I was quite stressed out today! Coached chess in the early morning, then went to uni to do some cramming for an assignment that was due today, and then rushed to get home for more coaching.
That assignment did really take a long time to do but I did get it done (thanks to God). I started to panic (since the past few days), since there were concepts that I couldn't put my head around for days, how could I understand them in time? So the verses in Proverbs 3:5-6 and Phillipians 4:6-7 (see previous post) really helped me. I think I did (kinda) undertand those hard concepts in time, well in part, at least.
I was planning to leave uni around 2pm so I could comfortably get home in time for coaching (which starts at 3:15pm).
But as always, for me at least, assignments take much longer than expected. I actually left uni I think around 2:30pm and just managed to catch a bus that was about to leave - yes, all that jogging practice came to use! And oh, was I panicking. But thankfully, I got home at 3:15pm on the dot. Ahh, such provision. Had I been slightly slower (20 seconds!?) getting to the UQ bus stop I may have been heaps late to my coaching lesson.
But the thing is, I later realised that the mother of my student had decided to cancel the lesson today...haha, so I just didn't need to stress!
I've always seemed to have panicked about assignments. Although these issues are seriously tiny in comparison to mighty God who created this universe, I'm so grateful to see that He cares for me and faithfully provides for me every time in the past, and still continues to provide today.
Ross
Friday, April 24, 2009
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Self-reminder
I'm @ uni, very stressed right now (with assignment). These commands and promises of God remind me to trust in Him.
'Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own undertanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight' (Pr 3:5-6).
'Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, in prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Chirst Jesus' (Ph 4:6-7).
'Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men' (Col 3:23).
I look forward seeing how God will provide for me today, as I seek to trust Him :).
Ross
'Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own undertanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight' (Pr 3:5-6).
'Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, in prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Chirst Jesus' (Ph 4:6-7).
'Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men' (Col 3:23).
I look forward seeing how God will provide for me today, as I seek to trust Him :).
Ross
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
What I really want
Such longing, such great desire do I cry out for. I become consumed. Yet, what I long for I do not have. I was given such short, sharp, salivating tastes of it. Yet it does not quench my thirst. It leaves me yearning for more.
Why does God, the great provider, withhold such great blessing from me, I demand? WHY?! Does He really even know what is best for me?
The reply comes… ‘Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know’. ‘But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well’. For ‘no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him’.
So, according to God, my role is to trust Him (for He has the best for me) and to seek Him first. Now, that’s hard. That’s humbling. But, I believe, it is the only, victorious way.
Why not just ‘have faith in [myself]’, as Goku was reminded by his grandfather in Gragonball. The answer is simple: I just can’t. It’s not like I haven’t tried that. I have, and it doesn’t work. I give up trusting in myself. Pessimistic? No. Thankfully there is One who I can trust in. One who has never failed me, and One who will never fail me: my loving Creator and Father in heaven.
Though I do not understand why God withholds certain things from me, things I consider right for me, and even good for me; I simply need to learn to trust God for His best in my life, no matter what it is. I don't even know whether He will give this to me. But what I do know is this: He does have the best for me. Not only has he been faithful to me for the past 18 years of my life, but has been faithful to his promises from generation to generation; from Adam, to Noah, to Abraham, to Joseph, to Moses and the Israelites, to the people in Jesus' time, and to us today.
Adam focused on what God did not give him in the Garden of Eden. He was ‘free to eat from any tree in the garden, but [he] must not eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil’. There was much to choose from (‘for God made all kinds of trees… trees pleasing to the eye and good for food’), and to enjoy what God had lovingly given him.
In Exodus, after God had powerfully and miraculously led them out of slavery in Egypt, the Israelites soon grumbled against God for the lack of food. God had only led them out of the bondage from Egypt only 2 months ago! Again, God had great things in their lives, blessed them amazingly. Yet, the focus was not on God, but on what they did not have.
Similarly in my own life, I, too, often shamefully focus on what I do not have, rather than to focus on God and what he has mercifully given me. What has he given me? The friends, the family, the education, the talents, the material things, and above all, the greatest gift that is sufficient alone: Jesus Christ.
Now, by God’s grace, let me fix my eyes not on the storm, but let me look up and have my eyes fixed upon my Creator. Only then will I not sink but to stand on solid ground. Is this blind faith? No, simply resting on the promises of God.
(Sorry, I apologise for the vagueness and the rant…had to release the tension :))
Ross
Why does God, the great provider, withhold such great blessing from me, I demand? WHY?! Does He really even know what is best for me?
The reply comes… ‘Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know’. ‘But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well’. For ‘no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him’.
So, according to God, my role is to trust Him (for He has the best for me) and to seek Him first. Now, that’s hard. That’s humbling. But, I believe, it is the only, victorious way.
Why not just ‘have faith in [myself]’, as Goku was reminded by his grandfather in Gragonball. The answer is simple: I just can’t. It’s not like I haven’t tried that. I have, and it doesn’t work. I give up trusting in myself. Pessimistic? No. Thankfully there is One who I can trust in. One who has never failed me, and One who will never fail me: my loving Creator and Father in heaven.
Though I do not understand why God withholds certain things from me, things I consider right for me, and even good for me; I simply need to learn to trust God for His best in my life, no matter what it is. I don't even know whether He will give this to me. But what I do know is this: He does have the best for me. Not only has he been faithful to me for the past 18 years of my life, but has been faithful to his promises from generation to generation; from Adam, to Noah, to Abraham, to Joseph, to Moses and the Israelites, to the people in Jesus' time, and to us today.
Adam focused on what God did not give him in the Garden of Eden. He was ‘free to eat from any tree in the garden, but [he] must not eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil’. There was much to choose from (‘for God made all kinds of trees… trees pleasing to the eye and good for food’), and to enjoy what God had lovingly given him.
In Exodus, after God had powerfully and miraculously led them out of slavery in Egypt, the Israelites soon grumbled against God for the lack of food. God had only led them out of the bondage from Egypt only 2 months ago! Again, God had great things in their lives, blessed them amazingly. Yet, the focus was not on God, but on what they did not have.
Similarly in my own life, I, too, often shamefully focus on what I do not have, rather than to focus on God and what he has mercifully given me. What has he given me? The friends, the family, the education, the talents, the material things, and above all, the greatest gift that is sufficient alone: Jesus Christ.
Now, by God’s grace, let me fix my eyes not on the storm, but let me look up and have my eyes fixed upon my Creator. Only then will I not sink but to stand on solid ground. Is this blind faith? No, simply resting on the promises of God.
(Sorry, I apologise for the vagueness and the rant…had to release the tension :))
Ross
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Holiday & 1st week
Uni mid-sem break over already!
Few things I did over the break were:
Few things I did over the break were:
- Went down to the Coast on Friday and Saturday, which was great.
- Went to an Easter Service at my church to celebrate Jesus' death and resurrection!
- Celebrated baptism, which was awesome to see God's awesome work in people's lives.
- Played a fair bit of baddy :D.
- Watched DragonBall. My opinion: pretty cool. Quite strange/ interesting having an Caucasian Goku and asian grandfather; and its mix with reality and fantasy though.
- Met up with some friends.
- Tried to do some study & assignment work (note: tried). Got some done, but not as much as I would of liked. But hey, it was a holiday after all!
- Had some quiet time. Not as much as I would of liked though.
- And...started this blog!
Overall, a pretty decent break!
And what I just realised 15 mins ago, my first week of classes are also over, which is pretty awesome! Chinese class on Thurs got cancelled/ swapped. Looking forward to a 5 day weekend :D :D :D. Oh yeaaahhhhhhhhhhhh :D :D :D.
Will be spent doing good assignment (due on Friday)... good times ahead... hopefully I get it done and hand in on Thurs... and if I do get it done then, I'll go and play baddy Thurs night (if no YF mtg then). HUGE incentive hehe. Just my hope. Bit optimistic? May not actually happen haha.
In other news, my chess clock arrived. Yes, a chess clock. Sounds terribly geeky, but it's a super cool thing. Super cool. Really. Mainly bought it for my chess kids, for them to practice.
Ross
Friday, April 17, 2009
God's love
As I hope this blog would be a source of encouragement and testimony to others, I’d like to share about how God touched my life in the past and continues to do so now…
“For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is [God’s] love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us” (Ps 103:11-12).
For many years of my life, I thought I was a morally upright person: a pretty ‘good’ boy. Nope, totally wrong. Quite the opposite, actually! When I compared myself with God's holy standards (revealed to us by the God's Word: the B-i-b-l-e), instead of comparing myself with my own set of dodgy standards, I realised that: hey, I've fallen heaps short of God's holy standards.
Because I had yet to understand God’s great love for me, I became ashamed of Jesus, constantly ignored Jesus by refusing to spend time reading His Word and talking (praying) to Him, and habitually rejected His commands by doing things contrary to His will. For example, I had major problems with pride, lust and deceit. Now these are serious issues according to the Bible. Jesus tells us that “anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Whoa! To my shame, because I habitually rejected God’s commandments, I was soon a slave to disobedience to God.
A few years ago, I realised that it was decision time. I had two choices: to follow God and do what He says through the Bible, or reject Him altogether. Although I had the desire to follow Him (by obeying Him), the good I wanted to do I could not do, but the evil (any disobedience to God – for eg, lust, not loving, hate) I did not want to do I kept on doing. One day, completely humbled, I asked God to rescue me from the bondage of rejecting Him. He graciously answered my my request, and taught me to overcome this struggle by keeping His Word in my heart. I did so, and it worked! I was in awe of His mighty power and completely overjoyed seeing that I was now free from the stronghold of disobedience to Him.
As a result of experiencing God’s power, God thankfully opened my eyes and I began to understand how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. I stuffed up big time (because of my rejection of Him, rejecting His just commands) and rightly deserved God’s just punishment (that is, eternal separation from Him). However, God loved me (and you) so much that He gave His One and Only Son to take the deserved punishment from me (and you) and that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. How awesome is that!? And so, I believed, and accepted His free gift.
Therefore, I am saved not by anything good I have done nor by my upbringing; rather I am thankful that it is by God’s grace and mercy alone that I am saved, and it is God’s amazing grace and mercy that sustains me now.
I earnestly hope that all of you have (and continues to), or will one day experience the joy of knowing God’s amazing love for us :).
PS. If there's anything I can elaborate, will be glad to do so :).
“For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is [God’s] love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us” (Ps 103:11-12).
For many years of my life, I thought I was a morally upright person: a pretty ‘good’ boy. Nope, totally wrong. Quite the opposite, actually! When I compared myself with God's holy standards (revealed to us by the God's Word: the B-i-b-l-e), instead of comparing myself with my own set of dodgy standards, I realised that: hey, I've fallen heaps short of God's holy standards.
Because I had yet to understand God’s great love for me, I became ashamed of Jesus, constantly ignored Jesus by refusing to spend time reading His Word and talking (praying) to Him, and habitually rejected His commands by doing things contrary to His will. For example, I had major problems with pride, lust and deceit. Now these are serious issues according to the Bible. Jesus tells us that “anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Whoa! To my shame, because I habitually rejected God’s commandments, I was soon a slave to disobedience to God.
A few years ago, I realised that it was decision time. I had two choices: to follow God and do what He says through the Bible, or reject Him altogether. Although I had the desire to follow Him (by obeying Him), the good I wanted to do I could not do, but the evil (any disobedience to God – for eg, lust, not loving, hate) I did not want to do I kept on doing. One day, completely humbled, I asked God to rescue me from the bondage of rejecting Him. He graciously answered my my request, and taught me to overcome this struggle by keeping His Word in my heart. I did so, and it worked! I was in awe of His mighty power and completely overjoyed seeing that I was now free from the stronghold of disobedience to Him.
As a result of experiencing God’s power, God thankfully opened my eyes and I began to understand how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. I stuffed up big time (because of my rejection of Him, rejecting His just commands) and rightly deserved God’s just punishment (that is, eternal separation from Him). However, God loved me (and you) so much that He gave His One and Only Son to take the deserved punishment from me (and you) and that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. How awesome is that!? And so, I believed, and accepted His free gift.
Therefore, I am saved not by anything good I have done nor by my upbringing; rather I am thankful that it is by God’s grace and mercy alone that I am saved, and it is God’s amazing grace and mercy that sustains me now.
I earnestly hope that all of you have (and continues to), or will one day experience the joy of knowing God’s amazing love for us :).
PS. If there's anything I can elaborate, will be glad to do so :).
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Hello and Welcome
Hello there! Welcome to my first blog!
Thought I would give blogging a go. Hope to update and to reflect on my life here.
I am now a blogger, horray!
Ross
Thought I would give blogging a go. Hope to update and to reflect on my life here.
I am now a blogger, horray!
Ross
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