Monday, June 1, 2009

1a.m. MAY ENCOUNTER

There is amazing development in what God has been doing or speaking to us in our journey in wanting to do Change Your World (CYW).

On May 3rd - 5th , the team went away for 3 days just seeking God on why “Change Your World”. One of the reasons why we did that is because we’re not sure if it was really God or us being man trying to be heroes. To be honest, there are too many uncertainties and these are just a few things on how we felt:

  1. We are nobody in Malaysia - no one really knows who 1a.m. is.
  2. We don’t have the finance as it takes at least half a million if we want to do 14 States. Yeap our church is too small and do not have such finances to run this.
  3. We are a small church and the amount of man power needed to do this needs what maybe Hillsongs or Planetshakers kind of capacity. Maybe we are too ambitious.

But after a burning bush experience with God, I am not only fired up but the whole band is totally consumed by what God spoke in our retreat. This is the summary from Cuzario, Neil and Kelvin.

Two weekends ago we set for the mountainous hiding place, away from the city, to seek and hear from God hoping that He would reveal His immediate action plans for us in 1am as we unfold yet another new and interesting chapter of our ministry.

This year He is entrusting us with a 2-year project, our biggest so far, called Change Your World; due to kick off in August. Honestly speaking, though fully driven by our childlike faith (as always), we didn’t quite have the clearest picture of what the whole thing should be like. Crazy ideas were aplenty and scattered everywhere but pieced together the effect of braving the approximately 18 degrees centigrade Malaysian winter for a latte night at Starbucks, close to 6000 feet above sea level.

Things weren’t the same after we got our caffeine shot that night

Early the next morning as we battled against our growling tummies, God began to speak to each one of us mostly through His living Word, some pictures. The next few paragraphs are just a few of the amazing things revealed to us

In Luke 5:5 we observed that despite the many hours of trying, Simon did not grunt when Jesus told him to drop his net on the water for what would probably be one of his last attempts that night. Without complaining he did exactly as told saying, At Your Word (some translations because You say so) I will let this net down. Just like Simon we, for most of the time, have no slightest clue of what it takes to labor for or partner with God we come to a dead end without knowing it; typically choosing to stop, drop everything, quit, forget about it and never ever make a come back. But Simon was not a quitter. Instead, as a reward of his obedience, he was able to have the last laugh that night catching most likely his biggest catch in his entire fishing career. More than that, he was able to share the spoils with his buddies too! Being in the boat with Simon, we can’t but so wanting to emulate his feat and of course his great servant hood attitude. We want to obey Gods command like Simon did, believing in His every word without any hint of doubt. It didn’t require much and there’s nothing to lose, really. Because He said so, we will go

Moving on to verse 17 of the same chapter, the sentence that caught our attention was, the power of God was present.

Well, in all honesty, this is our truest desire for all the things we do in our ministry. Never in our mind will we ever take pride in the things we are doing or called to do. Our up most prayer is that for His power to be present so evident that others can’t deny that it is truly by His work we are able to execute everything put into our plates, be it in our small productions or gigantour concerts! All we are about is bringing His presence to every single life around us.

Lastly for this entry then He showed through one of us an image of a compass, one that has a hand as would an analog clock. Clockwise, the hand ticked beginning from the North proceeding to the East; then making a way passing the South at the six o clock mark before wrapping its not-so-complete cycle up in the West. Frankly, none of us knew what this exactly means (and yes, we are still trying to decipher the illustration) but in my humble opinion, I felt that this could probably be the route He wants us to take for this tour. As far as my geographically-challenged mind can go, I remembered we first introduced this tour in the Northern part of our country followed exactly by another state in the West. The third stop was a city in the Southern part of Peninsular Malaysia and the next, but not the last just yet, was in yes you got it right it was arguably to the West (actually North, depending on where and how your standing position is while reading this) of the previous city! So there you go, need me to say more?

Stay with us for more news

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

God's Kitchen

It is way past midnight (oh yes, my BEDTIME too!) and I’m still wide awake. The reddish grey cloud outside is already hinting that rain is inevitable while the accompanying cool breeze is saying amen to that! Lovely…

I can’t help myself from munching the hot potato PIK-NIK “Shoestrings” while writing this…it is so addictive I’m beginning to think that if I don’t stop now I’ll continue eating it like an Eat-To-Sleep Chewing Machine! Oh don’t worry, I don’t do that all the time…and my current weight is still bearable…so it’s okay…

By the way, there’s a SMALL bowl of Cruzer’s Daybreak Salad waiting for me in the kitchen!

Hmmm…anyway, I’m just thinking…

If again tomorrow night I can’t sleep, despite the perfect weather, will I drug myself with more junk food or will I turn to the solid spiritual food? Shhh…I know…

Yes; lately, I’ve been so challenged and healthily bugged by the word of God written in Joshua 1:8. It says…

“Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful”. (NIV)

You see…too many of us, me included, I’m pretty sure we’ve came across this scripture too many times we overlooked the lamb-chop-like juice of truth it contains. Often time I realize I’d focus more on the “God’s Promise” part of the scripture neglecting the “My Action” part. It is as though I was too hungry I couldn’t wait for my lamb chop to cook I ate it raw – far off from His plan for me to enjoy the meat well done.

The thing about me (and probably you too) is that I don’t really love waiting and I want what I want right here right now. That’s how I am sometimes. I wanna be prosperous and I wanna be successful and I want them both fast, minus having to go through any hurdles. It is like I’m demanding for the profit but totally choose to forget about the investments! It doesn’t work that way, right?

But God being the fair Boss, His strategy is different – always! Not that He loves to withhold His promises, but in my own opinion, He is just not a fan of having to fork out salary advances to any of His servants. Unless faith actions are constantly and sincerely shown, He can choose to delay in delivering the desires of my heart…and He will not surprisingly do just that!

The whole experience of being enlightened by this simple verse has really caused me to dig in whatever I read so much deeper with the quest to find a fresh revelation and the whole package that comes with it. Like those who serves in the oil and gas industry, they dig deeper not with the goal to find out more about dinosaurs or fossils they knew ever existed; their prize – the oil and gas itself! Likewise, my attitude is not to just read whatever that is visible but beyond.

That’s just one of the things I learned…would love to share more juice with you again next time…perhaps in one of my other sleepless nights. Til then, enjoy what I’m leaving behind for you…

Cruzer’s Daybreak Salad Recipe:

Chicken Sausages with Cheese and Chili – raw, sliced to your hotness;

Onions, sliced thin enough to remind you of the unnecessary fat you might gain;

Tomato, sliced to the number of hours you have left in bed;

Carrots, sliced enough to shut your Parrot mouth;

Coral Leaves/Lettuces, generously green enough to remind you Jude is a vegetarian;

Sprinkles of coarse Black Pepper, as desired as you would tiny sweet moles on your face;

French Dressing, poured to perfection to romance your taste bud.

*would be nicer with Parmesan Cheese & Croutons!

Best paired with: Iced Lemon Tea chilled at -2°c.

Total Preparation Time: 7 minutes

Accompanying Soundtracks:

Nightminds by Missy Higgins

Water Feels Warm by Electralow

Hide Me by Grandad Bob

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Change Your World Tour - Teaser



Guys! GO TO YOUTUBE AND COPY THE URL OR EMBEDDED THIS VIDEO TO PLAY ON YOUR BLOG, WEBSITE OR MYSPACE.

SPREAD IT OUT AND TOGETHER LETS BRING CHANGE!!!!

1a.m. NEW WEBSITE LOOK

What a crazy month March turned out to be for us at 1a.m.! We are currently in the midst of fine-tuning a project we dreamed of embarking months ago called Change Your World, among others.


Concurrently, we are also in the last phase of upgrading our main website temporarily replacing it with the Change Your World website. If you would like to explore and check out the content, simply log on to our existing address at www.1am.com.my; you might just find something that will trigger your curiosity.


Just a little snippet of what you will find:


Facebook: Join us here and be a part of the 1a.m. community;

Twitter: To get instant updates about what we are up to;

Wordpress: To get details of our daily chores;

Indieheaven: Listen to our music and find out more about other Christian musicians near you;

Merch: Buy our merchandise;

Youtube: Watch our videos; Embed our new promo video to spread change!!!

Nominate Your City: Invite us to come to your city.


Well that is all we have for you this round. Have a great day! God bless..

Friday, February 6, 2009

Sound of Silence

I don't really have a title watsoeva but this is basically wat i went thru d last 2 weeks o so...d 1st is me, d 2nd part is when God came into d picture...



Engulfed by total silence I didn't know what to say…


Jotting my thoughts down on paper was totally outta the question…


As though it's gonna help translate what's exactly been piling up in the core of my dented heart...


If it could be a color, pitch black would have well painted my disturbed mind…


Saving precious words for deep conversations seemed to be a valid excuse for the prolonged silence...


The silence I befriended and grew fond of…


Who would have thought the lowest decibel could be far greater in volume than the sound of a roaring thunder?


Unexpected occurrence…you left me baffled…



Silence…



Uninvited yet persistently it came, breaking the silence…


As though written in the air I heard every word whispered…


Tearing the separating veil this gentle voice reached for my reshaped heart…


A tone so calm coated in shades of the bluest deep ocean…


Words of comfort and hope it bestowed upon me without restraint…


None of which came cheap but I got 'em for free…


So real were they silence was kept at bay, waiting to just fade away…


Who would have thought silence could effortlessly be erased simply by letting the voice speak?


Predictably unusual…I'm mystified…


You broke the ice…



Cuz1am

Thursday, February 5, 2009

God's Ang Pau


The sight of my apartment in KL…

The noisy cars that pass by everyday…

The view of a warehouse, FROM a warehouse…

( I’ll keep this short since my previous one was amazingly long)


Being back from holidays is always a bummer for most people, I’m one of them and most probably you are too. I made a conclusion that the one that needs a holiday the most are the ones that just had them(insert laughter here). Ah…I remember the feeling when I first touched down to KL last year to join 1a.m., oddly I felt the same when I arrived last night from KK. Oh well, I guess the only thing in life that God wants us to move in is forward.


If you didn’t know I went back to KK for the holiday season and I THANK GOD that I went back, so refreshing and really got me into the holiday mood. As usual for CNY I went back with my family to Sandakan and did 2 things: Eat, and collect Ang Paus. Ok you have to understand this, my grandfather married THREE TIMES…he must be very good looking…and as a result I have an array of aunties and uncles…some I never met before, and the good thing about that is…MORE ANG PAU. (Insert evil laughter here). So really it’s a blessing in disguise, although all of them thought of me as a girl cos of my hair. It was a really good chance for me to spend time with my family specially my brother and dad…since…us as guys don’t spend much time together. I really felt burden specially for my dad, cos since young I was never attached to him (I’m a mommy’s boy), so I took EXTRA effort to really spend time with my dad. Which I did, and really I thank God I did, cos now I feel we’re more bonded together and now we talk more. Of course it was awkward and needs getting used to but it’s a journey I guess.


Well, to share one thing with you guys one thing that God spoke to me this week in my devotion (we call it vedotion sometimes) he made me look at my ang paus…the wonderful time I had with my family…how awesome KK is…all those things…they are of extreme value to me, but will someday be gone. But in my devotion it says:


Lasting treasures lie in the riches of love, joy, peace,

goodness, grace and mercy that God lavishes on his children EVERYDAY”.


Isn’t that awesome…EVERYDAY!!


Which means everyday is Chinese New Year to us cos he gives us “Ang Paus” that are filled with love, joy, grace, mercy, peace and everything that is for our spiritual, physical and emotional growth and benefit!!


God really open my eyes to see that earthly things though of VALUE to me…is of extreme small value compared to God’s grace and love. I took the time to thank God in every capacity that I can think of...being able to receive ang paus, spend time with my family, serving Him full time, BEING ALIVE, and ALL the awesome “ang paus” that he LAVISHES us daily. He deserves all the glory and honour and thanks in my life.


Ready to receive a daily dose of God’s Ang Pau?

Thursday, January 29, 2009

RISE of the LEADER


So it was a Friday afternoon, I had an Intro to Business class and my word, did I enjoy this class.


A little side note here.... when I was in high school I purposely chose the science stream coz I hated Business. Who would have known that I'll be learning a bit on Business in college again...wahhhhhhhhhhhhh ... definitely not me.


I kinda felt like Jonah where you like try to run away from what your suppose to do or face only to find yourself submit to whatever you are running from =)

Anyway, You got to love God coz for whatever reason you think ain't worth knowing is worth knowing In God's Eyes!


In other words, just move with the flow knowing that God is in Control!!!


We had this game which the teacher kinda like asked us to play in a room with 5 students (The rest must be running away... hehehe). It was a "Survival simulation game".

Now I don't know if it’s true but it’s the same game that companies use when hiring managers. In short the scenario is that you along with your people where in a plane, crashed landed somewhere up north of Canada (How north can you get?!?! =p), its cold, 25 below zero during day time, 40 below zero at night, the nearest town 20 miles away. So you and your surviving buddies manage to salvage a couple of things in the plane....


WHAT DO YOU DO?


The list are (not in order)


A ball of steel wool

A small axe

A loaded .45 Caliber pistol

Can of Crisco Shortening

News papers (One per person)

Cigarette lighter (Without Fluid)

Extra T-shirt and pants for each survivor

20x20 ft. piece of heavy duty canvas

A sectional air map made of plastic

One quart of 100-proof whiskey

A compass

Family-size chocolate (One per-person)


Try doing this and see whether you are manger material =) (Comment or email me personally if you want to know the answer to this)


Anyway, I did mine... And guess what?!?!?!?!


I'll be the first one to die in the COLD!!!! Oh man, that just dropped the nuclear bomb in me and I can hear God say "..... ... ..... . . . . ..."


In other words, sometimes (or most of the times) I get the best of me (overconfident side) to act upon my life rather than listening to Him first and consider the thoughts of others.

When I thought about it, ask me whether my fellow "plane crashers" where part of my survival plan, I'm ashamed to say "NO".

Wow that was an eye opener, heart opener, can opener (however you want to call it) for me. I can see my "humble status" rising as it left a scar in my heart and mind as it’s gonna be one of those memories that you'll never forget. I can be very selfish.


But you know what.... Praise God! He reminded me that He is the perfector of our Faith!

Don’t ever think “that because things are going great for you everything is ok”. We need Jesus all the more.

I'm still amazed with this scene in my life. I still have a lot to learn. I thank God that He's never given up on me despite how many times I feel like giving up.


“A thousand times I failed still your mercy remains,

should I stumble again, I'm caught by your Grace" (plays at the back of my mind when writing this =) )


So I "died" in managerial skills but that’s all part in Leadership training so I guess I'm in the right class in life.


To be a leader is to go through failures not because you’re destined to fail but destined to learn so that you can be a better leader not for yourself, but for God and others.


Rise up!


Neil1am

P.S HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!!!