Masterpiece

..covered with His fingerprints..

Monday, September 8, 2008

Alive and well

..stumbled across this song the other day and it struck a chord..


"and i, i really want to know You
i want to make each day
a different way that i can show You how

i really want to love You
be patient with my doubt

i'm just trying to figure out Your will
and i really want to know You still"
-Nichole Nordeman-



*this song truly reminds me of you, my ocf camaraderies.. comm.. leaders.. friends.. don't stop yearning to be
in sync with His will. desiring to dance to the rhythm of His love. it's been such an honor standing alongside all of you in this unwitnessed battle. amazing people with huge warm hearts. =)


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..okay, 10 secs update on how i'm doing..

it has been an awwwsumm second sem.. days zooming by as usual, yet well-paced enough for me to photographically digest snippets of happenings. always love the later part of the year because it's the time when i begin seeing things coming together perfectly.. by the grace of God.. the jigsaw puzzle fitting together, piece by piece.. and of course.. always and forever grateful for my significant other. *smiles*



..greetings from the snow at Mt Baw Baw..
..wweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee..




*shuffles off to hibernate for another few months?? [i hope not!] =)

Thursday, May 22, 2008

The Pursuit

Winter Camp 2008


Monday, April 14, 2008

Testify to Love

Testify to Love
[Avalon]

All the colors of the rainbow
All of voices of the wind
Every dream that reaches out
That reaches out to find where love begins
Every word of every story
Every star in every sky
Every corner of creation lives to testify

For as long as I shall live
I will testify to love
I'll be a witness in the silences
When words are not enough
With every breath I take
I will give thanks to God above
For as long as I shall live
I will testify to love


i've been learning bout the HEART for the past 3 weeks. what an amazing creation - a masterpiece! it pumps despite our efforts to stop it, but in some people it stops despite our efforts to revive it. and then they're dead. yes, kaput. the heart - at only the size of your fist, circulates blood throughout your whole being with just one contraction. so fast that the "dub-dub, dub-dub" sound is so natural that we sometimes don't even notice it. yet if there's a 3rd "dub" sound = "dub dub dub", uh oh you're in danger. if it gets a bit crazy and "flutters", that means trouble as well, cuz you're gonna collapse from the lack of oxygen pretty soon.

yet it is a witness to love in the silences when words are not enough. it never fails to quicken when you're in adoration. with every beat, it is an overflow of a greater love. THE greater love.

will you give every beat of this masterpiece back to Him who pieced it together in the first place? will you make every beat count?


"above all else, guard your heart, for it is the well-spring of life."
[prov 4:23]

Monday, April 7, 2008

A boy..

..deep dark brown eyes. tanned unwrinkled skin. happy feet that danced at any given chance. mouth curved upwards, ever-ready for a smile..

that was what greeted me at my first day at "work", if i can call it such. a handsome cheery 2-year-old chap. he may be "mildly autistic", but i overruled that diagnosis in my heart the moment i laid eyes on him. Because..

Autism [ASA-defined] : A complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life and affects a person’s ability to communicate and interact with others.

But that boy :
1. Gave me a heart-melting hug the very first day i came in contact in him!
2. Looks adoringly at me from the corner of his eyes whenever i call his name.
3. Laughs heartily as i tickle him when he completes a task brilliantly.
4. Does the best "whoosh whoosh whoosh" actions i've ever seen! [Remember the song - the wipers on the bus go whoosh whoosh whoosh...? hehe..]


I'm supposed to be a therapist. working with him on his attention regulation, speech, motor skills, communication, recognition of pictures, and we have lotsa songs and play time in between. but i guess the 4 hours a week i spend with him is a therapy in itself for me. of innocence, joy, naivete, just marveling at His creation.. through the eyes of a 2-year-old.. =)

Sunday, March 16, 2008

My 21st..

~1st March 2008~
It was an amazing day, and 21 amazing years.. it was impossible to celebrate all of His marvelous masterpieces in just 24 hours, so here's a mere glimpse - of how great and how awesome a God He is!

God-sent people, warm smiles, beary hugs..
the only way of life that i know.. =)


~OCF Committee~

The bunch of you are among the closest friends that i have, almost "family" even.. and it is truly an honor to be in this circle with you! thanx for taking me out for a super yummy countdown.. (although we were so exhausted after Welcome Nite, hehe).. *i'm so so tempted to name each one of you and do a personal shoutout, but it will never do you justice, so i won't even try.. but know that i am truly grateful that somehow God found it in his favour to cross our paths..* =)


Pancake Parlour in the middle of the nite.. =)


i think this was Robin on the line, singing Happy Birthday.. =)

The three "angels".. =)


~Meddies, Houssies and JPA Kidz~

you guys should stop studying and go become birthday-planners! =) thanx so much for the surprise bash (and the almost-expired chocolates).. hehe.. you really brightened my day, and it's a pleasure knowing all of you.. some random words that pop in my mind whenever i think of you - "assignments, coffee, lameness, light-bulb moments, high-fives, overgrown lalang, jpa allowance joy".. =)




A cake specially baked by my housemate's *ehem*.. =)


the almost-expired chocolate. lol.. =)

jpa kiddos.. we so don't look like nerds!

so much for the gangster look.. =)


ooohhh leng lui, my ex-roomie! =)



~OCFers~

whoa, what shall i say.. i see you guys day in day out and i'm still not bored of it, never will be! if God gave me the choice to choose my heavenly family, i'd choose you, you and YOU! =)

*thanx for taking me for fishing, the 4 of you! =) you know how much i LOVE the beach, and honestly, it was on my to-do list for my birthday! =) i had so much fun, except the part where things flew into the sea. hehe..*



this wasn't actually my party. lol.. it was Robin's belated but they were so kind to celebrate mine as well (sorry to steal your lime light dude..) =)

andrew and his one-of-a-kind pranks..







**a special thanx to Andrew.. you've been behind the camera in all this, but thank you for capturing one of the loveliest days i've had.. =) **


and of course, a love song to the One who matters the most..
for 21 years of life, and a lifetime of amazing grace..

"For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because i am fearfully and wonderfully made;
marvelous are your works,
and that my soul knows very well.

How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were i to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When i awake,
i am still with you."

~Psalm 139~

Saturday, February 23, 2008

Reunited

As promised, a post named "Reunited".. after 3 months of being away from this 2nd home. Been back a week, and i still haven't had a chance to catch my breath, let alone miss the people back home. (sorry hehe..)

Highlights of my first week back:


**16th Feb, Sat - great to be back!

a day filled with eating.. sleeping.. tennis.. unpacking.. and conquering 3 months worth of cobwebs in the house.. but of course, meeting up with those "left behind".. 3 months worth of catching up.. =)

first meal after touchdown - Vietnamese beef noodles! *yummm*


**17th Feb, Sunday - home church..

it's amazing to see what God can do among His people in a period of time! (and how fast kids grow, too!) 3 months ago, i was still carrying Elise in my arms.. but i could hardly recognize her as she ran confidently into the sanctuary that day.. wow! =)



** 18th Feb, Monday - i sprained my ankle! =(

during tennis.. thanks to Bryan's super-high shot and my *ehem* supportive partner *ehem*. hehe.. oh well, at least i got the privilege of having a personal chauffeur for a whole week - lunch included! hehe.. thanx, you! =)

this is how bad it was..






** 19th Feb, Tues - jon's 22nd birthday!

it was supposed to be a surprise, but as someone said - "in ocf, there's no surprises." hehe. but we did celebrate with a Mexican dinner and midnite fishing (with no catch!) =P *hope you had a remarkable day, jon.. but above all, that you'll have a fulfilling year ahead - embraced in God's will.* =)


his sugar-high chocolatey cake..



a hilarious testimonial time..




**20 & 21st Feb - Orientation week

OCF set up a booth on wednesday and thursday - it was amazing! the people we met were definitely the outcome of God-made divine appointments, and pray with us that they come back to join in the great things God has laid out for us this year.

personally i was really encouraged by presence of the people who turned up to help - what a great level of courage and commitment.. outside in the scorching sun, or even under umbrellas during the rain, and even in the midst of the buzz of people swarming by.. the sight of it just sets a smile in my face. too bad we were too busy to take any photos. hehe..


**22nd Feb, Friday - Hillsong United!

we were blessed by a few tickets to go for the Hillsong United Youth tour thingy.. i enjoyed myself so so much (even with my bad ankle!). give it up for "In a valley by the sea" album.. but it got better when they pulled out the "oldies" songs like All Day, Tell The World, What the world will never take!!! what was more breath-taking is the number of people who gave their lives to Christ that day - heaven was having a dance partay!! =)


**23rd Feb, Saturday - exhausted..

it was a pretty technical day.. Clayton OCF is having a CD recording project (yeeehooo!), and we visited the band in the garage to lend some support.. although sadly we ended up in the hall playing PS3..? (hehe sorry!)

we cooked chicken curry for dinner for the committee after that.. our first meeting of the year - fantastic! what can i say, when God is there, He works wonders. dead-ends turn into greater possibilities, all glory be to Him! =)

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so.. being "Reunited".. witnessing friends coming back one by one.. trips to the airport.. random lunches and dinners and suppers together.. it's incredible.. and for all these, i am forever grateful.. =)


*if 3 months can do this to someone, imagine the extremely glorious Reunion.. after the wait of a lifetime. let's wait with an even greater anticipation of being "Reunited" - with our One and Only Love - someday.*

Saturday, February 2, 2008

..Heartfelt tribute..


the first time we met
, i honestly can't remember how. over the span of a year and a half, there were ridiculous physics classes, a dozen freak tests and presentations, grammy-standard talent nites (she was Lindsay Lohan from freaky friday), a spectacular prom nite, sweat-drenching uni interviews, and of course the dreaded TEE final exams. together.

the last time we met - in DFO, sydney. so chattery, she proudly told us of the new boots she had just bought while we stared in obvious envy. that was how she has always been - funny, witty, talkative, joyful, humourous, frank, non-pretentious. and that is how she will always be remembered.


this is a heartfelt tribute - to an ex-classmate, a dear friend.. to someone who brightens a room the moment she walks into it.. who always stood up for what she believed was right. who was always so genuine and non-pretentious.. who was not afraid to live out loud, speaking her thoughts, sharing her joy.. someone who had so much spread out in front of her.. who left without a goodbye..


Lee Nian Ning

1987-2008









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