Today, its going to be a wild time because…
This Friday, we are multiplying our HopeKids Care Group
This Saturday, its Parenting with Confidence facilitation
This Sunday, its HopeKids LIVE! Unplugged

But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you - Luke 6:27 (NIV)

When God called us to love our enemies when the natural response is to hate, He is basically calling us to relate to everything, good or bad. If you think its wrong to relate to everything, then stop thinking of needing to fall in love (emotionally) with them. You just need to love (agape) them and define a relationship with them so that you have a shot at loving them.

Keys to relate to everything

1) Understand what it is.
2) Learn what sort of relationship you should have with it.
3) Discover how to pray for it.
4) Do whatever necessary in response to it.
5) Love (emotionally) what is good but don’t embrace everything.
6) Love (agape) it and do what is good.

Someone asked me why I brought my family to watch Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince last week. It’s because 1) It’s part of my wife’s company’s family day. 2) its opportunity to educate what is witchcraft and charms and fairies, stuff we don’t normally talk about 3) its entertainment and appreciate of the artistic vision and creation of the producers. 4) It’s basically learning to relate with it but not necessary embrace it.

I don’t hate my enemies. If there’s to be hate, the verse suggest that they should hate me. I may not accept the value of what it represent but I have a relationship with it. We applause them for all the good that they intend and we learn from them. I hope one day they will learn from us because of what or who they see in us.

Our study trip to DaVinci the Genius exhibition at the Science Centre, opened our eyes to the genius of a man that has been given great ability to think, write, draw and create.  Yes I got a day chop on my wrist to re-enter the exhibit, so I spent almost the whole day with Mona Lisa, the Last Supper, the Virtuvian Man and da Vinci’s many work of inventions.

It was a day of rest and reconnecting to truth of these Words.

Genesis 1:27 ” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

Psalms 139:14 “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

Philippians 4:13 “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.

John 14:12 ” I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these…”

Sigmund Freud described da Vinci like this “Leonardo da Vinci was like a man who awoke too early in the darkness, while the others were all still asleep”.
Leonardo da Vinci himself observed the following about the world ” There are 3 classes of people in the world, Those who see, those who see when shown and those who do not see ”

How can we do the type of work Leonardo da Vinci do did? I think it is by observation. Everything that da Vinci did was without first careful study and observation.  Yes, seeing the potential starts the realisation of it. O Sleepers awake to see the great things of God. What we cannot see.. should be why we cannot do great work when we abide to the Holy Spirit.

Dinner was a catch up with a brother whom I haven’t met for a while. He shared about how he is in his own way  fulfilling his potential in the body of Christ.  Reached home late, inspired to do some touch up on an incomplete painting I’ve been working on before I retired from a great day with art, artistes and great inspiration.

When God created the world, he created something out of nothing. And since then he’s been continually creating and developing.

One day the world will be gone and becomes nothing again. What remains of created things are the souls and spirit of man. Knowing that created things will be gone except ourselves, it is so important to keep co-creating and developing with God. Create something out of nothing so that it’ll bless the souls of man. But know everything created is only good for a while. But… also know that a short moment for blessing others affects them for eternity.

So make it a point to do 3 things today.
1) Create something
2) Recreate something already created
3) Use them to lead people towards greatness

..and why not also have 3 things to stop doing?
1) Stop being scared
2) Stop avoiding reality
3) Stop managing people that you’ll know will achieve mediocrity at best

HopeKids Orientation 101

Sunday 26 July 2009
Holiday Inn Parkview
Orchid Room
12:15pm-1:00pm

Open for those who are new to HopeKids happening today

Will be going off to do secret things….. err having told you this, it wouldn’t be a secret would it? errrrghhh, now I always have problem with how to do this here.

Looking at my calendar, I’m staring a a whole list of things to do that I cannot help but assess if I am at a fitness level to be at the top of my game.

I strayed a bit …

I start to blame myself for not getting on a stricter fitness regime.
I also feel guilty for having KFC with a brother for lunch.
Looking at the mirror, I feel lousy having grey hair and not as young as I once was.

While preparing for the kids sermon a while ago, I discovered from the bilbe..
It is okay to be old,  it is only not okay to be old and have no wisdom (Proverbs 16:25)
It is also okay to be young,  it is only not okay to be young and stupid (Job 32:9)

It is not about being young or old. Neither is it about having enough energy or not. It is about being wise and not stupid.

For now, I think it’s pretty wise and not stupid to go for a run tomorrow morning. It is also true to start eating healthier food, drink more water and stop thinking about silly things like old age and wanting to be young again.

I already had my mid life crisis a few years ago and its now time to live!

While reading that Nancy Ortberg’s book about rubberband leadership, I learn very profoundly that people change the most under one of 2 circumstances;

When they are
1) on a Quest or
2) in Crisis

As a leader of change, we need to
1) help people to achieve their God given destiny.
2) be with people to go through their difficulties.

This is a gem of lesson in the book.

Other great stuff for me are…

- Leaders only know around 50% of things.
As a leader bring more question to a meeting than answers.

- Curiousity is the cure for fear.
Develop curiousity in every problematic situation.

- Leadership is very difficult.
Stop being surprised when it gets tough so that we can get on with real leading.

Was looking through photographs and this picture of May Ann and Mei Si with their grand aunt in Sydney’s Luna Park always make me smile. The smile is also with the reminder;

“There’s no better time than today to stand up and make what we do count”

Let’s start a revolution, let’s make the impact, let’s Ripple Start! Not tomorrow, not yesterday but today, right now where we are.

My CD Player died so I finally gave the turntable the space it deserves. It replaces the spot where my CD player sits and now becomes the centre piece in the living room. With old vinyl records going for as low as $2 per record, I can be transported back to my growing up years so easily.

Today is the day I’m placing things (besides the turntable) where its suppose to be in my life. Some weekly clean up outside and some inside makes a whole lot of difference to how effective we can be. Listening to a great sermon on ‘Being refreshed’, doing some errands, writing, sending my helper to the dentist and still have time to work on work to be done in the next few months, the Lord is keeping me fresh for his purpose.

*Check out why vinyl is making a comback