BLC's Community Blog - the Gatherings, Life Groups, discipleship, social issues, prayers, worship experiences, insights into the Scripture... no random statements of who we had lunch with and what our dogs ate for breakfast. The place where strangers get to know us as a community, who we are, what we're like, how we function, and to experience what it'll be like to be a part of us.

Sunday, August 21, 2005

Congrats Kevin & Olivia!


may the Lord bless you and keep both of you as a couple ...learning the art and science of "loving one another" ... As Christ loves you ... Amen!

Tuesday, August 16, 2005

The Nuts and Bolts of Forgiveness


Soo-Inn will be gracing our BLC mic stand this Sunday (please pray for him!) ... as I'll be off to Seremban for a camp with Hope EFC church (please pray for me!). I like what he has in stall for us from Matthew 18: 21-35 --> The Nuts and Bolts of Forgiveness.

Wednesday, August 10, 2005

The Party continues ...

The Canticle Singers in action!

The party started on with worship and dinner on August 6th (check our Friend Al's summary)

We continue this Sunday with special guests the Canticle Singers joining us for Worship which includes Holy Communion (and a special welcome to the latest addition to BLC *smile*).

On August 21 Soo-Inn Tan will grace our mic stand once again ... with a special topic that's much needed these days.

on August 28 Prof. Hans Schwarz visiting from Germany to give a pastors school for the LCMS and special lectures for STM. Wolfgang was so nice to recommend him to visit BLC and share with us as well as get our young 5 year old community :-)

So, God is gracious to us and we're truly in a month full of thanksgiving. I thought this is great because like the Chinese New year celebrations we celebrate an extended period of at least 15 days! For those who missed some of the videos during the anniversary worship dinner, we'll replay them on August 28th.

Monday, August 08, 2005

Amazing Birthday, BLC!

Here's some very encouraging and kind words from our friend Alwyn Lau ... and I'll add especially to all who've played a part in making the event a memorable one - a Big Thank-you! The celebrations will continue until the end of the month (in true Chinese fashion - like CNY). This Week the Canticles Singers are coming for vocal performances! anyway, on with Alwyn's paragraphs:


This is a Thank-You note to Sivin and everyone else in BLC.

Thank you for the sweet Saturday worship service in celebration of your 5th Anniversary. I told a friend that I’ve always found worship in BLC much more - what's the right word here? - ‘conducive’ to spirituality, to ‘hearing God’ than in most other places. This friend half-teased that maybe it was the tinted lights(!). I found that to be incisively true. The environment does matter. The lights, the multi-media, the colour, the carpeting, the proximity between altar and worshipper, what you ‘notice’ and ‘feel’ first when you walk in, and all that – it matters! We are, after all, sensual creatures and we worship as sense-agents. Kudos to BLC for exploiting this fully for the glory of God…(but hey I’m drifting…)

Thank you, the videoed interviewees, for the innovative and surprising(!) thoughts on Confession (Kia Meng confided that his entire comment was, “If worship is like breathing, then confession is like yoga!”), Worship (I particularly resonated with Messy Christian’s suggestion that silence is integral to worship…) and Why God Put You Here (someone said, to much laughter, that perhaps the church could, “use some of my skills!” – that sounds naturally amusing but I can’t imagine how this makes it any less true!). Thank you, John, for those hilarious

Thank you, Selah, for that groovy rumba(?)-styled performance on the violin (and if you can lemme know the name of that piece I’ll get on Kazaar right away!). Thank you, Paul and Soo-Inn, for those timely words of encouragement. Paul reminded us (via some cute balloons) that God can use even the most unlikely of persons, events, ‘items’ to lead us to the cross of Jesus (I’m unsure as to why he characterized Sivin as ‘weird’, there’s gotta be a hidden story there somewhere!). Soo-Inn, in his characteristic in-depth fashion, recounted Sivin’s painful past and his love of questions and how perhaps BLC’s growth in both numbers and warmth is proof that ‘unless a seed dies, it cannot bear fruit’. Death to a former way begets life in a revolutionary new one. I was touched by Soo-Inn’s remark that BLC’s creation of a special place for children reflects a rare sensitivity to the ‘least’ involved (and possibly most disruptive!) members of the church! I’m also writing this not two hours after chasing Nicky round my own church’s sanctuary during sermon time!

(As an aside, during dinner I overheard Soo-Inn mentioned that, “Emergent is always asking questions!” Right on. Questions open up possibilities, suggest new perspectives, point us to fresh thinking areas. Answers - especially ‘non-negotiable’ ones - tend to close-up thinking, draw greater and deeper battle-lines and stop conversation.)

Thank you, Sivin, for reminding us (via the ‘Jesus walks on water’ passage from Matt 14) that God isn’t a circus-performer, longing to impress us with His feats. He is amazing not only because He encourages us to move forward but He also pulls us up whenever we fall. This causes unrestrained joy and should also inspire unqualified compassion and action for those who have fallen into rough waters.

(The title of Sivin’s message was ‘Amazing’, phrased in three different ways! This fits VERY NICELY with at least two choruses sung, and his defining quotable quote, “Jesus is amazing”. Hence, too, the title of this post.)

BLC is a place which encourages you to come and stay and belong as the person you are, but it also challenges you to go out into the world as the person God can make you. Sivin has taught his church to become authentic, caring children of God. There is much passion and inspiration here. Most of all, there is much love.


I also resonate completely with

What else can I say? Amazing.



Sunday, August 07, 2005

Post Anniversary Gems


Father, we're so grateful that you have not abandoned us but accepted us ...
Jesus, we're so grateful that you have saved us from our drowning and sinking ...
Spirit, we're so grateful that you are still working on us and leading us forward ...
Amen!

For more check:
5th anniversary Memory Makers (with photos!)
Thoughts after church's anniversary celebrations
Drunk in the Spirit




Saturday, August 06, 2005

5th Anniversary Deco


A big thank you in advance to Susan and her Wonder team!

For more see through the eyes of a Canon A70 digital camera here! (if you can't wait, or for some reason you are not around!)

Friday, August 05, 2005

Getting Ready for the Party!


As the tents are getting ready, it's getting more and more exciting ... many parts of "the puzzle are falling into place" (in the words of John Cheah). The Worship team had a great time practicing last night ... (hope we remember what to do!), the people in charge of deco and others are coming tonight to clean up and give our premises a little face-lift, I saw the Mustard Seed today hot off the press ... honest and hilarious ... humbling too ... as well as a sense that we all seek to honor the one who's called us and sent us...

Gather us in Lord ... to have a foretaste of what the Kingdom Party you have for us is all about :-) Amen. Oh yes ... it's 6pm tomorrow!