A Father's Love

Watched this story on Oprah today. Touching... The son can only communicate through a special computer built on a wheel chair for him. He types by moving his head to press the keys. I tried to upload the photo but somehow it just can't be uploaded. Here's the story of a Father's love anyway. :)

Forty-three years ago, Rick was born without the ability to talk, walk or barely move. "They said, 'Forget Rick,'" remembers his father, Dick. "'Put him in an institution. He's going to be nothing but a vegetable for the rest of his life.' My wife and I cried a little bit but we talked and we said, 'We're going to bring Rick home and bring him up like any other child."

Dick knew deep down that his son was thriving on the inside, and he insisted Rick go to school. He believed with every fiber of his being that his son had something to say—and he was right. At age 12, Dick had a special computer built so that Rick could communicate. What were his first words? Not "mom" or "dad" as his parents expected. "The Boston Bruins were going for the Stanley Cup," Dick remembers. "The very first words he ever said were 'Go, Bruins.'"

Rick, born with the heart of a true athlete, made a request that would change their lives forever—he asked his father to team up for a five-mile charity race. Dick had never run in his life. "We finished the whole five miles coming in next to last," Dick remembers, "but not last. When we came across the finish line, it was the biggest smile you ever saw in your life. Rick wrote on his computer, 'Dad, when I'm running, it feels like my disability disappears.'"

After many local races, Dick and Rick take their new passion even further. Even though Dick couldn't swim and hadn't been on a bike since he was 6 years old, the two used a running wheelchair and other special equipment and began training to compete in triathlons.

The pure joy Rick experiences during each race drives his father to the finish line again and again. "Rick can't make very many sounds," Dick says with tears in his eyes, "but he does [make a certain sound] a lot when we're out there competing. … You know he's happy and he enjoys himself."

So far Rick and Dick have competed in over 206 triathlons and 64 marathons!

Dick says his son saved his life. Preparing to run their 23rd Boston marathon, Dick went to see a doctor about a tickle in his throat. An EKG revealed that Dick had suffered a silent heart attack. She informed Dick that he had a severe cholesterol problem and told him that if he weren't in such great athletic condition, he would have died 15 years ago!

"When [Rick] asked me to start pushing him that first race," Dick says, "I was not a runner and I was kind of overweight—maybe becoming a couch potato. He's got me in the best shape of my life and I just love to be out there competing with Rick. … Rick is a fighter and he never gives up. To me, he's the athlete and I'm just out there loaning him my arms and legs so that he can compete."

What does Rick want people to know? Rick is a graduate from Boston University with a degree in special education, and he even lives on his own. Through a special computer he is able to communicate his thoughts.

"Until my dad agreed to run that first race, I had no chance," Rick says through his computer. "My dad is my everything. He has made my dreams come true. To steal a line from a song, my dad is the 'wind beneath my wings.'"

Thank You

The heart is deceitful.

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things
and beyond cure. Who can understand it?

Sometimes you thank someone not because you are truly grateful, but cos you don't want to owe anyone. Sometimes you do that to people, sometimes you do that to God. As if a "thank you" was enough... As if being at best behaviour was enough...

Isaiah 64:6 All of us have become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags;
we all shrivel up like a leaf,
and like the wind our sins sweep us away.

Ephesians 2:8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--
2:9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

Romans 3:24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

Amazes Me (Christian City Church)

On my knees, I bow down
Sing about the healer & the hope I've found
You took my tears, took my shame
Washed them all away
Love shines down on this heart of mine
Lead me to the waters of eternal life
Once was lost, now I'm found
It's a brand new day
Your love, it amazes me
Your love, has lifted me
Higher than I can possibly dream
Your love amazes me
Hallelujah
Your love amazes me

So, sincerely from the bottom of my heart, Thank You Jesus, my saviour, my jiu(4) ming(4) en(1) ren(2), my benefactor and friend.

My Day In A Collage And A Song

Savior (Steven Curtis Chapman)

Well, who is this angry man I see

In the mirror looking back at me?

It’s a man who’s tired, a man who’s weak

And it’s a man who needs a Savior
And who is this fearful little child

Crying out for home, lost in the wild?

With a lonely heart that’s fading fast

It’s a child who needs a Savior

A child who needs a Savior
And what is this longing in my soul

That I get so scared and angry?

I need more than just a little help

I need someone who will save me

Come and save me

I need someone to save me

Who will save me? Come and save me
And who is this one nailed to a cross

Who would rather die than leave us lost?

He’s come to rescue us, come to set us free

Hallelujah, hallelujah

It is Christ the Lord…our Savior

Hatred For Self

I've heard this said by Dr Robin Smith a lot on the Oprah show. Dr Robin Smith is a renowned psychologist on the show. When drug abusers, people with extremely low self esteem or morbidly obese people are interviewed on the show, Dr Smith often proposes Hatred For Self as the root cause.

I've always thought what it's really like being in their shoes. How can someone hate himself? Why do they hate themselves? It's somewhat an ironical concept in a self-centred and selfish world.

I heard this again yesterday during Alan's sermon in the tertiary service.

Here's a copy of my notes:

How To Experience God's Transforming Power
1 Timothy 1:12-17

Alan Tea

1. Realize that God thinks the best of us.(v12)
-"the worst of sinners"
-God thinks the best of us, despite what we think about ourself
-1 Cor 1:26-30, Ps 139:13-16
-there are some whose survival is based on self praise, their confidence derived from the opinions of others on them
-sometimes things are meant for the HIGHER good

2. Accept that God wipes away our past.(v13)
-hardened criminals have died inside, they've lost the sense of guilt, chosen to ignore their conscience
-are we like that? Hardened? Chosen to ignore the Spirit?
-Isaiah 61:10, Lamentations 3:22-23
-if today you can accept that God has forgiven you, then you can start to accept yourself. If you find that you hate what you see inside, then you may not have accepted the fact that God has forgiven you
-Mat 19:19, you cannot love others like yourself if you don't love yourself to start with

3. Receive every good thing that God wants to give us.(v14)




It's funny, sometimes as Christians that we have not accepted the fact.