Drought

Whenever there is a drought, tree roots are forced to drive deeper into the soil to find water. If you find yourself in a time of trial, now is the best time to press into God! Let your roots grow deeper. These times are designed to create such a deep-rooted faith that will push your boundaries and burst your limits. You will never be the same again.

Press on BFCers! Many of us are praying for each of you daily. Don't give up easily. Put up a good fight. Plan time for rest and leisure. Set aside time for God. 20mins a day. You can do it.

:)

Shepherd

Through Life's Journey

#3
LIFE

Life is a journey we all must make. It has its ups and downs, detours and obstacles, valleys and mountains. For me, in relation to school, every week is more than survival. It is triumph! Knowing that God has already won the victory for you makes the journey easier. Sometimes, things get difficult. You climb one peak and yet another one is before you. You look up and you see many mountains ahead. They look steep. Sometimes, you can't even tell what is ahead. Mist and darkness enshrouds. During such times...

"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path." - Psalm 119: 105

Sometimes, life gets tiring and worrisome. But don't worry, Jesus is there for us!

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." - Matthew 11:28-30

Cast all your cares, worries, burdens and problems on Jesus! He will gladly take them!

"Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." - 1 Peter 5:7

Also, do not forget to pray! Prayer is probably the most powerful weapon/tool you can use for anything and everything, be it big or small, for God hears them all!

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." - Philippians 4:6

I tend to pray for things not in my control but I feel that we should, like what Philippians 4:6 says, pray for every single thing! Including those things that are in your control or which you think are in your control or which are supposed to be in your control. When praying, pray with belief! Because...

"If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." - Matthew 21:22

Remember that God is always with you!

"The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." - Deuteronomy 31:8

Remember always that God has only the best in mind for you!

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11

Therefore, knowing and believing in this, we should...

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight." - Proverbs 3:5-6

Have you ever felt lacking in anything? Fret not! God is our provider! If we choose to follow Him, He will not only guide us but provide for us!

"The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want." - Psalm 23:1

"And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:19

When Satan comes to taunt you and make a mess of your life, cling fast to God! Always remember that...

"You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world." - 1 John 4:4

Ours is the Almighty God! Therefore, we can go through life in confidence!

"Even 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." - Psalm 23:4

Through life's journey, depend on God who is full of love and grace, and who is our faithful God!

"But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness." - Psalm 86:15

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases
His mercies never come to an end
They are new every morning
New every morning
Great is Thy faithfulness, O Lord
Great is Thy faithfulness

Your grace is sufficient for me
Your strength is made perfect when I am weak
All that I cling to I lay at your feet
Your grace is sufficient for me

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness Lord unto me

When you feel that all is lost, and God doesn't seem to be working or answering your prayers even though you've prayed really hard, remember this:

"We live by faith, not by sight." - 2 Corinthians 5:7

God will make a way
Where there seems to be no way
He works in ways we cannot see
He will make a way for me
He will be my guide
Hold me closely to His side
With love and strength for each new day
He will make a way
He will make a way

Remember how God has been faithful in the past...

"I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago." - Psalm 77:11

Since God doesn't change, surely He will be faithful again! =)

When life gets tough, have the end in sight! It will be an encouragement to keep going!

"Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him." - James 1:12

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." - Hebrews 12:1

Knowing this, we can...

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." - James 1:2-4

Finally, in everything...

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." - 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

We don't have to thank God for everything that happens, especially the bad stuff. But we can thank Him in everything, knowing that He is always there and our victory is in Him!

I shall end my sharing with a verse from the Psalms. There is absolute truth to what David said!

"Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun." - Psalm 37:5-6

DARYL =)

I Will Remember...

Have you ever exercised your will over the will of God? Have you ever been so willful that you choose to go your own way no matter what God said? If so, you have been at the same place as the prophet Jonah. God called Jonah to deliver a message to God's people as a warning. Jonah flatly refused! It was Jonah's will over God's. Guess who won?

I am doing the One Year Bible in chronological order this year. And yes, I'm now in Leviticus.. Yawn.. However, the portion I read yesterday shook me out of my boredom, sending chills right down my spine.

Lev 26
... if you refuse to obey me, I will 1. Send debilitating disease, high fevers, blindness (lose my health!) 2. Enemies will eat your crops (I labour, others take credit!). 3. People who hate you will govern you (that idiot is gonna be my teacher/boss??!!). 4. You'll run scared even when there's no one chasing you (stressed until I hallucinate!). 5. No matter how hard you work, nothing will come of it (totally helpless!). 6. Wild animals will rob you of your children, kill your cattle (The gloomy economic dragon will eat me up!). 7. Send a deadly epidemic on you (unknown virus, lethal diseases!). 8. Send war (from where? Family wars? Cold wars?). 9. Cut off your bread supply (losing my job!). 10. You'll end up cooking and eating your sons in stews and your daughters in barbecues (!!).

The list goes on...

Wah, a bit kua1 zhang1 right? God, chill it man.. God has a way of getting us to rethink our decisions, to reconsider our position. In fact, we see the extent of Jonah's willfulness by the amount of time he was willing to hang out in the belly of that fish - three full days! Then, Jonah decides enough is enough! Obedience is better than this fish belly and seaweed. I can identify with Jonah. I am worse than Jonah at times.. Many of us are sometimes placed in the "belly of the fish" to encourage us to fulfill the purposes of God, to right our wrong. Jonah's situation changed immediately upon his obedience. Obedience is a mysterious thing. Jesus had to learn it through the things He suffered.

Heb. 5:8 (NASV)
Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered.

If Jesus had to learn obedience, what does that mean for you and me?

Lev 26: 40 - 42 (The Message)
... if they confess their sins.. I will remember..

God will remember His covenant with us. He will remember His unfailing love for us. He will remember.

Yeah, happy ending :)

Shepherd

Sharing.

It's my turn to share.

One of my friends recently asked, "What's worship all about?"
Well, Worship is between you and God-Nothing else.

I love that feeling when you're just lost in worship and you keep singing and singing and you just don't care how you sound anymore. You lose everything but your focus on God and it just becomes all that matters. When I sing to the lyrics, I want to mean every syllable of it from the depths of my heart. But sometimes for me, It's hard to surrender everything in life to him. It takes time.

Take for example, my O level results. It took me sometime to accept it. Two weeks ago during the worship. I was still pondering about it the entire week and my heart was feeling heavy the moment I step into the place. As the worship starts & continue, I pause and said a short prayer to God. Asking God to release the burden inside me that is hurting me. I felt his presence and tears started flowing. God is working on it and healing the pain. His is awesome.

I come to a point to realize that- To sit back and do nothing is like going backwards, rather than forward into the future that God has set for us. God has plans for us, everyone.


And....Mission trip. I can't wait for the mission trip end of this year. Honestly, It's the first time for many of us while some are going on their 2nd mission trip. From their experiences they share, I think it's called grace. Grace to care for someone other than myself, grace to go the extra mile and grace in which to Love God kingdom and children of His.

So yes, I'm happy and I thank God for everything right now.

Reminder: Please remember to pass me the 20 dollars for mission trip fund at youth ablaze this week if you haven done so yet.

Iris.p!

PRAYER MEETING

Hi BFC! How are u all doing? I hope you're doing fine! No.. I hope you're doing great! Coz I'm still surviving.. as usual =)

Anyway, this is about prayer meeting this Sunday - 8 Feb 2009. Yup.. I'm not sure how many of you will read this before the wkend comes but don't worry I'll send a reminder =) Was supposed to do this a wk ago, but didn't, so now Jacelyn is angry with me.. Got to do this quick.. Juz kidding, Jacelyn =)

Since we're supposed to come for service this Sunday (it's the 2nd Sunday of the month), let us take a quick lunch after that and go for prayer meeting! Yup.. It starts at 1330 I heard and it lasts for about an hour! I'm not very sure how it is done.. This is my first proper corporate prayer event so I don't really know what to expect. But I guess during the course of the week, you can prepare yourself by praying more and getting used to it and this Sunday, we'll pray as a church =) A small part of the church at least! I don't know what to say now. But anyway, hope you all are able to enjoy the week! As Joshua says..

Daryl =)


[post edited by joyce - enlarged & bolded some words ;)]