Praise the Lord!

2nd time blogging today but nevermind.. felt i really wanted to share this. went to church today.. had cellgroup before that. and i tell you.. the Word was awesome!! during cellgroup.. jo talked about praising God.. or His Word rather. God allows bad things to happen to good people because it's only when we go though these tough times that we can mould our character and become a better person.

i believe that God is a good god.. He's more concern about our character than our comfort.. so always give Him the praise that He deserves ALL THE TIME. and i mean ALL!! be it whether you have something to be glad about or when you are facing persecution.

learnt today that these 'valley' moments in our lives can come in 4 ways.. namely, delay, silence, contradicting circumstances and contradicting people. we should praise God when we are faced with difficulties.. don't always complain about your circumstance because it won't help. praising God builds faith... and when you have faith.. God can then deliver you from whatever tough times you are facing.

another thing jo mentioned is that praise is a sarcifice. these words really spoke to me when i heard them. it taught me that God looks at our attitude.. when we have faith and trust in Him.. He'll be pleased. like the bible says.. without faith, it is impossible to please God. learn to endure whatever comes your way.. no matter how hard it is.. because thanksgiving is an important element in faith!!!

John 16:33 says.. These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me you might have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world. so just learn to be more patient with God.. wait upon Him to hear His voice.

then came service!! i could feel God's presence even during the prayer meeting.. so was really expecting a powerful time today.
glad that pst Kong was back.. and safe. hee.. anyway today's message was about how to step into the anointing!! it was just amazing.. really!! pastor talked about the gifts of the Holy Spirit too.. sort of a continuation from previous weeks before we move on to something else. he talked about the arm of salvation, hand of healing, and the finger of deliverance. the sermon was from Mark 3:1-5.. with alot of other references of course.

the story was about the man with the withered hand who was always seen outside the church.. the man was healed because he followed Jesus's instructions to 'step forward' and 'stretch out' his hand. learnt today that we must step forward in faith to enter God's anointing. there's a difference between the anointing and the presence.. God's presence is everywhere.. no doubt about it. but His anointing is where Jesus is.. and that refers to the church!! pastor said something that i really like... 'i'd rather be in the ark than to be drowning in the flood.' although the christians around us may let us down or disappoint us in some ways.. it's always better to stay in God's house than to be in the world. we are imperfect.. so just forgive and forget. :)

anyway, back to the sermon.. the arm, hand and finger are symbolic of God's power. we must have faith to be able to perform God's miracles... have to get out of our comfort zone. that's why we must 'step forward'.. not backward or sideways.. don't be afraid! anointing travels through faith.. so this really reinforces what jo had preached earlier during cellgroup. and 'stretch' youself.. commit to Him. becuase when we put God first.. He will give us the desires of our hearts. so don't worry.. don't have fear. just believe in Him!!

after service.. had dinner with my cellgroup members then went to my parents' shop to help out.. because my mum's foot got injured.. so it's kind of inconvenient for her to move about. while i was there.. i took out my guitar(or rather my sister's) to play because i was bored. my mum wanted me to play jay chou's 'qing tian'.. so i did.. haha. after that.. got a few people in the shop so i kept my guitar. when the people left.. my mum came forward to me and said that my foot wasn't that painful anymore after i played 'qing tian' for her.. i told her it's not because of jay chou!!! but it's God who is healing her.. she was joking with me for a while.. but i kept insisting it's God.. started to share with her about what pastor preached today.. about having faith to be healed. yup.. then she was rather receptive to it!! Thank you Lord!!!!! i was really glad for this chance to share about God's healing power.. praying one day she'll receive Jesus into her heart! Praise God... see.. He IS a good god.. :)

haha... so overall today was a good day. felt really blessed today!! heee.... Jesus, You're the best!!! thanks for such a wonderful day.. :)