Mirabel's Cell

Friday, September 5, 2008

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Hey girls!

I'm working in TRYBE as a intern for a month, so some days (or most days) I get some free time to relax a little, and other times its rushing and full of typing and excitement! But this is my lunchbreak, and before that I was doodling (designing) some presentation templates for "M" (stands for Mirabel) and once done, I decided to bust out the creativity department in my head socket and fill them with some illustrations.

Its standard, (sort of) cute ones! Ha ha but this is what you get from Microsoft Powerpoint :0)

Hope these illustrations will brighten your day, to make you smile, and know that God our sovereign awesome King is never going to let us down because He wants you to smile, to follow the way that He leads, and to Trust in Him at all time!

P/S: Lindee, one of our fellow sister in Christ in FC (whose a cell leader) just gave birth today, Ugh we're so excited! Me, Jamie & Mirabel are going down after our work, pray that She'll recover well without complications and that the baby's health will be well and the family itself will be at ease, and be safe & secure.

Keep Paster Yueh Ping and her baby (in the stomach) in prayer too!

Sisters in Christ 4EVA,
Nicolette (with love, Jamie & Mirabel)

Monday, August 25, 2008

Heaven Rejoices over Nicolette and Jamie's Baptism!

Jamie's Baptism Testimony

I come from a good family background, where my parents are also Christians and have no marriage problems, and from young I saw my dad doing quiet time every morning. I really felt that I was carefully brought up in God’s hands, and He taught me what is right and wrong. When I was young I was scared of going to church and scared of the Bible because there’s this “devil” thing that I saw in a short skit in a church during the adult service, in which i did not understand their sermons at all. I did not go to the children's service because I tended to stick to my mum and cry if she left me to other people. (Laughs).

Recently when I started learning piano from a Christian teacher, I somehow got close to God again. She started praying for God to stir my heart, and He really did. I became more conscious about the loneliness in my heart - I had a lot of friends but only little close ones to go to, and often felt very down without a particular guy friend's sms for no good reason. As time passed, I felt very down and could hardly joke around or be happy wholeheartedly.

I did not know who to turn to, then God came to my mind. Looking at the calendar, which showed that 25th November 2007 (which was also my birthday) was a Sunday, I then decided to approach one of my friends in FCBC to tell him that I wanted to go church on that Sunday. Upon making that decision, I felt this Hand pushing me behind telling me “Just go, take that first step, and just go, don’t have to think too much anymore”. ha-ha I guess it was really God calling, and the good thing is I obeyed. :)

After coming back to God, of course things changed - there is now more security in me, and I started not caring much about what I wear to school everyday. I had cleared my doubts in God and can easily trust God and account to Him in times of trouble. I began spending time reading the Bible and soaking in God’s presence. All I can say is it is amazing. There is more happiness and joy in my life which help me to care for others more and also to bring happiness into their lives, beginning from the people around me (family, friends, and new cell sisters).

My cell leader’s care is real; each and every little step I take, she cares. She is always asking me “How are you feeling?” or “Are you ok?”. I can easily account to her my “progress” with God. I also ask her questions to clear my doubts, and became more stable in Christ, now being able to recognise that things that happen are all part of God’s plans, never coincidental. If I have not gone to church for spiritual nourishment, I would be spiritually dead. He gives power to the weak and to them who have no might, He increases strength. He said to me, "My Grace is sufficient for you, for My Strength is made perfect in weakness". God is R-E-A-L to me!

Jamie

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Happy Birthday Eunice!

With much love *HUGS* :)

Saturday, August 2, 2008

Our dear Sharon, wonderfully and fearfully created!

Some of us caught Sharon at her dance performance today. She was great! :)

Our dearie Sharon with flowers as bright as her! :)

Dear Sharon, you danced with such freedom and exuberance, beyond the mistakes that you mentioned and the stress on being on stage. Yes, the latter are not the most important, but your dancing your best which delighted God's heart and ours! :)

The might and focus you portrayed in your moves speak of the resilience and inner strength already in your heart through which God will sustain and propel you towards His good purposes in your life and family. So glad to see in even greater measure the beauty of the Lord in you as you dance! :) *HUGS* - Mirabel

Saturday, July 19, 2008

17th July Magicbox Event Photos

Hello World Wide Web people (Remember the days when the internet just started and the "World Wide Web" term was used frequently to say, internet, or online, and chat messengers like MSN or AOL maximum typing capacity was one sentence)

I report from 17th June 2008 Magicbox @ Esplanade event, it was mindblowing totally out of bonkers amazing, and the meaning, the spirit, the values that it held inside was touching and beyong explanantion. Secretly, I didn't like magic shows, they were like tacky gimmicks that I saw on TV and was like "Woooow" with this astounding expression, than I ran off five seconds later and played Barbie Dolls or went cycling with my best friends at that time. However this show was so inspirational and needed, it was like a "pick-up" call from God, it was beautiful and touching.

The full set of photos are with me, so if you need a digital copy let me know, I could send it to you via MSN or by a CD in Church :0)

Jamie and Nicolette

We had alot of fun times taking photos in the toilet. We like to think we have cosmic telepathy because we wore similar pattern outfits, but secretly, the faces when we met and saw each other outfits was amusing like "Hi... Is... Eh.. (looks down to examine outfit) Oh."

Dina's Cousin's Brother helped took the photo, all candid and perfectly pretty in God's and each other eyes.

Mirabel and Nicolette.

Mirabel and Jamie, two super dooper smilie queens.

Nicolette and a tall Brian, who was working at the Magicbox event, We support Pastor Khong! About the book that we were holding, its a limited edition book for $10 and you get to get Pastor Khong & Priscilla's signature after that, Ha ha but it belongs to a fellow Church brother of ours, we used it to pose to show our appreciation and support!

"The Regulars" Only featuring Nicolette & Jamie. (We should create a club name in church "The Regulars" club)

Lastly, our very pretty group photo! :0) Outside Hall 4 of the Esplanade Theatre, the lights there were really beautiful and the lighting was amazing. Everyone looked stunning and bright in there, (and outside too).

It was a great show! c:

P/S: We also got "interviewed" by some friendly, over enthusiastic loving tv people ("M" says that it'll probably be edited into a small clip to be shown in FC, perhaps) that was lots of fun, we were so "confident" and "strong" and when the TV camera came, all our "confidence" got sucked in, like the camera was the Dementor (from Harry Potter) but it was so exciting, and great.

Hoped you enjoy the photos, Many Happy returns and Happy Birthday Pastor Khong! :0) You look younger and younger, wiser and wiser, and more handsome year after year.

Much love
xoxo
Nicolette

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

From 'the disciple whom Jesus loved'

What i shared at combined cell two weeks ago.

How shallow is my love... I recognise this in my heart whenever i measure my love to Jesus'.

The thing is, i think Jesus knows this better than me. Yet He does not want me to hang my head down because of this.

The journey through the book of John led me to one main conclusion - think of Jesus' love for me more than mine for Him. And it was the disciple John himself who set the best example for me.

In 5 instances in this book, John described himself as 'the disciple whom Jesus loved'. Sounds prideful? Well i would think more humble was he who 'masked his identity' behind a name that simply proclaims all about God's love, forgetting his own name and absorbing himself in the sea of the truest love - that of Jesus.

Peter, on the other hand, was the one who said to Jesus "I will lay down my life for You, Lord!' (John 13:37) and who struck the high priest's servant right ear before Jesus' capture. By word and by deed, he showed his deep love for Jesus but probably proclaiming louder this - 'I AM the one who loves the Lord!'.

Let me share with you 5 benefits that i observed John got in his gospel:

1. Proximity to Jesus

John 13:23 One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to Him.

We really learn to lean on Jesus for intimacy, answers... all that we need.

2. Becoming Fit for Service

John 19:25-27 (Hanging on the Cross), Jesus saw His mother there, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, "Dear woman, here is your son," and to the disciple, "Here is your mother." From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.

John, the only disciple at the Cross with Jesus, became a vessel for the Lord's use.

3. Propelled forward by Love

John 20:1-4 ... she (Mary Magdalene) came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!" Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.

All scripture is God-breathed (2 Timothy 3:16a); the Bible does not record anything unimportant. I believe John outran Peter because he was propelled by Jesus' love for him, no longer on his own strength.

4. Quick and sharp Spiritual Perception

John 21:7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!"

After all these while as Jesus was standing before his disciples to give them verbal instructions which led to the miraculous catch, 'the disciple whom Jesus loved' was the first to recognise the Lord and discern His divine hand here.

5. A Heart that keeps Following

John 21: 19b-20 He (Jesus) said to him (Peter), "Follow me!"
Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them.

Jesus did not see the need to call John to follow Him, as He called Peter. John was already following all these while.

Instead of singing 'i love Jesus', let's first be convicted deeply in our hearts 'Jesus loves me'. John reiterated this idea in 1 John 4:19 'We love because He first loved us'.

His is the true everlasting and trustworthy love that is sure even when we fail Him. Abide in His love, from the One who has truly laid down His life for us.

Mirabel

References:

Charles Spurgeon's sermon

Hamilton Smith's writing