I was clearing photos from my Whatsapp - just as we need to do spring cleaning to our homes (and perhaps, offices), I clean up the photos in my phone for extra storage - and this one caught my attention. I thought these 10 points are pretty practical.
Listen without interrupting (Prov 18).
Speak without accusing (James 1:19).
Give without sparing (Prov 21:26).
Pray without ceasing (Col 1:9).
Answer without arguing (Prov 17:1).
Share without pretending (Eph 4:15).
Enjoy without complaint (Phil 2:14).
Trust without wavering (1 Cor 13:7).
Forgive without pushing (Col 3:13).
Reading them from top to bottom (you may read from bottom to top as well), I realised these are not just "rules of thumb" of how to love, but more of how to be humble.
It is not difficult to make a list of how we can prove our love for God by loving our neighbours. But humility is one tough case. When you think that you're humble, right there and then you're not being humble.
Talking about being humble, I need to learn it more than anybody else.
Praying that in 2015, I could at least pick up 5 out of the 10 points and turn them into habits.
I have not been blogging for quite a long time. Yes, I do miss blogging! I feel that it is not appropriate to leave this blog inactive for so long, and I should have some updates posted on my life at this point of time.
It all started with World Youth Day. A lot of things happened ever since World Youth Day '08. I came back home feeling empty, not knowing what was missing. I could no longer work as my heart was longing for that something. So I started searching, and by God's grace I was invited to Singapore to stay with and observe the Daughters of St. Paul. Although I was not able to see how exactly their schedules go, I had the opportunity to stay with them for more than a week and experienced the life in a convent, and that was actually more than sufficient to help me move forward.
Not too long after I came back from Singapore, I received another greater invitation -- to work as a full time staff for the Archdiocese in the Mass Communication team (i.e. production of Today's Catholic newspaper and all works related to the media in the church). It took me quite a while to pray and discern whether this is what God has called me to. It was seriously not easy as I discerned and at the same time struggled with work. After a few weeks of considering, I finally said "yes" to God. My parents are not happy, and I still receive a lot of discouragements from others. But these will not stop me from going forward to be a full time servant, because I really love the Lord and it is my desire to have Him as my Employer.
I have just tendered my resignation last Friday with a two months notice and I shall be with the Archdiocese officially beginning January 2010. Right now I am struggling with the remaining work in hand and hopefully everything will go smoothly until the last day of my employment with the current company. Your prayers are greatly appreciated!
Well, I will certainly tell you more about this once I have settled down with my new job. I thank you for coming back here once in a while to check on me. =)
Dear all,
I'm currently doing some repairing to my blog. Things are in a mess right now, but feel free to read all the previous posts. Hopefully it will be up and running soon.
Ever since that particular period of time (falling in love, getting interested in guys, having crushes, etc.), I knew that I can never be pretty. I never liked make-ups, nor going after jewelry and fancy dresses. Worse still, I take after my father, which makes me look like a boy. When all my girl friends were into make-ups, I concentrated on my inner beauty. I knew this verse from teenage years:-
Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God. - 1 Peter 3:3-4 (TLB)
I hated the world and its definition of beauty. So no matter how others look at me or judge me, I couldn't be bothered at all. I knew that nothing is more important than to please my God. Over the years, I did have a crush or two but I successfully got over it. Well, I didn't quite like the feeling of it because when it happened, it took my sight away from God.
As I landed in Balhaf (Yemen), attention seemed to be on my colleague and I as there were no other women there. The two of us were being compared... one guy asked why my colleague, being a Caucasian, did not have the curves. Another guy who helped me with work even told me that I looked beautiful, compared to the lady who was there the last time.
Wow... I was flattered! I have never received any compliment of such before! When I was so totally down, upset, homesick, and feeling hopeless, a simple compliment "You are beautiful" touched my heart. From a compliment (which may sound lustful to some), it was transformed into a word of encouragement and affirmation. My heart sent the signal to my brain, "Look, you are beautiful in God's eyes! You complained that you have never heard Him saying it straight to you, now He did!"
I couldn't quite believe that guy when he said that, as I didn't know what his actual intention was. But whatever it was, if I, a nobody, can be beautiful in a stranger's eyes, then surely, it was God who made me beautiful and surely, I am beautiful in His eyes too. Besides being an affirmation for me, it also proved that God was there watching over me all the times, whether I was aware of it or not.
Yes, whether we are aware of it or not, whether we believe it or not, no matter how ugly we think we are, in God's eyes we are all His beautiful precious princes and princesses. If not, would He have sent His only Son to die for us?
When I was typing away to get this post completed, a friend of mine sent me a song with the title 'Beautiful'. I was really surprised... well, could it be such a coincident? So I decided to put the song here to share with everyone. Perhaps, you are in some kind of struggle to get attention from others, or you need a healing of your self-image. Whatever it is, please bear in mind -- when the whole world turn its back at you, God is always there for you; if someone says that you are ugly, don't forget that you are more precious than the Son in the eyes of the King.
"... You are precious in my sight and honoured, and I love you..." - Isaiah 43:4
God bless you!
Click the "Play" button to stream the song. For the lyrics, click here.
Finally, I'm home. I'm just so glad to be home! Friends and family were curious about my trip to Yemen, but I'm not that eager nor excited about it.
Initially, this was the kind of conversation we had:
"How's Yemen?" "Well, not too bad." "How's the food?" "Hmm... okay. We had Indian food 3 meals a day. I was so sick of it after a few days."
Then as more people came along, my answers became shorter and briefer:
"How's Yemen?" "Sucks." "Oh, what about the food?" "Sucks too." "What did you do there?" "Duh, work of course. Can't you see my tan?"
My one and only concern was to attend Mass. Having to work on Sundays and missing Mass when I was in Balhaf (Yemen) was definitely not something I enjoyed doing. Staying together with a colleague who loves to curse using Christ's name was just another torture for me. I longed for the moment I was left alone in the cabin and when my colleague was in the shower, those were the good times for me to utter short prayers. Sometimes, I cried myself to sleep.
I simply missed my parents, my best friends in the Youth group, my good online Catholic friends and those kind Carmelite nuns -- all of those who have been praying for me while I was in the foreign land. I missed home, and I missed the company of God's people.
Till this point, you might most probably say that I'm a spoilt child. Well, maybe I am. I'm spoilt by both my parents... and Father God! All these while, the Lord placed me among His people and that was why I had no worries at all. No matter where I've been, I always find Him in those people I met. This time, it was different. I walked with fear and was concerned of my own well being, spiritually and physically. I did have the opportunity to meet two or three gentlemen, but one of them turned out to be a wolf in sheep's clothing. (I will write more on that in my future posts)
But I thank the Lord, for I experienced His presence. He was always there protecting me and keeping me from harm; in every occasion His presence was ever felt. I had a peaceful rest especially when we were on the way home; I had a two-seater (on board of the plane) all for myself and my heart told me that nobody took the seat beside me because it has been booked by the Lord. I even managed to watch Evan Almighty, had sound sleep and even woke up just in time for meals! Praise the Lord? Praise the Lord!
*Chuckled* I really don't know what else to say here besides being thankful to God that I'm home in one piece, and also thank Him for not forsaken me! Sharing with you the picture I took in Al Mukalla, the town we were in before the 3-hour drive to Balhaf.
*A sigh of relief* My heartfelt appreciation to all those who have prayed for me when I was away. Thank you, everyone! God bless...
**update** Sharing with you the song that has been a prayer to me during my unhappy stay in Yemen. Hope it touches your heart, especially those far away from home, as it touched mine.
Lord I am afraid, it is insecurity I feel. I can’t help but asking myself is this Your Will? Or is this just one of those desires that never hoped to be fulfilled?
Is this really an opportunity I should grab? Am I going to learn anything? What kind of offer it will have or impact on my life it will make?
Look at how much I’ve forgotten. Am I still capable? Will I come home alive or sent home in the cascade?
Is it okay if I mingle around with all the men there? To search for a glimpse of Your Presence in those unknown human hearts? Or should I just give up everything which I shouldn’t have revealed from the start?
I know, Lord, the choice is mine to decide which path to hike. But Lord, I don’t really mind, as long as Your hands hold mine.
Decide for me, my Lord, for Your choice is always right. You know my heart, my greatest desire, is to travel with You forever. So dear Lord, please gently take control, Come what may, it is You whom I follow.
I was amazed by my ability to produce this simple poem-prayer when I was drowning in fear. This is the poem I’ve came up with for the very first time in my 25 years of life.
My boss wanted me to follow a Caucasian colleague to Yemen 4 months ago, to assist her in handling one environmental project, which requires both of us to scuba dive. Duration, 3 weeks to a month. I remembered that my first reaction was sudden sadness. Escaped into the washroom, I couldn’t stop my tears from falling. Without me realizing, I started to pray… “Lord, how can I live without You for a month? My soul would wither and die without the Eucharist!”
None of my friends actually understood why I felt depressed and rather choose not to go for that trip. Having to move out of the comfort zone is not something easy to do. Leaving my good friends behind for 10 days seem to me like forever. Going without the Eucharist for 2 Sundays will simply be hell for me.
Will I be able to pull through alone? No church, no other Christians, no internet, no phone signals... gosh, how can I survive? I'm totally cut off from everyone!
Last week I received a phone call from my colleague and told me that I am required to go with her to Yemen, and this time, the trip is confirmed. Well, same tragedy happened - anxiety, fear and tears. I told my good friends and asked for continuous prayers. Yes, at this point, only prayers and prayers alone can work wonders.
Another one and a half hour and I shall be leaving to the airport. Guess this is the first time for me to fly out of the country at this hour. Today is my 4th day in Kuala Lumpur, and I've been so homesick. Of course, nothing is better than home! And all these while, I strongly believe that it was the prayers of my family and friends that have kept me alive and sane here. And I really thank the Lord for these wonderful people... I will be missing everyone...
I sincerely ask you all for prayers for me too. I shall be back home in two weeks time. Thank you all.
If you've noticed, I'm trying to do some up-keeping of my blog. I'm still searching for the right template so do give me some times to get everything up...
I haven't been updating my blog for a while, due to my busy schedule. I've just fallen sick lately too, so I very much appreciate your prayers.
Thanks for keep coming back for more thoughts of mine!
