the road less travelled

Being mobile

2011-06-20T05:49:00.002Z

Lately I have been dreaming of cruisin' through Europe this summer in a dream car!

When you drive 3000Km like our family did 2 years ago, a comfortable car would be the choice but
for Zoe and me...when it comes to our dream car...it is:....? (Guess which one!)

Spring 2011

2011-05-08T13:34:00.000Z

all last months of blog lacking, now summarized in a short slide show..

I am excited!

2010-08-18T13:47:00.002Z

with these words my little girl opened the curtains today to let the sun shine into a new day...her birth day. For weeks she has been talking about the cakes, balloons, candles and all her friends. So today was the big day though the big party will be this Saturday on the beach.

Zoe jumped onto our bed and made sure Papa was not sleeping a minute longer. Actually, I had some work to do as the night before I made buckwheat pancake dough so now was the time to get into the heat and bake them. Hot chocolate sauce and cheery jam and her face was on "Happy".

Her entire day was activity packed and for Zoe, as long as there is good food and friends to share it with, she is entirely satisfied. In this aspect she is a real product of her Asian mum and Belgian gourmet dad...

later, I will post some pictures and further report of the day, plus her own little, short and sweet prayer..

Happy Birthday to me, to me!

2010-01-22T15:57:00.003Z

Yup...another year added...amazing how time flies by! And whenever I read the news paper obituaries, I realize many of my age have passed on. So, every day now is a bonus and I am going to enjoy every moment of it while giving thanks to God.

This evening, we celebrated at "Marche" in the newly opened "313 @ Orchard" .. nice roesty, salda and finally a sweet cake made by Cheryl and Zoe today!

Here are some pics!

My 4Xth birthday @ Marche Swiss restaurant

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Happy Birthday Jesus !!

2009-12-26T05:57:00.004Z

and a meaningful time to all of you to ponder on what the birth of Jesus really meant for al mankind.

No tree this time but with balls in a rather ... strange musical performance, to wish you a

Merry Christmas !!

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Swine flu

2009-11-10T13:03:00.005Z

I wrote a bit on swines on my nutrition blog. These poor animals! Never created to be eaten, just to wander around in dirty mud and eat whatever they like.
Then some weird homo sapiens decided to chase it, kill it and grill it over an open fire, with all the fat on it ... it just tasted soooOOOO yummie!
After centuries of "serving humanity" as so called food, it gets the whole world wide blame for causing a flu! Wow, and what if it was all man-made? hahaa...

HOW TO FIGHT IT OFF?

Well ... as some world leader in Asia said: "Be resilient! Excercise, keep working, keep living, eat well and ..." ... urhhhhh ... and still eat swine ???

Cruisin' Europe

2009-08-25T11:58:00.002Z

Whenever I am on the road and in a car traveling throughout Europe I marvel at the great roads, fast speeds and especially the changing landswcape as you go from country to country and even while changing provinces!

Last 2 weeks, we were in Nuernberg, Rheinfelden, drove home via the German Wine Route and the Loreley, Rhine Route.

Then we visited some friends in Belgium and Brussel and believe it or not we even took a one day trip to Amsterdam by train.

Give us some time to make a selction of the pics and will upload soon.

This is also our last week as a family together in Belgium.

Orval: peace, nature, meditation ...

2009-07-20T13:35:00.007Z

I did drink the "Trappist beer" in my early 20'ies and it was only now that I visited the place.

The Abbey d'Orval (Vallis Aurelis or Latin for Golden Valley) is located in the Belgian Ardennes, a serene piece of wonderfully created nature.

A mineral water well attracted 1000 years ago the first settlers; monks from the south who built nearby the church building and monastry ( for more details, see www.orval.be ).

The water of the "Mathilda" well still serves the brewery and cheese factory. 24,000 bottles of artisanally brewed Trappist beer are bottled every hour. And they do not keep much inventory!!

Enjoy the slideshow!

or click here.

Cheryl's birthday

2009-06-20T05:05:00.004Z

Our family enjoyed the outdoors last Thursday, celebrating Cheryl's birthday with some special friends.

In the morning we had brunch at the Courtyard. Sharon made a lovely birthday bread ( as Cheryl like bread more than cakes, especially when they are home made with love! ), cup cakes, chocolate (yes: even Belgian choc !) and banana toasties. Zoe and Asher had great fun seeing Mummy making it all before their eyes.

In the late afternoon, we had a pic-nic at the Botanical Gardens. Mats on the grass, display the food and marvelous Andrew and Michelle brought a nice French Merlot, crackers, Boursin and blue cheese. As the saying goes in France: "Du vin, du pain et du Boursin" Basically: wine, bread and cheese. What else you need? Some good company who brought it all!
Watch the fun commerical by clicking this link. Boursin! ( I am looking forward to bringing Cheryl to the wheat field for a pic-nic ! )

Will upload some picture slide show later for you to enjoy...

Standing up for truth

2009-04-22T15:21:00.000Z

No Compromise, even if it can cost you your bread and butter, fame or career opportunities or position in your organisation.

I marvel at the confidence Carrie showed at the Miss USA elections.

She was asked the question if she "opposed gay marriage" and she boldly said: YES!

I can only applaud this and especially in a perverted and morally-on-the-drift-California. It is time people stand up for what is right and not for what is perceived to be acceptable.

History has shown that communities or even countries who depart from certain clear and right principles and moral structures, they invoke major damaging issues for the society and generations to come.

Read her interview here: on BBC or FOX NEWS

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Antwerpen Centraal

2009-04-21T07:33:00.008Z

In a few months time, I will most likely arrive in this train station from Paris on my way home for summer holidays in Antwerpen.

The station is an absolute historical monument and among of the few remaining grand central stations left in Europe.

Just to see a performance in an environment like this thrills me to be back home! and ... it made my day today!

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Resurrection

2009-04-09T14:36:00.006Z

Easter, Pesach, Passover ... Resurrection. Not just new life, but old life turned new, eternal.

At a time as this, Easter, one thing can not be overseen: LIFE...and He who gives it.

I just saw this LIFE shocking VDO of a person who was meant to be dead but rose from it. Resurrection. Without too much of my own words....

(For more info on the speaker, click here)
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Lights Off ! Candles on ?

2009-03-28T05:02:00.005Z

http://www.earthhour.org

What started in 2007 with a group of concerned people in Sydney became a world wide movement.

It reminds me of the Global Day of Prayer, which also started by the Vision of one man, a south African business man, Mr. Power who turned the whole idea in a global movement.

When I was in my teens, I wanted to change the world by becoming a man like in the film "Swordfish", in my 20'ies I thought I could do that by changing groups of people, in my 30'ies I was just figuring it out all again and now in my 40'ies .. I am just struggling to change my own heart and make it become more Christlike.

Enjoy the clip below and remember: switch off your lights and utilities at home, even your laptops or PC, sit in the dark and do some reflections, prayers and see what you can do to change the world.

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Feeding thousands.. it has been done before!

2009-03-24T16:05:00.004Z

The other day we were singing this song and I was remembered again of the Biblical record of our dear friend, the passionate Jesus who blesses the poor, destitute, sick, broken hearted and feeds the poor.

Bad news: this current crisis, which may last for 7 years, will cause many of the above.

Good news: Jesus is still the same today as he will be tomorrow.

Let God minister to your soul and heart as you listen and read following lyrics of this beautiful song..

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Global Warming - Feeding the Poor

2009-03-21T05:34:00.009Z

Last week I was a bit shocked to hear that one church community in Singapore raised 19 m S$ in one day for its building fund.

Only a day before I met up with a group of business people ( NRV ) who are helping a local community of islanders in the Pacific to feed themselves by catching life fish and exporting it to affluent Hong Kong. They have been raising funds ( an investment with ROI ) for 6 months !!

Watch below clip of the beautiful Carterets Islands and consider next time you raise funds: are you feeding the poor (Jesus' command) or are you building human edifices (whose command?) such as Cathedrals, church temples, etc...

http://www.youtube.com/watch !

Where in some areas the water is raising, in others it is receding, like in the case of the 4th largest sea, the Aral Sea. Once again man screwed up. Though, it seems here the process is reversible.

The Promised Land

2009-03-16T14:28:00.004Z

It has been nearly 10 years since I visited Israel for the first time. It left an everlasting impression on me.

It is really an amazing place. A land highly divided and revered by many different Faiths. Recently, I have been pondering over the idea to join a local "Kibutzim" and live my faith in an agricultural community.

But what do we really know about Israel? Why are only the jews criticized in the modern media and sympathy goes only to the Palestinians? Why do we call it "occupied land" and occupied by whom?

Have a look at the below film.

Warning: you may not agree with what you see because this may not be what people lied or falsly taught you before. So, have an open mind and educate yourself.

Truth about Israel, God's Holy Land with an ternal destiny.

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Pro life

2009-03-10T17:22:00.003Z

The name of my daughter is Zoe, it means life...eternal life in Greek.

Today I was shocked to see this about life.

How life is murdered in the womb.

I somehow 'knew' that in China, India, USA and Europe...millions of babies are aborted every year.

That is more than in any other conflict, plague or world war.

Something can be done ... it starts with you and me!

See below info and VDO clip:

http://www.priestsforlife.org/images/index.aspx

Sorry for the debaters, but though I was born when I came out of my mothers womb, that was not the start of my life. That started at least 9 months earlier.

Conception = Life

Millenium Money Documentary

2009-02-10T17:28:00.009Z

Usually, I do not mention any commercial issues on this blog (see Gold Bounty instead) but since many of my friends only browse at this site, I decided to blog this very important VDO you MUST watch.

Pay special attention as from minute 105 onwards. It describes the "dishonest weights and scales" as mentioned in Proverbs 11:1, detested by God, but widely practised in the world financial system and most businesses ( especially in the banking and insurance industry - Fractional Reserve Banking )

Please carefully watch: it may prevent you from loosing what you have now... and do write me with any questions you have. Answering then is part of my job!

(click here to watch Millenium Money at the Google site)

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What song did they sing for my birthday?

2009-01-21T17:48:00.003Z

It is passed mid night and extactly at this time, but a few times zones away, and also many years ago, I was born.

Curious what song Zoe and Mum are going to sing for me tomorrow morning. I'd better take my camera to the bedroom to document it...

Andrew, Michelle and baby Rubin brought me to the beach. Du vin, du Boursin and du pain et le soleil, what else do you need with your family and good friends around?

The biggest birthday party

2008-12-25T16:08:00.003Z

Not just the biggest but also most widely celebrated globally: Happy Birthday Jesus Christ !!

Here's a clip of Zoe singing carols..

Let every heart prepare Him room

2008-12-06T09:48:00.004Z

This Sonday* is the second Advent of the season.

Advent is meant to be a time of personal preparation when we intentionally make room in our hearts for the coming of Christ into our lives, in an ever increasing kind of way!

Christmas has become a celebration of many wonderful things: the joy of families being together, the thrill of both giving and receiving gifts and the beauty of giving honor to those who should be honored and appreciated: parents, special friends and beloved ones..

All of these things are good things!

Tragically, the celebration of the birth of Christ and the desire to prepare ourselves for His coming into our lives, are more neglected than ever before! Christmas has been replaced by “Happy Holidays”, “ Season’s Greetings”, etc… either to be “politically” correct (as in some countries) or simply because people have lost the meaning or are ashamed.

Irony is that we want instant response from God more than we want intimate relationship with Him! Christ did not come to start a new religion. He came to teach us how to have a relationship with the Father in Heaven.

We are busy filling our lives with our pleasures rather than emptying our lives to make room for more of His presence!

Advent is our moment to set everything aside and re-arrange our priorities so that Christ can be our focus and the center of our Christmas celebrations!

'Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room'!!

May God help us all to do whatever needs to be done in order to make this a reality!

* I take the Liberty to call it the Lord's Day after the Son, not the sun

Respond to the Financial Crisis? Come out of Babylon!

2008-10-24T11:06:00.015Z

A German Church has been directly affected by the credit crunch. In recent years, its income (German's law offers churches income directly through the tax payer's "Kirchensteuer") has been hit by a drop in membership fees. But its expenses remained the same.

So, to boost the coffers, the local church put its faith (faith in what??) in financial markets and made an investment in Lehman Brothers. As a result, the church is set to lose its 4.3m-euro investment. Lehman Brothers securities were considered a good, safe investment, the church official said. (read the whole story in BBC)

Recently, I had to hear these stories very often how believers have lost vast sums of their portfolios. Even this week, during a teaching on how to respond to the financial crisis by a reknowed teacher, he himself admitted he lost in the 6 digits! ... what a testimony!

Where
has
the
commandmend

"feed my sheep" gone?

John 21:15

Where do we find in Scriptures we have to invest our hard worked money into financial markets (read: dishonest scales and weights, Proverbs 11:1) over which we have; 1/ no control, 2/ no wisdom how it works and 3/ most of the time, statistically lose money anyhow... ?

I think this is again a hard learned lesson on how we have to spend our money. At least the pastor ended his teaching wise, saying we have to go back to basics, take care of the poor people ( believe me there are enough of them and if you can't find them, just ask me...) and use our money for 2 things that will last: 1/ the Word of God and our Faith in Him (not in financial instruments where moth and rust will destroy) and 2/ in souls!! (the latter the most important!)

Make friends with your money (Luke 16:9) : feed a poor needy soul, help your neighbour, a colleague who got retrenched, a sick person with no medical treatement, a child or orphan in Africa, India, etc...

Jesus says in in Matthew 25:37 to 46 to feed the poor" 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me."...

So, please do not let me know you also have lost money on the stock exchange, funds, or any other financial debt instruments. It will break my heart, definitely God's and frustrates the poor child, still wondering why his prayers for his 'daily bread' are not answered...

As one commercial in the metro sytem warned. "If you do not know what the book is about, put it down." Likewise for investments: ... put it down: you have no idea how it works... If you want to know, read the book of J M Keynes, The Economic Consequences of the Peace, Chapter 6, Europe after the Treaty...then you will know...

"An anxious soul is a soul who constantly wonders how his investment is doing.
A soul at rest is a soul who knows he has helped a needy soul."
, JT Clierinck

Atheist UK Bus Campaign

2008-10-23T10:36:00.008Z

The UK Guardian reports that initial fundraising for an atheist advertising campaign on the buses of London raised nearly nine times the amount needed in less than 24 hours.

The bendy buses will display posters saying "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life" on 30 buses for four weeks.

According to the BBC (read more: click on this link), British Churches have actually encouraged the campaign, thanking Dawkins for "continued interest" in God and encouraging people to think about the issue.

A spokesman for the Church of England said it supports the promotion of any religious position through appropriate channels. A spokesman added: "Christian belief is not about worrying or not enjoying life. Quite the opposite: our faith liberates us to put this life into a proper perspective"

Atheist do not claim there is no God, actually they say "probably" and that may be true for many other people too. It is a bit like Paul addressing the Greek philosophers in Athens (much the equivalent of today's atheists) in the book Acts (17:22-27), introducing them the "unknown" God...

The Kingdom of God is not about a religion, but more about a relationship with a "known" God, a personal, living God.

Who is the lesser evil of the 2? Obama or Cain?

2008-10-14T03:28:00.004Z

Though I am not a Roman Catholic (*disclaimer) this clip makes a lot of sense, and lucky (blessed ?) I am not an American who needs to vote and make a choice out of these 2 clowns. I watched the presidential debates and none has a solution (secret maybe?) on any of the serious issues. Their words are carefully measured in such a way nothing is absolute and true.

One thing I know is that whoever becomes the next President, he is only a puppet and an extension of those who write his paycheck to fulfill the agenda of the same. Nothing more, nothing less, so let us not be deceived by nice words but discern the times.
I also notice that there are a lot of political systems being shaken right now. In Europe there is a political vacuum, pop star Sarkozy in France, the Belgian joke (without PM for a long time..), Berlusconi maffia, etc... and the "Lisbon Treaty" allowing a European President to be SELECTED, not voted... will create a powershift in this vacuum. One world government coming up you think?

(*) disclaimer: because the Pope is not my boss, Mary is not my intermediary and the saints not my idols. Simply because Jesus Christ is my only Lord and head of the Church, of whom I - according to the Scriptures - am a part of and saint myself. I pray to my Heavenly Father directly in the name of Jesus Christ and I am encouraged not to have any idols at all! Wow .. I hope I do not upset anybody, but that is what my Bible teaches me... Having said that I know many reformed Catholics who have become Biblical Christians or born again sons and daughters of the most high living God.

2 angel candles for Zoe

2008-09-28T07:09:00.000Z

Zoe’s birthday weekend (16-18 Aug) was very nice, with Heather visiting from Thailand, meeting Evelyn for a special steamboat dinner on Saturday, celebrating with a yummy mud pie from Island Creamery with her aunty Coco and friends from the church on Sunday, and a small balloon party with home-made berry crisp for dessert on Monday. She also received lots of beautiful gifts.

Zoe was most enthusiastic in singing the birthday song and blowing her birthday candles. In fact, we also celebrated Zoe’s Oma’s birthday 3 days before Zoe’s birthday with a small cake and made a video of greetings for her. So, Zoe had a lot of practice singing the birthday song…

Developing Her Own Personality

Zoe has become very chatty now… She utters a few words of Chinese but she talks mainly in English. Weiting, one of the students who helped to shortlist possible Chinese names for Zoe, also taught Zoe how to say “Xin Yi ke ai,” which means “Xin Yi is cute” and Zoe loves to say this. She remembered it after just one lesson! Zoe is also learning a few words of Flemish and French. We hope that she will be multi-lingual and feel comfortable in all kinds of cultures.

This month, she achieved a few milestones:

- Pronouncing her name clearly (Zo-ay and Xin Yi)
- Giving kisses properly
- Able to count to two
- Celebrating her 2nd birthday
- Able to go out without a diaper
- Climbing on a chair herself to reach a high shelf
- Getting her first real haircut - surprisingly with no fuss
- Choosing her own pair of sandals in her current favourite colour: purple

Zoe enjoys playing with other children, reading, colouring, stickers, play-doh, playing with her doll, puzzles, art and craft, pretending to slide down overturned chairs, lining up things to form a “train”, playing with bath foam, looking at pictures and videos, singing and dancing, swimming, playing outdoors, going for outings, and eating.

Though she is slim, she enjoys eating a lot, especially strawberries, kiwis, fish, chicken, biscuits, raisins, bread, chocolate, beans, barley, soup, chapati with dhal, oranges, mangoes, nuts, cake and ice-cream.

Thank God that up to now, Zoe has not yet tried sweets and lollipops and most salty snacks—though she likes potato chips, keropok and pappadams whenever she gets the rare chance to eat them... Hopefully, she will be able to stay away from unhealthy snacks as far as possible… and be happy eating vegetables, nuts, seeds, fruits and home-made delights…

We pray that in the year ahead, Zoe will be able to grow healthily and be free of illnesses, learn more about God her creator and understand all that we try to teach her so she can be a kind, loving and joyful girl who will light up the lives of everyone around her! ( by Cheryl )

Zoe Has A Chinese Name!

2008-09-26T08:59:00.000Z

In early August, after consulting some Chinese students, I finally decided on a Chinese name for Zoe: Xin Yi. Jan has a Chinese name (Zi Lin – Clierinck) given to him in Hong Kong, so Zoe will be known as

子霖馨熠
Zi Lin Xin Yi

This name was inspired by the character 馨 “xin” that appears in two bible verses:

Ephesians 5:1-2
5:1

所以你们该效法神，好像蒙慈爱的儿女一样。
5:2

也要凭爱心行事，正如基督爱我们，为我们舍了自己，当作馨香的供物，和祭物，献与神。

Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

2 Corinthians 2:15
2:15

因为我们在神面前，无论在得救的人身上，或灭亡的人身上，都有基督馨香之气。
For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing;
The character 馨“xin” means “fragrance that resonates like hollowed stones” and is often used to describe “fragrance” or “comfortable, gentle, warmth.”

The character 熠“yi” is used to refer to “radiance,” “glow,” “sparkling” and “light”.

Therefore, we hope that 馨熠 will be able to resonate the fragrance of Christ and radiate the light of Christ wherever she goes!

a wonderful transformation

2008-08-20T08:50:00.004Z

Can anything good come out of Hamas?

Well, ... click below link and read for yourself ...

Transformation

08 08 08 and the Beijing Olympics

2008-08-09T08:20:00.008Z

All eyes seem to be focused these days on the China Olympics and the triple 8 saga.

It is a premier for 205 nations to be gathered in Beijing for the first time in history. Hopefully not only an Olympic spirit will be spread.

888 is an auspicious number for the Chinese, mainly linked to prosperity.

In Biblical terms, 8 stands for new beginnings. So let us pray new beginnings may happen in China after the Beijing Olympics.

While one of my eyes is focused on Beijing, my other eye is focused on Zimbabwe, Africa and on the credit crunch in the USA. PM Lee of Singapore could not help not trying to find comforting words that it is all well with the economy. It is not. However, the games go on. Bread is still there, though it cost 25% more than last year in many countries.

Inflation is what they call it. Well, we ain't seen anything yet. The money factories aka banks continue printing paper. Most people live of credit (=indebted). The bubble will burst one day, like it has just done in Zimbabwe with hyper inflation (read this BBC story)
I pray yours will not burst....

Zoe met staartjes

2008-07-23T03:36:00.002Z

.. that is Dutch for 'Zoe with tails'

July 2008

Zoe usually walks around at home with wet hair. She is always very lively, playful and gets hot. With temperatures always above 30 C. one perspires easily and running an air con in every room at all times (especially with soaring energy prices!) it helps to tie up her hair. Even mine grows faster in this climate!!

Human artwork ...

2008-06-27T03:36:00.004Z

We may wonder what global warming could do to us or we could be pro-active.

Actually, I am already planning to move back to Europe as it is getting a bit too hot for me here and I like the outdoors.
Only hope by then the Swiss Alps will still have snow so I can throw snow balls with my kids before it all disappears.

No snow in the Alps = no fresh water supplies in rivers... H2O may become a precious and expensive commodity. Yet, I wonder: who really cares?
Are we good servants to the earth God has given to us? There is only one planet for us. God is not going to transpond us to another one ...

Together ... we MUST ... !

2008-05-15T15:58:00.002Z

Obviously, the majority of the people appearing in the clip, drive fancy cars, jet set around the world and actually do not give a blimmin' flip on recycling and global warming.
Simple reason: there is no money to be made of it.
It cost 4,000USD to recycle one ton of plastic compared to less than 100$ for one ton produced plastic, derived from oil which yields more $$$ in the pockets of the oil dealers and bankers. Ever thought who really runs the worlds economy? Politicians or bankers? Who pays who you think? Voila! ... But nice clip anyway...

Loss or gain?

2008-05-15T05:20:00.003Z

Sometimes in life we give up something to gain another.

This again was illustrated by one of Belgium's greatest athletes ever: Justin Henin.

After loosing her own mother at the age of 12, she was determined to reach her own goal in life, to become tennis champion. She left her father and siblings for that one goal.

At the age of 25 she reached everything she wanted: 7 grand slams and with it came huge gains.. millions of dollars.

But is this all man can dream of? Now she calls it quits ... goes back to her family and thinks of picking up her studies.

Or has she received a greater calling in life? Serving family, community, reconciling with her ex-husband?

So, what is more important in your life? Striving for the goals, career, business projects, financial gains or is there something more? ...

Sorry folks... no easter eggs this time ..

2008-03-24T03:15:00.014Z

.. because at this time, we celebrate the resurrection of Christ!

Saint Paul said: "I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection ... (Phil 3:10)

Earlier in the same book, Paul starts by saying: "Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don't look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

Though he was God,
he did not think of equality with God
as something to cling to.
Instead, he gave up his divine privileges;
he took the humble position of a slave
and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form,
he humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal's death on a cross. (Phil 2:1-8)

Christ's death is the ultimate act of obedience and sacrifice that still impacts us today.
His Love in us will enable us to obey. And the blessings of obedience far outweigh the cost.
It always has and always will.

May you be inspired by this video! (Especially the last 2 seconds of the clip!! )

(In case you are keen to know the origins of "easter", please click this LINK )

Gong Xi Fa Cai

2008-02-07T07:40:00.000Z

The "Hongbao" does not always have to containe cash, huh? Above Singapore Zoo Orang Utans received their red packets, marked with "Prosperity", filled with their favourite treat: melon seeds!

More to follow after the holidays: some pictures of the Orang Putih counting their hongbaos...

Double four

2008-01-22T16:03:00.000Z

Today I celebrated my 44th birth anniversary.

But I will only share with you in a few days how my day looked like..

2008... here I come!

2008-01-16T07:26:00.000Z

Welcome to 2008!!

Yo Jan, a bit late no?

Well, unlike other years, I started this year not in good fashion. For weeks I was struggling with, what I believed a pulled shoulder muscle, but on Jan. 1st ... I could no longer lift my right arm, had tremendous pains and decided to seek medical attention. Needless to say that my 5 hours at the A&E were not pleasant in line with many others queuing to be cared for.

I was to see the specialist on Jan.17, but I insisted that this is Singapore! Patients from afar travel here for medical treatment and I had to wait for 14 days?? So, the next day I saw the doc who deduced from the X-ray results that possibly one disc in my neck had bulged or slipped and caused a nerve to be pinched.

Pinched? I felt like the nerve was cut!! So, the first 8 days of this year I spent lying on my left side only on the bed and the sofa, numbed by painkillers. No turning, no moving, no stretching, no playing with Zoe, etc... Then finally, a few days ago, the situation improved a bit and I put together a VDO clip of our last Christmas.

Click on below to enjoy it!

My 'Christmas' message for this year

2007-12-22T15:35:00.000Z

Why not say it with a VDO clip this time?

This year my circle of friends have decided not to give each other gifts, but raise the funds and bless a home for destitute children with a game party and vouchers!!

Though the meaning of Christ Jesus' birth has become very, very meaningful to me, the "festive season" - or at least how I see most people enjoying it - raised a lot of questions for me.
The wrapped gifts, the shopping, the dinners - one more indulgent than the other - the decorations, etc...

It all vapourizes compared with the greatest Gift of all: Jesus Christ. Thank you Heavenly Father!!

(double click on the picture to enlarge the image)

Water Festival

2007-11-08T15:27:00.000Z

water play at ACS ground and high tea

Okay for this one, it was just me and Zoé! No other kid, no Mum ... and I had fun for 2 hours just watching her how she gradually became more wet and very dirty by climbing on all the equipment at the play ground.
It was only when the mozzies came out to bite me, I withdrew with an empty pail and a soaked Zoé!!
She was ready for a nice soapy bath at home...
Today was Deepavali, an Indian festival and a day off ... which meant for me: meeting one of my new business partners in the morning and a nice scone and tea afternoon with Wendy and Angeline Gisele (Cheryl's younger sister) at Holland Village ...

Is there any more sand?

2007-11-06T16:14:00.000Z

Is there any more sand?

I will have Mummy Cheryl ask to write down her comments because I was not there!

On a Safari

2007-11-04T13:07:00.000Z

Singapore Zoo -021107

Whenever we take Zoé out for a walk, she is always attracted by the birds hopping around and the cats lying near the guard house. We thought that taking her to a Zoo would really impress her.

From above slideshow, you can see she liked the parrots and toucans a lot (maybe because that was all in the beginning and she was still fresh and alive)
Walking around the zoo, also gives you the opportunity to see a lot of leaves and pebbles on the ground. At least now she does not put them into her mouth anymore!

I reckoned she was more excited about the entire new scenery than all the animals together. Though she watches them curiously, one can not say that she is either in awe or just not very impressed.

At the end we observed the urang utans, one with a small baby and one baby hanging around in the tree. Again, Zoé was looking attentively .. yet it is hard to say what really goes around in her mind seeing these primates. After 2 hours she had enough and fell asleep on my back.

It was fun for dad & mum, Sharon, and the 2 other kids: playmate Asher and Jeanine. For Zoé it was still too early to take it all in, I guess. Hopefully, we will take her within the next few years to visit our friends in South Africa and go for a real Safari!

coping to assimilate

2007-10-09T03:46:00.000Z

After spending 2 months in Belgium, it is hard to get back in the Singapore routine. Wife and child had 2 weeks advance on me, but I can simply not get in the ritme. The weather is extremely hot and humid and after enjoying the European dry summer and even get a nice tan, it is hiding from sun and humidity again here in Singapore!

Though shortly after my return, I teamed up with 2 local businessmen in a new venture and got into some work, my sleepless nights still make it difficult to slip into a normal pattern.

Zoe has become very independent and does not want to sit with Daddy a lot, she knows where to get her food and explores the world in her own ways. My Mum said, I was not very different that when I had my first 3-wheel bycicle I adventured off and got to the main road watching cars passing by till one of them stopped, trying to find the Mum of the lost child!!

I am also trying to cope with the "living aspect" of Singapore. Especially after travelling through Europe a bit (Netherlands, Germany, Czech and Belgium) I see the quality of life one can get there. Most of my friends have done very well, and live in comfortable homes (my next dream is to have one myself).

On the other hand, the work/business opportunities are not that great in Europe and I was always hoping to make enough money to kind of semi-retire somewhere in Europe. Is Asia the right environment for our child(ren) to grow up? Will they not be soaked up in the rat race of making $$$ instead of living a life?

Happy birthday Zoe

2007-08-31T10:35:00.000Z

Thanksgiving

It’s a happy day
I thank God for the weather
It’s a happy day
I’m living it for my Lord
It’s a happy day
Things are gonna get better
Living each day by the promises of God’s word…

This is a song I sometimes sing to Zoe in the morning. It was truly a happy day to thank God for the weather as 18 August 2007 in Belgium was a beautiful sunny day – not that frequent in Belgium!

Zoe was in a very joyful mood when she woke up, singing and clapping her hands… I am reminded of the verse that God spoke to me the week before her birth –

“The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with Hois Love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.” Zephaniah 3:17

This verse had encouraged me at a time when Zoe was in a breech position and seemed to be headed towards a caesarian birth. I believed that God was watching over both of us and was rejoicing over her birth. Now, one year on, we rejoice at God’s faithfulness for watching over her first year and granting her good health and spirits!

Morning Walk

Seeing the fine weather, we decided to bring Zoe to a nearby park to have a walk and visit the animals there.

Since our trip to Prague and Germany, Zoe has been practicing walking by making us hold one of her hands and walking with her to wherever she wants to go.

Today, Jan decided to let her try walking on her own a little… Zoe was too excited to notice herself taking her first steps on clover… (see clip)

Unfortunately, we couldn’t get too close to the deer and rabbit – they were very shy and ran away from her.

Zoe’s encounter with ducks and geese was enhanced by a boy coming to feed them bread. The ducks and geese rushed towards the pieces of bread and gobbled them up greedily.

Zoe has learned that a cat is called “Poes” or “Pu” as she calls them … She was thrilled to meet a friendly cat in the park.

There were lots of things to explore in the park, but not enough time. Zoe picked up a pebble and also a thorny chestnut xxx and then we headed home for lunch and her afternoon nap.

Birthday Party

We organized a very small tea party for Zoe in the afternoon, followed by a dinner with Jan’s family.

Zoe had a fantastic time at her tea party, playing with balloons, opening presents and eating a selection of fruit, cereals and snacks. She was soon playing happily with her new toys and walking around with her guests…

She also took some steps on her own towards Papa! (see clip)

Later in the evening, we presented Zoe with her first birthday cake garnished with mixed fruits, cream and chocolate sprinkles. Zoe was entranced by her cake and reached out enthusiastically for the fruit… Strawberry, red berries, kiwi, passionfruit, peach, nectarine… She ate almost everything on the cake!

After enjoying her cake, it was bedtime for Zoe. I prayed for her that her next year will be a time of growth in experiencing God and that she will grow in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

Praise God for a blessed day!

(Jan is putting together a slide show and some VDO clips...so see a few days later!!)

Zoé a la Table

2007-06-18T07:45:00.000Z

... at the table, eating Mama's yummie food.

We are really blessed with Zoé, being a baby who likes to experiment food and eats everything we have offered her sofar.

One of her recent likings is bread. She stuffs her own mouth full with pieces of whole grain bread and loves it.

The other thing she loves is fruit. Since Papa is experimenting with fresh fruits and vegetables on his new twin gear juicer (see my other nutrition blog), there is always fresh produce available and she gets to eat from it. She does not even have her favourite fruit and flavours them all: banana, cantaloupe, plum, strawberry, kiwi, mango, grapes, pear, apple...

The other day she was sucking on a broccoli stem and we had difficulty getting the piece out of her mouth... I mean: she grabbed it and could choke on it.

Needless to say, with the choice of food, we try to go as organic and natural as we can, which also helps Daddy to control his weight (now 101Kg, still 11 to go!)

Interested in seeing Zoé's table manners? Here is the clip!

Zoé a la Plage Sentosa

2007-06-18T05:00:00.000Z

Mike and I have some things in common. We are married to a Singaporean Chinese, have a daughter, work most of the times from home and have a lot of time flexibility.

Hence we used a weekday to visit Sentosa's beaches with our kids and let them have a feel of the water, sea, sand and a picnic at Cafe Del Mar.

Please click on below YouTube VDO clip, which I made for the very first time, using MS Movie Maker and the clips made with a digital camera. I love this new hobby of mine!

Mike and I agreed to make a similar visit with our kids at least once a month.

Finding a Chinese Name for Zoé

2007-06-08T15:57:00.000Z

Finding an English name for a baby girl wasn’t too hard. I thought that it would be nice to have a short and simple name.

I did like quite a lot of names but they were for one reason or another not appropriate. Finally, a visit to the website biblical-baby-names.com sealed the choice when I found out that Zoé – pronounced Zo-ay – meant “eternal life” and was part of one of my favourite verses – “I am the way, the truth and the life (zoe)” – John 14:6

Great! If we have a girl, she will be called Zoé. The tough choice was for the boy’s name. Up to the day of the birth, we still hadn’t decided on a boy’s name.

So, thankfully, we came up with the name Zoé Hanne on the third day of Zoé’s life. Hanne is a Dutch variation of Hannah as we wanted her to have a European name.

As the choice of an English name had taken us months, we didn’t even try to think of a Chinese name out of the thousands of possibilities…

However, now that we have more time, energy and inspiration, the search for a Chinese name is ON!

Zoé Hanne means eternal life – the wonder of living and favoured grace.

I think it would be nice to give Zoé a Chinese name that adds on to her English name. I am still thinking of possibilities…

Zoé loves water, nature, people… She is lively, joyful, expressive, introspective, adventurous, likes traveling and exploring, enjoys playing with all kinds of people, likes music and dancing…

An idea of what we desire for her…

For her life to make an impact in this world as a blessing to the nations, for her to be a sensitive, spirit-filled messenger of God who demonstrates God’s power to speak life, healing, love, truth and freedom…

For someone who is able to appreciate the arts, the sciences, sports, nature, culture… and at the same time is full of practical wisdom and ability to use all her senses as well as spiritual intuition…

For someone who will be engaging, intelligent, caring, loving, fun, adaptable, gracious, passionate, courageous, radical, street-smart, and pure.

Which two characters would be able to encapsulate all the above into a beautiful and meaningful name for Zoé? Our target is to select a name before her 1st birthday. We will hold a special christening ceremony for our dear one and pray prophetically over her life as we give Zoé her new Chinese name!

(By Cheryl)

Cheryl & Zoe

@ Cafe Del Mar

2007-06-05T11:42:00.001Z

For our second wedding anniversary, we returned to the Island where we were married 2 years ago: Sentosa!

Though I had listened to the tunes of the Cafe Del Mar lounge music in some places in Bangkok before, I had to wait till there was actually a Cafe Del Mar (click on the link and enjoy some of the chill out music!!) opening in this region.

Sentosa is being revamped with new eateries, clubs on the South Beaches, soon an integrated resort (read: legalized gambling den) and other attractions. A direct sky train link from Vivo City all the way to Siloso Beach makes the trip easy with kid(s).

Honestly, I liked the setting: end of the day, a cool breeze, right on the beach and the sun setting, table next to the pool... But where there is water, booze and a couple of hot headed tourists, there is also noise!

We enjoyed the snack meal, a mojito and a digestive walk on the beach sand, watching the end of a light and sound spectacle and a silent prayer under the stars before heading back to my in-laws to pick up Zoé .. sorry my dear kid .. we'll take you another time to the beach!

Cafe Del Mar

Eat what you want?

2007-03-03T07:09:00.000Z

I have been enjoying my week after Chinese New Year with indulging myself in nature's goodness: fruits and vegetables.
I must admit that eating raw vegetables can be a bit tedious and if it is not converted and tossed into a nice salad with tasty herb and olive oil dressing, it can be a bit boring too.
Hence, I have been juicing or blending most of it ( without the dressing that is! )

Lunch today!
5 colours per day ... click to check site..
Apart from shedding some kilo's ( I am trying and beating my body to loose 19 Kilo's - from 109 to 90 ) in short time without doing strenuous exercise or following a "starvation diet", I am also fasting and praying for my healing and spiritual preparation for Easter and Pesach celebrations (more on this later..).

My last doctor's check up revealed elevated LDL-Cholesterol levels (4.4mmol/L, should be <2.6) on top of a dehydrated, flattened 2 lower disc.
In addition to depending on Jesus Christ for my healing, I am also taking responsibility to make sure I eat the right food.

As below funny French commercial suggests; we could eat healthy without depriving ourselves. Ever thought about the 'French food paradox' ? They drink red wine ( in modesty, please! ), eat mostly Mediterranean style food with olive oil and salads, consume butter, “ Boursin fromage et du pain” and at the same time count themselves among the least with cardio vascular diseases, cholesterol problems, cancer, etc...!

As to the butter: a funny, but true quote on a Dutch Food & Health web read:
"As to butter and margarine, I'd rather trust cows than chemists!"

( Mind you: strongly suggest the sex part in the boundary of marriage only! )

Valentine ... you give a little Love and ...

2007-02-15T07:01:00.000Z

"You give a little Love
and it all comes back to you..
You gonna be remembered
for the things you said and do...La la laa..."

See the VDO clip below which is an old Coke add (which I do not endorse!) but I like the add, especially when he turns around the guys carrying the billboards.

A Happy & Healthy Birthday in Bangkok

2007-02-06T07:28:00.000Z

Traditionally, because I have done so for the last 10 years, I celebrate my birthday in Thailand. Mostly, I choose some idyllic island or mountain region, but after I missed out on Krabi in 2004 (Tsunami) and fortunately did so, it has been Bangkok since. This time the occasion was also to attend a seminar and meet our good friends in Bangkok, many of whom have not seen Zoé in Live… (Ha! .. her name means life!)

This was also Zoé’s 4th country visit in her 5 months..and she likes traveling!

One night, my dear friends James and Patty, invited us for a wonderful open air Thai dinner and on my birth date (22nd), another couple - who have been instrumental in our lives - Rasael and Amie took us for a Persian meal. Our host, Heather, made us feel at home in her condo and after Cheryl and Zoé flew back to Singapore, I was kindly invited to stay on with Rasael for another week. I managed to catch up with some friends and share my testimony at a workshop held for singles, on how I managed to remain ‘cool’ in my 7 years of single hood, while waiting for my bride..to propose to me.

Bangkok is a 15 million mega city and yet I ran into and ex business partner of 10 years ago: Jason and his wife Vivian. Jason is a nutrition and diet expert. We went for a drink and he shared a lot of insights in diet and exercise. Cheryl and I went for a ‘skin carotenoid score’, to find out that at a level of 26,000 units (Cheryl:21,000), I am far below the benchmark of 35,000 and the optimal goal of +50,000. So... more super antioxidant food on my plate from now!!

Back in Singapore, my wife passed me a belated birthday present last night, a book titled: “Health & Wellness “ by Jordan Rubin. He was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease and felt triggered by God to eat according to Scriptures and exercise, so the temple of God should not de defiled but used for His purpose.

Rubin ate himself healthy again by fresh fruits & vegetables, exercise and meditation on God’s Word.

Here some pictures of Jordan

Before .............. after.......

Click on this web site for more details
http://www.biblicalhealthinstitute.com
for your free introductory course, called “Whole Food Nutrition Supplements 101.”

Cheryl’s prayers were also that I may have healthy and energetic years ahead. Right now, I am a ‘bit’ overweight with a BMI of 30KG/m2 (should be 18-25)and over 30% body fat… so it is a good time to start 2007 and my 43rd year to take care of this temple and make sure that my next decades will be healthier and more energetic!
So, in advance: thank you all for your prayer support and useful advice on how to achieve this goal. (Comments are welcome!)

Click on below picture to see a short slide show of our Bangkok trip.

... here is Pa, trying to see if daughter
likes to taste some chocolate of the
birthday cake!

(she did not attempt to lick it...)

Vend it like Beckham

2007-01-13T15:19:00.000Z

The talk in sports town is definitely the record amount spent on a football player not even worth to start in the first team of Madrid.

David even mentioned in his interview that some of his colleagues were laughing when he mentioned the amount of his new contract. My thoughts were: who is going to pay for all of this? The money needs to come from somewhere.
If it is not the banks that are cashing in fortunes out of fractional reserve banking and providing loans for such transactions, these astronomical ( or should I say galactical now?) funds must be somehow hidden in your Gillette shavers, Pepsi drinks or all his other marketing endorsements.

Someone has to pay the bill, there is no free lunch in this world.

Or is it Posh lured by the ‘Hollywood glory’ or was it Tom Cruise who succeeded in converting his buddy to become a Scientologist and be relatively safe in crazy California (rather than for example Germany, where they booted Cruise out because of his lobbying with the government to get legal status for his cult) Whatever the reason, I pray Beckham will not donate all his new marketing revenues into the promotion of the Scientologists, like Tom and John Travolta are doing.. but that he may use these funds to get the stoned and addicted from LA streets, help the less priviledged, homeless in the golden welfare state and get them to play some soccer. Maybe then, like in Brazil, some of these street soccers become good at it and make their own living.

DB claims his motive is to promote football or soccer in the US. Ha! What the US needs is not another giant franchise league, producing sport idols, but some people getting the Americans off the entertainment trap and back on track!

At last, I feel sorry for all the ladies in Europe who enjoyed seeing their star on TV, guessing on what hairstyle he would don next… What’s next? For Madrid, no worries, they will offload some 10 older players and buy fresh blood in the legs. For ManU: Fergie is building a new and young team, same as his buddy Arsene Wenger, who rather invest in youth programs than letting cash dictate them. Afterall: football is a sport ... no?

Starting a new year

2007-01-12T08:54:00.000Z

Many make new resolutions every year. Usually, I take the old ones, refresh them to SMART rules and live them out again..

This year I decided to start anew by making a major decision. After working 5 years for a medical firm that I help setting up with a few Taiwanese business men in Thailand, ... I quit! I even removed the link on this blog!

Sometimes leaving a ship that is neither floating nor sinking, is not easy. If another big ship comes along, one may decide to jump on that one or when a fast moving speed boat flashes by, hop on that one and move on… This time, I jumped into the sea… no floats… open sea… I am not sure what shore I will wash onto. It may be a stormy sea, lots of waves, lot of salt to swallow, maybe nothing in sight for some time, just bobbing around, where does my help come from?

My help comes from the Lord, in whom I trust .. (Psalm 121) .. funny One 2 one …!?

The Reason for The Season

2007-01-09T10:34:00.000Z

Wow, the Christmas season flew by so fast! We did not even buy presents for one another..
4 weeks before, Orchard Road and shopping malls were decorated and as soon the new year hit, all disappears… so it is all the more about $$$...

For me, Christmas becomes every year less and less a season I am looking forward to. Not because it is not important, but because I more and more celebrate the reason for it every day so there is not so much of a peak at the end of the year. By the way, according to some historians and Bible scholars, December 24 was not the real date but some time in spring…come to think of it: Israel is a cold country and mobilizing people for a census in the winter would not have been the ideal timing..

I only sent out 5 Christmas cards: mainly to my family. This year I wrote the above title on it, then explained that Jesus was born, died for our sins making the way to our Father in Heaven (i.e. God, for those who may wonder about my own dad…), resurrected, went to Heaven and is still alive today … I did not talk about: peace, happiness, good love life, luck, good health, etc… because my wish is not going to make that happen, but a relationship with God does…so why promise empty claims!?

E-cards for Christmas did also not work well this year. Cyber traffic is still a bit slow as reparations are being done on the undersea cables off the coast of Taiwan. How fragile this whole internet web is! Now I understand how world economy can collapse if just a few simultaneous failures happen at one time…just to learn one should not put too many eggs in that basket!

This entry will also have no pictures, because our camera got stolen on Christmas eve, while taking pictures on Orchard Road…so at least for somebody else it was a Christmas with a ‘new’ camera … and for me, I should never assume that Singapore is a safe place.

If any of you know of a good second hand digital camera for sale…LET me know!!

First time in Belgium for Zoé

2006-12-07T10:59:00.000Z

Even though we have been back for 4 weeks, a lot of memories from our recent trip to Europe are still fresh.

It was our first major trip with the new family. The day of our departure was very hectic as we did not only had to pack for baby Zoé, we also had to move to a new studio. On top of that Zoé, highly disturbed by the moving frenzy, was very unsettled, crying and needed to be fed constantly. My hopes of a smooth 12 hour flight to Amsterdam slowly faded. By the time our friend Sham picked us up, she calmed down a bit and to our great amazement, she slept throughout the flight in her personal cradle! ( I must admit, that little bed of hers, completely horizontal, with pillow and blankets, is better than what first class travelers get! … and me seated behind the bulk head, took my pillow and blanket and decided to sleep on the floor. First time I ever slept on a flight! )

Once arrived in Amsterdam, unlike first time visitors, Zoé peed on Dutch soil! Reason was that in the arrival hall, no diaper change room was available and she could not hold (babies usually don't do that!) In between a dirty and a clean diaper she saw chance to wet the hall floor! The Pope kisses the floor, Zoé pies on it!

The reason for this whole trip was to show our first born to my Mum and family. Whilst in maternity leave and me without any office commitments, this was a good chance for us to travel home.

Second reason was that we also wanted to have a baby dedication for her in Belgium. ( See below for more )

Our trip was blessed with good weather ( highly unusual sunny and dry at this time of the year! ), seeing many friends and spending quality time with Mum and my brothers and sister. Cheryl also had a chance to see a bit more of the village I grew up in and see other cities like: Brugge (Bruges or the Venice of the North), Antwerp and Brussels.

Belgium is widely known for its chocolates ( Pralines, we call them ) and the artisanal-more-than-400-beers.. Cheryl and I savored some of the fruit beers and we brought a kilo of chocolates back for a chocolate party for her colleagues.

For some pictures and comments, please click on the picture below:

First time in Belgium

Zoé´s Dedication

2006-10-30T11:29:00.000Z

... a few Sunday´s back, we invited the family and our close friends to Zoé´s dedication in a nearby church. It was the same place where my eldest brother John and his wife Jeanine got married and where their 2 children received their baptism.

Though our 'baptism' was slightly different! The resident priest, who kindly offered us the use of his church building, offered some prayers and my dear friend Pastor Terry, who explained me the Gospel of Jesus Christ and led me to receive Jesus Christ 10 years ago, shared on some Biblical principles. On top, Zoé and Terry are born on the same day.

We had also asked everybody to write down their prayers and or wishes for Zoé on a leaf and then hang it in her ´tree of life´, my sister made with some branches and flowers from her own garden. Lest did we know that one the way back home, my brother John carried the tree in the wind and some of the leaves got lost. We only found out, when Mum walked back from church the next Sunday and saw some of them on the ground! Mmmmh ... John must have had his mind on something else!

Our dedication service was one more of thanking God for His perfect Gift of Zoé and that we as parents will make it our responsibility to raise Zoé in Biblical principles and the knowledge of Jesus Christ, so that one soon day, she can make her own decision to follow a personal walk with Jesus and receive water baptism and follow God in his ways.

Please click below to see some more pictures of the dedication:

Dedication of Zoe in Belgium

It is a beautiful day !!

2006-09-23T04:01:00.000Z

Yesterday, I was working out in the gym at the school campus (found out that with my metabolism, this is the only way to loose weight and remain fit) and a pleasant radio tune waved through the room that I did not hear for ages.

"It's a beautiful day... Don't let it go away...It's a beautiful day.. Don't let it go away... Touch me, take me to that other place....." I asked my Cheryl if she had the album of U2 - all that you can not leave behind and ... yes! So, this morning I played the song and declared IT A BEAUTIFUL DAY ... the day the Lord has made ...

I was also reflecting on the lyrics: take me to that other place.. The last few days I was going through some teaching about Heaven and on how easy it is to be IN that place WITH God .. and here comes that song of U2 reminding me!

It is going to be a beautiful day! Carpe Diem

(wish I could put the song in MP3 format on my blog to download..in case you do not ahve the album...)

One month anniversary

2006-09-18T16:25:00.000Z

It was a rainy day that disrupted many of our plans today. We took Zoe to the polyclinic for a vaccination.. Oh, my dear … what an agony! We have learned that whenever she cries we have to act promptly or the fanfare breaks loose! After lightly disturbing the waiting room in the clinic and receiving a lot of attention ( maybe later on, this may turn out to be a good skill!? ) , Cheryl had to breastfeed Zoe all the way into the doctor’s cabinet..then I was called in to keep her in a wrestling grip, so she would not slip way while the nurse gave her the jab…Oh, dear… she did not like that at all and her crocodile tears really swept away any dirt still left in her eyes!

Then a bit of calm, having a tea and roti prata at a local muslim food stall and Mum took off to a nearby pharmacy to get some stuff. It only took 25 minutes and I thought I was going to enjoy reading a book in the nearby library. Ha! … as soon as we entered, Zoe started the fanfare again and I had to change her diapers .. so, back to the food stall. Then after being ‘pampered’ she did not stop crying for a full 20 minutes, and I thought I was going to enjoy watching a Spanish La Liga match on TV there … Ha! … it did not stop until the ‘milk provider’ returned and took her up to a friend's flat for a solemn breastfeed!

And if the food does not come immediately, Zoe has found a new way to pacify herself .. her thumb!!

One learns to relativate the concept of time ...

Another History In The Making ...

2006-09-17T16:48:00.000Z

In 1998, I met Ps Enoch Adejare Adeboye at Dennis Balcombe's church in Hong Kong. He delivered one of the first messages on prayer that I heard and it left an impact on me for ever.

Afterwards, during lunch, I mentioned that our paths would cross in the future.

In 2002, I crossed paths with one of his people in Antwerpen, Ps Mike (who helped us out with our wedding in Belgium last year). We pray walked the entire city and he has since started one of the most flourishing churches in our province, if not in the whole of Flanders!

Hoogboom wedding Pentecost 2005

Then last year, a flamboyant and big smiling Chidi and his wife, Laitan started attending our fellowship. We soon clicked and became good friends and prayer partners.

Today, Ps Adeboye dedicated RCCG with Chidi and Laitan as the founding pastors of the church. Again a handful of faithful and FULL of FAITH people starting a new history through whom many transformations will be seen in peoples lives in this region and beyond.

Of course, we took Zoe along and soon she was being picked up by one of the African sisters and softly cuddled into a deep sleep ...

A Few Good Men ... and the rest is :

2006-09-16T16:41:00.000Z

'History Makers' was the theme of the 15th Anniversary of Hope Church. A few good men (among which my now senior Pastor Benjamin Lee), fresh grads from the land of Oz, returned to Singapore with a vision to plant a church.

This week end, 15 years later, we witnessed how that celebration had to take place in the Expo, because our own sanctuary can not hold the complete congregation in one single service.

It reminds me again of how simple the Great Commission is, when only we would obey and trust God for the outcome and it only needs : ... a few good men (and women) who are willing to fulfill what is closest to God's heart.

History Makers...

Among the 3,000 men congregation, was also the youngest attendant at less than one month! Zoe enjoyed her first time at a church celebration. Even the loud worship music did not bother her. She was either amuzingly moving in her prem, sleeping or being fed by Mum in the hall.

After the service we joined our ex care group for a great tasting Vietnamese dinner. At the end, Zoe became a bit impatient, her face turned red and that was the signal for Dad to take her out for a diaper change. And she was so kind to us to let us enjoy the dinner in length that immediately after the change, her face kept red as now this was the sign for Mum to feed her again.

Actually, quite easy those infants: sleep, feed, cry and then there are two options: either she is hungry or needs a clean up!

(( hey, you can leave some comments on these blogs!!! ))

a miracle fruit ... from Eden?

2006-09-11T05:44:00.000Z

The actual location of Eden must have been somewhere in Persia, modern day Iran/Iraq. Unfortunately, today there does not grow much apart from figs, dates, pomegranates, etc... (great fruits! and actually: Persian food is very interesting and tasty. "Thank you!" to all my Persian friends for this introduction).

Prior to setting up my new business web site, I have started a blog on which I want to share some of the research and benefits of eating fruit, more specifically: wolfberries or Goji in Chinese.

It was already known to the West that eating mull -, blue -, rasp -, cran - and other berries contain a high level of nutrients and are wholesome food sources. Now the East berry is hitting the West!

In May this year, I met Rev. Kobus van Rensburg (South Africa) at a healing seminar, who informed us of an ethnic group in the Himalayas who pass well the 150 year age threshold! Indepth research led me to some legends/records and studies done in those areas and what food they intake. Obviously, because I am in the "dehydrated fruit business", I was particularly interested in a berry that grows in the mountainous provinces of North West China.

I have been eating the wolfberry for 6 weeks and can already experience an energy increase as well as some weight loss (though this can be contributed to the great 'confinement' food my mother-in-law cooks for my wife and myself!!)

So, Eden ... now the 'forbidden fruit' (*) grows in China .. though in Iran grows pomegranate, another miracle fruit.

Check out my other blog for updates on this!

http://goji-wolfberry.blogspot.com/

(*) I say "forbidden" here, because it has been "hidden" for such a long time!

First day out

2006-08-30T06:09:00.000Z

Last Monday, we took Zoe for her first day out. Packed with some spare diapers, wet tissues and the prem, we headed by taxi to the Joy Clinic. This is the practice of Dr Gordon Tan, whom we would like to thank for the follow up of Cheryl's pregnancy, delivering Zoe via a CS and for all his prayers over Zoe.

Afterwards, we took her to Orchard Road for some shopping.

Zoe's time is not our time, so we had to pause in Isetan's The Coffee Club for her feeding and for Mum to enjoy a pumpkin soup!

Then we drove her to Mum's workplace so her colleagues could see her, followed by a relaxed afternoon at our flat in Oldham Hall .. where I enjoyed having a short nap with Zoe, breathing gently on my naked chest and my wife next to me.

Precious moments for Dad !!

Sink Twice

2006-08-30T05:09:00.000Z

Today, I thought I'd write on something else than babies..

Living in a multi racial, - cultural and - relgious environment, I am faced every day with communication and social challenges. People around me speak in turbo language, use 3 letter words for nearly everything: a few days ago, I saw a small school boy, carrying a heavy back pack nearly his size. I asked him what was the heavy weight - not understanding he suffered 15 Kgs of books - and he replied: "CCS!" . Naievely, I asked him what that was and I got a nasty look back!
Then, some words are repeated 3 times for no reason either.. "Wait, wait, wait ... check my PDA-lah!"

A few months ago, I came accross this VDO clip from a language school (which I do not really endorse herewith) of a German coast guard novice ... I particularly enjoyed it because I am mixed Belgian/German, grew up in that culture and can nearly "smell" the circumstance.

Enjoy it! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOIThDgL4Tc)

Another hillarious mix of cultures is a caucasian man, singing a Bollywood song.

Shall we dance? .. click on the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch.php?v=2FNkUswfQdI

Just Hands ..

2006-08-24T01:57:00.000Z

..

One does not say much when holding hands like this...

Into Confinement

2006-08-22T14:18:00.000Z

Cheryl has entered her maternity leave and moved to her parents place today. The Chinese community is very family oriented. Married children live with their parents, till they can afford their own flat. The elder live with their children to be cared for. Many sick and old are nursed by their own families. Many Asian countries have no or lack in the social welfare system, as known in the western countries and rely on their own families. It has pros and cons. The con was today: when I picked up the hospital bill!

It is very common for a daughter, during the first month of her maternity leave, to stay with their mother or mother-in-law. The newly promoted mother will enjoy the home cooked food and both Mum and baby will be pampered by the experienced mother, who will help the baby to nurse, cook special confinement food for Mum's fast recovery. (more on this later as and when I learn about it myself)

This morning we checked out of our “hotel” aka Mount Alvernia Hospital and were driven by one of our friends to Zoé’s new temporary home. She liked the drive and slept throughout. ha! ... I must admit this is partly due because Marsli, our ‘driver’ treated all of us like a special convoy and did not exceed the 60 Km mark (which by the way, is on most roads the max speed here!)

Eventhough I did not stay overnight in the hospital, tonight is a night without wife and baby. I miss them dearly, ... both. The last 2 days, I enjoyed being with my daughter alone…just me and her…gazing upon her beauty…she gently smiling a few times, but also pulling some less pretty faces. ( I guess she was either trying to pass some wind or maybe some other less fragrant stuff!)

At one of those moments, I realized something revealing. As I was looking at her, suddenly a sense of love came over me, a few tears rolled …
and felt God inspiring me that this is the way how He looks at me all the time as His child and how much He loves me. Now I understand even more…

...

Zoé … Gift of Eternal Life

2006-08-20T16:39:00.000Z

Today was Zoé‘s third day

Some of her features changed. Her face was a bit fuller and her legs – long ones as it seems – felt rather powerful when she was lying on my lap and pushing them into my (fat) belly. I had felt the kicks when she was inside her Mum’s tummy, but not as strong as this..

Our dear friend Heather flew in from Bangkok as a surprise visit, just for the week end. She has been a good friend to both of us for nearly 10 years and been very instrumental in bringing both my wife and I together.

Today, many Church friends came to see Cheryl and Zoé, bringing many gifts, for which we all thank you deeply from our hearts. It is so lovely to see all these mothers bringing diapers, wipes, baby clothes and even a breast pump! … and at the same time giving all kind of advice to the new promoted Mum.

Most people say, she looks very much like Dad. I guess, when you look at her pinkish skin colour and her hair (all the other babies look obviously all Chinese with black hair).

Today, I saw her three times making some facial expression similar to a smile, but am not sure if I am over enthusiastic!

Choosing a name for our child was not easy: first we wanted a name meaning “Joy”. Secondly, a name that can be pronounced here in Asia and internationally without too many problems ( want to know how many times I need to spell out my name?) … though we found out in the meantime that this name also poses some hurdles…anyway, Cheryl decided on the name.

After some research we also found out that the name has a Greek meaning: Life !

Actually, it is “Eternal Life”, very much the same Greek word Jesus used to describe His Love for all people in the well known verse John 3:16. Pronounced as (dzo-ay'); from the Greek word zao (dzah'-o); which means literally to live.

Her middle name is “Hanne”, coming from Hannah … and thought that using a Dutch way of saying it, would give way of my European roots. We are still looking for an appropriate Chinese name. Any suggestions?

We hope Zoé will be a bringer of Life wherever she goes and be a light to many people.

Bundle of Life

2006-08-19T16:14:00.000Z

On Friday August 18, 17:02pm, my wife Cheryl delivered a lively baby girl. Weighing 2.889 Kgs for 48.5 cm length. At 38 weeks, the baby was full term, healthy, yet unwilling to turn from the breech position. Dr. Gordon had advised us to go for a caesarian section to avoid any complications with a breech delivery. Last week Cheryl had a dream she was going to give birth on the 18th, so when Gordon advised us for a CS for Friday, we were at peace with it.

Typically my wife (she can still pack one hour and a half before going on an international flight), she was still at her office at 2pm… so after checking in it at Mount Alvernia Hospital it was time for her to get prepared and rolled into the operation theatre.

After I was called in, it was all very quickly done and few minutes later, hardly any time to comfort my wife (who was in good Hands), Gordon announced the birth. Even with a CS it was a bit difficult for her to come out as the umbilical was wound around her hand ( and we were all praying hard for baby to turn! Little one could not even!)

It took a while for her to cry, but believe me that cry is significant when it comes! Breath of Life into her nostrils and out came the cry! I was juggling between my camera, VDO and MP3 to record the historical moments. Hence the remark of Gordon that I seemed to have more attention for my new born than my wife. Well.. I think it is because all went so quick, not having to comfort my wife in hours of labour and even throughout her pregnancy.
She was strong, without any complications and joyful! Just as the Hebrew woman of old in the days of Egypt.

I guess my wife is made to bear more children and obviously that is our desire as well as to adopt a few in the long term..

It is funny how people look at your wife’s tummy and make all kinds of remarks of sizes and moves and then guess what the gender will be. We thought of getting a boy, though we had no clear indications and did not want to get any.. From Cheryl’s face and her (improved) skin complexion, I reckoned it was going to be a pretty baby girl.
We thank God for this Gift of Life and a fast recovery for the happy Mum!

Pasta a la plage

2006-08-18T03:37:00.000Z

Last night, Cheryl and I, accompanied by another couple from France and their 8 months old baby, went for the last time on a ‘date-just-the two-of-us’

One of the places I really like here in Singapore is an Italian restaurant right on the beach at the East Coast. Unlike many other countries in Asia where you find many sea or river side restaurants - decorated with Christmas lights (all year round!) to create this special atmosphere - Singapore offers very little of this real outdoor eating experience. Hence, this place is usually frequented by expats or locals with a ‘savoir-vivre’. Admittedly, the food is not that gourmet, but portions are big and your bare feet can sit in the beach sand (wherever that sand came from?) and usually there is a cool breeze in the evening to comfort you.

Though we only had one main course and a dessert, it was close to mid night when we left the beach…time flies when you are having fun!

Ironically, the place is up for tender. Singapore knowing, by the end of this month it will go for some upgraded project with junk food and less atmosphere… Then again, my French friends are on their way out to move to New Zealand.

Pasta Fresca …

we hope you will find another beach spot in Singapore soon!

Then I can enjoy my pasta while my kid(s) will enjoy building sand castles..

Wedding of the Century

2006-08-14T16:19:00.000Z

Last week end I was a witness of a friend’s wedding in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia that needs a bit of an explanation.

James was one of the first people I met when I arrived in Bangkok in ’97. He was the pastor of the International Fellowship there and I had been recommended to meet him by friends in Hong Kong.

In the years following, he made a big difference in my life by his Bible expository teaching and mentoring. For 7 years he was even my neighbour! James had to endure much hardship by hearing my “love stories” ( he was the boss of my then to-be-wife ! … who was not at all interested in me – another story to share on.. ) … and was very patient with me.

So: James single, me single and I was asking his advice, counsel and many hours of praying for my wife to be. Every time, I offered James prayer for a wife, whom I thought he deserved more than me! Finally, it was six years of waiting until the day Cheryl finally swayed under my ‘pressure’ and asked me to marry! So, last year April, we asked James to come and bless our marriage.

9 months later he wrote us that he was going to follow our footsteps! What ?? .. Who ??

Surprise on top: the bride is a friend of ours and it is a blessing to see James after all these years of being a faithful man, 'bachelor-in-Christ', staying cool and not panicking - despite years catching up on him -, serving God wholeheartedly all that time … finally finding a good wife to make him an even more complete man!

The location of the wedding was awesomely beautiful, cosy with few guests and not to forget the finger-licking-good-Italian dinner in the evening.

I wish Christine and James all the best in their walk with God and … hope they will soon follow our footsteps again ( do I hear the stork flying in? )

Click on this link to view more pictures:

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0AauGLFszZM2Lpg

Bhangra dancing

2006-07-29T15:40:00.000Z

It has been a joyful day with the wedding of our dear friend from Thailand, Sumita and her groom Prem, from Singapore. Pictures of how colourful it was will be added early next week... and one thing that always interest me about India and the people, is the diversity in cultures and how they can all live together with 1 Billion cramped on a peninsular!

Most interesting is that both Prem and Sumita the only Christians are in their family and that this wedding was - to my rating - the best Christian wedding ever, seen the pastor gave a message on covenant marriages from the Bible so vividly and so close to the couple ( he even sang a song for them!) to an audience which was mostly Hindu with a few Muslims
They all liked it very much, because on a day like this, when 2 people bind their Love with oneanother, it becomes a reality that it is all about Love... and who is not moved by that?

Here are some pictures by the Bhangra dancing group, colours, music .. preparing us for an even greater feast later on when ... Indian buffet was served

Tit for Tat

2006-07-25T04:24:00.000Z

... a perspective on the Middle East Crisis and the Zinedan/Matterazzi 'tit for tat farce' during World Cup 2006 ... log on in a few days to read this blog ...

here is a picture of a jockey who learned some bad lessons from Zizoo ... I wonder what the horse told him?

What code... ?

2006-07-21T14:11:00.000Z

.. Oh! … The Da Vinci Goad!

Yo! Finally, after many months of good intentions to get this blog up and running, I find no better opportunity launch it by sharing my thoughts on the film "The Da Vinci Code" (DVC). No need to further introduce it, most of you have seen it…I haven’t!

But let me highlight some of the "hidden codes" that are not mentioned in the film, nor are they to be found in the author's book's footnotes.

40 million books sold! .. and now the film. Hollywood does know how to turn anything into ₤€¥$’s. Make it controversial, touch a religious string, ‘shutter’ some feathers, cause some hype around it - even a court case - and what more marketing and publicity is needed? Mmmmh… though the film did not really hit box office as expected.

“The last Supper” painting was decorating one of my walls in my humble Bangkok studio for years. Leonardo Da Vinci (DV) … a real master painter, who made a master piece! .. of the real Master!

If DV was still alive today, he’d probably sue Dan Brown (DB) !!! He was commissioned by the church to do the painting job, so he was surely not interested in putting any code in it! Even the allegation that he was a heir of the “Priory of Sion”, not a single shred of evidence is to be found in 6,000 pages of his scribbles or 487 years of The Renaissance wonder’s memorabilia. But even, Mr Pierre Plantard, the so-called- founder of the “The Priory link” to DV, admitted in court in ’84 it was all a hoax. If you really want to know about DV, go to a bookshop and buy books on him, but stay away from the DVC.

But let’s talk a bit on the book and film.

Fiction: DB writes: “And the companion of the Savior is Mary Magdalene. Christ loved her more than all the disciples and used to kiss her often on her mouth.” Quoting from the Gnostic gospel – gospel of Philip. Mrs. Jesus herself is then supposed to be the legendary Holy Grail, the royal bloodline of Jesus.

Fact however, is that the gonostic texts, were not authored by any of the apostles, but written under a pseudonym, using the name of the apostles to get credibility. The gospel of Philip was a late 2nd century AD text and is definitely NOT one of the earliest surviving Christian records.

Even if Jesus was married, this would not contradict his own teaching of marriage. He supports it and in other Bible books it is even recommended for elders and leaders in His Church! On the question of plausibility, however, it would be difficult to explain why there are no records of Jesus’ marriage, fatherhood, etc… he even did not even mention a word about it while addressing his biological mother, Mary, on the Cross dying!

Fiction: DB writes: “The bible as we know it today, was collated by the pagan Roman Emperor Constantin the great”, P.231 he makes it sound that Constantin was the key figure in deciding the Bible’s final composition!

Fact is that the history of the formation of the Bible did not start nor end with Constantin and involved many churches and leaders over many years. The present New testament of 27 books was confirmed only by Bishop Augustine, who was born 354 AD after Constantine’s death 337AD!

Was Jesus the Son of God?

Fiction: DB: “Jesus Christ was actually only a mere man. But he was elevated to ‘divine’ position as a result of a vote held in 325AD at the Council of Nicaea – a convention of Bishops.”

Fact: DB uses here a half truth to distort the Truth. For 2 and a half centuries before Nicaea, most of the disciples of Christ had already the opinion about the Truth that Christ is divine. (Peter says this in Matthew 16:16 even though having denied Christ so many times) The Council of Nicaea did seriously consider alternating views of Jesus, yet NOT whether he was merely mortal or divine (that was determined already!), but rather whether he was created or eternal. It was not a choice between “human” versus “God”, but as “eternal” versus “created”.

Finally, you may ask the question: “Jan, have you read the book?” My answer I simply: “ No, I have not and will not. The book would belong to the genre I normally would not read, so why bother this time? In the meantime the film critics have given me already enough reasons to pass on the film…” But then, how can you make your judgment? Well, why do people make a judgment or belief after they have seen the film and read the book and make and discredit the claims of Jesus and The Bible? Have they read and studied the Bible? I have read many other books on the DVC book, with excerpts from it on how it distorts truth, exchanges it for fiction, but still claims it is based a fact.

In India, the film is banned because the producers refused to put a disclaimer in the generics that it was all fiction. HellooO !? … India is predominantly Hindu and Islam!
Actually, I am looking at a pile of books, bought but not read yet, so … I am selective on my time spent and obviously would also pass on the film…waste of time, money and it does not bring me new Truth anyway!

I wonder what would have happened if DB would have made a fictional film on "Muhammad and his harem" ...

If you are interested in doing some homework yourself on the DVC, here are some useful web sites:

http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=12860 ( Top 20 Big Lies in the DVC book )

http://jesusfactorfiction.com/

http://www.thelife.com/davinci/ or send me a mail, I like to discuss these topics!

But the best source to check is without doubt

... the Bible!