The Different... Levels? Of Friends...

Taken from one of the extra Bible-based books that i've been reading, "The Teenage Q&A Book" by Josh McDowell and Bill Jones... I thought it real apt for me to share...

Page 103

The first level we call casual friends. This level includes the girl who has the locker beside yours, many of the students in your class, and more than likely your teachers. (You wouldn't call them your enemies, would you? Maybe you better not answer that.) Most anyone you have contact with and speak to would qualify as a casual friend.

The second level of friendship is your close friends. Your close friends include the people you eat with together at lunch, the ones you choose to sit by in class and the ones you go out with on the weekend.

The third and much deeper level of friendship is your committed friends. Where you would have lots of casual friends, several close friends, normally you have just a few commited friends. These are the friends with whom you share who you really are inside. They are the ones you trust and feel safe telling your secrets, hurts and joys.

Okay, let me guess... "There's nothing biblical about that!!!" Hahaha!!! Technically there is... While I read this, many names came to mind (I'm sure to yours as well xD) but the name of my friend who died for me kept humming in my mind when I read the part about committed friends...

I realized that I had many friends, and I thank God that He provided friends from each category for every stage of my life... I also realized that I have many committed friends, even today...

But what struck me is this...

Does anybody consider me as a committed friend? Being who I truly am among my best friends and buddies, do they think the same way as I do? I can only hope...

Anyway, you  guys know who you are... I thank God for putting you there in my life...

And I thank you for being there in my life...

And thus I shall strive to be a committed friend for the people around me...

Are YOU a committed friend? Strive with me, okay? :)

MAL

:-P

P/S : Oh and I highly recommend the book!!! Got it at a second-hand bookstore but it's not half-bad!!! The bottom line? - Get the book :)

Think too much...

We do, I admit we do it sometimes...

But it's only when we are able to look at things objectively that we are able to see the whole picture clearly...

And when you finally see the whole picture, it makes you more aware... And free!

A picture is composed of millions and millions of minute parts...

But if we keep staring at small parts and ignoring the whole...

When will we ever fathom the true meaning of the artist?

The artist himself knows what he draws when he does us...

Treat everyone fairly...

Get rid of prejudices...

Look at the goodness in people, not their flaws...

If only we would take time to understand everyone...

But still, there will be times when we don't understand...

Where we gaze and wonder why or what goes through each other's mind...

No doubt we think...

But do we think correctly?

Take the road of least painfulness to others

Never hurt others for your own gain

Take insults, cheap shots, rejection with honour

For in the end... We would have won the respect of others...

One day, after all the paint has been flung onto the canvas...

We would finally become masterpieces...

See? I did it again...

MAL

:-P

The DRIVE of LIFE

What shall compare LIFE to?

Perhaps it is due to my return to the road...

Perhaps it is due to my ignorance of the road...

Perhaps it is due to my avoidance of the road...

Perhaps it is because of what I see...

Perhaps it is because of what I feel...

Perhaps it is because of what I hear...

But LIFE... It is like DRIVING...

Think about it...

How do we approach the issue of life? Our mindset as we enter the car totally affects how we drive... As we turn the keys and run the ignition, as we rev up the engine and check the car's condition... How we feel about the drive, what is on our minds... It all affects our day's performance...

The car is just a tool... An instrument to push us forward, a machine, if I may say so...

Our goal in LIFE? That's our destination...

As we live our lives, we move forward, thanks to a little help from our vehicle...

But... Once in a while, we do have to move backwards... So why do we get upset? All it does is put our car back in a correct position, and so we can move forward again...

Why the mirrors? Why do we look back? Look at it this way... Only by looking back can we truly move forward... Learning from mistakes, looking at them when we face similar situations in the future...

But why do we stop? The red lights in LIFE, the stop signs? Know that people's lives do cross... Our paths cross, some end up going the same way, others turn away... But only when we stop and give in to others can they move forward toward their destination... Why? Because we all want that...

When we rush too much in LIFE, we might crash into others... But what happens then? We end up even later at the place we want to be...

Sometimes, our engine fails... It is a reminder that in everything that we do, we must always remember to take care of the things that matter to us...

In darkness, the headlamps lead us, they shine and guide us, so that we can safely reach our destination...

Our seatbelts, they are the things that keep us in place, our safety nets in trials...

Our will to continue driving? Should we meet with an accident, or should we experience near misses, will our will to drive be affected? Things like that happen... But if we give up, we will never reach our destination... In the same way, if we keep harping on past mistakes, then congrats my friend, you've just won yourself a ticket to another accident...

But one day, when we finally reach our destination...

It'll be worth the ride...

Oh and one more thing...

It's always nice to ride with the people who can guide you...

The people who can lead you...

And the people who care for you...

The people who love you enough to push you forward, and to never let you give up...

I thank God for these people, whom God sends to me daily (Yup! That includes you, you and... YOU!!!)

KEEP ON DRIVING!!! (Oh and a special ALL THE BEST to Cass for her driving test 2mrw!!! Jia You!!!) xD

MAL

:-P

P/S: Wow, i'm thinking again... Is it a sign of boredom, jealousy or contempt? Hmm... I blame it on Jules' and Aiman's posts :P

Psalm 91 - Psalm of Protection

Hey guys!!!

It's HOLIDAY TIME!!! WOOHOO!!!

Anyway, most of you guys will probably be leaving the "safety" (yeah, right) of your residences and going off to distant lands (or back home for that matter)...

So well... As a blessing to all of you, I have plagiarized a psalm which I think might be appropriate for the situation :-) I love this psalm, hope you enjoy it!!!

Psalm 91 (New International Version)

 ¹ He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
       will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 

 ² I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress,
       my God, in whom I trust."

 ³ Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare
       and from the deadly pestilence.

 ⁴ He will cover you with his feathers,
       and under his wings you will find refuge;
       his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

 ⁵ You will not fear the terror of night,
       nor the arrow that flies by day,

 ⁶ nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
       nor the plague that destroys at midday.

 ⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
       ten thousand at your right hand,
       but it will not come near you.

 ⁸ You will only observe with your eyes
       and see the punishment of the wicked.

 ⁹ If you make the Most High your dwelling—
       even the LORD, who is my refuge-

 ¹⁰ then no harm will befall you,
       no disaster will come near your tent.

 ¹¹ For he will command his angels concerning you
       to guard you in all your ways;

 ¹² they will lift you up in their hands,
       so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

 ¹³ You will tread upon the lion and the cobra;
       you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

 ¹⁴ "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him;
       I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

 ¹⁵ He will call upon me, and I will answer him;
       I will be with him in trouble,
       I will deliver him and honor him.

 ¹⁶ With long life will I satisfy him
       and show him my salvation."

Whenever I feel weak, unsecure, as if the world has turned its back against me, I look to this verse, that I know in all circumstances that His wings are covering me, plague and illness will not harm me, the great beasts cannot fight, I am protected from all evil, and best of all, I AM LOVED!!!

Look TO God... He looks out FOR you... He walks WITH you... He lives IN you...

Guys, have a great holiday for those who have it, and for those who don't... God still loves you anyway, k? :)

MAL

:-P

No worries yah? :)

Hmmm... Interesting to see people rushing about worried about their results, wether it be SPM or wether it be test results, or wether it be mid-term marks...

Just wanna let you guys know, God's got everything covered laaa... Don't worry guys!!! Am praying and supporting you guys!!! :)

Okay, so maybe that wasn't so effective, so lemme just give you a quote from the bible, k?

Matthew 6:25-27 

 ²⁵"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life^[a]?

This applies to me as well, I should stop worrying about stuff, God'll take care of me as He'll take care of you, and He knows and has a beautiful plan for each and everyone of us!!!

Thank God that he has a plan... At least one of us has an idea what's gonna happen :)

So guys, let go and let God... :-)

MAL

:-P

MUMMY!!!

An hour late or so I be...

But still for me , eternity...

To hear thy voice and say to thee...

My mummy!!! Oh how I love thee!!!

Half a century thou'st see...

Still more than half thy life to be...

Tho' others round thee frail may be...

Thou'st still stand strong and all man see...

Anger never could ignite,

All through darkness burning bright...

Thou teachest the paths of right...

To never wander from His sight...

All through life thou guidest me...

Showed me love, gave dignity...

In my ail thou criest with me...

In gladness thou dost smile for me...

Thou hast led me through 19 years

Thou'st made me as am to my peers

Gave me wisdom, oust my fears

Still cares for me and thy dears...

I don't have real much to say

And if I do, no other way

But here I write, if just to say

Mom, I love you, EVERYDAY!!!

Mummy!!! I just want to say thank you for everything you've done for me so far... I want you to know that the times when I say I miss home, it's more than just the physical home, it's always been our family, and especially you mummy!!! I thank you for loving us, for caring for us and for showing us the right way not solely by words, but by your actions as well... Daily when I thank God, I thank God for giving me such a wonderful mummy who cares (and worries more for me than I do... xD) and looks out for me all the time!!!

Thanks for never letting me hide anything from you, because even when I try to, you read me like an open book anyway... 

Thanks for making my study plan for me when i'm far behind or cannot catch up... 

Thanks for praying for me...

Thanks for never leaving me alone at any time to suffer anything silently...

Just want to let you know, I STILL won't change you for any other mummy in the world, okay?

I love you mom!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

LOVE, 

MALCOLM

:-)

Give Me Strength...

Father help me...

I ain't having the best of all days...

I can't carry on alone Father...

Be with me now Father...

Holy Spirit, my comforter, please come and comfort me as You always do...

Lord, remind me once again of Your love and suffering You had to endure, and how mine is nothing compared to Yours...

Father, please send Your angels once again to camp around me, to shield me fromthe fiery arrows of the evil one...

Father, send the physical angels that protect me, the friends that comfort me when i'm falling down...

Help me to look at the beauty of life and everything good that You created...

And Father, most of all I ask...

Be with me...

Give me strength...


MAL

Obsession? Back to the TRUTH

Wow...

In obsession, it is interesting how people tend to lose sight of the things that really do matter in life...

I must confess, lately I had been obsessed with certain issues that (sorry to say) I cannot reveal in public...

How easy it is to fall into blindness without ever realizing it...

Thank God, He's still been encouraging me and helping me to look back at Him and to Him, particularly over these past few days...

And I found out that the more I look to Him, the more I see His hand in action...

Well, clearly it is true what God says in Matthew 6:33 "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." I've been a fool. Whatever made me think that I knew what's best for me? I've been looking at myself, looking at the world, seeking, wanting an answer when God's been hinting and hinting...

Man, talk about blur :P

Another thing I believe God has been telling me to share is this : Romans 8:32 "He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?" It's almost as if God'sbeen saying "Hey, you think I don't want the best for you ah? Blur! Look lah who's been taking care of you, been guiding you all the way! I love you laaaa"

Man, sorry Father... Seems like I memang blur :) Anyway, thanks for loving a blur one like me ya?

Guys, look to God, He makes the scenery much clearer, the paths much straighter, the soul much more comforted...

Father, thank You for the peace and joy given and for the love You've shown me, the love that can never be beaten by any other. Thank You for showing me what it is to love, for showing me what it is to be loved, and for showing me the extent of true love. I thank You Father that in all things, I can look to You as One who would answer my prayers, as One who can counsel me and as one who truly does care for me. Once again Father, I commit my life fully into Your hands, asking that Your will be done in me. Thanks Father for friends taht I love, friends that I can count on and friends who are not ashamed of knowing me. I pray that You would bless them and enlarge their territory and that they'll grow be great in this world. Thanks Father!!! Amen!!!

MAL

:-P