The disciple whom Jesus loved

Do you know who's that?
The phrase is mentioned only in John's gospel.
So did Jesus love John more than the other disciples?
No, Jesus loved all his disciples equally.
But John was practising the consciousness of His love for him.
John constantly had a sense of how loved he was by Jesus!
And in his own gospel it was mentioned 5 times! (Number of Grace)
Let's take a look at the places where this appeared:

1) John 13:21-24
²¹After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, "I tell you the truth, one of you is going to betray me."

²²His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant. ²³One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him. ²⁴Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said, "Ask him which one he means."

Peter didnt ask Jesus directly but asked John instead, cos' he knew that John was close to Jesus.
When u practise the Lord's love for you there is intimacy with Him.

2) John 19:25-27
²⁵Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. ²⁶When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, "Dear woman, here is your son," ²⁷and to the disciple, "Here is your mother." From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.

John was at the foot of the Cross ministering to the Lord at a time when He most needed comfort.
When u practise the Lord's love for you you'll be at the right place at the right time, fit for the Master's use.

3) John 20:1-4
¹Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. ²So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!" ³So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. ⁴Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.

John outran (or overtook) Peter as they ran towards the tomb.
When u practise the Lord's love for you there will be (spiritual) progress.

4) John 21:4-7
⁴Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.

⁵He called out to them, "Friends, haven't you any fish?"
"No," they answered.

⁶He said, "Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some." When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

⁷Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!"

John was the first to recognise that it was Jesus!
When u practise the Lord's love for you there will be quick discernment.

5) John 21:19-20
¹⁹Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, "Follow me!" ²⁰Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, "Lord, who is going to betray you?")

John followed Jesus without even being asked.
When u practise the Lord's love for you you will be led of the Lord, sometimes even unconsciously!

Isnt it awesome!?!
Let's learn to boast not of our love for God but His love for us!
That will take us to places we never dreamed possible! :D

Ephesians 3:20
Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us

Hangout Night

Great time of catching up with Auntie Limin! =)
Her Japan trip was fantabulous!
She even managed to take pictures with the Nodame Cantabile Exhibition!!!
Gosh.
So much fun!
I'm sooo looking forward to Korea now haha :P
Believe that God has His own personal portion for me :D
To learn, experience, feel, touch, taste, see.
To be immersed with knowing how much He loves His people.

Anyway, it was an awesome time of meetup!
I reached slightly earlier cos' I thought may need to queue up on a Fri night to get in.
A few mins after I reached, Adrian acty reached haha :P
But he didnt see me at first lolx.
After we went in, I was thinking where we would be seating.
The place was almost fully packed!
Lo and behold, I spotted a window seat and true enough we occupied them!!
God certainly has the best in store for us! :D

Once Amos arrived, we attacked the menu.
My chicken curry was superb!
And after everyone's main course we ordered the famous toast there!
It was truly an abundance of food, complete with top-notch quality!
We toked, laughed, and juz let loose =)
It was one of the best Friday nights ever spent! :D

Expectations

They give us hope.
But yet sometimes they kill us.

I was quite shocked with my results.
Honestly.
It wasnt v decent.
Seriously.
I looked at it, stared at it, then realised it wont change.
I can dwell on it, mull over it, still nothing will change.

Even though it seemed ludicrous, in the end I chose to give thanks =)
Not because the results were good, but simply because God is still faithful.
He is faithful.
Period.
Even in the midst of what seemed like absurd results, His love never fails.
Even in times like this, I can never, ever lose His love! =)
Thank you Jesus, for everything that I have in You =)
Thank you that my identity is not tied to any kind of results.
My identity is in Christ, the altogether lovely, glorious, wonderful and perfect Saviour!
He is the One who is worthy of all the praise, honour and glory!! :D

18 more days to HM Camp!!
22 more days to Korea!!
God is good all the time, and all the time God is good! =)

Demand & Supply

Awesome service today! :D
Super long though.
I served 2nd service in Rock Kidz today, so went for 4th service.
Everything was lagged by one hr.
Service started at 6pm and ended at 830pm.

Today Pastor talked abt econs :P
Demand and supply.
The 2 different types of attitudes.
If you see everything as a demand, then life becomes tough.
The next assignment deadline demands ur immediate attention.
That test/exam demands ur mugging time and efforts in memorizing notes.
The list can go on and on.
On the other hand, if you see God's supply flowing always, then u become restful =)
Instead of seeing demands, you realise that God's supply keeps over-meeting all ur demands.
Everything becomes an opportunity to give thanks!
In God's kingdom there is no lack of resources!!

Similarly, the law demands righteousness from bankrupt man whereas grace imparts righteousness to bankrupt man!
Grace is deep - it takes the Holy Spirit to understand that you can receive all the good you did not deserve because Jesus took all the bad that you and I deserve.
He took our place and what we deserve so that we can take His place and what He deserves! =)
He became who we are in our sins so that we can become who He is in His righteousness! =)

What a Saviour we have in Jesus! :D
Indeed, this is the truth that will set u free!!!

The Last Song

If you had a few more months to live what would you do?

As a divorcee, Steve juz wanted to see his daughter (Ronnie) and son (Jonah) and spend quality time with them for the last time. Ronnie was initially defensive towards her dad cos he left the family years back. She literally 'pushed' away everyone around her, including this cute guy (Will) that she got to know. In a chance encounter with Will while protecting some turtles' eggs, Ronnie gets to know Will better and the two eventually fall in love. Things also get better with her Dad as they reconnect through their common love: Music. Just when things seem to be turning out juz fine, they discover Steve's lung cancer and that he only has weeks to live.

Based on the bestselling novel by Nicholas Sparks, I personally loved this show! There were comedic moments, esp. from Jonah and sad, touching moments. A story on love, loss, reconciliation and moving on in life =) Simple yet deep, a muz-watch at the big screen! U dont wanna miss this! :P

I stand amazed

Today is the day You have made I will rejoice and be glad in it =)

Met up with JP today at tamp central.
We wanted to go to Sakura@SAFRA Tampines cos of some discount then we realised that we needed a DBS Master/Visa card which we dont :(
Wasted sia!
If not each person $12 onli!

Anyway, it was a good time of fellowship =)
Discussed ns, sch, church, etc.
Roughly 6 months left for him!
Minus away weekends, holidays and off'/leave shd be abt 4 months onli :P
Miss the good old days of Wanton Mee with him, Gerrard and En Wei.
The sweet memories will always be dear to my heart :)
Yes, time doesnt wait.
But at the same time it gives you some perspective.
Believe it ornot, we are all running out of time.
Dont hold on to things that wont matter 5 or 10 years down the road.
Is being right reli so impt?
Is that position/role u r in reli so impt?
I dont like being wronged.
But I guess its part of the package.
Lord help me to juz look to You and Your finished work.
To see Your nail-pierced hands.
And the blood that freely flowed.
Every stripe that was unleashed upon You.
To know that "It is finished!"

I think that's the hardest thing to do.
To believe that everything is already finished.
To believe that we onli hav to walk in His blessings for us.
To rest in Him by believing that
1. He has gone before us
2. He fights our battles for us
3. He carries us in His arms

Deuteronomy 1:29-31
Then I said to you, 'Do not be terrified, or afraid of them. The Lord your God, who goes before you, He will fight for you, according to all He did for you in Egypt before your eyes, and in the wilderness where you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, in all the way that you went until you came to this place.'

Indeed, He carries us ALL THE WAY until we reach His promised land, the land of rest where everything is by His efforts and not ours =)

Wanna share this beautiful song:

I Stand Amazed(How marvelous) by Chris Tomlin

Workout

Badminton rocks!!! :D
Its been awhile since I fully utilized so many muscles haha :P
I wanna play once every week!
It'll be so fun!
One stone kill so many birds lolx :P

Ever since exams ended, I've been slacking, playing, etc.
Roughly one more month b4 I leave this sunny island.
What lies ahead seems so much fun, yet I know that I will miss this place.
The place where everything is so familiar.
Where I can literally do wad I want, go places I wanna go, and juz hang out :)

As I grow up, I realise more and more that busy-ness is a subtle disease.
My friends and I fall prey to it time and again.
It is probably the number one excuse not to meetup.
And yet there is nothing to say or do.
'Cos there may be valid reasons for being 'busy'.
Oh well, learning to live a life of rest is a lifelong journey :)
Even in this area, I shall entrust everything to you Jesus.
Whatever I have belongs to you anyway :)
I believe, and I receive.
Remind me that the supply is always flowing.
Your supply is ALWAYS flowing.
Teach me to have a child-like faith, and simply receive all that you have for me :)

Sometimes it is so easy to forget that everything comes by grace.
Can it be totally grace? We ask.
Man still wants some of the glory, so we dont believe that everything big or small is only purely by His grace.
In the natural, didnt we put in our efforts?
Didnt we work for it?
Didnt we strive for it?
Man cannot believe that nothing is a result of their own efforts.
Nothing at all.
We always want to split the glory with God.
I pray that I will learn to see my life the way God sees it.
Redeemed.
Forgiven.
Blessed.
Prosperous.
Beloved.

Simply Awesome! :D

The celebration was awesome!!! :P
I knew I was in for a pleasant surprise but it was soooo much more than that! :)
There was like tons of performances of all kinds.
Plus the various messages from all the diff ppl.
Wendy's and Jessica's ones the best lor I think.
Dunno if Pastor cried, lolx :P
And we got to see the diff pastors' 'talents' lolx...
Pastor Lian was super cool!
And to think I didnt recognise her till near the end -_-
Anyway she's gonna be my Ministry Pastor soon!
ROCK KIDZ ROCK!!! :)

Oh yes, our zai board!
Finished in one hr plus :P
Simple, elegant, delightful =)
Check it out! :D

It Is Finished! =)

Finally.
Year 2 Sem 2 is over.
The most xiong sem ever.
In which I took 7 modules!
But at the same time it was also the most gracious period!
Can nv outgive God haha! :P

Time flies.
Yes I know it sounds cliche.
But oh well I shall still comment on it.
Ended half my Uni education juz like that.
Results in exactly 3 weeks' time on the 27th!
Cant wait to see wad surprise God will give me this time round! :P

Some updates:
1. I'm officially accepted into Rock Kidz!!!
Had several considerations but still v happy that I've got in! =)
Hope to get to know more ppl and have LOTS OF FUN with the kids! :P

2. Finally booked my air tix to Korea!
Flying on 19 June in the evening and will be gone for one month plus! :D
So gonna tour Korea and have an EXCITING TIME!

3. History Maker Camp is juz around the corner!!
WHEE~

4 months of holiday!
A once-in-a-lifetime NTU Experience :P


Meetup anyone? :D