Merry Christmas!

Hey everyone
just want to thank you all so sincerely for this year
you guys have made this year so memorable, wonderful and special for me! if not for your presence i would be so much the less without it!

hope that this year's season of Christmas where we celebrate the birth or advent of our Lord Jesus Christ finds you happy and holy (and whole)! May you all continue to be richly blessed by God our Almighty Father, His Son Jesus and the Most Wonderful and Blessed Counseller the Holy Spirit!

looking forward to seeing you all in 2009 for more fun and a deepening of our faith!

Much love and Merry Christmas to you all!
Andrew

My addiction

This is an adaption of Neyo's song because I'm officially addicted to God!

"Because of You"

Want to, but I can’t help it
I love the way it feels,
It’s got me stuck between my destiny and what is real
Sing to you when I want to, sing to you when I don’t
Tell myself I’ll stop everyday, knowin’ that I won't

[Bridge:]
I got a problem cos I don’t know what to do about it
Even if I did, I don’t know if I would ease but I doubt it
I’m taken by the thought of You, and I know this much is true
Jesus, you have become my addiction, I’m so strung out on you
I’m filled with joy and I like it

[Chorus:]
And it’s all because of you [3X]
And it’s all because…
Never get enough,
He’s my glorious love.

[Verse 2:]
Think of You every second
I can't get nothing done,
Only concern is the next time, I’m gonna sing you songs
Know I shouldn’t steer away from, but gamsat’s creeping up
I try and try but my obsession wont let me be

[Bridge:]
I got a problem cos I don’t know what to do about it
Even if I did, I don’t know if I would ease but I doubt it
I’m taken by the thought of You, and I know this much is true
Jesus, you have become my addiction, I’m so strung out on you
I’m filled with joy and I like it

[Chorus:]
And it’s all because of you (all because of you) [3X]
And it’s all because…
Never get enough,
He’s my glorious love

Ain’t no doubt, so strung out [2X]
Over you, over you, over you

Because of you,
And it’s all because of you,
Never get enough
He’s my glorious love, He’s my glorious love.

Strong Christians

Sermon from Pastor Philip Mantofa (in Taiwan)

This cracks me up, Pastor Philip is so awesome in his sermons and healing services. Check out what he says...

When you are with your friends, your friends say "I change girlfriends every 2 months" and your friend is a womaniser, you are the only one who's different. They mock you, they say "Oh, you are a priest... Father! Father!" People mock you, I had that kind of treatment when i was younger, when they say "Father! Father!". I will not be angry or offended, why should i be offended? Why should i be offended when they associate me to the Lord? I should be proud, so [when] they said "Father! Father!", I said (in a deep voice) "Yes - I bless you! I bless you!".
:D

They say that you should have a lot of girlfriends, they say that you should cheat on your girlfriend, cheat on your wife, your husband. You say to them, "no i will just have one girlfriend and i will marry her". I will just have one girlfriend, holy, Godship, and I will marry her. They say "Oh you are so old fashion" [and I said] "Yeah - i come from biblical age!"
:D

Father's Love Letter

An Intimate Message From God to You

God Loves You. And He is the Father you have been looking for all your life. This is His love letter to you...

My Child,

You may not know me,
but I know everything about you.
Psalm 139:1

I know when you sit down and when you rise up.
Psalm 139:2

I am familiar with all your ways.
Psalm 139:3

Even the very hairs on your head are numbered.
Matthew 10:29-31

For you were made in my image.
Genesis 1:27

In me you live and move and have your being.
Acts 17:28

For you are my offspring.
Acts 17:28

I knew you even before you were conceived.
Jeremiah 1:4-5

I chose you when I planned creation.
Ephesians 1:11-12

You were not a mistake,
for all your days are written in my book.
Psalm 139:15-16

I determined the exact time of your birth
and where you would live.
Acts 17:26

You are fearfully and wonderfully made.
Psalm 139:14

I knit you together in your mother's womb.
Psalm 139:13

And brought you forth on the day you were born.
Psalm 71:6

I have been misrepresented
by those who don't know me.
John 8:41-44

I am not distant and angry,
but am the complete expression of love.
1 John 4:16

And it is my desire to lavish my love on you.
1 John 3:1

Simply because you are my child
and I am your Father.
1 John 3:1

I offer you more than your earthly father ever could.
Matthew 7:11

For I am the perfect father.
Matthew 5:48

Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand.
James 1:17

For I am your provider and I meet all your needs.
Matthew 6:31-33

My plan for your future has always been filled with hope.
Jeremiah 29:11

Because I love you with an everlasting love.
Jeremiah 31:3

My thoughts toward you are countless
as the sand on the seashore.
Psalms 139:17-18

And I rejoice over you with singing.
Zephaniah 3:17

I will never stop doing good to you.
Jeremiah 32:40

For you are my treasured possession.
Exodus 19:5

I desire to establish you
with all my heart and all my soul.
Jeremiah 32:41

And I want to show you great and marvelous things.
Jeremiah 33:3

If you seek me with all your heart,
you will find me.
Deuteronomy 4:29

Delight in me and I will give you
the desires of your heart.
Psalm 37:4

For it is I who gave you those desires.
Philippians 2:13

I am able to do more for you
than you could possibly imagine.
Ephesians 3:20

For I am your greatest encourager.
2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

I am also the Father who comforts you
in all your troubles.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4

When you are brokenhearted,
I am close to you.
Psalm 34:18

As a shepherd carries a lamb,
I have carried you close to my heart.
Isaiah 40:11

One day I will wipe away
every tear from your eyes.
Revelation 21:3-4

And I'll take away all the pain
you have suffered on this earth.
Revelation 21:3-4

I am your Father, and I love you
even as I love my son, Jesus.
John 17:23

For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed.
John 17:26

He is the exact representation of my being.
Hebrews 1:3

He came to demonstrate that I am for you,
not against you.
Romans 8:31

And to tell you that I am not counting your sins.
2 Corinthians 5:18-19

Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled.
2 Corinthians 5:18-19

His death was the ultimate expression
of my love for you.
1 John 4:10

I gave up everything I loved
that I might gain your love.
Romans 8:31-32

If you receive the gift of my son Jesus,
you receive me.
1 John 2:23

And nothing will ever separate you
from my love again.
Romans 8:38-39

Come home and I'll throw the biggest party
heaven has ever seen.
Luke 15:7

I have always been Father,
and will always be Father.
Ephesians 3:14-15

My question is…
Will you be my child?
John 1:12-13
I am waiting for you.
Luke 15:11-32

Love, Your Dad
Almighty God

Falling in Love with God

God loved you before you were born, and God will love you after you die. In Scripture God says, "I have loved you with an everlasting love." This is a very fundamental truth of your identity. This is who you are whether you feel it or not. You belong to God from eternity to eternity. Life is just a little opportunity for you during a few years to say, "I love you too." If you dare to believe that you are beloved before you are born, you may suddenly realise that your life is very, very special... This brief lifetime is my opportunity to receive love, deepen love, grow in love and give love. - Henri Nouwen (Finding My Way Home - Pathways to Life and the Spirit)

What a beautiful and touching way to look at our relationship with God! When I stop and pause to think about my purpose in life and why God put me here on this Earth, I think it can be defined by one simple yet powerful word - Love. Reaching out and serving others springs from a desire to share this deep love of God with those around me. Acts of kindness = acts of love. We were born to be lovers of Christ!

How does one "fall in love"? Like any good relationship, I believe there needs to be a strong sense of trust, courage and faith. A degree of self-abandonment. To let go and willingly take God from our Sunday day of obligation, and to allow him to propagate our core being - our total self! Only then is He the centre of our being... our sounding board for every decision, choice and action.

For me, it occured last year during a CGC retreat where we studied the first encylical letter by Pope Benedict XVI called "Deus Caritas Est" (Latin for "God is Love"). It was a turning point for me as during a heartfelt confession, I was challenged to jump off the cliff edge and proclaim with hand on heart... "JESUS, I TRUST IN YOU!".

Trust wholeheartedly in Yahweh, put no faith in your own perception; acknowledge him in ever course you take, and he will see that your paths are smooth" (Proverbs 3:5)

Just knowing that God will be there to catch me when I fall off that cliff gives me a sense of liberation. Freedom. I used to worry and stress a lot about what others think. Of how I will be perceived. Perhaps this was because I trusted God 80% of the time, but for 20% of the time I would doubt that he wasn't listening completely.

Our fears are what limit us.

Nouwen eloquently reflects the fullness of God's love... "In this world when you are chosen, you know that somebody else is not chosen. When you are the best, you know that somebody is not the best. When you win and receive a prize, you know there is somebody who lost. But this is not so in the heart of God. If you are chosen in the heart of God, you have eyes to see the chosenness of others. If the Love of God blesses you, you have the eyes to see the blessedness of others."

Now I can loosen up and smile! :) Because I know what God wants counts most... and he is always there to help and guide me along my own journey. We are all called to shine and dance freely with God!

So I challenge you to give your heart to God!

God truly loves me more than I love myself.
God desires my happiness.
God knows best how I'll be happy.
(Fr John Powell SJ)

PRAYER TO LOVE GOD ABOVE ALL THINGS
God, my Father, may I love You in all things and above all things. May I reach the joy which You have prepared for me in Heaven. Nothing is good that is against Your Will, and all that is good comes from Your Hand. Place in my heart a desire to please You and fill my mind with thoughts of Your Love, so that I may grow in Your Wisdom and enjoy Your Peace. Amen.