Live Borderless

One month ago while I was browsing my facebook wall, I came across an add of a video contest titled "Live Borderless". The contest was sponsored by a giant Korean electronic brand promoting a new type of flat TV which has no border on its monitor.

I saw some of the videos posted in the site and I found them quite interesting. The main theme is about how to free ourselves from the routine of life. I watched children playing in the midst of rain, a woman buying watermelon, imagining the green fruit as an object of shooting target practice, a group a little girls singing and dancing dangdut songs. The main theme of these videos are similar, how to free ourselves from the routine of life.

Do we see ourselves as a prisoner, trapped between the four walls of our responsibility, society norm, mind set and circumstances ? Wishing we could live as free as birds, doesn't have to worry about paying the bills and mortgage, finding the right soul mate, get job that we like doing and pays well, and many other things that constantly bother our mind like how to avoid traffic jam, getting our car fixed, etc.

Actually it depends on how you see things. If I see myself as prisoner, who has no choice but to live within the four wall of prison as my border, then I will see all things surrounding my life as thick wall that I can not get through. Everything becomes routine and permanent, there's no spark, no spontaneous act or even imagination. It's all the same boring routine from 9 to 5 from day to day to day to day.

However, when I see myself as creator instead of prisoner, then I will see things in life differently. These four walls of responsibility, circumstances, society norm and my mind set all are valuable treasure, although some are still hidden. They are the raw materials for me to create something wonderful in my life.

I am thankful for my responsibility. It is a treasure, because I am impacting others people live by what I am doing now, either it is in my job, my family, my circle of friends or even strangers that I bump into. It is not a border that limit my action, it's a resources that will expand my capacity.

It's also the same with circumstances. Sometimes we are faced with a very difficult situation. It feels like our hands and feet are shackled. Have nowhere to run, boiling inside but has no power to change the situation around. However when we see this unique situation as a treasure, instead of a thick border wall that limits our being, then we will feel that things are not that bad after all.

God has created us so unique with unlimited capacity, if only we dare to dig them.

Proverb 20: 5
Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water but a man of understanding will draw it out


No circumstances will serve as border in our life when we acknowledge them. They will bring out the best from us throughout that situation. The good news is we are not alone. We have the Spirit of The Mighty Creator inside of us, and we have the mind of The Creator inside of us.


If only we are willing to draw it out...than we could Live Borderless every second of our life.

My Time Is Precious

Last Sunday afternoon, I was at a very bad mood. I ministered in morning and afternoon service at my church. The two services were held at different places, so I thought of having one-hour rest or even took a nap before I left for the second service.

However the traffic was unexpectedly bad that afternoon. My car could only move at 5 km/hour. I just watched the clock in my dashboard, praying it would slow down. But no, it kept ticking and there went another 5 minutes of my one hour nap. I was very upset and unashamedly I complained to God why this traffic jam happened at this hour, didn't I deserve my one hour rest at home??

Well finally I passed the cause of the traffic. A big trailer was stuck at the middle of the opposite road, so it affected the cards from my road side who wanted to turn around. Poor drivers at the opposite road, they would not go anywhere for at least another one hour. And..right away I thanked God that my car still could move and actually the traffic was smooth afterwards. At the end I only lost 15 minutes of my rest time.

The Holy Spirit asked me, " Is your one hour rest so precious for you that you complained to me like you just did?" I repented, I considered my one hour rest is so precious for me, while I often neglected the time that is so precious for Him...my quiet time with Him, my spending time with people He wants me to touch, my prayers for people He has put in my heart.

My time is so precious for Him. There is no "Undo" and "Redo" button. Everything I do has to add value, either in my relationship with God, my relationship with my family, friends, my job, my knowledge, talents, ministry, etc.

Lord, I would not take for granted whatever precious in Your sight that You have given to me..

Had I Known

Dear Friend,

Had I known that you hide something inside your cheerfulness,
I would invite you to have dinner, and perhaps you would tell me some of your problems

Had I been more sensitive that you are facing difficult situation
I would call you and pray for you over the phone, and perhaps you would be stronger inside

Had I not too busy thinking of my own problems and circumstances
I would notice that there were something in you that cries out for attention, and perhaps you will feel that you were not all alone

Had I known that things have become too rough for you
I would try my best to find solution that may lighten your burdens, and perhaps I would still find you by my side now

Friend,
It is never too late to start again
Our God is God of second change
It is your love to God that inspires me to know God deeper each day
It is my mistake to let life routine draw us apart

Now I pray for you each time I remember of you
God loves you more than anything else in the whole universe
You may see your problems as gigantic wall
But for Him, it's just a speck of dust

I pray that you find Him wherever you are
You are His and nothing could ever change that
I believe by faith that we gonna meet again
By that time I hope you would have forgiven me
for not being there during your hardest time...


Jakarta, 16 November 2009

The Beauty of Waiting

Waiting is the most boring job to do. People generally do not like to wait. That’s why we have fast food restaurants and eat instant noodle. IT companies launch faster computer processor every six months. Car manufacturers are in competition to develop car with higher speed acceleration. We want fast response in every service we need, from ordering food in restaurant, buying electronic gadgets, opening bank account, boarding the airplane, traveling to other places, etc.

However sometimes we are forced to wait the most important thing in our life…it’s the realization of our dreams and visions, or salvation of our loved ones, breakthrough in our finances, etc. We have to wait for the breakthrough that we have been praying for so long. Sometimes it takes so long, that we already forget that once upon a time we had dream and vision for our future. We do not realise that God has planned and intended extraordinary lives for each of us.

Is there any beauty in waiting?

Well, we do not know that we are in waiting mode if we already forget what our dreams were or we just entangled with our current problems. Maybe we just try our best to enjoy life as it evolves. No big expectation because we are afraid to be disappointed.

An ancient book of wisdom wrote ,”Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.” Is it safer to be hopeless than to be hopefull? When you have no hope, that’s the end of it. However when you are full of hope, there will be some of your hopes that will become reality.

Waiting for God’s promises is not a passive action. We can choose our attitude while we are in our waiting period. It’s different from a convict waiting to be sentenced by the judge.

If there should be one reason only we should believe in God and His promises, is because we love Him. When we love Him, He asked us to trust Him. It hurts God when we believe in our own assumption and others opinion more than we believe in His words.

The song lyrics of “While I’m waiting” by John Waller, from movie Fireproof has wonderfully express what we should do while we are waiting on God to move.

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am hopeful
I'm waiting on You, Lord

Though it is painful
But patiently, I will wait
I will move ahead, bold and confident
Taking every step in obedience

While I'm waiting
I will serve You While I'm waiting
I will worship While I'm waiting
I will not faint I'll be running the race

Even while I wait I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it's not easy
But faithfully, I will wait Yes, I will wait

I will serve you while I'm waiting

I will worship while I'm waiting on You, Lord

There are a lot of things to do while we are waiting
Keep our faith on God that He’s able to do what He says He would do
Keep running our race wholeheartedly – doing what we normally do with excellence
Keep our ears open to Holy Spirit guidance and obey whenever He prompts us to take the new opportunities
Keep serving, worshipping and thanking Him for His faithfulness

Jesus waited for 30 years before He started to minister. He never rushed it. He was patiently wait for Holy Spirit annointing before He began His ministry.

Probably the longest waiting that He had to experienced was the three hours He endured in the cross when He was separated from Father. It was the most painful experience for Jesus. He could withstand any deception, tortures, scorn but not being left by His beloved Father. You know, He did it anyway because of His love for us and He knew what awaits for us after His sacrifice. It’s Him and us never being separated again.

I don’t know how long you have been waiting for breakthrough in your life. The beauty of waiting is in the realisation that we do not go through this alone. We have the priviledge to being personally trained by God through our problems and our delicate situation. This waiting period is endurable when we keep our love to God and to ourselves as we are being shaped to be better person than before. We love Him because we know Him. We trust Him because we love Him.

There will be an end to every waiting period..to be followed by another waiting period. So, let’s learn to discover the beauty of waiting with God on our side.

II Tim 1:12
for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.

A Lifetime Journey

I started my life journey 35 years 47 days ago. As for today I have spent almost 45% of my life span on earth. It’s a pretty intimidating thought !

When I read business magazine, leadership articles, news on TV, I saw many successful business woman at much younger age from me. They already settle with their life, have great family and have already contributed to the society where they live. Whenever I read about them, watched their testimonies, there was a feeling of uneasiness. Here I am, living single, work in the job I do not enjoy to earn just barely enough to make ends meet every month, still not recognized by the society where I work or live. Did I waste my 45% of my life just to reach my stage now?

God has set specific course for every human He created. Some get their success early in their life, some finally get their breakthrough at their mid stage or even at the end of their age. There was Mark Zuckerberg who became millionaire through facebook at the age of 25, then Susan Boyle shocked the world during “Britain Got Its Talent Show” with her amazing voice at the age of 46, Colonel Sanders started his Kentucky Fried Chicken franchising at the age of 65. Mbah Surip (an eccentric Indonesian singer) just enjoyed his fame at the age of 52, then at the midst of his success (for around 3 months), he died of heart attack in 4 August 2009.

The challenges were different for those who started at different stages of their lives.
1) Early starter
· Has more time to develop their business and adapt to changes
· More learning opportunities to implement fresh ideas to build the company or their career
· Need stability and creativity to maintain their success amidst of tough competitions from new competitors who will keep coming

2) Mid starter
· Time is precious, so they have to calculate their actions more carefully
· Excellent job quality is a must to differentiate themselves with the current market players or younger competitors

3) Late starter
· Wiser in taking every actions
· New leaders mentoring is a top priority

Time is slipping away so fast. When we evaluate our life at the end of our day, one thing we should ask ..,” Have I taken every opportunity I come across today? “

The opportunity can come in many faces.

Say hi and smile to strangers we meet in lift
Call old friend that we haven’t contacted for 3 months
Offer help to strangers lost in their way
Contact old customers that have not ordered again for one year
Learn more knowledge in what we passion about

One opportunity taken can lead to wider door of opportunity open for us. We will never know which opportunity will get us the breakthrough we long for.

Sometimes it is hard to keep ourselves motivated when our hopes are deferred, especially when we face failure and what it seems as high wall in chasing our dreams. We are so fortunate that we have history in our side. The world has seen amazing man and woman that has made the world become better place simply because they do not give up… and this is a journey of life time.

Ø Nelson Mandela became President of South Africa at the age of 76 after became prisoner for more than 25 years
Ø Thomas Alva Edison invented light bulb after thousand of failed experiments.
Ø Abraham Lincoln finally became the president of United States after experiencing series of failure episodes in his life
Ø Joseph rose from prisoner to Pharaoh’s prime minister after spending 13 years as a slave and prisoners in Egypt, despite receiving his vision when he was just 17 years old
Ø David spent 13 years as runaway before crowned as the King of Israel
Ø As apostles for the gentiles, Paul faced so many oppositions, from the Romans empire, Jewish priests even his fellow workers, but he stayed faithful until the end and wrote 13 letters that became the foundation of Christianity.

God has so much more in our life, if only we do not give up on Him and in ourselves. We learn from our mistakes, failure, problems and challenges. Embrace them because they make us wiser and stronger each day. Seize for opportunity every time it comes and our breakthrough will come when we are ready. As long as we still live in this world, our journey is still not over and God still has something in store for us.

Whenever despair and boredom come accross my mind and my heart, I remind myself one thing, “This is a lifetime journey and my lifetime is not over yet.”

I'm Happy To Be Me

I’m happy to be me
God has thought deeply about me
Before He made me in my mother’s womb

I am created so unique
With all my strength and weakness
As well as my gifts and flaws

He has special task in this world
That specially designed for me
It fits perfectly with my being just me

I will run my own race
No matter what other people say
Absorbing encouragement and correction
Rejecting negativity and giving up


My Lord is my faithful companion till the end
He is my source of motivation
Comforting me when I was down
Strengthening me from the inside out

He is my only reason to keep running
When I am in Him and He’s in me there is no way I’m gonna fail
I accept myself the way He accepts me
And I’m happy to be me.


Jakarta, 23 Sept 2009

Suatu Hari Di Perkampungan Facebook

Sejak demam facebook mulai melanda sejak awal tahun lalu, rutinitasku mulai berubah. Hampir setiap hari cek facebook (FB) adalah suatu hal yang pasti aku lakukan. Dan tidak terasa FB juga mempengaruhi hidupku. Aku bisa berhubungan kembali dengan teman – teman masa SD, SMP dan SMA, kuliah dan kerja yang sudah aku anggap tidak bakalan ketemu lagi.

Reuni jadi kebiasaan baru sejak demam FB merebak. Uniknya, lewat reuni ala FB aku bisa kenalan lagi dengan teman – teman yang aku tidak kenal saat sekolah. Itulah dahsyatnya networking.

Di FB kita bisa menjumpai berbagai tipe orang. Ada teman-teman yang suka share apa yang sedang mereka rasakan, entah itu baik atau buruk. Ada luapan kegembiraan dan juga luapan kekesalan ! Ada yang menceritakan apa yang sedang mereka kerjakan sekarang. Ada pula yang suka memberi komentar, baik itu bercanda, ngejatuhin atau ngasih semangat.

FB jadi seperti suatu kampung yang ramai. Dengan melihat status teman – temanku, aku sedikit banyak bisa tahu apa yang sedang mereka alami sehari – hari, bagaimana reaksi mereka saat menghadapi masalah, apa yang sedang mereka alami. Lewat FB aku bisa tahu nama perusahaan baru tempat temanku pindah kerja, tanpa dia cerita, gara – gara dia rajin update statusnya di FB. Meskipun temanku tidak memberitahukan kemana dia mau berlibur, akhirnya aku bisa tahu kemana ia berlibur, lewat komentar temannya yang lain di FB. Jadi, apakah itu sesuatu yang baik atau tidak baik, tergantung bagaimana kita menggunakan informasi tersebut.

Bagiku sendiri, FB sangat membantuku untuk belajar memberikan dorongan semangat, simpati, doa, dan turut bergembira untuk hal – hal yang dialami orang – orang yang aku perhatikan. Dari FB aku tahu bahwa ayah sahabatku waktu kuliah di Surabaya (sekarang aku tinggal di Jakarta) meninggal mendadak karena serangan jantung. Dari FB aku tahu, anak temanku yang tinggal di kota lain sedang sakit yang belum ketahuan apa penyebabnya, dan masih banyak lagi kejadian yang lain.

Beberapa bulan yang lalu, aku post status di FB saat laptopku crash dan semua datanya hilang. Dan tidak disangka banyak teman-teman yang begitu perhatian dengan memberi saran, komentar, dan penghiburan di statusku. Wow..selain terkejut aku juga cukup senang. Ternyata ada yang perhatiin aku juga ya..:). Saat ulang tahun juga adalah saat yang mengharukan, aku membaca setiap ucapan selamat ulang tahun yang dipost di wall ku. Sesederhana apapun, itu adalah bukti bahwa aku punya orang – orang yang memperhatikanku. Dan aku mengucap syukur atas semua bentuk perhatian dan kasih yang diberikan padaku.

Jadi kalau saat ini kita sudah tergabung di kampung FB, ini adalah saat yang tepat bagi kita untuk memperhatikan teman – teman sekampung kita. Lebih mudah untuk mengupdate status kita dengan problem, hal – hal negatif, keluhan, sarkasme. Akan tetapi hidup kita sudah penuh dengan hal – hal negatif baik dari diri kita sendiri, orang – orang di sekeliling kita bahkan masyarakat dimana kita hidup.

Satu kutipan dari film “Departed” yang kutonton dua hari yang lalu, “ Aku bukanlah produk dari lingkunganku, tapi lingkunganku adalah produk dari diriku.” Jadi kalau kita bisa mengubah suasana hati seseorang yang sedang bete dengan kata – kata yang membangun, bukankah kita sedang mengubah lingkungan kampung Facebook kita?

Amsal 16:24 Perkataan yang menyenangkan adalah seperti sarang madu, manis bagi hati dan obat bagi tulang-tulang.

Allah selalu melihat yang baik dalam diri kita, walaupun kita sendiri tidak melihatnya.

Allah menyebut Gideon sebagai pahlawan, saat ia melihat dirinya sendiri sebagai pecundang.
Yesus menyebut Petrus sebagai batu karang, saat ia melihat dirinya sendiri sebagai orang plin – plan.
Allah menyebut Abraham sebagai bapa orang beriman, saat ia mulai meragukan janji Bapa

Kalau Allah mengucapkan iman yang sedemikian besar terhadap diri kita, sudah saatnya kita juga punya iman untuk mengucapkan perkataan yang membangun, janji Tuhan kepada teman – teman kita, dimulai dari satu hal yang sederhana...menulis komentar yang membangun, memberi perhatian, berdoa, memberi saran dan bantuan bagi orang – orang yang Tuhan sudah taruh di perkampungan FB kita.

Saat kita menabur, kita pasti akan menuai. Akan ada orang – orang yang Tuhan gerakkan untuk menguatkan kita saat kita lemah, apabila kita setia menabur perkataan firman Tuhan kepada orang – orang yang sedang membutuhkan. Selamat menjadikan hari yang luar biasa di kampung Facebook kita masing – masing!

Leading Your Heart

Two weeks ago I saw a movie – FireProof , at home with my friend. It was a touching movie about a husband’s struggle and journey to save his marriage. There were many lessons I could take from the movie, but there was one sentence that kept resounding in my ears...”Don’t follow your heart, it may deceive you ...lead your heart”.


Since I was fascinated with this sentence, I put it on my facebook status. Immediately there were two comments from my friends. One friend said it was easier to follow our heart. Another friend said if I did not follow my heart, will I be happy?


Normally a decision is made based on mind calculation and / or instinct. The person who said this sentence, advised the main character who was about to make critical decision about his marriage not to follow his heart. All the facts, current circumstances, feeling, all lead to one logical decision..which is to divorce her. In short, the husband, played by Kirk Cameron decided to lead his heart and to follow “LOVE DARE” journal sent by his father. The 40-day journal taught him to do one kind action for his wive every day.


The days went by and there were no promising response. The wife just completely ignored all kindness, suprises and favor that her husband hadmade. He almost gave up until he realised that he had done just the same things as his wife did to him. He did it to his saviour, Jesus.


The breakthrough came after day 43. The husband had made a very generous sacrifice 14 days earlier. He used the money he had been saving in his 7-years marriage for his dream boat ,to pay for wheelchair and better treatment facilities for his father in law who was paralysed. And, after day 43, finally the wife found out who the secret giver was. She was just completely blown away at the change she saw in her husband. How he humbled himself to apologise for all his mistakes, how he nursed her when she was ill, and finally how he sacrificed his dream for her father. And at the end the couple renewed thir wedding vow based on eternal commitment in God.


Should there be one lesson we can learn from this movie is about leading our heart. Jesus is never tired of reaching out His arms to His sons and daughters. Even when we just ignored His presence in our daily life, He has already given the best sacrifice to us, His own life. His heart is always for us, no matter how often we say bad things to Him, complain all the time or even doubt His mighty power. Whenever we return to Him, He has already prepared His blessings and restoration in store for us.


There is no path leading to true happines instead of Jesus. Whatever we have gone through, how awful it may look around us, be brave enough to lead our heart back to Jesus...He is the ultimate way.

When everything seems stand still (Saat semua nampak seperti tak bergerak)

Memulai satu lagi hari yang baru. Berharap ada sesuatu berbeda yang terjadi di tengah rutinitas yang sudah direncanakan. Waktu terus berjalan, semua berjalan seperti hari kemarin. Makan pagi, berangkat ke kantor, menjawab beberapa telepon, dan sampailah pada saat istirahat makan siang. Sesudah jam makan siang, rutinitas tetap berlanjut. Menemani beberapa pelanggan, menangani beberapa keluhan dan sampailah saat jam kerja berakhir. Memulai lagi perjuangan panjang di tengah antrian mobil, motor, metro mini, bus DAMRI untuk sampai ke rumah lagi.

Itulah yang terjadi di hampir setiap hari – hariku. Waktu seakan tak bergerak, tetapi ia berjalan tanpa kenal ampun. Empat bulan lagi tahun 2009 sudah akan berakhir. Kembali pertanyaan yang sama menggaung dalam pikiranku. Apa yang sudah kubuat selama delapan bulan ini? Apakah hidupku lebih berhasil dari tahun lalu? Sudahkah kucapai target-target yang kutulis pada tanggal 1 Januari 2009? Sudahkah aku masuk tanah Perjanjian atau masihkah aku berputar – putar di padang gurun seperti bangsa Israel?

Pertanyaan yang sulit untuk dijawab. Ada hal – hal besar dalam hidupku yang sepertinya belum berubah dari tahun sebelumnya, seperti penghasilan, pekerjaan, pasangan hidup yang belum muncul, kelompok sel yang kembang kempis, dan beberapa hal lain.

Tetapi Allah mengingatkanku, ada hal – hal baru lain yang kucapai dalam tahun ini. Aku belajar untuk membangun hubungan yang lebih dalam dengan teman – teman dalam komsel ku, adik – adik rohani dan beberapa teman baru . Aku belajar lebih memperhatikan keluargaku yang tinggal di luar kota. Aku memperdalam lagi hobi musikku dengan mengambil kursus keyboard. Aku memulai hobi menulis dengan membuat blog dan membuat notes di account facebookku. Aku mendapatkan gairah dan warna baru dalam pelayanan musik terutama pada saat penyembahan.

Hal – hal ini sepertinya sangat sepele dan tidak ada artinya bagi dunia di sekitar kita. Banyak teman – teman seangkatanku yang hidupnya jauh lebih sukses dariku, baik dalam segi finansial, karir atau keluarga. Tetapi satu hal yang tetap kupercaya, hidupku sangat berarti bagi Allah dan juga bagi orang – orang lain di sekitarku.

Habakuk 2:4b – Orang yang benar itu akan hidup oleh percayanya

Pertanyaan pertama...sudahkah aku menjadi orang benar?
Dibenarkan oleh darah Yesus, menerima anugerah, pengampunan, damai, sukacita dan pengharapan akan hari depan yang lebih baik. Saat aku masih kuatir, lelah untuk beriman dan mulai membandingkan diriku dengan orang lain, berarti aku masih belum sepenuhnya menerima Yesus untuk tinggal dalam hidupku.

Pertanyaan kedua...sudahkah aku hidup oleh percayaku kepadaNya?
Pagi ini aku diingatkan lagi, maukah aku mempercayaiNya karena aku mengasihiNya ...
Will you believe Me out of your love to Me?

Kalau aku mengatakan aku mengasihiNya (seperti yang sering aku nyanyikan di gereja), aku akan memilih untuk tetap percaya akan semua janjiNya. Saat keadaan sekelilingku sepertinya tidak bergerak, aku akan tetap bergerak – menguatkan kembali percayaku kepadaNya dan hidup oleh percayaku, karena aku mengasihiNya.

I love You Lord and how can I not believe in You
Help me to live in Your righteousness always
Sharpen my ear so I can hear Your still voice so clear in the midst of other voices
Give me courage to step out when Your door of opportunities open in front of me
My saved lives will bring impact to people around me

Aku mengasihiMu Bapa, dan bagaimana aku bisa tidak percaya padaMu ?
Tolong aku untuk hidup dalam kebenaranMu senantiasa
Pertajam pendengaranku, sehingga aku bisa mendengar suaraMu di tengah begitu banyak suara lain
Beri aku keberanian untuk melangkah maju saat pintu kesempatanMu terbuka di depanku
Hidupku yang telah Kau tebus akan berdampak bagi orang – orang di sekelilingku..

Damai Yang Berbeda (A Different Kind of Peace)

Bagaimana seharusnya perasaan kita saat kita mendengar ada bom meledak di kota kita sendiri? Sedih, cemas, was – was, prihatin terhadap korban yang jatuh, dan akhirnya geram. Pagi itu, sekitar pukul 08.30, saat saya sedang berada di mobil kantor dalam perjalanan menjemput karyawan, atasan saya menelpon. Ia memberitahu ada bom meledak di hotel Ritz Carlton Kuningan dan minta kami berjaga – jaga kalau ada kemacetan di daerah Sudirman menuju Kuningan, dan agar bisa mengambil jalan alternatif. Kantor kami ada di daerah KH Mas Mansyur, dekat ke jalan Sudirman, dan sebenarnya masih agak jauh dari Mega Kuningan.

Setelah mendengar berita mengejutkan itu, langsung tangan saya memutar tombol radio 90.00 – El Shinta News & Talk. Ternyata bom meledak di dua hotel – Ritz Carlton & JW Mariot. Sepertinya sudah lama sekali tidak terdengar ada ledakan bom di tempat – tempat keramaian di Indonesia. Dua kali Pemilu berjalan dengan lancar dan aman. Beberapa kali perayaan Natal, Tahun Baru dan Idul Fitri berjalan dengan damai tanpa ada gangguan keamanan.

Dan ternyata pada pagi hari tanggal 17 Juli 2009, terjadi lagi ledakan bom di 2 hotel mewah bintang 5 di kawasan Mega Kuningan. Muncul kembali perasaan asing yang pernah timbul dalam hati. Sedih, was – was, kuatir tentang teman – teman saya yang bekerja di daerah Kuningan. Ternyata meskipun seharusnya kita sudah terbiasa mendengar berita ledakan bom, tetapi ternyata perasaan saya tidak kebal dan tetap ada perasaan tidak enak yang menyelip dalam hati saya.

Pada minggu itu gereja kami kedatangan satu rombongan youth berjumlah 14 orang dari Newcastle Australia, yang khusus datang sebagai band tamu untuk festival band “Rock the City” di tempat kami. Festival Band “Rock the City” akan diadakan keesokan harinya, pada hari Sabtu tanggal 19 Juli 2009. Sempat terjadi diskusi serius apakah festival tetap berlangsung sesuai rencana, ditunda atau bahkan dibatalkan, mengingat ada beberapa orang tua yang kuatir meminta agar anaknya segera pulang kembali ke Newcastle pada hari itu juga. Dan akhirnya dengan iman dan berbagai pertimbangan, diambil keputusan festival tetap berlangsung sesuai jadwal. Dan itu adalah keputusan yang benar. Singkat cerita festival berjalan dengan sukses, tidak ada gangguan keamanan, dan semua yang hadir menikmati penampilan setiap band peserta dan tentu saja band tamu “Weapon Generation” dari Newcastle.

Peristiwa ledakan bom ini mengingatkan kita bahwa tidak ada tempat yang aman di dunia ini. Akan selalu ada pihak – pihak yang berusaha menggoncangkan rasa aman yang ada dalam diri kita. Baik itu lewat berita buruk, bencana, kecelakaan, bahkan serangan teroris seperti yang terjadi baru – baru ini.

Tidak ada rasa aman yang bisa kita dapatkan selain dari Sang Pencipta Kita. Setiap kita mempunyai orang – orang terdekat yang kita sayangi. Betapa hancur hati kita bila kita mendengar ada sesuatu kejadian buruk yang terjadi kepada mereka. Entah itu penyakit jantung atau stroke yang bisa menyerang dengan begitu tiba – tiba. Atau siapa yang dapat merasakan perasaan hati Ratna, istri Evert Mokodompis, saat ia menyadari hari yang seharusnya penuh kebahagiaan karena putra yang dinanti-nantikan lahir dengan selamat, menjadi hari yang paling memilukan. Sang suami menjadi salah satu korban tewas ledakan bom hotel J.W Mariot. Ternyata teror maut begitu dekat dengan kehidupan kita sehari – hari.

Saya teringat saat Papa mengalami serangan stroke yang pertama sekitar 15 tahun yang lalu. Waktu itu saya masih kuliah. Keluarga kami tinggal di Mojokerto, satu jam perjalanan dari Surabaya. Malam itu sebelum berangkat ke rumah sakit, mama memimpin saya dan dua adik saya untuk berdoa bersama. Pada saat itu ada ketenangan dalam hati kami. Papa akan baik – baik saja.


Kemudian 5 tahun yang lalu, Papa mengalami stroke kedua. Saat itu saya sudah bekerja di Jakarta, beserta adik saya yang kuliah kedokteran di UKI. Kami mendengar berita itu pada hari Minggu pagi, sebelum kami berangkat ke gereja. Pada hari itu kami bertugas melayani di gereja sebagai musisi dan singer. Hanya ada satu yang kami bisa lakukan, berdoa dan menyerahkan semuanya pada Bapa yang terkasih. Pada waktu itu usia Papa sudah 70 tahun, usia yang sangat rawan apabila terkena serangan stroke yang kedua. Kami tetap melayani dengan damai pada hari itu, dan Bapa selalu mendengar doa putra – putrinya. Sampai hari ini Papa tetap sehat. Bahkan beberapa anggota keluarga kami yang jauh lebih sehat pada waktu Papa pertama kali terkena serangan stroke, sudah dipanggil Tuhan, dan Papa masih ada bersama-sama kami.

Dimanakah damai saat kita sangat memerlukannya? Bukan pada saat keadaan kita sedang baik – baik saja. Tetapi pada saat hal – hal yang tidak terduga terjadi pada diri kita sendiri atau orang – orang di sekeliling kita, saat itulah kita memerlukan damai sejahteraNya.

Yohanes 14:27 Damai sejahtera Kutinggalkan bagimu. Damai sejahtera-Ku Kuberikan kepadamu, dan apa yang Kuberikan tidak seperti yang diberikan oleh dunia kepadamu. Janganlah gelisah dan gentar hatimu.

Dunia bisa berusaha memberikan damai kepada kita. Banyak cara yang mereka tawarkan, yoga, meditasi, relaxing spa, hang out di kafe, dengerin musik, chatting, konseling, nonton film, fitness, dan lain – lain. Tetapi damai yang mereka tawarkan sama seperti ekstasi, nikmatnya hanya sesaat saja. Pada saat kita sendirian dengan diri kita, apakah kita masih bisa merasakan damai dalam hati kita?

Akan ada saatnya kita mengalami suatu titik dimana kita dihadapkan pada suatu situasi yang punya potensi besar untuk mencuri damai sejahtera dalam hidup kita. Mungkin hal yang sepele seperti ketinggalan bis terakhir pada jam 11 malam di jalan Sudirman, sementara rumah kita di Cengkareng, atau pencuri merampas tas beserta seluruh isinya waktu mobil kita sedang mogok di tepi jalan, sampai saat kita tidak punya cukup uang untuk biaya hidup sampai akhir bulan. Saat itu adalah waktu terbaik untuk mempraktekkan Yohanes 14 : 27.

Pada detik kita ijinkan Yesus menjadikan hidup kita sebagai tempat kediamanNya, Dia yang adalah Raja Damai akan memenuhi hidup kita dengan damai yang berbeda dari yang kita pernah rasakan sebelumnya.

Ada perasaan tenang yang sedikit aneh, karena kita jadi tampak berbeda dengan orang – orang di sekeliling kita.
Ada keyakinan yang tumbuh bahwa Allah sedang pegang kendali atas keadaan yang kita alami dan semua akan baik – baik saja.
Ada perasaan sangat intim dengan Yesus, karena Ia sudah mengalami semua yang kita alami
Ada kekuatan baru untuk kembali berjuang dan kembali melanjutkan hidup bersama Roh Kudus, Penolong kita yang setia

Dan ini adalah Damai Yang Berbeda...

Create Your Own History - Pelajaran dari Joseph Guardiola

Hari Kamis dini hari tanggal 28 Mei 2009 adalah hari yang paling ditunggu – tunggu para pecinta sepak bola dunia. Hari itu adalah hari dilangsungkannya partai final Liga Champion Eropa yang mempertemukan klub – klub sepak bola terbaik sedunia. Partai final tahun 2009 mempertemukan dua klub terbaik di dunia Manchester United dan Barcelona. Hasil akhir, Barcelona, tim favorit saya memenangkan pertandingan dengan skor 2-0 langsung.

Pertandingan yang diharapkan berlangsung ketat, ternyata malah didominasi para pemain Barca kecuali 10 menit pertama saat para pemain depan MU menciptakan beberapa peluang emas ke gawang Victor Valdes, kiper Barca.

Tahun ini adalah tahun yang tak terlupakan bagi Presiden Barcelona Joan Laporta dan setiap pendukung setia Barcelona, karena klub mereka mencetak sejarah sebagai klub Spanyol pertama yang bisa meraih 3 gelar pada tahun yang sama (treble winners) yaitu juara Liga Spanyol, juara Piala Raja dan juara Liga Champio Eropa). Dan satu lagi yang menjadi kebanggaan mereka, Barcelona mengalahkan MU, sang juara bertahan yang saat ini dianggap sebagai klub terbaik dunia berkat deretan prestasi mereka di liga Inggris dan liga Champion.

Semua ini tidak lepas dari keputusan riskan Barcelona untuk mengontrak Joseph Guardiola pada pada tanggal 5 Juni 2008, di akhir musim 2008 menggantikan Frank Rijkaard. Seseorang yang belum pernah melatih tim senior, menggantikan seorang pelatih yang pernah memberikan 2 gelar liga Spanyol dan 1 gelar liga Champion bagi Barcelona, tetapi meninggalkan tim dalam kondisi tanpa gelar selama 2 tahun dan suasana tim yang amburadul.

Setelah saya membaca beberapa artikel tentang pelatih muda ini (usianya baru 38 tahun), ada beberapa hal menarik yang bisa kita pelajari. Bagaimana Guardiola sebagai pelatih debutan berhasil meraih 3 gelar juara dalam tahun pertamanya melatih, mengalahkan para pelatih kawakan seperti Arsene Wenger, Gus Hidink dan Sir Alex Fergusson.

1) Building from foundation (membangun dari dasar)
Langkah pertama Guardiola adalah membangun timnya dari bawah. Ia menjual pemain – pemain bintang Barcelona yang menurutnya sudah tidak mempunyai semangat tim lagi. Seusai penunjukannya sebagai pelatih, ia mengumumkan bahwa tiga trisula maut Barcelona yang sukses mengantar Barcelona juara liga selama 2 tahun berturut – turut, Ronaldinho, Deco dan Samuel Eto’o tidak termasuk dalam tim Barcelona lagi di musim mendatang. Ia menjual Ronaldinho ke AC Milan dan Deco ke Chelsea. Sedangkan Samuel Eto’o yang juga terancam dilego, akhirnya selamat setelah sang pelatih baru mengatakan bahwa Eto’o tetap dipertahankan karena dedikasinya saat training dan pertandingan pra musim.

Dari 11 pemain yang bermain di final di Roma hari Kamis dini hari, 7 pemain adalah jebolan sekolah sepak bola Barcelona La Mesia. Guardiola lebih mementingkan memberi tempat bagi pemain – pemain muda potensial yang memang sudah dididik di akademi bola Barcelona sejak usia dini. Mereka sudah memahami filosofi permainan Barcelona, budaya tim dan itu yang membuat tim ini menjadi solid. Dengan demikian pemain – pemain bintang yang baru direkrut mau tak mau juga harus ikut melebur dalam budaya tim.

Jalan pembinaan memang panjang. Lebih mudah merekrut pemain yang sudah jadi daraipada membina dari dasar. Tetapi lihatlah buahnya sekarang. Lionel Messi kandidat terkuat pemain terbaik dunia bergabung dengan akademi Barcelona sejak usia 13 tahun. Andres Iniesta yang membawa Barcelona ke final berkat golnya ke gawang Chelsea pada injury time (menit 90+), menerima trofi piala Nike mewakili tim Barcelona yunior sepuluh tahun yang lalu.

2) Being humble yet confident (Keyakinan dalam kerendahhatian)
Joseph Guardiola alias Pep adalah pelatih yang rendah hati. Dia bukan tipe Jose Mourinho yang suka melakukan psywar dengan menyerang tim lawan sebelum pertandingan. Saat diwawancarai sebelum pertandingan final Liga Champion berlangsung, ia selalu melontarkan pujian bagi tim lawan. Ia memuji MU sebagai tim terbaik di dunia saat ini dan pelatih sir Alex Fergusson adalah pelatih yang sarat pengalaman. Bahkan setelah timnya memenangi liga Champion, Pep mengatakan bahwa timnya bukanlah tim terbaik dalam sejarah, tetapi memainkan musim terbaik dalam sejarah dengan memenangi tiga gelar juara.

Akan tetapi dalam sikap rendah hati tersebut, Guardiola tetap menyuarakan keyakinan bahwa timnya akan tetap memainkan permainan yang terbaik. Dalam pertandingan final kemarin sebenarnya MU lebih difavoritkan untuk menang. Selain memiliki pemain starter yang relatif lebih lengkap dari Barca, MU adalah juara bertahan liga Champion. Dalam rekam jejak perjalanan ke final MU unggul aggregat 4-1 dalam semifinal vs Arsenal, dibandingkan Barca yang hanya menang gol tandang vs Chelsea pada detik – detik terakhir pertandingan.

MU hanya kehilangan 1 pemain yang dikenai kartu merah pada pertandingan semifinal (Darren Fletcher), sedangkan Barca kehilangan 3 bek inti, Dani Alves, Erik Abidal dan Rafael Marquez. Ditambah Thierre Henry dalam kondisi tidak 100% fit karena baru pulih dari cedera.

Meskipun dalam kondisi demikian, sang pelatih tetap yakin akan kekuatan tim yang diasuhnya. Dalam wawancara sebelum final, ia berkata bahkan apabila ia harus memainkan 11 pemain cadangan pun, mereka akan tetap berjuang merebut kemenangan dengan satu – satunya pola permainan yang mereka yakini, yaitu sepak bola menyerang. Dan seluruh dunia menjadi saksi bagaimana di stadium Olympico Roma, MU menjadi bulan – bulanan permainan menyerang Barcelona.


3) Keep on doing what you have done best (Terus melakukan yang terbaik yang kita bisa)
Sepanjang musim pertandingan 2008 – 2009, Barcelona konsisten menerapkan sistem permainan menyerang dengan skema 4 -3-3. Mereka tidak memulai dengan mulus. Hanya mendapat 1 poin dari 6 pertandingan pertama mereka, awal terburuk Barca sejak tahun 1974, dan mereka mengakhiri musim kompetisi dengan rekor terbaik sepanjang sejarah tim.

Guardiola tidak panik. Ia tetap konsisten pada pola menyerang dengan tiga striker di depan. Waktu akhirnya membuktikan trio pemain depan Barca menjadi trio penyerang paling subur di seluruh dunia. Samuel Eto’o, Lionel Messi dan Thierre Henry menyarangkan total 97 gol. Barcelona menjadi tim paling subur di seluruh Eropa dengan memasukkan total 154 gol ke gawang lawan - lawannya.

Mereka bahkan menjadi momok bagi setiap tim lawan. Lawan bebuyutan RealMadrid dihantam 2-0 dan 6-2 . Bayern Munchen dilibas dengan aggregat 5-1. Mereka memaksa tim lawan untuk menyesuaikan diri dengan cara bermain mereka. Chelsea yang selalu bermain dengan pola menyerang memilih bermain dengan pola bertahan dalam dua pertandingan melawan Barca, bahkan pada saat mereka unggul 1 gol dan unggul jumlah pemain.

Barca yang kehilangan 3 pemain bertahan mereka dalam pertandingan final melawan MU, tetap konsisten untuk memainkan pola 4-3-3. Inilah satu – satunya strategi pertahanan yang diketahui Pep, yang telah mereka mainkan sepanjang musim dengan hasil yang sangat baik. Kita semua tahu hasil akhirnya. Seluruh dunia memberi applause kepada Barcelona karena permainan mereka yang sangat atraktif.

4) The sky is the limit
Dalam tahun pertamanya melatih tim sepak bola senior Guardiola sudah mencatatkan beberapa rekor bersama Barcelona.
· Barca mencatat rekor poin terbanyak di paruh musim dengan 50 poin, memecahkan rekor 47 poin Real Madrid musim lalu.
· Menjadi pelatih pertama yang membawa klub Spanyol meraih 3 gelar juara dalam satu musim.
· Pelatih termuda ketiga yang memenangkan Liga Champion
· Orang ketiga yang memenangkan liga Champion sebagai pemain dan pelatih di klub yang sama.
Dan ia masih lapar akan gelar – gelar lain di tahun – tahun mendatang…
Bagi Joseph Guardiola.... the sky is the limit, this is just a start.

A Trip to a Beauty Salon

Two days ago I had hair cut in a beauty salon owned by my friend. It was almost six months since I last had my hair cut in December. The salon was empty, meaning no other customer than me and my two companies , unfortunately my friend was not around too. So, the salon’s top hairdresser would handle my hair. He asked me what kind of hair style I wanted. I said, I was not sure, cos actually I only wanted to have my hair look more neat for my cousin’s wedding in two weeks time.


So, one of the assistant brought a magazine full with beautiful girls with all sort of hair style. I was a bit confuse. These girls were already beautiful whatever hair style they chose. Finally with the help of the stylist, I pointed the picture of a beautiful short hair girl. Okay – no problem said the stylist.. I would adjust the style with your face..


It only took 15 minutes for him to cut my hair, while I said my little prayer so the new style will not look odd in my face. At first look it was okay, but not too satisfactory. After paying to the cashier (55 thousand rupiah), I gave a tip to the stylist (only gave him 5 thousand), ten percent of the hair cut price. Anyway, I like my look better the next morning.


I remembered giving a very generous tip to the stylist in one of the branded hair salon, in one of the biggest mall in Jakarta. The hair cut price was 175 thousand at that time and I gave her tips of 20 thousand rupiah, cos I like her hair cut that time. My friend said the tips were too much, since the hair cut price was already expensive. It was 4 or 5 years ago. When I recounted that time, I was also surprised why I spent that much money only for my hair. Well I only cut my hair at maximum twice a year, so it was worth it. But now with so many other expenses coming, that lavish time was over for my hair. Expenses for my mortgage, saving commitment, house and car expenses has cut down my hair allowance to under 100 thousand.


Of course there were many who are still willing to spend hundreds of thousand rupiah for their hair cut. Hair was called woman’s crown, the most valuable treasure for her. One of my colleague didn’t want to cut her hair because her father told her not to. I heard story from a friend who had to ask permission from her husband to cut her hair. When we were at elementary school, the girls were so mad if the boys teased them by pulling their hair or put gum on their black long hair...ooohh that was disaster!!


Hair is so special for woman, that’s why beauty salon is a very prosperous and healthy industry. You can find small salon or barber shop in the small alley in a crowded residential slum, to the most convenient place at the biggest shopping mall in town.


Guinnes World Records stated the world’s most expensive hair cut was at Stuart Phillips Hair Salon in Covent Garden, London for the price of of £8,000 ($16,300) or 168 million rupiahs !!
I was stunned...this is the cost of one bed room apartment in Jakarta. Well, it’s government-subsidised apartment, but anyway..it is a hell lots of money. Stuart Phillips was the official hairstylist to The British Academy Television Awards since 2004. And of course, the record breaking haircut package includes a Champagne lunch, a head and scalp massage, a selection of personalised L’Oreal hair products and treatments, a return limousine ride from the airport, and of course, the haircutting skills of the internationally acclaimed Stuart Phillips, himself,
(Source :www.guinnessworldrecords.com/adjudications/071029_cut_above_beyond_rest.aspx).


Talking about pricey and what we consider valuable in our lives. So maybe our hair deserves that much amount of value or not, it is ours to decide. As for me hair is only a part of my whole being. As long as it fits my face, suits my personality, convenient enough for me (Jakarta is a very hot city today !), any hairdresser or salon is okay. However, on second thought..I think I still need to look for some recommendation first, as I have to live with the new look for the next six months.

Isn’t it beauty or good looking is a whole package of human being? Maybe we should also spend the same attention and care to make our inside look as beautiful as our outside look. As hair grows in time and we need to remodel it again, the same thing also happens to our heart and mind. Many new experiences happened, some are encouraging and some just bring sadness or disappointment. Bringing back beauty to our heart and mind is soul refreshing. There are many ways to do it, chatting and having coffee with old friends, do something nice for your self, do something nice for others, calling your parents, etc. As for me, the most refreshing salon time for my soul will be playing keyboard and singing my own song to my God.


So, enjoy your walk to your beauty salon today !

In Lions' Den

This morning my bible reading took me to Daniel 6, it’s about Daniel in lions’ den. A Sunday school story that I have been familiar with since I was 8 years old. So God, what else is new this morning ? After I read again, I learn some lessons from this old story. That how amazing the bible is...you’ll never get enough of it!

1. Excellence Pays off
Daniel was excellent in his service to his earthly king and his heavenly King. When we do our best in our service to our boss, either in a company or organisation, there will always be people who are jealous with what we do.They would say we are doing it because we are boss ‘s golden boy or golden girl .

It’s nothing new. The bible has recorded the same situation thousands years ago. When jealous officials tried to destroy Daniel, they could not find any mistakes in his jobs and responsibilities to king Darius. No corruption, love affair, murder attempt, suspicious rumours...No, he was so clean, that this group tried to attack Daniel from his service to his God. Apparently Daniel’s coworkers were well aware of his praying habits. Daniel never covered up his belief to Jehovah. He was bold in walking his faith to God.

Isn’t it difficult to work in environment where the people you work with always tried to take you down? Even when you got your boss in your side, how do we work with a group of colleagues that always say negative things about whatever we do ?

Surprisingly, Daniel managed to handle this kind of situation, even delivered the best performance, that the king planned to put him in charge of the whole kingdom after him.
His excellence in his professional work was due to his excellence in his personal service to God.

2. Knowing who we serve gives us boldness
So a law was issued, forbidding anyone to pray to any god or human except the king for the next thirty days. Everyone who disobeys this law must be thrown into a pit of lions. To avoid any possibilities of king’s mercy, the law was designed so it cannot be changed.

Isn’t it amazing that Daniel did not change his praying habit after he heard this law had operated? Or chose another secret place to pray. ..or another thought, just closed the window in his praying room, where he normally prayed for the next thirty days. After all the decree only last for one month wasn’t it?
No, he just did what he normally did, which was praying in front of the window that faced Jerusalem, three times a day. He made himself an easy prey for his jealous colleagues.

Where did Daniel get his faith in God? He knew Who he prayed to three times a day, all his life. He did not just kill the time in his praying time. It was really a precious time for him. It’s when God revealed the vision about the end of time, it’s when he got wisdom that he needed as king advisor, it’s when God gave him dream interpretation. So Daniel just knew Who he served and he did not hesitate to pray and ask God for help, even when it threatened his life.

3. An angel at our service
When Daniel was brought in front of king Darius, it seemed that the king was far more worried than Daniel himself. The king thought so hard how save Daniel all day, but the officials reminded him that no written law of the Medes and Persians can be changed, not even by the king. It was never written that Daniel was begging and pleading the king to pardon his life.

Finally Daniel was thrown into lions’ den. It was not only one lion in that pit, it should be at least 5 – 10 hungry lions in there, ready for their dinner. “ Bon Apetite!” said the devil’s’ advocate... Mission accomplished!

When we are spotless in front of people and God ,there’s always angel works in our behalf. While king Darius could not sleep all night long and canceled his routine all night dance party, Daniel was enjoying a remarkable night with exceptional companies, an angel and a bunch of lions as meek as lambs.

God could order His angel to shut any lions that tries to destroy us. Even when the most powerful people that we could think of could not helps us, He could send help in the way that we could never comprehend.

And do not bother our mind to think what we should do to retaliate with people who have bad intention to us. They are already in His judgement. The devil’s advocates team together with their families, were thrown into the lions’ den , which were suddenly felt very hungry indeed.

The Simple Things I do

Sometimes our life is not as exciting as what we would like to be. It’s not like a roller coaster that will turn you upside down 360 degrees, and swing you at 100 miles/hour speed. It’s not a kind of ride that will give a sense of thrill at one time and a sense of pure enjoyment and excitement at the next second.



Most of the time our life is just like a train going forward with a steady speed. In Indonesia the average train speed is 80 km/hour or 50 mile/hour. When everything is going well, you can predict what time you will arrive at the next train stop or next town.



It is very easy for us to just rolling through the life routine as usual. Dwelling in our own comfort zone, wishing we could be someone who can impact the world as Mother Teresa or Oprah Winfrey, but we do not know what kind of action that we could do, nor available time and resources.



Most of my jobs deal with doing simple things for others, such as calling service person to fix not – so cold air conditioner or refrigerator, calling engineering guy to fix broken intercom or leakage at their toilet, asking replacement for broken sofa, etc.



Sometimes I am asking myself, does it worth doing these kind of things? I did not feed homeless children or teach lessons to street kids or entertain senior citizens. Is this really important or am I only wasting my precious time?



Then one thought flashes to my mind. These simple things actually mean a lot to the person who ask my help. Most of my customers are professional workers. Some of them hold high position in their company and even own the business. Their immediate environment include their family, director, employees, suppliers and their potential clients. They will not be able to rest well if the room is hot. They will not be able to have a good home-cooked meal without refrigerator. Or they may become get irritated or cranky over these minor disturbance.



As a consequence these small problems may stir their emotion and disturb their ability to make the right decision. At the end, it will also affect their immediate environment...employees get scolded, can not focus during weekly briefing, can not enjoy good rest at home..



Maybe I’m only exaggerating or just trying to get the real meaning of my life. Well, the above thinking has comforted me in my distress time. And the Spirit inside me says,” Whatever you do, do it your best as it for God.” So, it’s not my task to compare myself with others. I believe the little things I do will help others. And recently He gave me more simple tasks to do. He connected me with people that are willing to share their life with me and allow me to share my advise to them and even pray for them.

I know my simple things with God could be significant to others... moreover, My Father knows what is done in secret.

I will make the most of my ride in my passenger train. This is my only journey and along the ride there is a good chance for me to meet new people, enjoy beautiful scenery that I missed most of the time and be grateful of what He has brought me so far.

A Brand New Start

This is the first time I type using my laptop after its hard disk reformat. No more old pictures, notes, personal journal, wallpaper, games. It’s all gone already. So it’s kind of odd seeing the monitor display so clear and spacious and no folders and files under my document, my music and my pictures.


Well, although I don’t feel as bad as when someone stole my bag with all its contents 2 years ago (which also includes PDA belongs to my office & I should replace it), still I felt there are something inside of me missing. My old photos with my family, old time work colleague, private photos at Kota Tua, Jakarta, and many others…it’s all gone. My personal journal, sharing, wallpaper, games, songs, they are all disappeared.

No one else to blame but myself, who have never backed up the data for the past 6 years. But it’s no use to keep feeling sorry to myself.. It’s time to go on with life and start to write new personal journal, download new music, wallpaper and photos. Life never stops when problem occurs. It keeps rolling and as Forrest Gump’s mom said,” Life was like a box of chocolates – you never know what you’re gonna get."

I believe there will be new notes, writing and even memorable pictures that will be kept in my laptop again (and for sure it will be backed up weekly or monthly …). I have just experienced so little and there are still many more journeys waiting to be explored.

So as I save my first notes here in my laptop, I am excited to see many more notes will be coming soon. Writings about personal experience, exciting journey, funny, sad, happy or mixed moments.

Life is never boring!

What does He worth for me ?

There was interesting story I just read today. How different people can react so different under the same situation. They come from very different background, and they have come across the same person who has mesmerized the whole nation.

The first person was a woman with an alabaster jar. The gospel of Mark did not tell who was her real name. She broke her precious alabaster jar of very expensive perfume , worth of her one year wages, and pour them all on Jesus head. What a sacrifice!

For middle worker in Indonesia the cost would be around 60 million rupiahs or around USD 5,5000. What is her motivation to do that kind of sacrifice that aggravate many people around Jesus? What kind of miracle that Jesus did to her that cause her to give her most valuable possesion to Him?

I did not know for sure, the gospel did not state clearly. And that was amazes me most. This unknown woman gave the biggest personal offering ever given to Jesus before He was crucified. She just gave and did not ask favor in return.

But Jesus never owe us anything. He always gives reward that over exceeding what we have given Him. The woman received her eternal reward and joy when Jesus said that what she did is wonderfully significant for Him and it will be mentioned through ages.

The second person is Jesus disciple, Judas. On the same night when Jesus was annointed with very expensive perfume, Judas went to high priests to sell his Master. The same question remains, what is his motivation? Was it only money ? He was given 30 silver coin, or equal to three months pay ( 15 million rupiahs or USD 1,500, as the result of his service to the high priests. And at the end he did not even enjoy the money as he threw them back and died full of remorse.

One person gave to Jesus and the other person took from Jesus. The woman gave her full one year wages freely and Judas get three months wages out of Jesus. That is the difference of how much Jesus worth for them.

As for me, what does He worth for me? Do I make profit out of Jesus or do I offer my best sacrifice for Him? Human heart is wicked, so it is my task to judge every motives of my heart. Let it be pure offering for Him.......because for Him I worth His life....

Live the dream or don't live at all

How can we live our dream today, while we know it is still far beyond us? We have many dreams from moving to the new house, buy new car, get new job with twice pay, getting married with our prince charming or dream princess.


Meanwhile, we are still stuck with our 9 to 5 job, welcoming holiday with pure enthusiasm and it seems like yesterday is the same as today and tomorrow is exactly like yesterday.


How can we break out from our routine and anticipating every moment with excitement? While we have become accustomed to disappointments, passive response and live is never better than mind our own business.


These are some of the thoughts that come to my heart and my mind:
1. Living without a dream is not living at all
Better to have a dream than never having a dream at all. But Proverb says that unfulfilled hope breaks our heart.

It’s true! We tend to not dreaming or anticipating anything for fear of unfulfillment which caused disappointment, discouragement and fear in our heart and mind. Especially when we have past hopes that we have already put in our back shelf.
By not challenging ourself to start dreaming again, we will become dead man walking. We will end up exactly where we are now in twenty years time.

However this time instead of only dreaming, imagining and complaining, there are next steps that we have to take to make our dream become reality.

2. God’s dream for us worth our whole life
While I believe that every person should find their own dream for success, I am convinced that fulfilling God’s dream in our life is much more valuable than our own personal success.
While we are starting to dream again, it’s never to late to ask Him to put His dream inside our heart. He is our Father who happens to create us, and He knows every bit of strengths and weakness. He will put one chunk of His big dream into our heart, the piece that He knows we can handle and then He will put some more as we faithfully walk His dream.

3. Making the dream into existence starts with one simple step –

WRITE THEM!
Then do not wait again, just write what is inside your heart on your dream book. Put some pictures on it, bring it everywhere you go. Look at it every now and than and pray for it. Thanking Him that He will bring it to pass in His perfect time.

4. Grow the seed inside of us and live the dream every day
Every seed has to be nurtured, so it can grow healthy. It needs fertilizer, good environment and even positive words of encouragement.
It’s the same with our dream. We need to do practical action on the seed. Make a plan, time table, allocate your time and resources, and the most important is “discipline” and passion.
Find information, enroll in the course or seminar that related to the area of your dream, ask an expert advise, find a good mentor.

Live the dream every day, bring them inside of your mind, walk in your dream every day. Let it grow inside of our heart and mind. Don’t forget to encourage yourself every day. Don’t let the disappointment and negativity or even status quo from people around you, cause you to stop growing your dream and let the seed die.

Never give up on our dreams! Living without a dream is not living at all

To Lie or not to lie.. A lesson from Marcus Einfeld story

On Monday morning, I read one small paragraph story about a judge in Sydney who was sentenced to three years prison due to lying to the court about his previous mistakes. I was interested, so I tried to read his story again in the printed version of the newspaper in the Internet, but the document was too small to read. So I tried to google, with the key words “ judge, Sydney, speed limit, fine, prison“. And surprisingly just in 0.02 second there were over 2.000 results.

Here was the story in short..

His name was Marcus Einfeld, 70. He has been a leading human right lawyer for more than 30 years, serving as Federal Court judge for 15 years and a prominent member of the Jewish community. He was a Queen’s counsel, National Trust living treasure and a director of 13 companies and trusts, a patron of many organisation, president of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission and a father of four children.

Well, a former Federal Court judge with a lot of credentials is also a human. So he made an error like what a human does. On January 8, 2006 his car was captured by a speed camera doing 60 km/h in a 50 km/h zone. If he drove in Jakarta, no one will even bother, unless you bump into someone’s car. However in Sydney, it was considered minor traffic offence, that caused $77 fine and three demerit points.

Normal response would be admitting the offense, pay the fine, got three additional demerit points and close the case. But it seems that it has never been the option for Mr. Einfeld. So, what the heck, I’ll blame it on my dead friend! In the court hearing in August 2006 (7 months after the offence), he declared in a 20-page statement that his friend, an American college professor Teresa Brennan, had been driving the car at that time.

Maybe Mr. Einfeld forgot that today there is no secret that can be hidden from the media, especially when you are a public figure. It did not take long before a Daily Telegraph reporter confronted him with the fact that Brennan had been dead for three years.

The story went on with him trying to make another excuse that eventually proven as lies. So, finally one minor traffic offense lead him to three years in prison. Not to mention the ruin of his good name, which will need much more longer than three years to restore.

Major Australian newspapers wrote various title from : Former judge Einfeld jailed over $77 speeding fine (Malcolm Knox,Sydney Morning Herald, March 20, 2009), A man without honour (Malcolm Knox,Sydney Morning Herald, March 21, 2009), Jail completes Marcus Einfeld's fall (Michael Pelly, The Australian, March 20, 2009).

Maybe he should have not picked a person who has deceased three years before the accident as a scapegoat, or he should have just admitted the fault. Just can’t imagine why he should bother to lie over this minor offense, which if admitted, would not cause disgrace for him, his family and friends, or what one article said "a spectacular fall from grace for the man once hailed a national "living treasure" (Michael Pelly, The Australian, March 20, 2009).

One of the article mentioned that should Mr. Einfeld admitted his offense, he would have three additional demerit points to his previous 6 demerit points. It was one shy from having his driving license revoked and not being able to enjoy driving his car anywhere and anytime. Well, there was one motive, or maybe lying has become a habit in his life.

Does lying have lower consequence than breaking the traffic regulation? It is so easy to do even by 2 years old child until 90 years old grandpa, from a housewife, taxi driver, a businessman to a president.

I am not a saint myself. Sometimes I only say half truth to my customer, then on another day one lies just come out of my mouth to please someone, or to escape from my promise. At first I feel guilty, but as time goes by, when I did it again, the easier for me to spell a lie. And it scares me...I don’t want to be the next Marcus Einfeld or other great person who falls from grace because of lying. There are so many living examples around us.

Jesus said “Let your Yes be simply Yes and your No be simply No; anything more than that comes from the evil one” ( Matthew 5:37, The Amplified Bible). One thing I learn from this story is every word we say has consequence, either it is a truth or a lie. Maybe no one will ever caught up our lies until we die, but there is nothing hidden before our Lord and our own heart.

At the end, the lesson I learned today is to ask my Lord to guard my thoughts and give me wisdom on what I should say to people who connect with me. As far as my part, I promise to be truthful to myself, to Him and to others around me

Article source :
· Former judge Einfeld jailed over $77 speeding fine (Malcolm Knox,Sydney Morning Herald, March 20, 2009),
· A man without honour (Malcolm Knox,Sydney Morning Herald, March 21, 2009),
· Jail completes Marcus Einfeld's fall (Michael Pelly, The Australian, March 20, 2009).

Didn't we Almost have it all

Saturday morning, while driving to my office , my car radio channel played one familiar old song ...Didn’t we almost have it all from Whitney Houston.

Didn’t we almost have it all
When love was all we had worth giving?
The ride with you was worth the fall my friend
Loving you makes life worth living
Didnt we almost have it all
The night we held on till the morning
You know you’ll never love that way again
Didn’t we almost have it all

Then it occurs in my mind, wouldn’t it be so sad, if this lyric keep happening in our life. We almost have it all, but it didn’t happen. But on the other hand, if the reverse happens, wouldn’t it be so wonderful ? We almost didn’t have it all, but we did !

Almost means nearly, not exactly, not yet or not in fact, but very close to being or happening as described.

Moses almost get in to the Promised Land, Job almost lossed all his possesion, family and faith in God, Peter almost lost his soul when he denied Jesus thee times, and the young rich guy almost get into the Kingdom of God.

In the reality we face so many “almost” situation. Either we almost loose our temper or we almost closed our business deal. From getting so near to miss the flight schedule, to so close to saying what the heck I give up. Any decision will have consequences, the degree of severeness depends on the seriousness of situation.

Did Jesus ever experience “Almost” situation? One night before He was crucified, He spent His time in Gethsemane, asking Father until three times, should there be any chance not to drink the cup of sorrow, death, curse, sin and separation. Never written in the Gospel, what the Father answered. But then it is written in the next verse, that Jesus was calmer and confident when He woke up His 3 disciples for the final times..preparing them for His life mission being accomplished.

Me and million others who receive Jesus as Lord and saviour are forever grateful that Jesus did and still do have it all...salvation, forgiveness, mercy and grace. He passed the critical situation, when His split decision will affect the eternity.

We almost didn’t have it all, but we did and still do. We have all the good things He has prepared for us, because of His decision two thousand years ago. Until today there were some decision in my life, that caused me to loose things or opportunities because of my impatience and recklessness. It’s a lifetime learning process, and I learn from my past mistakes.

But whenever I come across to the next “almost” situation, I will always remember that I’m gonna sing the revised verse of Whitney Houston refrain - “I almost didn’t have it all...”

Having Jesus as My Colleague

I imagine, If Jesus worked with me as my colleague, what would I do differently than what I do now. Now I work as property agent in one of the apartment in Jakarta. For sure He would become my “Most Favourite” Colleague, the one I will always turns to when problem comes.

· On dealing with “naughty” customer
He would be so patient dealing with our antique customers, opposite from my grumbling and cross words.One of my customer really tests my patience with keep on breaking his promises to pay due rental fee. I have threatened him from penalty to evacuation, but to no avail. And it seems that he just do not want to pay. If only I could ask Jesus to just put some situation on him (curse is too harsh words), like – can not talk until he pays the balance payment, or make his nose longer like Pinokio, everytime he breaks his promises...that would be so cool!

But I know He would not grant my request. He will asked me to keep on asking payment firmly and politely, reminding him again that a man should be honoured by his words. Well, I may try that plus asking His trusted messenger, Gabriel, to help reminding my dear customer about his responsibility.

· On handling so many complaints
One day without complaint on the unit from my tenants, is a blessed day. From ordinary complaint like cold water heater, hot air conditioner, broken intercom, leakage on kitchen sink until unclear TV channel. Sometimes I just got bored and frustrated...did I do something useful in my life, dealing with these kind of problems every day ? So if I asked my powerful Colleague to just eliminate all these problems just by saying “ Breakage/Leakage/etc go to the sea!”, would He say yes?

Ehm..on secound thought I don’t think so. Most probably He would remind me that whatever I do (as small as it seems)to solve these problems is assisting my tenants to do better in their life. When I am faithful in small things, greater things will be entrusted to me, and it helped me to learn problem solving skill as well as exercising my patience.

· On communicating with different people
Well, I meet many type of people in my job, and I am grateful that most of them are kindhearted and hardworking people with their own unique personalities. I would ask my favourite Colleague how to have better relation quality with them...more than business as usual. Then one of His advise would be me becoming genuinely interested with their personal life, their joy and problem in life. Keep my promises and earn their trust with clean heart, and in time they will open their hearts to me.

And I am not just imagining, for Jesus lives in me and He is truly my only trusted and most favourite colleague in my workplace.

Love is in the air

Valentine is coming in two weeks time. Another romantic celebration for couples, either still in love or try to keep the flame. Restaurants are fully booked with Valentine dinner. High school starts busy preparing prom nite. Supermarket, bakery , specialty stores show chocolates, flowers, teddy bears in their top shelves.

What about Valentine for the other clan called singles? Some are saying...

• it's time again to see the couples clan celebrating romantic Valentine with their spouses



• I will just enjoy it with my same-gene friends



• It's just the same Saturday night as the previous or coming Saturday

For me Valentine is just the same ordinary day. But I am still affected by its hype, 'cos it's always on the headline of every women and teen magazines. My church makes Valentine event for its youth members. TV infotainments shows Valentine moment for every celebrity couples they can think of.

So for the "couples" clan, Valentine is time to feel love is in the air..feeling love is everywhere, time to revive the forgotten spark, time to propose your dates.

For the "singles" clan, we still can feel love is in the air. I am loved by my parents, my brothers, my friends, my pastor, my church and most important, my God. Love can take many forms and for now, the love that I enjoy today is more than enough for me. If next year there's another form of love comes into my life, I will embrace it like I embrace other good things happening to me.

So, happy Valentine day... Hope you can feel love is in the air today.

The Seven Wonders of Jakarta Traffic

I am one of many users of Jakarta transportation, either public or private (cos I use both of them). Day after day I try to somewhat enjoy whatever condition it offers. Do you know that you can find so many wonders in the busy Jakarta traffic? I called it wonders, because it makes you wondering how in the earth it just could happen so naturally.

And after much research and observation, finally I manage to compile seven things that I call "The seven wonders of Great Jakarta traffic".

So..here they are :

1. Young, decent, polite professionals became bunch of barbarians over taking seat in busway.
2. Passengers get out of the bus in the midst of tollway
3. Public transportation just stopped in the middle of the road to let the passenger exit.
4. Minibus crews forced the passengers to move to other minibus sometimes 2 times in a row in one route, and that minibus just casually return back to its previous stop.
5. To cut someone's lane is the normal way to drive
6. The local government extended the road lane, only to narrow it again at the end of extended lane.
7. People lining at the exit of tollway expecting customers of "3 in one" rules.

Well ,I believe there are more wonders of Jakarta traffic. They are not the wonders that I can honestly admire. But, I would do whatever I can to remove them one by one.

What I can do now :

• Line up nicely in busway stop
• Do not cut someone else's lane when I drive
• Follow "3 in one" rules
• Pray very hard that the minibus I ride will not move me to their peers

Hope you can also do whatever you can, so we could have different kind of wonders in Jakarta traffic.

Cheers..

When He Speaks

The famous verse Jer 33:3 says "Call to Me, and I will answer you; I will tell you wonderful and marvelous things that you know nothing about.

It says I only need to call upon Him and He will surely answers me. Well, in my experience, sometimes He doesn't answer me right away. But He waits until my mind is calm, then I can hear the still voice of Him, my beloved Lord and saviour.

At other time, He reminds me that He loves me the way I am. It's the things that He keeps reminding me. He knows how often I looked down on myself, still tempted to compare myself with my peers and friends.

Sometimes I just feel a sense of warm love surrounding my soul...it's kind of hard to explain, but it feels reassuring and comforting.


When He speaks, I need to be in position to hear Him clearly
So, He doesn't have to speak twice to me
When He speaks, I know I am alive for a purpose
Designed and prophesied before my embryo was formed
When He speaks, I am fully persuaded that He is for me
Through every high and every low
When He speaks, I am assured that I'm always in His mind
That all His thinking for me is heavenly joy, prosperity and unending love

And I can not wait to hear when He speaks

Can We Get Anything We Want ?

Today's motivator will say yes! You can get everything you want in your life. You have to visualise it, focus all your attention on it and you will get whatever you want...new car, new house, your dream job, romantic vacation..



But sadly the reality is you do not always get what you really want. Yesterday I desperately wanted and needed a seat on crowded bus home. But I could only get it 5 minutes before my stop. I wanted and needed people to answer my phone call asking about their due payment, but I stopped after 10 unanswered rings.



Many things I have visualised and worked on it but still hasn't happened yet.But it doesn't make me stop to dream and keep trying.. And most important is to put them in God's hand..
Let my dreams is still His dreams for me.



I need to accept things that has not happened yet and try my best to do whatever I can today that can pave the way for my dreams become reality. And when it happens, I know I already have whatever I want in my life.