yeah man, talk about "training" to be a parent. this kids camp was definitely a great challenge.
and i loved every moment of being with the kids.
admittedly, i had some kids that were hard to handle! but i REALLY thank and praise God for giving me the muccchhh needed strength, grace and love when i needed. this camp, He really taught me alot about love. that, i guess, the real challenge of love is when the kid doesn't seem to respond to what you're doing for him/her. but to still press on in loving and encouraging.
and, God's faithful. could see how some of them really changed over the course of this camp, and i'm so super awed by how good God is. not only to the kids' lives, but also to me, by letting me see visibly that God's love really makes a difference in their lives!! (:
great time learning how to interact with the children. finding out more about their lives, playing with them, watching them learn to worship God, seeing them open up and having fun during games.
the most impactful moment of the entire camp was when the teachers (aka us) were on our knees at the altar. and the kids were supposed to now pray for their teachers.
2 prayed for me.
a little girl by the name of jolene, whom i had been spending some time with, especially since she's not from the church and is quite new, came up to me crying and grabbing my hand. her love for me blew me away. as she knelt and cried out to God "Dear Lord, please protect jie jie christabel. please send your angels around her, and guide her every step..." i've never felt that kinda depth of sincerity before in my life. never before had i met another person who was crying so desperately to God for me. needless to say, i hugged and cried with her too. sigh, mans..
the second one blew me away again. the quietest girl in the whole group actually came up to pray for me. i couldn't believe it. i couldn't believe with my own eyes what God had done for her, that she actually plucked up the courage to pray for me. the love of God for both her and me just really amazedddddd me.
can't remember specifically which girl prayed for which point, but they were praying that i would always seek God. that He'll bless me in my studies, teach me to love my family even more, and that He would be with me. mans.. God's really good la. (:
all good and nice things aside, suddenly became super emotionally down at the end of camp!! )): the very things i had been teaching my kids about, about finding security in Christ alone, i started to struggle with. but yups, as i began to talk about the works He's done, His joy came back and flooded me again. SO YES, PLEASE KEEP ME IN PRAYYERRRR.
and some thank yous! kor kor tai yong. for giving us the opportunity in the first place!! (x jie jie joyce. for coming!!! REALLY REALLY love this girl. your presence means the world to me dear, so thankful to God you could be with me in this!! you've been a really good jie jie la, writing so many cards to your kids ((X kor kor daniel. for seriously being one of the most selfless person i've ever met. though he seriously spoils the little girls la! helping them do their work so much! XP. thanks for being a great role model and example, not only to the kids, but also to me! kor kor jonathan! for helping us handle our group's children!! was at a serious loss at time, and am really thankful that you were around to teach/manage them!!! and of course, God. for coming when i call to you for strength, wisdom, love. for being with me, with the teachers, with the children. i love You!! (:
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will be in hong kong/china 10th - 14th! keep my family in prayer, that we'll be safe okay!! (:
Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the LORD, until he comes and showers righteousness on you. (Hosea 10:12)
i'm trusting in You and Your word.
that You'll surely rain (and rain and rain and rain) down on my life in abundance, that i may overflow to the others around me! (:
am bringing about 10 packs of stickers to the kids camp. and several Beni Bear letter pads. AHAHA. xD. talk about well-equipped. alright, remember to pray for the camp!! (:
WAS DARN AWESOME. you so so so must catch it. lovedddd it to bits. the graphics were AMAZING. plus the storyline, i felt, was very well-developed too (: enjoyed every moment of it.
mike: CHRIS HOW HOW?? the wave is gonna hit them!!!! me: then they die. boom. end of movie.
hahah, and of course, they escaped the big scary wave that was about to smash them into mount everest! xD.
on a random note, the movie is very unbiblical in the sense that God's promised He would never ever send a huge flood to destroy the earth ever again. and the rainbow's a sign of that promise! XD. so yes, 2012 won't happen, teehee.
had Broadcast & Entertainment radio training from 9am-5pm today. i thought i'd be super bored and sian, but to my surprise, i actually really enjoyed it. realised i have ALOT to work on!!! like, my delivery is o.0. and my voice projection was HORRIBLE. plus i need to sound less emotional when reading the news especially. xP. buttt, on the bright side, also discovered a bit of my strengths! (: that i'm not that bad in advertisement writing. (you WON'T believe what i had to advertise, xP.) had fun doing the pair segment with mike too. (X
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You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. (Isaiah 26:3)
tai yong's kids camp starts on sunday for prep, and the kids are coming in on monday! PLEASE PLEASE keep me (and all of us involved!!) in prayer. we're gonna teach the kids about hearing God's voice. but of course, you can't possibly teach something unless you first do it. pray for me, that i'll have a quiet, still heart before God. for a greater anointing of the gift of discernment and prophecy. and most most importantly, for God to REALLY grant me the Christ-like love for the kids, to be able to see their needs and to act in love, grace, and with His wisdom and strength. that kids lives will be transformed, and that God's glory may fall in this camp and in their lives.
anyway, i think God's really using this song to speak to me. was just listening to it while waiting for my bus. and i then decided to look at my favourite phone application, which gives you random bible verses each time you press refresh. xDD. AND BAM.
Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. (Deuteronomy 6:5)
confession? i didn't do quiet time last night, cause i was busy doing other "things". and from what happened this morning, i'm beginning to see what it means when God says He's a jealous God. He really really loves ME so much, that He doesn't want anything to stand between us.
DG went out today to celebrate cheryl's birthday! ((: had a great time with them. they're darn cute. xD. good food, good people. what more could you ask for? ((:
anyway, i just got infatuated with buttons. AHHHH!!!!! bought a whole bag of them. ahahaha. okay, sorry. xDD
yeah, i mean, truth be told, i had my moments of panic. ESPECIALLY when chionging through financial accounting, with only a few days to mug everythhhinggg. i looked at the amount, and i really nearly had a heart attack.
my prayer throughout this whole period was really for peace! and SUCCCHH wisdom. and of course, a divine intervention of sorts, that i would be able to finish studying everything in time.
and He's really very very faithful la. could really feel His presence with me the whole past 2 weeks, as i studied. everytime i went "oh dear", immediately He would gently prompt me to look back at Him, and to seek Him for the wisdom and SUCH grace i desperately needed. (AND His provision! sis bought snacks, mum bought stickers, sis got her math tutor to teach me, i got to tutor a classmate [which totally helped me revise and made things clearer!], friends generously sending me accounting exam papers/textbook answers, random good food my parents buy back..)
today's calculus exam was probably the most hilarious. it was crazy difficult!! i was like (o.0) when i saw the questions. i was like "my goshhh...." and once again, in His mercy, He poked me and told me to just do what i can. the best part was this question:
y = x ^ x dy/dx = ? (8 marks)
yeah. hahahaha. i sent an SOS "God, i need your help BIG TIME. divine revelation pleasee!!!!" and He calmed me down, and prompted me to "ln" both sides. and from there, use substitution to differentiate it. LET ME TELL YOU MY GOD IS THE BEST MATH TUTOR AROUND. DON'T MESS. hahahahaha. i'd NEVER have thought of doing THATTTT. (i've never even tried a question like that in my LIFE.)
am leaving the results for my exams to God. not sure what i'd get! but whatever it is, i know that He's definitely faithful. ((((:
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am thankful also for the many God-given opportunities over this semester to pray for people, especially non-christians. and in tiny ways, to be a blessing to them. ((X pray with me for open hearts in smu, that there WILL be a harvest in His kingdom! and pray for the christians (and myself!!) that He'll grant us His grace to live godly lives, living a life of His mercy and love. and to have boldness like never before to step out, and to bring His harvest in.
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on a different note, met ron and sanaya at 7pm today!! (eugene couldn't join us, he had a friend's party on he initially forgot about! ))X ) anyway, we caught "The Informant"! lol, it was super cheem. for the first 30 mins, i had to ask ron "do.. do you know what's going on?" to which he'd answer "must watch more first to find out." but yeah, ahahaha, after a while, finally got the hang of what was going on. the main character had some bipolar problem, and thus the whole movie was filled with the thoughts of his head. you'd start the show thinking he's kinda dumb.. but towards the end, you begin to realise that he's actually the smartest, evilest liar of them all. xP. quite a cool show.
happened to meet asher at the Cathay basement! lol. was nice seeing him after so many months! (X
sanaya, ron and i had wanton mee for dinner, and shared about our holiday plans. and later on, ron gave me a lift back! *does a jig* i always feel so thrilled when i get rides home, ahaha. xD.
and so, here's my holiday plans: 6-9th - Children's Camp (at tai yong's church. joyce and joel will be going for it too! (:) 10-14th - Family Trip to Hong Kong/China (disneyland!! hope to buy some stitch stuffs. hehe.) 15-16th - Youth Camp (held at RJC. talk about convenient. xD) 28-30th - Metamorphosis (campus crusade camp! (:)
WHICH MEANS, oh sexy people, please ask me out 17-27th!! (((X. (clique 8 christmas gathering on the 26th dec, tentatively right? (: and mahjong please! ty, sarah, chloe, know how to play? xD. plus, we're supposed to crash mike's house to game huh. xD. jeanne/nicole: tea/shopping any time? simsie: hot date when! xD joyce/joanna/cheryl: timbre timbre! must bring james & jeremy along also! (: 6.13: EHHHH, fab or tay, this time round you guys organise leh! xD)
Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10)
whoo, am really exhausted. was teaching a friend calculus today, while attempting to study graph sketching. XP.
and there we go! horizontal and vertical asymptotes ftw!
Realised the thing about teaching is that I HAVE to stay calm, and I had to constantly tell her 'oh don't worry, it's easy.. See? You just got the answer! just apply the formula for everything, and ta-dah!!!' LOL
but am thankful to God la, that I had this opportunity to help.. After all, hehe, so many people have helped me before, it's about time I passed it on (:
anyway, PLEASE keep me in prayer!! (& my friends who have stats/calculus too!) last lap, last lap!!! SO close to freedom, AHHHH!!!!
This time, what I want is you There is no one else, who can take your place This time, you burn me with your eyes You see past all the lies You take it all away
I've seen it all and it's never enough, it keeps leaving me needing you
Take me away, take me away I've got nothing left to say, just take me away
I try, to make my way to you But still I feel so lost I don't know what else I can do I've seen it all, it was never enough, it keeps leaving me needing you
Take me away, take me away I've got nothing left to say, just take me away
Don't give up on me yet, don't forget who I am I know I'm not there yet, but don't let me stay here alone
This time, what I want is you There is no one else, who can take your place I've seen enough and it's never enough it keeps leaving me needing you
Take me away, take me away I've got nothing left to say, just take me away Take me away, take me away I've got nothing left to say, just take me away
oh thank God. sis got her math tutor to tutor me for one lesson yesterday!! and he REALLY is quite good, taught me integration (eh, stop laughing. its higher level/H2 math stuff okay, things like 'integration by parts'. =X)
led worship for cell today! and we sang "shout to the Lord". ahaha. thank God for pulling me through that mans. xP. and for anthony! who's really a fantastic guitarist, and is super experienced and professional at helping noobs like me. xP.
anyway, one of the verses during sermon that struck me today was this:
I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. (revelation 2:2-4)
just last week, as i was walking along the road to church and thinking about God, i felt like skipping (actually i did. xP. only a bit though.) and i was thinking to myself "this is what its like to be in love." the whole deal. sun shining down on your face, you can't stop smiling, and your heart feels fuzzy and warm.
and just this weeeekkk, i started feeling so tired! ))):
rarrrghhhhhh. wouldn't it be great to fall in love with God anew every day? (:
25o19o
