*update*
“Give me a hundred men who love God with all their hearts and fear nothing but sin, and I will move the world.”
-John Wesley (*ht:reformissionary)
I’ve been thinking about some fresher ideas as of late… what to implement at RHCCC and I know I can’t do it alone. But I came across this quote and I agree with Wesley 100%… I just need to work with people who love God with all their hearts and fear sin. We will shake this area for God… and like this past sunday’s sermon so “eloquently” said… go out and speak peace to the people around us, not restricting to our own Christian family.
Peace and God bless.
I was listening to a video interview of Tim Keller at DesiringGod07 Conference and I was reminded to check out a book by C.S. Lewis called “Three Kinds of Men”. The topic of the interview was called “The Gospel, Moralism and Irreligion”. I am very thankful to be reminded of this:
“There are three kinds of people in the world. The first class is of those who live simply for their own sake and pleasure, regarding Man and Nature as so much raw material to be cut up into whatever shape may serve them. In the second class are those who acknowledge some other claim upon them – the will of God, the categorical imperative, or the good of society – and honestly try to pursue their own interests no further than this claim will allow. They try to surrender to the higher claim as much as it demands, like men paying a tax, but hope, like other taxpayers, that what is left over will be enough for them to live on. Their life is divided, like a soldier’s or a schoolboy’s life, into time 'on parade' and 'off parade', 'in school' and 'out of school'. But the third class is of those who can say like St Paul that for them 'to live is Christ'. These people have got rid of the tiresome business of adjusting those rival claims of Self and God by the simple expedient of rejecting the claims of Self altogether. The old egoistical will has been turned round, reconditioned, and made into a new thing. The will of Christ no longer limits theirs; it is theirs. All their time, in belonging to Him, belongs also to them, for they are His.” (Three Kinds of Men)
I hope God can open up my eyes and make me into the third man…
So I’ve decided to take some time to blog about my Guitar history so for those uninterested in guitar lingo and my excellent adventures with ebay purchases, you can stop now 
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Simon & Patrick Rosewood (1995-Present)
When I first decided to pick up the guitar for church, I was Grade 10 (around 1995-1996). I slowly stole away my dad’s trusty guitar, that he usually only played at Adult Fellowship Retreats and started to use it full time. Good ol’ Simon & Patrick Rosewood Guitar that I still own (but is currently being lent out to Dan Gam who graciously provided this picture of it), I used a external dean markeley pickup that really sounded bad and something I don’t suggest anyone to use! (Ken Foo still has that pickup btw!)
Taylor 310ce (2001-2006)
At the peak of my guitar development in 2001, I decided to purchase my first guitar with the money I had earned from working at Mitchell Family Books. The guitar I set my sights on was a Taylor 310ce which I purchased for about a great price off EBay. This Mahogany, Dreadnought beaut gave me a good reason to invest my time into practicing the guitar and especially to keep my passion for leading worship through playing guitar as well. This guitar came with a standard Fishman Prefix pickup and served me so well for 5 years until I wore down the first few frets and decided I needed a change…
Washburn J12S (2002-Present)
But in the during that time, I felt I also needed a new beat around guitar that I could bring to retreats and outdoors but one that would still have a pickup as my “backup” guitar for worship service. Again, Ebay didn’t do me wrong as I bought a Washburn J12S that was priced only under 500$US. The Small Jumbo/Grand Auditorium, solid top spruce guitar is still in my possession and over that period I decided to fit it with a Fishman Natural II pickup for the undersaddle. Then, the Fishman Ellipse came out and I decided to add it to the guitar to give it a dual source to improve its sound in amps/soundsystems. It’s still serving me well up to this day (when it’s not in Matt Mark’s house, haha).
Martin DC-16GTE (2006-2007)
During my brief one-year tenure at SBTS in Louisville, KY, I decided to sell my longtime friend, the Taylor 310ce after the last setup did not help the guitar improve from its fret deterioration. It was time for a new guitar! The Martin DC-16GTE found its way into my collection after a quick selling of my 310ce and a thrilling bid off… you guessed it… EBAY again! Mr. Chihymn Chan helped me bid on it while I was in class and also tricked me by saying we lost :p But anyways, this Mahogany Dread and glossed top ended up being my main axe for the past year. It had great reviews online and it was served its purpose, but I never truly got the kind of response I really wanted to get from it… so… I sold it to Joon Jae James recently and he’s enjoying it
Martin J-40 (2007 and beyond)
This has brought me to (hopefully) the end of my history of guitar ownership. I have finally got my dream guitar! The guitar I was first inspired by (from the playing of Shane Barnard) and the “responsive” and awesome toned sound I’ve been looking for. The Martin J-40 is one of the higher-end guitars made by C.F. Martin Co. and it has a Jumbo body (but uniquely Grand Auditorium at the top with Jumbo waist). I got it for a STEAL of a price by getting it AGAIN off Ebay! This time around, Matt bid on the guitar for me while I was helping to lead Uncovered Service at Tyndale Sunday Night… and SURPRISINGLY my bid won! 2400$ off the suggested retail price!!! The guitar, although used, is still in amazing condition for a guitar that was bought in 1999 (original owner). After meeting John Baik this year at Tyndale and hearing his Larrivee D-10 going through a LR Baggs M1 Active pickup, I decided to get one as well and got a good deal off craigslist Toronto. Thus, the history of my guitars is at an end. I hope this will be the guitar I keep the rest of my life and I hope I take good care of ol… GUMBO… haha (Guitar + Jumbo = Gumbo). Probably not the best name for the guitar… haha! Btw, I just knocked it off my guitar stand and it got nicked some… *sigh*, I better take care of it better :p
Here are two Youtube links towards the best two inspirations of guitar playing I’ve had… and they are both playing the nice Martin J-40
John Mayer w/J-40
Shane & Shane (Barnard with J-40 and Everett with Taylor 310ce)
I apologize for this long overdue post, but I’ve been super busy…
I have actually created two new blogs, one for RHCCC English Celebration Ministry and one for my critique on the local chinese church. I will refrain from telling you the rhccc site because it has some senstive material for the church, but here is the new blog I just started up:
My hope is that I can post some good thoughts on the chinese church and hopefully shed some light towards its renewal of the spirit, structure and understanding. I’m not trying to be prideful in trying to create solutions, but to at least start SOMETHING… we’ll see…
Anyways, this term I am taking 4 classes at Tyndale and continuing my job at RHCCC as the worship co-ordinator. I am already dying :p but God still finds a way to affirming I am where I’m supposed to be.
I had a recent talk with Jesse (Suridigo) and I told him that I always make time for my friends when we can meet because the relationships in ministry are more important than simply the service in the ministry. So if any of you want to just meet up and chat, I’d be more than happy to make time to just catch up and talk again.
Lastly, I want to give props to Pastor Sam Chan at RHCCC for laying the SMACKDOWN on all the congregations about coming on time for worship. I think I blogged a little while ago about how we treat worship as a service to us (Gas Station, HT: Dan Kimball), but we need to change that mentality. Our sunday mornings are in dire need to be understood as a WORSHIP GATHERING, we gather to worship the One True God. We want to be on time to worship God together, to not keep HIM waiting, not primarily for the sake of the worship service planners (even though that is important) but it is for Him and Him firstly. He paralleled it to going to work on time…. most people would not go to work late, but why do we gather to worship late? Corporate worship to God is part of a life of worship and that cannot we brushed aside for our comfort. Anyways, here is the respects to Pastor Sam for setting the record straight
Until next post!
just posting this link to Dan Kimball’s blog (Author of Emerging Church and Emerging Worship) on the emerging church because I think it is important to consider his thoughts in this specific post about wild claims about the EC. I do want to visit these churches as well to see what they do instead of just reading other people’s thoughts without seeing/hearing/knowing that they actually ENGAGED those churches.
btw, have a paper due 2morrow so I was just posting this quick blog, this isn’t the “substantial” post I was writing about! Peace!
Filed under: Life in general
At the request of another blogger friend, I will be post up something “more substantial” soon… I have actually been thinking of posting something more deeper at the root of my walk with Jesus. I have been lacking the words to articulate it. All I know is that, I’m gonna try to complain less, criticize less, and live (in Christ) more so that I can be part of that city on a hill.
Filed under: Life in general
So my buddy Davin posted his celebrity-look-a-like face recognition. I decided to follow suit! 
HAHA, I guess I’m most like Stephen Chow I wonder if I would ever be mistaken as the Saint of Gamblers! (Doh sing) But as you can see, this thing just doesn’t seem to be accurate, lol!
Filed under: Life in general
All I need is for the whites of my eyes to show a bit and it’ll be realistic! lol!
Filed under: Life in general
My first attempt to create a South Park Shu
“Sin is momentary atheism.”
- Bob Kauflin – worshipmatters.blogs.com
I followed a link from my SBTS buddy, Jeremy Haywood, to Bob Kauflin’s blog about Ted Haggard. Now tons of people have blogged about this incident of a high profile pastor in US getting involved in a huge scandal. Honestly, it scared the bejeebees out of me… As a (hopefully) future ministry worker… You see how real sin is, the fall of man (even now), ESPECIALLY to those guiding and shepherding out steps.
