1 oeuvre (musique)

Ever since I discovered the complete recording of Tchaikovsky's Casse-Noisette (Nutcracker ballet music) in my early teens, I have associated this particular adagio movement (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnmbas-eOWI) with feelings of nostalgia.

Sometimes also with a longing to hold on to something that you know you need to let go of.^

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It has been an emotional couple of days at college contemplating the loss of a large handful of friends who depart the College bubble indefinitely this month.

A loss for me because some of them will no longer be based anywhere near Sydney (Brisbane or Armidale for example) and, realistically, it's going to be so hard to keep regularly in touch, so different from seeing them every day or at least once a week.

A loss also even for those moving on into ministry (or returning to the workforce - or a bit of both) within the Sydney metro' region
- because although I love these people and feel they're such valued friends, life is so busy for all of us serving full-time or part-time here that you don't really get to stay connected as much unless you're labouring hard on both ends to maintain correspondence. (Also, unless they feel they have the time to keep up as much with me as I wish to with them - and since over half are introverts by nature this might well drain them of the energy they need for ministry.)

Time to go and read ACTS 20; my memory of that section tells me that could be helpful for Bible-based reflection...

...well, passages like this may resound a bit, anyway.
"Mais je ne fais pour moi-même aucun cas de ma vie, comme si elle m'était précieuse,
pourvu que j'accomplisse ma course avec joie, et le ministère que j'ai reçu du Seigneur Jésus,
d'annoncer la bonne nouvelle de la grâce de Dieu.
Et maintenant voici, je sais que vous ne verrez plus mon visage,
vous tous au milieu desquels j'ai passé en prêchant le royaume de Dieu."
ACTES 20,24-25


L/T.
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^ If watching the clip rather than just listening to Tchaikovsky's music - see how the girl wants to hold on to one, but how this is complicated by the other...

nombreux paroles

They say "of making many words there is no end", but I liked these, so I'm replicating them from f'book.

Merci beaucoup tous mes amis!

_______________

Ab.L ~ Happy birthday lovely!!
Ad.L ~ HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
Al.G ~ Bonne anniversaire!
AKY ~ Happy birthday beautiful lady! Hope you have a great day! x
An.L ~ Feliz cumpleaños!
An.Z ~ Happy birthday
Be.Y ~ happy birthday ----tia!
Be.L ~ Happy birthday ----tia!
Ca.Li ~ Happy birthday !
Ca.K ~ Happy birthday, ----tia! Have a great day. :)
Ca.La ~ Happy birthday ----tia! 
Ch.T ~ Happy birthday MLTC
Ch.E ~ Happy birthday lovely lady!!! Hope you've had a great day! xx
Ch.R ~ Happy birthday ----tia! Hope you have a lovely day :)
Da.H ~ happy belated bday!!!
Er.C ~ Happy birthday ----tia!!!! ☺☺
Fi.B ~ Happy Birthday ----cia xx
Ge.Z ~ Happy birthday T---!
Ir.P ~ Happy birthday my friend!
Ir.HY ~ Happy birthday ----tia!! Hope you're having a wonderful day! Lots of love from the Yamagishis.
Iv.Z ~ Happy birthday ----tia! :)
Je.Ch. ~ Happy Birthday 💕
Je.Cr ~ Happy birthday MLTC - lots of love - The Crawford's🎉🎈🎉🎈
Je.L ~ Happy Birthday 🙂
Je.S ~ Happy birthday ----sha! God bless :)
Jo.H. ~ Happy birthday!!
JOW ~ happy birthday, ----tia! :)
KYC ~ Happy birthday, my friend. 🍰🎉🎊🍾💐😃
Ka.Cc ~ Happy Birthday lovely! Hope you have a good day :)
Kr.C ~ Happy birthday!
Le.G ~ Happy birthday!
Le.M ~ Happy Birthday dear T---! Hope you had a lovely day too ❤
Lil.L ~ Happy birthday ----tia!
Lin.L ~ Happy Birthday ----tia! May it be a special day for you, to know that you are a special and wonderful part of His family!
Lu.L ~ [ (cake picture) ]
Ma.G ~ Happy birthday ----tia! Hope you had a joyful day with those you love at college, learning many good things! :)
Ma.H ~ Happy birthday T--- xx
Ma.D ~ Happy birthday.
Me.N ~ Happy birthday T---! :)
Mi.Y ~ Happy birthday :).
Nh.Y ~ Happy bday, T---!!!🎉🎉🎉 Hope it's a wonderful and enjoyable day!😎 May God shower you with His love, mercies and rich blessings for the year ahead!🙏😘 love, N. & J.
Ni.TM ~ Happy birthday! Hope you've had a great day
NNS ~ Happy birthday ----cia, nyo & Sid
PRS ~ Happy birthday :)
Ph.P ~ Happy birthday, ----tia!
Ra.E ~ Happy birthday T---!! I hope you have a lovely day :) x
Ra.B ~ Happy birthday!
Re.H ~ Joyeux Anniversaire! Gros bisous xx :)
Re.Y ~ Happy Birthday ----tia!
Sa.D ~ Happy birthday ----tia!!! Thank you for your encouragement and conversations! God bless you
Sa.K ~ Happy Birthday!
Si.W ~ Happy Birthday L and L!
Te.C ~ Happy birthday, ----tia! Have a blessed one :)
TMM ~ Happy birthdaaay!
Va.G ~ Happy birthday lovely!!!
Vi.W ~ Happy birthday!!!
Vi.X ~ Happy birthday!! Hope you had a lovely day! :)
Yv.Z ~ Happy Birthday ----cia!
Zo.W ~ Happy birthday ~~~~~

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An.K ~ Have a great day today, Miss-l't. Happy birthday.
An.L ~ Happy birthday!
DL(unc.) ~ Happy B'Day !
DH(lec) ~ HPBD2U
Ja.T ~ Happy birthday ----tia! And [twin].
Ju.F ~ Happy bday!
Pe.H ~ Joyeux Anniversaire MLTC! .. Affectueusement en Christ ..P. + R.
Ro.C ~ Happy birthday!
Si.C ~ Happy birthday.
Te.K ~ Joyeux Anniversaire!
To.T ~ Happy birthday ----tia!
Wi.W ~ Happy belated birthday ----tia!

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1 jour de joie (chant)

30 juillet, 2016.

Over 10 years ago, I wrote a song for 2 friends who were getting married. I had offered - they said, Yes. I said, do you want light or heavy evangelistic? They said, Heavy, please.

The working title for their wedding song was "Day of joy". I think I finalised it in October or November 2005.

I'm going to quote the 2nd verse here, for the sake of the spouse and progeny of one of my cousins, Tina - who would have been 40 this week, had she won the battle with cancer in November 2015.


Music & Lyrics © L.T. Cheng, 2006-2016. Not to be reproduced without written permission.
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There is a day of joy, for which we wait in hope,
When our Lord and Christ His bride will have received,
And His bride will be the Church, all who have followed Him,
Who when they heard His good news, they believed.

And they will be there at the Lord's wedding feast,
And His invitation is for everyone.
Will you accept the saving grace He offers you in Christ?
It's much more than marriage - it's eternal life.

L/T.

2 ou 3 dons, semaine de 21 mars 2016

Between mid-January and late March, quite unexpectedly, I received 3 gifts of financial significance from 3 different sources.
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For those who follow me here or glance occasionally into other social media outlets where I am active, I should tell you that since the start of 2015 there have been sharp, unforeseeable increases in my housing costs.

With strata levies and special levies being raised on properties across my city, I had been facing the sad prospect of maybe returning to full-time paid secular work in order to earn enough to keep up with the essential property costs (of living in a 38 sq.m. box worth $355k that mainly belongs to my mother!) This would have meant even greater losses for me - giving up part-time theological study at Moore, giving up time I wanted to spend doing more Christian ministry and growing in ministry skills to prepare for the future, not to mention giving up my stabilised sense of mental health (my last FT job at school in 2011 created a very bad state of mental health with severe anger management issues).

Whether this sounds noble or not, I was praying (both by myself and with others) for a short-term resolution to these unavoidable financial hurdles - at least, for the kind of resolution where I would not be forced into returning to full-time school teaching and therefore dropping out of Moore for 6 months (or longer).

I estimated that at least the first of these strata-plus-special levies would be around $1300, although I did not make this widely known.

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14 janvier 2016

At this time, an uncle informed me that someone he knew would be sending a secret anonymous ministry gift my way. Shortly thereafter a cheque for $200 arrived in the mail, a gracious provision from God which made paying a small electricity bill a whole lot easier.

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21 mars 2016

In this week (the Easter week), the 2 other gifts I inferred in my post title arrived. One given in secret, from an honest and hardworking source I am not permitted to disclose, amounting to $1000. The other, a thanksgiving cheque for $300.

Now do the mathematics, friends. What does $1000 plus $300 equal..?

It is important right now to clarify that NEITHER of the 2 donations above (totalling the exact $1300 I had estimated) were given by people who knew:
(a) I was in need of this kind of support, OR
(b) I had calculated, and was therefore asking for, a provision of $1300 in the upcoming quarter.

!!!!!


God in His great mercy was at work, behind the scenes, moving these 2 sets of people to give particular amounts that in fact, when combined, matched the exact amount I thought I might need and was praying about - without either of the donating parties having ANY idea of the precise sum!

I thought it was great reading about this kind of stuff happening to George Müller in the 19th century (see http://www.desiringgod.org/messages/george-muellers-strategy-for-showing-god#57 or http://www.sermonillustrator.org/illustrator/sermon11/george_muller2.htm for more).

I didn't assume, nor claim certainty that it would happen for me - because whilst God does promise to provide all our needs "according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus" (PHIL. 4:19), it doesn't follow that what I define as a NEED is what God may agree or decide is one.

That said, I am extra joyful and thankful about what God's provision through these unknowing (and exact!) donations has meant for the next few months.


From George Müller himself:
"The gifts have been given to me 'without one single individual having been asked by me for any thing. The reason why I have refrained altogether from soliciting any one for help is, that the hand of God evidently might be seen in the matter, that thus my fellow-believers might be encouraged more and more to trust in Him, and that also those who know not the Lord, may have a fresh proof that, indeed, it is not a vain thing to pray to God.'"


I am not so noble as he, only a little shepherdess
-  and yet in His grace and mercy, God has once again given water in the desert and streams in the wasteland as drink to me whom He chose, that I might proclaim His praise (ISA. 43:20-21).

L/T.