The Power of a Life Well-Lived by Joe Stowell

The Power of a Life Well-Lived by Joe Stowell
http://getmorestrength.org/daily/the-power-of-a-life-well-lived/

thoughts

Once, before I thought that when I finally come out, and show myself, when the world (doesn't matter the percentage) know me and found me, I would go and hide myself again in whichever I was hiding with--a 'cold mask', or in whatever He provides*, lest I get too overwhelmed with the attention and whatever effects it brings, e.g. in 仙剑奇侠传里的灵儿治了那村民的毒时or the jealousy and envy.

Apparently,  it's not up to me. ^^ And gladly so to leave it to Him.^^

*e.g. my pimples condition, my weight, the type of clothes/apparels,  even my phobias i.e. stage fright--sometimes it's manageable sometimes it's out of control so the performances or presentations at times is at my best of ability--like today it's ard 80%, at times it's only like 30% of my abilities (though that's also not within my control)...that's why things happen for reasons which at times we do not understand i.e. "why me"...

Thought to post this here too (first posted it on fb status today: 28//11/13)

Today's daily bread: doctrines of Christ and the Holy Spirit: The Atonement (Systematic Theology by Wayne Grudem, 2007)...

The hardest part was to read and study the section on The Nature of the Atonement:Christ's Sufferings for Us: The Pain of the Cross: Bearing the Wrath of God. Hardest because what had we done by putting this innocent being through such suffering... before I quote the part let me first quote this

"[Jesus] "having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end" (John 13:1)"

and it was necessary for Him a total innocent being to carry our sins in order for God to be merciful and yet maintaining His righteousness--His attribute. "For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16) and also Romans 3:25-26 "This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins; it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies him who has faith in Jesus" (Grudem used RSV for this biblical verse)

But then the wrath of God--the intensity of it--"Jesus became the object of the intense hatred of sin and vengeance against sin which God had patiently stored up since the beginning of the world" (Grudem, 2007) and "[the] heavenly Father, who is "of purer eyes to behold evil" (Hab 1:13).

饒恕 (quotation)

"饒恕是一份很難的功課...。饒恕絕對不是遺忘，相反的，你必須一一面對過去的傷害，­一一的原諒。對於一個沒有經歷到神的愛的人來說，這無疑是一種二次傷害。因此許多人只­是選擇遺忘，假裝自己已經原諒了，但其實心裡面累積很多傷。真正的饒恕，並不是一般人­印象中的以高姿態來原諒別人，而是先要承認自己軟弱受傷，沒有能力原諒，再為他們，也­為自己，祈求天父的赦免，這樣神的愛才能進到你受傷之處，在醫治的同時，也使你得著饒­恕他人的能力。”
       ---Allen7575 (from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qi9ADuMga0A&list=RDDqdVMpHKORc; and that's also a nice, meaningful song " 在祢手中"

Lesson on silence (2)

I went to party world for my belated birthday treat with a friend. Seriously, pardon me, I couldn't help but get annoyed and I had to type this out like now because of the probable hurt that my close siblings in Christ might sustain, at the beginning it was still ok, despite me knowing somewhat rather like a hindsight that apparently there were some sayings about wearing pink is not 'me'--that was still alright, at least there was no violent outbursts in public. It was when I went with my parents for dinner in the same area that those things start again, and my cause/level of concern is higher than before are for now, I stand not only for myself but my brethren and my Lord. Fine if those people can't take in, if when they are corrected (once again I couldn't tell them or talk to them for they are really really strangers), but seriously I just wished that this line would be immediately prove itself though "John 13:35 New International Version (NIV) ³⁵ By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” 

Of cause, if one is reacting according to human nature, AND THAT IS WHEN THEY DID SOMETHING WRONG, if there is a chance, one would not admit of things that would prove or show that they are in the wrong, for their pride and probably they know how bad the wrong is, which caused them to fear to reveal that they did something wrong. Just look at a child who did something wrong, e.g. eating the biscuit when told not to, the sheepish look on their faces...

It's maturity that leads one to admit one's mistakes when one really did make a mistake. The graver the mistake is, the greater guts required to admit it.

And I'm this person https://www.facebook.com/elayne.teng seriously...

Lesson on trusting Him completely...

I didn't expect this, which was what I thought at the beginning when the thought or things came to my attention--'side attention'.

Things and events, what's going to happen or what is happening which is not within my surroundings I don't know, unless it's in the papers or etc...But this I know, the Lord's will will always be greater than thine will (it sort of feels that I read it somewhere before but I can't remember it's said by who...) ^^

This was from my fb status a few days ago--19th nov, and some things triggered me and reminded me of this again...
"
    "不求thoughts己的益处,
只愿永随主,
让他的名得该得的荣耀。"
And also
 what He establish in Him will not fall;
 And what He didn't establish will fall.
 Even things/matter/relations that are not discussed and taught in the Bible.*
 My thoughts:
 But sometimes, it's just a wall of darkness that blocks the connection and cause us to think that it's not establish in Him. BUT it can only be seen with the help of the Holy Spirit. The Chinese saying "blood is thicker than water", connections that are established in Christ are even stronger than that as His Words are absolute.
 But then again, He gives and He takes..."恩上加恩"but when the gift is rejected or one doesn't use it wisely, He takes away.
 *maybe I should be clearer, things/ matter/ relations that are not discussed such as personalised advice such as whether or not should I go to jc or polytechnic, what does God wants me to be: a doctor, a lawyer, or a stall holder. But then again, if one knows what God wants from His Children, and taking consideration of various things, I shan't say much here for each God's children have different experiences in this, one will know what God wants one to be." ---fb status on 19th nov

Romans 11:33-36
33 Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and[i] knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgments,
    and his paths beyond tracing out!
34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord?
    Or who has been his counselor?”[j]
35 “Who has ever given to God,
    that God should repay them?”[k]
36 For from him and through him and for him are all things.
    To him be the glory forever! Amen.
---NIV

That's why at times I really get thrown back by matters that do happen...and that reminded me of the lesson/ past experiences that I had learnt, when I expected something to happen, the opposite happen, but at times when I expected nothing to happen, thinking that when I expected something to happen the opposite happen, so hence I shouldn't expect anything to happen, something happens...-_-|||

Lesson on silence

When I first heard those false accusations of me having no morals and got so stressed and immensely trying to defend myself with no veil due to a simple reason: I have no idea who those people are, and those who did verbally say it in front of me, when I thought of defending myself, those people already left. And my source of stress is not just purely from the anger of being wrongly accused but also that I grew up learning to be pure and just even in thoughts. And also it was so much better if those accussors really went to the Court, for then the evidences that I did not do it would be out. Those threats about submitting their claims to the High Court, I keep on expecting those threats to be true so that my innocence would be proven but it didn't come. And then probably when they realized that I wasn't afraid of being brought up to court, individuals who claimed themselves to be me, including my pen name, came out. Then I got worried over whether the evidences would be 'mishandled', it's been a long time since i used these category of words so I can't really recall what the word is. I was on the verge of calling the authorities myself, when things got so intense with people coming after me, and threats to drag me away to a certain place.

My psychologist whom I was seeking help from because of these issues, and some other old hurts, told me this lesson: when Jesus was being accused He didn't reply those who maligned Him, and also the time when the woman who was found in the act of committing adultery and was brought to Him by the pharisees who were finding fault with Him, for if Jesus agreed with them and said that indeed according to the law of Mosses, she should be stoned, but if Jesus said that, the pharisees would say that He doesn't do what He preaches--to forgive sinners etc.; but if Jesus do not agree with them, He is doing what He preaches but He is accountable to the law (the incident is recorded in John 8:1-11).
I'm still struggling with this and have much more to learn in this lesson of silence. It's a lifelong lesson to work on. And also while yet to keep silence, also know when to stay silence and when to speak out--that's why when the misunderstandings of Him and His Words, I couldn't bear it and spoke out...

The below is a lengthy commentary (?) on His silence during His trial. http://www.safeinthearmsofgod.org/resources/bible-qna/BQ052113/The-Silence-of-Jesus

Oh and on the same website, there's another sermon on false prophets and true prophets  http://www.safeinthearmsofgod.org/resources/sermons/80-409/an-appeal-to-charismatic-pretenders-john-macarthur...

Spent a little longer time typing this 'cos was reading the articles...   (a few minutes after publishing this post: eh, the article on the false prophets and true prophets, the tone is a little harsh which may be offending to some, but rightfully harsh...)

And after reading the second sermon: that's why I study the bible, reading systematic theology besides reading other daily breads, mediate, and pray so often that my prayers at times got disrupted by ppl around me who want to talk to me. And I should have recognized the direction which a particular group had gone, especially after the head of the group said certain things, I should have been alerted to the attitudes...but why is it so easy for that group to go into the various directions while trying to stay on board of the Lord's vessel? O.O

Seriously, know one's limit. Help if one can help, but don't try to help when one's not clear of most things. But that excludes knowing God, if one constantly knows God, and sees things from His perspective and react accordingly to the Holy Spirit's guidance, then one's help would not be so tiring for me!

Those images of battlecry etc. are just images, metaphors, for those kind of battles are battles of the past! Good thing that God's working with me, or rather, I'm working with Him...-_-||| And once again, I said I don't talk much, interact physically much with others! Especially with those living near me, except for my family!


What we get wrong about wwjd (what would Jesus do): If you want to follow Jesus, you have to know what He is really doing---By Paul Penley

http://www.relevantmagazine.com/god/practical-faith/what-we-get-wrong-about-wwjd

Beauty

saw this private blog post when I was searching for the Chinese poem that I wrote, I think a few years back, to convert it into PDF file and publish it on my wordpress. Thought to post "Beauty" here as once again the issue pops up, it was a bit late--this posting. And once again, if my tone comes across as much more than mild...

"
Another thing since this pops up more often nowadays than the other word. and I finally somewhat got back some of my energy, though I dont know whether it'll last for long. Definitions of a word differs from one to another depending on one's perspective. What is beautiful to one may not be beautiful to others. Some associate beautiful with personality etc. Some associate the word with physical appearance. One's self-esteem, confidence and attitude would affect one's aura. That's another factor for beauty. Why the saying nature's beautiful? In what way is nature beautiful? Is someone who had a good personality more beautiful than someone who is physically beautiful? What about the movie 'beautiful mind' then? What about those elders who toiled hard in the fields or construction site, whose hands and faces had weathered due to it? Then what about McCartney's "Vincent"? Is Vincent beautiful? Is his drawings beautiful? Is the meaning behind a minor action beautiful or an extravagant action more beautiful? Each individual has their own interpretations. By the way, it's just a reminder that there are individual differences. Thought that this may turn out to be quite hurtful to some ( especially with body and verbal language becomes unconsciously harsh), especially those who are standing in the corners if it progresses and the definition of beauty becomes more and more stringently physical, in the long run. that's actually how aneroxia and bulimia phenomenon started out. and I also reminded me of anne in the series of "Anne of...". She's not aneroxia though. It was the colour of her hair. And I think I wrote this too early but who knows whether i have enough energy left when it's required.
                                     --on  2011/11/19       

逼迫与恩典

I probably should have posted the fb status as a blog post here (it seemed too long on the fb status...) ....
感慨：

约伯记：当撒旦想刁难约伯时，耶和华答应撒但的当儿，耶和华也说 “：“凡他所有的都在你手中，只是不可伸手加害于他。” （约伯记1：12）

又 诗篇 91：11-16...

因他要为你吩咐他的使者，在你行的一切道路上保护你。12 他们要用手托着你，免得你的脚碰在石头上。13 你要踹在狮子和虺蛇的身上，践踏少壮狮子和大蛇。
14 神说：“因为他专心爱我，我就要搭救他；因为他知道我的名，我要把他安置在高处。15 他若求告我，我就应允他；他在急难中，我要与他同在。我要搭救他，使他尊贵。16 我要使他足享长寿，将我的救恩显明给他。”

主的恩典乃是一生之久 (诗篇三十篇)   http://youtu.be/5gC6ff8NciM

Juz thought of writing it down

After hearing thunder speaking and water speaking, and breathing speaking etc., I thought to myself, what cannot be replicated by humans? Wind. It seemed that wind cannot be replicated on a large scale, humans can only predict the wind direction and when it's coming, and even then it's not 100% accurate. There are too many factors to replicate. In fact most things cannot be replicate in the real-world context. Too many factors affecting the results. And the discovery of gear mechanisms in an insect's legs (can't remember what insect), there was an argument put forth that humans are smarter, there is no God as humans came up with the concept of gear mechanisms, i.e. in watches etc., even before the insect is discovered. But the thing is, does the insect exist before the watches existed? Or even: can a human create an insect, I'm not referring to insect robots but a real living insect that have cell-structure, biological system, and looks, texture, functions exactly the same as the original insect, with the function of digesting food and poo, the waste which is the digested food, and eat (which is not set by timers etc.), and breathing, that is oxygen coming in and carbon dioxide going out?

Now that I think about it, for me, it was after I found out about the various attributes of God that I heard those things speaking. Embarrassed to say when I was in Sunday school I didn't pay much attention to the details, i.e. in the old testament, when God spoke, He has a voice of a thunder; His voice was heard in the wind that engulfed His servant when He showed Himself to him and asked him to turn around and not face Him for His glory/His Holiness is unbearable to a human. God breathed into the human and the man took his first breath in Genesis, and thus the not-yet-alive human was given a soul by God. But the thing about the sound of the helicopter speaking, it was not in alignment. And the thing is, it seemed as though I was not the only who hear thunder speaking, water speaking etc. And thus it was possible that the intention was to make me stray away from Him, wrong understanding of Him and His Will. Hence, again, the part about the empowerment of the voices are not of Him, which I mentioned in previous posts.

Just saw the fb post that was posted in the morning, yesterday, abt the website thingy...If there are some who agreed to allow the launching of that website, thinking that I would do something about it like about the misunderstanding of His Words etc. (I may have misread the atmosphere), there's a limit to what I can do, and REALLY, I'm not physically strong, like an average person, I'm even weaker than them. Do you know how much my health suffered and went downhill throughout the recent episode, the malignment etc.? My heart almost stopped beating at one point in time. Literally. And I still remembered why and where it happened. And it was different from the other time when it happened in high school. In high school, it can be considered partly my fault, I was trying hard to study, and balancing my CCA role and responsibilities and studies, and the long hours wore me out. Seriously...-_-||| And I still haven't fully recovered, my health.

Isn't it easier to manage it at the top level of management instead of some nobody for this kind of matters? And it was already clear: the cons were listed out, it's not as though . There's ample reasons to reject the launching. And most of us use the internet very often, what if a kid stumbled accidently onto the website and think that it was normal, alright thing? Like the porno sites. Take a look at the cases where underage engages in such acts, thinking that it was alright, i.e. He loves me, I love him, so it's alright. But is it really alright? There are reports where those kids who engaged in sexual intercourse, the girls, felt extremely ashamed, and some were on the verge of self-mutilation. Oh and also the self-mutilation issue: "it's alright. fun and reduces the extreme emotional pain that we are feeling. and also many does that. it's a norm, an in-thing" mindset. Argh!

I had a close shave with self-mutilation in a sense, differently from others. I was thinking about how my class were extremely demoralized over something, and some of them had cuts on their wrists, it was their way of releasing their anguish, disappointment, their way of coping, BUT negatively, there are more healthier ways to cope with the emotional pain. And then I thought about my own troubles. And then finally, I snapped. I just took whatever I had in my hand and started rubbing it with my wrist. All without conscious thinking.Thank God it was just a mechanical pencil. Dangerous. Just thinking of it can result in carrying out the deed. And the impact of familiarity, that is, seeing something very often, eh how to put it in a nicer way (i'm quite blunt)..., such as watching a certain tv ad for a number of times, and then when one see the advertised product, one buys the product when one doesn't really need the product. It's the same concept.