Why did I upload this video?

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Because one day I will have a daughter growing up in this world.  And I want her to understand what so many do not know...or believe.

Is it me, or is there something a wee bit off about this signboard?...

Would You Like To Play A Game?

Working at an international school affords one the opportunity to learn about different cultures and traditions from around the world. Such as games.

Here is an explanation of a Kazakhstan game written by one of my students from...Kazakhstan.

Ladies and gentleman, may I present a game that every man and woman looking for a mate should try one day:

THE CHASING GIRL GAME

"There are lots of diferent Kazak games....But most are sports games on horses. One game is called Chasing Girl. This game is also sport game you must chase the girl on horse, and if you didn't chase her until the finishing point she will turn back, and chase you, and you must get to the starting point, but girl must take Kazak rope, and hit you at the back."

Most likely training for when they get married... :-)

Oh, and he brought that Kazak rope to school to show us. I feel sorry for any man's back that was hit with that thing...

Holy Holy Holy

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Is anything too hard for our God?

My friend, no...not even the darkness in your life cannot stop Him from seeing your deepest need. He is a miracle maker. It is the pain, the hurt, the sorrow, and the incomprehensible complications in your life that attract Him to you. He has the power and compassion to heal your deepest wound and to set your life ablaze with divine purpose and fulfillment.

At His feet you will find your miracle. Jesus Christ invites you to come. If you believe, He won't disappoint you. You've nothing to lose, and everything to gain.

Nothing is too hard for Him....nothing.

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This was a good night.

Quoting recent thoughts...

Thoughts that have been on my mind of late...

Silence breeds conjecture.

Information abhors a vacuum. When people aren't given information they have only their fears to guide them.

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. -Martin Luther King, jr.

The most basic and powerful way to connect to another person is to listen. Just listen. Perhaps the most important thing we ever give each other is our attention…. Rachel Naomi Remen

The best answer to anger is silence.

'Tis better to be silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.
Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865)

I think the first virtue is to restrain the tongue; he approaches nearest to gods who knows how to be silent, even though he is in the right. -Cato the Elder (234 BC - 149 BC)

Silence is one of the hardest arguments to refute. -Josh Billings (1818 - 1885)

The problem with communication ... is the illusion that it has been accomplished. -George Bernard Shaw

Feelings of worth can flourish only in an atmosphere where individual differences are appreciated, mistakes are tolerated, communication is open, and rules are flexible -- the kind of atmosphere that is found in a nurturing family. -Virginia Satir

The way we communicate with others and with ourselves ultimately determines the quality of our lives. -Anthony Robbins quotes (American advisor to leaders)

When all other means of communication fail, try words

Communication is the real work of leadership. - Nitin Nohria

Deep listening is miraculous for both listener and speaker. When someone receives us with open-hearted, non-judging, intensely interested listening, our spirits expand. -Sue Patton Thoele

People will forget what you say,
People will forget what you do,
but they will never forget
how you make them feel

Life is rarely exactly as we would like it to be.
Instead, life is exactly as it is.

Tentative efforts lead to tentative outcomes. Therefore give yourself fully to your endeavors. Decide to construct your character through excellent actions and determine to pay the price of a worthy goal. The trials you encounter will introduce you to your strengths. Remain steadfast.......and one day you will build something that endures: something worthy of your potential. -Epictetus, Roman Teacher, Philosopher 55-135 AD.

When your work speaks for itself, don't interrupt. - Henry J. Kaiser

You can't build a reputation on what you are going to do. - Henry Ford

People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered. Love them anyway. If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives. Do good anyway. If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway. Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable. Be honest and frank anyway. The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway. The biggest people with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest people with the smallest pride. Think big anyway. People favor underdogs, but follow only top dogs. Fight for some underdogs anyway. What you spent years building may be destroyed overnight. Build anyway. Give the world your best. -Reader’s Digest

The strength of a man’s virtue should not be measured by his special exertions, but by his habitual acts. –Pascal

Never explain - your friends do not need it and your enemies will not believe you anyways.- Elbert Hubbard

About all you can do in life is be who you are. Some people will love you for you. Most will love you for what you can do for them, and some won't like you at all. -Rita Mae Brown

I was not a good English teacher in Japan...look:

There's so much more work to be done...haha!

What we all need our brothers and sisters to say to us and what we need to say to them on this journey of life...

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The difficult journey of life is somewhat like the above experience. Waiting is the hardest part...

"...come go with me..."

Reminds me of my Japanese students...

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Might take a bit of time to load...but this is well worth it...all of it. I love this kid...ganbatta ne!

Want to know the love of God?

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If you want to know the love of God,

Get down at Jesus' feet.

Get down sinner, get down saint,

Get down at Jesus' feet.

Get down sister, get down brother,

Get down at Jesus' feet.

-La Rue

me love me k750i

Night time in Singapore

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"Nevermind lah...if confess can already." Jesus, Singaporean style

Your righteousness reaches to the skies, O God, you who have done great things. Who, O God, is like you? Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up. You will increase my honor and comfort me once again. - King David (Psalms 71:19-21)

Thank God for God.

When it's all said and done, the outcome is...

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I've posted this picture before but He's still God, and I'm still reaching...

There are times when I feel like I'm walking all alone,

Traces of unbelief in the One I serve, trying to conquer my soul.

But after all Ive experienced, after the blood has covered me so,

I'm reminded of that blessed assurance none other than God alone.

And oh Lord, I believe in you. Oh Lord I believe in all you do.

Oh Lord I believe, in the love you have for me.

When its all said and done the outcome is I believe...
-Daniel Johnson

It Is Finished

The previous photo was taken under that big "RIVERSIDE" sign shown here. It's a fountain, I think. Sis. Priscilla (mom!), being the closer one, wins 4.56pts and a warm feeling of having accomplished where so many have fallen short. Stay tuned for more "Where is this photo taken?" episodes...

At the Borders bookstore I...

...5 points to who can guess where in Singapore this is...

...saw a book with this title:

TOUGH TIMES DON'T LAST,

TOUGH PEOPLE DO.

I was like, "Das what I'm tawkin' bout yo!"

In The Name of Jesus We Will Conquer!

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...my prayer closet...

Why you lettin' the Father down boy? If you invite Him, He will change your life around! In the name, in the name, in the name of Jesus you will conquer them! In the name, in the name, in the name of Jesus you will solve all your problems!

Humility, simplicity, Father God let them take hold of me. Knowledge, wisdom, understanding, faith, hope, and charity. To have that is my vision of spiritual maturity. But on this journey sometimes the burden get so heavy...

...but that's no reason to be actin' silly. That's no reason to forsake the Almighty.

Oh, the choices

A rare moment in the history of a Singaporean MRT train...weep my friends...weep.

So I'm at school with all the teachers today going through training for our new Student Management Information System (SMIS, for the acronymly inclined out there). Name, address, date of birth, blah blah blah...you know, all the normal stuff one has to fill out. One would think that after filling out this information like a gazillon times in one's lifetime that the world over would know everything about you. I've got applications, registrations, publications, and other "ations" out there somewhere. Anyway, I digress....

The form had some interesting fields that had to be filled out. One is nationality. I looked for American, but it wasn't a listed option. I saw African, Japanese, Chinese, Brazillian (I think), but no American. I left that option blank, although I was tempted to tick Japanese. I figured if the office staff looked me up on their records one day they'd think I was a new Japanese teacher (with a weird name, of course) Then, I'd pop in during their coffe break to freak them out.

Another option I had to choose was whether I was an active or inactive teacher. Hmmm....let's think about this. If you came into my class and saw me dead in my chair with my students quietly doing their work, I guess I'd be inactive. Other than that, wasn't really sure what that option was all about.

My favorite option was color. This was right under the nationality option. So I, as well as everyone else in the room, figured it meant racial or ethinic or...haha...skin color. I clicked the scroll option and BAM....there they were! About 70+ options of colors to choose from! I mean, if you asked me what color I am, I'd say I'm black. But this baby had so many to choose from. Some of my favorite follow:

Dimslate (This sounds like an insult. "What color are you?" "Oh, well I'm a dimslate." ".....")

Hotpink (*cough*)

Chocolate (This would answer the question one of my students asked me the other day: "Teacher, can I eat you?")

PapayaWhip (What in the world does this color look like?)

Fuchsia (Yes, I am royalty)

Palewhite (Well, there it is! Inactive teacher)

Metallic (enter stage right: Terminator Teacher Part 3: The Reckoning)

In the end, there were so many choices to choose from, I decided to choose the first color on the drop down list:

Transparent.

This way, if ever the principal wants to see me in a meeting, he won't be able to.

Feeling Misunderstood?...

Here are 6 PowerPoints (pun definitely intended) to get over it:
1 O Lord, you have examined me, and you know me.

2 You alone know when I sit down and when I get up. You read my thoughts from far away.

3 You watch me when I travel and when I rest. You are familiar with all my ways.

4 Even before there is a {single} word on my tongue, you know all about it, Lord.

5 You are all around me—in front of me and in back of me. You lay your hand on me.

6 Such knowledge is beyond my grasp. It is so high I cannot reach it.

prepared by King David (Psalms 139:1-6) using PowerPoint for Windows 1.0

inspired by someone who constantly needs to remember this

posted by the one who did the inspiring

Oh Lord, How Do I Love Thee?...

I'm not sure what true friendship is, but I think maybe it's something like this...

It is not with doubtful but with assured awareness, O Lord, that I love you. Your Word struck into my heart and from that moment I loved you. Besides this, all about me, heaven and earth and all that they contain proclaim that I should love you, and their message never ceases to sound in the ears of all humankind, so that there is no excuse for any not to love you. But, more than all this, you will have mercy on whom you will have mercy and will show compassion to whom you show compassion (Romans 9:15). But if it were not for your mercy, heaven and earth would cry your praises to deaf ears.

But what do I love when I love you? Not the beauty of body nor the gracefulness of temporal rhythm, not the brightness of light so friendly to the eyes, not the sweet and various melodies of songs, not the fragrance of flowers and ointments and spices, not manna and honey; not limbs receptive to bodily embraces. It is not these I love when I love my God. and yet, when I love him, I do love a kind of light, melody, fragrance, food, embrace; for he is a light, a melody, a fragrance, a food, an embracement in my inner self – where that light shines into my soul which no place can contain, and where that voice sounds which time does not sweep away, and where that fragrance breathes which no wind scatters, and where that flavour is relished which eating does not diminish, and where that embrace is felt which is not severed by fulfilment of desire. This is what I love when I love my God.

-St. Augustine