BLog moved

Hi guys..as i've moved back..i'm moving to a new blog zone:P

here's the link-www.hisbelovedsprinter.blogspot.com

thank u for ur support!

COming home on a jet plane

Hey everybody..vivi's coming back today:) yeaps~

late notice but well..wasn't able to get some time to go on the web to tell everyone..

I'm arrivin on the airbus at 930pm back in Singapore..so if you are interested i'll see u there..otherwise, we'll see how it goes..

ooo..mixed feelings now..seeing u guys real soon!!-hugs-

Hey everybody!! thanks for your ardent support for my blog if u have been a true regular!!

It's my 1st year anniversary (++months i think) since i started my little humble blog!!!

Now, as I complete my studies in Australia, my life in the Down Under, I'll be having a couple more entries and then extending and changing the blog IF I HAVE THE TIME!!

If u have any requests on what sorta entries u will like..i'll try to meet all requests:)

I've a couple entries at hand
1) Graduation photo taking!
2) Cronulla- Whales at my feet!!

i might add more on packing stint..i've been packing ever since i shifted out of my lidcombe residence..hahaha..it's goin on forever!!!!

take care guys and i'll see u back home real soon!!

The curtain call~

After my exams, I started on another 5 weeks of placement at a children's hospital in Sydney. When I was 16, I never could imagine myself dealing with children. "They are cute when they are not yours." That's what many people tell me after they have their kids and they progress to the age when they can understand the meaning of being defiant:/ Scary enough, now at the age of 23, when my maternal instincts are calling out, I chose to do a placement that will have me face children-from neonates to adolescents- for at least 8 hours a day. I've never had any experience dealing with children- the closest I got to having dealing with childish behaviours was in Tekong and when I was in Australia dealing with most bizarre events of my life.

After these 5 weeks, I had such an urge to be a teacher! hahaha..I enjoy just playing imaginary running games in gyms, laughing at and joking about the littlest things, hearing honest comments, playing counting games from 1-700, arm wrestlings, pool therapy, ballet in the pool and birthday parties. I cherish the moments when my children listen to what I teach them to do and disciplined them so that they will be more well behaving children. I relish the moments when my children are able to get better from the conditions they are suffering from, smiling at me when they are get well. I indulge in every little victories my little warriors accomplished in their rehab process because I know it might seem small for us, but it could be the greatest thing they ever tried to do after being ill for so long. I learnt to celebrate the little steps they make, I learnt to love yet be firm in my rules, I learnt to be like a child.

The faith they placed in me makes me feel so important and responsible for their lives. Never mind the wailing and cryings I had to put up with them~ their lives create an amazing time for me at the hospital.

As I finished my last placement, the next time i step into the hospital- I am a physiotherapist. No more student before that name. I can no longer hide behind my supervisor and pretend that I know nothing. I can throw away the ugly looking pants that i wore for 4 years of my life. Probably for the first time in my life, I will look proper and well dressed in a hospital. HAHA...

When I look at the children, they remind me of that child like faith I had in Jesus when I first started out this course. I knew nothing about physio but still He took me by the hand and saw me through the goods and bads, the bad decisions and many victories. It was never easy finishing this course but still I managed to complete it:)

These 4 years been a real drama, whether it has been that in school, in canoeing, in church, at home, with my time in Australia- I knew there are things that i will not want to experience if i had a chance to turn it back, there are words that I said that I wish i could take it back, and there are people whom i trusted that i hope i did not trust in the very first place. Similary, these are things that if God had not given me, i'll have not grown much to know what I could and could not accomplish through him:)

Finally, time to take my curtain bows as the end of the my performance as a physio student has come to an end:)- curtseys for you-

When I call finally burn those papers without a worry

Week 11 into semester~ I finally put my pen down for the last written paper in my education life ( at least for now.) That feeling of knowing that I have no papers to study for in my life was ...WEIRD. I remembered that when I was in NYP, I was so happy..i threw almost all my notes away!!

Here~ I just felt that..MAN~ i'm going to be a physio back home.. how surreal is that and I so don't wanna go into that just yet.

Coming back from Mudgee was like yesterday's thing. I got down to cooking some Thai food when I reached Lidcombe and we had too much coconut and chilli padi that night..but I enjoyed cooking after long drought of not touching the pots and pans to whip up something nice to eat.:P Then, it was full swing on for assignments and also exams. Guess what!! I didn't sleep more than 5 hours in the past 3 days all because of my habit of procrastinating that got me into a real mess with work:P Somehow, I still survived till this very point to write this blog so I pray with all faith I will do fairly well for my papers:P

I'll be moving away from Lidcombe so there will be achange of address..if anyone of u wants it..just send me an email and I'll get back to you with the new one.

Lately, my family in Australia has been seeing additions. My cousin in law got pregnant and my other cousin is getting engaged. Then, the turn came to me when everyone started asking if I was goin to be at that stage any time soon. I was stumped..i thought of that but..I don't have one to fulfil that so I kept quiet. hahaha..o well~ It's all in God's good hands..He will send the biggest and most complementing person in my life:)

getting tired..need to sleep..NITE!

Mudgee-nest in the hills~

It was our 3rd week at Country Physiotherapy!!!

As we count down our weeks to the end of the PPD, I had mixed feelings as I approached the end of the week. We are half way there- we are half way there leaving Mudgee.

The 2.5 weeks of mornings that starts at 0600h when we have to make our way to Church street of Mudgee where our clinic is located marks the crucial countdown that we cannot make any mistake at our placements. Any mistake could cost you everything.

Even so, the warmth of the country people and my clinical educator caused me to put aside all these worries. Liz gave us a surprise treat at the High Valley today!!! I was so excited when I saw that we are going for cheese tasting and a good lunch.

She said we worked really hard so it’s good time for a reward. I had a good treat of hot chocolate in the morning from her too:P I feel super duper blessed!!! Liz’s the best!! She always encourages and gives pointers on how to improve. She teaches and not expects a whole load of you (which is good so I can learn the basics that I used to ignore LOL).

Sherry and I had a great meal with Liz at a beautiful place. I must go back there again:P
Then, Sherry and I had afternoon tea at grandma Shirley’s place again. I went to pay her a visit last week and got Sherry come along because grandma wanted more company.

Grandma Shirley made COffe CAKE!! Fabulous coffee icing I must say:)!! Boy~ Mudgee placement is really a thrill for the stomach, the heart and the brain. We talked about war days of Singapore- she actually read a book on that so we can have a chat on that and also her family and her days in Sydney. Granny had a new set of teapot and I took pictures of it- amazed at the collection she has.

As Mudgee had one of the coldest days in Autumn in the last few decades, I had the most amazing warm embrace from the Australians in Mudgee.

1) Frontline Christian Centre- Pastor Robyn’s ever welcoming hugs, meeting Christopher and Caroline who prayed for me, having tea at May’s and Grahm’s place and getting a VCD of Christian songs from May, Karen who chat with me real long, Emma’s offers to ride home, Rachael’s lunch invite to her place.
2) Granny Shirley’s afternoon tea.
3) Patients who don’t mind you treating them even when you are students
4) Liz- our amazing clinical educator who drops us home almost every night and offers to pick us up on rainy days, lunch and chocolate treats, cute winks and ever ready to teach us.
5) Ash and Karla who never cease to help us out with the administrative stuff at Country Physiotherapy
6) Ash’s mother who gave us blankets and a warm heater.
7) Getting a ride from a stranger when I was walking in the rain from work.
8) Wayne’s pumpkins and FREE RANGE EGGS!!
And the list just goes on..
Father, thank you for bringing me here. It was Mudgee that brought me back to the foundation- my foundation in you.

PS: thanks elain for your hugs given by shirlynnJ

A hope that never disappoints

I remembered of my youth days when I used to hear of the pastor sharing about the hope that is in our Lord Jesus Christ- because of that we can rejoice even in the midst of worries and adversities.

I then took the posture to rejoice and sometimes place myself in a position of self denial- denying the sadness and disappointment if I have to in order to demonstrate an attitude of belief in the so preached “hope”. Yesterday, I realized I had never truly understood and embraced such a hope till I read Acts 27:13-44.

That chapter of Acts is really long. So long, I fell asleep while trying to finish reading it. I bet it’s the pile of work that I had to keep up with that brought about such sleepiness (I know excuses as usual.) Anyhow, it was the study at Blue Sky that gave me an opportunity to truly examine and read in depth of what this common hope Paul and I shared- that Paul embraced but I had not.

As I read of the passage, the Holy Spirit begins to convict of my heart in the never failing hope that my Father in Heaven promises. As Paul, a convict that was due to sail and stand for trial before Caesar, was caught in the storm with the crew, he was the one who had the hope and faith in God to see that they will survive the storm without anyone lost to the menacing waves.

Paul was the only one on the ship who believed that God will deliver them- he spoke to the officer in charge, having to be rejected in the face on the first attempt because (perhaps) he was a mere convict. In fact, the entire crew banged on their sailing experience and knowledge to handle the rough winds, only to lose all hope of any chances of being saved when all attempts were in vain. (27:20) Then Paul came along once again, having first encouraged and assured the crew of preservation of their lives, and providing advice on how to manage the boat to deal with the sea happenings.

Paul did not have to do that. Why?
1) He was a prisoner on his way to stand trial- this was most probably the best chance to run away and escaped from the trial.
2) He was in the least position to speak because he has a status of a convict.
3) The situation out at sea was terribly bleak
4) He was not a sailor- does not have the relevant experience to advise
5) Nobody was bothered to listen initially.

Then, why did Paul still stayed and helped?
1) He heard from God
2) He had a promise from God
3) He found the hope in God
4) He was the only one who heard of the promise from God.
5) He saw the people- not himself.

Do you feel like you are Paul? You seem to be the only person in the light while the rest are in the dark or in their world? Do you think you will be as brave as Paul to vocalize if God has called you to even though you might be the most unlikely person to speak? What did you see in your situation of adversity- yourself, the people involved, God?

I believed with all my heart that Paul positioned his hope such that he saw God first and God led him to the people.

You could be in a situation now where you are of the least likely position to comment on a situation. It could be because you are not experienced, you are the involved party and might seem to be providing a bias opinion. You could be like Paul- at a lowly position that does not offer you the right to speak in the eyes of authority because you stand at their hand of mercy. I reckoned that Paul was frustrated when the officer refused to listen to him. Could you imagine if he stopped at that and never pushed his way through to make him heard? They could most probably have lost their lives to the raging seas.

For the hope he had in Jesus that he so wanted the people on board to have, he made sure that he must be heard.

As it was like Abraham coming to God and bargaining for God to spare the city of Sodom and Gomorrah, I believe God saw Paul’s heart and because Paul was on board- His mercy came and cover the ship all because of one man.

If you are the only person in a mess/situation that has hope and faith in God’s promises, God will deliver the group from the circumstances. Because of you (the only one), He will intervene in the situation. Because of your hope and faith, He will turn things round. Because of your hope and faith, He will change things. As such, that He shall be honoured and glorified by your faith and hope.

Today, you might be stuck in a real mud mess. You are thinking- Boy, I am the worst person to comment/ provide advice or even make mention of the matter. Could you have realized that you might be the only person that has a relationship with God and hear from Him? You might be THE ONE that he will use mightily to change things around- if you will only choose to position yourself in the posture to be used by God.

It just takes one person- are you the one?

PS: Was it worthwhile to go for the plunge? Paul’s hope and faith kept the lives of the 276 onboard the ship with the centurion having spared his and other prisoners’ lives. I think it will be.

His timing

I always struggle with punctuality. Friends who go out with me often will know that I am one that has poor estimation of the time I will take to get from one place to another. My days in junior college was way classic- I’ll reach my spot in the class line up at the ring of the second bell before the national anthem plays.

Having stayed in Australia for some time, I’ve tried my best to change that habit of being a few minutes late. Well, I must say it’s still in the primitive stage of correction :P When I made my shift to Mudgee( which was 2 weeks ago), I decided that I should put discipline into my punctuality- especially since I am on clinical placements. It has pretty much been effective in making me waking up early and getting ready for work

I like having timetables to tell me what I have happening in my day and I believed that God also has a great timetable- so that he can handle every little thing to every big things in our lives without missing anyone’s at all. I reckoned God’s a real sticker to time because the happenings of the world are dependent on when He calls for them to happen. Even the time you are to cross the particular traffic light- who knows He might have arranged to meet a long lost friend that will make a difference in your life.

My time at Mudgee, I believe with all my heart, was God ordained, orchestrated and blessed. When I arrived in Mudgee, I went looking for a church to attend on the 2nd day ( Sunday) that I arrived. The church that I intended to visit had a supposed 6pm service so I went for that. Frontline Christian Church youths met me at their venue- only for me to find out that there was no service going on at 6pm. However, a bigger piece of news awaits me.

The pastor, Pastor Robyn, wanted to invite me to the night conferences for the mid western regional churches and I agreed! She waived the fees for my attendance and arranged for people to pick me and drop me at my accommodation so that I can go out at night. The conference was in God’s timing- the last night was a night of prayer and commitment. On that very last night, God came and spoke to me about two issues, through three people, that were on my heart for the longest time. I rarely knew these people for a week but pastor Robyn, the preaching pastor and also this gentleman called Christopher came to pray for me- sharing the heart of God for my life.

Leaving Sydney at this time gave me time to review my past 10 months and also to take a break from the hustle and bustle of happenings that really got on my patience and nerves. There were so many occasions when I could take a chair and break it because I was so helpless over the behaviours of human beings- I had to find a way to vent that frustration but thank God the chairs were spared. Instead, this retreat has brought me back to the very heart of serving Jesus Christ- serving and loving His people.

It helped that I managed to escape the coldest time of the year from Mudgee- I will definitely freeze to death if I come in July.

God’s timing is so “zhun” isn’t it? Amusing as it may sound, but like it was said in

Ecclesiastes 3

There is a time for everything

A season for every activity under Heaven.

A time to born and a time to die
A time to plant and a time to harvest

A time to kill and a time to heal
A time to tear down and a time to rebuild
A time to cry and a time to laugh

A time to grieve and a time to dance
A time to scatter stones and a stick to gather stones

A time to embrace and a time to turn away
A time to search and a time to lose

A time to keep and a time to throw away
A time to tear and a time to mend

A time to be quiet and a time to speak up
A time to love and a time to hate

A time for war and a time for peace…

11 God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.

14 And I know that whatever God does is final .Nothing can be added to it or be taken from it. God’s purpose in this is that people should fear Him.

15 Whatever exists today and whatever will exist in the future has already existed in the past. For God calls each even back in its turn.

I feel I am slowly walking back onto His big palms.

Vivian @ Mudgee

Greetings from the midwestern region of NEW south wales!!!

I'm currently up at Mudgee. It's in between Dubbo and Orange ( my definition of her location to people)!! It's a beautiful peaceful town that has really nice people..

I'm having placements here at the rural area- currently at a private practice called Country Physiotherapy and having a great time learning and interacting with patients.

If you ever watched those old English films with those small towns with maple trees lined along your roads in autumn, those brownish red maple leaves falling- yea! that's Mudgee for you:)

I'm surrounded by the mountains and hills and every morning i see a differnt outlook of the moutains. It's getting colder but still tolerable..:P i think i've gotten used to the weather fairly well. The thought of returning to a humid weather kinda makes me upset a little but that's not gonna stop me from wanting to come home!!! I must confess- I do miss everyone back home in Singapore. Nevertheless, I shall make full use of my time here:)

After this stint, i'm heading back to Sydney. I must say a million times THANKEW!!! to people at 6A/6 Georges for that emo farewell( i didn't cry fyi) but i really enjoy the love and hugs and the pretty card. I will write love letters to u..LOL~ am so lookin forward to your arrival at Mudgee~

Alrightey~ it's been a long week..one week down..4 more to go~ looking forward!!

Luke 24:30- my year in Sydney

It may seem a little too early to reflect..but just felt a tugging in my heart to conclude my year ( as I make my permanent exit from 6A/6 Georges Avenue:P)

Luke 24:30
“As they sat down to eat, he took a small loaf of bread, asked God’s blessing on it, broke it and gave it to them. Suddenly, their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him. And at that moment He disappeared!”
As I spent my first Good Friday out of home and Trinity, I recounted the many “firsts” I have had thus far after arriving in Australia to pursue my studies. First Chinese New year with friends, first Christmas party I organized, my first meal that I cooked myself and my first baking session when I nearly burnt my house down. I had the very first taste of living overseas alone, living with friends who became strangers overnight and having to learn to cope with the many “sudden” incidents. How exciting is studying overseas!!
Having been in Australia for close to 10 months, my experience is like that described in verse Luke 24:30- Taken, blessed, broken and given. I was taken into the hands of God and received prayers and letters of blessings before I left Singapore. The first few months in Australia was close to a scary place called hell..haha.. The misunderstandings that arose from different lifestyles and values made 3 of my housemates shift out of my current accommodation. The struggle to fit within the church and the campus ministry and dealing with school demands did not really help with the process of settling down. I never felt so vulnerable, and all I could do was call upon God’s name and pray even though I witness the deterioration of relationships and circumstances. After one incident has appeased, another came along. Those were not big hurdles. The greatest one came when a very treasured friend whom I really trusted, broke an important promise and got me hit rock bottom. It got so bad, I did lose my faith in believing that God will come and rescue me. My desperation drove me to tears and I will sit in my room calling out to God silently because I was so afraid He will not answer. Then He came and called out my name, whispered into my ears, “I am giving you a promise now while the seed is still in the barn, before you have harvested your grain and before the grapevine, the fig tree and pomegranate and the olive tree have produced their crops. From this day onward, I will bless you.” Haggai 2:19
Bearing the brunt of all the rumours from the happenings was really challenging. I was challenged not to retaliate in language even when I underwent verbal attack from people whom I thought were good friends, I was challenged not to hate when they set out to teach me a lesson for the flaws that I had. The anger crept into me and made me gave up in believing these are people that deserve forgiveness. However, He called me to love them in all circumstances because Jesus did. 1 Corinthians 13: 13 “There are three things that will endure- faith hope and love and the greatest of these is LOVE.” When He chose to die on the cross even when people did not accept Him, it was love that kept him on the cross for men’s sake. If Jesus could still love these scary people who crucified Him, surely I can love these people no matter what they had done- Love the sinner and not the sin.
It was a humbling process- breaking of pride and surrendering my rights to hate and fight for what was my rightful way to address the grievances I suffered because of people’s actions. I asked God why I am the person who has to go through all these things. The breaking of every aspect of my life took a toll on my emotion basket. I got into really weird moods that my friends could not bear to see at times. 2 Corinthians 12:8- “Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time He said, “My gracious favour is all you need. My power works best in your weakness.”
I really did not want to love them for all the bad reasons I could give. I chose to but I struggled to love. My daily prayer was like Jesus did when He hang on the cross- Luke 23:34 “Father, forgive these people because they do not know what they are doing.” Then I looked upon that cross and He asked me- John 21: 15 “Do u love me?” 21:17 “Lord you know everything. You know I love you.” Jesus said, “Then feed my sheep.”
I envisioned that coming to Australia will be all fun and rosy, exciting things that will happen in my life. Fun and rosy things there were, but the tough times that came along were really tremendous testing of my faith in Jesus, my love for people and my focus on the race. 1 Peter 1:7 – “These trials are only to test your faith to show that it is strong and pure. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold- and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold. If your faith remains strong after being tried by fiery trails, it will bring you much praise and glory and honour on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.”
The most amazing part of this journey- The love I chose to show, to people who were against and misunderstood me, liberated me from fear. “Such love has no fear because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of judgment and this shows that His love has not been perfected in us.” 1 John 4:18-19
“Since I know it is all for Christ’s good, I am quite content with my weaknesses and with insults, hardships, persecutions and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong” 2 Corinthians 12:10”
As I look back on the things that have happened, it may seem like it’s all over but the hurt that has been done will take time to heal. The greatest joy was to know that even as I endured the past 10 months of seemingly never ending pain- I grew stronger because of the love of God that taught me to forgive and love. As Luke 24:30 states, as I was taken into the hands of my Father, blessed and broken by His grace, so that I can be given to do the will and work of God in this world that so needs the love of our Father in Heaven.

Christian Principles For Dating

By Patrick Zukeran

What Is Love

We were made to love and be loved. God is love(1 John 4:16). Among the spirtual virtues found in the bible, love stands preminent. It is no wonder the devil has worked hard to distort its meanings.Today, the word love has been misconstructed in several ways. One misconception is, love is sex. Hollywood has bombarded the media with this definition. When two people are "in love" in the movies, they immediately get sexually involved. Biblically however, the proper place for sex is in marriage. There are at least two commitments involved in the institution of marriage. First, there is the commitment each partner makes to honour, protect, and be faithful to the other for life. Second, true marriage involves a commitment to the larger society to abide by these principles.Remember, Hollywood protrays a distorted view of reality. But we often laugh when we see scenes that are factually ridiculous. For example, one scenario we often see in movies are when a group of skilled soldiers hidden behind trees and armed with machine guns open fire at the hero who is in close range and fully exposed. Even so, the trained marksmen all miss him, but with a single pistol in his hand, the hero annihilates his enemies. We laugh, knowing that this is the fantasy land of Hollywood. However, people buy into the scene of two people falling in love, getting sexually involved, and then leaving one another without any consequences. Just as the first illustration was absurd, so is the second. Yet, too many people have been deceived into this type of thinking that no harm is done when in reality, sexual involvement can lead to such consequences as emotional pain, feelings of exploitation, guilt...etc. Do not buy into the definition that love is sex.

A second misconception is that love is a feeling. Love needs to stir up emotions of excitement, happiness and passion. It must make me feel good. When we define love as an emotion, we inflate the accuracy of emotions.True, there are good feelings associated with love, but love also involves self-sacrifice and perseverance in difficulty. Love is a commitment to do what is right even if there is pain. Love defined as an emotion is not love at all, but a self centered desire for pleasure.A third mistaken view of love is the belief that love is conditional: I love u if u meet my expectations. It requires the other person to perform up to a desired level before my love is given. This love is shallow and self-centered. In the end, conditional love proves to be destructive.True love begins with God. Only His love can fill the emptiness in our heart. The people we date and marry can never meet our deepest needs. In 1 John 3:16 we read, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us." God valued us so much, He was willing to suffer and die on the cross so that we could have a meaningful relationship with Him. He loves us unconditionally, even though we can never repay Him. God's definition of love is a commited, sacrificial and unconditional love. This is the kind of love that any solid friendship, dating and marriage relationship must be built on. God's way of love is the key to a significant life and to meaningful relationships. In order to love God's way, we must first experience God's love personally. Only when we know we are loved just for who we are, and we are secure in God's love, can we share that love with others.

Principles To Remember

When I began dating, I didn't have a clue what God's Word said on the subject. As a result, my first few dates caused both parties a lot of unnecessary pain. These hurtful experiences could have been avoided, if I had followed two principles from God's Word.The first principle comes from 2 Corinthians 6:14 which states, "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?" Paul draws on the analogy from Deuteronomy 22:10 which prohibits harnessing an ox and a donkey together for ploughing. The result would be disasterous since they would pull a plow at different speeds and end up going nowhere.It is impossible for two different species of animals to pull a plow properly since they have too many incompatible traits. The same is true between a believer and an unbeliever when it comes to dating. The differences are so great Paul contrasts it to light and darkness.This principle applies to christians as well. It is possible for two christians to be dating and still be unequally yoked. One person may be commited to the Lord while the other may be worldly. It is not enough to date someone who goes to church. We must see if the other person's life reflects a heart for God. The first girl I dated was a pastor's daughter. Although she spoke the right words and outwardly lived a good life, I soon discovered her heart and mind were not on the Lord. After a few weeks, our worldly and frustrating relationship came to a bitter end.The application of this principle is simple. A christian should never date a non-christian for any reason. That does not mean we cannot be friends with unbelievers. How else would we win them to Christ? However, we should not be in a dating relationship with non-christains. Missionary dating, dating someone with hopes u will win them to Christ, is always an unwise practice for christians. The person u want to date is someone whom has shown himself or herself to be faithful and growing in the Lord.The second principle is what I called the 3 M's: Master, Mission, Mate.The first priority in a Christian's life is to know his or her Master, Jesus Christ. Matthew 6:33 says, "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness." From this relationship, all of life falls into its proper place.After knowing your Master, u need to discover the wonderful Mission He has for your life. Ephesians 2:10 states, "For we are God's workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God has prepared in advance for us to do." Your future partner will compliment the mission God has called u to.The third M stands for Mate. This must follow the first two priorities. The best dating relationships come when two people who know God and know their mission, are walking down the same paths towards the same goal. Somewhere down the road their paths will connect. From that point, they march together on the same path. That meeting point will be determined by God at the Best time.

Marks Of A Healthy Relationship

I am often asked, " How do I know if I am in a healthy dating relationship?" Here are a few ways to tell. Proverbs 27:17 tells us, "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." When two swords rub against one another, they result in two even sharper and better swords. The same should be true when two believers are together. They should make each other stronger in the Lord. They do this by encouraging the other to grow in the Lord, exhorting each other to become more like Jesus each time they are together. Postive constructive changes are produced in one another. A healthy relationship looks like a triangle. The man and woman stand at the bottom corners. At the top of the triangle is God. As each person moves closer to God, they move closer to each other. The focus of each individual is the Lord.When I first entered the ministry, I was goal-oriented and insensitive to others. Its not that I didn't care about others, it was that I was so focused on the goals that I often ran over other people to accomplish the task. As I started dating the young lady who became my wife, she pointed out these flaws, and through her 'sharpening process' I have become more balanced.The question to ask about the person you are dating is, "Do I get closer to God as a result of being with this person?" or "Do I love Jesus more today because of our time together?" If you answer yes, u have the markings of a healthy relationship.A second indicator comes by looking at the relationships around you. Look at your relationships with your friends, your parents, your pastor and older mentors. Are these relationships being strengthened or weakened as a result of your dating relationship? In a healthy relationship, these friendships are strengthened. In unhealthy relationships, the couple often isolate themselves from others.This is unhealthy for several reasons. One person cannot meet all your needs. There will come the time when you need other friends. Yet, unless you take the time to build other relationships now, later when you need the friendships of others, they may not be there. Often, one person in the relationship will try to dominate the time of the other. Because this person is insecure, they will be very possessive of the other. This leads to a relationship built on selfishness, distrust and insecurity. When I see relationships deteriorating between the dating couple and their parents, older mentors or pastors, it is often because the dating couple has something to hide. Integrity, sincerity, honesty and truth are the marks of a healthy relationship. When I was involved in unhealthy relationships, I saw key relationships around me deteriorate. As hard as I tried, they continued to decline and soon I knew this relationship was not of the Lord. If you are in a healthy relationship, both of you will be growing in character and in the Lord, and your relationships with other people will be enhanced and strengthened.

How Far Is Too Far ?

When I speak on dating, one of the most frequently asked questions is, "how far is too far?" In other words, how physical can I get with my date and still be obedient to God? The answer is found in Paul's exhortation to young Timothy is 1 Timothy 5:1-2. "Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and the younger women as sisters, with absolute purity." Paul's words remain clear. As christians, we are all part of one family belonging to the kingdom of God. He says to the men to treat younger women as sisters with absolute purity. There should not be even a hint of sexual immorality in the dating relationship. Women are to likewise treat men as their own brothers. Righteousness should be the hallmark of christian dating relationships.My basic guideline is this. The more physically involved the dating relationship, the worse off it is. Over the years, as a pastor of students, I have seen many relationships destroyed because the couples were too physically involved.In marriage, sex is the most intimate expression of commited love which binds two people together. Outside of marriage, it has the opposite effect. It becomes a hindrance to the development of mature love. Sex hinders the development of solid communication. The ability to communicate at a deep level is vital in a relationship. Couples must be able to solve difficult problems, discuss deep issues, resolve conflict and PRAY TOGETHER. To think a kiss or a hug can solve a conflict rather than communicating and praying together is like putting a band-aid on a broken bone.Solid relationships are built on mutual trust and respect. When a couple makes the commitment to wait until marriage, a strong mutual trust develops which carries over into marriage. Security and harmony define the relationship because both know the other will remain faithful even in difficult times. Should one partner even be disfigured in an accident, the other will be there because they have a proven commitment. Mutual respect is developed when both parties proves themselves to be people of character who will not compromise their convictions, honour and obedience to God.The best way to keep from sexual immorality is to develop the conviction to have a pure relationship from the beginning. Establish your convictions and limits at the beginning, then maintain them throughout your dating relationship. Although it may be difficult, there is a tremendous reward that awaits you in marriage when u honour the Lord in your dating life.

How To Know You Are Really In Love

Another question I am often asked is, "How do I know if I am in love or just infatuated?" Is this relationship worth pursuing, or is it just two people infatuated with each other? Relationships do often begin with infatuation, but healthy ones move on to mature love. Too often what appears to be love is simply infatuation. Here are some ways to know the difference between the two.Real love edifies. Two people in love seek the best for the other person. Their attitude towards each other is "How can I help make you everything God has ever intended you to be?" The two have found their fulfillment and security in Christ, and as a result, they can securely serve with the other's best interest in mind.On the other hand, infatuation is selfish and driven by the desire to have your own needs met. Infatuated love insists upon continual reassurance from the other person. It makes unreasonable demands that stems from possessiveness and insecurity. Charted on paper, it would range from high peaks of certainty to valleys of doubt. Unstable in its duration, infatuation is like a seasonal monsoon:it comes, blows fiercely, and moves on.Second, love is based on knowledge. One must first get to know the other person over a significant period of time and in many different circumstances. As u see the other person's character strengths and weaknesses, ask yourself, "Do I still feel strongly attracted to him or her?" Try this, list as many attributes of the other person as u can, including strengths and weaknesses and the evidence to support your claims. If you have a good-sized list, u probably know the person well and are basing your decision on knowledge. If it is infatuation, your list will be quite short. When people are infatuated, what they are often attracted to is an idealized image of the other person.Third, ask yourself, "If I were blind, would I love this person?" In other words, can I love this person without any physical expression? Is my desire for him or her based on quality of character or just physical attraction? If you can't express your love apart from the physical element, it is not true love. Physical involvement will distort two people's perspective, and it often leads to unwise decisions. Physical involvement can make people feel close, but upon careful examination, the only thing the two may have in common is lust.Finally, real love endures. Over time, real love grows and matures. Two people in love can wait for God's time, no matter how long it may be. Paul states in 1 Corinthians 13 that love is patient and love always perseveres or is long suffering. True love endures the tests of time and difficulty. Infatuation is marked by impulsive and emotional decision marking. It wants to rush into things before prayer or wise counsel is considered. True love is willing to wait on God's time and allow the other person to grow and become the person God desires him or her to be.As we conclude, remember this truth: God loves you and desires that your relationships be joyous and meaningful. He will not let you go wrong in the area of dating if you let Him be the Lord of every aspect of your life.

About the author*******************Patrick zukeran graduated from Point Loma Nazarene College in San Diego, California, and holds a Th.M from Dallas Theological Seminary. He speaks and writes for Probe Ministries and serves as a youth pastor for a Chinese church in the Dallas region.

THis was a LATE entry..haha.ENJOY!

School’s starting next weekJ
Woah, time fries. Well, it flies to fry. Anyhow, school’s beginning next week for 2 weeks and I will be out for clinical attachments in Mudgee. Mudgee is located outside of Sydney Metropolitan area, about 5 hours train ride: P It’s considered rural area and I am quite excited to go there for placements. I really pray that I will do well and learn heaps of stuff that will be helpful for my career!!
It’s been an exciting Easter week- Easter dinner, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Royal Easter Show 2008 and Lincoln’s visit from Canberra. I must say that it has been a fruitful Easter because I saw forgiveness and love in the act of Jesus on the cross. I never truly understood the extent of significance for Easter until today.
People must have been worried after reading my two entries on “smile”. I’m good now because God is good and faithful. I will blog more sometime later. Before I go into that, I must say Thankew a million times to the people who have come by to give me a smile, hug and a word of comfort. You Know who you are~ People like Taxi, Ah Seng, Wu liao de, the Berala gang and my “niece”. Buddies back home- thankew for being there when I so needed concern from way home.
The entire Easter season and the leading up to Easter have only one word to sum it up all- Faith. I remembered so many people praying for faith in my life and now I finally understand why that came. Faith that took Jesus to the cross and the belief in resurrection, faith that saw many lost sheep coming back to Jesus, faith that took me through the rough patches with the final goal in mind. The refining of the faith that is all so precious to my Father in Heaven- I am right in the furnace. Yet, I am glad I am going through it because Jesus will be glorified as my faith is being refined. ( 1 Peter)

Easter Dinner!!

Last Friday, we had Easter dinner as a “household” of Georges Avenue. My housemates, James, John, Joseph and I with my college mates aka neighbours gathered together for a good time of laughs and chatters. Our special guest was Wong Lincoln, who shifted to Canberra a couple of weeks ago from Adelaide and decided to pay us a visit in Sydney for the long Easter weekend. We had a really fun time cooking. I cooked Mum’s famous Chicken wings and John enjoyed it totally!! Haha..he said he never ate Chicken wings of such kind. We had hot cross buns from Bakers Delight!! James made rice paper rolls, John made salad, Joseph..hmm..he just appeared..didn’t remember he made anything..LOL..then the other household made entre and roasted pumpkin. The dessert king and queen made apple crumble and chocolate bread pudding!!! Sumptuous dinner..yumyumyum~

Picture for your enjoyment!!

Hot cross Buns- Vi, cai.Post Dinner entertainment- Master mind

Desert-chocolate Bread Puddin and Apple crumble

Eng's discovery of a tuna display in my house

Vi, James, Joseph, John:)Easter hunt-Joseph found his egg!

Easter Hunt- Lincoln feeling for his pillow~Casey, Vi, EngMy egg!!The multiple ears bunny!Blessed Easter~

Blessed Easter Everybody~

Blessed Easter everybody!!

It must have been a real exciting time celebrating the victory that Jesus had won on the cross when He was risen on the third day after His crucifixion.

I had a whole load of events that happened here in the line up for Easter. Church was exciting as they celebrated the Palm Sunday with a procession from Circular Quay as well as one from Martin Place back to Wesley on Good Friday, depicting the hours that Jesus carried the cross in the streets of Jerusalem.

Lincoln (my nemesis turned big brother) came from Canberra and visited us at 6/6A Georges Avenue for the long Easter weekend!!! I was really excited to see him come because it’s been close to 2 years when I last saw him. That was when he treated me to mud pie at Serene Centre’s Island Creamery and never will I imagine myself meeting him and spending Easter with him in my years of college with this guy.

Lincoln and I had our undercurrents that were so massive, we never liked each other. In fact, if he had a chance, he will not spare the opportunity to tear me down and make me cry. 90% of the times that I ever cried in college, he had a part to play in it. We were classmates and teammates back in our school’s canoeing team. I never really enjoyed his presence. I always hoped he will either disappear or be silent. :P I was not really nice too. I wrote subtle Christmas cards to antagonize him. Haha..how childish was that to think about it.

Then when we graduated, he wrote an email to me. In that email, he shared with me about his return to the Lord. He made apologies for the hurt that he caused throughout college days and beyond. The mercy and grace of God just overcame me and I am so thankful that God loved Him more than I did.

As he spent his Easter weekend with us, I am just blessed to have a friend like him. He might be a little too serious and indifferent about things, but his weird sense of humour never fails to light up my day. In fact, there were moments that Casey and I will always remember. The “technically”, “practically”, “fundamentally” and the “right~”, “no comments” classic lines that he always uses just makes us want to break into humongous laughter. The last night I spent with him in my room with Cai sleeping and snoring away made a lasting impression. God just showed me the most amazing thing on Earth- the power of love, grace and mercy. He might not be the most perfect person on Earth, but his ever brave attempts to acknowledge his shortcomings and mistakes made in life and facing the paradox of his life, I just want to say- I’m really proud of you, Lincoln. As a friend, as a fellow sister in ChristJ

When he left, Lincoln said that we must keep in contact. He will help me count down to the years of my ideal age of marriage to remind me that I must work on finding a guy. He promised me to attend my wedding (something that I will never want to have him around in the past :P) The dinners and the time with us made he feel like a little boy pampered and loved by a bunch of women~ hahaha..What a weird description. It was rare for Lincoln to be so emotional and sentimental in his words. I gave him a good hug before he board the bus for Canberra and told him to take care and remember to come for our weddingsJ He said he will.

This is one of the most meaningful Easter I ever had. The reconciliation was alive and at work- for Lincoln and I.

God's greatest gift to me- Friends..more than friends..they are my sisters~

Ecclesiastes 4:8-9 Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up.

I went looking for smile today and I met smiles on them. They have been sharing smiles with me for seven years and when one of them came by to give me her smile because she saw it was hiding, I told her I don't want hers. But I want her shoulders. So she gave me her shoulders and shoulders told tears to come. Then she gave me the task to share that smile she gave to my other sister, I told smile to appear for that important and it did. My smile got hold of that sister's smile with much effort and soon the smiles that met seven years ago had a rather unique reunion.

FOr that, I thank God for one of the greatest gift in the world. The gift- a shoulder so that I can have another wonderful gift called smile which only a friend can offer.

Smile at me when u see me.

I was not able to find my smile these past few days. It went hiding since last week. When I see you my friends, I seek to find smile but smile says he is tired and doesn't want to meet the world. I asked smile why do you not want to meet the world- smile says," well, I can't pretend to do what you want to when I know heart doesn't want me to appear." I stood there thinking about what smile told me. I'm sorry, smile. I'm sorry, heart. At night, when i try to find smile, smile says he's afraid to see someone. I asked him who is he afraid to..he said he's afraid to see frown. I asked him where's frown and all smile could do was hide and refused to tell me.
As the days past till the week when school started this week, I was so angry with smile because he refused to come out. Even he does, it's just a brief appearance. He told tears to take over his role. Tears gladly came and in abundance. I told tears to stay put but tears told me," I can't when heart tells me to. Mind says No but your heart rules over your mind for now."
I thought i could always pull out smile whenever I wanted him because it's the natural thing I do when I see people. Hands will go and hug the people and smile will just naturally appear. Now, even hands will come, smile struggles to surface and tears will fight hard to come forth and take over smile. All because heart says so.
My friends, smile at me when you see me. Maybe then smile will find a reason to appear once more. Thanks~

BULA~

Fiji, a country that has a total of 322 islands, consist of 14 provinces thereby giving you 14 different dialects within this polynesian islands. With a diverse ethnicity of Fijians, Indians, Chinese, Malays, the one thing they had in common was that resounding smile and warm greeting of BULA!

When I was in Singapore, Fiji used to be a country that seem really far far far away. Now that I was in Australia, I decided to bang my last few traveling dollars to go to Fiji with my other two mates- Eng and Casey. So there we took an ultra budget flight to Fiji with Pacific Blue that left Casey with a traumatizing experience and swearing not to take any more budget* LOL * Well! Going to Fiji on the 29th January allowed us to see the worst and bad of Fiji!!! WHY??!! Because we got stuck in a cyclone and had seen the best on a normal sunny day for tropical Fiji, tasted the closet to home weather/rain/paw paw aka papaya/watermelon, had the happiest time of traveling of all my travels. It was a sweet "graduation" for my traveling journey for summer holidays.

Fiji- not just liking it..but wanting to scream with all my heart I LOVE IT!!!

do you complete this word-"per-"

"Perfect"

Sometimes is never quite enough
If you're flawless, then you'll win my love
Don't forget to win first place
Don't forget to keep that smile on your face

Be a good boy
Try a little harder
You've got to measure up
And make me prouder

How long before you screw it up
How many times do I have to tell you to hurry up
With everything I do for you
The least you can do is keep quiet

Be a good girl
You've gotta try a little harder
That simply wasn't good enough
To make us proud

I'll live through you
I'll make you what I never was
If you're the best, then maybe so am I
Compared to him compared to her
I'm doing this for your own damn good
You'll make up for what I blew
What's the problem...why are you crying

Be a good boy
Push a little farther now
That wasn't fast enough
To make us happy
We'll love you just the way you are
If you're perfect

Alanis Morissette- Perfect

Your way?

Nobody's Perfect

When you catch the little things
But Overlook the BIG mistakes,
When everything takes longer
Than what it usually takes,
When nothing goes according to
The best laid plans you make
Just remember no one's perfect-
so give yourself a break.

When the stress of your success
Makes your head and stomach ache,
When everything you touch falls through,
fouls up, goes bad, or breaks,
Please remember that you're human
For your sanity's own sake,
And relax-nobody's perfect,
So give yourself a break.

Pass it on card from P. Gary before I flew~

Happy Lunar New Year!!

GONG HEI FATT CHOY!!!
(Gong Xi Fa Cai!!)

It's the time of the year for a good load of feasting. Unfortunately, I cannot get to enjoy the Bakkwa, the chicken wings, fishballs and sotong balls, the kueh LAPIS!!, the many many things that we have for CNY in Singapore.
I get my share in Australia with my relatives- the reunion dinner on New Year's Eve and as well as the visitings to each other house for a day long of eating and chatting and catching up after I've disappeared for SOOO long. When I saw all of them on New Year's Eve, their first reaction is WOAH!! so DARK!( and that's only having one sunny day in Fiji because of the cyclone). and yea..they said i grew fatter( no doubt, i ate really well during my Fiji trip and slept a little too much)

HM..Chinese new year without my family felt weird. I had to webcam with them for the afternoon when they were at uncle Roland's place. Everybody had a chat with me..saying hellos and looking at my pimpled face..and I really miss all of them. I was supposed to head home with sponsored air ticket but too bad ah..haha..

Anyhow!! School's starting real soon but before that happens..revision has to start. And Joshua Ko is coming to Melbourne so I might pay him a good visit before school starts and all:P It's always good to see someone from Singapore- especially when he's from my church!! Open invitations to anyone who wants to come and visit me..hehe..

I love u all and have a blessed Lunar New Year!

Drama Fever-when speech does not matter.

I came back from Melbourne to attend the drama camp that I signed up for back in 2007. When I saw the drama camp, I was really excited because I could finally DO something relevant and hopefully gained some new stuff from the week.

Australian Theatre of the Deaf- Summer drama camp 2008 was held at Alexandria Redfern. I did remember thinking if I could bail myself out of the camp because I was really tired from travelling and wanted some time off to just chill at home. Somehow, there's this tugging that got me going and there I got myself to the venue on Monday morning. When I got into the class, I heard rarely a pinch of noise. In fact, I saw heaps of hand and fingers moving and signing and then I realised what I was in for.
All my mates were hearing impaired or deaf. Some has hearing aids and having grown up in a community that does not have many people who have hearing difficulties, they learnt to speak with the hearing aids and were the ones whom I communicated verbally. Otherwise, I had to depend on Gerry( my interpretor) to translate sign language to verbal language( if that's the name for it). I was the oldest at the age of 22 while the others were between 13 to 17:) haha..heaps of fun with people who are younger than me.

We learnt all sorts of stuff- drama, theater, circus( hoops, juggling, scarves and clowning, human pyramid) and for Vivi- sign language. I picked up signing throughout my week and could sign all the alphabets and simple greetings and form simple sentences with the 10 fingers and the body that God gave me. Working with these kids taught me how to not only appreciate my gift for being able to hear, I appreciated the fact that God may have not given them hearing but he has given these kids the talent to use their bodies and facial expressions to tell stories and perform. People might say God's not fair to these kids by taking away their hearing. But, change the way we see it- perhaps it's a bonus that we could all hear. Instead of giving us talent to be expressive in our body movements, God gave us audio abilities to communicate with people. I remembered one of the incidents when it hit me in my head that I took my hearing for granted. We were trying to practise side to side stepping with clapping. Some of the kids can't seem to follow- and it's because they are hard of hearing so they can't hear the clapping to keep count and they had to rely on visual aid to follow which might give a lag in between. They will not possibly know what's keeping quiet because they can't hear themselves when they make squeaks of laughter. Even within their community, they have their divisions- the people who signed and those who hear with hearing aids.

As a class, we had to come up with a performance on the last day of the workshop and you could the sparkle in everyone's eyes when they performed. It was their day. One of my group mates Lydia fell and twisted her ankle the day before but she still pushed her way through to perform and gave the best she could for the show.
Of all, I will miss Dylan the most. He's my favourite. He never fails to bring joy and laughter with his acting and tricks- is a genuine and sincere attitude to provide entertainment for people that touched my heart. He gave me a big hug on our last day. I remembered that on the train back home, he asked me if I was bored and how he made every effort to ensure that I understood what he was signing. His freckled face that lits up with that charming smile makes my heart melt and something in me tells me that he will be a great performer one day- because he performs with sincerity.

For once, being a minority ( being abnormal amongst people who all have hard of hearing since I deviated from the normal standard they hold in their audio abilities) was something rewarding. Learning to communicated with them in Sign was the greatest reward of my week and when they allowed me to enter their circle of trust, I reckoned that I should return them a favour by allowing them to enter ( at least) my circle of trust by providing them that comfort of knowing that I can understand them through signing. SO! my next mission- take up signing classes. So that if I ever have patients who are deaf- They will not feel lost and handicap. How interesting- my skill gained is a way to overcome their handicap.

Heading back to Sydney:)

It's the end of another round of solo travelling..but solo travelling isn't always SOLO when you meet friends somewhere on the streets. I met zhen zhen(OT) on the russell streets of melbourne because i was desperate enough to eat cheena food!! hahaha..and guess what..I SAW SINGAPORE CHOM CHOM!!!*hysterical laugh* I had my hainanese chicken rice there and the chilli is exactly the same FEEL!!!* hysterical cry* they sell chee kueh and many other stuff in there that seem so foreign at one instance and before i knew it..ignited that " I MISS SINGAPORE CUISINE" in me. Zhen walked up and down with me to get food and it was really a good time of catching up at her hostel's kitchen-which seemed a little dodgy..LOL..she was so funny~

Anyhow i am heading back to Sydney in 8 more hours time and reaching the next morning because I am taking the ever trustworthy train.:P Then it's drama camp for a week and onto fiji- and Chinese New Year:). After that, finish up my tour of the eastern coast of Australia and it's time to hit the books. Will be busy then..and well book eating:)

Melbourne captured me with its unique blend of the victorian buildlings and the contemporary architecture- coming with the sports culture that I have personally witnessed and so want to do it by getting a bicycle and hit the roads. From working adults, to children to the seniors, none are left out in the sporting culture because almost everyone took no stress from someone else being better than them. Instead, they had this I do what i am best at attitude. Sydney hits the gym but Melbourne hits the streets. Singapore Chom Chom definitely scored a bonus point with me. The free city tram and city shuttle made me felt important as a tourist- at least my travelling is taken care of. The Australian Open 2008 was something that I never dreamt of being there. Now that I have sat through live tennis matches with Andy Roddick, Federer and Williams sister so near me- I hoped that Michael Chang was there to bring this beautiful dream to a beautiful closure..( He was OUR era tennis player..haha..the ASIAN player.)I found my WOMAN! hahaha..Sugiyama from Japan is a real hot padi. She is so short but she handles william's hit with OOPMH. Sports was like the heart of melbourne. However, they had their streaks of artistic blood that flows through their streets- the Dracula Cabaret Restaurant was amazing in their delivery and professionalism of their performance.. the musuems and galleries that I had my feet on were amazing in telling me stories about their city and how they came about, their state library makes me wanna study, the gardens and shrine of rememberance taught me the history of war folks in the 1940s, and the random lanes of art murals that amazes me with the art talent in this place- and that's not graffitti. Not forgetting the experience to the southern tip of Australia at Wilsons promonotory as well as the penguins that me awed in wonder- I will believe that this is an exciting to reside for some time:) not that i am thinkin of but well it's for you to find out!

The experiences with people never fails to marvel me the diversity of human relationships and it makes me understand why God always created us differently- the world will be SOOO boring if we are all the same. The pain and annoyance happens with different personalities or conflicts of interest- but that's how we learn and grow isn't it? I Kinda figured my style of travelling and my purpose of travelling- my weakness for some things Like TENNIS. Travelling- is not about putting sights in pictures but putting experiences in memories. That's for Vivi. What about yours?

PS: sorry for not hving pictures will bring them up soon. Otherwise JOIN FACEBOOK!! the latest pics get up them..hehe

Current time in Melbourne

Greetings from melbourne!! I am at my hostel's internet cafe so I am gonna keep this short sweet and simple. * cross my fingers*

Besides the high style layout but low substance service at my hostel, melbourne has been impressive thus far. The free city tram shuttle, the friendly people at service points like visitor centre and the parliament house and shopkeepers, the sights and well looking forward to the Queen Vic Market tomorrow as well as the Dracula's cabarest show at night in Carlton:)

Melbourne has a similar layout to Brisbane, especially with the Yarra River..it reminds me of that river back in Brisbane. But the walk down Yarra is really pretty especially at sunset- gonna head there for a cycle or a run the day after. It should be quite a relaxing one:)

I had a walk round the city, kept goin round on the tram too lazi to walk..hahaha..

I had the day tours for two consecutive days - the dandenong/puffing billy train, cattle farm and the PENGUINS!! on tuesday and went to the most southern tip of the continent- Wilsons Promonotory National Park.

The Penguins are my official favourite animals. WHY? Heaps of reasons~

When I got to the Penguin Parade, I waited quite a while in the strong winds to see the arrival of those little creatures and mind you they not taller than your ankles. THEY ARE SOOO CUTE!!

They stay in packs and never leaves one behind. When they get out of sea, they will get out together.. if one's left behind, then the pack will ALL return back to the sea and wait for that one to return. They are small creatures but they travel miles to their burrows where their youngs are. I witness their little scrambles home and they are either LOst or PRETEND to not know where their burrows are so as not to expose their secret hiding place. We can't take pictures of them because their eyes will be blinded by the flash and people( being inconsiderate creatures) did not follow the warnings did so and caused a ban to be slammed just 6 years ago. Nonetheless, i got one with a squashy one. The highlight was probably witness penguins kissing..LOL.. nah..the dad was feeding the mum with all the munched up fish into her stomach to feed the baby penguins. Penguins are a brave bunch of animals- so small yet they go through the daily ritual of hunting food to ensure the survival of their colony. I can't imagine myself doing that everyday. Yet they have the highest rate of divorce- suprising aint' it?

Their loyalty to their fellow compatriots amaze me. I wonder if i will ever go back to the sea in such conditions knowing that i might die going back to find my fellow penguins. Life isn't as such, you will not fathom the extent of loyalty you have for your friends till you are put into the situation:)

The simple life

Am back from a week's long of independent traveling:) was awesome and exciting( yea..hearing me getting the aussie way of talkin ey..LOL)

I headed down to the inner New South Wales- Rand( in between Albury and Wagga Wagga) and onto Dubbo.

If u guys ever watched The Simple Life by nicole richie and paris hilton, do u remember the farming episodes they had? Yea, I got myself one great and amazing time on the farms at Rand. Laurissa aka Larrie( my life group leader in Wesley and physio mate in Syd Uni) invited me to her place cuz she was back at the farms and she was getting wee bored so she got me down to provide that excitement of a visitor. So i took the long ride and because of track works, i was stuck on the train for 2 hours extra!! my butt was nearly ripped off and rinsed..so terrible:) I got there in the afternoon, headed for a cup of tea and then to the farms for 2 days and 2 nights..

Larrie's front yar d and backyar

Farm was exciting:) I reckoned it's me( being a kid living in the city ALL my life) i haven't had the opportunities to see cattle upclose and do things like making the fence for the farmland. So all decked in nice farming outfit, we headed out to the fields and did fencing.

FencingI chase quite a load of cattle for Mrs Creek( Larrie's mum) cuz they had to get them to another place..so i joined the cows and went MOOOOO. Kinda frightened them i think~ they started running away real fast when i went MOOOO.LOL..

The ladies of the Creek residence

SOme people commented the farm life might get bored after some time but i reckoned that it has become a lifestyle for many farmers around that they don't really see it as a boring thing to do. They see it as their life.
It was a good time cuz I did my first time lawn mowing and i drove the manual car under the instructions of Mrs creek..but i nearly killed my passengers..LOL..

Mrs Creek

The highlight at the farm was the night sky. I saw the milky way right before my eyes. It's a magnificent blanket of stars that laid before my eyes~ From the east to the west, the north to the south, the sight just blew my mind. I laid under the blanket and could hear my Father in Heaven telling me- It's all for you, enjoy:)

Being at the farm, I realised the amazing thing about God is that everything made or happened will remind you of Him. Mrs Creek was sharing that the fencing was done so that it can allow the vegetation for the area that had tracks running through regenerate and becomes a potential grazing place for the cattle. The fencing serves a s a barrier so that the cattle will not enter and trample the grounds. Well, is your heart this day like the fields in Mrs creek's farmland? Is it barren or is it flourishing? Are the fences up to guard your heart? or have you allowed the cattle to run through your fields because you thought that if you leave just a weeny bit of hole in the fence..they will not get through? [i saw sheep getting through the fences that had holes as small as my palm].

Onto to 2008

Blessed New Year everyone!!! I apologise for not being able to reach any one of u with calls because the lines were jammed and my phone died on me..as usual. Sydney celebrated New year with a huge lavish on fireworks..massive display. The biggest one I've ever seen in my life I reckoned. We headed to the place at 2pm ( fiona booked the seats for us!!thankew) and we sat there the entire till midnight..it was close to a torture but a worthwhile wait when u marvelled at the fireworks..it just goes on and on:)

New year new day new hope and new wishes.
TO my God- You left me speechless with your Love.year after year..regardless of how naughty I was.
TO my parents- Thankew for the love and the calls when I can't reach you guys. You came for me.
TO my bro- Quit the games and start the exercise. LUV u heaps:)
TO my best friend JIng- Thankew for the friendship after all these years..it's the 16th year dearie!!
To my Kindergarten buddy ah wee- Now.it's..say two more years before we hit the two decades of close association??hahaha..U always make my day..call u soon..
TO my woman ministry- Well! I had new year before u did..hahahaha but we shall head forth the new year with " great hopes" and "great wishes"..hee
TO my cousins- We will meet up someday when I get back next year
TO all my fellow bros and sis in Christ- Forward on Soldiers!
TO my fellow bros from WSC- It's been great year working and you guys are amazing..Keep the fire going and the life of WSC running! Proud of u guys:)
TO my big angel- may the new year be a good one for you:) I'm glad that I got to know you.
TO all who are in Sydney- We will have our PJ party soon..GIRLS NIGHT OUT!! heeh. Meanwhile, enjoy the company of those who are with u( for those with your loved ones) and embrace the new year with a great vision ahead:)Start the countdown for the return to Singapore!

Jesus saves