Friday, April 30, 2004
Lay it down at His FeetI was flabbergasted by what i heard. Didnt expect that things got that bad with this fren of mine... A struggle battling within me, i pity this girl yet i'm upset by her actions. The ways of this world is sinful but too attractive & she had chosen to be part of it. There's just so much she's not aware of. Why wouldn't she count her blessings... there's jus so many!
i know my limitations; i can't help much but to pray for God's Mercy! "I need some help... to help her,O Lord"Imagine Jesus showing up physically in my living room tml morning, he wants to sit with me and have coffee and breakfast... What will I think He might say to me? What will I ask him? ... I'm glad i dun hav to wait till tml to recieve His assurance to our questions...calling to mind the words from
Phil 4:13 13 I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ's sufficiency. (Amplified Bible)
For what specific 'everything' do I need God's strength today?1) Discernment to minister, to seize every opportunity and meet the need.
2) The discipline to intercede
I believe this verse is very applicable this week as I encounter situation that I have no answer and solution to at this very moment. I learnt to draw strength from the Lord rather den wearing myself with unnecessary stress. Just praying for all who are involved to bring her back to the Kingdom of Light.
God will support us in every way, in every circumstance. Even for those that are beyond our control.
... there's nothing too difficult for Big Daddy. therefore, lay all anxiety, brokeness, weakness down at His feet!
Hebrews 4: 15 - 16
Jesus understand every weakness of ours, because he was tempted in every way that we are. But he did not sin! 16So whenever we are in need, we should come bravely before the throne of our merciful God. There we will be treated with undeserved kindness, and we will find help. (CEV)
~~Min~~
~~derek~~ at 4/30/2004 03:37:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Tuesday, April 27, 2004
Superband is really... SUPER!!
I just have to post about this... I came back from church not too long ago from SUPERBAND! The event organised by BCC Cre8ive ministries and sponsored by many others including The Positive Alternative, 96.5FM... Only to Brisbane in Australia for one evening only!! Though it set me back $50 but I HAVE GOT NO REGRETS MAN!!! that was like the best clinic/concert i've ever been to in my LIFE!!!
The likes of Abraham Laboriel the Bass King, Sheila E drummer/percussionist for the likes of Stevie Wonder, Babyface and Prince, Paul Jackson Jr guitars for Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson, and Tom Brooks keyboards Dove multi-award winner producer/arranger/composer from the Hosanna Music series....
You have to see it to believe it... well even though I've seen it, I still don't believe it... they're OUT OF THIS WORLD MAN!!! they literally blew a whole lot of peoples minds... i mean in the clinic they just played off a melody that Abraham was humming backstage a few minutes before they went onstage... and they were TIGHT!! the ability to read off each other and play off each other was uncanny!! when you've heard the professional sound, you never want to go back to the sub-standards man!!! but they were really encouraging and everything... and they're all BORN AGAIN BELIEVERS so it was like a really cool outreach concert man!!
I'm motivated again to play and explore.. abraham shared that playing in a band is not about YOU... getting YOUR sound out... its about playing and making the other band members comfortable... its ok to be the background sound... typical musicians like to go in and BE HEARD!! but sometimes we need to lay back and let others be the foreground... play to complement each other, not to compete with each other... in time when you've made your mark in the background, there's only forward to go... =)
Yep i'm so motivated I'm thinking about my wishlist again... drum kit... les paul... zoom gt5 effects processor... that's a good $2Ks man... hahahah!!! oh well... if God leads me in that direction.. He will provide whenever I'm ready... =)
WHY SHOULD THE DEVIL HAVE ALL THE GOOD MUSIC?!?!??!?!!!!
~~derek~~ at 4/27/2004 11:22:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Sunday, April 25, 2004
Short Quiz.. Is It True?? Only I know...
LOVING ONE. You need safety in your relationship.
You want to be sure in his/her arms, knowing
that he will protect you and you can be totally
devoted to your other. At this point you are
very vulnerable. You open yourself and dont
even think that he/she could cheat you. You
totally trust your partner in every single way.
SO if you find out that she/he lied to you or
played a game this trust is broken. You may try
to forgive your other but this will be very
difficult.He/She has to be friendly and
trustworthy.
PLEASE VOTE, I want to know what you think about my
quiz, I worked hard on it.
You can always message me or tell me how I can
improve that quiz. Ill sure write back.
~THE big LOVE TEST!! What do you need? With PICS! For girls and boys!~
brought to you by Quizilla
~~derek~~ at 4/25/2004 11:47:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Saturday, April 24, 2004
Hectic, Hectic...
the week has been hectic... ever since the start of the week i've been rushing (well sorta) for assignments and deadlines to submit stuff... just by wednesday alone I had already submitted one team plan for comp3500, and a intragrp report and a project report for comp3804... and there's another submission coming up this week which is the comp3804 partial project plan which is pretty big.. there's practically submissions every week here on out till like just before exams!! and I got a mid-semester paper that's coming this friday and I haven't started much studying yet for infs2200!!!! pray that I will discipline myself and get my time management right to get my memory machine working!!
anyways dunno why thurs and friday i was really sleepy throughout the day.. probably not enough sleep... yeah then like thurs i was sleeping through most of my lectures.. more than usual... and friday too!!! sorry to say this but also during friday's xlr8 service.. i just dunno why though.. yeah but fri night after service a group of us headed down to Pancake Manor in the city... its this 24hr pancake place built in a former old church building so its like very cathedral like, but the pancakes are sooooo good man!!! fluffy but not like dry, its moist and perfect man!!! and the belgian waffle with icecream was just AMAZING!!! hahahaha... yumyum...
at least today i managed to get some work done... did some studying and referencing from the textbook before heading down to church for internationals... i played bass today for service cos daniel was busy with other stuff happening at his place but it went pretty well!! and I got my roster for internationals too! gonna start playing 2nd week may, drums and bass.. =) God's just awesome man... and today we had our Digging Deeper session, where Ps Steve shared on stress from Nehemiah 4 and we had like small group discussions on the topic and everything.. it was really good!! Run to God in prayer when you feel under pressure, cos He will give you knowledge on what to do... =)
ok got to wake up for church tom.. =) its ANZAC day, a celebration of the freedom of Australia... something to do with national freedom and honouring the military and stuff like that... ahaha.. =) ok gdnite!!
~~derek~~ at 4/24/2004 10:09:00 pm
(0) comments
Site Updates
Added link to Joshua Chew's blog!
~~derek~~ at 4/24/2004 12:11:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Thursday, April 22, 2004
Happy happy
this week started with a happy mood. I'm smiling from the inside because this cheerful spirit is still dwelling sweetly in my soul. My colleague comment that i look different today. Hmm maybe it's the new top i wore? or bec of my messy wash and go hair? or it is bec of my outstanding hot pink earrings? OR perhaps it's a personal decision to tell Big Daddy that I want to know him a little better daily and to love Him a little deeper each moment. Asking Him to reflect his face upon this tiny scrawny being... God is teaching me so many things. He uses circumstances, His Word, His holy spirit as tools to teach us how to be more like Him =)
He desires intimacy with His beloved. Hey isn't it comforting to know that God cares so much abt every details of our lives that it brings great delight whenever we run up to him in prayer n thanksgiving? It's just so sweet to know that Big Daddy patiently listens to every of my happenings even though he already knows all about it! so Have u taken time to talk to HIM?
Sleepless in Chijmes
~INSOMNIA~ Yep that's where I went! the chic place with very nice ambience, elegance setting surrounded by the night lights of CHIJMES. it's an all-girls nite out! Great time catching up with them, their updates, gossips and funny faces poses! aiyo anyway i'll post the photos @webshots! and not forgetting our long distance call to rachel who's in Bris... where they continued their gossips! =P Hee ah. 'Insomnia' remains alive...
I'm booked to go there again next month to celebrate a fren's bday! Hee =P binging again over Large servings of scrumptious food! Oops shouldn't mention too much about food... or else ur stomach will go growling. nitez
~~derek~~ at 4/22/2004 09:38:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Tuesday, April 20, 2004
Sy Rogers weekend
this weekend I would say is one of those mind-blowing weekends ever man... it was just unbelievable... on sunday morning sy shared his story again.. but this time with more details and stories... and he just shares so much... he shared on choices... that choices are really sacred territory to God. God gives us choices and respects our choices, no matter which road it will take us!
Rahab: she was a prostitute in the city of Jericho, yet God opened her eyes to see that the God of the Israelites is the true God, and she chose rightly, beyond her sin and status! Even Jesus was under her lineage! It doesn't matter what you've done before or how 'dirty' you think you are, if you make the right choice, God will still honor you.
Samson: he was anointed and appointed by God, yet he chose wrongly and fell into the hands of the enemy. No matter if you are anointed or appointed to God, if you make the wrong choices then you will pay the consequences of your actions. Yet when Samson repented and asked God for forgiveness and another chance, God used him more in his death than when he was living.
David: he was anointed and was a man after God's heart. Walking with Him for so many years, but yet he was so compromised over the years that he had no hesitation when falling over Bathsheba... but God did not reject him when he repented.
God still works beyond all their failures and He works beyond all OUR failures!!
Sy also talked about perception and judgements... Sy shared that for his benefit as a young child, his father sent him away so that he could rebuild his life and career after the death of his wife, but Sy perceived that as his father also giving up on him after losing his mother...
it just shows that its not the intent of people's actions that get noticed, but rather its what people perceive that impacts people's lives!!
Later in the evening service, Sy shared on how he stayed clean after being born again... Christianity is not a wave-a-magic-wand-and-all-the-pain-and-suffering-will-go-away affair...
the blood of Jesus washes away sin, but does not wash away experience, memory and humanity! Yet we do not have to ashamed of what we have done previously, because
scars are not there to remind us that we used to be hurting, but rather its to remind us that God has already healed us completely!! At the end of the service I just bawled man... I was sobbing like crazy... but it was just so good and so real... really thank God for everything... He's just so amazing...
what choice will u make today? God loves you... what does that mean? He accepts you... even when nobody else around seems to accept you for who you are... He affirms you... is always there to show that He cares and that YOU MATTER and that you don't have to be SOMEBODY ELSE to gain His love... Jesus cares...
~~derek~~ at 4/20/2004 10:47:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Monday, April 19, 2004
Updates
Added photos from Norman's birthday and Byron Bay as well!!! Check them out at the Pixum site!!!
Sorry got no time to blog... been busy with work... got a lot of assignments.. hehehe.. =) bye!
~~derek~~ at 4/19/2004 10:12:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Saturday, April 17, 2004
Culture Shock 2004
Culture Shock this year to me was a huge success man!!!! Kudos to Andrew and Melissa to organising this whole entire event that would blow anyones mind just to handle it... My day started late.. cos last night we were up until 5.30am playing warcraft with nicholas and gang... so we got up at 12pm then grabbed a drive-thru at Hungry Jacks before going to meet Andrew at 1pm at the Ukrainian Community Centre where the event was gonna be held..
when we got there, the hall was like bare.. some of the production crew were already there setting up the place but they had only just started.. and Andrew wasn't there cos he was settling stuff over at church so he just told me what to do and where to go.. basically had to pick up food from peoples' houses.. and they cooked a lot of stuff man!! one lady cooked like 25kg of chicken!!! so it was like in 2 huge pots.. and the other one I had to pick up many many trays of some cakish dessert stuff.. made me hungry just smelling the chicken..
then made a few trips to various different macdonalds to get the Orange Bowls... ok and now many of you are going, "What the?!" Orange Bowls are basically Cambro's or Coleman's or HUGE WATER CONTAINERs that belongs to Macdonalds and they have like the big M and they're yellow in colour.. obvious that's its Mackers one lah.. anyway yeah they actually allow people to loan those stuff, and its basically free for use, just have to book like one day before hand and pay like a $20 or $50 deposit... if you want syrup or cups then u got to pay extra, but ice is free, and when you return it you get ur deposit back!!! so cool right?!?! perfect for parties and you don't have to pay a single cent!!! imagine going to a macdonalds in singapore and going, "can i borrow a cambro for a party?" even if they do let you have it, they probably charge you... hehehehe...
anyways when we got back at about 6pm, half hour before it's supposed to start, all the decor was up already!!! it's so cool man.. artifacts from all over, and native Aboriginal art and Chinese deco and Indian stuff.. it was really just spectacular... and the performances were also so cool!! from the New Zealand Hakka, to Javanese dance, to Filipino dance, to even Latin and LINE DANCING!!!! and the FOOD!!! so much food... cept for the Indonesian stall which finished out like so early cos they didn't prepare enough.. but there was still so much left over.. i dapao ba zhang home for breakfast.. kekeke..
All in all IT WAS GREAT FUN!!!! kekeke.. will post up photos of the event soon once I get them from... MILTON!!! hehehe..
OOOOOO YEAH!!! Thanks MIL for the drumsticks!!! he gave me a pair yesterday!!! so unexpected man.. you the man!! hahahaha...
ok tom is another day with SY ROGERS!!!! Can't wait man!!! He's such a solid speaker.. when he spoke for xlr8 on friday, I was just blown away by his uncanny down-to-earth thinking and understanding and the way he presented himself and the message he was bringing.. he's really one of the best speakers I've heard... and he's like one of the renown experts on sexuality issues.... cos he was a former active gay and homo and almost underwent a sex change to be a female... cool right?! anyways that's another story... gdnite!!!!
~~derek~~ at 4/17/2004 10:30:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Thursday, April 15, 2004
Sunshine Coast
yesterday I was up at Sunshine Coast... we headed out from Brisbane at about 10 after catching some breakfast at Mac's... 2 cars went up, Gabriel, Gavin, Phyllis, David, Melissa, Rina, Alex, Winston and myself.. 9 ppl in total.. =) we first headed up to Glasshouse Mountains area and headed up to the lookout at Mt Beerubum... we had to walk up about 700m but it was SO STEEP!! it was like 30-40 degree gradient all the way up to the top.. but the view was worth it man! it was a 360 degree lookout so we could see out to the Glasshouse Mountains as well!! =)
After that we headed down to the Big Pineapple... its a sorta theme park consisting of pineapple farms and macadamia farms as well... you can take like tours and walks down but they cost $$ so we didn't walk.. but we did have our lunch there and you could still see the farms and all that.. hehehe... =)
Our next stop was the Eumundi Markets but sadly, we didn't make it there in time... when we went they were all closing!!! We reached there at about 2pm, but the markets apparantly closes at about 1-1.30pm so we JUST missed it!!! so sad man.. and they only open Wednesdays and Saturdays... maybe when we go up Sunshine Coast again then we'll make a stop there.. the last time I went there were so many things to buy man!!!
Last stop for the day, was of course the beach!!! We were trying to find a way down to the popular part of the coast, but we couldn't find a spot.. so boh pians went further down and found a way down and we just swam there lah... =) no lifeguards, only a few people.. but still we had our own loads of fun and stuff... It was a very good day man!!! hehehehe...
Thurday
I was so tired when I woke up today... think my body still haven't recuperate fully yet.. but anyway still went down to school for project meeting at 12pm... finished it pretty quickly and got it over with, then came home and rest awhile before going over to David's place to use the gym and dinner!! yep you heard me right... I went to the GYM!! finally got down to doing some exercise.. now my upper body is aching ... hahaha... and dinner was nice! tom yum soup.. nice and hot and spicy!!! hahahha.. =) then mucked around with his PSone playing Winning Eleven and Metal Slug X... hehehe...
ok time to sleep again.. tomorrow I SHALL WORK!!! I hope.. kekeke.. =) GDNITE!!!
~~derek~~ at 4/15/2004 09:47:00 pm
(0) comments
~~derek~~ at 4/15/2004 09:04:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Tuesday, April 13, 2004
Of Surprises and Sunrises
Yesterday we had surprises for Norman, cos it was his birthday... anyways we arranged for Mun and him to go running from St Lucia up to Mt Cootha... which by itself is no mean feat already... anyways the rest (friends of Norman of course) we were waiting for him at the top with a self-decorated banner and cake and everything.. so we were there just waiting for him to run up.. and when he did then we popped out and sang him the birthday song amongst all the people there at the lookout... his reaction was so classic man!!! too bad I wasn't fast enough to catch it on digi... hehehehe.... but it was all good! Then after that they ran back down Mt Cootha home.. they're mad man!! 2nd surprise was waiting at Serene's house, cos we were all gonna have steamboat dinner at her place and Norman didn't know about that either!! And the dinner was good and so were the laughs.. it was one of the most hilarious dinners I have ever attended man!! We were almost laughing non-stop throughout!! From Nelson to Daniel to Evie to Michelle to Gwen to Milton and on and on incident after incident, joke after joke it was outright funny!! but it was so much fun!! kudos to Serene and Michelle who prepared all the stuff!!!!
Later on, I went back home to pick up my hsemates to meet up with friends at 12am to drive down south to Byron Bay in NSW, its the most eastern point of the australian continent!! Nich, Eileen, Eldrige and Amanda were in Nich's car, and my hsemates and Derrick were in mine... it was a long drive through the night.. about 2 - 2.5 hours in total and when we got there and saw the lighthouse.. man it was so nice.. and we waited for the sun to rise above the waters... It was just magnificent!!! You really begin to be awestruck with God's creativity... the ocean waters, the cliffs, the beaches... in winter you can even see whales in the bay!!! after spending a whole lot of time taking photo after photo after photo, we finally left the place, and headed down to Humble Pie near Tweed Heads for breakfast.. the pies are really good man!! Then shopped for a bit at Tweed City and then moved to Pacific Fair in the Gold Coast for lunch...
and Eileen bought a puppy!!! It's SO CUTE!!!! its a small little shih tzu (i dunno how to spell it) about 6 weeks old (i think)... she actually saw a spaniel puppy in Tweed City but didn't buy there and ended up buying the one in Pacific Fair... I wonder how she's gonna take care of that... but its really an adorable little puppy.. let's hope it doesn't end up being to much of a hassle... =)
that was my trip basically.. i'm cutting everything short cos I'm really tired and I've only had 1 hour of sleep so far over the last 2 days because of the trip... and I'm going up north to Sunshine Coast tom!!! its gonna be one helluva trip.. hehehe.. =) well till tomorrow i guess.. GDNITE!!!! *plonk*
PS: photos of the birthday and trip will be up shortly... when I have the time...
~~derek~~ at 4/13/2004 10:50:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Sunday, April 11, 2004
HE IS RISEN!!!
"And as they were afraid, and bowed their faces down to the earth, they said to them, Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, saying the Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and the third day rise again? And they remembered His words ... " Luke 24:5-8
Jesus is risen, my friends. He is victorious over death and hell.. He has taken the keys of death and the grave and has gained all authority over them!! How marvelous is that man!?!?! Wayne shared today on Jesus being the Resurrection and the Life... would you go all out to share something that you really didn't believe in, that you didn't have evidence about? The greatest proof that Jesus has risen, is seen through the disciples of Christ... Do you think they would have, after fleeing from Jesus and going into hiding during His capture and crucifixion, gone all out to the point of risking their lives sharing Jesus to the rest of the world IF THEY HAD NOT SEEN THE RISEN CHRIST?! and the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead, lives WITHIN US!!! We don't have to be DEAD people.. cos Resurrection Power is within us!!
The evening service went along with that same theme as well... only it was the sharing of testimonies from all sorts of people... youth, young adults, adults, seniors and they all tell the same story... that we have resurrection power within us to do and believe for great and mighty things to happen!! I am so encouraged I tell you, the whole Sunday today was just totally totally awesome!! I know that there's nothing that my God cannot pull through for me, be it financial difficulties, physical weakness and illness, mental and emotional difficulties!! If only you would trust Him, He will heal you...
When it comes to choosing between 2 paths to take, would you follow a dead person, or someone who's alive? Jesus is alive today and forevermore... who would you choose? This just reminds me of a script that someone wrote during my time in ES...
Hands
Hands, God gave us hands
Hands to create
Hands to give
Hands to love
Hands to protect
But we have misused our hands
Hands made to create, now destroy
Hands made to give, now take away
Hands made to love, now hate
Hands made to protect, now let down
Jesus stretched out His hands to a dying world
But we took them and nailed them to a cross!
And on the third day He rose again
And now He stands before with His hands open
Would you reject Him? Or would you accept Him?
What would you do with the hands of Jesus?
~~derek~~ at 4/11/2004 11:09:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Saturday, April 10, 2004
Busy yet Exciting!
my day started at 630am in the morning today.. ok if u think that's early... well actually the sun is already out at that time loh... it looks like about 8am in the morning.. anyways yeah got up at 630am, washed up and then went to pick up David first then Khai Mun and his 2 other friends, Aaron and Fiona for rock climbing at Kangaroo Pt..
Rock Climbing
well I took them sorta for a spin cos I couldn't find the entrance to the carpark at the bottom of the cliffs, so it took us about a good half hour plus to finally find the place and get started! =) the rock face is very nice... its really natural rock wall so it felt exciting.. but it was really cold in the morning and I was kinda shivering.. hehehe.. =) anyways met the rest of the discovery group already there and climbing... they're all pretty good, though there were some that were also beginners... so it was a good mix.. there was about 10 ppl today... when it was my turn to try to climb the wall, I got stuck man!! it was so tough.. I had problems trying to lean into the wall.. was up until about 4m up then was stuck at a point where I couldn't reach the next hold.. was so tired, so gave up after hanging there for about 20mins.. let others have a go.. the group had set up 2 climb points, and i had the easier one.. took some photos so u can see for yourself..
Mun was the pro man.. he finished my course in like 5mins, and finished the more difficult one in 10mins.. hahhaha...
even so after the climb, my fingers were numb, my toes were also numb cos they were squashed in mun's really small climbing shoe... I took some photos of the climb, will post them up when they're ready! =)
Internationals
after rock climbing, went home for a shower and a quick lunch before heading off to church for internationals and jamming! the jamming session was good... getting the hang of playing good drums again.. too long never touch drums already lah... must play more to familiarise.. and I need a lot more practise.. hehehe.. =) after jamming they started the rehearsals for tonight's service, and vania, charmaine and myself went to buy some food for the team... anyways today was the Easter service and we were like all supposed to dress up, sorta semi-formal kind of thing, cos its the American Tradition and we were going along with that.. =) so everybody turned up in like dresses for the girls and shirt/tie for the guys... and we had some small games and stuff... won a big easter egg.. hahaha.. =) Jack shared an awesome message and there was awesome food!! Josephine and team really did a good job with the food.. hehehe yumyum.... also took some photos... and must get photos from vania and milton too.. hehehe..
Potluck
After internationals then headed to nicholas' house and that's where I am now.. using eileen's laptop to blog now.. they had potluck today and I met them later after the service... although food was not very warm, but it was still good... esp the curry chicken... yumyum. hahaha! =) pigging out man! but i had my exercise today.. from climbing!! hahahaaha.. yeah anyways i'm gonna go home soon, cos I'm really pooped out... need to get rest for tom's service too... the rest of my hsemates are all busy having LAN party.. hehehe.. the attractions of warcraft...
Ok i apologise for the super super long blog.. but that's my day.. packed right?!? hehehe.. ok have a Blessed Easter!!
~~derek~~ at 4/10/2004 08:38:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Friday, April 09, 2004
My Holidays have BEGUN!
and they've been off to a flying start... hahaha.. this morning had an exhausting time trying to wake up from my bed at 7am... the weather is just so cold and so shiok to just lie underneath my comforter and sleep... but I had to go for service... so got changed, woke up alex and winston and then we went to pick and david and gavin... apparantly when we got to their place, david was still in the bathroom and gavin hadn't woken up yet!!! so they made us late.. hahaha.. no lah late only to meet melissa... then today's service was awesome... Wayne shared on the 3 most famous words of the hour.. "IT IS FINISHED!!" yes the work of Jesus was finished, is finished, and will always be finished!!! We are redeemed by His death!! woohoO!!!
then one whole big grp of us went for brunch at Fat Boys where they have the $4 breakfast... toast, eggs, bacon, sausage, tomatoes... =) then we headed home for a while, cos we were all still pretty full to have lunch... after hanging around a while, melissa suggested going down to the gold coast! =) winston was off at his friend's place for some 'dry swimming' (refer to Benson's terminology if you do not understand), so alex, me, david and mel went.. drove mel's new car... its a delightful small little package.. but the brakes are way too soft!! had to remind myself to step harder a few times... hehehe...
the air temperature was cold man, so we went for a run before getting into the water... then it wasn't so bad... had some wave crashing in the ocean.. then a freak shower came along and we had to hide out in one of the buildings on the beachfront... talk about suay man... but we did catch an awesome rainbow.. it was so beautiful...
anyways headed home after that to wash up then went to david's house for dinner, DOMINO'S AGAIN!!! hahahaha.. we brought rockmelon though!! hehehe... but it was all good.. had some fun on his PSOne playing KOF99 and Winning Eleven... and watching the Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas on tv before coming back home... its been a long day...
well tell u about tom!! I'm going ROCK CLIMBING!!! yep going to Kangaroo Point where there's a natural cliff face.. going with the Rock Climbing Life Group from church... they've got all the equipment and stuff, and it's free!!! good for exercise too.. hehehe =) picking ppl up at 7am man!!! then after that, come home, grab lunch, then its jamming and Easter service at Internationals!! We're following the American tradition this year, with smart casual attire and FOOD!! hahahaha...
Ok time to sleep.. if not tomorrow that's it man... =) gdnite!!!
~~derek~~ at 4/09/2004 10:08:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Thursday, April 08, 2004
On a hill far away...
yep its the Easter weekend!! well to me its a good thing... cos it means its my term break (finally!!) and I get to rest for a week off school and go sightseeing!! =) However I do have my own share of project work and stuff that I have to do cos there's like 2 documents to submit like right after the mid-semester break the following monday!! OH WELL...
anyways today was my long day again.. surprisingly in the morning I was pretty alert until about 11am, when the comp3804 lecturer just put me to sleep.. AGAIN.. well can't blame him if he's boring.. hehehe.. then got back my marks for stage 1.. man its pathetic!! they grade me so little just because of some small thing leh!!! and they grade like 0.xxxx marks one loh!! so everything is only upon 4 marks and I got 2.32.. its bull man... oh well, can't be bothered.. next submission is group stuff already, so think should be able to perform better.. then fell asleep again during the comp3500 lecture after lunch... felt so bad cos was like sitting in front of him.. hahahaha.. cannot take it lah.. very sleepy.. hehehe.. =)
yes i'm in my holiday mood now... even so I just want to share this song with you... we've been singing it in church for the past few weeks now, and it really didn't catch me until David shared on it.. its just an awesome song...
You covered up my sin
yes He did... He covered up our sins with His blood that He shed for you and I... He sacrificed Himself that we might be saved, that we might have eternal life... He has forgiven us of EVERYTHING we have ever done wrong...
You covered up my silence
this was what hit me... He covered up our silence... God's commandment is obedience, yet at times when God tells us to do something, how many times have we put it aside, pretended like we didn't listen, acted as if nothing was going on? He has forgiven us of EVERYTHING that we were supposed to do but didn't....
They tell me to abandon You, to make my dreams come true
how many times has this happened? You want to do awesome stuff for God and people just come up to you and go, "Nah you sure you want to do that? You could go into business, or marketing, get a stable job, get a nice car and house if you just spent more time in your work, in your studies, living your own life the way society says u ought to.." or as musicians go through, "You could make more playing for secular bands, be a sessionist, play in clubs and bars.."
So what am I supposed to do, if I only dream of You?
Indeed, let our dreams be Jesus... cos it's ALL because of Him that we are living, that we are breathing, that we have what we have... everything belongs to God.. we're just stewards of His belongings... if we can live with that focus in mind, nothing is ever too big, or too hard, or too difficult, ALL BECAUSE OF HIM, because we have Him at our side, leading us, guiding us...
What about you? What are your dreams and aspirations? How do you see yourself living or working 10, 15 years from now? What would you have made, profited, established? What would be said of a man that profits the world, but loses his own soul? We remember what Jesus Christ did on the cross during Easter... He gave His very own life, that we might gain life and life to the full... What would you do with Jesus this Easter?
~~derek~~ at 4/08/2004 08:15:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Wednesday, April 07, 2004
Exciting Wednesday
It's been a long day and I enjoyed myself thoroughly! Thank God for understanding boss, he allowed me to leave the office earlier today so that I could help the TP campus ministry on their easter outreach. it's alwiz a joy to help them and seeing familiar faces! =) feels good to be back in campus i tell you! This was the place that i had so many fond memories and stress... love its surrounding coz it gave me the motivation to study and to stay on long enuff for project meetings... bet u didnt know that--the Architecture & the Bedok Reservoir was my Main reason why I put TP as my first choice even when I was staying in Woodlands back den. Ya siao rite? Hee hee =P
Anyway nothing much have changed just more greenery at the foyer
The Easter outreach
The event was held at Alumni Lounge! It's so cool... very nice ambience. Bamboo stands placed artistically at the lobby and a pond by the side. Reminds me of the resorts in Bali with candlelight and gentle sea breeze.. hee sorry I'm dreaming again.
Thanksgiving
All praise to God. Thank God that everything went well and most importantly thank God for the lives that were saved today, the heaven is rejoicing, so are we! It's truly by God's provision that we are able to gather in campus itself for such a gathering. God taught the students lessons about trusting Him, and encouraged them thru the good turnout, some of their friends came, and they were so excited. Many international students were invited too. I'm So encouraged to see students-leaders sacrificing their time to organize this event. Many of them are probably burning mid-night oil to finish their projects and preparing for exams right now! I'm sure God is pleased with their sacrifice of worship thru their service and time.
And I'm sleepy & tired... Carried the amp from home to office, den from office to TP and from TP back home.. good way of training my arm muscles
goodnitezzz
~~derek~~ at 4/07/2004 11:23:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Tuesday, April 06, 2004
Interesting quiz...
Which band instrument are you?
brought to you by Quizilla
~~derek~~ at 4/06/2004 11:35:00 pm
(0) comments
Nervousness...
today had my drums audition today at Cre8ive... was so nervous man... somemore I had just finished dance practise earlier in the evening so I was kinda perspiring and all... but it still went well.. i think anyway.. Laurel told me I looked nervous.. hahhaha!! but Shane told me it was good.. kinda falling behind on the beat... anyways he's gonna put me at the satellite church in Jindalee once every 3 weeks for main service... other than that, I'm gonna be playing for XLR8 soon too!! that'll be probably after the Emerge Conference in end April - May... and going to play for Internationals sometime soon... can't wait !!!!
~~derek~~ at 4/06/2004 11:02:00 pm
(0) comments
It's all about fine dining @Au Jardin Les Amis! Njoy myself tonight - all thanks to W.T.C.! I went to Au Jardin Les Amis to celebrate my dear churchmate's bday!
'Au Jardin', which in French means 'in the garden' Woolala .... yes I had French cuisine! Hmm ... Talk about fine dining, that's the first for me. =) You would have expected the portion of the food to be small, you're absolutely right but it was filling! We had a creative six-course accompanied with Spanish wine and lotsa walnut bread because it was so yummy! Here's what I had:
-
Carpaccio of langoustines, Avruga caviar, poupier -raw clayfish topped with caviar and salad
-
Oven-baked cabillaud, marinated anchovies, lemon emulsion -Cod fish with potatoes
-
Apricot confit, lychee sorbet & ginger cream - This is yummy! A combination or sweet and sour, it's refreshing.
-
A small piece of Dark chocolate birthday cake -with compliments from the restaurant woo, heavenly
-
And other finger foodAnd it was an expensive birthday dinner which I didn't regret. The place is cozy, exquisite and soothing as they played the soft music but that was drowned by my laughter. Pardon me, I just couldn't help it, I was having so much fun! haha and taking pictures like mountain tortoise.
Located in an elegant colonial house in the middle of Singapore's botanic garden. -hmm wonder if i would have the chance to go there again... haha hint hint... ya anyway. It was Truly a memorable experience and a great time of fellowship, been a long time since the gals sat down to catch up and talk abt serious stuff!
Au revoir, la Bonne nuit, vous voir autour d'un jour bientot =P
Bye, Good night, see you around sometime soon
~~Min~~
~~derek~~ at 4/06/2004 12:41:00 am
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
Saturday, April 03, 2004
sorry haven't had the time to blog cos of the projects rushing and activities...anyways just some short updates...
Thursday
Had my demonstration today... missed the first lecture and tutorial of the day because I was busy helping my friend out to get his demonstration code together... somehow it wasn't working when he went to test it yesterday... finally got it working and I fixed some minor bugs in my code and did some testing... after that when I did my demonstration, one of the functions didn't work!!!! argh!!! was so pek chek (frustrated) man.. later on then found out what was the problem, but too late liao lah.. marks deducted already... but that's over so i don't really care.. its not like i can fight for it anyway!! then the day went on as usual... KOed during the comp3500 lecture after lunch... was so tired after pia-ing for the demo...
Friday
today's infs2200 lecture was horrible man... because it was a continuation lecture from the previous topic from yesterday which I missed, I didn't have a clue what he was talking about during the first hour, i even slept ... during the break was running through the lecture notes and asking winston what the previous lecture was about... then came the 2nd hour which I was fully awake and paying attention for, but I still didn't understand what in the WORLD he was talking about... me, winston and joshua were like going HUH? after every point he made... only when he showed us the example much later on did we sort of get what the previous like 5 slides were trying to say...
then during comp3500 tute, played the card game again, this time with joel against 2 others, royston and chester... we rule man!! hahhaha.. was almost gonna win man, then tute time over liao.. oh well..
Today is Shopping Day!!
yep!! today we went down to Harbourtown Shopping Centre!! 5 of us, me, winston, alex, derrick and joshua drove down to harbourtown.. took us about an hour to get there... but the shopping was pretty good... but the nike warehouse was below my expectations... wanted to get a pair of running shoes today.. but too ex liao... then after shopping, rushed down to church for internationals.. but was about 15mins late.. hehehe... but the service was good... Jack spoke about the true fruits of the heart... and also about being thankful in our weakness and problems... cos there's just so much that we can thank God for... for all that He's done in our lives, for providing for us, for giving us His Son!!! And when he said it, flashbacks just kept pouring in man... so many instances of God's provision and His placing me in so many places and groups to experience so many things.. He's just awesome!!
well anyway think that's long enough for all of you... kekeke... tomorrow's another long day.. got a surprise party which I'll only tell you after tomorrow.. hehehe.. =) gdnight everyone and thank God FOR YOU!! =)
~~derek~~ at 4/03/2004 11:31:00 pm
(0) comments
::::::++++++++++++::::::
