SEASON 6 EPISODE 1: FIRST HALF OF 2010

Here's a quick snapshot of the last 6 months of activity in 2010 (just in case you all were wondering whether this blog had turned dormant...)

(1) Professional life

I started a new job as an in-house lawyer in one of the power generation companies here in Singapore and was on probation for 6 months. I have finally completed it and have been confirmed with effect from today (4 July 2010). 6 months may be long, but I must say that it has been an event-filled period. Learnt alot of things, both legal and about the energy industry! I thank my God for this provision of place of work, superiors and colleagues!

(2) Christian ministry

Each Sunday is busy with getting my church choir ready for service. Thank God for committed singers and that through them, the worship service is enriched and the congregation is ministered by it.

I have also moved out from the cell group I wrote about in my last post because I feel it is time to do so (a time to plant and a time to uproot - Eccl 3:2 was the verse that moved me to do what I did) and move on. It is also new beginning for the cell as the new leaders take their places.

What is the planting bit? Well, nothing concrete now but I am in talks with an external parachurch organisation who are considering to start a marketplace ministry.

That's briefly what has happened on these 2 areas of my life this past half a year!

SEASON 5 EPISODE 6: SUCCESS!

Just returned from a weekend away with my fellow Brothers And Sisters In Christ at the BB/GB Campsite in Sembawang.

The idea of a Retreat was mooted quite late in the year (just 2 to 3 months ago). But, thanks be to God! Everything fell into place very nicely, from start to end, and the programme ran without any hiccups.

The objectives of the Retreat were met. With new leaders now, a direction, an identity and a programme, we look forward to an enriching and fulfilling 2010!

Soli Deo Gloria!

SEASON 5 EPISODE 5: What a Year it has been and what a year is going to be!

I wonder whether anyone who have been reading my blog (to which I thank you for your readership) have been wondering what had happened since since July 2009.

No, I have not forgotten that I have a blog. No, my life has not reached a plateau (on the contrary, there have been many peaks and troughs since July 2009 - which I will elaborate later) and no, I have not forgotten these moments.

What I want to do in this entry is to pen down bite-size snippets of the significant moments since July 2009 and of the entire year.

(1) Professional

I have changed jobs and will be starting my new job in January 2010. I will be returning to legal work and this time, it will be at an energy power station situated on the northern part of the island. How I got this job is truly amazing and I attribute all this to God. It is not only His faithfulness that saw me through this job-hunt. But, it is also in His grace and mercy that this employer looked upon me with favour.

2009 has been a rough year on this front. But, I have learnt a great deal about myself as I moved through the 2 jobs. I pray now that at this new job in 2010 (and beyond), it will be a year of rooting and progress in order that I may establish my track record, bloom and grow in the mind and spirit. LORD, establish the works of my hands!

(2) Spiritual

This year, I have been active in the church in both learning and service.

(a) Learning: Christian Believer

The 30-week Christian Believer course where I learnt Christian theology opened my eyes into the richness of the faith I belong to. These theological concepts are the building blocks of any Christian and I say that every one (especially people my age) should consider equipping ourselves with some working knowledge of theology, especially in times like this.

(b) Learning: Alpha

The 13-week Alpha Course has also provided me an opportunity to revisit the basics of the Christian faith, get to hear how people's lives have been changed through the course and be exposed to people who have questions about the faith.

(c) Service: Young Adults cell group

The LORD has indeed blessed this cell group in leads and bounds this year with new members. These new members have given this cell a different mix compared to what it was before. But, what I want to especially thank the LORD for is the people within this cell. Praise the LORD for hearts of service, enthusiasm and passion! I look forward to our Retreat next weekend where we will rest in the company of the LORD and others, reassess our position both individually and as a body corporate and make ready ourselves for 2010!

I pray that each and every one of the members will rise up and wise up to be young men and women of the living God in the church and society so that they may "shine like stars" in this world.

(3) Personal

This year has been a year of learning about who I am as a person, how I can position myself with all the training and experience in the past. All this has given me a newfound confidence and I look forward to engaging and rooting myself in the new job. Praise be to God for these experiences.

With a job to look forward to and grow in and the prospect of obtaining my driving licence in the first quarter of 2010, I also pray to cultivate good working relationships with all I work and serve with.

I believe with God's help, all this is possible and I can really do "all things through Him that gives me strength."

Thanks be to God! Amen!

SEASON 5 EPISODE 4: 1 YEAR HAS ZIPPED BY...

It has been exactly 4 months since I last updated this blog and now just over a year since I returned from London. Indeed, 1 year has zipped by and this entry is really taking stock of things.

I must say that time has passed by so quickly that I cannot recall very much what had happened since my return to Singapore from London on 5 July 2008.

(1) JULY to DECEMBER 2008

This part was spent re-integrating with my family, friends and church. I was also "finding my feet" then and wondering whether I will be heading back to England to complete my legal training and qualifying there anytime soon.

During that period, I went through 2 internships at law firms and ended the year with a post-Christmas vacation to Ho Chi Minh City with my family.

On a church front, I went back to my cell group and re-integrated myself with them. By that time, my cell group had gone through quite a big makeover in terms of members. There were a couple of "new-comers" and the highlight was that we, together as a cell had some fun over food and fellowship in Bintan from 14 to 16 November 2008. It was a great time there.

(2) JANUARY TO MARCH 2009

The new year began with a new job where I did legal work at a communications agency. It was an experience of my life in this firm because not only did I get to have a taste of what it is like to be a lawyer, I got to also see a different side to life in the workplace, albeit in a negative sense. I left after 2 months and the month of March was a time of in-between jobs. Despite the negative nature of the experience, I give thanks to God for allowing this to happen and taking me out when it reached the point of no return.

Durign this period, I got myself started on "Christian Believer", a 30-week course investigating the classic doctrines of the Christian faith. This was held in church. I also busied myself with the affairs of a workings of a ministry in my church.

(3) APRIL to JULY 2009

The LORD provided me a job in the company where I did my internship in 7 years ago and I began on 6 April 2009. Thanks be to God for that. I am still involved in the legal profession, but from a technological viewpoint - which I believe will be the means of legal practice in the future.

Apart from workplace, the other place I spend most of my time is in church.

I continued to attend cell meetings on Saturday afternoons where I occasionally lead Bible Study sessions. I also had the privilege to provide emotional and spiritual support to a cell mate of mine whom I will always treat her as my younger sister (or mei2). I smile at being able to play bigger brother to a younger sister (largely because I don't have a biological sister in my household). I give thanks to God for bringing her into my life and it is my prayer that she will grow in the faith and be in favour with God and man.

I spend my weekends in the activities of the church. This range from cell group and occasional dinner fellowships on Saturdays, playing the organ for worship services on Sundays or attending worship service with my cell mates followed by fellowship over lunch.

As one can see, many things have happened since I returned from London and I give thanks to God for leading me through these events, both ups and downs, bringing people into my life and sustaining me through these periods.

For now, I look forward to positive developments in my job, the provision of opportunities to deepen my faith and relationship with God and build deeper friendships with my cell group mates.

SEASON 5 EPISODE 3: A NEW CHAPTER BEGINS...

In the last episode, I wrote about the discipline of “waiting” in 2 areas of my life: (1) Career and (2) Relationships. It is still status quo for (2) and still waiting.

For (1), since that last entry, the period of waiting involved making applications for jobs in various places: from law firms to MNCs and even registering interest in a conversion programme to be an Arts Manager.

However, through very unusual means and circumstances, the LORD chartered a direction for me that I never expected at all. I was offered a job at my first workplace (where I did my Industrial Attachment during my polytechnic days in 2002) yesterday just after having lunch with one of my bosses the day before!

At this point, all I will say is that the career prospects are good and it is in line with what I personally want to do in a couple of years time. I am still involved in the legal profession, only from a different angle and I believe my legal training gives me the edge to understand the workings and challenges lawyers face in running their practices. More will come as I get into the grind of things.

I have accepted the position today and will begin on 1 April 2009.

This acceptance is the apex of a series of events that began last Sunday where, during second breakfast after church, I found that the place I enjoyed my working life was at my poly internship firm. This is evidence of the maxim that the LORD’s timing is always the best. When the time is ripe, all things will fall into place. If not anything else, I take comfort in this and look forward to that perfect timing for (2) as well. Till then, I will just leave things as it is and build the friendship through amongst other things, Christian service and fellowship.

This new chapter is an illustration and affirmation of Romans 8:28:

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

God never fails to surprise us (and at times, make us laugh).

Another eventful moment in the season of Lent 2009!

SOLI DEO GLORIA!

SEASON 5 EPISODE 2: LENT 2009 & THE MONTH OF MARCH

The season of Lent this year has already been very eventful. Just within the first week of that season, many life-altering things have happened.

The first is on Ash Wednesday last Wednesday, the beginning of Lent where I believed there was another buzzword for me for the season. That word is “Wait” and I want to quote a couple of passages from Bishop Dr Robert Solomon’s in his article “Waiting on God” that was published in the March 2009’s issue of the Methodist Message:

“We must note that the LORD Himself chose to see time in a kairos (God’s special moments) rather than a chronos (chronological) way. Often He would say that His time had not yet come, meaning that He waited for the right opportune time, never rushing into it. And when it came, He noted it and fulfilled His purposed. Jesus often waited in His life and ministry. He waited 30 years for His opportune time.”

Bishop Solomon goes on to say:

“The spiritual discipline of waiting is not a passive act of hopeless surrender to fate, but an active commitment and consecration to the living God, who shapes us according to His purposes and into the image of His Son. While we wait for God, something happens in us – we become strengthened, the spiritual sinews of our souls become exercised and we grow in grace...

Often the discipline of waiting is exercised through prayer. Prayer slows us down; it teaches us to reject the urge to go our own way, to trust in our own strength or smartness, to take things into our own hands. Prayer helps us to wait.”

Wait for what? Well, this year, there are 2 aspects of my life I believe the LORD wants me to wait on Him and be patient.

The first is in my career. It was on Ash Wednesday itself that the thoughts of leaving the job came to mind through a chat with my mother. She sensed that I was not happy where I was. Well, on Saturday, the opportunity arose to tell my boss how I felt about the situation.

I was glad that both employer and employee believed that it was a “job mis-match” and I felt a burden being lifted at being at peace. I also believe that the departure from the job was a kairos moment. It happened so quickly that I immediately packed up my things. What’s next? Well, for now, it is just a break and re-assessing my goals. I truet that the LORD will provide the next step.

The second is in the area of relationships. While I am more or less certain that I might have met “my match”, through all that has been said and done, it is not the time to proceed further. I shall be patient and wait on the LORD to reveal that kairos moment.

While waiting, from what has already happened, I think what is needed of me is to build relationships with others and be a friend to others around me. The most important thing is that I pray for the strength to remain patient and like the parable of the growing seed in Mark 4:26-29, allow the seed of friendship to grow “all by itself”, take comfort that the seed is growing though I "do not know how" it does and I look to the day where I can “put the sickle to it because the harvest has come” (v29).

To round it all off, I saw a double rainbow on the way back home from work. The second rainbow might not be very clear from the photo, but if you look a little more carefully, you will see the faint shades of it. I managed to capture that moment with a photo from my mobile phone.

A very pretty sight, don't you think?

The saying goes that your wishes will come true when you see a rainbow. In this case, it is a double rainbow! But, while I am hoping that the desires of my heart will be granted, I trust the LORD will provide - in His time and in His special way.

What is required of me? Following Bishop Solomon's advice: pray because it helps us to wait.

SOLI DEO GLORIA!

SEASON 5 EPISODE 1: A NEW YEAR, A NEW SEASON!

It has been a long while since I last updated this blog. This is because I was going through a period of “wandering in the wilderness”. In my last blog entry, I mentioned that I went for an interview in a law firm – I never got that job.

Since then, I spent the rest of 2008 thinking through life and where the LORD wanted me to be. It was not the best of times because I wanted some form of certainty and a direction.

To “make things worse”, there were developments in my other spheres of life, most notably the desire to be more active in church. But, I could not really commit myself to that if I was to be called back to London!

Despite all this happenings, I made use of the time available to gain some experience as an intern in a large Singapore law firm and on looking back, I believe I was there for a reason: to stand in the gap for the pupils were still away completing the PLC for the months of October and November. I ended my internship on Christmas Eve.

This period of time was not the most exciting of times. There were so many unanswered questions and I wondered how much longer I have to wait until I see the end of the tunnel. It was mentally and emotionally frustrating. But, things took a turn somewhere in November 2008.

It began with one of those ventilating sessions with my parents where I was brought back to revisit the reason for heading to London and in particular, Westminster University to do the LPC. That reason was very specific, to read the Entertainment and Media Law elective.

(For those who know me, you would recall that I wanted to be an entertainment lawyer. Well, I lost that focus as well during this period of “wandering in the wilderness.”)

I gave that some thought and after much reflection, I realised that ultimately, entertainment and media was still my pet area and that spurred me to do the next step: what am I going to do after my internship at this law firm?

Well, at the LORD's appointed time, I did some random surfing on the web at the appointed website and stumbled upon a job as an “in-house legal advisor for a communications agency.” The advertisement was only posted the day before I chanced upon it.

As they dealt with movies and entertainment, I decided to give it shot and submitted my CV to someone whom I thought I knew from past connections.

The next day, this person called me and the first thing he said was: “do you remember me?”J True enough, it was that same person I worked with in a performance 2 to 3 years ago and the rest is history!

I got the job and started in 2009. I give thanks to God for providing and fulfilling the immediate need – gainful employment, the beginning of a career in my desired industry and a direction in life. With this, I can now commit myself to be more active in church and to build relationships with my fellow brothers and sisters. Alas, a new year, a new season!

Thanks be to God!