(from my fb notes, Feb 19th 2010)
it was just a normal evening... after work ..
my brother picked me up ..
we were just "hi..hi.." .."what's up...?"
but i immediately continued my conference chat with qton-poty = my high school sweetheartz.. (yes.. it's a blessing to be able to talk with both of them at the same time.. it's been 2 years!)
i was really busy laughing .. (my brother was clueless what i was laughing about!) maap koko >.<
me, qton and poty were talking about my experience in quangzhou .. naek ojek berdua qton ..saat winter + bawa 2 koper + nyasar pula tukang ojek nya ! oh well !
saking sibuknya ketawa cekikikan.. i didn't hear anything di dalam mobil saat itu...padahal jelas2 koko lagi dengerin lagu...
and, ketawa dan obrolan kita saat itu berhasil men-distract eyn dari pikiran2 yg saat itu sedang berkecamuk..
eyn emang bilang ke diri sendiri beberapa belakangan ini, kalo eyn butuh distraction dari pikiran2 eyn yg sungguh mengganggu.
"i need a distraction" adalah theme eyn minggu itu.
setelah bbrp menit..udah hampir sampe ke rumah..
eyn kembali ke dunia nyata..
di mobil + b2 koko + lagu koko ..
i FINALLY could hear something ... and the only sentences i actually heard that day was :
"Apa yang tidak pernah dilihat oleh mata, dan tidak pernah didengar oleh telinga, dan yang tidak pernah timbul di dalam hati manusia: semua yang disediakan Allah untuk mereka yang mengasihi Dia."
wooow~
there you are..
ini bukan masalah eyn butuh distraction.
tapi satu hal..
eyn butuh diingetin kalo ..
yes! Tuhan uda provided lebih dari yg pernah eyn pikirkan ...
tetep.. eyn really look forward dgn apa yg sih sebenernya yg Tuhan sediain ..
kapan sih ... gimana sih Tuhan..
tapi .. yeah .. on that very normal evening..
He distracted me in His very sweet and loving way .. with the simple truth that ..
"Since ancient times no one has heard,
no ear has perceived,
no eye has seen any God besides you,
who acts on behalf of those who wait for him."
ooo...how i love His distraction ...
Monday, February 22, 2010
be positive
(from my fb notes, Feb 23rd 2010)
Makasar, 23 Februari, dini hari.
Dalam perjalanan Jakarta-Makasar malam ini, (di dalam pesawat garuda airbus baru yg jauh lebih bagus dari flight Jakarta-Quangzhou), aku memutuskan untuk lanjutin baca kisah Yusuf-nya Charles Swindoll, sebelum akirnya aku nonton Love Happens.
Aku terhibur bgt, en ketawa pas baca satu bagian dari buku itu.. karena merasa “kok gue banget akir2 ini yg suka parno berat and ne-think sendiri?”
Tertulis begini:
Hukum Murphy berkata, “ Jika sesuatu bisa menjadi salah, maka ia akan menjadi kacau.”
I was like… “ooook???”
Terus dia kasi contoh…
- Jika anda abis cuci mobil, pasti abis itu ujan..
- Jika anda tidur lebih awal, telp akan berdering..
- Jika anda menjatuhkan roti, pasti jatuhnya di bagian yg udah diolesi selai dan mentega tebal2
- dst…
Ketika everything berjalan lancar, akan ada sesuatu yg tidak lancar.. ~ tunggu saja~
Ketika sesuatu sudah buruk, pasti akan menjadi lebih buruk lagi..
Tidak peduli jalan manapun yg anda tempuh, pasti jalan itu menanjak dan menentang angin.
Fyi, sejak kecil.. popo (my grandma) selalu ngajarin .. gak bole ngomongin apa2 sebelum kesampean..
contohnya..paling pamali deh tuh ngomongin merit kalo masi kecil, bahkan kalo udah actually lagi pacaran aja pun.. masi gak bole ngomongin merit.. "kapan donk yah kalo gitu? "
Karena popo selalu beranggapan.. karena sesuatu itu belum tentu sesuai dengan harapan…
Jadi intinya, TIDAK BOLE BERHARAP!
Oke, aku setuju! Tapi kadang2 kan bisa juga sesuai dengan harapan dooonk? Itu pikiranku waktu aku masi kecil..
Tapi lama2 seiring bertambahnya usia… karena sering kali kecewa juga..
“ pikir2 bener juga apa kata popo” .. kata erlyn yg ngaco berat
Dah mana akir2 ini mama sering bgt ngomong “jangan banyak berharap, nanti kecewa!” duuh..
Balik ke buku,
lalu Mr. Swindoll menulis ini:
KECENDERUNGAN-KECENDERUNGAN YANG WAJAR DALAM DIRI KITA SEMUA
Karena kehidupan seringkali berjalan tidak lancar, yang kalau ditafsirkan, berarti, tidak berjalan sesuai dengan keinginan kita, kita telah membentuk kecenderungan dasar yg sangat wajar.
1. Kita cenderung untuk memberi respons negatif daripada respons positif.
2. Kita cenderung memandang masalah-masalah secara horizontal daripada vertical.
Kita cenderung memandang masalah dari sudut pandang manusia, dan berusaha menyingkirkan Allah.
3. Kita cenderung menolak sesuatu yang baru, khususnya jika sesuatu itu kelihatan terlalu baik sehingga tidak nyata (too good to be true).
Kita cenderung menolak kesempatan yang baru, tidak berani menanggung resiko kekecewaan.
Ketiga kecenderungan ini kelihatannya meningkat seiring dengan pertambahan usia kita. Bukannnya menjadi lebih baik, malah menjadi lebih rapuh. Ada ketakutan yang lebih besar atas bahaya ~ keraguan yang takut dan bukannya keterbukaan untuk menjalani kehidupan Kristen yang positif.
Dengan bersikap positif, bukan berarti kita hidup dalam mimpi, menjadi mudah ditipu dan tidak peduli, tetapi berarti hidup dengan mata terbuka lebar. Bukan berarti menerima yang salah dan menyebutnya benar; tetapi berarti melihat Allah secara realistis dalam wadah dan panci kehidupan. Itulah caranya menjalani kehidupan.
Itu bagian terakir yg aku baca, sebelum aku jatuh ke godaan yg lebih besar, nonton.
(yg akirnya aku gak bisa nonton ampe kelar juga karena udah keburu mendarat >.< )
Tapi pesan penting di bagian awal2 Love Happens itu adalah..
“Ubah sudut pandang kita dalam menghadapi masalah/hidup.”
You just have to climb a stair to see a much wider view from the top.
(aku amazed dengan how God talked to me..kayak cerita bersambung dari kisah Yusuf di Mesir ke kisah Aaron Eckhart dan Jennifer Aniston di Seattle)
So, be positive!
Terutama kita.. hey..anak2Nya yg jelas2 punya pengharapan dalam Dia, en jelas2 tau kalo kita jalani hidup gk pernah sendiri..
Mungkin kalo diartikan dengan lebih positif, maksud mama adalah,
“Jangan berharap pada manusia, karena manusia akan mengecewakan.. berharaplah ke Tuhan, karena Tuhan tidak akan mengecewakan.”
Jangan biarkan kekuatiran kita akan hari esok dan kekecewaan kita di masa lalu merusak sukacita kita masa sekarang.
En apa yg menarik kalo kita ikut “sekolah menjadi murid Kristus” yg diajar langsung oleh Guru kita?
Dia ngajar aku gak setengah-tengah.. dari teori, praktek langsung!
Aku diajarkan malam ini juga, jam 2 dini hari WITA, untuk bersikap positif to deal with koper yg ketinggalan di airport en jadi harus tunda tidur-ku walau udah ngantuk dari 3 jam yg lalu. :D
Makasar, 23 Februari, dini hari.
Dalam perjalanan Jakarta-Makasar malam ini, (di dalam pesawat garuda airbus baru yg jauh lebih bagus dari flight Jakarta-Quangzhou), aku memutuskan untuk lanjutin baca kisah Yusuf-nya Charles Swindoll, sebelum akirnya aku nonton Love Happens.
Aku terhibur bgt, en ketawa pas baca satu bagian dari buku itu.. karena merasa “kok gue banget akir2 ini yg suka parno berat and ne-think sendiri?”
Tertulis begini:
Hukum Murphy berkata, “ Jika sesuatu bisa menjadi salah, maka ia akan menjadi kacau.”
I was like… “ooook???”
Terus dia kasi contoh…
- Jika anda abis cuci mobil, pasti abis itu ujan..
- Jika anda tidur lebih awal, telp akan berdering..
- Jika anda menjatuhkan roti, pasti jatuhnya di bagian yg udah diolesi selai dan mentega tebal2
- dst…
Ketika everything berjalan lancar, akan ada sesuatu yg tidak lancar.. ~ tunggu saja~
Ketika sesuatu sudah buruk, pasti akan menjadi lebih buruk lagi..
Tidak peduli jalan manapun yg anda tempuh, pasti jalan itu menanjak dan menentang angin.
Fyi, sejak kecil.. popo (my grandma) selalu ngajarin .. gak bole ngomongin apa2 sebelum kesampean..
contohnya..paling pamali deh tuh ngomongin merit kalo masi kecil, bahkan kalo udah actually lagi pacaran aja pun.. masi gak bole ngomongin merit.. "kapan donk yah kalo gitu? "
Karena popo selalu beranggapan.. karena sesuatu itu belum tentu sesuai dengan harapan…
Jadi intinya, TIDAK BOLE BERHARAP!
Oke, aku setuju! Tapi kadang2 kan bisa juga sesuai dengan harapan dooonk? Itu pikiranku waktu aku masi kecil..
Tapi lama2 seiring bertambahnya usia… karena sering kali kecewa juga..
“ pikir2 bener juga apa kata popo” .. kata erlyn yg ngaco berat
Dah mana akir2 ini mama sering bgt ngomong “jangan banyak berharap, nanti kecewa!” duuh..
Balik ke buku,
lalu Mr. Swindoll menulis ini:
KECENDERUNGAN-KECENDERUNGAN YANG WAJAR DALAM DIRI KITA SEMUA
Karena kehidupan seringkali berjalan tidak lancar, yang kalau ditafsirkan, berarti, tidak berjalan sesuai dengan keinginan kita, kita telah membentuk kecenderungan dasar yg sangat wajar.
1. Kita cenderung untuk memberi respons negatif daripada respons positif.
2. Kita cenderung memandang masalah-masalah secara horizontal daripada vertical.
Kita cenderung memandang masalah dari sudut pandang manusia, dan berusaha menyingkirkan Allah.
3. Kita cenderung menolak sesuatu yang baru, khususnya jika sesuatu itu kelihatan terlalu baik sehingga tidak nyata (too good to be true).
Kita cenderung menolak kesempatan yang baru, tidak berani menanggung resiko kekecewaan.
Ketiga kecenderungan ini kelihatannya meningkat seiring dengan pertambahan usia kita. Bukannnya menjadi lebih baik, malah menjadi lebih rapuh. Ada ketakutan yang lebih besar atas bahaya ~ keraguan yang takut dan bukannya keterbukaan untuk menjalani kehidupan Kristen yang positif.
Dengan bersikap positif, bukan berarti kita hidup dalam mimpi, menjadi mudah ditipu dan tidak peduli, tetapi berarti hidup dengan mata terbuka lebar. Bukan berarti menerima yang salah dan menyebutnya benar; tetapi berarti melihat Allah secara realistis dalam wadah dan panci kehidupan. Itulah caranya menjalani kehidupan.
Itu bagian terakir yg aku baca, sebelum aku jatuh ke godaan yg lebih besar, nonton.
(yg akirnya aku gak bisa nonton ampe kelar juga karena udah keburu mendarat >.< )
Tapi pesan penting di bagian awal2 Love Happens itu adalah..
“Ubah sudut pandang kita dalam menghadapi masalah/hidup.”
You just have to climb a stair to see a much wider view from the top.
(aku amazed dengan how God talked to me..kayak cerita bersambung dari kisah Yusuf di Mesir ke kisah Aaron Eckhart dan Jennifer Aniston di Seattle)
So, be positive!
Terutama kita.. hey..anak2Nya yg jelas2 punya pengharapan dalam Dia, en jelas2 tau kalo kita jalani hidup gk pernah sendiri..
Mungkin kalo diartikan dengan lebih positif, maksud mama adalah,
“Jangan berharap pada manusia, karena manusia akan mengecewakan.. berharaplah ke Tuhan, karena Tuhan tidak akan mengecewakan.”
Jangan biarkan kekuatiran kita akan hari esok dan kekecewaan kita di masa lalu merusak sukacita kita masa sekarang.
En apa yg menarik kalo kita ikut “sekolah menjadi murid Kristus” yg diajar langsung oleh Guru kita?
Dia ngajar aku gak setengah-tengah.. dari teori, praktek langsung!
Aku diajarkan malam ini juga, jam 2 dini hari WITA, untuk bersikap positif to deal with koper yg ketinggalan di airport en jadi harus tunda tidur-ku walau udah ngantuk dari 3 jam yg lalu. :D
Monday, February 8, 2010
Multi-tasking Mayhem
(taken from Proverbs 31 Ministries devotional, by Karen Ehman)
"But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, 'You are my God.' My times are in your hands; deliver me from my enemies and from those who pursue me." Psalm 31:14-15 (NIV)
"Mom, quick…look at that lady!" My fourteen-year-old-in-driver's-education-child shouted at me as we were headed down Michigan's US-27 interstate on an errand-running Thursday afternoon. "She should not be doing that," he added for emphasis.
I glanced over at the car next to us, expecting to see someone without her hands gripped properly at the ten and two o'clock positions like my by-the-rulebook-boy does when he is behind the wheel. Instead, I nearly ran off the road while gawking at what my resident Driver's Ed patrolman had spotted.
Next to us was a woman who was doing all of the following: talking on a cell phone by cradling it on her right shoulder, holding an open fast-food salad container in her left hand, ripping open a salad dressing packet with her teeth and her right hand…all while steering her car with her knees! What in the world!? My boys and I thought surely, if she kept up this multi-tasking method of driving, she was going to cause a crash.
"I would NEVER attempt to do all of that when I drive", I smugly thought to myself. "Entirely too dangerous and probably against the law." Yep, when it comes to being a safe-driving etiquette expert, the apple doesn't fall far from the "Honey-you-didn't-use-your-blinker-back-there" maternal tree.
It wasn't until later that night that it hit me. Yes, I may not try to dangerously multi-task when it comes to driving my car, thereby putting myself and others at risk of a collision. But in my day-to-day life? In my schedule? In my "sure-I-can-take-on-one-more-responsibility-so-everyone-will-like-me" way? Well, I sometimes dangerously multi-task to the point where I too am headed for a crash.
God nudged my heart a few years back, after dealing with some stress-related medical conditions that would not go away, that I needed to do a major plate scraping in my life. Taking on too many responsibilities, no matter how "good" they may be, can often render women ineffective for service to God. He knows our limits. He understands are capacities. He is willing, if we will ask Him, to help us navigate the waters of busyness and activity that often drown many a woman.
On one of my so-busy-I-couldn't-breathe days, I read today's verse. While I'm sure that the author David was talking about actual physical enemies -- men who could chase you, catch you and ultimately hurt you – I thought that day of busyness as the enemy. Too many activities and responsibilities outside of my four walls were abou t to do me in. They chased me, they cornered me and worst of all, they were about to go in for the kill.
Thankfully, God rescued me from the barren life of busyness. And He can do the same for you. He's longing for us to hold our too-full plates up to Him, scrape off all the activities and responsibilities, and then, place back on our plates only the items HE longs for us to possess.
Then, we can create white space in our calendar and places of sweet respite in our days where we can connect with the God of the universe who is just waiting for us to slow down and sit still; to listen and learn from the very Creator of time itself.
So, how about it friend? Rubber spatula ready? Keep reading below and let's start scraping before we crash and burn!
Dear Lord, Forgive me for allowing busyness to overtake my life, crowding out others and worst of all You. Help me as I purpose to place only those items on my plate that You long for me to have. In Jesus ' Name, Amen.
Application Steps:
List on paper all the commitments you have said yes to outside of your job or home responsibilities. Catalog approximately how much time you devote to them each week. Pray about what you discover.
Reflections:
What activities and responsibilities have I said "Yes" to that I know in my heart I shouldn't have?
How can I thin out my optional tasks and duties, freeing up more time for the places where God wants me to focus my efforts?
Power Verses:
Matthew 6:33-34, "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." (ESV)
Genesis 2:2, "And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done." (ESV)
"But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, 'You are my God.' My times are in your hands; deliver me from my enemies and from those who pursue me." Psalm 31:14-15 (NIV)
"Mom, quick…look at that lady!" My fourteen-year-old-in-driver's-education-child shouted at me as we were headed down Michigan's US-27 interstate on an errand-running Thursday afternoon. "She should not be doing that," he added for emphasis.
I glanced over at the car next to us, expecting to see someone without her hands gripped properly at the ten and two o'clock positions like my by-the-rulebook-boy does when he is behind the wheel. Instead, I nearly ran off the road while gawking at what my resident Driver's Ed patrolman had spotted.
Next to us was a woman who was doing all of the following: talking on a cell phone by cradling it on her right shoulder, holding an open fast-food salad container in her left hand, ripping open a salad dressing packet with her teeth and her right hand…all while steering her car with her knees! What in the world!? My boys and I thought surely, if she kept up this multi-tasking method of driving, she was going to cause a crash.
"I would NEVER attempt to do all of that when I drive", I smugly thought to myself. "Entirely too dangerous and probably against the law." Yep, when it comes to being a safe-driving etiquette expert, the apple doesn't fall far from the "Honey-you-didn't-use-your-blinker-back-there" maternal tree.
It wasn't until later that night that it hit me. Yes, I may not try to dangerously multi-task when it comes to driving my car, thereby putting myself and others at risk of a collision. But in my day-to-day life? In my schedule? In my "sure-I-can-take-on-one-more-responsibility-so-everyone-will-like-me" way? Well, I sometimes dangerously multi-task to the point where I too am headed for a crash.
God nudged my heart a few years back, after dealing with some stress-related medical conditions that would not go away, that I needed to do a major plate scraping in my life. Taking on too many responsibilities, no matter how "good" they may be, can often render women ineffective for service to God. He knows our limits. He understands are capacities. He is willing, if we will ask Him, to help us navigate the waters of busyness and activity that often drown many a woman.
On one of my so-busy-I-couldn't-breathe days, I read today's verse. While I'm sure that the author David was talking about actual physical enemies -- men who could chase you, catch you and ultimately hurt you – I thought that day of busyness as the enemy. Too many activities and responsibilities outside of my four walls were abou t to do me in. They chased me, they cornered me and worst of all, they were about to go in for the kill.
Thankfully, God rescued me from the barren life of busyness. And He can do the same for you. He's longing for us to hold our too-full plates up to Him, scrape off all the activities and responsibilities, and then, place back on our plates only the items HE longs for us to possess.
Then, we can create white space in our calendar and places of sweet respite in our days where we can connect with the God of the universe who is just waiting for us to slow down and sit still; to listen and learn from the very Creator of time itself.
So, how about it friend? Rubber spatula ready? Keep reading below and let's start scraping before we crash and burn!
Dear Lord, Forgive me for allowing busyness to overtake my life, crowding out others and worst of all You. Help me as I purpose to place only those items on my plate that You long for me to have. In Jesus ' Name, Amen.
Application Steps:
List on paper all the commitments you have said yes to outside of your job or home responsibilities. Catalog approximately how much time you devote to them each week. Pray about what you discover.
Reflections:
What activities and responsibilities have I said "Yes" to that I know in my heart I shouldn't have?
How can I thin out my optional tasks and duties, freeing up more time for the places where God wants me to focus my efforts?
Power Verses:
Matthew 6:33-34, "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." (ESV)
Genesis 2:2, "And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done." (ESV)
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