worthy?

taken from the motion picture The Prince Of Egypt, this song reminded me of how we are living our lives today... do we live for men to see, to judge us?? or do we live for God, for Him to judge us?

Through Heaven's Eyes
by Bryan Stokes Mitchell

A single thread in a tapestry-
Though its color brightly shine-
Can never see its purpose
In the pattern of the grand design.

And the stone that sits on the very top
Of the mountain's mighty face-
Does it think it's more important
Than the stones that form the base?

So how can you see what your life is worth
Or where your value lies?
You can never see through the eyes of man
You must look at your life,
Look at your life through heaven's eyes.
Lai-la-lai...

A lake of gold in the desert sand
Is less than a cool fresh spring-
And to one lost sheep, a shepherd boy
Is greater than the richest king.

If a man lose ev'rything he owns,
Has he truly lost his worth?
Or is it the beginning
Of a new and brighter birth?

So how do you measure the worth of a man-
In wealth or strength or size?
In how much he gained or how much he gave?
The answer will come,
The answer will come to him who tries
To look at his life through heaven's eyes.

And that's why we share all we have with you,
Though there's little to be found.
When all you've got is nothing,
There's a lot to go around.

No life can escape being blown about
By the winds of change and chance,
And though you never know all the steps,
You must learn to join the dance-
You must learn to join the dance.
Lai-la-lai...

So how do you judge what a man is worth?
By what he builds or buys?
You can never see with your eyes on earth-
Look through heaven’s eyes.
Look at your life,
Look at your life,
Look at your life through heaven's eyes!

boxing

happy Boxing day!!!.... Hmmmm... heavyweight championship??... who knows... too many leftover boxes from xmas presents??... maybe... here's why 26th december is termed boxing day...



Claim: The name of Boxing Day comes from the need to rid the house of empty boxes the day after Christmas.

Status: False.

Origins: Few Americans have any inkling that there even is such a thing as Boxing Day, let alone what the reason might be for a holiday so named. However, before one concludes we're about to rag on Americentric attitudes towards other cultures, we should quickly point out that even though Boxing Day is celebrated in Australia, Britain, New Zealand, and Canada, not all that many in those countries have much of a notion as to why they get the 26th of December off. Boxing Day might well be a statutory holiday in some of those lands, but it's not a well understood one.



Despite the lively images suggested by the name, it has nothing to do with pugilistic expositions between tanked-up family members who have dearly been looking forward to taking a round out of each other for the past year. Likewise, it does not gain its name from the overpowering need to rid the house of an excess of wrappings and mountains of now useless cardboard boxes the day after St. Nick arrived to turn a perfectly charming and orderly home into a maelstrom of discarded tissue paper.

The name also has nothing to do with returning unwanted gifts to the stores they came from, hence its common association with hauling about boxes on the day after Christmas.

The holiday's roots can be traced to Britain, where Boxing Day is also known as St. Stephen's Day. Reduced to the simplest essence, its origins are found in a long-ago practice of giving cash or durable goods to those of the lower classes. Gifts among equals were exchanged on or before Christmas Day, but beneficences to those less fortunate were bestowed the day after.

And that's about as much as anyone can definitively say about its origin because once you step beyond that point, it's straight into the quagmire of debated claims and dueling folklorists. Which, by the way, is what we're about to muddy our boots with.

taken from: http://www.snopes.com/holidays/christmas/boxing.asp

now you know... stop going around boxing people!!!

twelve

On the twelfth day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me
Twelve drummers drumming,
Eleven pipers piping,
Ten lords a-leaping,
Nine ladies dancing,
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four colly birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree!



YAY... christmas is here again... this year the lightings at orchard isn't that fantastic... i still prefered the year where they had blue and white lightings... that was really nice... but i especially love this year's xmas... becos of CCIS (celebrate christmas in singapore)... this year they have many different stages in town for performances throughout the week... and its such a good chance for the churches to spread the real meaning of christmas, and not the usual buying of presents and spending money on xmas eve...

anyway... i found out something about the song "twelve days of christmas"... that it might not simply be just a children's song for christmas...


firstly, why 12 days of christmas? the 12 days of christmas starts from christmas day itself until 5th january... and 6th of january is often known as epiphany, also known as the 3 kings day (the day the 3 kings arrived at the manger)... the day before Epiphany is the twelfth day of Christmas, and is sometimes called Twelfth Night, an occasion for feasting in some cultures...

~~~The popular song "The Twelve Days of Christmas" is usually seen as simply a nonsense song for children. However, some have suggested that it is a song of Christian instruction dating to the 16th century religious wars in England, with hidden references to the basic teachings of the Faith. They contend that it was a mnemonic device to teach the catechism to youngsters. The "true love" mentioned in the song is not an earthly suitor, but refers to God Himself. The "me" who receives the presents refers to every baptized person who is part of the Christian Faith. Each of the "days" represents some aspect of the Christian Faith that was important for children to learn.

However, many have questioned the historical accuracy of this origin of the song The Twelve Days of Christmas. It seems that some have made an issue out of trying to debunk this as an "urban myth," some in the name of historical accuracy and some out of personal agendas. There is little "hard" evidence available either way. Some church historians affirm this account as basically accurate, while others point out apparent historical discrepancies. However, the "evidence" on both sides is mostly in logical deduction and probabilities. One internet site devoted to debunking hoaxes and legends says that, "there is no substantive evidence to demonstrate that the song 'The Twelve Days of Christmas' was created or used as a secret means of preserving tenets of the Catholic faith, or that this claim is anything but a fanciful modern day speculation ..." What is omitted is that there is no "substantive evidence" that will disprove it either.

A Partridge in a Pear Tree
The partridge in a pear tree is Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, whose birthday we celebrate on December 25, the first day of Christmas. In the song, Christ is symbolically presented as a mother partridge that feigns injury to decoy predators from her helpless nestlings, recalling the expression of Christ's sadness over the fate of Jerusalem: "Jerusalem! Jerusalem! How often would I have sheltered you under my wings, as a hen does her chicks, but you would not have it so . . . ." (Luke 13:34)



Two Turtle Doves
The Old and New Testaments, which together bear witness to God's self-revelation in history and the creation of a people to tell the Story of God to the world.




Three French Hens
The Three Theological Virtues: 1) Faith, 2) Hope, and 3) Love (1 Corinthians 13:13)




Four Colly Birds
The Four Gospels: 1) Matthew, 2) Mark, 3) Luke, and 4) John, which proclaim the Good News of God's reconciliation of the world to Himself in Jesus Christ.




Five Gold Rings
The first Five Books of the Old Testament, known as the Torah or the Pentateuch: 1) Genesis, 2) Exodus, 3) Leviticus, 4) Numbers, and 5) Deuteronomy, which gives the history of humanity's sinful failure and God's response of grace in the creation of a people to be a light to the world.




Six Geese A-laying
The six days of creation that confesses God as Creator and Sustainer of the world (Genesis 1).



Seven Swans A-swimming
The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit: 1) prophecy, 2) ministry, 3) teaching, 4) exhortation, 5) giving, 6) leading, and 7) compassion (Romans 12:6-8; cf. 1 Corinthians 12:8-11)




Eight Maids A-milking
The eight Beatitudes: 1) Blessed are the poor in spirit, 2) those who mourn, 3) the meek, 4) those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, 5) the merciful, 6) the pure in heart, 7) the peacemakers, 8) those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake. (Matthew 5:3-10)





Nine Ladies Dancing
The nine Fruit of the Holy Spirit: 1) love, 2) joy, 3) peace, 4) patience, 5) kindness,
6) generosity, 7) faithfulness, 8) gentleness, and 9) self-control. (Galatians 5:22)




Ten Lords A-leaping
The ten commandments: 1) You shall have no other gods before me; 2) Do not make an idol; 3) Do not take God's name in vain; 4) Remember the Sabbath Day; 5) Honor your father and mother; 6) Do not murder; 7) Do not commit adultery; 8) Do not steal; 9) Do not bear false witness; 10) Do not covet. (Exodus 20:1-17)



Eleven Pipers Piping
The eleven Faithful Apostles: 1) Simon Peter, 2) Andrew, 3) James, 4) John, 5) Philip, 6) Bartholomew, 7) Matthew, 8) Thomas, 9) James bar Alphaeus, 10) Simon the Zealot, 11) Judas bar James. (Luke 6:14-16). The list does not include the twelfth disciple, Judas Iscariot who betrayed Jesus to the religious leaders and the Romans.




Twelve Drummers Drumming
The twelve points of doctrine in the Apostle's Creed: 1) I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. 2) I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. 3) He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. 4) He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell [the grave]. 5) On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. 6) He will come again to judge the living and the dead. 7) I believe in the Holy Spirit, 8) the holy catholic Church, 9) the communion of saints, 10) the forgiveness of sins, 11) the resurrection of the body, 12) and life everlasting.

merry christmas everyone..

click here.

back

back... from my KL trip... hope everyone missed me!!!.. haha... well... i dun think anyone did... but im back... and back to my mundane life... now i know why people love to holidaying sooo much... it really takes you away from your boring life into a sort of fantasy world where everyday you can just relax and spent money... away from work!!!...

it was really a good trip for me... i have learnt so much from this trip... and now that im back... im kinda missing the kids already... ok for those who still dunno, i went on a trip with shuqun primary school choir to KL for an international competition... went with my mom (vice principle), and 6 other teachers together with a group of 30 lovable choir girls...

there they are!! and thats my mom looking busy... aniwei... it was really an eye opener trip for me to actually see the choir scene... since now im in my church choir its good to know something... all this while i have actually only heard one choir - acjc choir... and they are good... fell asleep at their concert though... not that they are lousy, but too good and soothing for my ears... so i concussed away... aniwei... the competition is really supposed to be an international one... but about 90% of the choirs that took part came from singapore... commonwealth sec was there, TJC and NYJC were there, even NUS choir was there... each taking part in a different category... but the highlight of the competition was this group of girls from estonia... (wonder where is that)... they call themselves the estonian children's TV choir... i guess they must sing for TV in their country... becos boy were they super good... Choir-idiots pls bear with me for a while while i brag about their technical skills...

they have super good pitching, they start each note together and cut off each note together... they dun go flat before they cut off their notes or when they decresendo... they can do really good sound effects and then magically all get to the same note again... and the most important of all... they all sound like one person singing... their voices blend perfectly... its like watching many people opening their mouths and sing but you can only hear one person singing with a huge voice... they can control their volume at ppp very well without losing the quality of their voices... they have great showmanship... on top of that, they are young (12-18 years old), pretty, have blond hair and can dance really well...

too bad i dun have a picture of them... and its no wonder that the judges gave them 95 points for the competition... the next highest groups were only in the low 80s range... i really take all my hats off them to be able to achieve such standards... i guess we are just too too far away... at the end of the competition, they bagged 4 awards out of ten... which is really impressive - best in the youth category, best in the folklore category, best conductor category and overall best choir category...

but we did pretty impressive as well... though the children's category did not produce any gold choirs, in terms of score, shuqun came out 3rd out of 10 choirs that took part... we were happy about it... so here are some photos that i took during the trip... i need a new camera... my flash is spoilt... canon SLR 350D!!!!!

the kids warming up just before the competition...



trip to batuk caves after the competition... thats 473 freaking steps up!


the view from on top of batuk caves... thats my mom down there in red at the bottom left corner on the ground...


visit to the batik factory... here is an artist demonstrating how to do batik...



the finished product... now must wait for it to dry...


pewter factory visit... quite cool...


2 "drunk" teachers hugging the royal selangor icon...



the things some girls said about me during some game we played where we had to write GOOD/POSITIVE comments about each other... primary schools nowadays really have to teach their kids wats the meaning of good/positive.... okay... apparantly on the way to KL i was sleeping on the coach and my head was rolling here and there... and they just made fun of me the whole trip lah... gave me nicknames like uncle benny... but i guess kids are like that... the more they like you the more they make fun of you... yay... (self consolation)...

somehow... after this trip, i have a revival in my interest to teach... since young i have always wanted to teach... cos i really liked helping people understand things that they didnt but i did... but after trying out for 2 days of relief teaching i changed my mind... it happened in 2003 before my army enlistment... it was a really bad 2 days... but i shall not go into that... i think i can imagine myself teaching in the future... "good morning mr kirk!!"... sounds good yea?... but i think girl teachers always have a certain advantage over guys... and we are always on the losing end... female teachers can relate better to the kids and kids find more comfort in female teachers... males have certain boundaries too that we cannot cross over... and also i keep having this thinking that teachers are like army guys... cannot find wife next time one... cos too busy with sch work and the kids... but i guess since my mom and grandma can do it... i should be able too la huh... i guess teaching is in my maternal genes... but i can feel my paternal genes calling out to me too to go into the logistics field...

oh well... dun wanna think about it right now... i want to have a good sleep in my own bed... wake up late tml and laze in bed... shiok.










Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear..... ....Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
matthew 6:25-27

crazy

you keep me flying
you keep me smiling
you keep me safe in a crazy world
you understand me
embrace my frigility
you keep me safe in a crazy world
and in your arms i find the strength to believe in me again

Safe In A Crazy World, Corrinne May





there has been so much pain in the people around me... hopelessness, sadness, feelings of being lost... and all i can do is to offer them a listening ear... feeling helpless, i can only watch as they suffer... and its painful feeling helpless...
its really a crazy world out there... and its only gonna get worse... everything is changing - places, trends, ideals, people change... be careful not to fall in... in this time of darkness, only God remains the same... HE, keeps us safe in this crazy world... cling on to Him and He will set your paths straight... sometimes its just so easy to take the easy way out... its easy to say i give up... its easy to say i quit... but remember this... stand for what is right, even if you are standing alone... God is our rock, our firm foundation...

God keeps us sane in this insane world...


off to KL~

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:38-39

december

finally... i have time to sit down and blog about my life... yes exams are over for me and probably over for most people except some exceptional schools... shan't mention... and yes... its time to play and havoc!!...

had my last paper on thursday... wasnt a good paper... but i guess it wasnt that bad either... played tennis with jay jin and zhi... but poor jin had to loose her hp AGAIN... but lucky for her its was found on a cab and they went to collect it after...

which reminds me of an incident when i dropped my wallet in a cab on the way to camp last year around august... that day i just drew out 50bucks... and cos we were rushing to catch the last ferry back to tekong, i dropped it in the cab... tried to trace it back thru the cab help line but couldnt find it... my ic, and all my cards were in there... was quite sad over the matter... but a few days later apparantly, i recieved a call from the police station saying they found my stuff... so i was very happy of course and went down to the station to retrieve my stuff... but i was shocked to recieve my "wallet" back in a white envelope with only my cards inside... no cash, no wallet... the officer told me that someone found my cards and returned it to the station... and on the envelope he left a note for me written in pen in an ugly hand writing... it said

"found this at changi village. there was no money and wallet"...

hmmm... i was then thinking... if he found my cards at changi, how did he know there WAS suppose to be money and a wallet... its quite obvious that he took everything and returned the rest... how stupid can he be... but aniwei i was quite glad to get back my cards... which some i had already spent money replacing... oh well... lesson learnt...
always equipment check before leaving anywhere...
and don't hold too many things in your hands...
and dun try to be fashionable and wear baggy pants with baggy pockets where everything can just drop out unknowingly...


aniwei... after tennis we went to watch movie... CHICKEN LITTLE... it was quite a good show... enjoyed it very much... although was pissed i cant use my free movie passes... all the new shows are under no free list catergory... maybe i should auction it off or something.. i think cartoons nowadays on the movies are not really for children anymore... although yes its cartoon... but the amount of effort spent on doing the graphics for it is so much, that a young kid won't really appreciate aniwei... the morals that they teach in some require a certain level of maturity to understand... as well as some of the jokes and punchlines... im sure if we were to borrow some vcds of cartoons that we watched when we were younger, we will realise that there is so much more that we didnt notice when we were a kid... so... are people today young at heart?? or is it just that they refuse to grow up???




went for a bbq at marc's on friday... damn far i tell you... took a 1hour 20min bus ride there... never knew singapore was so big... but oh well guess he did the same when he came over to my place for bbq the other time... truce!... had a great time... great food... great people (including me)... great strong winds~... had a great time just mingling with school friends... the other times with them are mostly studying... so it was great to be just doing nothing, enjoying food and chilling out... damn i forgot to bring the vodka... had a stayover at his place... brought out all the laptops and we attempted to be like a lan shop... but... oh well... somethings are made for its purpose and im talking about lan shops... they are there for a reason... cos we had lots of trouble linking 5 computers together in a DOTA game... we managed to play together for 5 mins though... until one by one start disconnecting... haha... it was a failure i would say... at least the girls had a beter time watching vcds... but they couldnt get into the mood of the show with the background noise from our DOTA game... so at the end of the night the gals ended up sleeping the living room and the guys cramped into marc's room... i guess it would be different if it was a gal's house... woke up at 10 the next morning... and as usual we had a hard time waking jaymie up... she is a true blue snoozer... and when i say snoozer i mean without snoozing she cannot wake up one... must snooze for 1hour then can... we went for prata nearby before saying bye bye... home sweet home...


did not do much on sat... had to save energy for sunday... so i watched vcds until dinner... stealth and mr & mrs smith... nice shows... slept after dinner...


sunday!!... standard chartered marathon... waited one year for this... but i din run marathon la... ran 10km only... but 10km is enuff to punish someone who did not train for it... someone like me... oh man... it was a gruelling 10,000m... my heart was pounding like mad even before i can reach the turning point at the halfway mark... aniwei... serene did really well for her debut run... well done!!!... she was about 3 mins in front of me... that could be over 400m in front of me... yay... she is fit... i was fit... aniwei we managed to scramble to church after the run in time for the sermon... it was a cool sunny morning... not too hot but nice colours all around... thank God for that... din see weelee... maybe she was running too ffffast for me to see her with my naked eye...



fun things coming up for me...

monday - windsurfing... finally...
tuesday - band camp dry run (huh wats that?? dunno)
wednesday - squash game with fiona BD and willy
thursday - pack pack pack
friday - off to KL for competition... yay... back on following tuesday...



oh for those who dun know im going to KL... cos im playing the piano for my mom's school choir (shuqun primary school).. and... they are going to KL for this international competition... well hope for the best... and i hope i dun play a wrong note... stressful leh... haha... i jio shelly go to KL on friday she dowan... haiz... haha...


aniwei... many friends flying back and flying away this december... happening man... do ask me out!! im free after the 13th... i think... i mean, i hope... =]










but do not forget this one thing, dear friends: with the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. the Lord is not slow in keeping his promises...
2 peter 3:8-9