Life in 2009

Life this year has been really different from what I expected it to be. Yes, life is hard, life is busy, and I often find myself trying to finish what seems to be an insurmountable pile of work. Yet, this year, I also came to realise that life is beautiful.

Before 2009 begun, (end of 2008) I was not looking forward to 2009 at all. To me, 2009 just meant more work,more troubles and less sleep. Well, now that its already March of 2009, I can safely say that - I wasn't wrong! Haha.

--I don't know how to say this, but 2009 has been a wonderful year so far. Yes. Work has almost caused me to go insane, my sleep cycle is ruined ,I'm not exactly doing well for all my tests and I have been really distracted :/. Yet- this year has been really, really special.

On Thursday morning, I woke up with an overwhelming feeling of happiness. Happiness was just overflowing, and I was convinced, very convinced that it would be a very good day. The happiness I felt that morning, cannot be put into words at all...I knew deep down in my heart that a large part of the happiness came from God's love,the knowledge that God loves me, for who I am, the knowledge that life has a meaning--

Just a few nights ago, I read this Bible verse-

Love is patient,love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude , it is not self seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. - 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7

This passage describes how God's love is like.
Of course- his love is greater than this, and language alone cannot convey his great and amazing love.

I urge you guys to stop and calm down to think about how 2009 has been for you so far-
For we can only learn something new if we stop and think-
For we can only appreciate and love this life if we stop and pray-
Life is a gift from God,
it's something we should treasure.
Its not easy to do that all the time
and I'm still learning how to.

Tina

Rest

Many of us find that we really lack this: sleep. Whether we are working adults, or students, or in any other vocation, work sometimes calls for us beyond our sleeping time. Many of us find our sleeping time slowly becoming later and our waking times earlier; our sleep and rest becomes more irregular. Our lack of rest, as most of us have suffered by now, causes us to feel sleepy during the day as we go about our activities and adversely affects our ability to focus.

So why am I talking about rest. First and foremost, we need that 27 hours a day, so that we can afford to sleep more and not compromise on our work. Or, we could manage our time and complete our tasks more efficiently and effectively so that we can afford to sleep more. I agree it is easier said than done, work is tough; I’m also suffering from a lack of sleep that causes me to be lethargic at times during lessons. Stay strong and keep hoping in the Lord! God is the God of all things, include our rest. His blessings sometimes come in the form of a good night’s sleep or some free time to relax. These help our bodies to have physical rest. Indeed, since God is the God of rest, let us commit, apart from our work, our times of rest to him as well.

Since we’ve mentioned physical rest, next up, we have relational rest. Our relationships can be tense, and sometimes even sour. These have negative effects not only on us, but also the people around. As we begin to centre our life, our relationships on God, we will begin to realise that we will start to commit more of our relationships to God. Gradually, regardless of the state of our relationships with others, we can allow God to have his way in us. Emotionally and relationally, there will be less tension on our part, which hopefully would also diffuse to the other parties. Surrendering our relationships to God is something that we all have to learn on our own, throughout the duration of our lives. Let us continue to seek God and allow him to take the reins of our relationships, that we may find rest in him.

Spiritual rest is also part and parcel of, and I feel that it is foundational in, finding rest in God. Whether we suffer physically or emotionally or relationally, if we continue to focus on God, by the grace and timing of God, we will be able to overcome. Physical and relational difficulties can and may distract us, although there are times when God chooses to use these difficulties to turn our eyes upon him. Thus, having physical and relational rest can also help us to focus on God and find spiritual rest in him, vice versa.

All in all, let us centre our rest on God, and through and by the grace and power of the Lord, we will experience rest in him.

Ted

Doubt

Hello guys! This year has been quite trying in many ways and I came dangerously close to falling away. But after thinking through it, there have been certain occasions I cannot ignore or attribute to just mere coincidence. It’s good to know that God will always watch out for me even though I always fall to “necessary” distractions such as schoolwork, and that He shows me His love in little ways, which I treasure.

In the second week of school this year, there was one day I was feeling rather down for no particular reason. Although work had hit already, it wasn’t about that or holiday homework I hadn’t completed or that school was tough because lessons were quite enjoyable that day. I suddenly felt alone, but I also didn’t want to talk to anyone that day either. However, God reminded me to turn to Him and of His love through a verse shared by an almost stranger –

Exodus 14:14 The Lord will fight for you, you only need to be still.

Do you believe in coincidences? That reminder came at a rather appropriate time, cheered me up a little and I didn’t need to ask for it.

I see a relationship between QT and feeling better in the sense of having a better attitude = less upset / not worrying (yes, how useless and tiring!! it is to worry) / having faith that it will be okay. Still at my most down moments I find it difficult to turn to Him and let go even though I know I’ll be better after calming down and praying. Why? I think it’s because I’m still clinging to what I want not what He wants, be it things I cannot get or by choosing to brood over things rather than handing my problems to Him. In Mark 14, Jesus was “overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death”. He prayed: 1) everything is possible for you 2) take this cup from me 3) yet not what I will but what you will. It’s not easy to completely leave it in God’s hands and move on, knowing that difficult times happen because God lets them happen while trusting that it’s for the best. However, it is through these that 1) I realized how much I need God 2) started noticing and appreciating the little things 3) am learning to have faith in Him 4) God reminds us of His love. Admittedly, I still find myself wanting support/approval from people rather than from God, but I am learning to trust God for whatever He has in store for me.

I also thought about how I only really got to know God after I stopped going to church regularly which, if you think about it, doesn’t really make sense. I’m not suggesting that you should stop going to church (!!) but I think it is a good reminder that God will always love us and call us back to Him.

Lastly, I pray that you’re all well with school/life and that you’ll let God fight your battles for you when they come.

(:

love,

Eugenia