Isaiah 65:24

This story was written by a doctor who worked in
South Africa...

One night I had worked hard to help a mother in the
labor ward; but in spite of all we could do, she
died
leaving us with a tiny premature baby and a crying
two-year-old daughter. We would have difficulty
keeping the baby alive, as we had no incubator (we
had
no electricity to run an incubator).

We also had no special feeding facilities. Although
we
lived on the equator, nights were often chilly with
treacherous drafts. One student midwife went for
the
box we had for such babies and the cotton wool that
the
baby would be wrapped in.

Another went to stoke up the fire and fill a hot
water
bottle. She came back shortly in distress to tell
me
that in filling the bottle, it had burst (rubber
perishes easily in tropical climates). "And it is
our
last hot water bottle!" she exclaimed. As in the
West,
it is no good crying over spilled milk so in Central
Africa it might be considered no good crying over
burst
water bottles. They do not grow on trees, and
there
are no drugstores down forest pathways.

"All right," I said, "put the baby as near the fire
as
you safely can, and sleep between the baby and the
door
to keep it free from drafts.? Your job is to keep
the
baby warm."

The following noon, as I did most days, I went to
have
prayers with any of the orphanage children who chose
to
gather with me. I gave the youngsters various
suggestions of things to pray about and told them
about
the tiny baby. I explained our problem about
keeping
the baby warm enough, mentioning the hot water
bottle,
and that the baby could so easily die if it got
chills.
I also told them of the two-year-old sister,
crying
because her mother had died.

During prayer time, one ten-year old girl, Ruth,
prayed
with the usual blunt conciseness of our African
children. "Please, God" she prayed, "send us a
water
bottle. It'll be no good tomorrow, God, as the
baby
will be dead, so please send it this afternoon."

While I gasped inwardly at the audacity of the
prayer,
she added, "And while You are about it, would You
please
send a dolly for the little girl so she'll know You
really love her?"

As often with children's prayers, I was put on the
spot.
Could I honestly say, "Amen". I just did not
believe
that God could do this. Oh, yes, I know that He
can do
everything, the Bible says so. But there are
limits,
aren't there?? The only way God could answer this
particular prayer would be by sending me a parcel
from
homeland. I had been in Africa for almost four
years
at that time, and I had never, ever received a
parcel
from home. Anyway, if anyone did send me a parcel,
who
would put in a hot water bottle?? I lived on the
equator!? Halfway thr ough the afternoon, while I
was
teaching in the nurses' training school, a message
was
sent that there was a car at my front door.

By the time I reached home, the car had gone, but
there,
on the veranda, was a large twenty-two pound parcel.
I
felt tears pricking my eyes. I could not open the
parcel alone, so I sent for the orphanage children.

Together we carefully untied each knot. We folded the paper, taking care not to
tear it unduly. Excitement was mounting.



Some thirty or forty pairs of eyes were focused on
the
large cardboard box. From the top, I lifted out
brightly colored, knitted jerseys. Eyes sparkled
as I
gave them out. Then there were the knitted
bandages
for the leprosy patients, and the children looked a
little bored. Then came a box of mixed raisins and
sultanas - that would make a batch of buns for the
weekend. Then, as I put my hand in again, I felt
the
... could it really be?? I grasped it and pulled it
out
- yes, a brand-new, rubber hot water bottle. I
cried.
I had not asked God to send it; I had not truly
believed that He could? Ruth was in the front row
of
the children. She rushed forward, crying out, "If
God
has sent the bottle, He must have sent the dolly
too!"



Rummaging down to the bottom of the box, she pulled
out the small, beautifully dressed dolly. Her eyes
shone!
She had never doubted!

Looking up at me, she asked: "Can I go over with you
and
give this dolly to that little girl, so she'll know
that
Jesus really loves her?"

That parcel had been on the way for five whole
months.
Packed up by my former Sunday school class, whose leader
had heard and obeyed God's prompting to send a hot
water
bottle, even to the equator. And one of the girls
had
put in a dolly for an African child - five months
before, in answer to the believing prayer of a
ten-year-old to bring it "that afternoon."

"Before they call, I will answer" (Isaiah 65:24).
This
awesome prayer takes less than a minute.? When you
receive this, say the prayer, that's all you have to
do.
No strings attached. Just send it on to whomever
you
want - but do send it on. Prayer is one of the
best
free gifts we receive. There is no cost but a lot
of
rewards.

Let's continue praying for one another: Father, I
ask
you to bless my friends reading this right now. I
am
asking You to minister to their spirit at this very
moment. Where there is pain, give them Your peace
and
mercy. Where there is self doubting, release a
renewed
confidence to work through them. Where there is
tiredness or exhaustion, I ask You to give them
understanding, guidance, and strength as they learn
submission to Your leading. Where there is
spiritual
stagnation, I ask You to renew them by revealing
Your
nearness, and by drawing them into greater intimacy
with
You. Where there is fear, reveal Your love, and
release to them Your courage. Where there is a sin
blocking them, reveal it, and break its hold over my
friend's life.


Bless their finances, give them greater vision, and
raise up leaders and friends to support and
encourage
them. Give each of them discernment to recognize
the
evil forces around them, and reveal to them the
power
they have in You to defeat it. I ask you to do
these
things in Jesus' name.




"Do not ask the Lord to guide your footsteps if
you're
not willing to move your feet."

~~wilson~~

John 3:16

A little boy was selling newspapers on the corner, the people were
in and out of the cold. The little boy was so cold that he wasn't
trying to sell many papers. He walked up to a policeman and said,
"Mister, you wouldn't happen to know where a poor boy could find a warm
place to sleep tonight would you? You see, I sleep in a box up around
the corner there and down the alley and it's awful cold in there for
tonight. Sure would be nice to have a warm place to stay."

The policeman looked down at the little boy and said, "you go down the
street to that big white house and you knock on the door. When they
come out the door you just say John 3:16, and they will let you in."
So he did. He walked up the steps and knocked on the door, and a lady
answered. He looked up and said, "John 3:16." The lady said, "Come on
in, Son." She took him in and she sat him down in a split bottom rocker
in front of a great big fireplace, and she went off. The boy sat
there for a while and thought to himself: John 3:16...I don't
understand it, but it sure makes a cold boy warm.



Later she came back and asked him "Are you hungry?" He said,
"Well, just a little. I haven't eaten in a couple of days, and I guess I
could stand a little bit of food," The lady took him in the kitchen and sat
him down to a table full of wonderful food. He ate and ate until he couldn't
eat any more. Then he thought to himself: John 3:16...Boy, I sure don't
understand it but it sure makes a hungry boy full.

She took him upstairs to a bathroom to a huge bathtub filled with warm
water, and he sat there and soaked for a while. As he soaked, he thought
to himself: John 3:16... I sure don't understand it, but it sure makes a dirty
boy clean. You know, I've not had a bath, a real bath, in my whole life. The
only bath I ever had was when I stood in front of that big fire hydrant as they
flushed it out.The lady came in and got him. She took him to a room, tucked him
into a big old feather bed, pulled the covers up around his neck, kissed him goodnight
and turned out the lights. As he lay in the darkness and looked out the window at
the snow coming down on that cold night, he thought to himself: John 3:16...I
don't understand it but it sure makes a tired boy rested.

The next morning the lady came back up and took him down again to that
same big table full of food. After he ate, she took him back to that same
big old split bottom rocker in front of the fireplace and picked up a big Bible.
She sat down in front of him and looked into his young face. "Do you understand
John 3:16?" she asked gently. He replied, "No, Ma'am, I don't. The first time
I ever heard it was last night when the policeman told me to use it," She opened the
Bible to John 3:16 and began to explain to him about Jesus. Right there, in front of
that big old fireplace, he gave his heart and life to Jesus. He sat there and thought:
John 3:16....don't understand it, but it sure makes a lost boy feel safe.


You know, I have to confess I don't understand it either, how God
was willing to send His Son to die for me, and how Jesus would agree to
do such a thing. I don't understand the agony of the Father and every
angel in heaven as they watched Jesus suffer and die. I don't
understand the intense love for ME that kept Jesus on the cross till the
end. I don't understand it, but it sure does make life worth living.
John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten
Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have
everlasting life.

~~wilson~~

God loves you

Just want to share you this one!
SCARS IN OUR HEARTHS


Some years ago, on a hot summer day in south Florida, a little boy decided to go for a swim in the old swimming hole behind his house. In a hurry to dive into the cool water, he ran out the back door, leaving behind shoes, socks and shirt as he went. He flew into the water, not realizing that as he swam toward the middle of the lake, an alligator was swimming toward the shore. His mother, in the house and looking out the window, saw
the two as they got closer and closer together. In utter fear, she ran toward the water, yelling to her son as loudly as she could. Hearing her voice, the little boy became alarmed and made a U-turn to swim to his mother. It was too late. Just as he reached her, the alligator reached him.

From the dock, the mother grabbed her little boy by the arms just as the

alligator snatched his legs. That began an incredible tug-of-war between

the two. The alligator was much stronger than the mother, but the mother

was much too passionate to let go. A farmer happened to drive by, heard her

screams, raced from his truck, took aim and shot the alligator. Remarkably,

after weeks and weeks in the hospital, the little boy survived. His legs

were extremely scarred by the vicious attack of the animal. And, on his

arms, were deep scratches where his mother's fingernails dug into his flesh

in her effort to hang on to the son she loved. The newspaper reporter who

interviewed the boy after the trauma, asked if he would show him his scars.

The boy lifted his pant legs. And then, with obvious pride, he said to the

reporter, "But look at my arms. I have great scars on my arms, too. I have

them because my Mom wouldn't let go." You and I can identify with that

little boy. We have scars, too. No, not from an alligator, but the scars of

a painful past! Some of those scars are unsightly and have caused us deep

regret. But, some wounds, my friend, are because God has refused to let go.

In the midst of your struggle, He's been there holding on to you. The

Scripture teaches that God loves you. You are a child of God. He wants to

protect you and provide for you in every way. But sometimes we foolishly

wade into dangerous situations, not knowing what lies ahead. The swimming

hole of life is filled with peril and we forget that the enemy is waiting

to attack. That's when the tug-of-war begins - and if you have the scars of

His love on your arms be very, very grateful. He did not, and will not,

ever let you go. God has blessed you, so that you can be a blessing to

others. You just never know where a person is in his/her life and what they

are going through. Never judge another persons scars, because you don't

know how they got them. Also, it is soooo important that we are not selfish

to receive the blessings of these messages without sharing them to someone

else.



Right now, someone needs to know that God loves them , and that you

love them too enough to not let them go.



GOD BLESS! "Don't let your past dictate who you are, but let it be

part of who you will become."

~wilson~

Bible vs. Cell phone

Ever wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat

our cell phone?

What if we carried it around in our purses or pockets?

What if we flipped through it several time a day?

What if we turned back to go get it if we forgot it?

What if we used it to receive messages from the text?

What if we treated it like we couldn't live without it?

What if we gave it to Kids as gifts?

What if we used it when we traveled?

What if we used it in case of emergency?

This is something to make you go....hmm...where is my Bible?

Oh, and one more thing..
Unlike our cell phone, we don't have to worry about our Bible being
disconnected because Jesus already paid the bill.

Makes you stop and think 'where are my priorities? And no dropped calls!

Trust in the Lord and *ASAP (Always Say A Prayer)

Have a blessed and wonderful day!

Knock, Knock I knocked at heaven's door this morning. God asked me...'My child, what can I do for you?' And I said, 'Father, please protect and bless the person reading this message.' God smiled and answered...'Request granted'.

Place your mouse on the E below and drag to the U.

Even though you can't see Him, GOD is there for yo U

When Jesus died on the cross, he was thinking of you!

From: Wilson ^^

Bringin people into God's kingdom

Yo yo yo!

Been awhile since I surfed the net.

You know how our church is an evangelical church and that God did command us to make disciples of all nations? Orientation is the greatest avenue in fulfilling that commandment, yes?

I was just sharing with a few people about meeting people during orientation and how we have still kept in touch with them and the occasional quirks they have. =P Then I was telling them about 1 person I met during the beginning of this semester and another I met during winter orientation last year.

The first person, A, is a bit...dodgy. I'm assuming that his english is not too good and that's why he uses words that...well...make me feel very uncomfortable and he isn't Christian. At that first meeting, I thought, I must try my best to befriend him and when the opportune time comes, share Jesus with him but boy, did I find it difficult! I just wanted to stay away from him! He was asking me out to his house (at our first meeting) for a meal to get to know each other! Isn't that dodgy!

Then, the second person, B, he doesn't make me feel as uncomfortable as A but i just didn't want to spend time with him. Probably because the conversations we have takes a lot of energy out of me, I can't really pin-point the reason but all I know is that I don't enjoy his company 100%; not one of those people where you'd find common ground right away, if you know what I mean.

Back to the greatest commandment. Disciple ALL nations. There's no such thing as discrimination in God's kingdom, there's no such thing as unfair treatment... My point being, it is so much easier to walk away from investing in peoples' lives and miss the opportune moment to share what could be the greatest gift the person might know in their whole life - Jesus. In the case of person A, I TOTALLY feel unsafe (to a certain extent) with the person. Should I continue to keep in touch? Answer: perhaps? But I think the lesson to be learnt here is that we, as a church, we work together. We're all in this loving-others-as-yourself business together and we should share the load. You probably are doing the person a favour more than you doing a favour for yourself by connecting that person with more people! In the case of person B, I shall continue to ask God to give me the grace, patience and LOVE to B.

What was our one person assignment again? hmm...Who have you picked?

Keep each other accountable ok? That's what cell is about (and this includes myself. Cellies, I'm counting on you guys to remind me to pour love!)

LOL (Lots Of Love),
Yan Hua

Breakfast at McDonald's

I wanna share this story with u all that i received through an email. And yes, its about food again~

Here's how it goes:
" I am a mother of three and I have recently completed my college degree. The last class I had to take is sociology class. The teacher was absolutely inspiring with the qualities that I wish every human being has been graced with.
Her last project of the term was called, "Smile". The class was asked to go out and smile at 3 people and document their reactions.
I am a very friendly person and always smile at everyone and say hello anyway. So, I thought this would be a piece of cake.

Soon after we were assigned the project, my husband, youngest son and I went out to McDonald's on one crisp March morning. it was just our way of sharing special playtime with our son. We were standing in line, waiting to be served, when all of a sudden everyone around us began to back away, and then even my husband did.

I did not move an inch...an overwhelming feeling of panic welled up inside me as I turned to see why they moved. As i turned, I saw 2 poor homeless men with "dirty body" smell standing behind me. I looked down at the short gentleman close to me and he was "smiling".

His beautiful sky blue eyes were full of God's light as he searched for acceptance. He said , "good day" as he counted the few coins that he had been clutching. The second man fumbled with his hands as he stood behind his friend. I realize the second man is mentally challenged and the blue eyes gentleman was his salvation. I held my tears as I stood there with them.

The young lady at the counter asked him what they wanted. He said "coffee is all, miss " because that was all they could afford. (If they wanted to sit in the restaurant and warm up, they had to buy something. He just wanted to be warm.) Then i really felt it -- the compulsion was so great that i almost reached out to embrace the gentleman with blue eyes. That is when i noticed all eyes in the restaurant were set on me, judging my every action. I smiled and asked the young lady behind the counter to give me 2 breakfast meals on separate trays.

I then walked around the corner to the table the men had chosen as a resting spot. I put the tray on the table and laid my hand on the blue-eyed gentleman's cold hand. He looked up at me, with tears in his eyes and said "thank you". I leaned over, began to pat his hand and said, " I did not do this for you. God is here working through me to give you hope." I started to cry as I walked away to join my husband and son. When I sat down my husband smiled at me and said, "That is why God gave you to me, honey, to give me hope....."

We held hands for a moment and at that time, we knew that only because of the Grace that we had been given were we able to give. That day showed me the pure light of God;s sweet love. That is when I knew that we as human beings and being part of God share this need to heal people and to be healed. In my own way, I had touched people's hearts. I learned the biggest lessons that I would ever learn : UNCONDITIONAL ACCEPTANCE.


LOVE PEOPLE AND USE THINGS - NOT LOVE THINGS AND USE PEOPLE


There is an angel sent to watch over you. Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.

To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart.

God gives every bird it's food, but He does not throw it into its nest. "

Hope u enjoyed the story~ XD

~GerAldinE~

Jo

Hey all! Deepest apologies for not blogging!! Studies have been terrible. 

Not only that, I think I might actually fail some tests. 

I ask all of you to pray for me. 

1)deeper and more personal relationship with God. 

2)victory over procrastination and laziness

3)EXTREMELY GOOD END YEAR SCORES!

But as for now. I AM BACK TO BLOG. 

Oh oh. Yan hua, can you fetch me early when you go to pick up the guys who are doing worship for this week? 

A Piece of Cake!

Just wanna share this with u all, since im a major cake lover XD~~





~ GerAldinE~

40 days of Love and Search for a star 2009 !

Let us all be excited for these events !!!!!!

This photo is from another Pharmacist wanna-be and my big sister, YeeFang:

Hugz,
Er Win Lee

Message from the coordinators of 40 days of Love

Hey Zone supervisor, Ministry and Cell leaders and Members of zion praise harvest,

Zion Praise Harvest is launching a series of "40 Days of LOVE" starting 12th/13th September. Let us, in unity uphold this awesome and life-changing event in prayer. And by praying, we are blessing everyone. (2 Chronicles 30 : 27 The priests and the Levites stood to bless the people, and God heard them, for their prayer reached heaven, his holy dwelling place.) We are the chosen people, royal priesthood, holy nation, people belonging to God that we may declare today, to bless and to be a blessing.

4 POINTS to pray

1. Organisers ie Chin Seng and team will have wisdom, unity and their planning will go smoothly
2. The whole church is in one accord and one spirit in making this series life-changing for everyone
3. Hearts and minds are ready to receive and be blessed
4. Unbelievers will open their hearts and minds to join us

Lets bless and be blessed!!!

p/s : please forward this to your members. Thanks!


Prayer coordinator,

Wan See

Cell group 4/9/2009 !

Hello all ! This blog looks pretty dull and dead, where's the spammers ?! Where are the photos? hahaha...its time to REVIVE IT ! I know you guys are pretty stressed and tired cuz of schooling, so yeah, its okay. Enjoy this blog and spam it at your free time but I do encourage everyone to read our cell's blog even if you dont wanna post. All righty ! Cell this Friday :

Games: Wilson

Worship: Bobby (Lead and guitar)

Food: Justin (He'll call/sms you if you are involved)

Word: Yan Hua (Should be on Servanthood 4, the last of the Servanthood series)

Be EXCITED ! And let us all have a heart to take something home from cell =)

And yeah !!! This Sunday 6/9/2009, our church (ZPH) is having a Father's Day Celebration. Do invite any fathers, uncle, grandfather, old people that you know, and of cur your friends and family! Its gonna be so awesome. Presents will be given out to Fathers, so do let me or Yan Hua know if you've invited any fathers.

This is a family pic of mine (I was serving in National Service in Malaysia). So yeah, the one in white is my father.

HAPPY FATHER's DAY !

Hugz,
Er Win Lee