Was working on my project and needed to find a substitute word for “Staff” and I found some interesting related words from the dictionary:

Comfort
Defense
Protection
Safeguard
Security
Support
Pillar

Psalm 23:4
Even though I walk through the Valley of Death, I will fear no evil; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

More than a staff, God the shepherd comforts us, defends us, protects us, safeguards us, secures us and supports us… like a pillar.

I found new meanings for the staff that is so often used in the bible.

Appreciation comes with knowledge.

You’ll appreciate a good glass of red wine if you know it’s make, it’s vineyard, it’s winery, it’s year of production, the quality of the vineyard’s grapes, the colour, the taste in your mouth, the language and the pleasure you derive from having a glass of good wine.

Will you appreciate a good piece of classical music if you don’t know the terminologies, the movements, the climax and the end, the techniques and the skills to playing it? Will you appreciate a good film if you have no knowledge of the director, the film language, the cinematography, the context and the background?

Will you be able to appreciate God if you don’t know who He is and what He has done for you?

God the Father is bold and majestic. His speech is like thunder and He speaks boldly, with confidence and power.

God the Son is meek and gentle, like a lamb. He is obedient to the Father and a living example for us on earth. His words are kind, compassionate and loving.

God the Spirit is of the Father and Son. He moves freely and is not restricted by both. He is righteous and just, yet gentle and loving. He brings judgment and conviction, but also brings comfort.

Today is a rare occasion where the moon is BIG AND ROUND, and the sky is CLEAR!

But beauty is not forever. Who knows when this beautiful sight will come again?
I can stare into the sky all night, and it will be gone, just like any other night.
Yet Eternal Bliss after death is certain for me.
The more I know God, the more I love.
The more I love, the more I am certain of my future.

The beauty of God is forever.
I await the day of judgment and after that,
Eternal Bliss with Him.
I look forward to endless days and nights
Endless hours watching the clouds go by
Climbing new mountains
And exploring new earth
I look forward to life with Him
Endless conversations
Endless awe
Endless praise and worship
Endless adoration
Endless fun
Endless laughter
Endless Joy

Complete Love.

to announce the total air ticket to Taiwan price is….

$273.85!

WOAH! I am very glad! THANK GOD!!!!!!!!! This is almost 50% off the last time I got a ticket from Cathay Pacific. But of course, this time is Jetstar. Still, you won’t be able to get this price without some “special” treatment. Wahaha… if you wanna know, you can PM me.

They are invading my country fast and furious. Everywhere is filled with them. The Bangladesh cleaners are quickly replaced with the cheaper and more easily communicated (in chinese) labourers. I don’t exactly welcome them… I am struggling with accepting them as part of my life.

I have heard and experienced the nasty side of them. I have also met some very nice chinese nationals who broke down all types of stereotypes we have against them. But sadly, the nasty experiences accounts for more than 90% of the time and the pleasant ones are not many. I am lacking in love in this area. I can only pray that God change my heart and help me to see them through the eyes of God’s love. I know that His love extends to all kinds of people, all kinds of nationals and all kinds of cultures. Yet…

I am only human.

Oh God, I’m not good with words
But when I pray,
I pray with all my heart
Every word is squeezed out from an emotion
Love
Hope
Joy
Peace
Excitement
And more Love.

Oh God, I’m not good with prayers
But when I close my eyes,
I think of all the good things You’ve done
And I’m in awe of them all
I remember them
And I don’t have any words of gratitude
I can’t thank You enough
For all the good things You’ve done

Oh God,
I’m not good with expressing myself
But tonight,
The moon was so bright,
the sky was almost blue
I don’t know if anyone else appreciates them like I do tonight
I really love Your creation and I hope to see them again tomorrow

Oh God, how do I pray
When I have no words,
Limited forms of expressions
And not enough emotions
To passionately tell You
What a great God You are!

I really thank God that I have to chance to experience the hottest summer in Taiwan, and now I’m going to live through the coldest winter in Taiwan too!

CH says the best sight seeing season is winter. WOohoo! More picture taking! I want to see the lavender field… dunno winter have not. Whee!

I love TAIWAN! But I dunno if I can live there for long. Hahaha!

Oh God, what will I get this time?

I learned something interesting from my mom today… pure gold (well, almost – 99.9%) looks ugly. 99.1% gold mixed with other metals looks more polished and more reflective, thus more pretty. But their value is not as much as the dull looking pure gold.

Something to think about.

I’ve learned in my publication class that Images are often the deciding factor if one will read the article attached to it. Or buying a magazine.

Meaning, if you have a really powerful image, there will be a higher chance that people will read the article next to it.

I guess… that’s why I’m in Photography major.

I’m learning to make stunning images so that people will read what God has to say. It doesn’t make sense to me, because God’s words are so powerful you don’t need anything attached to it. But sadly, people are not interested in what God has to say. Just like how people need to see miracles before they want to consider (not even decide) if they want to listen to God.

I watched a video about the origin of … I don’t know what you will call it, I personally think it’s advertising but… they call it public relations. It’s about how Edward Bernays, after recognizing the potential of his uncle Sigmund Freud’s theory of the inner irrational desires of self, succeeded in manipulating the masses into buying things they didn’t need… by tapping onto their inner irrational desires.

The most famous example was how he got American women to smoke, when in those days, it was taboo for women to do so. A client of his was asking him if he could make the women smoke so that cigarettes could be sold to a wider audience.

Bernays persuaded a group of rich women to hide cigarettes under their clothes and attend a yearly parade in which thousands of Americans would attend. He also instructed them to light up their cigarettes dramatically at his cue, when they are in the parade. Bernays then told the press that he had heard a group of debutante were going to protest by lighting up their ‘torches of freedom’. He knew the press and all the photographers would be there to capture the moment. And he even got ready the phrase, “torches of freedom”. The idea was to make cigarettes a symbol of male power (penis) and that if women can smoke them, it’s a symbol of challenging the male power. In Sigmund Freud’s idea, it is how women can now have their own penises. (For this you have to read Sigmund Freud’s writings on Penis Envy in women)

This is the start of advertising, propaganda, manipulation and mass consumerism.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8953172273825999151#
This is the link to the documentary of Edward Bernays by BCC.

And there you have it, manipulation of the masses. Done, by reaching out to the inner desires that you may not even have noticed. Advertising firms, giant corporations and politicians have used it. And it’s evident everywhere in our world. Ever wondered why when you think of sports shoes, you only could think of a few brands? And the most common brand is Nike. The power of image and words.

This is an exhausting topic… I wish I could elaborate it… but it’s better for you to find out yourself from the experts (via documentary videos i.e BCC Documentary series, writings, essays and books).

My knowledge is so limited. If we can expose all these, if we can understand the workings of our minds and hearts, if we can be more aware of these tactics and psychological abuse done by money-making bullies, if we can be better informed, if we can be trusted to make the best decisions for ourselves… we wouldn’t be abused mentally, psychologically, emotionally and physically.