New Year Resolutions 2009

These are my 2008 resolutions. It's a good thing that I now have this blog to keep track of everything.

1. On my music, I think it only worked for about 3 months. It was not too bad as I tried to learn some riffs. I will try to complete this by this year.
2. The praise and worship band improved a lot by my own standards. I have drilled in some key concepts. Now what I need is more effort for one more year.
3. I think I had most success on the reading habit thing. I finished quite a few books. This will continue for the new year.
4. This blog is also getting better. This project is basically just a discipline to get me to write everyday. I think that really helped in helping me collate a bunch of online resources that will help me one day.
5. The GAME 2007 is totally dead. I have given up all hope of finishing that. That's a pity but truly inevitable. 60 coding systems is just too much for anyone.

For next year 2010,
1. Continue the 1,2,3,4 of 2009. They will just become permanent disciplines of my life. I do need to train up a proper successor for 2 though.
2. Now that I have largely given up BGG-RSP I need a new reading habit at work. I will start reading my office books. That will knock off a lot of my ignorance on matters important.
3. Plan a monthly Family Day. This should be an achievable target. Set aside one day per month for something extra. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
4. One new discipline for work, one for family, I need one for myself. How about finishing the sermon one week in advance? One can always dream big!

Wedding Sermon V

The House of Wisdom

Proverbs 9
 1 Wisdom has built her house;
       she has hewn out its seven pillars.
 2 She has prepared her meat and mixed her wine;
       she has also set her table.
 3 She has sent out her maids, and she calls
       from the highest point of the city.
 4 "Let all who are simple come in here!"
       she says to those who lack judgment.
 5 "Come, eat my food
       and drink the wine I have mixed.
 6 Leave your simple ways and you will live;
       walk in the way of understanding.

It is a joy and an honor today to speak at the wedding ceremony of L and M. I have known them since my days as a youth and I am happy to see them step forth onto a new phase in life. L and I go way back. He was my very first bass student back in the days when I was figuring out bass for myself. And because he had me as his teacher, I knew even then back in those days that he was obviously not very good in selecting guidance. Yet, we find him today, a mature and respectable young man with a promising future. How can this be? Since I am speaking on Proverbs today, I believe there is a saying that goes: behind every successful man… … I’m sorry, my memory is failing me these days. But thankfully, we now have the ever reliable internet to inform us on matters big and small.

These are my online findings. Apparently, there are various ways to end the saying. There is a thought-provoking one: Behind every successful man, there are a lot of unsuccessful years. That coincides with Proverbs 14:23 “All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk only leads to poverty.” That’s one way to end the saying. There is also a sad one. Behind every successful man is a woman – who keeps asking him when he will come home for dinner. This reflects the cost of success in a global city life. I found a funny one that says: Behind every successful man stands a woman and the IRS, or in the Singapore context, the IRAS. One takes the credit, the other takes the cash. But the one that tops them all is the quote from ex-American Vice-President Hubert Humphrey. He says, “Behind every successful man stands a surprised mother-in-law.”

The saying I’m actually looking for is of course, behind every successful man is a woman. M is a wonderful influence in the lives of those around her, and I think L is a living testimony of that truth. To paraphrase Jack Nicholson from the movie As Good As it Gets, she has a quality that makes you want to be a better person. So I asked myself, what can we expect from the union of these two wonderful people? They have battled through the years of discipleship in Jubilee and the test of a lengthy period of dating. I think that there is much that they can offer as spiritual leaders to the youths under their charge and also as forerunners being one of the earliest among their peers to be married. And therefore L and M, this is why I have chosen today’s passage on Wisdom as a vision for what your marriage should exemplify.

I understand that you have not bought your own place to stay. But where HDB has failed you, I can alleviate the situation for you. I will now give you some pointers on how to build a house. First, make sure you have your seven pillars for the house. These seven pillars represent completeness and stability. Getting these seven pillars will not be easy. Though you have come a long way, you have to continue your commitment so that what you build has strength and character. There will be some lousy contractors out there that are undisciplined and without knowledge (9:13). They will tell you to take the easy way out by using lousy materials. They use tiles known as "assume too much" and bricks that are called "take things for granted". They will corrode the house that you are building. The last time I tried this tile called "assume too much", my bedroom got drenched with spousal unhappiness mildew and I had to sleep on the couch for a week. Many in the world also give bad advice, “Stolen water is sweet; food eat in secret is delicious!” (9:17) Tiger Woods used some of this advice and last I heard his house is splitting into two. The reality is often “Garbage in-Garbage out”. If you do not take time and effort to put good stuff into your house, time will show that your house will be unsafe to live in.

“The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down.” (14:1) You can decide for yourselves which seven pillars you want for your house. A pillar of family ties, a pillar of brothers and sisters in Christ, a pillar of spiritual understanding, a pillar of mutual service and so on. The bottom-line is that a house with seven pillars indicates that you want it to be a magnificent and solid construction. And I hope this is the proud display that you will show to those whom you can influence. It is a house that can weather storms and quakes. It is a house that is a labor of love. It is a house that others can take refuge in.

Though we can see that such a house would be a comforting and secure place to live in, the purpose of building this house is not only for your private enjoyment. As members who have benefited much from this community, I hope that you also have the generosity to share this place with others eager to learn. But you can tell that it takes time to prepare. The house of Wisdom is a busy one when it invites others into its place. It needs to cook the food, to set the table and send out the messengers. (9:2-3) It is preparing a sumptuous feast. To do likewise will take sacrifice on your part. You have to bear the fruits of a healthy relationship, like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Gal 5:22). These are good things people can partake in. But without this diligent preparation, you will only have dubious things to offer. Those who eat at the house of Folly die of malnutrition or food poisoning.

The writers of Proverbs are wise because they know from the observation of life that the Lord has placed his laws into the world. There are right things to do and right decisions to make that will lead to a rewarding life. Scoffers and mockers who despise the will of God suffer at their own peril. L and M, let your marriage be a positive sign to others. Through the way you conduct your marital relationship, you show that the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. (9:10)

In the world today, there are many voices out there each claiming to be the voice of truth. As a pastor, I have reasons to be concerned about the future of our youth. It brings great joy to me to see L and M, beloved youth cell leaders, now joining the ranks of those giving a good testimony to Christian marriage. Let this be a marriage that treasures faithfulness, romance and above all a deep relationship with God. I will pray for you that the rich blessings of our Heavenly Father be upon you and indeed this house that you build be a bountiful blessing to those who follow.

Review: The Year of Living Biblically

I bought this book, The Year of Living Biblically, by A.J. Jacobs out of fun. The premise of a person's quest to live out the bible literally for a year is just too hard to miss. I enjoy humor, and I think the book would be good for learning what is wrong with religious fundamentalism.

It turns out that I got way more than what I have bargained for. This book is probably one of the best book on religion I've ever read, and I've read quite a bit. The reason for this high praise is because this book is right up my alley on what religious reflection is about. It is about a honest and sincere attempt to understand. I love the short stories on the many different adventures with the different laws and the author's conclusion about them. They are written with wit and wisdom. I also love the fact that he is Jewish and agnostic and the difficult journey he took to reconcile himself with his ancestors' faith.

This is a book for everyone.

Carlin and the Ten Commandments

This is what I use to start my youth teachings on the Ten Commandments. The reason I do this is to let my students see what could be a reasonable way to critique them using humor and atheism. I then discuss what I think to be fair comments (it was a marketing decision), what are some common misconceptions (it is 10 "words", not 10 "commandments") and why we still hold high respect for them today (Jesus' summary of the Law).

My Top 10 Comedians

This post is along the same idea as Rightly dividing the Word of Truth.

Top being the funniest:
1. George Carlin
2. Lewis Black
3. Bill Cosby
4. Jerry Seinfeld
5. Ray Romano
6. Jeff Foxworthy
7. Chris Rock
8. Richard Pryor
9. Bill Hicks
10. Bob Newhart

Some of their materials are on Youtube, especially Carlin's, and I highly recommend them.

Comedians I've tried but don't like:
1. Margaret Cho
2. Larry the Cable Guy
3. Carrot Top

Those that I've failed to mention, either I've not heard them or I find them just OK.

It's back to the Wild Wild West

Next year's camp committee will be made up of 7 guys. So I suggested one of my favorite movies as the camp theme. Turns out nobody else has ever seen this great film. Enjoy!

6 Ways to the Meaning of Life

This year's youth camp is based on wisdom literature, and hence we will talk about the meaning of life. For the 6 sharing groups, we have each given them a quote representing a point of view about life.

Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards. - Soren Kierkegaard

If you are a Christian, you are not a citizen of this world trying to get to heaven; you are a citizen of heaven making your way through this world. - Vance Havner

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. - Martin Luther King, Jr.

Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Have courage for the great sorrows of life, and patience for the small ones. And when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace. God is awake. - Victor Hugo

Only a life lived for others is worth living. - Albert Einstein

Which best describes your view?

I've told you again and again!

My church elder shared this with the congregation last Sunday. I think many of the elderly really liked it. Personally, I doubt it has the same effect with the youths. As for my own thoughts, I would differentiate between innocent repetition or intentional repetition. If it is innocent (like a child or senile), impatience is naturally and rightly considered the insensitive response. But sadly, it often is not. The repetition comes because the elderly think they know better, and this clip IMHO belongs to the same shade.

Still, give your parents a hug!

Review: Letters to Sam

I read the subtitle and knew instantly that this is a must-buy for me. "A grandfather's lessons on love, loss and the gifts of life." I have always been a fan of life lessons written in a mellowed way. Something like Tuesdays with Morrie.

It turns out that this book Letters to Sam is even better than its premise. The grandfather Daniel Gottlieb is a psychologist with a disability, and the target of his letters (life lessons) is his grandson who is autistic. So this book has the depth of someone well-trained in psychology. It is also a life that has been through a lot. And the target audience is someone whom truly needs empathy. The combination of all these factors resulted in a very moving book that teaches with great insights about life.

I lent this book to a friend who had a stroke. And he found it really helpful to him. This I believe is his favorite lesson:

"Sam, I want you to know that being different is not a problem. It is just being different. But feeling different is a problem. When you feel different, the feeling can actually change the way you see the world
... ... ...
Your different-ness and my different-ness are just facts. Sometimes what we do with our minds turns those facts into pain, and sometimes we can just treat them as facts, acknowledging them but not feeling them. But the more you feel your different-ness, the more lonely you will feel."

On Death

人固有一死，死有重于泰山，或轻于鸿毛，用之所趋异也。太上不辱先，其次不辱身，其次不辱理色，其次不辱辞令，其次诎体受辱，其次易服受辱，其次关木索被棰楚受辱，其次鬄毛发婴金铁受辱，其次毁肌肤断支体受辱，最下腐刑，极矣。

人总有一死，有的人(死得)比泰山还重，有的人(死得)比鸿毛还要轻，这是由于应用死节的地方不同的缘故。最上一等是不辱没先人，其次是不辱没自己，其次是颜面上不受辱，其次是辞令上不受辱，其次是被囚系受辱，其次是换上囚服受辱，其次是戴上刑具、挨打受辱，其次是剃掉头发、以铁索束颈受辱，其次是毁伤肌肤、断残肢体受辱，最下一等是遭腐刑，到极点了!

西汉元封元年，汉武帝第一次封禅泰山，司马迁的父亲作为史官，本应来泰山参加封禅，但是他却因故留在洛阳。他对参加封禅视为他政治生命中的一件大事。不能东行参加封禅大典，令他异常遗憾和失望，终于忧锁成疾，卧床不起。

这时，恰好司马迁外游归来与父亲相见，于是他握着司马迁的手流着泪说：“我们的祖先是周朝的官吏，远祖还有大功于夏，是百官之长，后世逐渐衰弱，难道天将灭绝于我吗？你如果能继任太史官职，那就能继承祖业了。现在汉朝的天子继承了数千年来封禅泰山的大统，封禅于泰山，而我却不能随行，这是命中注定的呀！我死之后，你一定会继任太史官职的，做了太史不要忘了我所渴望的著书立说的意愿。”

司马迁从父亲的言谈话语之中看出参加封禅泰山的大典对光宗耀祖是何等重要。司马迁没有辜负父亲的愿望，即使在受了宫刑之后，仍矢志不移，决心忍辱完成父亲未竞之业。他在给好友任安的《报任安书》中，表达了他受刑之后的痛苦心情，并提到写作《史记》的意图和完成的决心。就在这篇著名的书信之中，司马迁把泰山融入千古名句：“人固有一死，或重于泰山，或轻于鸿毛，用之所趋异也。”

封禅释义

FFoB 15: The dangers of female wrestling

One of the most perplexing law in the bible is this one in Deuteronomy 25:11-12.

11 If two men are fighting and the wife of one of them comes to rescue her husband from his assailant, and she reaches out and seizes him by his private parts, 12 you shall cut off her hand. Show her no pity.

Of course this is only a real issue if this law is applied literally. Studies have revealed that most of the physical punishments of the OT laws can be mitigated using monetary compensation. You can check out a common and well detailed understanding I found online here and here.

But why the harshness? Loren Rosson argues that it is the issue of shame.

If you want to know other Fun Facts of the Bible...

FFoB 14: Why we should not swear

I found another fun fact of the bible when I was reading some comments in Christendom. Apparently, in Genesis 24:2, 47:29, it was customary at that time to swear by placing the hand on the other person's genitals.

Genesis 24:2 "He said to the chief servant in his household, the one in charge of all that he had, "Put your hand under my thigh." NIV

Genesis 47:29 "When the time drew near for Israel to die, he called for his son Joseph and said to him, "If I have found favor in your eyes, put your hand under my thigh and promise that you will show me kindness and faithfulness. Do not bury me in Egypt," NIV

"Sometimes, as in this case, a gesture is added to the oath. The gesture usually is symbolic of the task to be performed by the oath taker. For instance, by placing his hand inside Abraham's thigh (in the vicinity of or on the genitals), the servant ties his oath of obedience to the acquisition of a wife for Isaac and thus the perpetuation of Abraham's line." - The IVP Bible Background Commentary: OT p.55

The Biblical Marva Dawn

I am slowly readings through Morning by Morning which is a devotional book based on the writings of Marva Dawn. While I'm been exposed to her books on worship, I did not realize until recently that she also has systematic reflections based on the bible. For your convenience, these are the biblical books she has covered:

Psalms - I'm Lonely and My Soul Waits
Romans 12 - Truly the Community
Isaiah 40 - To Walk and not Faint
Revelations - Joy in our Weakness

Review: Grave of the Fireflies

3 words: Big Manly Tears. You have been warned.

Last year, I found a very good deal at either TS or Poh Kim. Basically, it is 6 Studio Ghibli films for only $20. Inside there is Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, Castle in the Sky, My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Only Yesterday and Grave of the Fireflies. The first 4 films are all wonderful, highly imaginative films that makes you wish you can fly. They also include the common themes of innocence, environment protection and courage. Only Yesterday is a sweet story about a lady trip down memory lane back to her hometown.

However, Grave of the Fireflies belong to another world all together. It is a slow haunting tale about WWII based on the experiences of 2 little Japanese children. I had previously talked about war films and Letters from Iwo Jima. This animation is along the same vein with nothing that feels in-your-face. It has no great powerful scenes like Pearl Harbor, but trust me, it knocks you out more powerfully with its message about what happens to the little people.

Rowland says it well: "In my mind it's really hard to declare anything a "victory" when you've accidentally killed a bunch of little kids in the process."

History of the Presbyterian churches in Singapore

Copied from The Presbyterian Church in Singapore official website.

Review: Leaving Microsoft to Change the World

I bought this book because it was on offer. This describes the reason for the bulk of my purchases. I started buying motivational self-help books a few years ago when I realised that I lack communication skills. So the mission for me is to learn how these professionals communicate their ideas in a clear, powerful and memorable way. Looking back, I think I've come a long way in developing myself. Church members have been remembering my sermon points a lot better now.

I bought this book because it looks like a good and interesting story, but it turned out to be far more than that. It was a lesson on how to do non-profit the right way. The founder John Wood laid out a few principles that made people willing to contribute to his cause. Specific tangible results, low overhead and a passion for his work, these are all things that made Room to Read great.

I basically finished this book in one day, cover to cover, because of the captivating narrative. This is a guy who sacrificed it all to make his dream to educate the poor come true. And over and over we come to know of people who merely wanted a chance to learn more. My immediate response is that I want to share this book with everybody involved in missions and the like. Highly recommended.

FFoB 13: Signs and the "I AM" sayings of John

The church is currently doing a sermon series on the I AM sayings of John. The reason is because we will be celebrating this year's Christmas season from the perspective of John. Jesus is the "Word became flesh". He fully manifests the glory of the one and only.

1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was with God in the beginning.

4In him was life, and that life was the light of men.

9The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.

14The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

16From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. 17For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.

The Prologue of John explains clearly how Jesus the Word fully manifested the glory when he became flesh. He is the true light, life, glory, grace and truth.

This is therefore the reason we are doing the I AM series as the Advent messages for this year's Christmas season. The I AM sayings placed throughout the gospel of John explains how the ministry of Jesus is the revelation of the Word becoming flesh and dwelling among us.
i) 我是生命粮 I am the Bread of Life (6:35,51)
ii) 我是世界的光 I am the Light of the World (8:12; 9:5)
iii) 我是门 I am the Gate (10:7,9)
iv) 我是好牧人 I am the good Shepherd (10:11,14)
v) 我是复活生命 I am the Resurrection and the Life (11:25)
vi) 我是道路真理生命 I am the Way, the Truth and the Life (14:6)
vii) 我是真葡萄树 I am the True Vine (15:1)

Related to this point is also how there are "signs" performed by Jesus throughout the gospel.
a) 2:1-11 Water into Wine at Cana - "Jesus did this, the first of his signs ... and manifested his glory" ( 2:11 )
b) 4:46-54 Official's son near death at Capernaum - " the second sign that Jesus did" ( 4:54 )
c?) 5:1-9ff Healing of a sick man at Pool of Bethesda - called a "work," not a "sign" (7:21; cf. 5:17)
d) 6:1-14ff Feeding of the 5000 - "When the people saw the sign which he had done..." (6:14 )
e?) 6:16 -21 Walking on water ( never called a "sign", and does not function as one! )
f) 9:1-7ff Healing of a man born blind - "How can a sinner do such signs ?" (9:16)
g) 11:1-45 Lazarus raised from the dead - "they heard he had done this sign " ( 12:18 )
Jesus didn't just performed miracles to show his power (unlike in the Synoptic Gospels). These signs were done to reveal Jesus' unique identity.

FFoB 12: What went on with the Old Testament

This picture is taken from the Wikipedia. It shows the relationship between all the ancient copies of the Old Testament. The Protestant OT is mainly translated from the MT (200-900AD). The Catholic OT is based on the MT and the Apocrypha from the LXX (300BC). Since we will be speaking on the additions to Esther, it is good to know the relationship.

The Problem with Palin

I am genuinely disturbed by some of the right-wing enthusiasm with Sarah Palin. It is not so much the conservative viewpoints that is alarming. It is the anti-intellectualism, and the incredulous notion that that is something to be proud of. John Stewart sums it up clearly.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Daily Show: The Rogue Warrior
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

The relevant potion starts 4min into the clip

FFoB 11: Arise, Shine!

I recently heard a children song called "Arise, Shine" which is indeed very beautiful. The tune emphasizes on the word Shine and the children will throw up their hands to represent the explosive shining forth of the light. The ignorant me thought all along that this song is based on Ephesians 5:14

"Wake up, O sleeper,
rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you."

It is only upon googling for the song that I realize that the words are actually based on Isaiah 60:1

"Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.

Well, despite the embarrassment, it is still a good lesson for me. It is likely that this early Christian hymn recorded in Ephesians is based on a theology similar to Isaiah. Here we have good evidence of the early belief in Christ's divinity. Just like the Lord, Christ is the glorious light that gives life when it shines on you.

Church History is like a tree

I like the use of this imagery to depict church history and was glad to find a chinese one online. Although we may appear to be vastly different and at odds on many issues, the reality is that we are still one single organism and we all branch out from the same root. This picture is evidence that I am not alone in this vision.

FFoB10: Capstone or Cornerstone

The New testament reinterpreted Psalm 118:22 to define Jesus in Matt 21:42, Mark 12:10, Luke 20:17, Acts 4:11, Ephesians 2:20, 1 Peter 2:7. If you read NIV, you get: "The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone". If you read NASB, you get: "The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief corner stone". What is the difference? Well, Capstone refers to "one of the finishing or protective stones that form the top of an exterior masonry wall or building. It looks like this:

Cornerstone however refers to the "first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation, important since all other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure." It looks like this:


I think both translations are possible and depending on which one you choose, you will derive a different meaning of the phrase. If you think of Jesus as the Capstone, he is the stone that presses down and holds down the entire structure. When the Capstone is removed, the structure implodes. Willimon's description of Jesus as the Capstone brings out this nuance, (although his title is Jesus the Cornerstone). This is his sermon: Jesus the Cornerstone.

"Now at the Chapel at Duke, where I usually preach, the chapel is built in the style of true gothic buildings, with no structural steel, with each stone resting upon stone in the fashion of true medieval architecture. High above the crossing there is something that's called a capstone. All the soaring arches thrust their weight upward and meet right up there in the center at the capstone. If that capstone, which I’m told weighs over a ton, were removed, the whole building would collapse. To expand Ephesians’ architectural metaphor, if you were to remove Jesus, the capstone of the whole Church, it would collapse." - Willimon

On the other hand, if you think of Jesus as the Cornerstone, he is the stone at the bottom corner that the entire building plan aligns itself with. Everything is an extension based on that stone. This is especially important for religious buildings because that stone marks out the original position of the previous temple or shrine or holy place. Tim Gallant's sermon brings out this nuance with his focus on Christian unity. This is his sermon: God's new temple under construction.

"So verse 20, then, helps us see if we have indeed discovered the temple of God. If, as Paul writes, this temple is founded upon the apostles and prophets, with Christ Himself as the chief cornerstone, then the features of the temple come into focus. If a society calls itself a "church" but has moved off the foundation of the apostles and prophets - you are not looking at the temple of the living God. If a society calls itself a "church," but is not founded upon the Person and work of Jesus Christ - you are not looking at the temple of the living God. The Church of Christ does not worship a goddess. The Church of Christ does not worship humanity. The Church of Christ does not worship the flag. The Church of Christ is founded squarely upon Christ and His cross and resurrection." - Gallant

Tired of Churchy and Christianish people

Tony Jones started a call-out to fellow Christians called Ending Christian Euphemisms. I wholeheartedly agree with his sentiments. I have never failed to roll my eyes (secretly) when I hear the statements like "This is not biblical" or "The Lord laid it on my heart". Seriously, do you need the extra divine support for your decisions? Can't we all just agree that I am as spiritual and biblically well versed as you are? It never fails to show that people using such statements are trying to one-up their arguments because they don't stand up to rational scrutiny by themselves. My advice to such folks:

1. I know the bible too. Obviously the reason we are arguing is because we hold different hermeneutical principles. So let's lay aside the pissing contest of who has better bible knowledge, and talk about the issue at hand.

2. Yes, you and God have a special relationship. Well, so do I. If God wants you to do something, it must have better reasons than a "just because". Let's hear that one, since it is much more verifiable.

Recommendation: Notes From Off Center

Notes From Off Center is a Christian blog that I always find insightful. Drew Tatusko is a Presbyterian who received his theological education from Princeton and is now serving in Mount Aloysius College. The reason I like this blog is because he thinks quite differently from me, but his arguments are always so compelling and deep that it forces me to rethink my assumptions. He also have the great gift of making profound thoughts personal and heart-felt.

I recommend this post that I like very much:
My God is a Predator.

The Exchange Principle

I am truly benefiting a lot from reading Winning with People by John Maxwell. Among his many gifts is his uncanny ability to read people very well. I talked about this in my sermon Consider the Water, which is based on the famous "This is Water" commencement speech by David Foster Wallace.

Wallace said this:
"A huge percentage of the stuff that I tend to be automatically certain of is, it turns out, totally wrong and deluded. Here's one example of the utter wrongness of something I tend to be automatically sure of: Everything in my own immediate experience supports my deep belief that I am the absolute center of the universe, the realest, most vivid and important person in existence. We rarely talk about this sort of natural, basic self-centeredness, because it's so socially repulsive, but it's pretty much the same for all of us, deep down. It is our default-setting, hard-wired into our boards at birth."

Anyway, in talking about the Exchange Principle in his Patience principle, Maxwell wrote this:

To develop patience, you need to appreciate how other people think and be sensitive to how people feel. Every person thinks... ...
- his problems are biggest
- his jokes are the funniest
- his prayers should get special attention
- his situation is different
- his victories are the most exemplary
- his faults should be overlooked

So true.

The Best Things in Life are Free II

For the last couple of years, I have been using Introduction to the Old Testament by Prof Christine Hayes from the Open Yale Courses online as my basic guide for OT teachings. If you are looking for something that is scholarly astute, well presented and well balanced, there is nothing better I've come across. I consider it an absolute must-try if you want to gain a better understanding of OT.

It is with great excitement that I come to know that there are new free online courses given by Yale:
1. Introduction to New Testament History and Literature by Prof Dale Martin
2. Introduction to Ancient Greek History by Prof Donald Kagan
3. Death by Prof Shelly Kagan

If they are only half as good as the course by Prof Hayes, I would be immeasurably grateful. Good times ahead.

FFoB9: The Art of Speaking

Ephesians 4:29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

"Most of Paul's moral exhortations are the sort that most ancient moralists uttered. Despite many points in common with the ethics of his culture, however, Paul often cites the Old Testament as his ethical authority. Ancient wisdom literature often emphasized learning to speak rightly; many sayings in proverbs emphasize the idea, including the encouragement to speak gracious uplifting words." - The IVP Bible Background Commentary

Proverbs 12:25 An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.
Proverbs 15:23 A man finds joy in giving an apt reply— and how good is a timely word!
Proverbs 25:11 A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.

It seems that many Christians still need this lesson from Paul. They think that they are doing the church a service by saying things to "improve" the church. How about just learning to appreciate what is already there? And if you have to speak, speak lovingly.

Should Ben Witherington apologize?

There is apparently a mini-storm over Ben Witherington's comments about Sheffield's Department of Biblical Studies. This appeared in an article about the department's survival in Christianity Today.

In one of the paragraph, it says:
"Bruce, the noted author of books such as Paul: Apostle of the Heart Set Free and The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable?, founded Sheffield's department of biblical history and literature in 1947. But not all faculty have shared Bruce's conservative convictions. Evangelically minded faculty, including Andrew Lincoln and Loveday Alexander, were not replaced with scholars who held similar views. Other faculty were "bent on the deconstruction of the Bible, and indeed of their students' faith," according to Ben Witherington, a New Testament scholar at Asbury Theological Seminary."

This led to Stephanie Fisher confronting Witherington on his blog, and snowballed further when he defended his views about the way Sheffield conducts its teaching on those who are more conservative in their faith. You can read James Crossley's response to his comments here.

My thoughts on the matter is that I think the secular and critical way Sheffield do biblical studies is actually a good thing. As long as students who go there know what is in store for them (a secular education), I think the existence of Sheffield department of biblical studies definitely adds value to the overall academic world.

However, judging by Witherington's comments, he is probably not too happy about some who have lost their faith because of their education there. That is unfortunate from a religious point of view, but it is just private opinion. Now that there are those who demand an apology for his deeply-held sentiments, demanding proof of his accusations. How can such evidence be produced without leading to more unhappiness? I don't think that is possible. I guess the best he could do is to apologize for making his private unhappiness public, but that would satisfy no one. Now he is just choosing between a rock and a hard place. Poor guy.

Thoughts on War

Dulce et Decorum Est is a poem by Wilfred Owen about the horrors of war during the WWI. The poem describes how a bunch of soldiers were escaping gas bombs and graphically presents the horror of a particular young man struggling for life.

Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,
Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,
Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs
And towards our distant rest began to trudge.
Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots
But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind;
Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots
Of disappointed shells that dropped behind.

GAS! Gas! Quick, boys!-- An ecstasy of fumbling,
Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time;
But someone still was yelling out and stumbling
And floundering like a man in fire or lime.--
Dim, through the misty panes and thick green light
As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.

In all my dreams, before my helpless sight,
He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.

If in some smothering dreams you too could pace
Behind the wagon that we flung him in,
And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,
His hanging face, like a devil's sick of sin;
If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood
Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,
Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud
Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,--
My friend, you would not tell with such high zest
To children ardent for some desperate glory,
The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est
Pro patria mori.

The title of the poem makes a mockery of the poem by Horace.

Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori:
mors et fugacem persequitur virum
nec parcit inbellis iuventae
poplitibus timidove tergo.

"How sweet and fitting it is to die for one's country:
Death pursues the man who flees,
spares not the hamstrings or cowardly backs
Of battle-shy youths."

How sweet and fitting indeed.

Perhaps it is Memorial Day, we have an excellent reflection on the ethics of war by Dr. Richard Beck: Grandpa and Pacifism.

How are you feeling today?

This was the ice-breaker for my cell tonight and a damn good one. I do assess my own feelings everyday. If I am feeling bad, I will try stuff that help alleviate stress. It is an important spot-check for me because my state of mind can easily affect others. If I am feeling down, my message is likely to be negative.

Fortunately, things are moving along fine in church despite a hectic schedule ahead. What always keeps me upbeat no matter the situation is if I know there are challenging tasks to come. I get motivated by learning and stretching myself. In the year ahead, two things stand out.

1. The project on Esther, including the apocrypha passages, looks daunting but very very unfamiliar. I like that feeling. Let's explore God in a new way.

2. A bunch of loving people is joining the church choir. I hope this can be a life giving love that continues to pay it forward. Time will tell.

Age and Maturity

John C. Maxwell is really good with presenting ideas on leadership. That is his obvious gift, besides a genuine great personality. He is able to convey relationship concepts using direct and graphic words, making understanding really easy. I am reading his book, Winning with People, and it is most enlightening. I especially like this phrase:

"We often expect maturity to come with age, but the truth is, sometimes age comes alone."

So true.

FFoB8: Additions to the Book of Esther

The church will be doing the book of Esther in the sermons for the bilingual service next year. I've known for quite some time that there are additional passages to Esther in the Apocrypha, which means that we disagree with the Roman Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox on the canonicity of these passages. Nonetheless, I thought that since we are doing a serious study of Esther, it should be a fully comprehensive one. It doesn't harm to talk on a couple of prayers right?

It turns out that the additions are pretty long and there are 6 passages in total. Oops! Looks like it will take a few sermons to cover them. Why the additions? There are a few reasons.

1. God is largely absent in the original story. These additions attempt to give more theological depth to Esther and thus explain the events with a more active version of God.

2. The additions also help to explain some questions, like the inner motivations of the main characters. While the original leaves more to the imagination, the additions tell us more blatantly why Esther feels disgusted about being queen or why Mordecai doesn't bow to Haman.

3. Lastly, the additions also add drama to certain portions of the narrative that are overly brief. In particular, the texts of the edicts were given, thus giving more credibility when relating the tale.

Looks like we will be having some fun analyzing this very Jewish story. Certainly, the before and after effects of the additions will let us think about how looking at the story from different angles let us learn something new about God.

Ben Witherington Strikes Again!

When I was studying in TTC, I had a crisis of faith. The issue was whether we had misunderstood Jesus. The idea was that the theology of Christ and the self identity of Jesus may be very different. It become more and more troubling for me as I go down the rabbit hole of the quest for the historical Jesus. At that time, one book came to my rescue: The Christology of Jesus by Ben Witherington. In a well organized manner, Ben outlined how we can understand Jesus' interpretation of himself, and the conclusion was that Jesus' idea and our traditional idea isn't very different. The book was very well-reasoned, and I felt convinced.

As the years passes, I continue to see him as my idol, and often respect his opinion on theological subjects. His reply on the Da Vinci code is an example of well thought out scholarship: The Gospel Code. However, he does lean towards the more conservative camp, I so see that we disagree on the more controversial topics. My beliefs are still traditional, but I lean liberal on politics. I am simply more convinced about equality and social justice when applying the law.

Today, as I was catching up on his blog. This post is especially good: Why Arguments against Women in Ministry aren't biblical. Some of the more conservative bible-thumping parts of the Presbyterians in Singapore still use literal readings of the bible to justify their stand against woman pastors. This post is a perfect explanation of why they are so misguided.

"As I have learned over many years.... the problem in the church is not strong and gifted women. ... ... No, the problem in the church is not strong women, but rather weak men who feel threatened by strong women, and have tried various means, even by dubious exegesis to prohibit them from exercising their gifts and graces in the church." Witherington

Review: Yes Man

I have been reading motivation books for quite a while besides my usual religious literature. The reason for doing this is because I want to learn how to convey ideas and concepts effectively like what many of these motivational speakers do. Like it or not, we may have an important message, but if the medium is a boring convoluted presentation (i.e. most sermons), nobody is getting fed and bringing anything home with them. It is with such endeavors that I come across the book by Danny Wallace: Yes Man. It is about the real life adventure of the author when he tries to change his life by saying yes to every single proposal. Would you want to the party? Yes! Would you like to try this product? Yes! You get the idea. It is a motivational message presented in a humorous autobiographical style. Inspirational and funny, hence I finished it quickly. I think the book is just ok for what it is trying to say: namely, be open-minded about invitations of life and good things will come your way.

The movie adaptation however is extremely well done, despite the usual over-expressions of Jim Carrey. Many of the silly ideas of the book like wild adventures to Amsterdam (because of a secret message) or the correspondences with a Nigerian scammer were removed. The movie keeps a good pace in telling the audience how the adventure to say yes to everything works out, and I think the romantic subplot with Zooey Deschanel is quirky and sweet. To say that the movie brings out the best of the book is a gross understatement. This script is a good example of what proper editing can do in bringing out the essence of a sermon.

Review: Bedtime Stories

I bought this DVD despite the negative reviews, something I don't usually do. I am also not a fan of Adam Sandler's brand of humor, which is usually a not so successful guy and not too intelligent, whose sincerity somehow gets the girl. The wedding singer is the only one I like because it is not too stupid. The reason for the purchase is simply because I like the genre where story-telling and real life coincide and I think the best movie on this is Big Fish. Movies like this are important because I think the modern society with its emphasis on empiricism and historicity has lost the beauty of a well-told story no doubt also based on actual events. In the fanatic obsession with actual details, we forget that the truth of the matter is often bigger than the sum of its parts. Well crafted stories that creatively utilizes embellishments and narrative arrangements and other literary devices can present the reality more deeply than a recollection of facts. It is in the pursuit of such unique perspectives that I ventured into films like The Brothers Grimm and Hoodwinked. These films often challenge our mindset on what is involved when an event is retold.

In Bedtime Stories, stories made up by kids come true in the life of the main character Skeeter. That is the main draw for me. I think the movie succeeds very well in making the fantastic imaginations of children become a reality in Skeeter's life. How the events play out for Skeeter despite the impossibility when we listen to the bedtime story version from the kids the night before is the main plot, and that did not disappoint me at all. If you want a good and deep movie, this is obviously just fun family fare. But if you are searching for something like the hermeneutic of life, how life is interpreted, I think this film is worth a try.

The best part about the movie is when Wendy confronted Skeeter for telling her kids that there are no happy endings in life. I think that is something we can all think about.

Review: (500) Days of Summer

I've always liked romantic comedies. It speaks something about me. I like romance and I like happy endings. I'm an idealist and I like to feel good. Despite so, I also like it when a movie tries to be inventive with a tried and proven formula. 500 days of summer is not your average romantic comedy. It has a non-chronological narrative and well, there is a twist in the end. This movie tries to answer one basic question: is there a special someone meant for you?

The movie deals with this using the 2 main characters: Tom who comes from a happy family and has a romantic picture of love and Summer who comes from a broken family and has a "why so serious?" attitude towards commitment. In the end, both learned a little more about the entire picture of love from each other. I like that kind of stuff too: kind of like Sense and Sensibility.

This movie also has a good Sixth Sense moment, where a line transforms how the movie is interpreted. For me, it is this line:
Rachel Hansen: Tom, I know you think she was the one, but I don't. Next time you look back, I think you should look again.

The Voice of a Pastor: the Aftermath

Ok, I've now tried the voice exercise. I think I now have the Fat Voice.

The Voice of a Pastor

Since late September, we have been taking digital recordings of the church sermons and they are now available on the church website. After listening to a couple I now confirm what I've known for some time: I sound whiny. The truth is that I hear a different voice from what others hear from me, and I think this is common to most whose ears are more blocked. Think about how different you sound in a small bathroom and in an open field and you can imagine the difference in tone. All these times, I thought I was speaking with a baritone, but the reality is that people hear a squeaky tenor voice. So while I was trying to give a somber authoritative message, it lacks the punch that I thought I had. Here is a sample of my voice from my latest sermon.

I have asked a few people's opinion on the matter, and most say that they are rather used to the voice and don't think it is a big deal. However, I do think that the voice does impact the quality of the message for the listener. A statement of "Go Forth into the world" will be very different coming from the mouth of Elmo and Sean Connery. I found a webpage on this matter: How to develop a Perfect Speaking Voice. I'll try it out for a month and see how it goes.

Back from vacation V

This is the last of my thoughts on the trip to Taipei. I had wished to do a more detailed reflection, but I guess this will have to do.

Thursday Night: There were still 2 night markets we like to complete before we go but only 1 night left. They are the RaoHe night market and the ShiDa night market. No problem, sez my wife. We will finish one from 6-8 and the other from 8-10. I think she must have forgotten the tired kids. So we took the train from Jiannan to HouShanPi because that is the nearest MRT. At the HouShanPi station, we discover that the nearest road is apparently blocked by a train station. We decided to play it safe with a long detour. Upon reaching RaoHe, we immediately bought this famous 胡椒饼. This is actually one of the famous stalls that I saw on one of those Taiwanese food programs! It was indeed delicious, but also very filling. It is basically a packed bun with beef and lots of veggie, but a peppery crust, YUM! Once again, we ate hotpot for dinner. That was unfortunately again too much food (we had the same experience at Danshui). I think the Taiwanese just have a different level of food intake as a Singaporean. However, my wife did try the pig/duck blood this time, and she loves it. There were also many funny stuff inside the hotpot, but I don't know the names. The shopping area here is much smaller compared to TongHua-LingJiang or ShihLin but it is a buzzing scene nonetheless.

From here, we took a taxi. I told the driver that I want to go to ShiDa night market, and he asked me if I want to go to the ShiDa road one or the Roosevelt road one. According to him, the Roosevelt one is also one street like ShiDa but it has more modern shops. We didn't know about this one because it is not on the map but I have read the cursory mention of this GongGuan night market. Based on the recommendation of the taxi driver, we went this night market instead. I have to say that this night market gave me a good impression. It has an alley type night market area, but it also has a shophouses type shopping area, and if you are bringing a family and needing resting areas and aircons, this is a good place to go. The MRT station is also at the location. The shopping here is also more trendy since it caters to the student crowd from the nearby university.

Friday Day: It is time to go. We are running out of touristy spots, and we decide to go this Children Recreation Park in YuanShan. Big mistake, it either has closed down or it hasn't been completed yet. From there, we went to Zhongshan, since it is supposed to have a touristy place called SPOT Taiwan. It turns out to be an arty-farty place featuring Taiwanese art films. Yawn, sez my less than enthusiastic family. Finally, we ended up with shopping at the shopping centers. Bummer. On the way back to the hotel, I bought the last thing on my must eat list: 肉圆. I have always imagined it to be a giant meat ball, but it turns out to be a medium sized meat ball boiled within a jelly-like outer layer, with generous sauce. It was interesting and juicy.

This wraps up my entire account of my trip. I will surely go again.

Back from Vacation IV

Wednesday Night: The agenda for the night is straight-forward: Shihlin Night Market. To be honest, I don't have high hopes because I have heard that this place is now too tourist orientated, much like the Newton Food center of Singapore. True enough, the evening did not start well. We went to the Shihlin Food Center and the touting was horrendous. Eventually we settled in a place but my wife refused to try anything exotic for fear of food poisoning. Point to note: spoons and forks is very rare in Taiwan. No forks can be found, even in the proper restaurants, and when we ask for extra spoons and bowls for the kids, we were refused! Apparently, this stall is supposed to be famous, and the hawkers here still have the arrogant attitude that is thankfully becoming rare in Singapore. I had a miserable experience here, and the food was a disappointment. I ate sesame soup kidneys, it is ok, but no better than a good stall in Singapore. Thankfully, I got to try 卤肉饭 here, so that is one item off my food target list. The rice was tasty but I think passable. I saw a bunch of students ordered 综合煎 which is not in the menu and the lady boss which was stuck up previously with us was extremely cordial to them. Service favoritism sucks huh?

The Shihlin shopping however was very impressive. This place is at least double of the TongHua-LingJiang night market. We walked along some narrow night market style alleys, and also some shophouses style roads. My highlight of the night was that I queued up for a wrap food stall where there toss the wrap high and bake it in a proper tandoor. The result is a delicious fluffy flatbread which I cannot remember the Chinese name. Overall, I would say that this place is much better than my expectations and I think it is worth going for the shopping.

Thursday Day: This journey is quite an interesting one. We felt that we have covered all the places we wanted to go, except the night markets, which are of course only available at night. What happen was that we had depended on the initial maps that we got from the Taipei airport. When my sister-in-law mentioned an unfamiliar place, it was only then that we discover that is another MRT line, called the Neihu line, that is not described fully in the maps we currently have. Somewhat like the LRT system of the MRT system. So Wednesday night, we took some MRT maps from the MRT station, and this day would be a sight-seeing tour based on those new maps. In the morning, we started with this location that looked really scenic on the map called 大湖公园. It is quite a distance away, but it is worth seeing a big lake right? Wrong, it was a tiny lake somewhat the size of 小桂林 in Singapore. There was a pretty bridge and a nice platform and a quiet atmosphere, but it is a far cry from MacRitchie for example.

We then hit the next location, the Miramar Shopping center at Jiannan Road station. We had an absolutely fabulous meal at a Western restaurant - Gilley's Garden, and the kids had fun at the Ferris wheel and the Merry-go-round. The shopping is also nice and peaceful which is much more enjoyable to me than the packed places at the usual 新光三越. Overall, it was a thumbs-up experience for me.

Wedding Sermon IV

The Beauty of a Christian Marriage

Song of Songs 2: 10 My lover spoke and said to me, "Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, and come with me.
11 See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. 12 Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land. 13 The fig tree forms its early fruit; the blossoming vines spread their fragrance. Arise, come, my darling; my beautiful one, come with me."

There often comes a time in a wedding ceremony where the wise pastor, both a counselor and a friend, gives a sobering message to remind the newlyweds of commitment and mutual responsibility in a marriage. Well, now is not that time. While giving a solemn charge of fidelity and faithfulness is indeed important, I do not want to give an impression that that is all there is to the life ahead. Christianity sometimes gives a grave image of marriage, fortified by an emphasis on duty and staying away from temptation. It is as if we are saying, “You may not like one another, but you have no choice but to stay married, because that is the command of God.” You can hear the words, “command of God... God… God” echoing away in the emptiness of the relationship. Trust and obey, for there’s no other way. Such an impression is especially true if all you know about a Christian marriage comes from the boy-girl relationship talks in church from your days of youth. Youth counselors in a desperate battle against the raging hormones of teenagers are quick with warnings and apprehensive about romance. Even when Christians talk about love in a marriage, they immediately couple it with sacrifice. Let’s just say that the vision of Jesus dying for the church may be a beautiful picture for the apostle Paul, but that’s not what all husbands are scrambling to go through. In church, we celebrate the couples that can stay together over decades of thick and thin. The longevity of a marriage vow is certainly a virtue for others to follow. But I think that is not all. Today I wish to talk about another aspect of a Christian marriage. Not the quantity of the marriage, but the quality of this life to be shared.

The passage today is taken from a bible book called the Song of Songs. The title like ‘the king of kings’ or ‘the best of the best’ implies that this song is to be considered the cream of the crop, the song that is over and above all other songs. Given such an esteemed status in Christianity, it is remarkable that the Song of Songs is not directly a worship song, but primarily a romantic song between a pair of lovers. This should be a sign to us Christians that the words of desire and admiration of a couple in love expressed in the proper context of a marriage can be respected and given a place of honor. In a Christian marriage, the final objective is not just to avoid a divorce. God gave us a partner for life so that we may enjoy this life as a new body, the body of two becoming as one. Physically, we see two persons as a scientific fact. But we know that from now on they are forever connected because of the inseparable longings for one another. As the Song of Songs, the chief expression that overshadows all other expressions of the heart, it is a proclamation to all who are listening that in a Christian marriage, your passion for one another surpasses your passion for all other competitors. This is the true beauty of a Christian marriage: a couple that is fully expressing their love for one another. This is a far cry from any Puritan misconceptions that desires must be tamed and sex is a dirty word. The Song of Songs rejects that.

Among all the love poetry in the Song of Songs, I intentionally chose this passage because I want to draw the connection to another bible passage chosen at the wedding of M and H.

Habakkuk 3:17-18 “17 Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.”

Both are human proclamations that are loaded with agricultural imageries. In the Habakkuk passage, it is a personal conviction that no matter how bad the scenario, when all the fields are barren, I will trust in the Lord. That kind of personal conviction is critical in carrying us through all the tough times. But I have chosen today’s passage to show us that Christian marriage has another complementary side to that personal conviction. In marriage, just as there are winter times, there are also times of spring. Today’s passage tells us of the importance to celebrate love and romance in the times of spring. When the flowers are blooming and the birds are singing, when the figs are ripe and the vines bear fruit, it is not just personal conviction, but mutual invitation. Arise, come, my darling; my beautiful one, come with me.

Sa and Sh, this is the beauty of a Christian marriage that I hope you always keep with you. Here we see love expressed freely and passionately, and that is what you must do; not just today, not just on the anniversaries, but every time you see one another. You have to constantly invite one another to share your life. In a marriage you will go through many things: children, promotions, mid-life crisis, empty nest and even death. Marriage is a constant process of asking your partner to arise and come with you to the next stage, and then the next. The Song of Songs largely uses agricultural metaphors because of the context at those times, and we might not identify with its beauty. But Sa, you are the creative type. I’m sure you know how to always be creatively romantic to Sh. Singaporeans are painfully pragmatic, but I think we can all learn to be more poetic in expressing love. And Sh, we see how the beloved reciprocates her love to her lover in the Song of Songs. If Sa is stingy with his loving words, you can treat him economy class. But if he pays the full fare of cherishing you to the fullest, do not forget to bump him to serve him first class. I wish for you a loving marriage always fully communicated to one another.

Back from vacation III

Tuesday Night: This was the night that we are determined to eat some "exotic" street food after the bland Ramen at XimenDing (Sunday) and the usual Japanese food at the foodcourt at Sogo (Mon). We were deeply apprehensive because of the bad experience in finding LiaoNing Night Market, but this TongHua-LingJiang Night Market is a lot more reputable. We walked from Taipei 101 all the way to LingJing street and we are happily greeted with a buzzing Night Market scene. Success in our night adventures at last! We intentionally chose a restaurant that serves duck blood and smelly Toufu, YUM! But in the end I am the only one that ate them, the rest ate second rated steak and spaghetti. Still it is a good try. In my opinion, the duck's blood is absolutely delicious, but not very different from the pig's blood that used to be available in Singapore. The Toufu though is a disappointment. It is texturally different, but it is not exactly worth the bad smell. After enjoying the night market shopping, we send the kids back. My wife and I then went for the Pub performance again for yet another wonderful performance by 張晉樵. He was the second performer though, so we had to endure a deafening recital of the top 10 Taiwanese oldies by a female first performer.

Wednesday Day: After running out of the Must See, today is a day to catch up with all the touristy spots that we don't mind since we have the time. We visited the CKS Memorial hall. It was a beautiful plaza with imposing building. Unfortunately, I was wearing sandles and so I could only enjoy the interior from afar. But overall it was a worthwhile trip. We then walked to the Peace Park and that was also an educational trip to see the monuments to remember the 228 Incident.

There are 2 major concerns after the Must-sees were completed. Not enough shopping (both the one is WuFenPu and LingJiang-TongHua were cut short because of tired kids) and not enough authentic Taiwanese food. We decide to resolve both of this by trying out the Underground malls at the Taipei Main Station. Without enough research, we later realise that we only covered one out of the possible four. Anyway, we managed to try their dumplings which I think is quite good. And I bought 葱抓饼 and 猪血糕。 I highly recommend the former and thumbs down the latter. The former is like Roti Prata but with spring onions and is really flavorful. The latter is essentially rice dumpling but it is really just a starchy cake. Somewhat like tapioca cake if you are into that Nonya food. The shopping however is lousy despite the shade and aircon. The products are not unlike a Night Market's, but the variety pales in comparison. I would give Underground malls a miss unless the cool shopping is really a big plus for you.

Back from Vacation II

Monday Night: Since the pub performance will be near ZhongXiao DunHua road, we decided to go shopping at Sogo there and check out a little known night market: the LiaoNing street night market. It was drizzling so reluctantly, we ate at the food court. The Sogo was 12 stories there, but to me that is the only point of interest. They sell Haba games there but it is cheaper at the Better Toy Store here in Singapore at Ngee Ann City. After food and slight shopping, we proceed to head for the night market, but it turned out to be a really long walk. In the end, we gave up upon reaching the road and finding nothing obvious. The family rested in a Starbucks-like coffee place. I went slightly further alone to find about 20 food stalls, but it was quite dowdy in my opinion.

On hindsight, I should have researched the place before going. Looking at the online reviews of the place, it turns out that this LiaoNing mini-night market is famous for its food. I should have gone to this place for dinner instead.

After the rest, we went to the pub to see 張晉樵. It was a wonderful evening and his singing was as good as the clips we would find online. My daughter loved the experience as well. I especially enjoy 纸片人。 The crowd was largely subdued that day, but actually I liked it that way. The pub was a lot smaller than I imagined. The musicians were absolutely superb.

Tuesday Day: There were 2 must-go locations for us. One is DanShui which we cleared in Day 1. The other is WuFenPu which is a HUGE cheap shopping area mainly for clothes. We had breakfast in the East Dragon hotel which is totally recommended by me. The hotel is cheap, well located and clean with friendly service. Then we had lunch at a shop that specialize in 虱目魚。 This fish has a layer of fat that gives a unique experience when consumed with the flesh. This shop is along the way from the MRT to WuFenPu so it is definitely unmissable. We then shopped at WuFenPu which is absolutely HUGE. I think there are about 5-10 long alleys both in columns and in rows, all lined with shops on both sides. The kids once again tire out in 2 hours and we barely skimmed half the place. We debated whether to continue or to go back to rest. The ideal situation is to shop till the night and go to the RaoHe Night market nearby, but that is now quite untenable. In the end, we slogged on for another hour carrying the kids, and took a taxi to the shopping district at SongShan road. There are at least 5 huge shopping centers there, and we discovered that ICE-CREAM!!! is the secret formula that keeps our dear girl energized. Anyway, we then went to tour Taopei 101. We skipped the observatory because we think the charge is too expensive.

Back from Vacation I

I was in Taipei from Sunday evening to Friday late afternoon, so it is 5 days 5 nights. Being a Chinese in a Chinese environment, and also bringing along 2 kids, I chose a free and easy style. This was the itinerary.

Sunday Night: Our hotel is at XimenDing, so naturally it is shopping at XimenDing. I think my personal expectations were too high. I thought it would be highly unusual shopping and food, but it feels rather like shopping in Chinatown. It is still an enjoyable experience, but I guess there is no wow factor.

Monday Day: Seeing that the weather was fine, we wanted to strike out the first must see location that depended on the weather: Tamshui. This location is for the Taiwanese what East Coast Park is for Singaporeans. If you want to enjoy a scenic place to walk, go here. Our aim is to cover Tamshui to the YuRen MaTou(Fisherman's Wharf). We walked from our hotel at XimenDing to Taipei Main Station, enjoying the traffic and stalls along the way. Walking in Taipei city feels like walking around in old Singapore with shophouses everywhere. Thumbs up for this. We then took the MRT to Tamshui. From there we walked down Tamshui LaoJie (old street) and had hotpot for lunch. Food is very affordable there. The shopping here is much better IMO. However all the walking tire out my kids and my family decide not to continue the road march to the Fisherman's Wharf. Since we have already seen the scenic view, I guess it was not necessary to go the extra mile. We also missed Fort Santo Domingo. Going back to our hotel, we discovered (after calling) that my wife's idol 張晉樵 is performing at a pub on Monday night and Tuesday night. So we decided to change the night plans from a more popular night market to a unknown night market near the pub's location.

Why the Anglicans can never be Extremists

As explained by Eddie Izzard (Relevance starts from 4.45 into the video)



Transcript:
So the Pagan religion I don't know a huge amount about, but it was this earthy thing. Christianity had split into many different areas - Catholicism still has the fire and brimstone,( beating drum ) "Row, you bastards!” You know... Original sin! What a hellish idea that is! People have to go,

"Father, bless me for I have sinned, I did an original sin… I poked a badger with a spoon."

"I've never heard of that one before! Five Hail Mary's and two Hello, Dolly's."

"Oh, all right..."

"Bless me, Father, for I have slept with my next door neighbor's wife."

"Heard it! I want an original sin."

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry!"

The Anglican faith doesn't have that. You'll never go,

"Vicar, I have done many bad things."

"Well, so have I."

"What shall I do?"

"Well, drink five Bloody Marys and you won't remember."

Because the Anglican faith had a lack of principles for a long time. You can't get really headstrong about it. You can't say, you know, like the Islamic jihads that we hear bout. We get scared about those Islamic jihads. I think we do assume that everyone who is into the Islamic religion is having a jihad every other bloody day. There's a lot of very relaxed Islamic people, and we got to understand - remember, this is very important - and we do assume that jihads are just like, you know,everyday three jihads are issued by every individual. It just seems they're everywhere . "The fruit shop shortchanged me! A fucking jihad on them!" Bump into someone, say,

"Hey! A fucking jihad on you!"

"How many jihads have you got going now, Dad?"

"Well, 24. God, it's difficult to keep up with them!"

I just don't think that's happening. But you can't do that in Church of England, you can't say, "You must have tea and cake with the Vicar, or you die!" You can't have extreme points of view, you know. The Spanish Inquisition wouldn't have worked with Church of England.

"Talk! Will you talk!"

"But it hurts!"

"Well, loosen it up a bit, will you? Fine..."

‘Cause that's what it would be. "Tea and cake or death? Tea and cake or death? Tea and cake or death!" Students with beards, ( mimes demonstrating with picket signs ) "Tea and cake or death! Tea and cake or death! Little Red Cookbook! Little Red Cookbook!" ‘Cause, "Cake or death?" That's a pretty easy question. Anyone could answer that.

"Cake or death?"

"Eh, cake please."

"Very well! Give him cake!"

"Oh, thanks very much. It's very nice."

"You! Cake or death?"

“Uh, cake for me, too, please."

"Very well! Give him cake, too! We're gonna run out of cake at this rate. You! Cake or death?"

"Uh, death, please. No, cake! Cake! Cake, sorry. Sorry..."

"You said death first, uh-uh, death first!"

"Well, I meant cake!"

"Oh, all right. You're lucky I'm Church of England!" Cake or death?"

"Uh, cake please."

"Well, we're out of cake! We only had three bits and we didn't expect such a rush. So what do you want?"

"Well, so my choice is 'or death’? I’ll have the chicken then, please.

“Taste of human, sir. Would you like a white wine? There you go, thank you very much.”

“ Thank you for flying Church of England, cake or death?"

“I asked for the vegetarian."

"Ah, yes, the vegetarian, yes! There we go, Mr. Hitler. There we go... Like a bit of wine? Thank you very much...you Nazi shithead!"

The Worst thing that could happen from a Gay Marriage is

... ... 2 Jewish mothers. LOL. This is an old clip from The Daily Show.
(Relevance from 2.10min into the clip)

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Headlines - The Gay After
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Ron Paul Interview

Well, maybe 2 Chinese mothers or 2 Singaporean mothers could be worse.
"Do your homework now, or you will be sweeping roads"
"listen to your mother"

"Stay at home during the 7th month"
"listen to your mother"

The Best Sermon Series Yet

The sermon series on Judges is finally over. And it is all available online. In my opinion, it is the best team effort from Jubilee so far. When it was picked, I already envisaged the tough passages like Judges 19 being hard to deliver, especially to a youthful audience. But I felt that even tough obscure biblical texts deserved to be heard. At least once in a lifetime. In the end, I think we did a good job respecting the text and applying it well into the listeners' life.

The series began with a promise:
"This year, I made a new year resolution. I want to be more honest and authentic than ever before. I want to be more honest with others, but more importantly, I want to be more honest with myself. To be fair, I have never considered myself to be fake or a phony. One look at my simple appearance and you know that I’m too comfortable with my self-esteem to bother putting up a false pretense. Still, I think there are different levels of commitment to being honest, and perfect honesty is not easy because it means being vulnerable. However, authenticity is also a necessary ingredient for any relationship to go further, and that is a no pain no gain deal. I think I am ready to go deeper in the pursuit of better relationships in my life. To be honest with others, with myself and with God, and hence explore the relationships further."

And by sticking to the truth from the gut, and reflecting without reserve til the end, I feel pride about the entire endeavor. Some of my final words after 9 months of struggle with Judges:

"An American writer once told this story, “There are these two young fish swimming along, and they happen to meet an older fish swimming the other way, who nods at them and says, "Morning, boys, how's the water?" And the two young fish swim on for a bit, and then eventually one of them looks over at the other and goes, ‘What the hell is water?’”1

The point of this story is that the most obvious and important realities are often the ones that are the hardest to see and talk about. Our perspectives are so natural to us that we often fail to notice them. Like water to a fish, you seldom think about it even though you may be immersed in it. We assume our perspectives are true, and we take that for granted. As we go through this sermon series on Judges, we have intentionally looked into some of these realities and reflected on them. These realities include basic human instincts like fear and greed, and also the nature of our relationship with God. For these moments of introspection, I am immensely thankful. Sometimes, we just blindly go about our lives, day in day out. Even coming to church is a routine affair. Taken in this sense, we are really no different from the people living in those times of Judges. We are just doing what we think is right. Like them, it is hard for us to realize the water we are swimming in. But this awareness of the water is the most fundamental reflection that we must do on a regular basis, and it is my topic for today. "

Wedding Sermon III

The Blessing of Boaz (Ruth 4:11-12)

11 Then the elders and all those at the gate said, "We are witnesses. May the LORD make the woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel. May you have standing in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem.
12 Through the offspring the LORD gives you by this young woman, may your family be like that of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah."

This is my 3rd wedding exhortation. My aim in the wedding exhortation is to explain the importance of every segment of the wedding ceremony. My first message was about the sanctity of vows which follows the exhortation. And my second message was about the importance of the affirmations that occurs before the exhortation. Today, I wish to touch on the Benediction that comes at the end of the ceremony. You can tell I’m running out of topics. The next two weddings exhortations will be about the bridal procession and the call to worship. So future wedding couples, you have been warned.

For today’s topic on blessings, I think it is a good idea to use a couple of verses from Ruth in line with the recent sermon series on Judges. The scripture chosen is the blessing from the community upon the marriage of Boaz and Ruth. Boaz and Ruth is one of the most romantic stories found in the Bible. The story may be almost 3 thousand years old but the storyline of a mature experienced man being nice to a young and innocent Gentile lady is something S and F can surely identify with. S is like Boaz, responsible and a man of standing; and F like Ruth is caring and hardworking. If you include the plot about the woman who washed and perfumed herself and put on her best clothes and went looking for her beloved man eating and drinking and in good spirits, it’s practically the same story! The only difference with the biblical classic I can think of is that on their first lunch date, Boaz asked Ruth to have some bread and to dip it in the wine vinegar. S would not have been so subtle, he would have asked F to just keep drinking the wine.

The two verses today are familiar to me because I actually wrote a sermon on it during my days in Trinity Theological College 8 years ago. I named it the Blessing of Boaz. This was written shortly after another writer wrote on the Prayer of Jabez. Since then the Prayer of Jabez went on to become an international bestseller, topping the New York Times bestseller list and selling 9 million copies. The Prayer of Jabez comes in audio and video formats. The publisher also authorized a wide array of official "Prayer of Jabez" merchandise including key chains, mugs, backpacks, Christmas ornaments, scented candles, mouse pads, and a framed artist's conception of Jabez himself. There is even a line of jewelry of Prayer of Jabez. The Blessing of Boaz meanwhile stayed unknown. The writer of the Blessing of Boaz sold one copy to himself and now lives a fruitful life pasturing a church on an island and occasionally gives wedding exhortations. You may think I’m envious and bitter, but after all these years of sleepless and frustrated nights thinking about it, I don’t think I am at all. I have identified the core reason for the disparate plight.

(kidding) I think the main difference is that the Prayer of Jabez emphasizes that you have to pray the exact same prayer word for word for 30 straight days for the prayer to take effect, and in my original Blessing of Boaz, I have nothing of that sort. S and F will be glad that I will now present the new and improved version of the Blessing guaranteed to work. So this is what you do with the Blessing of Boaz. Print out this blessing in Times New Romans font size 30 on a piece of red paper, and place it under your marital bed during the 30 weeks. With adequate offerings to the Church depending on your level of sincerity, this new and improved Blessing of Boaz is now results guaranteed. I will also give you my bank account number for easy money transfer just in case you need personal bonus reassurances. (/kidding)

Perhaps now the biggest question in your hearts is, what is the Blessing of Boaz? The blessing contains three wishes. The first concerns the bride, the second concerns the groom and the third concerns the “house”. “House” is a figure of speech meaning lineage or descendants, hence the focus is on the children. For the bride, the wish is that she will become like Rachel and Leah. Rachel and Leah (with help from their maidservants) are the mothers of the twelve tribes of Israel. Therefore, the implied wish is that the bride will be the mother from which a house of generations is to come. So F, you have a big spectrum of choices here. Like Rachel, you can have 2 children. Or you can scale all the way up to 7, like Leah with 6 sons and a daughter. But if you are really ambitious and follow all my instructions as listed earlier, then you can aim even higher. Who knows? Maybe generations later, this house will be known as the 12 tribes of S.

-新译本-愿你在以法他显大，在伯利恒扬名。-和合本-又愿你在以法他得亨通，在伯利恒得名声。
The second wish which is for the groom is a little tricky to understand. In NIV, the translation is “May you have standing in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem”. In NRSV, the translation is “May you produce children in Ephrathah and bestow a name in Bethlehem”. The key to the seemingly difference in translation is the Hebrew word (חַיִל) [hayil] which could mean “strength” in physical or financial power. The word also occurs in the special sense of “potency or the ability to produce offspring”. But both concepts here are not mutually exclusive. In those days, in an agricultural society, the number of offspring is a show of strength in production capability. Similarly, the ideas of being famous and bestowing a name are related. In the ancient days, as it is with the Jews as well as the Chinese, the way to make and preserve a name is through posterity. Your name is kept in history because your descendents remember you. Moreover, I really like the word “standing” (显大) acting as a euphemism. So S, in receiving the Blessing of Boaz, may you have [hayil] standing and erect for yourself a name in this place.

The last wish is similar to the first wish. Just like the wish for the bride to become Rachel and Leah, the children of the wedding couple will become like Perez, the forefather of Boaz himself. In the world of the story, the townspeople’s blessing is presented as a traditional wish, something they might have said to any bride and groom. But when this story of Ruth is presented to the reader’s world, the blessing takes on a greater meaning. In “(Ru 4:18-22) 18 This, then, is the family line of Perez: Perez was the father of Hezron,
19 Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab,
20 Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon,
21 Salmon the father of Boaz, Boaz the father of Obed,
22 Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David.”
So Perez isn’t just the forefather of Boaz. The reader also understands Perez as the forefather of King David. The wish is that Boaz’s house will become like Perez’s house which eventually leads to David. David, the one through whom God built his kingdom and worship and eventually his salvation through Jesus Christ.

Here is the point where I think the blessing is more than just a blessing for children. Embedded in this blessing are the stories of Rachel, Leah and Jacob who became Israel, the story of Perez, Tamah and Judah whose seed became David, and the story of Bethlehem most famous for Christmas. These stories, including the story of Boaz and Ruth lie within God’s unfolding plan, which throughout history is intertwined with humanity. S and F, in sharing the Blessing of Boaz with you, it is my wish that you understand yourselves not as an isolated couple, but a house in submission to be used as part of God’s plan. To the God of millenniums, our lifetime of decades may seem insignificant. Yet, the best blessing that God can give us is that we become a part of his will. We are blessed when we become a blessing. Like the names mentioned in the Blessing of Boaz, let your marriage and your family be a blessing for generations to come.

Other Wedding Sermons

Wedding sermon II 婚姻与属灵恩赐

婚姻与属灵恩赐

1 Corinthians 13 林前13章
今天这段经文是贤&君选的。老实说，我不是很愿意讲解这段经文。虽然，这段经文在婚礼里面常常出现，可是因为内容郑重深远，很多牧者都避重就轻，含含糊糊带过就是了。贤&君是饱读诗书的人，应该明白这段经文的严重性。所以，我就三番五次，一而再，再而三的问他们，真的要用这段经文吗？他们斩钉截铁的回答，该说的还是要说的，你就安心的讲吧。好啊，有种。贤&君，你们竟敢选用这段经文，那我也不是孬种，你们敢选，我就敢讲。

这段经文的主题是爱。可是，如果我们参照上下文，保罗并不是在说随便一种爱。上下文的内容谈的是信徒群体在属灵恩赐上的运用，特别是14章，特别强调的是说话，预言，教导的恩赐。所以，很明显的保罗这里是针对一个群体在属灵恩赐上的运用，特别是话语上的运用，他强调了一个美妙的道理，而这就是爱。简单的来说，保罗是在说明我们做为一个信仰群体一定要用爱来表达使用我们的属灵恩赐。

你也许现在开始纳闷，保罗如果是在教导这样的爱，那么这跟婚礼有什么关系？你如果这样想，那你就是大错特错了。你其实已经中了西方个人主义的毒。婚姻不是两个人，夫妻之间的事。不是的。一段婚姻其实是整个信仰群体的事。一段美好的婚姻必须在一个充满爱的环境，才能健康的成长，开花结果。相反的，在一个恶劣，闲言闲语，权力斗争，彼此猜疑的环境，一段婚姻也会被负面影响，受到拖累，甚至破裂。所以，对于每段婚姻教会是有责任的。保罗在这段经文要强调的就是我们在运用属灵恩赐的时候，一定要用爱，使我们成为一个爱的群体，爱的环境。

这也就是为什么刚才我们有家长的承诺，会众的承诺。你以为叫你们举手表示愿意是胡闹吗？绝对不是，我们举了手，就表示对这段婚姻做出了承诺。你们好好重新认识你们说做出的承诺。双方家长，你们是否衷心祝福这对新人，并愿意全心全意，竭尽所能帮助他们保持婚约，白头偕老。亲爱的会众，作为这对新人的弟兄姐妹，你们都愿意同心见证这婚约，并付全心和爱心协助他们持守婚约。看到没有？你们都已经答应了这件事。也就是说我们整个信仰群体在这段婚姻都有份儿。而今天的这段经文就是贤&君要提醒我们，我们要以爱来运用我们的属灵恩赐从今往后来协助他们持守婚约。贤&君，你看，我没有辜负你们选这段经文的心意，我一五一十敢敢都跟他们说了。

老实说，作为一个比较传统的华人群体，我们受西方的个人主义的影响不是太深。所以，就算不是我的提醒，我觉得我们对于群体里面的婚姻，我们绝对不会漠不关心。不知道是不是一个吃盐比吃米还多的习惯，我觉得华人在话语上的属灵恩赐特别厉害。我们对什么难题，什么景况，我们都有独到的见解。有时对于一段婚姻，我们都能够七嘴八舌的帮帮忙。对于属灵恩赐的运用，我觉得保罗的教导却是关键。因为，一个好的恩赐必须配合一个美妙的运用道理，才能真正发挥作用。而这个最妙的道就是爱。有时我们可能觉得我们做很多，付出很多。保罗说如果动机和方式不是带着爱，那是完全没有益处的。有些人可能还有一种没有功劳也有苦劳的观念，那我在这里就把保罗的意思彻底的说死了。你在运用恩赐的时候，不管多厉害，不管多夸张，若没有爱，完完全全没有益处。所以这样看来，了解什么是爱，是至关重要。

• 爱是耐心等候时机。爱是表达恩慈。事情不是有做就好，话不是讲了就算了。做的时候，讲东西的时候，要合适又合时，人家又能够感受到恩慈，这就是爱。这个责任我就交给双方家长。该讲的话-“最近还好吗？有时间在一起吗？或者是我好想抱孙哦”。- 要等到恰当的时候，贤&君听到要感受到爱意，这是重点。
• 爱不是心头在燃烧一把嫉妒的火。爱不是像膨胀中的气球-自夸和张狂。这个责任就交给贤&君所有的长辈。他们两个有许多夫妻之道，与亲家相处之道要学习。我们要设立好榜样，不要看不顺眼就指责。应该分享爱的教育。
• 爱是不作失礼的事，不求自己的益处。爱的行动就是观察，了解别人的感受。有很多事不是对错的问题，而是关乎礼节，礼貌和品味。爱绝对不会因为私欲而惹人反感。爱以克制自己的行动尊重别人。这个责任就交给在这里的年轻人。特别是贤&君小组。婚姻有时过了一段时间会比较冷淡，你们要以行动提醒他们爱情的纯真与甜蜜，可是要做到大方得体。
• 爱是不轻易动怒，不像记账一样，斤斤计较计较人的过犯。爱不在别人做错的时候沾沾自喜，只喜欢真理。贤&君的婚姻生活，跟他们的属灵生命是息息相关的。这个责任就交给他们的小组组长P&盛。你们要看顾他们追求真道，用信仰保护他们的婚姻。可是，却要避免象会计师一样斤斤计较。
• 爱是绝不停止支持，绝不停止相信，绝不停止盼望，也绝对不放弃。在一个婚姻关系里面，一定要一股力量像支持屋顶的支柱一样支持，保护，不放弃。就算是贤&君本身感觉很痛苦，想放弃的时候，必须要有人相信，永不放弃。我觉得教会里面确实有一个人有这个悲天悯人的情怀，愿意为贤&君无条件的付出，又有着坚定不移的性格，那就是你们的区牧。这个责任非你莫属。

这就是爱的道理。让我们每个人都能够明白，让我们在这对新人的漫长婚姻道路上，以爱的方式用我们的属灵恩赐来支持他们。