They showed below video in today's chapel.

Lyrics copied below. The sentences in red are those who spoke to me at this particular time.


My heart is so proud. My mind is so unfocused.
I see the things You do through me as great things I have done. 
And now You gently break me, 
then lovingly You take me 
and hold me as my father and mold me as my maker.
Chorus:
I ask you: "How many times will you pick me up, when I keep on letting you down?And each time I will fall short of Your glory, how far will forgiveness abound?"
And you answer: " My child, I love you.And as long as you're seeking My face, You'll walk in the pow'r of My daily sufficient grace."

At times I may grow weak and feel a bit discouraged, 
knowing that someone, somewhere could do a better job.
For who am I to serve You?I know I don't deserve You. 
And that's the part that burns in my heart and keeps me hanging on. 

Chorus*
I ask you: "How many times will you pick me up, when I keep on letting you down?
And each time I will fall short of Your glory, how far will forgiveness abounds?"
And you answer: " My child, I love you.
And as long as you're seeking My face, You'll walk in the pow'r of My daily sufficient grace."
You are so patient with me, Lord.

As I walk with You, I'm learning what Your grace really means. 
The price that I could never pay was paid at Calvary. 
So, instead of trying to repay You, I'm learning to simply obey You
by giving up my life to you For all that You've given to me.

Chorus: 
I ask you: "How many times will you pick me up, when I keep on letting you down?
And each time I will fall short of Your glory, how far will forgiveness abounds?"
And you answer: " My child, I love you.
And as long as you're seeking My face, You'll walk in the pow'r of My daily sufficient grace."

The Cry of Children and Youth

Just came back from Sunday School training organized by my homechurch. The trainers are from Scripture Union Singapore. They are amazing people with great passion for the work of God in young people's lives. We had fun and learned a lot. I'm grateful that I was there. It was such an encouragement for me to press on in the ministry to young people.



And it's a song that one of the trainer introduced to us.


I can't wait to listen to more children singing this song earnestly from their heart. I think one of the joy of ministering to young people is when I will know that 10, 20, 30 years from now they still love God and serve God faithfully.

Voicing God's Psalms: A Festival of Psalms

In TTC chapel today, we were having a festival of psalms. It is mentioned in the booklet that the order of worship is based on the book "Voicing God's Psalms" by Calvin Seerveld, Professor Emeritus of Philosophical Aesthetics at the Institute of Christian Studies, Toronta, Ontario Canada (Used by permission.)

More information from the booklet:

In his book, Seerveld arranged his translations of the Psalms into nine themes: Torah, Melchizedek, enemies, repentance and forgiveness, wrestling with the LORD, comfort, trusting God, God-promises and hallelujah. The book contains thirty seven psalms from the book of Psalms and several psalmic passages from the Old and New Testaments.

     In his introduction, Calvin Seerveld wrote: "God's psalms contained the Older First Testament, as well as the "psalms" in the Second Newer Testament, are meant to be heard. For God's psalms to be heard, somebody must read them. To learn to read the biblical book of Psalms, one does well to realize and not a simple prose series of human declarations. The biblical psalms have the LORD God talking through the embattled confessions of children adopted by God who are in the grip of God's Spirit. Yet, in the psalms, God is also talking live to anybody today, worldwide, who will listen."

     The order of worship follows the nine themes featuring one or two of the psalm under each heading. It is hoped that from  this worship experience the faithful will be inspired to revisit the psalms and use them creatively in worship.

TORAH (God's Law)

"We are cradeled as human creatures in God's fantastic and ordered world"

Psalm 8

Psalm 8 celebrates the amazing LORD God whose creatures, like the starts and prowling animals, are astonishing wonders. And God makes us small humans to be lords over all these creatures.

MELCHIZEDEK

"Our daily life happens amid a rough tumble of public historical struggles in from of God's face."

Psalm 2

Psalm 2 confronts us with the historical reality of power politics. Yet the LORD God laughs at every Nebuchadnezzar and Herod who vaunts his cruel domination. The LORD promises that those whom God anoints will be safe from the Evil principalities which beset us. Whoever follows the Anointed Messiah, the Christ, will find shelter.

ENEMIES

"Entreating God for help against implacable enemies can teach us to voice unashamed expectation of rescue"

Psalm 22

Psalm 22 contains the anguished cry Christ quote on the cross: "My God, O my God, why have you left me in the lurch? You cared for me as a baby and have always saved my forebears. Lowering evil persons are set to make mincemeat of me - I'm scared to death! Hurry up! Help me!" and the last paragraph of Psalm 22 - which Christ also know ended the psalm - thanks the LORD for coming through with rescue: so I'll praise the LORD right here among the congregated faithful!

REPENTANCE AND FORGIVENESS

"Nothing frees us up like coming clean before God about our sin. Brutally honest prayer to the LORD, admitting guilt and nakedly beseeching forgiveness, brings merciful relief."

Psalm 51

Psalm 51 has not a single word of excuse, because David was caught by God red-handed in adultery and murder. "Iam a pervert!"cries the sinner. :But do not take your Holy Spirit away from me! O God, wash me until I become whiter than snow. Save me from myself! Do not reject my chastened heart yielded up to you as an offering." A later coda incorporates this personal confession of sin into a liturgical worship setting for rebuilding the city of God.

Kyrie Eleison

Psalm 130

Psalm 130 cries out to the LORD from the depth of despair: If you, O God, kept track of guilty wrongdoings, who could ever withstand such judgment! But the LORD God sets people free and wipes out transgressions! Anticipate that merciful, saving Word of the LORD they way a night watchman waits for the light in the morning.

Out of the Direst Depths

WRESTLING WITH THE LORD

"When a person has to hang tough for the long haul, direct intimate talk with God can revive the zest of being hopeful and the thirst for the LORD's coming."

Psalm 139

Psalm 139 is a most intense expression of intimacy and love about how utterly and unfathomably the LORD God knows me, my habits and quirks, even my provisional thoughts, my every day from the womb to the grave. There is nowhere and no time I am not held safe in God's embrace. So let me curse those who hate you, LORD, utters the psalmist. But make certain, O God, that I myself am pure at heart and hold me with your hand on the way of everlasting life.

COMFORT

"The comfort God gives for our down times is ongoing and lasts forever"

Psalm 90

Psalm 90 recognizes that our 70 or 80 years of many troubles and occasional joys flash by like just yesterday to God. But you, my LORD, says the psalmist, have always been the place where we can feel at home. So, gentle us with the smile of laughter, LORD God.

TRUSTING GOD

"Trusting the LORD to carry us through difficulties leads to our being surprised by receiving more than we need, so we want to dance at the surplus of God's grace."

Psalm 62

Psalm 62 teaches that only God is the Rock to which one can run for refuge. Aggressive deception, accumulation of goods, importance gained by violence all bring agitated insecurity. Only near God can a person find the stillness of peace.

In God alone my soul can find rest and peace, 
in God my peace and joy
Only in God my soul can find its rest,
find its rest and peace

GOD PROMISES

"The LORD God's promises of deliverance from evil and the rule of shalom coming are freely offered to all who hear the Word to be daily obedient like God's servant the sun."

Psalm 34

The thematic development of Psalm 34 moves from praise for God's deliverance to wisdom instruction in "the fear of the LORD." The person who sings this psalm commits to praising the LORD and calls all people to do the same, for God delivers and protects those who fear the LORD. "Taste and see," exhorts the psalmist, that this is so. Instruction in "the fear of the LORD" points to seeking God's peace and keetping the tongue from evil.

PS: I actually prefer this video. But they don't allow me to embed here. Check it out! It's my favourite song of today :)

HALLELUJAH

"Happy hours are good times to praise Yahweh in the company of the faithful"

Psalm 103

Psalm 103 celebrates richly the tender, forbearing mercies of the LORD who does not deal with us according to our sins. As far as East is from West, so far God removes from us our dirty deeds. The LORD knows we are feeble earthlings, but remains faithful to generations of those who remember to do God's will. Along with all the angels, let all of me too praise the LORD!

Bless the LORD, O my soul 

and all that is within me

Praise and bless the LORD,

O my soul,

Bless God's Holy name

Music by: Timothy Kimbrough

The Blessings of Teen Ministry

The church assigned me to be in charge of Teen Ministry which targets secondary school students. Our initial move is to start a Teen Service, which is scheduled every Sunday at 11am (concurrent with the Main Service II). Since April, I always attend the Main Service I (9-10.30am), followed by supervising the Teen Service. I am involved in this ministry in several ways: taking attendance and reporting it to the Worship Service Division, leading worship, supervising music rehearsals, arranging ministry schedule (WL, musicians, ushers), and updating prayer requests (Teen Ministry supervisors try to pray for the teens regularly).

 

It has been five months since we started our Teen Service. Thank God the ministry is growing in quality and quantity. When I sit down and prepare for this reflection, I was once again amazed by how God works in my life through this Teen Ministry. I was involved in this ministry with the expectation of being able to change people’s lives, but I came to realize now that I have also changed. As the ministry grows, all the people involved also grow: the teens and all supervisors, including me. Here how I have grown:

·   Grow in knowledge

“… Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” (I Peter 3:15)

Some of the teens are trying hard to find answers to their questions about God. They would ask me questions like, “If God is good, how come there is suffering and natural disasters?,” “The Bible was written by human, how can we be sure of its validity as the source of truth, as Word of God?,” etc. They told me that they got this kind of questions from their non-believer friends and they couldn’t provide answers.

            When they came to me for the first time with these questions, I also sometimes could not answer it.  Then I became keener in reading on those topics. I would go to book store to buy books and other types of resources to be able to answer them in a way that is easily understood. I think I am now more prepared to give reasons to my faith, not just to the teens, but to everyone who would ask me, and I must thank the teens. It is because of them, their questions, that I was encouraged to be better equipped.

·    Grow in patience

“As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” (Eph 4:1-3)

Teens are still teens. A few of them still sometimes skip church or arrived in church very late with “unacceptable” excuses like: “I slept very late and I found it difficult to get up in the morning”, “I had CCA and after that went out with my friends yesterday. I feel very tired so I don’t go to church.” I honestly sometimes was irked with these kinds of answers. I felt like sarcastically answered them, “Use your alarm”, “Ask you friend to wake you up,”, “Don’t stay up until late”, “The service is at 11! It’s not THAT early”. But, of course, I restrained myself from saying that. I would normally tell them to learn from the mistake and not to repeat it later. But sometimes they just don’t learn their lesson and they will do it again next time.

            I once thought of offering a morning call, but I buried that idea. I do not want to nag at them all the times as I believe it will not be effective. I decided to be patience with them because I realize that spiritual growth does not come in an instant. It must come from their understanding of the importance of worship and on how eager they are willing to grow in their relationship with God. And who can help with this matter? The Holy Spirit. I decided to pray more that God will bring them to His presence. So every Sunday morning on the way to church in the bus I always pray for each of them a simple prayer to God, “God, please get them up early in the morning and draw them to worship you today.”

·    Grow in willingness to serve

One thing that impressed and encouraged me a lot is their willingness to serve the LORD. Many of them are really talented and quite experienced in worship leading or serving as musician. Quite often when I assigned one person to become musician for the following Teen Service, another person would come to me and ask me to include him/her to be additional musician. So, instead of having one, we have two musicians. Or when I assigned someone to be worship leader but he can’t make it the following week, it is easy to find a replacement. They accepted this responsibility with excitement. I was encouraged to know that they long to serve God, and it prompted me to look at myself. Am I that excited in accepting a ministry? Not really. I think I still need to learn from them on this matter. I thank God for making them a reminder to me.

What would I do differently?

-T - The tough questions they asked me was expressed only when I was talking one-to-one with them or in a very small group. They do not really have the courage to ask question in front of everyone. So I think it is important to hang out with them more often or form a small group for those who are interested to pursue this matter further.

- People who serve in performance-based ministry (such as WL, musicians, multimedia) could  get easily fall into the “pride” trap. They want others to see them instead of God. I will need to remind them the danger of pride, the importance of humility, and the need to constantly checking their motivation in serving God. Is it because they want to show their abilities? Or is it an act of gratitude that God has given them those abilities?

The Colour of Language

When I learn languages I like, I will have very colourful notes :) I developed this habit since I was in secondary school (junior high school) as at that time I realised that I'm a visual person.  My brain works better when I see colours in my books or notes.

I dare to say that  my English notes are the most colourful  among my friends in junior and senior high school. Unfortunately, my Bahasa Indonesia notes is not that colourful. Hehe... (read carefully above, I told you that it is only for the languages that I like :p )

Here is one proof. Below is picture taken from my Japanese notes (I studied Japanese in 2008 for one year). It's colourful, and you can see pictures also! The sensei (teacher) showed us a lot of cute pictures that helps me to understand better! :) I still keep my Japanese notes hoping that one day I can brush up on my Japanese. Maybe after I finish Hebrew and Greek? :p

So why did I suddenly I bring this up? Because I just finished my two-weeks mid-semester break, and during the break I tried to come up with summary notes for Hebrew and Greek. I spent a few days doing it. Once I started, sometimes I couldn't stop because I really enjoy doing it! Here's the result.

Greek summary

 Hebrew summary

Done!

I hope this colourful summary can help me in my study :)

By the way, the point that I would like to make here is that it is very helpful for us to know what type of learner we are: visual, auditory, or kinesthetic. If you have not found out what type of learner you are, it is never too late. Just google "learning style VARK model" and you will get lots of information about it :) VARK model is not the only model. You can try other models, too! :)

Happy learning!  \ ^o^ /

Angklung @ TTC Cultural Night 2011

What a lovely poster right? Very colourful and ethnic. I love it. 
It's the poster for TTC Cultural Night 2011.
Cultural Night is an annual event at TTC. On this day, students from many countries cook their traditional food and perform something that introduces a glimpse of their countries. 
This year we, Indonesian students, decided to play angklung, an Indonesian traditional musical instrument originated from Sundanese tribe in Java. We played two songs: one Indonesian song titled "Ampar Ampar Pisang" from Kalimantan and a hymn, "Amazing Grace". You can check the video below.





The response from the school was great and we were offered to play angklung again during TTC Thanksgiving Dinner in October.  
I'm happy because we can both promote Indonesian culture and praising God with our traditional instrument :)

Behold the Lamb (Communion Hymn)

Today is Holy Communion in TTC Chapel. During holy communion two of my classmates sang "Behold the Lamb". It's the first time I heard this song and I think both the lyrics and the tune are so beautiful.



Behold the Lamb who bears our sins away,
Slain for us: and we remember
The promise made that all who come in faith
Find forgiveness at the cross.

So we share in this Bread of life,
And we drink of His sacrifice,
As a sign of our bonds of peace
Around the table of the King.

The body of our Savior, Jesus Christ,
Torn for you: eat and remember
The wounds that heal, the death that brings us life,
Paid the price to make us one.

The blood that cleanses every stain of sin,
Shed for you: drink and remember
He drained death's cup that all may enter in
To receive the life of God.

And so with thankfulness and faith
We rise to respond: and to remember.
Our call to follow in the steps of Christ
As His body here on earth.

As we share in His suffering,
We proclaim: Christ will come again!
And we'll join in the feast of heaven
Around the table of the King.

Keith, Getty, Kristyn Getty & Stuart Townend
Copyright 2007 Thankyou Music