This is a very wonderful message.
First of all, we need to know that God created man with 4 particular characteristics:
1. First, God created man in His image, that man might bear His likeness, expressing Him. This is shown in Gen. 1:26.
2. Second, God gave man His authority for His dominion, which indicates that man is His representative. This is also shown in Gen. 1:26.
3. Third, God created man with a spirit to contact and receive Him. This is shown in Gen. 2:7, Prov. 20:27, and John 4:24.
4. Fourth, God put man in front of the tree of life, indicating that He desired that man would receive and eat Him as the tree of life so that man might live God. This is shown in Gen. 2:9 and John 6:57.
However, man became sinners and were not able to fulfill the above 4 characteristics. Instead, man was fallen with 4 major diseases according to the book of gospels, especially in the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament. These 4 major diseases are:
1. First, fever. Fever signifies a person's unbridled temper, which is abnormal and intemperate.
2. Second, leprosy. Leprosy signifies isolation from God and from men.
3. Third, paralytic. Paralytic signifies being paralyzed by sin and thus is unable to walk and move before God.
4. Fourth, the flow of blood, the issue of blood. This signifies a life that cannot be retained.
But praise the Lord! Do you know that our Christ is the healing Christ? In Mark 2:17, "Those who are strong have no need of physician, but those who are ill; I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
We are sinners who are feverish, we are lepers, we are paralyzed by sinners, and we can't retain life in us. As sinners, we came short of the glory of God and are doomed. But the Lord Jesus Christ came and ministered as a Physician, not as a judge. The judgment of a judge is according to righteousness, whereas the healing of a physician is according to mercy and grace. The Lord came to minister as a Physician; that is, He came to heal, recover, enliven, and save people. Don't misunderstand me. Yes, our Lord is still the righteous Judge. If we sin, He will have to judge us. But at the same time, He is also the healing Christ, the great Physician. He judges and He heals.
Once, an elderly saint told me that if as a Christian, in our Christian pathway, we have never realized that we are sinners, our Christian life has not yet begun. A sinner who doesn't recognize that he is a sinner will never treasure the cleansing blood that Christ shed for us on the cross. That is why we will pass through certain situations and we will be enlightened that we ARE sinners. We are GOOD FOR NOTHING. We have no right to judge others. Even the Lord Jesus came as a Physician primarily. Who are we to judge and have no mercy upon others? I was very, very touched by this point.
Furthermore, the Lord serves us with His forgiving authority and His cleansing power. He forgives our sins, cleanses us, and brings us back to God, thus restoring us from our feverish condition. He restores our fellowship with God and man, thus restoring us from our leprous condition. Because of Him, our sins are gone, and we have God as our everything. Now we are enjoying God as our life, our light, our everything. We are feasting with the Lord. This is the gospel, and this is also the way to carry out the gospel service. (Ref: Life-study of Mark)
But how do we experience Him as the healing Christ that we may be restored, enlivened, and be able to enjoy God as our everything? We need to practice 4 things:
1. First, day by day we need to spend personal time with the Lord.
2. Second, learn in the presence of the Lord to be dealt with under His light.
3. Third, be infused with His burden according to His perfect will to care for people.
4. Fourth, have a change in our disposition to be fishers of men and feeders of lambs.
The gospel service is not an outward work. The gospel is a kind of living. When we spend time with the Lord and enjoy being ministered with life by the healing Christ, we are being healed from our sicknesses, and thus we are able to learn to live out a kind of living that reflects our enjoyment of Christ. Then, we become the living testimony of Jesus.
Yes, we will still sin because our flesh prompts us to sin. But we have the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ (1 John 1:9). Of course we do not sin purposely. In fact, a believer who has experienced the forgiveness of sin will never dare to sin on purpose. Only those who do not know what is the forgiveness of sin dare to sin again and again, taking the blood of Christ for granted. This is foolishness. There is a verse in the Bible that says, God is not mocked. Although God is full of mercy and compassion towards man and is always ready to forgive us of our sins whenever we confess, we still need to revere Him in a proper way, that is, the proper fear.
The key is this: Our Christ IS the healing Christ. For Him to heal us, we just need to spend time with Him. In fact, the highest profession on earth is to spend time being infused with God that we may shine forth God. (Ref: Life-study of Exodus, msg. 62)
Amen!
Before the exodusExodus 12:31-4031 And he (Pharaoh) called for Moses and Aaron in the night and said, Rise up, go out from the midst of my people, both you and the children of Israel; and go, serve Jehovah, as you have said.32 Take both your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and go and bless me also.33 And the Egyptians urged the people on, so as to hasten their departure out of the land, for they said, All of us will be dead.34 And the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading bowls being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders.35 And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses, and they asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold and for clothing.36 And Jehovah gave the people favor in the sight if the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. Thus they plundered the Egyptians.37 And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides children.38 And a mixed multitude went up also with them, as well as flocks and herds, a very large number of livestock.39 And they baked the dough which they brought out of Egypt, into unleavened cakes, for it had not been leavened because they were driven out of Egypt and could not delay; nor had they prepared for themselves any provisions.40 Now the time of the sojourning of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred thirty years.During the exodusExodus 14:5-295 And when it was told to the king of Egypt that the people had fled, the heart of Pharaoh and his servants changed toward the people; and they said, What is this we have done, letting the Israel go from serving us?6 So he yoked his chariot and took his people with him.7 And he took six hundred chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them.8 And Jehovah hardened the heart of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, so that he pursued after the children of Israel as the children of Israel were going out boldly.9 And the Egyptians pursued after them, all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh and his horsemen and his army; and they overtook them as they encamped by the sea, beside Pi-hahiroth, before Baal-zephon.10 And when Pharaoh approached, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and there the Egyptians were, marching after them; and they became very afraid, and the children of Israel cried out to Jehovah.11 And they said to Moses, Is it because there were no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you done this to us, bringing us out of Egypt?12 Is this not the very thing that we spoke to you in Egypt, saying, Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.13 But Moses said to the people, Do not be afraid; stand firm, and see the salvation of Jehovah, which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will see no more again forever.14 Jehovah will fight for you, and you will be still.15 And Jehovah said to Moses, Why do you cry out to Me? Tell the children of Israel to move forward.16 And you, lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea, and divide it; and the children of Israel shall go into the midst of the sea on dry ground.17 And I will now harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they will go in after them; and I will glorify Myself through Pharaoh and through all his army, through his chariots and through his horsemen.18 Then the Egyptians will know that I am Jehovah when I glorify Myself through Pharaoh, through his chariots and through his horsemen.19 And the Angel of God, who went before the camp of Israel, moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them.20 And it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel. And the cloud was there with the darkness, yet it gave light by night to them. Thus one did not come near the other all night.21 And when Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, Jehovah caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all the night and made the sea dry land; and the waters were divided.22 And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground, and the waters were a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.23 Then the Egyptians pursued; and all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen went in after them into the midst of the sea.24 And at the morning watch Jehovah looked down upon the camp of the Egyptians from within the pillar of fire and of cloud and threw the camp of Egyptians into confusion.25 And He caused their chariot wheels to swerve and made them drive with difficulty, so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from Israel, for Jehovah is fighting for them against the Egyptians.26 And Jehovah said to Moses, Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters come back over the Egyptians, over their chariots and over their horsemen.27 And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its level when the morning appeared. And the Egyptians fled against it, and Jehovah cast the Egyptians into the midst of the sea.28 And as the waters returned, they covered the chariots and the horsemen, even all the army of Pharaoh that went in after them into the sea; not even one of them was left.29 But the children of Israel walked on dry land through the midst of the sea, and the waters were a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.Read on.My points:1. ALL biblical records are TRUE. The Hebrew exodus is just one example. Biblical records are not myths or fairy tales.2. This kind of miracle only happened in the ancient times when God is revered as the All-mighty, fearsome God who can do whatever He likes. Indeed, before God became the man, Jesus Christ, He dwells in unapproachable light (1 Tim. 6:16). Of course today, He's still the All-mighty God and we still fear Him in a proper way. However, the Lord Jesus also commanded us to love Him with all our being (Mark 12:30).3. Our experience of God and Christ should not be focused on miraculous activities. No doubt God will have to move His finger to perform miraculous deliverance, whenever necessary, according to His way, not our way of how miraculous is miraculous. But those who know God's heart will know that this is not what God wants to do.4. Our experience of God and Christ is by enjoying Him as our food, drink, air, life supply, and everything by spending our time with Him in His word, and of course, by meeting with the saints to be the church. The desire of God's heart is that we are filled with Him personally, unto His fullness, the church, corporately. (Eph. 3:19; Eph. 4:13) Do you know this?
These sentences are very meaningful. I provide 'han yu pin yin' for the Chinese characters and its parallel meaning in English. The original content is best understood in Chinese.
[说话的速度]
[shuo hua de su du]
The "Speed" of Speech
急事，慢慢的说；
ji shi, man man de shuo
Urgent matters: Speak slowly.
大事，清楚的说；
da shi, qing chu de shuo
Large-scale matters: Speak clearly.
小事，幽默的说；
xiao shi, you mo de shuo
Non-essential matters: Speak humorously.
没把握的事，谨慎的说；
mei you ba wo de shi, jing shen de shuo
Matters that you lack confidence in: Speak carefully.
没发生的事，不要胡说；
mei fa sheng de shi, bu yao hu shuo
Matters that are yet to happen: Do not speak absent-mindedly.
做不到的事，别乱说；
zuo bu dao de shi, bie luan shuo
Impossible matters: Do not speak carelessly.
伤害人的事，不能说；
shang hai ren de shi, bu neng shuo
Hurtful matters: Do not speak.
讨厌的事，对事不对人说；
tao yan de shi, dui shi bu dui ren shuo
Hateful matters: Speak about the matter, not the persons.
开心的事，看场合说；
kai xin de shi, kan chang he shuo
Joyful matters: Speak accordingly.
伤心的事，不要见人就说；
shang xin de shi, bu yao jian ren jiu shuo
Sad matters: Do not speak to everybody.
别人的事，小心的说；
bie ren de shi, xiao xin de shuo
Others' matters: Speak carefully.
自己的事，听听自己的心怎么说；
zi ji de shi, ting ting zi ji de xin zen me shuo
Your own matters: Listen to your heart.
现在的事，做了再说；
xian zai de shi, zuo le zai shuo
Current matters: Speak of them after they are done.
未来的事，未来再说；
wei lai de shi, wei lai zai shuo
Future matters: Speak of them in the future.
如果对我有不满意的地方，请一定要对我说。
ru guo dui wo you bu man yi de di fang, qing yi ding yao dui wo shuo
Dissatisfied with me? Tell me.
Have you asked this question? HOW TO LIVE LIFE...
Be Calm... Quiet... Tranquil... 
Bloom as often as you can...
 Stay close to your family...
Explore the world around you...
Enjoy the relaxing rhythm of waves... 
Watch the moon rise...
Spread your wings and take off on your own...
Then enjoy the comfort of coming home again...
Life is short.
While you can... Take time to enjoy all the little pleasures that God has provided for you...
I love soup, clear soup especially. Well, actually clear soup should be called broth. Anyway, I believer clear soup is healthier than creamy soups. And less work too :P
Western-style soup is mostly cream-based, pureed, and require a blender and stuff to blend all the ingredients together. In the end, there's virtually nothing to sink my teeth into. So, I prefer clear soup where the ingredients are still visible. I do not need a blender to blend the ingredients together. They may be soft and mushy, but most importantly, I could have something to bite.
So, I'm happy with this version of chuncky pumpkin soup. (Sorry, no photo. Well, this ain't a food blog. So, never mind.)
What to Use? (Serves 3-4)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 small (raw) pumpkin
1 medium onion, quartered
3 small potatoes, quartered
1 cup of canned sweet corn
1 cup of canned chickpeas
3 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
4-6 cups of chicken stock
Salt and pepper to taste
What to Do?
1. Peel pumpkin and remove all the seeds.
2. Chop the pumpkin into 1-inch chunks.
3. Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add garlic & onion. Stir constantly until garlic is fragrant and onion is clear.
4. Add sweet corn, chickpeas, potatoes and pumpkin, cook for 2-3 minutes.
5. Add chicken stock, cover and simmer (over low heat) for 20 minutes or until pumpkin and potatoes are soft.
6. Turn off heat, add salt & pepper.
Note: This chunky pumpkin soup can be served in a big bowl or in a pumpkin shell*.
*To use a pumpkin as a serving vessel:
1. Select a pumpkin.
2. Rinse and dry the outside of the pumpkin.
3. Cut an approximate 4- to 5-inch diameter hole in top of pumpkin. Scoop out seeds and membranes. Use a sharp knife to make zigzag cuts around its rim.
4. Place a vegetable steamer rack in a large pot and fill 1/3 of the pot with water. Place pumpkin shell upright on the rack.
5. Cover and steam over briskly boiling water until pumpkin meat softens, about 25 minutes.
6. Check water level, replenish if necessary.
7. Pour pumpkin soup into pumpkin. Serve hot.
As Christians, we love to come together, i.e. to flock together or meet together. The crucial thing is this: We don't come together to gossip about people's stuff or discuss about people's affair. We meet together to share, based on the word of God, the enjoyment and experience of Christ in our daily living.
In fact, praying should be practiced more than talking. It's useless to discuss about things and ends up without any having concrete solutions. Prayer means, "Lord, I can't. You can."
This weekend (13-14 Oct), I'm going to Genting Highlands with the saints (same church, another district) for a 2 day, 1 night trip. Then, I'll attend the young working saints grouping (Eng) on 14 Oct (Sun) evening.
Then, on Thu (18 Oct), I'll join the sisters in my home group for dinner and sisters meeting at one of the sister's house.
After that, on Sat (20 Oct), there will be the FTTMY graduation meeting ceremony. Right after the meeting, I'll follow some of the saints to a saint's house for BBQ dinner!!! Wow!!
I'm getting healthier and healthier! "Detoxification" starts to take effect. Thank You, Lord.
Some portions of the ministry that I enjoyed this week:
When we were fallen or backslidden, we argued with others and blamed them for our situation. But after we have been revived, recovered by life, we begin to realize that we ourselves have been wrong... Only after He gives us the life supply, binds up our wounds, and heals us can all the unjust things among us be cleared away... If we lack the Lord's supply, binding, and healing, we will condemn others, blame others, and complain about others... But as the Lord recovers us by life, we have genuine revival, we have the enjoyment of Christ, which causes us to be satisfied, restful, and peaceful, and we experience the Lord's binding and healing. (Ref: Life-study of Ezekiel)
As our Shepherd Christ takes care of us, including our problems and responsibilities. He takes care of us not only in spiritual things but in all things related to our human needs... According to Psalm 23, He takes care of us in every aspect of our living... We should not worry about our problems or about our living. Instead, we need to learn to put our trust in Him... As we experience the Lord's shepherding and remain under His kingship, we enjoy His peace and are no longer subject to spiritual troubles and disturbances. (Ref: Life-study of Ezekiel)
Sometimes when we consider our situation, we may be disappointed and feel that we do not have anything... We may feel that nothing is real, not even in the church life. What should we do when we feel this way? We should turn to the Triune God. He is our real blessing and portion... What blessing it is to have His face, His presence, and to enjoy Him daily as grace! The more we suffer, the more we enjoy Him as grace. What a blessing it is to have His countenance smiling upon us, assuring us, and confirming us! And what a blessing it is to have peace in Him, by Him, and with Him! This is the Triune God as our blessing. (Ref: Life-study of Numbers)
The Salma Doll, termed as the "Muslim Barbie Doll" looks demure and conservative. The word 'Salma' derived from the Arabic word "salamah", meaning peace. Let there be peace. Even a doll could convey this message.
(Photo: IBNlive.com) Check out the short video of the creation of these cute dolls.
 October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
I got a shock of my life when I saw the photo of a Sphynx cat. OMG!Everything started when I "bumped" into Dragonheart's Domain. The About Me column caught my attention.
This hairless cat looks... errr... intimidating. Reminds me of one of those reverred ancient Egyptian deities.
My first 18 years were spent in Bintulu, Sarawak (aka East Malaysia), Malaysia. Then, when I was 19, I came over to Petaling Jaya, Selangor (in West Malaysia) to further my studies.There are a few East Malaysian dishes that I loved. One of them is "Ding Bian Hu". I don’t really know what these words mean."Ding Bian Hu" is a typical Foochow delicacy (non-halal) made from rice starch solution cooked in a seafood-flavored broth. Its cooking process is tardy. Read "True Flavors of Foochow Cuisine" to find out more about Foochow cuisine. I have tried "Ding Bian Hu" in Sibu, the native town of Sarawakian Foochows.
("Ding Bian Hu") Preparation of "Ding Bian Hu"
1. Pour 2 big ladles of pre-prepared meat-bone soup into a heated giant wok.
2. While the soup is heating up, apply oil to the side of the wok.
3. Then, apply a ladle of rice starch solution as a thin layer on the side of the wok.
4. In a few minutes, the rice starch solution is cooked and the flimsy-looking pieces are removed into the soup in the centre of the wok.
5. This step is repeated a few times.
6. Add squid and/or fresh cuttlefish, black fungus, dried golden needles (a kind of Chinese vegetable), fish balls, pork and liver slices, chopped spring onion, fish sauce, and salt to taste.
7. The broth is left to simmer for another 3-5 minutes.
8. Finally, pepper and vinegar are added before serving.
Try this to identify yourself as a right or left brain person :)
1. Hold your hands together, as if you were praying. Look at your hands. If you see:
Left thumb is below the right thumb: Left brain.
Right thumb is below the left thumb: Right brain
2. Fold your arms in front of you, as if you are angry. If you see:
Right arm above left arm: Left brain.
Left arm above right arm: Right brain.
Based on 1+2 (order important), below is the interpretation of your personality.
Right-Left:
1. Considerate, traditional, indirect
2. Able to read others’ emotion instantly and respond in a friendly way.
3. Not very keen to take the initiative to move forward but tend to support others.
4. Stable and considerate.
5. Give others the feeling that they are being protected.
6. Weakness: Cannot say no regardless of how unwilling they are as they care for others more than themselves.
Right-Right:
1. Loves challenges.
2. Straight forward and will take action straight away once decided.
3. Very curious and dare to face danger without further consideration.
4. Quite popular among friends.
5. Weakness: Hard to listen to others and will listen to what whey want to listen in a conversation (very subjective).
Left-Left:
1. Dedicated, cold, perfectionist.
2. Very logical in all aspects.
3. The only way to defeat (or win over) him/her is through logical reasoning.
4. Proud, tend to have a strong feeling to do the right thing.
5. Trustworthy although may be quite tough to deal with.
6. Weakness: Leaves bad impression as being hard to deal with after first meeting.
Left-Right:
1. Strong tendency to take care of others, leader.
2. Has a cool and keen observation ability to see through situations, yet still can be considerate in others needs.
3. Has a strong sense of responsibility and tend to lead a group.
4. Very concerned about how others view them.
5. Always on the alert.
6. Weakness: May not be able to help themselves when they get into trouble because they tend to take care of others too much.
Me: The Left-Right type.
I don't really like to take photos. But it's kinda fun when you "bump" into one of those group photos you thought you'll never get since the cameras were others. I'm lazy to "beg" for photos, so it never cross my mind that I'll really get them, no matter how precious they are.I was browsing through The Last Adam website when I got hold of this nice group photo, taken in front of Malaysia's National Museum. They are visiting saints from Kuching (Sarawak, Malaysia) and I remembered that day (should be in the year 2006), I drove my car to accompany their bus around KL area. What a moment...
There is something about beef stew that makes me feel so homey...
One of my home group members is a great dad who manages his own business and cooks for his children while his wife works. His signature Beef Stew is superb...
What to Use? (Serves 3-4)
2 medium-sized beef bones
400g beef chunks (1 inch x 1 inch cubes)
3 large onions, quartered
3 medium potatoes, quartered
3 stalks of celery, sliced thickly
3 carrots, cut diagonally
3 medium capsicums (green, yellow, red), sliced thickly
3 large tomatoes, quartered
3 tbsp tomato puree
1 clove of garlic, chopped finely
2 cm cinnamon stick
1 star anise
4 cloves
1 tsp thick soy sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
How to Prepare?
Preparatory work:
1. Marinate beef chunks with chopped garlic, salt, pepper, and thick soy sauce for 2-3 hours (up to you).
2. To prepare beef stock (so that we do not need to use beef stock cubes that contain MSG), place beef bones in a stewing pot and cover with water. Cover the pot and bring to boil over high heat. Reduce heat to a medium boil when the water starts to boil furiously. Turn off heat and leave to cool once the liquid becomes cloudy. Skim the fat away.
Stewing time:
1. In a pan, heat oil and fry cinnamon stick, star anise, cloves and onions. Add in marinated beef when the onions begin to change color. Stir.
2. When the beef is nicely browned, add potatoes, carrots, celery, and capsicum. Stir for a couple of minutes.
3. Then, transfer everything in the pan into the stewing pot. Simmer over low heat until gravy thickens.
4. Add in tomatoes and tomato puree. Let them simmer for a moment until tender. Add salt and pepper to taste. Lots of work but the end result is fantastic. A hot bowl of beef stew cures all loneliness... Yummy...
Below is the hymn that I enjoyed during the home group meeting when I blogged about being "captured" by Potato Salad. The content of the message is Jubilee of Grace.Lord, plant my feet on higher groundStanza OneI'm pressing on the upward way,New heights I'm gaining every day;Still praying as I onward bound,"Lord, plant my feet on higher ground."Chorus:Lord, lift me up, and let me standBy faith on Canaan's tableland;A higher plane than I have found,"Lord, plant my feet on higher ground."Stanza Two
My heart has no desire to stayWhere doubts arise and fears dismay;Though some may dwell where these abound,My prayer, my aim, is higher ground.Stanza Three
I want to live above the world,Though Satan's darts at me are hurled;For faith has caught the joyful sound,The song of saints on higher ground.Stanza FourI want to scale the utmost heightAnd catch a gleam of glory bright;But still I'll pray till rest I've found,"Lord, lead me on to higher ground."In fact, this is my desire: Let the Lord lead me onward no matter how long the journey may be. I'm learning to prioritize, learning from mistakes that I've committed, learning to let go self-generated assumptions about things & matters, and learning to stay closer and be more bonded to the saints of the church where I'm meeting.I'm also learning to make the effort to force myself to LET GO negative encumbrances that have been hindering me for so long a time, be they persons, matters, or things. Of course, still in the process. It's not an overnight practice.I'll follow the saints to Genting Highlands for a 2 day, 1 night church trip during the Hari Raya public holidays (13-14 October). The threefold purpose:1. Stay connected spiritually, psychologically to the community where I grew up with basically, in terms of spiritual edification.
2. Rest & relax from the hustle-and-bustle of working life.3. Get recharged (spiritually) that I may see again what is the vision of living on this earth.Let's GO ON!
This morning, while attending the Lord's Table, I enjoyed this hymn: Christ Liveth in Me.Stanza OneOnce far from God and dead in sin,No light my heart could see;But in God's Word the light I found,Now Christ liveth in me.Chorus:Christ liveth in me,Christ liveth in me;Oh! what a salvation this,That Christ liveth in me.Stanza TwoAs rays of light from yonder sun,The flow'rs of earth set free,So life and light and love come forthFrom Christ living in me.Stanza ThreeAs lives the flow'r within the seed,As in the cone the tree,So, praise the Christ of truth and grace,His Spirit dwelleth in me.Stanza FourWith longing all my heart is filled,That like Him I may be,As on the wondrous thought I dwellThat Christ liveth in me!
Friday evenings are meant to be reserved for attending home group meetings (or some prefer to call them cell groups). After 5 days of working, I look forward to Friday evenings, not just for spiritual nourishments, but also for FOOD. Haha... that's quite true as I'll skip dinner, wait for one of my home group members to fetch me, and go straight to the meeting.Last Friday, what caught my attention was this delicious Potato Salad.
Although I've skipped dinner, I restrained myself from gobbling too much as I won't want to put on weight. Haha...There are many versions of potato salad. Here's a simple, personalized version of this ever infamous salad recipe.What to use? (Serves 2)4 medium potatoes, washed, peeled, cut into 2 cm cubes2 large eggs, hard-boiled, peeled, chopped1 cup of raisins1 cup of fat-free mayonnaise1 small lemon, juiced1/2 teaspoon salt, or to tasteHow to prepare?1. Place potato cubes in a large saucepan. Cover with cold water. Bring to the boil over high heat. Reduce heat to a medium boil and cook until potatoes are tender (able to pierce through with a skewer). Drain potatoes and cool to room temperature.2. Place potatoes, chopped eggs, raisins, mayonnaise in a large bowl and stir gently to combine. Add in lemon juice and salt to taste.3. Cover bowl and chill for at least 2 hours.Other ingredients may be added for more variety and taste, such as cucumber, tomatoes, celery, onions, nuts, cheese, mushrooms, etc. Sour cream may substitute mayonnaise.It's always up to one's creativity to try out new combinations for lots of satisfying dining experience :)
You're A High Achiever
You strive toward perfection, but you have a healthy understanding of what is and isn't possible, and you're able to enjoy the journey without getting overly hung up on the results. Good for you! You may find the resources below of interest in case any perfectionistic tendencies begin to creep in, or to help the perfectionists in your life learn to relax and accept themselves. High Achievers' Traits
1. Satisfied with doing a great job and achieving excellence (or something close), even if their very high goals aren’t completely met.
2. Take pride in their accomplishments and tend to be supportive of others.
3. Pulled toward their goals by a desire to achieve them, and are happy with any steps made in the right direction.
4. Set their goals high, perhaps enjoying the fun of going a little further once goals are reached, not only happier, but also more successful than perfectionists in the pursuit of their goals.
5. Enjoy the process of chasing a goal as much or more than the actual reaching of the goal itself.
6. Able to bounce back fairly easily from disappointment.
7. See criticism as valuable information to help their future performance.
8. Have high self-esteem, not self-critical and unhappy, or lonely or isolated but enjoys team work. Good! I'll focus more on my strong points and get the best out of them! Way to go!
For single ladies, career is VERY IMPORTANT because that's where her source of income derives in order for her to survive in the pursuit of life, get her own house, own car, pay her medical/life insurance policy, her study loan debts, etc. It's good to advance & develop & getting better in life, ESPECIALLY in my career. Put aside boy-girl relationship. I don't have time for that, it hurts, & most guys are blind. (*High-fived*)
Career Attitude1. Pride. Self-dignity. If everything we do at work has our name and signature on it, we'll give it our best shot and nothing less.2. Passion. Just a simple plain ‘interest’ isn’t enough to bring us through tough times (unreasonable client/impossible timeline). An intense enthusiasm for all things worth doing will pull us through the toughest times.
3. Belief. In order to generate that passion, it is important to believe. Only a deep belief will create the vigour and force that gives us the fuel to charge. We can achieve all that we set out to do for ourself.4. Self-discipline. Part of self-discipline is to sacrifice some fun time to focus on our goals.5. Success. Knowing our goal and personal definition of success is an important element. Then, play up on our strengths and improve on skills required. Think about what are the skills sets that we do not have that are required for our job and build them up.
6. Sincerity. Doing our work with our level best, play our part, take personal responsibility for our work, and share your learning and knowledge.
In summary, the most important and practical things are developing self-discipline, learning to sacrifice, define what success means, be single-minded in pursuit of goals by knowing our strengths and skills, and doing our work with sincerity and have sharing as a work value we carry. Leadership Skills1. Integrity. To gain people's trust, it is important to learn to be honest. Take responsibility for our own actions. Do not play the blame game when things go wrong.2. Passionate. Enthusiastic about work, have the ability to rub this energy off on others.3. Commitment. Work hard and have a strong discipline in following through with team members' work.4. Courageous. Brave to confront risks and the unknown. The ultimate test of a leader’s courage is also the courage to be open.5. Goal-oriented. Focus on the objectives that need to be attained. Develop a plan and strategy to achieve the objectives. Build commitment from the team and rally them to achieve the organization’s goal.6. Developing people. Develop the people to build a stronger team so that the organization is effective.7. Prioritize. Do the most urgent and important things first regardless of interest in them.8. No public glory. Whatever achievements are the result of joint effort. Share glory and credit with the rest for the work.Work Behaviors1. Prioritize our work. A good work plan or action plan is one that details what needs to be done, when and by whom. Have work plans for all the projects we are involved. Make sure the important work is completed on time so that the rest can carry out their duty smoothly and successfully. This contributes to the team’s success and people will know that we have work behaviors that are reliable.2. Do more than talk.3. Keep others informed. This allows team members to pace their work and know what to expect. Execute these work behaviors honestly, sincerely and consistently.4. Self esteem. The experience of being capable of meeting life's challenges and being worthy of happiness. This definition breaks self-esteem into two components – the sense of competency (having the conviction and confidence to do the tasks at hand and achieving the intended results) and the sense of worthiness (finding relevance in things that foster personal growth and making the commitment to these goals that gives one a sense of satisfaction).Time management1. Understand roles. Understand own role and responsibilities in the office.
2. Do the important & urgent first. Prioritize tasks at hand. Do not overwhelm ourself with too long a to-do list. Too long a to-do list may cause us to procrastinate on starting the work.3. Do not waste time. Allocate time for each task on our to-to list. Be conscious of time robbers, e.g. long tea breaks, long smoking breaks, chatting on the phone and surfing on the Internet.4. Do it right the first time. Whatever we are doing, get it right the first time. Have a high personal standard that says nothing leaves our hand unless we know we have done our best. 5. Do it now. Do the task immediately. Do not procrastinate. Do not over rationalize and craft the perfect plan. A good plan executed today is better than an excellent plan not executed at all.(From Career-Success-For-Newbies.com)
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