Faith. It "is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1) But it is this faith that has kinda troubled me for a while. What exactly is faith? How can you be sure of what you hope for? What exactly is the foundation of christianity? I guess this questions are a bit deep.. Heh heh.
I've been learning about western civilization history for a while now. Nothing too complicated, but enough to raise some questions. How true is the bible if some great priests and holy people have to sit down and discuss what to put in, what not to put in? Is this what "divinely Inspired" means?
I'll be the first to admit that I have doubts. But i guess it is also true of the substance of faith. To put your trust in something that you cannot see or touch. The Rationalist is unable to have faith because he has to question and test everything he sees or hears. When i look up at the skies and stars, i cannot help but know that God made all that. It is just too much of a coincidence to suddenly have a big bang out of nowhere and Voila! The universe comes into being.
I guess its just me having to write all this out and trying to make sense of it all. I mean, sometimes i feel so small and insignificant compared to a lot of the other students here, who have great musical talents and get so many scholarships and such. Me, I'm just trying to get through all this in one piece. Guess thats where my faith comes in. I believe that God brought me here. He has a plan for me, different from other everyone else. If He brought me here, he wlll lead me through. Now if only i begin to put all my faith in Him and cast doubt away. Not an easy feat mind you, considering the fact that most "learned" people are skeptical to the concept of faith. Hmmm.. Faith Vs. Religion. But that is a topic for another time, another post. So long for now..
Funny video from YouTube
"Achmed The Dead Terrorist" Thanks to Hune! for posting on Facebook
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
Friday, November 02, 2007
Time and the Snooze button
Early morning. Alarm clock rings. You are roused from your sleep. What do you do? Do you hit the snooze button and try to get a few more precious minutes of sleep? Or are you a morning person, up and about 5 mins before the damned thing rings? I belong to the first group of people. When the clock rings at 7.45am, the first thing i think to myself is "its morning already? I just went to bed!" Doesn't help that i go to bed during the wee hours of the morning. like 2.30 or 3.30, giving me like 5 or 6 precious hours of sleep. I know thats usually not enough for the average human being, but "college student" is another sub species altogether.
But it is this Snoozing for 5 minutes that has landed me in predicaments i'd rather not be in. I've missed classes because of this snoozing, and every morning is a rush to get out of the house to catch the bus if i take the bus, or cycle like a mad man on a half awake state (not very safe, but curiously invigorating, like those runs during NS at 5.30 in the morning before you get breakfast.) And its five minutes! its not even enough to finish that dream about huge pile of money you're going to make, that project you're running late for (yucks)!
So i have decided. Sleep early and wake up when the alarm clock rings! On a side note, i wonder who the hell invented such a thing as a snooze button. Contraption of Satan! Hmm, why am i posting this at 2 in the morning then? Cos its the weekend! Yes!
P.S. this weekend is daylight savings time end. So if you live in the Continental United states, its time to turn back that watch/Clock. At 2am on sunday morning.. it becomes 1am! hahahaha.. so weird.
But it is this Snoozing for 5 minutes that has landed me in predicaments i'd rather not be in. I've missed classes because of this snoozing, and every morning is a rush to get out of the house to catch the bus if i take the bus, or cycle like a mad man on a half awake state (not very safe, but curiously invigorating, like those runs during NS at 5.30 in the morning before you get breakfast.) And its five minutes! its not even enough to finish that dream about huge pile of money you're going to make, that project you're running late for (yucks)!
So i have decided. Sleep early and wake up when the alarm clock rings! On a side note, i wonder who the hell invented such a thing as a snooze button. Contraption of Satan! Hmm, why am i posting this at 2 in the morning then? Cos its the weekend! Yes!
P.S. this weekend is daylight savings time end. So if you live in the Continental United states, its time to turn back that watch/Clock. At 2am on sunday morning.. it becomes 1am! hahahaha.. so weird.
Thursday, November 01, 2007
Stellarium
For those of you who are really interested in the stars, the heavens and constellations, check out this website:
www.stellarium.org
and download the free software. I just did last night and was having so much fun with it! I learnt that the big dipper is actually part of another constellation, the great bear, that the north star, Polaris, is actually at the tip of the little dipper (Ursa Minor) and other stuff.
www.stellarium.org
and download the free software. I just did last night and was having so much fun with it! I learnt that the big dipper is actually part of another constellation, the great bear, that the north star, Polaris, is actually at the tip of the little dipper (Ursa Minor) and other stuff.
What we say Vs. What they say. The 80's in Singapore
Its a lift, not an elevator.
Its a rubbish bin, not trash can.
If you did a basketball shot into the bin and missed, you'd actually walk over and pick it up.
And from some Facebook group:
Chewing Gum was illegal and we'd come back from shopping trips across the Causeway (another local invention) from neighboring Johor stuffed with bubble gum, hoping customs would not catch you.
And everyday in school someone would go, "Eh, borrow me your rubber."
You grew up watching He-man, MASK, Transformers, Silver Hawk and Mickey Mouse, Ninja turtles, Carebears, Robocop, My Little Pony and Smurfs.
You grew up brushing your teeth with a mug in Primary school during recess time. You would squat by a drain with all your classmates beside you, and brush your teeth with a coloured mug.
You hated or loved the school nurse (she was either pretty or mean).
You know what SBC stands for.
You paid 40 cents for cartons of Chocolate or Strawberry milk every week in class.
Everyone's wallet used to be the velcro type with the big Ocean Pacific Metal plate!
It was cool to have pagers in primary school
SBS buses used to be non-airconditioned. The bus seats are made of wood and the cushionwere red. The big red bell gave a loud BEEP! when pressed.
There were still bus tickets and bus conductors would come up to check them.
Envelopes were given to us to donate to Sharity Elephant every Children's Day.
You've probably read Young Generation magazine.You know who's Vinny the little vampire and Acai the constable.
Writing lines and caning hands were common, esp if you failed chinese spelling (caning was actually allowed. no shit).
You were there when they first introduced the MRT here. You went for the first ride with your parents and you would kneel on the seat to see the scenery.
Movie tickets used to cost only $3.50.
Gals were fascinated by Strawberry Short Cake and Barbie Dolls.
You learn to laugh like The Count in Sesame Street.
You bought tidbits called beebee (20 cents per pack, 10 cents in MGS), and mamee (30 cents), that had a different sticker in it every time and ice packs filled with coloured sugar syrup for 10 cents!
*You'd go to the coffee shop and order Ice kosong for 20 cents.
You carried a lunch box to school but either threw away the food or brought it back home again.
You watched TV2 (also known as Channel 10) cartoons because Channel 5 never had enough cartoons for you.
Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, The Three Investigators, Famous Five and Secret Seven were probably the thickest
story books you thought you would ever read.
KFC used to be a high class restaurant that served food in plates and had metal forks and knives. (I dont remember this, anyone?)
The most vulgar thing you said was asshole and idiot and THE MOST EXTREME WAS 'chicken pie'...you just couldn't bring yourself to say the hokkien translation.
Catching and pepsi-cola was the IN thing, and twist and "chope!" was the
magic word.
Your English workbooks were made of some damn poor quality paper that was smooth and yellow. "Jotter book Paper" Only a step up from toilet paper.
You came to school 15 mins before the bell every morning just so you could copy someone's homework.
CDIS was your best friend.
The only computer lessons in school involved funny pixellized characters in 16 colours walking about trying to teach you math.
Waterbottles were slung around your neck and a must everywhere you went.
Boys loved to play soccer with small stones or tennis balls in the basketball court.
Girls played five stones and boys played with marbles.
Science was fun with the Balsam and the Angsana being the most important plants of our lives, guppies and swordtail being the most important fishes.
Who can forget Ahmad, Bala, Ravi, Sumei and John, immortalized in our minds from school textbooks.
We conducted experiments of our own to get badges for being a Young Zoologist/Botanist etc.
Every Children's day and National day you either got pins or pens with 'Happy Children's Day 1993' or useless plastic files with 'Happy National Day 1994'.
You wore BM2000, BATA, or Pallas shoes.
Your form teacher taught you Maths, Science and English.
You went to school in slippers and a raincoat when it rained, and you find a dry spot in the school
to sit down, dry your feet, and wear your dry and warm socks and shoes.
There would be spelling tests and mental sums to do almost everyday (you hated them).
Your friends considered you lucky and rich if your parents gave you $2 or more for pocket mone everyday.
You saw Wee Kim Wee's face in the school hall.
Boys liked catching fighting spiders, earthworms or tadpoles.
Collecting and battling erasers was a pastime for boys.
Class monitors and prefects loved to say, "You talk somemore, I write your name ah!"
You got booked for muddy shoes in class.
There were at least 40 people in one class.
You brought every single book to school, even though there was a timetable.
There was a pro-yo/bumblebee, digimon craze at some point in time.
Its a rubbish bin, not trash can.
If you did a basketball shot into the bin and missed, you'd actually walk over and pick it up.
And from some Facebook group:
Chewing Gum was illegal and we'd come back from shopping trips across the Causeway (another local invention) from neighboring Johor stuffed with bubble gum, hoping customs would not catch you.
And everyday in school someone would go, "Eh, borrow me your rubber."
You grew up watching He-man, MASK, Transformers, Silver Hawk and Mickey Mouse, Ninja turtles, Carebears, Robocop, My Little Pony and Smurfs.
You grew up brushing your teeth with a mug in Primary school during recess time. You would squat by a drain with all your classmates beside you, and brush your teeth with a coloured mug.
You hated or loved the school nurse (she was either pretty or mean).
You know what SBC stands for.
You paid 40 cents for cartons of Chocolate or Strawberry milk every week in class.
Everyone's wallet used to be the velcro type with the big Ocean Pacific Metal plate!
It was cool to have pagers in primary school
SBS buses used to be non-airconditioned. The bus seats are made of wood and the cushionwere red. The big red bell gave a loud BEEP! when pressed.
There were still bus tickets and bus conductors would come up to check them.
Envelopes were given to us to donate to Sharity Elephant every Children's Day.
You've probably read Young Generation magazine.You know who's Vinny the little vampire and Acai the constable.
Writing lines and caning hands were common, esp if you failed chinese spelling (caning was actually allowed. no shit).
You were there when they first introduced the MRT here. You went for the first ride with your parents and you would kneel on the seat to see the scenery.
Movie tickets used to cost only $3.50.
Gals were fascinated by Strawberry Short Cake and Barbie Dolls.
You learn to laugh like The Count in Sesame Street.
You bought tidbits called beebee (20 cents per pack, 10 cents in MGS), and mamee (30 cents), that had a different sticker in it every time and ice packs filled with coloured sugar syrup for 10 cents!
*You'd go to the coffee shop and order Ice kosong for 20 cents.
You carried a lunch box to school but either threw away the food or brought it back home again.
You watched TV2 (also known as Channel 10) cartoons because Channel 5 never had enough cartoons for you.
Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, The Three Investigators, Famous Five and Secret Seven were probably the thickest
story books you thought you would ever read.
KFC used to be a high class restaurant that served food in plates and had metal forks and knives. (I dont remember this, anyone?)
The most vulgar thing you said was asshole and idiot and THE MOST EXTREME WAS 'chicken pie'...you just couldn't bring yourself to say the hokkien translation.
Catching and pepsi-cola was the IN thing, and twist and "chope!" was the
magic word.
Your English workbooks were made of some damn poor quality paper that was smooth and yellow. "Jotter book Paper" Only a step up from toilet paper.
You came to school 15 mins before the bell every morning just so you could copy someone's homework.
CDIS was your best friend.
The only computer lessons in school involved funny pixellized characters in 16 colours walking about trying to teach you math.
Waterbottles were slung around your neck and a must everywhere you went.
Boys loved to play soccer with small stones or tennis balls in the basketball court.
Girls played five stones and boys played with marbles.
Science was fun with the Balsam and the Angsana being the most important plants of our lives, guppies and swordtail being the most important fishes.
Who can forget Ahmad, Bala, Ravi, Sumei and John, immortalized in our minds from school textbooks.
We conducted experiments of our own to get badges for being a Young Zoologist/Botanist etc.
Every Children's day and National day you either got pins or pens with 'Happy Children's Day 1993' or useless plastic files with 'Happy National Day 1994'.
You wore BM2000, BATA, or Pallas shoes.
Your form teacher taught you Maths, Science and English.
You went to school in slippers and a raincoat when it rained, and you find a dry spot in the school
to sit down, dry your feet, and wear your dry and warm socks and shoes.
There would be spelling tests and mental sums to do almost everyday (you hated them).
Your friends considered you lucky and rich if your parents gave you $2 or more for pocket mone everyday.
You saw Wee Kim Wee's face in the school hall.
Boys liked catching fighting spiders, earthworms or tadpoles.
Collecting and battling erasers was a pastime for boys.
Class monitors and prefects loved to say, "You talk somemore, I write your name ah!"
You got booked for muddy shoes in class.
There were at least 40 people in one class.
You brought every single book to school, even though there was a timetable.
There was a pro-yo/bumblebee, digimon craze at some point in time.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Indescribable
I was watching a message online by Louie Giglio about God's universe and was awestruck about how huge our universe really is. we live on Earth, a planet in a group of planets known collectively as the solar system, revolving around a star we call the Sun. This star is but a speck in the huge collection of stars numbering millions we call the milky way galaxy. And this galaxy is only a small part of the many galaxies in the universe. we are far from understanding what goes on in the universe, only babies blind and trying to forge our footsteps in the heavens. There is so much we do not know about everything. Much of how our bodies function still remains a mystery to doctors!
Granted we have achieved so much as a race but we are infinitesimal compared to the universe we live in. That is the reason i am so enamored with the star trek series. The promise of hurtling among the stars at faster than light speeds, discovery of spectacular phenomenon, seeing stars close up, nebulae, pulsars, quasars, even witnessing what goes on inside a black hole! The possibilities are endless. We live in this universe created by Him to bear witness to His mighty works. We exist because he made us, like he did the stars, the planets, galaxies. All created for His pleasure. Could it be that we were created for His pleasure too?? I'd like to think that. If we don't worship him, of course, the stars and everything else will.
in the end, it takes a leap of Faith to believe in things you cannot see, smell or touch. You cannot question and test for yourself to see if He is real. But let the evidence speak for themselves. I attached a video of the song "Indescribable" by Chris Tomlin as he talks about just indescribable our God really is. I still get awestruck everytime i watch the night sky. With the stars, the night, the moon. To think he chose us other than any where else to proclaim his glory. Such small, feeble creatures.
I think its pretty neat.
Indescribable by Chris Tomlin
From the highest of heights to the depths of the sea
Creation's revealing Your majesty
From the colors of fall to the fragrance of spring
Every creature unique in the song that it sings
All exclaiming
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
Who has told every lightning bolt where it should go
Or seen heavenly storehouses laden with snow
Who imagined the sun and gives source to its light
Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night
None can fathom
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
You are amazing God
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
INCOMPARABLE, unchangeable
You see the depths of my heart and You love me the same
You are amazing God
You are amazing God
Granted we have achieved so much as a race but we are infinitesimal compared to the universe we live in. That is the reason i am so enamored with the star trek series. The promise of hurtling among the stars at faster than light speeds, discovery of spectacular phenomenon, seeing stars close up, nebulae, pulsars, quasars, even witnessing what goes on inside a black hole! The possibilities are endless. We live in this universe created by Him to bear witness to His mighty works. We exist because he made us, like he did the stars, the planets, galaxies. All created for His pleasure. Could it be that we were created for His pleasure too?? I'd like to think that. If we don't worship him, of course, the stars and everything else will.
in the end, it takes a leap of Faith to believe in things you cannot see, smell or touch. You cannot question and test for yourself to see if He is real. But let the evidence speak for themselves. I attached a video of the song "Indescribable" by Chris Tomlin as he talks about just indescribable our God really is. I still get awestruck everytime i watch the night sky. With the stars, the night, the moon. To think he chose us other than any where else to proclaim his glory. Such small, feeble creatures.
I think its pretty neat.
Indescribable by Chris Tomlin
From the highest of heights to the depths of the sea
Creation's revealing Your majesty
From the colors of fall to the fragrance of spring
Every creature unique in the song that it sings
All exclaiming
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
Who has told every lightning bolt where it should go
Or seen heavenly storehouses laden with snow
Who imagined the sun and gives source to its light
Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night
None can fathom
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
You are amazing God
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
INCOMPARABLE, unchangeable
You see the depths of my heart and You love me the same
You are amazing God
You are amazing God
Monday, October 29, 2007
Thoughts on Various subjects
Why do people instinctively choose to write the F word when vandalising lift walls? I have seen my fair share of graffiti but i fail to understand why this particular word is so popular among amateurs who cannot draw to save their lives.
"Hey! I'm alone in an elevator! Lets write something on the walls!"
Why not recap Marx's Communist Manifesto? Or at the very least, leave an interesting thought, like "Look up!" or "your fly's open". That shall perplex me for many moons to come. Speaking of moons, the weather in Boston is beginning to turn cold. Fall is approaching, and it is getting chilly,
On another note, the Boston Red Sox, baseball team of Boston (Duh) has won the World series with 4 games to 0 over the Colorado Rockies. not that i am a huge baseball fan myself, but i'd just thought i'd share.. IT IS MY BLOG.
My roommate's dog has just crapped on my floor! And on carpet! Argh! Stupid dog! Learn some toilet manners and go use the toilet if you need! Now i need to clean it up. Sigh...
Sunday, October 28, 2007
this blog shall not fall!
It seems that i've not been here in years. Hmm, actually, looking at the date of the last post, it has been years! But don't worry dear readers (of which there is a grand total of 0 of you) I shall not let this blog die. I shall be updating the blog soon. stay tuned!
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