Crazy snowstorm!!!

Snow has been pouring over North America this week. Do you find it fun? From the three of us, only I got the most interest in snow. Connie finds it too cold to stay out and prefers to stay in cozy warm indoors. I tried to get Abby's interest in playing in the snow, but she wasn't too fond of it. I'm the 'kidult' who still enjoy all sorts of activities with snow like skiing, snowfighting, toboganning(sliding downhill with a board)......except one thing: DRIVING in the snow!!

My home is surrounded by slopes, so I've to drive uphill or downhill to get to different places. You can imagine driving downhill is very dangerous while the road is covered with snow/black-ice. But I have never thought that it is also very difficult to drive uphill in such cases. There was once that the wheels of my car was just spinning on the spot while I was driving uphill. The car didn't go up. I had to switch to a lower gear at the end to drive up to the hill safely.

Even worse, I GOT STUCK in the snow THREE TIMES IN AN HOUR!!!! It was once when I suggested to go to the park nearby for some snow fun after a heavy snowstorm. It would be a ten-minute walk at most, but to do a favor for Connie, we decided to drive there. It should only take 2 minutes, but we took an hour!! The snow was so much that it could reach my knees. Roads here in Vancouver are not so well swept, especially the minor roads in the neighbourhood. My car first got stuck in one of the neighbouring streets. Then we arrived at the park and I tried to find a spot to park the car. As I have mentioned, if the roads are not well swept, not to mention parking spots (especially the ones in the park)!! My car got stuck badly and it took me a long while to get out. I had to shift the gears to go back and forth, and got out of the car from time to time to clear the snow near the wheels and the bottom of the car. I was right beside the park but I was stuck!! After a long while, we're cleared to go. I thought there would be a better place to park, so I drove to another path. However, I couldn't find an appropriate spot to park and my car was stuck AGAIN!!!! I HATE BEING STUCK!!!! This time, a friendly man drove by and he got out of his car to help pushing my car out of snow. I really thanked this man. As I got out, I felt totally defeated and had no more mood to play in the snow. I drove back home and found it so stupid to get stuck in the road so many times within the hour. Ironically, Abby was sleeping through the whole time while we're stuck!!!

As Connie suggested, I think I should have a shovel ready in my car in case more of these incidents happen again. ~_~ What a pity!!!

I was not the only pity one. I heard from others that one had lost his keys while shoveling snow. Another lost his cell phone in similar case. Would you enjoy finding your keys/cell phone in the snow? ~_~

Snowing is so pretty, but don't feel too romantic for it ^_^

Despite the beautiful branches coated with snow, you can click the picture and take a closer look at the cars at the background and you'll see how badly cars can get stuck.

08 Biggest Christmas Surprise

Something astonishing that Connie and I found out this week: Connie is PREGNANT!!

Such finding is very surprising if you know our story of adopting Abby. We've been trying to have our biological one but have never been sucessful. Even the doctors diagnosed us with 'unknown' reason for infertility. So this breaking news was really unbelievable at the first instance. In fact, our finding led us to thank God for what He has been doing, especially an incident that take place last month......

Connie had had gone through really tough time as being "barren". This sense has never fully disappeared with the arrival of Abby. But in one of the sermon last month, God used His scripture in John 5 (The healing of the a lame man at Bethesda) to encourage Connie: "Do you want to get well?" Connie felt being challenged to ask God for healing her brokenness. Our pastor prayed with us after the service and Connie was relieved after acknowledging her brokenness. A month after that service, surprisingly, Connie is now pregnant!! We are amazed with God's healing, not only spiritually, but also the physical 'gift' that He has given us. This is surely our biggest present for Christmas this year.

There are complications. For Connie has no MSP (the health care system in Vancouver) coverage at the moment (she's still holding a visitor status). I have a Canadian citizenship and has sent in application in sponsoring Connie's permenant residency, but it'll take quite a while to process. Meanwhile, we'll have to pay all the medical expenses which would be free if she is MSP covered. We hope that her status can be settled by the time our baby is dued. We just have to go through a new path of faith. We know that God will provide our needs when He gave us this gift. We trust that God will lead and help us, we just hope we can have more faith in witnessing God's grace and His wondrous plan for us. Please remember us in your prayers and share with us our joy.

How are we feeling? Connie did not feel so secured at the beginning, and she gave herself the worst scenario that would happen. We just need some time to 'believe' this would happen to us. But over the past few days, she is feeling more 'real' about being pregnant. She would get tired easily now and would need more rests. I'm grateful for the timing. I'm having my term break and can take more care of Connie and Abby. I'm doing the cooking and cleaning and most of the housework, so I feel more responsible and committed as a husband and daddy. I imagine if this were to happen during my stressful moments in the school year, I would not feel much joy. The baby is expected to be delivered in August, which will be during my summer break. I guess it would be the best time for I can be more available in taking care of the family. With the tension in workload and finance, this is surely a journey of faith to us. Please stand by us to see how God works with us. ^_^

Please join me in prayers

How's your prayer life? I long for a deeper prayer life. At Regent, I really appreciate the prayers at the beginning of each lesson. Some professors like to begin the class with prayers selected from prayer books. Others lead us with their own prayers. I find both very fruitful and they expand my horizon in prayers. For prayers selected from prayer books, I was thrilled when I related the prayer content with the original pray-er--the great theologians and saints like Augustine of Hippo, Basil the Great, Thomas Aquinas, ... and more, who shared the same faith with us. Most prayers were simple but genuine. Let me quote a prayer by Clement of Rome (c.30-c.95):
Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, establish and confirm us in your truth by your Holy Spirit. Reveal to us what we do not know; perfect in us what is lacking; strengthen us in what we know; and keep us faultless in your service; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

What a great prayer to start for the day!

The prayers of other professors also inspire me. They pray with such sincerety and devotion that I can feel their love to God and their fellow students. Looking back to myself, I find a certain dryness in my prayers. I tend to pray with similar wording/content all the time. I really hope to pray with a lively spirit that I can truly enjoy the communion with our God. It's also a matter of a loving relationship too. This is the yearning of my growth of spirituality and I guess this is one of my wish for 2009. Even though I am not very good at praying in English, I really hope to join other fellow schoolmates to pray. How about you? Are you praying well?
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D&D Time

Abby is just so adorable. Abby now gets into a habit that whenever I return home, she'll run to the door and greet me with a big hug and kiss. She made me feel so welcomed!! On Wednesday nights, Abby and I will stay home on our own because AbbyMommy has a night class to attend. Tonight I cooked Abby some dumplings. When she began to eat, she gave me a lovely smile and said in Chinese:「多謝爸爸煮」(literally meaning "Thank you daddy for cooking") My heart melted and was so surprised that she started saying things in simple sentences. What a joyous improvement!! So I could not hesitate to capture some funny shots of her while she was eating dumplings. Enjoy! ^_^ (The photo on the right is one of her favourite pose: Was that learnt from me and Connie? ~_~)

Final Dash Begins

The reading break is over and there are 2 more weeks to go!! 3 Exams awaiting next week!!!
Did I have fun over the break? Guess I was worn out by the stress that I could never have all the reading done in a week; so I was quite down in spirit with school work along the WHOLE WEEK. In fact, I did read much. I finished the "Latter Prophets" section of the bible and was left with the "Writings". I hope to catch up more with the reading before the exam next week.

There were a few enjoyable things I did:
1) On our special day (Nov 28, the day I proposed to Connie years ago), Connie, Abby and I had a city tour near the Kitslano area. We drove around and had lunch at a Greek restaurant. The food reminded us of our wonderful honeymoon trip in Greece. Connie was really glad that I could spend some time with them during the break, and I felt very relieved for her delight.

2) I'm now a fan of Joe Zheng 鄭元暢 and Ariel Lin 林依晨--the two hottest idol in Taiwan!! Recently, Connie has been so attracted by a Taiwanese drama series, and she was very fond of the two leading actor and actress. I took a peek during reading and eventually I was also attracted by them. Part I of the series was about their dating at their high-school and uni years. Part II of the series was about their relationship development after marriage. The interactions and dialogues of the idol series were sometimes quite hyperbolic but hilarious. I find it very interesting to see the development of their relationship. Indeed I treasure the moments when I disscuss with Connie about the various stages in their relationship. I long to love Connie more dearly. Connie finished the DVDs, and we're starting another series: Love or Bread「我的億萬麵包」with Joe and Ariel again!! ^_^ Only that this new series is shown weekly...we'll have to wait patiently for the weekends to come...

3) 銀河英雄伝説--I haven't been playing computer games for quite a while and I couldn't stop playing during the week!!! As a result, I sacrificed some sleeping hours and reading hours unfortunately. I still have struggles to strike a balance between work and play in terms of hours and attitudes. I really don't want to feel regretful in any cases. Nothing is perfect, isn't it?

Spiritually, it was really DARK inside me. I felt that I was put into a test in this past week and I FAILED. My stress and my viewing of comics that conveyed lustful thoughts had pushed me away from God. The sense of being a loser prevailed and I was depressed, especially when I was reading on the Prophets and was admonished by God's words. I was surprised about myself that I felt numb of my sinful rebellion. This vicious dark cycle continued to roll and there were times that I felt I had gone beyond remedy. However, when things are at the worst, they will mend under God's grace. I was reminded on God's faithfulness no matter I have failed Him many times. I was reminded on how I taught my primary students to make clever choices to avoid painful consequences. I have more lessons to learn.

Dear God, my Lord, here I am. I confess that I have all these brokenness. Please give me an undivided heart to live righteously and joyfully according to Your will.

As this first term approaches its ending, I do yearn for a deeper spiritual growth here in Vancouver.

Embracing my reading week with Books, Family and Video Games???

It's time for the second reading week!! It's going to be a busy one, and I hope I can really spend the time to read, just like the first one I had in October. Besides, I really hope to spend part of the reading week with Connie and Abby, so that they can be "cheered up" while I'm having some free time!!! ^_^

Coming to the end of this term, I'm thankful that the big assignments are all handed in on time. There'll be final exams in December for all my three courses, but I guess I'm now feeling much more relax than earlier time. Indeed, this is a time for me to learn how to cope with leisure and study. I'm the kind of person who doesn't know how to have fun in a wise way. In the past, I would just spend my holidays in video gaming, even after I got married (when I had my holidays, Connie still had to work, so I'd have my own fun time) I would get so addicted that I could spend hours non-stop playing those exciting 1st-person-shooting or strategy games. I did not find much trouble in that when I started my career and I could always make up sleep time eventually. But now if I play video games as before, I would be slacking off my studies and the result can be devastating. (the indulging experience I had in my university years still haunts me) I think this is the time for me to embrace a new/better way to spend my free time. I like sports but I can never do it just by myself. In fact I never ask people out for playing sports together with me. So I would just be so tied up with myself and ended up in playing video games on my own. Will there be changes in the coming reading week?

A costly experience

Thank God for granting me the strength to finish my first research essay at regent. Final word count: around 2400. Some may not think this as such a big deal, but to myself, it is a big leap; for Writing has never been my strengths. Recalling from AbbyMama, "Regent is the place to train you and change you." I'll learn to face my weaknesses with the grace from God.

I had a minor car accident on Friday. It was a rainy evening. I was driving along with Connie and Abby to a gathering. The traffic was slowly moving and I kept a safe distance with the car in front. However, as I was pressing a few buttons on my GPS (Global Positioning System) to find my way, I suddenly realized the car in front of us had stopped. We were about 4 metres away from it and we were driving at around 40km/h. I slammed the brakes. But the road was slippery and our tires were locked up. Our car slid forward. My instincts told me this would not be a good sign. There were cars on our sides and there was no way out. All I could do was a silent prayer to God as I watched our car slowly approaching the one in front of us. "Bump." There wasn't a great shock. Our car just made a contact with the one in front of us. Without much time to worry, I quickly got out of the car in the rain to see the damage. The driver and another passenger came out. In a judging tone, the passenger questioned, "Were you sleeping, man?" I couldn't help much, but could only meekly apologize for what had happened. It was not a big accident, so we then pulled off the road to settle the matters.

I hit a newly leased Mercedes Benz. Luckily, I could say, that there was only a tiny dent due to a nut from my license plate. There were minor scratches too. I quickly phoned my friend, Andrew, to ask for advice. I knew it was my fault, so I assured to the unlucky driver that I would take the responsibility. We would need to report to ICBC (the car insurance agency in Vancouver) about the incident. We exchanged phone numbers and details of our license and then we left. As soon as we arrived at our friend's house, I quickly filed in the case with ICBC. Later, the driver phoned me and told me that he would get his car estimated for damage in an autoshop during the weekends.

It turned out that I would have to pay $500 for repairing the damage. It's an expensive lesson to learn. However, I thank God for the accident was not too serious. I thank God that no one was injured and we found no damage in our car.

I'll meet with the driver tomorrow to finalize the case. I pray that things will go well. Please remember our safety in the coming winter as we have to drive in slippery snowy conditions too. I'm now driving with much alert and cautious.

Will my study be jeopardized by the recent global financial meltdown?

Has the recent global financial meltdown been affecting you? Did it bring you much worries? To me, it did. I worried about my pension money which I had been expecting to be cashed this month. This lot of money is quite important in determining how long I can stay in Canada, especially when both of Connie and I have no income.

During our return to HK three weeks ago, I noticed that my pension was not fully settled and I had worried about a great loss in the investments. I had thought of asking a deferral of cashing out the investments and wait for a better timing to do that, but I didn't do that. I tried to ask God whether I should or should not cash out the money. I was not struggling with my sense of security. In fact I struggled with the ideas of how to manage the God-entrusted money with wise stewardship, and how to discern a real faith in God's providence.

In my prayers and scripture reading, I was reminded that God is good and faithful. The Patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob) in Genesis and the Israelites in Exodus had also experienced times of trouble, and I noticed that there're times that they might had to suffer loss(sometimes financially) But God never abandones them.

There're more twists to my findings. I tried to log onto the insurance account, but my profile was no longer valid. I then checked my bank statement online, but the money was not there. I thought that the insurance company had already processed my case and I could do nothing to alter the process. I felt peaceful and I waited for the investments to be cashed and put into my bank account. To me, I think even if I would not get my expected amount, God will somehow help us, in His miraculous ways.

I got an exciting news today. I've got the cheque of my pension!!! (actually the cheque was sent to my brother in HK) To my surprise, I didn't lose too much from the recent global financial meltdown. I was able to get the expected amount in my original financial plan, with a few thousands (HK dollars) short only!!! How wonderful!! Now the new cashflow might even present a more favourable financial condition, which helps me to sponsor Connie and Abby to become permanent residents.

As I was still talking with my brother, I had an idea of making a photocopy of the cheque and then frame it like the first cheque I got when I first started my teaching job in HK. It's a symbol for me to remember God's grace and love. Back ten years ago, I returned HK from Canada with only HK$8000. I survived!!! And more God granted me a family with a loving wife and daughter. What can I say? I really thank God for his grace.

A new chapter of stewardship and faith has just begun! I believe our stay in Vancouver will trully be a great experience for my family and others to see God's work in us.

The Giant and the grasshoppers

Recently, I'm puzzled with the 2500-word essay assignment which will be due in two weeks. I'm interested to find out if animals can be saved in eschatological terms. I wonder what would happen to them. So I'll look for some views from early church fathers (e.g. Augustine) about how they viewed about animal soul. I've got some books/writings but I always think that I'm not good at writing and presenting points/arguments in a good flow. There're times that I felt so desperate and wanted to quit (e.g. let's go back to HK early, think of auditing the courses and not doing the MDiv......) I could hardly go to sleep for several nights.

In the midst of feeling stressed and inadequate, God reminds me of a bible passage in the Book of Numbers Chp13 - What the Israelite spies thought of the land that they were to entered. 10 of them thought: "We are not able to go up against this people, for they are stronger than we...and all the people that we saw in it are of great size...to ourselves we seemed like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them...would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt? Let us choose a captain, and go back to Egypt." The assignment really seems to be a big giant to me. I feel greatly challenged and tempted to quit.

But I wish to think differently than the 10 spies, and trust God like Joshua and Caleb. They said to the congregation, "Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it...The land that we went through as spies is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord is pleased with us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. Only do not rebel against the Lord; and do not fear the people of the land, for they are no more than bread for us; their protection is removed from them, and the Lord is with us; do not fear them."

What an astounding view!! May I learn to pray more diligently and have faith with God. Also I'm so grateful that Connie also comforted me and reassured that this would be a great lesson to learn, and I must endure all the hardships and stress.

Please pray for me that I'll find strength in the Lord and experience Him fully.

Autumn is so beautiful here in Vancouver. (Click here to see more photos)
Let us remember God's grace. Enjoy!!

In remembrance of Uncle Big and Grandma, whom I lost within a month

Uncle Big, you've lived an extraordinary life. Stories about you that I heard from my mom seem to be found only in movies. I guess these are only bits and pieces of your legend. I've longed to chat with you and to know more about you and your feelings; however, I could not overcome the fear from your extravaganza. It was difficult to get to know your minds.

The most wonderful conversation that I treasured most was taken place at BH while you had your cancer treatment. The way you talked to Aunt, Connie and me showed me your loving and sentimental side of you. I am so glad and relieved that you humbly accepted Christ as your saviour when you were at your last stage of life. I thank God for His mercy and steadfast love. May your family also find comfort in Him. I'll pray and care for Aunties and KK, HY.

Grandma, I'm so thankful that I could come back to HK for attending your funeral. It was a great memory that I could 'send you off' with our family and the Pangs. I miss you but I did not feel disheartened. You will always be in my heart. May you find peace and joy with our Lord Jesus Christ.

Take time to grieve. Take Time to heal

I just heard that my grandma has just passed away.
She now rests in peace. I do miss her and really wish that I could have talked to her more over the phone. Grandma really loves me and she has a great impact on me. I was going to record a short video clip for her yesterday, but now.......

I'm not sure if I shall go back to HK for the funeral though I'll have a reading break in two weeks. In the meanwhile, I'll take time to think of her and grieve for her. Please remember us in your prayers, especially my mom. Thanks.

2 weeks of time = Ages

Week 2 is over and it's time for a short reflection.
My feeling is that time flies so quickly!!! I can recall a song that I used to sing a lot in the past--
So many books, so little time (Michael Card)
How I wish to have more time to read! In fact, the topics that we're going through are really interesting and I really long to spend more time to read and get the most out from the bible and the textbooks. Here are the quick recaps:

Intro Hebrew: I had to learn all the 23 Hebrew alphabets in lesson 1!! Wow, that's really a graduate-level challenge. However, I really thank God for giving me a good time in learning. Professor Philip Long has a good method of teaching. Learning Hebrew reminds me of teaching my primary school kids how to learn English as a second language. The strategies and skills that I've developped with the children in APS really help me to have a better grasp in learning Hebrew now.

Christian thoughts and culture I: This course really stretches my thoughts! I'm learning from the teachings and theology of the great and faithful christians from the early church ages. It is a challenging course not only because of the many terminology and vocabulary, but also the diversity of the ideas that come across to challenge my present beliefs. We recently are discussing about dualism--the topic about body+soul. It's quite stunning to notice that I've been actually believing in some kind of Gnostics ideas....Oh....really need God's grace to help me find out more of our faith.

The Old Testament Foundation: Guess how long you need to read all the OT? 12 weeks!! So basically I've to go through 15 chapters every day....but I'm behind my schedule ~_~ But I'm really happy to read the textbook too as it gives a really good outline of each book in the OT. Interesting!!!

One of the great experience I had at the beginning of the term was to visit my Hebrew professor. We had some yummy dessert at his home and we had a good chat with other classmates who are also interested in studying OT. I was so glad that Connie and Abby could go and had a wonderful time there too. ^_^

Our whole family will go to the US tomorrow for our first retreat organized by the school. I hope to enjoy the fellowship with my schoolmates and our Lord Jesus Christ.
To enjoy and complete my readings and assignments, I really need your support in prayers.

Culture Shock

The experience I had in the orientation last week was profound (this is a new word that I learned last week ^_^)

To describe my feelings over the last week, you can imagine me having a roller-coaster ride.

Up: Having been anticipating for a new start for a long time, I enjoy meeting many people from all over the world: UK, New Zealand, Australia, Asia(China, Indonesia, Singapore, S.Korea), Africa.......People have different stories to tell of why they come to study at Regent; people from different cultures and backgrounds....and we're coming together to learn to love and support one another, and to learn about our faith....This is just so exciting.

Down: On the second day of the orientation, I began to feel stressed. As the faculty talked about the program, I just felt uneasy as I would drop 1 course to reduce my load, which means it would delay my year of graduation. Oh, how I wish to finish sooner and go back to HK!! In addition, I would need more money to finance my education and living. It's really an act of faith. Indeed I had thought of quitting my studies and go back to HK. This thought came across my mind many times along the week.

Up: The chapel (service) on the next day was my turning point. During the singspiration, we sang out a song which has a wonderful melody and lyrics:

"You're King and You reign over all things. You're King and You reign over all......"

I was so moved by this song as I noticed that God is in control of my life. I would learn to struggle and then submit to God. This song helped me to focus back to God again. I said to myself, "Who's the one to decide how much time would I stay at Regent?" God is my Lord and if He would like me to slow down a bit, I'd trust in Him and walk at a slower pace. After accepting the new decision, I do appreciate the notion behind this 'slower pace' , which make time available for more reading and reflecting on the things we learn in lectures. Other than the song, I was more relieved as I could share my concerns with a few other schoolmates that were sitting around me. We prayed together. I'm happy to make new friends through sharing and praying.

Down again: After four days of orientation, I started to make a number of friends. However, I began to feel lost and I felt a sense of loniness inside. I guess I had a yearning for more intimate friendships but which could not be easily developed quickly. I sensed that when all of the students were having coffee breaks and lunch, they tended to form small groups...but I was in neither of them...I felt quite strange as I really long for being accepted by people from different cultures and background. I guess I was in search of my identity. I could understand that we may need to overcome certain psychological barriers in order for us to become closer friends, but the feeling of being left out just simply couldn't be shaken off.

Up again: That very last day of orientation, God gave me hope again through a very familiar song I used to sing in Chinese.

My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus' blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly trust in Jesus' Name.

On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

The chorus of the song really caught my glance. It seemed to call my attention back to Jesus at Regent instead of merely in search of satisfaction in relationships.

The next verse also gave me comfort:

When darkness seems to hide His face,
I rest on His unchanging grace.
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.

I would not deny my yearnings, but I really thank God for reassuring His love and grace to me so that I could face the different challenges ahead.

The most touching moment was the benediction at the end of the service. Before Professor Darrell Johnson proclaimed the blessings, he asked us to be silent for a moment as he needed to wait upon more of His instructions. Then after a while, he said, “I think this is what God wants me to say….

‘I called you here. Though it seems that you decided to come to Regent, it’s me who called you.’……”

I was so moved and truly thanked God for such assurance. No matter what the obstacles are ahead, or the many changes that I may have to face, I can rest assure that God would take care of me. May Him be glorified when people see the path that I go through.

What an unforgettable orientation week!! ^_^

Magic Number: 33

33.......It meant quite a lot to me......

a) I live on West 33rd Avenue in Vancouver
b) I just celebrated my 33rd birthday
c) My Lord Jesus Christ was cruxified and resurrected when He was 33
(of course I'm not saying that I'm gonna die this year....who knows? ^_^)

I am so grateful and thankful to God for surrounding me with love. The Chows gave me a surprise celebration a few days ago. They bought me a really nice birthday cake and they really surprised me for I didn't know that they would remember my birthday.
Thinking back....one of my unforgettable birthday was the year that I entered university. My parents drove me to the resident and helped me settle. We had dinner and they returned to Toronto. I felt extremely lonely afterwards for I had to face a new life at the university alone. I wept while I was taking shower and I prayed to God for grace.....Now as I celebrate my birthday this year, I'm on a new journey again. But I really thank God for having Connie and Abby to walk with me....It's not the same anymore.....

One more blessing to my birthday this year is that my Mom is here in Vancouver!!! She arrived on 4/9 and would stay with us for 5 days. Then she'll be returning to Toronto. It's so nice to have her celebrate together because I could thank her for all she and dad did over the years. We went to a Japanese restaurant for dinner and Mom was delighted of the yummy food.

Later on the evening, I got another surprise--Anson and Charis(my landlords) came down with a birthday cake!!! What a surprise!!! I really thank them for their love to me and my family. They're not only my landlords, but good neighbours and a loving brother and sister in Christ. Though we met recently, I pray that our friendship grows strong.

I also want to thank lots of other buddies in HK and Aussie, who also sent me SMS/FB greetings on my birthday.
I got 46 presents on my birthday!!!!! They're my shipment goods that I've packed to Vancouver and they were delivered to my home today. Connie and I were so pleased now that we can get our stuff from Hong Kong and settle down in our new home. We spent the whole day unpacking and putting them in place. We're almost done. Abby was so happy to see her stuff too. These things we used in Hong Kong really made our new place a home-sweet-home feeling as they're our cherished memories.

When our house is settled, I hope to focus in my study as lessons will start on next Tuesday.
I would really like to share about the orientation that was held last week but I guess I'd share with you more in later posts.

Last night I dreamed of my colleagues, students and school life. I know I really miss them. I would love to see their faces and chat with them. Just wish them all the best as school has started this week.

1st Day at Regent College

Here we go!!! It's our first day of orientation.

Yesterday, we left home at 8:15 and arrived at 8:45. I was glad that I could drive to school and parked the car at a pretty good rate ($5 for the whole day) and a good location.

We tried to settle Abby at the childcare service, but she did not want to play alone. So we took her with us to the programme. We had a brief worship and prayer. I'm very touched by the sincere prayers led by one upper-form student. She prayed for our relationship with God, in addition to the knowledge that we'll get. Instead of all the Godly things that we're busy with, we need to focus at our relationship with Him. I'm learning to enjoy spending time with God and listen to His words not because of duty, but simply being there to enjoy the intimacy. I can recall such experience when I was spending time with Abby. I didn't really have to achieve a lot of things with her or giving a lesson to her. I could just simply sit or lie close to her joyfully. This is an intimate experience.

After praying, we began to introduce one after another through playig some ice-breaking games. I was so excited to know my classmates, who came from different parts of the world. There're people from Asia, like South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan... There're others from Europe, especially from UK. There're others from New Zealand and even Africa. We spent some time chatting during lunch. I think yesterday was a great start. I really look forward to know more about them and listen to their stories.

Abby became pretty well-known as she was singing along with us....You really need to listen to her singing....she could sound pretty close to what we're singing, with a slight delay in synchronizing. It's really funny. ^_^

Orientation will continue from Sept 2-4. We'll learn more about the study culture at Regent. I look forward to connect with others.

Please pray for me as I'll have lots of reading. I really need to spend time wisely.

We'll be moving on Sept 1 as well.
Thank God for providing us a 10' cargo van and some kind brothers and sisters from church to help us move. Connie and I really hope to settle everything before lessons start on Sept 8.

Touching moment

Thanks to Skype, I can chat with my colleagues "in person". It was a remarkable experience.

Thanks to Jason for setting up the computer and classroom so that I could talk to all our 40 staff members. I was so glad to see their happy faces after Summer Holiday. Really looking forward to our next Skype conversation.

Countdown: 1 more week to go!

Summer Holiday is coming to its end. (Do you long for more? ^_^)
My primary school colleagues are getting back to school this week. Really miss them much!

Just one more week, we’ll be moving to our new place. We’ll need to do lots of cleaning and unpacking. Hopefully we’ll be able to finish our work before lessons start.

Orientation for new students will begin this coming Friday. I look forward to meet with new classmates and teachers. Guess I should read bible more (esp. in English) + textbooks now…there’ll be tons of readings after school starts.

I’m grateful over the last few weeks that I could stay with the Chows. I was so happy to chat with them. I even got a few sessions of kinesiology therapy as Mrs. Chow is a registered clinical counselor. Through sharing and diagnosis, I discovered that other than our mind (or thoughts), our body actually can tell us a lot of our status through various responses to frequencies. I could identify some stress sources and trace back to the incidents that had occurred to me in my childhood / adolescence. These sessions really helped me to understand my needs more. As Mrs. Chow always says, “Your body remembers more than you know!” I just THOUGHT I was over with the problem, but my BODY is still grieving on it. My body would respond differently than I thought so. I was surprised by these reactions and I noticed I have always been on a “survival” mode of living. There was a great fear deep inside of me, so that I always “believe” that I don’t deserve to get over with problems and being loved by others. In response, I tend to have psychological reversals, meaning that I don’t mean what I say to myself. I notice that I longed for nurturing that was insufficient in my childhood years. It has to do with the relationship and interactions between me and my daddy. Though I am always proud of my daddy and respect him, my body tells me that I really long for playing with my daddy in my childhood but he was absent. Those years were gone long time ago; however, my body remembers and still grieves for that. I guess that's why I sometimes feel so distant with my parents (my body tells myself to feel ok to stay alone after so many years) Now I’ve to acknowledge such feelings and really let my body to feel the grief and let it get over with.

I also discover that I’ve got lots of my good friends are in the field of counseling. My dad and my wife are social workers; my best friends are counselors too. Then I was asked by Mrs. Chow, “Why haven’t you thought of studying counseling before?” I was stunned by this question and wondered why I’ve never thought of entering this field even I am really fond of this professional. Maybe I have been denying myself and having this thought of “un-deservedness” towards this. It will be very interesting to know what my daddy thinks about this since he has given me advice and insights over many important decisions (including my decision of pursuing medicine and my choice of studying chemistry in uni years).

Really feel blessed by God for shaping my life through many ways, even before school starts. ^_^

Daddy: If you ever read this post, I want to say that I love you. I'm always proud of you and thankful for all that you've done for me. I'm glad that I could go over my past and searched for my feelings. Just acknowledge my feelings. I really hope to hear your sharing, to know your ups and downs, or even play together.

Things look brighter in Week 2

This is a week to remember.

A. We spent 4 days on a short journey to a lake resort. This journey was planned and arranged before we left HK. We went along with the Chows and 2 other families from church. Check out the photos and you'll be amazed by the beautiful scenery there. The trailer house was neat and cozy. We enjoyed the beauty of the nature and the fellowship with each other. One night, I lay flat on the pavement with Connie and Abby to look at the sky. The sky was filled with twinkling stars. How I wish to take a photo of it and show you how it was like.

B. After we returned, I registered my courses for the fall term. I talked to a counselor and I decided to take 4 courses this term (as suggested in the student handbook in order to finish the program in 3 yrs). But only about 40% of Regent students will take 4 courses each term; another 40% will take only 3; the rest will take fewer courses. I’ll see how much that I can handle in the first 2 weeks of school. I may decide to take fewer courses, but it may mean that I’ll finish the program later. There’ll be stress on the finance when I think of that, but it’s all about faith to rely in God. I’m learning not to rush myself in finishing it in 3 yrs, but to open up myself to learn the essence of studying theology here. So I’ll be taking:
1. Christian culture and thoughts
2. History of Christianity
3. The Old Testament Foundation
4. Introductory Hebrew

These seem to be quite interesting. I had a look at the textbooks and noticed a lot of vocabularies. Pray for my eagerness to learn and be able to understand different concepts.
I really want to thank Foon傳道 for giving me a “dictionary” of those theological terms. It’s gonna be very useful in my years of study.

C. The most important issue this week was that we’re settled with our housing. We thank God for the understanding and care we got from uF and aSK though we’ll not be renting the original upper floor unit. It’s amazing that God prepared us another loving and caring neighbour (landlord) + schoolmate. (see details from Abbymama’s blog) We’ll be moving into the basement unit of the Ann family soon and we’re now getting/buying different stuff for the new place. We’re so grateful for the housing arrangement and the community around us. Thank God.

Life is always filled with excitement. Though there were times that we felt anxious and perplexed, I thank God for teaching us to pray and focus on Him. Praise Him for His love and care.

First week in Vancouver

Guess what we were doing as the opening ceremony of the olympics started in Beijing?
--sleeping

Really like to see the live broadcast, but we've no TV here....I saw some clips on YouTube...will try to download more from forums.

Here are some updates of what we did in these days:
1. Got a bank account settled. (The bank system here in Canada is so much different than in HK, everything here takes charges...from cheques to transactions....everything counts. I'm so lucky to open a student account so lots of these charges are waived...but I still have limited quotas for different operations)

2. Got my BC driver's license. (I don't need to do the test again because I've an expired one from Toronto which was issued within 3 yrs)
But Connie cannot get a BC license 'cause of her visitor status. She's allowed to drive with the International permit this yr. After that, we'll see what we can do for her. (maybe ask her to make a trip to HK later/see how the immigration process is doing)

3. Got 2 cell phones (1 for Connie: 778-8811492 ; 1 for me: 778-8811412) If you want to call us from HK, you also have to dial '1' in front of the phone numbers mentioned above. The phones we get here are really "old" models, but we got it really cheap. We're happy anyways. But the phone plan is way more expensive than in HK. We're paying 3 times more expensive than in HK, with poorer services (We've only 150 min....also we'll not be having voice mails, call display in order to save $ ~_~ But we can make unlimited calls to ppl using the same phone company, and the INCOMING calls during weekday evenings (from 7pm) and weekends are free) Oh Dear!!!

4. Got a chance to look at the school campus. Regent college is a small building situated in the UBC campus. But it has a nice library. I'm going to do registration really soon.

5. I can drive my own car now!!! I bought a used car and it is now insured. Thanks to our dear friend in Vancouver, we've got a Honda Civic (1998 hatchback model, gray in colour, no air con.) It reminds me of the 'little red car' my family used to drive in Toronto. When I did a little test drive on it, I know I'll like this car very much. This is the 1st car that I own, and I'll try to learn how to take care of it.

There are still lots to check out/settle in terms of school and living. Please remember us in your prayers. I do feel pressure in adjusting everything new even I've had experience in Toronto/London. I guess I haven't been out of my comfort zone for a long time. But I do see God's grace in providing us the things and people we need. I start to appreciate my mom and dad's braveness and endurance they showed as we moved from HK to Toronto in 1989. I can understand how much pressure they faced in a strange new place.

There're a few things that we'll have to figure out:
1. Really need to find out ways for giving Connie a status other than 'visitor'. I don't think I can sponsor her to immigrate to Canada 'cause we need to provide financial proofs that I can support her and Abby (for Connie: 3yrs, for Abby: 10yrs!!!!!) Wondering if Connie can apply for immigration as a skilled worker, or simply ask her to renew her visitor status every 180 days. But we're paying high costs in health insurance. sigh....~_~ Pray and see how God guides us. Another possible way would be that I get a part-time job so that I can at least show the government that I would take care of my family.

2. More importantly, we may have new changes in our housing for this year. It's a big issue...check AbbyMommy's blog for further details....we're praying and learning to experience God's grace and providence.

I really thank God for having the Chow's family in Vancouver. Not only they have helped us a lot in our settlement, but they're our great spiritual support when we could pray and share our fears and tears with them. I also thank God for the growth we see in Abby even in this short week. Abby now tends to give more facial and verbal expressions as she interacts with the lovely big sister in the Chow's family. She likes to mimick Lizzie and is more stimulated to talk and share ideas with different people. Connie and I are overjoyed to see Abby's responses to our actions/conversations.

Week one is almost over......filled with both excitement and uncertainty. Life is different (or at times, difficult) for us but we'll move on thankfully with the grace of God.

新開始--阿比爸爸與一家在Canada進修之旅

我們在八月四日晚已抵達溫哥華，報平安！

多謝友人的接待，令一切的安頓變得輕省些。我們一家都覺得新的環境很新鮮！過去兩天的生活可算輕鬆：起床後享受美味的西式早餐，然後到附近地方逛逛，有不少香港人的Richmond區，有附近的漁人碼頭和公園。我們很喜歡這裡到處都是綠草如茵；天氣晴朗和涼快，更樂在這裡優美的環境與悠閑的生活節奏。若能時常存感恩的心去享受所賜的生活環境，定能令身心都健康！

過渡中有幸可以藉上網，以skype與家人朋友傾談，甚至可以「見面」，真覺暢快！期待可以與更多朋友、同事、學生在網上聯繫。

今天開始了辦理一些本地的證件及初到學校報到。心情複雜。詳情請看下回分解。

為方便加快更新，日後我或者會多以英文分享，或許未能及中文的傳神，請大家見諒。另外，facebook中會有相片更新 ^_^

出擊！

阿比爸爸成功發動了機動戰士！在上星期五難得有一天weekday假期，阿比爸爸到了銅鑼灣的世貿中心Namco Wonder Park初次體驗了一部與別不同的遊戲機。這部《機動戰士--戰場之絆 》，玩家會在一個270 ° 可視半球形機艙、以100% 仿真操控一部機動戰士，我以「自護國」官兵的身份駕駛著一部初學者的「渣古」，與其他3位不相識的隊友對戰另外4位「聯邦軍」的「吉姆」。對戰過程很爽！兩手要控制操縱捍外還要用腳踏使用噴射氣推進，而且全程可以用附設的耳機和隊友交談，我與其他的2位都是初玩，但藉一起的配搭2局連勝了！而我自己初次的戰果亦十分理想：擊落了5架敵機。很期待可以和自己的friend一起鬥一番！

要玩事先要以$25出一張pilot card（靠它記錄經驗值及得分來升級），再付$35玩十五分鐘（共2局），而且還要輪候約1小時！但我仍然被那逼真的駕駛感吸引著！這次經歷確是圓了不少男孩小時的夢想呢！

當阿比遇上陳豪

阿比爸爸近日成為了某護髮品牌的代言人！

事緣這星期來帶Abby出外乘搭馬鐵時，當Abby看見車站其中一個的燈箱廣告時，便會說：「爸B」。看真點那廣告，原來是穿著西裝的陳豪！哈哈！在不少女仕心中陳豪都幾"Man"，而Abby又覺得他有幾分似阿比爸爸，結論是：阿比再一次證實『小孩的眼睛是雪亮的』！^_^

阿比點滴

看著阿比的成長依然是充滿喜悅！阿比近日學習上廁，當然是時有「失手」，但過程也蠻有趣，她成功上廁時她會喚我去看看在廁所的她！^_^ 此外，我又藉書本及玩具幫阿比辨認紅色及黃色，初時表現不錯，到後來就連番答錯，終於仍不是太知道她掌握與否，還留待改日再測試.......

今天因努力改測驗試卷與阿比留在家，我正苦惱怎令她不妨礙我工作時心生一計，就是要我在客廳改卷，讓阿比在我鄰畫東西！此舉成功讓阿比消磨了一個下午，又讓我順利改了一大疊的試卷！Yeah!!! 小小的阿比今天下午陪我改完卷後與我彈一彈鋼琴，又走入房著我打開油壓床，原來她記得早前我打開油壓床取出結他與她一起玩的片段！我便再取出結他與她一起玩，很開心！希望她也喜歡上這樂器啦！

昨天阿比的覆診加了我多點的思慮，是關於阿比是否比同齡的小朋友遲發育。我一向都覺得阿比細小的身型/體重比同齡的小朋友小是沒有問題，但若是心智上比較小，我倒是有點擔心/介懷。是擔心怎樣幫助她還是她日後長大的生活...等等。不過我仍向天父祈求，讓天父幫助她...

看著阿比攪笑鬼馬及古惑的表現，我也稍稍放心...我深信她的成長是需要我和Connie努力的栽培及小心的照顧，我們仍要多努力呢！