N194 BLOG | 2006

why are there sufferings and pain? Does that mean God doesnt exist?

2006-05-01T09:23:00.000+08:00

It's an email forwarded to me! And i feel that it's really a great example!Do read it! =)

This is one of the best explanations of why God allows pain and suffering that I have seen.It's an explanation other people will understand.

A man went to a barbershop to have his hair cut and his beard trimmed.

Barber began to work, they began to have a good conversation.They talked about so many things and various subjects. When they eventually touched on the subject of God, the barber said: "I don't believe that God exists."

Why do you say that?" asked the customer "Well, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God doesn't exist. Tell me, if God exists, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children? If God existed, there would be neither suffering nor pain. I can't imagine a loving God who would allow all of these things."

The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to
start an argument.

The barber finished his job and the customer left the shop.

Just after he left the barbers shop, he saw a man in the street with long, stringy, dirty hair & an un trimmed beard. He looked dirty and unkempt.

The customer turned back and entered the barbershop again and he said to the barber:You know what ?Barbers do not exist." "How can you say that?" asked the surprised barber. "I am here, and I am a barber. And I just worked on you!

" "No!" the customer exclaimed! "Barbers don't exist because if they did, there would be no people with dirty long hair and untrimmed beards like that man outside"?

"Ah, but barbers DO exist! What happens is, people do not come to me."

"Exactly!" affirmed the customer. "That's the point! God, too, DOES exist! What happens, is, people don't go to Him and do not look for Him. That's why there's so much pain and suffering in the World."

interesting facts

2006-04-19T00:42:00.001+08:00

hi guys
its been quite some time since we saw a posting right right ? ?
share with you guys something.
recently i watched the 2hour documentary on the 'gospel of judas' on the national geo channel. it was like w0w so draggy . wanna share with ya the summary of the whole show -
a team of experts was formed to restore an ancient book[not realy book. its only 13 pages] which was broken into fragments. it was sold twice and stolen once but nobody know how priceless the item was. after years trying to fix the paper fragments one expert [ who apparently could read ancient egyptian text ] recgonized the title : the gospel of judas . and they carbon-dated to confrim that it really existed 220-300 AD. and they believe that the gospel of judas was written by gnostics [ at that time there are christians that believe that they have the power to know spiritual things - it was a great headache to bishop Irenaeus that time ] . and amazing - early christians are not like now . there are more than 30 gospels and they even have home meetings where the gnostics read the gospel to the audience. imagine more than 30 gospels =_=.. matthew mark luke john judas thomas mary magdalene etc etc..
well the gospel of judas actually wasnt much different from the gospel we're reading now . the only difference was that it said that judas was Jesus's closest friend and He planned the crucifixtion` it said judas was doing it according to Jesus's will so that His spirit that was imprisoned in the mortal body can be released . [ rubbish eh.. =. = ] and but overall it doesnt matter whether if judas was the good guy or the bad guy` the truth is still that Christ died for our sins so judas wasnt really the main point . who would actually write a gospel according to judas - a man hated for eternity . maybe some people at that time took pity on him and had nothing better to do than to write a new gospel.
but one fact is that the 4 gospels were added into the new testament around 50-60yrs after matthew mark luke and john died . which means bishop Irenaeus was the one that chose the 4 gospels to be added into the new testament. the only mystery is how did he choose or decide which gospel was meant to be in the new testament . but if you notice that in the 4 gospels judas was protrayed increasingly evil from the 1st to the 4th gospel . in the 4th one gospel of john , judas was even depicted as Satan himself that entered into him.

hmm but afterall , its just a show. so dont know if what it says are true anot .

Jesus gives true rest

2006-04-07T11:41:00.000+08:00

Know u guys must be familiar with this verse but just wanna share it .. act as a reminder? =)

Matthew 11:28-30

"Come to Me, all you who labour
and are heavy laden, I will give
you rest.

Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me,
for I am gentle and
lowly in heart, and you will find
rest for your souls.

For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

Go to Jesus! Cry out to Him! He will give us rest. =)
It feels like Jesus is saying " Don't worry, leave your problems to Me and I will fix it! "

Praise God =]

2006-02-27T01:26:00.000+08:00

Praise God !
I brought my mum to church today !! Indeed God is doing His mighty work in my family =] I brought my mum to the front row inspite her "protests" . . the praise and worship was awesome , i guess im the only one singing in english =x Brother Joespeh saw our new faces and asked if its our first time here. Well its my mum's 3rd time to chc , she used to come with my sis . Really really wanna share with your how God is doing a miracle in my family ! Relationships with my family members have been improving lots =]~ Pastor Tan preached a great message` the same as the one zen posted =]] except its in mandarin . I could see that my mum enjoyed the message =`` esp the part where husbands should love their wives hahas . . really really looking forward to the salvation of my family = ) looking forward to your prayers ! PTL []

ps. If God can do it for me . He can do it for you too = }

10 Commandments for a better relationship

2006-02-23T23:59:00.000+08:00

WOW! I'm home so early today! I'm First!! haha!

Pastor preached a great sermon today! There were laughter throughout. Though Pastor just came back from overseas, bathed at Changi Airport, he still look as handsome and energetic! Like Sis Jacq, after the long hours of work, she still look as refreshed and happy! That's the glory of God shining on their face!

Today's msg is "The 10 commandments of making relationship"

1) COMMUNICATION
2) Be interested in people in THEIR world.
3) Make people feel IMPORTANT
4) SMILE when you meet people
5) ENCOURAGE people
6) Be LONGSUFFERING
7) Always RESPECT people
8) ESTEEM others than ourselves
9) Use people's NAME more than normal
10) Be COMPLIMENTARY of people

I'm planning to get a NLT version Bible! I think it's a lot more simplified, easier to understand and read! haha!!

Children must honor their parents.
Parents must not keep nagging their kids and give unreasonable expectations.
Husbands must love their wife.
Wife must love, honor, esteem, admire, (and the list goes on) their husband. It's really long!
Friends must help one another be more on fire for God and help each other grow spiritually.

+Today's a HAPPY DAY+ Let the whole world worship You ----+*+*+*---->>
Posted at 10:54pm 18 February 2006.
- Zen

Radio Blog Up again!

2006-02-19T09:23:00.000+08:00

Hey Guys, so sorry that I did not manage to update our blog announcements last week. Was really busy with everything.

And some of you mentioned that our radio.blog is not working already. Yupz, This is because the free host that is hosting our radio.blog has closed down! Hahaha.. But praise God! After searching really high and really low for it online, I managed to find another free host that is able to host our radio.blog! And this time, with a bigger space quota, which means, more songs! It is really difficult to find a free host that supports PHP and FTP, but with God, nothing is impossible..! Whaha..

And therefore, I have updated the entire list of songs that is available for you guys:

New Songs:
CCC - Presence [The new song that we sang in church recently]
Delirious - What a Friend
Newsboys - It Is You
PlanetShakers - Rain of Heaven [A really nice song from their latest album, Arise.]
Relient K - Getting Into You
Relient K - Less is More
Relient K - Always Winter
Tree63 - All Because

Songs used to be in our old radio.blog:
CCC - Thank You
Chris Tomlin - How Great is Our God
Tree63 - I Stand for You
Youth Alive - How Much

Old songs that is so presence-filled:
CHC - Making a Difference
CCC - Sing About You
Hillsong - Worthy is the Lamb
John Starnes - Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus

Some of you might not know, that Relient K is actually kidda of a Christian band. The songs that I had posted by them, their lyrics are very meaningful if you listen carefully to it. And also, now it's in full mode, so you are able to select the songs that you wanna hear from the list!
I hope that you guys will like the style of music that i have uploaded, and also, will be blessed by it.
I will upload more songs in the time to come. :)

By the way, it seems like only our tagboard is active.. Haha.. hope that our blog entries can be more active in the future! God bless everyone! :D

Solitude with God

2006-02-03T23:01:00.000+08:00

o.O first time posting =x

I came across a webby and wanna share with you guys =] hope you guys get blessed by it =}

http://sandrarooney.tripod.com/

A New Year without fear!

2006-01-22T02:39:00.000+08:00

Came across this very interesting article while i was reading through crosswalk.com. Hope that this article will bless you throughout the year of 2006. :)

- Brendan

A New Year Without Fear
Adrian Rogers
Love Worth Finding
Extracted from www.crosswalk.com

God's Word brings us a comforting promise, along with an insightful command as we face a New Year: "Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, I will not fear what man shall do unto me" (Hebrews 13:5-6).

You can live this coming year without fear if you apply these four incredibly wonderful truths to your life and root them deep into your heart.

The Contentment of His Provision
Contentment is not getting what you want, but it is wanting what you already have. First Timothy 6:6-8 says, "But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us therewith be content." If you know Jesus Christ, you have contentment. If you've got clothes on your back, something to eat, and Jesus Christ in your heart, you're rich!

Do you know why we have fear? Because we think our needs or the needs of someone we love are not going to be met. Or we fear that the things we think are meeting our needs are going to be taken away from us. The deepest need of your heart can only be met in the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Companionship of His Presence
I don't know what I'm going to face next year. But there's one thing I know, He will never leave me. Are you a child of God? He will never leave you either. Isn't that wonderful!

What's another reason we may fear in the coming year? Because we're afraid we're going to have to face something we don't understand, and we're going to have to face it alone.

When God's Word promises that God will never forsake you, it literally means that He will never abandon you. He will not give up on you. We need to practice the presence of the Lord this coming year. When the devil comes and knocks at you heart's door, you can simply say, "Jesus, please go answer the door."

The Confidence of His Promise
We're going to zero in on a little phrase in our verses in Hebrews, "He hath said." A promise is no better than the one who makes it. Who says, "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee"? It is the omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent God. This is the confidence of His promise.

In the coming year, when you say, "God, I just don't have the strength." The omnipotent God will answer, "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee." When you say, "God, I'm afraid of what is going to happen." The omnipresent God says, "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee." And when you say, "God, I don't know what to do." The omniscient God will respond, "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee." He himself hath said it.

The Comfort of His Protection
Hebrews 13:6 promises, "So that we may boldly say, the Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me." Now, put that with verse five which says, “He hath said."

Like I said earlier, I don't know what you're going to go through this coming year. But I know you can boldly say, "The Lord is my helper, so I will not fear what man shall do to me." When you find your contentment, companionship, and confidence in Jesus. Then, you'll find your comfort and courage in Jesus.

Enjoying Everyday Life - Joyce Meyer

2006-01-11T18:48:00.000+08:00

Just wanna share with you guys one of the series of Joyce Meyer's talk show. She talked about bibical truth regarding finances with Pastor Phil Pringle. Enjoy :)

Click here to download.

A greater 2006 has arrived!

2006-01-01T00:00:00.000+08:00

To some of us, 2005 may had been a wonderful year. Some were admitted to their ideal schools, scored great results, gotten their ideal job, had a financial breakthrough, had wonderful encounters with God etc. But for some of us, 2005 may had also been a tough year. Relationship failed, failure in exams, had financial difficulties or even on the verge of backsliding etc. And also this year, we saw the aftermath of the Tsunami and also numerous terrorist attack in various countries etc. Truly 2005 was a eventful year for all of us.

But now we had arrived at 2006! And the Word of God tells us to forget those things which are behind and to reach forward to those things which are ahead! [Phil 3:13-14]
On New Year's Eve, Pastor Kong preached a very impacting and relevant Year End Sermon, and it talks about NOT LOOKING BACK:

1) Don't look back at the OLD SINS that have been forgiven.
In 1 John 1:7-9, the Word of God says that if we are in the right fellowship, and if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all sin. We need to know that when God forgives, He forgets.

2) Don't look back at the OLD DEFEATS that get us down.
"The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; For the LORD upholds him with His hand" - Psalm 37:23-24.
We need to know that God will always uphold our life, and that failure is never fatal or final.

3) Don't look back at the OLD CONFLICTS that make us bitter.
Only those who are strong can forgive.

4) Don't look back at OLD VICTORIES and think that we have arrived.
We should not always lean on our past success and move on, but yet we should always grow from glory to glory. God is not a God of past, but a God of the present.

In the year 2006, let us grow more spritually like never before! Let N194 be a cell group full of faith and unity, and let us grow from faith to faith, and glory to glory! Praise the LORD!

Personally, 2005 is a significant year for me. Its the first year whereby God is at the beginning and also at end of the year with me. It is a year which i felt that i had grown more mature in the Lord. And also, a year which i had joined the IT ministry to serve God even more. God's grace was also upon me as i was admitted to my ideal school and course. I had also designed my first ever commercial website for a company, Nfood, which was a stepping block towards my dream of becoming a website designer. It's also a year which i began to work more on my guitar skills and had also tried playing in a cell group meeting once! Last but not least, it's also a year whereby the church moved to EXPO and it was really a significant event to me! Really wanna praise the LORD for such a wonderful year.. and i can't wait to see what the LORD had installed for me in 2006...!

- Brendan Terng

2005 another wonderful year

2005-12-28T22:52:00.000+08:00

well some ppl think tt 2005 is a terrible and not a good year la... but to me 2005 means alot of me.. though there are wonderful ups and disappointin downs in thix year but all i know 2005 is a breakthru fer me and thix year realli make me realise tt God is with me and my usher commitment... And thix year make me realise tt Christianity not jux as a religion but a faith and adventurous walk with God... though my NS commitment really make my walk weary and some complicated and sophiscated issues in my life but all i know that Jesus is the 1 and onli savior that make me feel so loved like never before.. And 2005 i seriously learnt alot!!

once agen thanks N194 and sis jacq

God is good!!!!
edmund was here on 281205, 2305

The end of 2005

2005-12-27T12:24:00.000+08:00

2005 had been a great year for me!

A year that i get into Poly. A year i get to know N194 brothers n sis even more. Most importantly, a year that i get to know God more!

In times that are not so pleasant, i know He is with me! He is always there for me! =) hee.. And I'm really grateful that i ve found home! A place full of joy and purpose. " a day in the House of God is better than a thousand else where"

Sometimes my sister will ask me " Why you always go to church?"
i said "i feel that church has something that i cannot experience from any other places. God's presence. He's just very real to me. He exist! N He loves me!"
"How u know?"
"Becoz when somebody loves you, u will know, right?"
Then I ask " you want to come this week? "
She said " eh.. Don't want. Not free. i go before."

It was immediate rejection. Then, how is she going to feel what i feel?
Sometimes, i will think.. If i never make the Decision to come to church again with Shirley, what type of life will i be leading now? Living aimlessly in my own whole? Feeling lonely and unloved? Being angry easily? Thank God i made a Decision to Go! =)

God has always been calling you. Everytime u reject Him, He's disappointed but He never gives up! He keeps sending people to call you home! It's not by chance i met Shirley.. God arranged it! Maybe, a friend of yours might suddenly invite you to church.. It's not coincidence, it's God.

i Believe that year 2006 will be another adventurous year of walk with God for me! How about yours? =)

- Zen

Just for Laugh!

2005-12-21T14:44:00.000+08:00

Q: What kind of motor vehicles are in the Bible?
A: Honda...because the apostles were all in one Accord.

Q: What's the first sign of football in the Bible?
A: Jesus going for the cross.

Q: Who was the only person in the Bible without a father?
A: Joshua the son of Nun.

Q: Who was known as a Mathematician in the Bible?
A: Moses, he wrote the book of Numbers.

Q. Where is the first math problem mentioned in the Bible?
A. When God told Adam and Eve to go forth and multiply.

George W. Bush, the president of the United States, was in an airport lobby, noticed a man in a long flowing white robe with a long flowing white beard and flowing white hair. The man had a staff in one hand and some stone tablets under the other arm.
Excited, George W. approached the man and inquired, "Aren't you Moses?"
The man ignored George W. and stared at the ceiling.
Mr. Bush positioned himself more directly in the man's view and asked again, "Aren't you Moses?"
The man continued to peruse the ceiling.
George tugged at the man's sleeve and asked once again, "Aren't you Moses?"
The man finally responded in an irritated voice, "Yes I am."
George W. asked him why he was so uppity and the man replied, "The last time I spoke to a Bush I had to spend forty years in the desert!"

Exciting Pre-Christmas Week!

2005-12-18T23:59:00.000+08:00

Wow.. wasn't this week exciting? Though it's still not Christmas yet, but we already had so much "Pre-Christmas" fun!
On Friday, we had our Christmas Cell Group Meeting! Colorful ribbons, lightings, and decoration was put up to create a heartwarming Christmas atmosphere.. All thanks to the effort of Theresa and Zen! Cell Group Meeting started off with some games. The first game was super exciting and funny! We are supposed to roll the discs until we got a specific number. Then we are to go forward and wear stuff such as Santa hat, scarf, bag etc. And with our hands wearing 2 socks each, we are suppose to tear open a present until a next person gotten the specific number! The second game was something like passing-the-parcel, but this time, the person who had the "parcel" in their hands when the music stops, have to pick from a number of ice-cream sticks to determine whether they will receive a present, or a forfeit. Poor Mei Yue picked up a forfeit and she had to be wrapped up as a "human Christmas tree"! Overall, it was a great time of games and its all thanks to Deborah for preparing those games.

After which we began to exalt the name of Jesus by praising and worshipping Him.. His presence was truly amazing.. Next sis Jacq began to share about being the salt and the light. As the primary mission for believers is to win the lost, we need to be the salt that makes people thirsty for God and to be a person of perseverance. We also need to be the light of the world that illuminates the darkness in people's life. Praise the Lord for such a wonderful purpose that He had put in our life.
Lastly, just like every year, we played the "Angel & Mortal" game. So Angels! Let's treat Mortals nicer eh? Haha..

On Saturday, we had our special Candlelight Service. After a amazing session of praising and worshipping our Lord, Pastor Kong shared about The Light of Christmas. Jesus said that He is the light of the world, those who follow Him shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life. And also Jesus have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Him should not abide in darkness. So it's not God's Will for us to stay in the darkness of disappointments, distress, doubt and depression. Because He will encourage us, strengthen us, guide us and change us to be the light of the world! Praise the Lord!
After which, the whole congregation was given a candle each, and the entire hall was put to darkness. The candle was then lighted up from the front to the back. The sight of almost 6500 candles being lighted up was breathtaking and presence filled. This is what God wants us to be... a light that illuminates the darkness..

On Sunday, a number of us went down town to enjoy the lightings at Orchard. Christmas carols and decorates could be found along the entire streets of Orchard.. and of course, we took a number pictures too! Praise God for such a wonderful time of fellowship.

Well, i felt that this week we had learnt so much about being the light of the world. And next week will be our Christmas weekend service. So let us all pray for God's glory and light to shine so brightly upon us, that we will be able to shine and make a difference in our friends' life. Let us not only invite them through smses or phone calls, but let’s meet up and spend time with them. And pray that through us, they will begin to feel the love of Christ this Christmas and will wanna come to church to know more about Jesus! Amen!

-Brendan.

WOW WOW WOW! AWESOME!

2005-12-12T22:31:00.000+08:00

hey this bloggersphere is so awwweeesssooommee!! hahaha great job, brendan! Well, just wanna say that having a cell group blog is something that i always desired to have in the cell group and really, just like what Ps Ulf said before that there is nothing new under the sun. God scatters ideas and dreams in many people. =) And our cell group is so privileged to have our very own "creative" department too. haha ^* anyways just wanna say that the new year is always full of new beginnings and i'm glad this blog will start off our new year and bring our cell group into another level of excellence! N194, you guys are members that make things happen. =) So lets believe God for greater greater breakthroughs for the year 2006 and that it is gonna be our best year yet, amen? Love you all =) indeed, the end of the matter will always be better than the beginning!

-Yours for revival, sis jac

Welcome to N194.blogspot

2005-12-11T21:42:00.000+08:00

Hey N194! God is a God of new and great things.. therefore i've decided to try out and create our very own N194 blog!
In here, we all will be able to share our hearts out! Be it sharing of testimonials, your spiritual diary, revelations, word of encouragement, prayer requests, birthday wishes, spiritual books&websites that you wanna share, pictures ETC ETC! Whatever you want the cell group to know or do, just post it up here! And if your friends want to know more about our cell group activities, you can also direct them here too!

Weekly updates of announcements, events, birthdays etc will also be posted up here, so you don't have to worry bout missing out on anything!

In order to start posting in this blog, These are the few steps:

I had already send out the invitations email to all the members of N194. You just need to click on the link that is given on the email.
If you are already a member of Blogger, just enter your User ID and Password, and you will be a member of N194 blog.
If you are NOT a member of Blogger, just click the sign up button and within minutes, you will be a member of N194 blog too.
At the Dashboard page, click on Add Post.
HAPPY POSTING!

There will not be any tagboard or shoutboard in the blog as i had set up the comment system. Just click on "Post and View Comments" at the end of every post to comment on it!

Lastly I hope that you all will like the idea and the design of this blog. I also hope that through this blog, we are able to help each other grow spiritually, and also to strengthen our bond.
Therefore, please support this blog!!!

Praise the Lord!!

PS: If you had not received the invitation email, or you want to be a member of this blog, please email to chcN194@gmail.com

*Note: If you're using Mozilla Firefox, the font may tend to appear smaller than usual, and some frame might be out of place, you may want to switch to Internet Explorer for this blog. :D

- Brendan Terng.