Are We Ready Now?

This is my response after reading a blog here which I feel has much relevance to us. http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/01/in-the-mood.html

"And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching." (Hebrews 10: 24-25 ).

There has been assertions made that the Church has entered the last hour of the last day, and the apocalyptic age is no longer approaching but is actually upon us. So this scripture is even more relevant to us than before.

How shall we characterise this age? This is an age of information and of knowledge (Daniel 12:4). With widespread emphasis of education, and advent of internet, information is freely available on just about anything 'under the sun'. With the fingers doing the walking or searching a patient can research into his therapy or medication in deeper depth than his physician. Ditto a church member could amass more information on a number of biblical topics than his pastor cares to find out. This is the age of information. Everyone has the potential to be a proficient knowledge worker.

This is also the age of complacency. Technology advances have also brought along a certain level of material comfort and security. Add to that much knowledge and a degree of pride that tends to follow divorces us from the need to return to God. We have the knowledge of good and evil. We can make make our own informed choices. We understand the mysteries of genetics and make nanobots work on our behalf. We are on the verge of cloning for organ replacements. In church, we are often critical of church leader's decisions, finding much to criticise yet with little constructive to offer. We say we are rich. We say we lack not. (Revelations 3:17)

Another sign of our times would be characterized by apathy. The hearts of many would grow cold. When surrounded by evil and sin at every turn, instead of arousing a response from us, we are like the frog in a pot of lukewarm water over a slow fire. We are so comfortable with the surroundings until we end up as frog soup. Our complacency and apathy lead us down the road compromise one after another (Mathew 24:12). This lukewarm church is a sign of our times.

The last thing a cancer sufferer in pain needs is much information about the nature, risks and danger of the chemotherapy he has to go through. It is true some basic information need to be given to the patient, but a cold clinical presentation of facts and figures often just leave the patient demoralised and results in outright rejection or sub-optimal outcome from the therapy. The patient needs, more than anything, to be motivated; he needs inspiration, a belief, a hope that would help him overcome his deepest pain and look forward to the cure.

Similarly the malaise of our lukewarm church cannot be counteracted by more teaching, more knowledge or more information which would just subfocate. I dare say the average church member has enough biblical knowledge to rival a pastor of rural church in some third world country already. We do not lack knowledge per se. Even if we lack any, knowledge can be augmented with the help of google search. What we do lack is real passion. What have lost our first love. What we do need is a motivation and be inspiration to love God and to serve Him. We are need to see is a fresh vision of our Lord. To see His purpose and calling for us, to be touched and compelled.

Now that God has allowed the world and our financial systems to crumble and disintegrate around us, let us know that His coming is near. Let's not forsake the meeting together and fellowship. Notice the verse doesn't say let's meet together, so the pastor can teach us. But it says 'we' are to meet and fellowship and to exhort, encourage, provoke one another to love and good works. It is down to all of us to stand up and be counted. Our fellowship should not be focused on ourselves and become an opportunity to garner sympathy for our 'hardships', to ventilate our angst, but to focus on Jesus. We meet to consider one another and inspire good works, to motivate each other to evangelize, to seize the day to finish the great commission as the day is now upon us. Enough firewood already, let's fan the fire instead!

"Where there is no vision, the people perish" (Proverbs 29:18).

PS : when was the last time we had a revival meeting in our church, or has it gone out of fashion?

Memory lapse?

Remember how many of us in Singapore were taken by surprised that there was actually another Singapore Flyer malfunction on the Dec 4, lasting an hour and inconvenincing about 70 pple? We didn't know because the press chose not to report it, and had to finally bring it up because of the later more major Flyer cockup involving 'spectacular' rescue op that everyone can see from the highway.. http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_321148.html

Or how a friend used to complain that the reigning Government uses the press to silence to opposition parties all the time :-p

Well I was quite surprised that many of my friends think that the Palestinians have brought the latest tragedy upon themselves, but that doesn't make sense. The following is a well researched post quoting diverse source on how Israel breached the ceasefire to setup the invasion which was preplanned a long time ago.

http://hippasus.wordpress.com/2009/01/01/israel-breached-ceasefire/#comment-9

Also a good piece titled 'The Facts about Israel’s War on Gaza'
http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/article.php?pg=11&ar=2348

Well worth a read if you can find the time.

Put together a selection of links on the Gaza conflict..

Took up my friend Tragic_Comedy's suggestion to aggregate the links together in a blog post.. I have been busy staying up since Christmas in the twitterland following and collecting interesting posts and links, in the interest to provide something that the mainstream media misses or chooses not to report on..

A blog by a palestinian woman, simple and effective, just photos, to illustrate the difference between bombs and rockets..
http://palestinian.ning.com/forum/topics/the-other-side-of-the-story

While you are in research mode, you could understand the Palestinians frustration with the following two articles (difficult to unearth due to mainstream media bias towards the zionists:-( )
http://hippasus.wordpress.com/2009/01/03/gaza-surviving-inside-the-tiny-box/ - difficult to imagine what growing up in this tiny space would do to us and our children..
http://www.openleft.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=10682 - A simple primer for Americans / Singaporeans, may I add, on the Palestinians..

Lastly you might appreciate these as well, two well written piece by people have lived in or visited Gaza and a final piece from Judith Stone, a Jew who felt it was right for her to support the cause of Palestinians..
http://palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=14596 - Short piece, of life in the line of fire, written by a Palestinian Psychiatrist
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article5420584.ece - Article to urge us to change our stereotype of Hamas, at London Times
http://www.indcatholicnews.com/speech.html - Quest for Justice, written by Judith Stone.

I have noticed that the Church has stayed silent on the atrocities or generally stand on the side of Israel.. the last time during the rise of Hitler the church remained quiet for far too long..

Rather ironically the most relevant message of these times that I have heard recently come not from any pastors, but quite a unlikely source, a Christmas message given by the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Christmas night over the British public TV channel, read it, it's uplifting.. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article5394734.ece

That is like the gist of what have kept me busy since Christmas :-) Happy reading.. World Peace!

Daocheng Again

From Daocheng & Ya...

Actually Daocheng again here meant my second visit to Daocheng, first referenced in an earlier blog entry, this time with two friends, Tim and Amos, both avid photographers. . I have not managed to blog any photos of that trip here, and I shall be visiting that place again in the coming week.. So again.. Anyway, I feel I'd better post some photos, better late than never! And, it's rainbow again! (Didn't expect to catch another wonderful rainbow from almost the same spot I shot this another rainbow..

From Daocheng & Ya...

This trip we made it to Yading, said to be the real Shangrila, which is the main reason why people visit Daocheng.. Pristine nature reserve.. This I believe is called Mt. Chanadorje, one of the three peaks in Yading. We had to trek by foot, (horses were unavailable), and this is the spot where we basically just chilled out and spent the afternoon..

From Daocheng & Ya...

This is mount Chenresig, with a highland lake (Pearl Lake, 4000 meter from sea level) in the foreground.. We nearly dropped dead from the effort expanded to trek upwards to this spot..

From Daocheng & Ya...

The Chonggu monastry, at altitude of 3880 meters. These are craftsmans working on some restoration project on the temple.

From Daocheng & Ya...

That man in yellow, yep, that was me showing them their photos on the LCD of my shiny camera! The gentleman in front is the cook and caretaker of the temple. Photo captured by my friend Amos.

From Daocheng & Ya...

Back to Daocheng, with my favourite subjects.. Kids! There, hope you enjoy these photos. More of the same Daocheng photos over here.

Acknowlegment: many of these photos were captured using the Zuiko 11-22 lens loaned kindly to me by my dear friend Jonathan Thong. I am loaning it again for my upcoming trip hee hee..
Cheers!

Sometimes I wish I could be happy..

There are days I wished I could be just be like her.. Yes, she is the same granny as the post below.. She lived through a harsh life, endured hardship and poverty, but she sure looked happy here.. Look at her creased face, toothless and all; surely, not be like her you say? Well, heard a friend say some days he'd simply wake up and wonder about the purpose of life.. Well that sounds quite ordinary, except for the fact he is about to tie the knot with his loved one very soon! Does life hold anything dear? To live, to age, get old, and die.. So we have the life everlasting; but, somedays I just wish I were her..

I am Back!

It has been close to a year since I lasted posted.. Sorry for the absence.. However, from now on I shall be posting quite a bit more. In the past 11 months or so, photography wise, I made another two trips to China. One trip was to Daocheng (again!) for that place holds dear memories. Then there's one trip was with a couple (the Cha's) who had left China in their youth, they are back to visit their relatives. Well, just one photo for now, one of Cha's many relatives.

Cheers.

Funeral

My father has passed away. He lived a full life, and at age 90, was relatively healthy. This was taken during the memorial service just before cremation.

Spinning prayers

I was at Kangding (康定), Szechuan when I chanced upon this group of elderly gentlemen and ladies spinning this column containing prayers, non stop, as an expression of their faith and prayer. What struck me was a granny was so infirm that she had required a walking stick, yet she was as diligent as any others..

From a local park

Marked my b day recently with a visit to the local park with a friend (Amos), to share breakfast, and a chance to take our photo gear out of storage.. Nothing fancy, just some simple scenes recorded.. 

 

Rainbow!

I saw this rainbow from the main streets, rushed to the fields, praying it won't fade away just yet, and was shocked to see it was a complete rainbow spanning both sides!

This is a stitched photo from 5 shots spanning from left to right.

Another series on Daocheng dusk

Having grown up in a concrete jungle that is home, I have not really had a great deal of experience taking lanscape kind of photos; however, Daocheng is so breathtakingly beautiful, when the light and weather conditions are right, landscape just came naturally! So enjoy, from a landscape rookie :-p

 

 

 

 

Lama Friendship

Some of my friends will notice that the bag in the picture below looked familiar! Yes, thats my Akha bag! I was out taking photos when I chanced upon a Tibetan boy, Dinda, who invited me to his house where I met his uncle, a lama. We had breakfast together, yak butter tea and Tsumpa, and I made up my mind to give my Akha bag to him as a token of appreciation. In return, he blessed me with a golden haddah around my neck.. I hope to return there sometime soon to give the the prints..

 

 

 

40-150 and Ex25 combo 1/500 f5.0 iso200

Daocheng 稻城

So I finally went to Daocheng, south west Szechuan, Shangrila and land of my dreams; haha, not quite, the weather was poor, rain, hail, cloudy, not much motivation for photography.. still,

Children of Daocheng

These series of photos is captured on the streets of Daocheng, when they were returning home from school

Having fun! 

Please, take a photo of us!