us humans ...

... created in the image of God.. created to rule over every living creatures that move on this earth.. the most intellectual beings that solved even life's most difficult challenges (over the ages) from "self-run" flintstone-mobile to automobile; from pigeon-communication to telephone.. who went through good education.. yet we may not be as wise as we seem...

have you stop to wonder why some people wash their hair with hair conditioner only later to apply hair gel? or why they spend money on food but spend even more money on taking slimming pills? or why do people burn paper money that print "bank of hell" to their deceased when they also pay good money for the monks to pray for the deceased to go heaven? are we being double-minded or just following blindly what other intellectual beings were doing?

James wrote: "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does."

are we double minded christians who appear to have faith & believe in God but our lives & actions contradict that of what the Bible says? are we "luke warmers"?

i would like to hear your views, click on comments!

living in this world...

... where we are constantly drawn by the things of this world.. by the people around us.. by the various interpretations of life's values.. yet we (as christians) struggle to "not conform any longer to the pattern of this world".. to see life's values from God's perspective.. to be a light that shines & show others the way to God.. to have a renewed mind & live a godly life!

but in our attempt to live a godly life, did we indirectly/unknowingly build a wall where others (non-christians) could not approach us because we seem too "holy" for them? are we living in a different dimension where it is too foreign for them? did we lose them along the way? i think it would be worthless if our godliness are not proceeding from love & reverence for God but just religious duties of the do's & don't's. Though it may be a godly walk to others, but without God in the picture? it could only be a godless walk...

here's what Paul wrote to Titus on the importance of right living:
"For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope - the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good." Titus 2:11-14

is living a life of Godliness an impossible mission?

share with us your view, click on "comments"..

we live from stage to stage...

...from infancy to childhood to adolescence to adulthood to aged to death.

in general, everyone goes through the same stages in life - no one is born an adult! can you imagine how painful it would be for a mother who gives birth to an adult instead of a baby?! but how is it that some find it easy while others find it hard to move on from phase to phase in their journey in life - notwithstanding the environment, the people, the circumstances & other elements?

perhaps those who find it easy are people who are realistic & true to themselves, they are focus & know what they want to achieve in life, there is a sense of purpose in them while those who find it hard tend to give up easily, "resign" themselves to fate, blame others/everything else but themselves, etc.?

i suppose recognizing which stage of life you are at is important because it determines how you should act & behave accordingly... for instance the most challenging adolescence stage where we struggle with anger, rebellion, self doubt, confusion, frustration, in constant pursuit of independence & still wonder why our lives "sucks"? clearly the biggest obstacle is ourselves! we are lost & we need directions in life yet we are too proud to admit that & refuse all wise advices given by our parents, godly friends & from the word of God... hello? what's wrong with us?!

could it be that the lessons we learn in each phase of our lives are a learning curve or experience to help us survive the next?

share your view, click on "comments"!

the consequence of...

...a choice made, is chore.

keeping a pet... a choice
picking up his poo... a chore
buying an apartment... a choice
cleaning the apartment... a chore
career path... a choice
coping with work... a chore
creating a blog... a choice
posting the blog... a chore (at least for me!) =P
speaking of which, i've not been posting & so here i am - trying very hard... hee!

how many of us go through life busy with the "chores" without us making a choice in the 1st place?

1. i didn't choose to be born into this world but i've to complete life's journey & "run the race"
2. i didn't choose which family to be born into but i've to learn to love & accept them as who they are
3. i didn't choose to go to school (my parents did!) but i've to study & produce decent results to please them

although these choices were made by default, they are not necessary bad for us... instead of dwelling on what we have no choice/control over, why not place our energy to work positively on these "chores"?

Disagree with me? Express your thoughts, click on "comments"!

1 msn chat & 4 hours...

... that's all it takes to mark the birth of 3notessteelstrings blog (thanks to abriel & huimin who have helped "kick-start" this for me). However, to really maintain & update it will take like... hmmm... a lifetime?!

now that i have my own blog, what's next? really spent some good time (over the national day) thinking through what to or what not to include in my blog... how i want the layout to be... & of course most important of all - what's the purpose of having this blog? what do i want to achieve?

the verdict:

1. i want an interactive blog where visitors could actively participate by giving their comments, providing information, sharing words of encouragement & contributing to this blog. the results: Chatterbox; Speakers Corner & allowing everyone to have access to write their personal comments at the end of each post published.
2. apart from keeping others informed about what's happening in my life through regular (hopefully) posting, i want to put up something inspiring or encouraging to motivate people. the results: QuoteMeal which aims to provide the reader with a parallel view of 1-liner famous quotes vs words from the Bible.
3. i prefer not to disclose my real identity (ie. name, age...) to the general public... although sadly enough, some dearest friends of mine have unintentionally let the cats out of the bag. for friends who know me & visit this blog, i would appreciate if you can try to refrain from typing my real name (in this blog, of course!) but address me as 3notes instead. those who have short-term memory, i won't hold it against you if you forget this special "preference" of mine!
4. .... to be disclosed when the time comes ...

the best part to blogging, which i enjoyed the most, is playing around with the layout & trying to figure out html codes, etc. the worst part? posting! perhaps i'm not used to sitting in front of a white screen & typing my day's entry... it's like back in school days where you have to write a composition... only thing this time, i have to think of a topic! could this be the reason why most people (at least those friends i know who own a blog) do not have the habit of daily posting? they run out of things to write?? or are their lives just as boring as mine???

What's your view? Here's an opportunity for you to express your thoughts, just click on "comments"!

the beginning...

... of this blog.