Friday, November 24, 2006

Hill top experience


Yesterday, 7.30pm

Hillsong United in Malaysia.

The venue was SIB KL in a tightly packed sanctuary. The atmosphere was alive with excitement and expectation as thousands (a literally full and perhaps almost overflowing sanctuary: the area in front of the stage was packed, much less the seats) waited for the concert to begin.

There I was, with a few of the KDU CF students and friends, right smack in the front of the stage area. Above, full; behind, full; left, full; right, full. It was an evening that will for always echo in the corridors of my memory ...

A 45 minute wait

We (about 10 of us) arrived at SIB KL at 6.30 pm plus. Wanting to quickly make our way to the fifth floor where the concert was to be held, we waited for elevators. We were told subsequently that the elevators may be too slow and that we'd have a better chance of arriving 'earlier' if we took the stairs.

Huh? 5 floors up?

Walked and walked, up and up. I was slightly out of breath at the 4th floor (and the concert had not started yet ... haha).

Upon our arrival at the 5th floor, we were greeted by an already full waiting area outside the main sanctuary. Wow ... we took our places in line and waited and waited. All around us were people, young and the not so young (I think I was in a middle category, hahah). Time passed and still people were coming in. I had heard that the tickets were sold out, so it was not surprising. People even had to line up in the stairwells.

Eventually they let us in at about 7.30pm.

The Hills are alive ... with the sound of (praise and worship) music

Officially the concert started after 8pm. We were there to see the group live but more importantly, we were there, whether we were aware of it or not, to meet with God.

The concert opened with huge songs, including 'One Way' (yes, it may be an older song of theirs, but to me, one of the best that evening. Guys ... I am still waiting for the reward ... ahem hehe). People began to sing their lungs out and jumped and jumped. You will not see as much dancing in clubs, I think, and the floor was literally moving.

This old-er guy, all of 29 years, gave it my all too as I jumped and jumped with the throng of worshippers, raising our voices to defeaning levels to praise and worship our Lord Jesus. Songs came and went, but the crowds matched the group on stage with levels of sky high enthusiam. I have not jumped so much ... I am still reeling from the exertion (hahah), but it was worth it ... every single moment.

Worshipping Jesus 'From the inside out'

The majority of the songs were new-er to me as I am much more of a Hillsong listener rather than a Hillsong United listener. Still that did not stop me singing and praising God. Wow, the experience was so fresh and exciting. I literally shouted praises and prayers to Jesus and my Heavenly Father. Among the 'highlights' (songs that I enjoyed singing most) were One Way, King of Majesty (I really sang and sang to this), Take it all and the (almost sure to be) anthemic From the Inside Out (see my earlier post on the CF camp, it was one of the highlighted songs).

Thank You Lord Jesus for helping me to truly praise You.

Also we sang powerfully to snippets of classics like Our God reigns and also the newer Chris Tomlin favourite worship song 'How great is our God'. And we shouted God's victory through so many other songs ... I am sure the spiritual realms were shaken and probably God's angels sang with us too. :)

All in all, this old-er guy had a spectacular time in worshipping and in rededication to Jesus.

Truly 'All the Heavens shout Your praise ... beautiful is our God, the universe will sing, Hallelujah to You our King'.

What's next?

Lord Jesus, please help me to build on what You have and are doing in me and through me that truly ALL praise and honour will go to You, to be faithful to You and to love You and others as much as You love me. Amen.

Ok, who is coming to bless Malaysia next? Heheh ...

I bless You God.
God bless you all.

Friday, November 10, 2006

Singing Christmas into the college: Gloria in Excelsis Deo


It is almost that time of year again, a time of celebrating the birth of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. A time of great joy, a time of singing and praise, worshipping our Heavenly Father, God Almighty and His glorious plan of Salvation.

Glo o o o o o ria ... in Excelsis Deo ... (Glory to God in the Highest).


Carol of the bells

This year, we at KDU CF are going to sing Christmas into the college, and hopefully into the lives of its students. :) It's carolling time! We plan to do it in the concourse area where we are sure to get maximum exposure ... which is a good thing ... but that would mean we would have to be extra prepared ... which is a ... um ... good thing also ... I think. :)

Oh yes, we are also singing 12 - 13 songs. Haha. All by memory.

We are singing ... in parts!

Oh the days ...

We have all four groups between us, the 'high flying' sopranos, the 'courageous' altos, the 'elevated' tenors (hehe, I am one of them) and the 'booming' basses.

Our torture maiden ... opps ... conductress, Ms Carissa (oklah, she is nicelah ... :) ), has the herculean task of drilling ... opps ... training us (and our voices) into tip top shape, and I think she is doing a great job of it. Little did I realise that we can s-i-n-g. Haha. Woo Hoo. All glory and praise to God for the gift of song, and unity.

So far, we have practiced (and for one or two, almost perfected) about 8 songs including Angels we have heard on high, Silent Night and Joy to the world. Some of the times, there is a cacophony of parts (haha), but there are those times when the group surprises even me. Boy oh boy, it is during those times that we rock! But hopefully more rocking than sinking lah ...

And the practices keep on coming ...

We have been practicising for some weeks now, usually twice a week, and are getting there. Carissa told us that quite a few of the parts sung in parts have been modified to suit us or taken away to simplify the song, to also suit us.

We are grateful ...

How great is our God, SING with me ....

So to those involved, let us truly strive to come together and sing our hearts to the Lord Jesus, and celebrate His birth, His coming into the world.

So ...

Let soprano voices ring high and clear, while altos weave their song to complement and support, let the men of bass anchor the songs with foundations so firm and tenors soar in harmony and symphony ... to create a most pleasing sound as a sacrifice of worship and praise to our God, our Father in Heaven and to embed the true message of Christmas in men.

Glo o o o o ria in Excelsis Deo.

God bless you all.
Pray with us and for us, ok? :)

Wednesday, November 01, 2006

Surprise, surprise ...

Today's post (after what seemed to be ages) is inspired by the quiz on John (The Wallah)'s blog. I did it and the results are ...

Surprise, surprise
Have a look.

I did the quiz twice and twice I was challenged with the same tie breaker question: English or Education? I love English (language, culture, footie!). I also love education (although not necessarily the law, hehe). Anyway, scores for both my #1 and #2 are same.


You scored as Education/Counseling. You should strongly consider majoring in Education, or related majors (e.g. American Sign Language, Child Development, P.E./Physical Education). Teaching others takes compassion, dedication, patience, an open mind, and a certain type of intelligence for the field you teach.




It is possible that the best major for you is your 2nd, 3rd, or even 5th listed category, so be sure to consider ALL majors in your OTHER high scoring categories (below). You may score high in a category you didnt think you would--it is possible that a great major for you is something you once dismissed as not for you. The right major for you will be something 1) you love and enjoy and 2) are really great at it.




Consider adding a minor or double majoring to make yourself standout and to combine your interests. Please post your results in your myspace/blog/journal.

English/Journalism/Comm

81%

Education/Counseling

81%

Religion/Theology

69%

HR/BusinessManagement

63%

French/German/Spanish

50%

Visual&PerformingArts

50%

Psychology/Sociology

44%

PoliticalScience/Philosophy

38%

History/Anthropology/LiberalArts

38%

Physics/Engineering

31%

Biology/Chemistry/Geology

31%

Accounting/Finance/Marketing

25%

Nursing/AthleticTraining

19%

Mathematics/Statistics

6%

WHAT MAJOR IS RIGHT FOR YOU?
created with QuizFarm.com

All glory to my Lord Jesus for the love of teaching and English. May I use these for Your glory, Jesus.

God bless you.