Marriage is a 3nity

Monsters vs Aliens

Teaching kids is an exercise in patience and love. My classes are mostly formed of kids who are slower in learning, so I have to learn how to teach differently from the way i teach K. We're so blessed that K is a quick learner and that he has a pretty good attention span in comparison to many of his peers. I feel teaching has taught me to greater appreciate my Heavenly Daddy's love. Imagine the patience He has to exercise whilst handling us slow learners! :) Everyday we tend to make the same silly mistakes- losing our temper over small things, letting fear strike us through the deception of the devil,etc. But He very lovingly and patiently deals with us, being firm but gentle at the same time. So that's where I learn to be a teacher- from the Holy Spirit, from our Abba and our loving Shepherd King.

Love Dare: Day 18 LOVE SEEKS TO UNDERSTAND We like to find out more about things we like or care about. We delve into it, reading up about it as and when... We try to catch every episode me that drama no telly, we're a walking encyclopedia about the recipes if we love cooking, we know all that needs knowing about when it's about football. We might know a lot of stuff, we might even be experts. But are we experts about our own spouse? During courtship we're always digging up more things to know about our mate. We're intrigued and invested. We study our mate because we want to win his or her heart. But when we do, something else happens- the fire to understand him or her better cools off. Maybe because the mystery's been unlocked. Women who initially feel so much admiration and respect for their boyfriend begin to less so after marriage, esp once they realise their Prince Charming's no Mr. Perfect but merely Average Guy. There are still new things to discover abou...

Thus says the LORD, "Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears; for your work shall be rewarded," declares the LORD, "and they will return from the land me the enemy. There is hope for your future," declares the LORD. - Jeremiah 31:16-17 NASB God desires your restoration even more than you do. :) He wants to take those disappointments and turn them into reappointments. Never put a question mark where God has put a full stop. Keep expecting blessings and good things in the future because He loves you. Do not let your focus be on the problems instead me on Christ and His FINISHED work. :)

Love Dare: Day 17 LOVE PROMOTES INTIMACY Marriage is the most intimate amongst all the relationships we experience in life. It should be more intimate than the closeness we have with an old secondary school classmate, a sibling, a cousin or your best friend. We're all born with a hunger within us, an emptiness that wants to be filled by love, acknowledgement and acceptance. We want to be valued by our loved ones. We want them to recall our names, to recognize us on the streets. The idea of sharing our life and home with another person who knows every single detail about who we are is "part of the deep pleasure of marriage." Just like there are two sides to a coin, opening your heart to someone in such a capacity can mean some one loving you in ways you've never imagined before, or some one hurting us in ways that we've never thought possible before. This vulnerability, according to the authors is "both the fire and the fear of marriage." So has opening ...

A happy heart is good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing. - Prov 17:22 It wasn't easy fishing my mobile phone out of my freshly laundered bedsheet yesterday Was I crushed? Of course! My phone's my ministry tool, went with me to my honeymoon in Korea, taken loads me treasured photos on its 5 megapixel camera... But although i shed 2 mins of silent tears, i got over it as i spoke to Andrea. I chose to laugh with my phone about the bubble bath it got. And God's been encouraging. Firstly, He's provided a replacement phone. Secondly, He's given me several testimonies from people who also bathed their phone in the laundry and their phones survived. ;) Also I praise God that the devil felt my ministry was a threat to him enough to attack my phone. Just means we're doing the right things by glorifying Jesus through sms-es and mms-es. I'm praising Jesus because there were so many blessings despite the tragic- comedy that occured. I choose to see the rainbow, ...

Let It Go! Exodus 15:26 26 … I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the Lord who heals you.” After crossing the Red Sea, the children of Israel came to a place called Marah. The waters there were bitter. That is why the place was called Marah, which means “bitter”. The Israelites could not drink any of the water, so the Lord made the bitter waters sweet. (Exodus 15:23–25) Then, He brought up the subject of the diseases of Egypt and, for the first time, revealed Himself to His people as “the Lord who heals yo...

WE ALL LOVE TO SEE MIRACULOUS TRANSFORMATIONS. Whether it’s a sports team that goes from worst to first in a single season, a life-saving surgery for a child, a person that loses hundred of pounds, or even the amazing home make-overs on TV that take a home in much need of TLC and literally transform it into a beautiful mansion – we all love the outcome of miraculous transformations. Anytime we want to have a change though, especially one that will make our lives better, it requires us to believe that it can happen. We have to make a choice to have hope. Most of us have found ourselves in a place where we were on the edge of losing something very precious to seemingly everything. Whether you’ve lost your job, your mortgage is in risk of foreclosure, your relationships are struggling, or you or a loved one need healing, I want to encourage you to never give up! It all begins with a choice; the choice to never give up. God always completes in us what He has started; His good work and good...

Yes. I've gone and done it. I've somehow given my beloved Sony Ericsson K850i a bubble bath in the tub along with the laundry. =p The good thing? God is awesome! Less than twenty mins after discovering my fone's comatose state (i refuse to use demise), a dear friend living nearby offered to lend me her SE phone, her spare. Less than an hour, I had a spare phone that is friendly to use and really light, in my hands. Praise God and thanks Julie! The mem card and sim card are all working great so PRAISE GOD again! =D Drying out my K850i and hoping to back up the numbers. But till then, could y'all PLEASE message me your numbers and email addresses either through my blog or facebook? Thanks plenty! Those who got word of my phone woes, dun worri... I've got your numbers already. =D Thanks all for the prayers and encouragement, & for laughing with me about this incident. =p

"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." (Isaiah 41:10). Christ upholds us today and clothes us in His righteousness. We've nothing to fear for He is with us so who or what circumstances can be against us? :) God will prevail and so we will prevail as we are in our overcomer and our overcomes is in us! Hallelujah!

Love Dare: Day 16 LOVE INTERCEDES Many people marry thinking they can change their spouses after the wedding band's slipped on. It doesn't work that way though. We aren't God. We can't mould and make our spouses into something else. Don't burn time, energy and joy doing that. So what can we do about our mate? We can choose to be a "wise farmer." A farmer can't make a seed grow into a fruitful harvest. But he can plant it, water it, fertilise it, pluck out weeds and leave it up to God. Not all seeds sprout but majority will with proper soil and care. There's no guarantee that these Dares will transform your spouse. It challenges you to love your spouse radically though. It will very likely cause a heart transformation in you though. :) As you carry out each Dare, you can be sure your spouse will notice the changes and your marriage will turn from a parched desert into a watered and fruitful land. This may not happen overnight, but as you keep walk...

Don't pray the problem! Faith comes from hearing. When you hear yourself pray the problem. What do you hear? Your problem. What grows in you? The problem. God knows your problem. He doesn't need to hear it. He wants to hear what you say is the solution through His Word. Confessing the Word of God brings revelation of His light and solution. Confessing your problem just grows your fear and anxiety. So how to pray? If you're ill say Thank you Jesus that although I feel unwell, that your Word declares over me that by Your stripes I am already healed. If you're facing problems, speak to the mountain n command it to be thrown into the sea! Declare - Thank You LORD that although there are trials before me, You said in Your Word that You have overcome these problems for me. You declare in Your Word that I am more than a conqueror in Christ! I believe and receive. I will not perish but live and declare the goodness of the LORD! All is well. Amen!

Love Day: Day 15 LOVE IS HONORABLE- ** Following extract totally written by the Kendricks: Stephen and Alex There are certain words in our language that have powerful meanings. Whenever these words are used, an air of respect is associated with them. These words never lose their timeless quality, class, and dignity. One of these will be our focus for today. It's the word honour. To honour someone means to give them respect and high esteem, to treat them as being special and of great worth. When you speak to them, you keep your language clean and understandable. You are courteous and polite. When they speak to you, you take them seriously, giving their words weight and significance. When they ask you to do something, you accomodate them if at all possible, simply out of respect for who they are. The Bible tells us to honour our parents and those in authority. It's a call to acknowledge the position or value of someone else. Honour is a noble word. This is esp true in marriage. H...

More Joel Osteen stuff up soon! Sorry been led to focus on Love Dares because of the many relationship problems I've been witnessing amongst friends and loved ones. I'll post up more Joel Osteen stuff soon. :) I've been very busy lately so had to choose one area to focus on and i basically let the HS lead. Hope you'll all be patient and understanding. ;) Do read the Love Dares as they are applicable across all our relationships with those we care for. And it's good to check out a variety of good grace- based authors, sermons, and books too. :) Our focus must remain on Christ and ALL messages that glorify His finished work. I think it's dangerous when we only feed from one source constantly- some, not all, people might focus on the writer or preacher instead. ;) I'll try to put up a Joel Osteen sermon transcript up over the next few days or so. Have not had time to transcribe and it does take at least two to three hours each time. Please be patient as I'...

The below article was extracted from the book, "The Love Dare". Also watch Fireproof- both available at most Christian bookstores and Gramophone. :) These materials are really good and worth the investment of time, money and kleenex tissues. My Love Dare entries, for your info, are composed of personal summaries and emphasis, thoughts on the Dare, and extracts of parts of the book. Not exactly identical to the actual book- which phrases things in a more concise, easy to read manner. So I highly recommend you purchase the book. It has a journal within so you can record your Love Dare journey with your spouse. :) A few of us might be consolidating orders to buy the actual book from America to give out as Christmas gifts. It might be cheaper to buy in bulk together from online. ;) Feel free to let me know if you're interested. TEN THINGS THAT HINDER PRAYER 1. Praying without knowing God through Christ. Is God angry, hateful, judgemental, vengeful, mean in your eyes? Then yo...

Love Dare: Day 14 LOVE TAKES DELIGHT One of the most important things you should learn on your Love Dare journey is that you should not just follow your heart- you should lead it. You should not allow your emotions and feelings to take control. It does not mean you'll always feel lovey dovey 24/7 when you think about your spouse. Feelings can't keep the spark going in your heart, neither can obligation. Newly weds often experience a honeymoon period. But there's something as strong and alive as a fresh honeymoon period sort of love, and it comes from a decision we make to delight in our spouse for no limited amount of time. Love that chooses to love is truer and more powerful as love that feels like loving. We tend to naturally look for thinks to pick on in each other. But why waste precious time bickering over little things? Life is too fleeting for these petty arguments. Why not choose to enjoy our spouses? Remember why you fell in love with your spouse; seek their comp...

K's A-track-tion to Cars

Hot-wheeling K

Love Dare: Day 13 LOVE FIGHTS FAIR Recently, everyone's been quoting Barak Obama about disagreeing without being disagreeable. In a marriage that's an important rule of confrontation. In today's Dare, the authors talk about how you can't avoid conflicts in a marriage. When we joined in union with our spouse, we united our hurts, fears, imperfections, emotional baggage along with our hopes and dreams. From the time we unpacked from our honeymoon, that's when the actual process of really discovering each other starts. We begin to see how imperfect, sinful and selfish we can be. Our pre-conceived ideas of our spouses evaporate just as their pre-conceived notions of who we are melt away. Our pretense give way to truth - suddenly we're stark naked before our spouse- private problems, secret habits and all. Ouch! The storms also start to appear on the horizon- in law issues, work probs, financial offer, health problems... One after another they come, adding more press...

I was asked a question the other day that provoked great thought and searching- A sister told me how she and her hubby prayed hard about some issues but God did not come through for them. Why? They prayed so hard about it. I think this is a question many of us struggle with at different points of our lives. "So why does it feel like our prayers are not being answered? How can we pray effectively? What's the idea of making us wait and wait and wait for the solution to manifest? Can't God chop chop a bit since He is all-powerful?" First of all, we need to have revelation about our problem. What is the nature of our problem? Is it internal or external? Is it a problem rooted in self-pride? Was it caused by a wrong decision that we made - ie. we were led one way but we chose to go another way? Is it nothing you did but trouble that fell upon you just as things were going great? God is not the bad guy here and that is the number one thing you need to get straight in your h...

Love Dare: Day 12 LOVE LETS THE OTHER WIN What are the 3 areas where you and your spouse disagree? Have you come out with a top ten list yet? :) The Kendricks tell us in their book that until one of us makes the first move to give in, the same probs will keep surfacing. We're all stubborn to some degree and we're defensive by nature- a source of great frustration. There are two sides to a coin and there are also two sides to Stubborness. It's good when we're standing up for our beliefs and protecting the things we treasure- our priorities, our morals, our obedience to God. Our stubborness does not serve us well when we pick on little things- the material for the curtains, what to eat for dinner, etc. Then there are other more pertinent issues- MIL issues, where to put the kids for primary school, marriage counselling or not- issues that are explosive. They never truly go away but hover over you, waiting to swoop down and press your buttons when you least expect it. The...

LOVE CHERISHES Our spouse is not just an item we procured through saying the marital vows, he/she is an extension of who we are. The problem today is that many couples think otherwise and remain self-focused. The Kendricks give us 2 scenarios to ponder today - 1. You've sent your car to the workshop because it's been showing up some problems. They have a look at it and tell you that it is going to cost a tooth and a nail to get it fixed and that it might just be easier and cheaper to get a new model and ditch the old one. This sounds like the logical thing to do. 2. You've broken your arm awfully bad- think bone crushing bad- and the doctor has a look. he tells you it can be fixed but the procedure is going to cost much and hurt much at first, plus the healing time is gonna take quite a bit. Will you allow yourself to be treated or are you gonna just let your arm remain broken? You'd do the former won't you? No matter how much it costs you. Why? Because you can'...

Dear Sis, In the words of Sylvia Plath "I know the bottom, she says. I know it with my great tap root; It is what you fear. I do not fear it: I have been there." Perhaps right now you feel like there is no way things can get better, perhaps you think that there is a "better" way out of your problems that involves taking your life into your own hands. But know this - they are all lies. I had the same thoughts and feelings and though the "me" of yesteryear seems like a complete stranger today, the memories are still fresh when I try to draw them out on tap. That darkness seems to go on forever, but when you light a match in your heart, you'll see how that you've been staring at a wall. All you have to do is turn around and walk and once you clear the bend, you'll find yourself staring into a beautiful summer sky. Giving up always seems easy. So thank God He doesn't do the easy thing. He doesn't and will not give up on us. He has more fai...

Ok I know I look a bit Sadako here, no thanks to my dishevelled hair, but just wanted to share a fav fav P&W song of mine. It made a huge difference to my walk with Christ when I REALLY heard the lyrics one day after singing it for years, and REALLY came to let go of past hurts and disappointments & just made my way back into the arms of Jesus. It's all about Him folks... =) Amen?

I dunno about you but I have always wondered about the word "quicken". It appears especially in the KJV - prob one of the hardest translation of the bible to read (even for a Lit student... coz the modern translations are just so much easier on the eyes, ears and brain hahaha). =) Well, I decided to check out its definition in the dictionary. I know it means become quicker in general, but I wanted to know the FULL meaning =) So here goes - quick⋅en   /ˈkwɪkən/ –verb (used with object) 1. to make more rapid; accelerate; hasten: She quickened her pace. 2. to give or restore vigor or activity to; stir up, rouse, or stimulate: to quicken the imagination. 3. to revive; restore life to: The spring rains quickened the earth. –verb (used without object) 4. to become more active, sensitive, etc.: This drug causes the pulse to quicken. 5. to become alive; receive life. 6. (of the mother) to enter that stage of pregnancy in which the fetus gives indications of life. 7. (of a fetu...

Love Dare: Day 10 LOVE IS UNCONDITIONAL How would you answer someone who asks you why you love your spouse? Would you say it's his/her looks, personality, or character? But what happens if your spouse changes and stops being all of these things after some years? Will you still love them then? Will your love fade away in proportion to those faded qualities? Was your love based on those conditions in the first place? The only Love that endures time and myriad circumstances is an unconditional love. The Kendricks remind us that the Truth is Love is not determined by the one being loved but rather by the one choosing to love. The Greek call this Agape. There are other types of love- phileo or friendship, eros or sexual love. Whilst these types of loves are qualities that are also important components of one's marriage, the foundation of your marriage can't just be about having good sex or shared hobbies as they're not firm foundations. Phileo and Eros are dependant on emot...

Daddy n K

Mummy n K

Mama and K

Gong Gong n K

Birthday prayer

K's cake on a cake

Happy Birthday Kae!

Love Dare: Day 9 LOVE MAKES GOOD IMPRESSIONS ((- personal reflection, summary, extracts from "The Love Dare", a really awesome book. Get it for people you love so that love can change them and their lives for the better.)) The last 8 days covered some serious and crucial aspects about love and today's theme might seem unimportant next to those issues, but as you've prob come to realise, it's always the little things in life that matter suprisingly the most. How a couple greets each other reflects the condition of their relationship. Watch the way they look at each other, the way they behave around each other, or reach out to touch each other... Our body and facial languages speak volumes. Even the Bible shows the importance of a greeting. Paul reminds people to greet one another warmly. He even asked fellow believers to greet a list 27 of his friends and loved ones on his behalf. He even listed them one by one. How many of us bother to go into such detail? But we...

My view on K's thoughts, and I told him this, we shoot the arrows not to defeat the devil but to remind him that he is the defeated. Each arrow reminds him of Christ's victory and agonizes him. :)

Kae: "The mouth is the bow. The arrows are the Word you confess. If you don't read the truth aka the Bible, you won't have any arrows to shoot. If you don't have arrows to shoot, how to damage the devil?"

Love Dare: Day 8 LOVE IS NOT JEALOUS The root word of "jealous" is "zeal" which means "to burn with an intense fire.""Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before jealousy?" (Proverbs 27:4). There are two sorts of jealousy- the first is legitimate and caused by love, the second is illegitimate and caused by envy. Example of the first one is a husband who feels a justified, jealous anger because his wife has an affair. He loves his wife a great deal and wants back what is rightfully his. God has this kind of righteous jealousy for His people. It's not that He envies us and wishes He too has what we have- hello, He owns ALL of creation. It's because He longs for us, loves us so deeply way desires that we never forget that He is our first love. He doesn't want us to love anything more that Him. Then there's the illegitimate jealousy that is borne of Envy, that green-eyed monster. It causes a bitterness to...

You know I blogged about the girl in my Friday class who kept crying? Well, before I went to class on Fri, I said a prayer to lift up my class and the kids, my teaching job for that day to the LORD. And God is so awesome- The little sweetie bopped up to me at the canteen, smiling and waving. In class she was cheery, participated in the lessons with enthusiasm and did very well. She smiled so much, laughed so merrily, and I felt so proud and happy that she overcame her fears to enjoy class, to enjoy learning. :) Only God could have done such a marvellous work in the little one. May she come to know Jesus some day and may that smile never fade from her face. Amen? ;)

Communion Elements

Love Dare: Day 7 LOVE BELIEVES THE BEST In the deep and private corridors of your heart there are two rooms- The Appreciation Room and further down, The Depreciation Room. Happy memories and encounters find their way into the Appreciation Room. Most of these were from the earlier days of courtship and are deeply engraved in one's memories. Each time you remember your loved one's good opinion of you, it brings a smile to your face and makes you fall in love with them all over again. But maybe you haven't been in this room for a long while since you got married. Instead you might have started to visiting the other room. Round the corner is a darker corridor. Located here is a room you shouldn't visit so much, but you just do. In this room are walls filled with angry scrawls and records of scores of those times when your spouse said a hurtful comment, vented his or her anger on you, was selfish to you, etc. This is a room where the worst thoughts of your spouse are kept ...

Love Dare: Day 6 :) LOVE IS NOT IRRITABLE Love is hard to offend and quick to forgive. How easily do you get irritated and offended? Some people have the motto- never pass up a chance to get upset with your spouse. When something goes wrong, they quickly take full advantage of it by expressing their unhappiness. But this is the opposite reaction of love. To be irritable means "to be near the point of a knife." Not far from being poked. People who irritable are locked, loade and ready to overreact. When under pressure, love doesn't turn sour. Minor problems don't yield major reactions. The truth is, love does not get angry or hurt unless there is a legitimate and just reason in the sight of God. A loving husband will remain calm and patient, showing mercy and restraining his temper. Rage and violence are a no-no. A loving wife is not hypersensitive or cranky. She exercises emotional restraint. She chooses to be a flower not a thorn. When things are prickly she responds...

Wee are family :)

Outtathisworld!!

Happy Mother's Day!

Woke up around four plus to the cracking sound of thunder. Shut the windows and caught an awesome lightning show at the same time. It made me think of Chris Tomlin's songs- "Indescribable" &"How Great Is Our God". Check out the photos i took! :)

Love Dare: Day 5 (From the Kendriks' book, The Love Dare. I highly recommend you buy it and do the journal reflections in them. It'll be something you can read and reflect upon.) Nothing irritates others as quickly as being rude. Rudeness is unnecessarily saying or doing things that are unpleasant for another person to be around. To be rude is to act unbecoming, embarrasing, or irritating. In marriage, this could be a foul mouth, poor table manners, or a habit of making sarcastic quips. No one enjoys being around someone rude. Rude behaviour may seem insignificant to the one doing it, but it's unpleasant for the one on the receiving end. When you love someone, you mindfully behave in a pleasant way around him or her. You are careful to avoid things that cause discomfort or frustrate the other. True love minds its manners. This attitude tells your spouse that you value them enough to have some self-control around them, and to be good company. This restores honour to your rel...

Day 4: Love Dare- LOVE IS THOUGHTFUL (Extracted from the book, "The Love Dare" by Alex and Stephen Kendrick) Love thinks. It is not a mindless feeling that rides on waves of emotion and dallps asleep mentally. It keeps busy in thought, knowing that loving thoughts precede loving actions. During courtship, couples can't stop thinking about each other- this shouldn't change after marriage. Sparks of romance should not burn into grey embers. Motivation for thoughtfulness should not wane. If not, one begins to unintentionally ignore the needs of your mate. Another person has been added into your universe after marriage. If your thinking doesn't mature enough to constantly include this person, you catch yourself being surprised rather than being thoughtful- forgetting anniversaries, not including your spouse during decision making, being self-centred,etc. If you don't learn to be thoughtful, you end up regretting missed opportunities to demo love. Thoughtlessnes...