Jane Talks!

3 more days to the Lunar New Year… how exciting!! Unless you are colour blind, you should know that the whole town is painted red almost everywhere.. no no, not blood shed, but just a popular to be in during the CNY.

i don’t know abt you but i love the atmosphere of CNY everyday. Everyone seems to be busy shopping for stuff whether it is buying new clothes or new year goodies or ‘fai cai shu’ or decorations, it can only be one thing… people love CNY and we chinese not only like to receive, we like to give as well. People give tons of things, hampers, bak gua etc but most of all, ang pows!!

So, if you still not excited abt CNY, here are top 10 reasons why u should stop pouting and start saying ‘xing nian kuai le’!!!

TOP 10 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD BE EXCITED ABT CNY:-

10. Singaporeans get excited on the topic of food… huge array of food all the way from ‘tuan yuen fan’ to new year goodies such pineapple tarts, bah kwa, spring rolls, almond cookies… etc (Drool)

9. Another excuse for you to go shopping…

8. You get to see relatives that you only meet once a year… (CHC members… remember Pst Kong’s msg)

7. Positive atmosphere because ppl wish each other good new year greetings like "nian nian you yu, bu bu gao sheng, sheng ti jian kang" etc

6. The possibility to see n hear fire crackers during the new year countdown programs.

5. Everything can be new… New clothes, new shoes, new bedsheets, new furniture, even new money

4. Nice & cheap bargains everywhere….

3. Chinatown’s CNY decorations & laser light display…

2. If you are a unmarried person… praise God for ang pows… If you are married.. Praise God for you.. thank you.. Gong Xi Fai Cai

1. Because you are chinese and we are the only group of people that have our own unique way to celebrate new year.

Alright, just want to wish you a great chinese new year, have fun eating your pineapple tarts and bah kwas… i will be flying to taiwan with my family to celebrate CNY with my aunt. Will be taking a break and i will be back on 6th Feb.. Gong Xi Gong Xi

Finally oh finally, i have found the one… one that who has been in CHC since the beginning… one who knew Pst Kong first as Bro. Kong… one who witnessed the revival & growth of the church… one who goes wherever the church went when there was still no building… one who was faithful all these years…

She is none other than my own CG member, Christine. I feel so happy because i have always been curious and keen to talk to someone who has always been there since the beginning of CHC era (1).. So without further or do, here’s how the interview went.

Jane : How old were you when you first went to CHC?
Christine : 1989 end Jul, in secondary one I came to church.

Jane : So..who brought you to church?
Christine: At that point of time… I was at one of the lowest peak of my life… at parkway HeShe Store outside I cry out to God, He heard my cry and He sent people(namely then Pst. Ting, Pst. Jacq and Pst Karen) to witness to me.

Jane: Wow.. so.what made you stay in CHC for so long?
Christine: Sometimes I wonder what makes me stay too.. haha.. I guess the journey wasn’t easy for me.. As Christians we often go thru challenges and testings ahead. Yes, many times when life storms hit us.. too often I wanted to throw in the towel and quit believing in Him.. What  I should say then? What makes me stay I think its God’s  unfailing love and presence that I have found in here..

Jane : What are some of the things we did then but you don’t see us doing it now? (Name 3)
Christine :

· In church last time we used to wear veil… acted like a spiritual covering and as an act of submission.
· During cell group worship time in 41A at Marine Parade, we used to off all the lights, leaving only the OHP lights. But now u don’t see it now.
· We used to have “fun night” at the end of every year, its just like thanksgiving. It was fun as there are dramas and small play.. Award was given to some members too.

Jane: Who is the one person who you can say impact you the most?
Christine: There are too many people who has impacted me, but I guess, its Pastor Kong, (at that time… we used to call him brother Kong J ) .  He is always on the ball for Jesus.. Seeing him serving God with all he has really inspires me.. of course not forgetting all the wonderful leaders that have helped me to grow in Him.

Jane: Tell me what message that impacted you the most?
Christine: Too many… all of the messages are so impactful ..

Jane: 18 years you have been in CHC, what do you see yourself in another 18 years?
Christine: It should be 17 years lah.. im in church since 1989.  Well, I see myself being passionate with God more… and of course .. I want to live out my life to do His purpose… Settling down.. marrying a godly man.. have kids.. bring them to children’s church… and reaching out to bless others..

Despite of so many things that has happen through out these long 17 years.. All the high mountains and deep valleys.. God is faithful.. He ever ready to act on our behalf when we call upon Him… And.. I may not know what my future will be like… But I know who holds my future J..  Let us give our unknown future to a known God Amen!

After my interview with Christine, couldn’t help but to feel what a faithful person she is, holding on to God despite having difficult periods of her life. Christine, know it is not an easy 17 year of walk…just wanna say that i am so proud of you and i pray that you continue to walk with God for the rest of your life. Many choose to give up but you choosed the good thing of trusting God. You inspire me… i am sure many will read this and choose to stay with God no matter what happens in their lives. Praise God!!

Last night after dinner, i had the greatest laughter session i ever had this year with guess who? My parents. Now you know where i got my comedian genes from. Plus 2 days of American Idol Auditions. Hahaha … I felt great cos it certainly helped me reduce the stress i have been receiving all week from work.

I then made a conclusion that being able to laugh is a blessing from God. He would know cos He knows that we will go thru problems in life, then we choose whether to sulk or laugh over it. A study done at the University of Maryland Medical Center suggest that a good sense of humour and the ability to laugh at stressful situations helps mitigate the damaging physical effects of distressing emotions. I remembered one time, i was trying to make a point to my mum until i was so frustrated (Cos she didn’t get my point) that i burst out into laughter. Funny… but yet true.

i did some research on laughter and here are some interesting facts:-

TOP 10 FACTS ON LAUGHTER

10. Laughter activities the chemistry of the will to live and increases our capacity to fight diseases. It also relaxes the body and reduces problems associated with high blood pressure, strokes and ulcers. (WOW)

9. Humour improves brain function and relieves stress. It eases muscle tension and psychological stress which keeps the brain alert and allows people to retain more information. (See? I told you)

8. Humour helps us to enhance our ability to connect with others. (Finally another way for you to get people to like you besides always talking abt urself )

7. Laughter heals.

6. Humor adjusts the meaning of an event so that it is not too overwhelming. (So next time when you are in trouble with your mum, try laughing… it helps and ur mum might think you are more crazy than naughty)

5. Good news for you ladies or even guys: Laughter gives our body a good workout, it is also estimated that a hearty laugh can burn calories equivalent to several minutes on the rowing machine or the exercise bike.

4. Humor replaces distressing emotions. You cannot feel angry, depressed, anxious, guilty or resentful and experience laughter at the same time. If you can, you are definately not human.

3. Laughs and smiles are best enjoyed when sharing it with others. Always laughing at yourself and by urself is not that cool.

2. Humour increases energy. Thats why i get re-charged after watching a bunch of comedies.

1. Humor is good for mental health because it makes us feel good.

Wow… look at all these benefits… doesn’t it make u want to laugh more?? So if you are feeling blue today, watch some comedies or meet up with clowns cos it will certainly help you. Hahaha…

Alright, time once again for an entry. Know that the previous few entries was a little light hearted, with top 10 & everything, so i thought why not write something more in depth today…

Bible says that God expects us to be fruitful & multiply. I know you are thinking abt families & having babies but God spoke to me that fruitfulness may also mean influence. How you live your life and how it may influence others to do the same.

Truth is that no matter what we do, people will see and put a note somewhere in their minds. If possible, they may take after what you did and influence others as well. In our lifetime, we may know tons of people but we will always remember those that influence us the most, and what we admire about them, we keep and pass it on to others.

Influence can be good or bad depends on what you choose to be influenced in. If you accept bad influence, you will pass on bad influence but if you accept good influence, you will naturally pass on good influence (Duh)

I have been a christian for 7 years and who i am today was shaped by people who had influenced me. These are like seeds that people sow into your life and those fruits are produced for eternity. THats why the Bible says that God is more concerned with our character & attitude because these are the things that will last us for eternity. As a christian, we are called to influence the people around us, the culture, ethics so that God’s character is being reminded and that should be the way. Influence can also pass thru many many years like how Jesus is still and will continue to influence the minds of people to draw back to God. It has been 2000 years but people are still talking about him.. now thats a record. Could you influence someone even for 50 years??

Remember, whatever you say and do, it will directly & indirectly cause a seed to be sowed into a person’s life. So if you desire to spread good influence, make it a lifetime habit & decision because you never know how you would influence the next person you see.

Today is the 12th day of the brand new year, i hope you have already done up your resolutions. If you already did, wipe that smark off your face, but if u hadn’t done so, time to repent and do something about it. Don’t wait until Chinese New Year.

As i sat down to plan out what i want to do in 2006, i looked at my 2005 goal plan and i am proud to say that i achieve more than 50% of it. Like what Pst Kong always says, "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail". I am sure that i didn’t want to fail last year and certainly not for the rest of my life. It is also part of me as a person to plan, i always look at the bigger picture in things so that i won’t let the little things in life wear me down. So instead of writing my top 10 resolutions, i decided to write up a TOP 10 list of what i am not going to do this year in 2006. Some ideas for those still doing up your resolutions….

TOP 10 THINGS I AM NOT* GOING TO DO THIS YEAR:-

10. Overspending money. Money is indeed not our faithful friends… they stay in your pocket for a day and then the next day, they are gone. This year, they are not going to go anywhere… Muahahaha

9. Be lazy. Thats one reason why my body is going sidewards. (-_-)

8. Upset over little things… Like wat Joyce Meyer said.. " So much easier to let go then having to hold on to frustrations that stays for a long time.."

7. Eat McDonalds. Age is getting to me and so is my metabolism.. I need to work hard to get rid off one Big Breakfast than it is for me to gobble down in 20mins.

6. Not practise my keyboard. If you want to be good in something, you got to keep on keeping on cos i kinda lose heart when i play badly.

5. Make excuses not to exercise… Aiya is raining… Too tired from work… Too early to get up and jog… No one to ask to exercise with me… I gotta stop my nonsense.

4. Make excuses.

3. Procrastination on writing my blog. You know… cos u always log on & see the same old entry.

2. Lose my cool when someone makes me wait for more an half an hour. (Grr..) I will just be cool…

1. Not doing all of the above. (Hmmmm….)

I know this is a late entry but i just wanna write this so that it can somehow brighten up someone who is from E375.

As i watched the appreciation video that was kindly made by xiao xing, couldn’t help but to feel touched and blessed to be in a group that loves God wholeheartedly & loves people fervently. Though most of us in the group are already working adults & prob have many things in their life to fulfill but in most of our hearts, there is always room to do more.

I won’t say that my group is perfect but i would say it is an imperfect cg doing extra-ordinary things for the Lord & His people. So without further ado, i would like to write up a top 10 list for the things i appreciate abt E375. So if you are a E375 member reading this, feel free to smile cos i appreciate being in the same group as you guys.

TOP 10 THINGS I APPRECIATE ABT E375:-

10. For appreciating who i am as a person, esp on my lame jokes, n facial expressions or even secretly supporting me by reading my blog frequently.. I will be more faithful in writing them… i try…

9. For changing my mindset cos i used to think that adult cgs are not exciting, inward-looking and not fervent in spiritual things. You guys are not like that at all!!

8. Till now, you guys complain that i don’t go fellowshipping with u all enough. You could have just forget abt me, but u didn’t. Never felt more wanted… hahaha… but can you promise to stop talking about me if i do turn up for fellowship??

7. How we always sms each other to pray for one another. Thats why i think our group is united, cos prayer keeps unity.

6. How most of you are older than me but u impart wisdom to me, really learn alot from you guys.

5. Servanthood - i see tremedous effort in availing yourself to serve the church n the cg during the big events during the past year. You all should be given the Singapore Quality Service award.

4. Happy or sad times, we are there for one another. If you need a shoulder to cry on, there’s Louisa, Thow Wee etc. If you need someone to laugh with… There’s christine, jason to laugh with you. If you need to sabo someone, there’s always john… opps…

3. Inspiration: Though all of us come from different background, have different kinds of struggles but your faith & trust toward God gives me motivation to do that for my life as well. Bible gives us examples of the facts of life from man & woman of God… You gave me the realness of life thru your examples.

2. Ling Siang. For being who you are, and loving us no matter what we do wrong. Because of you, we have become better people.

1. The presence of God - Bible says when 2 or 3 gather together in His name, there His presence will be always. Lets continue to draw close to God this year together as a cg and believe that the love we have in this group will continue to multiply forth into the next generation of adults that will come into this group.

Thank you Jesus.