Monash CF Camp 2009

Monash CF Camp 2009 may be over, but the wonderful memories and lessons I learnt from the camp still linger on! The 4 days of self-discovery was worth every second... and I know a good many of you who attended the camp wished it never had to end!

The theme of this year's CF camp was "Lego Me Brother!", a phrase synonymous with the notions of ego suicide, sacrifice, grace, forgiveness and consecration among our brothers- and -sisters-in-Christ. Luke 17:3-4 clearly talks about the importance of forgiveness and rebuking a sibling-in-Christ when he or she sins. It is easier said than done in most cases, and during devotions in the morning, my group did discuss the many crucial issues within this context of brotherhood. We agreed that the strength of the body of Christ rests upon the relationships between our brothers and sisters.

Personally for me, I felt that the toughest aspect of brotherhood to actually practise is ego suicide. In a modern world where kiasu-ism and perfectionism is widespread, it is not easy to let go of your pride for the benefit of others at your own expense, especially when it means that the other person, as a result, would be of a higher status than you in the political or social hierarchy. However, after this camp, I will always be reminded about the reassuring fact of Jesus Christ's humility when He came into this fallen world. Christ is known to many by many different names, but one of my favourites is Servant King. He demonstrated humility by washing his disciples' feet and setting an example that is followed even today by many Christian groups around the world. His greatest act of love for the world was His sacrificial act of death for the sins of the world, even to death on the Cross!

Anyway, lessons aside, let's move on to the memories! Hey, what's camp without all the wonderful memories from the hundreds of pictures we took collectively? So without further ado...

During the Team Fortress game... Yours Truly in action!

Definitely one of my fave pics from this camp: Angel & Mortal at WAR! Awesome pic!

The game where we had to form the phrase, "LEGO ME BROTHER!" from satay sticks

The guys and girls at my table during the girls Dish-up

All Blacks!

My group was doing "America's Next Top Model" based on the "Wild Wild West" theme

In our play on the final night, we had to cross-dress!

Lind & I =)

Lind & I again on the final day, who apparently didn't change her shirt! =p

From this pic and the one above, who wouldn't notice that Lind likes to stand on the far right when taking pictures? =p

The med fac students that attended the camp!

The Year 2 meddies!

Another fave! The FGT-ians jump shot!

Lurve everything about this pic of Yin & I... you go gal!

Von looks really nice and sweet here

Raymas & I after arriving back @ Monash

Our parting shot with Victor, who was leaving us as he juz graduated

Thanksgiving time! Praise God, the author and perfector of our salvation, for everything that happened during the camp, both good and bad, as it taught me so much and made me a stronger person in more ways than one! A special shout-out and personal thank you to Ms. Annette Arulrajah & Yuong Eng for sharing and speaking to us on this not-so-easy topic... it was good hearing the Word from 2 Bible scholars who have definitely 'tasted more salt' than any of us at camp. Also worth mentioning were the strengthening of beautiful, pre-existing friendships and the forging of new ones over the 4 days of camp: the joy and fun we had bonding as the people of God united in one heart at the lovely Golden Sands beach area in Port Dickson! Camp would not be possible without the hard work of our camp commandant, my bro Raymas and his committee, so kudos to them for doing a wonderfully splendid job, especially those who were in the many worship teams... you guyz rawk! Praise God for the good and lovely weather throughout the camp, especially during the games planned out by Yin/Kaede, Carmen & Rachel Lim, which I also wanna thank for planning ever so meticulously and burning a lot of midnight oil juz to make sure everything went well! A special thank you to my angel and fellow FGT-ian, Abel, who encouraged me with his notes which came at the right times; and for having fun together at the Team Fortress game! If you're reading this, I can still remember you telling me that my angel was closer than I thought... which turned out to be so true coz u were juz sleeping next to me every night! o.O Thx 2 my fellow Year 2 meddies, Rachel Ooi & Evonne, for being there for me with your warm hugs and prayers, let's finish the race well together! Last but not least, thank you Lind... for making camp that much more interesting; for helping me design a new brand of footwear indirectly =p; for asking and making sure if I was alright from time-to-time; for being honest and transparent with me; for having those heart-to-heart talks at night; and all-in-all for juz making me feel comfortable when I'm with you! *hugs* I'll continue keeping you in my prayers dear!! =D

~Tim~