ignite 'n inspire

Don't you feel like sometimes you want to escape from everything and just bury yourself inside a hole? For me, every single weekend feels like an escape from fear of getting my tests and assignment back. Instead of focusing on calculating my average admission mark or seeing people stress about post-secondary education, Saturdays and Sundays are a time of rest and meditation. Two weeks ago, my weekend escape was heading to a scenic and beautiful place called Blue Mountain just a few hours away from Toronto. It honestly felt like a dream there. With sunshine, I got to stroll around the village with some of my old and new friends...but most importantly, enjoy a Starbucks frapp without the rush to go back home to complete my never ending to-do list. With my guitar, I got a chance to play an 1.5 hour worship music jam with my sister and friends. Worship music never sounded so beautiful in my ears With a television, I got to watch movies and get all emotional about the power of love

You only live once. The trending hashtag that American celebrities and teenagers posted for the longest time…this sent a bright message that proclaims the idea that we should take risks in life and live to the fullest. I believe that the center of this hashtag isn’t the concept that we only live ONCE but the idea of LIVING…Nobody here can tell you how long we will be living for or whether or not we will get a chance to see our children graduate from university… Serve, Love and Be Happy are the three things that came up in my mind recently after witnessing emotion-filled event in my personal life. Serve those who’ve served you. And serve those you want to serve. Give back and help those who were in your position because that is how you can use your physical abilities to honour God. Recently, a family friend was re-diagnosed with Stage 4 bone marrow, breast and lung cancer. She was given a second chance to live six years ago and she used this past six years of her life in m

There is a well-known Christian song named ‘Indescribable.’ The song talks about all the wonders of God and how the creation of the world shows how amazing He is. The words to the chorus are: 'Indescribable, Uncontainable, You place the stars in the sky and You know them by name, You are amazing God'   As much as I understand from the textbook about how miniscule organisms are or how the complex humans’ mind functions, the idea of His power seems to be so vague and difficult to understand. It was only until my Maritimes road trip last summer that allowed me to see how majestic his creation really is. The sounds of the Bay of Fundy waves and the sun setting beside the Atlantic Ocean really offered me a small peek of this universe. But despite his awesomeness, I find that over time as I’m growing up, the idea of ‘God’s Grace Is Enough’ becomes less and less true. From seeing people that are my father’s age dying from cancer or families that go th

Flowers are signs of life. This week, I got to see two different types of flowers that symbolize two complete different symbols of love. The first one is a white carnation. A symbol of romantic love coming to life. As a walk pass the hallways on Monday, I saw this girl holding her boutique of white carnations. They were beautiful, romantic but most importantly, it reminded me that there was some boy in my school that cared about her so much enough to send her a special sign of affection. The second one was a white rose that I held today at a funeral. The funeral was a celebration of life and a symbol of appreciation to an accomplished mommy after  years of hard work raising her children. Even though she is no longer living. the seeds that she has planted in this world are actively spreading the love that she once gave. restinpeace motherly love, fatherly love, family love, and romantic love are all types of affection that we should never take for granted....because God sent these t

       A little more than 365 days ago, I was baptized...and publicly proclaimed that I was a Christian. The next 12 months from there was a whirlwind...grade 11, church, piano and guitar. Nothing ever seem to stop, and even if it did, silence never lasted for a very long time. But as a watched people stepping into the baptismal tank again, I suddenly drew myself out from the applause just to find myself thinking about the transformation God has created in my life.        I've learnt so many different things: 1) I've gotten a lot more patient. 2) I am a better leader. 3) I learn to take stand up after defeat 4) I've reached out to the poor 5) Appearance isn't everything...there are things far greater than that. Transformation, with a capital "T" has only happen because I am no longer my stubborn and cocky person but someone that yearns for change and humbleness. ~c.h.

other than blogging, I love to write poetry... for the past two years, I've had the amazing chance to co-write two love poems with my sister...It was a great opportunity to put our heads together and write out the way loves feels like in our daily lives. Here is our sister-sister collaboration and our work of art: Eternally Sometimes, I feel sparks fly But other times, you just seem to be another ordinary guy   There is something about you that makes me smile Even though life is full of so many trials, You have seamlessly impacted my life Somehow, you always make my world all right, I wonder sometimes if we’re more than friends Or if I’m looking through a kaleidoscope lens, These colorful memories seem to never fade And I never want you to walk away, Through all the highs and lows; fast and slows Maybe we are meant to be with each other, who knows?   Is life one of those dramas? Where everything is

failure. The way I feel about myself today...I did a horrible job and my head is filled with regret. I want to go back and do it all over again but that's simply impossible. Bible study yesterday was a big mess! I felt like I was speaking about the bible but not being productive about it. My group deserved a better bible study leader and a better bible study. I apologize to my group that they had to sit through that. I apologize to my pre-study leaders for butchering their prestudy like that...but most of all, I owe an apology to God. I'm sorry that bible study turned out like that. It's been hard to recover from this regret but I guess... As God continues to mold me into a better leader and prune me to bear better and stronger fruit...I will listen and dedicate my life to hear what He has instored for me! ~c.h.

Last week, I had a really bad day! I was so disappointed and angry about myself, I wanted complete silence. No talking. No music. I sighed a breath of sadness and this boy who sat across from me said one sentence that made me tingle and reflect. He said, "Don't worry, just keep swimming, just keep swimming." The famous line Dory says from Finding Nemo. At the moment when I was about to give up on the opportunity of success, I was touched by his encouragement because he isn't someone who would ever say anything like that. He never encourages anyone, at least, his compliments are more sarcastic than meaningful. But when he talked, it felt genuine. Reflecting upon his words, my brain was thinking ALL about 'encouragement.' How often do I go up to people and encourage them? Or am I always speaking words of discouragement? Other than looking at the brighter side of each problem, my job is also to give to people a sense of positive energy... ~c.h. Encourage on

     Although humanity seems  to carry an unstoppable power in this technological society, we are no different than a paper figure. Because once things like cancer or a heart condition or accident arises, we are so weak, so hopeless and we feel so small. My dad's close friend passed away this week and it showed me once again that the things we live for-money, fame, clothes-will become worthless one day. Life is short, what are we truly living for?      In one week, a women lost her husband, and two kids lost their father. These kids lost a very important fatherly figure in their lives. So...is humanity so strong after all? Can technology and money fix this missing puzzle piece?  I've learned something simple, just honor your father and mother because one day, you won't get your chance to repay the sacrifice they've made for you. Because no matter what...they have offered so much to make your life luxurious and happy.  I don't want to regret forgetting to thank t

      We are broken people. It's the truth..we are flawed. During the March Break, I got a chance to talk in a long conversation with 13 other individuals. We simply broke down all the barriers and talked about our growth, struggles and weaknesses...       Some of them talked about the broken relationships that had with their parents, while others confessed that weren't sure if they were Christian or not...I don't remember much but I remember going through so many different emotions during this 3-hour talk:      Coming in without expectation, I remember being very sad because I couldn't tell that the people were struggling despite the fact I see them every week... I remember being so scared because some of them could have just walk away from church and never come back...But most importantly, I couldn't see the faith and strength they had in God that I saw back in Grade 8. After that conversation, I talked to my closest friends in the pitch dark meeting place, wit

Am i scared of you? Yes! Do I lose sleep because of you? Yes!  It is because I am seeing my friend falling into your trap and I can't control it at all...I've come to realize how nasty, disgusting and horrible you really are. As she is walking further and further away, I am yelling at the top of my lungs to call her back...but she completely ignores it because you are there manipulating her. I tell you, 'please stop' because I know she is blind and can't see the truth.  Stop it! I don't want to lose a friend, ~ch

      I really like biology, it makes me realize that life around me is so delicate...recently, I've learned how the heart works. By using a stethoscope, I realized the magic of two strong sounds, a 'lub' and a 'dub', the closing of the heart valves. From the moment a little baby is alive in his/her mother's tummy, these two sounds start playing like a engine that is turned on. But after ten months of relying on the mommy, this human being gets the chance to live an independent life on planet Earth.        It isn't easy for the heart to continue beating, sometimes the body is really weak and tired. Sometimes, the heart needs to work so fast because we are challenging life's limits.To me, the simplest things in life are sometimes the most important. Without the heartbeat, we wouldn't be living. Without the love, we would never be happy. Without music, we wouldn't be able to express a basic universal language.        Last year, I've learnt

          A new year. A new goal. A new start. 2014. To be honest, I got a chance to step out my comfort zone in 2013 but I hope that this year, I will be able to challenge myself in understanding my weakness and my identity. I pray that I can be humble and that people can see how I'm different than anyone else because I am a follower of Christ.           Last weekend, the retreat at Horseshoe Resort was more than just skiing and having fun but it was an opportunity to open my eyes to see things that I might not see in things around me. Things like sticking into my cliques made me realize my problems. Am I going to make an effort to meet friends? Is my goal to dress myself up to become someone I'm not?  Whether it is a struggle in the way I lead or the flaws in things around me, this retreat has re-focused me on someone greater than just ME ME and ME… happy new year and keep writing... ~ch