Below are some of my thoughts and some of the things that God has taught me the last few years. I pray that it will challenge your thinking, and cause you to think beyond your own dreams, to the ones God has for you!!

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No one knows what he is living for until he knows what he will die for….what is the driving passion in your life? What is your dream? If you could do anything, be anything, have anything, live for anything, what would it be??

All of us dream dreams. Most of us have a desire to do something great. To live a life that is worth something. But there is also someone else who has a dream for you. In fact, His dream for you is guaranteed to be bigger and better than ANYTHING you could ever give yourself. His name is Jesus Christ. He is the one that created your life. That spoke you into existence. And the Bible tells us that before the foundations of the earth were laid, He ‘knew you by name.’ Eph 2:10 tells us that He has ‘created us in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God has prepared in advance for us to do”!

What does this mean?

God has a dream for your life. He has already laid out what He wants for you to do. His dream is bigger, better, harder, more scary, but more beautiful than you could ever give yourself.

Have you ever considered the impact your life could be in the earth if you lived it 100% for the One who Created it?? Can u imagine meeting hundreds in eternity who are there because you gave of yourself so that they would know the same love and hope that you’ve been given?? The one thing that will bring change to your life is a decision to do something different. This is simple, but not easy “If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.”. Stepping out of the boat is scary. Because you are stepping into the unknown. As I read the great ‘heroes of faith’ in the Bible, I have to remind myself that we are now reading their story. We know the end result and how God used them to save nations, deliver people, take back conquered lands, etc. But for them, they didn’t know how it would end up. Every decision they made was based on nothing more than a step of obedience to do what God had told them to do.

Moses did not know that the Red Sea would part when he was told to stretch out his arm. The 3,000,000 + Israelites were ready to kill him because they were trapped between the Red Sea and the Egyptians. Put yourself in his shoes. He didn’t have a Bible to read. He had heard God speak at the burning bush, had seen amazing things happen in Egypt with the plague, but now he was responsible for all the people of Israel and they were about to be slaughtered! The only thing He had was a Word from the Lord that others would call crazy.

Think about Joseph. He was a teenager, 17 years old and God had given him 2 dreams. Like any other youth would have probably done, he told his family about them. They didn’t make any sense to him. Because of this, and his father’s love for him that was greater than his siblings, his 11 brothers hated him, threw him into a pit and then sold him into slavery. Throughout the next 13 years of his life, the Bible tells us he remained faithful to the Lord. 13 years later, he was promoted to the 2nd highest position in the world, at that time and God used Him to save a nation.

Was it because He was a hero?

A great man of faith?

Did God tell him that he would be thrown in a pit, sold as a slave, and thrown in prison for something he didn’t do? And if he honored his slave master, kept himself pure, was faithful in prison, and learned to interpret dreams that God would make him loved and revered and he’d be exalted to a high and wealthy position??

NO—Joseph didn’t know the end of the story. Neither did Moses. Neither did any other of God’s servants.

Devotion to the Lord is a daily decision to Honor the Lord in all you do. It’s not a one time decision you make at youth camp or in church. You have to make the decision every day. Not until you step out of the boat will you walk on water and see things you’ve never seen before. Perseverance and purpose is what will separate you from the rest of the world. With it, you can see an entire nation changed. Without it, not much will change in your life.

Whose dreams are you pursuing? Yours or His? If you are willing to be the puzzle piece that He has handcrafted and designed your life to be, than history is waiting to be made. No, it is not easy, but there is no better place to be than the center of His will. His presence in my life is what makes life worth living. The Passion and grace to do it, HE will give it to you if you open your heart to Him. It’s not our own passion, but the One that He gives us that gives us the courage to pursue what He has placed in our hearts. Now, I can wake up every day and love those that He’s put around me with the love He’s put within me. Life is complete when it is lived the way that it should be. Is there more to life than just the status quo?? Yes there it is. But we have to choose it. The walk is so narrow and I will be the first to tell you it is not easy. Sometimes I literally have to ‘force myself’ to choose His best when all my heart and flesh is begging to do something different.

It is not always that our dreams are ‘not good.’ Sometimes they are very good. They are Godly, they are leading us a good direction, but it may not be HIS best for us.

The story of the Silversmith refining the metal says it all. When the silversmith first puts the metal in the fire, the impurities begin to burn away and after awhile a beautiful bronze metal comes forth! If the silversmith is happy with the bronze, he can pull it out and sell it for a lot of money. However, if he puts it back in the fire a bit longer, the bronze will be burned off and SILVER will emerge! Silver is beautiful! It is very expensive and very valuable. So many times when God puts us in the fire, he burns a lot away and we can see the change in our lives. Our lives are reflecting the beauty of silver….. but sometimes we stop there. We don’t want to go back into the fire. Did u know that the last thing you see in a stone before it is completely purified is silver? When the silversmith puts the stone back into the fire and lets it burn completely until every impurity has come out…..the finished product is GOLD!

Too many times we let God purify us—only to a certain degree. When the fire gets too hot, when the battle is too hard, when we just want to stop and remain where we are at, we sell ourselves short of God’s best for us. Living the life that He has dreamed for you is a life filled with joy, pain, struggle, beauty and fulfillment. Don’t settle for less than His greatest for you. If you will give Him everything that you are, He will give you EVERYTHING that HE has dreamed for you. What will your last days tell?? What will be said after you are gone? I can tell you from experience that my life would be so much more miserable if I had held onto my own dreams and not allowed Him to give me His. I wouldn’t trade where I am today, and where I know He will take me in the future for anything in this world.

– Rachel Lutz

http://shuhweirachel.blogspot.com/2009/09/hormonal-waves.html

Last week, Wilson was talking about BGR in ISCA.
This is one of the many times I heard talks about BGR and all that kind of stuff.

But you see,I was once at that stage when having a boyfriend was the best thing that could happen to me.My peers had their own set of boyfriends.
Or maybe,I would say,string of boyfriends.
They had guys going after them,calling them,asking them out.

And me?

None of that sort.

Not that I wanted guys to come after me.No,I am not that kind of girl.Trust me.
I was just waiting for that special someone to come.

As a teen, you have these things in your body called hormones that are at it’s optimum rate.
You know what,I realise I like to blame all these lovey dovey stuff on hormones.

ANYWAYS,like any other normal teen, I was attracted to guys.I had my set of crushes.
I was not one of those girls who are fortunate enough not to fall for anyone.

But there was once when I fell in so deep it actually hurt.

I thought I was so so smart.I thought I could see what was coming.
So I allowed myself to fall in deeper.
It was serious.

There were a few leaders who were trying to talk me out of it.
I remember clearly what Wilson said.
He said, ‘Rachel, don’t play with fire.Don’t play with fire!’

Now I am guessing that I was the topic of discussion during leaders meeting.HAHA.

Did I heed Wilson’s advice?

I thought I was smart.I thought I knew what was coming.I thought I could handle it.I thought and planned.
It would be perfect!!!!
I remember smiling to myself.

I shrugged and told him , ‘Wilson,I am not playing with fire!’
I kept my straight face and said, ‘Serious!’

I went straight into this unauthorised ‘relationship’.

And what did I get?

I got out bruised and broken.I remember the tears.I remember the heartache.

It’s like somebody searing your skin from your body.It’s like someone stabbing you in the heart and then the knife twists a full circle.It’s like you could see yourself vomiting imaginary blood.

You see,there were many things that I considered when I went right into the relationship.
I convinced myself that everything I did was the right thing.
But the only thing I failed to realise was I was doing everything right at the WRONG TIME!

That was the killer.

I am sure many who get into a serious relationship before the ‘right’ time think they are doing the right thing.You are thinking,I can handle this.He is matured.I am matured.We are matured.
We can pull through.

Reality check!

Remember what Wilson said about thinking about marraige when you actually consider that particular person?
You think I didn’t?

Many things went wrong when I thought I was doing it right.

I couldn’t see past the facts that my leaders were pointing to me.I clearly didn’t listen and I deliberately disobeyed.

Who is to blame.

Me!

So there goes. A part of my life that I can’t take back and relive.

In a way,I don’t regret it because there are people that I can help.But I hope that is it!One person is enough to help you and to keep you from getting into a relationship a little too early in life.

Blame it on the hormones all you want.They are just really tiny chemicals that float around in your body.
But there are things you just have to get right.

I realised this a little too late.
These ridiculous boundaries about no relationships until after your Form 5.I thought it was meaningless and silly.I thought it was just obstructing my freedom of choice.

But you see,it’s simply a gift of love we do not want to receive.I didn’t see the connection.I didn’t see any point of the stupid rule!

But now I know.

Because you can get yourself seriously hurt.

I would not have composed this if I didn’t think it was important.

Ask me,and I hope I’ll be of help.

Isn’t it great if we could only blame it on the hormanal waves?
But it’s you who will make the ultimate decision.

Stop crapping about just friends or he is my close friend.You know what you are doing.You ain’t fooling me by telling me that she is my god sis or anything like that.

Let us take a good and truthful look at ourselves and ask ourselves what are we getting ourselves into.Because no matter what,you are not as smart as you think you are.

What is happening on the 3rd of October 2009.

Well,we have ISCA!!!
And Daniel Ross is coming to town.
HAHA.

So come.And bring your friends.

And ask them to bring their cash too.Because ISCAMANIA is still on sale.Grab yours before it’s too late.

But yes.
Daneil Ross is speaking for ISCA this weekend.He is young.So…it’s not like the usual…

I think I should stop here.

But yeah!
COME!
Jirah Hall at 3.00PM, thats our rendezvous.

After gazillion hours of planning,it is finished!
HAHA.

So buy more than one.

Why?
Because we want to use this as a medioum to reach out to your pre-christian friends!
A place where we can help them discover who Jesus is to us!

So buy it.

This issue is called…
SO YOU THINK YOU ARE SMART???

Haha.
Grab it this weekend!

If only we could fast our phones.

I bet it would be a bigger sacrifice than fasting food.

I am back…after a very very very very long time!

I left this place quite emplty I suppose…but Wilson asked me to sit down and blog here to here goes!

After all I do love blogging.

So yeah,I just came down from a very very refreshing Bible Study.

SO PEOPLE,what in the world are you waitning for!

Regiester for this weekends’ bible study on the book of John.Thee are so many insights on the life of Jesus that I have never seen before.And its just so absolutely awesome.

MIND YOU,if you think it is boring,I am a witness here to say that it is not!

Just take some time to discopver who your Saviour is!Is that too difficult?

Goodness,it’s so interesting,Cassandra,Rachelk Lutz and I were practically sitting at the edge of our seats!

So why do we feel that reading the Bible is so boring sometimes.because we don’t see the bigger picture of it I guess.We do feel it they way we should.

So yea,need I say more?

Sign yourself up.i am very sure you people won’t regret it.

So yea…don’t be such lazy bummers!

Rachel Yeoh

in case you have been MIA in ISCA for a pwwrrrreeeetttieeee long time. PAD is coming up in three weeks time. Its a combined celebration of Mother’s Day and Father’s Day and its a day we should all thank them for all that they have done. *even if they seem pointless to you sometimes.

so, each cell group will be presenting something. try to do something different for each group.

we want variety and of course QUALITY!

we want to show that we do care and this is what we made effort to do.

the list for now:

Air Itam 1 + Air Itam 2 = Dance and Singing Concert

Roti Batu 1= Status Unknown

Roti Batu 2= Status Unknown

Shockwaves= Status Unknown

Southern Sheep=Status Unknown

the price for the buffet is

Parents : RM10.00                                                                                                                                                                                                            

ISCAlite: RM 15.00                                                                                                                                                                                                           

pls pay for your parents, for goodness sake. they’ve been paying for your meals for years. treating them a meal wont hurt your pocket.

oh yes, the theme. its the 70′s.

i know some parents will be, “what? me? dress up?”

its just for the fun of it. it doesn’t have to be exactly the 70′s. i repeat. not necessary the 70′s. just don’t come modern. that’s all we’re asking.  a polka dress or your very favourite dress in your youth that’s still hanging in your closet will do.

girls…and BOYS!! dun take this advantage to shop!

be creative and accesories!! you dun know how? ask RACHEL Yeoh, Benice or me!! if you trust my taste. we’ll be happy to dress you up.

so register yourself and your parents. we need to know the number of ppl ASAP!!! its to allocate the amount of food and the souvenirs. its pretty meaningful and we want to make sure every family has one.

p.s. to make the day memorable, pls dress up you’ll know what i mean on that day.

have fun rummaging you parent’s closet, ppl.

much love,                                                                                                                                                                                                                            connie

Just want to encourage you to NOT to be too stressed out and worried.

Just do your BEST and let God do the REST. He will bless your effort.

I am praying for all of you.

PS: We will not be having CG and ISCA this weekend to make way for the Alpha Course training and also to give you some time to study. Stay at home to study, k? Do not let me bump into you in Gurney Plaza!

love,
Wilson

I know this is like the first post this month at the end of the month.Sorry I didn’t have time to update and everybody else is like…urm…not really keen to blog anyway.

Somehow I wonder if this is going to work.

OKay,actually I am blogging to ask for your PRAYERS!

My cell,the Southern Sheep are going down to Kampung Batu 23, Camaron Highlands this Saturday.(Yup,it’s our turn)

And guess what?WE lost one vehicle…that means,we only have one van to squeeze 14 people with loads of stuff like food,clothes,guitar,tends and sleeping bags,water and you know…STUFF….

DILEMMA!

But I have faith that prayers will help us to find a way.SO pray for us.

And for also our trip that we will be able to bless the people there with what God has already blessed us with.

THANK YOU!  xoxoxox

Rachel Yeoh

It was the end of the Pantai Kerachut hike. Everybody was leaving one by one, the crowd slowly thinning out, until there was only a handful of us left. Like sheep, we followed Wilson to the van; he was to fetch the latter home and the rest back to church. Now, being a person who needed to return to PCC, i sat at the back. With the back door wide open, i tried to nestle myself at the far end of the van. As an attempt to find the holder on the top side of the car, i tried to feel for it using my left hand. At the moment where my hands were outside of the van, the trunk door slammed shut on three of my fingers. The pain was simply excruciating. A few seconds passed. A few more seconds passed. Every second that past was just another second of blinding pain for me. Until i couldn’t take it no more, I screamed for Wilson. Rachel screamed at the sight of fingers crushed both sides by metal. By the time Wilson got the hatch door open, the three fingers caught by the door were badly bruised. 

Well, that ended well.

The amazing thing was, they were merely bruised with a blue black on each joint of the finger, which is a LOT better than getting a bone fracture or otherwise. It practically fully healed within a day, and no doctors’ appointment needed! Sure, it took me time for me to realize that i luckily escaped from a more serious injury, all praise be to God! I don’t see how we can live without Him, our lives would be a whole lot difficult to live without His guidance, His love and care, and his sovereignty. Don’t estimate Him; He is the creator of the heavens and the Earth, our lives, and He is surely in control. I recommend that you keep a journal on how many things He has blessed you with. That way, you can be sure that we won’t underestimate him. Even in the most sudden and instant situation, He can make a way.

Another injury was obtained from a different place – this time from playing basketball. My team was entered into a 3 on 3 basketball competition within school. After playing viciously, we won our debut game, however it came at a price. My back was aching. My prediction? A mere muscle strain. Three weeks passed, but the same pain was still present, the concentration of the pain still the same three weeks ago, if not worse. I started becoming desperate. The basketball competition was far from over, and playing with this injury is simply asking for trouble. I constantly prayed almost everyday for it, but it more or less stayed the same. Even while playing captain ball, the pain was a constant burden. I even started to think of even going to a physicist.

Boy, this isn’t good.

But I forgot one of the most basic things – in God, there is healing. Pastor Kul Bal was an experienced pastor full of the Spirit, and was well known for his many testimonies on miraculous healing. He healed me after a simple prayer. I felt overjoyed, and my faith was renewed. I didn’t hesitate to give testimony to what He has done! It felt great, it always did, being fully recuperated after a long sickness, or even getting healed from an annoying sore throat – it always felt great when you are healed. But this was special. Getting healed by God is always a lot better – because you are again reminded how Great our God is! God never lets us down, and we should remember that.

We won each game in the competition, before finally bowing down to the Year 11 team, consisting of St. Xavier’s U18 B-ball captain. Praise be to God, forever and ever!

“Trust in God with all your heart, And lean not upon your own understanding: In all your ways acknowledge him, And he will direct your paths.” -Proverbs 3:5-6-

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