Reflections of 2005

OK. Now that the year is coming to a close, I thought I'd better do some reflections...

2005 has been a year where I really felt God's Blessings upon my life, despite the many setbacks I face in all aspects of life. Thank God for seeing me through the year, thank God for friends - siblings in Christ whom I can trust to pray with me and in whom I can share my joy and sorrow. Relationship with colleagues has been good too, though some could have been better. In terms of work, I procrastinated doing a lot of things, so that's one thing I really should improve on in 2006. On a spritual front, am very happy that I got baptised in March, and that my parents have given me the consent to do so. Also thank God for the ministry He has placed me in, something which I enjoy doing, though it can get quite tiring at times. My walk with God is getting better, slowly but surely. Just no discipline to pray and do QT... :(

Am not quite ready to usher in the New Year yet - with the thoughts of school reopening. Body engine cannot start! Think I need someone/something to jump-start it... So many things left undone during the hols, yet no time to do them all... :(

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

First off, here's wishing one and all a GOD-BLESSED CHRISTMAS!

Went for the annual carolling stint with the alumni yesterday. Carolled at Paragon in conjunction with the opening of the Citibank outlet at Paragon. After that, carolled at the Les Amis chain of restaurants. Felt good after carolling. The sound was warm, the ensemble was good. I think people's hearts were touched. They actually stopped dining and listened to us! Response from the diners were positive too. Think they really enjoyed it.

Had a relatively sombre Christmas service in church today. Am so reminded that despite all the fun and cheer during this festive season, there are still people out there who need the Lord, and who are not yet saved. Then what are we as Christians doing to bring these people to Christ? Christmas is not just about the presents - it's about Jesus, His magical Birth and His Life!

Watched The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe today with the parents. I really enjoyed the movie. One movie worth watching the second time! The parallels with Christianity are more obvious with the visuals. Shan't say more, lest I spoil it for those who've not watched it yet (Why haven't you?!??!!) However, some parts of the book weren't shown in the movie. Makes me want to re-read the book again. The parents didn't enjoy it as much - they said they almost fell asleep during the movie, and felt King Kong was better. (I've not watched King Kong, so no comments there.) Partly cuz they don't know the background of the Narnia series. But it became a good talking point with Mumsie as I explained the movie to her, and who in the Bible the characters in the movie are depicting. Am praying God will speak to her through the movie.

Hope there'll be a part 2 of the Narnia movie... maybe they'll show Prince Caspian??? Speaking of the book, I'm still reading it - am going to finish Prince Caspian. Hope to finish all 7 books by 31 Dec, then I can return the whole set to Wei Dee when the new year comes...

OK... back to reading...

And the final wedding for the year...

First things first, before I go on...

HAPPY 20TH BIRTHDAY 3SG TERENCE LEONG SIR!!!!

Yes, the special age when he's "not a boy yet not a man"... hahaha.

Yes, the title of this blog.

Went for Jon and Joy's wedding at Charis Methodist Church today. Was a very sweet affair. (Hmm... why do I say the same thing for all the weddings I've attended this year?!?!? It's as though all the weddings are so similar!) The sweetest part was when Jon and Joy presented a special item, with them singing and Jon on the piano. It was so refreshing to hear Jon play - he's sooooooooo good! Sounds so pro! And they sound good too! (Ah! Alumni of the ACJC Choir, no doubt! :) )

Spent some time fellowshipping with the SG during lunch reception. When it was time for photo-taking, we had a fair share of it ourselves. Here's the result:

(from left: Terry, Charles, Vincent, Ping-Loong, Xian Yi, Colin)

I don't get it. Are the guys trying to look tao or what? Some of them are looking tao, while some are smiling... (And they say girls are fickle...)

(the same guys, with the addition of Terence the birthday boy on the extreme left.)

Supposedly the shot with the tongue sticking out. Obviously the 2 Terences have no chemistry with the other guys... *sigh*

And the belles of SG3!

(a candid shot of Wendy, Shuli, Kae Tee and Sufen with me looking at them...)

(Acting kawaii!!!)

Went for alumni rehearsal after that, and we were rehearsing the Christmas repertoire. Didn't feel good after rehearsal - somehow ensemble wasn't there, the feel wasn't there... think we've not been singing together often enough. Hope things work out on Christmas Eve...

After a quick dinner at HarbourFront, Geoff came to my place to teach me how to play FFVIII. He played the battle against the final God and I got to see the ending graphics. It was SOOOOO beautiful! My heart almost melted!!! Will aim to finish the game... soon.... But for now, he has helped me up the level of my characters and storing magic and cure for them. (Thanks, Geoff! :) )

OK... gotta go... Got rehearsal with the praise team singers tomorrow. Hope can go Kino with the SG after church - got lotsa books to buy... Hope I can finish reading them though - still stuck with Narnia...

my 26th birthday...

Yes, I've (finally) turned 26 today. But I sure don't behave that age, right...? At least I don't look it... which is quite fortunate, I must say... :)

Was quite a fruitful day today. Jeremy spent the whole day with me. Met at 11.45am, which was much later than our planned time. But might as well, since both of us were late anyway. Went for the Star Wars exhibition at Science Centre in the morning. Exhibited the models, props and drawings used in the making of all 6 episodes of Star Wars. A small exhibition area, so we managed to cover it quite fast, especially for episodes IV, V and VI. We spent the most time on Episode III, which was actually the most interesting. Shan't bother typing. Will let the photos speak for themselves:


R2D2











Chewbacca the Wookiie











A marquette of Naboo








Anakin's racer








Light Sabre!!!











Darth Vader's Mask!








Darth Vader's upright operating bed











Padme's birthing table








Des and Darth Vader!











Des and Padme










We saw this section called "Jedi Gym", which turns out to be games based on Star Wars. Below are some photoshots:










A game similar to what you can find in the arcade - testing your reflexes. Here, whenever a button lights up, you push it to de-lit it. This photo shows an ang moh couple playing it. We also tried it, and hit a score of 63. Highest score of the day then was 89... A team of 3 was 5 points shy of the highest score.




I don't understand how this game works. Apparently, you put this band round your head which is supposed to test how relaxed your mind is. The objective of the game is to get a ball, which is at the centre of the table, over to the other side of the table from where you're seated. And to do that, you must be totally relaxed. We played it, and obviously I lost...


This game's very cool! You put your hand through this twin sensors, and it acts as a gun where you shoot droids. Ultimately, you have to deflect the rays from the Droideka (chief Droid) and avoid getting attacked for a full 90 seconds of the game. So this is a photoshot of me having a go at the game.




The screenshot at the end of the game, saying, "GAME OVER. no more training do your require already know you that you which you need". Yoda language, I presume...?






The games are seriously quite fun, though we only had limited time... Other than that, quite a disappointing exhibition - expected to see more than what I saw...

Went to K-Box after a quick lunch at Long John Silver's. I think I'm going KOK too many times already, so much so that I'm getting tired of singing KTV! No more KTV for at least 3 months, man!!!!! (Unless I learn up 20 new songs...!)

Ended off the birthday celebrations with dinner at home with the family. We ordered Canadian pizza and bought a chocolate birthday cake. A mark of my 26th birthday:


Wanna thank everyone who SMSed me for their birthday wishes. It feels good knowing that people DO remember my birthday. Thanks a lot, guys! Really appreciate you all! :)

Looking forward to a fun day of shopping with DCT and Qinghao tomorrow, possibly with Val too. [Geoff will be stuck in camp, so he can only join us in the evening. At that time, I think I'll be gone... :( ] Can't imagine what it'll be like shopping with 2 guys... Maybe they'll buy more things than me...! :) Am also set on checking out the Creative Zen Vision:M. Heard it's selling cheaper at SLS. Am very gian to get it cuz of the small size (it's 30GB, yet smaller than my Zen Touch!) and also the colour screen. Think will just check it out - shan't take the plunge yet. Not wise... Rehearsal with the praise team singers for Christmas tomorrow night at Liza's place. Hope all turns out well - everything seems to be so last-minute! I'm really not a good organiser... *sigh*

OK.. gonna go sleep now... Must look good for tomorrow.. hahahahaha! :p

Lunch at Mindef!

Yes, you read right! L'll ol' me, the peasant civillian, had lunch at Mindef today with an NSF (CPL Charles Leong) and a regular (LT Valerie Chia, or should I say "Madam"!). Was supposed to meet at 12nn, but me was late, having rushed from school. Had thought that clearing security would be a nightmare and a hassle, but it wasn't as bad as I thought. The people at the guard post made the pass-changing quite a breeze, though they were supposed to "escort" me to the podium to meet LT Chia. (It turned out that they only directed me there. Well, it's good enough, I guess.) Vehicle check was also quite fast. And for the 1st time, I actually see my spare tyre under the boot! *heh* Had problem finding the canteen, but had a little help from a passer-by.

So yeah... the 3 of us FINALLY managed to meet for lunch, but at 12.30pm though. Must also mention that the 2 of them looked very smart in their uniforms... :) The food at Mindef canteen wasn't all that bad. We all had cai beng for lunch. 1 meat, 1 vege with rice cost me $1.40! Yes, it may cost more than what school canteen charges, but they give WHOPPING portions! Think for that much rice and liao they give in the school canteen, I would end up paying more than $1.40! They were saying that the western stall and the dessert stall are quite good too. Though it was a short 1-hour lunch, I'm glad we had it, and I'm glad it worked out! :) A memorable lunch. Hmm... another time, perhaps...? :)

After that... went to Liza's place for dessert - mocha ice-cream! :) spent time talking and praying for the music ministry in church, for God to reveal the directions He has for the ministry. Indeed, there are so many things we can do in the ministry, but it's all also in His timing, and we have to obey and listen out to His instruction.

Reflections after church camp.

Just came back from a 4D3N church camp at Guoman Resort Port Dickson. Am now sitting at my laptop doing some reflections about it. I really thank God that I went for the church camp, and this being my 1st church camp too. Really, God has spoken to me in so many ways, through so many people. Through all the sharing of testimonials by my group members, I really can see how God has actually worked in their lives. It was really encouraging. The fellowship was awesome! It really lifts me up when I know that I'm surrounded by people with the heart for God, and who share the Love of God with others. I definitely got to meet new people, and got to know "old" people better at the same time. And I had fun playing and learning a couple of new games. And the KOK, the mahjong, the chor tai tee...! :)

Though the camp theme emphasises on evangelism and sharing the Good News to the people around us, I feel that before I can do that, I must, as Rev Wee said, set my heart right before God, which I have failed at times. I am also reminded that I should not feel small and inadequate of my (lack of) abilities and giftings, but take courage that God will use me in His own special way to reach out to His people. The prayer and reflection time we had on the last night struck me again that there are so many people in my life that I can reach out to, and I shouldn't let opportunities that God has given slip away.

The talks by Rev Wee and the workshop led by Eu-Jin and Mei-Lin about sharing the gospel at the workplace all give relevant pointers and application tools to reach out to others. I have definitely learnt alot through them.

All in all, what I can say is that the camp has met my objective - to experience God and to be spiritually revived. I just pray that this spiritual revival won't be one which will go away right after camp, but one that will stay, and with constant renewal.

To those who went, thanks for making this camp a wonderful experience for me through your fellowship and love. It made a difference.

May we continue to "Be A Blessing To The Community" and "Reach Out (to others) As God's Family".

Didn't bring my digicam, so can't post pictures. Am waiting for Sufen to mail the pics to me... :)

OK, I have rambled enough. Going to meet Mr. Zhou now...

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.............

And another wedding...

Yes, the 3rd of the 4 weddings I'm attending this year-end.

Today's the wedding of Su-Fern and XR. Was quite a sweet affair. Quite unconventional. The couple were so open to share their love story with the congregation. They also displayed the act of humility by washing the feet of the congregation. Literally! I'm no kidding! Was shocked to hear that initially - we all thought it was metaphorical. But when I actually saw them doing it, I was like... WOW! Really takes a couple with a heart for people to do such a thing even at their own wedding. Makes little wonder that their calling is missions. (I didn't get my feet washed by them, though...)

Was like a mini-AC gathering of the old and the young - '97 batch (Su's - and mine - batch), '00 batch (XR's), '03 and after (Su's students). Managed to catch up with Huiyi and Fiona. A pity Wendy was too ill to be present, otherwise the 5 comm. gals could have all met up for the 1st time in ages!!! (Huiyi's now an accountant with Ernst & Yang; Fiona is an occupational therapist with Balestier Special School - for kids with special needs.) Was great catching up with them. Caught up with Rajni, who's now doing medicine in Perth and Su Li, a teacher in ACJC. Was great too catching up with Debbie (Low, '00 batch), who's now working at Starhub under IT support. Seeing Ms Gracia again was really a heartwarming experience. Hearing her read the scripture passage during the wedding service... with her reading it with so much expression, she brought the scripture reading to life! Really, she's one lady who really inspired me to be a teacher, as well as a servant for Christ!

Since I had the car today ( :) ), went to "chill" out at this gelato place along Sixth Avenue with Geoff, DCT, Sheryl and Junie. Stayed for about an hour or so. As usual, photo-taking with my K750i was not left out when Geoff is around. Subject: Me wearing DCT's cool Gucci (?) shades. This is the result:

The top shot was me trying to look cool in the shades. Obviously I failed looking cool by smiling. So we had a second take:Personally, I thought this one looked more the cut, though I think it's quite obvious that I was gonna break out into laughter anytime. Everyone preferred the former shot, though... The 2 photos were taken, not by Geoff this time, but by DCT.

(Ed: DCT gave me permission to publish this photo, so here it is. Geoff took this shot of me and DCT trying to look cool in shades...)

Then chionged down to KOK with Allan, Steph Saw and Sarah. 2nd day in a row I KOKed - did it last night with the SG. This time, we all started whacking Jay Chou and David Tao songs till no end! Really, Allan and Steph should be crowned the King and Queen of KOK respectively - they know almost ALL the current chinese pop songs! When I went there, I could hardly open my mouth cuz I dunno any of the songs! They were singing songs by 5566, Mayday, Sam Lee... any song that's on the charts now, you name it, they know it! It was so different from the other KOK sessions I have with colleagues and SG. But it's fun, nonetheless. Just that I now have to relisten to all my Jay Chou CDs...

Church camp tomorrow till Wednesday. My personal prayer for the church camp is that I will get to know my group mates a lot better (quite apprehensive, cuz I don't really know the people in my group), and for spiritual renewal and rekindling my passion for God.

OK... gotta go do my 3Ps - pray, prepare, pack!