Sunday, May 10, 2009

Interlaken Shenzhen


Last weekend, we finally made it to Interlaken - a replica in Shenzhen.

It's a fine hotel in terms of the hardware. However, the service is still a bit behind. I would say it's a 4.5-star hotel with 2.5-star service quality. For instance, we expected to check in our rooms at noon but it turned out that only one of our two rooms was available by 3:30pm. Besides, the English standard of the receptionists, waiters and waitresses is rather poor. The hostesses were too busy trying to ensure that the house rules are kept and there seems to be a lack of good judgement and flexibility. We subsequently moved to Dameisha Sheraton and the receptionists there were warmer and much more helpful.

Be ready for some disappointment if you will be visiting Interlaken. It's a pity that such a fine hotel is having substandard management quality. Overall, for the price we paid for staying at Interlaken, we think we could have better deals elsewhere!

Friday, April 17, 2009

You raise me up !!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYFC4god31o&feature=related

YOU RAISE ME UP

When I am down and, oh my soul, so weary;
When troubles come and my heart burdened be;
Then, I am still and wait here in the silence,
Until you come and sit awhile with me.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up: To more than I can be.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up: To more than I can be.

There is no life - no life without its hunger;
Each restless heart beats so imperfectly;
But when you come and I am filled with wonder,
Sometimes, I think I glimpse eternity.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up: To more than I can be.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up: To more than I can be.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Can you say Renminbi

Can You Say 'Renminbi'?

Last summer Asian central bank executives met in China to discuss the developing financial crisis. During the conference, staffers developed a currency swap model among central banks, which made the renminbi the de facto preferred currency for trade among these countries.
All of this started last July at a two-day meeting of East Asia and Pacific Rim central bank executives in Xi’an, China. The chairman, China central bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan, held talks with representatives from several countries on the subprime crisis.

Meanwhile, central bank officials worked on a cooperative model for currency swaps. The plan quickly received approval from South Korea’s central bank. Since December 2008 China has signed USD95 billion worth of currency swap deals with six countries, Malaysia, South Korea, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Belarus, and Argentina.

The idea is simple. A central bank injects the other country’s currency into its own financial system, allowing domestic businesses to borrow that currency and use it to pay for imports of that country. This mechanism deals at the same time with shortfall of USD in the global markets and currency exchange risk. With China being the constant partner of each bilateral agreement, the whole scheme is based on the confidence in the renminbi among all parties. Note that although the renminbi has been used for some time now for trade payments in East Asia, this is the first time a similar deal has been done with a Latin American country--the agreement with Argentina is for USD10.2 billion.

According to trade experts, the amount of funds involved can cover as much as 85 percent of imports from China, potentially boosting China’s exports to these countries.
It’s almost certain that the long-term strategic goal for the Chinese is the so-called internationalization of their currency which should eventually lead to the renminbi taking its place as a legitimate currency used in trade settlements around the world.

But the shorter-term reason for this action is clearly China’s contribution to the global effort to boost growth and trade. These efforts are necessary right now while the global economy is being hit hard and issues of global credit and the failure of the developed world’s banking system have yet to be resolved.

The latter remains the main problem for the global financial system; the prolonged avoidance of bank nationalization (in order to clean them up) will create more problems down the line. As any seasoned banker will tell you, the bank business is all about transparency and trust. Right now we have neither. That said, everyone now agrees that the current US recession will turn out to be the longest, deepest and broadest in more than 60 years.

And although the jury’s still out, there are indications--mainly an uptick in global manufacturing--the worst may be behind us. By this I don’t mean that the economy will make a swift turn for the better, just that it won’t deteriorate at a brutal pace going forward.
Turning to the narrower subject of markets, the global rally continues, with the emerging market outperforming by far. This is in line with my expectations, and supports my forecast that the major emerging economies will come out of this crisis in much better shape than many observers thought possible.

China remains for now the major source of good news, most of it focused on the potential of its stimulus package. For the month of March new loan issuance reached a record USD290 billion. Banks continue to lend, and people seem to be willing to borrow. Chinese consumer balance sheets are generally in good shape.

China has been my top market recommendation since late in 2008, and it remains so today. If the country’s stimulus package works (especially on the infrastructure front) expect the Chinese economy to have a V-shaped recovery this year. The sustainability of such a recovery will depend on the status of the global economy, though. If the global economy and the credit/banking crisis don’t improve by this time next year, the Chinese economy will have more serious problems to deal with.

For now, though, China seems to be headed for GDP growth of around 8 percent this year, which is nothing to fret about in the current economic environment. Capital goods orders from China have increased substantially--Japanese chemical and electronics companies are reporting capacity utilization rates back up to 70 percent.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

The Federal Reserve sharply downgraded its economic outlook at its latest meeting only three weeks ago, minutes released on Wednesday revealed, challenging the view that green shoots of recovery are now plain to see.

The staff’s projections for real GDP in the second half of 2009 and 2010 were revised down,” the minutes say. Fed staff no longer expected growth would recover this year, and instead forecast that output would “flatten out gradually” in the second half and then “expand slowly next year”.

While Fed policymakers took note of some news that was better than expected on housing and consumer spending, they appeared reluctant to put much weight on this. Most “viewed downside risks as predominating in the near term”.

Officials worried about “adverse feedback effects as reduced employment and production weighed on consumer spending” and a “weakening economy boosted the prospective losses of financial institutions, leading to a further tightening of credit ­conditions”.The downgrade to the forecast led the Fed to announce that it would sharply increase its purchases of assets and would start buying Treasuries for the first time to try to support growth.

The minutes reveal disagreement within the Fed as to how robust the eventual recovery will be. Some officials “believed that the natural resilience of market forces would become evident later this year”. But others “saw recovery as delayed and weak”. Some worried that the crisis could ultimately lead to a reduction in the potential growth rate of the US economy.

While there has been better news since the March 18 meeting, the tenor of the Fed discussion suggests most policymakers will treat this data with scepticism.

Investors shrugged off the Fed’s assessment. The S&P 500 index dipped but closed back up nearly 1.2 per cent. The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined 6 basis points to 2.83 per cent.
Fed officials were concerned about the “degree and pervasiveness of the decline in foreign economic activity”. Policymakers “did not interpret the uptick in housing starts in February as the beginning of a new trend”, the minutes say.

Some policymakers noted “tentative signs of stabilisation in consumer spending in January and February”. But “others suggested that strains on household balance sheets from falling equity and house prices, reduced credit availability and the fear of unemployment could well lead to further increases in the savings rate that would damp consumption growth”.

While businesses were liquidating excess inventories, ratios of inventories to sales remained high. Given this, “participants anticipated further employment cutbacks . . . though perhaps at a gradually diminishing rate”.

Sunday, March 29, 2009


Phoebe is 10!

Phoebe just had her 10th birthday last Saturday. I can still remember how she looked like when she was delivered at the operation theatre. It seems like such a long time ago and yet it also feels just like yesterday.

We had a little celebration at the CRC on Saturday. Phoebe invited eight of her best friends to her party. These young girls have grown to become young ladies sooner than I thought. They are charming, fearless and totally submerged in their games and songs!

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

被上帝咬過的蘋果

世上每個人都是被上帝咬過一口的蘋果,都是有缺陷的人。有的人缺陷比較大,是因為上帝特別喜愛他,所以咬得深了些。

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Hebrew 11 : 1 - 40 FAITH

11:1
[hb5]
信 就 是 所 望 之 事 的 實 底 、 是 未 見 之 事 的 確 據 。

[bbe]
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the sign that the things not seen are true.
11:2
[hb5]
古 人 在 這 信 上 得 了 美 好 的 證 據 。


[bbe]
For by it our fathers had God's approval.
11:3
[hb5]
我 們 因 著 信 、 就 知 道 諸 世 界 是 藉   神 話 造 成 的 . 這 樣 、 所 看 見 的 、 並 不 是 從 顯 然 之 物 造 出 來 的 。


[bbe]
By faith it is clear to us that the order of events was fixed by the word of God, so that what is seen has not been made from things which only seem to be.
11:4
[hb5]
亞 伯 因 著 信 獻 祭 與   神 、 比 該 隱 所 獻 的 更 美 、 因 此 便 得 了 稱 義 的 見 證 、 就 是   神 指 他 禮 物 作 的 見 證 . 他 雖 然 死 了 、 卻 因 這 信 仍 舊 說 話 。


[bbe]
By faith Abel made a better offering to God than Cain, and he had witness through it of his righteousness, God giving his approval of his offering: and his voice still comes to us through it though he is dead.
11:5
[hb5]
以 諾 因 著 信 被 接 去 、 不 至 於 見 死 . 人 也 找 不 著 他 、 因 為   神 已 經 把 他 接 去 了 . 只 是 他 被 接 去 以 先 、 已 經 得 了   神 喜 悅 他 的 明 證 。

[bbe]
By faith Enoch was taken up to heaven so that he did not see death; he was seen no longer, for God took him away: for before he was taken, witness had been given that he was well-pleasing to God:
11:6
[hb5]
人 非 有 信 、 就 不 能 得   神 的 喜 悅 . 因 為 到   神 面 前 來 的 人 、 必 須 信 有 神 , 且 信 他 賞 賜 那 尋 求 他 的 人 。

[bbe]
And without faith it is not possible to be well-pleasing to him, for it is necessary for anyone who comes to God to have the belief that God is, and that he is a rewarder of all those who make a serious search for him.
11:7
[hb5]
挪 亞 因 著 信 、 既 蒙   神 指 示 他 未 見 的 事 、 動 了 敬 畏 的 心 、 預 備 了 一 隻 方 舟 、 使 他 全 家 得 救 . 因 此 就 定 了 那 世 代 的 罪 、 自 己 也 承 受 了 那 從 信 而 來 的 義 。

[bbe]
By faith Noah, being moved by the fear of God, made ready an ark for the salvation of his family, because God had given him news of things which were not seen at the time; and through it the world was judged by him, and he got for his heritage the righteousness which is by faith.
11:8
[hb5]
亞 伯 拉 罕 因 著 信 、 蒙 召 的 時 候 、 就 遵 命 出 去 、 往 將 來 要 得 為 業 的 地 方 去 . 出 去 的 時 候 、 還 不 知 往 那 裡 去 。

[bbe]
By faith Abraham did as God said when he was ordered to go out into a place which was to be given to him as a heritage, and went out without knowledge of where he was going.
11:9
[hb5]
他 因 著 信 、 就 在 所 應 許 之 地 作 客 、 好 像 在 異 地 居 住 帳 棚 、 與 那 同 蒙 一 個 應 許 的 以 撒 、 雅 各 一 樣 。

[bbe]
By faith he was a wanderer in the land of the agreement, as in a strange land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, who had a part with him in the same heritage:
11:10
[hb5]
因 為 他 等 候 那 座 有 根 基 的 城 、 就 是   神 所 經 營 所 建 造 的 。

[bbe]
For he was looking for the strong town, whose builder and maker is God.
11:11
[hb5]
因 著 信 、 連 撒 拉 自 己 、 雖 然 過 了 生 育 的 歲 數 、 還 能 懷 孕 . 因 他 以 為 那 應 許 他 的 是 可 信 的 .

[bbe]
And by faith Sarah herself had power to give birth, when she was very old, because she had faith in him who gave his word;
11:12
[hb5]
所 以 從 一 個 彷 彿 已 死 的 人 就 生 出 子 孫 、 如 同 天 上 的 星 那 樣 眾 多 、 海 邊 的 沙 那 樣 無 數 。

[bbe]
So that from one man, who was near to death, came children in number as the stars in heaven, or as the sand by the seaside, which may not be numbered.
11:13
[hb5]
這 些 人 都 是 存 著 信 心 死 的 、 並 沒 有 得 著 所 應 許 的 、 卻 從 遠 處 望 見 、 且 歡 喜 迎 接 、 又 承 認 自 己 在 世 上 是 客 旅 、 是 寄 居 的 。

[bbe]
All these came to their end in faith, not having had the heritage; but having seen it with delight far away, they gave witness that they were wanderers and not of the earth.
11:14
[hb5]
說 這 樣 話 的 人 、 是 表 明 自 己 要 找 一 個 家 鄉 。

[bbe]
For those who say such things make it clear that they are searching for a country for themselves.
11:15
[hb5]
他 們 若 想 念 所 離 開 的 家 鄉 、 還 有 可 以 回 去 的 機 會 。

[bbe]
And truly if they had kept in mind the country from which they went out, they would have had chances of turning back.
11:16
[hb5]
他 們 卻 羨 慕 一 個 更 美 的 家 鄉 、 就 是 在 天 上 的 . 所 以   神 被 稱 為 他 們 的   神 、 並 不 以 為 恥 . 因 為 他 已 經 給 他 們 預 備 了 一 座 城 。

[bbe]
But now their desire is for a better country, that is to say, for one in heaven; and so it is no shame to God to be named their God; for he has made ready a town for them.
11:17
[hb5]
亞 伯 拉 罕 因 著 信 、 被 試 驗 的 時 候 、 就 把 以 撒 獻 上 . 這 便 是 那 歡 喜 領 受 應 許 的 、 將 自 己 獨 生 的 兒 子 獻 上 。

[bbe]
By faith Abraham made an offering of Isaac, when he was tested: and he with whom the agreement had been made gave up as an offering the only son of his body,
11:18
[hb5]
論 到 這 兒 子 曾 有 話 說 、 『 從 以 撒 生 的 纔 要 稱 為 你 的 後 裔 . 』

[bbe]
Of whom it had been said, From Isaac will your seed take their name:
11:19
[hb5]
他 以 為   神 還 能 叫 人 從 死 裡 復 活 . 他 也 彷 彿 從 死 中 得 回 他 的 兒 子 來 。

[bbe]
Judging that God was able to give life even to the dead; and because of this he did get him back as if from death.
11:20
[hb5]
以 撒 因 著 信 、 就 指 著 將 來 的 事 、 給 雅 各 以 掃 祝 福 。

[bbe]
By faith Isaac, blessing Jacob and Esau, gave news of things to come.
11:21
[hb5]
雅 各 因 著 信 、 臨 死 的 時 候 、 給 約 瑟 的 兩 個 兒 子 各 自 祝 福 、 扶 著 杖 頭 敬 拜   神 。

[bbe]
By faith Jacob gave a blessing to the two sons of Joseph, when he was near to death; and gave God worship, supported by his stick.
11:22
[hb5]
約 瑟 因 著 信 、 臨 終 的 時 候 、 提 到 以 色 列 族 將 來 要 出 埃 及 、 並 為 自 己 的 骸 骨 留 下 遺 命 。

[bbe]
By faith Joseph, when his end was near, said that the children of Israel would go out of Egypt; and gave orders about his bones.
11:23
[hb5]
摩 西 生 下 來 、 他 的 父 母 見 他 是 個 俊 美 的 孩 子 、 就 因 著 信 把 他 藏 了 三 個 月 、 並 不 怕 王 命 。

[bbe]
By faith Moses was kept secretly by his father and mother for three months after his birth, because they saw that he was a fair child; and they had no fear of the king's orders.
11:24
[hb5]
摩 西 因 著 信 、 長 大 了 就 不 肯 稱 為 法 老 女 兒 之 子 .

[bbe]
By faith Moses, when he became a man, had no desire to be named the son of Pharaoh's daughter;
11:25
[hb5]
他 寧 可 和   神 的 百 姓 同 受 苦 害 、 也 不 願 暫 時 享 受 罪 中 之 樂 .

[bbe]
Feeling that it was better to undergo pain with the people of God, than for a short time to have a taste of the pleasures of sin;
11:26
[hb5]
他 看 為 基 督 受 的 凌 辱 、 比 埃 及 的 財 物 更 寶 貴 . 因 他 想 望 所 要 得 的 賞 賜 。

[bbe]
Judging a part in the shame of Christ to be better than all the wealth of Egypt; for he was looking forward to his reward.
11:27
[hb5]
他 因 著 信 、 就 離 開 埃 及 、 不 怕 王 怒 . 因 為 他 恆 心 忍 耐 、 如 同 看 見 那 不 能 看 見 的 主 。

[bbe]
By faith he went out of Egypt, not being turned from his purpose by fear of the wrath of the king; for he kept on his way, as seeing him who is unseen.
11:28
[hb5]
他 因 著 信 、 就 守 逾 越 節 、 〔 守 或 作 立 〕 行 灑 血 的 禮 、 免 得 那 滅 長 子 的 臨 近 以 色 列 人 。

[bbe]
By faith he kept the Passover, and put the sign of the blood on the houses, so that the angel of destruction might not put their oldest sons to death.
11:29
[hb5]
他 們 因 著 信 、 過 紅 海 如 行 乾 地 . 埃 及 人 試 著 要 過 去 、 就 被 吞 滅 了 。

[bbe]
By faith they went through the Red Sea as if it had been dry land, though the Egyptians were overcome by the water when they made an attempt to do the same.
11:30
[hb5]
以 色 列 人 因 著 信 、 圍 繞 耶 利 哥 城 七 日 、 城 牆 就 倒 塌 了 。

[bbe]
By faith the walls of Jericho came down, after they had been circled for seven days.
11:31
[hb5]
妓 女 喇 合 因 著 信 、 曾 和 和 平 平 的 接 待 探 子 、 就 不 與 那 些 不 順 從 的 人 一 同 滅 亡 。

[bbe]
By faith Rahab, the loose woman, was not put to death with those who had gone against God's orders, because she had taken into her house in peace those sent to see the land.
11:32
[hb5]
我 又 何 必 再 說 呢 . 若 要 一 一 細 說 、 基 甸 、 巴 拉 、 參 孫 、 耶 弗 他 、 大 衛 、 撒 母 耳 、 和 眾 先 知 的 事 、 時 候 就 不 夠 了 。

[bbe]
What more am I to say? For there would not be time to give the stories of Gideon, Barak, Samson, and Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets:
11:33
[hb5]
他 們 因 著 信 、 制 伏 了 敵 國 、 行 了 公 義 、 得 了 應 許 、 堵 了 獅 子 的 口 。

[bbe]
Who through faith overcame kingdoms, did righteousness, got their reward, kept the mouths of lions shut,
11:34
[hb5]
滅 了 烈 火 的 猛 勢 、 脫 了 刀 劍 的 鋒 刃 、 軟 弱 變 為 剛 強 、 爭 戰 顯 出 勇 敢 、 打 退 外 邦 的 全 軍 。

[bbe]
Put out the power of fire, got safely away from the edge of the sword, were made strong when they had been feeble, became full of power in war, and put to flight the armies of the nations.
11:35
[hb5]
有 婦 人 得 自 己 的 死 人 復 活 、 又 有 人 忍 受 嚴 刑 、 不 肯 苟 且 得 釋 放 、 〔 釋 放 原 文 作 贖 〕 為 要 得 著 更 美 的 復 活 .

[bbe]
Women had their dead given back to them living; others let themselves be cruelly attacked, having no desire to go free, so that they might have a better life to come;
11:36
[hb5]
又 有 人 忍 受 戲 弄 、 鞭 打 、 捆 鎖 、 監 禁 、 各 等 的 磨 煉 、

[bbe]
And others were tested by being laughed at or by blows, and even with chains and prisons:
11:37
[hb5]
被 石 頭 打 死 、 被 鋸 鋸 死 、 受 試 探 、 被 刀 殺 . 披 著 綿 羊 山 羊 的 皮 各 處 奔 跑 、 受 窮 乏 、 患 難 、 苦 害 、

[bbe]
They were stoned, they were cut up with knives, they were tested, they were put to death with the sword, they went about in sheepskins and in goatskins; being poor and in pain and cruelly attacked,
11:38
[hb5]
在 曠 野 、 山 嶺 、 山 洞 、 地 穴 、 飄 流 無 定 . 本 是 世 界 不 配 有 的 人 。

[bbe]
Wandering in waste places and in mountains and in holes in the rocks; for whom the world was not good enough.
11:39
[hb5]
這 些 人 都 是 因 信 得 了 美 好 的 證 據 、 卻 仍 未 得 著 所 應 許 的 .

[bbe]
And not one of these got the good things of the agreement, though they all had a good record through faith,
11:40
[hb5]
因 為   神 給 我 們 預 備 了 更 美 的 事 、 叫 他 們 若 不 與 我 們 同 得 、 就 不 能 完 全 。

[bbe]
Because God had kept some better thing for us, so that it was not possible for them to become complete without us.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

自信、迷信、信心

自信、迷信、信心

事實上,人的自己並不可靠, 人的身體不可靠,人的意志也不可靠;外在的體力不可靠,內裏的判斷力也不可靠。世界上沒有一個人,能樣樣事都依靠自己,相信自己。許多事需要靠人,相信人。求學問要相信老師,有疾病要相信醫師,買藥要相信藥劑師,捉賊要相信警察,開一桌酒席要相信廚師,報稅要相信會計師,上法庭要相信律師;大事小事,都要相信別人,一個單相信自己的人,在這個社會中是無法生存的。既然信心這樣重要,怎樣才能建立信心呢?怎樣才知道我們的信心健全不健全呢?

許多人知道要有信心,但是他們的信心並不健康,有的人信是信了,卻是一味的迷信。迷信的人雖然有信心,但這種的信心,是建立在不可相信,不值得相信的事物上。許多迷信的人,花很多錢,算命卜卦,求問風水,將信心掛在算命先生和風水先生的手裏,結果付出的錢一去不回,付出的信心更石沉大海。迷信的人,甚麼都怕,怕風水壞,怕兆頭不好,怕不吉利,怕手氣差,怕撞邪,怕東怕西,越怕就越沒有信心。所以迷信的人,其實不是迷信,應該說是『迷怕』,因為他是迷惑在懼怕裏,他的人生是以『怕』字為主,『忌』字為主,是消極的,不是積極的。

聖經說,魔鬼的目的,乃是叫人懼怕,而耶穌基督來,就是要除去人的懼怕。另外有些人,不是迷信,他們是過度自信。自信的人就是凡事都只相信自己的人。自信的人認為,只要對自己有足彀的信心,一切都可以心想事成,說到辦到。但是許多似乎極度自信的人,其實是落到過分自負的毛病裏,甚至孤芳自賞,目中無人,只有自己。

一個太自信的人,被困縛在自己裏面,很難從自我裏面被釋放出來。嚴格來說,不能肯定別人的人,根本是一種不能肯定自己的表現。聖經所講的信心,不是相信自己,乃是相信神,就是那位創造萬有,主宰一切,賜生命氣息的神。神是信心的源頭,又是信心的創始、成終者。聖經所說的信心,不是相信受造之物,乃是相信造物之主。這樣的信心,是寶貴,是火焰一般的試煉所不能動搖的。因為這個信心,相信的不是別的,乃是神,是可靠的神。

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

『常常禱告,不可灰心。』

 『常常禱告,不可灰心。』(路十八章一節)
他墨蘭(Tammerlane)常喜歡向他的朋友述說他早年的軼事。他說:『我有一次被仇敵追逼,不得已藏匿在一所破屋中,我在那裡獨自枯坐了幾個鐘頭。那時萬念俱灰,再也沒有志氣和勇敢去幹前面的事業了。在絕望中我看見一隻小小的螞蟻,背著一粒比牠大數倍的穀,盡力向牆上拖走。牠跌下來多次,但是每一次牠仍舊努力向上。我曾數過牠跌下來了六十九次;可是牠並不灰心氣餒,第七十次牠到達了高牆的頂上。那時我得了奮興,我終身不能遺忘這個教訓。-譯自君王的軼事(The King's Business)
如果因為許多禱告得不著答應而灰心,那就不是信心的禱告了。信心的禱告看以前沒有得到答應的禱告是一種鼓勵、一種證據,暗示我們上帝的答應來到是更近了,就在前面了。從起初到末了,主的教訓和榜樣都告訴我們:應當常常禱告,不可灰心;懇求的禱告若是沒有得到答應,就該集中以前所有的力量,繼續求上帝,直到上帝給你應許,或是成就。如果上帝已經聽了你的禱告,這並不是說,禱告可以中止了,仍該繼續,只是懇切的禱告應當改為讚美和感謝的禱告。-亞塞(Wm. Arthur)
大音樂家魯班斯坦(Rubenstein)有一次說:『如果我一天不練習音樂,我自己會覺得;如果兩天不練習,我的朋友會覺得;如果三天不練習,人人都會覺得。』我們的禱告也是如此。若不常常禱告,你和別人都會發覺:你的禱告是走了樣的。-選 莫勒先生曾為他五個不信的朋友禱告。他天天求主不肯放鬆,雖然一時看不見什麼效果,可是他不灰心,一直繼續求上帝。結果五年之後,第一個朋友得救了;十年之後,第二和第三個朋友得救了;二十五年之後,第四個朋友得救了;莫勒死後好幾年,第五個朋友得救了。他在禱告上所花的工夫,並不是徒然的。-醒

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Storms Bring Out the Eagles

"Storms Bring Out the Eagles,But the Little Birds Take Cover"
When the "storms of life"Gather darkly ahead,I think of these wonderful words I once read.
And I say to myself As "threatening clouds" hover,Don't "fold up your wings"And "run for cover."
But like the eagle,"Spread wide your wings"And "soar far above"The troubles life brings.
For the eagle knows That the higher he flies,The more tranquil and brighter Become the skies.
And there is nothing in life God ever asks us to bear That we can't soar above "On the wings of prayer."
And in looking back over The "storm you passed through,"You'll find you gained strength And new courage, too.
For in facing "life's storms"With an eagle's wings,You can fly far above Earth's small, petty things.
~ Helen Steiner Rice ~

Thursday, January 8, 2009

一月八日

『我也必叫時雨落下;必有福如甘霖而降。』(結三十四章二十六節)

今天早晨你的光景如何?是不是一個枯燥的光景?那麼你正需要時雨滋潤了。是不是一個憂鬱煩惱的光景?那麼你正需要時雨調劑了。『你的日子如何,你的力量也必如何』(申33:25)。『必有福如甘霖而降。』『福』字在原文中是多數的,意思是上帝要降各種-不止一樣-的福。祂一切的祝福聯在一起,如一條金鍊一般,--降下。如果祂給我們得救的恩典,祂也要給我們得勝的恩典。恩典上還要加上恩典。祂的祝福真如甘霖一般。哦,枯萎的植物啊阿!張開你的葉子和花瓣來接受從天上來的時雨罷。--司布真(Spurgeon)
多結果的生命常尋求時雨。

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes of his life. For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand; one belonged to him, and the other to the Lord. When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life. This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord about it, "Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you, you'd walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why, when I needed you most, you would leave me." The Lord replied, "My son, my precious child, I love you and I would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you." By Mary Stevenson