Don't fight the rope

Image copyright Ian Ho 2011

What a bobbing experience I had this morning! Tried wakeboarding for the very first time!

It's quite a bit of fun, but I'm experiencing the consequences now:( My head still feels like it's bobbing up and down, and there's a little bit of water stubbornly stuck in my ears. Not to mention being totally burnt.

I thought it seemed simple enough. At least it looked simple enough. You slip your legs into the wakeboard, grab the handle, crouch down low, then wait for the motorboat to slowly pull you up. Once you're up, you just.. simply ride the wave!

But boyohboy was I wrong. On my first few attempts, I struggled to stand up. I could never hold onto the handle more than a few seconds after the boat moved. At the instance I tried to stand, I would fall back and then drown in an overwhelming torrent of seawater. The boat would then turn back to pick me up, the instructor would correct me, and this frustrating cycle continued for a while and I was like OHH SO IT ISN'T THAT EASY AFTER ALL.

What was my problem? Well, a few things. I remember the instructor telling me, "hang on to the rope, don't hold on. Hang on!!" The first attempt I didn't grip the handle properly. I needed to really hang on, grip onto it firmly and not just hold it. Second problem: I was trying too hard to fight the rope, i.e. I was exerting strength against the boat trying to pull myself up. The trick was to straighten your hands and then let the boat move and naturally pull yourself up, not the other way around. The instructor sarcastically told me, "this boat has 200 horse power, you don't even have 1 horse power and you're trying to pull on the boat?!" HAHA. Besides that, I also had problems with my getting-up posture. I found it a little amusing how I was treated like a small kid learning how to STAND-UP -.-

The first round I didn't succeed in standing on the board, not at all. But thankfully, upon the second round, I managed to effortlessly get myself up! At that instant I felt a sudden sense of accomplishment and freedom, to feel the wind against my chest and the churning waves beneath. But I only managed to remain surfing for a short while before falling off again. :( Thankfully, long enough for my friends to snap a shot!

I did what they said - not to fight the rope, to hang on tight, not to think too much about balancing and just getting up naturally. AND I DID IT. I WAKEBOARDED FOR MY VERY FIRST TIME! =D

But I took back more than a skill today. Yknow what? I took back a precious lesson.

I saw that riding the ocean waves and riding the waves of life aren't any different. God is my 200 horse power boat that's always steadily pulling me along. And I'm always the small guy behind clinging on desperately to the handle that's called life. God pulls me along in life. And in order to stand up and ride the waves that come my way, I gotta HANG ON TIGHT AND NOT FIGHT THE ROPE.

I gotta let the boat pull me, not struggle with the boat. God has to pull me, because alone I'm powerless and weak. He's doing all the work - steering the boat, powering the boat, and all I need to do is hang on.

Simple enough a reminder for all of us.

Hang on tight and don't fight the rope. That way you'll survive and not fall.

You should try wakeboarding too:)

Image copyright Ian Ho 2011

<3 New York New York!!

Image copyright Ian Ho 2010

Image copyright Ian Ho 2010

Image copyright Ian Ho 2011

Saying I love u

These past few weeks have been really hard for me.. many things happened, I wasn't doing well emotionally, and there was just so much of questioning God and disappointment with Him over so many things.

I finally decided to take tonight and spend time soaking in His presence and seeking after Him. Frankly speaking it's been ages since I set aside time to reconnect with my big 'CO' up there. And as I was singing songs and praising Him and all, I just broke down in tears when I felt His presence surround me.. and it was that kind of a sweet feeling which I haven't felt in a very long while. I miss God's presence, his warm embrace soooo much. That feeling of security, of assurance, and of His everlasting love for me... really only my God can make me feel this way.

Strange thing, as I was half tearing and half singing, the Lord just gave me a song. With my guitar missing one string, I just started to strum a few chords and then amazingly the words just came out spontaneously and I started singing it. And I know this is a song from my Daddy.

I am safe in Your arms
I am forgiven and accepted here
I am safe in Your embrace
You never let me go
No never let me go

I want to worship You
I'm coming back to You Lord
I've run a million miles
Went a million places
But I'm home now

Chorus:
Jesus
I love You, I love You, I love You
You are good
You are strong
You are awesome almighty Father
The same today, tomorrow and forever.

You're the comforter of the storm
And forever I can sing
I love You Lord
I love You Lord

I might record it down some time soon (and figure a title), but I hope this song that God gave me will find you well wherever you are in your life, whatever issues you may be grappling.

Situations might not change, but guess what? Our God will never change too!! And this is my greatest source of comfort. That God will ALWAYS remain God. And because of that we have EVERY reason to still praise and say "I love You". :)

Our God is above every situation. And HOPE IN CHRIST NEVER FAILS.

"And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." - Romans 5:5

Image copyright Ian Ho 2010

Trust your tools

Image copyright Ian Ho 2010


Everything's alright cause I am on your side
And if you need to you can hide in me
Cause all you need to know
I will never let you go
I'm the lover of your soul

Brandon Heath is just such an AWESOME AWESOME songwriter!! I really loveeeee his music so much.. it's the kinda music which goes beyond superficial, beyond nice tunes and catchy drumbeats to really speaking the truth. I don't know, I guess his music resonates with me because many issues mentioned are pretty much what I'm dealing with. It's so uplifting, encouraging and inspiring. I could lie on bed enjoying air-con doing nothing but listening to his songs, especially the slower emo nemo ones :D So the two must-listen albums are What If We and Don't Get Comfortable. Pretty much love EVERY track in there.

All you need is a sunrise
Just a moment of dawn...

... Just a little more time the sun's gonna find you


Things have been better this week, training tempo slowing down for a while - finally some time to catch my breath. Still questioning, still seeking, but at least I'm in better spirits. Besides being called poster boy in camp (thank you SUTD), I'm smiling more and actually having great fun with my section. It's the same realisation that no matter how tough training is/going to be, as long as awesome people are alongside you in it, it will be fun and thoroughly enjoyable.

So yesterday was our navigation test for the CSB badge. Second time there; we did a similar navigation exercise there last week. Of the three day checkpoints we were assigned to find, the third one (Quay) was the same as what we got last week. Having found it once, we were pretty confident that we could replicate the success again.

Set off around noon, with no fancy technology other than a prismatic compass, pacer, laser pointer and a map which reflected nothing but a generous chunk of green with contour lines. With just these simple tools, we started bashing up knolls cluttered with thorny bushes, thick vegetation and dead-fall, overcoming the obstacles one by one till the pacing showed we reached our destination. Then we would begin our frantic search for the checkpoint - a small board nailed to a tree. Yes, it's finding a needle in the haystack.

By God's grace, my team found the first two checkpoints. All we were left with was the last checkpoint - Quay, which we found the week before. We walked there, brimming with confidence that we would find it again with relative ease. In fact, the six of us were so sure of Quay that when we went down the knoll, we didn't even use our compass or pacer to navigate. Trusting our instinct and vague impressions of trails we took, we relied on our memory and intuition to find Quay.

If the vegetation was distinct enough, it might have worked. But unfortunately, every tree there looked like any other tree, every dead-fall like any other dead-fall, and every trail like any other trail. After blindly bashing around for some time, we started to get frustrated. After all we did find it before, why not again!

To cut the story short, we failed to find Quay. Uh. Dejected faces we wore as we headed to the day end-point... the prospect of full marks and a pizza treat was over. Reflecting back, the grave mistake we committed was to abandon our tools and stupidly navigate based on hazy impressions of where it is.

Intuition failed us. Feelings weren't accurate. Memories weren't reliable.


Why I'm relating this is because amidst the disheartened faces and low morale, I saw a parallel between navigation and living the Christian life. This simple incident opened my eyes to a bigger realisation about how we are with God many times.

We are often like that aren't we? We like to navigate and lead our life based upon our feelings, our human emotion and warped ideas about what's good and bad or right and wrong. Not that these feelings should totally be disconsidered, but many times they fool us. Like how I should have trusted my tools at all times, we should live our life trusting in the infallible word of God.

Don't base your decisions or view of God based on what you feel. Rather, base it on the unchanging truth.

When He says His love for you is deeper than the deepest seas, it really is!
Even if you don't feel it.

When He says He is fighting for you and is always there with you, it really is!
Even if you feel lonely and feels no one sees your tears.

When He says you're free and the chains have been broken, it really is!
Even if you feel trapped by the circumstances you're in.

When He says He is good all the time, it really is!
Even when you feel everything's falling apart.

When He says you're beautifully created in His eyes, it really is!
Even if you feel you're not good enough.

Lead your life based on God's truth, that way, you won't get lost.

Questions

Image copyright Ian Ho 2010

Daddy, have you been waiting for me?
I've been running for far too long now, my body is aching and I really need a break.
Can I sit with you and have a cup of coffee?
I really miss you, it has been some time since we talked.

Daddy, why does it keep raining these past few weeks?
Where's the sunshine, puffy clouds and clear blue skies?
Why is it all shades of grey?
I'm afraid of the thunder and lightning - I can't seem to sleep during the storm.
See, even the flowers outside are withering. Will they be fine? It's hard to find time to water them.

Daddy, your love for me is beyond my wildest imagination and deeper than the deepest oceans and bigger than the biggest mountains, right?
You do know the longings of my heart, right?
Why is it that everything around me seems to be falling apart?
Why do you keep on taking away the things that I cherish most?
Why do you make life so painful, bitter, full of suffering and struggles?
Can't it be just a little easier?
Why is it that you give and yet take away?
Just what are you doing inside of me?
It feels like chaos; every step seems harder to climb, every moment seems darker.
Can't the storm clouds part for a while for the golden sunlight to shine through?

Daddy, how do I deal with these feelings of disappointment and failure?
I know I can't do it by myself, but surely you're strong enough to carry me right?
Why is it so hard to wear a smile on my face?
After all you said that it'll be alright eventually.
Then why is my heart still racing in fear?

Daddy, come and restore this broken heart, come lift my spirits up.
Help me to see beyond the pain and suffering to realise that it's part of growing up.
Help me to see that you're the closest when I'm hurting and crying, when all around me is darkness and I can't see where I'm heading.
Help me to see that you're the peace within when I toss and turn in bed wondering what tomorrow brings.

Daddy, it really isn't easy when I'm battling the storm.
But I know, when it's over, I'll look back and say thank you, for faith in the light is born in the dark.
In the meantime, I just got to hold on tight.

Won't you show me the answers?
Your son is waiting:)

Stay on track

Image copyright Ian Ho 2010 | Snapshot on the way home, simulated film grain in photoshop

"Do you see what this means — all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we'd better get on with it. Strip down, start running — and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we're in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed — that exhilarating finish in and with God — he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he's there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!

Hebrews 12:1-3 (The Message)

I pass by this park connector every time I walk from the bus-stop home, but I don't know why this signage particularly caught my attention today. I glanced up, contemplated for a second if it was worth a picture, then whipped out the nifty fifty, waited a while for the cyclists to appear, snapped, and continued my walk home.

As I walked, I kept repeating the 3 words "stay on track" to myself, and then naturally I asked God why. It's as if He wanted to tell me to stay on track. Truth is, I don't quite know if it's Him or just myself. But as I pondered over a simple signage, Hebrews 12 about running the race came to mind - and I think the way the Message phrases it is just so apt and relevant to me and where I am now.

As I'm reminded to stay on track, let me remind you to stay on track too! Don't veer off the path, keep your eyes fixed and focused. We'll get there someday.

When paths cross and diverge

Image copyright Ian Ho 2008

"Friends come and friends go, but a true friend sticks by you like family."
Proverbs 18:24 (Message)

Making good friends is hard, but you know what? The parting after that is even harder. Had to say bye to a good friend who left for studies a few weeks ago, and now after BSLC some of my army friends have parted ways too. And I was just thinking - sometimes our paths cross, sometimes God causes them to diverge. New friends come and old friends go, we embrace new relationships and cry at those who left... and that's the way life works.

But in every season of my life, God never fails to give me a few really good friends that I treasure. It's never the number of friends one has that matters, but who these friends are. I would prefer 5 really really close friends than say 20 "okay" friends. We all start out on our separate path in life, walking our own way, and then at some point we reach junctions where paths cross. And I was thinking of the people that God has placed in my life this season... cos I know it's more than mere coincidence when God causes these paths to cross. I look back and stand in awe at how God brings two paths heading in seemingly different directions and merges them together. Sometimes the people around me are so different from who I am - different backgrounds, personalities, and countries even - but somehow, somehow through the unique course of events in life God causes us to meet. And I constantly ask God why, why He brings these people into my life. There is a purpose, a reason for everything, and sometimes He puts people around us so that we may support them in their walk, or so that they may encourage us in ours. In any case, the very least we could do for these people is to keep them in prayer. The truth is we all can't survive alone, and God never did made us to do that anyway. Although we may not get to see our close friends everyday, prayer bridges that gap. Even when paths diverge and we don't know why, we can still pray for that person and keep him in our thoughts. Prayer is powerful - and that's the least we can do as a believer in a community of believers.

But even as friends come and go, I take comfort in knowing that God's family lasts forever. Our spiritual family, whoever they may be, will continue throughout eternity. And it is much stronger than worldly friendships and even family bonds, because an everlasting God is in the centre of it!

Dear Father, my prayer this season is that you give me more spiritual friends, friends that will stick alongside me like family, because I can't walk alone and I never want to. And to those you've placed around me, I ask that you give me the courage and strength to support them in whatever way I can, because that's what friends are for..

To Him the future's history

Image copyright Ian Ho 2010 | Walking by faith, not by sight

Today marked the end of BSLC, the end of 8 awesome weeks in Pasir Lepak camp, and I also got my posting today. While some were jumping joyously upon being posted to air force and MP (aka the slack life), I wasn't that pleased with getting ASLC. Nope, didn't get artillery that I wanted... and so in typical American idol fashion when we were grouped and it was announced that I'm coming back to echo coy, my heart sank.

I asked God WHY WHY WHY ASLC. Weekends burnt, tough training, Taiwan... it won't be easy at all. I don't know what to expect next. 13 freaking weeks to endure.

On the train ride home, I was listening to Miracle of the Moment... and then God spoke through the lyrics, that very same verse which assured me before I enlisted assured me once again:

There's only one who knows
What's really out there waiting
In all the moments yet to be

And all we need to know
Is He's out there waiting
To Him the future's history

I may not know the challenges that's coming my way, but heck ALL i need to know is that a) God has a plan for where I am, and b) to Him the future's history. I just have to wait and see as He reveals why over the weeks. I told myself, there's two ways I can choose to react: either worry, panic and curse or let God's peace fill me as I trust in Him. And I'll choose the latter, for worrying will not add an extra hour to your life, will it? (Matthew 6:27)

I'll choose to walk by faith and not by sight, cos my daddy has it all under control. He doesn't make mistakes!!

To whoever who's reading this, whenever you think life has taken a wrong turn, or things aren't going the way you want, remember that there's a reason for everything and nothing ever happens by chance. God has a perfect plan for you and you just got to trust that's true. Choose to see the positive, because what has happened has happened and worrying won't change a thing.

It's time for letting go
All of our if only's
Cause we don't have a time machine...

...and this is the only moment
we can do anything about.

The crystal ball

Image copyright Ian Ho 2010

Sadly, there's no crystal ball in life. Only He knows what's coming up next around the bend... cos to Him the future's history.

Trusting my posting after bslc all into the hands of my good God.

After all, worrying is a form of atheism.. I'm just praying that wherever I go I can be the salt and light to those around me, haha and I secretly hope to NOT get aslc!

Each day

Image copyright Ian Ho 2009

Taking each day at a time, that's how I'm living the army life now. Things are getting somewhat mundane; I'm going through the motion everyday just to get over with each day. Like this sunrise image, it's so similar to every other sunrise image taken by everyone. There's nothing different, nothing stunning or spectacular about it. Army life is becoming more and more like that. Badly need a fresh perspective from God.

The route march week

Marched a total of 37km this week!!!

Never walked this much in my life before!

Also had the BIGGEST blister ever in my life after 12click route march for sitest. Measures approximately 5cm by 4cm on my right heel and it totally freaked me out!

Thankfully, by God's grace, it healed in time for today's 16click march. Just for the record:

Countdown: < 1 day

12 hours more.

Before reporting to Tekong school 1!

I'm actually kinda excited about it, and I'll try to keep an open mind and be optimistic about it. But before I start on this new journey, I think it's good to wrap up the last 4 months of civilian life by saying that Trackers was really an experience that I will cherish for a long time to come.

I really thank God for enlisting so late, because otherwise I wouldn't have got to meet my wonderful Cebu team!! I will cherish those crazy times we spent together in Cebu, and really I miss all of you after Trackers ended! I really thank God for placing the Trackers people in my life, for bringing me on missions, and for the opportunity to grow deeper in my faith the past 4 months. The lessons learnt and experiences gained will serve as an encouragement for me whenever I'm going through tough times in NS. I've walked long enough with God to know for sure that my life is in His hands, and that He's always beside me and for me, no matter the circumstances.

So I want to start this new journey by looking back at Trackers and saying THANK YOU Lord for the friendships forged, the memories shared and the faith-lessons learnt!

Indeed I wouldn't exchange Trackers for anything else, it really was the best way to spend my pre-enlistee life!

Countdown: 2 days

Image copyright Ian Ho 2010

2 days more.

Many people ask me if I'm scared to go in, and hell yea the answer is yes. I'm scared about the physical training and torture, about adapting to a new routine, and just the uncertainty of what lies ahead. I peek out from the comfort of life now and I don't know what to expect next.

But I don't think I'm worried or troubled about going in. I once heard the saying that worrying is a form of atheism. I'm not worried because there's this inner sense of peace knowing that He's by my side. And actually I do look forward to meeting new friends (hopefully good ones) and starting new friendships.

But for sure I'll miss home, photography, my Trackers group, and my dear teddy bear!

There's only one who knows
What's really out there waiting
In all the moments yet to be

And all we need to know
Is He's out there waiting
To Him the future's history

Miracle of the Moment, Steven Curtis Chapman

My dear lens is back

I spent a considerable amount of time travelling today. Haha have to use up my student ez-link card before it expires on the 31st anyway. I'm proud to say that I'm left with 20 cents in my card after today! Hmm, but the thought of paying adult rates really put me off.

I went all the way to freaking John Wesley Centre at Bukit Batok for my trackers interview in the afternoon. It was quite informal, and it went ok thankfully. I'm actually excited for trackers to begin in Jan... getting to know new friends, studying God's word and going for the mission trip. After that ended, I took the Bukit Panjang LRT (first time in quite a few years) to Chua Chu Kang mrt, then took the train all the way to Harbourfont to collect my lens which died on me a few months back!

I'm happy that my 17-85 is back after 3 weeks with Canon. If you ask me, 3 weeks for any kind of repair is too long. And the charges were absurdly high too. I was extremely shocked that out of the hundred plus the repair costs, did you know 80 bucks goes for the service charge, and the actual parts itself only costs 30 bucks?! Wow the repair guys at Canon must be earning good money!

But at least my lens is working fine now, and after requesting to change the rubber zoom ring, it looks slightly newer, and the zoom a tad firmer. Looking back, the 17-85 has been with me for close to 3 years. Optically I can't say it's fantastic. Price wise it isn't too. But what keeps me holding onto this lens is the superb zoom range, stabiliser function and quick AF. Sure, the new 15-85 is a better lens, but the price now is just way unjustifiable. I'm thinking.. and just thinking, if I were to replace the 17-85, I would go for the new Sigma 17-70 OS when it is available. Ah this is where I tell myself again not to lust for equipment. These thoughts are eeeevil!

Haha tomorrow I'm going to visit the dentist, then going shooting with Waiyong and Vernon. Thank you Lord for seeing me through the interview today!

New look for the new year

This is my blog's new look for 2010!

Haha, well I hope you like it. Decided to keep the design really simple and clean. I think this is way better than the previous design with the kiddish banner graphic.

Wow, 2009 is coming quickly to an end... and it's that time of the year where we look back at what we've accomplished, and look forward to new beginnings.  I think I'll write another post to reflect properly on 2009, but to put it succinctly, 2009 has been the toughest of my four years in JC.  But through every major obstacle, I learnt what it meant to take a step of faith, and to live a life of faith in Christ. Indeed, as the song goes.. you are forever in my life, you see me through the seasons...

This year has been really crazy, and I'm so thankful that God has seen me through it!

Where is your heart?

I thought that after the As ended, my life would be more "worry-free" and I would have less things to be concerned over. Haha I'm so wrong. Because after As my worry then shifted to how I was going to spend the next 4 months before enlisting.

I narrowed it to 2 options: one is to go teach my juniors art, and the second one is to join Trackers, which is a youth bible-study and mission trip programme by TRAC. I have been praying about it, and asking God to reveal to me His plan and purpose for the next 4 months of my life. I always believe nothing happens by chance, and I'm enlisting in april for a reason and I've been asking Him to show me the reason why.

For quite a while I felt that there was no answer. But I think today God finally answered me, through the Purpose Driven devotionals, but not directly. He pointed me to Matthew 6:21, which says "for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." This wasn't the first time I've read this verse, but somehow it impressed upon me differently today. To quote from the devotional, this verse means that wherever we put our time, money and effort to, that's what's going to attract us. If we invest ourselves whole-heartedly into something, then that's where our heart and treasure will be.

For some of us, our heart may be in money, or in our outward appearance, or in our work. For me, I know that my heart is in photography, simply because I spend so much time and energy in it. And wherever my treasure will be, my heart will be there. If my treasure is my camera and photos, then my heart will be there. Likewise, if our treasure is money, then our heart will be with our worldly riches.

And that's where I thought... I want my heart to not just be in photography, but more importantly with God. I want to seek Him more, because the more time I spend knowing Him, there my treasure will be. Matthew 6:19-20 also says not to store up treasures on earth, but to store up treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. And so I decided that I would go do trackers, because it is the opportunity for me to align my heart with the Lord and build up heavenly riches. After all, I can always do teaching in future if I really wanted.

Where is your heart at today? What is precious to you? For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Think what and why, not where

The weather these few days are extreme. One moment it's sunny with puffy white clouds and the next moment it's grey and ominous. Haha but it's mostly rainy... not good for shooting. Whatever, the point is I've not been shooting. So the only thing I can do is to think about photography, instead of doing. This includes looking at more wonderful images (which makes me so depressed), hanging around Clubsnap (which isn't very healthy) and reading photography websites as I contemplate my next lens purchase and drool over pro bodies (lol jk).

In the process of wasting my time, I decided to look through my Flickr stream and all the photos I've taken. And that was when I realised my landscape photography revolved primarily around locations, i.e. I would first start by deciding on where I want to shoot, instead of what to shoot. Reflecting on this now, I think it isn't a good way to approach photography. I think the better way is to think of what to shoot first, rather than 'oh the weather is good today, maybe I should go to ______ to shoot'. By thinking of the what first, it forces us to be more focused in our images, instead of going to a place and then randomly capturing anything that interests us. For example, if your theme is 'morning mist', then go to the place which has the most mist, and not say the best sunrise.

And I would take it a step further: besides thinking of what, also consider the why, because the why will give purpose and meaning to what you do.

I believe if we can think more about the what and why aspects of photography, instead of the where, we can become more focused and purposeful photographers. I'm hoping to do just that :)

End of the road

Image copyright Ian Ho 2008

The A levels are coming to an end. Left with one physics MCQ paper. Finally!

Looking back, it was a long journey indeed, and not an easy one. For about 2 months now, I've been doing nothing but studying. Haha I've never studied this hard before! Haven't touched my camera or gone shooting for about 2 months now. Up till today I still don't know how I did that. I feel that my photog skills are rusty, and I've kinda forgot my photoshop workflow and post-processing stuff already. Can't wait to go out and appreciate God's creation again.

In the mean time I'm just so thankful that He has brought me so far. Really, I could not have done the A levels alone. I still remember on the 10 Nov when I sat for my first paper (math), I was totally so nervous! Haha turned open the cover page, saw question 1, then panicked for a while, until I realised it was actually system of linear equations. But I think the paper went fine.

I think on the whole, A levels are easier than prelims, but it's still not easy-peasy. With the exception of Chem, I feel that I did my best for the rest... hopefully the results should be OK. After all, there's no point worrying now. I'm just leaving the rest to my big daddy up above. The entire A level journey was truly a leap of faith for me, and as weird as this sounds, it was as much an academic pursuit as it was spiritual. I've learnt so much more about the Lord, and got closer to Him.

Oh oh and I've also got to know many new CCM bands/singers and songs as I listen while studying. As of now, my favourite is Bethany Dillon! Her music is deep, honest, sincere and just a joy to listen to. Her style is something like a mix of Chris Tomlin and Brooke Fraser. I think I'll get her new album :)

Ok back to Physics!