Taming the Tongue
James 3:1-9
"3:1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 2 For we all stumble in many ways, and if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. 4 Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. 5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things.
How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, [1] and set on fire by hell. [2] 7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God."
was reminded by a fellow brudda in CF.
the very same lips, that praise Him.
are also the same lips that hastily condemn others.
Thursday, July 28
Tuesday, July 26
progresion of truth
progresion of truth
http://www.challies.com/archives/001165.php
Hang on to your hats, because I am about to spiritualize (and very possibly trivialize) one of the great laws of physics. Newton’s Third Law of Motion states, in its simplest form, that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Take a look around and you will see this law in action every day.
Have you ever seen a slow-motion replay of a big boxing match where the broadcasters show the punch that finished the match? A gloved fist flies towards a face and at the moment of impact you can see the law in effect. As the glove meets the face, it reacts according to the amount of force applied to it. When the fist meets flesh, the point of impact is compressed inwards – perhaps a cheek is pressed into the boxer’s mouth. As that happens, the force of the punch pushes the entire head in the same direction as the fist is travelling. The opposite cheek sags eerily outward and a spray of sweat flies off the man’s body. The action of the fist striking with stunning force produces an equal and opposite physical reaction.
While this law is true in the physical world the framework of this law applies equally to truth. Through history we have seen that for every truth God reveals about Himself, there arises an equal and opposite error. Whenever God has chosen to reveal new truth about Himself, an opposite falsehood has arisen to lead people astray from the Lord.
The history of truth’s progressive revelation to mankind is not constant. Through history we have seen that for truth to progress, God must first reveal it in an objective sense. There must then be a combined effort on the part of God and men to subjectively reveal that truth to church or society. Where the objective revelation may take place in a moment or a day, the subjective revelation may take years or ages. Consider God’s revelation of His Law to Moses. In just a short while He wrote the Law on the tablets, objectively giving His Law to a particular man. It was then the combined task of God and Moses to subjectively integrate these Laws into society.
History, then, when viewed through a wide lens, is a series of these great epochs as God first makes an objective revelation and men then slowly integrate this truth into society. The first is an action on God’s part and the second is a reaction on the part of men. While there is always a positive action in reaction to truth, there is also an opposite negative reaction that arises in direct opposition.
J.A. Wylie describes the waves of action and reaction as being similar to the tide rising on a beach. A great wave crashes down on the beach, and for a moment it seems that the beach and the land beyond must be flooded. But in a moment the ocean’s fury is spent and the wave retreats, washing back towards the sea. But a careful observer will see that not all the ground that was gained by the great wave has been lost. Before long another wave crashes on to the beach and more land is gained by the ocean. And thus, by a series of advances and retreats the tide flows in and the beach is gained. And so it is with truth.
I want to briefly consider this in the contexts of four of the great epochs in history: God’s original revelation, God’s revelation to Moses, early Christianity and the Reformation.
Revelation After Creation
At the close of Creation God created a man in His own image and placed him in the Garden of Eden. The crowning achievement of His Creation, man was given a position of great honor and responsibility. Man was given dominion over the earth and entrusted with the responsibility to tend it. Everything was given to him but a single tree – the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Man walked in perfect communion with God. We do not know what truths God revealed to man at that time, but we can presume that it was just exactly what he needed – no more and no less. God told man what he needed to know to thrive in a perfect world. It was in this beautiful world that there arose the first error as Satan convinced man that He could be like God. In opposition to the truth that man is limited and God is infinite, arose the opposite error. Satan convinced man that he could be like God. The waves receded so that by the time of Noah the Bible tells us everyone on the earth, with the exception of Noah and his family, hated God and sinned continually.
truth gradually progressed in society. But as truth had progressed, so had error. Paganism took root as the opposite of the pure worship of God. The tower of Babel arose as men reached to the heavens to usurp the glory due only to God. We see that paganism, though in a primitive form, arose and thrived as the evil alternative to God.
Mosaic Revelation
Many years later God’s children found themselves in bondage to the Egyptians. It must have seemed like the world contained nothing but darkness and surely the Israelites must have felt that God had abandoned them to their sin. But this was not so. Just when it seemed that things could not deteriorate any further, God providentially raised up Moses. After leading the people from their slavery, God gave Moses new revelation about truth. Over the course of many years, this truth was subjectively integrated into the Israelite society. The tabernacle and later the temple were built as places to worship God. The feast days were integrated into the calendar and the ceremonies into times of worship.
During this time error also increased in direct opposition to the pure truth of God. Baal worship progressed in its influence and in its evil. The ceremonies of pagan worship grew in proportion to match the ceremonies of god-ordained worship. God’s people were continually led astray by more developed forms of pagan idolatry that directly contradicted true worship.
The Early Church
Jesus’ death marked the end of the Mosaic era. The ceremonial and judicial laws were fulfilled in the Savior. In place of law and ceremony God planted a church – a church that was not merely an extension of His plan for His people but was the fulfillment of His plan. His eternal plan led to this church, composed of men and women, Jew and Gentile, black and white – a church of people from all races united in their love of God. But the laws of truth were in effect even then, and there quickly arose opposite errors. The simplicity of the early church was polluted as jealous men fought for rank and position. Whatever God instituted was quickly matched by a corrupt opposite. Simplicity gave way to symbolism, free grace to man’s work and sacrament to ritual. The early church gave way to a Roman religion that for over a millennium seemed to hold back the tide of truth’s progress.
The Reformation
Once more the waves receded so that the beach again appeared to be bare. Once more it seemed that God had allowed the shadow to cover the earth. But there, in the 16th Century a light flickered. God allowed one man, Martin Luther, to take a stride forward in truth. Following in Luther’s footsteps other men came to rediscover great truths that had seemingly been lost since the time of the apostles. Within just a few years this truth had been integrated into Christianity in the movement that came to be known as the Reformation. Similarly, within a few years, there had arisen errors to match these ones. As truth unfolded in a more complete form, so more complex errors were invented. Arminianism arose as a means of lessening the terrifying prospect of God’s absolute sovereignty. Catholicism continued its corruption, attacking the principles of Protestantism – Christ’s sufficiency, His completed work and God’s free grace.
And So On
And so it continues. Even in our present day, hundreds and thousands of years after these great revelations, truth marches on. The truths God revealed to Adam, to Moses, to the apostles and to the Reformers continue to challenge the church. There is little reason to doubt that more epochs will unfold, or perhaps are unfolding even now, as God more fully reveals truth. As truth progressively unfolds, error continues to oppositely assert itself.
It is of foundational importance to understand that while each truth further strengthens its position, each error further corrupts the attempts to undermine God’s revealed truth. Each truth draws closer to perfection while each error draws closer to destruction. Just as a child lies to his parents and as his ficticious story progresses it becomes less and less plausible, so error upon error progressively undermines the position of those who fight against truth. God’s truth must and shall prevail. In the end error will be destroyed; truth will reign supreme and shall be fully revealed. We will know truth even as truth knows us. Truth will win in the end.
http://www.challies.com/archives/001165.php
Hang on to your hats, because I am about to spiritualize (and very possibly trivialize) one of the great laws of physics. Newton’s Third Law of Motion states, in its simplest form, that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Take a look around and you will see this law in action every day.
Have you ever seen a slow-motion replay of a big boxing match where the broadcasters show the punch that finished the match? A gloved fist flies towards a face and at the moment of impact you can see the law in effect. As the glove meets the face, it reacts according to the amount of force applied to it. When the fist meets flesh, the point of impact is compressed inwards – perhaps a cheek is pressed into the boxer’s mouth. As that happens, the force of the punch pushes the entire head in the same direction as the fist is travelling. The opposite cheek sags eerily outward and a spray of sweat flies off the man’s body. The action of the fist striking with stunning force produces an equal and opposite physical reaction.
While this law is true in the physical world the framework of this law applies equally to truth. Through history we have seen that for every truth God reveals about Himself, there arises an equal and opposite error. Whenever God has chosen to reveal new truth about Himself, an opposite falsehood has arisen to lead people astray from the Lord.
The history of truth’s progressive revelation to mankind is not constant. Through history we have seen that for truth to progress, God must first reveal it in an objective sense. There must then be a combined effort on the part of God and men to subjectively reveal that truth to church or society. Where the objective revelation may take place in a moment or a day, the subjective revelation may take years or ages. Consider God’s revelation of His Law to Moses. In just a short while He wrote the Law on the tablets, objectively giving His Law to a particular man. It was then the combined task of God and Moses to subjectively integrate these Laws into society.
History, then, when viewed through a wide lens, is a series of these great epochs as God first makes an objective revelation and men then slowly integrate this truth into society. The first is an action on God’s part and the second is a reaction on the part of men. While there is always a positive action in reaction to truth, there is also an opposite negative reaction that arises in direct opposition.
J.A. Wylie describes the waves of action and reaction as being similar to the tide rising on a beach. A great wave crashes down on the beach, and for a moment it seems that the beach and the land beyond must be flooded. But in a moment the ocean’s fury is spent and the wave retreats, washing back towards the sea. But a careful observer will see that not all the ground that was gained by the great wave has been lost. Before long another wave crashes on to the beach and more land is gained by the ocean. And thus, by a series of advances and retreats the tide flows in and the beach is gained. And so it is with truth.
I want to briefly consider this in the contexts of four of the great epochs in history: God’s original revelation, God’s revelation to Moses, early Christianity and the Reformation.
Revelation After Creation
At the close of Creation God created a man in His own image and placed him in the Garden of Eden. The crowning achievement of His Creation, man was given a position of great honor and responsibility. Man was given dominion over the earth and entrusted with the responsibility to tend it. Everything was given to him but a single tree – the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Man walked in perfect communion with God. We do not know what truths God revealed to man at that time, but we can presume that it was just exactly what he needed – no more and no less. God told man what he needed to know to thrive in a perfect world. It was in this beautiful world that there arose the first error as Satan convinced man that He could be like God. In opposition to the truth that man is limited and God is infinite, arose the opposite error. Satan convinced man that he could be like God. The waves receded so that by the time of Noah the Bible tells us everyone on the earth, with the exception of Noah and his family, hated God and sinned continually.
truth gradually progressed in society. But as truth had progressed, so had error. Paganism took root as the opposite of the pure worship of God. The tower of Babel arose as men reached to the heavens to usurp the glory due only to God. We see that paganism, though in a primitive form, arose and thrived as the evil alternative to God.
Mosaic Revelation
Many years later God’s children found themselves in bondage to the Egyptians. It must have seemed like the world contained nothing but darkness and surely the Israelites must have felt that God had abandoned them to their sin. But this was not so. Just when it seemed that things could not deteriorate any further, God providentially raised up Moses. After leading the people from their slavery, God gave Moses new revelation about truth. Over the course of many years, this truth was subjectively integrated into the Israelite society. The tabernacle and later the temple were built as places to worship God. The feast days were integrated into the calendar and the ceremonies into times of worship.
During this time error also increased in direct opposition to the pure truth of God. Baal worship progressed in its influence and in its evil. The ceremonies of pagan worship grew in proportion to match the ceremonies of god-ordained worship. God’s people were continually led astray by more developed forms of pagan idolatry that directly contradicted true worship.
The Early Church
Jesus’ death marked the end of the Mosaic era. The ceremonial and judicial laws were fulfilled in the Savior. In place of law and ceremony God planted a church – a church that was not merely an extension of His plan for His people but was the fulfillment of His plan. His eternal plan led to this church, composed of men and women, Jew and Gentile, black and white – a church of people from all races united in their love of God. But the laws of truth were in effect even then, and there quickly arose opposite errors. The simplicity of the early church was polluted as jealous men fought for rank and position. Whatever God instituted was quickly matched by a corrupt opposite. Simplicity gave way to symbolism, free grace to man’s work and sacrament to ritual. The early church gave way to a Roman religion that for over a millennium seemed to hold back the tide of truth’s progress.
The Reformation
Once more the waves receded so that the beach again appeared to be bare. Once more it seemed that God had allowed the shadow to cover the earth. But there, in the 16th Century a light flickered. God allowed one man, Martin Luther, to take a stride forward in truth. Following in Luther’s footsteps other men came to rediscover great truths that had seemingly been lost since the time of the apostles. Within just a few years this truth had been integrated into Christianity in the movement that came to be known as the Reformation. Similarly, within a few years, there had arisen errors to match these ones. As truth unfolded in a more complete form, so more complex errors were invented. Arminianism arose as a means of lessening the terrifying prospect of God’s absolute sovereignty. Catholicism continued its corruption, attacking the principles of Protestantism – Christ’s sufficiency, His completed work and God’s free grace.
And So On
And so it continues. Even in our present day, hundreds and thousands of years after these great revelations, truth marches on. The truths God revealed to Adam, to Moses, to the apostles and to the Reformers continue to challenge the church. There is little reason to doubt that more epochs will unfold, or perhaps are unfolding even now, as God more fully reveals truth. As truth progressively unfolds, error continues to oppositely assert itself.
It is of foundational importance to understand that while each truth further strengthens its position, each error further corrupts the attempts to undermine God’s revealed truth. Each truth draws closer to perfection while each error draws closer to destruction. Just as a child lies to his parents and as his ficticious story progresses it becomes less and less plausible, so error upon error progressively undermines the position of those who fight against truth. God’s truth must and shall prevail. In the end error will be destroyed; truth will reign supreme and shall be fully revealed. We will know truth even as truth knows us. Truth will win in the end.
Sunday, July 24
true.
| Advanced Global Personality Test Results
|
personality tests by similarminds.com
Stability results were moderately low which suggests you are worrying, insecure, emotional, and anxious.
Orderliness results were moderately low which suggests you are, at times, overly flexible, improvised, and fun seeking at the expense of reliability, work ethic, and long term accomplishment.
Extraversion results were high which suggests you are overly talkative, outgoing, sociable and interacting at the expense too often of developing your own individual interests and internally based identity.
trait snapshot:
messy, outgoing, open, self revealing, ambivalent about chaos, unpredictable, not good at saving money, social, likes large parties, likes to stand out, risk taker, quick to make friends, does not like to be alone, rash, fame seeking, sarcastic, craves attention, social chameleon, low self control, food lover, not rule conscious, weird, assertive, not a perfectionist, anti-authority, thrill seeker, vain, likes to fit in, reckless, emotionally sensitive, leisurely, trusting
Friday, July 22
Wednesday, July 20
chioness.
sony has been the pioneer for these kinda earphones.
and sony SUX.
read more here. *chinese
Features
Neodymium magnet for rich, high quality, and powerful sound
Includes 3 types of ear pads allows you to choose and fit your characteristics
Adopts an light weight aluminum body for strong protection and for a nice high class stylish look.
Specifications
Type: Closed, Dynamic
Driver Unit: 8.5mm
Cord: 0.5m
Plug: Stereo mini - plug straight type
Impedance: 16 ohms
Sensitivity: 102 dB/mW
Power handling capacity: 100mW
Frequency Response: 10 - 23,000Hz
Mass: 8g
and sony SUX.
read more here. *chinese
Features
Neodymium magnet for rich, high quality, and powerful sound
Includes 3 types of ear pads allows you to choose and fit your characteristics
Adopts an light weight aluminum body for strong protection and for a nice high class stylish look.
Specifications
Type: Closed, Dynamic
Driver Unit: 8.5mm
Cord: 0.5m
Plug: Stereo mini - plug straight type
Impedance: 16 ohms
Sensitivity: 102 dB/mW
Power handling capacity: 100mW
Frequency Response: 10 - 23,000Hz
Mass: 8g
rooted.
went to school for cf yesterday.
and we proceeded to joel T's place, which is really nice.
we played taboo, mahjong! =) friendly mahjong lah. no need dai to win.
though cf is small.
but.
stay faithful guys.
prayer meeting today.
encouraged by the sharings from the younger ones. =)
may God keep us faithful, to keep on prayer for the work. and the workers.and the pple.
Monday, July 18
sunday again.
tian and neek. bumming after church, after meeting.
my fellow bruddas and fellow co-workers in the Lord.
sometimes i feel like this:
cos,i'm out of poly and school life. and it's kinda different cos i face diff issues. but anyway.
i thank God for my brothers, and for giving them devotion and zeal to serve, and a heart of servanthood.
gd read 1
gd read 2
Friday, July 15
finally.
it's 2 digit.
finally it's 2 digits!!!
99 days left.
i've waited {(365 x 2) + (4 x 30)} - 99
850 - 99 = 751 days.
counting down.
2 digits!
finally it's 2 digits!!!
99 days left.
i've waited {(365 x 2) + (4 x 30)} - 99
850 - 99 = 751 days.
counting down.
2 digits!
Wednesday, July 13
wooden it be nice.
Wouldn't it be nice if we were older
Then we wouldn't have to wait so long
And wouldn't it be nice to live together
In the kind of world where we belong
You know it's gonna make it that much better
When we can say goodnight and stay together
Wouldn't it be nice if we could wake up
In the morning when the day is new
And after having spent the day together
Hold each other close the whole night through
Happy times together we've been spending
I wish that every kiss was never ending
Wouldn't it be nice
Maybe if we think and wish and hope and pray
It might come true
Baby then there wouldn't be a single thing we couldn't do
We could be married
And then we'd be happy
Wouldn't it be nice
You know it seems the more we talk about it
It only makes it worse to live without it
But let's talk about it
Wouldn't it be nice
Good night baby
Sleep tight baby
Good night baby
Sleep tight baby
- Beach Boys
Then we wouldn't have to wait so long
And wouldn't it be nice to live together
In the kind of world where we belong
You know it's gonna make it that much better
When we can say goodnight and stay together
Wouldn't it be nice if we could wake up
In the morning when the day is new
And after having spent the day together
Hold each other close the whole night through
Happy times together we've been spending
I wish that every kiss was never ending
Wouldn't it be nice
Maybe if we think and wish and hope and pray
It might come true
Baby then there wouldn't be a single thing we couldn't do
We could be married
And then we'd be happy
Wouldn't it be nice
You know it seems the more we talk about it
It only makes it worse to live without it
But let's talk about it
Wouldn't it be nice
Good night baby
Sleep tight baby
Good night baby
Sleep tight baby
- Beach Boys
Monday, July 11
distracted.
instead of doing work and working on the poster.
heh, i've been hunting for music.
Silvertide
they rock. like totally. i like. it's very old-school rock with nice guitar riffs, solid performers as compared with strum-3-chord bands like simple plan, bowling for soup. oasis. WATEVA.
judge for urself.
listen to the samples. scroll down at the page.
silvertide @cdnow.com
meanwhile.
managed to find anwar robinson's videos
http://www.anwarriors.com/video.html
anyway, these are my favorites from him. so he's gay. but he can sing.
moon river
wat a wonderful world
what's goin on
i want bo bice's video leh. anyone? wu bo?
heh, i've been hunting for music.
Silvertide
they rock. like totally. i like. it's very old-school rock with nice guitar riffs, solid performers as compared with strum-3-chord bands like simple plan, bowling for soup. oasis. WATEVA.
judge for urself.
listen to the samples. scroll down at the page.
silvertide @cdnow.com
meanwhile.
managed to find anwar robinson's videos
http://www.anwarriors.com/video.html
anyway, these are my favorites from him. so he's gay. but he can sing.
moon river
wat a wonderful world
what's goin on
i want bo bice's video leh. anyone? wu bo?
Sunday, July 10
my watch!
2000, Swatch Spring Summer Collection
the strap broke. i got it replace about 3 weeks ago.
i can't find the elastic strap.
swatch says they no longer bring in the strap, and to order it
it costs 30 + shipping fee 20 to change it.
at first it was like this
when i first got it
and the strap broke, and i changed it to this
which broke in china. sigh.
and now, i'm using a black plastic with hook kind.
u know, the standard normal one which u have to loop thru and secure.
manage to find this page: http://www.squiggly.com
where u can order and find swatch stuff.
but still. damn ex. as u can see. i want only the black elastic strap.
i think this strap also quite nice
ex lah. plus shipping fee to sg. will come to abt 40 bucks. plus plus. =(
Saturday, July 9
xbox for sale!
helping bala post this.
-modded xbox to play copied games.
-modded to play dvd w/DVD control
-2controllers
-at least 15 games.
280 (neg)
teeemo@gmail.com
Price: 280
-modded xbox to play copied games.
-modded to play dvd w/DVD control
-2controllers
-at least 15 games.
280 (neg)
teeemo@gmail.com
Price: 280
3 cheers.
1. - HAPPY BIRTHDAY BECKS!!
just wanna say tht becks has been a real cool supper buddy (@ iman) and a real fun sister to hang out with. someone whom i can talk to and share opinions openly, life issues and ministry struggles. yup~ thank God for a friend and sister like u to encourage me and for me to suan also. music junkie and fellow motor siao. steady lah sista. we sons and daughters of zhonghua. are to be courteous and righteous.
2. HAPPY BIRTHDAY WEILYN!!
weilyn's the coolest and funkiest sister i know. she's like quite goofy-schizo. can be so calm & serious, then change pattern.
thank God for her being in cell, in sundayschool, in china trip too~ just a great blessing to all who know her =), easy going (too easy-going in fact) mild tempered, cool headed and laid back, RESPECT for my sista WHO NEVER GOT OFF THE BIKE @ PanShi, up the crazy 8 km mountain climb. more than tht, i just love her goofy side. she's really entertaining. *see above picture
3. happy ORD wayne!
i dun think he'll read this, but anyway. wayne's a great buddy in office, and just the best to person to slack and chill out with. watching all the southpark episodes, family guy and all the crap we downloaded. there was a point in time when we were quite siao on in playing street fighter 3 and completing it. will miss the canteen breaks, soccer games and taitee. all the best in NTU dude.
Thursday, July 7
m.u.f.H.h
July 7
All Efforts of Worth and Excellence Are Difficult
"Enter by the narrow gate . . . . Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life . . . "
—Matthew 7:13-14
If we are going to live as disciples of Jesus, we have to remember that all efforts of worth and excellence are difficult.
The Christian life is gloriously difficult, but its difficulty does not make us faint and cave in— it stirs us up to overcome.
Do we appreciate the miraculous salvation of Jesus Christ enough to be our utmost for His highest— our best for His glory?
God saves people by His sovereign grace through the atonement of Jesus, and "it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure" ( Philippians 2:13 ).
But we have to "work out" that salvation in our everyday, practical living (Philippians 2:12). If we will only start on the basis of His redemption to do what He commands, then we will find that we can do it. If we fail, it is because we have not yet put into practice what God has placed within us. But a crisis will reveal whether or not we have been putting it into practice. If we will obey the Spirit of God and practice in our physical life what God has placed within us by His Spirit, then when a crisis does come, we will find that our own nature, as well as the grace of God, will stand by us.
Thank God that He does give us difficult things to do! His salvation is a joyous thing, but it is also something that requires bravery, courage, and holiness. It tests us for all we are worth. Jesus is "bringing many sons to glory" ( Hebrews 2:10 , and God will not shield us from the requirements of sonship.
God's grace produces men and women with a strong family likeness to Jesus Christ, not pampered, spoiled weaklings. It takes a tremendous amount of discipline to live the worthy and excellent life of a disciple of Jesus in the realities of life. And it is always necessary for us to make an effort to live a life of worth and excellence.
http://www.rbc.org/utmost/07/07/
All Efforts of Worth and Excellence Are Difficult
"Enter by the narrow gate . . . . Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life . . . "
—Matthew 7:13-14
If we are going to live as disciples of Jesus, we have to remember that all efforts of worth and excellence are difficult.
The Christian life is gloriously difficult, but its difficulty does not make us faint and cave in— it stirs us up to overcome.
Do we appreciate the miraculous salvation of Jesus Christ enough to be our utmost for His highest— our best for His glory?
God saves people by His sovereign grace through the atonement of Jesus, and "it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure" ( Philippians 2:13 ).
But we have to "work out" that salvation in our everyday, practical living (Philippians 2:12). If we will only start on the basis of His redemption to do what He commands, then we will find that we can do it. If we fail, it is because we have not yet put into practice what God has placed within us. But a crisis will reveal whether or not we have been putting it into practice. If we will obey the Spirit of God and practice in our physical life what God has placed within us by His Spirit, then when a crisis does come, we will find that our own nature, as well as the grace of God, will stand by us.
Thank God that He does give us difficult things to do! His salvation is a joyous thing, but it is also something that requires bravery, courage, and holiness. It tests us for all we are worth. Jesus is "bringing many sons to glory" ( Hebrews 2:10 , and God will not shield us from the requirements of sonship.
God's grace produces men and women with a strong family likeness to Jesus Christ, not pampered, spoiled weaklings. It takes a tremendous amount of discipline to live the worthy and excellent life of a disciple of Jesus in the realities of life. And it is always necessary for us to make an effort to live a life of worth and excellence.
http://www.rbc.org/utmost/07/07/
Wednesday, July 6
quote.
"Distance is no bar, space no barrier, to reaching the remotest place on
earth. Nor is the power of prayer diminished by the distance between the
person who prays and the person prayed for. Men and nations can and do have
their destinies decided by God's praying people, who through intercessory
prayer, wield power greater than the armed might of the nations of the
earth."
Harold Lindsell
Tuesday, July 5
drool.
wayne pointed out this to me in camp.
9 string bass.
yes. 9 string !!
jeanbaudin.com
"As some of you may or may not know, I've been waiting (pretty much most of 2004) for one of my custom 11-strings to get finished. The guys building them have just been too busy, but it looks like I should have something in my hands (hopefully) by early 2005. In case you are wondering, compared to my 9-strings it will have a low C# string and a High Eb string (C#, F#, B, E, A, D, G, C, F, Bb, Eb) One has been nicknamed "Hideous Claw" and is being built as a gift from some Nuclear Rabbit fans and the new Conklin 11-string will have MIDI incorporated into it so I will be able to play piano, organ, drums, synths or whatever straight from the bass and mix that with my bass signal."
damn chio. see his page for more bass guitars.
jane.kandis & tovya. can u say wow. =)
see him play it
9 string bass.
yes. 9 string !!
jeanbaudin.com
"As some of you may or may not know, I've been waiting (pretty much most of 2004) for one of my custom 11-strings to get finished. The guys building them have just been too busy, but it looks like I should have something in my hands (hopefully) by early 2005. In case you are wondering, compared to my 9-strings it will have a low C# string and a High Eb string (C#, F#, B, E, A, D, G, C, F, Bb, Eb) One has been nicknamed "Hideous Claw" and is being built as a gift from some Nuclear Rabbit fans and the new Conklin 11-string will have MIDI incorporated into it so I will be able to play piano, organ, drums, synths or whatever straight from the bass and mix that with my bass signal."
damn chio. see his page for more bass guitars.
jane.kandis & tovya. can u say wow. =)
see him play it
Monday, July 4
SAF.
e-mart is this like. econ mimimart for NSFs to buy their army stuff
...and i was waiting for my next topup of credits to buy stuff... like the amry sandal, my formation singlet and shorts.
Welcome LEE JIANAN TIMOTHY
Open: 58.13 Cart: 0.00 Available: 58.13
they only gave me 50 bucks.
Name LEE JIANAN TIMOTHY
Credit Limit 169
Credit Balance 58.13
Last Top-Up Date 1/7/2005
Next Top-Up Date 23/10/2005
the end is near. 23rd october is the day. maybe tht's why they din topup as much. =( i got about 100 credits last year. by the way. they screwed up my name. it's lee jian an. not lee jia nan. =(
Your estimated Service Balance is 125*.
Your projected ORD date is 23-Oct-2005*.
This record is updated on 20-Jun-2005.
[*see important note below]
*Disclaimer: The Service Balance and ORD date stated here are only the estimated figures, and should not be relied on to be the actual Service Balance and ORD date unless officially confirmed by the unit. The Service Balance and ORD date are subjected to factors such as disruption to full-time national service for studies, disciplinary offences, etc., which may not be reflected on-screen. If you wish to confirm your actual Service Balance and ORD date, please contact your unit for this information.
...and i was waiting for my next topup of credits to buy stuff... like the amry sandal, my formation singlet and shorts.
Welcome LEE JIANAN TIMOTHY
Open: 58.13 Cart: 0.00 Available: 58.13
they only gave me 50 bucks.
Name LEE JIANAN TIMOTHY
Credit Limit 169
Credit Balance 58.13
Last Top-Up Date 1/7/2005
Next Top-Up Date 23/10/2005
the end is near. 23rd october is the day. maybe tht's why they din topup as much. =( i got about 100 credits last year. by the way. they screwed up my name. it's lee jian an. not lee jia nan. =(
Your estimated Service Balance is 125*.
Your projected ORD date is 23-Oct-2005*.
This record is updated on 20-Jun-2005.
[*see important note below]
*Disclaimer: The Service Balance and ORD date stated here are only the estimated figures, and should not be relied on to be the actual Service Balance and ORD date unless officially confirmed by the unit. The Service Balance and ORD date are subjected to factors such as disruption to full-time national service for studies, disciplinary offences, etc., which may not be reflected on-screen. If you wish to confirm your actual Service Balance and ORD date, please contact your unit for this information.
war of the united-states.
another "everything happens only in US" movie.
read the story here: wiki version of WOTW
anyway. morgan freeman as narrator and voiceover. very aptly sounded like "god" in bruce almighty. he always gets this kinda roles. cool.
losta action. and irritating screaming scenes.
$9.50 for it?
pay me $9.50, i'll scream for u and entertain u at the same time.
read the story here: wiki version of WOTW
anyway. morgan freeman as narrator and voiceover. very aptly sounded like "god" in bruce almighty. he always gets this kinda roles. cool.
losta action. and irritating screaming scenes.
$9.50 for it?
pay me $9.50, i'll scream for u and entertain u at the same time.
Saturday, July 2
bible
here goes.
genesis.exodus.leviticus.numbers.deuteronomy.joshua.judges.ruth.1st,2nd samuel.1st,2nd kings.1st,2nd chronicles.ezra.nehemiah.esther.job.psalms.proverbs.isaiah.jeremiah.ecclesiates.songofsongs.lamentations.ezekiel.
did i get it right?
argh. sala liao. heh -_-"
k wat i'm trying to do is to memorise the OT order, cos NT i kinda know. i think.
and at the contents page, the OT has 3 columns. so i tried memorising till the 2nd column.
but! still got error.
ok. try NT
matt.mark.luke.john.acts.romans.1-2 corinthians.galatians.ephesians.philipians.colossians.1-2 thessalonians. 1-2 timothy. titus. philemon. hebrews. james. 1-2 peter. 1-3 john. jude. revelation.
yay! cos frankly, i never really tried to memorise the book order, i kinda own those bibles which have the grooves at the side for u to flip to. so kinda take it for granted, not to remember the book order.
actually NT got tips to remember.
matt - 2 corinthians. is like the 1st section.
next just remember 'go eat pan cake'
heh/ daniel loh teach one. so tht'll represent galatians to colossians.
the next order is kinda formulated by myself.. cos if u notice, it's alphabetical. in a way.
"thes - titus"
next is 'PHJ' maybe can stand for, "praise and honor jesus?"
philemon - james
up to this point, should be no problem i think?
1-2 peter, 1-3 john, jude, revelation.
yuP. ur done! NT is simpler i guess, cos i refer to it more. this is really an unofficial method to remember the book order, cos i think i neva did it as kid. =P and not for pride or anything, but if i wanna study God's word well, then familiarity and the desire to learn has to go hand in hand.
truthfully, the 'desire to learn' bit, it's not as easy as the familiarity.
just like we can know so much truths, but when the truth doesn't convict us or challenge us to grow more christlike in our attitudes, mentality, actions, speech, deeds.
then. it's just like another history textbook.
"What if Meditation and Prayer are Drudgery?
Finally, we must ask about this delight. The deepest mark of this happy person in Psalm 1 is that he delights in the Word of God (verse 2). Bible reading and Bible memory and meditation are not a burden to him, but a pleasure. This is what we want. What a sadness when Bible reading is just a drudgery. Something is wrong.
What shall we do? Well, we will say more next week, but let's close considering this. We struggle with Bible reading and memory and meditation because we don't find pleasure in it. We have other things we want to get to more. TV or breakfast or work or newspaper or computer. Our hearts incline to other things and do not incline to the Word. And so it is not a delight.
Did the psalmists ever struggle with this? Yes they did. Take heart. We all do. How shall this be changed?"
read more on this short article: John Piper - Psalm 1: Meditate on the Word of the Lord Day and Night
genesis.exodus.leviticus.numbers.deuteronomy.joshua.judges.ruth.1st,2nd samuel.1st,2nd kings.1st,2nd chronicles.ezra.nehemiah.esther.job.psalms.proverbs.isaiah.jeremiah.ecclesiates.songofsongs.lamentations.ezekiel.
did i get it right?
argh. sala liao. heh -_-"
k wat i'm trying to do is to memorise the OT order, cos NT i kinda know. i think.
and at the contents page, the OT has 3 columns. so i tried memorising till the 2nd column.
but! still got error.
ok. try NT
matt.mark.luke.john.acts.romans.1-2 corinthians.galatians.ephesians.philipians.colossians.1-2 thessalonians. 1-2 timothy. titus. philemon. hebrews. james. 1-2 peter. 1-3 john. jude. revelation.
yay! cos frankly, i never really tried to memorise the book order, i kinda own those bibles which have the grooves at the side for u to flip to. so kinda take it for granted, not to remember the book order.
actually NT got tips to remember.
matt - 2 corinthians. is like the 1st section.
next just remember 'go eat pan cake'
heh/ daniel loh teach one. so tht'll represent galatians to colossians.
the next order is kinda formulated by myself.. cos if u notice, it's alphabetical. in a way.
"thes - titus"
next is 'PHJ' maybe can stand for, "praise and honor jesus?"
philemon - james
up to this point, should be no problem i think?
1-2 peter, 1-3 john, jude, revelation.
yuP. ur done! NT is simpler i guess, cos i refer to it more. this is really an unofficial method to remember the book order, cos i think i neva did it as kid. =P and not for pride or anything, but if i wanna study God's word well, then familiarity and the desire to learn has to go hand in hand.
truthfully, the 'desire to learn' bit, it's not as easy as the familiarity.
just like we can know so much truths, but when the truth doesn't convict us or challenge us to grow more christlike in our attitudes, mentality, actions, speech, deeds.
then. it's just like another history textbook.
"What if Meditation and Prayer are Drudgery?
Finally, we must ask about this delight. The deepest mark of this happy person in Psalm 1 is that he delights in the Word of God (verse 2). Bible reading and Bible memory and meditation are not a burden to him, but a pleasure. This is what we want. What a sadness when Bible reading is just a drudgery. Something is wrong.
What shall we do? Well, we will say more next week, but let's close considering this. We struggle with Bible reading and memory and meditation because we don't find pleasure in it. We have other things we want to get to more. TV or breakfast or work or newspaper or computer. Our hearts incline to other things and do not incline to the Word. And so it is not a delight.
Did the psalmists ever struggle with this? Yes they did. Take heart. We all do. How shall this be changed?"
read more on this short article: John Piper - Psalm 1: Meditate on the Word of the Lord Day and Night
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