Wednesday, February 15, 2006

10th entry - A Happy Valentine's Day



S and I celebrated our first Valentine's Day together this year. Honestly I think this must have been the happiest Valentine's Day I ever had.

Our celebration actually started on Friday 10 Feb afternoon. I injured my foot on Thursday morning and stayed home the next day to rest after seeing the doctor. S insisted on visiting me at home after getting off work even though I was already able to walk about. It was also S's first visit to my place during the day. S's care and concern touched me deeply - with a lover like S there was every reason to be injured or sick ever so often! ha ha ...

On Saturday afternoon, I went as usual to S's apartment. We ate a simple lunch together and then made passionate love to one another. At around 6pm, we set off for Amara Hotel and had a sumptuous buffet dinner at Element restaurant. After dinner, we strolled to a nearby park and sat down to enjoy the cool night breeze and beautiful moonlit scenery, before heading back to S's apartment where I stayed the night. There, we resumed our passionate love-making for a while before drifting to sleep. I guess when you are in the mood for love, weariness and bloatedness is no obstacle...

The next day, I went to FCC in the morning, and after that S and I met up for lunch at a neighbourhood shopping arcade near my place. We then bought some groceries and headed back to my place. For the first time, we were able to enjoy a lovely couples' shower together! I was ecstatic and I believe so was S. We made love, and then sat down on the couch to watch television and eat fruits and ice-cream together - like a honeymoon couple! Time stood still for a while as we enjoyed each other's presence ...

S and I managed to find time to have dinner together on Monday evening even though S had to work late. At 12midnight, just as I was messaging a Valentine's Day greeting for S on my mobile phone, S beat me to it by sending me one first. I felt it was incredibly romantic of S to do something like that, considering the fact that S needed to wake up very early everyday for work...

On the 14th, I took leave in the afternoon to accompany S to do run errands. After taking our late afternoon tea and buying some groceries, we took a cab to my apartment. While doing the laundry, I made some greek salad (with S's favourite dried guava!) for our dinner and we enjoyed a tasty yet healthful meal. S then showed me the lovely Valentine's Day e-card that was designed specially for me, and presented me with a surprise gift. I had given a special Valentine's Day gift to S on Saturday consisting of a pencil sketching, a box of lovers' Ferrero Rocher chocolates and a pair of hugging bears; and S had also given me a sweet gift on Sunday consisting of a large box of Ferrero Rocher chocolates and a cute bear; thus, S's 14-Feb gift of a beautiful watch and a couples' sex toy was really unexpected, and I liked it very much. When night fell we gazed at the full moon, with S in my arms, and I felt incredibly happy. S made love passionately to me, and we slept soundly till the next morning. I got up early to make breakfast for S, and even though I couldnt bear for S to leave for work I knew it was time for us to part. My heart ached as I stood by the window to watch S take the train...

Our Valentine's Day celebration felt like a 5-day festival that only S and I would observe. I dont know if I am exaggerating but I have not experienced such joy and happiness as this for a long, long time. I only know for sure that I am madly in love with S right now. I never expected for someone as sweet and lovable as S to enter my life, and now I pray that S will never leave me...

Tuesday, February 14, 2006

9th entry - Truth




At FCC last Sunday (12 Feb), an interesting perspective about the Holy Bible was shared with the congregation. Citing 1 Timothy 2:11-15 and 1 Corinthians 14:33-35, the pulprit speaker talked specifically about what we should make of Paul's intructions/advice in today's context.

  • 1 Timothy 2:11-15 - "11A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. 12I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent. 13For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 14And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. 15But women will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety."
  • 1 Corinthians 14:33-35 - "33For God is not a God of disorder but of peace. As in all the congregations of the saints, 34women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says. 35If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church."
The speaker then questioned whether verses in the Bible such as the 2 mentioned above should be taken literally and whether they are still relevant today. He gave examples of how scriptural verses had been cited by people to justify slavery, discrimination and exploitation, even cruelty, war and violence. Throughout history, he implied, many problems arose because people did not interpret the Bible and simply lifted scripture, usually out of context, to support their own ends. One of the conclusions I gathered from the message is that responsible Christians need to exercise spiritual discernment.

Many churches and Christians, including myself, believe that the Bible is the absolute and undeniable true, living and unchanging Word of God, but few can agree to the extent to which the Bible should be interpreted or taken literally. On one extreme, some Christians believe, among other things, that to avoid misinterpreting the Bible, it is best not to interpret it at all. On the other extreme, some Christians (like the speaker I was referring to above) not only believe that the Bible can be interpreted, but also that it is wrong not to.

My own view is that above all, the Bible is a beautifully-written record of God's perfect Love and will for His Creation. Although it is the work of Man, this compilation was inspired by God. What I think is amazing is that while there are aspects of the text that are tied to the cultural, historical and political context at the time the verses were written, the truths in the text can and should apply beyond any given context and period of time. Rather than wasting our time questioning factual inconsistencies or historical inaccuracies, or debating contextual applicability issues, it seems prudent to invest our time learning the biblical principles in order to do God's work.

I also know that the Bible is a powerful tool of spiritual warfare. Each verse committed to memory can be a sword that a believer can draw in faith at times of need to help himself as well as others. Used in this way, we not only need help from God through the Holy Spirit, but also a fair bit of diligence in learning scripture, perserverence in prayer, and discernment in ministering the Word.

To me, it is all right that different people arrive at dissimilar conclusions about the same text. Our paths and callings in life are different (even if our experiences are the same, our perspectives about the same experience may be different), so this will have an impact on the way we perceive and use the Word of God. What is not all right to me is for people to impose their own conclusions on others.

A sound knowledge of the context in which the various scriptural texts were written can be helpful. My understanding of Paul's reasons for advising the church on the need for women to be silent during worship is that women in those days were typically not properly educated, at least not spiritually or intellectually. Hence, for a woman who is not learned to teach someone, it would be like the blind leading the blind, resulting in more harm than good. Moreover, Paul was setting rules of orderly worship and authority where previously there were none - his advice is based on the fundamental principle that we should submit to the leadership and authority of our Lord Jesus Christ and come to worship God with reverence and love. In my view, the standards of propriety and orderly worship as well as the status of women in society may have changed since Paul's time, but the principle of worshipping God with reverence and love remains unchanged.

I believe that the Bible is the Truth. And the basic truth is God loves us, and desires for us to love Him too. If we truly love God, we will want to read about how He saved His people from slavery because He loved them; how He fought battles for them against insurmountable odds; how His heart broke countless times due to our winful disobedience in sin; how He forgave us time and again, and desires to be reconciled with us through the sacrifice of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. To me, this Truth is the most important Truth of all.

Friday, February 03, 2006

8th entry - A Sweet Lunar New Year



This was the first Lunar New Year that I spent with my beloved sweetheart. It represented another milestone for us in many unique ways. For S, it was the first time my sweetheart spent the traditional Chinese New Year festival in Singapore. For me, it was the first time I had a 5-day break as well as the luxury of spending one whole day and night with my beloved. For us, it was the first time we celebrated the festival together as a couple. These first times had been really memorable for us, but there were also other more memorable first times that I had experienced this year.

For the first time, S and I had the privilege and pleasure of indulging in fine dining at a Chinese Restaurant, but what made this even more special was that we had our meal together on the eve of the New Year celebration. Eating a meal together on the eve of the New Year symbolises family re-union - for S and I, it implied that we are like a family.

For the first time, we exchanged blessings of "red packet" as a couple. My parents had this tradition of giving each other a "red packet" with some money as a token of love and commitment for each other, and also as a form of blessing. I love S so much for agreeing to adopt this tradition with me even though his parents did not share this practice.

For the first time, I had the great honor of tasting the most delicious dessert soup that I ever had, that was painstakingly prepared by my sweetest beloved. S search high and low for the ingredients to prepare this soup and after spending hours at the stove, my darling even brought it all the way to my place for me! I was so touched that I cried (S did not know this)...

For the first time, I had the privilege of seeing S's graduation photos. In some of the photos, S exuded a quiet, humble and mature charm that seemed almost nostalgic and poignant. In others, S held an air of defiance, a look of a conqueror of countless battles, like one on top of the world. The mystery that surrounded S draws me irresistably towards my beloved...

I was sure there would be many more first times that S and I would go through together; not all will be good, but whatever happens in the future I feel so blessed to have had these precious, wonderful and happy milestones within weeks after meeting my sweetheart. This Lunar New Year is one of the sweetest I had ever had in my life because of my beloved S.

My sweetheart darling S, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways ...

(continued in another entry for Valentine's Day)