Wondering what’s left to do after Christmas? Come 29 December, dress up as the celebrity of your choice and stand to win prizes at CELEB-RATION – our year-end fashion party!
Whether you’re into Hollywood movies, Korean dramas or hip-hop, we want you to come in your best Brad Pitt, Lindsay Lohan, Bae Yong-joon, Rihanna or Jay Chou style to be part of our party.
If you don’t look like star, don’t fret! We’re looking for creative people who can carry off a unique sense of style modeled after a famous person. If you think you got what it takes, start putting together your outfit and we’ll see you at CELEB-RATION! All friends and family are welcome to join in the fun.
"...Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:10,11
Please pray for all the people who are lonely this Christmas. For many people, Christmas is a time of great joy. Other people may be alone, and afraid, and not have anyone to spend the holidays with. Please pray that others would come around them and show them love.
Believe! This is the week of Christmas - and it is so important that we believe God and receive Christ.
When the angel Gabriel spoke to the virgin Mary over 2,000 years ago and said she would have a Son even though she was a virgin, she did not doubt - she believed. She said “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” Mary believed God - and she received God’s promise, the Christ child.
When you celebrate Christmas this year, focus on Christ — the wonderful son of God who came to earth to be our Savior. Believe in Him as the Son of God; receive Him in to your heart if you have not done so already. And let’s pray that:
Millions of people across the whole world will believe in God and in Jesus Christ as the Son of God
People everywhere will receive Christ as their Savior and Lord Your own friends and family will all welcome Christ as their personal Savior
When Christ came to be born on earth, people had a simple choice - would they believe in Him as Savior? Would they receive Him into their lives? Would they welcome Him?
Our choice is the same today. Let us celebrate the birth of Christ into the world - and into our hearts. Merry Christmas!
Jesus is the hope that lives within us, and we boldly share His promises to those seeking Him.
"So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because He belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son." Luke 2:4 - 7
"Christmas is coming! The night that Jesus Christ was born, angels sang "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests". The angels appeared to shepherds. Shepherds were among the poor of society -- they watched sheep and were out in the fields at night, not in their homes. But the shepherds had faith in God. The Bible says
"When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, 'Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.' So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger."
The baby Jesus was born over 2,000 years ago -- but the great news is He is alive today! He is alive in heaven, where He is with God His Father -- and He is alive on earth in the hearts of all those who have accepted Him as Lord and Savior. Our time on this earth is very short -- but soon we will see Jesus in heaven, who is King of Kings and Lord of Lords! Let us worship Him this Christmas.
O, what a winning innovation Founder started performing arts centre to fund non-profit school for dropouts Weekend • December 15, 2007 Lin Yanqin yanqin@mediacorp.com.sg
RUNNING a non-profit school to help youth dropouts to complete their O levels is a worthy cause — but with high rental costs and student bursaries to fund, it is also an expensive one. So, to offset the mounting costs of running the City Harvest Education Centre (CHEC), founder and principal Kenny Low (picture) last year started a performing arts centre called the O School. Its dance classes generate revenue to pay for the costs of CHEC and also provides steady employment for promising young talents to become full-time instructors, performers and choreographers.
Mr Low's entrepreneurial spirit, coupled with his mission to reach out to youth, won him this year's Schwab Social Entrepreneur of the Year award at the Social Innovators' Forum gala dinner on Friday night. Said Mr Kevin Teo, head of the Schwab Foundation of Social Entrepreneurship's East and South-east Asia offices, who sat on the judging panel: "Using unconventional approaches to address the needs of a challenging student population and leveraging a social business to support the operation of the school, Kenny certainly provides an inspiring role model for Singapore's next wave of social entrepreneurs."
Speaking of his experience in starting and running a social enterprise, Mr Low felt that although seed funding was valuable, it was important not to handhold such businesses too much.
"After we got funding … there was no alternative, we had to make it," he said. "It made us tougher, and now we're sustainable. As entrepreneurs, we must have backbone and not let a lack of support hinder us from trying."
O School is now recognised as a leading dance studio, training the likes of Singapore Idol winners Taufik Batisah and Hady Mirza, and organising dance conferences like The Big Groove.
At the same time, the school helps reach out to youth at risk by engaging them through dance.
Social enterprises like O School can't maximise profits for shareholders since it channels some of this back to supporting its social causes. But Mr Low chooses to focus on the intangible benefits. "The power to create jobs, to create a service needed by people … there is economic value in it," he said. "It shouldn't be seen as a sacrifice."
This is the story behind the couple. Read the story first and watching:
The lady in her 30s was a dancer and was trained as one since she was a little girl.
Later she got into some kind of accident and lost her entire left arm. She was depressed for a few years. It seemed that someone asked her to coach a Children's dancing group. From that point on, she realized she could not forget dancing.
She still loved to dance and wanted to dance again.
So she started to do some of her old routines.
But by her losing an arm, she also lost her balance. It took a while before she could even making simple turns and spins without falling. Eventually she got it.
Then she heard some guy in his 20s had lost a leg in an accident. This guy also fell into the usual denial, depression and anger type of emotional roller coaster. She looked him up and persuaded him to dance with her. He had never danced.
And to dance with one leg? No way.
But she didn't give up and he reluctantly agreed. She started to teach him dancing 101.
The two broke up a few times because the guy had no concept of using muscle, control his body and a few other basic things about dancing. They hired a choreographer to design routines for them.
She would fly high (held by him) with a sleeve for an arm flying in the air. He can bend horizontally supported by one leg and she leaning on him, etc. They danced beautifully and they legitimately beat others in the competition.
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