to the young man of how to inherit eternal life.

There were two things that the young man was not able to follow. He was not able to give up his wealth and he didn’t want to take up the cross and follow Jesus.
What are the things that we are not willing to give up for God? What are stopping us to take up the cross and follow Jesus?

Conclusion:
We may be good people but being good people doesn’t mean that we will inherit eternal life. In order to inherit life, 1) We must follow all the commandments in the bible, 2) Give up the things that stop us to be close to God & 3) Carry the cross and follow Jesus.

Sera speaks: "My little dream of being humble."

Sera is a theatre production student from LaSalle, she never fails to inspire others around her with her deep convictions and carefree expression of God's love. She's blessed with a beautiful singing voice too!

Hi Brothers and Sisters,

How've we all been? I know for me, it's getting a little tougher. Especially with direction in my life. But all's well, I guess. Need prayer that God will show me a clear path and that my eyes would be opened to see that path He has for me.

Was just thinking back when I was still in kid's kingdom, how my aunt Cynthia (some of y'all might know her) would ask me if I wanted to be a christian and I'd always say yes!! And she'd ask why.

My reply would always be, "Because I want to be humble." I had no clue what being humble was all about. haha. Since then, it has been my dream and it inspires me to know that God gave me that vision even when I didn'tunderstand it. But now I do. I'm glad I held onto that child-like dream.
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I'm gonna share something about humility that I've grown to understand and appreciate the difficulty of attaining.

Deuteronomy 8:3
"Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone; rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord."

Been reading quite a lot on humility on top of the NT readings. Just to give my QT a little more flavour.

This passage really taught me the simplicity of the term, 'we do not live by bread a lone.' I've even sung it in songs so many times. (Man shall not live my bread alone.... But by every word~~)

God gave them just enough to live with so that they would understand the greatness of Him. When I got that insight, I immediately thought about the many great worldly things that we have. They all distract us from God. Being humble is also about living our lives free of distractions, so that we can fully absorb the greatness of God and live by Him.

Proverbs 11:2
"When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom."

With humility comes wisdom. My two loves that I want to aquire, all in one simple sentence. I feel like, in situations when I've been humble in accepting advice and accepting other's view of me, I'm calmer and I actually make wiser decisions. And at that point I really see myself becoming the woman God wants me to be. Don't ask me how I know... You just do.

I'll leave you guys with that.

Love you all dearly =)

Sera

Alex Theo speaks: "God remembers you."

A big guy with an even bigger heart, Alex is a brother who is very contented and happy. He finds joy in the little encouragements God places in his life.

Hi guys!

What a privilege it is to be in the mailing list of the campus! Thank you God for that! It has been very encouraging reading all the sharing so far! Trust me, some of the sharing really did make my day better after a really really long one!

Wow! Its been a long time since I last shared my QT with u all! Been sooooo busy with school work over the past few weeks as I was developing a training seminar for my project. Thank God its over already!

Hmm..... Where do I start? I guess since we're on the NT reading thought I'd share some insights I've gained along the way.

My group, House of Rock, are doing something interesting. We have chosen 2 topics to be discussed on 1st Feb's burreans nite! But before I dwell into that here's something I learnt from Matthew 1.

As we all know, it is the genealogy of Christ! We can go away thinking, its just one mega long family tree! But if you look at it deeper, its actually an encouraging chapter! What I kinda gathered was that God was encouraging us by telling us He never forgets those who have served him. If you look properly, the names mentioned actually dates back as far as Genesis 16 or 17, this being Abram then but later known as Abraham! And it goes chronologically all the way till Christ's birth! I think any day if ya feel down, think bout how God DOES remember you as we are all His precious children, more precious than gems or treasures measurable!

The 2 topics my group are looking into are:
1. The Power of the Resurrection
2. The Importance of Hope

I'll share bout it a little further in my next mail out. In the mean time I hope u guys n gals will be encouraged by that short verse and sharing.

Love you all!
@ _ 3 X

Alfred speaks: "The Parable of the Two sons. (Matthew 21 : 28 - 31)

Alfred is our very cheerful, zealous and fired up brother. He loves children and is always inspiring others with his soft heart towards the word of God.

Hi Campus,

The Parable of the Two Sons

MT 21:28 "What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, `Son, go and work today in the vineyard.'

MT 21:29 " `I will not,' he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.

MT 21:30 "Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, `I will, sir,' but he did not go.

MT 21:31 "Which of the two did what his father wanted?"
"The first," they answered.


1) God desire a repentant heart.

In this passage, Jesus wants us to imitate the repentant heart of the first son. In the past when I did my QT on this passage, I misinterpreted it wrongly. I read it and thought that if I don’t fulfilled the promises that I ought to do, God will displease me. I felt very down when I missed my QT or fall into sin and I thought that I was like the second son who was not able to keep promises. However, after reading this passage again, I realize that Jesus didn’t say that he disliked the second son. Rather, he said that God desire the repentant heart of the first son. In the passage, God is not focusing on the unfulfilling promises, but rather focusing on the repentant heart.

2) What I need to repent on?

I will like to thank brothers and sisters in for all of your inputs. They have helped me to be a better brother, a better leader and a better son for my family. I am happy that I am now 7 years as a disciple. Without the Campus brothers and sisters helped, I won’t be able to grow much in my leadership, maturity and sensitivity. I am grateful to be in Campus. However, definitely there are many areas that I can grow in. They are…

3) Discipline with my time

In this semester, God has blessed me with a good timetable. I have many breaks in between lessons and I actually have lots of time to do the things that I always wanted to do. When I looked backed for the past few weeks, I can’t remember what I did with my time. I realized that I am far from the goals that I have set myself. I have goals like spending more time studying bible with people and spending more time reading Christianity books to build my knowledge of the bible and also prepare myself for biathlon. I pray that I can be more discipline with my time and to archive the goals that I have set myself.

4) Be a man of Courage

I pray that I can be bold in my area of evangelism and constantly share my faith in NTU.

Love you deeply,
Alfred

Bernard speaks: "The Poor Widow"

Dear Bros and Sisters,

I am really glad that we are having this church wide simultaneous bible study. Knowing that there are other disciples who are reading at the same pace as I am encourages me to do my quiet time everyday.

Just want to share an insight about the poor widow who put in two small copper coins in the temple treasury.

The Widow's Offering
As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. "I tell you the truth," he said, "this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on."

(Luke 20: 1-4)

Before, everytime I read this passage I always imagined that Jesus wants me to give more monetary contributions to the Church. But after being a Christian in our Church and being inspired at how insightful other Christians are when they read the Bible, I realize that there is more to this story than Jesus wanting more out of our pockets.

Certainly God appreciates a giving heart that does not hold back. To Jesus, the poor widow who gave her everything has definitely given more than the rich people who only gave part of what they can truly offer. To delve a bit deeper, I asked myself what does it mean to be a widow in those days?

In 1 Timothy 5:5 Paul says "The widow who is really in need and left all alone puts her hope in God and continues night and day to pray and to ask God for help." For someone to pray night and day to ask God for help sounds pretty desperate to me. And Luke says that the woman who gave the only money she had is a poor widow- being a woman in those days she probably had no work, maybe no relatives to look after her, could possibly resign herself to begging in the streets, and most definitely had no resources or property. And yet she gave all that she had and did not hold back.

Luke 21:1-4 however does not denounce the rich people who gave what what is due of them. But it certainly gives a contrast between a person who gives more than what is expected (the poor widow) and those who just gives what is required of them (rich people). This passage encourages me to give more than what is required of me. Not just monetary but in every endeavour I do for the Lord. Like by serving Him, instead of just doing what is expected of me, I should cheerfully do more by giving my time and putting in more effort. In Jesus' standards, it is simply not enough that we just fulfill our responsibilities, but we should make it a point to bring things higher and do more for the Lord.

In Church I see alot of Christians doing this. Those who use their precious time and energy to give more to God. There are the leaders, the choir singers, the ushers, those who prepare communion every Sunday morning, the disciples at Kid's Kingdom, etc. These are people who go the extra mile to serve our one true Master and Lord and Father. And I am confident that Jesus Christ is very pleased by the acts of sacrifice these people make.

God bless you all!

Love,

Bernz

Marilyn speaks: "It's not the man"

Amen, Jer! Your email sharings are not just encouraging, but very insightful as well. Also you write in a conversational way which warms my heart, it's like i can imagine you talking to all of us in a bibletalk setting or morning devo. :)

Just some background info about the 12 apostles that Jesus had picked out... have you ever wondered why twelve? Why not eight? Or twenty? Like what Jer shared, why not every single person in the crowd then?

The number twelve is filled with symbolic importance. There were twelve tribes in Israel. And the religion of Judaism of Jesus' time represented a corruption of faith of the Old Testament. Israel had abandoned God's grace in favor of 'doing good works'. Their religion was legalistic, filled with hypocrisy, self-righteous works, man-made regulations and meaningless rituals. Therefore, in choosing 12 apostles, God was in fact appointing new leadership for the new covenant, judgement against the 12 tribes of Old Testament Israel.

None of the 12 apostles Jesus chose were from any religious background. They were common men, fishermen, tax-collecters etc. They were like us. In this world, there are no intrinsically qualified people. God Himself must save sinners, sanctify them, and then transform them from the unqualified into instruments He can use. Just like the 12 disciples...because of them, 2000 years later, millions of people know God! Sometimes, Satan will attempt to convince us that our weaknesses render us useless to God and His church. But God chooses the humble, the lowly and the weak so that there's never any question about the source of power when their lives change the world.

It's not the man, it's the power of God in the man.

Dear lambs, let's be cranking the ministry and save at least 2 men and 2 women this semester :)

Jeremy speaks, "Heart of an intercessor."

Jeremy is our brother, full of joy and inspiration. He brings smiles to everyone's faces and glory to God with his excitement for His word.

Hi campus,

it's really nice to see emails flying here and there. :)

anywayz today wanna share something after reading from mark 1-2 and Eze 22:30

As i was reading mark 1-2, i notice something. well, Jesus was preaching the gospel to the people and i noticed that a large
crowd followed Him.
Hmmm.. now... why did they follow Jesus? there maybe many reasons, they could probably be
- curious
- since they were there, might as well follow and listen and see if Jesus was really as great as what others proclaim Him
to be
- really believed that He is the Son of God
and the list goes on.

well, i was wondering, why is it that Jesus did not appoint all these people as apostles, imagine there wil be thousands of people.
Spreading the word can never be easier right?
But...
Maybe Jesus saw through them and knew that though there were numbers right before His eyes, but none was ready.

Eze 22:30 - "I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on the behalf of the land
so i would not have to destroy it, but i found none."
Perhaps, Jesus was finding someone with the Heart of an Intercessor.

An intercessor is defined as a link between 2 parties. God will look into our heart and choose us. We may not volunteer to be
an intercessor, God will choose us. He will enlist us into His army of intercessor. As a disciple, being called by Him to the kingdom,
we ought to intercede for the lost.
Thinking back, before we got baptised, many pray for us, interceding for us, willing to stand between God and man.
so we should pass it on, right?

So how to intercede? well, i am no expert but the following are my personal opinion:-
- (in conjunction to today's devotional) we evangelise, but we must be sure what is our intention. we should evangelise with love and plant the seed of faith,
God will sprout it, well, we interceded by planting/sowing the seed, making the 1st move.
- We pray, but we stripped away all our status and all earthly authority before Him. Humbly asking for the salvation of
people ard us. Have faith and believe.
- We intercede, because we want to imitate God, imitate His love.

Lastly, "if we truly have God's love within us, we will feel compelled to plead with God on behalf of those who face His imminent judgement"
(taken from Experiencing God Day-by-Day by Henry T.Blackaby & Richard Blackaby)

Happy reading. Yawnzzz gonna sleep. lolx.
Take Care

Love
Jeremy

Victoria speaks, "Healing fo the deaf and mute man."

Victoria, a fresh psychology grad from NUS, is a full-time teacher in a secondary school. She enjoys cooking and that makes many of us in Campus very happy indeed!

Actually,

I think it's not exactly strange that Jesus brought the man away from the crowd. Jesus did that again in Mark 8. He's not someone who wanted to incite the crowd into excited frenzy due to his miracles. He wants people to listen but so the miracles are more to show that he's the Son of God rather than a publicity hype. I am not sure about his actions part but I read somewhere that Jesus might have put his fingers into the man's ears to demonstrate how he wanted people to listen as one of Jesus's greatest challenge was to get the people to listen to the right message.

(Quite similar to what we see now as well: Are we listening to the right message? Are we responding to the call of the Bible or to the call of the world?)

I do am curious about why Jesus used spit though. It's something rather rare. Is it some property of spit? Or is Jesus trying to say something as well?

Hmmm... anyone?

Wei Lin from the East speaks, "Thoughts on God's divine nature -- perfectly just, loving unconditionally."

Dear all bros & sis,

Coincidentally, my bible talk berean group was also doing a study on Matt 20. So, tot of sharing our insights with you all. We did our discussion based on the theme, Jesus as the servant.

Let's grow deeper in our love for god and his words this year as we embark on our journey of NT readings. :)

love,
weilin

Matthew 20: 1-16 – Parable of the vineyard workers

God is humble to invite outsiders to His kingdom. God is in fact doing the workers a favour by employing them; as the workers are all idling. Even though it is a losing business for the vineyard owner, he accepts all the idle workers; jus like how god accepts us through grace.

God is generous to give every sinner equal amount of grace and is impartial by not showing favouritism to anyone who enters His kingdom earlier than the rest.

Do our best to serve even though every follower will still receive the same reward from God himself at the end of the day.

The workers who started work earlier; they complained when they only received a denarius; the same amount as the workers who started work later. They feel that they deserved more than a denarius since they put in more hours of work. The workers who complained had a worldly mindset about servant hood. They forgot that it was the vineyard owner who first gave them a job when they were idling.

Do we have a worldly mindset about servant hood? Do we look at other Christians and compare how much we serve and how much we gained?

We need to remind ourselves that we serve because god chose us and gave us salvation first even before we started doing anything for him.

Matthew 20: 24-28 – Being a slave for god

As slaves, when we have victories, the credit is to the master. Sometimes, in the world when we have victories, we claim the credit for ourselves and we built on our reputation in the world. Serve with an attitude without claiming any credit and recognition.

As slaves, we do not have anything, there are no possessions owned by the slaves. They are fully under the control of the master; and submit to the master in obedience. Be grateful to God as a Master who is still willing to provide my needs even when I am His slave.

We are either slaves to sins or slaves to God. Make a stand to choose to be God’s slave to righteousness, letting Him take total control of my life.

Are we being slaves to God or other things in our lives?

Andrew speaks: "Men and Women of Teachable Hearts."

Dear bro and sisters,

I'm convicted by the fact that God wants us to share our learnings in order that we may grow as a body in Christ. God wants us to be the light of the world. He doesn't put the light in us so that we may hide under a bowl or our bed. Hence let us lead a radiant life as a disciple, glorifying Him in every single way possible.

Recently i've attended a seminar on asking good questions. A good question sounds like this:
1)Is most of our convictions from God? If they are from God, did we get them just from the bible?
2)Is our God-based convictions always applicable in every situation?

As i read Mark 2:23-28 i saw how strongly the Pharisees held on to their 'convictions'. They were a devout sect of Jews that abides the Mosaic Law whole-heartedly and in its entirety. What started out to be God-fearing 'convictions' drifted over time, diluted as it passes down from generation to generation.

Sometimes i find myself so used to doing things in a certain way that i no longer question what are my motivations are. I just do them in a mechanical fashion without much thinking. Do we review and reflect our convictions when other disciples gave us input or do we simply brush them aside because our convictions became the 'untouchables' in our lives. Be mindful that not all convictions are not necessary from God. There are good convictions and not so good convictions and there are cut-and-paste convictions used in a unsuitable situation because the circumstances are different.

Jesus asked the Pharisees in Mark 3:4 whether it is lawful to save a life or to do evil on sabbath. The Pharisees could not answer because clear cut black and white area became a 'grey' area for them. Jesus got angry with them because of their stubborn hearts that refuses to unlearn and re-learn the correct convictions. He was hurt because he saw how much man's heart has drifted from fervor and zeal to indifference.

Some points to ponder:
1)Do i have any not-so-good convictions that i'm not humble to unlearn and re-learn?
2)Have i tried to look at the circumstances before doing a cut-and-paste of other's convictions in my situation?
3)Do i share with people my convictions or the values/reasons behind those convictions?

Three things i've learnt: Question my motivations, Validate the situation, Re-learn the convictions

If we do these, we'll be able to have that teachable heart to allow us to respond humbly whenever we stand corrected by God's Word or by his people.

Love ya all
andrew

Victoria speaks: "Jesus' Last Words."

Victoria, a fresh psychology grad from NUS, is a full-time teacher in a secondary school. She enjoys cooking and that makes many of us in Campus very happy indeed!

Hi everyone!

Am now sitting on a bench at NTU waiting for some campus brothers and sisters to turn out before we do some evangelism. I am also meeting a friend for dinner after my project meeting as well. Thank you God for allowing me to be a student for a year again! It's AWESOME to be a student but also very GRATIFYING to be a single as well. Amen? Amen. haha, hope u all 'miss' my rambling to myself.

I will just like to share abt what I learnt from Jesus's last words in Luke 23. Today, my key verse was to meditate on verse 34. Have you ever wondered why Jesus said those last words? Why did he choose to phrase the words as it is? It was his last few moments and he only uttered words seven times (Luke only recorded 3 statements he said when he was on the cross). Taking my Literature lesson to heart, I wrote the verse in a HUGE font. It's something like this:


Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing

So what did I learn abt the meaning of this verse?
- Jesus was interceding on the people's behalf to ask God to forgive them
- The people were ignorant of that they were carrying out the prophecies written in OT. (Isaiah 53:3-12)
- Jesus did not say this prayer just once.


Then I asked myself the question: why did Jesus ask God to forgive the sins of the masses? In Matthew 9:2, he told the paralytic that his sins were forgiven. Why did he not do the same thing now?

Because he's taking the sins of the humans... he's becoming one of us. He's offering himself as a offering to atone for the sins of you and me. Imagine the mighty judge now being wrongly judged so that the wrong can walk free. Very unfair right? It made me think abt how I often catch myself complaining abt how life is so unfair... Jesus's death illustrates the need for us not to hunger for justice but to be merciful. There will always be injustices in the world but hope and mercy made life on earth more bearable.

The whole statement above is in present tense. The people were ignorant that they were killing the Lord. " While they didn't know, they should have known. The prophecies were numerous and very clear. His teachings were profound and filled with wisdom and authority. His miracles should have convinced them. His perfect life and love should have removed all doubt about His identity. There was no excuse for their ignorance." (quote from a website) I can replace 'them', 'they' with my name and it will be a prayer for mercy on my behalf. Before I was a Christian, I was ignorant of the meaning of Jesus's death on the cross for me. Til now, I am still ignorant of the ACTUAL hurt that I am causing God and Jesus everyday with my sins. As humans, we will never fully comprehend God's love for us. We have the Bible aka God's Word with us. Yet everyday, we struggle to love. We struggle to forgive. We struggle to put God in the first place. We get distracted. We get discouraged. We get burnt out. We feel that God has forsaken us when we are the ones who have forsaken him. God knows we are responsible for our sins and what will befall us BUT He still forgives us.

He doesn't just forgive once when we are baptized. It made me think abt my heart to love and forgive. In order to forgive us, Jesus paid a very very painful price. He gave up everything for us. So what's the meaning of forgiveness? The word "forgive" is borrowed from the world of commerce and banking. "It means to cancel a debt or to pardon a loan.To forgive is to cancel the debt of someone so that they never have to pay us back for what they've done to us. It's to give grace to someone who doesn't deserve it. If we choose to not forgive we can end up letting our anger and resentment metastasize into bitterness." (quote from website) So have I put down my bitterness? If Jesus laid down his life to forgive, can't we lay down our bitterness towards others? Can't we lay down our insecurities towards ourselves? Let's write down what we struggle to forgive and ask someone to help us. Let's be VULNERABLE so that we can grow to be even more Christ-like. :)


Love, Victoria

Sera speaks: "It's not how big our faith is."

Sera is a theatre production student from LaSalle, she never fails to inspire others around her with her deep convictions and carefree expression of God's love. She's blessed with a beautiful singing voice too!

Dearest All,

todays quiet time was really insightful and also a tear-jerker for me... Hee hee

Lemme share!

Matthew 17:20

"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."

Can we really move mountains?

Jesus was talking in the shadow of the Mount of Transfiguration, he might have gestured to it as he spoke. The Jews knew the phrase 'to move mountains' as a metaphor, just like when we say we have a mountain of work. When the impossible comes near to us, we need to come to God in faith and ask him to remove that mountain.

Many times in the Gospels Jesus indicates that someone's faith has healed them.

From verses 14 - 20, it talks about the demon possessed boy's father. He admitted that there was unbelief mixed with his faith, and still, his son was healed. Why??? Because even with his so-so faith, he connected with Jesus, the Source of Power.

Jesus reminds us that it's not how big our faith is but how big our God is. The smallest faith, even tinged with doubt, can open the door for great miracles, as long as it is humbly presented before our almighty God. It may sound oh so easy when Jesus said with our mustard seed faith we could move mountains.

That's the mystery of faith and the paradox of prayer. Praying in faith is both easy and hard. It's easy because we now have access to the father.

"For through Him we have access to the Father by one Spirit."

Eph 2:18

It's hard because we struggle against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

"For our struggle is not agains flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of the dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."

Eph 6:12

It's about knowing how big our God is. He moves the mountain. We just call out humbly.

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith -- and this is not from yourselves, it is a gift of God -- not by works, so that no one can boast."

Eph 2:8-9

Amen!

Have a great start to the day Brothers and Sisters!

Love you all dearly

Sera

Sera speaks: "A triple-braided cord is not easily broken."

Sera is a theatre production student from LaSalle, she never fails to inspire others around her with her deep convictions and carefree expression of God's love. She's blessed with a beautiful singing voice too!

Dearest Brothers and Sisters,

Something I want to share that I'm truly convicted by. Really made me think about my 'partnerships' in the campus ministry.

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Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labour. If they fall down, they can help each other up. But pity those who fall and have no one to help them up."

There is a need for us to be there for one another when the load is too heavy. We've got to carry each other's burdens. As a ministry, we're the body of christ and we work together with our strengths to complement each other. Everyone plays a part in strengthening each one.

When one member is struggling and feels a need for help, we should give readily to their needs. No matter how strong they can be. Even the strongest can feel burdened.

Let's lift one another up and be there for each in good times, ok times and bad times.

This is a battle that will never end until we see God behind heaven's gates. Let's keep fighting for each other.

Ecclesiastes 4:12

"Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken."

Amen Brothers and Sisters,

I love you all dearly,

Sera

Sera speaks: "Wasn't that awesome?!?!?!?!"

Sera is a theatre production student from LaSalle, she never fails to inspire others around her with her deep convictions and carefree expression of God's love. She's blessed with a beautiful singing voice too!

Hey campus!

We really had a great weekend didn't we?

Amazing lessons for the brothers and the sisters on saturday afternoon. Encouraging and also cut to the heart!

I really felt the lesson on saturday night was so simple and yet so amazing and heartfelt! Truly our treasures are in heaven, just like what Marilyn has share in our previous post.

What's our ATM??? Let's all be really thinking about the lessons and putting them into practice! I really felt very moved by Dennis' sharing on saturday night. It was different from what we normally would do, sometimes I really feel like during the services people just write notes then go home to meditate on what was preached. But Dennis made us pray about it right there! He gave us time to think about right there when it is still fresh in our minds.

Do we still think about lessons shared when it is still fresh in our minds? Are we urgent enough to not want to lose the essence of the lesson? =)

Let's all be sharing with one another what has impacted us the most about the weekend. Let's be wanting to share insights to build one another up in the Lord!

You guys are amazing and a wonderful family to me! Love you all dearly!

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I want to now officially welcome our new campus shirt!!! Yayeeeeeee!!!!!

I want people who read the blog to know about the shirt that represents who we are!

Version 2.0 of our campus shirt! "The armour of God!"

This verse was chosen by Poernomo. We want to shine in all our strengths so we can be the light to lead many to righteousness! =)

I present you the Campus Ministry of the Central Christian Church. We seek wisdom to inspire many to lead a Godly life. Many young lives have been changed and many spiritual leaders are born!

Amen!!

Marilyn speaks: "Treasures in Heaven."

Dear lambs in green,

I feel very inspired by the weekend with the Williams and the couple whose surname i've forgotten haha. It has been a fruitful workshop and i'm so encouraged that we have so many friends today to hear God's word with us. I was convicted by the humility of Dennis and Karla on Saturday when they gave God and the Williams the honour of their rags-to-riches testimony.



Here are some thoughts i'd like to share.

When i was studying in acjc, everyone around me lived in mansions or condos, my classmates /schmates /cca mates were sons and daughters of very affluent families - families who owned huge organisations or shopping malls like Paragon and Millenium Walk, ministers and foreign ambassadors and so on. They lived in Sixth Avenue and were chauffered to school, i was a heartlands girl and my dad gives me a lift in his taxi. Though i'm a simple girl living in a small flat, opulence and wealth do not faze me. A life of glitz is enviable to some, but it was nondescript to me. Show me small luxuries and i will gawk and appreciate. Show me simple pleasures, a good book, good music and exciting fellowship and i will be delighted.

Admittedly there was once or twice in my 2 years there that i wished i had a little more, or that i didn't have to work and study at the same time, but i was NEVER ashamed of my humble background. My parents loved me and worked their fingers to the bone to send me to university and sponsored my trips to China and Vancouver. We lived simply and thus my parents never or had very very little conflicts about finances - something that seems to be tearing marriages apart in Singapore lately. While my wealthy schoolmates had the latest cell phones and a credit card, i had home-cooked food everyday. For the many intangible things that my parents gave to me, i believe God really blessed me tremendously.

On a side note, i always think that the best parents are not the ones that fawn and splurge on you when you bring back straight As or a shiny trophy. The best parents are the ones that who keep the childish comics you've penciled, the unintelligble drawings you've scrawn, the lopsided paper cranes you've folded out of 80cents coloured paper. The best parents are the ones who appreciate every single thing you've done, big or small, nothing is too insignificant for them to be proud of.

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Matthew 6:18-21

Sometimes you can tell what a person is like by the possessions they hold on to.

To store up treasures on earth is to set our heart on earthly things. It is difficult, even impossible, to desire the return of our Lord when we have made all of our investments in earthly things. Not only this but we also tend to put our trust, our confidence and hope in our investments. The great difficulty of the rich is that they are deceived into fixing their hope on the uncertainty of riches. Jesus is not telling us that it is wrong to have material possessions, but with material possessions comes responsibility as well; not that we are forbidden to enjoy many of life’s pleasures, but that we view them as temporary and, in the long term, unsatisfying compared to the riches God prepared for us.

Amen, have a great week ahead all :)

Alfred speaks: "A Sick Woman & Jesus Heals the Blind and Mute."

Alfred is our very cheerful, zealous and fired up brother. He loves children and is always inspiring others with his soft heart towards the word of God.

Matthew 9: 18 – 34

1) Believe in others

From the passage, the bible said that the dead girl’s father was a ruler. Though the father was someone with high status, he humbled himself and knelt before Jesus for help. He believed that Jesus can save his daughter. It was her father’s faith that saved the daughter. It was her father’s faith that made him approach Jesus. In verse 24, when Jesus said that the girl was not dead but asleep, the people were laughing at him. If the father had the same belief like the rest of the people, her daughter wouldn’t be saved. The daughter was saved because her father believed in others.

2) Believe in ourselves

When Jesus cured the sick woman who had bleed for twelve years, Jesus said to her…
Vs 22: "Take heart, daughter," he said, "your faith has healed you."

When the two blind men begged Jesus for cure, Jesus touched their eyes and said…
Vs 29: "According to your faith will it be done to you";

Jesus kept mentioning them that it was their faith that healed them. Jesus sees that great value in everyone’s life and wants us to believe that we can make a difference. When Jesus saw the life of the sick woman and the blind men, Jesus believed that they too can make a difference. They were cured because they believed in themselves.

3) Jesus Believe in us

I was touched when I read the account of Jesus healing the demon possessed. It reminds me that whatever bad state that I am in, Jesus still believes in me and still loves me. The demon possessed man was cured because Jesus believed in him.

Let’s us keep believing in others, believing in ourselves and keep reminding ourselves that Jesus always believe in us.

Love you deeply,
Alfred