One of the good things about taking a break is that you have more time to strengthen your spiritual walk with God. Like I always share with the cell, satisfying your spiritual hunger is akin to the feeling you get after having a salad (light and healthy; don't know how to capture it adequately but you get the sense that there's more oxygen in you). Compared to eating fast food, the latter makes you feel oily and bloated in an unhealthy way (I'm sure you experience this feeling before!)

Thus, to make you feel "light and healthy" today, I would like to share with you an excerpt from one of my devotional readings:

Many Christians are out of bondage and are no longer under Satan's reign, yet they are not experiencing the full liberty of Christ. It is common for Christians to embark on the spiritual journey with great expectations. But when the going gets tough, they become halfhearted, taking half measures and going half the way, instead of going all the way.


That's the story of Terah's (Abraham's father) life. His family could not progress in their spiritual experience until he died. Then Abraham picked up where his father left off and this time, he went all the way. . . Many Christians would have experienced God's fullness if they are disciplined enough to go further, plunge deeper and soar higher. No matter how weary we are, we should practice the principle of just one more - just one more try, just one more push, just one more practice - then we would have developed the habit of going all the way. . .

Remember the Semitic line? It's a royal one through which Jesus Christ would be born. God had to step in and intervene because He doesn't do things halfway. So Isaac was born.


Then Isaac's wife Rebecca was barren. If God had stopped there, then the Messiah would not have been born. But God doesn't do things halfway, so He intervened. Jacob was born, and it was through his line that Jesus would be born.

Indeed, God went all the way. . .


When the people wanted to make Jesus King, He could have been sidetracked by them. But He said  "no" to the tempting offer in order to go all the way to fulfill the Father's plan for Him. . .


There was a great temptation not to face the Cross. But because He intended to go all the way, He finally submitted and prayed, "Nonetheless, not My will, but Thine, be done."


With that, Jesus steeled His soul, set His face like a flint toward Mount Calvary and went all the way for your sake and mine.


All of us are going through the ups and downs of life. There are times we feel like giving up halfway. But let us not forget that Jesus had gone all the way for us so that we, too, will be empowered to go all the way despite the storms of life and all the obstacles along the way.

I find this very encouraging, firstly because I didn't expect that we can derive so much just from the genealogies (family tree) of Jesus Christ and also because, Jesus is the perfect example of perseverance and love. He endured trials and temptations just to save us from being separated from God. Such is the extent of His love :)

"Being in love is a good thing, but it is not the best thing. There are many things below it, but there are also things above it. You cannot make it the basis of a whole life. It is a noble feeling, but it is still a feeling. Now no feeling can be relied on to last in its full intensity, or even to last at all. . .In fact, the state of being in love usually does not last. . .But of course ceasing to be 'in love' need not mean ceasing to love. Love. . .is a deep unity, maintained by the will and deliberately strengthened by habit;reinforced by the grace which both partners ask and receive from God. . .'Being in love' first moved them to promise fidelity: this quieter love enables them to keep their promise. It is on this love that the engine of marriage is run: being in love was the explosion that started it."

[C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity ]

reflections...

I'm back to blogging again!

Hmm...it's always hard to start blogging again after abstaining from it for so long. Actually, it's more of procrastination that's been keeping me from doing it besides the fact that I've been busy but after reading Joan and Cui's blogs and their honest reflection and musings about stuff, I finally decided to pen down some thoughts which I've been having on my part.


As you all know (well, at least those who are still visiting my blog occasionally), I've been spending time with Chris (hmm..feels weird to call him that now) ever since we got together and it's been a ride. For starters, I'm beginning to understand the issues which I once thought would be easy to resolve when I was single and when I hear the problems (similar ones as mine) being told to me by my friends who are attached. We aren't as free to make decisions as it seems compared to independent, single life.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not complaining now that I'm with Chris and all. He's been more than nice to me and I love and cherish him and thank God for him. It's just that I didn't expect that I would have to get used to living a "double life" like what Michelle termed it. Not in terms of double standards but with regards to decision-making. I have to factor chichi (yeah, that's what I call him) into the decisions I make now (eg. Do we have plans on that day? Will he like what I'm doing? etc etc). I've been so accustomed to planning my day and the activities around myself, you see.

Maybe it's just me. I've always imagined relationships to work in mushy, romantic ways; that everything will eventually work out once both parties come to an understanding with each other but now that I'm in one, it's becoming more like a reality check (hmmm..I'm making it sound like there are problems in my relationship now but don't worry, we're very much in love :) )

Ultimately, one thing I hope would be that my core self (the idiosyncracies that makes me who I am) would  remain and that I'll still be the same, old me. Of course there'll be certain areas that will change for sure (eg. who knows, maybe I will become more feminine or whatever that happens when one gets into a relationship) but essentially, I hope that both of us will still retain an independent part of ourselves, one that our friends will still recognise and associate us being uniquely us with, while living our life (and making decisions with) as a couple. It all comes down to striking a balance in whatever we do.

As for changing for the better, now that I'm with chichi, I realised that there are stuff about myself that I'm unaware about (which he's been pointing out). It's stuff that friends wouldn't dare to tell me directly or stuff that might seem too trivial to be brought out on the table for correction, but they might be things that might leave an unfavourable lasting impression.

Well, if it feels like a depressing post for someone who just got attached, I'm just being honest here :/

For now, I'm just glad that we're being open and honest to each other, telling the other party when we're not happy with a certain issue, etc...and I hope it will last even after the "honeymoon period" is over. Maybe it's a blessing in disguise that chichi is experienced in such stuff enough to know that we have to regulate our feelings from time to time and come back to earth once in a while...

And ultimately, I hope (and I know he stands with me on this point) that our relationship will be God-centred and that our walk with Him will not waver now that we have each other (especially at this stage).

Please keep us in prayer :)