Hey there champs! :)
Since I'm not physically with you guys there in Melbourne, I shall let my wise words precede me lah. :D Only kidding! I just want to encourage you guys with something that God's been placing in my heart this week.
Proverbs 25: 11 - 13"A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver. Like an earring of gold or an ornament of fine gold is a wise man's rebuke to a listening ear. Like the coolness of snow at harvest time is a trustworthy messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the spirit of his masters."So I know that many of you are either conquering the very last remnants of exams for the year (to which I say, hurrah, I know you can do it by His strength!) or are happily partying away. But whatever it is you're doing, I just want to encourage you guys to think about the words you say.
Yesterday, He showed me just how much words can hurt when He brought to my remembrance sharp and cruel words that have been said over my life a few months ago. I was actually incredibly surprised that I could remember the exact words that had been said to me and not only that, I could sense the mean spirit that lurked behind the words so that I found myself crying.
Maybe there have been words said over your life that have caused you pain or that have stopped you from living out your true potential. I've been there before. I just have one simple thing to say to you: Give it ALL to God. Don't give only some and hold the rest back. Self-pity is something that you don't want to live with because it completely and utterly contradicts the principle of forgiveness that God has explicitly set before us in His word and Himself practiced time and time again. Self-pity seeks to make yourself right in your eyes and whoever that comes against you in the wrong when in the very beginning, what made you better than your enemies? It won't be easy and sometimes you'd have to remind yourself that you've given it all to God long after you've done it because the enemy will bring those words back to mind!
And if words of the past are holding you back from the potential that God has called you to, DON"T let it anymore. Move on from those words. Rebuke them in Christ Jesus. Surround yourself with people who DO NOT FLATTER YOU but are ready to build you with good words. And speak out God's promises over your life. Promises such as: I am the apple of His eye. I am a conqueror in Christ and bucketloads more. Moving on to your calling despite words that bring you down, and I speak from experience, opens up a whole new world to you that is just packed full of rewards for you to reap. Granted, the moving on part won't be all fine and dandy, sometimes you'd find yourself remembering the words and feel yourself falter, but no matter! Push on! And ask God for help in doing so! The blessings that await you far outweight the struggles that you push yourself through! You'd see!
Thirdly, words that have been said can NEVER EVER be taken back. The spirit with which they were said: be it in a spirit that seeks to vindicate or to encourage, will be remembered long after they have been spoken. I like to think of words as things that hang around in the atmosphere long after they've left the lips of the speaker. Words create an atmosphere: be it an atmosphere saturated with venom or with goodwill.
Words that are filled with hate or malice are sometimes said on the spur of the moment. And the people who speak them sometimes reel back afterwards and regret what they have said. But you know what? Like I've said before, they've been said, they've been heard and now they will linger in the heart of the receiver, hurting him/her. Words that bless others are, most often, spare and few in between and yet when they are said, they will remain in the heart of the listener, encouraging him/her in days that see the dire darkness. I, for one, still remember words that build me up even though they've been said years ago.
So I want to challenge you with what God has challenged me with this week. Will you watch your tongue to prevent it from slipping and spluttering insults on the spur of a moment so that you'd spare those who're listening the hurt? Will you make it an effort to say or write words of encouragement that are so seldomly heard in this critical world to give a massive boost to the person that needs it?
Name above every other name
OOoooo! Vellyyy good Cheree!! I recently had a talk with God about studies. I know He has called me to do super-chuntified things, as i was reading in Jeremiah 1 how before i was even formed he had chose me, set me aside before i was born, that i would be appointed. Then i asked, but it's so Hard!!! -_____-Haha! so He goes to Phillipians 2:9 talks about I will lift your name, the name above every name.And it hits me bam--how often are we lifting the name Jesus over the names that we give over our situations and ourselves? i Can come up with So many names for my pharmacology and biochem rite now--tedious, hard, detailed, long, many to remember, no way..But above those labels, comes the name of Jesus. Who should be set above those names I give over my hard times!So it's by realizing that it's the name Jesus that we have to set up high to believe that He Will get us through, because He has not sent me where His grace can't keep me. In other words, we All have the grace to do what He has sent us to do! (for me it's the grace to memorize and understand my metabolic charts, and memorize drug lists etc...) Woohoo!I'm so excited Jesus!!! =)
My God, My Provider.
It's have been quiet here. (:
But ya, just a little note of encouragement in the midst of exams preparations.
Today, I felt God tell me that though I am going through this crazy time of having
"not-enough-time-to-finish-work", it is not an excuse to put Him aside.
I have 22 readings to get through by Monday.
Yet, I ushered for 2 services today.
And at the end of the day, I felt more peaceful than ever.
God told me that He was pleased that I chose to put Him first and He reminded me that He will honour those who honour Him.
So guys, let's not allow our situation or exams or whatever else you may be facing dictate our worship for God.
Let it not get in the way of your time with God.
Let's press in and find peace in God despite our circumstances.
Let's not be anxious.
And let's believe that God will bless us tremendously in all that we do as we lift His name above everything else.
strangers
Because i was asked to post by cherish and jovial (please refer to tagboard haha) i'm finally here. :)
Anyway, I'm here to share a little testimony on what happened to me last week and I hope it'd encourage all of you to ask God for answers to the smallest things. Because God's not only interested in the huge major parts of your life like your relationships, your finances, your studies... He's into ALL of you. And that includes the tiny little parts as well. :)
And I also know that sometimes we, well I know on my part I do, don't really expect a straight answer from Him when we ask a question. Especially if it's a small problem. But you know what? Have faith because my Bible tells me that ask and you shall receive. :)
About a week ago, I was walking home from uni and this was at the end of a morning that saw at least one person turn a frown on me in response to a small smile or simple statements that I said. And for some reason, previous similiar or worse incidents before this started to arise in my mind and before I knew it I found myself telling God: Lord, I think I have a bit of issue of saying the wrong thing and so I say nothing at all. And with such a fear, how will I ever expect to connect with people You'd bring in contact with me so that I can contribute to a change in their life?
I must admit, when I asked the question, I never really expected an answer because of my gloomy state of mind and also because right after that, there was neither a big booming voice from heaven nor a still small voice in my heart, telling me what to do.
Which was why I was considerably taken aback when God did answer my question later in the day; neither speaking directly to me nor speaking through someone I knew, but indirectly through a stranger.
After lunch in the city, I was walking home when I noticed a shop selling bags which I have not been to ever since the beginning of last year with my mum. I remembered that the bag that I usually used to carry my Bible was a bit spoilt and that I had meant to replace it. The shop was having a 1/2 price sale so I decided that there was no harm in checking out.
So I went into the shop and while I was browsing through the bags on the shelves, the shopkeeper suddenly materialized next to me and started asking me questions.
Him: Hello! Looking for a bag today?
Me: Yeap. :)
Him: Oh that's great. Hmm.. are you a student here?
Me: Yeap, that's right.
Him: International?
Me: Yeap.
Him: I see... and where do you come from?
Me: Malaysia.
Him: Oh really? What part do you come from?
Me: Oh. Uhm... I'm not from the Peninsular. I'm from this place called Sarawak... a city called Kuching.
Him: Kuching! I know Kuching! I used to have this worker from Kuching.
Me: Oh really? How nice :)
And as I stood there smiling at him, he started telling me about how he loved this worker of his from my hometown and I watched his eyes light up as he told me of her many brilliant qualities... and then he suddenly went silent and sighed.
Suddenly, before I knew it, here was this man, whom I have never even met and whose name I do not even know, telling me of all his troubles because of this worker. Of how she went back to Kuching, lost her passport, how she has kids that are trapped in no man's land, how he's trying to get the Australian government to regrant the passport, how hard it is to do so, of how he's fighting to get her kids a decent education ... everything.
At this point, another customer came in and he went off to serve them. I stepped out of the shop for a moment to look at the bags outside and the moment I stepped back in, the shopkeeper immediately made a beeline for me and said: I thought you left without saying goodbye! If you had, I'd have been really sad because I really enjoyed talking to you.
When I finally left the shop, he pushed a business card into my hand and made me promise to drop by his shop everytime I was near it so that he could have a chat. He assured me: It's been really lovely talking to you. You're such a nice person.
And as I walked home, I thought that it was nice that I could have made such a difference to a stranger who obviously needed someone to listen to him talk. And I managed to do that.
It was then I felt God tell me: Remember your question just now? About how were you going to connect with people who are brought into contact with you when you don't even know what to say? Well, here's your answer first-hand. Sometimes, you don't even need to say anything but just listen. Sometimes all people really need is for someone to listen.
So yeah, I just want to encourage you guys that God always answers you, even if it isn't immediately or through an expected channel. What becomes the issue is that: Do you even ask at all?
Rain...
yayy!! Finally what we've talked about for a long time to come! Well i recently discovered a song that i really like! it talks about surrendering everything to God:This Beautiful Republic - Learning to Fall http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=VKx_KlUUhPEhaha! oke, that was cuz i'm probably going to be hearing it again and again for the next few weeks..or months..who knows.. =Pyesterday during worship, the Lord was showing me standing on a pavement under the rain...Have any of us ever done that? haha! in a fun way! just letting the rain fall on your face, like u just don't care, and if it was a hot day it every drop would feel like good? And if it was just a drizzle, you would know that not much actually falls on you, it's almost...nothing... -_-But The Spirit Of the Lord should be sought out like a rainstorm! He wants to cover ALL of us! He wants to bring the rain to take away our troubles and worries, to completely soak us in Living Water... I dunno bout you, but i'm not settled for the drizzle of the Holy Spirit, I Envision Rain! I want All of it! I want to Seek it everyday! I Need it! I believe that God will Use His creation to teach us something,..how often do we look at our environment, at the trees and flowers he created, at the wind and rain that He brings? I really feel that the Lord wants to move to a whole new level in teaching us more about Him, with our surroundings....with eyes open wide,
~Jovialll
Welcome Fellow Friday uL-ers! (:
Hey guys! (:
Welcome to our new uL blog!
Well, the reason why we've decided to create this blog is so we can encourage one another and share our testimonies, revelations, anything basically. (:
So what are you waiting for?
:D blog away!
