Sacrifices made unknowningly

This post in actual fact actually really deserved an immediate posting, but it has been 3 days of interviews, I was just pre-occupied to blog about it. In fact, more often than not when a blog post has been procrastinated, it usually doesn't see the light of day. It just gets kept and hidden in our memory somewhere, but this deserves to be posted up.

Well, I have been attending a course called XEE short-formed for Evangelistic Explosion, you can find out more about them by clicking on "Evangelistic Explosion". In a nut-shell, it's basically teaches you how to share the gospel in a structured manner and it has been an enjoyable experience thus far. One very important point that I must highlight is that it helps solves two very crucial myths that many people perceive:

1. People do not want to hear the gospel
2. It is difficult to share the gospel

The situation on Sunday was a rather odd one. I always treasure by Sunday evenings, because if i'm not out with Shermaine or out with the guys, I would like to stay at home and have "me time" watching football or Formula 1. Well last Sunday, I unknowingly made an appointment to a connect activity to see a prospect in the evening.  What i realized later was that the appointment would mean that I would be missing:

1. Liverpool v Arsenal
2. Belgian GP

To be honest, I kinda rued my judgement for agreeing to the appointment at that time. I was tired and it was a big sacrifice (some may disagree) on my part. Well, we were due to share with a fruit seller at Taman Cempaka. So far I have only shared the gospel in English, well this Uncle did not understand English so had to be translated in Cantonese or Mandarin.

We managed to go through with him the entire gospel and despite the language barrier needing translation and what not, he accepted Christ! His wife was very thankful, and it took a bit of time for the feeling to sink in about what we have managed to do. Someone's life is going to be changed, renewed and for eternity that's something BIG!

What I'm getting at is, sometimes we need to put our own interests and luxury aside to attend to others for awhile. These are the sacrifices we make, not necessarily big ones per say but getting out of our comfort zone, in this case literally (because i watch F1/Football on the couch) can make a necessary change for someone else.

I may have missed a match, a race but thank God there are highlights and repeats, whereas for someone's salvation who knows what might happen. We won't, so can't afford to leave it to chance, people's life are too precious to be gambled on.

Just food for thought. Have a great week ahead!

A student's struggle

I'm still feeling some after effects upon receiving my final semester results, ultimately how this semester turns out will determine if i graduate or not. Fortunately, results were great (4 distinctions and 1 credit), it's great to have a set of results that reflects the effort you've put in, because saying you've studied hard without results to show at the end is like telling your boss "I've made profit, but i can't show it to you" that sorta thing.

Well, a little history, to those who knows me will tell you that i'm a realist on a good day, probably a pessimist on a bad (that's all you need to know in regards to this). I believe that when you're like that, you prepare for the worst outcome, and with every worst outcome there is a worst-worst outcome. Preparing yourself for the worst is practical, but although it serves that purpose indirectly it's a shield to protect from disappointment, being pragmatic if you will.

If you were to look at my past results going back from Standard 2 all the way up to Semester 5 of University, you would see i'm a very consistent student, my grades have never deviate much despite the level of difficulty increasing. That can be interpreted as good and bad. Good is that i've been consistent, bad would mean i have not improved over the years. So which is it? How do we know what we're doing is keeping us on track?

The difficulty is always in persevering through the difficult times, as there is nothing much to persevere in good times (perhaps some of us don't enjoy it enough though). The idea is to keep pushing forward, regardless of the type of situation you are in as you never know when it ends (hypothetically), don't leave room for chance. Leaving room for a chance, is a 50% opportunity for things to go against you (assuming things were going your way and you got complacent) and nothing to lose if things were already bad.

Some people believe in being a self-made man, but i'm not having much of it because it's a given. We of course have to understandably work-hard to achieve something, but God alters our route and sometimes we don't get what we want or what we think we deserve. Many years, I've asked that question but as grew up I stopped asking, because I realized i never moved on by dwelling on it.

When you've held on long enough, the success you were looking out for was just around the corner and don't give up till it comes. Even though it might be right at the end.

First Post of 2012..

It's about 2:30am on the 15th of February 2012, Valentines Day has just passed. Well, for the second year running, valentines was spent without Shermaine. Without her being around, valentines day is just like any other day.

Well, Valentines Day is a special day, but for those of you who are courting. Do something to appreciate your loved one, especially when they are within close distance to you. Because there might be times, where you can be apart and the only thing you wish, is the company of your loved one.

Valentines Day should be a everyday thing, simply because of everyday you learn something new about the person. Each day should be taken with appreciation and not for granted.

My love, my best friend. I have missed you much.

Christmas came early...

This is an awkward post to write, because there are several ways it can be scripted, but i'll just type it out as the words come, and hopefully it will be made sense of. 

Firstly, about three weeks to a month back, I joined a competition that were giving out access passes to Blackberry DevCon Asia 2011. For those who do not know, DevCon means Developers' Conference. 

Blackberry DevCon Asia 2011 in Singapore

Now, i need to make it pretty clear that my knowledge of being a programmer or a developer is pretty shallow actually. I have always thought about going, but it was only for the fun of just mingling around with big-time developers. The competition basically was to submit an idea for an app, and i precisely did that. It was nothing more than idea, there was no restrictions or constraints, so i just tried my luck with no expectations to win or anything.

However, sometimes when you least expect things to happen, it's those things that catches you by surprise. On the 2nd of December, I got an email notifying that I won one of the pass that was being given out, and on top of that was, every person attending the conference was given a free Blackberry Playbook (tablet) in picture. It's something that I had actually been wanting to buy for sometime, and was planning to save up for Christmas, as a present to myself. The present presented itself.

Playbook Companion Book , Blackberry Playbook and DevCon Asia tag

In addition to that, a further few months back I joined another competition to win a Blackberry Playbook companion book, on Crackberry.com. The writer Matttew Miller a.k.a Palmsolo on twitter is a Christian too #justsaying. Well, I just tried my luck as well and it's kinda odd to have a book without having the device that the book is for. The book took a long time to arrive from Canada, and it finally came yesterday. My Mom and a close friend told me that luckily the book came later, if not I would have been prompted to buy the tablet not knowing that I would have been able to get it free later.

Some free goodies that I brought back for some Blackberry gang

On top of all that, my expenses in Singapore were kept to a minimal staying under the roof of my cousin and his family, where i was very well taken-care of. Seeing my nephew was priceless too.

The adorable little nephew!

 I'm someone who has never been very good at receiving praises and perhaps have never known how to recognize the blessings upon my life, that God has to make it so obvious that there is no blind spot for me to miss. I'm not bragging, but i think it'll be injustice if i do not talk about it at all. So I'm thankful for that. I have very understanding parents, a wonderful girlfriend, a very tolerant sister, the best friends that anyone can ask for...(it's a long list). Thinking of such things, sometimes will make us overlook the other things that we feel short-changed for, because it weighs alot more than those we've lost overtime. We can't have everything, that's life.

Final word, I believe that God will always take care of those love Him, and take care of His house. I urge those of you who serve to continue to serve, it's not easy and it will never seem to get easier, but sometimes we just gotta bite the bullet and do so. There's nothing wrong in expecting God to bless and we should, but then we shouldn't tie His hands that it becomes an obligation. We have to be very careful that our motives don't deviate in the process, it should always be Him as a priority to our best capacity regardless. I can say that because at this point of life, I've always done whatever I've could.

Besides.....who knows, what the future holds? Who knows you might be next to receive an early Christmas.

What happens if there's no tomorrow?

For the first time ever, I am posting about deaths back to back here.

A close friend of mine has just lost a loved one. As once I thought before, there is almost nothing good that can be said to make someone in grief feel better, no amount of good words can bring the dead back to life.

We always make plans to a future date, because we have this assumption that we will be alive to see it through. However, what today made me realize is, do we ever think what would happen if there isn't a tomorrow. All the plans doesn't mean anything anymore.

Having said that, we should still make plans and so forth. However, we should make today count for something. Cause time once lost, is gone forever. The same goes for opportunities, life.

We plan to say something, but if only death was predictable, we would have done things differently, I am sure.

How fast things can change within a blink of an eye. Make every opportunity count. 

R.I.P Steve Jobs (1955-2011)

Today the 6th of October 2011, is the day the tech industry lost it's greatest innovator to date, founder of Apple inc, Steven Paul Jobs.

Whilst there are many, myself included who refuse to be part of the MacWorld or the iWorld, cannot deny the contribution this man has made to the industry. Revolutionized the industry, built the most successful brand to date. You can't hate that, you can only admire that.

A genius in the mind, a visionary in the heart. Sir Alex Ferguson said that there's no one bigger than a club, but in this case, it is hard to associate Apple without Steve Jobs. Apple won't be the same.

Condolences to the family.

R.I.P Steve 

"You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future,"   - Steven Paul Jobs-

Times Tribute

Tim Hughes - Happy Day

Verse 1:
The greatest day in history, Death is beaten
You have rescued me
Sing it out Jesus is alive
The empty cross, The empty grave
Life eternal You have won the day
Shout it out Jesus is alive
He's alive

Chorus:
Oh happy day, happy day
You washed my sin away
Oh happy day, happy day
I'll never be the same
Forever I am changed

Verse 2:
When I stand, in that place
Free at last, meeting face to face
I am Yours Jesus You are mine
Endless joy, perfect peace
Earthly pain finally will cease
Celebrate Jesus is alive
He's alive

Bridge:
Oh what a glorious day
What a glorious way
That You have saved me
Oh what a glorious day
What a glorious name