Chris Ong is Wrong

Apple picking at Edwards Orchids

A few weekends ago we decided to take a 1.5 hour drive out to the Midwest Country-side to do some apple picking before the weather turned bad. The day was forecasted to be raining and wet, but praise God! it was perfect weather. It turned out to be a really great day. We picked a stack of apples (and gave them away to our neighbours, made apple pie and ate it every day for weeks), got to pet animals, ate apple cinnamon donuts and got to shop at a country barn kinda shop.

Here are my thoughts on the whole thing:

1. Wow. It was really run and the kids loved it. The apples (Gala) were really yummy, and it was great to eat them straight from the tree. I think I ate 5 apples. Each kid ate at least 3 each (and err. wasted many more than that).

2. I can't believe the whole farm looks so much like the american farms look like in TV (like Smallville or something). It's as if they model the farms after watching heaps and heaps of American TV (or maybe American TV is err ... reflective of their culture and decoration ... can't be .. ;)). If we were to head to a farm that looked like this in Australia, it would just be sooo pretentious/try hard. Everything is stylised to make it have that errr. "Country" look. Nice though.

3. I can't believe that good weather is ending. Food was great and very very yummy. Ah. I wish could have an apple cinnamon right now.

Anyways. I've posted the pics on facebook. You can see them here: Facebook Album

Our first street/block party

I'm sure I've said this before, but in case I haven't .. the street that we live on is ABSOLUTELY fantastic. Firstly, I'm convinced that it was God's providence and grace that placed us on this street. I arrived with only one week to find a place. I go for dinner at the Harrower's place and as I drive there ... just days before a "for rent" sign goes up. We now are neighbours with the amazing Harrowers (Kate is pictured above with May Yen), Scott studies with me and we car-pool and their kids and our kids get along great (they're coming over this weekend). But that's not all. This street is full of kids under 10 (I think there's at least over 15) who go to the same school as our kids. Everyone is so friendly and very helpful. So far we've had bikes donated to us, tennis rackets and even a kiddie slide lent to us. There's a real great sense of community here, and I'm so thankful to be on this street. Not to mention the fact that, by being on this street, we get allocated to this really amazing elementary school! Rachel and Nicky are thriving in the school. They have a high tech multi-touch whiteboard, and Nicky has a wireless voting console in his class so that each student can vote (real-time) for answers so that the teacher gets immediate feedback. Crazy. I'm so proud of Rach too. She just got her result back for her ISAT test (all of america standardisation test) and came in the top 2% of america for maths, and some other ridiculously high number (that I can't remember right now .. sitting in OT class) for reading. She's a champ.

OK, I'm digressing. The main point of that previous paragraph was. God has brought us to this place that is amazing and it really had nothing to do with our planning. So when the street decides to have a block party (as they do every year), we were so thrilled. I've put in a few pictures of the event (trying to avoid pictures of neighbours and kids because I haven't asked their permission to put them online). We hired a huge bouncy castle that we put infront of our house. The guy who rented it to us let us keep it all weekend. The kids had a blast! It was a great time. It feels like we all get along. I got to meet the many other people on the street. Topics of conversation were so natural too. There's disney fanatic on the street (no .. not me .. another one), there's a tech person (works with Western Digital), there's a theology major (PhD in Theology), there's an asian, there are young families .. ah .. so fun.

So we chat for ages, stay up till late, and generally have a great time.I don't think I've ever had a street like this in Australia or in Malaysia.

So, I would like to dedicate this post to our street and the many fantastic neighbours that live on it. You may never read this blog, but I think that you guys are great!

Summer activities for the kids

I know that summer is long gone and that I'm now into my third week of the Fall semester, but there's just a long lag of blog posts that I need to do. It was a fantastic summer here in Chicago. I was kept very busy learning a great new language and the kids and May Yen got to experience the richness of the summer period here in Chicago. For all the aussie readers out there (I've checked the logs, most ... but not all of you are in Australia), summer is a weird phenomenon here. Firstly, kids have something like 3 months off school! Then everyone is enrolled into summer camps. But these camps aren't camps. They are just ... mmm ... summer day programs, the bulk of which is just fun, sports or arts. The picture above is Rachel showing some of her artwork at her Art Summer Camp. Nicky did Sports summer camp and then Tennis camp.

On top of camp, our kids have been practising piano. They have really improved heaps while they have been here and I'm so thankful that we have had a digital weighted piano "lent" to us by a friend we just met. This allows both Rachel and Nicky to take lessons and practice. Wonder if the worship team at home could use a few more budding pianists ;)

Also, Rachel has started learning how to cook from May Yen. Already she's a way better cook than her dad! (I think that's the start of an omelette).

And what has Gracie been up to? I think this picture summarises it well ... as she's just been smiling heaps, enjoying life and working on being cheeky enough to get out of trouble!

Ok. time to put these lovely kids to bed. I'll blog more later.

Summer Greek and a whole new world

Wow. its been just very very long since I've had the spare time to write on the blog. This doesn't mean that a lot hasn't been going on, its just that I've been keen to discharge all my responsibilities before I get on to things that I really like doing (like writing on this blog). So, over the next few days/weeks you'll hear a lot more from me and you'll see alot more on this blog. Noticed that Typepad has upgraded some of the functionality ... great (has it been that long?).

Firstly, I'd like to write about Summer Greek. It was my first foray into a new language since French as a kid and so I really didn't know what to expect. The picture above is a shot of all my classmates and my teacher for the class. We had classes pretty much every day for 4-5 weeks and homework which consumed the rest of the afternoon, night and the morning before class started. If you're wondering why there's so much of a backlog of stuff to do, I think it can mostly be explained by two words - Summer Greek. Basically, I pulled so many favours over that period (with my wife, kids and with these books that I was supposed to do for pre-reading) ... that I've spent the last few weeks kinda repaying that debt. Kids went to Disneyworld, May Yen flew to New York, we've had guests over (Jon and Seki) and I've been pushing double-time to catch up on pre-assigned reading and learning Biblical Hebrew. Also, I've been prepping up material for the Young Adults retreat I'm running when I head back home in October for a week.

It might seem like Summer Greek was the worst thing ever, but you know what ... I think it was the BEST thing ever. I'm so thrilled that I can now read Koine. I know it really sounds cliche, but I love the way it makes the Bible come alive for me. Especially sitting in Prof. Harris' Hebrews class ... wow .. I'm just amazed at how the bible sounds when I'm reading it Greek. It also slows me down when I'm reading scripture to see the real meaning and links in the text.

I had been holding off doing Biblical Hebrew until I saw what Greek was like and how I'd handle it (I'm by no means a Greek expert ... and I'm sure there's going to be a lifetime of learning Greek ahead of me), but seeing as I loved it so much ... I'm right into Hebrew now.

It's been great having this opportunity to learn two new languages. I feel like its like a door has opened to all kinds of future growth and learning. That, and now I've got a whole bunch of friends ... great ... as I'm sure they are going to know Greek heaps better than me ... I can just see myself emailing them 10 years from now.

Right now we're translating through Colossians in Greek Exegesis, and I'm also translating (albeit REALLY BADLY) the book of Hebrews. K. Enough for me tonight. May Yen has gone off to a Bible study on Psalms and I've got to prep up for my weekend intensive on Proverbs that starts Friday night. 

Amanda visits us

I'm really still completely engulfed with Greek (hence the lack of updates on here), but I thought I'd take a moment from the ancient world of Koine to write about a surprise guest we had last week. Amanda (who's now in Canada for a bit) decided to come down to Chicago and crash with us. I can't tell you how good it was to see someone we knew ... after so long. Seriously, more of you need to make the trek to Chicago!

Anyways. Her timing couldn't have been better. She was such a great help, and it was just when I was super busy with Greek (the starting bit). I just got an A for my first semester of Greek, and honestly ... I mostly credit that to her! (being around). Thanks Amanda.

Here are some pics of what we did. She also took some videos. If I get some time ... I'll upload them too.

I've got to keep this short. For those of you who are wondering what I'm up to besides Greek here's what's coming up for our family:

- end Aug: We're heading to Disneyworld again. Great deal

- Jon Siow and Selina Mok are coming to Chicago (and joining us for Disney)

- May Yen may take a trip to New York (while I watch the kids) .. with Seki

- I start the Fall semester at trinity (So far it looks like i'll be doing Old Testament Survey, The book of Hebrews, Elementary Hebrew, Greek Exegesis I, The book of Proverbs and possibly one more subject ... maybe pastoral leadership).

- I head back to Australia for 10 days in October to run a Young Adults Leadership camp and speaking at church (as well as working on all the 2010 planning).

- My dad comes over in Oct (that'll be great)

Also .. all our birthdays are towards the end of the year .. Anyways. thats it from me. Thanks for following my blog. Don't forget to follow me on Twitter. My iPhone no longer takes pictures (long story) so I'm not twitpiccing as often as I would like.

Leave you with this pic of us with Amanda (we went to the beach and I studied Greek while the kids played)

Greek Greek Greek

Greek is pretty much the whole world for me for the next five weeks. I'm in classes from 8:30am to 12 everyday. That's not too bad if that's all there is but I'm really finding that it requires much more than this. Everyday there's new vocabulary, translations, new tenses and chapters. Also there's a test everyday that I have to cram for. So I'm up when Grace gets up at 6:30am and doing last minute review before the exam. But then there's class. During lunch i'm revising. Quick nap (thanks to my lovely wife who covers for me). Then a few hours of study (usually memorizing vocabulary). Then its dinner and some family time, putting the kids to bed and then its a few hours of exercises and Greek reading.

I'm quite used to doing big spurts of study, but man this is pretty rough. Fortunately,in five weeks I'll be in a good position to read Greek for Exegesis class. Already beginning to see some pay off as I'm now actually able to "read" (not fully understand) Greek, and somewhat breakdown the sentences. But wow, there's a whole massive road ahead. also, it seems like everytime we get the hang of a particular paradigm or rule, we're learning the next day how to break it. sigh.

I'm really liking the language though. Better get back to study .. this' is Grace's impression of her Dad studying:

Learning to cycle for summer

We've been doing a lot this summer. Way too much for me to even take a break to blog! I think, when I'm not in my regular class routine ... it is just hard to spend a tonne of time on the computer (yes, that's why I'm not scoring high on Typing Maniac). Instead, with my last week of holidays before 'suicide' Greek ... I'm trying to spend as much time as I can with my family.

My mum just headed back to Australia. Just got an email from her saying that her flight was good and that she arrived safely. It was a real blessing to have her around for the last few months. Not only was a great physical help, it was really like a touch of home over here. Great having chats with her, talking theology and playing scrabble. Going to miss her. The kids are already asking about her. We skype tonight.

Well .. better get to the point of this post. We decided to get bikes for the kids and teach them to bike. So many kids on our street cycle, and there are so many friends on our street ... its a great opportunity for our kids to learn over summer. Neighbourhoods here are so different from what we've seen in Malaysia or in Australia. Kids are out and playing with each other, kids come over and invite our kids to play. Oftentimes a few families will be out with their kids playing on the street and so all of us can chat. Its a real close neighbourhood. 

Our neighbour (opposite), the Hsiehs, have lent us their bike (for Nicky) so we only had to buy a bike for Rachel. We thought it would take a few hours or even a few days for our kids to learn (seeing as their dad is so bad at cycling), but Hannah (Hsieh) has this technique for teaching kids to bike and our kids were cycling in minutes! Crazy.

Well, next post will be soon hopefully. So many things going on.

Holiday at Wisconsin Dells

We just got back from a great holiday at Wisconsin Dells. It was a great 7 days away at the Water Park capital of the US, staying at a lovely apartment inside a water park resort (Thanks Mum!). I'm right now rushing two major assignments so I don't really have time to update the blog too much and to give you alot of details about the trip. Fortunately, Apple makes slides, videos and photo uploading happen in the background ... so I was able to make this video clip of our trip:

And I was able to post these photos up on Facebook. 

Link

Ahhh.. I love my mac. Also, if you're following me on Twitter (@ebusinessguru), you'd have gotten a few more close up shots of our holiday.

Here's a shot of my lovely wife ;)

Grace's 2nd Birthday

Grace just turned 2 this week and we had a very small celebration in our home. Went for dinner with Jono and Debs for Buffalo Wings (wow .. were they hot!!) and May Yen made chocolate cupcakes for her birthday cake. Grace had an absolute blast through the night and stayed up till late fuelled by chocolate, sugar and celebration.

Here's a quick video I took of the tail end of the singing. You see Grace try to blow the candles (praise God for older sisters) and she says (if you can hear it) that she's two years old:

Brookfield Zoo

Still trying to catch up with the things we did over the two week holiday last week (while sitting in class doing Ecclesiology, theology of the church). We signed up for a year long membership with Brookfield because we really liked it so much. We get to go as often as we want, park for free and bring a guest (that's right Jon and Seki ... we can bring you along). Seriously the place is huge and it is amazing. I love zoos. Not so much for the animals that are there, or what it is doing to preserve life (though both of these things are great) ... I love it for its environment and atmosphere. There's so much life and beauty in the zoo. You get a chance to see so much of God's creation all around you.

We got to release over 1,000 ladybirds to the wild. Really liked that, but man ... those ladybirds went everywhere. Kept finding them in my clothes and in the kids hair!

Overall, we had a blast with the animals (Real and Not Real). Definitely have to go there again.

I've put up pics on facebook: 

   

Spring projects with the Kids

Things have really eased up (I say that because I've just finished my two weeks of holidays). Basically spent it around Chicago and with the family. There were a few assignments and work projects to clear (did two videos for Trinity) but mostly I was just doing really fun things with my mum and wife and the kids. We did Chicago's Field museum:

(they have the largest T-Rex in the world ?!?)

We did Legoland:

And we're doing a whole bunch of small projects with the kids. Nicky and I worked on a homemade volcano:

Rachel (and Nicky) has been doing sowing with my mum (still WIP, I'll post the finished product soon):

And Grace is riding, skipping and doing sack races!

 

If you are interested in seeing more of our family life, you may have realised that I've gotten more into Twitter as a publication medium. I can snap shots from my phone and Twitter it immediately. So if you look at the sidebar you'll see links to many many activities in our day. Why you would be interested in my daughter's piano recital and our trip to KFC i don't know, but if you are .. you can tweet me!

Our family and a contribution to the poor and hungry

A few weeks ago we joined our church's "Celebration of Hope" and signed up for packing food to be shipped to the poor in Africa. We went on three days of minimal eating (just water and simple food) and started conversations with the kids about people less privileged than us. At night and at our meals, we incorporated a prayer for the poor and we even spoke to the kids about donating some of their pocket money to the special offering.

What we didn't realise when we started this journey with Willow was how much it would affect us. We rocked up (with Debs) on Friday (pulled the kids from school that day) along with hundreds of other people at the Willow South Barrington church. We were only able to get this slot because the many many other slots were already full. Once there though, we were given plastic covers for our heads and directed to an instructional meeting. We learned that the food we were packing was specially developed so as to bring a kid back from severe malnutrition. We heard that there are kids so hungry they would regularly eat "Mudcakes" just to stave off the hunger so they could sleep at night. Mudcakes would be purchased at markets and only comprise of hardened dirt. Kids would have to chew and eat it fast because the taste would be unbearable ... but hunger at that point was apparently more unbearable. 

We learned of the story of the girl who was discovered with a stomach full of stones because she would swallow stones to fill her tummy. Skinny all over, except a bulging belly full of stones. If not treated with the right nutrition, kids would not be able to handle normal food, so what we pack is nutritional and used to restore. It was basically a combination of rice, vegetables, some soy and chicken flavouring. We even got a chance to taste it afterwards! quite nice actually. Quite embarrassing though when nicky said loudly (after trying it), "eww. its yucky, I don't want to eat this". How fortunate it is that my son has the luxury to refuse food that many will search, work, slave long and hard for. Obviously I have a lot more parenting work ahead of me!

Anyway. We worked for 2 hours or so. All as a team. I scooped rice and soy. Rachel did vegie and chicken flavour. May Yen and debs did the plastic packing and nicky sealed. Our group (the whole hall for that afternoon) did 66,744 packs of food. That will feed 183 kids for a WHOLE YEAR. Seriously, I can't think of anything I did that week/month/year that comes close to accomplishing something as rewarding. I hope the kid I fed will feel the love of Christ as he/she eats his/her way back to health. I'm so glad Christian organisations are doing great acts of mercy and love! That is what we should be known for!

Grace, growing up in America

(Caption: Powerwalking down our street. imagine this image with pumping rock soundtrack, slow mo action and wind blowing ... don't mess with this girl haha)

I'm quite amazed at how fast Grace is going. She's talking alot now, using phrases, heaps and heaps of words, and she's not even two yet. I can't imagine what she's going be like when she figures out how to make sentences and use the phone. I'll have to have a conversation with Daniel about parenting a household of Ling girls ... hehe. (fortunately, Grace and Jenny don't really read my blog!). But seriously, last week, Grace figured out how to unlock my iPhone, navigate to the iPod section, find the videos on the menu and fire up her download YouTube video of Little Einsteins.

She's learning to talk here in America and she's growing up into her own individuality and personality. We've got a huge bundle of energy and fire with Grace. Its pretty fun, but talk to me in 13 years time :) I hope she uses what God put in her to shine the light to Jesus to the world around her. She is certainly shining a bright light in our home.

Here are some pics with Grace. We took a day out at the park.

NOTE: That's a kids baseball game going on in the background. Its something they take reasonably seriously here (we're in baseball season now)

Spring and flowers

It really is changing. Flowers  are coming up. Green grass where we are. Really reminds me of the parable of the sower. There's a real difference when the soil and the environment that the seed goes in to changes. In Australia I've gotta battle against the world to produce flowers like these in my garden. I kill plants so readily. Now I'm seeing with my garden over here (where it rains alot, where the sun is out), I'm probably even doing less with my garden (if it is possible to do less than what I do in Australia), but we are getting the most beautiful flowers and green grass over here.

I really hope my life is like that. A soil that takes God's word and lets it thrive and flourish in me. I wanna be my spring garden!

Here are the kids celebrating the great weather ...

Tiny Tim comes to visit ...

I'm a little behind posts, so you're going to get a recap of the last few weeks of our family life. I'm keen to make this blog mostly personal and so you're going to hear about the exciting events of our family. A few weeks ago, Nicky brought back the pet turtle from school - Tiny Tim. Was great having a pet around, and it was really fun seeing him crawl around the whole house. Grace was so fascinated by him, and Nicky now ranks turtles as his number one choice for pets.

I think its a great example of how a living breathing example of something can be so much more life transforming, intimate and convincing than just reading about something or seeing it from a distance. I'm a huge fan of books, but the Christian life is supposed to be lived and shared. I just attended a great Asian Pastors conference yesterday (and the day before) and what I found most impactful was the genuine conversation and life connection with fellow asian pastors. We need to be Tiny Tim's that people can live next to, touch feel and connect with :) 

Here's a quote from Romans 10:13-15. How will people know unless someone goes to them? A real living breathing person who they can touch and interact with. Ok. My turtle didn't actually talk, or preach. But, its amazing how much preaching we can do without even saying a single word.

Romans 10:13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”   14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” 

Yay! the grass is green

Wow. Can't believe we're into the thick of Spring now here in Chicago. Seriously, it makes everything wonderful when you look outside and it isn't snowing and freezing. Its still a bit cold (10-20C), but the sun is out and nature is blooming in full swing.

The picture above is our kids at church (Willow Creek) running down the small hill they have at the front of the church. Man. Next church building we get, its gotta have a green green hill! Seriously, so many kids just climb up there and roll down. Great way to burn some energy. Don't know if you can see but that's Rachel and Nick going full speed down the hill. Grace is waiting for her brother and sister to take her up ... and I'm trying to capture the moment with my iPhone.

PS: You're gonna get a lot of posts from me this week. I'm done with one semester and i'm in for an all day 5 days intensive conference on church planting (for credit). Its really great, and I'm learning alot, but its a much easier pace than heavy theology. So I get to update my blog during the day :)

Celebration of Hope

Thought I'd write something serious on here for a change. Mostly I've tried to keep this blog highly personal and family oriented. A lot of my theological thinking and writing is going into my private journal as is becoming fodder for mentoring sessions, preaching sessions and series. I'm currently also working on some pretty big ideas. The reality is that God has really caught hold of me here in Chicago, and He's radically transforming me on the inside. I wish I could share some of the things on here, but now isn't the time ... except to say (in case you're worried) that I've never been so aware of the fact that my life isn't completely Centred on Christ than now. I'm realising more and more the kind of personal sacrifice it is going to take to be come a true disciple of Jesus and how much we'll have to do if we're going to accurately reflect the Gospel.

On a practical level, our church (Willow Creek) is doing something pretty cool this week. All of us are eating/drinking like poor people (words my kids use, nothing derogatory meant by it). The concept is that for a week (we're only doing 3 days), we'll only drink water and eat minimal basic food (rice, eggs) and no special good meals. Its based around the fact that most of us can't even in our wildest imagination imagine what it might be to have physical needs (food, shelter etc.). As a side point, the money we save from not eating out or eating fancy, we are to save and donate to the poor.

We're then also, practically going to help out with some food packing (with the kids) at Barrington. This will help get food to malnourished countries.

You can read more about it at: http://www.willowcreek.org/coh/mealpack/

Kids are excited to be doing it. We're talking about what its like to be poor. They are grumbling with the food that we are eating and the restrictions on supper and dessert. But you know, that's great. My kids are way too spoilt (hey, I'm too spoilt!) and there's the whole effect of 'entitlement' that's creeping in into this generation that we really need to counter. I'd recommend reading up on the entitlement phenomena, pretty good stuff.

Thanks so much for the many prayers, and the great chats. Feel free to catch me when I'm online at facebook, msn or skype. 

Crikey .. we're having a blast!

Ok. I know its been a while since I've posted on the blog, and I've spoken to a few of my regular readers and they've been hassling me to write. Well. Its just been really busy. Stacks of theology reading, lots of assignments. Its kind of reading end of term (in two weeks) so everything is coming to a head right now.

Obviously (as you can see from the video above) Jono and I are hard at work over here. So far I've mostly gotten 90's for my assignments and exams which I'm pretty happy about. However the real stunner is Debs. She's beaten Jono and myself for a stack of assignments (and me for the Systematic Theology exam ... by 1%). Guess that's what you get for mucking around with the video camera while she tries to study!

Ahhh .. the Ong Family Band

Thought I'd write something else on here other than Disney and give you an insight into the recreational life of the Ong Family. We just got Guitar Hero World Tour on a big big discount and so we've been jamming. To quote Audio Adrenaline ... "We're a Band, We're a Band, We're a Band" (ok, what? no one has heard of Audio Adrenaline ... aw c'mon.) Anyway, its really fun because over here we don't play for church and we don't jam. The kids like it, Grace plays drums even. May Yen drums and sings ... I'm loving the guitar.

Just last weekend we had Jono and Debs come over for a great dinner. I love having them over, especially our chats (but May Yen reckons I talk too much 'shop' when they are around). We you know ... had normal conversation about Armenian vs Calvinist views on providence and salvation, Complimentarian vs Egalitarian views on women in family and church ... and kinda .. ended with dessert and conversation about biblical inerrancy and infallibility.

Well .. after that super fun chat, they were keen to see our new band kit so we went down for a quick jam. It was only after a couple hours and many many songs later that we stopped. I'd like to say we chatted more about theology than banging out rock songs (and singing out of tune), but I think the reality was we only talked theology for a max of two hours ... and jammed for more than that :)

Oh well ... I'll have to make sure the balance is right the next time we catch up... there's this really interesting topic imago dei in an anthropological context ... functional, substantive or my personal favourite ... relational. Till then .. here's the video:

A beautiful world

When I retire, I want to work in Disneyworld. This is the first of many posts that I'll be writing about our family's time at Disney. Seriously, it was a great time spent with the kids, and May Yen really seemed to be able to just relax and enjoy Disney (she's very busy at home usually holding the fort while I'm off reading or at lectures). 

Despite the may things to say, I'll start off with something very personal. It was an early morning at EPCOT, and I was watching Grace while May Yen took the older kids to do Test Track and Mission:SPACE. The crowd hadn't really picked up, and I had taken Grace to an obscure corner of EPCOT to see the jumping water fountain (I don't know why people don't go to Journey Into Your Imagination, it looks awesome). Anyway, I was just playing with Grace when two Disney employees walked by (a guy and a gal). The gal stopped and looked out and just stared. The sun was just rising, the park was empty but just beautiful and she said something like: "Isn't this just fantastic. Working here at Disney is like a dream. This is so beautiful", and then the guy (older) said something like, "yeah, I love waking up in the morning to come here everyday to work".

ARGGHH! That was the moment. That. Right there. I really wanted to just run over to Disney HR somewhere and just apply for a job, any job ... I'll pick up the rubbish at Disney. The picture I took above (was around the same place) but doesn't really do it justice. The place just looks wonderful. I love to just sit there and think and dream. I love the themeing, the music ... but you know what makes the whole thing so much more authentic for me?

Its when I hear that their staff (those who do Disney day in and day out) are bursting with enthusiasm about the place. How they see it as a dream come true.

Sitting here now in a New Testament lecture, this is what I'm thinking. How do we feel about working at church, our pastoral calling ... or (if you're not full time like me) .. how do you feel when you're volunteering at church. The Bible says that people will know Christ through us, through our testimony and our lives. Nothing speaks better about Christ than the candid, honest enthusiasm and love for Christ in the heart and life of the believer.

I love my job. Sure, FGA is not Disney ... but I was only half serious about working at Disney. Our cause and purpose is much more noble and significant than bringing fictional happiness to starry-eyed kids and the parents they drag along. Our vision is definitely more beautiful as its not just linked to the physical and the temporary, but the spiritual and the eternal. 

Thanks Walter Elias for reminding me that however beautiful your big dream is - the one I live for is much much grander.

Buh-uhn dat calm

Wow, its happening very quickly. Just recently I was talking to Nicky and he was talking about this rocket and then he talked about a guy with a controller for the rocket and then he said the magical words. He said, "and then he hit the Buh-uhn". And I said. "The what ?!", and Nicky said, "Buh-uhn, the buh-uhn". Seriously, my kids are turning american. My daughter (Grace) already absolutely loves american food, and her favourite word is now "Lollies", and now Nick is picking up the slang.

In case you haven't picked it up from the title, dat calm is what my kids say whenever they are referring to a website. 

On the good side, they are settling into life in America a lot better than May Yen and I had hoped for. We were quite worried. Praise God for great neighbours, good friends and a good school.

Perspective does amazing things ...

Wow, its three weeks after the fall and I can finally look at those steps and laugh. I seriously should have been paying more attention. In case some of you haven't heard, I slipped and fell one wet, icy day on these steps and really hurt my back. I was bedridden for almost a week, it was so painful. First question May Yen asked was, "didn't they put any warning signs up" ... I was like .. "Yeah! I hit them as I fell!". Crazy. In fact the caution its slippery signs were still there when I took this picture - do you like the recreation? Thanks Jono, appreciate that.

Anyways, just wanted to post to say that so much changes when you're sick, in bed, with assignments due and exams around the corner. I'm convinced things look much worse. The natural tendency is to take your perspective at that moment and then project forward. Or maybe if you're not that way inclined, you worry that your dropping of one ball will mean that you're juggling two the next day, and then more and more because you're not at 100%.

Well, whatever the dodgy reason, its amazing how things change after all the hardwork is done, and after the recovery has occurred. Now, sitting here in my last lecture before I head off to Disneyworld, all well from my flu and mostly recovered from my back pain ... having blitzed the preaching mid-term exam, handed in two major papers and having just gotten an two As from my last submitted papers ... things are definitely looking UP!

I'm pumped.

Sitting here in the New Testament lecture, hearing about the spread of the gospel and the miraculous work of Jesus on the Cross and the supreme significance of what took place there at that First Easter ... I'm so glad that we get to see the world from the perspective of the New Testament :)

Me and all Christians are about to rejoice (as Easter approaches). Me .. cause I'm going to Disneyworld. All Christians because Christ is risen and he has defeated Sin and Death!

It's time to celebrate :)

Big and small

Just had to post this picture up. We were out for Debbie's birthday and Jono took this picture of Grace. She seems so daunted by the quantity of food. Seriously large portions here!

Back on track

After at least a week of really bad back pain and a whole lot of just lying in bed and being a complete wimp regarding pain tolerance (don't ask me to ever give birth to children or anything ... I couldn't hack it) ... I'm back on track. I'm still in pain, and still have to be really careful about how I move and what I carry. Having said that, I'm back to classes, just finished off 2 assignments and I'm back to my reading schedule.

Got my first major paper back - 91% (jono and debs beat me), and I've just sat another test. Next week we've got two more papers due before I start "Spring Break" a week's holiday in Disneyworld.

Tomorrow I'm filming the International Student Orientation video for TEDS, so Jono and I are interviewing overseas students and compiling this video. We need to work in order to get our social security number. Should be fun doing videos again.

The picture I've put up is of the Daddy/Daughters date I went on about a week ago (pre-Fall .. hehe .. haha. . oh .. haha. ok. I'm the only one who gets it cause I'm in a Biblical Theology class right now.. aw man, i'm gonna come back with so much Bible-geek humour). Anyways, I took my two girls to Walker Brothers and we had pancakes for breakfast. Its important for dads to be close to their daughters and to give them attention - so that when they grow up they aren't needy for male attention (Thanks Mark Driscoll)

Love my hairdresser

Praise God! I just got a long overdue haircut yesterday. Took ages to get an appointment with my hairdresser, but i finally managed to squeeze one in. Fortunately for me, I was able to fly in my hairdresser to Chicago. Don't know what I would do without her. Here are some before and after shots.

This is me, slowly morphing into wolverine:

and here's me after the chop (sitting in my office, in front of the computer typing up this blog):

Chicago City Video uploaded

Hey. Went down to the city a while ago, but only managed to get around to editing it recently. Seriously, iLife 09 is so awesome, I love the new iMovie and the new iPhoto. Look out for more videos from me, I've gotta play with iLife more. Too bad there's so much reading to do. Back to my assignments.

Reading reading reading

Well it looks like it's not just dad who I'd massively reading. Our kids have taken to going to the great deerfield library. It's a fantastic resource. There are books galore and we can borrow 7 DVDs for a week at a time. That and CDs and Wii games. It's crazy. However, we're mainly reading books. How nerdy hehe :) Oh did I mention free Internet. This is posted from the library

Shots for everyone (and more)

Just a quick note just to say that over the weekend, all our kids had their vaccinations and flu shots (required by school). They're feeling a bit uneasy, but i suspect its mainly to get away from swimming classes and chores (they seem to be snowball fighting and playing Wii just fine). We were really blessed because the All Kids program covered their costs fully, so we didn't have to pay anything! 

PS: I've posted two other posts below this (I wasn't logged into facebook, so there wasn't the auto facebook posting)

The ultimate snowball fight :)

Yesterday was a perfect day for snowball fighting. 3C outside, and lots of snow in our backyard. I just acquired for our family the latest in high end snowball making equipment (only cost a couple of bucks), so I was definitely keen to give it a test run. It was older kids vs dad, and they had the high tech equipment. We each made our bunkers and wow, I've gotta say ... the snow consistency yesterday was just right! When we had our first snow fight in Christmas the snow was freshly falled and way too powdery (covered with a layer of icy hardness). Its hard to describe, but I'd make these awesome well rounded snowballs just with my hands. Throw in the high-tech snowball machine and you get cool snowballs like this:

Later on, I'll post up a video of an experiment i did with the snowball. We're thinking of taking 100 snowballs and putting it in the bathtub when the kids bathe! hehe (i'm struggling to persuade May Yen about the coolness of the idea though .. esp. since a few of the snowballs have Squirrel pee in them). Anyways, last pic is the set up of my fort, with my stash of snowballs and the kids getting theirs all set up. Seriously, it was a couple hours of pure family bonding fun. I think I'm going to miss the snow.

Really enjoying the Bible

Been spending time reading the Bible and all these books about the Bible and I've just realised that the Bible is actually a pretty awesome literary book. When you relate what was being written in the NT with what was happening at the time, you see the whole Bible world in amazing colour. I just find it crazy wild! Take for example this image, that I can't shake from my mind. 

In the time of Octavian, who renamed himself Augustus when he became Caesar, there was the concept of Caesar as diety. Augustus, called himself the Saviour of the World, and commanded people to worship him. The most powerful man, in the most powerful empire in the world. He was into every manner of sin and a heavily debauched life and he just took advantage of the people that he conquered.

Right there, in a town so obscure that it had to be described not just by its name, but by its suburb, its province, the smallest of all was born. At the height of one man's power, was the birth of a baby at the infancy of his potential. While Augustus named himself, the wise men and shepherds and angels declared this baby the "Saviour of the World". I mean, how cool is Luke when he writes this account and contrasts it so well! This is the stuff of Tolkien .. (oops, hey maybe thats where he got his inspiration.. oh wait, it is.) Awesome really. Over time, this little baby outsthines the self-made debauched emporer, and his empire now spans the whole world and is alive and well 2,000 years later. Makes you wonder how trivial man's glory is, when compared to the great/powerful stuff God can do.

He can write a book (woven with links back and forth, contrasts, themes, rich plotlines) historically in a linear fashion over 1,000s of years through multiple writers across different languages and cultures. Crazy. Its like God has complete control of history and he's just writing the world just like its a book. Oh wait, He does have control... 

So, as I read and study the bible its like it is coming to life. I'm so thrilled. I think there's a inner literary artist in me. Either way, I'm looking forward to being able to share the many things i'm discovering about the bible (ah, the extrovert in me speaking).

PS: Shot is from my table in my evening Intro to New Testament class (taken quickly from my iPhone)

No time for rest

Well, play time is now well and truly over. Just sat through my first test, and wrote my first paper. Seriously there's a lot of reading and prep work to do for the classes. Just as an example I've read four complete books (ok fairly thin ones) last week, and a couple of chapters of some real big complicated chapters. Honestly, if I have another child i'll name him Irenaeus after the founding of Biblical Theology and for his courage in the fight against Gnosticism and Marcionism (joke). There's just so much stuff that I just need to power through. So I'm going to do it. You probably won't see some posts from me for a while (I'm posting in the middle of my Intro to NT lecture right now) because I'll be using my free time to study.

I think my priorities are definitely going to be towards letting the things I read (which includes systematically going through the whole Bible as well as the many books on the reading lists of the 6 subjects I'm doing this semester) filter into my philosophy of ministry. I don't think I'm going to be focussed on marks. There are some guys here who have that down pat. They don't have family here, they basically live in the library and they want the grades. They've got my blessing. I'll just sit next to them and borrow notes. I'm already writing stuff for messages when I get back, and leadership/bible training classes.

Also, its an important time for my family. We're gearing up for a major shift in our life calling. I'm no longer just testing out pastoring, I've committed to getting a Masters degree for it. We're all sold out and there's no turning back. So work needs to balance well with my family life. I don't want to pastor a family church and leave behind a family wreck. US has been great for the kids so far. Rachel and Nicky have really adapted well and have been stretched beyond their comfort zone. They lived fairly sheltered lives in Melbourne (same church, same school etc.), but here I'm seeing Rachel talk confidently to new kids, I'm seeing Nicky get more accustomed to different situations .. I'm really liking the effect this is having on them. Its rough for May Yen though I imagine .. constantly holding the fort with Grace and the kids while I'm away studying .. though she's loving it too (but I suspect mainly because of the positive effect it is having on the kids). Tuesday I was up at 5am to send my parents and sis to the airport, then we were busy right up until 1am the next day (study, class, kids and cleaning), only to get up at 6am to start today with classes from 8:15am to 9:30pm. Its rough, fortunately thats my worst day. All the other days are pretty light.

Well, all this to say that, I have allocated time to help out the family and to enrich the the US experience for us as a priority. (OK OK, I know what some of you are thinking, that's a long winded way to say I'm going to DISNEY WORLD!!. . but yeah, we're heading down in spring break ;)) Seriously though, I think how this year goes will form for my wife and kids a view of how life with a busy pastor is going to be like. So I'm conscious that its gotta be enriching for them too. Each week, I'm alternating daddy dates with my kids one on one. Saw Bedtime Stories with Rach, and did Chuck E Cheese (arcade food place) with Nick.

I hope my marks hold up. I'll know next week. Did the assignment in 45 mins and studied for the test sitting at Potbelly eating dinner just an hour before the test. I'll report in next week. Ok, Dr. Harris is up to Herod Antipas (4 BC to AD 39), better pay attention ;)

Starting School

Well .. here I am in the library again. I'm going to make it a habit to take a break from reading by writing on my blog. So that ... you know, instead of looking at my computer screen reading lots and lots of material, I'm ... err.. on my computer looking at the screen mmm writing material. My fingers are definitely going to love the exercise :)

Today's post is all about school. As many of you know, our kids have been very nervous about heading to school. Its Thursday today and kids have now been to school for three days. Rachel is in class all day 8.45am  to 3.10pm in Grade 3, while Nicky is in Kindergarden (like Prep) for the afternoon session 12:30 to 3:10pm. We had the option of either fast forwarding our kids by 6 months or holding them back by 6 months. We decided to hold them back for half a year so that they could really spend their energy adjusting and making friends. That way they will be able to cope with the workload and be able to adjust in a comfortable, secure way. I know its not the 'Chinese' thing to do, but I think our trip to America is not going to be about academics (mmm.. says the guy sitting in the library doing his second Masters degree), but developing social and people skills.

Anyways. Praise God! School went well. They both loved it, and they have already made friends (we've found Americans to be very friendly). The next step was getting them on the bus. They've never taken a bus to school before in Australia, and over here the bus picks them up and drops them off. Actually, God was really good, and we got FREE bus trips because of the location of our house (across a main road, so kids can't walk).

The pictures above show May Yen and Rachel waiting for the bus, and the bus arriving. Seriously, everything here looks like the MOVIES! Look at the street that our house is on (ours is the cheapest looking house on the street).. its seriously like from a movie. Our friends the Harrowers (from Australia) say that our street is the "As-Seen-On-TV" street. haha .. cracks me up. But, seriously, all the busses are these Yellow Busses you see in movies. Can't believe its the same all across america. Now my kids go on one every day.

Me ... I get the classic america library. looks like the one in Australia. bummer.

Too much of a good thing

This is a pic of the kids eating at McDonalds (yeah, very fancy over here). All you could possibly eat for breakfast for $4 :) Dad took them there on Saturday, while Mum was sleeping.

Well .. finally gotten into the swing of studying and now all that's left is getting back to blogging. Its been a super hectic week of getting the kids ready for school and helping Jono and Debs settle. Very fun actually. I feel like these are going to be the stuff of legends going forward (or maybe its just me being too dramatic). Anyways, I thought I'd throw in some thought blogs into the mix. 

Today, I'm dealing with the this whole issue that I get confronted with here in America (I'm sure its all over the world, its just that I notice it more here). Its the issue of just having TOO MUCH STUFF!

A few days ago we went to KFC to eat. It was the all you can eat buffet. I had been there before. I initially had no idea there was a buffet. I went to order a two-piece feed ($5.95), however, the guy said .. why don't I consider the all you can eat buffet. Its only $5. Turns out, its cheaper and you get more selection. Original chicken, crispy, spud, coleslaw, lots more useless sides and unlimited soft drink (I only drank water). The thing is this. Two pieces of KFC when you're really hungry is awesome. 4 pieces of KFC with lots and lots of spud and tomato sauce .. mmm.. thats just gross.

Its kind of like that over here. There's so much to choose from and you get given so much, if you don't know how to control yourself, you just overdose. And sometimes you overdose to the point ... well .. to a place where its not even good any more.

For some reason (I think Comcast made a mistake..) I have over 300 channels of cable. Thats just crazy. You get unlimited soft drink here. I still remember the look Sidney gave me when I ordered my third refill of coke earlier last year when we went to America together.

I mean, hasn't anyone here read about the Law of Diminishing Returns ?!?

I've made it a point to now say no to a lot of things. Not because I have to, or that I can't handle the excess. Its because I really think its more fun and better to have less. Case in point .. I used to really like Law & Order (all versions of it). Well, when I was alone here in the US (Before my family arrived), they had a Law & Order special. I watched 7 episodes straight (while doing other things). By the time I got to the last ones, all the stories had blended into each other. I was more interested in the music that was playing while I was on hold with Progressive (our car insurance provider) than I was with the elaborate murder mystery in front of me. I now don't even watch Law & Order. What a tragedy.

So. I don't drink soft drink now. I only watch one episode of TV a night (usually House with my wife). And I take the 2 piece feed at KFC. If you're following my blog, maybe its time to decide that 20 hours of computer games in a row during your holidays isn't all its cracked up to be. I've lived years with just a couple of hours of DOTA a week as my recharge/recreation time. It gets really fun.

Now a bit about theology and church: 

My experience here in America isn't just restricted to me though. Sometimes I feel that the modern church has gotten that way with Christian things. We get so many sermons, so many learning points, Bible verses, lectures, principles and Godly tips .. and uh .. programs. Its like c'mon. do more, get more of God. That's awesome. Provided you can digest it all.

How about you pick one or two things that you know God is wanting to deal with in you. Savour the taste of God transforming your life. Notice how the struggle it brings refines you. Go deep into God's word and let it transform you. 

Our first white Christmas

Ok, I'm really behind with the posts. I've done SEVEN draft posts (in skeleton form) which I'm aiming to update on Wednesday. Once school starts I think I'm going to set a specific DATE for post updating so that everyone who regularly checks my blog knows when there'll be an update.

Our Christmas was mmm.. very different. It was heaps of fun, and Chicago looked wonderful all covered in snow. Christmas music was in the air and Willow's Christmas service (as previously posted) was absolutely awesome. I think the best thing was that I was able to spend my first Christmas in so many years with my family. Its surprising the the things you give up as a pastor. I never noticed that I had worked through so many Christmases. Ps. Roland and our pastoral team (and the many ministers reading this post) will know what I'm talking about. So often we give up the big days to create a great environment for everyone else. Well this year, I'm really thankful that I was able to create some great memories for my kids and family.

Christmas Eve we were invited to our neighbours house (didn't think it would be nice to start filming and snapping pictures in a strange house). It was really nice of Bonnie to invite us. I think there were at least 60 people at her place. All friends and family, and a lot of neighbours from the street. Santa Claus was there and I'll talk about this in another post, but seriously ... I felt like I walked into a Christmas movie.

While the day was really fun and quite spectacular, I've gotta say, the downside was that we couldn't share it with friends. Really missing church and everyone back in Melbourne. Merry Christmas guys.

Since a picture is worth a 1,000 words and a video is full of pictures, i thought i'd describe our Christmas day via video. Here's what we did 25th December 2008. Please post and let me know how Christmas was for you.

Shovelling snow

Ok. We are well and trying into Winter right now. Today is -19C but with windchill, they reckon its -28C. That's pretty cold. Also, we had a massive dump of snow over the weekend. I think shovelling snow is going to be a regular phenomenon here in the Ong household in Chicago. I've put in a before and after pic of our driveway with a very LIGHT snowfall. I know what you're thinking ... how come I've got the whole family working hard. I had to be the one to TAKE the PIC! hehe. A few days after this pic, we had a massive dump and I was out alone shovelling snow for 2 hours.

Here's a video of our kids helping me out.

Willow Creek's Christmas LIGHT

Nick .. this pic is for you. When I get back make sure our tech room looks like this :)

Arrgh, I'm so cut that I didn't take a picture of the stage at Willow Creek's LIGHT Christmas presentation. Let me just say that it was out of this world. The WHOLE background of the stage was a massive projection of motion and video. It wasn't even widescreen, it was super widescreen and seamless. I don't even know how they did it. But, it just looked incredible. Especially when the guy at the front said, "This is the Earth. There are 6.7 billion people that call this place home. Since the light of Jesus spread from the very first Christmas, there are now about 2 billion Christians ... " But seriously, he said this standing in front of a full video of the earth taken from outer space, while the earth was spinning .. aaaaaahhhh!!

There are so many things to talk about. Honestly, they did this whole thing really well. Bill Hybel's message was awesome and inspiring. The musicians from around the world were so exotic and the testimonies were powerful. Then there was the amazing multimedia! I know that this must have been the way God intended Christmas to be done. With two of the biggest LEDS around and the entire backwall of projection .. SEE this from wikipedia:

"Willow Creek's state-of-the-art Worship Center (completed in 2004 at an estimated cost of $73 million) seats over 7,200 people, making it over twice as large as the Kodak Theater in Hollywood and the largest theater in the United States. It was the first church in the world to make use of two Mitsubishi Diamond Vision high-definition LED screens 14'x 24' in size, usually seen in new sports stadiums. Each screen is movable on its own track system and can be combined into one giant screen. The Worship Center also has innovative dual, stacked-deck balconies."

I mean. Wow. There's the LEDS, the lights, videos taken in super HD from all around the world. Oh oh oh . did i mention the STAGE and musicians that lift from the GROUND! or the one to one ratio of LCD screens they have in the cry room and wheelchair access. 

Seriously. I'm in awe. I can't believe God picked to give birth to Jesus in a manger. i'd have picked the stage area of Willow Creek. funny that. huh?

Our new house

So you know that we found this place in Deerfield, just two houses down from our new good friends the Harrowers. The Harrowers are such an amazing family (Scott shares very similar ministry views, is very pastoral and not only is he working with Dr. Carson, his dad FOUNDED GWAC! and took it from 40 to 1,200 ... in Glen Waverley!). Kate is so friendly, and has been an amazing help, my mum likes the cooking pan she gave us so much she wants to take one back to Melbourne. Kids get along great (already come over for plays 3 times or more). Do check out their blog, I've got it linked on mine.

In fact the whole street has been super friendly. We've had three neighbours come over with cookies already, and because we live in a cul de sac with young families with about 16 kids under 9, our kids have already made friends playing outside in the snow. Honestly, I don't think I remember Melbourne being that friendly even. Our neighbour on the right has invited us to her house for Christmas eve dinner, and we met the Jewish family on our left while I was out shovelling snow (for 2 hours). Its amazing how easy it is to make friends when you and the other guy are both outside slaving away shovelling snow!

Ok, back to our house (see that's what happens when I don't post for ages, there's so much to talk about). Its a four bedroom place. We've got a basement with one bedroom and a study. My parents are there at the moment, and on the 27th of December the Moks (Jono and Debs) will arrive. They'll probably stay in the study on the sofa bed. I think we can easily squeeze in about 4 guests in our house (if they don't mind roughing it out slightly) so if anyone is thinking of coming over, consider this an invitation to stay.

Upstairs we have three bedrooms. Rachel and Nicky are in a room together and Grace has her own room (because she wakes up at the slightest noise). May Yen and I have an ensuite in our master. Fast Internet, Basic Cable TV package and a Nintendo Wii (second hand for very cheap) make it easy to entertain the kids while we are super busy setting everything up.

Its been crazy busy coping with the jet lag (not mine, but my family's) and setting up at the same time. Grace will wake up at 6:30am (I take morning shift), while the rest of the family only goes to sleep at 2am at night. We spent a day at the outlet malls, one day at IKEA, one day at uni, a couple of days driving all around the northern Suburbs picking up second hand stuff sourced from craigslist (www.craigslist.com). Then there was a WHOLE day spent at H-Mart, this mega asian supermarket. My parents have been fantastic helping and cooking and setting everything up.

I think we're all set now. We've had countless issues and problems to solve, but most of them are now sorted out. I think my biggest issue now is health insurance. We're about 3 weeks away from getting that for the kids, but Grace has already fallen sick (some sty or something in her eye). Fortunately, my mum has a friend here in Chicago who is a specialist doctor, who was able to call his Opthomologist friend, who was able to do a diagnosis over the phone and order a prescription for us to pick up that very night on our way back from ... shopping at SEARS. Crazy. God is very good (so are mums).

Back to regular posting, watch this space ...

Alright! My family has finally arrived. The picture above was taken at the arrivals area of the Chicago O'Hare airport. They had a trip (again) filled with miracles. It seems like I keep barking up the same tree by saying that God is so good and everything, and I know that there are some people out there who reckon that I'm so optimistic that I only ever see the good side of things, but seriously, God has done some pretty awesome things during this trip and it would not be right if I didn't give Him some kind of credit.

 

So, with my family's trip over here:

1. They were late getting to the plane due to a traffic jam (not your fault Stan), and Jetstar actually called Chicago to get their number to call them on the car to let them know that they had been given an alternative flight which suited better.

2. When they arrived in Hawaii, it turns out that the hotel room they booked for 2 days stay was not actually booked (due to a faulty email address), but God provided them with the LAST room available AND they managed to save ONE day stay because the manager let them stay for longer on both ends.

3. They were charged for extra baggage (which A. Eve/U. Roland and my sister had to pay), but when my mum asked about it (must be the fierce look on her face) they just gave her a refund!

I'm going to break up the many things that have happened over the last week into many manageable posts. I just want to say how absolutely amazing it is to have my whole family here. All you single guys out there, you've just got to hurry up and get married (yes, I'm talking to you ... Mr. DOTA players out there) ... it just feels like home whenever they are around, and it feels like some kind of limbo waiting room when they aren't.

Welcome to Chicago Ong Family :)

Woo hoo, my family arrives tomorrow

Well, that's my car after a freak snow storm. Its actually pretty mild. Took this a few days ago, but since then I've actually seen worse. My whole car was covered with snow. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me, so you'll have to imagine it.

I'm so glad that my family arrives. It might sound that I'm doing alright over here with lots of things going on and tonnes of prep, but the reality is that it gets really lonely in the hotel room. I can't understand people who do this frequently. I think I must be just too much of an extrovert, or too much a married man. I really don't feel 100% without my wife. Its like I'm running at 50% capacity, and everything is only half as exciting. All that will be fixed tomorrow!

I've managed to buy a car (spent this whole morning at the Department of Motor Vehicles getting new license plates, waiting in lines and uh, running around town getting money orders). Just got back at 11pm (after being out at 9am) and finished all the last minute shopping prep in readiness for the family arrival. Bought ... may yen's gloves (she lost hers), welcome mat (our front door is slippery), shampoo/soap, coffee and kettle (Essential for May Yen), Pillows, Towels, Lamps (i'll tell you about lights here in the US some other time, rooms don't have lights), Bin, Shovel, garbage bags. Thats all, I know cause I copied it off my iPhone list.

there's not much in our house, it'll be pretty empty. My next post will have pictures of the place and our whole family. It may take a while though. I don't get internet access until Monday. I'll check at Starbucks and at uni every now and then, but not as convenient as having it in your home (esp. since its -5C out there right now).

This is going to be a long post, because it'll have to last 4 days. Here are some of my observations:

1. Santa claus must be going out of style. Passed so many empty Santa booths. I think the world is wising up. You may not be able to see, but this picture was taken at the Vernon Hills Mall near where I'm staying.  A guy comes along and just gives free presents to good kids is so dodgy. Its impersonal, commercialised and seriously, most kids know the one to suck up to is not the store Santa .. its MUM and DAD!! That's why, even though St. Nick gave presents, we all know that God didn't necessarily come to just give presents. He came to start a relationship. He never wanted to dish out eternal life and then go away... I like God's version of Christmas much better. Its authentic. I don't want a gift from God, I want to know God and have Him be my friend. Santa ... time to wise up.

2. Christmas decoration is actually pretty awesome. I gotta say. I'm really loving how this place looks when the sun is up. As you know, I'm quite a visual person, and Its just sooo cool to be here in Christmas and seeing all this Christmas deco. They really go all out. I wish I could take some night Christmas pictures well. Joel, maybe I need to go to your photography session after all! This was taken on my iPhone while I was driving. This was just a regular street in a small uh. suburban shopping area (like Camberwell). Ok, maybe you can't really see on this pic, but take my word for it. Its a beautiful mix of softly falling snow, with well sung Christmas tunes and classic american deco.

3. Guns at Wal-mart. Haha .. seriously, Yang, this one is for you. I'm walking in Wal-mart .. Wal-mart, and they are selling air guns and paintball guns with paint pellets. How wicked is that?. I took a pic, but its too blurry. Must have been too excited... hands shaking.

Well, thats its from me. 1am now, gonna sleep so that I can pick up my family tomorrow morning. Here's a quick vid that I did:

Settling in with God's help...

Well, here I am. Sitting at a Chicago local restaurant, with a burger, fries and a cool Macworld magazine from Borders (signed up for the Borders club and the Barnes and Noble club already). Taking some time to reflect on the last few days. God's been really good. This has happened lots of times before, and I'm not one to take good things happening as the way God shows you you're walking His plan, but I can't deny that I can see God's hand all over what's been happening.

1. Accommodation: As you know, I came a week early to help find a place to stay and to sort out as many things as I possibly can before the whole family arrives (they leave Melbourne tomorrow). The reality was, that it would have been quite unlikely for us to get a place in one week. The Harrowers took 4 weeks, and others have taken about 6 weeks. Well, over the weekend, God opened up a place for us (it was only released last week itself and hadn't even been listed on the internet yet). Not only was it within our budget, but we managed to get a discount for it, so now its $200 per month lower than we expected. Not only that, but it is two doors away from the Harrowers! (who are very friendly btw). That means our kids can play with their kids, we'll have someone to help us settle, we can car pool etc. Also, there are 16 kids under the age of nine in our street (which is a cul de sac). AND the neighbourhood just got rated the 3rd BEST PLACE to raise children in the WHOLE US (See this article).

So now we save money from having to put my parents and our family up in hotels for weeks (there's a $1,000 saved .. ) and they have a comfy house to crash in when they arrive. Seriously, any one of these things would be a big bonus, but getting the perfect match of all of them together. That's another testimony. I'm checking the lease tomorrow, and moving in on wednesday. I'll post up a pic of the place when I get in (we won't have internet for at least a week :()

2. Car. So, we're looking for a 7-seater car. God pulls through again as the guy who picks me up from the airport is actually leaving in December and he has a 7-seater car that he wants to sell. Its a bit pricier than I wanted to pay at $11,000, but its a 2007 model Chrysler Town and Country, with 30,000 miles on it, with an extended warranty that covers it till December 2009! Saves me having to deal with dodgy dealers etc. Its a great price for that kind of car.

3. Did I tell you the one about the exchange rate? So, I need money for the bond for the rental property so I transfer money across from Australia on Friday. I'm bummed, because the exchange rate fell to 63 cents (from 65 which I was expecting), but I needed to do it, so I completed the transaction online. Then May Yen pays bills etc over the weekend and it turns out our account doesn't have enough money (long story, I have to transfer money from one account to another just to transfer it across). So, my transaction gets denied. Crazy, you would think. But, no. Because today when I go to transfer it again, the exchange rate is 65.3 cents! That's a difference of $354 right there ... (ok I didn't do the maths in my head, i used a spreadsheet.) God's awesome again.

Three days, three testimonies. I know that not everyday is not going to be this good, but walking back ... look at the clear sky, seeing snow fall softly down and listening to Christmas carols play from the shops nearby, I can't help but think. How beautiful ... I'm in a foreign land, and a strange environment, but I still have the same God. One who does good things ... beautiful things (Matthew 7:11)

First day in Chicago

Well, this is it! I've officially had my first day in Chicagoland, and what a beautiful day it was. Its a complete contrast to last night (which was snowing, dark, wet, cold) ... today it was sunny clear, dry and uhm cold.

Only managed to sleep at about 5am last night (thanks Nick for Criminal Minds and Everybody Hates Chris), so when the alarm clock rang at 9am in the morning and I hit the snooze button (turns out my iPhone doesn't have a snooze button), I overslept. That made me late for my first interview with the school (great way to make an impression). Met Amber (very friendly and super helpful) who set me up with a stack of practical things, and Felix who gave me the enrolment/orientation papers. Attended my first chapel at TEDS (picture above is a shot from TEDS), and I can tell I'm really gonna like it. Its so different from what I'm used to, and the guy was talking about Amos ... nice. The point of the end chapter of Amos was that God was going to give Israel (and us) an amazing gift, but that it wasn't so much about the greatness of the gift. It was to remind us about the giver. He told this really lovely story ... I digress. Ask me in the comments, and I'll embellish. Gonna love studying the Bible .. I just know it.

Set up my bank account, subway for lunch again. Swung by Best Buy to look at gadgets (woo hoo), and scoped out a GPS unit. Seriously, driving here is very weird. I haven't gotten used to the fact that at an intersection no one has a right of way. We all just ... look at each other and then the right there and then, figure out who goes first (usually not me). Turned into the wrong side of the road a few times (thankfully only in carparks).

After sorting out a stack of stuff, by 3pm I was knackered! Went home for a quick chat with May Yen on skype and then a nap.

Probably the highlight of the day was heading over to the Harrowers (I have a link to their blog on the right) for dinner. Met them, a cop from Melbourne and another New York couple there. We had yummy lasagne (which beats all the subway I've been eating everyday), and a fun chat about US culture and things to expect over here. (turns out they don't use the word, Heaps, over here, and they don't say One Thousand Six Hundred .. its Sixteen Hundred.. mental note to self).

Was gonna take a picture of the group, but you know what, I forgot. Scott and Kate were really helpful, I've got a stack load of brochures, lots of tips, ideas for where to take the kids and family when they arrive ... and a house two doors from them just came up for rent! 

God's got a great way of looking after us. Its a miracle. However, the interesting thing is that he uses people to bring about his miracles. He works Christ-likeness in us, and then, when it comes time to look after someone new in the country.. God doesn't need to bend heaven and earth, he just unleashes his mini-ambassadors. I'm so blessed to have interacted with people who've been changed by God.

Enough from me today. I'll let you know how I go tomorrow. Its house hunting time!

Ok, Chicago might take some getting used to

Hey, just a quick note to say that i've arrived safely. Pretty wrecked from the travel, but i should be able to survive. Its snowing pretty heavily over here. I've rented a car and been driving around (to get to the hotel, and Walmart and dinner). Ate a subway for dinner, grabbed some cash (some complications because my card didn't work, so i had to use my BACKUP card) and then ... just when i thought i was getting the hang of things ... BAM!

I get into a car accident. Crazy. On the first day I arrive. Now I reckon I'm a pretty good driver (ok, well, maybe my wife may not agree, and well, the victorian transport commission may also, but .. .well .. i've been pretty good lately). Seriously, I was only going 10 mph (see US already), there was snow, it was night and then the car infront of me stops. I was a MILE away, and the car stopped so slowly. But when I hit the brake ... i skidded. I just slid and slid. The ABS kicked in. So I was sliding and jerking. Such a weird feeling, heading into a crash slow motion ... not being able to do anything.

Anyways, the girl I bumped into was very nice. She called the police to witness (I didn't have the number), and alls good. I have comprehensive insurance (good thing i took the full package), and her car wasn't damaged at all. My number plate is SLIGHTLY bent.

Gotta drive tonnes slower in the snow. Especially when it just starts snowing. Very slippery. I've been told my car will be covered with snow tomorrow, and that i'll have to scrape it out. I'll take a picture and post it. Until then, good night. (I'll edit some photos into this post later, its on my iPhone).

Here in Japan

You're gonna get alot of posts from me during this trip. I pomosed Rachel that I'd keep her up to date on my travels (yup, I'm blogging to the whole world to communcate with my daughter ... And proud of it :))

I managed to get allocated a spot with an empty seat next to me, despite a reasonably full flight. Praise God. I was so tired from only getting a few hours sleep last night that I immediately fell asleep. However, any real prolonged sleep attempts were pretty hard. I think it's cause it is a day flight. So many interruptions. Food, towels and drinks, seriously drinks were crazy. Itjink I got asked five times in the span of 9 hours. Sidney, you'd be in paradise!

Anyway, I had seen most of the movies showing so I ended up watching "house bunnies" (no jokes please) and some tv episodes on my laptop (thanks nick). Most of the other time I spent work on this idea I have for the Easter play based on Ps. Roland's title "by His stripes". I think the emphasis will me that entry into God's ideal isn't as easy as we think, but atthe same time it's not hard either. Gonna mix and match present and future. Should be fun, too bad I won't be able to see it.

We passed Mt Fuji. Seriously it looked awesome, rising above the clouds like that. I'd have taken a picture but I wasn't aoslebseat and we were landing at the time.

Seriously, it is so fun being back in japan again. I haven't been here in over twenty years and it's hilarious! You notice the wierdest things. "passenger LOODY chin, Loody Chin". Also, for some reason the male urinals are really really low. In Australia we'd have on for kids, but I reckon nicky could use the ones here no probs. I didn't take a pic cause it was always full. Plus it's one thing to notice it, and another to be snapping pics in the Men's toilets.

Well enough from me. My plane is about to board again. The pics are from my seat in the plane, entry to the airport and view from the gate (my US plane hasn't arrived yet). Miss everyone already.

On my way to Chicago

Well here I am, blogging on my iPhone in an airport on my way to japan. I just received an email from my 9 year old daughter, and spoke via mobile phone to my son and other daugther grace. Seriously, technology is changing the way we keep in touch and the way we travel. I like it! Gotta go, off to reading (old skool) 'Soul Tsunami' by Leonard Sweet and listening 'again' to the soundtrack for Wicked. Oooh, forgot to mention that I just got this great idea for a short musical skit over Easter 2009. If it works out you'll are fungus and 101 pull it off next year. I'll have to get the DVD. See you in japan. Chris

Finally received our visa

Just a quick post to say that we have received our visa, so now I'm definitely confirmed to leave for Chicago on the 3rd of December. Pretty quick really. We had an interview with the US Consulate on Monday and the passports arrived all approved on Wednesday. Last year, the wait was 4 weeks (just to get an interview) and a few weeks to get your passport. I guess there aren't that many people travelling to the US given the Economic Crisis and the ailing exchange rate. err.. except uhm. us.

Praise God.

Here's where you can find my Sunday Message

For everyone asking about my last message (esp. those who missed Sunday Service), I've managed to get an audio version of it to put online. DVD and CDs can be ordered at church .. hehe .. I sound like I'm marketing some product. Mainly, I'm putting this on here so that I can test out the podcast capabilities of this blog.

Listen to Farewell Sermon  

The gist of the message (in case you don't want to listen for 45 minutes) is that we all can learn from others (especially those that God has placed over us). That's kind of why I love reading books. Its like an open window into the world of someone who has travelled further than me, and even if they haven't, its like looking out to learn something that I would never ever see. I like this quote from CS Lewis:

"Literature enlarges our being by admitting us to experiences not our own.

They may be beautiful, terrible, awe-inspiring, exhilarating, pathetic, comic, or merely piquant. Literature gives the entrée to them all. Those of us who have been true readers all our life seldom realise the enormous extension of our being that we owe to authors. We realise it best when we talk with an unliterary friend. He may be full of goodness and good sense but he inhabits a tiny world. In it, we should be suffocated. My own eyes are not enough for me. Even the eyes of all humanity are not enough. Very gladly would I learn what face things present to  a mouse or bee.

In reading great literature I become a thousand men and yet remain myself. Like the night sky in a Greek poem, I see with a thousand eyes, but it is still I who see. Here, as in worship, in love, in moral action, and in knowing, I transcend myself: and am never more myself than when I do"

Saying goodbye in 45 minutes

This Sunday I'll be preaching my last message before I head off to Chicago. The church is going to pray for our whole family and then .. well, then I'm off to do marriage counselling with a couple from church, then cell group at my house ... followed by completing all the annual plans and calendar for next year at FGA ("Assist 2009").

I'm really bad at saying good bye. When I left Malaysia at 15, I had like 5 farewells, and I came back several times in the first year. When I broke up with the first girl I really liked, I think it took at least a dozen good-byes. I don't end well. I went to one primary school, one high school, did all my degrees at Melbourne Uni, and worked all my secular life at PwC. One church in Malaysia, one church in Australia till we planted FGA, then one church ever since then.

One wife, one God, one life.

As I head off to a new phase in my life, and another season of learning and reflection, I'm very conscious of the fact that : some things aren't meant to change.

I'm really bad at saying good bye to people, places and things that are very close to me. Good thing .. I'm not really saying good-bye this weekend. Can't wait to get back already :)

Starting the blogging habit

I've always admired people who develop great habits. They make doing really incredible things so easy! The thing with a good habit is that after a while you begin to see pretty amazing results. Over time it gets easier and easier, and the result gets better and better. I'm never going to start an exercising habit, but I've seen guys who regularly go to the gym or run ... man are they toned. My personal experience with this is giving up SOFT DRINKS. Crazy I know, but I'm getting older, and I had to choose between doing actual exercise and cutting out something from my very unhealthy eating routine.

Anyway, since January of this year, I haven't touched a single can of coke. I was downing a minimum of a can of coke a day (sometimes two) for the last .. i dunno 15 years. They say you have to jog for a few kilometres just to burn the fat from a can of coke. Well, there you go. I'm jogging every day now (from the fat i'm not consuming and not burning off. A real short cut to the whole process.

At the start, it was ridiculously hard. Every meal tasted bland. I couldn't believe how hard it was (mmm. at Maccas and other fast food places) to get a drink that wasn't a soft drink. And, I desperately craved the refreshing taste of coca cola. But soon, days became weeks and weeks became months. And within a couple of months, I went down 2 waist sizes. Crazy.

Rituals, habits, systems, methods ... have been getting a bad rap at Church. Way too closely linked to the Catholic Church or other forms of "High Religion", where we HAVE to do certain things because they are good for us. Most of us over time forget the real reason why we do some things, and then we're just left with .. oh, my mum's nagging me, or arrgh, I said I'd do it so I have to. However, I'm keen to give habits a fair go.

We're (and by we I mean the senior leadership of FGA Melbourne) are planning to bring back journalling habits to our church next year as part of our ASSIST theme. For so long, we have been focussing on intent and motivation as the main drivers of change. However, we keep meeting people (myself included in this) who are always high on intention to read the Bible and pray, but somewhere between the wanting to do it and the doing it .. something gets in the way.

i guess that's why the personal trainer business is growing so fast. We lack the discipline to get a habit going, so we pay someone to start it for us. Good for them.

Good habits are hard to form, but they are amazing when it comes to getting returns. Do something again and again, day after day, and pretty much a year will pass you'll be changed because of it.

So, today I'm starting a new habit. I'm journalling my thoughts, and I'm starting a blog. Our family is heading to Chicago next month and I thought i'd share my journey with everyone who is reading this.

Please feel free to write comments and messages. And please, stay in touch.