About Sir William Alexander Smith

Finally after 8 weeks of Basic Officer Training Course, i am done with it, but the thing is that we have to do this book review in order to pass the course

PERSONAL BOOK READING AND REFLECTIONS

As the first few pages of the book, we can find that Sir W.A.S was born in a military family, and I think that FAMILY really shaped him, and provided the ENVIRONMENT to cultivate him so that he was being instilled the leadership and made him the leader among the boys, perhaps part of it is from his father, genetic genes, maybe also his father influence in his family, and the up bringing by his father that made him a leader among the boys.

A PERSON that provides the environment plays an important part too. W.A.S at the age 11 formed a company and discipline, and drilled by an Artillery Volunteers instructor. His uncle, Alexander Fraser a business man, also brought the adventure and sports instinct out of W.A.S, bringing him oversea, and teaching him how to do business, so all these skills gave W.A.S the qualities to do international relationship at the later part of his life. The most important thing that leads Sir W.A.S was the message by D.L. Moody that struck him to devote his life for God. W.A.S also joins the military to understand the structure and the culture in it. He attended churches and kept hearing Mr. Moody speaking. So the military family, culture he has gone through combine with the inspiration of Mr. Moody, he has the twin pillar of Discipline and Religion in him.

So what lead W.A.S to have the idea of the BB?

It was at that time there was this situation that portrait the idea about Boys as nuisance to be suppressed, and they tends to create trouble, which annoyed people. With his good culture and inspiration, combining with he great skills in identifying the problems in the society image on boys and the nature of boys, this led W.A.S to have the idea of the BB so that that can advance the Kingdom of Christ.

What was he seeking to achieve?

The purpose of him creating Boys’ Brigade is to divert the high energy of the boys from doing something bad into something good, at the same time advancement of the Christ Kingdom. In the era of gangsterism, he gives boys the identity and cultivate them to be man so that these man can contribute to the society better and do God’s work, instead of them becoming hooligans and loafers to the society.

How did he seek to achieve it?

First “drama out your vision”, that is on my own words, else that will be palagrism, as for what W.A.S meant is “let’s pretend”, this shows that he is not dreaming, he is acting his vision out. Second “Submit to the authorities”, he laid his idea before the Mission authorities. Third “burn the boy’s energy”, by introducing the esprit de cops and also organizing games, and from there it actually attracts the boys. Fourth “Sacrifice and perseverance”, he gave up being successful business man, and also stand firm to his believe despite of the discouragement from his friends. Fifth “Gather all people with common ideas”, we must remember that he did not gather those who oppose, he gather those who has the same idea to it, James R Hill, John B .Hill who are his friends that shared the common ideas, from here we can see that In order to kick start something it is better to gather those in common, rather those doesn’t share the idea, because it slows down the process of settle up and at the same time put water into the fire of passion and not oil.

What were the qualities that he exemplified as an officer? Why did he consider it of utmost important?

W.A.S considers man who is humble, responsibility, and the strength of overcoming challenges. He should never covet the position that gave prominence in the eyes of men, but always that which brought most opportunity for useful work. He is preferred to be kept in the background and to be direct unobtrusively from that position and be ready to go to the front when a lead is needed.

How do you measure up in term of these qualities? What are some personal challenges you think that you would face? How should you handle these challenges?

As a boy growing up from rank and file, I am cultivated with these qualities by my officers, but to be in the background is rather difficult, because you know that you are trained and brought up as a leader, but recently I have learned how to let other people a chance to lead. Other than the qualities, what I found that the most difficult part or challenges I am facing now is to balance between your work and your services, because one is your passion and the other is your "rice bowl" in chinese. Because most of the officer are wage-earners and in the modern society you have to pay for lots of stuff, like hand phone bills, internet bills, transport and other stuff, so work comes into a very important part of the life, and having your spare time just on Saturday and Sundays only, you bound to know that these 2 days will be used up by the BB, so it comes to no rest for you. So how can young officers nowadays be really committed? I know that this can leads to more questions such like “Faith!” and “Conviction” which will leads to more words. Ultimately I think young officers, who is building their careers should also need to gain the understanding from those around him, but he also needs to know his priority in his stages of life, even things changes let us pray that the burning passion for the boys in the officers in this world will not sway.

The pain my father gone through

It was just another normal night, me surfing the net and see is there any interesting stuff, and chatting on my msn, then my father suddenly show me a piece of wood that is around 2cm long and around 2mm width, he said that it has been in between the top the nail and the flesh of the thumb for quite long, and i can see that the thumb is swollen. I was a bit shock. He said that the thumb need to be swollen in order for that splinter to come out on its own.

My father is a carpenter, is very often to get splinters, imagine having a splinter is a very painful thing, and to have it in between nails and thumb is a more painful thing that i can thought of. That is his job. He is the father of mine and raise me and my brothers up going through the pain.

He does not work in air-con rooms, or good condition, he has to sniff the glue, carry heavy furniture which he has build, and also get splinters, bruises and pain.

As he showed me the thumb, deep down in my heart i felt the pain, and tell myself to work harder so that he does not need to work again and get that pain, another part of my heart really said thank you very much pa!

What is Love?

What Is Love?

Love is when you can wait at the bus stop early in the morning, and looking at every bus passes you without boarding it, until you see your love one in it, then you broad.

Love is when you know the person’s schedule everyday, waiting for her to finish classes and walk home, as you wait quietly at a junction to meet her.

Love is when she is doing her work and you don’t mind waiting for her to finish, so that you can have time together. Even the time is shorter than the waiting time.

Love is when you have no money, and you will work to get money for better times with her.

Love is when you are willing to take an hour train down to wait for her for 3 hours to knock off, so that you can give her a surprise to sent her home.

Love is when you know, when she is sad and always be there to lend a shoulder for her to cry on.

Love is when she says no to something and you would always listen to it.

Love is when she has trouble; your ears would always be there for her to listen.

Love is when she gets a cut, you would get a plaster, and even you have to run 5 streets away.

Love is when she says she wanted to jog in the morning, you will get up for her even you only have 3 hours of sleep.

Love is when you help her to finish her reports; even you have an exam tomorrow. (Better don’t learn this!!)

Love is when you know she loves flowers and you would sacrifice the money for the flower, even though you have just enough.

Love is when you are willing wait for an hour. To give your Love one watermelon juice, even she is late.

Love is giving a hug whenever she needs it.

Love is making time and staying late for a few nights to make cards for every special occasion.

Love is when you will forgive, even though your love one has hurt you extremely deeply and tears keep flowing.

Love is patient, Love is kind, and Love is all about sacrifice.

You see everyone, people tends to do stupid things when they are in Love, because Love has a mind of its own.

And most of all, Love is about remember every single moments together.

The Man's support

There is this man working day and night, facing with troubles in his work , trying to solve every day. As a man taking care every problem and every trouble, family, money, status, pressure, principles which he has and facing the world and doing the things which he does not like to do. All the time, he has to get up from his feet daily and face the world with a "bright" heart.

He felt lonely in this world , not because he lack of good friends, is just that as a man, problems and troubles and meant to be taken in only by his heart, and pressure on his own shoulders, doesn't want to show any weakness to the others.

The pace of the world is fast, and he has to run fast to catch the pace, and climb fast on ladders to meet expectation, and there is no rest, even there is rest, it leaves him an empty mind to think of his next step, in his lonely little dark room.

sigh! Sigh! Sigh! why there is burden, why there is a burden which i cannot share. . . .? Is it me , is it me? said the man. Pressure! Pressure and pressure, burdens and burdens and burdens, why there is a tearing in my heart and no one is there.

Five years later, the man still climbs the ladder, with pressure and no pleasure . After work . . . Step by step, he walks into the dark room, and saw a figure sitting on the sofa, waiting for him. He bend down and rest on its shoulder with all the pressure on it, releasing all the weight onto the figure. Slowly he finds comfort in his heart and the warm of the figure gives him warm, his heart is warm in the cold room.

With a relief tone, he said, "ruth thanks for sharing with me". And ruth reply . . .

"When you are tired, i am here
You are weary , i am here
Your heart is cold i will warm it
Your feet is sore, i will smooth it
From the time i am with you,
i will be always there for you.
When you are strong, you protect
when you are weak, i will support.
Dun worry about the rest
Just have a good rest !"

LOVE - Chemistry Analogy

At this period of time i was going through th ML1, after ML 1 and then i proceed on with ML2, on one of the following session we were talking about are we able to start a realationship with a non -christian or not. My mentor's answer is totally a NO NO !! Because of the answer,Justin plans to give up hope on starting a relationship with one of his friend. Then i started to ponder and wonder . . .

It was at one time we were at the back of a lorry, and justin asked me what is LOVE to me. Then it was recently that this mind of mine has also thought of this question - what is love? and i managed to dig out some answers. For me i always believe in Chemistry(feelings), no matter how, there is a need for chemistry with that person you love, you can be friends with gals and you can be nice to every gal and gal can be nice to you. So what makes that differences, is chemistry and that chemistry is to bring from a level of friend to a level relationship.

So how did i answer Justin? I say LOVE is just like chemistry(science). 2 person is just like an elements, when they gets together, which is call bonding(in chem terms) reaction (energy) occurs,which is that LOVE feeling, the feeling of energy that drives you crazy that you wants to see that person every minutes and seconds, and the reside is the product which is family.

Bond can be covalent or ionic, and the bond holds both the elements together and is going to holds them forever. The bonds i refer to is the beliefs you have in common , the principles in life you have common, the same understanding and acceptance to things that you have in common. Beliefs can comes from religions or family. So religion is every important , because understanding can change, acceptance can change, but beliefs is rooted by religion, and beliefs can change your understanding and acceptance to things,

So is having a girlfriend that is a non-christian important or not? Let you decide.

Fighting the noodles

Is just another day of work, and kind of sick of the poor project management skills by the project manager, also the manager is a nice woman, but it just seem like there is quite a number of unsolve stuff , which she is trying to cover and is only up till the last min everything surface up.

Forget about the unhappiness. After supporting them i went to far east to shop for my pants, i was eyeing at this pants for every long , is just that i did tell myself not to over spend my budget for the month, but for this month i have catered for it, so i managed to save some money to buy that. Then francis and i went to meet up with susan to see how is she doing with her ex and francis trying hard to act a show, so that her ex will be jealous and at least give up the relationship, but in the end she blow it away. i felt that i am so childish still playing this kind of game, by the way we just trying to help whatever we can.

As we were waiting for susan to knock off, francis and i walked around, and we saw this ajisen outside the shop, as usual of the typical hongyee, i went up and say i wanted to take the pics with "her" so francis whip out his O2 atom,and do a quick shot. The shot was perfect.

Why the pic is call "Fighting noodles" is because it looks like i wanted to eat the noodles from that "little gal" and she is like trying to prevent it from snatching it away by me.

Gracious living

Finally there is a time I can do my blogging now; it has been a long time because there are a lot of things in my mind nowadays. I have this bad habits, which is do my thinking and thoughts on rough paper, then I just chunk them away, including the sermons I copied. Today is Saturday and there is no BB, because of the polling day. So I managed to find some time to tidy up the "paper work" I have.

In the mids of tidying up the paper work, I found this sermon, and I find that it is really good, and do not want to keep into my stash of good stuff, and here is the sermon.

By Rev Dr Ngoel Foong Nghian,
Psalms 1:1 - 6

In everyday of our life today, there is a lot of advertisement in self-improvement, like diet, facial, spa and lots more, the targeted group is also corporate people, and successful in the business aspects, another targeted group is studies.

The people don't care about the cost they are just so willing to pay for it, these programs does not educate the inner self or being improvement. In Christian improvement are very important aspects, despite of interior or exterior. In verse 3, God paint us a gracious living and stability in life, not in terms of material wealth, is about prosperity, it means peace and joy.

2 keywords to 'planted' and 'rooted'. Quality of life is how well you are planted and rooted, which is righteous and knows the wicked. The righteous is these who wanted to follow God's instruction for the wicked are those who deny it.

Psalms is address to the believers of Christ and telling us to take faith in life.

Everyday we have to make a choice not to go the wrong way; it takes a discipline and the determination to go to the right way. How can we follow the right way? The answer is to take note that how you are planted and rooted yourself

Socialize:
Socalise needs to be careful and watch for those wicked influence. 3 questions to think

1. Those mock the church, blasphemy the church and mock at your faith.

2. Are there those peers, you keep who encourage you to compromise with God and let you and temp you to sin against God.

3. Are there coy you keep have no good things to say about people and judgmental to people, no good of confirmation and they are like to tear people apart

You must be watchful to those people, do not reject them , just be watchful as those can influence you.

Be Rooted well
We need to make TIME for reflection, we need to disengage ourselves for the world, and get away for the voice of the world, the world has a lot of stuff contradict to the God's word. When we meditate and pre-occupy with thoughts and nature of God, from Philippians 4:8, shows that we should meditate the law of Lord, and tell us to think our mind in all those things and that let God to enter our life to shape our souls.

When we meditate the goodness of God, we are refreshing. In Singapore we are so drive to the wall, and some times we get the wrong things to refresh. We just need that quietness to be fresh. In life we step in the mine filed of wrong decision if we listen to God's field, we will step less into the wrong decision, and have gracious living and happy and meaningful. Even thought these are bad decision.

In the TIMES magazine, really dovetail the happiness in life and to the Philippians

1. Count your blessings.
2. Practice acts of kindness to one another
3. Enjoy it, enjoy everything, don’t rush it, and just enjoy it.
4. Thank your mentor
- Those who teaches you directly and indirectly, who shapes you and make difference in your life.

5. Learn to forgive.
- Don't carry your bitterness
- 9 out the e10 who hurt you, does not know that they hurt you.
- Let it go
- Delete the bad things, just like the computer.
- Move on in life

6. Invest time and engage in friends and family
- A man says that he have a lot of faithful friends. They are the one who is with you.

7. Look after your body, physical and mental health.
- Trust in the lord, and give your worries to the Lord, because God will give you wisdom.

8. Develop strategy to take care your stress
- Life is not a bed of roses, so plan the upcoming stress.
- Before Jesus die, he is there to equip the disciples.