Water Baptism on 30th March 2008 - Deb & Kenneth

Before the baptism....

Trying to get a NORMAL photo...

I give up! I think Kenneth is TOO excited about his baptism!

This could possibly be the MOST crowded baptism I've ever attended.

(I lifted up my hand to get a shot... and i captured Weiwen in the photo! Didnt know he was here. HAHA!)

After Kenneth & Deborah got baptized, our CGs celebrated with them, by....

SABOING them! Buahahaha!!!

A conversation with Yaozong.

YZ: Jerb, how come baptism got apple to eat one?

Jerb: For fun. But it also means that the candidate becomes the apple of God's eye.

YZ: Is it? Jerb, when I get water baptised next time, please prepare a BASKETFUL of apples for me!

Jerb thot Yaozong is VERY spiritual... But I realized mabbe not....

He is just VERY hungry... (He is hungry... all the time)

YZ: Jerb, Kenneth don't want to share :(

Photo-taking time!

It's just so difficult to take a photo of 3 of the youngest boys in my CGs... so I..... just took! Melvin was the most enthu.

When it comes to photo-taking, gals are much better! :))) Enjoy!

Beauty Questions

OK... if you are a guy, you can probably skip this entry... unless you want to inform your girlfriend or wife.... :)

I came across these 10 Beauty Questions I thought I had answers to... but 'teh', I (& most prob you!) was wrong! So for u girls, let's find out if you have some Beauty IQ....

Question #1: Brushing your hair as many times a day makes it healthier. TRUE/FALSE?

Over-brushing is possibly the main culprit of split ends & hair breakage. This is especially so when your hair is wet. So once your hair is untangled, stop brushing! Ans: False.

Question #2: Cutting hair makes it grow faster. TRUE/FALSE?

From young, I was told that the more you cut your hair, the faster it grows. That's why guys need a haircut every other week and girls tried growing their eyelashes by trimming them! Well well.... please prepare yourself for this - That hair is like grass and cutting the bottom of it has ABSOLUTELY NO effect on the root! (But trimming your head hair *HAHA* is good as it gets rid of damaged ends). Shaving hair anywhere else does not make the regrown hair thicker or longer. *Phew! Ans: False!

Question #3: Pluck one grey hair and two will grow back. TRUE/FALSE?

When you pull out one strand of grey/white hair, another strand of hair will emerge... one which is about to surface sooner or later. This gives the appearance of two strands of hair. Ans: False.

Question #4: Dandruff is caused by dry scalp. TRUE/FALSE?

Dry scalps can flake but the worst kind of dandruff is actually caused by an oily scalp which causes produces yeast (... found in bread??!!) that leads to excessive skin renewal. Ans: True & false.

Question #5: Leaving mascara on will make lashes thicker. TRUE/FALSE?

In the short term, yes. However, in the long run, if you do not clean your mascara off properly, your lashes will become brittle and prone to breakage. So... invest in that good bottle of eye cleanser! Ans: False.

Question #6: Wearing a tight ponytail can cause baldness. TRUE/FALSE?

Wearing too-tight hairstyles like buns, braids & ponytails over a long period of time can cause a hair loss condition! So wear your hairstyles loose occasionally. Ans: True!

Question #7: Washing hair regularly is harmful. TRUE/FALSE?

If you do not wash your hair/scalp, bacteria will form in this warm and oily (at your scalp) atmosphere. So wash it well with good quality shampoo... no matter how regularly. Ans: False.

Question #8: Makeup bases are not neccessary. TRUE/FALSE?

My sister recently asked me if the sunscreen is a cheaper alternative to makeup bases (that was what a beauty counter staff advised her). Well.... it's NOT. Foundation is also not enough. Even though foundation gives you an even complexion, the makeup base brightens up your complexion and gives you that natural look. Ans: False.

Question #9: Only one facial feature should be emphasied. TRUE/FALSE?

This is generally true. Emphasizing 2 or more sometimes makes you look 'fake', overdone and even like a clown! However, in the evening, you can afford to go heavier on more than 1 feature. Ans: Generally true.

Question #10: Heavy makeup stops the skin from being able to 'breathe'. TRUE/FALSE?

Sometimes, the feel of thick heavy makeup on your face makes you think that your skin is 'suffocating'. However, really the only way oxygen is supplied to your skin cells is through blood supply. Even though a heavy foundation or moisturizer hinders absorption to some extent, but they don't stop the actual oxygen needed to nourish your skin. Just remember to cleanse well and use lightweight moisturizers. Ans: False.

That's ALL! Hope this helps you as much as it did for me!

LIFE Entry: He didn't have to do this

After 9 years of watching Easter dramas... i still teared... in every of the 3 Expo services that I attended. Sensitive tear ducts? Nah, I don't think so... It's about what Jesus did... that He didn't have to do. (PS: And I must say Tian-An is a very anointed Jesus!!! His voice I think....) Anyway, have you ever done art pieces in primary and secondary school before? I remembered tearing up and re-doing many times before I finally came up with the Masterpiece for submission. Well, I thot, maybe God could have done the same to us... a failed creation - Redo! But phew!...... HE DIDN'T. A God who came as man to die for the people who might never acknowledge Him, who might neglect, reject Him... He came anyway so that the people He loves will have a chance to choose to live... I remembered in Bible School... during the lesson about the Humanity of Christ... Ps Ming got us to meditate on a prophesy of the words of Jesus in Ps 88... To show us how real the pain Jesus went through. After Jesus' physical pain, He went to the grave weighed down by the heaviness of sin. The sins of Man separated Jesus from God the Father so far far away.... that Jesus thought the only One who loved Him had also forsaken Him.... (Remember Jesus would say this after He was rejected, betrayed, tortured, despised by the very people He loved and died for)... How terribly rejected and alone Jesus must have felt those 3 long days? Have you ever felt hurt and wrongly accused by a loved one before?? I remembered that long worship/meditation session... I cried and cried and cried.... And I understood, in my limited knowledge and understanding, a little more of the depth and width and height of God's love for me.... So this Easter, may you be reminded of Jesus's great great love for YOU... Here's Ps 88 for u.... To remind us that Jesus chose to die for you & I... "O LORD, God of my salvation, I have cried out to you day and night. 2 Now hear my prayer; listen to my cry. 3 For my life is full of troubles, and death draws near. 4 I have been dismissed as one who is dead, like a strong man with no strength left. 5 They have abandoned me to death, and I am as good as dead. I am forgotten, cut off from your care. 6 You have thrust me down to the lowest pit, into the darkest depths. 7 Your anger lies heavy on me; wave after wave engulfs me. Interlude 8 You have caused my friends to loathe me; you have sent them all away. I am in a trap with no way of escape. 9 My eyes are blinded by my tears. Each day I beg for your help, O LORD; I lift my pleading hands to you for mercy. 10 Of what use to the dead are your miracles? Do the dead get up and praise you? Interlude 11 Can those in the grave declare your unfailing love? In the place of destruction, can they proclaim your faithfulness? 12 Can the darkness speak of your miracles? Can anyone in the land of forgetfulness talk about your righteousness? 13 O LORD, I cry out to you. I will keep on pleading day by day. 14 O LORD, why do you reject me? Why do you turn your face away from me? 15 I have been sickly and close to death since my youth. I stand helpless and desperate before your terrors. 16 Your fierce anger has overwhelmed me. Your terrors have cut me off. 17 They swirl around me like floodwaters all day long. They have encircled me completely. 18 You have taken away my companions and loved ones; only darkness remains." I am drawing closer to God this Easter. You?

Guest Blog Entry 1

Okayyyy.. u r probably wondering how come there are 2 posts within 1 day.... the author of this post is not Miss J herself but her other half Mr J. He simply finds registering on blogger.com a tad too cumbersome and NO.. neither does he have any intention of setting up a jaredluvsjesus.blogspot.com! So while Miss J is busy beautifying herself at Kimage's today, here is Mr J's chance to borrow his other half's blog to share a bit our wedding prep. Here goes.....

We are exactly 2 months away from our wedding.. Alarm bells are going off.. it dawned on us that we better start cracking! so this week we have been a bit more diligent in getting things done...

1) Wedding cards (14 March, Friday)

Rushed during lunch time to T-Dragon to select our dinner invites. It was at Excelsior Shopping centre.. Think most hotels use them for dinner invites. But for all the business it garnered, the storefront looks a bit cannot make it.. It has not even a signboard! Took us 5 minutes walking around the entire 3rd floor to locate it! Took 1.5 hours for us to select a peachy looking card with a cool design in front. One of the ones that caught my eye... not the usual "XI" word.

2) Buffet Lunch Food Tasting (Sunday evening)

Like what Jerb posted, we were really stuffed by all the food.. Was a tad disappointed by the outlook of some of the food so gonna change them.. The colors were kinda lacking.. and where were the greens? Nope. it's not a deliberate exclusion by me.. its just that they were not present on the original hot entrees menu! hahah... But 1 thing for sure we gonna keep is the Chocolate Fountain complete with strawberries and marshmallows... YUm YuM...

3) Furniture Shopping (Sunday evening)

If you were at IKEA Tampines at 9pm last Sunday, you would have seen this couple dashing around the store looking a bit sluggish due to a heavy dinner, looking high and low for a study table. We needed to beat the clock coz the store closes at 10pm. Eventually chose a all white study table, we were deliberating which side of the study room wall should the table be leaning against. And one thing we realised, the cheaper IKEA tables had exposed wood underneath hence highly susceptible to mould infestation. So we settled for just a simple white table for a staggering $348, and this was after I used $100 voucher I claimed off my credit card points... Who said during IKEA furnishing sale, everything is cheap?!?!? And dun let me get started on the $45 delivery charge and 5% charge on retail price of item for assembly fees :-S

Will continue to drop by every now and then to update you guys on how the prep for the biggest day of our lives is going.. leaving you guys with some of our raw photoshoot pics from beautiful Krabi, Thailand! Luv the vivid colors and the powdery beaches...

Food Tasting (Lavish Catering)

Last night, we had food tasting and the food... was delivered to our home! The portion for four was probably for four giants!

Thank God we tried the food as we decided to change some of the dishes. Here are 4 of the dishes you'll get to see (or maybe not... after changes are made) at Singapore Arts Museum:


Olive Pilaf Rice with Chicken & Pepper


Roast Sirloin Beef with Black Pepper Sauce


Breaded Torpedo Prawn with Wasabi Mayonnaise


Oven Baked Boneless Chicken with Mango Salsa Sauce

Anyway, now we are deciding for the dessert...

Fruit Tart VS Chocolate Eclairs
&
Caramel Creme Strawberries VS Mango Pudding

Hmmm....

Loving people fervently.....

This week in CG we learnt about being an evangelistic Christian... I must say even as I was preparing for the Word esp the part whereby people mattered to God and Jesus shared not just once, not just twice, but three times in a row, stories about people who seeked and searched for that 1 seemingly valueless item (1 lost blur sheep, 1 small coin, and 1 terrible son)... and with all that happened this week, I really am inspired to see people through God's eyes. YOU matter to God! Like what Ps Kong shared that meeting needs and healing hurts was how CHC got started... To me, I might see another person's needs as small and unimportant... but to that individual, it may mean ALOT! We as Christians should never ignore needs.... So my prayer is that I be even more sensitive to people around me and sensitive to the Holy Spirit that I may be able to meet a need in time and draw the person closer to God, somehow... I think sometimes I am guilty of using busi-ness as an 'excuse' of not being prompt to meet needs... but seriously, our life mission is to win souls.... it should be priority! So, this Easter, I am going to focus on needs of the friends and family members that come... as much as I can... sharing the love of Jesus in a practical way! Let's be bold to make a difference in peoples' lives and we can start by inviting them for Easter 2008!!!

IT show 2008

I have never stepped into or wanted to even try step into an IT fair. I am that kind who would rather pay more than squeeze in the crowd for some bargains.

And just when I thought this year would be no different, on 9th March 2008, the last day of IT show 2008, the last hour.... Jared decided to visit the IT show to sign up for a broadband promotion!

"ARE YOU SURE YOU WANT TO GO??!!" ....

So off we went to Suntec at 8PM.... And here's the situation when we reached.

Even if you are blind and someone pulled you to this place, you would still know this is the IT fair. The yakkety yak of thousands of individuals, chi-chink* of the cashiers, the le-long songs that the salesmen (who can't sing!) were bellowing... then this aunty who was very fierce, scolding her little kid.... What a crowd....!

Finally, we found what we were looking for!

..... and.....

the promo that Jared was looking for!

SO we've got a free PC after queuing for a short ONE hour! :)))

Sun's audition for Olympic games!

SUN did it again! God really answers our prayers. Such that even though she was sick and had little sleep, Sun did so well! Actually also first time hearing Sun singing such a traditional song. HAHA! Anyway, do click on these links and.... U will see familiar faces! :)

http://www.reuters.com/news/video?videoId=77230&feedType=VideoRSS&feedName=MostWatchedVideos

http://itv.ifeng.com/vplay.aspx?id=ee9603c1-9e48-4ffd-8356-2c440fc13f8f

Did you see Jacob Abraham? He used to be in E99, is now working in a highly stressed trading company, and I was so surprised and very proud of him to see him availed himself to go and sing in China!

Like what Ps Kong shared yesterday, we can never be too busy to serve!

RED HOT CHILLI PEPPERS

Suddenly decided to blog about my favorite garnish/side dish... Presenting to you... (If u know me fairly well, u would have known what!):



Not just the big red/green ones, not just the sauce... but I PARTICULARLY, ESPECIALLY have a love relationship with the small chilli padi (CP)!!! Do you know I buy a packet of chilli padis and keep in my fridge. Every time I eat cai fan, I will cut 3 CPs up to eat with my meal. No CPs, no appetite. (I am serious!)

Here are my rankings of the various versions of chillis (from best to worst):
1. Chilli padi - Raw, cut, in soya sauce
2. Sambal - The nonya kind
3. Chilli - The longer red version of the CP... Not fiery at all ...
3. (Tie!) Chicken rice chilli - The one with garlic and ginger
4. Green Chilli
5. Chilli sauce (in a bottle or packet) - Give me the Sinsin's HOT! version please!
6. Tabasco sauce - You can't eat CP with sphaggeti right??
7. Fried chilli - The one you see in HK restaurants to eat with tim sum or with duck rice/wanton mee? .. The amount of oil it floats in absolutely grosses me out... I'll have this one if NO other choice.

What?? U don't eat chilli?? O man... what have you been living on? Besides the shiokness you get from eating it, it has many IMPORTANT health benefits! So, here's reading myself happy... Quoting from the Brands' health website...

"Recently, the effects of capsaicin on boosting fat metabolism have received much attention and proven."

"Yoshika et al. (1998) further investigated the effect of red pepper added to high-fat diet and high-carbohydrate meals on energy metabolism and nutrient utilization in Japanese women. Results of the study indicate that red pepper increases diet-induced thermogenesis (i.e. energy generation) and fat oxidation or so-called fat-burning."

Interested to try now?? Heehee... Maybe CP is the reason why I haven't put on weight these couple of years since my chilli input in my diet majorly increased! But honestly... the hot, burning sensation you get from eating chilli DOES really make you feel as if you have just 'burnt' away the food you have eaten!

Other key uses of chilli are:
Fat reduction, Aid digestion, Circulatory system health (traditional), Pain relief (topical application). It also contains Vitamins A, C & E!!!

ARE YOU CONVINCED NOW??

....................................................... dump the tomato sauce! :)))

Widget = A portable chunk of the web

Have been BUSY dan... couldn't update my blog....

But check out my new Widget! Look at the hot pink countdown timer on your right! Intro-ed to me by my ZS. Thanks to u Boss, I dun have to count my days everytime I forget to keep track on my MSN! HAHA! Niceeee.... 76 more days!!!

We've just settled our menu for our holy mat.... Choc fondue included!

Yumyum. Yea... I hope I'd be able to eat on that day.... If u r my friend and reading my blog, pls remember to dabao some food for me on my big day!

Anyway, this week many things happened....

Doesn't it feels shuang for AN INSTANT to say something (wrong), which u do not mean in your heart.... then you end up fully regreting those words later. No wonder the Bible says 'be quick to listen, slow to wrath and slow to speak..." How applicable! So, I am learning to treasure. Learning to trust. Learning to love unconditionally.

No matter what, U r my good friend, & friends are friends forever through the thickest and thinest! :)))

Signing off with a sudden craving of drinking salted veg+duck soup with rice + chilli padi....