26 Jan 2008, Saturday night.

Many interesting events have zipped by since my last posting. Many firsts and many turnings. Really enjoy the time back in Singapore, having more time to spend with loved ones. Riders' Lodge was a really good trip and I thank God for allowing me to forge deeper relationships with some of the closer friends like Yueh Heer. Am grateful that the Lord has used him to bless and speak words of encouragement and direction in the times of uncertainty this year. I remember the sharing of Psalm 20:7 during my job search.

Beginning a new part of the journey with Lynn - attending MPC (We'll be playing with kids tomorrow) is quite fun. Participating in weddings, even as a brother, is one thing. Planning and walking through your own (potentially) is another. Good stuff :)

Reminded of the fragility of life when I heard about the passing on of parents for 2 school friends. Both were sudden and I am still clinging on prayerfully for the salvation of my family members. At the same time, am learning to focus on living this life that we have to the fullest and to age gracefully with the blessings of the Lord.

I think that somehow one of the biggest changes I note in myself is the inquest within myself about the calling of the Lord. I remember the earlier days when the dream of really going forth to the nations to support mission work was really burning and I really tried to be involved in pioneering / networking with like-minded people. Now, I acknowledge that the flame within is more subdued but I still hope, deep inside me, for the fulfilment of this dreams with my family.

The simple life - to enjoy the mundane and live supernaturally. Wow.

It's Q4 2007 already! Gosh, time really flies. Was reading my last post and realised that the Lord has really delivered me from a foreign land. Life isn't a bed of roses at the new place but I do thank God for the many blessings He has given me - colleagues who are willing to teach, interesting work, sane hours (kind of).

Am treating things from a very project-based perspective. After going through a very long process of getting a job and claiming God's grace for this one, it was off to climb Mt KK. Made it as far as the 3/4 mark before retiring with altitude sickness. At least I tried. The view from the top was really shiok! Meanwhile, as the financial markets tumbled, Ben and I whisked off to Europe to catch the Anfield crunch against Chelsea. Really thank God for the many small pockets of grace He provided during the trip - friends to catch up with, sights to see, Ben in Paris (wished it was Lynn, but oh well, just have to make the best of my situation), genuine tickets albeit under shady circumstances (Smokie Moe to meet Joe?????), catching up with Leenah and family in Amsterdam. All in all, a very satisfying break. After the fun, to focus on work and working out the next phase in life.

It's been a month since I've started work. Just started revisiting Mr Brown's website to get a few giggles and feel tempted to relaunch my own crappy postings. Those guys really have got flair! They really crack me up.

Been feeling a little vexed recently about work (I dreamt of work! Can't remember the last time I did that) so I went for a swim today. Didn't do many laps but I did clear my head a little. Exercise does wonders to your sanity. So does QT.

I really like to catch up with long-lost friends. Really interesting to see where most of them are now since school days. Some are really high fliers in their careers. Others are just happy to see the end of the day and look forward to Friday. Some have tots now. Really puts some glitter in your perspective of things. I guess I have to accept graciously that I'll never represent Singapore and lead them to the World Cup but I do have opportunities to do more things within my domain. Get the dream of social enterprise started again?

Should stop rambling now. Time for early rest. Night!

Wanted to type some thanksgiving, then realised I can just copy and paste from an email I sent to my spiritual family earlier while I was in Shanghai from 26 Feb to 9 March .....

THANKSGIVING......

Thank God for a wonderful weekend. Attended expat cell on Friday night and service on Sunday. Expat cell was good. It's interesting to see people from different nations coming together for fellowship. There were Americans, Australian, Jamaican, Brit, Germans, and of course, Red-Dotians. Service was great! Different style from our church but I enjoyed the time of worship and the sharing of testimonies as well. One of the takeaways I got from the sharing by an Indian national was that when we focus on Jesus instead of the circumstances, we have peace because we know that He is in control.

MORE THANKSGIVING......

Managed to meet up with some friends in Shanghai over the weekend as well. One of them - Ben Lee came to my cell for awhile when I was under JJ. To my surprise (cos I thought he MIA liao mah......), he offered to bring me for service if I was in Shanghai. He attends the same place that I went to. Really cool stuff.

EVEN MORE THANKSGIVING......

Some of you guys know that I'm looking for accomodation in Shanghai because my current contract with the hotel expires end March. Looking around because the hotel wants to increase the price if we wanted to renew. Really want to thank God for provision because I only rang up different places on Thursday and planned to recce on Saturday. A family friend in Shanghai found out (on Friday) that I was looking for an alternative place and he offered to come with me and get his driver to chauffeur us (colleagues and myself) around in a 7-seater. He stays in Pudong but he was willing to cross over to Puxi (to keep it simple, it's like going from Changi to Jurong with the Singapore River dividing them and driving me around Bt Batok, CCK, Kranji, Boon Lay etc) to drive us around.

Really grateful for His provision because I had shortlisted 5 places and had no idea how to get there except by cab. The Lord really saved us a lot of hassle and I could get helpful advice from a trusted friend who's been in Shanghai for 4 years. He helped with the sizing up of the place, the directions and even had some input of location and price. Also did some shopping (To Lynn: Yes, I managed to clock about 20 - 30 minutes. Quite a breakthrough .. haha )/ dining / touring after that so it was a really great time of sharing as well because I've not seen him for a really long time.

TAMBAH LAGI .....

Finally! Thank God for your prayers, for those who know of my situation. The Lord created an opportunity to share with my big boss just now while he's still in Shanghai about my intentions to move on to pursue other interests. It's really the Lord who created the timing for me and I'll share more when we meet up again. Supposed to catch up with my boss again when I'm back in Singapore so would appreciate prayers for the Lord to reveal to me His plans for me and wisdom to know what to do. I know it's time to move on but no idea where yet.

However, I thank God for favour because I've received some invitations from friends asking me if I'm interested to join them at their respective work places. Although I've been delaying them because I wanted to speak to my boss about it first before considering the options available (also quite fearful lah.... of my boss ..... the Lord spoke to me from Joshua 1:9), I thank God that they have been understanding and I pray for a fruitful discussion with my boss to conclude matters.

Yup, that's about it for now. Going back Shanghai again this week. God bless me with plenty of favour! Amen! =)

Went shopping in Shanghai today after lunch.

1. Long overcoat (RMB 200) to accompany my formal suit. It was slashed from RMB1,000 because the weather is warmer now. =)

2. Adidas haversack (RMB28) to replace the one that I brought because the zips spoilt

We're staying in the current place till end March but plan to look around for other available places because the rents might increase in view of the peak period. Anyone has lobang in Shanghai?

Making arrangements to meet up with friends and trying to squeeze in some mugging during this time as well. I have 12 weeks remaining to my CFA exam.....................

Hmm, creative juices not really flowing at the moment so just doing reporting on this blog. Stay tuned..... =)

It's been a rather happening 2 weeks since I returned from Shanghai. Busy in the office and also meeting up / catching up with several people. It's always good to meet up with people. Within these 2 weeks, I reached a few personal milestones.

Milestone 1: Brought Lynn to meet my dad during reunion dinner nite. Always wanted to introduce my love to my father before the rest of the relatives get to see her *to honour him mah* and glad that I could do so. The meeting went well. Needless to say, my relatives were also happy to see her around.

Milestone 2: Lynn brought me to visit her parents and family. =)

Milestone 3: I was looking for a group of friends for support when I'm in Shanghai. Really thank God that on the first night of CNY, managed to meet up with Daniel aka Howe Kiat and it's all thanks to Adrian for bringing me to meet his ol' buddy. Cool, now I can go to church if I'm in Shanghai for the weekend

Milestone 4: Went for baptism service last night. No, I'm already baptised. It's just that I felt rather out of sorts these past few weeks. I thank God for the opportunity to speak to my team leader about my desire to move on. Next step, boss. However, there is this fear of man syndrome in me which probably explains why I have delayed doing what I should have done long ago. Really glad for the worship during baptism service where God reminded me of His faithfulness through the songs and also that He will not shortchange me. Also grateful that God used CK to send me a wake-up call.

Watched Dreamgals today. I liked the musical element in it although I'm not sure Darren and Moon would agree. Interestingly, the theme was also somewhat about that person inside. Over lunch this week, CK also encouraged me to really ask myself what I really want in my heart. What are my guiding principles? Do I really believe that ministry comes first? Or career? Or it's possible to balance both?

Honestly, with my current job, it's not possible for me to balance ministry and work. I have tried but given my erratic schedule, it's not working out. At the same time, I feel that while I try to do my best, my heart is not in my current role because I feel stifled. I need a new start. I need to grow. I need to bring it up to my boss. I need to move on.

Lord, grant me that confidence that I need to dispel the self-doubts that clutter my mind. Grant me wisdom to adapt but to remain grounded in You. Let me soar once more on eagle's wings.

Amen. Shanghai, here I come (again). Pray for me ok? To find the right time to speak to my boss when he visits Shanghai the following week. Thanks :)

Just landed back home from Shanghai a few hours ago. Believe it or not, it was first time in China!

First impressions... Shanghai is so .. erm ... cheena... hehe .. the only place in the world which has 4G (My 3G phone is still operating only on a 2G Sim Card.. hmm). Was rather lost at first with the directions and language (I eat potato so a bit rusty lah). I must say, this is good practice for my Cheena though. I do believe that my language skills have improved =)

Stayed in a suite hotel. Kind of like a service apartment with gym, living room, fridge, kitchen, microwave oven, etc. Really blessed also by my team who went out of their way to make us feel at home. Negotiated for good rates with breakfast and broadband thrown in. Went around to eat the tasty food ie. oily and salty with lots of MSG :(

It's supposed to be the coldest period but the temperature was like 5-18 degrees which was quite comfortable actually. Really could get used to the weather.

Looking around at the attire of the working class in restaurants, I couldn't help notice that the ladies really make an effort to dress up / down (depending on how you look at it. It's winter right, so not too distracting lah). However, my personal take on this matter is.... *drum roll* .. I still prefer the Singapore girl =p

Really enjoyed myself over the weekend when I visited Zhenghan and Veron. Had a yummy (read "tasty food") dinner at a restaurant which serves Northwestern Chinese cuisine, stopped by Hong Kong dessert store and then visited their place later on. I must admit, this was the first time that I really got to know them better in all the years we had been in ministry together. They're a really amusing couple. Thank God for them :)

Thank God for answered prayer. I finally managed to speak to my team leader about my future plans. We had a meaningful discussion and next step, prayerfully, is to bring it up to my boss. After CNY .. hee ... God is good =) ... Romans 8:28

OK, time to go sleep and prepare for the week ..... Philippians 4:6,7

There's been a property boom in the recent months. Office rentals, upcoming 'atas' complexes and soon, residential prices are expected to soar. Many of my peers are fretting over HDB / condominium prices (then again, land prices in Singapore have always been abnormally high)

A thought flashed across my mind recently.

"In my Father's house are many mansions (dwelling places); if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a mansion (a dwelling place) for you." John 14:2

Will there be en bloc sale in heaven?

Thank God for a guaranteed shelter in Christ Jesus :)