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Sep 30, 2007
Posted at 05:20 am by coffeeministry
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Jun 23, 2007
What
Love Does
Saturday, June 23, 2007
“I was without clothes, and you gave me something to
wear.”
Matthew 25:36
What if you were given the privilege of Mary?
What if God himself were placed in your arms
as a naked baby? Would you not do what she did? “She
wrapped the baby with pieces of cloth” (Luke
2:7).
The baby Jesus, still wet from the womb, was
cold and chilled. So this mother did what any
mother would do; she did what love does: She
covered him.
Wouldn’t you cherish an opportunity to
do the same? You have one. Such opportunities
come your way every day. Jesus said, “I
was without clothes, and you gave me something
to wear…I tell you the truth, anything
you did for even the least of my people here,
you also did for me” (Matt. 25: 36, 40).
| God loves you. Personally. Powerfully. Passionately. Others have promised and failed. But God has promised
and succeeded. He loves you with an unfailing love. And His love--if
you will let it--can fill you and leave you with a love worth giving. |
- Max Lucado -
Even as coffee ministry has ended for this semester ; keep the people we have met along the way in prayer - and where possible , tangibly in our lives too.
I pray, we too, love unfailingly.
Posted at 04:19 am by coffeeministry
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Jun 20, 2007
A lthough things are not perfect
B ecause of trial or pain
C ontinue in thanksgiving
D o not begin to blame
E ven when the times are hard
F ierce winds are bound to blow
G od is forever able
H old on to what you know
I magine life without His love
J oy would cease to be
K eep thanking Him for all the things
L ove imparts to thee
M ove out of "Camp Complaining"
N o weapon that is known
O n earth can yield the power
P raise can do alone
Q uit looking at the future
R edeem the time at hand
S tart every day with worship
T o "thank" is a command
U ntil we see Him coming
V ictorious in the sky
W e'll run the race with gratitude
X alting God most high
Y es, there'll be good times and yes some will be bad, but...
Z ion waits in glory...where none are ever sad
Posted at 03:28 am by coffeeministry
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Jun 12, 2007
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"Look at the nations and watch - and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told."
Habakkuk 1:5 |
It's quite a different feeling altogether - encouraging each other to bless and to love strangers ; and to be actually blessed and loved by a stranger yourself.
A bit like what Alice related to last week and shared again by Jon yesterday ; you'll never quite get how to cope in overwhelminglyoverwhelming circumstances until you just really trully understand God's love. The gist of it being ; hearing of something and telling others of something really pales in comparison when you are personally acquianted with something through experience.
Taste and see that the Lord is good;
blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him.
Psalm 34:8
And I just want to thank you all for every bit of your heart that knits this ministry together. For making this love real enough for others to taste, and to see.
When complacency sets in and its hard to find a drive to press on; I pray we will take some time to look at the supernatural wonders that happen in the natural. For what happens in our own lives and the joy that sets us free to share it with others. Literally.
God's love is everywhere.
As for what keeps it alive in our world ; i'll leave you with this :
" Has not the Lord Almigthy determined
that the people's labor is
only fuel for the fire...
...For the earth will be filled
with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea"
Habakkuk 2: 13,14
Posted at 05:59 pm by coffeeministry
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Jun 10, 2007
do you see a man that excels in his work ?
he will stand before kings
he will not stand before unknown men.
proverbs 22:29
Posted at 02:09 am by coffeeministry
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Jun 6, 2007
I would have lost heart,
unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the LORD
In the land of the living.
psalm 27:13
do you believe tonight, today?
Posted at 09:00 pm by coffeeministry
Permalink
Jun 2, 2007
hmmm. truth be told; sometimes it feels rather bland contemplating the same questions over and over again. of course the purpose of the ministry is inspiring. no doubt about it. but the rethinking ; or rather , rediscovering of the vision each sem , can't help but somewhat feel like you're chasing after the wind ... or , to a certain extent, a desperation for a fresh revelation to reinspire people about it...
The only accurate way to understand ourselves (/our ministry) is
by what God is and by what he does for us (/coffee minisry), not by what we are and what we do for him.
Romans 12:3 (Msg)
after the first week came and gone only did (i think) my own understanding of coffee ministry (right now, where it is) began to shift.
its a nice thing to do ; give coffee, talk to people and all that jazz ; and , correctly assumed, many of us would have been able to grasp the greater-more-miraculous-noble purpose behind it. but maybe until we see it the way God sees it; it will remain for each of us a (potentially) tired familiar concept when further down the line.
the fruits of the ministry - our brothers and sisters who've come to know Christ - has been evident over the past 7/8 semesters..and i believe the ministry will continue to bear these fruits.
but i believe too that if our focus falls solely on these fruits and our labour alone , it will be an unimaginable task to soar to heights that He wants to take us.
On Tuesday, we had a short debriefing time as per usual and talked about our thoughts. Someone had shared that in the span of time that he was there, just by observing people (some studying hard, some you-tubeing addictively, some ..asleeep..) ; it really hits you how much God loves each and every single one of them.
Another, shared about how; although, through our conversations & short meet-greet time with them ; we're more able to understand the sentiments of being pressured/stressed during the exam time ; but when you look beyond them , perhaps there's another heapload of family, financial, relationship etc problems that's distressing them.
the point is. they are people. like us. back in your mind, its not just the exams thats driving you up the wall.
the root of our motivation ; isn't just the blessed ability to share unconditional support for them through these choppy exam times. i think it goes deeper. i think it can only stem from beginning to realize how much God's love ( being so vast deep tall wide high low) is painfully personal for each and everyone of them - saved or not saved...just like how it is for each of us.
it doesn't quite matter as much what we say to them really.. actually. because sometimes, the answers we all seek, goes beyond what can be articulated by words.
it's what you don't say. that speaks more volume.
perhaps maybe its good to think of this in our own shoes. the simple concept of the ministry isn't quite something that i could ever compartmentalize into 20 words for you..that would do it such injustice.
Love from the center of who you are; don't fake it....
Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle.
Don't burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame....
Laugh with your happy friends when they're happy;
share tears when they're down.
Get along with each other; don't be stuck-up.
Make friends with nobodies; don't be the great somebody...
discover beauty in everyone.
Romans 12:9-19 (Msg)
so in reality, the big part of the truth of why you're always told that you don't need to be the most charismatic person or the best coffee maker ...and why we didn't roster more than 5 people and left it up to you this time around ; extends further from the convinience of coaxing us out of our insecurities and worries to do a nice thing and bless the campus.
further and beyond that, i think; God did call this ministry to be a ministry of relationships. the driving point behind it couldn't be more than how dearly much He loves every single person who sits in the cubicles,longtables and computer desks. and i think, i truly think; that when the absence of other motivations (like being rostered) helps convict you to come for that few hours; you open up many willing doors in your own heart - whether you realize it, or not.
i am absolutely certain that our ministry isn't just there to bless. it doesn't stop with us just being His ambassadors.
it starts with us, administering His love, through relationships ; through our own individuality to each and everyone that comes our way...
each semester, the ministry isn't a template of the last. it's a new phase in our relationship with the people He loves.
if your drive is to represent Christ to those who do not know Him , for sure, they will identify Him
but if your drive is the sweet longing to know and love each person the way you see Christ has in your life, then for certain, they will encounter Him.
from our stand, i just believe God really wants us to do and love from the core of who we are (He is) .
taking a few steps back, i've come to become so thankful of how God is blessing us with this (as individuals) as much as He is blessing the ones receiving from us.
Posted at 03:07 am by coffeeministry
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Jun 1, 2007
Posted at 06:14 am by coffeeministry
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May 24, 2007
hello chums :) just for reference, i'll list the leaders for the respective days. Pop by as an when you can and want or just to cheer on the happycoffeegivers ! Swot Vac Week (28 - 31 May )
Monday : Su Ling Tuesday : Jack and Melody Wednesday : Jon and Lindsey Thursday : Melody Exam week 1 ( 4 - 7 June )Monday : Lindsey and Jack Tuesday : Kah Yan and Jon Wednesday : Su Ling and Melody Thursday : Su Ling and Kah Yan Exam week 2 ( 11 - 14 June )
Monday : Kah Yan and Jack
Tuesday : Lindsey and Jon
Wednesday : Tee
Thursday : Su Ling Exam week 3 ( 18 - 21 June )
Monday : Jon and Shuk In
Tuesday : Shuk In and Lindsey
Wednesday : Tee
Thursday : Jess and , just as a added bit on the rostering this sem , we've included about 2 volunteers only each night ? so it makes a set team of 4 that's preallocated. why why why ? because.... we're really going to leave this up to you. we are all incredibly familiar with coffee ministry and God's faithfulness and the something special that just works like magic every semester ! and it's amazingly humbling to know and to see the ministry each semester , different from the previous ones. we've got the coffee, the favour with authorities, the amenities, the people and the everything all well taken care of but this semester especially we are definitely believing for MORE. we want more than serving 175cups each night and having great conversations and meeting people who are encouraged by you. we want to see God work in their lives - through our actions of faith, our acts of love and when we speak words that bring life to people. this is a season where God is placing the key to these dreams in our hands. for us - it means to Arise and Shine , it means to come ; not because we're rosterd but by a conviction of faith that when we go and help out for the few hours ; someone's life is going to be different. i believe so much when we come with a heart wanting to believe, eager to trust and willing to embrace, it will be a sacrifce of highest honor for our God. And even as we are preparing towards this ministry to bless, love and encourage others, I pray very much that the generous love of God will overflow into your own lives.
Jeremiah 29:13 (Msg )
When you come looking for me, you'll find me. "Yes, when you get
serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I'll make
sure you won't be disappointed."
Posted at 05:43 am by coffeeministry
Permalink
May 15, 2007
COFFEE MINISTRY IS BACK !!
"Let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth"
1 John 3:18
16 days
384 hours.
23040 minutes.
we've got THAT much time to make lives count for eternity (:
Ps. erm. as in 16days=384hours=23040mins yah..not 16days+384hours+23040minutes (:
Posted at 08:22 am by coffeeministry
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