YOUTH CAMP 2008

Youth Camp Promo Video

credits: Benjamin Yee

youth camp blog: www.leakout.blogspot.com

rmb to visit to find out more about whats happening in and out before the youth camp!

de connection event is BACK!

i think u get the message from these pics rgt??!!

its PICNIC this time!!!

please come k???look at the pic above, dont they just look sad to u?? :(

and we do not want the flies to come instead...rgt...?

so get ready! get excited!

be in BOTANIC PARK, BUKIT TINGGI

at 3pm-9pm!!!

after picnic-king we'll move to the YAP's family place!!!

(Evelyn, Rachel and David)

so do come and join us

dont be shy, we wont bite :)

but, dont come empty handed yea.

i mean, its not a must for u to bring anything though.

the food and drinks will be provided by de connection team

so i'm gonna see you there k!

-signing off-

a glimpse on..

the food you will get!!!

Sandwiches

Egg

Tuna

Pizza (Domino)

Fried Rice

Pudding

Pisang goreng

Curry puff

Keropok Lekor

Sotong balls

Sausages

Nuggets

Sate

Watermelon

Packet drinks

Salsa dip

yummy, yum, yum. air liurku meleleh-leleh.
saw any of your fav food there? come for the grabs before others fin it up!
then that will be really sad. :(

the power in your words-part5

Boldly Confess God’s Word

Mother used her words to change her world, and you can do the same thing. Maybe you are facing a “hopeless” situation. Don’t give up. God is a miracle-working God. He knows what you’re going through, and He will not let you down. He is a friend that sticks closer than a brother. If you will trust in Him and start speaking words of faith, your circumstances will begin to change.

Of course, we don’t have to be in life-threatening situations to use God’s Word. We can speak God’s Word in our everyday lives. Parents, you ought to speak God’s Word over your children every day before they go to school. Just say, “Father, You promised me in Psalm 91 that You will give Your angels charge over us and that no evil would come near our household. So I thank You that my children are supernaturally protected, and You are guiding them and watching after them. Father, You said that we’re the head and not the tail, and You will surround us with favor. So I thank You that my children are blessed, and they will excel at whatever they put their hands to do.”

Speaking God’s Word over your children can make an enormous difference in their lives. I know my mother prayed over my siblings and me every day before we went to school. She prayed specifically that we’d never break any bones. She raised five healthy very active children. We all played sports and did a lot of crazy things, but to this day, as far as I know, not one of us has ever broken a bone.

Just as it is imperative that we see ourselves as God sees us and think about ourselves as God regards us, it is equally important that we say about ourselves what God says about us. Our words are vital in bringing our dreams to past. It’s not enough to simply see it by faith or in your imagination. You have to begin speaking words of faith over your life. Your words have enormous creative power. The moment you speak something out, you give birth to it. This is a spiritual principle, and it works whether what you are saying is good or bad, positive or negative.

In that regard, many times we are our own worst enemies. We blame everybody and everything else, but the truth is, we are profoundly influenced by what we say about ourselves. Scripture says, “We are snared by the words of our mouth.”

“Nothing good ever happens to me. My dreams never come to pass. I knew I wouldn’t get promoted.” Statements such as these will literally prevent you from moving ahead in life. That’s why you must learn to guard your tongue and speak only faith-filled words over your life. This is one of the most important principles you can ever grab hold of. Simply put, your words can either make you or break you.

God never commanded us to repeatedly verbalize our pain and suffering. He didn’t instruct us to go around discussing our negative situations, airing our “dirty laundry” with all our friends and neighbors. Instead, God told us to speak constantly of His goodness, to speak of His promises in the morning at the breakfast table, in the evenings around the dinner table, at night before bedtime, continually dwelling on the good things of God.

You could experience a new sense of joy in your home, if you’d simply stop talking about the negative things in your life and begin talking about God’s Word.

If you are always talking about your problems, don’t be surprised if you live in perpetual defeat. If you’re in the habit of saying, “Nothing good ever happens to me,” guess what? Nothing good is going to happen to you! You must stop talking about the problem and start talking about the solution. Quit speaking words of defeat, and start speaking words of victory. Don’t use your words to describe your situation; use your words to change your situation.

Every morning, when I get out of bed, I say, “Father, I thank You that I am strong in the Lord and the power of Your might. I am well able to do what You have called me to do.” I quote several other passages of Scripture regarding God’s favor in my life. What am I doing? I am starting off my day on a positive note, aligning my thoughts and words with His.

Set the tone for the entire day as soon as you get out of bed. If you wait until you have read the morning newspaper, you’ll start your day with all sorts of sad, dreary news. Try starting your day with some good news by speaking God’s Word over your life! Don’t wait till you’ve checked the stock report, or you’ll be up one day and down the next. The moment you wake up, begin to give new life to your dreams by speaking words of faith and victory

Understand, avoiding negative talk is not enough. That’s similar to a football team having a good defense but no offense. If your team is constantly playing defense, you stand little chance of scoring. You must get the ball and move it down the field; you must get on the offense. You have to be aggressive.

Similarly, you must start boldly confessing God’s Word, using your words to move forward in life, to bring to life the great things God has in store for you. The Scripture says, “With the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” This same principle is true in other areas. When you believe God’s Word and begin to speak it, mixing it with your faith, you are actually confirming that truth and making it valid in your own life.

If you are facing sickness today, you should confirm God’s Word concerning healing. Say something such as, “Father, I thank You that You promised me in Psalms that I will live and not die and I will declare the works of the Lord.” As you boldly declare it, you are confirming that truth in your own life.

If you are struggling financially, instead of talking about the problem, you need to boldly declare, “Everything I put my hands to prospers and succeeds!”

Friend, when you make those kinds of bold declarations, all heaven comes to attention to back up God’s Word.

God has not given us hundreds of promises simply for us to read and enjoy God has given us His promises so we might boldly declare them to bring us victory, health, hope, and abundant life.

In 1997, Victoria and I had the opportunity to develop the last full power television station available in Houston, channel 55. It was a tremendous opportunity but also an enormous undertaking. All we had was a construction permit, basically a piece of paper giving us the right to build the station. We didn’t have a studio, we didn’t have a transmitter or a tower to put it on; oh, and we had no programming! We were starting totally from scratch. And we had less than a year to get the station on the air or we’d lose the license. We really needed God’s supernatural wisdom to deal with the day-to-day details of building a television station.

I decided to do what my mother did, and every morning when I read my Bible, I wrote down any verse or passage of Scripture that had to do with wisdom or guidance. After a couple of weeks, I had recorded twenty or thirty passages, and every day, before we would leave the house, Victoria and I would read those Scriptures and boldly declare them.

One of my favorite passages was: “For the Lord grants wisdom! His every word is a treasure of knowledge and understanding. He grants good sense to the godly--his saints. He is their shield, protecting them and guarding their pathway. He shows how to distinguish right from wrong, how to make the right decision every time.” We’d say, “Father, we thank You that we have Your supernatural wisdom, and we do have the ability to make the right decision every time. Father, You said the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, so we thank You that You are guiding and directing our steps.” And I cannot tell you how many times during the development of that television station God supernaturally protected us and kept us from making mistakes.

For instance, I was just about to pick up the phone and order an extremely expensive and critical piece of equipment, probably the most important piece of equipment in a television station. Just before I did, a man called me out of the clear blue, and we discussed numerous issues. Toward the end of our conversation, he said something that gave me insight and totally changed the decision I was about to make.

What was happening? God was using that man to help guide us; God was protecting us from making a poor decision, and He was giving us good sense to make the correct decision. God was watching over His Word to perform it.

God wants to do something similar for you, but you can’t be lazy. Search the Scriptures and highlight those that particularly apply to your life situation. Write them down and get in the habit of declaring them.

God has already done everything He’s going to do. The ball is now in your court. If you want success, if you want wisdom, if you want to be prosperous and healthy, you’re going to have to do more than meditate and believe; you must boldly declare words of faith and victory over yourself and your family.

The Power in Your Words-part4

Speaking Life-Changing Words

In 1981, my mother was diagnosed with cancer and given just a few weeks to live. I’ll never forget what a shock that news was to our family. I had never seen my mother sick one day in all my life. She was extremely healthy and active. She loved being outdoors, working in the yard, working in her flowerbeds.

I was away at college when the doctor’s report came. My brother, Paul, called me and said, “Joel, Mother is very, very sick.”
“What do you mean, Paul? Does she have the flu or something like that?”
“No, Joel,” Paul replied. “She’s losing weight. Her skin is yellow, and she’s extremely weak; something is seriously wrong with her.”

Mother was hospitalized for twenty-one days, while the doctors ran test after test. They sent her lab work all over the country, hoping to find some key to help her. Finally, they came back with the dreaded report that she had metastatic cancer of the liver. They called my dad out into the hallway and said, “Pastor, we hate to tell you this, but your wife has only a few weeks to live. Not months, weeks . . .

Medical science had reached the limits of what they could do. The best and brightest doctors in the world had exhausted their efforts, so they basically sent our mom home to die.

We expressed our sincere appreciation to the doctors and hospital staff for their hard work, but we refused to accept their opinions. I’m grateful for doctors, hospitals, medicine, and science, but the medical professionals can present only what their medical charts tell them. Thank God, you and I can appeal to a higher Authority. We can always have another report. Gods report says, “I will restore health to you and heal your wounds.”

We serve a supernatural God. He is not limited to the laws of nature. He can do what human beings cannot do. He can make a way in our lives where it looks as if there is no way. That’s what we prayed that He would do in Mother’s life.

And my mother never gave up. She refused to speak words of defeat. She didn’t complain about how sick or weak she felt, or how awful her life was, or how hopeless her situation looked. She chose to put God’s words in her mind and in her mouth.

She started speaking faith-filled words. She started calling in health and calling in healing. All during the day we’d hear her going through the house speaking aloud, “I will live and not die, and I will declare the works of the Lord.” She was like a walking Bible!

I’d say, “Mother, how are you doing?”

She’d say; “Joel, I’m strong in the Lord and the power of His might.” She pored over her Bible and found about thirty or forty favorite passages of Scripture concerning healing. She wrote them down, and every day, she’d read over them and boldly declare them aloud. We’d see her walking up and down the driveway, saying, “With long life, He satisfies me and shows me His salvation.”

Mother mixed her words with God’s Words, and something powerful began to happen. Her circumstances began to change. Not overnight, but little by little, she began to feel better. She got her appetite back and started gaining weight. Slowly but surely, her strength returned.

What was happening? God was watching over His Word to perform it. God was restoring health to her and healing her of her wounds. A few weeks went by and Mother got a little better. A few months went by, and she was even better. A few years went by, and she just kept on confessing God’s Word. Today, it has been more than twenty years since we received the report that Mother had just a few weeks to live, and as I write these words, Mother is totally free from that cancer, healed by the power of God’s Word!

And she is still confessing God’s Word. She gets up every morning and reviews those same Scriptures on the subject of healing. She still speaks those words of faith, victory, and health over her life. She won’t leave the house until she does it. Beyond that, she loves to remind “Mr. Death” that he has no hold on her life. Every time my mother passes a graveyard, she literally shouts out loud, “With long life He satisfies me and shows me His salvation!” The first time she did that when I was riding in the car with her, I nearly’ jumped out of my seat!

But Mother refuses to give the enemy a foothold.

Do you want to be like her? What are you waiting for?Don't just sit there and hope to be or want to be her. Its time to practice proclaiming God's Promise. NO matter what situation you are in, there is definitely scriptures in the bible on God's promises! Stop reading and start proclaiming with God's Authority!

It is not only in our own life that we need to speak life changing words. We are ought to do the same in the lives of people around us. This is because whether we know it or not, our words do carry weight in people's life.

Ephesians 4:29 says:

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
more to come.stay connected.

Its time for you to look back at your life and ponder about what you have just read.

stay connected.

The Power in Your Words-part3

Guard What You Say

If you’re in a storm today, now more than ever you need to guard what you say and not allow any negative, destructive words to come out of your mouth. Scripture says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue; and you will eat the fruit thereof.” In other words, you create an environment for either good or evil with your words, and you are going to have to live in that world you’ve created. If you’re always murmuring, complaining, and talking about how bad life is treating you, you’re going to live in a pretty miserable, depressing world. You may be tempted to merely use your words to describe negative situations, but God wants us to use our words to change our negative Situations. Don’t talk about the problem, talk about the solution.

The Bible clearly tells us to speak to our mountains. Maybe your mountain is a sickness; perhaps your mountain is a troubled relationship; maybe your mountain is a floundering business. Whatever your mountain is, you must do more than think about it, more than pray about it; you must speak to that obstacle. The Bible says, “Let the weak say I’m strong. Let the oppressed say I’m free. Let the sick say I’m healed. Let the poor say I’m well off.”

Start calling yourself healed, happy, whole, blessed, and prosperous. Stop talking to God about how big your mountains are, and start talking to your mountains about how big your God is!

I love what David did when he faced the giant Goliath. He didn’t murmur and complain and say, “God, why do I always have these huge problems?” No, he changed his whole atmosphere through the words that came out of his mouth. He didn’t dwell on the fact that Goliath was three times his size. Nor did he dwell on the fact that Goliath was a skilled warrior and he was just a shepherd boy. No, he didn’t focus on the magnitude of the obstacle before him. He chose instead to focus on the greatness of his God.

When Goliath saw how young and small David was, he began to laugh. He jeered, “Am I a dog that you’d come at me with a stick?”
But David looked him right in the eyes, and with great determination, he said, “Listen, Goliath, you come against me with a sword and a shield, but I come against you in the name of the Lord God of Israel.”

Now, those are words of faith! Notice, too, that he spoke the words aloud. He didn’t merely think them; he didn’t simply pray them. He spoke directly to the mountain of a man in front of him, and said, “I will defeat you and feed your flesh to the birds of the air this very day” And with God’s help, he did exactly that!

Those are the kinds of words you must learn to speak in your everyday circumstances, and especially in times of crisis and adversity. When you’re facing obstacles in your path, you must boldly say, “Greater is He who is in me than he who is in the world. No weapon formed against me is going to prosper. God always causes me to triumph.” Quit worrying and complaining about the obstacle, and start speaking to it. Quit complaining about poverty and lack and start declaring, “God supplies all of my needs in abundance.” Quit nagging that friend or family member who is not serving God and start declaring, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Quit complaining that nothing good ever happens to you and start declaring, “Everything I touch prospers and succeeds.” We must stop cursing the darkness. Let’s start commanding the light to come.

Friend, there is a miracle in your mouth. If you want to change your world, start by changing your words. When times get tough, don’t give in to murmuring, disputing, and complaining. Speak to those problems. If you’ll learn how to speak the right words and keep the right attitude, God will turn that situation around.

You may be thinking, This sounds too good to be true, Joel. I know it’s true! I saw the power of our thoughts and words turn an impossible situation in my own family into a modern-day medical miracle. Come on, let me tell you about it.

The Power in Your Words by James Lau-part 2

I heard about a doctor who understood the power of words. One prescription he gave to all his patients was for them to say at least once every hour, “I’m getting better and better every day, in every way.” The doctor’s patients experienced amazing results, much better than the patients treated by many of his colleagues.

When you say something often enough, with enthusiasm and passion, before long your subconscious mind begins to act on what you are saying, doing whatever is necessary to bring those thoughts and words to pass. Sadly, most people insist on saying negative things over their lives. They continually denigrate themselves with their own words. They don’t realize that their own words will decimate their confidence and destroy their self-esteem. In fact, if you are struggling with low self-esteem, you need to go overboard in speaking positive, faith-filled words of victory about your life. Get up each morning and look in the mirror and say, “I am valuable. I am loved. God has a great plan for my life. I have favor wherever I go. God’s blessings are chasing me down and overtaking me. Everything I touch prospers and succeeds. I’m excited about my future!” Start speaking those kinds of words, and before long, you will rise to a new level of well-being, success, and victory. There truly is power in your words.

We have to be particularly careful about what we say during times of adversity or hardship, when things aren’t going our way. How you respond in the adversities of life and what you say in the midst of your difficulties will have a great impact on how long you stay in those situations. As a rule, the more positive your thoughts and words, the stronger you will be and the sooner you will get over whatever ails you. Admittedly, when times get tough, our human nature tends to want to complain, to talk about the problem, to tell everybody who will listen how badly life is treating us. But such conversations are self-defeating. To get through a tough time quicker and with better results, we must learn to speak as positively as possible.

Too often, we make the mistake of adopting negative attitudes and complaining.


“I knew my marriage wasn’t going to work out.”
“I don’t think I’ll ever get out of debt.”
“I guess I’ll just have to put up with this health problem for the rest of my life.”


When you start talking like that, you become your own worst enemy. If there’s ever a time you must guard what you say, it’s in times of trouble. When you feel overwhelmed, when you’re stressed out, when everything in the world has come against you, when that left-field fence looms largely over your shoulder, that’s when you need to be on high alert. That’s when you are the most vulnerable and the most likely to slip into a negative attitude, speaking negative comments. Your subconscious mind picks up your words, treats them as true, valid statements, and then sets about trying to fulfill them. When that happens, you have nobody else to blame but yourself; you’ve been undermined by your own thoughts and words.

The Power in Your Words-part 1 (James Lau)

By Joel Osteen

Jose Lima starred as a pitcher for the Houston Astros for several years in the late 1990s. Jose is an outgoing, energetic, likable young ballplayer who usually exudes a positive attitude. But when the Astros built their new ballpark, now known as Minute Maid Park, Jose was upset. The fence in left field was much closer than the fence at the Astrodome. In fact, Minute Maid Park has one of the shortest distances from home plate to the left-field fence of any ballpark in Major League Baseball. The hitters love it, but the short left field makes it tougher on the pitchers, especially when they are working against right-handed batters who tend to hit to left field.
The first time Jose Lima stepped onto the new diamond, he walked out to the pitcher’s mound, and when he looked into the outfield, he immediately noticed the close proximity of that left-field fence. “I’ll never be able to pitch in here,” he said.
The next season, despite the enthusiasm of the fans and the excitement of playing in that brand-new ballpark, Jose had the worst year of his career. He plummeted from being a twenty-game winner to being a sixteen-game loser in back-to-back seasons. Never in the history of the Astros franchise had any pitcher experienced such a pronounced negative turnaround.

Self-Fulfilling Prophecies
What happened to Jose? The same thing that happens to many of us every day--we get what we say. Our words become self-fulfilling prophecies. If you allow your thoughts to defeat you and then give birth to negative ideas through your words, your actions will follow suit. That’s why we need to be extremely careful about what we think and especially careful about what we say. Our words have tremendous power, and whether we want to or not, we will give life to what we’re saying, either good or bad.
Sadly, many people are living discouraged lives because of their words. They say things such as:


• “Nothing good ever happens to me.”
• “I’ll never be successful.”
• “I don’t have what it takes. I can’t do it.”
• “I’ll never get out of this mess.


Some people even call themselves names! “What an idiot! You never can do anything right.” They don’t realize it, but their own words are paving the way for failure.
Words are similar to seeds. By speaking them aloud, they are planted in our subconscious minds, and they take on a life of their own; they take root, grow, and produce fruit of the same kind. If we speak positive words, our lives will move in that direction. Similarly, negative words will produce poor results. We can’t speak words of defeat and failure yet expect to live in victory. We will reap exactly what we sow.

The Bible compares the tongue to the rudder of a huge ship. Although that rudder is small, it controls the direction of the entire ship, and, in a similar manner, your tongue will control the direction of your life. If you habitually speak words of failure, you are going to move in the direction of a defeated, discouraged life. If your conversation regularly includes phrases such as “I can’t. I’m not able to. I don’t have what it takes,” or other negative comments, you are setting yourself up for defeat. Those negative words will keep you from being the person God wants you to be.

stay tune for more!!!

ATTENTION!!!

SEPTEMBERIANS BABIES WILL BE UP AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!!!
>TECHNICAL PROBLEM<
SO DONT BE SAD SEPTEMBERIANS BABIES WE DID NOT FORGET YOU!!!

Words can Heal and Words can Harm

Words are very important. Words can heal and words can harm. Words can hurt grievously and for a long time. The tongue can bless and the tongue can curse. It is very important for us to control our words and tame our tongue when we are angry. Many times, when we are angry we say the most atrocious things. We forget ourselves and become indifferent to what we say. We blast the other person without mercy, although we may not mean those words. But words once spoken cannot be taken back and it takes a long time to forgive and forget. We have to exercise self-control. Many couples are particularly prone to such outbursts when they get mad. But it is not an easy thing to control our tongue when we are provoked, boiled over with anger or have outburst of wrath. It is at such time that we have to learn to hold our tongue and to remain silent. If we can’t tame our tongue, we have to take a break or go for a walk to cool off. It is much easier to control the words before the blow-up than during the explosion.


Uncontrollable words spoken in anger can have devastating effect. Angry words, that are used unthinkingly, such as “I don’t care,” ”I can’t be bothered,” “I don’t need you,” or “you can go to hell” cause pain and feelings of rejection. They give rise to insecurity. The unmeant and foolish words contain full of deadly poison and can play havoc in the mind. The unruly words get churned over for hours on end and create their worst mischief in a difficult relationship. It can take a very long time to forgive what was said. Let us learn to turn away from angry words before they leave our mouth and try to say healing words instead. Father Henri Nouwen said, “It is so important to choose our words wisely. When we are boiling with anger and eager to throw bitter words at our opponents, it is better to remain silent. Words spoken in rage will make reconciliation very hard. Choosing life and not death, blessings and not curses, often starts by choosing to remain silent or choosing carefully the words that open the way to healing.” (“Bread for the Journey,” Sept 5)

We must also be very careful that in our anger we do not label our children with ugly names such as fat, stupid, snake, pig, moron, ‘kay-poh’(busy-body), useless, good for nothing. Such negative words can do harm to them for years to come! Henri Nouwen said, “When we say to someone, ‘You are an ugly, useless, despicable person,’ we might have ruined the possibility for a relationship with that person for life. Words can continue to do harm for many years.” (“Bread for the Journey,” Sept 5) Indeed, we do not want to spoil our relationship with our own precious children. We must always use words to build them up not words to knock them down. Be an encourager not a critic. They have enough people criticizing them but far too few approving and affirming them. So to help our children to fulfill their highest potential we should be their greatest ENCOURAGER. Encourage. Encourage. Encourage on every occasion.

Paul advises us not to speak harmful words but to use helpful words, “Do not use harmful words, but only helpful words, the kind that build up and provide what is needed, so that what you say will do good to those who hear you.” (Ephesians 4:29 TEV) Also, don’t utter vulgar or obscene words, “Nor is it fitting for you to use language which is obscene, profane, or vulgar.” (Ephesians 5:4 TEV) And no more immoral talks, jokes or gossips “Since you are God’s people, it is not right that any matters of sexual immorality or indecency or greed should even be mentioned among you...You may be sure that no one who is immoral, indecent, or greedy (for greed is a form of idolatry) will ever receive a share in the Kingdom of Christ and of God.”(Ephesians 5:3,5 TEV) Paul warns us not to quarrel so we are to “Remind our people of this, and give them a solemn warning in God’s presence not to fight with words. It does no good, but only ruins the people who listen...Keep away from profane and foolish discussions, which only drive people further away from God. Such teaching is like an open sore that eats away the flesh.”(2 Timothy 2:14,16-17 TEV) He reiterates that we should “keep away from foolish and ignorant arguments; you know that they end up in quarrels. As the Lord’s servant, you must not quarrel. You must be kind toward all, a good and patient teacher, who is gentle as you correct your opponents, for it may be that God will give them the opportunity to repent and come to know the truth. And then they will come to their senses and escape the trap of the Devil, who had caught them and made them obey his will.”(2 Timothy 2:22-26 TEV)

It is vitally important that we exercise our choice to speak helpful words wherever we are, particularly at home. As Henri Nouwen said, “Words can bring consolation, comfort, encouragement, and hope. Words can take away fear, isolation, shame, and guilt. Words can reconcile, unite, forgive, and heal. Words can bring peace and joy, inner freedom and deep gratitude. Words, in short, can carry love on their wings. A word of love can be one of the greatest acts of love.” (“Bread for the Journey,” June 22) When we choose to speak words of care, words of encouragement, words of praise, words of love, words of admiration, positive words---they uplift and give meaning to our lives. Everyday we need to give and receive words of encouragement, hope and joy. We then create an environment that is pleasant to be in and that gives us the confidence and courage to cope with our stressful life here and now. Henri Nouwen said, “When we say to our parents, children, or friends, ‘I love you very much’ or ‘I care for you’ or ‘I think of you often’ or ‘You are my great gift,’ we choose to give life.

"It is not always easy to express our love directly in words. But whenever we do, we discover we have offered a blessing that will be long remembered. When a son can say to his father, ‘Dad, I love you,’ and when a mother can say to her daughter, ‘Child, I love you,’ a whole new blessed place can be opened up, a space where it is good to dwell. Indeed, words have the power to create life.” (“Bread for the Journey,” Sept 6)

Often, we want to hear words such as, “’I’ve been thinking of you today,’ or ‘I missed you,’ or ‘I wish you were here,’ or ‘I really love you.’ It is not always easy to say these words, but such words can deepen our bonds with one another.

"Telling someone ‘I love you’ in whatever way is always delivering good news. Nobody will respond by saying, ‘Well, I know that already, you don’t have to say it again!’ Words of love and affirmation are like bread. We need them each day, over and over. They keep us alive inside.” (“Bread for the Journey,” Feb 12) “When we say, ‘I love you,’ and say it from the heart, we can give another person new life, new hope, new courage. When we say, ‘I hate you,’ we can destroy another person. Let’s watch our words." (“Bread for the Journey,” Feb 11)

At the same time, we must be careful that we are sincere in our words because if we say, ‘I love you,’ without meaning it, then such words do more harm than good. But if these same words are spoken from the heart, they create new life. They give joy. They bring happiness. We have to make sure that our words are rooted from our heart.

To dwell in peace and joy, we have to learn from Jesus. As Henri Nouwen said, ”The words of Jesus can keep us erect and confident in the midst of the turmoil of the end-time. They can support us, encourage us, and give us life even when everything around us speaks of death. Jesus’ words are food for eternal life. They do much more than give us ideas and inspiration. They lead us into the eternal life while we are still being clothed in mortal flesh.

" When we keep close to the word of Jesus, reflecting on it, ‘chewing’ on it, eating it as food for the soul, we will enter even more deeply into the everlasting love of God.” (“Bread for the Journey,” Sept 20) So it is vitally essential for us to read the Bible, as, “Spiritual reading is food for our souls. As we slowly let the words of the Bible or a good spiritual book enter into our minds and descend into our hearts, we become different people. The Word gradually becomes flesh in us and transforms our whole being. Thus spiritual reading is a continuing incarnation of the divine Word within us. In and through Jesus, the Christ, God became flesh long ago. In and through our reading of God’s Word and our reflection on it, God becomes flesh in us now and makes us into living Christs for today.

" Let’s keep reading God’s Word with love and great reverence.” (“Bread for the Journey,” April 16)

Since love is proved by works and not words alone, “What we live is more important than what we say, because the right way of living always leads to the right way of speaking. When we forgive our neighbours from our hearts, our hearts will speak forgiving words. When we are grateful, we will speak grateful words, and when we are hopeful and joyful, we will speak hopeful and joyful words.

"When our words come too soon and we are not yet living what we are saying, we easily give double messages. Giving double messages--one with our words and another with our actions--makes us hypocrites. May our lives give us the right words, and may our words lead us to the right lives.” (“Bread for the Journey,” June 20)

Should we, then, keep quiet and not speak at all if we cannot live by what we say? No, said Henri Nouwen, “Can we only speak when we are fully living what we are saying? If all our words had to cover all our actions, we would be doomed to permanent silence! Sometimes we are called to proclaim God’s love even when we are not yet fully able to live it. Does that mean we are hypocrites? Only when our own words no longer call us to conversion. Nobody completely lives up to his or her own ideals and visions. But by proclaiming our ideals and visions with conviction and great humility, we may gradually grow into the truth we speak. As long as we know that our lives always speak louder that our words, we can trust that our words will remain humble. (“Bread for the Journey,” June 21)

Finally, we need to remind ourselves that all of us have a responsibility to share and pass on our unique experiences in life to our children and others by telling our stories, verbally or if possible, in writing. Henri Nouwen said “One of the arguments we often use for not writing is this: ‘I have nothing original to say. Whatever I might say someone else has already said it, and better than I will ever be able to.’ This, however, is not a good argument for not writing. Each human being is unique and original, and nobody has lived what we have lived. Furthermore, what we have lived, we have lived not just for ourselves but for others as well. Writing can be a creative and invigorating way to make our lives available to ourselves and to others.

"We have to trust that our stories deserve to be told. We may discover that the better we tell our stories the better we will want to live them.” (“Bread for the Journey,” April 29) Writing also helps us to touch base and clarify our thoughts for us to live our life more fully. ”Writing can help us to concentrate, to get in touch with the deepest stirrings of our hearts, to clarify our minds, to process confusing emotions, to reflect on our experiences, to give artistic expression to what we are living, and to store significant events in our memories. Writing can also be good for others who might read what we write.

"Quite often a difficult, painful, or frustrating day can be ‘redeemed’ by writing about it. By writing we can claim what we have lived and thus integrate it more fully into our journeys. Then writing can become lifesaving for us and sometimes for others too.” (“Bread for the Journey,” April 27)

by James Lau

*one of our readers request on simple writings. So hope you like this *smiles*

to all readers, hope you will gain something from reading this post and practice it in your daily life. With this, that you may shine your light to all that surrounds you.

May the good Lord bless all of you and have a great week ahead of you!
be exicited for what God has planned just for each an everyone of you!