Category Archives: Extraordinary Mundane
Daily routines are mundane; I set myself apart by living my humdrum life extraordinarily.
when the numbers add up.
There is no denying that I am really aging. I no longer can sleep at 4am and wake up at 7am feeling fresh. It takes a toll on my body and its consequences are usually perpetuated acne on my cheeks and bags under my eyes. Ulcers are less frequent now, so I am thankful for that. It’s interesting how I hardly get sleepy or lethargic in the afternoon though.
My body is no longer working as hard as it ought to. A slower metabolic rate means that I can no longer have supper like a king (sigh!) and not feel its repercussions gathering around my torso afterwards (double sigh!). My fitness levels have also declined. While I am not unfit, it’s obvious that I am past my physical peak of fitness; I don’t know think I will ever run 2.4km in 9:21, finish SOC in 7:53 or score 21 for pull-ups ever again. There are some once-in-a-lifetime trophies.
However, while my physical prowesses decline (I sound like I’m 40!), I notice an increase in my intellectual, emotional and spiritual awareness, especially in my awareness of my strengths and weaknesses. I’ve always believe that confidence is an acute awareness of what you’re good at and what you need to work on. I’m still much more Sanguine than the average Sanguine, but I’ve mellowed significantly; I remember LY exclaiming, “Joey, can you stop mellowing!?” Age brings about a certain calmness, levelheadedness and deliberate delays in responding to situations, events and people. Maybe wisdom is applied knowledge.
This gets me thinking about maturity and how from year to year I evaluate my growth. Hindsight is powerful – it would be a gift if we had present-sight. I don’t know about you but when in retrospect I find that I’ve matured relatively exponentially from period to period. It’s like I’ve either really grown a lot or that I was really immature last time!
During my short coffee-break with LL just now, I told him that I was thankful for a colleague like him who’s my age. I told him that since we are not married and have no children yet, we should aspire to give to and serve the Lord with high levels of zeal and zest that reflect our age, while we are still young and energetic and able to contribute like that. Taking our lead from what God puts in our hearts, this is the best time for us to make investments in time and energy before the marriage and family elements kick in.
never forget that it’s ministry.
Last week, as I routinely called the 80-over potential REAL candidates, I found myself repeating the same lines and asking everyone the same question, just phrased differently. My purpose in calling them was to put a voice to a name and to put a name to a programme. At the same time I also wanted to acquaint myself with more young people.
Most of them responded in the same manner; they confirmed their contact information and acknowledged that they would be awaiting my email before they respond from there. On a side note, I was reminded of the massive responsibility that a preacher has and how crucial it is to exercise his influence well. People KNOW and REMEMBER who you are once you go on stage and your public profile increases significantly whether you realise it or not.
When I met with my first and only “I am not interested” response, it caught me offguard. I simply, like a professional telemarketer, responded with a polite “thank you” and “maybe another time then”. When I put down the phone, I still hadn’t realise that with every new phone call made, I am starting to miss the whole point of calling in the first place.
CX snapped me into place. She had overheard my conversation and asked me why I didn’t ask the person why he wasn’t keen on REAL. “Maybe he backslided? Maybe something happened? Maybe he needs someone to talk to him?” I sobered immediately and realised that I should have been more pastoral in my approach instead of being just professional and polite.
It was a good nudge on the purpose of ministry. It’s been a week since and this anecdote still lingers in my head. May we never forget that it’s always about ministering to people and not about the task to be completed.
P/S – Yes, I am attempting to revive this blog by writing more regularly.
fight today’s battles today.
I am grateful for the welcome that I have received from my colleagues. Everyone has been kind and helpful. It feels like working from home; after all, this is a place I’ve called home for over a decade. Premature to say, but I feel good about being here. Let’s see where that takes me tomorrow.
Attended a prayer meeting in the afternoon together and somehow it feels really good to pray during office hours and not feel like you’re taking time away from your work! I never felt this way before when I prayed for extended periods of time in my previous jobs during office hours.
Thought of the day – there’s no difference between relational praying and religious chanting if we’re just doing it for the sake of doing it without engaging God with our heart, mind and spirit. Whenever we pray we shouldn’t just vomit words but we should really seek God and ask Him what we ought to be praying about and for today. It’s all about praying the will of God.
HY and I experienced a breakthrough in our journey of faith today. She’s been such a courageous girl, bless her heart – I have a girlfriend who inspires me. God has shown Himself to be faithful and He granted us favour tonight. We are beginning to make sense of Romans 8:28 and have that verse personalise our faith in God. God is good, He is in control and He will bring it to pass.
“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”
Can’t wait to wake up to pursue His purpose in a few hours.
good morning Jesus.
A new chapter brings about a new routine. This one begins with an early morning run, which might just turn out to be an early morning conversation with Jesus – before the motivational self-talk begins towards the end of the 20 minutes.
I haven’t gotten up this early in a long time and while it feels slightly strange because my bio clock still isn’t tuned, but I must say it feels great. The aroma of the morning air, the sound of awakening birds, the sight of old folks doing taichi and the taste of the Lord’s daily new mercies.
I can’t wait to begin, really. In 15 minutes, I’ll be taking the familiar 111 to church, except that this time I’m not going as a lay worker, but a full time staff. I need to learn to remain humble and to always struggle with God and not with systems or people. I must learn to crawl, then walk, then run. It would be fatalistic to fly immediately.
Well, here I go. The page turns. I’ve spent the last 26 years writing my introduction. I love You, Lord. I will learn to trust in You with all my heart and rely not on my own understanding. In all my ways I will (seek to) acknowledge You and You will direct my footsteps. Proverbs 3:5-6.
joey asher | misunderstoodsunshinekid 