Youth Service

I see the youth gathering as a place to provide joy, a sense of belonging, and the motivation to urgently pursue our God-given dreams. To a certain extend, I believe that those are already taking place in the hearts of our youths.


I forgot how long it has been since we started having this small hall for our youth gatherings. But I'm really grateful for this small setting provided by the church. Previously we had to meet in the church santuary - a place with a capacity of 200 people. It can get rather depressing when you look at the number of empty seats. It's different with this hall - it fits the numbers nicely, we have our own sound system with 1 keyboard, 1 guitar, and 1 microphone, and we actually have our very own wall!! Sure, it isn't perfect & the stage area is messy most of the time, but it's a place of our own to fully and freely express ourselves.



To me, having a small hall as a starting point is a very good thing. It tunes our minds to focus on the important things & also to get the small things right first. I think we did alright. We could have done better, way better, that's for sure. But what we have - the victories & the lessons - we'll take to heart and move onto something greater, bigger. To achieve excellence & never settle for mediocrity. It's about time we rise up, it's about time we answer the call, it's about time we fly.



There are intiatives that has to be taken. And one important step is to make extra effort to touch the people at the other side of the curtain. We have to take it to them - the joy, the sense of belonging, and the motivation to urgently pursue God-given dreams.

Emmanuel

I was never the type who would make cards or write small notes & give to people. But May is a pro in that & she's the one who decided that we should give something to my brother to bring back to Australia as a souvenir of his trip back to Malaysia.

And indeed it was a really fruitful trip. It was like the most significant month I've had with him. I remember the intense conversation we had in the car. Saw him play chinese chess with his childhood friend was really a joy. & I'll never forget the expression on his face when he excitedly told us about a musical he wrote. I saw the enthusiasm on his face & then a realisation...

WE CAN DO IT TOGETHER!!

Maybe I should write more about my brother...

A Tribute

This is for my cell group.

Rebecca: Thank you for preparing lovely food for our gatherings. You're a good cook. Thank you for being a friend to Pauline & Ker Xin. Thank you for bringing them into our lives.

Michelle: I really enjoy your smile. You may be quiet among us, but your smile is really loud, and that's a good thing. Like to see you being excited about something.

Chi Wing: Thanks for increasing the entertainment value of our cell group. You're there to entertain the people. You bring extra laughter to the group.

Sabrina: It's great to witness your growth. Press on, God is preparing you. Thank you for bringing your friends & introducing them to us - they are a lot of fun.

Anna: Thank you for being a fun person. I enjoy being in your company. Thank you for being so generous with your smile.

Brian: Thank you for easing this burden. It's easy working with you. Thank you for your height too - many jokes have been created due to that... Haha...

You come to my house for cell meetings, but somehow I'm the one who feels welcomed. Thanks for allowing me into your life. I hope I've done some good. Thanks for laughing at my jokes.

Recent Reflections

Writing a brief for MalaysianLah & also for the remake of Where There's Will, There's Wei isn't easy, but it's good. Putting down the 'what's it all about's would be extremely helpful, considering the amount of time & energy I would invest in my passion for movie-making & video blogging - things I'm quitting my job to focus on.

Of course I understand the spontaneity of it all, how there isn't always a need for righteous justification of our actions or behaviour - we laugh, because it's funny; we cry, because we feel the pain. There isn't always another explanation for our modes of expression apart from 'it feels right', 'it's so fun', or 'because that's the only way I know how'. Michael Jordan didn't have to write a thesis on how a flying basketball player could bring about exhiliration & thrill to those who witnessed his flight - he just flew, and he took our breaths away.

You know that feeling, I'm sure. You felt it before - when you heard the piano solo, then the drum roll accompanied with strings, leading to the chorus of David Tao's Who Do You Love; or when Boyz II Men sang the chorus of End Of The Road acapella... it sounded awesome, it felt right. Some of us we even knew what was coming despite hearing it for the first time, and it felt like we were connected the writers & arrangers of the song. Even though we were not part of the production team, we felt like we're part of that music-loving community. Then some of us start to feel disastified just being part of the audience - and it has come to that point for me in movie-making (actually I feel very strongly about music too, I'm just not convinced that I'm good enough).

But feelings can be all so fragile, spontaneity can be put off in an instance. That's where the writings come in for me. I don't want to be without a direction and purpose more than the "feel good" factor. I've seen too many people merely surviving. I don't want to be that ship, wandering aimlessly on that big bad ocean, going nowhere at all, getting battered & bruised for nothing at all, going for repairs just to carry on... frustrations have to at least be standing in the way of something worth persevering for.

(To be continued)