Take The World But Give Me Jesus
Came across this hymn among the CDs I bought during the Gladsounds sale. It is written by Fanny J Crosby, the famous blind hymn writer in the 19th century. Yes, only Jesus can satisfy the longing in my heart and soul!
Take the world, but give me Jesus — all its joys are but a name,
But His love abideth ever, through eternal years the same.
Oh, the height and depth of mercy! Oh, the length and breath of love! Oh, the fullness of redemption –pledge of endless life above.
Take the world, but give me Jesus, in His cross my trust shall be, Till with clearer, brighter vision, face to face my Lord I see.
Uncategorized | Comment (0)8 Ways to Encourage Your Pastor
Since October is the Minister Appreciation Month (well, at least in the States), I m gonna post this article in my blog. So, remember to do at least one nice thing to your church pastor this month 
Simple acts that feed a shepherd.
Sometimes pastors are the loneliest people in the church. Often their hours are long, the pay minimal, the criticism considerable and constant. Feelings of disappointment, discouragement, and defeat may begin to plague the best of them.
Paul’s admonition to "serve one another in love" (Gal. 5:13 ) should encourage us to remember our shepherds. Here are eight ways to make their lives better.
1. Cut the criticism
Presbyterian minister Fred Rogers, creator and host of television’s "Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood," recently gave an address describing the time he was a student at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and attended a different church each Sunday in order to hear a variety of preachers.
One Sunday he was treated to "the most poorly crafted sermon (he) had ever heard." But when he turned to the friend who had accompanied him, he found her in tears.
"It was exactly what I needed to hear," she told Rogers.
"That’s when I realized," he told his audience, "that the space between someone doing the best he or she can and someone in need is holy ground. The Holy Spirit had transformed that feeble sermon for her—and as it turned out, for me too."
Unlike most workers who are evaluated once or twice a year, clergy are often critiqued weekly after each worship service. It’s not unusual to hear people say "the music was poor," "the hymn selection was awful," or "the sermon was boring." We would do well to remember that most spiritual leaders work hard to make worship a unique celebration each week.
2. Pray regularly
Ask God to shower your pastor with an abundance of love, hope, joy, faith, peace, power, wisdom, and courage. Pray for your spiritual leader’s maturity and growth in the faith. As you pray keep in mind this wisdom from German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe: "If you treat a person as he is, he will stay as he is; but if you treat him as if he were what he ought to be, he will become what he ought to be and could be."
3. Express appreciation in writing
A spoken compliment is always welcome, but a written one can be read over and over again for years. So, when you hear or see something you like from your minister, write an appreciative note.
4. Use your skills to bless
Are you proficient with computers? Help your pastor master the church’s new computer. Are you a mechanic? Offer to service the car free of charge or at a reduced fee.
One pastor I know recalls: "I was pastoring my first church—a small congregation with limited resources. While there, I developed a series of dental problems and could not afford treatment. What a joy it was when a dentist in the church offered to treat me for free. Correcting my dental problem involved nearly a dozen visits. He treated me carefully and cheerfully each time. I have thought of that dentist many times since then and the memories of his kindness continue to bless my life."
5. Squelch gossip
If you hear a negative comment, respond with a positive one. If misinformation is being spread, correct it with the accurate information. Or, if people are gossiping, just walk away. Remember the Bible soundly condemns gossip and careless speech. James 1:26 says, "If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless." And Psalm 34:13 reads, "Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies."
6. Offer to meet a need
Some people make their spiritual leaders defensive and angry by saying, "You need to … " That approach is seldom welcome and almost always counterproductive. If you see a need, approach your spiritual leader by saying, "I’d like to help by … " If you see an area that can be improved, take responsibility for working on it.
Be an active participant in your church. Get involved by teaching a class, leading a workshop, singing in the choir, feeding the hungry. Ask your spiritual leader where and how you can employ your gifts.
7. Be openly responsive
Nothing so animates and excites a spiritual leader as seeing people respond to the preaching and teaching. Imagine the surprise and delight of a pastor in Virginia Beach, Virginia, who, when greeting a visitor to his church, found she came because of the kindness of a church member who was her neighbor.
"I’m recently divorced, a single parent and new to this community," she told the pastor. "To keep up with rent and provide for my three children, I must work two jobs. That leaves me very little time for yard work. I was relieved when the weeds didn’t overrun my yard as I had feared they might. However, when I made an unscheduled trip home in the middle of my workday, I discovered the reason why the weeds had not taken over my yard.
"My 86-year-old neighbor—a member of your church—was on his hands and knees pulling my weeds. I barely knew this man and he was embarrassed to be caught in this anonymous act of kindness. He explained that he heard you preach a sermon on the importance of living a life of compassion and kindness and decided to put that sermon into practice by weeding my lawn."
One pastor’s heart filled with joy when a group of women in Washington, D.C., responded to a sermon preached from the words of Jesus—"Do not judge, or you too will be judged" (Matt. 7:1). After hearing the sermon, the women decided to give a baby shower for the young woman who provided childcare while they met for Bible study. She was unmarried, close to going on welfare, and without support from her family or the father-to-be. The young woman was moved to tears by the surprise baby shower.
Later, the women explained to the pastor, "Your sermon taught us that it’s possible to reach out to someone in need—in this case, an unwed mother—without judging or condoning the situation."
8. Throw away the measuring stick
Don’t expect that your present spiritual leaders will do things the same way their predecessors did. Lay aside personal agendas and preferences. Instead, focus on how your leader is being used by God to do effective ministry now. By serving your shepherds, you will ensure that they will not only be encouraged but will feel appreciated and continue to minister with enthusiasm and energy.
A friend is someone who stays with you in the bad weather of life, guards you when you are off your guard, restrains your impetuosity, delights in your wholeness, forgives your failures, does not forsake you when others let you down.
The friendship of Jesus enables us to see others as he saw the apostles: flawed by good children of the Father.
—Brennan Manning
In the mood of sakura :P
I just got some really nice tunes from Cat a few minutes ago through msn. It always good to talk to her even though we are so far apart. Sometimes, God brings some friends to you and they stay on a few years on even though we seldom see each other.
The tunes remind of me sakura trees somehow 
Remind of Japan…hmmm…well, actually just the sakura trees. When I first saw a row of sakura trees in NZ 6 years ago. I just fell in love with it. The whole scene of sakura blooms made me feel as if God hangs little hope on the trees. It looks the best when the sunlight shines through them. Try walking along the fully bloom sakura trees on a sunny day when you are tired or down. The sight of it will just lift you up.
There is something about it which I like so much, I just can’t rightly explain it…The best part would be when the wind blows and the flowers just float in the air before they land on the ground. It never fails to put a smile on my face when that happens.
The scenes must be much more beautiful in Japan. I must go for a Hanami next time (sakura viewing activity) Hey, before the guys start laughing, I m sure some of you share the same sentiment as me!!
Or maybe I m just a hopeless romantic
[still listenning to Sleepy Forest..thanks, Cat]
Uncategorized | Comment (0)The Top 50 Books That Have Shaped Evangelicals
Books! They change the way we think, talk and see life through another’s person perspective. They filled up our imaginations when we were young, shaped our views on certain issues and some good ones can fire up a passion in our dry souls. Many of us are defined by books we read, ideas of the authors which we had engaged shaped our personality in some ways.
Christianity Today came up with the Top 50 books which shaped the evangelical movement for the past 50 years. Here are the nominees :-
50.Revivalism and Social Reform
Timothy L. Smith
The new evangelicals were rightly wary of the liberal "social gospel." Yet they knew Jesus called them to serve the oppressed. Historian Timothy L. Smith destroyed the myth of the "heavenly minded" evangelical and helped us remember our history of personal and social holiness.
49.Knowledge of the Holy
A. W. Tozer
The Christian and Missionary Alliance pastor and mystic invited us behind the curtain and into God’s presence.
48.The Hiding Place
Corrie ten Boom with John and Elizabeth Sherrill
The staple conundrum of late-night ethics discussions in Christian college dorms—Do you lie if the Nazis knock on your door asking for the Jews you are hiding?—was a question ten Boom lived.
47.The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable?
F. F. Bruce
Yes, they are. And it took F. F. Bruce only 120 tiny pages to show it.
46.Out of the Saltshaker and into the World
Rebecca Manley Pippert
"Christians and non-Christians have something in common," author Rebecca Pippert noted. "We’re both uptight about evangelism." Out of the Saltshaker helped generations of fearful students (and other would-be evangelists) to loosen up. (this is my first evangelical book! And I actually heard the author preached 2 weeks ago!)
45.The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind
Mark A. Noll
Few people have accused evangelicalism of being an intellectual movement—but now we feel bad about it, at least.
44.The Gospel of the Kingdom
George Eldon Ladd
Ladd’s work called a generation of evangelicals to a higher level of scholarship, and his "already-but-not yet" take on God’s kingdom influenced charismatic theologians and cessationists alike.
43.Operation World
Patrick Johnstone
The who, where, what, why, when, and how many of unreached peoples.
42.The Purpose-Driven Life
Rick Warren
A recommended resource to have on hand when faced with a home intruder (a la Ashley Smith) or when seeking to turn around an African nation (a la Rwanda). Yup, got this but then again who doesnt?
41.Born Again
Charles W. Colson
As we now know, the metamorphosis of a Nixon administration crook into a prison evangelist wasn’t just a phase.
40.Darwin on Trial
Phillip E. Johnson
This Berkeley law professor’s takedown of scientific naturalism launched Intelligent Design and gained creationists a level of public attention they hadn’t enjoyed since the Scopes trial. Sounds like a cool book on Creation vs Evolution.
39.Desiring God
John Piper
Who expected a Calvinist Baptist to redeem hedonism for Christ? Hey, i just blog on this book 
Still reading on it.
38.The Gospel in a Pluralist Society
Lesslie Newbigin
"A profound rethinking of missions in a pluralist context," says Wheaton College English professor Alan Jacobs, who nominated the tome.
37.God’s Smuggler
Brother Andrew with John and Elizabeth Sherrill
Brother Andrew’s autobiography "instilled in me a concern for the persecuted church and ignited courage in my heart to serve those who suffer for Jesus," writes Charisma’s editor J. Lee Grady.
36.Left Behind
Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins
The book launched a series that launched a marketing empire that launched a new set of rules for Christian fiction. The series spent a total of 300 weeks—nearly as long as the Tribulation it dramatized—on The New York Times’s bestseller list. Haha! Only got to know this from a Revival Meeting in KCMC. Might get this someday.
35.The Stork Is Dead
Charlie W. Shedd
Shedd published his sex advice for teens in 1968 and got evangelicals talking about the topic four years before The Joy of Sex was published.
34.This Present Darkness
Frank E. Peretti
InterVarsity Press editor Al Hsu says Peretti’s horror thriller "challenged evangelicals to take spiritual warfare and the supernatural seriously." Maybe, in some cases, too seriously.
33.The Late Great Planet Earth
Hal Lindsey with C. C. Carlson
In the beginning—before the Left Behind series was a sparkle in the cash registers of religious booksellers—there was The Late Great Planet Earth. It’s hard to imagine that Jenkins and LaHaye would have sold 43 million copies of their bestsellers if Lindsey hadn’t first sold 15 million copies of his dispensationalist hit.
32.The Cross and the Switchblade
David Wilkerson with John and Elizabeth Sherrill
Amazing things started happening when, in 1958, a country preacher arrived—Bible in hand and Holy Spirit in heart—in the ghettos of New York City. Christian Retailing reports that "more than 50 million copies are in print in 40-plus languages of the book that gave birth to the ministry of Teen Challenge."
31.The Next Christendom
Philip Jenkins
The Penn State professor confronted North American Christians with the shocking truth that they were not the center of the universe.
30.Roaring Lambs
Robert Briner
Back in the early ’90s, when engaging the culture wasn’t the "in" thing to do, Roaring Lambs inspired countless Christian artists to become artists who are Christians.
29.Dare to Discipline
James Dobson
In the permissive ’70s, Dobson did what he still does best—calling us to focus on the family.
28.The Act of Marriage
Tim and Beverly LaHaye
The explicit marriage manual told men how to satisfy their wives. "Fundies in their undies," joked religion scholar Martin E. Marty.
27.Christy
Catherine Marshall
A privileged city girl finds faith and a husband in rural Appalachia—sounds like a TV series to us.
26.Know Why You Believe
Paul E. Little
Now we do.
25.Boundaries
Henry Cloud and John Townsend
Sometimes, it’s good to say no. This, in a nutshell, is the message that some ministry-weary Christians still need to hear.
24.The Meaning of Persons
Paul Tournier
Swiss physician Paul Tournier awakened us to the deep interconnectedness of the physical, the emotional, and the spiritual.
23.All We’re Meant to Be
Letha Dawson Scanzoni and Nancy A. Hardesty
Scanzoni and Hardesty outlined what would later blossom into evangelical feminism. For better or for worse, no evangelical marriage or institution has been able to ignore the ideas in this book.
22.The Genesis Flood
Henry M. Morris and John C. Whitcomb
In 1961, hydraulic engineer Henry M. Morris and biblical scholar John C. Whitcomb infused young-earth creationism with new energy. They argued that the biblical deluge could explain fossils and geological layers.
21.The Master Plan of Evangelism
Robert Emerson Coleman
Using Jesus’ methods, Coleman showed the intimate, indispensable relationship between evangelism and discipleship.
20.A Wrinkle In Time
Madeleine L’Engle
Madeleine L’Engle told CT that when she tried to be a Christian with her "mind only," she ceased to believe. But then she realized that God was a storyteller. Her 1962 classic modeled the power of imagination to energize belief.
19.The Cost of Discipleship
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
"Although cheap grace has entered into the common vocabulary of evangelicals," says theologian Roger Olson, "the full weight of Bonhoeffer’s exploration of true Christian discipleship has yet to be borne by many of us." Translated into English in 1949, Bonhoeffer’s classic remains a devastating critique of comfortable Christianity.
18.The Divine Conspiracy
Dallas Willard
With this call to discipleship, "Willard joins the line of Thomas a Kempis, Luther, Fenelon, Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection, Zinzendorf, Wesley, Frank Laubach, Dorothy Day, and other master apprentices of Jesus," wrote Books and Culture editor John Wilson in a review, praising the University of Southern California professor’s "philosophical depth" and "penetrating understanding of Scripture."
17.What’s So Amazing About Grace?
Philip Yancey
With trademark self-deprecation, Yancey wrote: "Grace comes free of charge to people who do not deserve it, and I am one of those people. I think back to who I was—resentful, wound tight with anger, a single hardened link in a long chain of ungrace learned from family and church. Now I am trying in my own small way to pipe the tune of grace. I do so because I know … that any pang of healing or forgiveness or goodness I have ever felt comes solely from the grace of God." I m half way into his " Where is God When It Hurts?"
16.Basic Christianity
John Stott
The slim volume "has introduced more people to Christ than any book I know other than the Bible," says author James Sire. Yup, heard of this book before. Might get this if my purse permits
15.The Uneasy Conscience of Modern Fundamentalism
F. H. Henry
Henry’s call to cultural engagement seems unremarkable today. That’s because we took his advice to "pursue the enemy, in politics, in economics, in science, in ethics."
14.Let Justice Roll Down
John M. Perkins
The civil rights activist got white Christians thinking about his three-pronged solution to America’s systemic race problem: relocation, reconciliation, and redistribution.
13.Evidence That Demands a Verdict
Josh McDowell
Who says faith is only for the heart and not the head? Not Josh McDowell.
12.Power Evangelism
John Wimber with Kevin Springer
Lifestyle evangelism is great, but signs and wonders are spectacular.
11.Celebration of Discipline
Richard J. Foster
It "opened the door for many evangelicals to intentionally practice spiritual disciplines and find a connection with the church throughout history," writes Phyllis Alsdurf, professor of journalism at Bethel College.
10.Evangelism Explosion
D. James Kennedy
This more than any other book ("The Four Spiritual Laws" is a pamphlet) gave evangelicals a systematic way to share their faith. It made the question, "If you were to die tonight, do you know for sure that you would go to heaven?" standard evangelistic fare.
9.Through Gates of Splendor
Elisabeth Elliot
The account of the martyrdom of five young missionaries at the hands of a feared "Stone Age" tribe in Ecuador helped launch a generation of cross-cultural evangelists into the world’s hard places. Author Jerry B. Jenkins told CT, "The story left me feeling spiritually slain."
8.Managing Your Time
Ted W. Engstrom
Evangelicals have historically been entrepreneurs and mystics, so we have run into much personal burnout and organizational chaos. With this book, Ted W. Engstrom gave evangelical leaders permission to organize their ministries rationally and efficiently.
7.Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger
Ronald J. Sider
"God is on the side of the poor!" Sider writes. To neglect them is to neglect the gospel.
6.The Living Bible
Kenneth N. Taylor
One of the first in a wave of easy-to-read, modern English versions of the Bible, Kenneth N. Taylor’s Living Bible came out in 1971, complete with its signature green cover. Book design has come a long way since then.
5.Knowing God
J. I. Packer
Packer was magisterial in substance, but adopted the tone of a fellow traveler. He convinced us that the study of God "is the most practical project anyone can engage in."
4.The God Who Is There
Francis A. Schaeffer
"This book, and its companion volumes, accomplished something startling and necessary: It made intellectual history a vital part of the evangelical mental landscape, opening up the worlds particularly of art and philosophy to a subculture that was suspicious and ignorant of both," writes John Stackhouse, professor of theology and culture at Regent College.
3.Mere Christianity
C. S. Lewis
Anyone who has read this far into the list doesn’t need any explanation about why Lewis’s work of apologetics placed this high—right? I have heard sooo much about this book! Definately next on my list-to-buy.
2.Understanding Church Growth
Donald Anderson McGavran
Although evangelicals have always been enamored with large and growing numbers (e.g., the Great Awakenings), it was Donald McGavran who gave us phrases such as "church growth" and "the homogeneous unit principle" and who made the endeavor a "science." Today, every pastor in North America has a decided opinion about whether or how much he or she buys into church-growth principles.
1.Prayer: Conversing With God
Rosalind Rinker
In the 1950s, evangelical prayer was characterized by Elizabethan wouldsts and shouldsts. Prayer meetings were often little more than a series of formal prayer speeches. Then Rosalind Rinker taught us something revolutionary: Prayer is a conversation with God. The idea took hold, sometimes too much (e.g., "Lord, we just really wanna …"). But today evangelicals assume that casual, colloquial, intimate prayer is the most authentic way to pray. Hmm…kinda skeptical about this book. Another Prayer of Jabez type?
Anyway, I m glad to know that some of the books on my bookshelf actually made the list. Kinda dissapointed Lee Strobel’s The Case of Faith isnt in at all. For more information, u can visit the page at :- http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2006/october/23.51.html
Have a blessed week ahead!
Tsukaretta
I m tired…physically, mentally, emotionally — kinda affects me spiritually to a certain extend. Hai, tsukaretta yo!
I need a time off, a change perhaps, a vacation maybe…………….. Or what i really need is really spend some quality time with God again. Yeah..i guess i need that.
Anne is right. I m such a confused lot That is because, as she puts it, I got too many choices to make. Too many blessings to take granted of. Too comfortable in my zone. Too many thoughts to entertain (haha!) Too many books to influence my thoughts (that..i might agree). Too many activities to do. Thus, in the end, I have chosen to procastinate to make any changes in my life.
Sigh…for all I know…she might be right! (Argh! I hate it when that happens)
Alrighty, Chris! Time to get my butt off the ground and do something about this life of mine before mushroom starts growing on my head.