FINISH STRONG!!

The starting line. Hearts racing, adrenaline pumping, eyes focused and ears peeled for the sounding of the gun. The start of a race, the moment that can decide victory or defeat. No wonder every athlete takes so much effort to start off well.

I joined a run in Terengganu a month back. It was a run organized by the government of Terengganu and they wanted to have a special 3km run for OKU participants. A guy I was introduced to not very long ago contacted me about it and asked if I was interested. Well, of course I was! Everything was fully sponsored and I'd get an allowance of RM100 just by going. Plus, the cash prize for the 1st place was RM2,000!

I went there with some confidence in trying to win the grand prize but that was quickly dampened when I was introduced to a few Malaysian wheelchair Paralympic athletes who were joining to get the grand prize as well. I was introduced by a friend to a guy he referred to as "Malaysia's No. 1 wheelchair marathoner". The worst part was that everyone who were there hearing the conversation agreed to the "title" he was given. How was I supposed to win against this guy?! There were quite a number of other athletes there as well!

All I had in mind to do after that night was simply to leave an impression during the 3km race. I didn't want to leave a place, without having impacted or inspired someone. But how was I gonna do that when everyone else was also on a wheelchair? So, I decided to do my very best despite no longer having hopes for the grand prize, aiming to inspire with my sportsmanship, my fighting spirit and humility above all else.

So, the race day came and we were placed into rows before moving into the starting line. With a total of 180+ wheelchair participants, I ended up at the very back of the line and crossed the starting line LAST! All the other participants, especially the athletes were speeding right at the front and I knew I needed to get out of the "traffic jam" and at least catch up to some of them. I just consistently pushed and pushed, passing by one person after another, not thinking of anything but to do my best.

Before I knew it, I couldn't see anyone else in front of me except for 2 other guys. The guy closest to me was about 100m away from me & the other was definitely an obvious lead against all of us. I never thought of anything else but the next push I put into my wheels and by the half way mark, I was in the lead!

Looking back, I didn't start off very well as I would have wanted. There was a 1 minute gap between the sound of the gun and the time I crossed the starting line last. Along the way, there were so many wheelchairs in front of me that I was almost stuck while the rest of the athletes in front were already in a big lead. However important the start was, it wasn't the most important thing that day. The most important thing was whether I choose to FINISH STRONG, and I did! Being 1 minute behind at the starting line, I gained a lead by the halfway mark and continued to finish FIRST PLACE with a 43seconds lead over the 1st runner up. The next few places were taken by Paralympic athletes. Praise GOD!!

In this "marathon" we call life, some of us may not start off very well in the eyes of the world. Some of us may be from a broken family, had problems with relationships, got bullied when we were younger; you name it! However good it may be for us to start well, the reality is that most of us don't, and we may face even more challenges as we go further. However, we can still choose to FINISH STRONG in Christ Jesus!! Praise God that in Him, we have the strength to finish strong in life and will keep the faith at the end of our journey!

The rest of the 180+ participants in front of me. Biggest crowd of wheelchairs I've ever seen! 

Jesus was the champion that day. I was only a vessel to show His glory!

Hallelujah! 

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith." (Hebrews 12:1-2)

Finish STRONG!! 

The Start of a NEW Chapter (Life's PURPOSE)

For those who didn't know, I've just been hired! As of this Monday, I will be starting a new chapter of my life in the working world, as a staff in Run For The Nation. All I can do is to praise God for His faithfulness. I did nothing to deserve this job, neither did I even applied for the job. I was just offered the job in God's timing. 

Looking back, I truly believe that God has been long preparing me to take on this vision and this new adventure that I will be embarking on. A number of people have have asked me how do we know God's purpose for our lives. In other words, What is my purpose in life?" Well, let me give a simple illustration with a daily object we always see. 

Take a hammer for example. A hammer won't know what its purpose is (assuming that it has a mind, that is) UNLESS the Maker of the hammer or the Master of the hammer tells it what it's supposed to do. Is it made to hammer nails into surfaces, or to take nails out? Or both? Without the owner of the hammer using it the way it is meant to be used, the hammer can just be another paper-weight. Well, nothing wrong with that. Hammers are good paper-weights i presume. However, it is not doing what it was created for.

So, in order to know our life's purpose, we must know the One who created us for it. The One who has a plan to use us in a specific way, for a specific purpose. Without knowing our Creator or allowing ourselves to be used by Him, we may still achieve "greatness". We may be the greatest paper-weights in the world or the best weapons too, but not the best hammers (well, figuratively speaking) doing what we are created to do.

That being said, in most cases it still takes time. My vision of God's purpose for my life was an ongoing refining & re-defining journey with Him that took about 4 years or so. So, don't be impatient, don't rely on your own understanding, but be patient & look to Him & He will slowly but surely reveal the great plans He has for your life. 

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11)

Can't wait to be working with the great people in Run For The Nation to make a REAL impact through our community project, Sponsor Our Run campaigns. Hoping to be able to encourage the young people in our nation to do something as the future of our country. May God's will be done in my life. Praise God! 

Scars- An OVERCOMER'S Mark

Ever heard of the term, "battle-scars"? A term used by men to brag about scars they obtain from "fierce battles" or war against 1 million other enemy troops. Well, at least that's the story that played out in our minds. 

We get scars whenever we heal from injuries (You don't say!). It could be a scar of anything, from minor scratches to a fatal wounds that we manage to recover from. I have a few notable scars myself. Four actually. Those are scars I got from numerous corrective surgeries performed on both my legs. Each one of the scars is a mark that I've went through another surgery, survived the procedure, endured the pain, went through fevers & eventually made a full recovery. 

In life, we get many "scars" along the way. A broken relationship with our parents, strained friendships, getting an "F" in your finals, or even when I lost my dad to a heart attack so suddenly one day. All these things in life leave scars. Some are minor scars that heal over time & becomes less visible. Some are deep scars that last for life.  

Whatever the causes are for these scars, scars are there because your wounds have healed. Every "scar" you  have proves that you have overcome a battle in life. It means that though life has wounded you, you've stood against it and you have survived. So don't be ashamed of the "scars" that you have, however painful a past those were. Show it to the world as a TESTIMONY that while times got tough, JESUS has sustained you & that He has healed you. Even Jesus had scars from the nails of the cross when He resurrected. It was a mark that He has endured the cross & overcame DEATH for us!

Bethany Hamilton, an overcomer whose scars testifies of God's goodness.

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)

Scars are an overcomer's mark! 

We only have TODAY

"Go ahead and be the light TODAY, because tomorrow is not guaranteed."

-Sonia Lee (Jayesslee)

No one in this world, however rich or powerful he or she may be, can claim that they have tomorrow in their hands. It doesn't matter who we are, none of us can guarantee that we can live past today. Things just happen & nowadays we see bad things happening so suddenly to people whose time are not supposed to come yet. 

When someone knows when he/she is going to die, everything falls into the perspective of what is most important. The most important thing for me is probably to touch lives for God & make a lasting impact in the world with my presence. If I want to be remembered for anything that I did, I want to be remembered for my ability to love. That's why I want to try my best in being a person who loves the people around me, however bad I am at it. 

Mordecai said to Queen Esther, "For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14). I know that I am destined to impact lives, not only that, I was placed where I am & how I was for such a time as this. If I do not live according to the purpose I was called, then God can raise someone else from another place and I will have just lived a meaningless life. 

So, I will remind myself as many times as possible to be the light TODAY, for I do not know what may happen tomorrow. If we all live this way, for such a time as this, how can we not SHINE for Jesus the way we are meant to? So say what you need to say to your loved one TODAY, approach that lonely person in your class TODAY, and live TODAY like there is no tomorrow! After all, we only have today- one today at a time ;)

Why? Why? WHY??

A dedication to someone who inspired this post. One day,everything will seem clear. Then you will see that God's plan is to use your life for His glory ;)

"Why?" That is probably one of my most asked questions of all time. "Why is life so challenging at times? God if you are good, why can't be born normal like everybody else? Why must I go through the pain that I am experiencing now? WHY ME?" These are all questions that had went through my mind before. I have my own sets of why's in my life, and most of us do too. The feelings that we have to go through, the pain that we can't seem to bear, or even the fears about the things we are unsure of.  Sometimes, we can only ask "Why...?". 


There are still many things that I still don't understand in life. I can't stand in place of God to answer all the "why's", not even the "why's" in my own life. But through experience, I know for sure that God has plans- plans to prosper us no to harm us, plans to give us HOPE and a FUTURE. "But why must I go through emotional pains, or poverty, or even a fail in finals for God to give me hope and a future?" 


I can't know the specific reasons for God to let you go through what you are going through now, but one thing I am sure of -that is God is planning to use all the things in your life to help you see Him clearer, and for you to use it to helps others SEE too. 


Do you think the small things you face is too insignificant for God not to use it for His glory? Definitely not! How can someone who has not experienced hurt in relationships empathize with a person who just broke up with his girlfriend? Or can a person who gets straight A's all the time comfort a person who just failed his mid-term paper? 


Every hurt, hardship or question that you experience, however small or common it may seem, God has BIGGER plans for it. I am a testifier of that! I understand how people feel when they are lonely because I've felt it. I know how hard it is to overcome challenges, but I overcame! In the midst of finding the answer to my "why's", I found something more- a purpose. To help others see that in the midst of their "why's", there is HOPE in Jesus, the Christ!


"You intended to harm me, but God intended for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:20)

POWER in Weakness

Being weak is probably one of the last things anyone of us would want to be. Most of us like people who are strong figures- dependable, stable and strong. I love superheroes (yea,my favourite is Batman & Spiderman) and superheroes are not well-known for their weaknesses.Superman is well-known for his super strength,X-ray vision and his many other super abilities, NOT for his weakness towards Kryptonite. That's why kids (and many of us adults still) love superheroes so much. There's just that small part in us that imagines ourselves being the hero, saving the world, protecting the ones we love. People always admire people who are strong. No one finds glory in being weak. 


And I guess for me, that is the answer! No one finds glory in being weak. So that when I overcome in my weakest times, no one can get any glory but Jesus alone! I've always tried to be strong, or at least appear to be. I am already physically challenged. Others around me can do things I can't. They can be helpful to others while I always felt useless when I was younger during my school years. 


I've overcome many challenges in my weakest times, and every time I am the victor, it was simply because I found strength in Jesus. The time that you see me being "strong"? Well, those were the times Jesus carried me in His arms! Whatever you've seen in my life so far is only the beginning. One day a challenge will come, so BIG that no one can deny that it is God that overcame,not me. 


You don't have to be Superman all the time. It's okay to be a normal human being every once in a while, you know? And humans get weak. Then will you see that there is POWER in WEAKNESS, simply because it's in your weakest hour, that God's strength shines most in your life. People will your life & they will praise God for who He is!  "...For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2 Corinthians 12:10)


POWERED BY JESUS
"I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." (Philippians 4:13)

Step by step

The past few months since the end of last year had been a crazy one for me. Crazy, in a good way. God has been showing me things I've never expected before this. I saw my own plans for my future totally go out the window, I saw people around me making preparations for their UK studies as I just sit back,waiting to see what's my next step. At the very same time, I saw God's different (and not to mention BIGGER) plans for my future, I saw God's vision for me that surpasses just UK to all around the world, and I'm very humbled to witness the salvation of 10 young boys through an opportunity that God provided for me to share my life in the Klang Boy's Brigade. 


Most of my coursemates are going to UK soon for their 3-months Degree programme in June. I was wrestling with God for about 2 semesters about whether or not I will be going to UK. My plans were to go to UK get it done quick & come back to Malaysia with a Degree in time for my 21st birthday. That was THE PLAN. Well, at least until God challenged me to another route. I decided to obey and see what He has in store for me. 


However by His grace & mercy, I've seen so many open doors & opportunities that are coming up in my life. Opportunities that I can't even imagine! Too many to tell it all here & do it justice, but I may share some of it with you all when some of them goes through a few confirmations. All in all, this year will be a very exciting year for me. Far greater than the plan that I had- going UK to get my Degree.


It's overwhelming to look back on His faithfulness & His blessings over my life. What I really want to do now is to take everything in baby steps & know that He is in control. It may be a bit intimidating when people keep asking what I am doing in life, or whether I've found a job, or why I am not going for my UK Degree when it's only 3 more months. However, I want to move only when God tells me. So that I can walk in His plan, not running off to head my own way. 

"Your word is the lamp unto my feet and the light unto my path." (Psalm 119:105). When you walk in darkness and all you have is a lamp for light, you don't run. Instead you take it step by step where the light shines. Similarly I want to walk in His light, not trying to be rushed or pressured by people around me. His peace will be with me, this He promises.