I happened to find this photo of gem from long ago... HAHA. So cute right. I asked for permission leh! He says it was due to the post lunch slump... (i think his branch mates took the photo and added the effects. hurhurhur.) Can you find/see the little stick men?Monday, August 03, 2009
Saturday, August 01, 2009
it's not for us to fight the fire, but the fire (God!) who fights for us!
I'm getting old, man.
Went for The Fire Fight's Album Launch concert, where we had to stand for an hour. I got a backache after that (but the rest of my friends didn't). Fail.
(The Fire Fight is a local, indie band made up of a group of young chaps who love music and are using their music to reach an audience for a bigger life purpose.)
I really enjoyed the music (though i was as stiff as a BBQ skewer) and saw the boys enjoying themselves on stage as well. They were telling a simple but true story of a bear named Henri. But really, the "bear" represents us living today and the story that unfolded was the story of how when we were woo-ed by the devil who lured us into loving the material things of the world but getting burnt in the process, God pursues us, back into his loving arms, back home again.
The boys deserve thumps on their backs!
It was quite funny how the name most heard last night was Jon's because he's a friend of ours, and a couple of us were getting high and it was hilarious what being high does to you. And... quite a number of the audience were from the same place *ahem* as i, and boy, if we wanted to, we could've started a praise and worship session. Haha...
Well done Fire Fight. I know this is your ministry, and I pray that God will continue to partner with you guys to speak the same loving message of God to those who need it, in the language that they know and understand, and find meaning in.
Went for The Fire Fight's Album Launch concert, where we had to stand for an hour. I got a backache after that (but the rest of my friends didn't). Fail.
(The Fire Fight is a local, indie band made up of a group of young chaps who love music and are using their music to reach an audience for a bigger life purpose.)
I really enjoyed the music (though i was as stiff as a BBQ skewer) and saw the boys enjoying themselves on stage as well. They were telling a simple but true story of a bear named Henri. But really, the "bear" represents us living today and the story that unfolded was the story of how when we were woo-ed by the devil who lured us into loving the material things of the world but getting burnt in the process, God pursues us, back into his loving arms, back home again.
The boys deserve thumps on their backs!
It was quite funny how the name most heard last night was Jon's because he's a friend of ours, and a couple of us were getting high and it was hilarious what being high does to you. And... quite a number of the audience were from the same place *ahem* as i, and boy, if we wanted to, we could've started a praise and worship session. Haha...
Well done Fire Fight. I know this is your ministry, and I pray that God will continue to partner with you guys to speak the same loving message of God to those who need it, in the language that they know and understand, and find meaning in.
Friday, July 31, 2009
when we see Christ in someone, it should be evident in their everyday lives right? not only when the person is in their christian-ny element, eg. preaching, evangelising, befriending, cell leading, worship leading, etc.
something i noted. a person whose private life's deep truth is far from the superficially professed ideal, should refrain from preaching that they pursue only after God loving/centred/consumed women/men.
it makes them not just look stupid, but it is hypocritical and stumbles others.
something i noted. a person whose private life's deep truth is far from the superficially professed ideal, should refrain from preaching that they pursue only after God loving/centred/consumed women/men.
it makes them not just look stupid, but it is hypocritical and stumbles others.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Driving Instructor Uncle Vocabulary Trivia
Update:
Generous = Dangerous
Hedges = Hazards
Kuiz = Squeeze
Prup = Pull Up
It's funnier when i get to pronounce it outloud for you! ;-P
Hello folks! For your and my entertainment, i shall now present you with a Driving Instructor Uncle Vocabulary Trivia! Try to guess what these words (really) are!
"Generous" = ?
"Hedges" = ?
"Kuiz" = ?
"Prup" = ?
Er, no prizes for right answers.
Generous = Dangerous
Hedges = Hazards
Kuiz = Squeeze
Prup = Pull Up
It's funnier when i get to pronounce it outloud for you! ;-P
Hello folks! For your and my entertainment, i shall now present you with a Driving Instructor Uncle Vocabulary Trivia! Try to guess what these words (really) are!
"Generous" = ?
"Hedges" = ?
"Kuiz" = ?
"Prup" = ?
Er, no prizes for right answers.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Potato Bake Version 2
Cut up: 1 Red pepper, 1 big yellow onion, and grated a bunch of garlic. The pieces that were too small to grate are there on top of the peppers.
My cheddar cheese which i cut into small pieces, so that when the scattered pieces melt, they melt out evenly throughout the dish.
My button mushrooms. You decide how many you is want! :-P
Some random box of chicken nuggets that i found in the fridge. I've no idea who put them there and no one at home admits to its existence. Well, it no longer exists! It's going into the potato bake. :-D See the ones in aeroplane shapes. Hurhur. I toasted them so warm them up and give them a nice brown colour.
My grated garlic which i used to scatter in with the filling, as well as scattered on the top of everything with the cheese topping, mixed herbs and coarse black pepper (you'll see later on).
The boiled and scalloped potato base on the baking dish. OH YES. Don't forget to grease the base and sides of the dish with margarine or butter. This prevents the cheese and other stuff from sticking to it after some of it melts and burns slightly.
This is the cream i used. Instead of the 1 1/2 cups that i used in version 1, i used 1 instead. Healthier i guess. Less fat.
Fried up the bits of garlic, red pepper, onions, mushrooms in olive oil, and added a tiny amount of salt and black pepper.
Zees is the filling: red pepper, onions, mushrooms, diced chicken nuggets, grated garlic, cream and cheddar cheese, french onion soup, a bit of coarse black pepper again.
Put scalloped potatoes on top again with the grated garlic.
Top with mozarella cheese, cheddar cheese, mixed herbs, coarse black pepper. Dump in oven!
Ok, here we go. Kinda looks similar to version 1 anyway, but it's different on the inside!
Sitting pretty by the kitchen window. :-9
Close up for your viewing pleasure. Whee!
And finally... on the dinner table. It's a bit sad that i have to "force" my family to eat my stuff. I have to keep asking them if they've tried my food, or i have to bring a plate to them and ask if they want a bite. Only my dad took a portion by himself last night. Otherwise, no one other than myself and Van has eaten a decent portion! Grrr. I need food test subjects, and gem is too busy to stick around long enough to be one. I need daring, willing and FREE participants, or else the fridge will be full of stuff that i make and no one will eat! Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Potato Gratin/Potato Bake sort-of-recipe
For those of you interested in making the potato thingy i made, here's the sort of recipe!
The reason why it's only a sort-of-recipe is because i did not use much measurements. I just added things according to how i liked it to be.
1) Boil 7-8 russet potatoes. Some people might find the russet variety too crumbly and soft so they use the harder yellow-er types.
2) Fry 2 (big) yellow onions in a shallow frying pan with olive oil, slow cook them, so that they don't burn and they should caramelize in the pan. Sprinkle a tiny bit of salt and pepper to taste.
3) After the potatoes are boiled and tender, de-skin them and scallop them. Grease an oven-safe glass dish with a bit of butter, so that the food doesn't stick. Line the bottom of the dish with the potatoes. Don't use up all of them.
4) I had some leftover cooked chicken chunks, so i layered them over the potatoes. I also added ham slices, add half of the previously fried onions.
5) I used something like 1 and a half containers of Bulla cream (350ml to 400ml), and added dollops of it, scattered among the meat, onions, etc. Don't use all of it yet. As and when you feel that some corners/portions are dry, just put some cream there. Added dollops of butter also, but not too much.
6) Slopped ready made packet french onion soup all over to flavour the dish. Add amount according to your own disgression. Similarly, if you find it a bit dry, you can slop some more. Up to you! Just keep in mind that as you add, you are adding more flavour/salt into your dish, so you want to mentally keep stock of what you are dumping into the dish so that when you finally eat it, you aren't overwhelmed with the taste of one particular ingredient.
7) Also throw in cheddar cheese. I added red cheese and the regular yellow one. However, make sure that you cut up the cheese into little pieces, so that when it melts, it melts out evenly and not in little lumps here and there.
(at this point, i would recommend adding some cubed green/red/yellow pepper. Reason being it's good to add some vegetable and it also adds a crunch to the dish. You can either fry it first with the yellow onion or if you want it a bit more raw, just add it as it is in this layer.)
8) I sprinkled a tiny amount of salt, but in this case, i did so because not many of the other ingredients were salty naturally, except for the cheese and ham. If your version has other stuff that is salty, then don't add anymore.
9) Once the middle portion is done with all the layering and stuff, put your final layer of potatoes and also the fried onions as the top layer of your potato bake. Add the rest of the cream too. Use a ladle to gentle press everything into the dish. After that, grab a pack of shredded mozeralla cheese and add a generous layer of cheese on top of the potatoes and onions.
10) Lastly, sprinkle a tiny amount of mixed herbs evenly, and also coarse black pepper.
11) Throw everything into the oven and wait for the mozeralla cheese to brown to the colour you want!
Hope this helps and doesn't sound too messy or complicated. It isn't complicated once you get your ingredients prepared really.
Ask me if you have any doubts! :-D
The reason why it's only a sort-of-recipe is because i did not use much measurements. I just added things according to how i liked it to be.
1) Boil 7-8 russet potatoes. Some people might find the russet variety too crumbly and soft so they use the harder yellow-er types.
2) Fry 2 (big) yellow onions in a shallow frying pan with olive oil, slow cook them, so that they don't burn and they should caramelize in the pan. Sprinkle a tiny bit of salt and pepper to taste.
3) After the potatoes are boiled and tender, de-skin them and scallop them. Grease an oven-safe glass dish with a bit of butter, so that the food doesn't stick. Line the bottom of the dish with the potatoes. Don't use up all of them.
4) I had some leftover cooked chicken chunks, so i layered them over the potatoes. I also added ham slices, add half of the previously fried onions.
5) I used something like 1 and a half containers of Bulla cream (350ml to 400ml), and added dollops of it, scattered among the meat, onions, etc. Don't use all of it yet. As and when you feel that some corners/portions are dry, just put some cream there. Added dollops of butter also, but not too much.
6) Slopped ready made packet french onion soup all over to flavour the dish. Add amount according to your own disgression. Similarly, if you find it a bit dry, you can slop some more. Up to you! Just keep in mind that as you add, you are adding more flavour/salt into your dish, so you want to mentally keep stock of what you are dumping into the dish so that when you finally eat it, you aren't overwhelmed with the taste of one particular ingredient.
7) Also throw in cheddar cheese. I added red cheese and the regular yellow one. However, make sure that you cut up the cheese into little pieces, so that when it melts, it melts out evenly and not in little lumps here and there.
(at this point, i would recommend adding some cubed green/red/yellow pepper. Reason being it's good to add some vegetable and it also adds a crunch to the dish. You can either fry it first with the yellow onion or if you want it a bit more raw, just add it as it is in this layer.)
8) I sprinkled a tiny amount of salt, but in this case, i did so because not many of the other ingredients were salty naturally, except for the cheese and ham. If your version has other stuff that is salty, then don't add anymore.
9) Once the middle portion is done with all the layering and stuff, put your final layer of potatoes and also the fried onions as the top layer of your potato bake. Add the rest of the cream too. Use a ladle to gentle press everything into the dish. After that, grab a pack of shredded mozeralla cheese and add a generous layer of cheese on top of the potatoes and onions.
10) Lastly, sprinkle a tiny amount of mixed herbs evenly, and also coarse black pepper.
11) Throw everything into the oven and wait for the mozeralla cheese to brown to the colour you want!
Hope this helps and doesn't sound too messy or complicated. It isn't complicated once you get your ingredients prepared really.
Ask me if you have any doubts! :-D
Saturday, July 18, 2009
1. Did i mention that beginner motorcyclists in the circuit (relative to beginner car drivers) and inconsiderate ones outside are really pesky. I tell you, they are asking for an accident to happen, with the way they simply shoot out from the lane without considering or even SEEING that a car is coming their way/coming out or that they are the vulnerable ones when they try to squeeze by the side of the car. Sheesh.
2. Kitchen is mine for the next few days! Hopefully i can be making food that people will enjoy eating (which happens to be the minority of the time).
3. Shape run is tomorrow. I hope my lungs and legs won't give me a hard time. I'm mentally strong (in my mind, 10km is considered an ok-not-that-long distance, and 5km is considered to be a fun run distance) but i'm physically kinda weak, for some weird reason despite having been training for months. And i have 7 other girls coming with me. WOW, RECORD NUMBER! FINALLY!
2. Kitchen is mine for the next few days! Hopefully i can be making food that people will enjoy eating (which happens to be the minority of the time).
3. Shape run is tomorrow. I hope my lungs and legs won't give me a hard time. I'm mentally strong (in my mind, 10km is considered an ok-not-that-long distance, and 5km is considered to be a fun run distance) but i'm physically kinda weak, for some weird reason despite having been training for months. And i have 7 other girls coming with me. WOW, RECORD NUMBER! FINALLY!
Friday, July 03, 2009
i was enchanted...
Over lunch at home, i channel surfed and decided to watch Enchanted because it looked entertaining and quite amusing... Little did i know that i would find such a gem of a song. It's a little sad, message-wise, but it's just the moment that captured my heart.
I had goosebumps while watching them dance but most of all, through listening to the way the song was sang. The tone of the singer's (Jon Mclaughlin) voice, the pitch, dynamics, the heartfelt emotion poured into it. (oh man, the actor guy, ok patrick dempsey, sang a bit of the song softly to her, it was SO SWEET. Augghhh....)
Ok, a version without the actors talking midway.
Lyrics (Music Video of Giselle and Robert dancing from Walt Disney's "Enchanted"):
You're in my arms
And all the world is calm
The music playing on for only two
So close together
And when I'm with you
So close to feeling alive
A life goes by
Romantic dreams will stop
So I bid mine goodbye and never knew
So close was waiting, waiting here with you
And now forever I know
All that I wanted to hold you
So close
So close to reaching that famous happy end
Almost believing this was not pretend
And now you're beside me and look how far we've come
So far we are so close How could I face the faceless days
If I should lose you now?
We're so close
To reaching that famous happy end
And almost believing this was not pretend
Let's go on dreaming for we know we are
So close
So close
And still so far
I had goosebumps while watching them dance but most of all, through listening to the way the song was sang. The tone of the singer's (Jon Mclaughlin) voice, the pitch, dynamics, the heartfelt emotion poured into it. (oh man, the actor guy, ok patrick dempsey, sang a bit of the song softly to her, it was SO SWEET. Augghhh....)
Ok, a version without the actors talking midway.
Lyrics (Music Video of Giselle and Robert dancing from Walt Disney's "Enchanted"):
You're in my arms
And all the world is calm
The music playing on for only two
So close together
And when I'm with you
So close to feeling alive
A life goes by
Romantic dreams will stop
So I bid mine goodbye and never knew
So close was waiting, waiting here with you
And now forever I know
All that I wanted to hold you
So close
So close to reaching that famous happy end
Almost believing this was not pretend
And now you're beside me and look how far we've come
So far we are so close How could I face the faceless days
If I should lose you now?
We're so close
To reaching that famous happy end
And almost believing this was not pretend
Let's go on dreaming for we know we are
So close
So close
And still so far
Thursday, July 02, 2009
Part 2 of Home Cookout: Potato Gratin/Potato Bake
Just some of the ingredients... But i had more stuff sitting elsewhere. Like a packet of onion soup, cream, etc.
Slow fried (to caramelize) these yellow onions in a little olive oil and a bit of salt and pepper to taste.
Boiling the russet potatoes first before baking, otherwise it would take forever to bake and the cheese on top would burn to carbon!
Messy cross section. But just you wait! We have a potato base, onions, red and white cheese, chicken, ham, cream, dollops of butter, a sprinkle of salt, french onion soup.
The unbaked finished product. Topped with potatoes again, onions, mozarella chesse, coarse black pepper and mixed herbs.
Baking in zee oven!
Tadah!
Yummers. Everyone loved eet! For once, joline makes something that she didn't have to eat all by herself to finish it (like in most other cases because got no business from family members even...).In future, i could add prawns, button mushrooms, red/green/yellow peppers and garlic. Muah hahaha...
Part 1 of Home Cookout: Strawberry Cheesecake
Was on a quest to reattempt to make my strawberry cheesecake for V to try. Also doubled up as dessert for Jun who was coming over for dinner.
Creaming the cheese manually with the sugar and gelatine mixture.
Poured the mixture over my biscuit base which i had prepared earlier and placed in the fridge.
There we go! Into the fridge to set for a while before i lay out the strawberries.
Ok, this dude is my proof that i used organic strawberries. I was washing the strawberries that i had bought about 2 days ago, when i turned a berry over to find this little dude still and not moving with all his legs hidden somewhere. I turned my attention away for a bit and when i returned to my berries, i was surprised to find that s/he was crawling fine and dandy about! So there. No pesticides, fresh organic strawberries with a ladybug thrown in. Took the liberty to snap pictures of the lovely little harmless creature.
After the cheese had set, i placed my strawberries in rows and then poured my jelly mixture over the whole thing. Jelly mixture is the pink liquid you see... Raspberry flavoured.
The finished product after setting in the fridge for a few hours to ensure it was ready! The pink is actually a deeper shade. The colour here looks a bit washed out.
Here you go! :oDStay tuned for part 2...
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Saturday, June 13, 2009
just one of the many times...
I have one of the nicest human beings in the world as my significant other. He is SO NICE to the point that it is almost inhuman.
Today, i was at Challenger and called him asking for his opinion about the prices of external hard drives and which brands were reliable. Instead of just letting me buy the stuff off the rack there and then, he offered to go down to the now ongoing PC Show at city hall where he knew there would be better deals. Like, he WANTED to make the effort to squeeze with the rest of geeky Singapore just to get me my stuff.
Not only did he help me purchase them on my behalf, he took the trouble to travel back to the west so that he could pass the stuff to me when he could have simply gone home (east side) first. And when he arrived back to the west, he waited an hour for me to be done with cell group. And it was already late, like 10+pm. O.o
Since i wasn't feeling too good (stupid driving simulator practice i had made me dizzy and queasy), he saw me all the way home (west) even when it meant that he couldn't take the train home (too late), which would've been much more convenient for him. Some guys would've just cared more about his own convenience and let the girlfriend go home on her own.
I did stop along the way to pick up some yoghurt though, and because i was having a hard time moving around quickly (so as not to further upset my dizzy head and throw up) and deciding (mental processes had slowed down to a crawl), he very willingly carried my bag and purchases for me, waited alongside me as i took AGES to decide on what to get. Not a single squeak or complaint from him to me to hurry up. Genuinely cheerful, supportive and caring for my needs as always.
I was already so thankful but when i reached home, he slipped a big packet of cookies into my plastic bag of electronics. :-)
God really put a HUGE, soft heart in this guy, it's unbelievable.
Today, i was at Challenger and called him asking for his opinion about the prices of external hard drives and which brands were reliable. Instead of just letting me buy the stuff off the rack there and then, he offered to go down to the now ongoing PC Show at city hall where he knew there would be better deals. Like, he WANTED to make the effort to squeeze with the rest of geeky Singapore just to get me my stuff.
Not only did he help me purchase them on my behalf, he took the trouble to travel back to the west so that he could pass the stuff to me when he could have simply gone home (east side) first. And when he arrived back to the west, he waited an hour for me to be done with cell group. And it was already late, like 10+pm. O.o
Since i wasn't feeling too good (stupid driving simulator practice i had made me dizzy and queasy), he saw me all the way home (west) even when it meant that he couldn't take the train home (too late), which would've been much more convenient for him. Some guys would've just cared more about his own convenience and let the girlfriend go home on her own.
I did stop along the way to pick up some yoghurt though, and because i was having a hard time moving around quickly (so as not to further upset my dizzy head and throw up) and deciding (mental processes had slowed down to a crawl), he very willingly carried my bag and purchases for me, waited alongside me as i took AGES to decide on what to get. Not a single squeak or complaint from him to me to hurry up. Genuinely cheerful, supportive and caring for my needs as always.
I was already so thankful but when i reached home, he slipped a big packet of cookies into my plastic bag of electronics. :-)
God really put a HUGE, soft heart in this guy, it's unbelievable.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
When a person has never gone through a certain lesson in life or have really felt how others felt in true empathy, they can only have an ideal idea of how things and people should be like.
As much as my heart does not wish to judge others, events of late has taught me never to assume and draw a boundary around the capabilities of a person based on who we know them to be personality-wise or what we think they are capable of doing.
You can never know a person in their entirety and humans are complex creatures.
So, i would appreciate it if you would pause for a moment to consider the weight of your words before telling me or others not to judge because you do not know what i or others have gone through. I have emphasized it to you and hopefully you have listened and heard the pain in my voice.
It hurt me to think that you think i judge others, but my aim has never been to judge people (my career choice forbids me to fyi). I may tell you in time to come what happened, and so you will understand.
Just know that while ideals are great if you can upkeep them, also remember that life is never ideal. I have tasted that in my own life. As i have already stated clearly to you, I simply have learnt not to be naive anymore regarding certain things and people. That is not tantamount to judging, i am simply just more aware.
As much as my heart does not wish to judge others, events of late has taught me never to assume and draw a boundary around the capabilities of a person based on who we know them to be personality-wise or what we think they are capable of doing.
You can never know a person in their entirety and humans are complex creatures.
So, i would appreciate it if you would pause for a moment to consider the weight of your words before telling me or others not to judge because you do not know what i or others have gone through. I have emphasized it to you and hopefully you have listened and heard the pain in my voice.
It hurt me to think that you think i judge others, but my aim has never been to judge people (my career choice forbids me to fyi). I may tell you in time to come what happened, and so you will understand.
Just know that while ideals are great if you can upkeep them, also remember that life is never ideal. I have tasted that in my own life. As i have already stated clearly to you, I simply have learnt not to be naive anymore regarding certain things and people. That is not tantamount to judging, i am simply just more aware.
Monday, May 25, 2009
A testimony for the sceptic, who is me.
We were outside one of the practice rooms waiting for a group of people to come out, when cheryl, my band's bass guitarist, shared with me and others around her that she woke up this morning with her hands red, swollen and painful and she had no idea why. And boy, were they really red, and swollen. In my mind, i was thinking: "should we pray...? sigh, don't want..." (my lazy, faithless human mind)
But my worship leader said, "come, lets pray for cheryl..." so we gathered around her and a few of us led outloud in prayer of healing for her hands. When 2-3 people were done praying, we looked at her hands again and saw that the redness had lessened but it was still swollen and painful. Usually, i remain quiet unless i feel that i have something to say but during a silent moment, Tomlin said, "I just feel that, joline, you should pray for cheryl. I asked God who else should and i saw your face... Just hold on to cheryl's whole finger."
I was of course stunned (more on that later, because i have some background info) but so i started out. I firstly declared that we have the holy spirit in us, and that allows us to do what Jesus could do in the past and therefore we have every ability of the holy spirit. I said to God, since you said you wanted to use me to bring healing to others, then this is what i'm asking for. With that, i just asked for healing for her hand and commanded the swelling and pain to leave. When we checked, the redness had gone down a little more but it was still swollen and painful.
By that time, it was time to enter the room for our pre-service prayer and so we decided to just trust God for the healing to come in time.
As usual, we started our time just singing and worshipping God... And for some reason, the prayer time we had was so intense. People were receiving words of affirmation of love and also God was telling us how He wants us to trust Him and His ways and to move along with His plans.
While worshipping, i suddenly had this strong urge to go over to cheryl on the other side of the room to pray again for her hands. At first i was like, "Nah... are you sure this is me just wanting to be altruistic or is this really God inspired?"
But then, my pastor had a vision of a mighty rushing river, but there were people standing by the side afraid to jump in. She felt God saying that the river was his holy spirit, and was saying to us to not be afraid to jump in because although it looks scary, he will never allow us to be hurt or killed but instead would lead us with His power.
At first i thought that did not make much sense to me but as i reflected on it, it DAWNED on me that: HEY. THIS IS EXACTLY what i am going through... (more on that later, as i said! :oD)
We started to sing the bridge of the song "Healer" and i was again stunned because we weren't spending the time praying for healing but rather we were just listening to God.
With the urge so strong to go over to Cheryl and with the final push/cue as they sang "Healer", i went over with both faith and fear in my heart. It occured to me that perhaps God was going to allow THIS time instead to show us His healing power. This was the moment.
To my surprise, two of my other friends also started to approach cheryl to pray for her. I was like, "oh. my. word". It was like, we were all prompted at the same time!
(i checked with Tomlin and he said that at that moment, he "sensed that something was coming". Cool huh?)
I decided to choose confidence over disbelief, and knelt in front of cheryl, held both her hands and started to pray with two of my friends as the rest sang and worshipped in their own way.
As the time came to a close when the music died down, i opened my eyes and cheryl and i smiled at one another... And she opened her hands and... There was NO MORE REDNESS, NO MORE SWELLING, AND BEST, NO MORE PAIN.
Those around us who saw us in a huddle asked if her hand still hurt and she said "There's no more pain!"
I myself could not believe it even when she showed me her hands and exclaimed, "See! Back to skinny fingers! You can see the bone!"
Ok, my faithless doubting mind always doesn't run far from me, i had to keep looking at her hand to see the difference... It was indeed back to normal. Earlier on, it was seriously red and swollen but now, the difference was STARK. Haha, i told her we should've taken a before and after photo...
I still have to say that God has to throw a brick at me at times. I am a very careful charismatic (the denomination) christian and i question and doubt a lot. Even with a miracle occurring before my very eyes, i could still ask myself whether it was really true and maybe there is a scientific reason for it, or maybe it was my friend's prayer (which is such a ridiculous thought because it is God's power and not who prayed that makes the difference) or whatever.
It's not that we can demand things out from God the Genie as and when we want to. Whatever happens or does not happen is God's choosing. Even if nothing visible happens, that is not the point. What matters is that i'm relying on a living God with whom i have a relationship with, prayer changes things in the invisible spiritual realm and I am simply choosing to step out in faith (and some inevitable fear of course) and exercising the bible's truth.
I know that what i saw and experienced was true and real. Nothing can take away the fact that it happened and that God partnered with me and my friends to pray and see the healing happen to bless my friend.
This incident has bolstered my faith and my resolve to continue in my walk with God despite the things happening around me. I am tired of being a quiet status quo christian. I am tired of being sceptical and jaded. I want to bring God's kingdom onto the streets. Yes, i am an imperfect, weak and flawed human being prone to going back to my old ways, but my Father God is neither of that. And that gives me all the reason to trust and move forward and bring destruction to barriers and obstacles, seen and unseen.
***
Background info will share in the next post or so.
But my worship leader said, "come, lets pray for cheryl..." so we gathered around her and a few of us led outloud in prayer of healing for her hands. When 2-3 people were done praying, we looked at her hands again and saw that the redness had lessened but it was still swollen and painful. Usually, i remain quiet unless i feel that i have something to say but during a silent moment, Tomlin said, "I just feel that, joline, you should pray for cheryl. I asked God who else should and i saw your face... Just hold on to cheryl's whole finger."
I was of course stunned (more on that later, because i have some background info) but so i started out. I firstly declared that we have the holy spirit in us, and that allows us to do what Jesus could do in the past and therefore we have every ability of the holy spirit. I said to God, since you said you wanted to use me to bring healing to others, then this is what i'm asking for. With that, i just asked for healing for her hand and commanded the swelling and pain to leave. When we checked, the redness had gone down a little more but it was still swollen and painful.
By that time, it was time to enter the room for our pre-service prayer and so we decided to just trust God for the healing to come in time.
As usual, we started our time just singing and worshipping God... And for some reason, the prayer time we had was so intense. People were receiving words of affirmation of love and also God was telling us how He wants us to trust Him and His ways and to move along with His plans.
While worshipping, i suddenly had this strong urge to go over to cheryl on the other side of the room to pray again for her hands. At first i was like, "Nah... are you sure this is me just wanting to be altruistic or is this really God inspired?"
But then, my pastor had a vision of a mighty rushing river, but there were people standing by the side afraid to jump in. She felt God saying that the river was his holy spirit, and was saying to us to not be afraid to jump in because although it looks scary, he will never allow us to be hurt or killed but instead would lead us with His power.
At first i thought that did not make much sense to me but as i reflected on it, it DAWNED on me that: HEY. THIS IS EXACTLY what i am going through... (more on that later, as i said! :oD)
We started to sing the bridge of the song "Healer" and i was again stunned because we weren't spending the time praying for healing but rather we were just listening to God.
With the urge so strong to go over to Cheryl and with the final push/cue as they sang "Healer", i went over with both faith and fear in my heart. It occured to me that perhaps God was going to allow THIS time instead to show us His healing power. This was the moment.
To my surprise, two of my other friends also started to approach cheryl to pray for her. I was like, "oh. my. word". It was like, we were all prompted at the same time!
(i checked with Tomlin and he said that at that moment, he "sensed that something was coming". Cool huh?)
I decided to choose confidence over disbelief, and knelt in front of cheryl, held both her hands and started to pray with two of my friends as the rest sang and worshipped in their own way.
As the time came to a close when the music died down, i opened my eyes and cheryl and i smiled at one another... And she opened her hands and... There was NO MORE REDNESS, NO MORE SWELLING, AND BEST, NO MORE PAIN.
Those around us who saw us in a huddle asked if her hand still hurt and she said "There's no more pain!"
I myself could not believe it even when she showed me her hands and exclaimed, "See! Back to skinny fingers! You can see the bone!"
Ok, my faithless doubting mind always doesn't run far from me, i had to keep looking at her hand to see the difference... It was indeed back to normal. Earlier on, it was seriously red and swollen but now, the difference was STARK. Haha, i told her we should've taken a before and after photo...
I still have to say that God has to throw a brick at me at times. I am a very careful charismatic (the denomination) christian and i question and doubt a lot. Even with a miracle occurring before my very eyes, i could still ask myself whether it was really true and maybe there is a scientific reason for it, or maybe it was my friend's prayer (which is such a ridiculous thought because it is God's power and not who prayed that makes the difference) or whatever.
It's not that we can demand things out from God the Genie as and when we want to. Whatever happens or does not happen is God's choosing. Even if nothing visible happens, that is not the point. What matters is that i'm relying on a living God with whom i have a relationship with, prayer changes things in the invisible spiritual realm and I am simply choosing to step out in faith (and some inevitable fear of course) and exercising the bible's truth.
I know that what i saw and experienced was true and real. Nothing can take away the fact that it happened and that God partnered with me and my friends to pray and see the healing happen to bless my friend.
This incident has bolstered my faith and my resolve to continue in my walk with God despite the things happening around me. I am tired of being a quiet status quo christian. I am tired of being sceptical and jaded. I want to bring God's kingdom onto the streets. Yes, i am an imperfect, weak and flawed human being prone to going back to my old ways, but my Father God is neither of that. And that gives me all the reason to trust and move forward and bring destruction to barriers and obstacles, seen and unseen.
***
Background info will share in the next post or so.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Friday, May 22, 2009
at the dog run on a sunday evening
That's Jed at the dog run looking wistfully at a piece of dog food that my sister is holding in her hand. I taught him to do this trick where he rests his little snout and paw on the lap of the food giver. Kinda of a useless trick but i thought he looked so cute so i figured it's be nice to have him do it on command. :-D
This beagle came by and started to dig at my sister's pocket because there was a plastic bag of dog food in there... Beagles are hunting dogs and have a very powerful sense of smell. As you can see, my sister is trying to protect the food. :-D Earlier on, Jed had lost a piece of dog treat in the ground between my feet and since he couldn't dig it up to eat it, he left it there. It didn't take the Beagle much time to run over from dunno where to my sister to dig for food from her pocket and to also pick up the scent of the tiny hidden piece of food in the ground left by Jed. It tried to dig for the piece but i think it failed since it was caught somewhere deep in the grass. I'm amazed by its little nose!Tuesday, May 19, 2009
absolute pain, absolute love, faith, grace and beauty
I tried to shower as fast as i could so that i could catch them awake before they slept. When i reached their room, it was pitch dark and i figured they had already dozed off. I poked around for my mum still so that i could just squeeze in next to her on the bed. I just felt like i needed the comfort so badly like a child all over again. I was thinking of giving up when i felt a hand firmly hold mine and pulling towards the other end of the bed.
So i slipped onto the bed next to my mum thinking that we'd just sleep in silence, but no. As she held my hand in hers, I heard her whispering something and i responded with a "huh?", but it dawned on me that she was praying. A few moments later, she pulled my right hand onto her chest and nestled it in my dad's left hand that she also pulled onto her chest, using her own to hold us together and I heard her praying more distinctly again for our family.
I started to cry and big, full tears rolled down my cheeks and landed on her pillow next to my ears and i could hear them going "thud" each time.
At intervals, she would carress my face and hair and pull my head close to her shoulder, and deliver a kiss on my head. Her shirt became soaked with my tears soon enough. In those moments, i really realized what a strong person my mum can be and more so, how she is a darn solid trooper, soldier, and a beautiful woman of God.
So i slipped onto the bed next to my mum thinking that we'd just sleep in silence, but no. As she held my hand in hers, I heard her whispering something and i responded with a "huh?", but it dawned on me that she was praying. A few moments later, she pulled my right hand onto her chest and nestled it in my dad's left hand that she also pulled onto her chest, using her own to hold us together and I heard her praying more distinctly again for our family.
I started to cry and big, full tears rolled down my cheeks and landed on her pillow next to my ears and i could hear them going "thud" each time.
At intervals, she would carress my face and hair and pull my head close to her shoulder, and deliver a kiss on my head. Her shirt became soaked with my tears soon enough. In those moments, i really realized what a strong person my mum can be and more so, how she is a darn solid trooper, soldier, and a beautiful woman of God.
Monday, May 18, 2009
the little piglets are sleeping by the way...
I laughed and laughed at this video... a bit mean lah, but i'm like, animals are so cute.
Friday, May 08, 2009
as u can tell, i am on a hiatus which was unintentional... i was just busy with driving and getting my practicum paper work settled.
but something very drastic has happened and i am not at liberty to talk about it.
all i know is that i need time to heal from the pain, hurt, anger, hatred, disappointment, and i don't know how i am going to do my practicum without being sullen if i am not talking to anyone.
God is real and the only one i can depend on. The human race is indeed an evil race when it wants to be.
but something very drastic has happened and i am not at liberty to talk about it.
all i know is that i need time to heal from the pain, hurt, anger, hatred, disappointment, and i don't know how i am going to do my practicum without being sullen if i am not talking to anyone.
God is real and the only one i can depend on. The human race is indeed an evil race when it wants to be.
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