Paul's Remains Found

Matthew gave me the heads up on a CNN report on the Apostle Paul's remains being found. You can check it out here.

THe Metronome, and Others

I (finally) met up with Sean and Melissa today for dinner. I really miss those guys! It's been such a long time since I met them both. Absolutely enjoyed myself today. Listening to them talk, I wished I were a part of their lives back in secondary school. I only started getting to know Sean more post-secondary and Melissa (near?) post-JC. But still, I'm mighty glad and grateful that I have found true friends in the form of these two great people.

I really need to keep up my contacts with friends like them.

An Oven in the Near Future?

Made a trip to Northpoint's Harvey Norman with my mum to purchase a new washing machine and a stove. Since we were there, I made a casual remark about buying an oven, in great hope that since she is in the buying mood she would consider getting an oven as well. She is quite keen about it! Woo. But because she expended a large amount of dough on the aforementioned items, there isn't money to get an oven now. But maybe we can get one in the future. Hopefully in the near future. I did not have a huge reaction on the outside but inside I was like WOOHOO FINALLY WE MIGHT BE GETTING AN OVEN NOT A STUPID TINY LITTLE TOASTER OVEN THAT DOES NOTHING MUCH BUT A REAL OVEN WHICH YOU CAN CONTROL TEMPERATURE AND HAS A TIMING ON IT AND YOU CAN USE IT FOR FOR BAKING AND ROASTING THISISGREAT! The oven is long overdue.

Oh please, PLEASE let there be an oven.

After that maybe I can convince her to get an espresso machine. And a bread toaster. :)

Coffee and Chocolate

Dylan once asked me a question which I still consider to be one of the toughest in my book. He asked if I had to give up either coffee or chocolate, which would it be?

So anyways, I finally pop by the Yishun Library to borrow some books on coffee and chocolate. Been reading up on coffee. Can't remember every detail though. Funny thing though: apparently a shot of espresso would contain probably the least amount of caffeine as compared to the filtered varieties. That's because only a small amount of water is used in the percolation, and it happens so quickly not much of caffeine is dissolved. Yet somehow I have always thought that it should pack the most caffeine. Have you? And why is that so? Because it is immensely full-bodied and bitter? Or is it the idea that a shot of espresso is very concentrated coffee, which everyone takes to be synymous with caffeine? And come to think of it, I have heard people talk about drinking espresso for that kick and to stay awake. Kick, there sure will be. But to help stay awake? Since it has the lesser amount of that stimulant than a cup of coffee brewed via other means, technically speaking it would not really help all that much right? So maybe it has been merely placebo effect for these folks? Hmmm.

So, arabica beans contain about half as much caffeine as robusta beans. They would usually use arabica beans in cafes such as Starbucks (because it tastes better), and usually they use shots of espresso for their concoctions. I may be mistaken but I believe our local kopitiams would use robusta beans (cheaper ma). So if you want a cuppa with less caffeine, go for cafes, or use arabica beans at home. Be prepared to pay through your nose though. The other alternative is to drink less, but let's not deprive ourselves.

Life

Days swing by and it appears that life is pretty much about the same old things in varying outfits. It's like we are living out a formula. No matter how you try to add different factors into the equation, the end result is a constant. You cannot beat it. Life's like the wheel of the bus that goes round and round; you may course on different grounds, be it wet or dry, smooth or rough, but you are simply going round and round, until you hit a sharp object and it punctures you there and then without warning, or you are simply worn off by the road of life till you burst, thereby wrapping up your sojourn on earth.

We often become jaded and grow weary of the many mundane activities in life. Performing a regular task, meeting the same old people, doing the job you do every other day or even living itself can become such a vapid and trite affair. It chips you bit by bit until it exposes you, leaves you weak, vulnerable, cold, tired.

You lose the fight in you, the patience you once had, the grace you once offered readily, the love you once freely give. Now life is simply about living till the next day, till the next, till you expire, till you can call it a final day. Your personality caves in; a hollow ruin that was once a wholesome character. You seek to be individualistic, because after all you are the one with the responsibility of living the life of your self, and so you feel you must tend to it first. It is about how the actions of others and of your self affect you, how your actions affect others.

But is that really life? Are we destined to be shaped by circumstances and happenstances, or is there a higher code to live by? Is life simple about trying one's best to live through the pressures from work, school, family, friends, acquaintances, bosses, colleagues and responsibilities of all nature? Does all of that grant a person the warrant to shut himself up and live the way he fancies without concern for the community he exists in and identifies with?

Yes, life can be a chore. But what makes something a chore, a bothersome work? Does the matter lie with the task per se, or with the person in question? Whether or not something is considered work or play, troublesome or a breeze, really depends on your outlook isn't it?

Life has many challenges, difficulties, rough patches, trials, whatever you label it. It makes you feel all sorts of negative emotions, turns you inward so you opt for individualism, decomposes your want for living your life for other people's benefits as well. Sure, many things in life make it tough to live, but they are not deterministic with regards to your character and outlook of life. At the end, you decide how they affect your living.

As a Christian, I want to also add that it is not the ups and downs in life that should mold you. Ultimately, God is the potter, we are the clay. We respond to and tackle life with Him as the guide, the source of wisdom, and we live a life that yields to Him alone. A word of caution is necessary at this point. Please do not fall into the fallacy that life will be magically peachy and nice if you are or become a Christian. Being a Christian does not make it easier per se; life is just as tough. But as Christians we can live through it knowing that there is a bigger purpose, a higher calling, a greater cause. In the midst of our struggles, as there surely will be in many seasons of life, we as God's servants must not allow our hearts to grow cold and neglect the others in our lives and our role in this life. The pressures are still the same, but living with God's will and purposes in mind changes everything.

I'm writing all these partly because it somewhat reflects who I am currently and partly because I have seen it in other friends. I suppose it is a propensity of our human nature. Maybe it's just a phase, and may last only for a season? I don't know. Anyways, I might just be blabbering many untruths and should be slammed. Just some of my thoughts, though.

Paranormal Activity

Caught the show today with Wan Ting. This is one of the scariest film I have watched in my life, and one of the very few horror films that is actually impressive and not lame. The film was very effective as a horror flick in so many ways. Very simple, very low-budget (cost of production = US$15,000), very scary.

Everything seemed so real; from the blair-witch-project filming style to the great performance of the actors. They were so plain and normal that they seem not to be acting at all. Makes everything appear like it really did happen. The director made very good use of silence as a tool to get you hooked. And with the limitation of only Micah's camera as our eyes, there are so many dark and unseen areas, and the unknown really keeps you on the edge, especially when we see Katie sleep-walked out of the bedroom a couple of times not knowing where she is going and what she is or will be doing, and once when she was dragged by an unseen force. Each time there is a night scene in their bedroom, with the camera on while they are asleep, you wonder what's gonna happen this time. And each subsequent scene gets more and more unnerving. This is the first time I felt a real tension in the cinema. You can feel (and perhaps see) everyone bracing themselves and the atmosphere clenching in the theatre whenever we reach night scene.

The film ended really well. The moments building to the climax, which were foreshadowed by a preceding scene, were chokingly unsettling, and the sequence to the end was gripping, shocking and creepy. Personally, it gave me the feeling like "ahh, of course it must have ended this way." Shan't reveal too much about what exactly happened. Just go watch it :)

Gideon (Judges 6-8)

Not sure about you, but I have heard the Gideon story a number of times. Usually people (sometimes pastors) would say Gideon was the most unlikely candidate for a judge as he was the least of the least and yet God called him, and Gideon trusted the Lord, went to war against the Midianites with 300 men and we should all learn from a man of faith like him. Good story, but is that all to it?

Gideon did had some qualities we ought to learn from, no doubt. (1) He was an intelligent man, having defeated the Midianites with overwhelming odds. (2) God chose him and the power of the Lord was with Gideon. (3) He was, in a sense, a humble man (Jud 6:15 "how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family."). Towards the end of the the Gideon narrative, (4) Gideon declined to be Israel's king when asked by the people, saying that it is God who will rule over Israel (8:23 ..."I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you., the Lord will rule over you.").

Yet is that all there is to Gideon? Not so. There are certainly traits and exploits that are far from ideal. (1) His cowardice: when God told Gideon to destroy the altar to Baal and cut down the Asherah pole, and build an altar to God, he did it in the night time because "he was afraid of his family and the men of the town" (6:27). (2) He was insecure and needed God to assure him three times (fire flariing from the rock and consuming the meat and the bread [6:20-21], 2x fleece [7:36-40]). On top of that, God told him he can go down to the enemy camp and hear from a Midianite that they will be defeated, which Gideon did (7:9-14). (3) There were instances when he was a tad ego-centric, which shouldn't have been the case given the context. In 6:36 Gideon said to God, "If you will save Israel by my hand as you have promised...", and in 7:18 ...blow your trumpets and shout, 'For the Lord and for Gideon.'" (4) God chose for him 300 men to fight, and he was already gaining the victory, and yet he calls up his army reserves (7:24) and so had 32,000 men (7:3) again to fight, which made the previous exercise of cutting down the soldiers to 300 seem almost pointless. Not only that, (5) beyond the victory God had promise and given, he chases Zebah and Zalmunna because of a personal vendetta (8:10-21). (6) Immediately after saying God will rule over Israel, he made arrangements to acquire a gold earring from each person's share of the plunder and "made the gold into an ephod, which he placed in Ophrah, his town. All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family." (8:27) He yielded to false worship that led Israel astray. (7) He had a concubine (besides many wives and 70 sons), who gave him a son named Abimelech, and this son later became a major headache to Israel after Gideon's death.

To qualify my post, Gideon is but a human, like many of us, and you and I can definitely relate to some or all of his failings. The contention here is this: is everything about Gideon really laid out on the table clearly by teachers/preachers for all of us? Never have I ever heard about all the negative exploits until I started studying the OT in school. Before, all I learnt were good stuff, things that make Gideon out to be a total hero and make you want to be like him. I think we need to be careful and make sure we get a fuller picture of characters in the bible and learn from both his/her good points as well as failings, or we will be looking at only caricatures of the biblical characters.

In relation to the Gideon story, there are people who would talk about "putting out the fleece in finding God's will", much as Gideon did. That is actually an incorrect observation. If you read the text, God has already told Gideon's His will for him (calling in 6:12-16, assurance that it is from God in 6:17-23). Gideon's putting out the fleece was not to find God's will because it was already revealed to him; he did it for reassurance(s).

Askinosie

Was at Great World City in the afternoon today. Decided to take a break from studying and walk around in the mall, and I walked past this store called Askinosie. The tagline was "EAT GOOD CHOCOLATE" so I had to go in. Look really appealing, them chocolates in brown paper packages, which I happen to fancy.

The cashier let me try a sample of one of their chocolates, and I think the one i picked was a 70% or 75% dark. My gosh it was really good. Dark, smooth, fine, doesn't leave an unpleasant sweetness, and the richness is just right. You know how some dark chocolates out in the more mainstream markets are either too sweet, too sharp, too overpowering in the wrong way, or sometimes too acidic? This is nothing like any of that.

But the price tag is painfully expensive. It's around $20 for a bar? And it's not a big one. There is a rather huge one, a one-kilogramme bar of dark chocolate which is selling for $89. While the idea of buying that is really tempting, the idea of consuming that isn't so inviting...unless it's in a party or something. Anyways, I ended up not buying anything because I lack the moolah and almost felt embarrassed not purchasing a bar. But I am really looking forward to buying one soon :)

Anyways, apparently Askinosie is a small batch chocolate maker in the States, use only beans grown without any administration of pesticides or insecticides, and touts their products with a whole bunch of other organic, we-are-all-natural sort of information. Which is good. And they do good for the farmers they get their beans from as well; no exploitations or anything like that. It's worth a visit if you like chocolate, but it's currently only available in Great World City.

All this talk about chocolate has made me realise I know nuts about it, except that it is one of God's better gifts to humanity and on par with coffee in awesomeness. So when I am done with my school work and all, I'm gonna try to read up on chocolate. And coffee. And drink mocha.

By the way, there is this other interesting boutique in Wheelock Place (among other places), called Chocolate Research Facility. It has a chart for their connoisseur range, which shows some information about the chocolates from different parts of the world, like their taste, acidity, et cetera. I couldn't resist buying a bar to try, and got a dark chocolate bar from Java. 65%. Better than most, but a little too rich, and a tad acidic. Think the boutique has a cool concept and it apparently has 100 different flavours to choose from. Maybe one of my goals in life should be to try out every flavour. Hmmm.

Now I cannot stop thinking about chocolate. Reminds me of Royce... Nama Chocolate, the cheaper ones they have in paper packaging (Dark and Rum Raisin chocolates are really good), and that chocolate-coated potato chips. It sounds queer, like Peking duck with ice-cream, but it is a surprisingly fine combination. Sweet and salty hand-in-hand always give a very flavourful experience. Except when it comes to popcorn.

Man, I wish chocolates doesn't make you fat... :(

the difference

Many things in mind, one thing to say.

The difference between an Epiphone and a Gibson is huge. I know "thou shalt not covet" but still...

When will I get an amazing guitar?

blessing

Today we had our usual Holy Communion Service in the evening in our St. Peter's Hall Chapel. Bishop Rennis was the preacher and minister today and as he was distributing the bread he said a short prayer for me which really touched my heart. He prayed something about our God being one who can do all things, and he asked God to open up doors in my difficult times, and so I can trust in God and finish what I have begun. Simple words, really, but that was something I needed. Coming from a stranger and someone of his standing, I was really touched, both by God and by him.

Perhaps the worry has always been completing all my work for this semester and hopefully do well enough for my subjects. Since the beginning, it has been one huge struggle amidst other issues, with tiny breaks in-between. As it is now, I would probably have to slog until somewhere near the end of Nov to submit my M&E reports and theology paper. But thanks to Bishop Rennis' prayer, the pressure on me feels lighter. Just need to do my best and let God do the rest, as the axiom goes.

life goes on

So I am done with my Church History Quiz II. Calling it a quiz is really a gross understatement to the magnitude of the paper, seeing how we have to revise, remember can recall what went on from 600 CE to 1453 CE. Don't think I will do well; I totally screwed up one section because I really couldn't remember who was who and did what. This is tougher than the first quiz..

Kinda worried that I wouldn't be getting an A. It is going to be a tremendous effort keeping my grades at at least a B+, seeing how studies is like so far, but I need to because I want to be able to do my Mth.

What I have realised, though, is that the most important thing is not knowing everything and being able to score As. What's most crucial is a sharp and critical mind. Through these few months studying here, it has dawned on me that I seriously lack it. I am trying my best to learn how to be more critical in my thinking, look at an issue from different angles, and ask intelligent questions, but to no avail. There is really no point in amassing a wealth of information and knowledge when you don't think well enough.

So I cannot score very well, and I cannot think very well. What a bummer. I hope I change next sem...

Anyways, here's a question my schoolmate posted on facebook. Why do people lift their hands when they sing during worship? And it is usually during more contemporary songs, and more often during the choruses or refrains. So why do you lift your hands during worship?

Spell it.

Now I know where I stand.

Just peachy.

Overloading

Recently I figured that if I sleep late at night consecutively for a few days, I'd get used to it. Guess I figured erroneously. I'm so exhausted my memory is failing and I cannot pay attention. And yet there is so much I need to read, study and memorise...

E-books
Looks like e-books are gradually becoming a trend, at least in the States. Will books start to lose their place in our society, what with this new electronic gadgets coming up? You can buy e-books off internet websites such as Amazon.com, load several books into your device and read it on the go. Depending on the brand and model of your choice, you may be able to procure the e-books anywhere as long as there's internet access. Plus, it's more compact than your average book. So is this adios to good ole hard-copy books?

It swings both ways. The news reported that because of introduction of e-books, some people actually began to buy more books as well. But quite obviously there will be others who would rather go with e-books any time. Then there is the camp that says, "come on, let's get real: who reads nowadays? Just do away with the whole 'reading" joke altogether." Their argument? We now have so many other avenues for entertainment which are presumably more fun to engage in, so who would possibly want to read? Tsk.

Anyways, my personal preference would still be the hard copies. First, I cannot possibly stack rows of e-book devices on my future shelves to show off my would-be collection (nevermind read or unread) and give the impression that I am a avid reader and apparently intelligent, because that would be way too expensive (one costs few hundred bucks, and I would need to buy more of the devices since they are a lot slimmer than books) and also a real stupid move since it totally defeats the purpose of an e-book device (which will lead people to think that I am an idiot. not good). Second, I just hate reading off an electronic screen. It doesn't feel real, organic; like there is a coldness that inhibits the connection to the writings. Third, I'd rather flip pages than scroll up and down and/or click "next page". Fourth, imagine you forget to charge up the batteries.

Roman Catholic Church Reaches out to the Anglicans
In 1992, The Church of England finally gave the green light to the ordination of women as priests. That has quite obviously displeased many conservative Anglicans. Quite recently there is a whole uproar regarding the ordination of Gene Robinson, the openly gay bishop in the US (and now there is a split among the Anglicans in US). It is in the light of such events that the Roman Catholic Church, aware of the tensions and displeasure some Anglicans have with the Anglican Church, is welcoming Anglicans into Roman Catholicism. They will allow this Anglicans to continue some of their practices should they convert to Roman Catholicism. It seems some bishops in England had already done so before this, perhaps due to the issue of the ordination of women.

And this was done without the knowledge of Bishop Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, until hours before the report. I wish I knew enough to say something intelligent regarding this whole matter, but I can only keep on wishing. Still, my personal opinion is that this is really an uncalled-for stunt. Decades of effort in making peace between the RCs and Anglicans may now go to waste. Is this an opportunity for the RCs to effect conversions from the Anglicans? Plus I have no idea what sort of freedom Anglicans will have with regards to their practices should they convert. And I think they have some major differences in terms of doctrinal beliefs, such as the Assumption of Mary and veneration of saints, no? How are the newly converted Anglicans going to reconcile with that?

And with regards to the issue of women ordination in England, I don't see anything wrong with that to begin with. A discourse here will be lengthy and, more importantly, ill-informed, since I can only vaguely reproduce what my lecturer spoke about on this issue (he is for the ordination of women) and thus do him injustice, but I think people should recognise that there is no sense in saying that women must be submissive to men and cannot climb above men in the ecclesiastical aspect. Both man and woman are created in the likeness of God and so both enjoy the same dignity, worth and value in the eyes of God. I have heard a reasoning from someone of a rather high standing who is against the ordination of women in church, and I personally feel it was a rather petty argument, but of course I am not going to state it here.

If only I knew more, then I can better sound out what I feel and substantiate it. But I guess that's all you can get from a 5th-rate theologian here...

things

New Creation
Got the chance to visit New Creation Church last Sunday. Was rather disappointed that they let us sit in the overflow room though. Reason was that they'd like to give us an experience of being in the overflow room. hmmm.

Anyways, I shall just talk about what impressed me. 1. Their music and media productions are great! 2. I am highly respectful of the way Pastor Prince preached; his deliverance of his message was engaging, vibrant and humorous at appropriate times, and is something which I wish I could be capable of. Kudos to him for having to preach like that for four sermons on a single Sunday, every Sunday.

Stuff
I really cannot get acquainted with politics and war topics, despite my efforts to grope for a handle on them. Anyone has info on the beef between those conflicting countries?

Anyhow, here's something else: traffic police officers are fining jay-walkers. A summon slaps you with a $20 fine. So try not to get caught (don't even pretend you don't jay-walk).

If you guys do not already know this, Neil Gaiman, alongside some of his contemporaries, will be here for the Singapore Writers Festival from Oct 24 - Nov 1. I have no idea how to get the tickets. I think you gotta queue for free tickets or something, and the collection dates are probably over. There's a "black market" for the tickets though, just not sure how to get to it. Anyways, Gaiman is a fantastic cult fiction writer. I thoroughly enjoyed reading his works, especially the Sandman (graphic novel) and American Gods, amongst others. Now I wish I had the time to read novels...

We are one Catholic Church
Some may not know this, but in the Nicene and Apostles' Creed, it states that we believe in the Catholic Church. If I had come across this anywhere before I came into TTC (and one wonders if I ever did...I probably just swept it under the carpet when I read it), I would have thought that this means we are one and the same with the Roman Catholics. Please do not confuse the terms; "Catholic" simply means "universal", and so we all belong to One Universal Church. Roman Catholicism is something else. All I currently know is that they broke off from the Eastern Orthodox Church in 1054 (the East-West schism), and reformation occurred in I-know-not-the-dates, where you have protestants (that's us) breaking off from them. Hoping to be more informed about the reformation period soon.

Oh, by the way, to the Anglicans, the word "churches" under the Diocese of Singapore is rather a misnomer. The rightful term to use is parish. They like to say one Anglican Church, 26 parishes. But of course, I don't think they are anal about it, or I would belong to YCP(A) or something.

that's the way it is

Was chatting with Elim over msn and I realised that I was not fully aware of this weight on my heart until I actually penned (or typed...) it down in words.

"I need a break from everything regular."

Cell Group Meetings

Cell on Friday:
I led cell group discussion yesterday (after a really long while) on Acts 2:42-47 and here's what went on. I had the privilege of checking up two commentaries on the assigned passage. Was in lack of time and so my preparation was rather rushed. In turn I was afraid I wouldn't be able to lead well enough, and I guess I did stutter a lot during my sharing. Some of the discussed issues are personal opinions so correct me if I am wrong.

The topic was "Gathering Around the Word", and presumable that means a gathering/fellowship of believers/Christians. First thing was some background info. The authorship of Acts, to start. Without going too much into details, the simple answer would be Luke, the one who wrote the gospel with the title bearing his name. Realised many does not know this. This is the episode after the day of Pentecost, where Peter gave a sermon and people were baptised, and 3000 new converts were added to the number of believers.

Israel was identified by its belief in YHWH, but here was a group of growing minority that identified themselves as the true Israel because they saw that God was at work in the person of Jesus, the one whom they proclaim to be their Saviour. The believers at this time were not called "Christians" as yet, but simple people of the Way. It is only in Acts 11:26 that others began to call these group of people "Christians."

So first question: What qualities of the believers' fellowship do you notice throughout these verses ? Told them to write out whatever qualities or important phrases they can glean from the passage on the whiteboard. Here are what we noted:

1. they devoted themselves to the
i. apostles' teaching - just as Jesus himself emphasized a lot on teaching during his ministry, so it continues
ii. fellowship - koinonia; a commonness, a sharing that Christians have with God and with other Christians
iii. breaking of bread - Lord's supper and/or fellowship meals; a Agape (Love) Feast? This is where they gather and share an actual meal, while remembering the body and blood that Jesus sacrificed for us. They gather and partake in the meal together as one body, cf. to 1 Cor 11 where there is segregation within the body, where people do not wait for others and they do not share in the same meal/food.
iv. prayer - an important part of their lives, no doubt. Later on, due to shortage of manpower, the apostles will appoint 7 people to help in the distribution of food while they would "give [their] attention to prayer and the ministry of the word." (Acts 6:4)

2. Everyone was filled with awe

3. Many wonders and miraculous signs - which can be seen as an evangelistic ministry of the church; people began to see the power of God and believed, much like in Jesus' ministry, where he too performed wonders and miraculous signs, which served as an evangelistic arm.

4. believers were together and had everything in common

5. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need - quality of mutual care. This was not enforced in the community; the people did so voluntarily

6. broke bread and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God - the joy and gladness experienced in the community

7. enjoying the favour of all the people - not just believers, but non-believers as well

8. and the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved

So in this way, we basically studied the passage part by part.

Next, a question about which of those we have and which we lack was raised. Some interesting points were surfaced by my group, though what's discussed here may not necessarily be held by all in my group. First, we are strong in our fellowship as a body of Christ. However, we are lacking in the Word; some feel we are not as informed in the Word of God as we ought to, to which I concur. I think this brings up some questions: Are leaders teaching (well) enough? Is there a mentality that too much information on the bible = boring discussion, and we ought to talk more about what is "applicable" to our lives? I also voiced my opinion on our commonness as a gathering of believers. Do we gather firstly as believers, or as individuals from our own walk of life, be it as a student, a worker, a musician, a gamer? I see that as important because commonness is not reached if, say, I come to a cell group as firstly a student who has done a week's worth of studying and is tired, rather than as a fellow believer who wants to share and receive in the cell group.

Timothy asked a very good question, which got me a little dumbfounded. Why do we see so few miraculous signs these days? How do I answer that? Well, I admit I cannot tell the full, proper answer. But in my opinion, there can be two reasons: miracles ARE happening still in today's world, just not prevalent in developed nations as it is elsewhere or that we are just not well-informed about it, or perhaps it's a question of the faith of people, much like the Nazarites who had so little faith that Jesus could not perform many miracles there in his hometown. I think these are rather weak answers, and I wish I know better. Or do we simply just say that it is God's prerogative to allow signs and wonders to be performed and we have no say over it? Food for thought...

Then some of us shared about experiences that they had with the power of Holy Spirit.

Another question was this: the last verse says that God added to their number daily, but it does not seem like they were active in evangelism, so how was this so? Let's take note that firstly, there were miraculous signs, and secondly, they were enjoying the favour of all people (probably non-believers as well). Furthermore, they presented a community that was vibrant and joyous, a very inclusive people who genuinely loved one another and would share freely, so I'd think people would be drawn to such a community as they observe what these people were doing.

Lastly, there was a sharing about how christian fellowship has impacted each of our lives. I ended off with two points about this early Church in Acts 2:42-47:

Firstly, looking inwardly, it challenges the life of our community in an individualistic age. "We will open up certain segments of our lives to certain people because that is a necessary part of living in society. But that comes nowhere close to the biblical idea of devoting ourselves to the fellowship (v. 42) and having "everything in common"(v.44)." [1]

Secondly, looking outwardly, is our community living and gathering (cell group, Sunday service) drawing the outsiders in like the early Church did? "With Acts 2:42-47 ending as it does, Luke wants to leave no doubt that there is an important connection between community life and the "favour" the community experienced with outsiders...Everything about the Gospels and Acts tells us that God's people are to take the initiative to show community and serve those around them." [2]

So that was it. At the end of it all, I sure hope that they learnt at least one thing out of the whole discussion, that the discussion itself was okay and that I wasn't too boring or anything.

Saturday's Young Adult cell was pretty good as well. It was on the Joseph narration, how the Lord gave him success in Potiphar's household, and then again in prison. Not in want of typing another tedious report, I guess I will say that the one important thing I learnt today is to be a "thermostat", just as Joseph was, rather than a "thermometer", as Cindy pointed out. That is to say, don't allow your environment/situation to change who you are, that you become simply a reflection of what's around you, but change your environment and maintain your integrity!

_______________________
[1] From a commentary, which I regret not noting down the author and title.
[2] From another commentary; the author and title are regrettably unknown to me at this point as well.