A Father's Love

I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
* Philippians 4:13 (New International Version) *

- godtube

The Apostles' Prayers

After a long silence, I was prompted again to write when I read through today's Our Daily Bread devotion. It was on the passage Luke 11, where Jesus thought His disciples to pray. However, someone once noted that the prayer was wrongly labeled as "The Lord's Prayer", as it did not really apply to the Lord, but rather to the Apostles. As Jesus never sinned, He needed not ask for the Father to forgive His sins.
Long story cut short, here's my view on the Apostles' Prayer:

* "Our Father, which art in Heaven"
- The Lord of universe, we now call Father. What else do we need to worry, if the Lord of universe calls us His children?

* "Hallowed be thy Name"
- To remind ourselves WHO we are praying to, that we are praying 'that God may be God to us' - Martin R. De Haan II

* "Thy kingdom come"
- Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33

* "Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven"
- We place God's will above our own, recognizing that His ways are WAY HIGHER than ours.

* "Give us this day our daily bread"
- 'and all these things shall be added unto you.'...We trust Him to supply ALL our needs (not necessarily all we want)

* "And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us"
- We are to recognize and seek forgiveness first, so as to set ourselves right with the Father. Even as we recognize our sins, we remind ourselves that we are in no position to judge others, thereby learning to forgive them as Jesus taught us (70 x 7 times)

* "And lead us not into temptation"
- Realizing and recognizing that God has all things in control, and they we need His grace to pass by temptations. For we cannot be victorious, but only God can be if we let Him. It is God's battle for our victory.

* "But deliver us from evil"
- Putting our fallen lives into God's embracing arms becomes our best hope and comfort to be protected from the charms and lured of the evil one. We are asking God to open our eyes to the devil's works, and thus trusting God to keep us safe.

* "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever."
- Recognizing that everything belongs to God, including ourselves, are created for God's pleasure and glory. We are after all the temple of Christ, and God's kingdom is not made out of swords and spears, but the heart of men. So,when we say thine is the kingdom, I am reminded to offer my heart to be the kingdom of God, and that I will be used to display your power and glory in all the earth, according to God's will.

To influence, or to be influenced...

I'm back!! I've been putting off writing about the blessings I received this past Saturday.

Kindly allow me to bring you back to 1/2 year back, when I told God that I wanted to surrender to Him and commit my time and effort to serve Him, rather than just pledging financially and attending Sunday church. Because of the background and exposures I had, I felt that I am in the position to work together with the young adults in my church. I also felt that this is where my passion and love is.

As with everything with God, He opened the way and in about 2 months back, we started with over 10 people in our first meeting. As we wanted it casual, we simply set simple rules and discussion topics. However, over time it seems that the initial inertia has fallen and the numbers dwindled to a handful. Commitment and excitement seems to have ebbed away. To be truthful, I was sorely disappointed.
However, I thank God that He has sent my darling sweetheart to be an encourager to me. Not only did she gave me a word of encouragement, but also very constructive advices and also her hands-on help. Between the both of us, we worked out the necessary plans and made solid some structures to make this whole fellowship work.

Then came Saturday, and because of the lack of communication and perhaps the work of the evil one, people in charge of the discussion and worship sings-peration couldn't make it. But as my pillar of strength(my sweetheart, now referred as POS) discussed the options with me, we decided to quit worrying about the problems. Instead we sat and prayed. We knew that if this is God's work through us, He will not let His words return to Him void. As we prayed, I kept in mind how I should take over to lead the discussions. Half-an-hour after the appointed time of fellowship, 2 of our YA gang came. Reflecting back, their tardiness gave me more time to prepare for the discussions.

To cut the story short, we had a Great time. Absolutely marvelous. I was encouraged, and I certainly hope that so were the rest of them. A short summary of our discussion and lessons to take home:
1. Question to ponder: Did Jesus spend His time on earth being influenced by His surrounding environment OR did He spend His time influencing others?
2. Refer to Luke 2:41-52, where Jesus did not allow His parent's views to influence what He knew he has to do and where He had to be
3. Refer to Luke 4:1-13, Jesus did not succumb to the devil's temptations but rather held fast to the Word of God to rebuke the devil's attempts to influence Jesus
4. To learn to be "un-influencable", we are to follow Jesus' lead, that is to ANCHOR ourselves to the Word of God, that we might be so secure in our believes and grow the faith that is freely given to us by the Holy Spirit. Once we know and remember who we REALLY are, we will then not only be "un-influencable", but rather be influencing others around us.

I am so encouraged by the youth's sharing with us that Saturday. Their presence already is a present, but to add on to it, their open sharing was just what I needed to keep going and work for the Lord. God knew this.
We closed our fellowship with a simple sharing of prayer needs, and prayed for one another. God listened that day. The discussion also led to commit to influence others in my daily life, by correcting my attitude in driving. I told myself to put down my pride and attitude and humble myself as Christ did, and to deem other drivers more important than me. It's really tough work for me, but I shall try. The motivation is that I will want to share my success(of failure) in the next meeting.
For this is my objective, that everyone will be able to take home something from this fellowship. For me, it's would be lesson learned and internalize(practiced).

Dave d Saved

We Are The Reason

As I listen to this song, my eyes flood with tears while my heart feels like exploding with indescribable joy and gratefulness for my Savior and beloved God, Jesus.
I pray that as you read this or listen to this song, you will also experience the freedom and realize the unfathomable love of my God, Jesus.

We are the reason, indeed, we are the reason The God from Heaven came down to this physical world to show us the reason to live...

As little children
We would dream of Christmas morn
And all our gifts and joys
We know we'd find
But we never realized
A baby born one blessed night
Gave us the greatest gift of our lives

We are the reason
That He gave His life
We are the reason
Jesus suffered and died
To a world that was lost
He gave all He could give
To show us the reason to live…

As the years went by
We learned more of our gifts
And giving of ourselves
And what that means
On a dark and cloudy day
A man hung dying in the rain
Because of love… because of love… because of love…

We are the reason
That He gave His life
We are the reason
Jesus suffered and died
To a world that was lost
He gave all He could give
To show us the reason to live… to live… to live…

Every time I see the cross
I'm reminded that he gave his life for you and me…

We are the reason that he gave his life,
We are the reason why the Lord suffered and died.
To a world that was lost he gave all he could give,
To show us the reason to live
We are the reason but He is the reason we live…

Composer: David Meece

Langkawi...The Counting of Blessings...

Do we count our blessing when good things happens, or do we count our blessings when trouble overshadows us? For me, it's in both situations that reminded me to count, count, count...

Our trip to Langkawi started way before we step foot in LCCT airport. About 2 weeks before, I had to scramble my way to get accommodation booked, and prepared the tour agenda. An over sight of the public holiday made bookings nearly impossible, not to mention the exorbitant prices the motels are charging for the mosquito infested shacks.
But with a little determination, finally a local agent got us a place for shut eye for the two nites.


In Langkawi, the breathtaking view from above the clouds @ Mount Mat Chinchang really is mother nature's testimony of God, the creator and tasteful artist of the beautiful pieces of work.

On our first nite, back at Pantai Cenang nearby where we stayed, we decided to go shopping around the night markets, a hotspot for souvenirs in Langkawi. To my terrible embarrassment, I missed a huge hole by a tree stump and drove the rented car right into the ditch. The left tyre was virtually hanging free, while the right tyre did not have enough grip to pull the car out.
The moment I got out of the car, several kindly Mat Sallehs came up to me to offer a hand. While discussing for a solution to the seemingly impossible situation, another Mat Salleh gentleman came by to offer his help. To cut the story short, all of them simply lifted the car, while I slowly reversed it out of the ditch, almost effortlessly. I am ever so grateful to these angels that came to our aid. They asked nothing in return and went off after that. I could imagine the consequences were there no angles such as these tourists around. I counted our blessings twice, when I remembered that I did not drive my own Evie(my Honda City) to Langkawi, but rather rented an aged Iswara. Otherwise, my heart would've been dented too.

Although not much was pre-planned, God has been a real good Father, paving the way smooth for all our visits, from Underwater World to Mount Mat ChinChang.

One of the most memorable journey was out Island Hopping trip, which included a boat ride to a cove where the eagles feed. These are eagles in the wild mind you, and they have nested virtually around the cove area where we see dozens of these majestic creatures spread their wings, swooping down in grace to skim the waters for food.



To top it all off, sunset at the beach by our ole' shack was terrific. To see the sun slowly descending behind a little island just off the shoreline, setting into the horizon is simply beyond words. My sweetheart and I were busy snapping away, trying to take in as much as possible the glorious moment. This reminds me, God sends the sun to greet us in the morning, and sets in the evening for us to rest. I am reminded to appreciate each day as it comes, because no matter how we feel, the sun still rises and sets just the same. We have been given the privilege to live, and so much live it worthwhile for God.

Final words, glory and thanks to my God and Friend, for His unending and relentless love and cover over me and my sweetheart throughout the entire trip, and may our lives continue to be works of testimony of His wonderful grace and gift to mankind. I hope for those who do not know who or what I am talking about, if u are wondering the reason of my gratefulness, or why wonderful things has been happening in my life, feel free to ask. I am more than happy to share with you, the REAL UN-SECRET to everlasting happiness and fulfillment.

Langkawi...The Trip...

I'm back from my 3D/2N vacation @ Langkawi Island, Malaysia. While this is not my first trip, it is one of my more significant trip to remember. You see, I have a very short term memory capacity. One could say my memory runs only on RAMs, not ROMs(for those computer geeks). I only remember what was stored while they are fresh, and I find it a really hard time recalling anything older than a couple of years.
Anyhoo, I shall break this trip into 2 posts, this one being an information post for those who are considering going to Langkawi in the near future.

ONE: Transportation - Renting a car in Langkawi is a good idea, as the vacation hot spots are spread out across Langkawi, taking about a good 20 minutes drive in between places. Renting a car cost about RM50/Kancil or RM60/Iswara(mid-size sedan).

TWO: Accommodation - Pantai Cenang is one of the more popular place to be, where the nice combs of beaches are located. You can find motels and hotels here, although I wouldn't put too high hopes in staying in a great 4-5 star Hilton, but most likely you'd have to rough it out a little. I stayed in a little place called Charlie's Motel, along Jalan Pantai Tengah. It's off the road from Pantai Cenang, and it is a difficult place to find, although not difficult to get to.
For RM85/nite(supposed to be Peak season only), we got a "family room" with 2 queen-sized bed, with a TV that barely works, and an attached toilet. The wooden room has terrible sound proofing characteristics, you can audibly distinguish word for word your neighbor's discussions from the TV program they are watching. The washroom has no heater for shower, and is built in such a way that you feel you're sharing the washroom, only with a brick wall segregating you and your neighbor. Toilet papers are NOT included. Oh...1 important note: The room breeds more mosquito than the fishes at Underwater World. I personally caught and killed over 5 mosquito with my bare hands.
We literally had to keep the lights on while we sleep to avoid being sucked dry while we sleep.
Charlie Motel however is located in a rather strategic place, just off a nice beach where sunset is absolutely fabulous.

However, i would recommend you to look for other alternative motels along Pantai Cenang if you're on a tight budget, such as AB Motel nearby. Alternatively, Helang Hotel seems to offer a pretty good deal with their Hot Wheels package, where it only cost RM140/nite with a car

THREE: Attractions - I would personally recommend a trip up Mount Machincang via the Cable Car. Entrance fee is RM25/person, with a RM10 discount if you hold a My-Kad identity card. The trip consist of 2 observation deck. The view there is absolutely fantastic. A good picture paints a thousand words. So here, I shall let the breath-taking photos do the talking...



Underwater World is a major disappointment, the ultimate Hall of Shame being the so-called 3-D movie. It was obvious right from the start that management had no control or proper direction for visitors to queue to get into the theater. Hordes of barbaric Malaysians cut queues climbing over the dividing ropes to get in. Once inside, you're to help yourself with the ever-so-run-down 3-D glasses.The moment the "movie" started, it instantaneously felt like an mid-term project from an undergraduate Malaysian college student. The good news is, the animation didn't last more than 10 minutes.

Besides that, we went on a Island Hopping trip (costing RM25 if direct from providers, and RM35 if from travel agencies) which covers the Island of the Pregnant Maiden, Beras Basah Island and a stop-over at a lagoon where eagles feed. If you love nature, this is where it is all worth your while...to watch the eagles swoop down for a meal. You can get relatively close to the action, but don't put your hopes up if you intend to catch them on camera. Here's my best shot of a majestic eagle in mid-flight.

Over all, Langkawi is a pleasant place to visit, if you don't mind the heat. All the hyped up duty free discounts are really not that attractive, perhaps unless you are into cigarettes or alcohol.

Well, here ends my list of info...hope it is helpful and informative.

Watch out for my next post on Blessings Langkawi...

Cheers...

Eyes wide Open

Hello hello....I'm back again....
This time, because of something I want, I "had" to turn to God...
You see, I was just informed that my life-long dream of visiting Australia could finally be realized. Malaysia's favorite airline is offering a zero fair return flight to Gold Coast, Australia.


To cut the story short, I had to make a decision quick. Considering my dear darling in the plan, I had to juggle between "is this the right time?" and "do we have enough to spend on the road?" consideration. I knew through experience, that all informed and knowledge-based decision are utterly fruitless and potentially disastrous if they were made without my God in the equation. As much as I wanted jump into it RIGHT AWAY, I slammed on the ABS brake(ABS being Anti-locking Break System for those who are unfamiliar with automobiles) and held back my enthusiasm.

I asked God to give me the peace and an answer before I even work out the budget for such a trip, before I even start calling my friends to see who's interested...etc..etc...
I've been known to be hard-of-hearing when it comes to listening to God from heaven...kind of like I'm using a Maxis line to God...so I asked God to give me some pointers via this morning's daily bread. For a very long time(if not the first), I find myself "looking forward" to reading the Our Daily Bread (http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread) to find a path to my wandering journey.

Guess what??

Today's ODB speaks of Nick Vujicic, the man without limbs. He's a man born without limbs, and God transformed him to become a missionary for Jesus.
Nick shares: God won’t let anything happen to us in our life unless He has a good purpose for it all.

His words hit a note with me. I realize that it wasn't so much my seeking God for "approval" to book the tickets to the land down under, but rather also my seeking to please God wherever I am and whatever I do.

Did I think of going to Australia just to have a fun time(it's not wrong), or also should I think about God's glory and purposes.

This opportunity presents itself by the grace of God, the question is not just what I do with it, but also how does a grateful child reacts when his/her father bestows an opportunity to make into reality the child's dream trip.
I believe that I need to trust God for this trip, and above that remember to see God's vision and seek His kingdom, either here in Malaysia or during a trip to Australia.
Going to Australia will be one of my dreams come true, but beyond that I need to keep my eyes and ears open when God calls.

Two things to keep in mind:
1. Vacationing in the wonderful land of Australia should be an act of worship and appreciation to God's creativity and marvelous works of nature
2. In the people I meet, God's grace and love should be reflected in my words and deeds.

If my attitude becomes right with God, no matter where I am, or am going, I can rest my trust and future in my heavenly Father.
So I thank God, that my eyes are not opened, a little more than before, to see the real issues of life.
It is not just in the decisions we make, but the attitude and purpose we have towards these decisions that spells out our faith.

God bless...
Dave d Saved...over and out.