Monday, September 19, 2005

My Tribute to NJC 05S21

My dear 05S21, in the beginning of the year, i talked about the mark of a true man is not to score grades, or win trophies, but to be awesome. I want to tell the world how awesome you guys are:

Because when you heard i was suffering, you gave me a big Get Well Card signed by everyone, even though I've never stepped into your class, or have i personally met any of you.

There are people that are in contact with me everyday, every week that didn't bother.
Why is it awesome?
Because i won't forget it.
And, you have been part of what dreams are make of. Always continue to be like this... make other people's dreams a reality.

Thank you for the bottom of my heart, God bless!
Ken

Operation NJC RockX (Post Mortem)

I'm drained. But not wasted. (Download a clip here: http://www.djclart.com/vids/ken6.wmv) (BTW: DJ Clarts is cool.)
This is to thank everybody, every soul who made this even possible.
Everything i was made off. Everything i was made to be. Every experience that permeates richly between the grace of God and the mistakes i made, or mistakes done to me... everything was expressed on that day.
Passion Pursuit Day.
What is Passion?
It's NOT a hobby. A hobby has NOTHING on passion. Compared to the richness of Christs' experience personified, a simile, a metaphor is the closest it makes it. Peer into the looking glass, focus in and push away the pervasive distractions...
You don't need to.
In fact, the original meaning of 'passion' was the passion of Christ. The event where Jesus willingly went to the cross to die. This originated the definition of Passion, any other definition is a cheap imitation. For who? Us. You and Me. The extremity of it all is awesome to behold.
Christs' passion is more obvious than when Galileo partially blinded himself looking into the sun. Like a bright flourescent light blazing in a city where everyone cowering over some cheap neon source. Depth of joy overlooking a forgotten morose. A real burning flame, over a children's sketch book picture of one.
It's about believing in something, and doing it as much as your soul is alive.
"If you haven't found worth dying for, you haven't really lived" does Rebecca St James in her song.
Christ died for me. That means He lived for me? Every breath he endured on this fallen rhapsody called earth, was breathed for me.
Love will never have the same meaning, for those who understood what Jesus did, ever again. You see, Jesus was the most blameless person and He CHOSE to sacrifice for us, even when firstly, we didn't deserve it, and secondly, never cared about it either.

Romans 5:
6You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.


Passion? This is true passion. To give so much. Jesus gave up heaven, to come to earth to be with us, show that He understood and loved us till death. And when the time came for His death, He could have prevented it from happening:

Matthew 26:53
Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels?


But no, He struggled. Till his sweat was like drops of blood. He died the ultimate death. Excruciating pain. Dishonorable, shameful death on the cross to be spat on. And, the worse, to be ignored by God the Father because at that moment, He carried the sins of the whole world (you and me included) past present and future; and the God of justice had to turn away. Till Jesus cried out:

Matthew 27:46
About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"—which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"


Why Jesus? Why did you have to suffer so unearthly?
So that God could forgive my sin.

Hebrews 9:
26Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, 28so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.


So that now, because of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, His blood was shed for me, my penalty has all been paid, and I can now bask in the living graces of God's presense... that upholds me.
Guiding me.
Surprising me.
This is what true passion is about.
Some students ask me, why bother putting so much effort, time and detail into the Passion Pursuit day concert; or even in all the lectures i do?
Simple, it's Passion
and the definition of Passion is the example of Jesus.
No matter how sick i become, or how lonely it can be, or how the world can misunderstand you.
Jesus went through it first, and went through an unimaginably times worse - for me.
For me.
The world may frown on me, but GRACE carries me through:

1 Cor 15:
10But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.


Grace can make you do the impossible.
IT can make you forgive the unforgivable.
IT can make you fly on wings like eagles.
IT can take you from height to height, higher and higher.
IT can make you do the impossible.
IT can make you free of worldly expectations.
IT can make the weak say 'I am strong'
IT can make the poor say 'I am rich'

because of what the Lord has done...
to have the passion to love and die for us.

That's what the Mr Koh SHOW was all about. It wasn't about performing. It's about pulling out all the stops and giving of yourself what God gave you, despite having 101 problems. To all students of NJC who sat in, i hope you went away with that. If you did, then i'm happy. Very happy.
I can only hope to be a passion to my friends, and kids too.
All those who came together for Passion Pursuit. I love you more than words can say.

Ken Y
Ling
Ruth
JJ
Jacq
Gab
05s13
04s13
05s19
05s20

Love
Ken

PS: Below are two poems i read. These are my life. But it doesn't end there. I've always reasons to smile. Jesus is the reason.

Operation NJ RockX - Sadness Part II (iSoLaTioN)

Everyday I come back to school, wish I was cool,
But I know I can’t be that too.[1]
Cause I’m wrecked with pain, my skin’s inflamed
I’m ashamed of the blood that’s leaving my veins [2]
But I remember all the things you said,
paid my debts, said I had a future ahead [3]
But if that’s true, God, why I do wish I was dead?
My souls heavy like I’m chained with lead [4]
That’s what I said, that’s what I said
God, why you make me so swollen and red? [5]

I come to assembly with sores bloody and open
No one even cares about the burdens I’m holdin’ [6]
Every minute, every second, pain beckons, and I can’t reckon
Who could answer my questions? The echo rings, I sing [7]
mahjulah and there are flies around me
A dog’s licking my wounds, but I don’t make a sound see [8]
My hearts crying out, but I’m too torn and tired
All I want to do is escape this satire [9]
I perspire, aaa, my skin stings again
Where are my friends? Guess I’m alone again? [10]

So I, pop all my pills, feel sleepy inside
Ignoring hurts and pains, for no reason despite [11]
I’m waking up cold and in fright, it’s now 4am,
but I thought it was midnight [12]
So when will you when will you make things right?
Let the pain subside, I confide in you like [13]
A Father Figure, rush like a river, arms open wide
Makes my souls shiver, two worlds collide inside [14]
Between fears that sink where I need to be at
Need you here, at the brink of dawn and I can see that [15]
You’ll help me through the dark that seems forever,
Let the hope take me pass the never-ever land, where a [16]
Refuge exists, to lay my head
And I see hope in the future ahead instead. [17]
and i see hope in the future ahead
Colorful rainbows painted crimson Grace Red [18]
instead.
i'd be Free.

Operation NJC RockX - Sadness Part I (dear Mum)

Tears cross my eyes when I look into the stars of the night,
shining so big and bright
When here I am, a part of me dying
am I hiding lying on the bed, tired and tried?
How was I to know you’d leave me,
with all my regrets and you know, that I can’t see
past, the times I ignored you, ran right past you, didn’t give a damn but
you were there to understand me, embrace me,
giving in me the strength to face adversary
Now you’re gone, the night's so long, get me through
where i don't belong, seperated from you.

Now that I look back, hold on
The memories come back, they are coming in strong
The tears that drop in the blink of an eye
Was it a way in the darkness for me to deny
The obvious truth, what I lost, there’s no sleep on this bed I toss
Remember when you tuck me to sleep,
making sure that I knew all the prayers I keep
And you sat by me, held my hand, helping me always to understand
That no matter tough this life could be, you’d be right there, God’s gift to me.

I couldn’t understand, did God throw the dice
Stage four cancer not once but twice and the pains that you bore so silently
Ironically, bravely, lucidity, and I see you lay there on the hospital bed
Vision blurred, voice slurred, both of our eyes swollen and red
And how much time did you have left?
I heard the tick of the clock and I counted your every breath
As morphine dripped and you were concast
The fear that gripped my heart, which breath would be the last
Then from the deathly silence, I heard vividly
“Do something great for God, son” and you left me.

You left me.