Small Sin = Medium Sin = Big Sin = Sin

You know in this world, we can be very very comparative about a lot of things. And extremely negotiable too. Especially when we want a quick getaway, a fast deal, a "better" solution. All these are? Excuses. Merely. And then there are things we seem to take so seriously, we tend to think its no escape at all. Face the music. And go down in a blaze of.......errr........shame?

You know when people say "Its just a small matter. Nothing to worry. We can figure it out."

Or when others go, "This is a disaster!!!! Im dead!!! Oh God help me......"

Or this , "Its impossible. I cannot possibly forgive that person. He just did a bad thing. He deserves hell."

We people just love to cut shortcuts and curse people dont we?

I just got news from Australia News Online that Pastor Mike Gugliemucci, former bassist for Planetshakers, and battling 2 years with terminal cancer........has lied about his condition. He claimed to have been diagnosed with cancer 2 years ago. For those of us who loved Mike so much, those who put so much prayer and hope. Those who believed in him. Those who loved him. Now it seems like a huge betrayal rite?

How and why did he do such a thing? He lied to the world. He lied to his family. He lied to the church. And he , if i may put it this way, misused God's Word.

Thats wat the general people will say. Agree? I was at first in a state of shock and disbilief. But i had my reservations.

Yes, i posted a video on him in my blog earlier. He performed the song "Healer" with Hillsongs. He was seen with the oxygen mask and tank. He has lost hair. All part of the lie. I was those caught offguard. How could a pastor do this? His credentials and credibility is now a big fat zero. And he gave us so much hope.....

Can we ever trust him again? Love him? Support him? Hate him? Curse him? He was one of the best of Planetshakers and was once the most on fire for God....so it seemed.

And he did this big fraud. He sinned. To many of us his sin was HUGE rite? Cheating the world of its money for his reputation. And compared to those little kids or any of us tat just told a "white lie" to our frends, parents, boss and to God. So those are small small sins. Nothing much rite? Compare to liars and murderers and sex addicts.

But you know wat? In Gods dictionary.......sin is sin. No big or small. U sin means U sin. No escape. You cannot possibly compare sin. Because it is already said in the bible, as long you CONTRADICT anything God says.......it is sin.

God ask u to love your parents and your neighbours as yourself.......but u didnt. You just sinned. God said if you look at a person with lustful thoughts (even the tiniest bit) .....you have sinned. And im sure u just did a few months ago. God says you shall forgive others. But u didnt. You just sinned.

If we were to judge Mike for sinning ...... look at yourself first. Are you in ANY position to judge others? Coz if you want to judge others, you have to be 100% free of any sin to do that. U have to be 101% sure you are by NO MEANS accountable for ANYTHING you have said done or thought in your whole entire life to first judge others. Can you give me any guarentee at all.......or any proof at all.......that ANY of you have a clean sheet of paper on your resume since the day you came to earth. I can 100% tell you NONE of us have that. Not even me. Not even the Prime Minister. Not even Mike. Not even all the pastors and Christians and other 6.5 billion people on thie earth. Why? We all have sinned......one way or another. Just like Mike. If you can tell me you have never sinned, you shud be in heaven by now.

So whats the point of judging others? You dont gain anything at all.

God said in the bible, "If you jugded others, God will judge you in return by his own wrath." If you dont God's grace be upon you then. So dare we judge others while there is Someone higher who can eternally wipe us from the Book of Life?

First remove the plank from your own eye before you remove the speck of dust from others. Hypocrites!

But you want to know the best part of it all?

Jesus Christ died for your sins and mine. And because He did that, God can forgive all our sins IF we confess and tell Him as it is. No hiding no two face. The fact the Mike even admitted......shows he still had an ounce of courage and im sure he seeks forgiveness. For even God will forgive him. Why not we? It is more blessed to forgive coz God even forgave you.

As fellow bro's n sis's in Christ, we are one Body. We are one Spirit and in one unity. We are here to edify and to love. To care for the sick. To save the lost. And to guide the misguided. Dont you think thats our MAIN purpose on earth? Coz if we didnt do it, who will?

Lets just pray for Mike and his family in this time of extreme need of Gods favour and mercy. We are all in the same prison as i said. None of us can bail each other out. Only God.

To Mike : Still.........a many thanks to you. God Bless You always.

Be OK

When you have troubles in your heart.......

When you have a mountain to climb........

When you have the world hating you.......

When you are at the mercy of others........

When you have no road in sight.......

When you are in pain and fear........

When you have sinned and done wrong......

When you have nothing else to hold on........

When you are helpless...........

When you are divided........

When you are torn apart........

When you are on your knees.........

When you cant take another ounce of this world.......

When you cry.........

When you fall.........








You will be OK










In Gods arms

Think this....

Almost all the people say that "God only helps those who help themselves". Note : whether the word "only" is in there or not im not too sure.

And its a normal thing to hear "Depend on yourself. Believe in yourself. Trust yourself."



I got better answers which i know is much much better than those above......

God helps the helpless. He died for sinners, the ungodly :

"For You have been a defense for the helpless, a defense for the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat..."Isaiah 25:4

"For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly." Romans 5:6

"Ask and you shall receive, seek and you will find, knock and it will be opened to you. "Matthew 7:7

"And those who know Your name put their trust in You, for You, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You." Psalm 9:10

"In You our fathers trusted; they trusted, and You delivered them. To You they cried and were rescued; in You they trusted and were not put to shame." Psalm 22 : 4-5

Thus says the Lord:
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man
and makes flesh his strength,
whose heart turns away from the Lord.
He is like a shrub in the desert,
and shall not see any good come.
He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness,
in an uninhabited salt land.

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,
whose trust is the Lord.
He is like a tree planted by water,
that sends out its roots by the stream,
and does not fear when heat comes,
for its leaves remain green,
and is not anxious in the year of drought,
for it does not cease to bear fruit.”

—Jeremiah 17:5-8

The Lord is on my side; I will not fear.
What can man do to me?
The Lord is on my side as my helper;
I shall look in triumph on those who hate me.

It is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in man.
It is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in princes.

—Psalm 118:6-9

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.

—Proverbs 3:5-6

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”

For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler
and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his pinions,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
You will not fear the terror of the night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.

A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
You will only look with your eyes
and see the recompense of the wicked.

Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place—
the Most High, who is my refuge—
no evil shall be allowed to befall you,
no plague come near your tent.

For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways.
On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.
You will tread on the lion and the adder;
the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.

“Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him;
I will protect him, because he knows my name.
When he calls to me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and honor him.
With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”

—Psalm 91

So who you going to trust MORE? Yourself, as imperfect as any other thing on this earth, man who have a cunning heart, OR Jesus Christ who has defeated death, defeated the devil and raised the dead? You might wana think again who u are trusting.......since u yourself cant even guarantee tomorrow's heart beat or your own life.

Btw.......God helps those who help themselves was a phrase made by Benjamin Franklin. No where in the Bible does it ever say this. Why? Coz simply.....God is that loving. And He knows we can never help ourselves totally 100%. Since we are imperfect. Therefore we always will be needing Him everyday. See how important God is now?

Think again.......

Levi's Live Unbuttoned 501 Musician of The Year 2008

Hmm this was an interesting event for me to attend as it was for my good frend Faith Ding.

She apparently entered this song writing contest organised and sponsored by Levi's jeans Co. And of the whole country's contestants, Faith entered the final 4. Which im proud of her.......and for Zhang Song (since she's his).

Event was held at Ruums Bar n Club , KL. Just along Jalan Sultan Ismail.....just a lil further after Hard Rock cafe. I went on basis tat Faith didnt know the directions and also just coz she invited me and i get FREEEEE ticket in. :)

Went there for sound check at abt 4pm and its the first time i walk into a bar and club.......though empty coz general clubbers and pub goers are "nocturnal" if i may phrase it tat way. I got a preview of Faiths song and the other 3 contestant's, Ryo, Ezra and Ken. Ezra is a bubbly 17yr old btw.

So once done went to Sg Wang to kill time and came back at 7pm. Didnt know tat many of my church mates came to support her too.......btw Faith is my churchmate as well. So 15 of us roughly in a bar on a Saturday nite. Seems like we're with the in crowd. Event started at 8.30 right away with the songs written by all finalist being sung out. Ken n Ezra sang their songs....while Faiths n Ryos were sung by local artists. I must say all are equally good. And theres potential serious song writers in out midst. Then after tat some local performances from ICOM, Hujan, IpohMali Kid and The LapSap DJ's. All said n done.......results (60% SMS 40% judges). ANd the winner is Ken , second Faith, 3rd Ezra and 4th Ryo. No doubt getting first runner up is a good achievement. And Faith was really in the lime light tonite along side the others. Interviews by Astro HITZ and Astro Amili were showing this event is happening.

Photo shoots. Artists everywhere. Cool guys and cool babes. Well.........wat u expect in a bar/club in the middle of KL? Everyone's lighting up and drinking to a good Saturday nite of fun. Not for me though. Clubbing n pub going is just not for me.

Friends are for me.

Which is why i rather ditch all the hot, smoking ladies in the pub and clubs. No offense ladies. :)

Congrats Faith on your win. You did us proud and u did God proud above all.

Gob Bwessy Yew.

Nervous

Me feeling nervous about next weeks Intertstate Ride. Probably part excitement as well. Got to prepare my stuff and get more items necessary. And i just read the updated news letter of PCC. Darn there are so much things to keep in check.

All for the sake of 3 days riding 400+ km from Kajang - Kuantan.

We are all in Prison

This world is a prison. Why? No one can escape far beyond the confines of this place. (Exempt the astronauts coz its not a daily affair). And you can forget about Prison Break.

So wat happens in prison stays in prison. All the grief and roller coaster rides of life. And what better to do than to be looking for a way out. I mean, all prisoners want a way out right? They are desperate to be released. FREE. No one is dumb enough to be cooped in prison their whole lives. And because we are in prison, no one in here can ever bail us out. Coz simply no one can ever get out to get the money to bail us in the first place. No one has ever been out before to come back to bail us. No one has the keys. We are that helpless on earth.

Its like we are on Alcatraz. Inescapable.

So in this prison we kill each other. We kill ourselves. We do every darn thing we can to get beyond the iron bars. Yet we still cant. As mere mortals we can never. We wake up everyday looking forward to yet another routine in prison. You know life in prison is routine, mundane, and above all, not FREE. Thats sad by the way. So sad. The only people who would enjoy this life are probably deranged or SOT.

And even if someone tries to be a hero and say "I will get us all out of here. I will die trying for you all. I will DIE for you." Now thats very kind and touching of him. But remember we aint Superman. If we try on our own we get into a huge pile of shit by trying. Worst still....someone dies a wasted death coz it doesnt get us out. When was the last time a prisoner said "I will die for you all so we can be free", ever succeeded?


When he dies, we are still in prison. WAT a bloody waste of good resource. He could have been the good toilet cleaner for all we know.

Are we that destined to be here forever?

NO.

There is ONE WAY.


There was somebody who actually DID die for us. He DID grab the prison keys miraculously. He DID get to bail us out. He DID comeback and say , "Im back to get you guys. Lets go!".

But i just said no one can do it. Yes, no one IN THE PRISON. But this man wasnt in the prison in the beginning. He was outside. He came from afar. Saw us in here rotting like dead fishes. Yet, He came in. He sat with us. He gave us His plan for salvation. He told of The Way, The Truth and The Life that can be only found through Him. But He would DIE in the process of saving us from this wretched place. But He said He will return. And open the gates for us. He did it not to show he was Harry Houdini. He just simply cared not to see us rot and die another wasted death. He died. 3 days later He came back from the dead. With good news in hand.

He carried out the perfect Plan that no one suspected it would work so perfectly, a win-win situation. He finally has bailed us! Isnt that good news?

We have been paid for. We have been redeemed in the name of Freedom. The work has been done for us. The door has been opened, wide. And I have walked out, finally. And i have tasted freedom. If you ask me how it feels, even my words cannot possibly replace what im feeling. Words dont equal feeling. I can only ask u to step out and experience for yourselves what i experience.


So do you want to stay in prison? Come one man, we arent slaves forever.

Do you want to taste freedom?

The choice is yours.

By the way, that man was none other than Jesus Christ.

Thank you coz You have set me free.......

.......forever.

Worlds Apart

"Worlds Apart"

I am the only one to blame for this
Somehow it all ends up the same
Soaring on the wings of selfish pride
I flew too high and like Icarus I collide
With a world I try so hard to leave behind
To rid myself of all but love
to give and die

To turn away and not become
Another nail to pierce the skin of one who loves
more deeply than the oceans,
more abundant than the tears
Of a world embracing every heartache

Can I be the one to sacrifice
Or grip the spear and watch the blood and water flow

To love You - take my world apart
To need You - I am on my knees
To love You - take my world apart
To need You - broken on my knees

All said and done I stand alone
Amongst remains of a life I should not own
It takes all I am to believe
In the mercy that covers me

Did You really have to die for me?
All I am for all You are
Because what I need and what I believe are worlds apart

I look beyond the empty cross
forgetting what my life has cost
and wipe away the crimson stains
and dull the nails that still remain

More and more I need You now,
I owe you more each passing hour
the battle between grace and pride

I gave up not so long ago
So steal my heart and take the pain
and wash the feet and cleanse my pride
take the selfish, take the weak,
and all the things I cannot hide
take the beauty, take my tears
the sin-soaked heart and make it Yours
take my world all apart
take it now, take it now

And serve the ones that I despise
speak the words I can't deny
watch the world I used to love
fall to dust and thrown away

I look beyond the empty cross
forgetting what my life has cost
so wipe away the crimson stains
and dull the nails that still remain
so steal my heart and take the pain

Take the selfish, take the weak
and all the things I cannot hide
take the beauty, take my tears
take my world apart, take my world apart
I pray, I pray, I pray

take my world apart

~Jars of Clay~