Short entry about Prayer

Just some thoughts that came to me about prayer as I was studying Cognitive Psychology. Yes it is Cognitive Psych and NO there is not link in the two. But the thoughts came anyway.

Prayer should be focused outward or inward? This was the question that is central to it. As I think about the two years ago, as I served, how were my prayers and how was life then to now, I realised my prayer was of course God- will centric but also outward. It was for others generally and also like David, ask God what to do next. And to be frank, there was a sense of intimacy with the Lord back then as compared to now. Euphoria is another word that stands out as I look back.

But shouldn't we be honest to God and just ask Him for our needs. Well that is true but what I am suggesting here is to switch the focus. The best way to push our focus is to pray for others and His will, then God will give whatever is neccesary.

There are verses to back up my thoughts but as I ought to be studying. I shall take a break here and continue perhaps on a later day.

What are your thoughts on this?

Stewardship and

That was the topic that the speaker of VCF Fellowship Teaching spoke about. Well I shall spare you the nitty gritty details details of my thoughts throughout the session. But this analogy is one of the things i took away with me.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the rocks. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.




The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous "yes."

The professor then produced two cups of water from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

Now what it shows is this.. To be good stewards of the average five hours that we have after taking away the time to sleep and go to work or school, we need to first put the big rocks of our life down. Then the rest can come in.

He must have been a brilliant man. But what it also says to us as Christians is that if we see our lives as being bought with a price,thus our time here on earth is God's. Therefore, should this time not be put to good use?

I will now leave that for your thoughts...

Oh and this is to show off a bit.. heheh nice picture i think ..
Its a poster done by me.. but the general graphics.. well i took it off their poster : )
but i think it looks good.. haha

God bless

You supply my every need,
Its clear i know that my future is in your hands,
But help me Lord I pray to do one thing
To love you more and more each day,
Let my heart abound in eagerness
For a life that experiences you daily,
A mouth that speaks little but in love
A mind that is focused on you
The discipline to excel but to testify
To be honest to the girl I love
But most of all O' Lord
To be honest with you and yearn like a child to be inspired by you.

Love in prayer

In the past few days,a devotion has been one of the things that I have tried to maintain. But here is what I realise in my prayer.

Its very cliche to say that we do not want to pray or present a shopping list before the Lord. And that as much as I have tried, I realize that I still do that. Not in a sense like " God, I want this and that and this" But even as I pray for someone, it still seems like that. This was until I read this article and begin to put thought into it. It says that when we pray, what is our motivation.. here is a clip from it

Check your motivation for wanting to hear from God. Ask yourself honestly whether you really want to hear from God simply to connect with Him because you love Him, or whether you want to use Him to further your own agenda or increase your sense of self-importance. Understand that the purpose of communicating with God is to develop intimacy with Him, not to use Him to grant your requests.

As I am reading this, and pondering it through the day, I was reminded of a verse in Revelations that said asked have we abandon our first love. Abandon at many a times we see it as an active decision, but sometimes unconsciously, we may forget about our first love. And who is the first love, God. some may see it as God is or should be our first love, but another way perhaps we can see it as that God is love. So the source of love which is God is then the first love.. Get it?
Source = First

Anyhow, I end with this thought

Oh daily I cry
For myself and my friends
Intercede I may for their needs
But Father Lord,
Watch me I pray
That my heart will always love you
To seek you with all I have
In times of milk and honey
Or dust and sand
Help me O' Lord
To connect with you
In my mortal self
To know the divine King

A short one

Well I think i am losing touch in blogging. But anyways here is an attempt.

As I was buying my text books which are super "mahal" it crossed my mind to get a small little notebook for journaling down devotional thoughts. The last one i had was mixed with sermon notes and what nots. Anyway the reason why it suddenly crossed my mind was because I was convicted recently in my quiet time to be faithful in the little things that God has asked me to and also that God does not seek our sacrifices but seeks us to be obedient.

As I am writing this entry, an illustration of my latter point above comes to mind. As a young child, I once bought my dad this super big set of stationary, mostly consisting of pens. Trust me when i tell you that its a super big set as the amount of pens reached till like 20. Anyways , when i gave my dad, he was pleased. But then, not long later i did some things that disobeyed him. So as you can guess, he was displeased and sad. Even after the gift which as a young child the money was out of my small little allowance, therefore the sacrifice is great lor.

So that applies to our Father in heaven. In 1st Samuel 15:22 it says this

Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD ?
To obey is better than sacrifice,
and to heed is better than the fat of rams.

To some, this may seems like a cold God. But the truth is that if we obey, the sacrifices will come along by itself and better still not out of compulsion but in love.

That aside, first lecture today. Sociology.. Well I have a tonnes of reading to do and get done. This sem is the sem where i need to get almost perfect score to pull my cap back up. so shan't spent time here.. its devotion then study .. : )

As a uni student, I have begin to think ahead of the future, sometimes trying to plan what i can do to make myself perhaps, more marketable, that the industry will take me in at one glance. But tonight after reading a blog post from Esther's blog, the Lord begin to remind me of many things. Of all the thoughts, this was the key to them all. What should life be, an endless chasing after the wind for things that are temporal. Who is the king of your life?

For me,I will say that it is Jesus, and since I have Him as my king, then now i need to relearn to serve Him in all my ways. For the isrealites during the times of the book of judges, they had no king and no thought or obedience to the father. The bible says each do as they see fit, thus there was much turmoil. But now for me, I know that Jesus is my saviour, king, Lord and friend, thus i will obey and follow Him.

For this sem, there will be much shifting of priorities again, in terms of the activities i do. Instead of on my future career, let the Father's ministry be central and the rest to come along.

Tonight I am refreshed,
Reminded that I am fully human,
But empowered by the Holy Spirit
With a new understanding and revelation,
To sit at His feet, and to hear His words
Jesus.. light my way.....

Next Phase - 2008

A much delayed post on my side, but it has been about 3 weeks or 4 since I got a direction shown to me for this next phase of my life. And that direction was one that is to be as if i was blind man that cannot see what is coming or where to go. All a blind man has is a heighten sense of hearing and he also needs to trust his guide. This was dawned upon me when i was reading a part of the bible , Mark 10:46-52. Bartimaeus called upon Jesus, even when circumstance was not one that encouraged him to do so and even when at first call, there was no reply. What he had was faith, faith in our Lord to hear and heal.

As for me, i sensed the Lord telling me to call upon Him and to trust on His guidance. This means moving from my view to His view and trusting Him in ALL things.

The starter event that caused me to think about this is due to a situation I am now in. In NUS, where i am currently studying, we have to bid for our subjects each semester and for this sem I was planning to bid for certain core subjects. However, i missed the window of time to declare my major which thus makes me on the losing end of bidding for the core subjects. Through the day, I tried appealing and consistent phone calls to anyone and everyone in the dean's office whom i thought could help me. But even after doing all that with prayer, it came to no success. However, it was about 4 when suddenly it deemed upon me to praise the Lord and surrender it all. Imagine praising God when you may not be able to do your planned modules.

But having thought of King David and his many psalms he wrote in those times of distress, I realise he always ended praising and submission to the Father. So I did that, and there was a deep sense of peace. And more to that, the bible says the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Well after doing so, somehow, my thoughts settled and I have a sense then of what to do.

So praise the Lord.

First Entry - A Pursuit of Happiness

Well the name above is actually obtained from a show I am currently now 33 minutes in watching. It is stared by Will Smith and is a pretty good movie.

Good not on the basis of action or etc but it got me thinking about how is happiness brought about, especially in a family.

Having learn about Maslow's theory on the hierarchy of needs [ Psychology : ) ]

The movie shows me that there is a need for the lower levels, and is applicable to all man. In this show, it especially highlights welfare - rent, money and etc.. Well it got me thinking, if i were to traverse down life's path as a missionary, where the pay may not be certain, how then can I support my family? Will my wife then leave as the movie did? And truly as this questions flood my mind, worry swells up. But I realise a difference, or more like a key thing that I need to learn now that is faith. Faith on the Lord who sent me to provide sufficient and overflowing for me and my family. That perhaps is the difference that enables those who have gone before me such as Herbert to live in the unknowing.

So perhaps now the title should be - Awaiting in faith...

Prayer for the start of '08

Lord, help me to learn to surrender these matters to you, but at the same time not vegetate in complacency