The Pillar of Cloud and the Pillar of Fire

"You in your amazing compassion didn't walk off and leave them in the desert. The Pillar of Cloud didn't leave them; daily it continued to show them their route; The Pillar of Fire did the same by night, showed them the right way to go."

- Nehemiah 9:19


The holidays are finally here! I know all of us here have different stuffs planned for the rest of the holidays but before I sign off, I'd just like to give the above verse to remind all of you (me incl.) that wherever you go, God's guidance will show you the way, be it in the morning, at night, at midnight or even during the dawn (if you're wild enough to be doing anything at that time).


And here I share with you one of the most played songs on my playlist:

Tiang Awan Tiang Api - Jonathan Prawira

Have a fun end to 2008 and expect even better things in 2009!

Mobil di Surga

*Pak Haji* meninggal dua hari yang lalu dan hari ini ia diterima seorang
malaikat penjaga gerbang surga. Sang malaikat berkata: "Pak Haji, jalan ke
surga masih jauh, ini saya kasih *Suzuki Carry* supaya nggak capek jalan
kesananya dan kendaraan ini buat Pak Haji yang dapat digunakan selamanya di surga nanti".
Pak Haji: "Wah, terima kasih sekali!" sambil tersenyum. Pak Haji dengan senangnya mengendarai Suzuki Carry pemberian si malaikat tadi.

Beberapa saat kemudian, secara tiba-tiba ada sebuah * Toyota Corolla* melaju dari belakang dan menyalip Suzuki Carry yang dikendarai Pak Haji.
fiiiooosshhh......
Pak Haji secara sekilas sempat melihat pengendara Toyota Corolla tadi..
Ternyata *seorang pastor!!*
Pak Haji agak jengkel dan nggak terima... masa ia cuma dikasih Suzuki Carry. Akhirnya ia balik arah hendak menemui si malaikat lagi. Begitu sampai Pak Haji langsung berkata:
"Ini tidak adil, masa si pastor bisa dapat Toyota Corolla sedang saya cuma
Suzuki Carry?"
Sang malaikat berkata dengan kalem: *"Begini Pak Haji..bapak kan hidupnya di dunia sudah enak..bisa kawin, *
*bisa punya istri empat lagi....*
*sedangkan seorang pastor kan hidup selibat dan harus mengatasi
keinginan duniawi.*
Jadi mengertilah........kini saatnya si pastor tadi mendapat imbalan."
Pak Haji berpikir sejenak dan mengangguk: "Oya..ya..benar juga.
Oke lah saya nggak apa-apa pakai Suzuki Carry.....yang penting bisa
sampai ke surga."

Dengan gembira Pak Haji mengendarai Suzuki Carrynya lagi dan meluncur dengan santai.

Tetapi tanpa disangka-sangka ada kendaraan lain lagi yang melaju kencang dan langsung menyalip Pak Haji.
Kali ini *Mercedes SL-500* open kap dan pengendaranya adalah seorang pemuda berambut gondrong dan ngebut.
Rambutnya berkibar tertiup angin saking kencangnya Mercedes tersebut. Kali ini *pak Haji* geram dan berkata dalam hati:
"Huh! Kalau tadi pastor dengan Corolla, bisa saya terima. Tapi kali ini pemuda berambut gondrong dengan Mercy SL-500?.......
Itu keterlaluan!!!".

Dengan cepat Pak Haji berbalik menemui si malaikat lagi.
Setelah sampai, ia langsung lompat dari mobil dan marah-marah:
"Ini sudah keterlaluan, masa seorang pemuda gondrong dan ngebut
bisa dapat Mercy..open kap lagi!???".

*Si malaikat tampak salah tingkah dan terus celingak-celinguk,*
akhirnya ia berbisik ke Pak Haji:
*"Ssstttt...itu tadi... Jesus...!!!"*

Butterfly

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could, and it could go no further.

So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon.
The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time.

Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.

What the man, in his kindness and haste, did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. If God allowed us to go through our lives without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. We could never fly!

Don't Lay Back

Hey everyone,

I've read all your testimonies, and also heard about the others. God has certainly turned all your lives upside down for the better! Congrats for those of you who has rekindled the fire for God again. Now, what happens after HMC? You're back to facing the real world where you;re constantly facing external pressures from school, friends, family and the economy. My challenge to all of you: DON'T FALL BACK! Laziness, mediocrity, procrastination and sub-standard satisfaction will put off your fire. So, be EXCITED and be CLOSE to God every single moment of your lives!

Many things and obstacles will come in your way, but know that God is with you all the time. Now, I challenge all of you to SPREAD THE FIRE to your surroundings, TO WIN SOULS FOR JESUS, and to BURN EVEN BRIGHTER everyday!!! We're going to make sure everyone of us has a mentor/buddy to encourage you every single day by the end of this week. Also, keep reading the Bible, keep worshipping God, keep reeading purpose driven life, and approach Him in secret!

I'm extremely excited to witness God moving through YOU this coming year! Mark my words, from this day on, you will see God bringing revival and breakthroughs in the church, in your school and your family. Jangan cuma di healing camp aja kalian bisa merasakan hadirat Tuhan yang kuat, tetapi let it be EVERY SINGLE day that you feel God's mighty power and presence!! God never stops being there for you--and you should not stop advancing in spirituality!

There is only ONE WAY: Jesus and Up.


The LORD is my light and my salvation—
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life—
of whom shall I be afraid?

-- psalm 27: 1

"freely you receive, and freely you give"

"the body is weak, but the spirit is willing."