my heart over flows with praise to the Lord! :D

I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore.
Psalm 86:12

wow. i thank the Lord for all that He is doing in my life. many lessons He has been teaching me in the past week or so, this is just a gist:

- He has been teaching me the joy of prayer. The joy of communing with Him as friend to friend. He is giving me the assurance that nothing, yes nothing, is too small in His sight. That the slightest concern i may have is precious and valuable to Him and that He loves for me to talk to Him. He is teaching me a little more on waiting on Him in prayer. On waiting for His answer, not just to bring my prayer requests before the Throne and scurry off in life. I am to wait at His feet for the answer, for He never fails to give an answer. The best answer, be it - go, wait or no. His will is best

-He has been showing me that this Christian Life is one of progressive growth and change. It is not like i will totally change completely to become Christ-like over one night. It is a life long process of His Spirit working in me to mould and shape me to be more like Christ. and this my friend, requires patience. Much patience. At times it may seem like nothing is happening, or even worst, i seem to be going backwards! but take heart, His child, for He is faithful to fufill His promise in Phil 1:6 that "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform [it] until the day of Jesus Christ:"

-God has been teaching me that just when i think i've got it - when i think i've understood the exhange life, or when i think that i have learnt all there is in the Christian life - that i've got to stop, take a step back and realise that all i know is only the tip of an ice berg. It is only a little of the deep and intimate relationship God wants to have with me. Not so fast mel, your head is puffing up, YOU DON'T KNOW IT ALL!

-God has been showing me that it's not what i can do for Him that matters, but what i let Him do through me. It's not me (in my own energy and strength) living for God, it's God living His life through me! It makes a whole lot of a difference! Dependence on self vs Dependence on Christ! in my own strength and energy, or in His stregth.

and that's not all...i know there's still more. but i can't really think of em now cos something excites my heart so so much more!

Children's Camp '09! - We are preparing for rain! Are you ready?

Where do i start? I am just simply so so so excited at what God is going to do! :D
i thank and praise God for the vision that He has given Jeremy and i am very sure it is one from God. it is not some idea creative idea crafted out by man, but it is God, it is God's will and His will has to be done! Because it is HIS will, we can go forth in God confidence!

When Jeremy first shared this vision on Sunday with the carebears, it so excited my heart!
There was just convicion, passion, fire and energy in all that Jeremy shared and most of all faith in the never failing Word of God. It has to be God.

and you know various things that were shared then and even in the conversation that followed with him still lingers in my mind:

+ The Children's Ministry is God's ministry! Children's Camp is God's camp! and with God we do not need to care about success or failure bcos with God in it, there is no failure! we are on victory ground! and everything with God is success. It is His work, we are merly His vessels and He will see this camp to past.

+ We are preparing for rain! We are preparing for an outpouring of His Spirit! and it is only right if we are expecting rain to really go about preaparing full fledge for it.

+ It is interesting something Jem mentioned. That even if God takes away our feeling, even if God takes away our excitment about camp, are we still able to trust in God by faith resting upon His Word? Will we walk by faith, even when we cannot see?

Here are some facts from God's Word which we can claim, irregardless of feelings or not:

Matthew 21:22 - And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.
Wow! look at this promise from God's Word! All things, whatsover, ask in prayer, believing - you shall receive! May we claim this promise and fall on our knees pleading with God for the salvation of the many unsaved souls He will bring in, and also the spiritual awakening that will come upon the believers.

Jeremiah 33:3 - Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.
This verse speaks for itself.Call, God will answer. Not only answer, but more than answer, He will show us great and mighty things which we do not know. Great and mighty things which we have never seen before.

Psalm 81:10 - I [am] the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt: open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.
In the beginning of this verse, God is establishing Himself. Who is this God whom we love and serve? He is the God who is powerful, strong and mighty, bringing his people in time past out of bondage into freedom. He is the great I AM. He is the God who today is sill that same God. He never changes and the power which He displayed in Egypt, the 10 plauges He brought upon that land, simply goes to show us His mighty power. Open wide your mouth, and God will fill it.

May we stand upon the Word as camp approaches nearer and nearer. Standing on the promises I cannot fall, listening every moment to the Spirit's call. Resting in my Saviour as my all in all, standing on the promises of God!

+ and what then may be one thing that will prevent God from working mightly? - it is unbelief. Scripture says in Matthew 13:58 that "And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief." Look at this. What hindered Jesus from doing many mighty miracles in His own country? -- unbelief. May every bit of unbelief in our lives be purged that Christ may be free to do many mighty works in our midst. :)

but wait. look at this, the mercy and grace of God:
He says in 2 Tim 2:13 that even "If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself."

What does this verse mean? This is a short excerpt from Matthew Henry's commentry on this verse:
He is faithful to his promises; neither one nor the other shall fall to the ground, no, not the least, jot nor tittle of them. If we be faithful to Christ, he will certainly be faithful to us: he cannot deny himself, cannot recede from (withdraw) any word that he hath spoken, for he is yea, and amen, the faithful witness.

Even if we don't believe, God still abides faithful. He is still faithful to fufill His promises. Only, with unbelief, we will miss out on the great things God wants to and can do.

+ and I believe that this is a Spiritual Battle! we can expect attacks from the evil one if we are doing the Lord's work. Hence, we must -- as Ephesians 6:11 put it -- "Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." and also we must be "Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints" (Eph 6:18)

+ Hence, we must Pray, Pray, PRAY! This is a spiritual battle, and this battle can only be fought on out knees!

i know this has been a lengthy post (: but nevertheless, important and vital nuggets.

A note to all serving in Children's Camp:
Let us go forth in prayer, bathing this camp in prayer. We have a great God and He wants to do mighty things. The quesion Jesus puts forth to you today is: Believe ye that I am able to do this? Believe thou that I have the power to do this?
May we be able to say, be it with fear and trembling or with full assurance in our hearts -- yes, Lord. I do believe.

A last note to all who are not serving in this Children's Camp or who are not in Children's Ministry:
Please also do keep us and this camp in prayer. (: we will appreciate your prayer very much. :D and if you are keen or have a burden to serve or help out in this camp in any way, pls do let Jeremy know. (:

thanks for bearing with me. (: haha. God bless and good night!