The Love Dare - 3

http://thelovedarebook.com

The Scriptures say that God designed and created marriage as a good thing. It is a beautiful, priceless gift. He uses marriage to help us eliminate loneliness, multiply our effectiveness, establish families, raise children, enjoy life, and bless us with relational intimacy. But beyond this, marriage also shows us our need to grow and deal with our own issues and self-centeredness through the help of a lifelong partner. If we are teachable, we will learn to do the one thing that is most important in marriage—to love. This powerful union provides the path for you to learn how to love another imperfect person unconditionally. It is wonderful. It is

difficult. It is life changing.

This book is about love. It’s about learning and daring to live a life filled with loving relationships. And this journey begins with the person that is closest to you: your spouse. May God bless you as you begin this adventure.

But be sure of this: it will take courage. If you accept this dare, you must take the view that instead of following your heart, you are choosing to lead it. The world says to follow your heart, but if you are not leading it, then someone or something else is. The Bible says that “the heart is deceitful above all things,” and it will pursue that which feels right at the moment.

We dare you to think differently, and to choose to lead your heart toward that which is best in the long run. This is a key to lasting, fulfilling relationships.

The Love Dare - 2

This forty day journey cannot be taken lightly. It is a challenging and often difficult process, but an incredibly fulfilling one. To take this dare requires a resolute mind and a steadfast determination. It is not meant to be sampled or briefly tested, and those who quit early will forfeit the greatest benefits. If you will commit to a day at a time for forty days, the results could change your life, and your marriage.


Consider it a dare, from others who have done it before you.

Sunday Sermon - 4-Mar-2012 - Bro. Tom Cheryan

Speaker: Br. Tom Cheryan
White Fields Assembly Seremban

http://www.mediafire.com/?f3j0ibpw0c2jhhv

Children Like Gifts. Some Love Them!

by Dr. Gary Chapman

Does your child feel loved? All of the research indicates that children who are loved fare better in life than those who do not. Most parents love their children, but not all children feel loved. When Dr. Ross Campbell and I wrote the book The 5 Love Languages of Children, we discovered that children have different love languages.

What fills the love tank of one child will not necessarily fill the love tank of another. One child may crave physical touch - hugs and kisses, while another longs for words of affirmation. For some children it's quality time, for others it is gifts or acts of service. Discover your child's love language, speak it fluently, and you will keep the love tank full.

The Love Language of Gifts

One of the love languages of children is receiving gifts. I know what you're thinking: "That is the love languages of all children." But, not really. Some children will ooh and aah and jump up and down with excitement when they are about to open a present. Once it is opened, they will repeat the performance. Others will simply open the gift, look at it, perhaps say thanks, and then they are off to other events.

Why the difference? For one child receiving gifts is their primary love language while the other much prefers quality time or one of the other love languages. Don't expect all children to respond the same way. If you want to love effectively you must learn the primary love language of each child and speak it regularly.

The Love Dare

LINK TO WEBSITE

In the movie FIREPROOF, a couple dares to rescue their choking marriage from the flames of divorce and temptation using The Love Dare book as a guide. Now you can take the experience of the film one step further with your own copy of The Love Dare book. This daily devotional steers you through the fiery challenge of developing a strong, committed marriage in a world that threatens to burn it to the ground.

The Love Dare personally leads you through daily devotionals, records your thoughts and experiences, and ends each day daring you to perform a simple act of love for your spouse. This 40-Day journey equips you to melt hardened, separated hearts into an enduring love that can withstand the flames of fear, pride and temptation. The Love Dare book will help you reinforce and enrich your marriage, earn back a love you thought was lost, and hear more about the One who not only designed unconditional, sacrificial love—He illustrated it.

In a world that attacks, devalues, and redefines relationships every day, learn how to rescue and protect your marriage from the firestorm. Take The Love Dare and FIREPROOF your relationship.

TV and Kids

from HERE

This month I decided to do some investigation into the effects of TV and other electronic media on children and their development. How much TV is too much TV? and What kinds of TV are detrimental and if any of it is helpful to children’s growth?

It seems there is general agreement that a child’s exposure to TV of any type should be limited. The American Academy of Pediatrics even said children two years and younger should not watch any TV whatsoever. Yet, there is also general agreement that we are completely ignoring this advice. Most parents lobby for and seek TV programs with appropriate content as a matter of convenience, since TV clearly serves as a babysitter of sorts for parents feeling time-constraints.

In many homes the TV is turned on early and stays on late. The programs viewed shows less actual choice and more habit. There are TVs in several rooms of most homes. Many children not only have their own TV, but electronic games, a computer, a DVD player for the car, and the list goes on.

So why is this so bad?  Why should we not allow children under two to even see the TV?

Young children’s brains are genetically programmed to develop most effectively when exposed to a rich environment. They must have lots of social interaction and language exposure. This leads to self awareness and understanding one’s role in society. They should have virtually limitless opportunities for physical play, imaginative play, and creativity.

This Is the Hour for Women to Arise

J. Lee Grady Newsletters - Fire In My Bones

God is calling His daughters to swallow their fears and step into a new level of faith and authority.

This week I’m ministering at Trinity Christian Centre, one of Singapore’s largest churches. It is led today by Dominic Yeo, but for 30 years it was pastored by Naomi Dowdy, a brave American missionary who grew the church from about 250 believers in 1976 to more than 4,000 members in 2005. The Pentecostal congregation has grown even larger since then, when Dowdy set Yeo into his pastoral role so she could do more traveling ministry.

Dowdy is a friend and a spiritual mother in my life. I’ve ministered with her in Malaysia, Nigeria, Venezuela, Ukraine and other countries. I’ve gleaned from her leadership skills, benefited from her counsel and been inspired by her zeal for missions. I view her as one of the planet’s best examples of a female church leader. When I consider her amazing legacy I’m grieved that we don’t have more women like her.

“I agree with the makers of the film Courageous that Christian men need to demonstrate integrity, sexual purity, family values and moral courage. But isn’t the same response needed from women?”

The primary reason we have so few Naomi Dowdys today is that the church does not encourage trained and anointed women to step into leadership. A second reason is that many women have either disqualified themselves from taking on such roles, or they aren’t willing to face the criticism that inevitably comes when a woman defies tradition.

Don’t Marry, Be Happy

by Mark Gungor

 I know that it seems like odd advice for a marriage speaker to give. But what I really mean by it is pretty simple. If you think marriage will make you happy, you are sorely mistaken. Don’t marry someone with the idea that it’s going to make you happy. When either one or both spouses head into a marriage with this thinking, it creates some of the most miserable couples out there.

Can you be happy in marriage? Absolutely. But the people who are successful and happy in their marriages are not happy because they are married. It isn’t the marriage or the person they are married to that makes them happy. They are happy and fulfilled in life apart from their marriage.

The reality is if you are looking for a man or a woman to make you happy, if you are looking to marriage for happiness, you are barking up the wrong tree. The answer to your happiness isn’t marriage. The answer isn’t another person. Some of the loneliest and most unhappy people on the planet are those with wedding rings on. Sad, but true.

All of the romance novels, chick flicks and TV shows sell the lie that the real answer to finding contentment is to find a man or woman to make you happy, but nothing could be farther from the truth. Here is what I say about this in my book Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage: A successful marriage is not the result of two empty souls finding each other in an attempt to “complete” each other. Two empty, unfulfilled souls who get married will just be a marriage of two empty, unfulfilled souls.

Sunday Sermon - 26-Feb-2012 - Ps. Sandy Haverfield

Speaker: Ps. Sandy Haverfield

http://www.mediafire.com/?wdsjk6nwvydkz1f

In Celebration of Being Single - Pastor Mark Gungor

Anger: Handle with Care

by Dr. Gary Chapman

Do find yourself over-reacting to little irritations? Your spouse forgot the milk. Your child tracked mud on the new carpet, and you explode. There is a good chance that you are suffering from stored anger. Anger that has been living inside of you for years. Your parents hurt you with harsh words or severe punishment. Your peers made fun of you as a teenager. Your boss treated you unfairly.

You've held all of these hurts inside and now your stored anger is showing up in your behavior. The bible says, "Don't let the sun go down on your anger." In my book entitled Anger, I talk about getting rid of stored anger in more detail, but here's a few helpful insights that could help you handle this powerful emotion.

Discover the Symptoms

One of the common problems I encounter in the counseling office is people who are eaten up with anger. They have been deeply hurt by others. In an effort to be good Christians, they have held their anger inside. They didn't want to explode or be unkind, so they said nothing. Anger held inside leads to bitterness, hatred, and often depression.

Many people have no idea why they are cranky, critical, and condemning. They make life hard on others and hard on themselves. Almost always, these people are filled with anger. Everything they encounter seems wrong. They read into the present what has happened to them in the past. They were hurt by parents, siblings, and others. The hurt turned to anger and the anger to a critical attitude.

Cornelius

by Max Lucado

Cornelius was an officer in the Roman army. Both Gentile and bad guy. He ate the wrong food, hung with the wrong crowd, and swore allegiance to Caesar. He didn’t quote the Torah or descend from Abraham. Uncircumcised, unkosher, unclean. Look at him.

Yet look at him again. Closely. He helped needy people and sympathized with Jewish ethics. He was kind and devout. “One who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always” (Acts 10:2 NKJV). Cornelius was even on a first-name basis with an angel. The angel told him to get in touch with Peter, who was staying at a friend’s house thirty miles away in the seaside town of Joppa. Cornelius sent three men to find him.

Peter, meanwhile, was doing his best to pray with a growling stomach. He saw a vision of a sheet that contained enough unkosher food to uncurl the payos of any Hasidic Jew. Peter absolutely and resolutely refused. “Not so, Lord! For I have never eaten anything common or unclean” (v. 14 NKJV).

But God wasn’t kidding about this. He three-peated the vision, leaving poor Peter in a quandary. Peter was pondering the pigs in the blanket when he heard a knock at the door. At the sound of the knock, he heard the call of God’s Spirit in his heart. “Behold, three men are seeking you. Arise therefore, go down and go with them, doubting nothing; for I have sent them” (vv. 19–20 NKJV).

Pursuing God in the Dead of Winter

J. Lee Grady Newsletters - Fire In My Bones

How hot is your spiritual passion when it’s 40 degrees below zero outside?

Because I grew up in Georgia’s sweltering humidity and I now live in Florida’s year-round sunshine, I am not fond of cold weather. I’d rather go barefoot in the sand than trudge through snow in heavy boots. To me, it’s “cold” when I have to wear anything heavier than a T-shirt and shorts, or if I have to cover the Sago palm in my front yard with a plastic sheet on a chilly Florida evening.

But because I told God a long time ago I would go wherever He sends me, I ended up in the Canadian city of Saskatoon two weeks ago. It was minus 40 degrees F on my first night there. Snow was piled everywhere, and the Saskatchewan River was frozen solid, yet my hosts told me this was a “mild” winter. Locals, who start their cars 10 minutes before going anywhere to warm their engines, joke that there are four seasons in Saskatchewan: “Almost winter,” “winter,” “still winter” and “road construction.”

“God honors spiritual hunger because it is a sign of humility. He does not reveal Himself to casual inquirers; He looks for fervent pursuers—people who are willing to go the extra mile to find Him.”

We had a renewal service planned for a Friday night, and I wondered if anyone would be brave enough to venture out in that freezing weather. (I would have hibernated until late March.) But not only did these people from Saskatoon come to receive a word from God, one pastor and his family drove from a town three hours north.

The Value of Loneliness

R.T. Kendall

In May 1984 Billy Graham spoke at Westminster Chapel. His subject was “loneliness.” He took his text from a strange verse; Psalm 102:6, in the King James Version, in which the psalmist likens himself to an owl in the desert. Graham definitely hit a nerve! There are so many people today who are lonely.

Loneliness is a painful condition, a dreaded state that, given the choice, most people would do anything to avoid. It is enforced solitude.

There is obviously a significant difference between enforced solitude and chosen solitude. Some of us appreciate the bliss of solitude. Jesus needed to get away from the crowds, and there are some who, by nature, are loners; they love it that way. My friend Robert Amess calls himself “the complete loner,” but he is not lonely.

Enforced solitude is another matter. It may be that you are confined to one place or one room. Or, in the case of social isolation, you have few or no friends. “Webster’s Dictionary” says that “loneliness” means “sad from being alone.” It occurs when you have no one to share your hurts or joys with.

You may spend time with people, and that is good as far as it goes. But you are sad the whole time because you know that, in a few moments, in a very little while, they will go back to their homes — some to their wives, some to their husbands. You, on the other hand, will go back to your lonely place and turn on the television.

Worship Roster - 26 February 2012 - Communion

CM : Tom Cheryan
WL : Wong Kai Yew
BU : Ng Siew Pin, Shankar R, Gigi Lim
PN : Lydia Sim
SY : Jacinta Lee
LG : Chew Weng Ern
BG : Terry Choong
DR : Kenneth Lai
TM : Joycelyn / Lareina / Colleen
LCD : Joseph Yap
PA : Tommy Quek, Jason

*as per hardcopy printout

Sunday Sermon - 19-Feb-2012 - Dr. Siow Kim Woon

Speaker: Dr. Siow Kim Woon
White Fields Assembly Seremban

http://www.mediafire.com/?4bii7k272mk90bq

The Shadow of a Doubt

by Max Lucado

Sunday mornings. I awake early, long before the family stirs, the sunrise flickers, or the paper plops on the driveway. Let the rest of the world sleep in. I don’t. Sunday’s my big day, the day I stand before a congregation of people who are willing to swap thirty minutes of their time for some conviction and hope.

Most weeks I have ample to go around. But occasionally I don’t. (Does it bother you to know this?) Sometimes in the dawn-tinted, pre-pulpit hours, the seeming absurdity of what I believe hits me. The fear that God isn’t. The fear that “why?” has no answer. The valley of the shadow of doubt.

To one degree or another we all venture into the valley. In the final pages of Luke’s gospel, the physician-turned-historian dedicated his last chapter to answering one question: how does Christ respond when we doubt him?

For both the dejected Emmaus bound disciples (Luke 24:13-35) and the frightened upper room disciples (Luke 24:36-49): A meal is served, the Bible is taught, the disciples find courage, and we find two practical answers to the critical question, what would Christ have us do with our doubts?

Whitney Houston and the Silent Shame of Addiction

J. Lee Grady Newsletters - Fire In My Bones

The pop diva’s death should remind us of an uncomfortable reality: People in church take drugs.

Anyone who has listened to Whitney Houston’s rendition of “I Love the Lord”—or who saw her perform with CeCe Winans and Shirley Caesar at the 1996 Grammy Awards—knows she had an incomparable voice best suited for gospel music. But Whitney chose a broader path: When the doors opened for her to make a pop album in the 1980s, it became the all-time best-selling debut album by a female artist. She became America’s diva.

But all her worldly success didn’t help her overcome her personal demons. Her stormy marriage was marred by domestic violence. She admitted in the 1990s that she took cocaine every day. She tried rehab three times over the course of eight years. Her voice was so damaged by her drug habit that people walked out of her comeback concert in London in 2010. She became a pathetic shell of her former self.

“Whitney Houston was not the only person who talked about Jesus yet struggled privately with cocaine or other illegal drugs. I frequently meet men and women at church altars who have never found the strength to kick their habit.” 

Christians in the music industry reached out to Whitney and prayed with her during her up-and-down battle with addictions. But the drugs had a powerful pull. In 2006, a photo was released of her bathroom sink in Atlanta filled with crack pipes, drug paraphernalia, cigarettes and beer cans. Even after she divorced Bobby Brown in 2007, the downward spiral continued.

Control Is Not a Four-Letter Word

by Mark Gungor 

Control is not a bad word. It’s not a bad thing. Yet in our culture today, people treat it as is if it is a cuss word. Many think it’s a horrible insult and freak out when someone accuses them of trying to control something. Frankly, I just don’t understand it.

Here is a scenario to help illustrate what I’m talking about: A wife is texting and emailing very personal, sexually charged and inappropriate things back and forth with a guy from work. She is also meeting this guy alone for coffee and lunch. When her husband talks to her and challenges her on this, she fires back, “You can’t tell me who I can be friends with and what I can and can’t do! You are just trying to control me!” And then he feels bad and backs down.

Or maybe it’s a husband who goes out drinking and partying with his friends several nights a week till the wee hours of dawn and when his wife confronts him, he shouts ”You are a control freak! You can’t tell me when I can come and go in my own house!” Then she thinks she’s wrong and just lets it go because she surely doesn’t want to be controlling. Are you kidding me?!

I am stunned at how many people in bad marriages just shut up and empower the other person because they fear the charge of being a controller. Whenever you have a badly behaving spouse, there is always an enabler who is weak and insecure and all the badly behaving spouse has to do is accuse the weaker one of being controlling, jealous or insecure, and they win.

FG+ Convergence Camp

https://www.facebook.com/fgplusconvergence

http://fgconvergence.weebly.com/

Worship Roster - 19 February 2012

CM : Tan Hong Lu
WL : Terry Choong
BU : Tan Hong Lu, Chow Foong Yee, Joycelyn Choong
PN : Priscilla Sim
SY :
LG :
BG : Anna Sim
DR : Darren Oi
TM : Joycelyn / Lareina / Colleen
LCD : Moses Tan, Bryan Tan
PA : Manjit

*as per hardcopy printout

Sunday Sermon - 12-Feb-2012

Speaker: Bro. Chin Teng Lum
White Fields Assembly Seremban / Youth With A Mission (YWAM)

http://www.mediafire.com/?xs8461jvkuhme9b

Take Up Your Cross

by Max Lucado

The phrase “take up your cross” has not fared well through the generations. Ask for a definition, and you’ll hear answers like, “My cross is my mother-in-law, my job, my bad marriage, my cranky boss, or the dull preacher.” The cross, we assume, is any besetting affliction or personal hassle. My thesaurus agrees. It lists the following synonyms for cross: frustration, trying situation, snag, hitch, and drawback.

The cross means so much more. It is God’s tool of redemption, instrument of salvation—proof of his love for people. To take up the cross, then, is to take up Christ’s burden for the people of the world.

Though our crosses are similar, none are identical. “If any of you want to be my followers, you must forget about yourself. You must take up your cross each day and follow me” (Luke 9:23 CEV, emphasis mine).

We each have our own cross to carry—our individual calling. Discover your God-designed task. It fits. It matches your passions and enlists your gifts and talents. Want to blow the cloud cover off your gray day? Accept God’s direction.

“The Lord has assigned to each his task” (1 Corinthians3:5 NIV). What is yours? What is your unique call, assignment, mission? A trio of questions might help.

In what directions has God taken you?

What needs has God revealed to you?

What abilities has God given to you?

Direction. Need. Ability. Your spiritual DNA. You at your best. You and your cross.

While none of us is called to carry the sin of the world (Jesus did that), all of us can carry a burden for the world.

Check your vital signs. Something stirs you. Some call brings energy to your voice, conviction to your face, and direction to your step. Isolate and embrace it. Nothing gives a day a greater chance than a good wallop of passion.

From: Great Day Every Day: Navigating Life’s Challenges with Promise and Purpose

Copyright (Thomas Nelson, 2012) Max Lucado

Previously published as 'Every Day Deserves a Chance'

Phoney Rabbis, Lost Discernment and the Eddie Long Disaster

J. Lee Grady Newsletters - Fire In My Bones

Why did people applaud Bishop Long’s bizarre “coronation” in Atlanta?

Question of the week: What should you do when a megachurch pastor is accused of serious financial and/or sexual misconduct?

A. Ask the pastor to step down so he or she can receive ministry, and then conduct a thorough investigation. 

B. Flatly deny all allegations and wait until the storm blows over.

C. Use church funds to pay off the people who made the sex abuse accusations.

D. Ask a guest preacher to call the pastor to the stage, wrap him in a 312-year-old Torah scroll and ask an “expert” in Old Testament language to declare him a “king” so he can be exonerated of all wrongdoing.

“True restoration requires a lengthy process of repentance, restitution and inner healing. If we practiced biblical restoration on a wide scale, the cancer of immorality that is eating the church alive today would go into remission.”

Until Jan. 29, when Bishop Eddie Long of Atlanta was coronated on the stage of New Birth Baptist Church in front of thousands of his congregants, I would never have dreamed of option D in the list above. I thought I had seen it all. Yet the odd ritual (I hesitate to call it a “Jewish ceremony”) performed by Denver minister Ralph Messer is now officially the most bizarre religious video ever posted on YouTube. (If you are one of the 16 people in the world who have never seen it, click here.)

Apologies: Because People Aren't Perfect

by Dr. Gary Chapman

When is the last time you apologized? What did you say or do? Did the person to whom you apologized seem to accept your apology? Did they forgive you? Was the relationship healed? If not, I have an idea as to why they found it hard to forgive you. They did not hear your apology as being sincere.

When someone hurts us and is now trying to apologize, the question in our minds is: are they sincere? We judge sincerity by how they apologize. If they simply say, "I'm sorry," that may seem a bit weak. We may want to hear them say, "I was wrong. Will you please forgive me?" There are five ways to apologize. If you speak only one, you will likely come across as insincere.

Apology 101

Do you know how to apologize? Chances are you do what your parents taught you, but that may not be enough. Dr. Jennifer Thomas and I discovered that people have different ideas on what it means to apologize. In fact there are five languages of apology. If you don't speak the right language you are not likely to have a favorable response.

If you aren't sure how to apologize, consider saying this: "I value our relationship. What do I need to do or say in order for you to consider forgiving me?" Their answer will reveal their 'primary apology language'. Express your apology in that language and will likely receive forgiveness.

Worship Roster - 12 February 2012 - Communion

CM : Siow Kim Woon
WL : Shankar R
BU : Peggy Tan, Jacquelina Lim, Colleen Chang
PN : Christopher Lai
SY :
LG : Chew Weng Ern
BG : Kenneth Lai
DR : Wong Kai Yew
TM : Joycelyn / Lareina / Colleen
LCD : Timothy
PA : Hiew FF, Jeremiah

*as per hardcopy printout

Sunday Sermon - 5-Feb-2012 - Bro Andrew Kok

Speaker: Bro. Andrew Kok
Malaysian Fellowship President, Moscow

http://www.mediafire.com/?s3lvzx07qw43p44

How to Win ANY Battle in Life - 2

by Steve Arterburn

The Choice of Humble Willingness
Those who are both humble and willing realize they do not have all the answers, and they are willing to do whatever it takes to find them. This place of humility allows them to seek help from others and shift their reliance from themselves to God.

Proverbs 3:5-7 tells us to not lean on our own understanding and to not be wise in our own eyes. A humble willingness to do whatever it takes, to reach out and get the help that is needed is a sign of character and strength. It is the beginning of the path to the victory circle. But to get there you have to allow God to use your struggle to teach you to rely less on your own resources and totally on Him.

Over the years I have watched people reach this crucial point where they are willing to do whatever it takes, and I have watched everything in their lives turn around. I have also seen those who reach the point and turn and run in the opposite direction. The biggest reason is that they are unwilling to make a bold move toward healing.

You can't just declare yourself a winner. You have to heal the things that are preventing you from having victory. The biggest reason you have lost the battle is that you have relied on your own strength, trying to win on your own.

Automatic vs. Intentional

by Mark Gungor

When you first start out dating, and then in the early stages of marriage, most of the relationship is automatic. You are running off of emotions and hormones that drive each of you to be nice, be considerate, spend time together, and tend to one another. But eventually, marriage happens, life kicks in, kids come along and things change.

Most people think that the early stages of love—that chemically induced time of bliss and ease—will continue indefinitely. After all, they are “in love” and have found “the one” that will make the rest of their days as euphoric as the honeymoon phase.

But that’s not the way it works. The reality is this automatic phase is short-term (lasting six months to a couple of years) and when it fades away your marriage and your sex life must happen on purpose. You have date night on purpose. You plan to have sex on purpose. You make time for each other on purpose. Couples who don’t make the transition from automatic to intentional have marriages that suffer the most.

This is especially true when you become new parents. Now there is this new little creature that has come into your lives who consumes inordinate amounts of time and energy. Add another child or two and it’s easy to see how the auto-pilot can fly out the window. Couples start to struggle during this season of new responsibility because things aren’t as easy as they once were. They don’t have the time or they are too tired and often this is when husbands and wives will begin to think that the marriage isn’t working, or that it’s over.

Does your child feel loved?

by Dr. Gary Chapman

Nearly all parents deeply love their children, yet not all children feel that unconditional love and care. Why this contradiction? Often, parents assume that their kids just "know" they love them, or that saying "I love you" will be enough. But children are behaviorally motivated. They respond to actions-what you do with them. So to reach them, you must love them on their terms.

Sometimes parents don't feel especially loving if they've had a discouraging day. But you can behave in a loving way, because behavior is simple. You can give your love to your children, even when you don't feel loving.

You may wonder if your children can see right through you. Since your children are exquisitely sensitive emotionally, they know when you don't feel loving, and yet they experience your love behaviorally. Don't you think they are even more grateful and appreciative when you're able to be loving, no matter how you feel inside?

It was the apostle John who wrote, "Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth" (1 John 3:18). If you began to list all the behavioral ways to love a child, I doubt that you could fill more than one page. That is fine because you want to keep it simple-behavioral expressions of love can simply be divided into five categories: physical touch, quality time, gifts, acts of service, and words of affirmation. To uncover your child's love language, visit 5lovelanguages.com.

A word of caution, though. If your child is under age five, don't expect to figure out his primary love language. You can't. The child may give you clues, but his love language is rarely clearly seen. Just speak all five languages because they all converge to meet your child's need for love. If that need is met and your child genuinely feels loved, it will be far easier for him to learn and respond in other areas. This love interfaces with all other needs a child has. Also, speak all five languages when your child is older, for he needs all five to grow, even though he craves one more than the others.

Continue the conversation: Share your questions, thoughts insights, or comments by joining the conversation on Facebook at facebook.com/5lovelanguages

Peace for Anxious Days

by Max Lucado

When my daughters were single-digit ages—two, five, and seven—I wowed them with a miracle. I told them the story of Moses and the manna and invited them to follow me on a wilderness trek through the house.

“Who knows,” I suggested, “manna may fall from the sky again.”

We dressed in sheets and sandals and did our best Bedouin hike through the bedrooms. The girls, on my instruction, complained to me, Moses, of hunger and demanded I take them back to Egypt, or at least to the kitchen. When we entered the den, I urged them to play up their parts: groan, moan, and beg for food.

“Look up,” I urged. “Manna might fall any minute.”

Two-year-old Sara obliged with no questions, but Jenna and Andrea had their doubts. How can manna fall from a ceiling?

Just like the Hebrews. “How can God feed us in the wilderness?”

Just like you? You look at tomorrow’s demands, next week’s bills, next month’s silent calendar. Your future looks as barren as the Sinai Desert. “How can I face my future?” God tells you what I told my daughters: “Look up.”

When my daughters did, manna fell! Well, not manna, but vanilla wafers dropped from the ceiling and landed on the carpet. Sara squealed with delight and started munching. Jenna and Andrea were old enough to request an explanation.

My answer was simple. I knew the itinerary. I knew we would enter this room. Vanilla wafers fit safely on the topside of the ceiling-fan blades. I had placed them there in advance. When they groaned and moaned, I turned on the switch.

God’s answer to the Hebrews was similar. Did he know their itinerary? Did he know they would grow hungry? Yes and yes. And at the right time, he tilted the manna basket toward earth.

And what about you? God know what you need and where you’ll be. Any chance he has some vanilla wafers on tomorrow’s ceiling fans? Trust him. “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes” (Matthew 6:33-34).

From:

Great Day Every Day: Navigating Life’s Challenges with Promise and Purpose

Copyright (Thomas Nelson, 2012) Max Lucado

Previously published as: Every Day Deserves a Chance

Please Stop the Holy Ghost Smackdown

J. Lee Grady Newsletters - Fire In My Bones

Do you want the real power of the Holy Spirit? Then don’t pretend by pushing people to the floor when you pray.

I love it when the Holy Spirit shows up in church gatherings. Whenever sinners are converted, backsliders repent, bodies are healed or self-centered believers are broken by God, we see evidence of the Spirit’s work. But I don’t appreciate it when people fabricate spiritual manifestations to prove God is using them.

A few years ago a popular charismatic preacher spoke at a meeting I attended at a church in Orlando, Fla. After his message he asked all ordained ministers to run to the platform so he could lay hands on them. Immediately this man’s team of beefy bodyguards began grabbing people, dragging them onto the stage and holding them in place until the evangelist could pray for everyone.

“We seem to have become masters of mixing the anointing with other ingredients. The charismatic movement has become an embarrassing mixture of flesh and spirit.”

I felt queasy about this spectacle. It resembled a charismatic version of World Wrestling Entertainment: lots of smacking noises, falling bodies and cheers from the excited crowd. We Christians seem to love a good show, even if it is staged!

I cringed as I watched the bizarre theatrics. But before I could move to the side of the auditorium, one of the evangelist’s 220-pound goons strong-armed me onto the platform. When I looked up, the wild-eyed preacher was heading toward me with his arms flailing. I tried to duck, but when he got close enough he shouted “in the name of Jesus” and slapped me across the face. I tumbled to the floor.

8 Myths (and Truths) About Male Authority - 2

 by Joel Hunter

SO WHO ARE WE? 8 TRUTHS ABOUT MALE AUTHORITY

Being real men is not just about gender; it is about spiritual maturity in all areas of life. Therefore, manhood is about our calling and not about any competition with women.

Truth #1: We have a gender-unique leadership role in our marriages. 1 Corinthians 11:3 says: “But there is one thing I want you to know: A man is responsible to Christ, a woman is responsible to her husband, and Christ is responsible to God” (NLT). Then, in verse 8 it says: “For the first man didn't come from woman, but the first woman came from man.” I don't know why God made this arrangement. In many ways our wives are more competent than we are. Wise men will lean on their wives to decide many things for the family. In the end, it is not a matter of competence or even gender; it is a matter of following God's order.

When I was in grade school, my desk was closest to the door. That made me the leader for fire drills. Why was I the leader? Because I was more competent? No. Because I was a boy? No. It was because the teacher said so.

Truth #2: We are to love our wives as Christ loved the church and give ourselves up for her. Our authority is for sacrificing and protecting our wives, not for lording power over them. We don't need to be less strong to be a servant, nor do we need for our wives to be weak so that we can appear strong.

Worship Roster - 5 February 2012

CM : Liong Kam Chong
WL : Priscilla Sim
BU : Chow Foong Yee, Christopher Lai, Lydia Sim
PN : Jocelyn Lee
SY : Jacinta Lee
LG :
BG : Darren Oi
DR : Anna Sim
TM : Joycelyn / Lareina / Colleen
LCD : Joseph Yap
PA : Tommy Quek, Jason

*as per hardcopy printout

Sunday Sermon - 29-Jan-2012 - Bro Andrew Loh

Speaker: Bro. Andrew Loh

http://www.mediafire.com/?k6qq14i54qowsq5

How to Win ANY Battle in Life - 1

by Steve Arterburn

You've tried it your way and failed. Don't give up! Choose to stay in the game and see how God even takes our mistakes and builds them into our greatest victories.

How many times have we heard this one: “It doesn't matter if you win or lose, it's how you play the game that counts.” Some of us realized winning meant a lot when we noticed that the guys who got the girls were the ones who won the starting positions on the team. Even if how they played the game was anything but nice, they still won and got the girls.

Go out in life thinking that winning does not matter and you will be very disappointed. Winning matters a lot. 

Winners get the best stuff. The world talks about and celebrates winners, while it shuns the loser who seems to not have what it takes or has it for a while and then loses it. Few can tell you who raced in the Indianapolis 500 in any given year. The winners are the ones that count.

Your Personal Battles 

Everybody struggles with something and battles it day after day. Your main battle might be overeating, pornography, drinking, anger, depression or one of many other things that could have been tripping you up, perhaps for years.

Third Culture Kids' Friendships - final

by Diane Constantine

Now let’s consider other effects of multiple losses on relationships:

1. They may struggle with a fear of intimacy because they fear loss.

2. They may erect walls to keep relationships from going to the third and fourth levels of communication, even without realizing it.

3. They may limit their vulnerability to impending grief by refusing to acknowledge they care for anyone or anything. This can cause the profound pain of isolation if not dealt with.

4. They may have a 'quick release' when separation is impending. They quit calling or getting together before it is actually necessary, so as to avoid pain. Then they may wonder why the other is upset for 'abandoning'  them.

5. They may pick fights. To them it seems more comfortable to be angry than sad.

6. They may just completely refuse to say goodbye. 

I think I have seen some of those effects with my own TCKs and those of friends. They find friends at home shallow and parochial in their thinking. Years as a TCK have made one a good communicator, able to capitalize on other's needs and interests. For that skill, he is highly esteemed in his work. He can talk to anyone about almost anything they want to discuss, and do it well. 

Others make lots of acquaintances, but have difficulty maintaining long-term relationships. They want friends, but it takes more time and work to develop them.

God Runs Toward You

by Max Lucado

Brighten your day by envisioning God running toward you.

When his patriarchs trusted, God blessed. When Peter preached or Paul wrote or Thomas believed, God smiled. But he never ran.

That verb was reserved for the story of the prodigal son. “But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.” (Luke 15:20 NKJV)

God runs when he sees the son coming home from the pig trough. When the addict steps out of the alley. When the teen walks away from the party. When the ladder-climbing executive pushes back from the desk, the spiritist turns from idols, the materialist from stuff, the atheist from disbelief, and the elitist from self-promotion…

When prodigals trudge up the path, God can’t sit still. Heaven’s throne room echoes with the sound of slapping sandals and pounding feet, and angels watch in silence as God embraces his child.

You turn toward God, and he runs toward you. 

From: Great Day Every Day: Navigating Life’s Challenges with Promise and Purpose

Copyright (Thomas Nelson, 2012) Max Lucado

Previously published as 'Every Day Deserves a Chance'

Song : Phillips, Craig & Dean - When God Ran

The Desperate Cry of Africa’s Women

J. Lee Grady Newsletters - Fire In My Bones

It is time for the church in Africa—and throughout the world—to address abuse and injustice against women and girls.

After spending last week in the city of Masindi, Uganda, I traveled to Uganda’s capital, Kampala, to address a women’s conference. After my first session a woman named Florence grabbed me and began to tell her painful story.

She had given birth to five girls during her marriage. But when her girls were small, her husband decided to leave Florence because she had not produced a son. He blamed her (I guess he didn’t know a man’s sperm determines the gender of a child) and he said she had shamed him by having only girls. He sold the family house, evicted his wife and daughters and gave them no money for food or school fees. Then he married again and started a new family. He got two boys and another daughter out of the deal.

“My dream is that the church—not only in Africa but throughout the world—will stop playing in the shallow waters of feel-good, me-centered Christianity and decide to apply the gospel of Christ to the injustices of the world.”

Florence was not depressed when she shared her sad history. She wore a colorful African dress and had a bright smile on her face as she told me how Jesus had been faithful to care for her after she was abandoned. “I had to learn to pray,” she told me. “But today my girls are blessed and my oldest just finished her university education.”

8 Myths (and Truths) About Male Authority - 1

by Joel Hunter

God has given men a unique role as leaders of our homes and families. But how do we reconcile this in a culture that has become reactionary against men exercising biblical authority?

We live in a society that is pushing for male sensitivity and female strength. That's fine. But much of the current societal norms are a reaction to a perverted idea of God-given male authority. If men could understand the authority God gives to them, they would not have to surrender to the culture's emasculation of their role. If wives could understand their husbands' roles, they would see that support of their husbands' leadership would make themselves more free and secure, not less.

Many Christian men today are wimps. They hate themselves for it, and women do not respect them because of it. So, let me remind you of eight ways that our culture perverts the biblical understanding of male authority … then we will see the list of how a “real man” exercises his authority.

Myth #1: Male authority means male dominance. Men must understand that mature masculinity in Scripture has to do with our strength to serve and sacrifice for the good of the woman. Luke 22:26 gives the general servant-leadership paradigm: “'But among you, those who are the greatest should take the lowest rank, and the leader should be like a servant'” (NLT). Ephesians 5:25 gives the home version of it: “And you husbands must love your wives with the same love Christ showed the church.”

Don't Take It from Me: Reasons You Should Not Marry an Unbeliever

by Kathy Keller

Over the course of our ministry, the most common pastoral issue that Tim and I have confronted is probably marriages---either actual or proposed---between Christians and non-Christians. I have often thought how much simpler it would be if I could remove myself from the conversation and invite those already married to unbelievers do the talking to singles who are desperately trying to find a loophole that would allow them to marry someone who does not share their faith.

That way, I could skip all the Bible passages that urge singles only to "marry in the Lord" (1 Corinthians 7:39) and not "be unequally yoked" (2 Corinthians 6:14) and the Old Testament proscriptions against marrying the foreigner, a worshiper of a god other than the God of Israel (see Numbers 12 where Moses marries a woman of another race but the same faith). You can find those passages in abundance, but when someone has already allowed his or her heart to become engaged with a person outside the faith, I find that the Bible has already been devalued as the non-negotiable rule of faith and practice.

Worship Roster - 29 January 2012 - Communion

CM : Caleb R
WL : Peggy Tan
BU : Ng Siew Pin, Shankar R, Gigi Lim
PN : Lydia Sim
SY :
LG : Chew Weng Ern
BG : Terry Choong
DR : Wong Kai Yew
TM : Joycelyn / Lareina / Colleen
LCD : Moses Tan, Bryan Tan
PA : Manjit

*as per hardcopy printout

Sunday Sermon - 22-Jan-2012 - Ps. Dr. Solomon Abraham

Speaker: Ps. Dr. Solomon Abraham
Grace Assembly of God, Petaling Jaya

http://www.mediafire.com/?d3d7vv855tccv0c

Patience: Because People Aren't Perfect

by Dr. Gary Chapman

In Western culture, we are not trained to be patient. We get irritated just waiting for the computer to boot up. We are also impatient with people who don't operate on our time table. Or waitresses who bring us the wrong order. And yet, patience is one of the traits of love. To be loving is to be patient. In a nutshell: patience is accepting the imperfections of others.

Patience begins by recognizing that people are not machines. They have thoughts, feelings, and they make decisions. Those decisions do not always please us, but we must give them the same freedom that God gives them. To condemn your son for not going to college will not have a positive effect on his life. Step back, and give him freedom to be human.

Isolation is not Patience

Patience does not mean that we do nothing when others are upset with us. I've known people who will sit stone-faced and listen to the ranting and raving of their spouse and then get up and walk out of the room with no comment. This is not patience it is isolation. It is self-centeredness.

Patience is caring enough to listen empathetically with a view to understanding what is going on inside the other person. Such listening requires time and is itself an expression of love. Patience might mean remaining calm when what the other person is saying is hurtful. Patience says, "I care enough that no matter what you say or how you say it, I will listen and try to understand.

Positive Patience

When I become impatient, lose my temper, and spout condemning words to my wife, I have become an enemy, not a friend. So, she will likely fight the enemy or flee from the enemy. So, we have a royal argument that no one wins, and both of us walk away wounded, and try to avoid each other the next few days. All because I was impatient.

On the other hand, had I been patient, I would have asked questions in an effort to understand my wife's behavior. Once I understand what motivated her behavior, I'm more likely to have a reasoned response. I am now her friend and she responds positively to a friend. The whole atmosphere remains positive because I chose to be patient.

GET SOCIAL: Share your questions, thoughts insights, or comments by joining the conversation on Facebook at facebook.com/5lovelanguages

God Listens

by Max Lucado

You can talk to God because God listens. Your voice matters in heaven. He takes you very seriously. When you enter his presence, the attendants turn to you to hear your voice. No need to fear that you will be ignored. Even if you stammer or stumble, even if what you have to say impresses no one, it impresses God—and he listens. He listens to the painful plea of the elderly in the rest home. He listens to the gruff confession of the death-row inmate. When the alcoholic begs for mercy, when the spouse seeks guidance, when the businessman steps off the street into the chapel, God listens.

Intently. Carefully. The prayers are honored as precious jewels. Purified and empowered, the words rise in a delightful fragrance to our Lord. “The smoke from the incense went up from the angel’s hand to God.” Incredible. Your words do not stop until they reach the very throne of God.

Then, the angel “filled the incense pan with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth” (Rev. 8:5). One call and Heaven’s fleet appears. Your prayer on earth activates God’s power in heaven, and “God’s will is done on earth as it is in heaven.”

You are the someone of God’s kingdom. You have access to God’s furnace. Your prayers move God to change the world. You may not understand the mystery of prayer. You don’t need to. But this much is clear: Actions in heaven begin when someone prays on earth. What an amazing thought!

When you speak, Jesus hears.

And when Jesus hears, thunder falls.

And when thunder falls, the world is changed.

All because someone prayed.

From: Lucado Inspirational Reader

Copyright (Thomas Nelson, 2011) Max Lucado

Why I Refuse to Give Up on the Local Church

J. Lee Grady - Fire In My Bones

This is not a time for gloom and doom. The church can shine its brightest in a dark hour.

When my friend Ferrell Hardison moved to the town of Princeton, N.C., in 1990, he began pastoring a Pentecostal church with 70 people. Founded in 1918, it was a tired, aging congregation with a tiny budget. Ferrell was the 25th pastor to lead the church, and some of his predecessors had stayed only a year or two. Not exactly a young pastor’s dream job!

Today, the church has a new name—The Bridge—and it has grown to 1,250 in weekly attendance. Last fall the vibrant congregation broke ground on a new worship center, and they’ve planted a satellite congregation in the town of Goldsboro, N.C., that already has 300 members. A large percentage of the church’s $2.6 million annual budget is marked for outreach, and Ferrell estimates that at least 3,000 people have come to Christ through their ministry in recent years.

“Because of this pervasive negativity, many Christians have settled into a gloomy cynicism. They think America is ripe for judgment (Haven’t we been for decades?) and that we might as well shut the blinds, curl up on the couch and wait for the rapture.”

“In a down economy, our giving has been up,” Hardison told me. “We have discovered that people give when they understand how their giving changes lives for eternity.”

Worship Roster - 22 January 2012

*tomorrow is Chinese New Year

CM : Tom Cheryan
WL : Chow Foong Yee
BU : Tan Hong Lu, Colleen Chang, Lareina Chang
PN : Priscilla Sim
SY :
LG :
BG : Anna Sim
DR : Kenneth Lai
TM : Joycelyn / Lareina / Colleen
LCD : Timothy
PA : Hiew FF, Jeremiah

*as per hardcopy printout

Sunday Sermon - 15-Jan-2012 - Bro Patrick Cheng

Speaker: Bro. Patrick Cheng
Senior Executive Secretary, NECF

http://www.mediafire.com/?bd19co0t6bai7h2

Third Culture Kids' Friendships - part 2

by Diane Constantine

Pollock and Reken describe the various levels of communication as people get to know each other. While this happens in different ways in various cultures, here is one common pattern for how relationships are established.

1. Superficial level:

This involves conversation generally referred to as "small talk"--How are you? Where are you from? The weather or today's headlines.

2. "Still safe" level:

This is an exchange of no-risk facts. Where did you go on vacation last year? What sights did you see?

3. Judgmental level:

Here, we begin to risk a few statements about our opinions on politics, religion, or other matters about which our new friend might disagree with us.

4. Emotional level:

We begin sharing how we feel about life, ourselves, and others (e.g., that we're sad, happy, worried, or depressed).

5. Disclosure level: 

We reveal our most private thoughts and feelings to another person, confessing secret dreams as well as painful failures. This stage involves an honesty and vulnerability that leads to true intimacy. Most of us only have a few people in our lives with whom we share at this level. Some people have no one to share such a place.

“You Say You Want a Revolution?” – the Beatles

by Mark Gungor

We need a revolution. When I grew up in the 60’s, young people rebelled against materialism and morality. We said “Enough!!” and fought back against the establishment – an establishment we regarded as corrupt and clueless. When it came to a war we thought unjust we chanted, “Hell no, we won’t go!!” When it came to materialism we said, “We don’t want it!!”, and walked about with no shoes and holes in our jeans. And when it came to traditional morality, we rejected it and gave ourselves to free sex, drugs and rock and roll. It had an enduring impact on our nation. And while the rejection of materialism was a positive reminder that there are more important things to life than possessions, the plunge into immorality has been devastating.

Today, four decades later, as I look at the Evangelical Christian Church (now as a pastor, husband, father and grandfather) I can’t help but believe we are in need of another revolution. This time, however, we need a revolution among Christian young people – those who will go against the narcissistic thinking of their unspiritual Christian parents, a thinking that only leads to selfishness, materialism and a high divorce rate.

Our Christian young people are being destroyed today by a culture of sexual impurity – a poisonous trend that is not taken seriously enough by their clueless parents. Our daughters rarely lay claim to being virgins on their wedding night and we have helped to produce an entire generation of young men who are porn addicts. Our divorce rates are skyrocketing and, as a result, our grandchildren are being traumatized.

The Stand-off

by Dr. Gary Chapman

It only takes one person to break the silence. Have you been standing off, refusing to give in and call, waiting for your spouse to make the first move? Why wait? An effort to communicate that you care, that you are open to working on the relationship may be all that it takes to get the process going.

"He failed me. Why should I try to reconcile with him?" That line of reasoning is perfectly normal, but not biblical. In Matthew 18, Jesus instructs us to reach out to those who have sinned against us and seek reconcile. If they won't turn from their sin, then we take someone with us and lovingly confront them again. If they still refuse to talk with us, then we turn them over to God. We pray for them. We seek to win them by the love of Christ in us.

Reconciliation is hard in any relationship, and it's even harder in marriage. But God is good. He offers healing. If you and your spouse have been separated in the past but are now reconciled, share an encouraging story for others who may be in that situation right now.

GET SOCIAL: Share your questions, thoughts insights, or comments by joining the conversation on Facebook at facebook.com/5lovelanguages

Everything You Need

by Max Lucado

Are you hoping that a change in circumstances will bring a change in your attitude? If so, you are in prison, and you need to learn a secret of traveling light.

What you have in your Shepherd is greater than what you don’t have in life.

May I meddle for a moment? What is the one thing separating you from joy? How do you fill in this blank: “I will be happy when ________________”? When I am healed. When I am promoted. When I am married. When I am single. When I am rich. How would you finish that statement?

Now, with your answer firmly in mind, answer this. If your ship never comes in, if your dream never comes true, if the situation never changes, could you be happy? If not, then you are sleeping in the cold cell of discontent. You are in prison. And you need to know what you have in your Shepherd.

You have a God who hears you, the power of love behind you, the Holy Spirit within you, and all of heaven ahead of you. If you have the Shepherd, you have grace for every sin, direction for every turn, a candle for every corner, and an anchor for every storm. You have everything you need.

From: Lucado Inspirational Reader

Copyright (Thomas Nelson, 2011) Max Lucado

Seven Tips To Raising Godly Children

Seven Tips To Raising Godly Children

1. Love them with all your heart

(Titus 2:4 - that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children,)

The love you have for your child will make an incalculable impact on his or her life. It will help your child develop the proper sense of self worth. They will carry it with them even when you make a mistake or they do. Without true love for your child, he or she will be handicap in life. It will be harder for them to love others; to have a proper relationship with others. It will also give them a distorted view of God since our love is based on His.

2. Teach them God’s Word

(Deut. 6:6-9 - 6 “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.)

The surest way to raise a good child is to teach them the Good Book. Even from the womb babies ought to be taught the Bible; it is a habit to form early on. As they grow the lessons and material can be adjusted to suit their needs. If parents wait until their children are 10, 12, 0r 14, it is way too late. In fact, from my observations and what others tell me, if you wait much beyond the first year or two a great deal is lost that may never be recovered.

Don’t Limit God With Little Prayers

J. Lee Grady Newsletters - Fire In My Bones   

When I stepped into 2012, God challenged me to pray big—and to expect the unexpected.

Right before Christmas my wife and I took our youngest daughter out to dinner to celebrate her grades from her third semester in college. When we got home I sent out a tweet about the dinner, and mentioned the name of the restaurant. (Hint: It’s a popular national chain that serves Italian food—and it has the best bread sticks in the world.)

I didn’t think anything about the tweet. I was just sharing personal news about Charlotte’s accomplishments. But the next morning I got a private message from the restaurant, thanking me for the “advertising” and informing me that they were sending me a $100 gift card.

“Are you willing for God to overwhelmingly surprise you by doing something bigger than you ever expected? If you are, you may need to change the way you are praying.”

I don’t play the lottery, don’t enter sweepstakes and can’t think of another time when I won a monetary prize. So I was skeptical when I got the message—and wondered if it was a scam. But in a couple of days the gift card showed up in my mailbox. And after Christmas I took my wife, our daughters and their husbands out for a free meal.

Shortly after I got the card I was jogging near my house, and I had an intriguing conversation with the Lord. It went something like this:

Worship Roster - 15 January 2012 - Communion

CM : Tna Hong Lu
WL : Wong Kai Yew
BU : Ng Siew Pin, Shankar R. Gigi Lim
PN : Jocelyn Lee
SY : Jacinta Lee
LG : Chew Weng Ern
BG : Terry Choong
DR : Darren Oi
TM : Joycelyn / Lareina / Colleen
LCD : Joseph Yap
PA : Tommy Quek, Jason

*as per hardcopy printout

Sunday Sermon - 8-Jan-2012 - Pastor Justin Ryan

Speaker: Pastor Justin Ryan
One Voice Ministries

http://www.mediafire.com/?3j1vadikiegzgt9

Personality Differences

by Dr Gary Chapman

Have you ever gone on date with a person and all they wanted to do was talk about themselves? Their life, their problems, their emotional baggage strewn out for you to look at and analyze. It's probably because they're a babbling brook. Many of you may be asking what in the world that means.

When it comes to communication there are two extreme personality profiles. First is the babbling brook. This person is constantly picking up the phone to talk to others, in fact, if they get someone's voicemail they call someone else. If they can't get someone on the phone they'll talk to themselves. Whatever they see, whatever they hear, they tell. Some of you are probably turning red saying, "That's me," but don't get too embarrassed because there are likely others out there saying, "I wish I could find someone like that, then I wouldn't have to worry about conversation starters."

This personality type is called, the "Dead Sea" personality. These people are perfectly content not to talk. In fact, if you say to a Dead Sea personality, "What's wrong, why aren't you talking tonight?" He/she is likely to respond, "Nothing. What makes you think something's wrong?" These are the kind of people who don't find long silent car rides awkward, rather they find these car rides enjoyable.

Babbling brooks have a great time with Dead Seas because they are such great listeners, and Dead Seas love not having to carry the weight of the conversation so they enjoy time with babbling brooks. The good news for two babbling brooks is that you can both learn to become better listeners. Likewise two Dead Seas can learn to be more open and to find things to talk about.

Which are you, a babbling brook or a Dead Sea? What ways have you tried or learned to become more balanced?

GET SOCIAL: Share your questions, thoughts insights, or comments by joining the conversation on Facebook at facebook.com/5lovelanguages

Getting Your Family to Help

by Diane Constantine

Wow 2012 got off to a tough start for my husband and me. I hope yours was much, much better. We have been down with a flu bug and it’s after effects. Broken night’s sleep has robbed us of strength for the day. We’re both on the mend, but needless to say, we are almost a month behind in our internet work.

So this month I’m going to share some ideas from a newsletter that I get regularly called Mamapedia. You may like to join the list or just browse through the web site.

Many of you receiving this letter have children too young to begin doing chores, but keep these ideas in mind and hopefully chore time won’t become fight time in your home. For those of you with children old enough to help with chores, don’t be afraid to try something new. If what you have been doing hasn’t worked well, January is a good time to try a new scheme, learn new habits, and see big improvements.

Here’s to a better 2012!

8 Ways to Get Your Family to Help You Around the House

Just Believe

by Max Lucado

It was small enough to overlook. Only two words. I know I’d read that passage a hundred times. But I’d never seen it.

But I won’t miss it again. It’s highlighted in yellow and underlined in red. You might want to do the same. Look in Mark, chapter 16. Get your pencil ready and enjoy this jewel in the seventh verse (here it comes). The verse reads like this: “But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee.

Did you see it? Read it again. (This time I italicized the words.)

“But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee.”

Now tell me if that’s not a hidden treasure.

If I might paraphrase the words, “Don’t stay here, go tell the disciples,” a pause, then a smile, “and especially tell Peter, that he is going before you to Galilee.”

What a line. It’s as if all of heaven had watched Peter fall—and it’s as if all of heaven wanted to help him back up again. “Be sure and tell Peter that he’s not left out. Tell him that one failure doesn’t make a flop.”

Are You a Disciple? … or Just Part of the Crowd?

J. Lee Grady Newsletters - Fire In My Bones

In 2012, Jesus is calling us to re-enroll in the school of discipleship.

Besides being the Year of the Dragon in China, 2012 is full of global observances. World Peace Day was Jan. 1, World Rabies Day is Sept. 22 and the World Day for Laboratory Animals (huh?) is April 24. There is also Global Hand-washing Day (Oct. 15), Star Wars Day (May 4), International Cat Day (March 1), and—for all Johnny Depp fans—International Talk Like a Pirate Day (Sept. 19).

I don’t know who comes up with these odd celebrations, but I’d like to add one more. Can we declare 2012 the Year of Discipleship?

“When Jesus started talking about repentance and the necessity of the cross, people lost interest. Crowds always thin out when the message gets tough.”

This would be an appropriate time for it, since Jesus had 12 disciples, and that number won’t be showing up for a while as far as years go. But I doubt 2012YD would inspire much more than a corporate yawn. Discipleship is just not popular, even though the word figures prominently in the Great Commission: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations” (Matt. 28:19, NASB).

Notice that Jesus did not say, “Go therefore and make converts,” “Go therefore and gather crowds” or “Go therefore and build churches,” even though those things aren’t wrong. The mandate is very specific. Jesus wants disciples, or “taught ones”; He wants followers who know Him intimately, who have surrendered fully to His will, and who can impart His life to others. He wants mature sons and daughters who reflect His character.

Resolve to be Thankful

by Mark Gungor

Thankful? Haven’t we passed that holiday? I know, Thanksgiving was seven or eight weeks ago…the leftovers have vanished along with the attitude of gratitude that was quickly lost in the flurry of Christmas.  Now, here we are at the start of a new year. The presents have been returned, the wrapping has been recycled, and the tree is tucked away in the basement for another year.

Many people make resolutions beginning January 1st to improve themselves and their lives.  Lots of us make promises to eat less and exercise more, or to pray and read the bible more and watch TV less. All good things…and they would be even better if we could actually stick to them beyond Valentine’s Day! But here is an idea for a resolution: Be thankful.

Let’s start by looking at an example from scripture of what being thankful actually looks like. In Luke 17 we find the account of Jesus healing the ten lepers. As most people are well aware, leprosy was a horrible disease at the time. It was incurable and caused people to be completely separated and isolated from everyone…including their own spouse, family and friends. Therefore, when these ten guys heard this man was healing people, they wanted in on the deal and made their way to see him crying out loudly for Jesus to have mercy upon them.

Ministry / Department Leaders

**for those who would like to serve, feel free to contact the respective Ministry/Department Head.

• Music & Worship : Wong Kai Yew
• Missions : Liong Kam Chong
• Young Adults : Tan Hong Lu
• Youth : Tan Ann King
• Children : Ch'ng Kooi Hwa
• Ushers : Tan Choon
• Hospitality : Sally Loh
• Communion : Verni Param
• Altar Call : Dr. Lung Jien Kien (asst. Irene Lai-Fong)
• Hearing-Impaired Ministry (HIM) : Verni Param (asst. Chee Wan Heng)
• Audio / Public Address System : Hiew Foong Fai
• Visual Communication / IT : Terry Choong
• National Service Outreach : Michael Lim
• Ladies' Fellowship : Tan Choon
• Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship : Caleb Ramachandran

Life Groups

Life Group Coordinator
Bro. Liong Kam Chong – 016-2877638

1. Longsuffering (Young Adults)
(L) Bro. Tan Hong Lu – 012-3777060
Sis. Chow Foong Yee – 012-2320970

2. Peace
(L) Bro. Moses Tan – 014-7323117
Sis. Sim Gaik Kim – 012-3302639

3. Love
(L) Dr. Lung Jien Kien – 06-7626873

4. Kindness
(L) Bro. Michael Lim – 016-3288950
Sis. Jenny Lim – 012-3354978
Sis. Mimi Loh – 017-8893243

6.Gentleness
(L) Sis. Tan Choon – 017-6392086

7. Faithfulness
(L) Bro. Tom Cheryan – 012-6740237
Sis. Romila Cheryan – 012-6740237

8. Self-Control
(L) Dr. Siow Kim Woon– 013-2929887

9. Goodness (Youth)
(L) Bro. Ann King – 012-6129213
Sis. Peggy Tan – 016-6255989

Worship Roster - 8 January 2012

CM : Siow Kim Woon
WL : Terry Choong
BU : Tan Hong Lu, Chow Foong Yee, Joycelyn Choong
PN : Christopher Lai
SY :
LG :
BG : Priscilla Sim
DR : Anna Sim
TM : Joycelyn / Lareina / Colleen
LCD : Moses Tan, Bryan Tan
PA : Manjit

*as per hardcopy printout

THEME 2012/14

18 - but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.

 context :
2 Peter 3 - God’s Promise Is Not Slack

1. Beloved, I now write to you this second epistle (in both of which I stir up your pure minds by way of reminder), 
2. that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us,[a] the apostles of the Lord and Savior,
3. knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts,
4. and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.”
5. For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water,
6. by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water.
7. But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
8. But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
9. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us,[b] not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. The Day of the Lord
10. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.[c]
11. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,
12. looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?
13. Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Be Steadfast
14. Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;
15. and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation—as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you,
16. as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.
17. You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked;
18. but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.

Sunday Sermon - 1-Jan-2012 - Elder Sim Say Khim

Speaker: Elder Sim Say Khim
White Fields Assembly

http://www.mediafire.com/?ld9p2vxag85v9ek