Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth
Would care to know my name
Would care to feel my hurt
Who am I, that the bright and morning Star
Would choose to light the way
For my ever wandering heart

Not because of who I am
But because of what You've done
Not because of what I've done
But because of who You are

I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
A vapor in the wind
Still You hear me when I'm calling
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling
And You've told me who I am
I am Yours, I am Yours

Who Am I, that the eyes that see my sin
Would look on me with love
and watch me rise again
Who Am I, that the voice that calmed the sea
Would call out through the rain
And calm the storm in me

Whom shall I fear
Whom shall I fear
I am Yours

:Chua Huiling, Christine:
.:21 going on 22:.
::28111986::


God.Family & Norman.Friends.Piano.Seashells.Fireworks.Travelling.Sceneries.Roller Coasters.Music.Bible.


*Europe.
*Disneyland.
*Maldives.
*..............
*..............
*..............

-4:00 PM




"People's ideas and fears can make them small- but they cannot make you small. People's prejudice can dimish them- but they cannot dinimish you."

I got to know something someone thought about me that is not entirely wrong but not entirely correct as well.Half-truth maybe? Or are there even half-truths in the world? In anycase, I was so upset with the statement and all I could do was cry. Yet I give thanks, simply because the person I cried to was the Father. How many times have I depended on Man and have been disappointed? As His Word says in Psalm 118:8-9(part of my day's devotion), "It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put conidence in princes.". The re-iteration of the first half of both statements (which if I didnt remember my BS materials wrongly,is a form of Hebrew poetry) jumped at me as I read the whole chapter. No, I didnt read this only after I that unpleasant statement, I read it beforehand. Many parts of this simple chapter spoke right to me and I chose to simplify them, not digesting nor reflecting upon what God was telling me.

Back to the unpleasant statement story. People judge and yes, people do judge, I judge too, even when the Bible states so clearly to please check yourself before you even dare to check others. But at the end of the day,it comes to mind that being judgemental and narrow-minded often poses as an impediment to personal growth. More often than not, it reflects the person that judge more than it does the person judged.

I don't like to be compared with. I don't like to be mis-judged. But I can't control how people think and how they react. Daddy told me once that in life,there will be people who think negatively about you,so the most important thing is just do what you want and be true to yourself regardless of how or what people think. If people want to say then let them. In anycase, to whatever people have to say, I'll listen, I'll reflect but I'll take in things that are going to build me up or correct me in a positive way. I'm tired of taking in words that pull me down, wasting time feeling sad and thinking of ways to correct that mis-conception when I can be using the time for other things. I'm so not going to do things for the sake of pleasing people. I'm going to do things that pleases Him.

Reminds me of a poem I learned in Primary School days when poems were the 'in' thing to write in autograph books: Sticks and Stones will break my bones but words will never harm me.

What you are today is God's gift to you. What you make of yourself is your gift to God.

***

At the kindergarden near my place, one cherry blossom tree bloomed. It was a pretty sight cause it stood out admist the others which were just of branches.


-12:18 AM

I was blog-surfing and found this interesting thing, which I never knew significance to such detail,on the blog of a friend who got it off another friend.

Christian marriages : and the meaning
1) What is a marriage covenant?
Simply explained, a marriage covenant is an agreement made between the bride and the groom in the presence of God and witnesses. It cannot be broken and involves the exchange of seals or signs. In fact, the marriage relationship is used in Scripture to describe the relationship between Christ and His church – “’Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.’ And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.” (Revelation 21:9-10)

2) Why do ushers seat the family and friends of the bride on opposite sides of the church?
This provides a covenant setting. Marriage is established by God as a covenant, not a contract. According to Smith’s Bible Dictionary, the Hebrew word for covenant is “berith” which primarily means “a cutting”, with reference to the cutting or dividing of animals into two parts, and the contracting parties passing between them in making a covenant. (See Genesis 15.) Hence, the family and friends are seated on opposite sides to symbolize the sacrifice which they have made in order for the bride & groom to enter into the marriage covenant.

3) Why does the groom enter the church first?
This is to signify that he is the covenant initiator. This is important because whoever initiates the covenant assumes greater responsibility for seeing it fulfilled.

4) Why does the father walk with the bride down the aisle?
This action has a twofold significance. The father is saying to the bride, “I am endorsing this young man as God’s very best choice of a husband for you, and I am now bringing you to him”

At the same time, the father is saying to the young man, “I am presenting to you a daughter whom I have earnestly endeavored to train up as a pure bride.” In Scripture, the father is responsible for the purity of the daughter before marriage (See Deuteronomy 22:13-21.) Paul illustrates this responsibility in his preparation of the bride of Christ. “I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him.” (2 Corinthians 11:2)

5) What is the real significance of the white wedding dress?
The white wedding gown symbolizes the purity of heart and life for which the husband is responsible in the life of his wife. During the marriage, he is to cleanse her by the Word of God, just as Christ purifies believers by the Word. “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies...” (Ephesians 5:25-28).

6) Why do the bride and groom take each other’s right hand during the wedding vows?

The open right hand offered by each party symbolizes their strength, resources, and purpose. By clasping each other’s right hand, they are pledging these to each other. Just as we depend upon the “saving power of his right hand” (Psalm 20:6), so each partner can depend upon all the resources that the other brings to the covenant relationship.

The handshake goes far beyond sealing a contract. It symbolizes the cleaving together of lives which is to be accomplished in the marriage covenant. “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.” (Genesis 2:24)

7) What is the real significance of the wedding ring?
It symbolizes transfer of authority, strength, and protection. In Scripture, the ring is a symbol of authority and the resources which go with it. (See Esther 8:2.) It also represents a covenant sign, serving as a visible seal and reminder of covenant commitments. Just as when God made a covenant with Noah, He put a symbol in the sky – a rainbow – to be a continual reminder to God of the covenant that He had made. (See Genesis 9:8-17.)

8) What is the special meaning of the bride’s veil?
The veil represents modesty and respect. It symbolizes the sanctity and the exclusiveness of the marriage covenant. It reminds the couple and the witnesses that the physical relationship is only to be entered into after the vows are completed.

There is further significance in the veil as it relates to salvation. When Christ fulfilled the conditions of His covenant for our redemption, the veil in the temple was taken away. “And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.” (Matthew 27:50-51.) Similarly, when a nonbeliever receives Jesus Christ as his Savior, the veil between him and Christ is removed. (See 2 Corinthians 3:14.)

9) What is the significance of signing the guest book?
The guests become the official witnesses to the covenant. By signing their names they are saying, “I have witnessed the vows, and I will testify to the reality of this marriage.” The witnesses can also serve as God’s reminders to the couple to be faithful to their marriage vows.

10) Why is a special invitation given for the reception?
The invitation for the reception symbolizes the invitation to salvation. In the teaching ministry of Christ, He used the invitation to the wedding feast as an illustration of inviting people to partake of salvation. The wedding feast was free to the invited guests, just as salvation is free to all who will receive it. “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. … Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. … Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.” (Isaiah 55:1, 6-7)

11) What is the meaning of serving food at the reception?
Food is part of the covenant celebration. One of the root meanings of the word covenant is “to feed”. Following the marriage, a feast was customary to further symbolize the unity of the couple. Entering into a meal is itself a form of covenant. It is significant that the first event of Christ’s ministry was attending a wedding feast, and His first miracle took place during that occasion. (See John 2:1-11.)


-11:49 AM


My dad is coming to visit me on the 1st of April!! So happy..but it would be better if all could come but dont think its possible cos my brother has O levels while my sister has A levels. Its nice to have people visiting me finally! Beams*

At church last week, I dont remember the entire sermon but one thing that struck was:when we first became Christians, we were on fire for God and willing to do anything and everything for him. Yet as time pass and we became more "mature" in the faith, the human flesh came in. Pride came in. Were we doing what we were doing for ourselves or for Him? If its for ourselves, we will find ourselves stuck and God's power cant flow through us, his vessels. Its only when we do it all for him and ask him to rid us of all that is not of him that we can be clean vessels, a channel for his power and love to flow through us to others.

Yesterday, A and I went shopping together. She just became a christian after she came to china last year and it was interesting to hear her talk about her experiences. She was the one encouraging me suprisingly and she asked me several questions about the faith, about God, about life etc. I felt really touched and encouraged by this friend whom I only got to know really well after she became my internship buddy. She taught me once again to rely totally on God, telling me to pray when I face difficulties. She said something about a broken heart being opened once again to allow God's love to flow through. A humbling 3 hour experience as we shared about our lives. It taught me to have simple faith, child-like faith once again.

For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. Psalms51:16-17


-10:24 AM

Today PJ and I had the afternoon off and so we decided to go to the Temple of Heaven aka 天坛, which was just a few bus stops away from the hospital. The Temple of Heaven is a place the Emperor uses to pray to the heavens for good harvests.


We saw this man along the way, selling kites or whatever you call those things, on the overheadbridge. He was showing what his product could do and we were wondering what if the wind stopped blowing. The vehicles below will suddenly have kites under their wheels or at their windscreen.

天坛公园的售票处。


Cute little boys playing. The park is really clean and I'm so glad to spot a park without spits and dog poo.

A common sight in China-an elderly man using a small er, mop, dipped in oil, doing calligraphy on the floor. But it was the only thing of the entire day that really interest me enough to stand for a good 10 minutes while he explained the words and how 繁体changed to 简体.


美丽（its the 2 words rightmost)



I was so amazed to watch people actually dancing in the park. The park will play some music and people will just come in and dance in beat. And no, the pair above do not know each other. They just dance together! When will we ever see this in Spore? Reminds me of my days in Yunnan where we joined the local folks for night line-dancing!

This is husband and wife dancing.

What so special about this walkway? Well, it smells of cattle so strongly and true enough, it leads to a place used to keep and slaughter cattle used as offerings to the god of heaven. The place for slaughtering is called 神厨、宰牲亭.

Along the walkway was this guy playing the saxaphone! I've always though guys that can play the sax look quite cool! It would be nice if someone can play it for me (hints*):P.
Do you see people playing chap-teh at the background? Yupp. Its a common game at the park and everyone seems to be really good with it.

As we walked along another walkway called the Long Walkway(长廊), we saw people singing karaok! They brought their own set of stereos and microphones. And some are really good!






祈年殿
The top reminds me of flying saucepans.:P

Its a pity that we cant go into any of the buildings.

Awaiting the butcher.

A model made of wood.

Something I found interesting. It tells us the meaning of the different structures build on the steps leading to 祈年殿.

I wonder where that leads to.



And we decided to find out.

古稀门
This little door has a funny story to it. Its build by 乾隆 when he was 70 years old. Due to his old age, he couldn walk so far from the main enterance to 祈年殿 and thus, he decided to build this small side-door to shorten his walking distance. However, to prevent his descendants from misusing this door, he gave a verdict that the door can only be used when the emperor is 70 years old and above. Essentially, he was the only king to live till 70 and still be on the throne, so the door was his exclusively.

It was only when we were walking on this long bridge（丹陛桥）did we realise that we were walking in the opposite direction to that of the emperors. You see:




4865
The 祈年殿 looked smaller and higher as we moved further away but actually according to history, the emperor was suppose to walk towards 祈年殿 so that it would be as if the emperor was walked upwards(cos the ground is more elevated as you move forward towards祈年殿) and forward. Notice that the bridge has 3 paths. The one leftmost is for 天子，the center one is for the god of heaven, the rightmost one is for the officials.(如此设计建造，一则象征皇帝步步高升，寓升天之意；二则以表示从人间到上天有遥远的路程。 路面中为“神道”，左为“御道”，右为“王道”（陪臣走的路）。)


At the end of the bridge, or rather the start.


This is 皇穹宇 and the wall surrounding it is called 回音壁 and the wall is so called cos one day, 乾隆 heared 2 frogs (or chicken?) croaking loudly and decided to find out they were so loud. He realise that the animals were next to this circular wall which amplified their sound. Hmm.

Inside.


On 养心石。

Leading to 圜丘坛.


And everyone was pushing man! PJ took 9 takes (i took even more) before we got a satisfactory picture of herself on the stone. The people there love to take pictures with one million people standing on the same one stone. -.-.

Birdie.

I must have completed 12km walkathon cos we walked back and forth to get to all the places.Checked.

斋宫-closed when we arrived.



Trying to be funny with this weird tree I saw, but was too short! I have a thing for strange trees.



Twin Towers.

An uber low bench that we rested after 10km?haha~

It was closing.

A band and choir in the park to end our day!


How wonderful, How beautiful, Jesus Your name, name above every name, Jesus!