I... Need... COFFEE!!!

When I can't stop yawning away today, I realised one thing... I am seriously addicted to coffee!!!. I had not drank coffee since Saturday morning, woke up sleepy today and forgot to took my regular dose. Suffered from caffeine withdrawal. I finally feel more awake now after drinking my 1st cup of coffee after more than 40+ hours!!! (Yes... probably will take a booster dose later to mug for my exams).

By the way, I wanna say

Thanks Cinthia for helping to get the bags for my members. Although one of the bag is not the right brand, my member like it nonetheless. My CGL said the Puma bag looks cool, very vintage. Hahaha.

And also, Thanks Briony!!! For helping to design the busing tags for COPE ministry. My CGL and I really appreciate it. Both of us are really busy and at our end's wits. Thanks for availing yourself.

Pastor mentioned something today that coincide with my revelation last week. He said he didn't even pray when someone offered him to go overseas to pastor another church. That's because he already knew what he need to do through the Word of God and what God had spoken to him.

Once again, it reminded me of how many Christians kept using the same old answer whenever they are asked to make a decision, "Let me pray about it." Yes yes... It sounds right, sounds holy (or "hole"ly). In reality, this phrase had being used so often that it no longer have the same meaning as it was used in the past, it had already become a clinque. In the past, people would reply like this when they have to make very crucial or important decision (Example, King David in the bible, also and many history making man of God for the past few centuries). Nowadays, everyone use it just to cover up their indecisiveness (some people do so just to put on a show to make people think they are "hole"ly), saying they will pray about things that already have an obvious answer, which makes many people very frustrated.

For examples,

CGL: You are not doing well for your studies, I think you should take a break from CG to concentrate for you upcoming exams. As a student, if you can't do well in your studies, you are really not glorifying God.

Member: Let me pray about it.

CGL: You should forgive your dad even thou he had not being a good father. The bible says you should forgive others and you should honor your parents.

Member: Let me pray about it.

CGL: I believe you can be strong and overcome your problem. Let me pray together with you and believe together with you to help you overcome this difficult times. If you have faith to believe and don't give up, I am sure God will make a way out.

Member: Let me pray about it.

CGL: The more you feel dry in your walk with God, the more you shouldn't be skipping church. You should do your best to come and seek the face of God.

Member: Let me pray about it.

CGL: Seriously, you should not be having a boyfriend/girlfriend who is a non-Christian. The bible said we shouldn't, because it will affect our walk with God.

Member: Let me pray about it.

The list is endless.

I actually wanted to go home straight after church today, to mug for my exams. However, I just feel pretty bored... Not really in the mood to study (due to the caffeine withdrawal???) so I decided to fellowship with my members.

Anyway, my CGL needs to give makeup CG to 2 of my members after church, she needed a guitarist and so I helped to play. Being really happy with this ministry. It's almost one month since I became the CG guitarist. My skills are not exactly fantasic, still requires HEAVY polishing but still good enough for the time being. I shall seek to polish up my skills after my exams next week. Hopefully by the end of next month, I can achieved much better results.

Thank God it's Friday Night!

Wanna say thanks to Cinthia for coaching me with my guitar. Probably never know how to play a decent praise song if not for her.

Anyway, during CG on Friday, I made one BIG mistake while playing praise. I forgot to change to a hard pentrum! By the time I realised it, I tried strumming harder but it was still too soft. I can hardly hear my own playing!!! I aruptedly stop the praise (BAD MOVE!) and change to a hard pectrum. My CGL was like "Oi!..."

Overnight prayer meeting's great!!! It's being a long time since church held an overnight prayer meeting. I was comtemplating to leave halfway cuz It had being a long tiring day for me, exams are nearing and none of my members will be staying beyond 1am. In fact, that is enough reason for anyone not to even attend prayer meeting.

Nonetheless, I believed that I could manage my time well and I already took ministry leave, I figure that I could very safely attend the prayer meeting (I can't study at night anyway :P) and seek God's face and stand in the gap to pray for my CG and church.

At least I get to see some familiar faces during prayer meeting. Was really happy to see Briony and Cinthia! Hahaha. Later after 1am, when some of the people left, Cinthia managed to get a seat for me so I wasn't alone. Got to know one of her member (or was it her ex-member?) Jacky (or is it spelled as Jackie?), who's really a witty chap to talk to. Making new friends made a great prayer meeting even better. :)

Prayed for a lot of items during prayer meeting. It started from 11pm and end at 5am, with 2 30min breaks in between. I didn't even feel tired throughout the prayer meeting! (I remembered Cinthia used to call this "talent" of mine inhuman :P). I was really throwing every ounce of energy to the praise and worship session and command every possible focus within me during prayer time. It was so refreshing, physically and spiritually after the prayer meeting. :)

There's one particular praise song that was introduced during the prayer meeting, it was so hype and I really love it! I went to check out it's lyrics and chords on Guitar4Christ and tried playing it on my guitar. It's pretty simple yet addictive!

Shine Like Stars
Jakarta Praise Community Church

Look at the world we live today
Look at the hurting everywhere
Let us see mercy and Your grace
Over flowing every place
Let us be one with You today
Let Your glory fall

(Chorus)
We will shine
Shine like the stars above
Shining in Your light
Guided by Your love
Let Your fire burn in us
Burning like a sun
As we glorify
Show Your Kingdom come
To all of the earth

Teach us to live in righteousness
Teach us to love in one accord
Guide us to live life everyday
As we worship in Your court
Let us declare Your majesty
Let Your glory fall

We will shine like the stars above
As we're burning like a sun

Later went to have breakfast with Cinthia. Learned to eat "you tiao" dipped in soy milk from her. It is really nice!!! The soy milk help to wash off the excess oil on the "you tiao", the "you tiao" absorded the hot soy milk and became soft, sweet and "soy" smooth!!!! Amazing taste and texture! Later I learnt from my mum that's the Taiwanese style of eating "you tiao". Hahaha. Got to try that again next time. :)

Friends Connection.

It is amazing how you can double guess what your friend is thinking even before he or she speaks up.

I read in a book about how a person could differentiate the voice of a friend and find him in a crowded noisy party. It is as if like you just know where that friend is.

Going out with the BBC is kinda like this. Like when Briony was just saying, "That's shoe is nice!", I just know which one she's talking about without her pointing it out. Cinthia could read to me what she had written over the phone and I could just say out what she wrote next even before she says it.

Telepathtic powers? Nah. I figure when you get to know someone long enough, you just happen to figure out what the other party's thinking. Of cuz it is not so accurate, I am no mind-reader, but I guess it's the effort a person puts in to know the other party better.

Nothing scary, it is not as if someone close to you will figure out all your secret or what, it is just the coordination that exist between 2 close friends, just lke how players in a team sports can coordinate their tactics after spending many hours of training together. It just makes someone feels special that you know what that person is going to say or is thinking about. This question never cease to amaze me, "How did you know?" Hahaha.

Oh, and the amazing thing today, I realise all 3 of us had a pretty hectic day and were all feeling tired at the same time. Somehow, it makes us understand each other since we all are tired.

Understanding and support, set apart and special, building and commitments, that's what friendship is about.

Ok... really tired now. I hope my post make sense. Hahaha.

Count down to 1st Allowance!!!

Started my exercise regime today with Cinthia in school. We met up on the school running track to run. I haven't being running for a long time so I was a little breathless after the run. However, thanks to all the stair-climbing regime that I did on my own, my legs are not feeling the pinch of muscle cramps or joint pains. (Stair climbing was really effective for shuttle runs!!! I had a timing of 9.7 seconds for my recent IPPT. Hahaha.)

I really lived quite a blessed life, my family love me a lot since I was the 1st child and 1st grandchild for both paternal and maternal side. I am always blessed with many good things. My maternal grandfather will just buy any toy for me if I were to stare at it for a while longer. Even as a "big boy" now, I still get "ang bao" during festive seasons such as lantern festival to "buy lanterns" (trust me, I got more than enough to but a dozen lanterns with the amount of money I recieved), incredible big "ang baos" during Chinese New Year, "ang baos" during my birthdays. God is good. Hahaha.

Thanks to sure a caring and giving family, I learnt the value of giving. I love to bless my friends as my family had blessed me. It doesn't matter even if I will be "broke" after getting something that a friend really like, a smile from that friend is all I need. Hahaha. To see others benefit at the expenses of self is such a wonderful feeling, no wonder my family just love to give and give, sacrifice upon sacrifice. Hahaha.

I will be getting my study sponsorship allowance soon. 3 months backpay + current month allowance!!! It is more than enough to cover my building fund, I can even fulfill the promise to double it and it is still more than enough! This is the highest amount I had given so far. I thank God for all the blessing that allow me to keep increasing my giving every building fund! God is Good!

So what to do with my remaining aboundance?... So much things I wanna get. Hahaha. But first of all, I already promised to treat Cinthia and Briony. Hahaha. I am still thinking what else I can get for the two of them. Not forgetting My CGL Irene and her adorable little boy, Kean!!! Then not forgeting my CG members. And always in my mind, my mum and the rest of my family members. So many people! Hahaha. Cinthia was even reminding me that I am only getting $x00 per month for my allowance and not $x000! Hahaha.

Nonetheless, I will still have to fork out for my $1000++ semestral school fees, travel expenses etc, so I am still pretty clear-headed. Don't worry I will overspend. Hahaha. I believe the more you sow, the more you reap. Give and it will be given unto you. God promised that and God had kept that promise for the past 5 yrs everytime without fail since I started my walk with Him. God is good. :)

A Wonderful Weekend, with a little "surprise" on Monday.

First of all,

Thank you CINTHIA and BRIONY for your gifts!!! Thanks for spending time with me on Sunday and make my birthday this year an EXTRAORDINARY one!!! Hahaha!

Not forgetting...

Thank you Lifeng!!! For the 2 new clothes for my birthday!!! You remembered!!! hahaha.

and then...

Thank you Fung Lun, Szemin and Phui Yun, for those vouchers!!! it will sure come in handy. :)

and of cuz...

Thank you N196 and IRENE!!! Your support never fails to make me a better person. And... So are your "surprises". hahaha!

I was so excited about my birthday that acutally forgot about the Psycho test today... But thank God I was quite alright with the regular revision and I managed to do one last revision on Monday itself. However, it is really STRESSFUL to "discover" that you forgot a test on the last minute. Hahaha. Thanks Thia and Briony for hearing me out when I was so stressful :) God is GOOD!

Life is like a "Bed of Roses".

First of all, I am going to change the music you hear on my blog once in a while because my friends mentioned that the previous music too depressing. Hahaha. Anyway, I am quite a RPG game maniac in the past, so all of the music you gonna hear from now onwards are going to be midis from various RPG games I ever played. hehehe

I wanna share a revelation of a vision I always keep having. This vision 1st came to me when I first heard pastor mention that Christian life is not a bed of roses. That was already a few years back and everytime I hear this metaphor, I will always see a bed of thorny roses. (in case you never seen roses in natural setting before, it is actually a vine plant with thorns.) At first, all I can try to discern this vision is that, "looks can be decieving" but never really felt that is what God is trying to say.

Now after a few years of bible studies, I hear the metaphor once more during cell group last Friday. Finally, I could percieve the message of this thorny bed of roses.

"The bed of roses is only as comfortable as the effort you put in to remove the thorns."

Our Christian walk is really like this, God give us this "bed of roses". It is easy to recieve it but not easy to enjoy it. God gave us His righteousness as a gift but to live a life of righteousness is another thing. The "thorns" in the "bed of roses" are the trials and testings that come along with the gift, but the tool to cut away these "thorns" is really prayers and leaning on the promises of God, that is reading His Words.

Like Paster Carl said, when we faces problems and challenges in life, we look to the Word of God for his promises. At first, we have to keep carrying the promises around, got to keep confessing it and meditating on it. God is good, He always make sure His promises come to pass and when the promise come true for you, you will have more faith to believe in that promise. The more you believe, the less the Word become a burden for you and it will eventually turn around and carry you through out your life instead!

So is the Bed of Roses. The more you cut away the thorns, the more comfortable it becomes. So look beyond the "thorns", see the beautiful rose above it. :)

Nursing Diagnosis in Lay Man's Term

I was helping my friend with her nursing diagnosis and care plan when the thought just came to me, "What if we don't use medical jargons but instead we use lay man terms for our nursing diagnosis ?"

Answer: Cannot make it.

Here's a few examples, (with the usual Singapore Engrish.)

Diarrhea related to something wrong with the stomach
As evidence by,
Subjective data: patient complain of stomach pain for 3 days, keep running to the toilet until legs weak, shit more than 4 times since last night and shit is like water.
Objective data: Patient was seen running to the toilet a few times since coming in to hospital. He shit like no body's business and his shit is like water, looks a bit like milk coffee but smells like rotten fish.

Self-care deficit (feeding) related to old already cannot think properly
As evidence by,
Subjective data: patient's daughter said that patient start to act like a child since 3 yrs ago.
Objective data: patient 90 years old already, he talk no body can understand, someone must always feed him at meal times. Patient likes to grab hold of something, anything. Patient like to spit at nurses. Note: please be careful when approaching patient. When he starts to spit at you, try to dogde like Matrix.

Risk for fall related to weak legs
As evidence by
Subjective data: Patient said he need someone to help him walk, cannot walk without walking stick.
Objective data: Patient likes to sleep all day in bed. Needs help to get out of bed and sit on chair. When standing up, his legs wobble like jelly until I scare he will fall.


How about in Singrish style? ( I try ok?)

Lao Sai related to eating char pah lang food
As evidence by
Subject data: patient say he kar cheng jung, makan sambal already still drink Japanese Sake, later eat Yogurt, at home lao sai lao ka bin qi qi.
Objective data: Patient now bo lat to go toilet liao. He ask to wear jiu por (diapers) and we got to keep on changing for him, si beh kang kor. And the patient's sai ma chiam like teh tarik, come out also like making teh tarik, but dun smell like teh tarik lah. Make me dun wanna drink teh or kopi for the next few days.

So nurses out there... please learn your medical terms well and look more pro when writing your documents.