Tag Archives: food

mmmm psalm 119 mmmm

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I’m passionate about eating Asian food in Sydney because we have the best outside Asia!

There’s an enormous variety of authentic dishes to choose from:

  • Cantonese yumcha
  • Peking duck
  • Malaysian char kway teow & roti canai
  • Singapore noodles & chicken rice
  • Korean bulgogi
  • Thai green & massaman curries
  • Indian biryani & lamb korma
  • Turkish gozleme
  • Vietnamese pho

But there is something even more delicious!

Join a hungry Sydney Bible College student for a satisying meal!

Psalm 119: 97-105 (NIV1984)

Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long.
Your commands make me wiser than my enemies, for they are ever with me.
I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on your statutes.
I have more understanding than the elders, for I obey your precepts.
I have kept my feet from every evil path so that I might obey your word.
I have not departed from your laws, for you yourself have taught me.
How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!
I gain understanding from your precepts; therefore I hate every wrong path.
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.

The writer of this psalm uses a food metaphor to describe the words of God
He hungers after the sweet delicious mouthfuls and craves for more
He is passionate about reading and meditating on the words of God
In Old Testament times, the words of God were the Law (the 1st 5 books of the Bible)
In the context of the New Testament, the whole Bible is God’s Word (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
We can now enjoy both Testaments on our dinner table

How often do you read/eat the Bible?
We need to eat the Bible everyday just like we need food daily to survive
Without nourishing food we will die!
It is the same with God’s Word as we gain hope and strength for each new day
The last verse in this section uses a light metaphor to describe the words of God
The Bible shines a light in darkness so we can see the way forward

We are faced with so many daily decisions in life, how do you know which path to follow?
The answers can be found in the Bible

Bible College starts again in less than 3 weeks!
I can’t wait to get stuck in to the Bible and eat the delicious feast!

mmmm Bible mmmm

mmmm revelation 21 mmmm

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Come for a delicious journey through God’s Word with a hungry Sydney Bible College student!

Do you hunger for something more filling than yumcha?

If so, read on ….

Revelation 21:1-4 (NIV 1984)

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

What do you look forward to?

I look forward to actually meeting God face-to-face and living with him in his city.

Imagine a place where there is no:

  • War
  • Death
  • Sickness, Cancer, Arthritis
  • Pain
  • Mourning & Crying

Our current earth is only a shadow of things to come and we are only passing through. This is not our permanent home. There is something better to look forward to.

The problems of this world only serve as a reminder not to place our hope in our own abilities.

We cannot fix man-made Climate Change. Our world is dying from pollution. We haven’t cared for our world properly and face major environmental problems – erosion, deforestation, salinity & land degradation.

There has always been conflict in some part of our world as peoples war against each other. Today it is Syria & Afghanistan. Yesterday it was Iraq, Lebanon, Vietnam, Korea, Germany. There have been mass-shootings in the USA and Norway in the last few years. Recently, an innocent woman was brutally raped and murdered while walking home, shocking the city of Melbourne in Australia.

It is obvious that as humans we fail to control our world and find a solution to our countless social problems. There is crime, domestic violence, divorce, depression, homelessness & unemployment. We try to escape our problems by turning to alcohol and drugs. But this is no solution.

Wouldn’t you feel cheated if this is all the world had to offer you?

Jesus conquered death and offers us life with him. There is hope beyond this world. Our old world and its problems will disappear. It will be replaced with a beautiful new world.

mmmm Bible mmmm

mmmm job 28 mmmm

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Come for a delicious journey through God’s Word with a hungry Sydney Bible College student!

Do you crave something more filling than yumcha?

If so, read on ….

Job 28:20-28 (NIV 1984)

“Where then does wisdom come from?
Where does understanding dwell?
It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing,
concealed even from the birds of the air.
Destruction and Death say,
‘Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.’
God understands the way to it
and he alone knows where it dwells,
for he views the ends of the earth
and sees everything under the heavens.
When he established the force of the wind
and measured out the waters,
when he made a decree for the rain
and a path for the thunderstorm,
then he looked at wisdom and appraised it;
he confirmed it and tested it.
And he said to man,
‘The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom,
and to shun evil is understanding.’”

The book of Job in the Old Testament is about a Man and his relationship with God.

Job experiences unexplained suffering and cries out in pain.
His friends try to offer comforting words of wisdom but are tactless and foolish.
Job wonders where true wisdom can be found.

Only God is the source of true wisdom.

Man can find wisdom in right relationship with God.
We do this by humbly approaching Him and recognising that He is the Creator (and we are not!)

He creates thunderstorms like Super Storm Sandy that devastated NE USA recently.
I love New York in the Spring – one of the great cities of the world alongside Sydney.
So to see the recent devastation is heart-breaking and humbling.

When suffering happens to us, we cry out in pain.
But instead of asking, “Why did you do this, God?”

We should ask, “How can I trust God to get me through this suffering?”

God is more important than our treasured homes that can be washed away in a storm.

God is more reliable than politicians who promise but fail to deliver.

God wants us to trust Him when everything collapses around us.

He sent Jesus to give us eternal hope so that we can weather the most powerful storm.

Who do you trust when you lose everything?

mmmm Bible mmmm

mmmm colossians 1 mmmm

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Come for a delicious journey through God’s Word with a hungry Sydney Bible College student!

Do you crave something more filling than yumcha?

If so, read on ….

Colossians 1:15-16 (NIV 1984)

He [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.

What is the meaning of life?

Philosophers, comedians and theologians have pondered this question since time began.

Some answers include:

  • Love, Family relationships and friendships
  • Knowledge, learning and education
  • Career success and job satisfaction
  • Good food and wine
  • Money, possessions, a comfortable home in a good suburb and a fast car
  • Good health, the body beautiful, fitness and sport
  • Art, architecture, music and entertainment
  • Travel and the environment
  • Recreation and leisure
  • Humour and happiness

Colossians tells us something different and often we miss the last 2 words in verse 16.

Jesus created the universe for himself. This includes all humans – Christian and non-Christian.

We belong to Jesus. He is our “meaning”.

So what does this look like?

Jesus desires to enjoy us in close relationship to him – closer than our family or best friends.

We often look for meaning in the wrong places:

  • Family and friends come and go – we mourn when we lose them
  • Even with all the knowledge in the world, we can still be lonely
  • Redundancy can stunt our career plans and threaten our homes
  • Cancer and Diabetes can spoil our appetite for good food and wine
  • Money and possessions can be stolen or destroyed in fire
  • We are so busy in life and no longer have time for rest and hobbies
  • Worries and Depression can make our fun and laughter disappear

Jesus is eternal – he is still there when our world collapses around us

He is our food that satisfies the greatest hunger when we need it most

Enjoy him today!

mmmm Bible mmmm

mmmm ephesians 2 mmmm

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Come for a delicious journey through God’s Word with an inquisitive Sydney Bible College student!

Do you hunger for something more filling than yumcha?

If so, read on ….

Ephesians 2:4-9 (NIV 1984)

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.

Growing up in a Christian family, I always thought I had to earn my way to heaven by going to church every Sunday and obeying the Ten Commandments.

But I was always worried that I wasn’t good enough. In my heart, I knew that I wasn’t perfect.

When I was 17, I read this passage in Ephesians and a wave of relief washed over me.

God is a God of second chances (mercy) giving me an amazing gift that I didn’t deserve (grace): His Son Jesus.

I didn’t earn this free gift and there is no way that I can repay God for saving me.

Suddenly a light dawned on me and I fully understood and appreciated the enormity of “grace“.

I was baptised soon after and now live my life in thankfulness to God for his “grace“.

Think about “love”, “mercy” and “grace” – they are  closely interconnected:

Grace is clearly the greatest gift we can receive in our lives – once you realise this, you can relax and be free from guilt and worry forever. Nothing else matters.

mmmm Bible mmmm

mmmm psalm 88 mmmm

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Come for a delicious journey through God’s Word with an inquisitive Sydney Bible College student!

Do you hunger for something more filling than yumcha?

If so, read on ….

Psalm 88:1-5 (NIV 1984)

O Lord, the God who saves me, day and night I cry out before you.
May my prayer come before you; turn your ear to my cry.
For my soul is full of trouble and my life draws near the grave.
I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am like a man without strength.
I am set apart with the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom you remember no more, who are cut off from your care.

The writer of this psalm strongly believes that God will save him even though he is in immense pain.

Life is tough sometimes ….

Maybe you’re in a backbreaking job with a bullying boss

Or you’re about to lose your job in uncertain times

Maybe you suffer chronic pain like arthritis

Or you’re a persecuted Christian in China jailed for attending an unregistered church

Maybe one or both of your parents are dying of cancer

This psalm is written to be sung in community and maybe it’s appropriate when there is a great tragedy like the outpouring of grief over the sudden premature death of a child in a car accident

When your world collapses around you, who do you turn to and what do you hope for?

Jesus has taken our pain on himself and can be trusted to save us now and in the future

mmmm Bible mmmm

mmmm ezekiel 36 mmmm

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Come for a delicious journey through God’s Word with a hungry Sydney Bible College student!

Do you hunger for something more filling than yumcha?

If so, read on ….

Ezekiel 36:24-26 (NIV 1984)

[God said] “For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.”

God was very angry with the hard-hearted Israelites in Ezekiel. He punished them severely.

But after judgement, God quickly forgave them and desired to gather his people back to himself.

We can see that He is a God of second chances!

He will change our hearts so that we can respond to him in love.

God no longer lives in the temple in Jerusalem.

Through Jesus, He will now live in our hearts if we let Him in.

mmmm Bible mmmm

mmmm revelation 7 mmmm

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Come for a culinary journey through God’s Word with a hungry Sydney Bible College student!

Do you hunger for something more filling than yumcha?

If so, read on ….

Revelation 7:9-10 (NIV 1984)

After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb.”

Awesome! Heaven is going to be multi-racial, but not multicultural.

No longer will there be cultural divisions and misunderstandings.

There will be one heavenly culture.

No longer will there be language barriers and miscommunication.

Everyone will understand each other perfectly as we sing together.

Imagine a place where there are no longer wars and insoluble conflicts like Israel/Palestine.

No longer will there be nations fighting over the same piece of land.

Instead all Christians will be united before Jesus on his throne!

mmmm Bible mmmm