I BBQ-ed wings and flipped hamburgers before. I can tell you it is not easy to be a good BBQ cook. If you don't flip the wings or burgers every now and then. If you forget to flip them it will burn out and you get the real "BBQed" wings and burgers. "NO Thanks!" that's cancerous food. I go to church every time the doors is open. I ran a small but highly energetic youth fellowship and youth ministry. I also work full time. Attend my own young professional / university fellowship. Spent time on my precious photography hobby. Drove some people to and from church. And I even managed to lose 30+ lb for the past year. My goodness - next time I will make sure to take out my watch and car keys and wallet out of my jeans and wear something lighter before stepping on the scale at the doctor's office... because they do add up. :) This time I went back to get another yearly physical exam, crazy to hear the doctor tell me I need to lose some more extra weight... this time I made sure to shed the wallet, the car keys, my Guess watch and the jeans out before stepping on the scale... now it kinda fixated in my neurons the scale at the doctor's office!!! The scale in my bathroom has correct reading... in my computation I am pretty sure that my BMI is actually at a good index and I think the doctor should go take an CT scan himself instead of me!!! Anyways, I am grateful to God for giving me that youthfulness and that bounty of energy accorded to me. I feel I still can find some time out to chill / relax - no beer or alcohol - just a walk in my secret garden - but yet my candles seem to flicker faster and may not last through the night. It's so romantic to have chocolate melt next to your candle. LoL. :)
My body cannot take caffeine or other stimulants anymore... hence it gets exhausting and my body is denying me to walk on water - however I should walk on water more often - heeding that call from my good Shepherd - Christ - I feel that I have to do a lot more to improve in all areas of His ministry, digging out hidden talents to serve Him. Whether it is singing, whether it is simply making a phone calls to cheer up / encourage someone. Whether it is helping a sister in the middle of the night writing a paper or even just chatting up with her and after finishing up all these activities - I would like to do more - it is simply doing God's work. However honestly I feel a bit burned out to fully commit to God to have faith in Him, to fully trust Him - as I do all by my own strength and deny His strength in us. Lately I do feel the pain in my arms - it is denying me to fully enjoy the work I do on a daily basis - it is painful - yet I should cast away all my anxieties and stop complaining... I don't complain a lot in my life because it doesn't help - but this time it hit upon me to the core. Not to function fully. Then I think again - a small woman like Mother Theresa who had endured so much and work so hard to hold up sick people in her hands until God called her back to His Heavenly Kingdom - not just touches me but really encourage me. Pope John Paul II had Parkinson's disease yet - he continued to work so hard for God until God called him back to Heaven - How did they get their strength from? Not from man's strength obviously! But from God Almighty! That's richness of being instead of richness of having. Being joyful to serve God in all kinds of ministry and to serve Him with love. No wonder Mother Theresa and Pope John Paul II are saints! They certainly have good work / life balance, good leadership skills and a love for serving God as they love God without second thoughts. When God calls you - you better pick up the "phone".
There got to be a balance to fix this burned out situation. I realize my good friend went back to France recently from Malaysia on a 10 hours flight just to be with his wife at the airport to pick her up and also their twin infant sons and return immediately with their sons to Malaysia. No he was not a pilot. He just wanted to accompany them safely back to Malaysia. Such is the life of a joyful and loving family. I did spend countless nights picking up a friend in the middle of the night and take her home from her studies. Drove her home from her work. Fixed a few diner plates for her. Just because she is your friend. Your special friend. You would exercise just for her. You will serenade just for her. You will do crazy things to woo her. Once you have done all the wooing... and you have knelt down on your knees to propose her. She raised your hands up and say - "YES Lord!" and you say "Yes Yes Lord!" ring that tone of that songs... Thank You God! HAHAHA. This is called passion. Once you are passionate about something - about a girl, you will do whatever it takes to impress her. You have no second thoughts. You just do it. You will sacrifice your time, your health, your waking hours praying for her. You will hang out at the movies. You will take long walks in the park. Seating at a cafe sipping with chocolate cup on hand. You are insane! You never tire for what you love to do and never tire for what you hold dear... even crazy things.
So think of Christ's life - His life is pretty balanced! Walking with friends (his disciples). Dining with his family. Attending weddings. Talking to strangers. Healing the sicks. Preaching to the masses. Talking to wannabe kings. All the while taking the time to fast in the wilderness and pray. He was never in a hurry, he balanced his walk. He was never anxious... as even to comfort behaved friends. He was not frustrated... even to his sleeping disciples. Until the last day of His life on the cross. He kept the last breadth for you for us. Walk with Him - take it easy, speak with gentleness, may the fruit of the Holy Spirit - such that love, peace, joy, patience, kindness, gentleness, self-control ripen in our lives.
What is truly essential is that we trust a sovereign God - He will mold and shape us according to His will. We have that assurance that he will lift us up when we fall down, provide for tomorrow what is needed just for us. Comfort us and bring joy to us when we are down. So long we are fixated upon Him.
Now I'm burned out - it is past midnight! I just killed quiet a lot of neurons and without caffeine and didn't flip any burgers. I am pretty hungry actually. Umh... I'm thinking about some melting chocolate and croissant for breakfast. I will not be burned out but always light up the fire on my candle because He lives! :)
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Monday, October 15, 2007
Best piece of professional advice (given or received)
1. "Always strive to hire/attract people who are better than you." Larry Woerner
2. "If you can't get a child to understand a business idea, you don't understand it yourself." - Terry Thompson.
3. "Don't spend too much time worrying about things you can't control or influence!" - Simon O'Regan
4. "Take a risk." and "Change jobs before you're bored." - Patricia Milligan
5. "Learn to fail, or fail to learn." and "It's never as good as it seems or as bad as it seems." - Jeff Miller
6. "There is really one thing in life that never changes; if you learn to accept change rather than fight it, life and work become much easier and more enjoyable." - David Goldenberg.
7. "Strategy is as much about what you decide not to do as it is about what you decide to do." - Phil de Cristo
2. "If you can't get a child to understand a business idea, you don't understand it yourself." - Terry Thompson.
3. "Don't spend too much time worrying about things you can't control or influence!" - Simon O'Regan
4. "Take a risk." and "Change jobs before you're bored." - Patricia Milligan
5. "Learn to fail, or fail to learn." and "It's never as good as it seems or as bad as it seems." - Jeff Miller
6. "There is really one thing in life that never changes; if you learn to accept change rather than fight it, life and work become much easier and more enjoyable." - David Goldenberg.
7. "Strategy is as much about what you decide not to do as it is about what you decide to do." - Phil de Cristo
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Be Rich Toward God!
When I was in Ethiopia recently, I was struck as so many Westerner are, by the grinding poverty. While I was there, though, a man told me, "In the West, you measure a man's wealth by his possessions. In this country, we measure his wealth by his friends." How will you measure your wealth?
...
Wise people build their lives around what is eternal and squeeze in what is temporary. Not the other way around. So let's try an exercise in understanding what is at stake. Think for a few moments about two categories: "forever" and "temporary". What in your life is going to last forever, and what is going back in the box?
What will go back to the box?
* Possessions
* My resume
* My body
* Money
* Pleasures
* Other people's opinions of me
* Security
* Titles and positions
* Youth
* Power
* Physical attractiveness
* Health
Forever
* God
* Deeds of love
* Other people
* My Soul
All that will be left is love. That which was done out of love for God will last. Every human being you see is a cleverly disguised receptacle of eternity. You can take the love with you.
The object of life is to be rich toward God."
John Ortberg, "When the game is over, it all goes back in the BOX" pg 30-32. Zondervan 2007.
-----------------------
Naked we came, naked we will depart! John Ortberg was referring to the monopoly game. We are Master of the Board at least once in our live... but we will surrender everything after each game of monopoly. The plot of lands we acquired, the houses we built, the friendship we made... everything will be returned to da box! Caesar built a big empire! Genghis Khan conquered the world, little kingdoms, fiefdoms were built and destroyed. Companies were built and gone! Well at least that's call entrepreneurship. In the book "Built to last" by James C. Collins (Author), Jerry I. Porras - they described / analyzed companies which were "built to last" such as GE, GM, Ford, HP, TI... interestingly enough a lot of technology companies. Yet look how they have become such colossus that even they plan to shed their weight... i.e sell divisions, subsidiaries that cannot compete. GM and Ford are in trouble and compete heavily with Japanese & Korean car makers... Chinese cars will come in-line soon! I think the Great Wall of China is a great highway to nowhere... only Chinese cars can be driven on this autobahn (highway)! Erno Rubik is famous for his Rubik's cubes... hours and hours of addictive puzzle. Built to last? It took a while for the cube to be a craze in the west because Rubik's company was in the Eastern Block (Hungary) - they only knew communism... not capitalism or even socialist democracy as China is trying to embrace. However whatever we try to build to last... it will turn to dust. Even your Rubik's cube!
So when the game is over, it all goes back in the BOX!
Unwittingly I arrived, as if I leave quietly. Sometimes you have to let go of what you cannot live without.
...
Wise people build their lives around what is eternal and squeeze in what is temporary. Not the other way around. So let's try an exercise in understanding what is at stake. Think for a few moments about two categories: "forever" and "temporary". What in your life is going to last forever, and what is going back in the box?
What will go back to the box?
* Possessions
* My resume
* My body
* Money
* Pleasures
* Other people's opinions of me
* Security
* Titles and positions
* Youth
* Power
* Physical attractiveness
* Health
Forever
* God
* Deeds of love
* Other people
* My Soul
All that will be left is love. That which was done out of love for God will last. Every human being you see is a cleverly disguised receptacle of eternity. You can take the love with you.
The object of life is to be rich toward God."
John Ortberg, "When the game is over, it all goes back in the BOX" pg 30-32. Zondervan 2007.
-----------------------
Naked we came, naked we will depart! John Ortberg was referring to the monopoly game. We are Master of the Board at least once in our live... but we will surrender everything after each game of monopoly. The plot of lands we acquired, the houses we built, the friendship we made... everything will be returned to da box! Caesar built a big empire! Genghis Khan conquered the world, little kingdoms, fiefdoms were built and destroyed. Companies were built and gone! Well at least that's call entrepreneurship. In the book "Built to last" by James C. Collins (Author), Jerry I. Porras - they described / analyzed companies which were "built to last" such as GE, GM, Ford, HP, TI... interestingly enough a lot of technology companies. Yet look how they have become such colossus that even they plan to shed their weight... i.e sell divisions, subsidiaries that cannot compete. GM and Ford are in trouble and compete heavily with Japanese & Korean car makers... Chinese cars will come in-line soon! I think the Great Wall of China is a great highway to nowhere... only Chinese cars can be driven on this autobahn (highway)! Erno Rubik is famous for his Rubik's cubes... hours and hours of addictive puzzle. Built to last? It took a while for the cube to be a craze in the west because Rubik's company was in the Eastern Block (Hungary) - they only knew communism... not capitalism or even socialist democracy as China is trying to embrace. However whatever we try to build to last... it will turn to dust. Even your Rubik's cube!
So when the game is over, it all goes back in the BOX!
Unwittingly I arrived, as if I leave quietly. Sometimes you have to let go of what you cannot live without.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
The story of Teddy Stollard: Value what God values!
Dale Galloway tells the story of a young boy named Teddy Stollard. He was not the kind of kid who got invited to parties. He slouched in his chair and looked bored most of the time; he only spoke when called upon, and then in monosyllables. He never dressed right; he had smelly clothes; he was a rather unattractive boy.
Whenever his teacher would mark Teddy's papers, she. got a certain perverse pleasure out of marking all the wrong answers. She would put the "F" on top with a little flair. She might have known better, because his history was on record:
First grade: Teddy is a good boy and shows promise, but has a poor home situation.
Second grade: Teddy is quiet and withdrawn. His mother is terminally ill.
Third grade: Teddy is falling behind. His mother died this year; his father is uninvolved.
Fourth grade: Teddy is hopelessly backward. His father has moved away; Teddy's living with an aunt. He is deeply troubled.
Christmas came, and all the children brought presents to school. They were carefully wrapped, except for Teddy's, which was packaged in brown paper and held together with tape and marked, "For Miss Thompson. From Teddy."
The teacher would open the gifts one by one for the class to admire. When she opened Teddy's, it was a rhinestone bracelet with most of the stones missing, and a bottle of perfume that was mostly gone. The other children started to laugh, but Miss Thompson caught herself. Snapping on the bracelet, she said: "Isn't it lovely, class? And doesn't the perfume smell good?"
At the end of the class, Teddy approached her shyly. "I'm glad you liked my gifts, Miss Thompson," he whispered. "All day long you smelled like my mother. And her bracelet looked nice on you, too."
After he left, Miss Thompson put her head down on the desk and cried. She asked God to forgive her. She prayed that God would help her to see what he sees when she looks at a motherless boy.
When the children came back to school the next day, Miss Thompson was a new teacher. She tutored the children who needed extra help, Teddy most of all. By the end of the year he had caught up with most of his classmates and was ahead of some. After that, she didn't hear from him for quite a while. Then one day she received a note:
Dear Miss Thompson,
I wanted you to be the first to know I am graduating from high school, and I am second in my class.
Love, Teddy Stollard
Four years later came another note:
Dear Miss Thompson,
I wanted you to be the first to know I am graduating first in my class. The university has not been easy, but I liked it.
Love, Teddy Stollard
Four years later, another note:
Dear Miss Thompson,
I wanted to you be the first to know that as of today I am Theodore J. Stollard, M.D. How about that? I want you to come sit where my mother would have sat, because you're the nearest thing to family that I've had.
Love, Teddy Stollard
The ability to assign value is one of the rarest and greatest gifts in the world. So value what God values. There is an ancient story about a poor traveler who is amazed by the welcome he receives at a monastery. He is served a lavish meal, escorted to their finest room, and given a new set of clothes to replace the rags he arrived in. Before leaving, he commented to the abbot on how well he was treated. Yes, the abbot said, we always treat our guests as if they are angels-just to be on the safe side.
Ortberg, John. Everybody's Normal Till You Get to Know Them. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2003, p. 216-217
Whenever his teacher would mark Teddy's papers, she. got a certain perverse pleasure out of marking all the wrong answers. She would put the "F" on top with a little flair. She might have known better, because his history was on record:
First grade: Teddy is a good boy and shows promise, but has a poor home situation.
Second grade: Teddy is quiet and withdrawn. His mother is terminally ill.
Third grade: Teddy is falling behind. His mother died this year; his father is uninvolved.
Fourth grade: Teddy is hopelessly backward. His father has moved away; Teddy's living with an aunt. He is deeply troubled.
Christmas came, and all the children brought presents to school. They were carefully wrapped, except for Teddy's, which was packaged in brown paper and held together with tape and marked, "For Miss Thompson. From Teddy."
The teacher would open the gifts one by one for the class to admire. When she opened Teddy's, it was a rhinestone bracelet with most of the stones missing, and a bottle of perfume that was mostly gone. The other children started to laugh, but Miss Thompson caught herself. Snapping on the bracelet, she said: "Isn't it lovely, class? And doesn't the perfume smell good?"
At the end of the class, Teddy approached her shyly. "I'm glad you liked my gifts, Miss Thompson," he whispered. "All day long you smelled like my mother. And her bracelet looked nice on you, too."
After he left, Miss Thompson put her head down on the desk and cried. She asked God to forgive her. She prayed that God would help her to see what he sees when she looks at a motherless boy.
When the children came back to school the next day, Miss Thompson was a new teacher. She tutored the children who needed extra help, Teddy most of all. By the end of the year he had caught up with most of his classmates and was ahead of some. After that, she didn't hear from him for quite a while. Then one day she received a note:
Dear Miss Thompson,
I wanted you to be the first to know I am graduating from high school, and I am second in my class.
Love, Teddy Stollard
Four years later came another note:
Dear Miss Thompson,
I wanted you to be the first to know I am graduating first in my class. The university has not been easy, but I liked it.
Love, Teddy Stollard
Four years later, another note:
Dear Miss Thompson,
I wanted to you be the first to know that as of today I am Theodore J. Stollard, M.D. How about that? I want you to come sit where my mother would have sat, because you're the nearest thing to family that I've had.
Love, Teddy Stollard
The ability to assign value is one of the rarest and greatest gifts in the world. So value what God values. There is an ancient story about a poor traveler who is amazed by the welcome he receives at a monastery. He is served a lavish meal, escorted to their finest room, and given a new set of clothes to replace the rags he arrived in. Before leaving, he commented to the abbot on how well he was treated. Yes, the abbot said, we always treat our guests as if they are angels-just to be on the safe side.
Ortberg, John. Everybody's Normal Till You Get to Know Them. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2003, p. 216-217
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Thursday, October 04, 2007
Waterdrop... Une goute d'eau
We are like water drops, traveling through mountains and valleys,
To reach the ocean. Mountains are tall and cold, valleys are vast and windy.
Days and nights, winding down the rivers and streams of Alishan mountains,
We can hear mountain goats on cliffs, eagles and owls over the distance.
I am afraid and lost in a strange land, my friends, many, countless were stuck along
Our journey to the ocean. They flooded nearby lakes, wells and rice fields.
I am one fortunate water drop to reach my desired destination but lost like a forgotten song.
The sea is vast, mysterious, cold and very lonely... I will never be able to find my old friends.
Ah! Lets start some new friendship before it is too late... for many sharks are
Roaming around my new found place. The wavering night turns to daylight fast.
The sea starts to heat up under the sun. One by one, we were all lifted up to the sky... afar
Pulled by a mysterious force into the clouds, into the heavens. I am freezing to death almost.
Lightnings strike nearby, aurora float a few yards away, and rumbles the thunder.
It seems too late to hide myself. I suddenly become a world class adventurer,
Making around the world in as many days, floating from Asia, passing through Europe,
Stopping on a strange yet beautiful continent: Africa , dropping by America a couple more!
Suddenly a cyclone blows nearby, rampaging blindly. I am on the move again.
I really wanted to stay, I have found liberty, amity, shelter, dreams, peace and
Most importantly love, yes love in America. It was all beautiful but now a pain.
Forever, even though I am traveling through the storming ocean and landed
In my native, misty and beloved Alishan mountains... Ah, beautiful and alluring Alishan,
It's been quite a while my beloved friend. Staying and re-starting anew I hope I can.
Ming Lai
To reach the ocean. Mountains are tall and cold, valleys are vast and windy.
Days and nights, winding down the rivers and streams of Alishan mountains,
We can hear mountain goats on cliffs, eagles and owls over the distance.
I am afraid and lost in a strange land, my friends, many, countless were stuck along
Our journey to the ocean. They flooded nearby lakes, wells and rice fields.
I am one fortunate water drop to reach my desired destination but lost like a forgotten song.
The sea is vast, mysterious, cold and very lonely... I will never be able to find my old friends.
Ah! Lets start some new friendship before it is too late... for many sharks are
Roaming around my new found place. The wavering night turns to daylight fast.
The sea starts to heat up under the sun. One by one, we were all lifted up to the sky... afar
Pulled by a mysterious force into the clouds, into the heavens. I am freezing to death almost.
Lightnings strike nearby, aurora float a few yards away, and rumbles the thunder.
It seems too late to hide myself. I suddenly become a world class adventurer,
Making around the world in as many days, floating from Asia, passing through Europe,
Stopping on a strange yet beautiful continent: Africa , dropping by America a couple more!
Suddenly a cyclone blows nearby, rampaging blindly. I am on the move again.
I really wanted to stay, I have found liberty, amity, shelter, dreams, peace and
Most importantly love, yes love in America. It was all beautiful but now a pain.
Forever, even though I am traveling through the storming ocean and landed
In my native, misty and beloved Alishan mountains... Ah, beautiful and alluring Alishan,
It's been quite a while my beloved friend. Staying and re-starting anew I hope I can.
Ming Lai
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)