Sunday's worship was amazing, and I know I wasn't the only one who felt that way.
A couple of the Team 3 ladies (we haven't settled on a name for our team yet) who led the singing were in tears, and we agreed that God had been present in a very powerful way.
One of the ladies remarked that this is the reason why our team came together. I said jokingly to her that it was a good thing I didn't look at her or her fellow singers while I was playing, or I might have cried too!
The drummer told me I had played really well. And I know just what he meant. I thank God for His anointing, because I can feel the difference when He's there guiding my fingers.
Towards the end of the service, as the Holy Spirit took over, I had this strong urge to just let go and let my fingers do their thing without me consciously watching out for changing keys and sus chords. There was such an incredible sense of release and joy, of oneness and gratitude, of being in the moment and flowing along with the rest of the team and the singing of the congregation.
Wow.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Monday, November 15, 2010
Putting in the hours
Two sessions of playgroup aren't a lot.
But I reckon over the past two Mondays, I've honed up my communication skills, organization skills and social skills more than would have been possible if I'd said no to relieving the regular playgroup coordinator.
And I've confronted my fears (what if I can't unlock the church? what if I don't lock up properly? what if I can't manage on my own? I don't know how to talk to kids), overcome them and experienced God's providence.
As Filipino preacher/missionary Bo Sanchez says, you have to put in the hours (10,000 is Malcolm Gladwell's recommendation) if you want to get better at anything. And the best way to do it is to say yes to every opportunity that comes along.
But I reckon over the past two Mondays, I've honed up my communication skills, organization skills and social skills more than would have been possible if I'd said no to relieving the regular playgroup coordinator.
And I've confronted my fears (what if I can't unlock the church? what if I don't lock up properly? what if I can't manage on my own? I don't know how to talk to kids), overcome them and experienced God's providence.
As Filipino preacher/missionary Bo Sanchez says, you have to put in the hours (10,000 is Malcolm Gladwell's recommendation) if you want to get better at anything. And the best way to do it is to say yes to every opportunity that comes along.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
The fine print I missed
Hubby and I are on a $29 Cap plan with '3' for our mobile phones.
My conversation with iPrimus customer service yesterday inspired me to take a closer look at our latest bill.
I'm trying to see if there's any way to cut down the monthly cost.
And here's what I discovered: the plan requires a minimum spend of $29 per person per month. If you spend more than that, they credit you the difference (you get rewarded). If you spend less than that, you get charged (penalized!).
Not only that, our plan actually has a $150 cap limit that includes $100 of international calls.
Which we've never used.
We've always just bought a $10 ICC and used it up till it expired, if we didn't remember to recharge it before.
Hubby spent only $10 last month and was charged $18 for breaching the minimum cap requirement.
I spent $34 and received a $5 credit that brought me back down to $29, so I actually benefitted.
Two options going forward - either use hubby's mobile to make international calls to SG to get up to the $29 cap, or ask '3' how we can downgrade hubby's plan.
We've had the plan for more than a year and this is the FIRST time I've actually bothered to scrutinize the plan.
All we've ever focused on is paying the bill on time (and this goes for all our other bills).
Until now.
My conversation with iPrimus customer service yesterday inspired me to take a closer look at our latest bill.
I'm trying to see if there's any way to cut down the monthly cost.
And here's what I discovered: the plan requires a minimum spend of $29 per person per month. If you spend more than that, they credit you the difference (you get rewarded). If you spend less than that, you get charged (penalized!).
Not only that, our plan actually has a $150 cap limit that includes $100 of international calls.
Which we've never used.
We've always just bought a $10 ICC and used it up till it expired, if we didn't remember to recharge it before.
Hubby spent only $10 last month and was charged $18 for breaching the minimum cap requirement.
I spent $34 and received a $5 credit that brought me back down to $29, so I actually benefitted.
Two options going forward - either use hubby's mobile to make international calls to SG to get up to the $29 cap, or ask '3' how we can downgrade hubby's plan.
We've had the plan for more than a year and this is the FIRST time I've actually bothered to scrutinize the plan.
All we've ever focused on is paying the bill on time (and this goes for all our other bills).
Until now.
Simple Savings
Yesterday was one of those productive days where I got down to ticking off things I'd been putting off for ages.
First thing in the morning, I rang the lady who runs the Kumon Centre in HX. I had left her a message on Monday but hadn't heard from her. I normally don't follow up on calls; I hate talking to answering machines and I try not to call someone if I can because I just can't handle the interaction. But for some reason, I thought I'd try and see if I could get through to her.
And she picked up!
The result was we had a very friendly and informative (for me) chat and I had most of my questions answered. We are booked in for a parent info session on Monday and Beth will sit a diagnostic test to see where she's at with her math. [Math ability is generally poor in Aus and I'm hoping Kumon can help Beth get an edge as she gets older.]
The next thing I did was to compare energy supply rates using GoSwitch and SwitchWise. I finally went with the supplier and plan that will save us $269 a year on a Loyalty Saver plan (the same retailer has an Easy Saver plan that would save us $270, but requires us to lock in a contract for 2 years, and I wasn't sure I wanted to do that).
The retailer is supposed to call me to confirm details.
Finally, I filled out an inquiry form on iPrimus, our broadband and home phone service provider (another way of avoiding direct contact!). I wanted to ask about their VOIP Lingo service.
The customer service officer called me back within the day, talked me through the options, answered all my questions, and after analyzing our monthly spend, actually advised me to downgrade to a cheaper plan so we could save money.
Instead of the $87+ we currently pay, we are switching to a plan that costs $59.95 with no change to our home phone or broadband usage, and with line rental included. So we get to enjoy a savings of $27+ every month. And it cost us nothing, just a couple of minutes on the phone.
Wow.
That's not all. The same guy suggested we look at the SIM Saver mobile phone plan that would allow us to retain our numbers while spending less on phone calls and texts.
It was a bit of info overload at that point, so I said I would look into it at a later time.
In all, we're looking at saving potentially $593 pa. Awesome.
The only thing that tops that is going through my insurance policies and writing up a table for my financial planner so he could review them and advise on the best strategy for the future.
I ended up writing three letters to my respective insurers asking questions and informing them (in some cases) that I wanted to surrender the policies. That should free up some cashflow to be redirected to where they are most needed.
Taking charge of where our money is going is so empowering!
First thing in the morning, I rang the lady who runs the Kumon Centre in HX. I had left her a message on Monday but hadn't heard from her. I normally don't follow up on calls; I hate talking to answering machines and I try not to call someone if I can because I just can't handle the interaction. But for some reason, I thought I'd try and see if I could get through to her.
And she picked up!
The result was we had a very friendly and informative (for me) chat and I had most of my questions answered. We are booked in for a parent info session on Monday and Beth will sit a diagnostic test to see where she's at with her math. [Math ability is generally poor in Aus and I'm hoping Kumon can help Beth get an edge as she gets older.]
The next thing I did was to compare energy supply rates using GoSwitch and SwitchWise. I finally went with the supplier and plan that will save us $269 a year on a Loyalty Saver plan (the same retailer has an Easy Saver plan that would save us $270, but requires us to lock in a contract for 2 years, and I wasn't sure I wanted to do that).
The retailer is supposed to call me to confirm details.
Finally, I filled out an inquiry form on iPrimus, our broadband and home phone service provider (another way of avoiding direct contact!). I wanted to ask about their VOIP Lingo service.
The customer service officer called me back within the day, talked me through the options, answered all my questions, and after analyzing our monthly spend, actually advised me to downgrade to a cheaper plan so we could save money.
Instead of the $87+ we currently pay, we are switching to a plan that costs $59.95 with no change to our home phone or broadband usage, and with line rental included. So we get to enjoy a savings of $27+ every month. And it cost us nothing, just a couple of minutes on the phone.
Wow.
That's not all. The same guy suggested we look at the SIM Saver mobile phone plan that would allow us to retain our numbers while spending less on phone calls and texts.
It was a bit of info overload at that point, so I said I would look into it at a later time.
In all, we're looking at saving potentially $593 pa. Awesome.
The only thing that tops that is going through my insurance policies and writing up a table for my financial planner so he could review them and advise on the best strategy for the future.
I ended up writing three letters to my respective insurers asking questions and informing them (in some cases) that I wanted to surrender the policies. That should free up some cashflow to be redirected to where they are most needed.
Taking charge of where our money is going is so empowering!
Faith in action
A follow up on earlier post about Faith vs. Action.
Have emailed Good News Lutheran to request a school tour. Received an acknowledgement email yesterday and hope to hear from them soon. After that we'll have a chat with the principal and hopefully get all our questions answered so we can submit the enrolment form.
Have been dropping hints to Beth that she may be transferring out of Heathdale in two years' time so it won't be such a massive shock when it happens. I know she'll grieve over the separation from her friends and her comfort zone, but kids are resilient, and we've tried to highlight the positives: the $ saved could go towards holidays (RACV Royal Pines is still high on her list of favourites).
Other ways I can think of to cushion the blow: regular play dates with her Heathdale friends, Good News Gang on Wed (which is attended by GNL and Heathdale kids).
Last night, I finally got round to reading up on the ASG terms and conditions to get a grip on what we signed up to when we enrolled the girls in '07. More importantly, I needed to know how we would benefit and when.
The good news: when Beth turns 13 (Year 7), ASG will send us the amount of projected benefit ($4k+). The amount goes up every year until Year 12. Then when she starts uni, she is entitled to a scholarship benefit of $1k - 2k for 3 years. Same for Jordanne, except her benefits are more because she enrolled at a younger age.
It's good to know we'll get some help with school fees (esp if Beth's still in a private school and not at Suzanne Cory or on a scholarship to Westbourne Grammar, which is our best-case scenario) five years from now. Which means the years of financial stretch are actually just Years 4, 5 and 6 (2012 - 2014).
Still, at $6k pa for 3 years ($18k), that's still a huge outlay compared to GNL's $2700 x 3 years ($8100).
Imagine how much more good we could do and how much more we could give for God's kingdom with the savings.
Why should a good Christian education have to be prohibitively expensive?
Have emailed Good News Lutheran to request a school tour. Received an acknowledgement email yesterday and hope to hear from them soon. After that we'll have a chat with the principal and hopefully get all our questions answered so we can submit the enrolment form.
Have been dropping hints to Beth that she may be transferring out of Heathdale in two years' time so it won't be such a massive shock when it happens. I know she'll grieve over the separation from her friends and her comfort zone, but kids are resilient, and we've tried to highlight the positives: the $ saved could go towards holidays (RACV Royal Pines is still high on her list of favourites).
Other ways I can think of to cushion the blow: regular play dates with her Heathdale friends, Good News Gang on Wed (which is attended by GNL and Heathdale kids).
Last night, I finally got round to reading up on the ASG terms and conditions to get a grip on what we signed up to when we enrolled the girls in '07. More importantly, I needed to know how we would benefit and when.
The good news: when Beth turns 13 (Year 7), ASG will send us the amount of projected benefit ($4k+). The amount goes up every year until Year 12. Then when she starts uni, she is entitled to a scholarship benefit of $1k - 2k for 3 years. Same for Jordanne, except her benefits are more because she enrolled at a younger age.
It's good to know we'll get some help with school fees (esp if Beth's still in a private school and not at Suzanne Cory or on a scholarship to Westbourne Grammar, which is our best-case scenario) five years from now. Which means the years of financial stretch are actually just Years 4, 5 and 6 (2012 - 2014).
Still, at $6k pa for 3 years ($18k), that's still a huge outlay compared to GNL's $2700 x 3 years ($8100).
Imagine how much more good we could do and how much more we could give for God's kingdom with the savings.
Why should a good Christian education have to be prohibitively expensive?
Friday, November 05, 2010
My God is a big God!
Just received the 2011 school fees list.
Suddenly, Good News Lutheran is looking very attractive. At $2700 for Prep to Year 6, it's half of what we're paying. Imagine how much we could save. Even at Year 7 and 8, the fees ($4500) are still less than what we're paying.
I like how GNL charges the same rate for all years of primary school. Heathdale's adopting a similar system for next year - fees are the same for Prep to Year 4, Year 5-6, Year 7-8, and Year 9-12, respectively.
Woke up extra early today and sat down at the computer thinking of alternatives and solutions to the Heathdale problem.
Was reminded of a Bo Sanchez article I read yesterday. Bo says when our fears are big, it means our God is small. But if our fears are small, then it means our God is a BIG God.
Which when you think of it is so obvious.
Our God is above all gods. He is the God of the universe and every created thing. He made the world and everything in it. Nature shouts His glory. He made people with diverse talents, personalities and abilities. He made the human brain smarter than any computer. He heals, transforms, creates miracles, blesses, forgives and loves. In Him we live and move and have our being.
If He wants us to remain at Heathdale, He will make a way where there seems to be no way. He will provide the funds, the ideas, the job opportunities, the passive income streams.
And if He wants us to transfer to Good News Lutheran, He will take care of our fears and guilt, and Beth's sense of sadness and loss.
My part, as I continue to pray and wait on Him, is to ACT. Faith does not mean just sitting back passively waiting for things to happen. Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. (James 2:17) For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. (2 Tim. 1:7)
God has given me a sound mind, attention to detail, legal knowledge and creativity. All these things I offer up to Him as hubby and I navigate this new challenge in our lives.
Suddenly, Good News Lutheran is looking very attractive. At $2700 for Prep to Year 6, it's half of what we're paying. Imagine how much we could save. Even at Year 7 and 8, the fees ($4500) are still less than what we're paying.
I like how GNL charges the same rate for all years of primary school. Heathdale's adopting a similar system for next year - fees are the same for Prep to Year 4, Year 5-6, Year 7-8, and Year 9-12, respectively.
Woke up extra early today and sat down at the computer thinking of alternatives and solutions to the Heathdale problem.
Was reminded of a Bo Sanchez article I read yesterday. Bo says when our fears are big, it means our God is small. But if our fears are small, then it means our God is a BIG God.
Which when you think of it is so obvious.
Our God is above all gods. He is the God of the universe and every created thing. He made the world and everything in it. Nature shouts His glory. He made people with diverse talents, personalities and abilities. He made the human brain smarter than any computer. He heals, transforms, creates miracles, blesses, forgives and loves. In Him we live and move and have our being.
If He wants us to remain at Heathdale, He will make a way where there seems to be no way. He will provide the funds, the ideas, the job opportunities, the passive income streams.
And if He wants us to transfer to Good News Lutheran, He will take care of our fears and guilt, and Beth's sense of sadness and loss.
My part, as I continue to pray and wait on Him, is to ACT. Faith does not mean just sitting back passively waiting for things to happen. Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. (James 2:17) For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. (2 Tim. 1:7)
God has given me a sound mind, attention to detail, legal knowledge and creativity. All these things I offer up to Him as hubby and I navigate this new challenge in our lives.
Wednesday, November 03, 2010
How to expand your territories by Bo Sanchez
From http://bosanchez.ph/5-steps-on-how-to-expand-your-territories/
Key #1:
Believe You’re Bigger
It’s common fact that we only use 10% of our brain’s capacity.
Can you believe that? We’re wasting 90% of what God has given to us!
I believe God has given us more capacities than we think we have.
The ultimate crime is that we belittle ourselves.
We think we’re insects, so we live an insect life, but actually—we’re giants!
Because of this, I believe you can earn a ten times more than whatever you’re earning right now. You can help ten times the number of people you’re helping now. You can serve ten times more than whatever service you’re doing now.
Don’t limit yourself.
You’re bigger than you think you are.
Key #2:
Be Consistent With The Fundamentals
Every morning, I enjoy time with God.
Every morning, I chew on His Word—the Bible.
Every morning, I pray, “Lord, let me love every person I meet today.”
Every morning, I read my life mission, my list of dreams, and my annual goals.
And throughout the day, instead of exposing myself to bad news, I digest good news available around me: I voraciously read inspiring books and listen to inspiring audio talks.
Every night, like a little boy, I kneel beside my bed and thank God for His blessings of that day.
In other words, the reason why I live such an exciting life is because I’m boring.
I’m monotonous.
I’m repetitive.
I do the same basic things again and again and again and again…
I now realize that the reason I can do all those thrilling, exciting, exhilarating stuff is because I do the boring basics every single day of my life. Everyday, I’m grateful. Everyday, I think positive. Everyday, I love. Everyday, I select what I watch, what I read, what I listen to—and stick to what can make me grow. Every single day.
The more I live on planet earth, the more I agree with Jim Rohn when he said that “There’s really nothing mysterious or magical about success. Success is simply the consistent application of fundamentals.”
Be boringly consistent when it comes to the basics.
And in time, you’ll find exciting success knocking at your door.
Key #3:
Focus On Your Core Gift
I have very few talents. Honest!
I don’t know how to cook, how to dance, how to write a computer program, and how to solve the Rubix cube. I don’t know how to do geometry, trigonometry, and calculus. I’m totally lost in chemistry, physics, and biology. I also can’t fix a leaking faucet or do carpentry or repair my car.
But this is what I can do very well: Communicate.
So I focus my entire life on that one thing.
I write well and I speak well. Period.
And I delegate everything to people who are better than I am.
Ask yourself now: What is my core gift?
I have a general rule I follow in my life: I don’t like complicating things just to impress you. So instead of giving you 329 psychological questions filled with scientific babble to discover your core gift (so I could impress you on how intelligent I am), let me just boil it down to 2 very simple questions. Stop reading this book until you answered both of these questions.
· What do you enjoy doing?
· What are you good at
For some of you, it’s technology.
For some of you, it’s teaching.
For some of you, it’s selling stuff.
For some of you, it’s cooking.
For some of you, it’s music.
For some of you, it’s advanced trigonometry. (Yes, I’ve heard there are such strange creatures walking on the face of the earth.)
Key #4:
Build Your Network
My wealth isn’t my money.
My real wealth is my network of friends.
Personally, I don’t think anything great is accomplished without a team.
Even Jesus had a team around him.
A few months ago, I was reading about the interesting world of horse-pulling competitions.
That’s where huge horses the size of elephants pull massive concrete blocks behind them.
Did you know that the grand champion horse could pull the incredible weight of 4,500 pounds? If the average weight of a Filipino is 140 pounds (which happens to be my weight before I eat my breakfast), that means this super horse could carry 32 Filipinos—without wheels! That monster could pull me, my wife, my kids, my parents, my siblings, their spouses, their kids, and all my in-laws combined.
And the second placer horse can pull only slightly lower than the first placer: 4,400 pounds.
That was when the organizers got curious. If these two horses pulled together, how many pounds could they carry? Could they pull 8,900 pounds?
They harnessed both horses and were shocked with the results.
Both horses, when pulling together, carried the mind-blowing weight of 12,000 pounds. That’s 85 Filipinos.
My message? Teams are powerful.
Alone, I can do a lot of things. But with my team, I don’t add but multiply what I can do.
I keep networking. I circulate. I meet people. I build bridges.
So I surround myself with a bunch of people who have impeccable character and fantastic skills. I network with Mentors, Preachers, Administrators, Accountants, Programmers, Lawyers, Financial Wizards, Multi-millionaires, Media Experts, Businessmen, Architects, Engineers, etc…
And everyday, I constantly expand my team.
Key #5:
Create An Autopilot System
Every time I enter into a project, I always do it with a team around me. Never alone. And I choose my team well.
I have a very simple criteria: I choose men and women who are humble (teamplayers) and who are experts in their field. In other words, I search for impeccable character and fantastic skills.
And together, we create a system for the project that’s replicable and duplicable.
In other words, it’s got to run on autopilot without my direct supervision.
Here’s my ideal leader: If I appoint someone to be project head (or organization director or business manager), and after six months, I don’t want him to bother me anymore except for major directional issues. If he still bothers me for tiny matters, I’ve chosen the wrong leader—or I trained him wrongly.
If You Love, The Universe Opens Up To You
Here’s what I’ve learned: Love is limitless! It has no boundaries.
I do what I do because I want to love people.
Each morning, I wake up and ask myself, “How can I bless people today?”
And so I stretch. I go just a teensy bit beyond what I think is my limit—and my capacities expand—because I want to bless the world.
Post-interview thoughts
Just returned from my interview.
The interviewers will have to go back to Church Council with what we discussed and work from there.
For myself, I gained a better appreciation of the work our pastor and Op Shop manager currently do that is unmentioned but nevertheless necessary - answering the phone, manning the book shop, answering queries on funeral and baptism service fees, organizing wreaths to be sent to funerals of members...
There will be even more work next year when the church is in transition, as records and minutes have to be archived and documentation put in order for the big move.
And there are things being done by various volunteers which can be consolidated under my job description, as well as things that need to be done but which no one is doing.
It'll be interesting to see how God uses my talents.
The interviewers will have to go back to Church Council with what we discussed and work from there.
For myself, I gained a better appreciation of the work our pastor and Op Shop manager currently do that is unmentioned but nevertheless necessary - answering the phone, manning the book shop, answering queries on funeral and baptism service fees, organizing wreaths to be sent to funerals of members...
There will be even more work next year when the church is in transition, as records and minutes have to be archived and documentation put in order for the big move.
And there are things being done by various volunteers which can be consolidated under my job description, as well as things that need to be done but which no one is doing.
It'll be interesting to see how God uses my talents.
Possible Job Opening
Am off to have a chat with R&J about the admin position at church.
Have no idea what direction the chat will take and how I should answer. It's been AGES since I've had a job interview, if you can call it that.
Will just flow along with things and pray that God gives me a clear mind, wisdom and discernment to make choices that please Him and fulfil His purpose for me.
Have no idea what direction the chat will take and how I should answer. It's been AGES since I've had a job interview, if you can call it that.
Will just flow along with things and pray that God gives me a clear mind, wisdom and discernment to make choices that please Him and fulfil His purpose for me.
Monday, November 01, 2010
The Preacher In Blue Jeans
Discovered Filipino preacher and entrepreneur Bo Sanchez's blog tonight and haven't been able to stop reading.
I watched the latest video on his Preacher in Blue Jeans site and was fascinated to see his audience was standing throughout his sermon.
He writes so simply, so authentically so powerfully.
And I agree with just about everything he says. He affirms what I already know and believe, and he does it with great conviction, clarity and persuasiveness.
Even though I've never met him, I like him already.
Now that's the power of a truly magnetic personality.
I watched the latest video on his Preacher in Blue Jeans site and was fascinated to see his audience was standing throughout his sermon.
He writes so simply, so authentically so powerfully.
And I agree with just about everything he says. He affirms what I already know and believe, and he does it with great conviction, clarity and persuasiveness.
Even though I've never met him, I like him already.
Now that's the power of a truly magnetic personality.
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