Joie de Vivre A Wretched Man’s Quest To Follow Jesus Christ

I have to admit: I have never ever fasted. Not once, not even for a short duration of time.

However, I have been giving it some thought. Not fasting itself per se, but the act of fasting.

Just the other day in the study, my wife popped her head past her monitor, looked at me and asked, “Dear, why do Christians fast?”

(We have 2 PCs in the house, both set up opposite the other back-to-back)

Honestly, I was stumped and couldn’t give her an answer simply because I have never done it, nor really explored this aspect of faith and prayer. In the end, I had to ashamedly fire up Google for a few good articles on why Christians fast.

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Here’s inspiration and encouragement for the week ahead.

God bless, and Shalom!

Often we pray to God and set forth our requests for His help in many things, but when God answers them, have you ever considered that it will take continued faith and trust in God to see your prayers fulfilled?

Many pray and fast for some aspect of their lives to be changed, but when God does start changing those aspects of their lives, they falter.

Simply because they start doubting thereafter when they face trials and opposition, with little faith that God shall see them through.

In Matthew 14, we read of the account of our Lord Jesus Christ walking on water.

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It’s Sunday, and time for a round-up of my favorite blog posts over the past week:

Run! He’s Going to Shoot! Not!

The big news in Singapore the past week has been that of the National Service (NS) man who managed to get away from his camp while on guard duty with his service rifle — a SAR21 — and an estimated 5 rounds of ammunition.

Naturally the local blogosphere was abuzz with many taking the copy and paste approach to ‘reporting’ the news on their blogs. Quite a good number were also adding fuel to the fire by speculating why the NS man, Dave Teo, would do that, with many pushing forward outrageous and childish alarms which I shan’t repeat here.

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What’s happening to this world of ours, really?

In this series of reports at the Wall Street Journal, Jeff Zaslow examines the phenomenon where men are so readily criminalized as sexual predators in the United States to the extent that many men today are afraid of being seen with children.

Citing three men as examples, Zaslow amply illustrates how bad the situation is.

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I don’t usually write about technology but I thought I need to share this, badly.

As most of my friends and colleagues know, I totally dislike Microsoft, and am a huge fan of Apple.

So it almost comes as a surprise that I now say I am not going to get the Apple iPhone if and when it arrives in Singapore, but the Microsoft Zune.

For what other phone is there on the market that can provide the classic features that remind me so much of the 70s and 80s when I was growing up? You know, like the pulse dial, small little cube flashbulbs and Polaroids?

Ah… nostalgia, it’s a wonderful and powerful marketing hook, isn’t it?

Just check out these great features that the Microsoft Zune offers!

Picture of Microsoft Zune taken off Technology-blog.com.

I was re-reading the Book of Matthew on the train yesterday evening on the way home from work, and in the Gospel of Matthew, I read of this account:

Matthew 8:5 (KJV) And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him,

Matthew 8:6 (KJV) And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented.

Matthew 8:7 (KJV) And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him.

Matthew 8:8 (KJV) The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.

Matthew 8:9 (KJV) For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.

Matthew 8:10 (KJV) When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.

Matthew 8:11 (KJV) And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 8:12 (KJV) But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Matthew 8:13 (KJV) And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.

As I reflected on the account, I realized just how many lessons we can take away from this little incident!
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