Routines?

Eating, sleeping, playing, praying, studying, working, surfing the net, chatting, messaging… these are some of the daily “routine” that people go through.

What will we do when suddenly these things just don’t go the way we want it to be? What will we do when we don’t have food to eat, can’t sleep, no play time, what’s next after our studies? “No internet connection in this area?”- don’t be surprised when people ask this question. Suddenly your close friend stops messaging you, what happened? You suddenly can’t focus in your work; you suddenly feel a distance away from people.

Something doesn’t go right; the first thing that comes to mind is “did I do anything wrong?”. And when we can’t find the fault, the mistake, we are troubled the whole day.

Are we too used to routine? When something doesn’t happen the way we expect it to be, we get frustrated, we ponder, and we are confused. The question of what’s next is always there…


Here’s a short story:
There is once a bunch of college student who stays together. There are close, they hardly fight, living in harmony. But no one liked to do certain chores in the house. Suddenly, one day, one of them decided that he wanted to take up the chore and do it. None of them like to do the chore, but he doesn’t mind doing it even though it might be a little troublesome. So he took up the responsibility, having the thought that doing something out of routine is nothing compared to having a house full with unhappy people when it comes to chores.
To his surprise, the housemates did not that him, but instead scolded him and said, “don’t try to be holy, we know you don’t enjoy doing this.” … >.<” Ouch, never did he thought that such words will come out from their mouth. He wasn’t even hoping for a big thank you but he never expected such respond either.
When we do good, we do not expect something in return, but what is heartbreaking is when people think that we have motives, that we try to bribe them, that we are up to something fishy. Are these things and these thoughts disturbing? But are they going to stop us from continue doing what is right? Be strong in the grace of giving. Don’t become talkers but become doers. We might be in a situation where all around us are against us. But remember that we are created for the glory of the Lord. Do all things for His glory. We might be the odd one, but we are certainly not alone.


* story is not related to what’s written before it, just some randomness. :p

Do people think too much?

Do smart people think too much at some point? Here’s a situation. One day, I invited a friend for a dinner with a group of four. I said, “hey hey, John asked you, asvin and I for dinner. So come along k.” it’s a normal day situation. But I was humored with the reply I got. He was saying, I have 5 theories about this invitation.

First, he really invited the 3 of us. Second, he invited you and you are bringing both of us along. Third, he invited you and you don’t want to have dinner alone with him. Forth, you are bringing me along to make someone jealous, and fifth, you have nothing to talk to him and bring me to start a conversation.

How much can a person think out of one simple question? I just laughed and replied, when I say he invited you means that he actually invited you!!!

Are we thinking all these stuff because it happens too often around us? Here is the reasoning for him to think this way. First, there is the probability of him inviting the 3 of us. Second, sometimes, people don’t feel easy comfortable being alone with another person, well, it is no harm in bringing others along as long as the other party knows about it. Third, the more the merrier, when there are more in a crowd, it will be livelier. Forth, people sometimes get close to others to make someone jealous, but we must always remember the golden rule, people has feelings as well. And fifth, when there are more people gathered around, it is easier to initiate a conversation and there are more things to talk about.

Sometimes, when we think too much, it just leads to trouble and it might make our life miserable. But on the other hand, it prepares us for the situation to come and that we will be more cautious. But in everything we do, do it out of love. Love, be it in family, friendship, people that hurt us before, maybe even to random people around us, or even people far far away that needs our help. It is good to see other people are blessed and the smile on their face. Meet a need when you see one, it doesn’t matter if it is appreciated or not, it won’t be sincere if we are expecting something in return. =D

At last, we had dinner together in Batavia. Its Indonesian food. Food is a good way of bringing people together; catching up with what was left behind, getting to know each other more… And we had a long long chat of random stuff and went home happily. =D Praise the Lord even if it’s a bumpy road that we are going through.

A loser?

What do we do when we feel like a loser? There are times that we fail, times that we succeed in life. But what actions can we take to overcome such things? Well, the best thing for us to do in such situation is to take a break, think of what went wrong, pray about it and work on it.

It is sometimes not that easy especially having people around us looking down on us. What more those who are close to us? Fixing the problems takes time. There are not much point fighting with them and defending ourselves. Is it not better to have patience and continue to work to overcome our failures? The best way to prove them wrong is to make sure that we succeed in the future.

We might feel down, feel that there is not much purpose in life, negative thoughts will come to us at such time. But we must stand strong and not be shaken. We need perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that we may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

When times that we feel useless, alone, uncertain, be sure that He is always watching over us and will certainly guide us and be with us all the time.


*We are not perfect being, there are ups and downs in life. But we are over comers!!!

Year End goals =D

Its my first day of fast, fast and pray for my family and my studies =D. Not that bad, but having the urge to go online to chat on and off. Its also the first day of college, not that bad also. Well, people make their New Year resolution and work towards it. But I haven’t set much goals though, always having the mindset of if you have no goals, you have no disappointment. But well, maybe its time for a change. But this cannot be called a New Year resolution though, because its not New Year. =D maybe its just some stuff I want to do and hope to achieve. Was chatting the other day, my friend said something I it was stuck in my head since then. “Why not glorify God in everything you do?” I know this, but it just sort of keeps ringing in my brain since that statement is made. So, here are some things that I hope to achieve before I regret not doing it. In a race, all runners run, but only one will get the prize. So, we shall run in such a way that we get the prize. =D

1. Scoring in exams – well, we always talk about faith, but a man is justified by his works, not by faith alone. As a student, the best thing for now is to be a testimony is through our results.

2. Have patience – a realized that I like to rush people, but most of the time is because other people are rushing me. And I have to learn to have patience when it comes to lots of random stuff. Have my regrets and will learn to set things right.

3. Finish my book – haven’t been reading much but this book did caught my attention. Borrowed it a long long time ago but can’t seem to finish it. After reading a bit, I realized that there are many things that I don’t understand yet. (will write a blog about it after I finish reading =D)

4. Live a healthy lifestyle – well, first I have to start with a healthy diet. Our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Keep is healthy keep it clean!!! And some exercises will do me good as well. And have at least 4-5 hours of sleep per day.

5. Start a record of my budget – I’ve to learn to be a good steward of $$$. Was thinking back, I realized that I myself don’t spend much, but I have to keep an account of where my $ goes. (it’s amazing that I had only 2 figure in my account in mid August. But I’m still living till now, indeed He will provide when we give faithfully.) Was blessed by my dad, my mum and my sis.


Well, no point setting too many goals and not working towards it. So, this is so far 5 objectives that I will want to achieve by the end of this year!!!

Some Bugging random thoughts

1. Why would someone buy vodka knowing that he/she will never drink it? Random actions that has no explanation?

2. Why do we expect to find a perfect partner when we alone are not perfect? And when the perfect person shown up, we find that we are unworthy and back off?

3. Why do we get homesick when we just leave home for one day? Even when we have lots of activities around us.

4. Why do we smile all the time when there are actually nothing much to be happy about? And can’t even cry when we are depressed? Till no one can actually tell how we feel from the outside?

5. How do we say that we are close to God when non-Christians know the bible better then us? How can we not remember much even we have been reading the same stuff over and over again?

6. Why do we have endless chats online and have practically nothing to talk about when we meet each other? Does internet create more problems then solving?

7. Why is it that random things just appear when we say we want to focus? Why do random people appear when we have other better things to think about?

8. Why is it hard to say “no” to a close friend even if its inconvenient? Why is it more fun to see our friends being happy rather then being happy doing other things that we enjoy?

9. Why do we feel guilty when we do something wrong and when others don’t feel a thing at all? Why do we feel extremely guilty when someone is upset because of us?

10. How do we celebrate when we do well but others don’t? And how do we don’t do well when everyone else is doing well? Where will we be many years from now?



*How do we expect people to understand how we feel when we sometimes don’t understand how we ourselves feel?

Bar B Q

Was browsing through blogs. One blog did caught my eyes, that’s Ah Fu’s blog. First time going into his blog, and I can see food food and food. =D How can someone like me who likes to eat have no food picture in my blog? But just realized that we were too busy eating and only managed to take 4 photos.

Well this dish looked interesting and looked delicious but it somehow tasted more like flour.

Its in Bar B Q, in Pyramid of cos. the food there is ok. But we enjoyed cooking!!! Some burnt, some overcooked, some not so cook, but well, at least we enjoyed it.

Well, this is a place that we can hang out for hours, just catch up, chat, and talk nonsense... heheh.. =D

Troubles = sleep = decisions

Some time, some part of life, we are just troubled. We can’t concentrate, can’t seem to do things right, even the simplest things we get it wrong. But we just don’t know what is troubling us. Hmmm… we just suddenly feel down, not knowing what to do next. Everything just seems wrong. We sometimes just randomly don’t feel like studying, working, doing what we normally do.

What can we do when we face these situations? Having the want to do nothing feeling, we are easily influenced. If those around us are doing drugs, drinking, clubbing, lepaking… we will tend to follow. Is this when we get into more troubles and feel stupid when we wake up?

Or what we can do is to sleep over it. Sleeping helps in many ways. When we wake up, we just seem to be calmer, everything else just seems to fade away, and we can think and decide more rationally. It gives our brain time to structure things. Put all the unnecessary things behind, and when we wake up, we can be more focus. No bad influence by anyone. No waste of time, no waste of money- instead of going bowling, pool, arcade, cyber café, movies… we are recharged when we wake up, and it is most effective when we pray right when we get up from the bed.

But eventually, the day is how we want the day to be. We decide how we want to feel. Its either we make our decisions based on emotional or rational. We can’t control everything around us, but we certainly can decide and shape our own day.

Heroessss = Teaching us about life?

Do we each have a mission on earth?


There are friends that will help us on the way.


But there might also be time that we have to discern.


So we need to think hard!!!


We will find out soon. =D

Holidaysssssss 3

Once again a day has come and goes. Hmm… not a very fruitful holiday so far. Pretty much alone in the morning and afternoon. Everyone goes to work and school. Well, when we have to go for classes, we complain and when we have too much holiday we complain too. Sometimes, come to think about it, in certain situation, we don’t treasure when we have it in hand, but we complain and get disappointed when we lose it.

Just started the walk with - MARK, again. Well, many times have I read this book. It’s the shortest among the 4 gospel. But how much do I really know about it? Reading and understanding is two different things. Maybe this holiday I shall find something different about it. Maybe a hidden meaning, maybe I could unlock an unknown secret. =D

Hmm.. getting bored and nothing much to do. My “chatting kaki” are all offline d. guess its time for me to do some stuff not in front the comp, maybe find something more useful to do. :p

Holidayssssss 2

Holidayssssss 2

Well, its about 1.30am in the morning. Not having much to do, that’s when life gets bored I guess, we end up doing pretty much nothing, that’s why we must always keep our mind occupy!
Well, I told myself that now the important thing is to make sure I can “fly”. But having the books In front of me, nothing seems to be going in. How can we get bored of studies? Well, like it or not, we have to do it. So, better enjoy while doing it. =D.
There are also few more things that might affect our studies, but MUST NOT GET DISTRACTED!!! For other things, I rather go with the flow. Its much easier that way. No worries till it actually hit you.
Its already 2 something am. Wrote so little in half an hour.. hehe.. have been watching the C walk and some Classical Gas. WOW, their guitar is awesome! This is real talent and skill. Thanks to Big John, this night ended with something different! =D

Here’s something about life,
Alan Bennett:
Life is rather like a tin of sardines - we're all of us looking for the key.

Holidaysssss

Holidaysssss

Another holiday is here. Will it be a fruitful holiday? Will there be anything special happening? Time flies. It has only been less then 15 months since I started college. Yet, many things have happened. Good things, bad things, things that don’t make sense, all cramped up in these time. Our ring of friends change, our approach to things change, our views changes, the things that we go through shape us and will make us who we are in future.

Getting hooked onto different things at different part of life, the way we look at things, the way we overcome it, those around that help us overcome it. This has made the bonding between our family members, the bonding with friends, and the bonding with all those around even closer then ever, and yet for some further apart. As we take ever step further into the future, we face new things; things that we never thought will be part of our lives. But yet, no matter what happens, God will make a way for us – either we continue to face it or we have to turn 180’ away from it. may it be good or be bad, there is always someone out there watching over us, praying for us, making sure that we analyze every move we make, guide us and protect us from harm.

Not expecting much for this holiday, just hope to have more badminton, more boling, more outing, more swimming maybe, and certainly some studies need to be done. And not forgetting longer period and more effective quite time, learn a bit more guitar and help out wherever I can. Not forgetting building a strong bond with those around us. =D

Invasion - a life without emotion

Invasion -  a life without emotion

Its once again after exam period. After a period of much interaction with books, we finally got to go out together for a movie, pool, also and boling-and I lost to Asvin!!! How is this possible?.. lol... Not to forget the most important part--- FOOD!!! It was a nice Sci-Fi movie. Asvin was covering her eyes most of the time though. Yen Ling is immune to all type of scariness, and Hari always acting macho as usual. But what is important is that we had lots of fun. =D

What would this world be if everyone has no emotion? No feeling? Fights, Nagging, Screaming, Sadness, Confusion, Frustration, etc… etc… None of the above. We might get use to it but would we not be bored? What is life without Happiness, Laughter? Is sadness bad? Are all fights bad? If life is without emotion, there won’t be any suspense, no excitement, no meaning to move on in life. No competition, no chance to express what you know, everyone the same—well, if everyone is the same, we might as well be penguins.. =p

Well, holidays are here, time to catch up with family, old friends, just having fun and not forgetting any of my studies.

*random blog about myself, cos some mentioned that I never talk much about myself in my blogs. =P

Fears in relationship

Fears in relationship


There are many reasons why some people do not want to get involved in relationships. Is it because of fear? Or do we just enjoy being not in any relationships?

First, there is the fear of rejection. But in this, some might tell you that if you don’t face it, you’ll never find the answer. Some might also tell you that as long as you do not know it, it won’t hurt you. We do not want to be rejected by our friends, by our family, by people in our work place, by people that we always hang out with, in conclusion most people want to be accepted someway or another.

Commitment. The fear to be committed, do we and are we willing to commit our time, our energy, our earthly things… do we just want a relationship that we can get in and out freely, no strings attached, no barriers of entry and exit? Sometimes we might think that is it worth it? Where can we find true friendship when we are not willing to commit? When we are down, we expect someone to be there with us, but when our friends are down, are we as committed or can we be more commitment.

There is also the matter of security. Some might want to be in a relationship because they want security. It indeed feels good to feel safe with people around you. Some might not want to get involved in a relationship because they do not feel safe. But when the relationship is strong enough, there ought to be trust, and we will slowly stand up for people around us. Having the sense of security often give us a peace in mind.

Friends and people around might also influence us of who we are mixing with. We fear what people might say about us when we mix with different people. Are we made worse when we mix around with bad people? Are we less worthy to be with when we mix with unfortunate people? Are we less smart if we mix with underprivileged people? Are we more childish when we spend our time with little kids? Of cause we can choose who to be with and all, but we do not need to reject others because people around us reject them.

There’s another fear when we want to get into a relationship, we are often afraid that we are not good enough. We are afraid that our standard does not fit the people around us. This is the flaw and it leads people to not being themselves, being a fake person. But if our standard is not good enough, then its time to upgrade. We can’t stay in the mentality that we only want to mix with people of the same standard. We should be more volatile, able to mix with all types of people. There will always be a room of improvement. When we start to think that we are not good enough, then its time to put in more effort to improve.

There might be other barriers that causes fear to be in us when are mixing around. These might mean our culture, our religion, our family background, the generation gap, our environment… but we can’t always make this the excuse for us for not being friendly, for not wanting to mix around…

For every true relationship, there ought to have trust, loyalty, commitment, patience, hope… we must always have hope and not give up easily, we must be able to have to strength to move on, we must be able to decide wisely… All in all, the most important thing is that we must keep people around us in prayers. And also pray that we will mix with the right people. Surrender our relationship to God. We must also be strong and not shaken. All these fear shouldn’t always be the reason why we want to isolate ourselves. NO MAN IS AN ISLAND.

Getting back on track

Getting back on track



Getting used to routine, going through the things over and over again, using the same formula of life, tackling every difficulty that we face, with reasoning and deciding after much analysis. We are sometimes unfamiliar to changes. And often reluctant to leave our comfort zone.

The path is straight, with some bumpy roads; some turnings and sometimes we might face dead ends and might have to make a U-turn. When things go wrong and we are hit again and again, continuously, will we be like the tree that will stumble or are our roots planted deep enough that no matter what wind blow, we are able to come back to position?

There might be times that we are lost and can’t seem to decide, can’t seem to see any light in the darkness, can’t find the path in the jungle. There’s no wrong in staying in the jungle for a while before we find our path out of it, we might resort to waiting for help, and we might continue and wait and hope that a map will appear. But in the end, the important thing is that we have to find our way out.

There might be lots of people, giving various advices, pointing to different path, in the end, we have to decide on who to follow, how to follow and why are we following. We can also build our own path.

With everything around, the crowd, the noise, the wind, the cars… as long as we are able to stay focus, know what we want, and start to really ask and pray, we will find that there are no barriers among us and God, and are able to continue the journey. Being tied down with all the work and activities, we have less time; this is when we learn how to treasure time. Facing failures, this is when we learn how to climb back up.

When our tires are flat, put in more air, when it is wear off, change a new one. When the paints fade, repaint it. When we are bored with it, modify it. When we are less compatible, change the engine. No matter what happen, we have to use the best fuel to keep us going.

Onions

Onions



Some might say, "Life is like an onion. You peel it off one layer at a time; and sometimes you weep." Some might also say that "Life is like an onion; you peel off layer after layer and then you find there is nothing in it."

Things come and go. When good things come, we do not want it to go. But when bad things we just hope that it disappear immediately. But sometimes, it may seem that unfortunate events come and stay, and will not leave till we learn our lesson, or when we learn to out grow the difficulties that we are facing. When good things happen, we sometimes forget to be thankful and often overlook it. When it come to pass or when we down, only then will we start appreciating them.

But being an onion, we can either make others happy, putting flavor into their life or we can choose to make them cry. It’s a choice we can make. But when we are upset, we can also choose to make those around us frustrated or we can choose not to. Are onions good or bad for us? When things happen, we sometimes just need to sit and think all over about what went wrong.

Crying when we cut onions is nothing wrong. Only then we can see who really cares for us. But what can we do about the disappointment that some people just don’t care? Onions might sometimes seem fresh and juicy from the outside but are rotten and dried up in the inside. How many can tell the difference?

Onions come in varieties. Sometimes, more effort is needed to analyze it and sometimes we can just tell if it is good from the outside. Only when we start to appreciate it, we will know the properties of it. Evidence suggests that onions may be effective against the common cold, heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, and other diseases. (wikipedia)


** some of the things doesn’t make sense and can be ignored =D

Knowing and Actually Doing

Knowing and Actually Doing

Mankind often can discern of what is good and what is not. Sometimes, it is just that the spirit is strong but the flesh is weak. We know that exercising is good for us, but sometimes we just prefer lazing around at home doing nothing. We know that eating healthy food is important but we still feed ourselves with junk food. We know that drinking enough water is important but we still don’t drink enough. We know that having proper and enough sleep is important but we still sleep irregularly. We are not made stupid, we know many things, but the question is “do we practice what we preach?”

We know that failure is not the end of the world; it is just a part of learning process. When we face failure, we can either blame others, blame other things, but if we look closer, might the problem be within ourselves? Instead of trimming the leaves, isn’t it better if we can treat the root? Get to the source of the problem and resolve it once and for all. What is the use of a lesson if we gain nothing out of it? Then later we might face the same problem and the same regrets all over again.

“The fact that we are ashamed, crying, feeling defeated means that we still have conviction in our heart.” In a way, it is true. If we do something wrong and not feeling guilty, then more reason for us to spend more time to think about what went wrong. Having to live with our failures might be hard, sometimes it might seem like all eyes are on us. But even if we need to crawl, should we crawl till we finish the race?

Having many people around us, comforting us, caring for us when we face difficulties, that is good. But how many are willing to run the race with us? How many are actually willing to tell you straight that you are just not focus enough, that’s why you fail. How many will tell us what actually went wrong?

Faith without action is dead. Motivational courses may be able to push us to do something, to do better in life. But when we don’t persevere, don’t want to help ourselves, don’t want to work harder, don’t want to concentrate, then we better hope for a miracle.

Knowing what is right and wrong is important. But if we just know where the root of our problem is and not working towards to solve it, then the failure merely make us a failure. But if we are willing to make a difference, then the failure might be a lesson, a valuable lesson that will push us to higher ground, prepare us for tougher challenges.

A better painting

A better painting

Life, choices,
The world is still turning,
People come, people go,
Are we here by chance?

What about the road not taken?
Is there more to what we see?
What is the probability of things in life?
Can we explain every move by calculation?

Who said that we can’t walk on water?
Who said that dogs can’t fly?
Who determine our actions?
Can all things be justified?

What will the world be if we learn to care?
What will the world be if we learn to give?

Is this world a cycle?
Are all things predicable?
What mystery is left if we know the future?
Where is the excitement if everything goes well?

Life is journey,
We might not be able to determine where to start,
But we can certainly determine where we end,
And how we end.
It’s a new chapter that yet to be explored.
Mystery, fantasy, destiny awaits.
Making sure that the world is moving together,
Everyone moving together,
Learn to help and care.
Won’t there be a better tomorrow?


*Life is more than me, me, and me. If we learn to spread the joy and happiness, it will be a more colorful world. Putting color and smile into people’s life, won’t our life be more meaningful? “Being thin is not a compliment”, as we eat our life through, think of those who never even tasted chocolate. There is not much purpose in life if the other end of the world can’t even get their necessary needs. Who are we to enjoy life when there is still suffering? Learn to give as we learn to care. We are more blessed for we know that we are able to bless others. Can we put color into people’s life as our own life is painted?

Pouring

Pouring

Alone,
In the silence,
Then came the soft music,
With the guitar,
No one else can hear.

As singing started
Having all worries and thoughts
All cast out
Hoping that there is a solution

Lips moving slowly,
Murmuring,
Who can understand?
Besides Him.

Strings of stress just pour down,
As the music is playing,
Time ticking,
All we can do is pray.

In the stillness
We shall come to know
That His grace is sufficient
What else do we expect?

Pouring,
All the misunderstanding
Hoping,
That tomorrow will not be the same
Wondering,
How could we overcome
Praying,
That He will keep us safe
Knowing,
That we can make a difference
Ending,
With a burning flame


* He will always be there for us when there seems to be nothing that we can do anymore. Continue to trust in Him. Cry out to Him and He will hear us out. With compassion and mercy, we shall be able to stand up once again. There are much more sufferings out there for us to care about. We should just come out from our bubble bag. There is much more that can be done.

Dry tears

Dry tears

Things that we want and things that we can have
When both cannot come to an agreement
Not knowing what is the next step
Is time the only factor that can change all these?
Are we supposed to wait and act as though all is good?

Keeping everything inside,
Having only joyful expression
Hiding the frustration and confusion
When all around seems alright
Something is still missing

Taking every step by faith
Hoping everyday that it might change
Wondering about the decisions that was made
Knowing that there are no other ways
Continue whispering in prayers

When no one else knows,
When all seems unclear,
When you have to handle more then you can bear,
When all things seem alright to those around,
Only God knows.

Lost,
When will these whisper and cry be heard?
Uncertain,
When will the path be cleared?
Disappointed,
When will the heart’s desire be heard?

Still having hope,
Having faith.

Thinking about what have to be done
Tears flowing, dry tears flowing
Still hoping for the best.

Short Story

Here’s a story:
There was a boy who wanted a brand new PS3. He asked his dad for it but dad knows for certain that if the son has the PS3, the son will not study and will be indulged in the game. Daddy then explained and hoped that the son could understand. But stubbornly, the son insisted and cried day and night, rebellious, unwilling to do anything else. Being in such situation, having to take the headache, the dad still insists on not buying the PS3 for the son. When it comes to time like this, either one side must give up, but it doesn’t mean that the one who gives up first is on the losing side. The son will soon see that daddy is doing all these for his own good. And if he shows his willingness and ability to balance his studies and playing time, daddy might actually give him his PS3.

This story tells us something very important. When there are two stubborn parties, one must give up, if the two of them continue and press on, unwilling to take a look at the big picture, their relationship might be shaken.

When we pause, listen to advice, think over it and discern, in the end, we might be able to get the best out of the situation and also able to preserve the relationship.

In the end, the son listens to his daddy and studied hard. And when his results are out, daddy gave his the PS3. Later only that he found out that daddy had already bought the PS3 for him a long time ago, and was just waiting for the right time to give it to him.