My Blog

Hei guys…. Yea i can update via blog once in a while, but it depends if i can find a cyber cafe as the ship doesnt allow web surfing… only email to our private database. Oh, if u guys wanna email me,u can, but to this email address:

mark.tan@mvdoulos.org

Life is good onboard… i have so many frens from everywhere, living there is just… so interesting… i dun feel lonely at all, although there ARE sum ppl i wud kill to see again, particularly the Leong family, and someone i will not mention at the moment. BUt i wish to GOd that i could see u guys again. It’s like camp, only with such a different atmopsphere as we are always reminded that our campsite is a 130m long vessel.

The food here is FANTASTIC… i’m stuffing myself most of the time, but its all healthy… no deep fried, no heavy oil or butter.

Normally it’s cereal and toast with coffee in the morning, western meat dish for lunch, and perhaps a sandwich or sumthin in the evening. Oh, maggi mee here is sumwhat essential for midnite snack, but i dun take it every nite of course.

The work here is nice. i’m a deckie, which is sumthin like a  navy petty officer (NCO). Its so cool, as at some time i’m cleanin, other time i’m scraping, painting, and i might have night duty or sail duty next week, where i get to STEER the ship for a couple of hrs or so. How cool is that.. YAY… will definitely post photos when i can, buit just imagine me sailing as if i’m driving… scary huh? lmao.

Am praying for BB, the church, and of course all my frens when i’m here, i hope u guys do the same for me too. in the ship, i can feel the Spirit working His way in this ship, i jus wish that u guys can feel the same feeling i have everytime i am onboard. I’m not homesick, not scared, just aware, precautious, and at peace… a peace that can hold mountains by it’s breath.

What a period of time….

things for me at the moment have been going on so fast… From Pesta to teaching Drill Advance Class, to enrolment and awards day… Now… i’m going onboard Doulos this saturday (aug 5) for two months… and when i come back… One of my best buddies would’ve left for england for at least a year… Haih… wat a time period

So what is this? Have i gone through three chapters? or is this jus another one chapter, still continuing… I’m so confused.

Forgive me as i have not updated my blog for so long… I’m not the type who writes when sumthin big happens, let alone when nearly half a dozen things happen sekali-gus. I prefer to meditate on it first, then when i’m calm enuf, then i start writing abt or discuss abt it.

So many changes happened in this short time (barely three months). there are even sometimes when i jus have to stop, clean my wounds, rest a bit, then only move on. But i cant… one thing after another comes up. church, BB, Doulos preperations… well at least i can get away from BB for a bit.

Ok… since quite a few ppl alredi wrote abt E&A and de barbeque and pesta (which all rocked), i’ll talk abt me going onboard Doulos.

Fo those who dunno abt Doulos, it’s a ship dedicated to bring "Good Books for All". It’s a German Christian ministry, dedicated to spread knowledge to the needy countries to the world. Of course with knowledge comes evangelism and other means of help. But  our primary goal is to bring knowledge around the world.

Besides Doulos, another ship is also circling around the world, only the other way around, Logos II… its also under the same group, and with the same purpose. Next yr another ship will be added to the number, and so will the ministry.

When i’m on doulos i’ll be working in a certain dept. Either deck, engine, or pantry. i keep a 9hr a day, 6day-week job onboard. But after that, i have cell groups to attend, ministries to learn from and its jus de whole "onboard experience" that makes me excited to go.

But of course when i’m gone for 2 months, i’ll be away from BB, church, councelling, and other ministries. But, i think i kinda need it rite now. You see, u’re prob wondering why am i going onboard. I dun get paid to work… i PAY to work onboard. sounds crazyy rite? But there is a reason for this.

Put it this way… instead of paying thousands of dollars to cruise and jus waste my lazy ass throughout the time, i pay a quater of the price to travel, gain work experience, help in a ministry, and i get a break (sabbatical) from it all…. Its perfect for me.

So wad do i expect out of this 2 months… Basically 2 things… to learn and to Listen. While i’m onboard i learn different ways to evangelize and gain more experience from outside church and BB. I hope to listen to God’s voice and perhaps find y calling for my life ont this earth. Cos, even until now, i dunno…

I want to be a youth pastor, or a teacher, anything to do with youth. i hope to be in full time. But, on the side i hope to live comfortably, enuf to start and maintain a family. I oso want to be with the girl of my dremas. But from the looks of things she seem to have a long while to go more… It was then i was thinkin…"GOD, HELP ME!!!" Which is then, with His Perfect Timing, i got enrolled onto Doulos.

I hope to achieve wat i am about to go and accomplish, and i ask all those who noe me, or understand wat am i going through, to keep me in prayer. I need courage. Most ppl wud think its simple for me, but in truth, i feel scared, torn away from my comfort zone.

So for those who reads my blog often, i’ll be updating it when i’m onboard as often as i can. Please keeep me in prayer.

So what is this? I think its an end of a stage in a chapter, and de beginnign of another climax.

Haih… life… cant hate it without loving it first.