Anecdotes from the past week

Part 1

I have to teach about worship for the upcoming trip to Shangri-la and had been kinda edgy about my material for awhile. Few days ago, whilst reading up a book on worship to pump up my material, I heard a clear, loud voice that sounded undoubtedly like GOD.

"Stop reading. Worship is not a theory. Just go out there and enjoy My presence with My people."

I cheered silently and shut my book immediately (honestly, I was sick of trying to absorb material and going through the motions). "Yay," I thought, "I just need to focus on enjoying God's presence." A load was lifted off my shoulders... the load to teach, to present, to do. God wanted me to focus on my being.
 
How true. Worship is inspired, not taught. It is inspired by who God is, and 'taught' by spending time worshipping, not talking about it. We need to worship more than we teach.... whether it's in worship school, seminars, workshops.... worship can only be understood through a direct encounter with the God we worship.

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Part 2 

Well, since I didn't have to spend so much time preparing my teaching, I was now free to meet some youths I owed a conversation. *double yay! Starbucks Toffee Nut Latte! Pancakes!* (now, meeting people is also an excuse to satisfy my astronomical gastronomical cravings)

To me, spending quality time with youths is a non-compromise. I mean QUALITY time, not playing-and-laughing-time. The kind of time you offer them where they know they are supposed to ask questions and air their issues.

One girl started talking about her needs - Mentors. Mentors to guide her in her new life as a young person working and discovering a new world that she wants to excel in. An industry where attending a Sunday service is irrelevant because of timing. She told me she couldn't find anyone to talk through these, much less ask about her when she doesn't attend Sunday service. The solution offered to her disappointed her: 1. Form a group of people in the same situation/industry as you; 2. When you reach a higher position in your company 5 or so years later, you'll have enough influence to change things.

Sounds strange to me (disclaimer: these are purely my views and I am a flawed individual) but....
1. Solving a relational problem using a structure: forming a group doesn't mean they'll relate. The issue is how you get people to relate/multiply mentors who pursue relationships
2. OK, how about the present?

I found it strange too that in youth groups we spend most of our time and energy on running events that our leaders (who are sacrificing their time and rights for the good of the ministry) don't have any more energy left for quality time with our young people. And wondered why multiplying mentors and pastors isn't high on the agenda because that is what builds lives.

YWAM Singapore's Revamped Website!

The YWAM Singapore website's been given a makeover. Check it out.

And here is the Ethnos page.

Thank God and high-fives to Him for always being faithful.... funds for our airfare are in. Please pray along with us for the remaining ground fees. Looks like it's gonna be a packed week ahead before lift-off. We changed our dates to 7th Dec - 7th Jan. Nice and perfect-sounding, eh?

Till then, I'll try to post again before we leave. Adios!

Shangri-La

We will be away in Shangri-La on a worship training trip from 8th Dec - 5th Jan.... 

       

Please pray for:

• God's deeper work in the locals' hearts, to understand His plans and purposes for their lives  
• The lovely kids and teenagers who are part of this big family's daily lives
• Protection for us all from the enemy's distractions and schemes - over every relationship, communication and physical protection
• God's anointing on us as we lead in worship and impart values
• An impactful and meaningful Christmas celebration
• Finances for our airfare, insurance and expenses

 And in the meantime, there's stuff lined up for 2010.... stay tuned and check back soon!

Conscience

Why Nicole was brave to speak out

Having a conscience matters, says this actress

Samantha Morton
The Guardian, Monday 26 October 2009

Last week Nicole Kidman told the US Congress that Hollywood contributed to violence against women by portraying them as sex objects, and Matt Damon revealed that he turned down scripts if they featured gratuitous violence. How hard is it for actors to make decisions of conscience?

I have a huge issue with Hollywood actors who don't use their power in a way that's really constructive. For example, if they do a big blockbuster action film and they're playing someone violent, yet they don't have a say over the movie's poster and whether they appear naked in it, or with weapons. What does that say to the children who are in the backs of cars being driven around cities?

I do have a say in those things and if people don't want to work with me, then they don't. You want to be proud of all the choices you make and your reasons for making them.

When I receive a script the first thing I ask my agent is: what's it about, who is making it and who is producing it? These considerations are not always straightforward. When, for instance, I was sent the script for Longford (2006), in which I played the part of Myra Hindley, my initial instinct was: no. "It's a very good script," my agent said. "I don't care," I replied.

But I trust my agent, and when I read the script, I felt educated by it. So although that role attracted public dismay as well as critical acclaim, I felt my performance was part of a bigger message.

But not everyone gets it. After I played Iris in Under the Skin (1997), a woman who was harming herself through sex and being very promiscuous as part of a medical condition, I got sent every script going for women who would open their legs at anything. I was reading them thinking: "There's no reason whatsoever for making this film."

Actors can be manipulated. You can think you are involved in something with a message, and it can turn into something else altogether. You are at the mercy of the director, the director is at the mercy of the producer, and the producer is at the mercy of the financier. People can change the script while you're working and they have the right to do so. And you have to cooperate, otherwise you are deemed unsupportive.

A scene can be directed in a way that you had no concept of. A film I made recently, which I thought was about one thing, somehow turned into a different kind of film altogether. I had no idea that was going to happen. I felt abused by it.

I admire Nicole Kidman for speaking out. It was a brave thing to do. For her, the difficulties multiply – it's a different world. You have obligations, you have to respect the studios that keep employing you. You probably have houses all over the world you would like to keep . . . It must be hard at times to keep making conscientious choices – and not everyone does. Some people think they just want to act, and don't care about the broader message.

I'm Not Being Paid To Say This

Hello. Why, today I experienced the best product aftercare ever in my life and had to come here to rave about it.

It's the X-Mini capsule speaker. I walked away from their office elated, having brought in my 1.5 year old 1st generation X-Mini to exchange its mangled retractable cable which didn't work anymore. Don't get me wrong, I've used and abused my X-Mini in jam sessions, worship practices, cross-country bus trips, (chasing unclean spirits away in) hotel rooms, missionaries' homes, doing open-air dancing, presentations, etc.... Next to my iPod, Bible and trusty notebook, it's one of my most utilized tools and I'm happy with the mileage I've gotten out of it.

And so, it was nice enough of them to offer to replace the cable for free.... but when the guy-in-charge tested my dusty-&-gummy-@-same-time speaker, he discovered it wasn't working - probably from all the sizzling the faulty cable caused it, retreated inside and returned with a BRAND-NEW speaker in its box, tested it and gave it to me! Wow! On top of that, he was extremely flexible (no, he didn't do somersaults in front of me) and didn't ask any questions except how old my X-Mini was. Can you beat that? Such a demonstration that they stand by their products and customers. At the end of the day, their goodwill and generosity simply amazed me, blessed me and made me proud of this Singapore start-up.

I mean, I dig good ethics and integrity. I believe that prosperity in businesses, societies.... right down to your personal life.... is a fruit of applying kingdom principles like generosity or not cutting corners with your customers.  And I like what the company represents - constant innovation, a powerful product that delivers effectively, and catching the cutting-edge vibe of this generation.

Well, so I am another satisfied customer and proud that Singapore has produced such an enterprise. I don't buy a lot of 'techie stuff', but I've had enough bloopers with my laptop conglomerate (incidentally, wasn't I talking about 'fruits'?) to know whether a company truly values the consumer or has a kingdom philosophy.

Oh, did I mention that as I left, the guy-in-charge had the glowing grace to turn back, as if remembering something, to say, "Have a good weekend!" genuinely. Another brownie point for them!

I feel so blessed and was thanking God for showing me such goodwill today and reminding me of the kind of person He wants me to be. Plus, I was broke this month but now have a new X-Mini! It's been a great day =)

Quote of the Day

"A great worship leader does not demand worship but inspires worship." 

Do we demand or inspire?

At a particular vocal class, I learnt that the more I try to please my audience, the less I find. Immediately after that class, I found myself in a meeting where I felt I had to please someone and give her what she wanted. As a result, during that time I was uncomfortable, struggling to flow with God and unable to be who I really am or give fully from my heart.

My trainer said this : "We try so hard to hit the high notes, pulling and forcing and straining, but it's so difficult. Then we take a step back and let our voice find the note naturally, without straining and pushing, and although it sounds uncomfortable and unfamiliar to us, it's right."

As I sieved through today, my questions of whether what I did was good enough or if I did it the way she wanted pressed into my heart. I should have tried to please less, and not allowed myself to let that hang over me. Because in trying so hard, I found less. I was trying to mold my actions into something I felt she wanted, but maybe that wasn't what was really needed. I could only have found it by giving up my right to be protected from judgement and letting the natural take place - in this sense, God showing up. 


How often do we stress ourselves up and underperform our potential by trying to live up to people's expectations?


Lord Jesus, I repent of pleasing man instead of You. I choose not to be affected by comments, and turn a blind eye to being judged, that I may find the place of rest and peace in You. No need to perform, no need to force. Amen.

To-Die-For

I'm dying to make music like this.....

Injustice at our doorstep

An excerpt from Valerictorian gripped me today:

I was nine.

One afternoon,

a commotion drew me

to the window.

A Chinese man,

highly likely a construction supervisor,

was barking into the face

of an Indian worker.

His words

 were

ugly, wicked and inhuman.

As he spluttered on,

the pudgy bully

pounded his

 victim's head

with a long, rolled up document.

Heartbreaking.

Anger.

Tears.

I tiptoed,

pressed my face

as much as I could against the window grills

and

yelled,

with all the power in my lungs,

'SHUT UP!'

Then,

I didn't know what else 

I could do for the

Indian man.

It happens, at our doorstep. 

Stand in the gap.

The Dream Centre

Last Saturday night, the base went out to do a mooncake distribution to the Chinese ladies in Geylang. Debbie felt the need to do something for these girls as Mooncake Festival is the second-most important festival in China where families celebrate together. Thus they would be feeling great sadness being away from their families.  


I ran into a young girl on the busy street just outside the base. She didn't know what I wanted until I spelt out that it was Mooncake Festival and we were Christians wanting to bless her with a mooncake. Her bewildered face gave way to a huge smile and she revealed her vulnerability, saying, "This is the first time that such a thing is happening to me.... the feeling is strange!" And as we walked off, she was left smiling from ear-to-ear and waved goodbye happily, girlishly. 


Over the years, YWAM Singapore has been trying to establish a ministry to people in Geylang. Geylang is the hotbed of vice, in all forms. I've had a contact call me late at night and tell me he's in Geylang, helpless, vulnerable and confused after a big argument with his wife about the family's major financial trouble, and he did something he regretted, was full of remorse and needed a friend to set him straight and give some support. 


I know of 18-year-olds who hang out in the dark alleys running gambling dens and working with their fathers who do the same. I know my friend's elderly father who goes to Geylang for his fix every day, oblivious to the fact that his family knows and has to endure the humiliation. 


You see, I can put faces to the vice. Geylang, to me, is not "a dirty area full of prostitutes, foreign workers and danger".... it is a place where strongholds over people turn them to sin. But ask yourself: if the people there - middle-aged uncles with wives and children at home; choiceless women duped into prostitution; immigrants living in a harsh, loveless environment - if these were people you know, wouldn't you do something for them? Wouldn't you love them and help them? 


Lives are going down the drain. About 3 or 4 years ago, I had the privilege of meeting Matthew Barnett of the Dream Centre. The Dream Centre started as a small church in Los Angeles, with this 20-year-old white guy conducting services in a bad, bad neighbourhood. He faced gangsters, shootings, drugs and homeless folk who looked and smelt bad, at the doorsteps of his church. Yet, he persevered in his call to transform the city by letting these gangsters into church services, nervous as he was; feeding the hungry; praying for the insane/hurting/drugged-out/gun-toters as he risked his life. Today, the Dream Centre is my inspiration for what we can sow by laying our lives down and letting God rule.  


Matthew Barnett was in Singapore then to speak at a conference, and I had gone specially to hear his keynote message. Like an awe-struck fan, I zipped to his side when he finished his message, introduced myself as a YWAMer and told him we had been trying to minister in a rough neighbourhood, like his. 


"Oh you're from YWAM!" His eyes lit up, like something clicked. "You guys are doing such a great job!" Wow, I was floored. My 'idol' knew about us and thought we were doing something worthy. He actually gave me his mobile number and asked me to call him while he was in Singapore if I wanted to meet up. I kept that mobile number in my phone for a good number of years.... I never called him because.... well, sheepishly, I didn't feel that I could sustain enough conversation about what we had done. Truth is, I felt alone in my cause. I wasn't sure if it amounted to anything because there were so few of us championing this.


So I'm glad we went out to the streets last Saturday in droves. I'm glad Debbie isn't alone, and I really hope you heard my heart and God's as you read this. I'm glad this seems like a new season for our base, one of unity and deeper relationships, and a corporate call to the unreached. 

More Than Words

"It's annoying, but Justice and Equality are mates..... Justice always wants to hang out with Equality, and Equality is a pain in the a**....."

"A number of years ago, I met a wise man who changed my life. In countless ways, large and small, I was always seeking the Lord's blessing. I was saying, you know, I have a new song, look after it… I have a family, please look after them… I have this crazy idea…And this wise man asked me to stop. He said, stop asking God to bless what you're doing.... Get involved in what God is doing—because it's already blessed."

- Bono

Love

We all need some reminders every now and then ;)

Hari Raya!

Today is Hari Raya Puasa in Singapore, a festival that marks the end of the Muslim fasting month. Families of Muslims in their baju were all over town in a celebratory mood, especially in the housing estates.... Awhile ago, I was walking around my town's bus interchange, when the sight of families decked out in their Hari Raya finery reminded me of the day I was in Japan during a cultural festival. Here on my island, we were having a festive day that echoed a similar sentiment.

The things we take for granted. I stood around and soaked in the cultural sights and sounds of the day, appreciating the solidarity of national dress and traditional festival.

And I was glad to live on an island with a wealth of cultural heritages to behold.

Cold Blood

Reading the newspapers on an eventful day is, for me, quite a poignant experience.

My compassion and grief get stirred up pretty easily, and all it takes is a line or two of descriptive words for me to find meaning and conviction.

Today:
The story of terrorist mastermind Noordin Top's death. It was headlined as a violent end, yet smirking with a heroic and satisfied tone. I wondered why the papers painted this cold-blooded shoot-down as though it was a great victory to be lauded and celebrated. Sure, his elimination is significant, yet does who he is and what he did warrant the kill? As I read how he was shot, with details of his bodily wounds and shattered head from explosives, I paused and thought: HOW SAVAGE. HOW COLD-BLOODED. Did anyone deserve that? Did he deserve to die such a violent, merciless death? It was done in cold blood. It reminded me of Che Guevara's bloody murder in Bolivia and how he was hunted down, gunned down.

And I was brought back to the time when I was preparing lesson plans for the topic of capital punishment during my General Paper teaching days. I had a graphic video that documented those controversial capital punishments done in various nations - stoning of women in the Middle East, ethnic slayings in Indonesia.... all captured on video for my eyes to witness. It was gory, stomach-churning, and disturbing. When you see a real-life taking of a life - whether it was that of an innocent or guilty man/woman.... you will know that nothing qualifies another human to take the life of another. What one has to summon, or grow cold to, in order to kill.... is unimaginable.

At the end of the video was a scene of a gun squad executing a murderer in a Southeast Asian country. It was done in the forest, with many witnesses. As I saw bullet after bullet enter this man's body, limbs, face, nose.... slowly, one-by-one, as he lay on the grass ebbing away...... it didn't matter that he killed someone else in whatever manner. It mattered how numbed I had become to the frequency of reports, the media, the existence of the human soul and spirit, and the commonness of such suffering. When the scene was done, a line from the Bible flashed across the screen - "Let he who has no sin cast the first stone." And I finally understood what Jesus was talking about. The reality of God's heart on violence, murder and humanity had been imparted to me.    

Yes, I showed it to my students.

Now, my thoughts turn to Afghanistan, Pakistan, Israel and Palestine, where recently, BBC reports of war killings have gripped me. Detailed pictures of death scenes, violent acts and what bodies looked like have reached my eyes and ears. It is no longer a statistic or report. This is real. Heads sliced off. Bodies cut in half - bodies of children, who were at home in the day when the soldiers came in to finish them off. There is cold-blooded murder going on in droves. We are in the throes of a media-fatigued world emblazoning war violence in the ambiguities. Where is our sensitivity to violence and torture?

And my question is, ARE WE INTERCEDING ON BEHALF OF THE OPPRESSED?
Is there no better way to resolve conflict than petty perpetration, bullying and intimidation that escalates in gruesome murder? 
What kind of people/world have we become?
Where is forgiveness and laying down of rights?
Where is our trust in God's sovereignty over conflict situations, that enables us to lay down our power and control?

Shake Your Bon-Bon In Singapore

We found a Japanese Summer Festival to go to last weekend, right here in the Tiny Red Dot! Justin drove us to a private estate in Changi, where he and Jasmine wore their supermarket-bought yukatas and took a long stroll in full Nihon glory to the Japanese Primary School.... to relive our bon-bon days in Matsumoto!

Actually, we have a video of us doing the bon-bon to the ponyo theme song, but I can't seem to download it from Facebook. Oh well.....

Macho Men

Japan: The Fantastic Food

What's a Japan post without the food???

Crepe-y junkies

Mamma mia! Those were the best peaches I've ever tasted!

Japan: The Dream Team

My tribute to an amazing team:

Charlton Ying

Justin Ho

Joshua Riordan

Ruth Lee

Jasmine Sia

The Wonder Boys & Girls

With our hosts, Glynis & Judith

Japan: The Children

Photo credits: Joshua Riordan

Japan: The Rising Generation

These are the children and youth we met and ministered to in the worship camp. For each of them, God has a perfect will for their lives and wants them to know Him more.

We had the privilege of igniting a fire in these youths' lives - through worshipping together, telling them our life stories, and teaching about our identity in Christ. Most of them grew up in church and saw Christianity as a tradition. Many had yet to encounter God in a personal way. But on the last day of camp, we got to pray for them during a power-packed time of ministry that took us by surprise. God touched both them and us significantly, as we prophesied and declared God's purposes over their individual lives.

Just today, I received a testimony from the pastor's wife, as she told us what God had done through this camp.

"I got some words from God in worship time. God spoke to me that He deeply loved everyone of us and really wanted to give His love. Everyone is a very precious existence and His child. So, let them draw near.

After getting those words, God showed me a picture; Mako who was a very shy girl was standing at the front holding a mike. And God spoke to me again, 

“I am weak, but I am strong,” That was exactly same words as that Justin shared with us.   

Next day, I noticed Mako was standing at front and singing with my daughter Eimie. This was very surprising happening because Mako was never did such a big thing. Her mother also was surprised and said to me,  “I’ve never seen that she stood before everyone holding a mike. She was to do that too shy.”

Mako (far right) with Eimie during a worship practice.

Japan: The Scenery

Here's the first installation of our photos. Sorry for the delay, Blogger's been acting up. 

This is Azumino city in Nagano Prefecture, where we stayed to run a youth camp and children's camp. Lovely, isn't it?

Our house

Photos: Joshua Riordan