"But this precious treasure- this light and power that now shines within us- is held in perishable containers, that is, in our weak bodies. So everyone can see that our glorious power is from God and not our own. We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed and broken. We are perplexed but we don't give up and quit. We are hunted down, but God never abandons us. We get knocked down, but we get up and keep going. Through suffering, these bodies of ours constantly share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.... Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an aternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. "

2 Corinthians 4:7-12,16-18

When Blood and water flowed
I didn't know it was for me...

Overwhelmed.

Simple things...

Its the small, little, simple things that really catch my attention.
Sometimes u want to be a big-picture kinda person, looking into the future and doing life long planning. Most times i wish i had better organisational abilities, better planning skills... But largely, i realise that I'm not in control, it's so much easier to look simply- to see things in an uncomplicated way. To trust and hope like a child does.

In our world of chronic busyness, pause for reflective time with Him.
Call it quiet time or quarantine time, ENJOY THE AUDIENCE OF ONE.
Luxuriate in His lavish love.
Journal your thoughts.

*How lovely is your dwelling place*

Research is on the way- reading lots of info, sometimes abit lost lah.. its a huge undertaking and the topic itself is vast! mm... neeed to really focus. *mumbles*
Great thing is, my mom actually has material lying arnd at home- some books she n dad got from Israel. *yay* think she's going to scan n mail for me the relevant info according to date. ; )

It's been raining and pouring the past 2 days... *cats n dogs*
den those snails start to come out onto pavements and get stepped on. (i didn't step on any, if that's wad u're thinking... i just dislike the crunching sound the shell makes) *ugh*
so i must put them back to the soil n grass... they're safer there!

Yep, time for bed! Goodnight!

San Luca Cathedral glows behind the city's porticoes. (taken from travelandleisure.com)

 

It's a tuesday morning... feeling sleepy as usual- after mowing thru a stack of my research books- just plainly labelling them. (helps me to find whatever info i need when i'm desperate and rushing). Well, i wld scribble on the library books, but i'm not a vandal. *library cops knocking on my door*

Had a sumptous crabby dinner last night. Notice the pun. Anyway, there's this thing when u eat crabs- it's just an intricate affair. Just u and the crab, nothing else stands in the way. Of cos the "Man tou" and the dipping of the sauce (chilli sauce) i might add- wld be a major distraction from the actual delicacy itself. Yes, i consider the crabs a delicacy- not some Buddha Jumps over the bridge. or was it a wall?

Shall not give u the gory details of how the juicy meat of the crab was really droolicious.

I'm stuck with (counts fingers) 11 days- for my history essay (50%), 14 days for my Politics essay(35%), and 24 days for my English essay (50%). would anyone wanna trade that with exams? *i think not*. ; (

ya, ok... enough of MSN encarta and Wikipedia. i need a nap.

Weekend is here!
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Let me cut to the chase.

The truth is that "church" or peer pressure in church can be a form of worldliness too. i dunno how many people can agree or disagree with me. Yes, there's good pressure and bad. (not bad in an explicit way... probably very sublime) But just doing things for the sake of it, doesn't really sound like something coming from ur heart.

Worship can be seen on an outward and physical way, but worship is not equated to an outward expression. It's a matter of the heart. No one can look at u on the outside and judge whether u're really worshipping or whether ur heart is right. This being said, it's really between you and God, yes we should correct and advise in a loving, kind and tactful way-- but only thru the power of the Holy Spirit's conviction can come true transformation. (forcing the auto pilot ain't going to help)

Know that the work on the cross is a finished work, it's completed n perfect.... and u'll realise that nothing else u do can improve it, lessen it or void it.

"He was pierced for our trangressions, crushed for our iniquities, the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by His wounds we are healed!" Isaiah 53:5

I must be tired.... i think i picked up and put back the same book 3 times. and when i finally realised i needed it, the librarian had placed it on a sorting shelf too high for me to reach. (that happened within a span of an hour tho) i guess i'm not so bad...

and den today, my presentation partner didn't turn up!
Well, wad can i say.... ok, she's not exactly a presentation partner. not partner as in we essentially need each other's material kinda partner. (if u get my gist)
So she didn't turn up, and i had to tackle the one and a half gruelling hours by myself. and of cos with the good and lively discussion it wasn't that bad.
Blessing in disguise...

Yingzi's self made bag of surprise for me!! ooo. 

so corny uh... ;p Thanks girls!  

Tiramisu from Nikki n elaine too! from Michel's Patisserie- ; ) 

From Nikki and Elaine!! can't show u wads inside tho. 

The whole pack with the card and earrings! ; ) 

He is the Rock of my salvation. Tower of refuge, Help in times of need.  

i was at the university club today... it was ABC's 'Australia Talks Back' with presenter Sandy McCutcheon, he's absolutely funny i tell ya.. aha
Anyway, it was a live radio forum regarding "Islam and Australia"... they took callers from around the country, took questions and comments from the audience... ; ) it was a good experience mingling with world renowned speakers and a vast mix of cultural backgrounds.

Basically, disussions surrounded the terrorist attacks in the US on Sept 11, 2001, and the Bali bombings a year later led to many equating Islam with terrorism.... with a focus on changing attitudes towards Muslim countries and Islam as a religion. THe problem i found with the understandings of many people were the ideas that Islam consisted of a single entity, and was looked at as a whole. So wad some radical muslims do-- is frowned upon and taken to be a majority belief or action. When in fact, there are so many different intepretations of the Quran, from the orthodox schools, moderate progressives to the liberals.

what i mean is that, we don't see a cult intepretation of the bible being taken for the sole understanding of the entire religion of Christianity. but that's a whole other debate.

i am tired... haha can u believe it, i thought ZLM was today... ; ( gah... so silly.

I've reformatted my comp... i've got no programs on it... : (