Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Chapter 39 - 2009

wow, its 2009 already. 2008 came and went by amazingly quick.. the past year was filled with a number of different experiences and sleepless nights. in this post, i will be revealing a thing or two that you people may not even know it happened so yea ;)

1) Was called to head the events department of CY
it was entirely different to lead a department as a whole and to merely organize an event like past years. events were planned back to back and tons of other aspects to consider at one go. though i really didn't think i've done well at all and worth mentioning, but i guess i could say i've given my all that i could possibly give at that very point of time for this ministry, for every event that was planned throughout 2008 (amazing race, missions month, youth camp, cg/lg outings, movies, etc).

2) Was reinstalled as a LG leader
this was and still is a humbling experience for me as leading a LG is not anywhere near an easy task. despite my existing busy schedule, i admit that it is uber difficult to actually fork out time to care for each and every member individually. however i thank God for somehow giving me opportunities to help and guide them whenever possible, not forgetting placing both Brian and Esther in the very same LG working together for our members. ultimately the members are the very reason why i still insist to remain here even though i'm busy.

3) Had the opportunity to share God's word in CY
though i've shared a number of times in CCSM, Teen's Class and even in CY itself, "Emo-lution" was the only time where the numbers were the greatest of all. i thank God for giving me the Word and the courage to stand in front to share as i honestly say that i do not like sharing from the front as it is very difficult to do so especially when i know i'm not perfect in fulfilling God's word as i stand and speak. i struggle with myself all the time when such opportunity is given.

4) Managed to launch Shirts 4 Real's Illuminate collection publicly
5) Obtained good contacts in New Zealand and Australia for Shirts 4 Real's expansion purposes
6) Organized the Fleur-de-Lis under the banner of Shirts 4 Real and A Shopaholic's Den
7) Given the opportunity to gain publicity at the Hillsong United concert @ GTPJ
all these couldn't have happened without God in the picture. now that i look back, i've got no idea how i managed to put all these together without going crazy. the workload, i remember, it was insane. all the brainstorming sessions, all the communication work, all the physical work, etc etc.. it was insane..



8) Witnessed the growth and potential of Genesis IT Solutions & Services
i recall the days where Joel and i used to fix home computers during college days and eventually dived into starting up this company where we don't really know where were we heading to exactly. today, this company is actually doing well in the data recovery industry and if you look us up, we're actually one of the top 5 in Malaysia for such services. it is amazing to see how God's grace and mercy works in life.

9) Got featured in emmagem.com!
now this is one nobody knows! i got featured on their site after the Shirts 4 Real launch @ Positive Cafe and i thought it would be interesting to disclose since its the new year lol!
10) Got featured on Business Times!
well well, the last time i went on local papers was when i was still in kindergarten and was featured alongside my dad. this time however, is a whole new thing altogether. 
11) Got featured on 20Questions!
this is my first time on a talk show. though it is an online one but it is still something i've never experienced and it was quite fun and scary at the same time since we are to do it in one single take!

12) Organized The Malaysian Entrepreneur Challenge
this is definitely one of the biggest event organized thus far! the amount of coordination work itself is enough to kill. this is apart from the brainstorming and the inception phase of the entire project itself. 

i guess the above are the highlights of 2008. of course there are others such as the friends and people placed in my life that has made a significant difference in who i am today. without this bunch of people, i know i'll definitely not make it. 

i'm eager to know what 2009 has in store. i pray that i'll remain in God's will and not wander off into my own orbit (refer to camp booklet devotion day 2 ;) ) of life.

Thursday, December 25, 2008

Chapter 38 - Christmas

it is currently 4.17am as i begin on this post on Christmas morning. this is probably one Christmas, a different Christmas altogether. usually i would still be up wrapping presents and digging for more tapes to tape the wrappers together but this year, i've none to wrap at all. in fact, all i've been doing is to recover from youth camp and the fleur de lis by sleeping. i slept since 6pm, skipping dinner and all till now..

somehow there isn't a Christmas-y feel in me this year. i tried going into malls today to 'attempt' Christmas but nothing seemed to happen as i returned empty handed.. i guess this is a year where God is once again trying to say that Christmas doesn't revolve around shopping and presents but its about Him.

Christmas, is afterall a silent and a Holy night..

Blessed Christmas, all!

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Chapter 37 - The "Holiday"

Ahh.. youth camp and the fleur de lis is finally over! no more sleepless nights of rounding, making sure everything is going as planned, getting the hotel to fix all the complains, etc etc until i resume working on FYP, of course.

honestly, this year's youth camp wouldn't be what it is without the help of every committee member, including the CSTs, musicians/av, hospitality and the games committee.. their tireless effort and enthusiasm kept me going all the way throughout camp even if that means skipping a number of meals everyday and having less sleep.

if you haven't noticed, this year's CST were formed by a "younger generation" as compared to previous years but they have never failed to impress me. each and everyone of them contributed much to the success of this camp and they have done very well.

not to forget the games committee which also mostly comprises of the CST again. without them working overtime aka doubling their roles, the game wouldn't have been able to take off at all!

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Chapter 36 - The Camp Speaker

I know many of you are wondering who the youth camp speaker is and really, it can be rather annoying at times. I believed I've mentioned that I will let the news out when I have concrete news and nobody seems to listen. So here I am, posting a post about our camp speaker so that everyone knows who is he. I just got the info 10am this morning (Saturday) and I have to go to youth so PLEASE SPARE ME FOR NOT TELLING ANY EARLIER! I need time to relay the information too, you know..  at times I really think people think that I only have youth camp to plan and I've got nothing else to do and manage. just so you know it is NOT AT ALL EASY organizing this year's camp. you've no idea at all what I have to go through so please I beg all of  you to cut me some slack.

The below is the information I have EXACTLY without even one missing letter and I don't have any additional information except from the below so yea :) It's 100% ctrl+C and ctrl+V.

"Jeremy pastors the youth ministry at Victory Family Centre, in Singapore and runs their weekly youth service the edge which reaches hundreds of students every week.  Called as a teenager to serve God as a pastor, Jeremy has spent the last 15 years of his life serving in youth ministry.  He is a dynamic communicator and has a passion to see this generation lay hold of their purpose in God."

There you go, the camp speaker for Calvary Youth Camp 2008 - Jeremy Seaward from Singapore.

Sign up now? 

zz.

Sunday, November 9, 2008

Chapter 35: The 'Final' Exam

Finals are tomorrow! (Monday and Wednesday) and I've honestly haven't been studying much since the FYP and assignments ordeal last week. This week have been seriously packed with birthday celebrations, lunches, dinners, surprises and last but not least, major youth camp planning sessions with myself (i.e. sitting in my room with two computers, having every past camp's information and booklet laid out in front and more camp stuff from all over the globe on the screen, massive email sessions with various people and phone calls with the not-so-helpful hotel staff). 
"huh? janwong got exam wan mehhh??"

Feels like work is the only thing i do huh? lol

Well, I guess tomrrow's exam wouldn't be too difficult to
 manage.. or at least I hope so. Back to studying (or trying to)!

Urgh and I just remembered I've to continue with my FYP soon. Have to have a meeting with my supervisor after my finals. Banyak kena buat.. else I doubt I can even go for camp -.-

Sign up NOW!

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Chapter 34 - The Freedom

I-AM-FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
(well, not really)
Submited my midpoint (FYP) documentation today. 114 pages, around 28,000 words excluding appendices and it is only MIDpoint. This means that there are 5 more chapters to go till the final submission + the working system. 

Next up are my finals in 2 weeks time then 2 weeks of holidays (mind you, FYP is still counted during that 2 weeks so no holidays afterall).

Anyhow, I'm glad I'm finally over midpoint. Now I can breathe a little and finally sleep earlier than 3am :)

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Chapter 33 - News Flash!

I'm only half way through my busy schedule and here I am, down with fever and flu. So timely, isn't it? It currently feels like I'm at Cameron's as it is rather cold even with a single fan turned on. I need to get well quick to get back on track. Lots of things to do in this coming week.

Anyhow, that is not the news that was supposed to be flashed. Shirts 4 Real is on today's newspaper: The New Straits Times (business section)! So go grab a copy or simply click http://www.btimes.com.my/Current_News/BTIMES/Industries/Retailing/REAL26.xml/Article/ for you lazy people that do not read newspapers (like me but today is an exception).

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Chapter 32 - The Abundance of Work

I just had to express my thankfulness somewhere:

I've just completed 98% of my (one of out many) assignment!!

now, 2 more to go excluding FYP *sigh*

I'm sure lots of you have been wondering whether "does Jan really have SOOO much work/assignments to do as he claimed to have?"

well, let me give you a little tour:
2 assignments due this Friday
- 2 mobile web applications accompanied by 2 full reports and user guide (4,000 words)
- 1 project management report based on the PMBOK (7,000 words)

1 assignment due next Wednesday
- 3 reports, 2 presentations all regarding different areas of the module (5,000 words)

FYP midpoint presentation next week
- Chapter 1 (introduction) to Chapter 5 (analysis and design) approximately 100pages or 30,000 words

Finals on the 10th and 12th November
- 2 2hour papers, 3 questions choose 2, 50% each question

First week of December
- FYP progress report with supervisor (development of the system has started)
- Also the beginning of a new semester aka final sem

Second week of December
- Claimed as a critical week though still unknown

This workload schedule excludes the following:
- Youth ministry responsibilities (LG + Events)
- Musician responsibilities
- Shirts 4 Real
- Genesis IT Solutions & Services
- and more assignments during the final semester

Working hours are now: 9am - 3am daily without any off days (Sat and Sun are fully packed)

So, there we go. Now you understand why I'm very thankful for just ONE 98% completion? :)

God has been very very good so yea, I'm not complaining at all.

Now I'm off to complete it!

There! No more dust and shrooms growing all over this blog for now!

Time management tip: Draw a timeline for yourself when you're very busy, with much work to do. Set milestones (i.e. deliverables) to ensure that you're on the right track. It works! ;)

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Chapter 31 - The Double Post (Part 2)




NEW DESIGNS FOR SHIRTS 4 REAL ARE OUT!


[ILLUMINATE]




pre-release promotion has begun!

Chapter 31 - The Double Post (part 1)

The Malaysian Entrepreneur Challenge (http://www.thechallenge.com.my) finally ended. 3 days back to back at the KL Monorail stations was really tiring as many things needed to be done. There are some videos covering the event on YouTube but I won't be posting the links so you can search "Malaysian Entrepreneur Challenge" there if you want to.
Anyhow, the event went well and it's covered on the news and newspapers. For those that've been at the monorail stations, you should've caught a glimspe of the event while passing through.

Monday, August 11, 2008

Chapter 30 - The Struggle

Looks like I'm finally giving way..

heh..

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Chapter 29 - The To-Do List

(without order)

1) Shirts 4 Real (date due: August)

- AYA partnership launch

- Project 1

- Project 2

- Supplier sourcing


2) Genesis IT Solutions & Services (date due: July)

- Data Recovery partnership with Challenger IT, Singapore


3) Brandbuilding.com.my (date due: August)

- KL Monorail project: The Malaysian Entrepreneur Challenge

- Website design [http://www.thechallenge.com.my]


4) Ministry

- Youth Missions Month (date due: July)

- Lesson planning (date due: August)

- Event 1 (date due: September)

- Seeker Event 1 (date due: August)

- Misc.


5) Place-of-boredom

- FYP

- 3 Assignments (date due: October)

- Random Presentations (date due: anytime)

- Random tutorials (date due: anytime)

[i probably need to hire an assistant]

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Chapter 28 - The FYP

"Why can't I just graduate now?"
I've just started my final year. This means, the dreaded assignment for generations is now in my hands - Final Year Project (FYP). Orientation just ended last week and we're supposed to submit our FYP proposal tomorrow (Monday). It's gonna be a hectic year for me just for college itself, neglecting the fact that I need to juggle between college, 2 companies, a major project with another company AND 3 ministries.

Ah well, I'm not complaining about the workload but as first mentioned, "why can't I just gradudate now?" Ahh.. things we need to go through just for that piece of degree paper.

In fact, I want to thank God for giving me the strength and capability to juggle all these at one shot. Sometimes, writting out the amount of things I have to do scares myself. But somehow I always manage to get through it (of course there are times of frustrations and all) by the grace of God.
tip: time management is uber crucial!

Alright, back to proposal writting!

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Chapter 27 - The Random Happenings

First and foremost: I'm on holidays now! Finally! But I've still got tons of work to do so yea, not much a difference. Just that I don't need to go for classes and all :)

Somehow i landed upon this typing test thingy and here are my results:

380 points, so you achieved position 22508 of 1013184 on the ranking list
You type 513 characters per minute

You have 94 correct words and
You have 2 wrong words


94 words

Speed test

Oh, for those of you that haven't heard, Shirts 4 Real are now partners with AYA! Will be discussing the details with them soon! Will keep you all updated!

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Chapter 26 - The Return.. Again

hello all! i know i've been missing since easter and much have happened since then. in fact, i didn't have much rest at all since i started planning for the easter event. i had assignments to be completed, maths tests and soon, my finals. not to forget work that is piling up in Genesis IT Solutions & Services and Shirts 4 Real.
God have been really faithful despite all the busy-ness and i'm proud to say i need not skip youth or church or anything to complete all my work and yet do well. through it all, all i can say is: God rewards those that put Him first in all that is done.



does the image above look familiar? Yes, it's Hillsong United! Finally, they're coming back again. i thought last year was the only time they would come but they're back!

this time, Shirts 4 Real will be at the concert itself to sell their shirts! :)

Saturday, March 29, 2008

Chapter 25 - The Success

A quick update to say that the Youth Easter Presentation: Turning Point was a success. We had 214 people and there were 7 salvations and 10 rededications! All glory to Him!
I also want to thank all those that have put in much effort:
Musicians - Se-Ken, Brian Siew, Joel Wong, Eugene Gerard, Karl Edwards, Daniel Teo, Darren Yong
Singers - Wei Chin, Kevin Chan, Chee Pang, Salby Ng, Emilia Toh, Darren Here
Technical - Joshua Yap, Vivian Tan, Elyse Gan
Dancers - Crystal Ng, Sarah Tay, Wei Lin, Katrina Yeoh, Cheryl Lum
Drama - Joshua Cheah, Hansel, Kah Yun, Michael Loon, Samuel Ngeow, Andrew Yem
Altar workers, greeters, etc etc etc (too many to name)
This production wouldn't be successful if all of you didn't bear and put so much effort into it.
God sees your effort and will reward accordingly.
Once again, thank you.

Friday, March 14, 2008

Chapter 24 - The Downfall

well, i've just took my maths test just now. further computing maths, yea..
and its awesome!
i stared blankly into the paper as i cant even comprehend the questions.
i took a quick look around and saw similar expressions.
20 questions, all objective, sounds simple enough.
guess what? all answers have to come with working as well.
so much for being objective.
here am i, eagerly waiting for the results.
waiting to see how far am i from the passing line.
yea, it was awesome.
i know.
zzzzzz.

Friday, March 7, 2008

Chapter 23 - The Turning Point


There are many situations in life when decisions need to be made. Every decision we make, marks a turning point in our lives. It is something that cannot be avoided. To some, it marks a change, while to some it marks maturity. Everyone faces different turning points at different times and that turn can be the biggest move you’ve ever made.

Are you ready to make that move?

ALL ARE INVITED! Bring your friends along and experience the GREATEST turning point in your life! :)

ps. contact me for more details! ;)

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Chapter 22 - The Long Pause

it's been a month since i updated so i thought it would be good if i posted something here. well, lots have happened in the past month. good stuff, actually. business is picking up in Genesis IT Solutions and new opportunities are popping up for Shirts 4 Real!

college, though, is boring. everyday i dread to go for classes because there is nothing much to do! the only class that i actually did something is during Further Computing Maths. i fail to see the usefulness of these in the future.

anyway, youth Easter celebration is coming up in a couple of weeks time. lotsa preparations, practices, plannings and organizing to be done. lets keep this event in prayer as Easter is when the Lord gave His life for us. lets spread the word for the world to know that there is a love greater than everything, without boundaries.
does love matter in this world? read more here
!

Saturday, February 2, 2008

02-02

THANK YOU ALL!
especially brian, tab, esther, darren here and sarah for taking all the trouble to wake up SOOOOO early to surprise me and bombard me with balloons when i'm asleep! i guess this is the first ever surprise birthday i've ever had. haha.
and THANK YOU (including those that forked out money for it, especially when its nearing CNY.. i know most of you are broke) for the 'guitar accessories pack' and the version 3 CD. :)
i really appreciate everything that you all did. it has indeed been a special day.
yes, i'm 21, older, but still going strong! (i hope)

Friday, January 25, 2008

Chapter 21 - The Responsibility

different people have different driving force to take on responsibilities. of course, commitment is an important factor and it affects the degree of someone being responsible or not. it is indeed very difficult to see one not bearing the same burden as you and taking things lightly but holding the same amount of responsibility in hand.

what can be done? to some, commitment is driven money. to another, commitment is driven by signing on a piece of paper.

just today i was looking at some guidelines of what a youth leader should be and it reminded me of how critical this role is. yes, the responsibility is heavy, and your peers may not take it seriously, but how far can your commitment take you? there are many things listed on the piece of paper, it may seem really difficult to uphold that resposibility but it can be done without much difficulty if we have -- PASSION.

i personally think that yes, committing yourself to a set of guidelines is good, forking out money is also good, but how far can it take us? passion is the main driving force in one's responsibility regardless of ministry or work or games or even studies. if one has the passion in the things he/she does, every effort will be put to see it come true. this is probably one of the reasons why the youth isn't growing much. we lack people that are passionate to expand the work of God, we lack people that are committed to their responsibilities not by rules and guidelines but by the passion to see growth.

it's difficult, but yea, God is the strength of my heart and i'll give my very best to pursue what i can do for God for His kingdom, for His glory with what He has blessed me with.

there are lots of text, so yea, this is a summary:
passion + action -> increase of commitment to responsibility
:)

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Chapter 20 - The God Above

hello all! i somehow felt that quite a number of people are feeling down/hopeless/discouraged this early in the year.. the lyrics of this song: Praise You In The Storm by Casting Crowns often lifts me up, may it be little or much, it still helped. especially the bridge.

Verse 1
I was sure by now God
you would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day
But once again, I say “Amen”, and it’s still raining

Pre-Chorus
As the thunder rolls I barely hear
Your whisper through the rain“I’m with you”
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

Chorus
I’ll praise You in this storm
And I will life my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I’ve cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

Verse 2
I remember when I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry
You raised me up again
My strength is almost can I carry on
If I can’t find You

Bridge (Psalm 121)
I lift my eyes unto the hills
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord
The Maker of Heaven and Earth

this is a very powerful song, a song of surrender, a song of hope, a song that reminds, a song that shows the faithfulness of God, a song of declaration and a song of victory.

its very difficult to do as the song says, but really, if only we can praise Him in the storm, things wont seem all that tough anymore. all things are possible through Christ alone.

be still, and know He IS God! :)

Monday, January 21, 2008

Chapter 19 - The Updates!

classes have just started again. its not going to be an easy semester ahead. further computing mathematics seems very very difficult just by looking at the modules we're gonna cover. oh well, i've to be a good boy and attend to every maths class from now on then.

Shirts 4 Real now have a blog! (another place where i'll have to struggle to update) http://www.shirts4real.com/blog

- i spent almost the whole day putting up the template. my brains are running out of creativity juices again.

Shirts 4 Real is on FACEBOOK!
(http://www.facebook.com/pages/Shirts-4-Real/7073557490) (can't believe i actually have to be on it too)

- i just don't get the navigation scheme on it! lol.. more like i somehow dislike being on facebook. (i disabled ALL email notifications!)

well well, i'm off! have a great week ahead!

ps. thank God wednesday is a public holiday!

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Chapter 18 - The Missing Me

hi all! this time, i've been missing for a really really long time (well, in exception of me being in the chatbox) but yea, here am i again, moving on to the 18th chapter of this blog!

throughout this time of absence, i've been through problems, work, headaches, problems, headaches, sleepless nights, work, work, problems, sleepless nights, work, problems, headaches and the list goes on. how interesting :)

but seriously, thank God for His hand upon everything else i dont think i'll be able to find the strength to even blog right now. in fact, i slept at 3am this morning to finish up some work and i had to meet a supplier just now at 8am. right now, i'm back to work, adjusting some of the stuff in http://www.shirts4real.com/.

oh, classes are starting this coming monday again. it really doesnt seem like a holiday at all! i dont think the timetable is out yet though. i'll check now..




oh look! i've got no classes! (i wish).. the timetable still isnt out yet. i hope it wouldnt be packed so i can have some time off for myself.... and work........


do you know that is SO easy to lose sight of God in the midst of all the busy-ness? at times we may think we're doing alright but if we really evaluate ourselves, we might be over consumed by all the work and problems in hand. so much so that God is out of the picture.


lets all not be missing from God's presence :)



are you..FOUND in Him? ;)

Tuesday, January 1, 2008

Chapter 17 - The New Year, Another Beginning

BLESSED NEW YEAR EVERYONE!
its 2008! what are your plans for this coming year? its time to move on and achieve greater things in life. we'll once again have 365 (or was it 366) days to make 2008 a better year than before.
anyhow, let us not forget that with all our plans, we should never overwrite God's plan for us. afterall, He knows what is best for us! :)
have a blessed year ahead!