Or, daughters be Pastors' wives, in North America. Unless... they have a genuine calling from God. I am neither a Pastor nor a Pastor's wife. I was a PK - Pastor's Kid. My mom and dad were pastors of a small Chinese Church in Malaysia. My childhood was fabulous in many ways - we were always surrounded by people. There was a lot of respect from the people in the congregation - no matter how nasty the Pastor was, they just loved him and his family - simply because he was God's "elect". My dad had struggled with anger management all his life and it got quite scary at times (as in afraid for your lives type scary). However, my mom stuck with him for the sake of the ministry and for the sake of the kids. Growing up as a PK, one learns a lot about the inner workings of the church. Based on my experience as a kid of a Pastor who was definitely far from perfect, I really did not have a whole lot of respect for Pastors - to me, they were simply people who could not get into a proper program in University, therefore, they had to go to Bible college. I equated them to people who got a general Arts degree and could not have a real career when they got out of school (I know, I just offended a whole pile of people here - please pardon me for being so candid). Oh, and I also thought that they were really lazy people who needed to go and get a real job. Due to the hard life my mom had, she wanted to make sure that we all got very well educated so that we had more choices in our lives. Well, I became an Engineer, my sister became a Teacher and my brother was the head of the Canadian Operations for a software company based in the USA (he took Computer Science and Economics in University).
As kids, we played "pastor" - I guess that is what PKs do. We would pretend to baptize people when we are in the swimming pool. My brother would preach to his teddy bears. Yup, he lines them up and preaches to them. I think that was the first sign that he had a calling on his life.
My brother, the very successful business man felt the calling of God to pioneer a church. We were all ok with that decision, as long as, he was still working full time, doing "real" work and not "mooching" off God's people, the church. Well, he also wanted to make the millions before committing to full time ministry. Then one day, he announced that he was going into full time ministry - quitting his "real" job - and he had not made the millions yet. You should have heard us, the Pastor's family, trying to dissuade our brother/son from making the BIG mistake. You should have heard my mom - she did NOT want her son to go into full time ministry - she knew how difficult it was. She told my brother, "People respect you now because your Tithe cheque is bigger than your salary. But, watch out - they will not be as nice when you get a full salary from the church". My brother told me that he simply could not ignore God's calling anymore - God wanted him to trust Him and not on his own strength. I marvelled at his wife, who supported his decision whole heartedly - perhaps it's because she did not know what being a Pastor's wife entailed. (I understand from my brother now that she really does not enjoy being a PW :-)). I think if she knew then what she knows now, she may have opposed the decision more.
I now have a slightly different view point... (to be continued)
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Friday, February 4, 2011
Meal Planning for the Easily Bored Family
Dinner was very yummy last night. I decided to cook "Western" food because I was feeling lazy. Made a Parmesan Chicken based on a recipe I googled, along with mashed potatoes and peas. The entire family LOVED it. I did not think they could eat that much! Now I know they can really eat - their pallate is for Western style food, not my kind of food. I am a Malaysian born Chinese who married a "white" Canadian guy. My Hubby really likes my kind of food - Malaysian food. I LOVE Malaysian food. Hubby's favourite is Mexican food. My kids' favourites are Kraft Dinner and Red Hot brand Hot Dogs. Malaysian food is unique - it is simlar to Thai food in that some dishes use lemon grass, lime and coriander - spices/fruit from that region. They are also mostly spicy. However, I think it is better than Thai food because it had the privilege of influence from other cultures such as Arabic, Indian (as in from India), Chinese, Dutch and Portuguese. I won't get into the history of Malaysia here but, if you have tried food from Penang, Malaysia you know what I mean.
When I plan my meals, I usually do them when I go grocery shopping - whatever is on sale that week. I know many women do the same - it makes perfect sense. If it is a really good sale, like a whole chicken for $4 (this week's big sale), I would buy more to stock up for another week. I keep thinking that my family gets bored easily. So, I try to cook a different cuisine each day. Chinese food one day, Italian another day, Malaysian the next, Mexican, Indian, Western food and then rotate. Here's what a week's menu could look like:
Mon: Pork Tenderloin (garlic, lime, garlic, ginger, soya sauce, honey), with Rice and Yu Choy (Chinese greens)
Tuesday: Leftover Pork Tenderloin and Snow Peas used to stir Fry with Spaghetti Noodles - add Hoisin Sauce and Soya Sauce to flavour the noodles.
Wednesday: Roast Beef, with potatoes, carrots and gravy
Thursday: Linguine with Clam Sauce
Friday: Butter Chicken (from scratch) with Rice
Saturday: Penang Laksa (Rice noodles in a tamarind based fish soup, complete with mint leaves, pineapples, cucumber and oyster sauce) - my mouth is watering, just typing all this up!
Sunday: Shrimp Pad Thai (from scratch)
Lunches each day are usually leftoevers from dinner the night prior.
They don't seem to eat that much - good for the grocery bill, but I need them to GROW! When their friends come for sleepovers, you should see some of their reaction - often times I have to make KD for their friends.
Then I make the easy Parmesan Chicken with peas and mashed potatoes, because I was lazy, and it was such a hit! The problem I found was, I used more than half a stick of butter for the entire meal. There was 1/2 cup of butter in the chicken, more butter in the peas, more butter and cream cheese in the mashed potatoes. I don't think it would be very healthy to eat this kind of food every day - although I think it would help fatten them all up so that I don't look like such a terrible mother/wife with such skinny kids and a skinny hubby! Oh the decision - to fatten or not to fatten them up! Nah - I think the condition of the heart is more important than "looking prosperous" - as the Chinese would say to someone who has gained weight.
So, why are they not eating more and gaining more weight? Is the problem due to a lack of fat (BUTTER) in my cooking? Or, is it that their pallate is over stimulated and I should just stick to easy boring foods - like Macaroni and Cheese (from scratch) and Mashed potatoes? Hmm, I am planning on making Liver pate from scratch today - wonder how they would like that! Bwaaaaaaah!
When I plan my meals, I usually do them when I go grocery shopping - whatever is on sale that week. I know many women do the same - it makes perfect sense. If it is a really good sale, like a whole chicken for $4 (this week's big sale), I would buy more to stock up for another week. I keep thinking that my family gets bored easily. So, I try to cook a different cuisine each day. Chinese food one day, Italian another day, Malaysian the next, Mexican, Indian, Western food and then rotate. Here's what a week's menu could look like:
Mon: Pork Tenderloin (garlic, lime, garlic, ginger, soya sauce, honey), with Rice and Yu Choy (Chinese greens)
Tuesday: Leftover Pork Tenderloin and Snow Peas used to stir Fry with Spaghetti Noodles - add Hoisin Sauce and Soya Sauce to flavour the noodles.
Wednesday: Roast Beef, with potatoes, carrots and gravy
Thursday: Linguine with Clam Sauce
Friday: Butter Chicken (from scratch) with Rice
Saturday: Penang Laksa (Rice noodles in a tamarind based fish soup, complete with mint leaves, pineapples, cucumber and oyster sauce) - my mouth is watering, just typing all this up!
Sunday: Shrimp Pad Thai (from scratch)
Lunches each day are usually leftoevers from dinner the night prior.
They don't seem to eat that much - good for the grocery bill, but I need them to GROW! When their friends come for sleepovers, you should see some of their reaction - often times I have to make KD for their friends.
Then I make the easy Parmesan Chicken with peas and mashed potatoes, because I was lazy, and it was such a hit! The problem I found was, I used more than half a stick of butter for the entire meal. There was 1/2 cup of butter in the chicken, more butter in the peas, more butter and cream cheese in the mashed potatoes. I don't think it would be very healthy to eat this kind of food every day - although I think it would help fatten them all up so that I don't look like such a terrible mother/wife with such skinny kids and a skinny hubby! Oh the decision - to fatten or not to fatten them up! Nah - I think the condition of the heart is more important than "looking prosperous" - as the Chinese would say to someone who has gained weight.
So, why are they not eating more and gaining more weight? Is the problem due to a lack of fat (BUTTER) in my cooking? Or, is it that their pallate is over stimulated and I should just stick to easy boring foods - like Macaroni and Cheese (from scratch) and Mashed potatoes? Hmm, I am planning on making Liver pate from scratch today - wonder how they would like that! Bwaaaaaaah!
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Why do I Study the Bible with Jehovah Witnesses?
I have been studying the bible with Jehovah Witnesses for the past year. When I tell this to my friends and family, the first reaction from them is - shock, concern, horror! What I say to them is, if you haven't done it, you can't really knock it. Now, I'm not saying for anyone to go and meet with JWs every week - it can shake you up if you're not very grounded in the Word. Let me give you a bit of a background about myself. I was born into a Christian (Pentecostal, Assemblies of God) home. My father was the Pastor of the church. My mother was the head of Sunday School - she taught the youth/adults Sunday School class, she was the Treasurer (she took on that role to ensure that my Dad did not try to spend money on things that he should not be spending money on), she was the chair (on behalf of my Dad) of the Youth Committee, the chair of the church board, she taught new believer's class every Monday nights. She is also the Principal/teacher of the schools our church started up in different parts of the island as outreach programs. We lived in the parsonage that is in the same compound as the church. We attended church every Monday nights (new believer's class), Wednesday nights (prayer meeting), Saturday afternoons (young youth), Saturday nights (youth), Sunday mornings (Sunday service), Sunday afternoons (Sunday school), choir was in there somewhere (my mom ran the choir too), people were always at our house for counseling, meals, etc. OK, church was my life. I did not just go to church, I loved (still do) to read my Bible daily and prayed daily. I gave my heart to the Lord - ie. chose to follow Him - at the age of 7. I started to speak in Tongues at the age of 9. Because I read the Bible every night of my life (even during the University years when I was back slidden), I have read the Bible through a few times - yes, even the boring parts in Leviticus and Numbers. So, to say that I am steeped in the Bible is an understatement!
How has all that helped me in my life? Well, in my own opinion, I think it has allowed me to live a very blessed life - you know, the great marriage, great career, great family life and now as a stay-at-home-mom/semi-retiree. However, how has all that helped me in telling others about the good news? Sure, I had tried to sow seeds into colleagues' lives by having non-confrontational discussions with them on God, however, none of them came to accept God. There was only 1 friend who accepted God into her life - but I did not lead her to God, my presence was just merely there to remind her every time she saw me, that God is knocking on the door of her heart. She finally gave up fighting God and accepted Him - then she had great peace! So, I can't say that I have led anyone to the Lord. Nope. Have not been able to personally lead anyone to the Light. So, I started to think about how one could tell others about this great God who has given me such a blessed life, and convince them to follow Him so that they can also be blessed and get eternal life to boot.
I remembered a speaker who came to our church - her name was Teri Barr - she's a lawyer in California whose husband is the Pastor of a church there. She said, "the bridge of relationship has to be strong enough to bring the weight of truth across it". That was very well said. Indeed, I needed to focus on relationship building. I've started doing that - this year - my goal is relationship building - I liked what my pastor said, "don't befriend someone with the thought in the back of your head that you are going to invite them to church - they will see right through the insincerity". That is so true - so, I have decided to be a good friend to people that I really want to be friends with - not people that I'll be friends with until they get saved!! I'll be friends with people I actually really enjoy hanging out with. Whether they accept God or not, I still want to be their friend.
I was hanging out with a few friends of mine who were part of different multi-level marketing groups. I noticed the change in their behaviour and psyche. They used to be down on life. After they joined the multi-level marketing groups, they became positive, outgoing, friendly, and seem to have a much more brighter outlook on life. So, I started listening to some of the CDs that those organizations give out. I think we can learn from these organizations - how to help a person change their habits and behaviours. Listening to a sermon (I call these motivational speeches) once a week is just not enough for someone who is just beginning their walk with God. They need more mentoring. In the multi-level marketing groups, their "up-line" takes the time to mentor the new recruit. They get them to listen to the motivational CDs, they teach them how to run the "shows", they encourage them when things don't look rosy, I have seen them using new recruits in small roles, eg. introduce a segment of a meeting, so that they feel part of the team - so that they feel like they belong. I believe we need to do that for new comers and mature believers alike - get them involved so that they feel like they belong. Have a mentoring system built - so that everyone can continue to grow - even "old" believers, as in someone like myself who have known the Lord for a very long time - still need to be mentored so that we are not stagnant.
Then, the JWs knocked on my door. The first instinct was, shoo them off, like I used to do. Instead, I decided that there could be things I could learn from them also. So, I invited them in, offered them tea, and we have since continued this on a weekly basis. This is what I learnt from them:
1) They are very friendly - genuinely friendly.
2) They pray that people's hearts are open to the message of the Gospel - but know that it is not them who bring people to God but it is God's Holy Spirit who will draw people to Himself.
3) Committment - tenacity. They will come to my house every single week, to show me what they believe - as long as I am willing to listen to them.
4) They are prepared - and they know the Bible scriptures very well. Not just in generalities, not just a vague idea, but chapter and verse. They spend the time getting trained for this.
5) They follow a very well written script - a book - but is not afraid to digress when I pull them that way - and then getting back to the topic at hand.
6) They sometimes bring a young recruit - there is that mentoring thing I was talking about in the previous paragraph.
7) They always have an answer from the Bible when I have a question - believe you me, my questions are not the kind that can be easily answered - without me shooting holes in them - if you've seen my background above. (For example, why did God make man when He had already made the angels? Or, Paul's letters to the various churches are just letters - Paul's opinions - they are not scriptures that he referred to - why should we consider them as scriptures? Why didn't God just wipe out the Devil?) If they don't have an answer, they will research the question and come back with a good answer the next time.
It has been fantastic discussing the Trinity, Jesus (is He God?) and Healing - is it for today?, Christmas - should we celebrate it? - with them. (We have yet to discuss life after death and tithing) These are the things we have some disagreements on, however, I have found that we actually agree on very key things, such as, Creation, Jesus being the only way to the Father, once saved, we are not always saved, we don't have anything to do with Halloween because of what it stands for. In my discussions with them, it has helped me to search the scriptures to support my belief, instead of blindly accepting those beliefs because that was what I was taught for many years. I would throw questions at them that I could not throw to just anyone. These are questions I would throw at my brother or sister because I know that they know me well enough to not freak out and they know the scriptures enough to debate a topic with me. However, I don't get to see my siblings that often - so I'll throw them at my JW friends. To answer the question of the title of this blog - Why do I Study the Bible with Jehovah Witnesses? Because I need to meet with someone who has a very good knowledge of the Bible, who can cheer me on in my walk with God, who is not going to be shocked or disappointed if I don't agree with them and who can debate intelligently with me on controversial topics - like a mentor. Then, I can mentor others in a similar manner.
How has all that helped me in my life? Well, in my own opinion, I think it has allowed me to live a very blessed life - you know, the great marriage, great career, great family life and now as a stay-at-home-mom/semi-retiree. However, how has all that helped me in telling others about the good news? Sure, I had tried to sow seeds into colleagues' lives by having non-confrontational discussions with them on God, however, none of them came to accept God. There was only 1 friend who accepted God into her life - but I did not lead her to God, my presence was just merely there to remind her every time she saw me, that God is knocking on the door of her heart. She finally gave up fighting God and accepted Him - then she had great peace! So, I can't say that I have led anyone to the Lord. Nope. Have not been able to personally lead anyone to the Light. So, I started to think about how one could tell others about this great God who has given me such a blessed life, and convince them to follow Him so that they can also be blessed and get eternal life to boot.
I remembered a speaker who came to our church - her name was Teri Barr - she's a lawyer in California whose husband is the Pastor of a church there. She said, "the bridge of relationship has to be strong enough to bring the weight of truth across it". That was very well said. Indeed, I needed to focus on relationship building. I've started doing that - this year - my goal is relationship building - I liked what my pastor said, "don't befriend someone with the thought in the back of your head that you are going to invite them to church - they will see right through the insincerity". That is so true - so, I have decided to be a good friend to people that I really want to be friends with - not people that I'll be friends with until they get saved!! I'll be friends with people I actually really enjoy hanging out with. Whether they accept God or not, I still want to be their friend.
I was hanging out with a few friends of mine who were part of different multi-level marketing groups. I noticed the change in their behaviour and psyche. They used to be down on life. After they joined the multi-level marketing groups, they became positive, outgoing, friendly, and seem to have a much more brighter outlook on life. So, I started listening to some of the CDs that those organizations give out. I think we can learn from these organizations - how to help a person change their habits and behaviours. Listening to a sermon (I call these motivational speeches) once a week is just not enough for someone who is just beginning their walk with God. They need more mentoring. In the multi-level marketing groups, their "up-line" takes the time to mentor the new recruit. They get them to listen to the motivational CDs, they teach them how to run the "shows", they encourage them when things don't look rosy, I have seen them using new recruits in small roles, eg. introduce a segment of a meeting, so that they feel part of the team - so that they feel like they belong. I believe we need to do that for new comers and mature believers alike - get them involved so that they feel like they belong. Have a mentoring system built - so that everyone can continue to grow - even "old" believers, as in someone like myself who have known the Lord for a very long time - still need to be mentored so that we are not stagnant.
Then, the JWs knocked on my door. The first instinct was, shoo them off, like I used to do. Instead, I decided that there could be things I could learn from them also. So, I invited them in, offered them tea, and we have since continued this on a weekly basis. This is what I learnt from them:
1) They are very friendly - genuinely friendly.
2) They pray that people's hearts are open to the message of the Gospel - but know that it is not them who bring people to God but it is God's Holy Spirit who will draw people to Himself.
3) Committment - tenacity. They will come to my house every single week, to show me what they believe - as long as I am willing to listen to them.
4) They are prepared - and they know the Bible scriptures very well. Not just in generalities, not just a vague idea, but chapter and verse. They spend the time getting trained for this.
5) They follow a very well written script - a book - but is not afraid to digress when I pull them that way - and then getting back to the topic at hand.
6) They sometimes bring a young recruit - there is that mentoring thing I was talking about in the previous paragraph.
7) They always have an answer from the Bible when I have a question - believe you me, my questions are not the kind that can be easily answered - without me shooting holes in them - if you've seen my background above. (For example, why did God make man when He had already made the angels? Or, Paul's letters to the various churches are just letters - Paul's opinions - they are not scriptures that he referred to - why should we consider them as scriptures? Why didn't God just wipe out the Devil?) If they don't have an answer, they will research the question and come back with a good answer the next time.
It has been fantastic discussing the Trinity, Jesus (is He God?) and Healing - is it for today?, Christmas - should we celebrate it? - with them. (We have yet to discuss life after death and tithing) These are the things we have some disagreements on, however, I have found that we actually agree on very key things, such as, Creation, Jesus being the only way to the Father, once saved, we are not always saved, we don't have anything to do with Halloween because of what it stands for. In my discussions with them, it has helped me to search the scriptures to support my belief, instead of blindly accepting those beliefs because that was what I was taught for many years. I would throw questions at them that I could not throw to just anyone. These are questions I would throw at my brother or sister because I know that they know me well enough to not freak out and they know the scriptures enough to debate a topic with me. However, I don't get to see my siblings that often - so I'll throw them at my JW friends. To answer the question of the title of this blog - Why do I Study the Bible with Jehovah Witnesses? Because I need to meet with someone who has a very good knowledge of the Bible, who can cheer me on in my walk with God, who is not going to be shocked or disappointed if I don't agree with them and who can debate intelligently with me on controversial topics - like a mentor. Then, I can mentor others in a similar manner.
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