CF Easter Party

My college CF organised its 4th Easter Party this year. It's been an annual thing ever since CF started in 2009. No easter bunnies or chocolates but all about Jesus dying on the cross to pay for our sins and he resurrected because even death can't defeat him. He is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

The party didn't start off well but eventually, everything fell into place and I really thank God for that. God works wonders in my life over and over again. Just when I thought things were falling apart, it ended with a bang! The good bang. The CF-ers were so super helpful as well. God's timing is perfect and there's no doubt to that.

Only a few pictures captured at the event.







I prepared some spring roll this morning. My first attempt. Mom's recipe.



First batch... looks a bit burnt but ok..


Second batch. Not so dark cause i was running out of time.


Of irregular sizes cause I was in a hurry... Will be better next time!

1 year...

It's been almost exactly one year since we adopted Elly and Elsa. (I actually thought we took them in on March 6th last year but it's actually March 5th) I wanted to just post their very first picture and their latest picture but ended up selecting so many because they're just too cute to not post. I don't really have their latest picture here though. Pictures below are among their earliest and their latest pictures.

Here goes:












First time wearing their collar with licence.


First vet visit.








Passport picture.


This one is my all time favourite picture of Elsa.






Taken last week. She's not as skinny as she looks in the picture.


Taken last week too. She struck this post when she saw me taking her picture.

Well, it's been a year and I've come to learn that puppies have got the most deceiving look. Even the most gorgeous woman or the most handsome guy would lose to them.
Innocent-adorable-pitiful-lovable-etc. Wait till you get to know them. Haha..I really longed for them to grow up when we first adopted them and now it feels like it was only a few months ago. How time really zooms. Guess that's all for now.

Till then!

The Passion Principle

Finished reading the book which I shared about - 10 Things Jesus Never Said and it took me only a week. WOW! Indeed a record considering my slow speed and low interest in reading.

Reading another book and it's titled "Awesome On The Inside" by Tim Hawkins. Halfway through and every chapter I read felt like I was reading about myself - not the awesome part of course but how not awesome it is deep down inside me.

Something I want to share from the book:

"There are some things that if you don't do them with all your heart, you might as well not do them at all."

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men. - Colossians 3:23

1. Work at it with all your heart
You're never meant to do anything half heartedly. God says, whatever you do, work at it will ALL your heart.100%

Why?

2. Because you're working for the Lord
You don't read your bible because your youth leader said you should. You don't come to church because you've simply "got into that habit". You don't get involved in ministry to others "because it's expected of you". You don't obey your parents just so they won't get angry with you.

All because we're working for the Lord.

Happening Monday

This is a backdated post. I've been wanting to blog this post since Monday but was really busy for the past many days since Thursday.

Monday was an extremely happening day for me. Quite a black Monday as well. You'll know why.

After settling the usual house chores, my sister and I went out to several places to settle some stuffs. First to the bank to withdraw some money. There, I took notice of a red kancil because it was blocking the way and somehow i remembered the number plate. Then we went to the bus station to buy my sister's bus ticket. On the way out, there was a roadblock, police checked my licence and of course I got through =p It's the second time my driving licence got checked since i started driving.

Next, we headed to sister's college to settle some convocation procedures and next to Ipoh Parade to watch Ah Beng: 3 wishes. Guess what? I managed to park at the free parking area outside starbucks for the first time, must be my day eh? and guess what again? we met the very same red kancil we saw at the bank !!! The car was entering the same parking area when we got off. What a coincidence!!!

Wanted to watch that movie in Kinta City with my friends last week but it was sold out and it's super expensive to watch a movie there now. It's so much cheaper in Ipoh Parade, only RM6!!! My sister claimed a free ticket cause it's her birthday month so it's like a 3bucks movie! Definitely worth it =) sound system ain't that good, but doesn't matter, it's so cheap anyway.

Dined in Kenny Rogers after movie. Sister's treat to celebrate her new job in a new department.


Vanilla and chocolate muffin.


We're quite health conscious and thrifty when it comes to ordering drinks so, sky juice =)


Quarter chicken with black pepper gravy with fresh fruits, mashed potato and garden pasta salad.


Sister's chicken with rice,macaroni and cheese and coleslaw.



Walked around after lunch looking for brown court shoes for sister's new job but couldn't find any and planned to hunt for it somewhere else. We decided to leave Ipoh Parade for the next place at about 4pm but couldn't unlock our car. We thought something must be wrong with the remote control so we called dad for help and he suggested us to get new battery from the watch shop. We went back in, all the way to the 1st floor but the guy said the battery was still strong and taught us how to unlock the car using the key and off the alarm when it's triggered but we changed the battery anyway, just in case. Got back to the car and nothing worked.

We loitered around until 5.45pm, dad came. He brought the spare remote control and it didn't work either. Anyway, long story short, tapped my dad's car battery in the end and realised the headlights were on!! That's why the battery went flat. I refused to admit I turned it on until i recalled i did turn it on at the bus station while crossing the dark carpark and totally forgot to off it. The funny thing was that, the police didn't tell me, the guard at the parking lot didn't tell me. They probably didn't notice either. It was about 7pm by the time everything was settled.

Lesson learnt: Always check that your car headlights are off before getting off your car and remind others whenever possible when you see their headlights on during the day or at any parking lots. It'll save them a whole lot of trouble.

Went to church for the valentine event preparation at night and finally had time to check my results at 11.30pm. It's just so happen that I'm always occupied on the exam results day. Didn't know what to expect and gathered my guts to check it. Failed one, passed another. Just 3 more marks to pass! argh.... but it's definitely much more than what I deserve based on how badly I answered the paper. It is already grace and I'm really thankful I didn't fail both. Least I don't have to defer the one I'm enrolled for now. I'll finish this year if all goes well.

Guess that's all about my happening Monday. Sorry I'm just so long winded cause it's for my record too =p

That's all for now. Till then!

assurance and encouragement

I came across these 2 bible verses 3 times today, I think.

For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.
- Colossians 1:16

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
- Galatians 2:20

First while watching a video shared by a friend on facebook, then at cell group and again while googling up for verses related to 'love'.

Perhaps these 2 verses always come hand in hand but it simply amazes me each time i stumble upon the same verse a few times in a short period of time.

It's not just bible verse. I even came across some same phrases at least twice over the past one week.

- We can never surprise God because He knows everything.
- God will never give up on us.
- Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is not a one time sin but a lifetime sin of which we reject Jesus until the day we die and that is unforgivable.

That's an encouragement for me and I hope it is for you too =)

"I'm so disappointed in you"

Got this book a few days ago and I'm almost halfway through. I'm not a bookworm but if a book can get me reading on and on, it must be good.

It's quite a risky act to simply purchase a book without knowing how good it is but so far it's a good read especially if your christian walk seems to be driven by guilt, afraid you're not good enough for God and afraid of how He may be disappointed by you.

The title of this post is among the 10 things Jesus never said.

There is no way we can disappoint God because He knows every single thing about us, every decision we would make and every deed we would commit. We'll never catch Him by surprise by the things we do.

Here are some lines taken from the book that I had the urge to share:

God knows more about you than you do. He's a "you" expert! How are you going to surprise Him or somehow do something He didn't expect?

Jesus died for our sins. Past, present, future - He died for it all.

God is way to big and all-knowing for us to ever surprise Him or let Him down.

God knows everything about us but chose to love us anyway.

Our standing as believers before God has forever been confirmed by the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Know that when you fall - and you will - your loving heavenly Father will be the first to pick you up. You will never hear Him say, "I'm so disappointed in you".

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. - Romans 5:8 -

CNY 2012

Chinese new year seemed to come early this year. As usual, plenty of last minute house chores to be done but it's much better this year compared to the previous years.

Almost everyone who celebrates chinese new year had their reunion lunch/dinner yesterday. Facebook news feed was so full of reunion food pictures. My sister and I used to cook a few dishes for reunion dinner for a few years, then one year we had steamboat then it got even simpler to just domino's pizza last year. Since there are only 3 of us at home, we had the same again this year.


2 regular pizzas and garlic cheese onion rings.


Quick, simple and delicious. Haven't had pizza in a while so it tasted really good =)


Brother caught Elsa sleeping in the "useless-dog-post"

Which cny cookie/snack is the most addictive to you? I found mine and it is :


Deep fried crab stick !!! i love it in its form and i love it this way too. It's way too addictive than I thought it would be.

As usual, had lunch at my grandaunt and granduncle's place.


Rendang, chinese sausage, stewed pork with mushroom, cauliflower and fried turnip.


My first mandarin orange this year, I think. I'm not very fond of eating mandarin oranges actually but I was served.


This is like a must have in my grandaunt's place.


Pineapple jam tart.


Angpows collected so far. Not many, I know but satisfied =) We seem to be going to less and less houses every year but it's ok. I'm too lazy to go anywhere anyway.

Looking forward to my actual family reunion on wednesday.

That's all for now. Till then!

San Francisco Steakhouse

My friends and I decided to have lunch in San Francisco Steakhouse on Wednesday after a game of badminton. Yeah, so our effort of trying to lose some fats was kinda burnt off after the meal. The last time which was my first time eating in San Francisco was in Midvalley about a decade ago when dad's friend spent us. It wasn't a good experience though. I remember eating the big portion of steak meal till my siblings and I felt like throwing out!! How blessed we are to have food overload in a classy restaurant like that. We've never eaten there since then.

This time, Yan Lin wanted to try the set lunch there so we went for it.




The business there ain't that good when we went..


RM16.90 for a drink, starter and main course. 4 types of starter to choose from and 4 types of main course as well.


Complementary bread and butter


Salad with thousand island sauce.


Fried onion rings.


Joyce's beef stew with mashed potato.


Grilled white fish. I had this..

The food was just okay overall. Fish was kinda salty and the sauce didn't go so well with it but the texture of the fish was satisfying. Portion was quite worth the money, I think. I was expecting smaller portions. Anyway, I don't think I would go back for the same food again. Oh yeah, it was super filling too!!! I couldn't finish the fries myself. We got our parking fee waived off for eating there too.

Had a good time eating and catching up with friends.

Guess that's all about my second time eating in San Francisco Steakhouse.
Till then!

the source of true joy...

First class of the year has started today.

During the class today, someone mentioned about living in moderation, having just enough money to enjoy life - not rich, not poor. No doubt, we all need money. I disagreed when he said poor people can never have true happiness.

No matter how poor a person is, he can be happy and joyful if he has Jesus in his life. Likewise, one can have all the riches in the world yet never find joy if he does not know Jesus.

Our source of joy is found in Christ alone, not wealth.
Happiness depends on happenings thus it will not last but true joy comes from knowing Jesus and accepting Him as our personal Lord and Saviour, for in Him, we have eternal hope. The world will always let us down but Jesus will never disappoint us.

Wealth has no role in bringing joy that lasts.

If you wanna read more about Joy vs Happiness, here are 2 worth reading sites:

http://www.studyjesus.com/more/devos/joyvshappy.htm

http://www.diffen.com/difference/Happiness_vs_Joy



"These things I have spoken to you so that My Joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full." - John 15:11

"Do not be grieved, for the Joy of the Lord is your strength." - Nehemiah 8:10

More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. - Romans 5:11

First Post of 2012

It's the first of January 2012. The most talked about year when it comes to the "end of the world" topic. That doesn't concern me much cause I think we shouldn't hold on to something which we aren't even sure is true.

As mentioned in my previous post, so much has happened in the year 2011.

- lost my dear doggie during chinese new year.
- failed my exams for the first time.
- adopted 2 puppies.
- more home-alone-experiences.
- had a massive surprised birthday celebration.
- passed 3 papers and I was so happy that I couldn't sleep the night I checked my results.
- had a short awesome trip to KL for Caryn's birthday celebration. It was a good getaway and get together.

- took an hour to get home from college because of the flood on the way home. Then, met a minor accident when a car banged into my car's side mirror while driving in the rain. (not sure if that's considered an accident but I hope it's not an annual thing)
- towels got saved from getting wet cause God sent the rain only after i got home. Very trivial I know but it totally made my day.

- went for youth camp the week before exams. I've never been to any camps during my examination period. Conducted games for youth camp for the first time and it's really not easy but I've no regrets because through this, God showed me again that He's in sovereign control of everything. The weather was great and He sent me 2 helpers to help out with the games just when I was short of 2 more helpers.
- travelled to Penang alone for the first time. I've never travelled to anywhere alone.
- slept during my precious break more than I have ever before during any other semester breaks. I don't know why I've been sleeping so much recently. I think I need to exercise more regularly.

That's all I can recall of among the many incidents happened in 2011. Didn't seem so bad after all. It's been a tough year but God has faithfully brought me through it though I've not been an obedient child. I've said it once and I'll say it again that in all circumstances, I could see God's hands working in my life and it's really amazing. I'll just wait to see the whole big picture.

I'm too lazy to upload pictures captured throughout the year so I'll just post some recent pictures captured during the week.


Yummy clay pot porridge with my favourite yau char guai in Sunway Pyramid.


Busybody Elly and Elsa looking over to my neighbour's house. Yes, they're that big now...


Dim sum for breakfast.


Mom spent us McFlurry after dinner in Jusco. It's my second time having the whole cup to myself.


- BBQ dory fish.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, I went to Ipoh Parade twice in the week after exams. 3 times on 3 consecutive days to Jusco last week. Did a lot of Christmas shopping this time.


Snacks from Japan from Sue Jane =)


Mom found this while spring cleaning the house. It was my artwork in art class about a decade ago. Guided of course and i didn't draw that. Just coloured.


Saw this rainbow on the way home yesterday evening. It's beautiful cause it's the sign of the covenant God made with Noah.


New banner with new theme in church for this year.


Bought this at a 31% discounted price since it was the 31st. My first time too =)


Omelette served during new year lunch sponsored by my church today in a restaurant nearby. Everyone was too hungry so I didn't capture the rest of the dishes.

Looks like the pictures are mostly on food. Shows how much I've been eating recently. I think I spent most of my time eating, sleeping and relaxing. Anything but studying is holiday =)

I'm sad that holiday is over but life goes on. New year resolutions? I have a few but not gonna post it here and some are renewed resolutions cause i failed to achieve them. Incase you didn't realise, I've changed my blog title since it's new year and I don't like the old title anymore.

2011 has been a happening year with many ups and downs and I believe there are more to come this year.

Guess that's all for now for my new year post with random pictures.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!
Expect great things from God, attempt great things for Him!!

Got this from one of my previous new year posts:

God’s faithful care will extend to every day of the new year. We can count on that promise. - David C.McCasland

God holds the future in His hands
With grace sufficient day by day;
Through good or ill He gently leads,
If we but let Him have His way. —Rohrs