BEST

Shio Shio Gai Loti Entry #7

(Matthew 5:16)
"Let your lights so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."

3 things we can learn from (Matthew 5:16)

1) Let your lights so shine ---------------> REVELATION
2) Men may see your good works ------------> RESULTS
3) Glorify your Father in Heaven ----------> REASON

God is our source, our provider. All gifts, talents and abilities that we have are freely given by God. With these, we are called to shine in all the things that we do so that the light in us through Christ can penetrate the darkness and bring forth the light of Christ.

We shine for one reason, and that is to glorify God.

First, we need to receive and understand the REVELATION to do our BEST so that our light can shine. And when we shine, it leads to and produces Good works and RESULTS in the marketplace, ministry, families, etc. This would then lead to the ultimate REASON of Glorifying our Father in Heaven.

We should all strive to be the BEST in the things we do. When we do our BEST, God will do the REST. And when we are at our BEST, the REST will follow us as we become an example to them.

BEST = BE EXCELLENT, SERVE THANKSFULLY

To be the BEST, you need to:

1) Anchor your NEST in church
(PS 92:13): "Those who are planted in the house of the Lord, will flourish.." God will prosper and flourish His children.

2) Have your REST in Christ
(Matt 11:28):"Come to Me all you who labor and are heavey laden..and I will give you rest." People who strive to be the BEST works hard too. They will get tired often and it's important to rest in order to go on the journey.

3) TEST your Limits
We are called to be conquerors in Christ. We should aim to test and push our limits.

4) Venture out to the WEST
The West is often known to be very creative. As christian, we should also learn to cross over and be creative in the things we do.

5) Keep your ZEST
Be enthusiastic, do not grow weary in doing good...

6) Put on your VEST
The vest is a kind of sleeveless shirt. Keep an open mind and listen to creative and constructive ideas from others. Be humble

Last but not least, one of the takeaway is "To be the BEST, you CANNOT be a PEST"

GRACE

Shio Shio Gai Loti Entry #6

(Hebrews 12:1)
"Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us."

All of us have different races in life that we are running and competing to be the best, to be NUMBER 1 - Christian faith, Work, Family, Friendship, Studies,etc.

(Heb 12:1) said that we should all run with endurance the race that is set before us. That is because along the way, we might face challenges, obstacles and unexpected situations that will affect us in finishing the race, achieving the prize.

We are not alone in the race, God is always with us. We should constantly remind ourselves to include God in the race because:

God + race = GRACE
With God in the race, His grace is also with us.

(2 Corinthians 12:9)
"My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness".

God's grace is sufficient for us all the time and our weaknesses is an opportunity for God to reveal His strength in us.

"Sufficient" (Webster dictionary) = "enough to meet the needs of a situation or a proposed end"

When we have God in the race, His grace is always enough to help us overcome the situation. More than often, it is us who have a limited mindset about God.

We might fail in the race but always remember that God's grace is more than enough for us because:

Grace = "God Releases A Chance Everytime"

(1 Peter 5:5-6)
"God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble". Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

Let's be humble and learn to include God in all the races that we are in. Pray and seek God everyday that the mighty hand of God will come upon us, exalting us in due time.

(Hebrews 4:16)
"Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and grace to help in time of need"

FEAR

Shio Shio Gai Loti Entry #5

(Psalms 23:4)
"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me".

What is the valley of the shadow of death? They are probably moments or seasons in life where we felt lost, helpless, fearful, depressed and etc. Everyone of us had our own unique moments of experiencing the valley of the shadow of death at certain parts of our life.
One example of the valley of the shadow of death is Fear. In my opinion, we experienced Fear when we fail in life and fall under the pressure of this world. Eventually, you fear the opinions of others to the point that you cant face yourself.

God knows that this is one experience that we will definitely have to go through at least once in our life journey. Knowing that, He strengthens us with His word in (Psalms 23:4) that we should not fear because He is with us all the time and His comfort and peace is with us.

This is why whenever we fear, we should remind ourselves of the word that God has given to us. We do what we can and God will do the rest.

A touch from Heaven, a change in your mindset and a shift of perspective can help turn your fear situation around.
When you FAIL in life, remember to SAIL through the storm because God will help you.

When you FALL under the pressure of this world, remember to CALL upon the name of God because He will rescue you.

Whenever you FEAR, remember to HEAR the heartbeat of God and move in faith because God is with you.

GUTS

Shio Shio Gai Loti Entry #4

I attended the Thanksgiving Service for Sun on 20 Dec 09 and to me, it was really an honor and privilege to be part of a 2400 congregation that evening. We celebrated like a big family, praising and worshiping God, and the different ones testified on stage what Sun had done and impacted their lives.

Pastor also shared about the many sacrifices that Sun had made for God’s Kingdom and the church visions with the Crossover project. There and then, I began to sense that boldness, saw that kind of courage and guts that Sun had from that very point when she agreed to take on the Crossover project and till the moment she embarked on the journey. Not many people can have that level of courage and guts to make these kinds of life changing decisions.

Sun works with many people in the entertainment world, including the people in the gay community who are extremely talented and gifted. One of the reasons why they are so creative is because they are fearless.

(2 Samuel 10:12)“Be of good courage, and let us be strong for our people and for the cities of our God. And may the LORD do what is good in His sight.”

In (2 Samuel 10:12), it says that we should be courageous and be strong for the things that we are doing for God - the people and for the cities. The cities here refer to the marketplace. We should have the courage to believe and be strong to carry out what God want us to do.

Another word for courage is GUTS.

GUTS = “Getting Used To Sacrifices”

It takes GUTS to believe in and be part of something great. It requires SACRIFICES to make your dreams and visions come true.

However, it doesn’t necessary mean you have to anyhow make sacrifices in order to have your dreams come true. The key in life is balance. There must always be a balance and that balance should come from God.

The kind of GUTS that Sun has demonstrated as she takes on more challenges and fights for the vision that God has given to her is something that we can all learn.

Dare to Dream! Dare to Believe! Dare to Sacrifice! Dare to Conquer!

With God, All things are Possible! As the year 2009 is coming to an end, let’s gear ourselves up and enter 2010 with GUTS!

PACE

Shio Shio Gai Loti Entry #3

Our journey in life, our walk with God is liken that of a marathon..a long distance race in which we have the privilege to experience various elements of surprises, joy, sadness, shock, love, etc at different stages, thus enhancing our values and beliefs towards life.

God knows that we will all go through seasons in life. There's ups and downs in different juncture in life. In Gen 8:22, it says:

(Genesis 8:22)
"While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat, Winter and Summer, And day and night Shall not cease.'

Positive thinking leads to Positive life and outlook.

God is faithful and His promises to us never fails.
God is our provider and He is always with us.

When we are weak, He gives us strength.
When we are poor, He provides for us.
When we need help, He gives us solutions.
When we are sad, He comforts us.
When we are lost, He gives us direction.

Knowing that there are seasons in our life, we need to understand how God moves and works in our life. The key is that God is always with us and He is in control of All things.

The word "Pace" came to my mind during one of my quiet time. The meaning of the word "Pace" in Webster dictionary denotes as the rate / speed of movement;

The fact that we will go through seasons in life influences the speed and rate of movement during that particular stage. For example, we got affected emotionally, physically as well as mentally whenever we are in our bad times. As a result, some people's rate / speed of movement, their pace in the things they do, be it their workplace or ministry would tend to be affected.

We should learn how to "Pace" ourselves at all times. Pacing to me is consistency. In a race, a runner usually pace himself consistently in order to win the race, to clock his best timing or to finish the race.

When we pace ourselves in a race, we should consistently do the following:
1) Push through and Pray Strong
2) Acknowledge and Activate God's promises
3) Commit and Continue to believe the vision that God has given
4) Endure and Encourage yourself

YES

Shio Shio Gai Loti Entry #2

(2 Cor 1:20)
“For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.”

Truly the Word of God says in 2 Cor 1:20 that His promises are Yes and Amen! God is faithful and whatever He promised, He will give it to us.

The bible has more than 7000 promises from God for each and every one of us. How many of you want God’s promises in your life? Then you need to have Faith. Faith is the foundation for you to receive God’s promises and to eventually see it through.

God is the same yesterday, today and forever. Heaven and Earth may past away, but His Word, His promises will always remain

There are 3 things regarding Faith in God’s promises

For God’s promises, Faith requires you to:

1. Yield to God

There must be a yielding to God. Faith without works is dead. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. As you study and meditate upon God’s word, as you pray and commune with Him, He will begin to show you His promises, visions and revelations.

It is important to yield to God. Man also tends to be forgetful. The devil is here to steal, to kill and to destroy. But as you spend time with God, He will bring a remembrance of the promises that He had given to you before. Therefore faith requires youghn yield to God.

2. Endure

Our Christian walk is a journey of faith. Heb 12:1 says that “let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” To see God’s promises come to past, we need to ENDURE. Life is never a bed of roses, there bounds to be challenges and obstacles along the way. But that should not stop us from having faith in God’s promises. If we endure, we shall also reign with Him. Friends, let’s not give up easily. We are more than conquerors in Christ. We should keep on keeping on and fight the good fight of faith.

3. Sacrifice

To fulfil God’s promises requires a certain level of sacrifice. Jesus says in Mark 8:34 that “whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and followed Me.” There are sacrifices that we need to make in order to walk in the will of God, to receive and fulfil His promises.” We sacrifice our time and youth to serve God and His people. We give our finances, our tithing, our offering faithfully for the works of the Kingdom. All these are sacrifices. Our church has a famous saying: “Others can but we cannot” For example, during our building fund period, our friends can go for a good holiday but we choose not to because we want to build God a great house and we give and give and give. Amen

As we begin to apply these 3 points in our life, the end result for God’s promises will be a YES. It will come to past. He who promised is faithful. Let’s have faith in God, let’s have faith in His promises.

SAD

Shio Shio Gai Loti Entry #1

Feeling sad is one of the emotions that we all would experience somehow or another in life.

Webster defines "Sad" as "Experiencing or showing sorrow or unhappiness".

In short, it simply means to feel unhappy, upset or troubled. It could be a result caused by people, things, situations, etc.

Our life is never guaranteed a bed roses. Sometimes bad things or situations do happened to good people. As a child of God, we are called to be more than conquerors in Christ. It is therefore imperative for us to understand and realize the kind of reactions and actions that we should take especially in a condition that is unfavorable to us.

As human beings, we will definitely experience sadness at times. But more than often, we are vulnerable to dwell in a state of sadness, so much so that it would cause damage to our soul, body and spirit. Ultimately, it leads to depression if we are not careful. Therefore it is very crucial for us to control ourselves and prevent falling into the plots of the devil.

(Matt 14:26-27)

"And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying "It is a ghost!" And they cried out for fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying "Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.""

God want us to be of good cheer, to smile, to have hope, to be positive, to be in good spirit.

We should all learn to put an end to our sadness and do it fast!

Option 1 and 2 below are two scenarios of the process that we take:

OPTION 1: SAD ----------------------------------------------------> END

OPTION 2: SAD ---> END

In between "SAD to END" is the Journey or Actions that we can take to end our sad emotion. Obviously, we can see that Option 2 is a faster and shorter process than option 1. We have a choice!

3 simple steps that we all can do at our side to end our sadness:

1) SmilE

2) AbandoN

3) DefenD

SmilE - whenever you feel sad, start SMILING. =) By smiling when you don't feel like doing so is a good start to break your sad condition. (Proverbs 17:22) "A merry heart does good like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones"

AbandoN - Learn to let go of all the unhappy things. Forgive and Forget. (Psalms 55:22)"Cast your burden on the LORD, And He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved." Get rid of the root problem by trusting and having faith in God.

DefenD - (Proverbs 4:23) "Guard your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life". It's a good start and indication of your effort to progress into the future.

The END of a matter is always more important than the beginning. The closure of a matter opens the door to a new chapter in life.

Start to Smile, Abandon your worries, and Defend your life.