Full Gospel Tabernacle: The Church You Can Call Home (Pt 2)

It's like somethin so clear and vivid... yet at the same time... it seems so far away based on the measurable equivalent distance of any two places that are about 400km apart. The church, situated in USJ, or more specifically housed in Wisma Eagles, is a church that I will forever hold close to my heart.

It's been only approximately 2-and-a-half weeks that I've been in JB, and already I miss the people there, which is what constitutes the church... not the building, but the people! Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't enjoy coming back to my home church in S'pore; but rather this post is a token of appreciation to signify how much I've matured spiritually each week that can only be attributed to FGT's role in my life this year. Over the 9 months or so in FGT, I've been involved in the transport ministry and evangelism ministry (through Evangelism Explosion), built new friendships, been exposed to many spiritual encounters that I never thought I would experience, attended the 365 Youth Camp, and the list just goes on and on. Through his servants, The 365 Youth pastors, Pastor Richard & his wife, Ps. Louisa Evans, this youth group has seen and experienced so much. God is really working in their lives to touch the hearts of this youth group here.

And yes, I have never seen so many Africans in a church before. I guess that the church is able to provide some sense of 'security' to these brothers- and sisters- in- Christ and create racial unity among its members. Another key factor that probably attracts people of all races is the church's love for music, and when I say music, I mean really good, all-out worship and singing! :)

You can look over the previous posts about the church events we've had over the past few months as well as some of the photos put up by the youths on Facebook.

But let's come to the main highlight of this post: the close friends in FGT I've built bonds with over the months... some of whom will be sorely missed next year due to studies and work! :(

First up, I shall thank the person who introduced me to FGT in the first place, my uni colleague and fellow Year 1 (now Year 2!) meddie, Ms. Evonne Teoh! We kinda came up with nicks for each other, where she calls me "Stubbornhead" and I call her "StubbornGIRL"! :p Anyway, I'm glad I got to know you better throughout this year, and I really appreciate you opening up to me on more than several occasions. :D Hope you enjoyed your holiday in Aussie, babe! (... although it meant that you missed my farewell lunch) :( Anyhow, I'll cya in time too next year.. it's juz 2 months plus more! :D

The 2 photos above are candid shots of Ms. Lim Tak Yee, who usually poses or smiles with her grin in front of the camera, AWARE! TY, thx for the advice and guidance you've given me throughout this year. I really appreciated it when you were sincere in getting to know me and where I wanted my life to go during the long chat we had in the LS... I guess that was the start of our long and beautiful friendship. Anywayz, I'm hoping to meet up with you and the others in Jan 09 when you guys get to JB! :) Haha, don't kill me for putting up these candids! :p

The dude above, ahem *clears throat*, is a semi-candid shot of none other than Dr. D.R.! Did you get that? I guess not! It's Mr. Ooi Dar Ray (soon to be Doctor Dar Ray), my closest bro in FGT and also my senior by a year. Really appreciate the close friendship we shared over the year, for lookin out for me, and for hearing me out at one point. It's good to know we've got each other's backs! :)

Haha, Mr. Steven Tan, my bro and cell leader in FGT... love the expressioN! Thx for all the contributions you've made throughout this year not only in our cell, but the Monash cell as well as the 365 youth group as a whole, both as a worship-leader and a musician. Super talented guy... can play almost any mainstream instrument known to man! Rawk on! :D

Last but not least, I'd like to include Ms. "Kaede" Chia Suyin here for two reasons:

1. She attended my farewell lunch organised by Steven exclusively for the ppl in FGT :p

2. We seemed to click almost instantaneously when we met the first time over lunch at Medan, and from there we could talk about almost anything! :)

Yeah, and she has a strong passion in joining EE next year as a trainee too.. praise God! :)

So, as some of you might have inferred, they had this farewell lunch for me at an Indonesian restaurant somewhere in Mentari, and all of us ordered ayam penyek, their specialty dish... which was super-spicy! After that, the conversation just flowed. It was good company, great friends... and as usual, we 'camwhored'!

And we didn't juz camwhore outside the restaurant, but we also took a mirror shot INSIDE the restaurant! Yeah ppl were looking at us, but hey, who cares? We only live on Earth once, right, so live it to the fullest! :p

So that concluded the year in FGT for me... and I'm lookin forward to more exciting and happening events in the next one! Toodles!

Those days in KL were... wait for it... AWESOME!! (Pt 1)

For those who watch and follow the HIMYM TV series, you'll understand what my blog post title is referring to... (winks especially at Rachel, Adnan & Nick). For those still clueless or reading it again and again with puzzled faces, HIMYM stands for 'How I Met Your Mother', a really cool comedy series revolving around its star, Ted Mosby, narrating to his 2 adolescent kids about... simply how he met their mother! The show has been running for 4 seasons now, and like Rachel said, when you reminisce, it is somewhat like Friends. The tagline reads 'A Love Story, in Reverse'. How true! Some folks might detest the show saying that it is too liberal in its values and the culture depicted is too "Americanised", unlike our traditional Asian culture. However, I believe that as long as you know where the boundaries and limits are, it's still A-O.K. to watch it!

Newae, this post series will play its purpose in updating u guyz about wat's been happening to and around me during these past few weeks/months. Life's been good, pretty much repetitive in some aspects, but nevertheless bearable and if I choose to see it in a positive light, fun! For those that are unaware, I am FINALLY back in my hometown after what I would call a brief 'post-exam holiday' in KL, before packin my bags and driving down 360 km a.k.a. 4-hour drive @ 110-120 km/h.

Let's see... While I was still in KL, there was this outing where Jun Yet, Rachel & I decided to visit The Mines. Both of 'em wanted to check out a Mandarin book fair and asked me to tag along.. even though I don't read Mandarin! But being the good friend I am, I decided to accompany them. Picked up Rachel in the morning, went to uni for a briefing, then both of us left for the Mines. A while later, JY showed up. We headed for the book fair and then spent a couple of hours there, which thankfully had an English section by MPH, kudos to them...

The pic below is one which I took showing the beautiful layout and design of the mall. Newae, it's been ages since I actually came here. Probably a decade, but to me, that's half my lifetime!

We went for lunch after walkin around the mall and feelin hungry. It was at this unique shop that specialised in teas. The food there was juz o.k., according to my high standards I have for food. I think the tea was better, not juz taste-wise, but also aroma-wise which was both scintillating and pleasant at the same time.

After lunch, we hunted around for dessert, or anything to arouse our already-aroused tastebuds even further. We probably encircled the moat you saw in the first picture once or twice, when JY (I think) pointed out to a stall called 'Snowy' which sells a variety of delicacies such as ice cream, ABC, fruits, etc. After much contemplating on what to order, we finally decided to have 2 bowls of iced fruits.

Thus, this concludes the first part of this post series. Who knows what I'm gonna write about in the next part. Newaez, gonna go for dinner at TGIF with family & friends now. I can actually hear my stomach grumbling amidst the loud Hillsong United music being blasted by my subwoofers back here at home. Haha, juz kidding, that was a little too exaggerated. Anyhow, until the next post from me, stay cool and God bless you all!

~Tim~

The Return...

Alas, I have returned to my blogging ways after a long, I-couldn't-help-it-cause-I-was-studying-for-exams "sa-blog-atical" (codename for a blog sabbatical!) Gosh, I wonder how long it's been, last I posted something was Oct 8... which is like more than a month! In fact, almost 6 weeks! I presume every1 knows why, so I shall not comment any further on it.

FYI, I'm blogging in the histopath lab in uni now. I have it all to myself cos every1 is busy enjoying the hols and not a single med student can be seen gallavanting around. I miss those days when I get to see one, two, or maybe more familiar faces around here, even if those faces are stressed out over too much studying (or the lack of it!) Not returning to JB until after the 10th of December for certain reasons.

My OSCE exam ended on the 10th of Nov and prior to that, my brain was being saturated non-stop with medical content: such as drug names, classes of chemoreceptors, Health Enhancement Program material, and so forth. I started studying and preparing for the written exam about 1 month before I had to sit for it, which is probably the longest period of mugging and cramming-data-into-brain that I've ever done so far for any exam. That's coz statistics show that:

Fact #1: NORMAL people usually only remember things they've memorised or studied with precision in the last 2 weeks.

Fact #2: Some claim that you can only remember with deadly accuracy specific details about a certain subject that you studied within the last 48 hours. (This fact is probably applicable to those major "last-minute-muggers" who aim to barely achieve the passing grade, or in medical terms, 'surface' learners.)

Therefore, after 1 month of studying, it's gonna take awhile before I start revising content of my Year 1 syllabus again. Furthermore, as you may have noticed, here I am blogging once more. =)Some of you may have noticed that there is a 10-day gap in between after my OSCE & now, and most prob wondering what I've been up to. Well, let me fill you guys in, with tons of details! So here it goes...

The day after the exam which was inarguably the 11th, I went along with the rest of MI6 to Low Yat Plaza (LYP) to do some shopping. Nick, Rachel and I started the trip there by monorail after Nick parked his car at KJ LRT station. One stop later, we got off to meet up with Sarah. Then the 4 of us headed off to LYP to shop for Nick's new handphone, which was eventually a Sony Ericson K "can't-remember-the-model" LOL. Moments later, poof, Jun Yet and Grace met up with us and thus the 6 of us "conquered" both LYP & Sungai Wang Plaza... literally. WHY? Coz we ended up shopping from noon till late at night, running around desperately to look for things that THEY would need for the formal dinner the following night. So, for the sake of vanity, the 3 guys bought a long-sleeved shirt each, Nick & I bought a tie, and Nick & JY both bought a black coat. On the other hand, the 3 girls bought a similar top but each with different colours; and who knows what else... ! :p Oh, I bought a CoolerMaster laptop cooler for RM92 on the same day too, carried it around for 10 hours, and coz I forgot to check the contents, I found out that the USB cable needed to power the cooling fan was missing! Arrgghhh! Had to go back there on Tuesday to get it... I learnt a valuable lesson the hard way, always check your purchases to make sure everything's there! On the upside, I went back 1 week later which was a good thing, coz I realised that brand power really exists. I used the cooling pad without the fan and presto, the aluminium body dispersed the heat emitted from my laptop with ease without crashing the system! It's true what they say, you get what you pay for!

Yeah, so as you know from what you've juz read, the next day was the MUMedS Formal Dinner at Bread & Olives Restaurant in Ampang. Everyone who attended was dressed to kill, even the lecturers! *looking innocent* Yeah, pics that were taken on that night by my friends and I are already uploaded onto Facebook, so go have a look to see what I mean. :>

Last Thursday: PAINtball! Period.

After the exam, I did quite a lot of shopping for luxuries/accessories that I don't really need but had been eyeing for the last few months, as well as spending more than I usually do. My most expensive buy of the post-exam season (for now at least), is a 320GB Maxtor external hard disk drive which cost me RM285, which I also got from LYP on the day I had to go back there to "claim" the USB cable for my laptop cooler. Kudos to Julian for bringing me there and back! You rawk!

I also got my Accord serviced and now it runs smoother, drives faster and ready to take the long journey home to JB after the 10th of Dec. Woot! Well, I think this post is way-too-detailed and I feel like hitting my Lineage 2 game once more... so saiyonara, take care ppl & God bless you all!

~Tim~

Does God Exist?

Faith is believing in what you cannot see.

If you have doubts as to whether God really exists, just look up to the sky at night. In certain regions of the world, you can actually see stars and constellations that speak of the vast nature of the universe out there. Everything in outer space has a "system" to function properly, and without it, even sustaining life on Earth would be an impossibility. Our planet is positioned just nicely in the Solar System, whereby any move nearer or farther from the Sun would be catastrophic. A perfect location... The only planet in our vast universe that is known to house living beings. What are the chances that all this was just due to chance, or due to the notion of "pre-existence"?

Do you believe in evolution?

A man went to a barbershop to have his hair cut and his beard trimmed. As the barber began to work, they began to have a good conversation. They talked about so many things and various subjects. When they eventually touched on the subject of God, the barber said I don't believe that God exists."

"Why do you say that?" asked the customer.

"Well, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God doesn't exist. Tell me, if God exists, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children? If God existed, there would be neither suffering nor pain. I can't imagine a loving a God who would allow all of these things."

The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to start an argument. The barber finished his job and the customer left the shop.

Just after he left the barbershop, he saw a man in the street with long, stringy, dirty hair and an untrimmed beard. He looked dirty and unkempt. The customer turned back and entered the barber shop again and he said to the barber: "You know what? Barbers do not exist."

"How can you say that?" asked the surprised barber. "I am here, and I am a barber. And I just worked on you!"

"No!" the customer exclaimed. "Barbers don't exist because if they did, there would be no people with dirty long hair and untrimmed beards, like that man outside."

"Ah, but barbers DO exist! " answered the barber. " What happens, is,people do not come to me. "

"Exactly!" affirmed the customer. "That's the point! God, too, DOES exist! What happens, is, people don't go to Him and do not look for Him. That's why there's so much pain and suffering in the world."

Keep the faith burning!

~Tim~

A.S.A.P.

Ever wonder about the abbreviation A.S.A.P.? Generally we think of it in terms of even more hurry and stress in our lives. Maybe if we think of this abbreviation in a different manner, we will begin to find a new way to deal with those rough days along the way.

There's work to do, deadlines to meet;

You've got no time to spare,

But as you hurry and scurry-

ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER

In the midst of family chaos,

"Quality time" is rare.

Do your best; let God do the rest-

ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER

It may seem like your worries

Are more than you can bear.

Slow down and take a breather-

ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER

God knows how stressful life is;

He wants to ease our cares,

And He'll respond to all your needs

ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER

People often misjudge the power of prayer.

A prayer of salvation and redemption.

A prayer of healing and comfort.

A prayer of forgiveness and restitution.

A prayer of hope and faith.

A prayer of protection.

A prayer of anointing.

A prayer of peace and harmony.

A prayer of guidance and purpose.

A prayer for the church or the house of prayer for all nations... For it is written in Isaiah 56:7, "... these I will bring to my holy mountain and give them joy in my house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations."

Any of the prayers listed above, and more, have the potential to bring change(s) in our individual lives, our community, our nation, and last but not least, the planet we live on. Let us not forget the power of prayer!

~Tim~

Winds of Changes, Wings of Angels

I guess listening to Andrea Bocelli & Sarah Brightman's duet, "Time to Say Goodbye" kinda inspired and prompted me to write this post... as I'm moving out of Saujana Resort to an undisclosed location tomorrow. :(

Leaving the ever beautiful and peaceful Saujana Resort does have an effect on me, especially after I spent the last 8 months here, effectively making it my 2nd home in KL. I guess I have gotten used to a maid coming to tidy up the place and iron my clothes every week, the wonderful facilities available here (esp the swimming pool, gym and 24-hour security feature) and a place where anyone can juz come home and relax. This is a place I called home even though it wasn't exactly mine in the first place, but I guess that's because I juz felt too comfortable here. Juz ask any of my frenz who've been here - Sarah, Grace, Rachel, Jun Yet, Terence and Joann.

I will also miss the company of my two housemates (Aunty Ai Yat & Deb... the former being the owner who sold the place - the reason why I have to move in the first place :P) Thank you both for your kind hospitality and putting up with me for the past two-thirds of a year! =D

Unfortunately for me, my 'prospective' new home lacks most of what I had here. No pool, gym, wide-screen flat panel TV, DVD player, etc. As it is quite new, it lacks Internet access! Looks like I'll be spending more time in uni, not that it's a bad thing, since I get to wake up later for uni anyway! :D Yeah, and less distractions means more time on studying. No, I'm not complaining - there are pros and cons to everything.

Anyway, moving on...


I'm actually on a one-week "break".


It's not exactly a good thing.


It's supposed to be utilised for revision for the upcoming exam in a month's time.


SO I don't exactly know why it's called a break, probably cause Monash wants to "break" us.


Don't even get started on calling it a holiday!


... although during the duration of last week, some of us felt the "holiday mood" setting in.


You want proof? The pix below show evidence regarding some of my overenthusiastic frenz' attempts to bring in the "holiday mood" as mentioned above. =P

Sam & Pat, our very own clowns, oops I mean medical reps for MUSA, as voted by my fellow meddies and I. Hope we made the right choice guys! LOL!

There's Pat (again!) with Irfadh.

Nick played too... not with the clowns or as a clown though, but with the guitar. :P I think the hat matches his shirt nicely.

On the same note, which 2 words that both rhyme with mood comes to mind when the term "holiday mood" is mentioned?

Let me give you some pointers: Starts with good and ends with food. Oh wait, I already gave it away... GOOD FOOD!

Last Friday, 5 of us meddies went to Pizza Hut and kinda "over-ordered" coz there was a Ramadan promo goin on there. There was Yours Truly, Dan, Grace, Sarah & Jun Yet; and we cumulatively (and crazily) ordered:

6 personal pan pizzas, 2 spaghetti pastas, 4 rolls of garlic bread, 8 bowls of soup and 8 glasses of Pepsi! We couldn't really finish everything, even with Dan around.

Leftovers: 1 pizza!

Nah, come to think of it, we didn't over-order. I think we were stuffed really well, but not to the extent of throwing up everything. And we paid about RM15 each only due to the promo! Talk about GOOD (and cheap) FOOD!

Typical ain't it? Get used to it! =D

Yeah, I think that's about it for now... Oh but wait, there's juz one more thing!

Ms. Stubborngirl a.k.a. Evonne a.k.a Blair Teoh has specially requested I put up pix of her during her blood donation last week. However, I'll only put up what I think to be her best one! Scroll down to see if you agree with me. :D

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That's all for now. Seriously.

~Tim~

Test of Faith

~ What doesn't kill you makes you stronger ~

~ Adversity doesn't build character as much as it reveals it ~

I think both statements can be true if you don't waste your pain.

Pain, obstacles and adversity: the anvil on which your character is forged. Everything has a cause and effect.

Some people say that pain is all in the mind, and if you can suppress it mentally, you will not even feel it. However, what if it is mental pain i.e. anxiety, anguish, fear, depression, etc.

If you fail to learn from the pain, but choose bitterness and anger, the next adversity you face will reveal the shallowness of your character and faith.

God can indeed use adversity to build your faith and make you a stronger man. But He can also use those "life-storms" as a proving ground for your faith.

Answer the following questions for yourselves:

What are your biggest fears?

What causes you the most pain in life?

Do you have doubts about your purpose and direction in life?

What is faith and/or what does it mean to you?

More importantly, ponder over EE's 2 diagnostic questions:

#1: Have you come to a place in your spiritual life where you know for certain that if you were to die today you would go to heaven, or is that something you would say you're still working on?

#2: Suppose you were to die today and stand before God and He were to say to you, "Why should I let you into My heaven?" what would you say?

As you reflect over both critical questions, I hope you have confidence in your answers and the assurance of the Holy Spirit, especially those who know Christ. I know for certain, without a shadow of a doubt, that I do! Think about it!

~Tim~

FEATURE: Euro-English

Ok ppl, I'm gonna introduce a new type of post on my blog, coz lately, I've been gettin a whole pile of interesting stuff delivered right to my e-mail address. I'm gonna entitle it "FEATURE", and it will be a pre-fix before the actual post title. I'll only put up FEATUREs from time to time though, so look out for 'em! I assure you it will be a good read, as it is mostly articles I find that tickled my funny bone (or ulna nerve, as meddies would put it! :P) And yes, they are almost always "clean", so I won't include any dirty humour, racist jokes, and so forth. So, I hope you'll enjoy reading them too! =D So without further ado, here's the first FEATURE... Euro-English!

The European Commission has just announced an agreement whereby English will be the official language of the European Union rather than German, which was the other possibility.

As part of the negotiations, the British Government conceded that English spelling had some room for improvement and has accepted a 5- year phase-in plan that would become known as "Euro-English".

In the first year, "s" will replace the soft "c". Sertainly, this will make the sivil servants jump with joy.

The hard "c" will be dropped in favour of "k". This should klear up konfusion, and keyboards kan have one less letter.

There will be growing publik enthusiasm in the sekond year when the troublesome "ph" will be replaced with "f". This will make words like fotograf 20% shorter.

In the 3rd year, publik akseptanse of the new spelling kan be expekted to reach the stage where more komplikated changes are possible.

Governments will enkourage the removal of double letters which have always ben a deterent to akurate speling.

Also, al wil agre that the horibl mes of the silent "e" in the languag is disgrasful and it should go away.

By the 4th yer people wil be reseptiv to steps such as replasing "th" with "z" and "w" with "v".

During ze fifz yer, ze unesesary "o" kan be dropd from vords kontaining "ou" and after ziz fifz yer, ve vil hav a reil sensi bl riten styl.

Zer vil be no mor trubl or difikultis and evrivun vil find it ezi tu understand ech oza. Ze drem of a united urop vil finali kum tru.

Und efter ze fifz yer, ve vil al be speking German like zey vunted in ze forst plas.

Cheers,

~Tim~

7 Daily Rules from God

Today is one of those rare, non-holiday weekdays where I get to wake up late coz my classes today only start at 2 p.m. I know some of my fellow meddies would be sleeping until 1 p.m., but as a habit, I make it a point not to wake up later than 11 a.m., even if it is a weekend or holiday. :) I'm glad I finished up my intro for EPI and started a bit on the Objectivity & Patient Perspective section already. Praise Adonai to Our God Most High! :D

This is not going to be a lengthy post coz I actually have to divide tasks for my Practical class later as I'm the "Chair" for this week. Moreover, I actually have to DO them! Yeah, but I juz wanna share somethin here, which I hope will enrich the lives of those who read it. Basically, it's about a few pointers for living your day-to-day lives with a purpose, a purpose that glorifies God. So here they are:


1. Wake Up! Decide to have a good day. "Today is the day the Lord hath made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalms 118:24

2. Dress Up! The best way to dress up is to put on a smile. A smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks. "The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at outward appearance; but the Lord looks at the heart." I Samuel 16:7

3. Shut Up! Say nice things and learn to listen. God gave us two ears and one mouth, so He must have meant for us to do twice as much listening as talking. "He who guards his lips guards his soul." Proverbs 13:3

4. Stand Up! ... For what you believe in. Stand for something or you will fall for anything.. "Let us not be weary in doing good; for at the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good..." Galatians 6:9-10

5. Look Up! ... To the Lord. "I can do everything through Christ who strengthens me." Phillippians 4:13

6. Reach Up! ... For something higher. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, And He will direct your path." Proverbs 3:5-6

7. Lift Up! ... Your prayers. "Do not worry about anything; instead PRAY ABOUT EVERYTHING." Philippians 4:6

Serving Christ Together,

~Tim~

Exams

Fact #1: No one I know loves exams. Period.

Fact #2: Med students take a long time to "relax" after exams. Yes, I know my mid-sem exam ended about one-and-a-half weeks ago, but I'm taking a long time "de-stressing" from the aftermath of it (probably applies to almost all my fellow meddies as well) - spelling an often-disastrous 'procrastination'!

Fact #3: Post something farnie! For my blog faithful, it's been quite some time since I posted anything that really tickled your funny-bone (oh, for those that are oblivious, the "funny-bone" is actually the reaction you get when you suddenly strike your ulnar nerve on the medial epicondyle of your humerus i.e. that immediate reflex associated with it)...

... Newae, I recently came across something funny (or that I found funny) regarding exams, or more specifically, the Malaysian examination of the highest pedigree known to Malaysians... the STPM!

How do you explain the fact that 87% of the students passed the examinations of the Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM) recently? When during your grandfather's time only 10% would have passed?

Are students getting smarter? Or are STPM questions getting easier?

Let me put things in their proper perspective.

During your grandfather's time, they would ask exam questions like:
"In what year did Parameswara founded the kingdom of Melaka ?"
The correct answer was "1402", and they found that only 10% of the students managed to answer the question correctly. This didn't go down too well with the authorities, because the objective of the exams was to pass people.

I mean, what's the point of having exams if people fail?
So later, they found another way to ask the same question:
"Parameswara founded the kingdom of Melaka in the year:
a) 2001
b) 2004
c) 1986
d) 1975
e) 1402
Tick the correct answer."

The results were better in that 20% of the students passed.

But it was still not good enough, so the authorities tried a different tactic a few years later.

"Parameswara founded the kingdom of Melaka in the year 1402. True or false?"

Well, half of the students guessed "True" and the other half guessed "False".

Fully 50% passed.

The results were getting pretty acceptable by now but still not good enough.

Most other countries would be satisfied with a 50% passing rate, but not us. We are a better country, because we are a boleh country. The authorities then cracked their heads and then came out with this one:

Read the following sentence carefully.
"Parameswara, the cousin of Proton-Iswara, founded the kingdom of Melaka in the year 1402. Underline the name of the person who founded Melaka."

60% underlined "Parameswara", 30% underlined "Proton-Iswara" and 10% underlined "1402".
Yeah!!!!....60% managed to pass! So krever!

But for some reason, the authorities were still not contented. So last year, they came out with this gem:

"One day in the year 1402, Parameswara founded the kingdom of Melaka . Then he went home to have dinner. What did he eat?"

13% (smart students) handed in blank answers, 57% wrote "Maggi Mee", and 10% wrote "Kentucky Fried Chicken", and 20% wrote "Nasi Lemak". The official answer was anything concerning "Food" of course!
After the marking was over, it was found that 87% of the students had passed.

87%!!!!!............now that's pretty impressive!

So it's true.
So now the authorities are very happy that the students are indeed getting smarter? Well done Boleh-land!

Proves once again that "Malaysia Boleh!" :)


Oh, and here are some pics that I took over the past few weeks which I wasn't able to put up due to exams... Bleh! Finally!

Sem 2 PCL Group C

W Tak Yee & Dar Ray at EE Banquet Dinner

W Dar Ray (coincidence that we both wore shirts of almost the same colour and design on Sunday morning in FGT, on more than 1 occasion!)

W Sukanya

Doesn't this pic say enough of what kind of students we are? (Hint: For you blur cases, look at the T-shirt!)

W Pin Tet a.k.a. Mr. Birthday Boy

W Jacelyn, Ron & Arif

W Stella

W Jeremy & Tshek Zen, my Selectives buddies (and possibly study groupies?)

Clockwise from top: Kaarthikeshen, Yew Loong, Jun Yet, Dan, & Yours Truly

Cheers ppl! Give God the glory in whatever you do! Soli Deo Gloria!

~Tim~

Heaven

Finally, I'm posting again!! As my blog faithful would know, the lack of posts on my blog over the last two weeks (sigh, it has been that long huh?) has been due to the fact that I was BUSY BUSY BUSY studying for my mid-sem exam which I juz sat for 2 days ago. Yeah, I know I could have updated earlier, but betta late than never right? :P Anyway, I promise you that this post is going to be a feast for the eyes (yes, I know some of you are scrolling down already! :D), and my "post-exam post" is not going to be mainly about pictures with people (unlike Terence's) or as short as Jun Yet's LOL! :)

Newae, I know most of you would have come across the question: "What would you do if you won a million dollars?" before. There's the typical "saint" answers like "Oh, I would donate it to the poor!" or "I would sponsor a campaign or fund an organisation that stands for good works!" etc. Still, more "honest" ones would admit that they would use it for themselves or people close to their hearts. Whatever your choice, chances are, how often would one actually win such a large amount of cash?

Personally, if I ever get hold of one million dollars (or Ringgit after conversion ;P), I would decide to travel the world. Most of my life has been spent in Malaysia, a tropical country where it's humid all the time; where food lovers all around the world come to taste juicy cuisines and savour the results of fine culinary skills that make this country a gastronomic heaven; where we are renowned to have the tallest twin towers in the world; and where the political scene is but the butt of jokes worldwide. Ahh.. Malaysia! Malaysia! 20 years I have spent on Malaysian soil, how long more will it be before I get my opportunity to roam the world?

There's a whole world to see, feel and experience out there. From Paris, the city of love; to the vast urban jungle of the Big Apple (NYC); and there's the crisp and fresh air of the mountainous Swiss Alps. Then there's the global city of entertainment: Las Vegas; the luscious savannas of the African continent; and the beautiful reefs of Australia's waters. I could go on about everything I feel like doing that's within my somewhat vast knowledge of Geography... but what's the point? It's something I can juz dream about right now. Maybe someday my dream will come true, and if it is according to God's plan, I'll fulfill it with a special someone.

In the meantime, I can juz look at beautiful photographs of urban jungles all around the globe and admire the amazing concrete and metallic works of man's hands, and the magnificent lighting that usually encompasses them. Thus, I've included some pics of my favourite and most beautiful cities in the world for your viewing pleasure:

And presenting, last but not least, Kuala Lumpur!

Oops!! Sorry, nothing to see... TNB cut off the power supply!! :D

But you know what, the city of Heaven is greater and far more superior than any city than any man can ever build. Even the most advanced and modern cities face many problems. Pollution (at least thermal and sound), crime, health problems, and decreasing area of land for development are juz some of these problems.

On the other hand, the Bible in Revelation 21:1-4 says that Heaven (the Holy City of God) is a city of NO PROBLEMS: No death, sorrow, crying or pain! Scholars have visualised Heaven as a city where the streets are made of gold! Best of all is that we will finally get to see our Father who will dwell amongst all who are chosen to be saved in the name of Jesus Christ, who died on the Cross for a purpose: to save all mankind from the grip of sin. Oh, and admission into Heaven is a gift from God to men. In other words, it's free! You don't have to win a million bucks to get there. All you have to do is pray and accept the Lord Jesus Christ into your life and live according to what He says in the Bible.

Unfortunately for some, they will never see the beautiful city of Heaven. The Bible says that death awaits those who do not believe in Christ, our Saviour King. John 8:51 says, "I tell you the truth, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death."

For those who know me and wanna find out more about what is stated above regarding Heaven and issues pertaining to it, feel free to drop me a message so that I can liaison with you, if possible (I'm in KL now). Oh and FYI I'm joining the Evangelism Explosion or EE, a global movement that aims to fulfill the Great Commission. This is going to be a leap of faith for me too as it not only requires a passion to serve others through evangelism, but it's going to require commitment and time for a good 13 weeks or so!

Yeah, I guess that's all I'm gonna write for this post-exam post of mine. For those that wanna know, my exam went alright, and I found the questions easier than the ones I sat for during the mid-year (probably because I didn't blog since I started my proper revision LOL!). However, I'm glad the Lord saw me through the 1st sem, and I know He'll see me through the rest of the year! :)

~Tim~