I was taught to Dream:
To Dream big and to Dream far;
To reach for the moon, lest I should fall,
I'll still find myself among the stars.
But what is Dream
when I am just a gush of whirlwind?
And what is Dream
as I bathe in tears that flow like a stream?
Still I did dream:
I dreamt big and I dreamt far.
I reached for the moon, and surely I did fall
to find myself among starfishes on the shore.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
A Geography Lesson
It was the first Residence Hall Leaders' Meeting after Christmas break and the first one for this semester. So we were going around sharing what we did over the break.
TommiLee: Our family had a Chinese Night. We had Chinese food and Chinese tea. I don't know what's it called, but we had this thing that is wrapped in seaweed.
Dorcas: Er... I don't think that's Chinese. It's most probably Japanese food.
TommiLee: Oh, really? Anyway, we dressed up as Chinese too!
Rachel: Oh! What did you guys wear?
TommiLee: We all had Kimonos on!
Dorcas: Erm... Kimono is Japanese too.
(Girls laugh)
TommiLee: Oh well, it's just an inter-cultural night then.
Natalie: Maybe you can call it South East Asia Night!
Dorcas: Well, actually, neither China nor Japan is part South East Asia.
Natalie: (blushes) Oops, sorry!
Well, this is American Geography for you.
*Please take note: Kimonos and Sushis are Japanese, and there are 10 countries in South East Asia, but Japan and China are NOT in the list!
TommiLee: Our family had a Chinese Night. We had Chinese food and Chinese tea. I don't know what's it called, but we had this thing that is wrapped in seaweed.
Dorcas: Er... I don't think that's Chinese. It's most probably Japanese food.
TommiLee: Oh, really? Anyway, we dressed up as Chinese too!
Rachel: Oh! What did you guys wear?
TommiLee: We all had Kimonos on!
Dorcas: Erm... Kimono is Japanese too.
(Girls laugh)
TommiLee: Oh well, it's just an inter-cultural night then.
Natalie: Maybe you can call it South East Asia Night!
Dorcas: Well, actually, neither China nor Japan is part South East Asia.
Natalie: (blushes) Oops, sorry!
Well, this is American Geography for you.
*Please take note: Kimonos and Sushis are Japanese, and there are 10 countries in South East Asia, but Japan and China are NOT in the list!
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Let My Walk Speak Loud
Nothing closes the heavy wooden double doors of the church as effectively as hypocrisy does. Bang! The door is slammed shut, never to be opened again. The crowd sneers and jeers at the closed doors, and the people turn their backs on the church. "Look!" they say, "And they call themselves Christians."
Nothing is as great a turn-off as hypocrisy is.
Since hypocrisy is pretending to be something you are not, or saying something that you do not actually practice, can we all agree that hypocrisy amounts to deception? You are presenting yourself to be someone you are not! I feel so deceived to hear one speaking so loudly on stage, and yet his actions have such a great discrepancy with his words. Oh, the deception!
I understand that no one is perfect, and Christians are humans too. Christians make mistakes, just like everyone else. No one is excluded from mankind's downfall. But maybe it's time we start practicing what we preach. Or maybe it's time we stop preaching and start living. Let our walks speak louder than our words!
Because our actions can either put a 'Welcome' sign or a 'No Entry!' sign at the gates of Heaven.
Nothing is as great a turn-off as hypocrisy is.
Since hypocrisy is pretending to be something you are not, or saying something that you do not actually practice, can we all agree that hypocrisy amounts to deception? You are presenting yourself to be someone you are not! I feel so deceived to hear one speaking so loudly on stage, and yet his actions have such a great discrepancy with his words. Oh, the deception!
I understand that no one is perfect, and Christians are humans too. Christians make mistakes, just like everyone else. No one is excluded from mankind's downfall. But maybe it's time we start practicing what we preach. Or maybe it's time we stop preaching and start living. Let our walks speak louder than our words!
Because our actions can either put a 'Welcome' sign or a 'No Entry!' sign at the gates of Heaven.
Friday, December 26, 2008
The Legacy
If there is one most profound mistake that a great man of God can make, it is the failure to pass on his faith to the next generation. This is seen recurring all through history, from Moses to David, and the nation of Israel as a whole. Moses, God's chosen one, failed to pass on his faith to the next generation. You do not even want to know what his decendants did. David, a man after God's own heart. But look what happened to his family, or rather, families. And Israel's downfall was caused by her failure to pass her faith on to the next generation.
Unfortunately, this does not stop there. What was true in the times of the Old Testament is still true today. We see the same thing recurring again and again. It breaks my heart everytime I see great men of God failing to pass their faith on to their children. It pinches my heart to see their children slowly turning their backs on God, and turning to the world instead.
This is such a pity, because the only thing that you can leave behind for your children is your faith. And for those who failed to pass their faith on, they walked the length and breadth of this earth and earned the title of a great man of God, but when they leave this world, they leave nothing behind. They are like shadows who sojourned the world, leaving not even a footprint behind. They are like breaths of air that disappear with the lightest mist.
The only legacy that we can leave behind for our children is nothing less that our faith in the one true God. And the greatest ministry the LORD has commissioned to us is our family. Let's live the legacy and pass it on to generations to come!
Unfortunately, this does not stop there. What was true in the times of the Old Testament is still true today. We see the same thing recurring again and again. It breaks my heart everytime I see great men of God failing to pass their faith on to their children. It pinches my heart to see their children slowly turning their backs on God, and turning to the world instead.
This is such a pity, because the only thing that you can leave behind for your children is your faith. And for those who failed to pass their faith on, they walked the length and breadth of this earth and earned the title of a great man of God, but when they leave this world, they leave nothing behind. They are like shadows who sojourned the world, leaving not even a footprint behind. They are like breaths of air that disappear with the lightest mist.
The only legacy that we can leave behind for our children is nothing less that our faith in the one true God. And the greatest ministry the LORD has commissioned to us is our family. Let's live the legacy and pass it on to generations to come!
"...choose you this day whom you will serve...
but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."
Joshua 24:15
Friday, December 19, 2008
I am Malaysian!
Recently I have been having too many doses of everything American. Some time ago, they had their Veteran's Day, and at Liberty, we had our Veteran's Day Convocation, just to pay tribute to people in the armed forces who faithfully served and are serving the country. Some representatives of the armed forces marched out with the American flag. Videos of the veterans were shown. The "Star-Spangled Banner", the lyrics and tune of which I had absolutely no idea, was sung. The pledge of allegiance was recited.
Then of course there was the election which was very much talked about. There were so many politicians who were invited to speak at our convocations, all too many, in fact. Everyone was talking about the political and economics situation of the nation, while at the same time, praying for the country as well.
Young people ranging from age 17 to mid-twenties cared so much about their country. They actually knew the significance of casting a vote in the election. They actually cared enough about the politics and the economy of the country to talk about it over dinner. They actually cared enough to plead to God on behalf of their nation, asking for forgiveness and mercy.
This is something new to me, because in Malaysia, most young people do not even bother to get out of bed earlier once in four years to cast a vote. Politics and economy are conversation topics for above-middle-age men. Yes, we do pray for our country during that 40-day prayer and fasting event organised by NECF, or when we hear that petrol prices are soaring, or when we hear that Anwar has set a new date to take over the government.
Do we not care enough for our country to uphold her in prayer to the LORD Almighty? Do we not care enough to plead for forgiveness on behalf of Malaysia? Are we too caught up with our homework and crushes that we have forgotten this land that the LORD has placed us in? Obviously, Malaysian (non-bumiputra) youths are are not patriotic enough to take any interest in what's going on within the country, let alone to intercede on her behalf. It makes me shudder to think that these young people are the future leaders of the country. I bet some may not even know who is the current ruling party.
Why is this so? Well, for one thing, we do not identify ourselves as Malaysians. Whereas anyone who holds an American citizenship calls him/herself an American, whether that person is black, red, yellow or white, people in Malaysia call themselves Chinese, Malay, or Indian. This is the weirdest thing. I have met Chinese from China, and the Chinese they speak sounds entirely different from mine. They can even tell from my looks that I am not from China. I have met people from Hong Kong who told me that my Cantonese is funny, whatever that means. And my English certainly does not sound like either that of the Americans or the English.
So, what does that make me? I can only come to the conclusion that I am Malaysian! I do not speak Chinese, Cantonese or English. I speak Malaysian. We may feel that we are not being treated as first-class citizens. We may feel that we have been deprived of all the special privileges that some others enjoy. But then again, we will never get these treatments elsewhere either. Maybe it's time we realise that God has not put us where we are so that we can distinguish ourselves from others, but so that we can make a difference for His world right where we are. Maybe it's time we, as the next generation of the nation, start caring for and interceding on behalf of Malaysia.
Then of course there was the election which was very much talked about. There were so many politicians who were invited to speak at our convocations, all too many, in fact. Everyone was talking about the political and economics situation of the nation, while at the same time, praying for the country as well.
Young people ranging from age 17 to mid-twenties cared so much about their country. They actually knew the significance of casting a vote in the election. They actually cared enough about the politics and the economy of the country to talk about it over dinner. They actually cared enough to plead to God on behalf of their nation, asking for forgiveness and mercy.
This is something new to me, because in Malaysia, most young people do not even bother to get out of bed earlier once in four years to cast a vote. Politics and economy are conversation topics for above-middle-age men. Yes, we do pray for our country during that 40-day prayer and fasting event organised by NECF, or when we hear that petrol prices are soaring, or when we hear that Anwar has set a new date to take over the government.
Do we not care enough for our country to uphold her in prayer to the LORD Almighty? Do we not care enough to plead for forgiveness on behalf of Malaysia? Are we too caught up with our homework and crushes that we have forgotten this land that the LORD has placed us in? Obviously, Malaysian (non-bumiputra) youths are are not patriotic enough to take any interest in what's going on within the country, let alone to intercede on her behalf. It makes me shudder to think that these young people are the future leaders of the country. I bet some may not even know who is the current ruling party.
Why is this so? Well, for one thing, we do not identify ourselves as Malaysians. Whereas anyone who holds an American citizenship calls him/herself an American, whether that person is black, red, yellow or white, people in Malaysia call themselves Chinese, Malay, or Indian. This is the weirdest thing. I have met Chinese from China, and the Chinese they speak sounds entirely different from mine. They can even tell from my looks that I am not from China. I have met people from Hong Kong who told me that my Cantonese is funny, whatever that means. And my English certainly does not sound like either that of the Americans or the English.
So, what does that make me? I can only come to the conclusion that I am Malaysian! I do not speak Chinese, Cantonese or English. I speak Malaysian. We may feel that we are not being treated as first-class citizens. We may feel that we have been deprived of all the special privileges that some others enjoy. But then again, we will never get these treatments elsewhere either. Maybe it's time we realise that God has not put us where we are so that we can distinguish ourselves from others, but so that we can make a difference for His world right where we are. Maybe it's time we, as the next generation of the nation, start caring for and interceding on behalf of Malaysia.
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