work

this past week, starting on monday...i've been attached to a firm making a building models. my first impression was tat making these models was quite easy...just sticking some materials together for display..and abacadabra..there you have it!

but in real life...its real hardwork. everything has to go nicely...like the cutting, pasting, etc, has to be perfect..becos the boss is a perfectionist, and expects improvements to occur along the way.
otherwise...had a pretty interesting lunch today.. went to a colleagues place at the shoplots near by (the office is in MJC batu kawah). and on the menu was Mamee junk food, ice cream and maggi mee! but i ordered black pepper chic rice anyway so that i won't get hungry for the rest of the afternoon.

will tell u guys more later, but work starts at 9 tomoro, and i've to call it a day. take care and God bless ya!

life's lessons

Hi guys…

Looks like God isn’t finished with me yet. I sense he is on a mission to turn me into a better person this holiday, although I had to learn these lessons the hard way. I learnt a very tough lesson yesterday (okay..about 3 days ago) about driving….

I was on my way to meet some friends for dinner at 7pm. Before getting out of the house at 6.20pm, I had been playing computer games the whole afternoon. I was pretty tired, but I was overconfident that I could get to the place on time. Moreover, it was raining, and I was driving pretty fast on the slippery road at about 70 km/h.

I managed to ‘conquer’ a bend pretty easily at gear 4 but then things started to happen so fast. I lost control of the car (which was my mum’s 20-year-old Proton Saga), and it started swerving around. I was driving like a mad man in curves, and heading directly towards a Perodua Kenari on the opposite side of the road. I instinctively swerved to the left to avoid it, but it was too late.

I felt a substantial knock on the door, and the next moment the front part of the car was in the ditch. I was so afraid, almost to the extent of crying out. The guy from the kancil came towards me and tried to pry open the door but it was knocked inwards so badly, and the glass was shattered. After I found my glasses, I got out of the car through the other front door, and called my parents. Man, I was so afraid , because I have never expected myself to get into this time of situation in my entire life. I’ve seen accidents before, I have never imagined myself getting into this kind of wreck.

Of course, my parents and the victim’s ‘friends’ came along to assess the situation, but luckily there were no injuries that required hospital treatment. As for the kenari, its tires burst and I believe the engine was knocked so badly it couldn’t run again. A police report, and expensive payments for insurance claims had to be made. 2 tow trucks were also called, but it took the men over an hour to get the proton out from the ditch. The situation was complicated because the steering shaft (which controls the front tires) broke, and in the end both tow trucks had to be used. The undercarriage of the car was badly damaged because it scraped against the concrete when it was pulled out.

Until today, the costs for the damages haven’t been estimated yet, but its still gonna cost a bomb. My parents decided that if the repair costs (for the proton only) exceed its value substantially, the car might as well be condemned. As a matter of fact, this was the 3^rd time that this same car was involved in accidents. The first time was by my brother, and the 2^nd time was by my grandfather ( which was hit my a 4WD, estimated repair costs RM 4k!).

Yes indeed , the Lord isn’t done with me yet. After a depressing start to the holidays by a sprained ankle in Melbourne, now this! sigh...but the bible does say...all things work out for the good of those who love him. its indeed true...and i'll keep on holding to His promises. amen!

reflections on site

Dear all….

I’ve been back for 2 weeks plus….and just before that, I ‘ve been staying at home in Melbourne, unable to travel anywhere becos of my sprained ankle.

This past week, I’ve been starting to do sth constructive (literally). Yesterday, I went to visit an uncle who had a civil engineer firm to visit some construction sites. I have learnt how to handle ‘difficult’ people who seemingly ignore the engineer’s instructions. The situation was like this: a tripod like steel structure, at least 4-5 meters in height was built at a large church in Kuching to display a cross at the top. The problem of the structure was that the structure’s base was not built to the engineer’s specifications by one of the subcontractors. From then onwards, the engineer had incurred an unnecessary liability in case this structure was to fail in the future. The engineer then expressed his dissatisfaction to the responsible contractor in the nicest way possible, instead of firing the gun on the spot.

Sadly the contractor, whom I knew was a church elder, was the one who was more obviously responsible for this incident. He tried to protect his subcontractor who performed the task by saying that he was an experienced at his job. Additionally, by allowing the subcontractor to perform the modification on the structure without the engineer’s knowledge and approval showed his dishonesty and unreliability of handling the project. Moreover, both the engineer and the contractor are Christians, and this particular project involves a church!

Wow…that was certainly a mouthful for the day. Imagine the sort of gossip and distrust towards this church elder if he continues in his ways. I can my uncle snickering at this contractor while he preaches the gospel, performs the Holy Communion and chairing church board meetings. How about other non Christians who are working with this contractor? Surely it will be hard for him to preach the gospel to his colleagues. Of course, we should not generalize all contractors who are Christians behave like this person whom I’ve described here. There are many other Christians around who work with a clear conscience, and truly aim to display the likeness of Christ towards their coworkers through their behaviour.

Indeed, we know that as university students, we are the salt and light to the friends around us. It will be more challenging for us to proclaim Christ to the people around us when we start work, knowing that the people whom we are trying to evangelize to are in the same rat race as we are. But take heart and don’t give up! God will surely give us the strength and grace to proclaim the gospel to the ends of the earth, and we as Christ’s ambassadors have the responsibility to do this to our best capabilities. Amen.