Contemplation

Lord, I Stretch My Hands to You

2011-06-11T22:07:00.006+08:00

The “Creation of Adam” is a fresco painted by Michelangelo on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel of the Vatican. Anyone who views this cannot mistake the special relationship of Man and the Creator God. The face of Adam is one of an innocent person who looks toward God as if looking for instruction and and relationship, a look for love. God appears resolute but also shows a fatherly countenance.

Adam’s nakedness indicates a certain vulnerability and helplessness. He stretches his hand as if to turn for refuge and direction; very dependent on God. The hymn ‘Lord I Stretch My Hands to You’ by Jay Althouse with lyrics adapted from Charles Wesley, succinctly described the vulnerability-dependency realities of the man-creator relationship. (Click on title for Youtube rendition)

Lord, I stretch my hands to You

No other help I know,

If You should leave me all alone,

Where then shall I go, O Lord.

Lord, I stretch my hands to You

Oh Lord. I give my soul to You

I seek Your care and love.

No other blessings do I need

but those from You above.

Lord I ask You:

Give me faith, and help me understand.

And Lord, when I this life shall leave

Just hold me in Your hand.

In God we will find abundance but unfortunately, many of us fail to recognise this. We want to assert our independence and in so doing, we lose sight of God. What a pity! We withdraw our hands and go our separate ways. In this zealousness to break free, we become blind to our spiritual inheritance and lose the wisdom of God’s counsel.

God’s hand however remains outstretched.

Is 42:16 “I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them."

Philip Yancey in his book, ‘Finding God in Unexpected Places’ recounted this story, “Theologian John S Dunne tells of a group of early Spanish sailors who reached the continent of South America after an arduous voyage. Their caravels sailed into the headwaters of the Amazon, an expanse of water so wide the sailors presumed it to be a continuation of the Atlantic Ocean. It never occurred to them to drink the water, since the sailors presumed it to be saline, and as a result many of them died of thirst. That scene of men dying of thirst even as their ships floated on the world’s largest source of fresh water has become for me a metaphor of our age. Some people starve to death spiritually while all around them manna rots.”

Is 41: 17-18 “The poor and needy search for water but there is none, their tongues are parched with thirst. But I the LORD will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. I will make rivers flow on barren heights, and springs within the valleys. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground into springs.

John’s Gospel recorded a gentle conversation between Jesus and a Samaritan woman; a woman looking for meaningful love and relationship.

John 4:7-13, “When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?” Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

If only we all can recognize our lack of spirituality and wisdom! Then we would stretch our hands to God to establish a relationship that was meant to be from the dawn of time. Psalms 121:1-3 “I lift up my eyes to the hills— where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip— He who watches over you will not slumber.”

Lionel

When I Run, I Feel God’s Pleasure

2011-05-28T07:00:00.079+08:00

The Corporate Services Group at Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine

In the movie, "Chariots of Fire", Eric LIddell in explaining to his sister why he wants to run in the Olympics said, “Jenny, when I run, I feel God’s pleasure”. My friend, Benjamin Ng noted Eric Liddell's statement with this comment, “What a change it will make in our lives and what an impact God will make in our society when we can say that we feel God’s pleasure when we work”.

At 60 years old, I decided to resign my job as Director of the Defence Medical and Environmental Research Institute (DMERI) and take on the challenge of a Chief Operating Officer of the new and third medical school in Singapore, the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine.

I felt that by God’s grace the mission to establish DMERI has largely been accomplished. It is time to be of service to the country once again and help start up the new school which will see its first intake of students in 2013.

People asked me why I made the switch. My reply is every job is a God sent vocation. To be of service to church, society, friends and country is a calling and privilege and, like Eric Lidell, I feel God’s pleasure at work. The Bible puts it more directly as in Col 3:23-24 “ Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Jesus Christ you are serving”.

About a year ago, I was interviewing several candidates for the post of CEO of the Dover Park Hospice. As usual towards the end, I asked one interviewee what questions has she got for the interviewers. She asked, “What is expected from me on the job?” I answered without any hesitation, “Servant-Leadership”.

When working in a hospice, from the CEO to the kitchen maid, one will need such an attitude of dedicated service. The patients need attention for their every need, even for feeding, staff needs counseling and families need comfort. The leader in a hospice needs an attitude and action of a servant; not to lord over others but to serve.

We have just experienced a very exciting general election. It was described as a watershed election. There was a groundswell expectancy of the electorate for politicians who will serve the people and not just their own interest, the party’s platform nor the government’s agendas.

Last week in the papers it was reported that Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, in introducing his cabinet said, “Politics is not a job or a career promotion. It is a calling to serve the larger good of Singapore”. Yesterday, 28 May 2011, the papers reported that PM in a “rules of prudence” letter to the PAP MPs reminded of their responsibility to uphold the spirit of service to the people and work hard on their behalf.

Would one lose the competitive edge with such an attitude?

Well, in Philippians 2:5-7, it is written, “We are encouraged to have the same mindset as Christ. He did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant".

This Christian ethos of “Humility in Service” was dramatically demonstrated by Jesus Christ who took a basin of water and with a towel wiped the feet of the disciples.

Jesus’ example with the basin and towel is not only for the spiritual service of the church, the mission field or the monastery but for the everyday tasks in busy world at the market and work places.

In the phrase, 'Humility in Service.' the Greek word for 'humility' is literally translated 'lowliness of the mind'. How we treat other people depend entirely on how we think of them and how we evaluate them. In our mind’s evaluation of our subordinates, our bosses, our colleagues we are to count them better than ourselves. This means to place a value of others as being more important than ourselves, to consider their dignity and worth. Humility is the attitude, mindset and basis for all our relationship building, our collegiality at the workplace.

Humility begins with the mind but it continues into conduct and service, that is to say, humility is 'action-able'. Jesus took action to serve us as noted in Phil 2:7 “by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself". Scripture described six actions that Jesus took

• He emptied himself,

• He became a servant

• He was made in human likeliness
• He humbled himself

• He became obedient
• He died on the cross

After winning the men's 400m gold medal at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, Eric Liddell followed in his parents' footsteps and served as a missionary to China from 1925 to 1943. He served in Tianjin and Xiaozhang. He was interned during the Japanese occupation of China and died in 1945 just five months before liberation. In 2008 near the time of the Beijing Olympics, the Chinese authorities revealed to his family that Liddell had refused an opportunity to leave the camp and instead gave up his place for freedom to a pregnant woman.

Serving like a servant at our workplaces; is this possible? It becomes possible when we realise that it is not just our colleagues or bosses whom we serve but God. Like Eric, we hope to feel God’s pleasure. In 1991, a memorial headstone in Eric's memory was unveiled at the former concentration camp in Weifang and on it is inscribed, "They shall mount up with wings as eagle, they shall run and not be weary." Isaiah 40:3

Lionel

A Healing Ministry Without Making Your Church Sick

2011-03-17T19:49:00.015+08:00

Cor 12: 7-8 “Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me”.

The affliction that Paul had was not something trivial; not just an inconvenience. It tormented him to the extent where he thought that Satan had inflicted it upon him. It was something so painful or embarrassing that he pleaded with the Lord to remove it. Three times he pleaded but there was no healing. God used this affliction for Paul’s greater good in order to keep Paul from becoming conceited and to keep him from depending upon himself. Instead, Paul depended on God and not on his personal visions, revelations, spirituality or apostleship. God strengthened him.

For the title of this post, I have used the title of a book by Peter Wagner, “How To Have A Healing Ministry Without Making Your Church Sick”. We need to correctly pitch what the Bible has to say about healing in order not to hurt other people, especially those suffering from intractable illnesses. Some Christians have the unrealistic expectations that God always cures and God always does miracles. However, the reality is that very often, as in the case of Paul’s experience, God will choose not to heal.

What do we do with Christians who accuse others to be without faith or to harbour unconfessed sins when, despite persistent prayer, there is no healing?

My father-in-law served God as a Pastor, always tending to his churches and congregation throughout a 40 year ministry. He died of prostate cancer which had spread to the spine. When he was first diagnosed, many Christians, including the family, exercised faith and prayed for a cure.

When it became obvious that no miraculous cure would happen, some people refused to give up the praying for a cure. These same people later suggested that the reason God did not heal my father-in-law was because there were unconfessed sins in the old man’s past.

After he died, my mother-in-law, exhausted and grieving, also succumbed to cancer. These Christians then proclaimed the family to have a generational curse. Yet, both my parents-in-law had fruitful Christian ministries for many years; well into their mid-seventies. How insensitive can “holier than thou” Christians be! They explain away their inability to be the instruments of healing by imposing guilt upon the sick.

Where medicine cannot provide a cure, sick people die. For this reason, as a profession of my Christian faith and ministry, I serve as a volunteer and now the Chair on the Governing Council of the Dover Park Hospice (DPH) in Singapore. We tend to the dying, managing pain and other concerns, giving respite care as needed.

I admire the doctors, nurses and staff of DPH as they dutifully and lovingly look after their patients with much care and sensitivity. I tell them that in instances where a cure is not possible, we can help heal the sick. Our desire is to tend to the sick so that in dying, they can be at peace with family and friends, at peace with themselves and at peace with God. This is when the miracles happen, if only we can recognize them. At the DPH, we have a saying, ‘Where we cannot add days to life we shall add life to days’.

Lionel

In God’s Power The Weak Become Strong

2011-03-16T06:57:00.006+08:00

My Father at Toa Payoh
Methodist Church

2 Cor 12:9 and 10, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong".

In a successful society like Singapore, it is fairly easy for us to praise and look up to successful and strong men. This can lead us to assess the extent of the grace and blessing we receive from God not in terms of virtue, character and spiritual worth but in terms of wealth, good jobs and high positions in society. After all success and prosperity are very visible rewards that we can achieve by working hard in a meritocratic society. So, we can easily mistake these to be the same rewards we could expect from God in answer to our prayers.

Like Singapore, first Century Corinth was a busy metropolis capitalizing on economic opportunity that the extended peace of the Roman empire brought to the region. Like Singaporean Christians, the Corinthians easily succumbed to the persuasive teachings of false teachers who equated the very tangible evidence of success and power in society to the rewards, blessings and grace God would bestow upon faithful Christians.

J I Packer the current professor of theology at Regent’s College wrote this in his book, Rediscovering Holiness (ref 1), “What do we Christians mainly preach and teach these days? The answer seems to be not holiness but success and positive feelings – getting health, wealth, freedom from care, good sex and happy families. What do we Christians chiefly value in our leaders – our preachers, teachers, pastors, writers, tele-evangelists, top people in parachurch ministries, money-men who bankroll churches and other Christian enterprises and other folk with key roles in our setup? The answer seems not their holiness but their gifts and skills and their resources.

In the extreme cases, we could even succumb to the belief that we should pray hard for material success and wealth for that is a Christian heritage which God has ordained for us. Then, if we do not receive these blessings from God, our faith must be weak or that God may not be happy with us.

In these verses, Paul says No; the way to God’s favour is not by the route of power and success but sometimes, by the route of weakness and suffering. The second pathway will more likely strengthen our character and resolve. “My grace is sufficient for you and my power is make perfect in weakness”. This is a Christian paradox, when we are weak we will go out of ourselves to Jesus and receive from Him an abundant supply of divine strength and grace that will enable us to overcome these weaknesses. Paul was able to boast about his weakness because he has come to understand that Jesus is ready to draw near to him and to help him.

Nelson Mandela whilst imprisoned on Robben Island wrote, in a letter to Winnie Mandela dated Feb 1975, (ref 2) “Incidentally you may find that the cell is an ideal place to learn to know yourself, to search realistically and regularly the process of your own mind and feelings.

In judging our progress as individuals we tend to concentrate on external factors such as one’s social position, influence and popularity, wealth and standard of education. These are, of course, important in measuring one’s success in material matters and it is perfectly understandable if many people exert themselves mainly to achieve all these. But internal factors may be even more crucial in assessing one’s development as a human being. Honesty, sincerity, simplicity, humility, pure generosity, absence of vanity, readiness to serve others – qualities that are within easy reach of every soul – are the foundation of one’s spiritual life.

Development in matters of this nature is inconceivable without serious introspection, without knowing yourself, your weaknesses and mistakes. At least, if for nothing else, the cell give you the opportunity to look daily into your entire conduct, to overcome the bad and develop whatever is good in you.”

Lionel

Ref 1 JI Packer in 'Rediscovering Holiness.' Regal 2009 pp 31
Ref 2 In 'Nelson Mandela – Conversations with Myself.' MacMillan 2010, pp 211, 212

Eleanor - When A Child Is Born

2011-02-23T22:14:00.008+08:00

Eleanor, our first granddaughter was born today at around 7.47 p.m. She is a big baby weighing 4.07 kg at birth and holds the record for birth weights in the Lee Family. I thank God that both mother and child are well. Like the birth of her elder brother James, I waited anxiously throughout the pregnancy for Eleanor’s arrival, all the time not knowing what kind of a grandchild will be given us from God but always trusting in His providence.

Every birth is a miracle. I stare at Eleanor and watch her move, cry and open her eyes, I cannot help but feel so proud as a grandfather. In this child, given of God, is the hope of the future for our family, the Lees and her paternal grand-parents, the Giffords. The song, ‘When A Child Is Born’ sums up this hope and exhilarating feeling so appropriately

A ray of hope flickers in the sky

A tiny star lights up way up high

All across the land, dawns a brand new morn'

This comes to pass when a child is born.

A silent wish sails the seven seas

The winds of change whisper in the trees

And the walls of doubt.. crumble tossed and torn,

This comes to pass when a child is born.

A rosy dawn settles all around

You got to feel you're on solid ground

For a spell or two no one seems forlorn

This come to pass when a child is born.

It's all a dream, and illusion now.

It must come true sometime soon somehow

All across the land dawns a brand new morn

This comes to pass.. when a child is born.

This song celebrates the birth of any child, anywhere in the world but it lends itself to an association with the birth of Jesus Christ. It is this greater miracle of the birth of Jesus which offers hope and joy to the world and from whom, every newborn, like Eleanor, gives the same expectations and brings their individual glimmer of hope.

Every child is God’s gift. Psalms 139:12-14 states, “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well”.

The Catholic Media House made a video, “The Miracle of Life” which shows us how amazing and wonderful the gift of Life is that God has blessed us with.

God is the creator of Life. Every child is special and wonderfully made. Jer 1:5 states, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Before you are born I set you apart...” Psalms 127:3 “Behold, children are a gift of the Lord; the fruit of the womb is a reward”. Eleanor is a blessing from God.

Lionel

Love Changes Everything

2011-01-20T06:47:00.010+08:00

Today, as any first-time tourist to Northern India would, Pat and I made the customary visit to the Taj Mahal. It is the most beautiful building we have ever seen. The Taj Mahal certainly lives up to its name and reputation as the "crown of buildings”. It has a simplistic, symmetrical, white, pristine and feminine beauty which will fix the eye and drop the jaw of any observer. I stood in awe of it and celebrated the artistic imagination and creative inspiration of the human race.

This pure beauty aptly and eternally celebrates what must have been a stunning beauty of a woman, Mumtaz Mahal, to whose memory this mausoleum was built.

Mumtaz Mahal, meaning 'jewel of the palace', was the third wife of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. So enthralling was her beauty that Shah Jahan fell in love with her at first sight at the age of fourteen. They were married five years later and she became his inseparable companion till her death after giving birth to her fourteenth child. It is said that Shah Jahan was so heartbroken that he ordered the court into mourning for two years.

Some time after her death, Shah Jahan undertook the task of erecting the world's most beautiful monument in the memory of his beloved. Construction took 22 years from 1632 to 1653, employing thousands of artisans and craftsmen and in its building, almost bankrupting the coffers of the rich and mighty Mughal Empire. It also cost Shah Jahan his kingdom. When the building was completed, his son confined him to house arrest and usurped his throne in an effort to stop the blatant expenditure and save the economy of the country.

The Taj Mahal stands today as a symbol to love and romance. For Shah Jahan, “Love Changes Everything”

Love, love changes everything:

Hands and faces, earth and sky,

Love, love changes everything:

How you live and how you die.

Love can make the summer fly,

Or a night seem like a lifetime.

Yes, Love, love changes everything:

Now I tremble at your name.

Nothing in the world will ever be the same

(click on title to hear a Michael Ball’s rendition of this song on YouTube).

Jesus Christ expects all Christians to aspire to the highest aspect of love - Agape or unconditional and sacrificial love.

In John 15:12-13 Jesus said “This is my command: Love one another the way I love you. This is the best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friend" (the Message). By these words Jesus shows how far love to another should extend, even to the laying down of our lives for our friends and neighbours; which is the highest instance of love among men.

Lionel

Now Walk With God

2011-01-01T09:00:00.018+08:00

Happy New Year, 2011!

The first thing to do in a new year should be to worship God and dedicate to Him the rest of the year. The rather passive practice of the ‘Quiet Time’, seemed insufficient as a way to herald the dawn of a New Year. Other cultures and more ancient traditional churches would perform some form of worship liturgy or ritual. Today, I acutely felt the absence of ritualistic worship and sacrifices in the practice of my faith.

My family used to be ancestor-worshippers, so the first thing to do on auspicious days such as the new year would be to prepare a makeshift altar table for special worship. When I was barely five years old, I assisted my mother by carrying plates laden with food and fruits to serve and place them before the ornately framed photographs of my grandparents. We would burn incense and joss-sticks and pray to each grandparent in turn, asking for their blessings for the New Year. The practical performance of morning worship at the very start of the year served as a vivid reminder of the social-spiritual hierarchy between man and gods.

I was converted to Christianity in my teenage years. My family followed suit several years later. Naturally, we expunged the ancestor-worship routines from our lives, treating such practices as superstitious drivel. From then on, we were going to express our spirituality more intellectually - following Western church mores and norms. Somehow, in discarding all visible forms of worship and removing them from familial traditions, we had missed a very illustrative manner to express our devotion.

How do we worship? In the Old Testament, the prophet Micah asked a series of rhetorical questions (Micah 6:6-7):

“With what shall I come before the LORD
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings,
Shall I come before Him with yearling calves?
Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?
Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”

For lack of tangible sacrifices and ritualistic offerings, considering these questions helped me to be in the right frame of mind to reaffirm the appropriate relationship between Creator God and lowly servant on New Year's Day.

With some trepidation, we could respectfully ask, “What can I offer you God?”. To which, the real answer is: there is nothing of any value we could give that would be adequate.

No wonder that many early Christians were willing to be martyrs. Even so, offering our very lives would not be fitting. How can we dare to find any proper offering in exchange for the gift of God’s Son, Jesus Christ?

Still, it is alright to approach God with these questions. These unanswerable questions will make us see our unworthiness and place all our achievements and possessions in their proper perspective.

Perhaps the only appropriate response is not in considering what offering to bring or what sacrifices to make. Instead we could ask, “What do you require me to do?” Micah answered with (Micah 6:8):

“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.”

This invitation to walk with God is unbelievably gracious. It would be fitting to make a New Year resolution out of this, namely, to learn to walk humbly with God.

There is an early description of this walk with God in Genesis 3:8: “the sound of the Lord God as He was walking in the garden in the cool of the day”.

The only two persons to have enjoyed such an experience were Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. What a waste! Despite enjoying such blissfulness with God, Adam and Eve, in their greed and pride, chose to disobey God and thus rob us of Eden.

I wonder what will be the nature of this walk with God. My guess is that it will be:

• A physical experience: a walk by the sea or in the woods, in touch with nature and to note the beauty of creation in the cool of the day.

• A prayerful experience: this walk will be contemplative and inspiring; a respectful conversation and fellowship will ensue.

• A practical experience: this walk will involve some form of ministry to others especially to the poor, needy and downtrodden.

Lionel

With All of Our Being - Love God

2010-12-31T20:52:00.014+08:00

Door posts in different parts of the world are ornately decorated according to different cultures and traditions.

The most striking ones are found in Chinese houses. One example is this elaborately carved and painted door which fronts the Hokkien Huay Kwan Association along Jonkers’ Street, Malacca.

The two large warrior figures, Qin and Yuchi are known as 'door gods'. Door gods are supposed to keep evil spirits from entering the premises. This custom originated during the Tang Dynasty (618- 907 AD).

Two Tang generals, Qin Shubao and Yuchi Jingde were ordered by the emperor to guard the door of his bedroom chamber. Apparently, a ghost was harassing the emperor, causing him to have sleepless nights. With Qin and Yuchi on guard, the emperor had a blissful sleep. The next day, the emperor, not wanting to trouble his two generals, ordered their portraits to be hung on either side of the door. Qin Shubao, who is most often seen carrying swords, has very pale skin (often depicted as red), while Yuchi Jingde has much darker skin and wields one or several batons.

To celebrate Christmas, Christian families would hang Christmas wreaths on their doors. This practice dates back to the Lutherans in Germany in the 16th century. In 1839, Johann Hinrich Wichern used a wreath made from a cartwheel to educate children about the meaning and purpose of Christmas, as well as to help them count its approach. For every Sunday of Advent he would put a white candle in the wreath and for every day in between he would use a red candle.The wreath is constructed of evergreens to represent everlasting life brought through Jesus and the circular shape of the wreath represents God himself, with no beginning and no end.

Another traditional door decoration is that of the Jewish ‘mezuzah’. This is a piece of parchment (often contained in a decorative case) inscribed with specified verses comprising the Jewish prayer "Shema Yisrael". The mezuzah is fixed at a 45 degree angle on the doorpost. The practice of hanging the mezuzah originates from the Deuteronomy 6:4-9,

“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates”.

Rather than add another decoration to our front door, it would serve us better to live out exactly what the scriptures have directed, that is, to love God with everything we have; indeed with all of our being. By this, we will be sure to transfer this special and distinctive relationship to our children who in turn will transmit the same value through successive generations. It will become a family inheritance. This is the key to family happiness, security and well being. What other protection will we need?

Let this be your New "2011" Year resolution - to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and all your strength.

Lionel

“I am going to your house for tea” – A Moment Of Importance.

2010-12-24T22:00:00.186+08:00

My Father and My Grandson

Yesterday, the Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Lee Hsien Loong, and Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Teo Chee Hian, visited my father in hospital.

My father, an 84 year old man, has been lying in a single room isolation ward for the last 10 days, suffering from a multidrug-resistant bacterial infection. The VIPs were on a fact-finding visit to the newly-opened Khoo Teck Puat hospital and upon hearing that Dad was in the ward, took a detour to visit with him.

For most of this year, Dad has been wheelchair-bound due to osteoarthritis in both knees making it too painful for him to walk. He also has early senile dementia, along with diabetes, heart disease, bad lungs, thyroid problems and colonic cancer in remission. This accounts for his susceptibility to infections.

Christmas Lunch with Jen and the Boys

Imagine an old man, trapped in bed with an intravenous line inserted into his arm and feeling depressed and very confused when who should walk into his room but the most important person in the country. That very kind gesture made my father's day.

The next day, he was perky and bright, talking about the visit to anyone who would care to hear. My family really appreciated what the PM did - he engaged in small talk with my father despite knowing that he was entering an infection-control isolation ward.

When someone grows old, not only does he suffer physical weaknesses and disabilities but more insiduously he finds that he loses his psycho-social skills. Gradually, he will lose his social status and becomes isolated and shut out from friends and family. This erosion of the sense of well-being is the most disconcerting change that I had observed in Dad in the last few years, affecting both his pride and self-esteem. The rest of the world had moved on and left him behind.

During the days of the making of Singapore, Dad was a political and trade union activist. He was often not at home when I was growing up because he was preoccupied campaigning for workers’ rights and working with the leaders in fighting for the independence of Singapore.

Nowadays, he has been rather forgotten and alone, confined to a wheelchair and beholden to two maids who look after his daily needs. It is sad to see how time and age can strip down a proud man and make him so vulnerable. The Bible in Ecc 2:11 notes this great loss in despairing tones, “Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun”.

The VIP visit was brief. PM asked about his condition and they chatted briefly about old days of the political party. Then PM left. This short encounter did wonders for my father. The PM’s visit left Dad feeling important and happy.

This reminds me of another brief encounter recorded in Luke 19:1-8. Zacchaeus, the tax collector, was a short person. He climbed up a sycamore tree so as to have a glimpse of Jesus as he was passing by.

Here was another man, an insignificant, non-descript entity amongst the crowd. All he wanted was to see above the crowd and watch the proceedings. However, that day was meant to be different for Zacchaeus. On reaching the tree where Zacchaeus was sitting, Jesus noticed him and invited himself to Zacchaeus’ house to spend time with him. That encounter changed Zacchaeus's life.

Sometimes, a brief and everyday gesture of recognition can mean much to a person who is feeling unrecognised, insignificant and sorry for himself. One moment in time can become truly inspirational - a great blessing. Pray that someday, somewhere you can become the giver and bearer of this one shining moment of importance.

Lionel

Upon This Rock....

2010-12-19T16:04:00.015+08:00

On the 29 Nov 2010, our tourist bus meandered slowly through narrow streets lined by three to four storey shop houses. This was Manshiyat Nasir or 'Garbage City', where several thousands of Egyptian Christian families, the Zabaleens, eked out a living by collecting and recycling the refuse of metropolitan Cairo. We could see children playing and families living out their lives amidst garbage piled ceiling high in their homes, spilling out into the streets. We were thankful that the bus windows were all up. Otherwise, none of us could possibly bear with the smell and stench of these streets.

At the turn of the last Century, there was an influx of very poor Christians from Upper Egypt to Cairo. They made a living out of collecting and recycling garbage, a common occupation for many a refugee family in many cities in the world. In 1969, the Egyptian government moved the rubbish collectors to this district under the Mugattam Mountain.

The Egyptian official who made the decision to relocate the poor Christians of Cairo here must have a wry sense of humour. Mugattam Mountain was the site for one of the most celebrated miracle in the history of the Egyptian Coptic Church, known as ‘The Moving of the Mountain’.

According to Coptic traditions, during the reign of the first Fatimid Caliph in the 11th Century a challenge was thrown to the Coptic Church. During a debate between the Islamic, Jewish and Christian religious leaders of the day, the Jews invoked the verse from Mark 11:23, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to the mountain move from here to there, and it will move” and demanded the Coptic Pope, Abraam to demonstrate this. Al-Muizz, the Muslim Caliph then threatened to persecute the Copts if the church failed in this test.

In a dream, Pope Abraam was guided by the Virgin Mary, to seek out a holy man, Simon the shoemaker, who would have the required faith to move this mountain. Recruiting Simon, the Christian congregation and Pope marched to Mugattam Mountain along with the religious leaders of the day. As the congregation prayed, the mountain shook violently as if a strong earthquake had hit the city. Each time the congregation rose from prayer, the mountain was lifted upwards. When they knelt down, the mountain came down with a deafening bang. This happened three times and with each time the rays of sunlight from the other side of the mountain could clearly be seen through the gap.

The Caliph Al Muizz proclaimed, “God is Great!” and turning to Abraam he said, “This is enough to prove your faith is true”. From then on, he allowed the Christians freedom to practice their faith in Egypt. Simon the shoemaker was never seen again after this incident. The Coptic Church survived one of the severest persecution periods in their history.

Relocating the Zabaleen Christians to live out a miserable existence in a stench-hole at the holy site of the Coptic Church, was an affront and insult to Christianity. However, our Lord saw otherwise. In Matt 5:3 Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”. For the poor and destitutes on Mugattam Mountain, Jesus worked a modern day miracle starting from 1974.

After traversing for about 3 miles through garbage lined alleys, none of the Singaporean tourists were ready for the sight as our bus turned the last corner. Before us, stood a large monastery, churches, hospital and social community complex which these garbage collectors had hewn out of the barren rock. On the rock faces on the mountain sides, they had sculptured various illustrative episodes described in the Bible.

To understand the miracle that has taken place at this site and the many everyday miracle testimonies in the lives of these simple Christian folks, please turn to a two part commentary on Youtube, ‘Fr. Samaan and Garbage City (Zabaleen)’. (Double click to view.)

A chance meeting of a Christian brother, Farahat (later Father Samaan) and a garbage collector, Edis Agib in 1974 led to the transformation and miracle. Edis had approached Farahat to teach him to become a Christian. Soon after, Farahat was led to minister to the physical and spiritual needs of the Zabaleen.

Worshipping@St Sammaan Church

One day whilst standing at the barren summit and staring down at the squatters below, Farahat was overwhelmed by a sense of lost and grief at the impossible situation of the people living on the slopes. As he cried out to God for direction, there was a strong gush of wind and pieces of paper were blown upwards from the garbage below. One of these papers that flew towards him was a tattered page from the Bible in Acts 18:9,10 ‘One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.”

After viewing the video, one cannot help but marvel at the transformation and miracle wrought by God using the hands and labour of these destitute and poor people. The Lord saved them out of most pitiful conditions and allowed them to manifest their faith in a most inspiring and uplifting manner

It is a story of the indomitable faith of one man and the garbage collectors. It reminds me of the faith statement by St Peter, to which Jesus responded, “Upon this rock, I'll build my church and the gates of hell will not overcome it”.

I stood there at the mountain top, after visiting two of seven rock churches, staring at the sculptures on hill side and the garbage city below. I realised then what Jesus had meant with his declaration, “Upon this rock, I’ll build my church”.

Lionel

Climb Up Higher

2010-12-04T08:00:00.101+08:00

The tour-pilgrimage group reached St Catherine's Monastery having journeyed by bus via a tunnel under the Suez Canal and through the Sinai Desert for about 7 hours.

At this spot at the foot of Mount Sinai, Moses encountered God in the burning bush, where he received the commission to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. On a second occasion, at the top of the mountain, Moses received the Ten Commandments.

A much smaller group, 5 out of 37 of us, decided to brave the biting cold and make the 3 hours climb up to the summit, 2285 metres high. They wished to see the sunrise at the mountain peak. More importantly, in making the climb they hope in the stillness of the dawn to very personally find God at a most sacred place. The rest of us lesser mortals settled in our beds to rise up early to worship at the foot of the mountain.

The Bible passage in Exodus 24 describes a similar group of pilgrims; the Israelites arriving at this same location after several days of walking through the Sinai desert. Here, the Lord God called Moses and the Israelites into a covenantal relationship with Him. Just like us, at the invitation to climb higher up the Sinai, the congregation separated out; this time into 3 groups. Bishop Robert Solomon expounding from the passage described this as 3 levels of intimacy, the general congregation at the foot of the mountain, the seventy elders at mid-level and Moses alone at the mountain top.

At the foot of Sinai, the general congregation experienced their first introduction into a relationship with God :

Exodus 24:4 'Moses then wrote down everything the Lord had said. He got up early the next morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain and set up twelve stone pillars representing the twelve tribes of Israel'

Sacrifices were made and blood was shed. This reminds us of baptism, which hinges on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross and His blood shed as atonement for our sins.

The second level is represented by the elders who went with Moses halfway up the mountain. It was recorded that they ate and drank at the feet of God:

Exodus 24:9-11 'Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel went up and saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was something like a pavement made of sapphire, clear as the sky itself. But God did not raise his hand against these leaders of the Israelites; they saw God, and they ate and drank'.

The scene depicted the communal relationship of God's people, among themselves and with God. In the church we express this in the Holy Communion.

Then, Moses was invited alone into a deeper relationship with God; he was called to come up to God.

Exodus 24:12 'The Lord said to Moses, "Come up to me on the mountain and stay here, and I will give you the tablets of stone, with the law and commands I have written for their instruction'.

There was a cloud covering the mountain, which appeared to be on fire. In a spiritually charged atmosphere, Moses worshipped God alone.

Pilgrims from Singapore by the walls
of St Catherine Monastery

On that cold morning on 4 Dec 2010, every one of the 37 pilgrims who came from Singapore to Mount Sinai wanted to feel very close to God.

The five that went up the mountain will no doubt always remember the physical feat that led to a very special spiritual experience. At the summit, they worshipped and sang 'How Great Thou Art'. The rest of us worshipped by the walls of the Monastery of St Catherine, at the foot of the mountain. We sang 'To God Be The Glory'.

Here, on this historical site, God revealed himself so dramatically in ages past. This is holy ground. We were glad that we came. During our worship, a special communion transpired between our human spirits and the Holy Spirit. We knew that wherever we are and whatever level we are at, God will still beckon us to 'Come Up Higher'.

Lionel

So Great A Cloud Of Witnesses

2010-12-02T20:00:00.003+08:00

We visited the ancient Monastery of St Anthony today. It is sequestrated in the parched Egyptian desert at the foot of mountains, by the western banks of the Red Sea. Here, about 112 Coptic monks live and work, dedicated to a secluded life seeking after a special communion with God and a community of like-minded brethren.

This monastery was founded in 356 AD and is reputed to be the oldest monastery in the world. St Anthony, whom many claim to have founded the monastic movement, lived as a hermit in a cave on the slope of the mountain behind the monastery. What drove him and many others down through the ages to forsake the world and live in solitude and seclusion?

Even today, there are such men living in caves in the desert. Many gave up their worldly possessions to live in this manner. St Anthony surrendered his family properties to live an ascetic life for nearly ninety years. He received his calling when he overheard the scriptures read from Matthew 19:21, 'If you want to be perfect, go sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come follow me'.

We may consider such men to be eccentric, deranged and paranoid, battling personal demons that infest their souls.

In their desire to be completely pure and holy in God's presence, men like St Anthony speak of having to deal with such demons both within and without that would tempt them away from the holiness they seek. These struggles were probably very dramatic, even frightening. Some even describe near-death experiences. Eventually, many succeed to subdue these 'spirits' and establish an inspirational spirituality that few can ever hope to achieve.

Some may think that such desert fathers are just simply obsessed with evil, sin and guilt. In actual fact, they focussed on imitating Christ by following a life of self sacrifice that will embody their dependence on God for their ultimate personal worth and salvation. (Ref 1) Accordingly, the desert provides the opportunity to shake off all kinds of earthly encumbrances and limitations in order to stand unfettered in the very presence of God.

Realising this need for focus explains the sanity of their sacrifice. The experience of the physical desert makes giving up material things easier.

In contrast, in the material world of Singapore, following Jesus' advice to give all and follow Him, can be extremely difficult if not impossible. Many of us will suffer missed opportunities just like the Bible's rich young ruler.

We are all the poorer for this; we clutch at our possessions, unable to release their stranglehold on us. As a result, we may never taste the pure and holy spiritual moments with God. Who, then, is more insane, we or the desert fathers?

Nevertheless, trapped as we are, we should still define the spiritual space of our own desert and cultivate an attitude of detachment from material things, of being charitable to the poor and ministering to the needy. We should also find time and space for much contemplation and worship. The words of hymn goes,

'Behold us, Lord, a little space from daily tasks set free,
and met within thy holy place to rest awhile with thee.
Around us rolls the ceaseless tide of business, toil, and care;
and scarcely can we turn aside for one brief hour of prayer'.

Lionel

Ref 1 The relevance of the 'Life of Anthony' today written by a solitary monk living on St Anthony's Mountain, Mt Colzim, Egypt. In St Anthony, His Life and Sayings, Monastery of St Anthony, 2010 pp 173.

Love Is A Many Splendoured Thing

2010-11-07T22:03:00.048+08:00

When Christians speak of love, we often attempt to define it with theological jargon, reducing it to a intellectual concept. We quote from the C.S. Lewis book “The Four Loves”, namely:

• Affection (storge,). A fondness through familiarity, especially between family members or people who have found themselves in a relationship.

• Friendship (phileo). A strong bond existing between people who share common interest or activity.

• Attraction (eros). Romantic love in the sense of 'being in love'.

• Charity (agape) - Unconditional love that brings forth caring regardless of circumstance.

When we describe love so theorectically, it becomes cold and expressionless. Instead, when we are able to experience love, it becomes a wonderful and overflowing virtue.

Therefore, I prefer to describe love by the title of a romantic novel by Han Suyin - “Love Is A Many Spendoured thing”. The lyrics of the theme song of 1955 movie based on the novel explain:

Love is a many-splendored thing,

It's the April rose that only grows in the early spring,

Love is nature's way of giving a reason to be living,

The golden crown that makes a man a king.

Once on a high and windy hill,

In the morning mist two lovers kissed and the world stood still,

Then your fingers touched my silent heart and taught it how to sing,

Yes, true love's a many-splendored thing.

Indeed, love is a many splendoured thing - a quintessential and fulfilling human emotion and experience.

To help us appreciate this kind of love, the Bible teaches us to love sincerely and absolutely, that is, to “Love from the center of who you are; don't fake it” (Romans 12:9 The Message version).

The 17th Century French Bishop Francois Fénelon [1] wrote

“I live on love. Love does everything within me. It is only out of love that I was created. And it is only inasmuch as I love, that I do what God intended to do by creating me”.

Fénelon knew that to be loved and to love is the deepest yearning of the human spirit. He also knew that love must be everything to a person, so to enable the giving and receiving of love unconditionally.

We all want to receive love and have somebody love us. However, God has also given us the grace and ability to give love. He loves us so that by His example, we can also love another.

The giving and receiving of love is at the centre of every Christian inter-relationship. It does not matter what kind of love, romantic, filial or agape; just love sincerely, absolutely and unconditionally and we will be living out God’s will and intention for us.

Jesus said, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. As I have loved you, you should also love one another” (John 13:34).

Lionel
[1] R J Edmonson and R M Helms The Complete Fenelon Paraclete Press, 2008. pp 238-240

Walk A Mile In My Shoes

2010-11-05T04:35:00.010+08:00

Rustic Bridge

The Facebook boasts of more than 300 million active users linking people to virtual communities. Today, the word "Virtual" aptly describes modern interactions between people because despite the Internet connectivity people still find themselves isolated, lonely and misunderstood.

The computer has replaced face-to-face encounters, telephone conversations and letter writing. The endearing and emotional expressions of human communication skills have been lost, replaced by terse and short sentences over email and Twitter. So much misunderstanding can arise because we do not spend enough time in meaningful, bridge-building conversations.

In 1969, Joe South wrote a song entitled ‘Walk A Mile In My Shoes’. It is a song concerning intolerance and bigotry. The singer cries out for understanding, tolerance and compassion. (Click on the title to hear Elvis Presley’s rendition).

If I could be you, if you could be me for just one hour

If we could find a way to get inside each other's mind

If you could see you through my eyes instead your own ego

I believe you'd be surprised to see that you've been blind, Mmm

Walk a mile in my shoes, just walk a mile in my shoes

Before you abuse, criticize and accuse

Then walk a mile in my shoes

Now if we spend the day throwin' stones at one another

'Cause I don't think or wear my hair the same way you do

Well, I may be common people but I'm your brother

And when you strike out you're tryin' to hurt me it's hurtin' you, Lord have mercy

Now the whole world you see around you is just a reflection

And the law of common say you’re gonna reap just what you sow

So unless you’ve lived a life of total perfection

You better be careful of every stone that you should throw, yeh-heh

Now there are people on reservations and out in the ghetto

And brother there, but, for the grace of God, go you and I,

If I only had wings of a little angel don't you know, I'd fly

To the top of a mountain and then I'd cry, cry, cry

Let us not wait on each other to bridge the gaps. Instead, let us reach out and take the first step to settle any misunderstanding, misperception and quarrel. It is during the act of trying to understand others that we reveal ourselves and enable a reciprocal reaction. This requires time, patience and face-to-face encounters that are not restrained by an impersonal medium or interface.

When the Bible in Prov 4:7b states “though it cost all you have, get understanding”, it speaks not of understanding with the mind, but the active application of the heart.

Understanding things, principles and concepts is very different from trying to understand people. Understanding people is possible only at a very personal, emotive level. This is costly; we pay not only with our time, effort and money, but also with our privacy, pride and ego.

The more deeply we understand other people, the more appreciative and reverent we will feel about them. One heart declares itself to another heart, differences are diminished and what is common becomes the bridge over which understanding can cross.

When one reaches out to touch the heart of a stranger - this will be a most holy and spiritual act.

Lionel

“Hear Only the Good Stuff” – the dangers of Glitz and Gismo Christianity

2010-10-31T17:31:00.059+08:00

Some years back, a Singapore radio station Gold90FM, ran a series of clever ads on TV with the tagline “Hear only the Good Stuff” (Click to view ad). It depicts a tennis coach commenting to a father how talented his son is at tennis, when the boy is missing every single ball or more correctly, the father only wants to hear the good stuff about his son. It was a clever ruse indeed for persuading listeners to switch to the radio station - Gold90FM will only give to its listeners what they want to hear.

Recently, the Singapore Straits Times ran a centerpiece spread on mega-churches, indicating how these churches are very successful in attracting huge crowds each Sunday by using the latest entertainment and media techniques to communicate their message. Each worship service is filled with young people clapping and making music with songs of praises, often reaching ecstatic emotional levels during worship. The sermons are delivered with the skills of very polished motivational speakers, moving about on stage not unlike entertainers on TV.

There is a very good reason for turning to glitz and gismos during worship services. We live in the era of one minute commercials and 30-second sound bytes. Children grow up surrounded by every communication device delivering connections at breakneck speeds. The conventional wisdom seems to be that if one wants to get a message across, it had better be entertaining enough to attract attention and capture imagination. It is not surprising that churches have turned to these techniques. But aren't we, like Gold90FM, guilty of pandering to the audience when our responsibility should be to communicate the truth however unpleasant?

Today, our young Pastor Andy Goh bravely spoke from Micah Chapter 3, warning us that the temptation to pander to the wants but not the needs of society and congregation is not new. In Micah’s days, the Lord condemned the spiritual leaders and prophets for hypocritically feeding the people a diet of distorted messages to please the congregation and for their own profit.

"As for the prophets

who lead my people astray,

if one feeds them,

they proclaim 'peace';

if he does not,

they prepare to wage war against him.

Therefore night will come over you, without visions,

and darkness, without divination.

The sun will set for the prophets,

and the day will go dark for them.

The seers will be ashamed

and the diviners disgraced.

They will all cover their faces

because there is no answer from God."

Preachers and spiritual leaders should heed because:

the medium of communication these days may distract and detract from the truth
the church's agenda may not necessarily be God's agenda
what the congregation wants to hear is not necessarily God's message for them

“Her leaders judge for a bribe,

her priests teach for a price,

and her prophets tell fortunes for money.

Yet they lean upon the LORD and say,

"Is not the LORD among us?

No disaster will come upon us." Micah 3:12

Like the prophets, every church has a responsibility to communicate the undistorted truth. We must not preach selectively but the whole word and counsel of God as found in the Holy Bible. If we fail to do so we cannot presume God's continual blessings.

Lionel

A Light in the Attic

2010-10-10T06:28:00.009+08:00

Lighthouse@Kiama

Malcolm Muggeridge, an English author and satirist, was once asked the question, "What do you most want to do with the rest of your life?" He replied, “I should like my light to shine, even if only very fitfully, like a match struck in a dark, cavernous night and then flickering out.”

When our children were young, they liked to read poems by Shel Silverstein. One of these poems caught my attention

"There’s a light on in the attic

Though the house is dark and shuttered,

I can see a flickerin’ flutter,

And I know what it’s about.

There’s a light on in the attic.

I can see it from the outside,

And I know you’re on the inside . . . lookin’ out."

Uncannily, Muggeridge’s comment on the twilight years of life could well have been a commentary of a poem meant for children.

As we grow older we become increasingly isolated and shut in, like living in dark and shuttered houses. In this final lap, many people hope to have the same aspiration as Muggeridge. If our lives in the past had not been good examples, we hope that however flickering and for whatever time remaining, the light we now have would shine forth.

Light may be vision. Light may be virtue. Light may be wisdom. Light may be comprehension and light may be truth. Light may be a beacon.

Light must be seen. Why? Because the light we have is the light of Jesus. That light has a force-multiplier effect. It can reach out beyond our wildest expectations. Ephesians 5:8-10 “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases God."

St Francis of Assisi, kneeling at a crucifix towards the end stages of his life, prayed, “All highest, glorious God, cast your light into the darkness of my heart. Give me right faith, firm hope, perfect charity and profound humility, with wisdom and perception, O Lord, so that I may do what is truly your holy will. Amen”

Lionel

Nurturing The Next

2010-09-12T15:08:00.007+08:00

Children at Malbork Castle Poland

Who will tell the next generation? This was the theme of the sermon preached by Mrs Percy Loh1 today. She reminded our congregation of parental and community duty that the children receive Christian values through our examples, testimonies and teachings.

Every community feels a responsibility to impart the legacy, stories and teachings to its younger generation. I saw a group of Polish children visiting the Malbork Castle in Poland led by teachers and parents. During the excursion, these children hear the stories of medieval Polish knights; their deeds of chivalry and honour. These are the treasured lessons of past generations; the inheritance of these young children.

Despite our short history, Singapore is no exception. Recently we staged the very first Youth Olympics. Our Deputy Prime Minister, Mr. Teo Chee Hean said, “Through YOG, we hope to change the way in which we engage and view the youth. Instead of telling young people what they can or cannot do, we hope to create an environment where they receive support and are nurtured to realize their potential.”

What about the small Christian community at Charis Methodist Church? Percy shared from Psalms 78:3-4,

“…..what we have heard and known,

what our fathers have told us,

we will not hide from our children;

we will tell the next generation

the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord,

his power and the wonders he has done.”

Furthermore, she shared a video entitled “You are losing us…” ( Please take time to view the video by double clicking at the title). It is a sobering reminder of our responsibilities as adult members of the church community to win the hearts of our children and youths.

At the National Day Thanksgiving Service, Bishop Dr Robert Solomon said, “There is a fear that we are losing our young – to values and lifestyles foreign to us. They live in a new world, both exciting and dangerous. Our young Singaporeans need guidance and We must pass on our faith to the next generation.”

Can we make a difference?

Lionel

Acknowledgement to Mrs Percy Loh for use her sermon “Who will tell the next generation?”

A Silence That Speaks

2010-08-13T18:07:00.018+08:00

Vercors Silence

Today we visited Helsinki, the second port of call of a Cruise on the Baltic Sea. Finland boasts a great composer in Sibelius who composed the well loved anthem, Finlandia. The tour guide told me that although Mr Sibelius travelled the world, most of his compositions were inspired and written in Finland. He had a famous quotation “In Finland there is a silence that speaks”. By this, he meant that he found the peace and quiet of his country especially inspiring.

Sibelius Memorial Helsinki

A silence that speaks - this phrase resonated with my soul when I first heard this as I viewed the countryside around Helsinki. In case you have not noticed, I have not been able to post in Contemplation for many months. It seems that the quiet whispers of God speaking to my soul and spirit have gone. If it had been present, as it surely must have been, it was simply ignored and shut out. Days turned to weeks and weeks to months, still there was no inspiration. I simply did not enjoy any contemplative moment. I was too hurried. I need to shut out the noise of a busy life, keep still, enjoy the silence and hear God’s inspiration.

Pastor Lay Suan shared, "Stillness is always a prerequisite for receptivity. Telephones and television sets cannot receive messages when they are too filled with static and noise. Stillness first then later, listening. The order cannot be reversed. "Be still, and know that I am God," quotes the psalmist”. She shared from Psalms 131:

“O Lord, my heart is not lifted up,

my eyes are not raised too high ….

But I have calmed and quieted my soul,

like a weaned child with its mother;

my soul is like the weaned child that is with me.”

Kent Nerburn spoke of being in Saskatchewan once. The wind there was extremely strong and loud to him, a newcomer to the area. But the people in that part of Canada were so used to this wind that they hardly noticed its presence. So too is the voice of God. It is always present but we fail to give it the correct attention because life itself, like the Saskatchewan wind, sound-surrounds and shuts out God’s voice.

Too often we are deaf to God’s voice. We are busy with our daily obligations and too occupied with our daily activities. If we are to listen above the noise, we have to calm and quiet our soul like a weaned child, a child no longer hooked on the distractions of the busy life.

But God’s voice like the wind does not stop, it just drops down to a whisper. Does this happen ever so often in your life? Our own self importance, our self directedness stifles the God given instinct for communication and communion. When we learn to wean off the voices of the world, then perhaps we can start to listen to the voice of God.

There is a mountain in the middle of France near the town of Grenoble on which a monastery was founded by St Bruno. It is called the Grand Chartreuse. For nine centuries, contemplative Catholic monks and nuns of the Carthusian Order, have been faithful to the vocation of solitude. There in the stillness of the surrounding countryside, the brothers pray and live their lives in silence not speaking to each other except for a few days in a year. Yet, the testimonies of the monks speak of knowing God, the world, society and humankind in depth and truthfulness. Was it not, Mahatma Gandhi who said “It is better in prayer to have a heart without words than words without heart?” The Carthusian monks knew this secret centuries ago.

Lionel

Listen, do you want to hear God?

2010-04-11T06:54:00.005+08:00

Ah Kong and James

The Hebrew word for the Bible is “Miqra”. This is rooted to the verb “qara” which means “to call”. The Bible is not just a repository of spiritual information, not just a book to carry around, but also a voice to listen to. We should read the Bible in the anticipation of listening to the voice of God which we should obey and so live our lives.

At no time am I more aware of the dynamics of listening and obeying than in watching my grandson, James, grow up. Today we are on our way to Australia’s Mornington Peninsula near Melbourne. I watch James at breakfast. I observe the interplay between the child and his mother. Mother gives, sometimes shouts, instructions. James hears, listens, and obeys. Most times, James respond to his mother’s call in faith. He understands that his mum means well for him and he sees no reason not to respond positively to her instructions.

However, at two years old, James is starting to have a mind of his own. So, there are times when he wants to exert his will and takes on a personal response which may not always bring him in alignment with his Mum. James is also exposed to the extended family. He listens to the voices of his father, grandparents and beyond us to other adult voices. Our voices are shaping him, molding his character and conscience; these are the healthy dynamics of growing a child.

The Bishop Robert Solomon in his new book 'The Conscience' stated “The conscience is like a divine spark in human beings, but it has been dulled and neglected and require the Logos (Word) in the revelation of the Scriptures and Christ to be revived and renewed.” Coming from Christian roots, we hope by example and gentle persuasion to help James define, a godly conscience with good attitudes and virtues.

All Christians are called of God as advised by St Paul “to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called.” (Eph 4:1). The word, “worthy” is translated from the Greek word, “axios.” Axios pictures a balancing scale. The items which Paul asked to be in balance, are God’s calling and personal direction. This will be expected of my grandson as of all of us, to keep our walk and God’s call in equilibrium.

Lionel

Ref: Solomon, Robert M, The Conscience - Rediscovering the Inner Compass Singapore Genesis Books 2010

Where There Is Injury, Let Me Sow Pardon

2010-02-09T06:27:00.018+08:00

Invictus Movie Poster
Uploaded by LeeFamily

Our Bible discussion group was sharing a chapter from Kent Nerburn’s book, “Make Me An Instrument Of Your Peace.“ Low Li Eng commented that in asking to sow pardon where there is injury, St Francis was dealing not with the principle but with the pain.

This was the brilliant inspiration that Nelson Mandela had when as the first black President of South Africa he established the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission. South Africa was a brutally repressive state where a minority of four million whites ruled a majority population of over 20 million nonwhites in a segregationist, racist apartheid regime. There was widespread discrimination, racially motivated murders and beatings. It was severely unbearable. Soon it became clear that such a repressive regime could not sustain itself. The white apartheid government had to turn over the country to the black majority. When that happened, many speculated that an unprecedented bloodbath of vengeance and retribution would ensue. Just elected president, Mandela was more than aware that his nation was a hotbed for revenge-seeking racism following the abandonment of apartheid. It was a earth-shaking challenge.

No bloodbath ensued. Instead, South Africa managed a remarkable and relatively peaceful transition to democracy and majority rule. With Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Desmond Tutu, Nelson Mandela organised the Commission in 1995 to help South Africa work through the scars of an entire country and people. Its goal was to provide, on a national scale, an effective and productive way to allow blacks who had been mistreated or subjected to violence to seek justice without revenge. In an unprecedented gesture of national forgiveness, the Commission would also allow perpetrators of racially motivated crimes to seek amnesty from the government in return for testimony.

The commission was not vengeful or retaliatory. By giving those accused of racially motivated crimes opportunities to apply for amnesty, the South African government showed that being reasonable and forgiving to a degree could be beneficial. Revenge will simply perpetuate the hate and undermine any real chance for peace and advancement. South Africa has pioneered an approach that exemplified the Franciscan and Christian invocation, “Where there is injury, sow pardon.”

The prayer does not ask where there is injustice sow pardon. Many who were maligned, offended or betrayed would ask for justice. After retribution, perhaps they could generously offer pardon. Instead St Francis knew that there is something even more painful than injustice and that injury needs healing. There is something else - the prayer does not ask, give or offer pardon; St Francis asked us to “sow pardon.” Kent Nerburn wrote, “Sowing does not imply that something is fully grown, only that the seeds of possibility have been planted.”

This act of sowing pardon was well illustrated in the movie “Invictus” which was released in Dec 2009. (Click on the title to watch a trailer of the film.) “Invictus” is the amazing true story of how Nelson Mandela (played by Morgan Freeman) joined up with the captain of South Africa's rugby team, Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon) in an effort to use the game to unite their country. Mandela loves rugby but the South African rugby team, the Springboks, was one of the worst national teams. Because of apartheid many nations had boycotted playing with the Springboks. Furthermore, the nation's majority blacks favoured soccer, not rugby and Springboks was viewed contemptuously by the blacks as a remnant of the hated apartheid. Over fierce resistance, the rebuilding of the team with both blacks and whites players began, with a distinct eye toward the World Cup final. They won the finals that year and Mandela's mixed Springboks team came to terms with South Africa as a fully integrated state. There was sowing and there was healing.

Lionel

And Tigers Come At Night

2010-02-03T06:44:00.011+08:00

Yunnan Stone Forest "Tiger"
Uploaded by LeeFamily

Fantine in the musical “Les Miserables” sang a song of unrequited love, “I dreamed a dream.” She was waiting to die of tuberculosis. She had great dreams of a romantic relationship. But her once growing love was a disappointment. A destitute amongst the poor she struggled with life, her dream was shattered.

The song has a haunting melody; particularly the chorus (bridge)
“But the tigers come at night
With their voices soft as thunder
As they tear your hope apart
And they turn your dream to shame.”

Currently I am the chairperson of the Dover Park Hospice and this refrain comes to mind as I pondered over the plight of our hospice patients. Some have dreams in life yet to be realised. Others, having achieved their dreams and aspirations had hoped to remain in their happy status quo. But end stage diseases afflicted them. The tigers had come at night and shattered remaining hopes, aspirations and dreams.

One particular character in the Bible stands out as a person whose once prosperous life suddenly and tragically turned to depths of despair, Job. Like the tigers that come at night, despair and misfortune can hit us insidiously, unexpectedly just as it did Job. What do we do? Do we discard our faith and blame God for the unfairness of it all? In vain attempts to advise and console him, Job’s friends and wife tried to pin the misfortunes on some unconfessed sin; something dark and sinister must have been present in Job’s life to have brought on him these calamities. His wife in hopelessness suggested to Job to ‘curse God and die.’ But Job replied "You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?" (Job2:10).

Job kept his faith. It was hard to do so. The book of Job is a discourse between hope and despair, a struggle to find the meaning and reasons behind the misfortunes. At one point, in Job 6:11, he lamented "What strength do I have, that I should still hope? What prospects, that I should be patient?” He vacillated from "At least there is hope for a tree, if it is cut down, it will sprout again and its new shoots will not fail” to “He tears me down on every side till I am gone; he uproots my hope like a tree.”

It is not easy facing the ‘tigers’ and one should not wish for them to come haunting. If and when they do, beware because despair can really break a person. As St. Francis of Assisi once prayed, where there is despair can we sow hope?

At such times, hope in God. In Psalms 42 the Psalmist wrote,
“As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O God.
Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him,
By day the LORD directs his love,
at night his song is with me.”

Lionel

(click on title to you-tube song)

Look On Nature

2009-07-27T19:55:00.011+08:00

Tintern Abbey
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

Bishop Robert Solomon opined that one of the spiritual disciplines is to train the soul by immersing oneself in nature like taking quiet walks in picturesque countrysides.

We had a family holiday in Wales once, Pat, Debbie, John and I in Oct 2004. I insisted on making a detour to visit the ruins of Tintern Abbey. I needed to see the hills that rise up from the valley of the River Wye. This was the nature scene that captivated the poet William Wordsworth when he wrote the poetic essay ‘Tintern Abbey.’ I studied the poem in school, when I was 15 year old and was so inspired that I had an urge to stand, in awe of the natural surroundings, viewed from the ruins of Tintern Abbey.

Since reading ‘Tintern Abbey,’ I have learned to view nature enrapt by worshipful thoughts and attitudes. Wordsworth wrote:

“For I have learned
To look on nature, not as in the hour
Of thoughtless youth; but hearing oftentimes
The still, sad music of humanity,
Nor harsh nor grating, though of ample power
To chasten and subdue. And I have felt
A presence that disturbs me with the joy
Of elevated thoughts; a sense sublime
Of something far more deeply interfused,
Whose dwelling is the light of setting suns,
And the round ocean and the living air,
And the blue sky, and in the mind of man;
A motion and a spirit, that impels
All thinking things, all objects of all thought,
And rolls through all things. Therefore am I still
A lover of the meadows and the woods,
And mountains; and of all that we behold.”

The Bishop and I knew the secret, God is present in nature. We should go out of our way to find those sublime moments that tinge our hearts and reach our souls. When surrounded by the simple beauty of the woods or the splendid panoramas of the Grand Canyon we will sense the subtle presence of God. It is a sweet and gentle presence. We come out of that experience matured, elevated, chastened and subdued.

When nature confronts us, we also sense the infinite gap between man and God; just how small we are and how infinitely great God is. Like the Psalmist who contemplated the cosmos, we are left to wonder just why God would even consider us. Psalms 8:3-4 ‘When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that thou visitest him?’ Yes, nature brings the realisation of both the presence and the distance of God.

“All things bright and beautiful; all creatures great and small, all things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all!” How great is our God!

Lionel

Find Us Faithful

2009-07-08T07:29:00.009+08:00

Pa & Ma
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

On the 28 Jun 2009, Pat and her siblings, the Goh (Kao) family celebrated the lives of their late parents the Rev and Mrs James Kao by remembering the 20th anniversary of their deaths. Both had died of cancer within 6 months of each other in 1989.

Coming together in family worship, we reminisced about Pa and Ma; what we knew of them. Rev Kao was a Methodist Pastor for 40 years. In his career he was the pastor to many churches ranging from small village congregations in Malaysia to large urban churches in Singapore. He was known as a church builder, having raised funds and organised the development for at least 7 churches in Singapore, Malaysia and China. Mrs Kao was ever the dutiful pastor’s wife who cared for 7 children and ever the present companion at his side.

We talked of how both were so committed to the Lord and faithful in ministry. It was not easy to be a minister of the Gospel in the 1940s. My father and mum in law were sent to village churches that could ill afford the minister’s salary, much less feed seven children. Ma would relate how these churches pay Rev Kao in kind, mostly by giving them “kampong” chickens. But they soldier on, faithfully serving God. They were both prayer warriors, noted for spending the early morning and late night hours on their knees, praying. We recalled the many miracles surrounding them wherein God answered their prayers in the difficult circumstances of their lives and ministries.

Considering their testimonies, struggles and service, the advice by St Paul to young Timothy comes to mind 1 Tim 6:6-8 ‘A devout life does bring wealth, but it's the rich simplicity of being yourself before God. Since we entered the world penniless and will leave it penniless, if we have bread on the table and shoes on our feet, that's enough’.

They are fortunate, my in-laws. They found their calling early in life and lived lives of service, godliness and contentment. Ravi Zacharias states “We often find out too late in life that attaining a pursuit and finding fulfillment are not necessarily the same thing. It is surely possible to find meaning without extraordinary success. Many people do. But conversely immense success does not always bring meaning and fulfillment. Sometimes it takes a lifetime to recognise God’s calling.”

Richard of Chichester prayed.
‘may I know you more clearly,
love you more dearly,
follow you more nearly,
day by day.’

St Paul’s advice to Timothy in 1 Tim 6:11-12 ‘But you, Timothy, man of God: Run for your life from all this (that is the pursuit of wealth and worldliness). Pursue a righteous life—a life of wonder, faith, love, steadiness, courtesy. Run hard and fast in the faith. Seize the eternal life, the life you were called to, the life you so fervently embraced in the presence of so many witnesses.’

What should occupy our lives? Do we pursue wealth, happiness, popularity, acceptance? My guess is that the pursuit of godliness is the best path to follow. It was the path chosen by the Rev and Mrs James Kao. I hope that my life will be lived such that long after I am dead and gone, my children and grandchildren would one day sit in conversation and sift through our lives, Pat and I. My prayer is that they would have found that we’ve have kept our Christian faith and have made a difference for them and others. May they find us faithful.

“After all our hopes and dreams have come and gone
And our children sift through all we've left behind
May the clues that they discover and the memories they uncover
Become the light that leads them to the road we each must find

Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful
May the fire of our devotion light their way
May the footprints that we leave
Lead them to believe
And the lives we live inspire them to obey
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful”
Lionel

Ref Ravi Zaccharias, “The Grand Weaver” Zondervan 2007

Take Me Deeper

2009-07-06T05:53:00.010+08:00

Tree: Sturdy,Stable
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

Calvin Miller in the introduction to his book ‘Into The Depths of God’ told of a family visit made to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Calvin and wife snorkeled in the shallow waters whilst their son scuba-dived. The insightful Mr Miller later wrote, “Ask me if I’ve been there, and I will hastily answer yes. So will my son. However, the truth is that the content of our experience was vastly different. We will both spent the rest of our lives talking about that experience and our enthusiasm will always be exuberant. But only our son really knows the Reef; only he understood the issue of depth.”

We live our lives in the shallows. This is the era where communication by terse SMS and information exchange by 30 sec sound bites are preferred. We are ever so busy moving from one place to another, skipping from one assignment to the next; reading and sending emails. We scarcely have time for each other, to talk and make conversation. Time is short, precious and not to be wasted.

It becomes serious when we apply the same hurry and superficiality to the nurturing of our spiritual selves; our souls. Spiritual depth needs time, contemplation and discipline. It had better be; we are touching the lives of others. Our testimony and witness shape the lives of our friends. We cannot be play-acting, dwelling on the peripherals and hope to get away with it. To be authentic we must go deep; into the very depths of our souls.

Think of a huge tree with spreading branches giving shade. We know instinctively that the roots of this tree must be equally gigantic growing deep into the earth; giving it stability to weather any storm. The Bible described a soulful man in Psalm 1. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither.

To get deep, we need a teacher to make the dive with us, the Holy Spirit. 1 Cor 2:10-13 states ‘The Spirit, not content to flit around on the surface, dives into the depths of God, and brings out what God planned all along. Who ever knows what you're thinking and planning except you yourself? The same with God; except that he not only knows what he's thinking, he lets us in on it. God offers a full report on the gifts of life and salvation that he is giving us. We don't have to rely on the world's guesses and opinions. We didn't learn this by reading books or going to school; we learned it from God, who taught us person-to-person through Jesus, and we're passing it on to you in the same firsthand, personal way’. (The Message)

Similarly John Wesley urged his followers to make the dive, going deep into nurturing their spiritual lives, not settling for anything less until one attains the Wesleyan concept of Christian perfection. He explained the goal. ‘We mean one in whom is 'the mind which was in Christ,' and who so walks as Christ also walked; a man 'that has clean hands and a pure heart,' or that is 'cleansed from all filthiness of flesh and spirit;' one in whom is 'no occasion of stumbling,' and who, accordingly, 'does not commit sin. 'This man can now testify to all mankind, 'I am crucified with Christ: Nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me.' He is 'holy as God who called' him 'is holy,' both in heart and 'in all manner of conversation.' He 'loves the Lord his God with all his heart,' and serves him 'with all his strength.' He 'loves his neighbour,' every man, 'as himself;' yes, 'as Christ loved us’.

Bishop Robert Solomon in his book, The Race, called for discipline to train the soul and thereby achieve spiritual fitness. St Paul also urged the training of the soul in 1 Cor 9:24-27, ‘You've all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You're after one that's gold eternally. I don't know about you, but I'm running hard for the finish line. I'm giving it everything I've got. No sloppy living for me! I'm staying alert and in top condition. I'm not going to get caught napping, telling everyone else all about it and then missing out myself.’

There is a purpose, Wesley taught in the attainment of Spiritual Fitness/Perfection:
Do all the good you can,
to all the people you can,
at all the times you can,
in all the ways you can,
by all the means you can,
as long as ever you can.

Take me deeper O Lord!

Lionel

Refs: Calvin Miller, 'Into the Deoths of God" Bethany House, 2000

Robert M Solomon. ''The Race - Finding the Real Journey in Life' Genesis Books, 2008

Too Much Sanity Is Madness

2009-06-26T07:03:00.007+08:00

La Mancha
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

In an article in the Singapore Straits Times, prominent neurologist Dr Lee Wei Ling wrote about her attempts to climb Ben Nevis in Scotland in bad weather. After accomplishing the feat, drenched hours later and herself searching for an answer as to why she did the climb, she wrote if asked, her answer would be, “For some people, it takes a streak of insanity to make life worth living.”

Reading this article, I am reminded of the Broadway musical ‘The Man of La Mancha’, relating the story of Don Quixote by Miguel Cervantes. The tag line in this musical is “Too much sanity is madness and the maddest thing of all is to view life as it is and not as it should be”

Think about these two quotations for a while. There is truth in these two statements.

The novel, Don Quixote, is a satirical commentary of early 17th Century Spain under the yoke of the Spanish Inquisition. At such times, the tyranny of the ruling classes and the Church, severely put down the working classes and limited freedom of expression. For years no one dared speak out against the brutalities, social oppression and injustices.

Don Quixote relates the comical adventures of a schizophrenic old country gentleman from La Mancha, a district near Madrid. He donned a makeshift knight errand’s armour and went about the countryside. correcting imaginary wrongs, fighting imaginary dragons and rescuing imaginary damsels in distress. The novel became an instant hit. It is arguably the best written novel for all times. Don Quixote and his squire Pedro Sanchez have become icons of Spain. It gave rise to the word ‘quixotic’ which stands for behavior that is noble in an absurd way. It promotes the notion that individuals can be right while society can be quite wrong and disenchanting. Such individuals should gather the courage to speak up for right even if it is sheer madness to do so.

History relates many examples of groups of individuals who, stricken by a new social conscience brought about revolutionary changes in society. One sterling example was the abolishment of slavery, through the strong social actions of men like William Wilberforce, Granville Sharp and Abraham Lincoln.

As a Methodist, I am proud that many historians have commentated that this new social conscience, that corrected so many injustices, had its roots in the Wesleyan spiritual revivals in 18th century England and America. John Wesley is popularly remembered as the itinerant evangelist and open air preacher. But the gospel he preached inspired people to take up social causes in the name of Jesus Christ.

The book of James has many things to say about faith needing to give rise to social conscience, social concerns and social action. That is the right and Christian thing to do. James Chap 2:15-17 and 4:17 reads “Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. Anyone then who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins”.

John Stott(1) narrated a story of a homeless woman who turns to a country vicar for help but he in turn, perhaps because he was busy promised to pray for her. She later wrote this poem,

“I was hungry,
and you formed a humanities group to discuss my hunger.
I was imprisoned.
and you crept off quietly to your chapel and prayed for my release.
I was naked,
and in your mind you debated the morality of my appearance.
I was sick,
and you knelt and thanked God for your health.
I was homeless,
and you preached to me of the spiritual shelter of the love of God.
I was lonely
and you left me alone to pray for me.
You seem so holy, so close to God
but I am still very hungry – and lonely – and cold.

Yes, there were shameful instances when the Church should have spoken up against injustices but chose to remain silent. These were times when it would have appeared to be madness to revolt. To make the rational decision for inaction and omission may appear to be the sane thing to do. At such times, perhaps too much sanity is madness or as Wei Ling says, it pays to be mad sometimes.

Lionel

Ref 1: John Stott “Issues Facing Christians Today. Marshalls Paperback, 1984.

Father's Day and Prayer

2009-06-21T21:48:00.001+08:00

Apparently it's Father's Day in everywhere except for Australia and New Zealand. So, to all Fathers out there, Happy Father's Day.

One of the rather strange things about being a Christian is the fact that we consider God to be our Father. We've even been instructed by His Son to consider ourselves adopted into his family, which is a pretty good deal.

We are even instructed to start our prayers by acknowledging this - "Our Father in Heaven..." (Matthew 6:9). I've even heard of one or two Christians who address Him as Dad when they pray. It's the great secret to Christian prayer. Fathers have a habit of doing what's best for their kids and God is no different, in fact, being all-knowing, he has a tendency to know what's really the best for us (Matthew 7:9-10).

So give your Dad a call to wish him a Happy Father's Day today and, if you're Christian, give Our Father a prayer as well. He's a very good Father.

Distilled From God’s Vineyard

2009-04-26T20:28:00.016+08:00

Rutherglen Wineries
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

Rutherglen is a town in Australia’s Murray Valley famous for the wineries around it. The first planting of grapes for wine occurred in the 1850s. The green scenery, clean air and clean rivers make the valley a perfect backdrop for inspirational food and wine tasting tours.

I like visiting vineyards. Apart from the pleasing sights of grapes growing in rows and rows of neatly placed vines, vineyards bring to mind the environment and milieu for Christian growth. The Bible uses vineyard as an agricultural imagery in many references relating to the nurture of Christians and Churches.

Isaiah 27:2-3 notes “In that day— "Sing about a fruitful vineyard: I, the LORD, watch over it; I water it continually. I guard it day and night so that no one may harm it.” This is a wonderful picture of the Lord God tending to the vineyard which is the faithful people of God. John 15:1 Jesus said, “I am the vine and my Father is the gardener.”

Vineyard
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

One observation is that individually, the grape vine is not impressive. They are spindly and weak plants. They need to be supported on the wires. But together rows and rows of the grape vines planted on the hillsides are a beautiful sight to behold.

Thus, it was not surprising when our church wanted to start a Senior Adult Fellowship, that we should call this fellowship the Charis Vineyard League. It is a recognition that individually we are very weak and unimpressive individuals. But hopefully being supported in the fellowship and expressing our interdependence for one another we will become that Vineyard which is fruitful because God looks after us.

There is much God has to work at with our individual lives and the future of our League. As the Gardener, He will prune the branches to the very centre of the mother stem of the vine. This will encourage the growth of new shoots which will grow through winter, spring and summer until the vines become laden with bunches of grapes. At which time the vineyard will become aglow in the evening sun. Then in autumn, the ripened grapes are gathered, mixed and pressed. From this milieu the fruit of the vines become distilled into vintage, much valued wines. This is how we hope to see ourselves as the Charis Vineyard League. All of us having matured and ripened at the prime of our lives would be brought into a Christian fellowship, each bringing the different experiences, so that new wines - products of service, will venture forth as fruits of God’s vineyard.

During the inauguration of the Charis Vineyard League, the Bishop Robert Solomon remarked, “As we grow older, as our strength and abilities begin to decline, we learn to lean more heavily on God. The spiritual lesson is to know that apart from Him we cannot do anything of significance."

Robertson McQuillan wrote, “God planned the strength and beauty of youth to be physical. But the strength and beauty of age is spiritual. We gradually lose the strength and beauty that is temporary so that we may concentrate on the strength and beauty that is forever.”

Lionel

God's Lively People

2009-02-07T15:34:00.008+08:00

Two Birthdays
Originally uploaded by Leefamily

During the first day of the Chinese Lunar New Year (27 Jan 2009) we celebrated my father’s 82nd Birthday and my grandson's 1st birthday. They were both born on first day of the New Year which means that every CNY we will be celebrating their Chinese birthdays.

My extended family, 26 of us altogether, now spans four generations. We count it very fortunate that we are a close knit family and will find reasons, ever so often, to be together. This does not always happen for so many other families. The song by Ralph McTell, “The Streets of London” describes a pathetic loneliness amongst the old, that exists in our crowded cities. There is a very tragic line in the song, “The rain cries little pity for one more forgotten hero and a world that doesn’t care.”

This world has lost its sense of community. The ‘kampong’ (village) spirit is long gone. In its place is a selfish, ego-centric individualistic modern reality.

Erich Fromme in his book “The Sane Society” wrote, “There is not much love to be found in the world of today. There is a superficial friendliness that rather conceals a distance and indifference, a subtle mistrust.” Psychologist Karen Horney wrote, “The average individual today, even when they have many contacts with others and are happily married nevertheless feel comparatively emotionally isolated. They are hungering for a great deal of affection and yet find great difficulty in obtaining it.”

Recently, the Straits Times, Singapore’s major newspaper, warned of a suicide peak ahead. Consultant psychiatrist Dr Chia Boom Hock remarked, “Suicide is a sad reflection of a society’s failure to help them as needed.”

Can the church fill this gap? Is there today, a Christian community spirit? We are introduced to this Greek word, Koinonia that has been translated to express the Christian fellowship. It means communion by intimate participation and is the expression used frequently in the New Testament to describe the relationships within the early Christian community.

A Sharing People
Firstly, Koinonia describes a people whose relationships with one another are so deep that they share many things in common. It embraces the concept of joint participation, sharing together, caring of one another. The Bible describes this phenomenon like a living body with all the different parts gelled in unity.

A Generous People
Secondly, Koinonia means a generous community. It is interesting that the apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians used the same word for the offering he was raising from the Greek churches in aid of their fellow Christians in impoverished Judea. The church is a fellowship of people who exhibit the principle of generosity. We should give freely as we see the needs of others within and without the church.

A Engaged People
Thirdly Koinonia carries the principle of Engagement; of Total Commitment. We are not afraid to live lives of interdependence with one another. We are true neighbours, brothers and sisters. We are comrades, sharing our joys and pains. We are united by common experiences, interests and goals. We are God’s Lively People

What is the cement? It is the love that God has for us, a love which we give to each another. But for successful fellowship, this love is expressed practically by the ability to forgive and to receive forgiveness.

Closeness presents a danger of hurting one another either intentionally or unintentionally. Society often prevents itself from bearing the pain of hurt by raising up barriers and not getting too close to each other. The words of Simon and Garfunkel in the song “I am Rock” state “I have no need of friendship; friendship causes pain.”

In contrast, the Christian network forces us to break down barriers. But we become vulnerable to hurting and being hurt by what we say and what we do; by our active interaction with each other. We need to face the question: Are there brothers or sisters in our churches who worship the same God; profess the same love and yet are not talking to one another because of a hurt that cannot be forgiven and cannot be healed?

Thus, central to Koinonia is the ability to mend broken relationships. Max Lucado1 wrote “In repairing a relationship, it’s essential to realize that no friendship is perfect, no marriage is perfect, no person is perfect. With the resolve that you are going to make a relationship work, you can develop peace treaties of love and tolerance and harmony to transform a difficult situation into something beautiful.

The apostle Peter wrote, “Love each other deeply, because love will cause many sins to be forgiven. Open your homes to each other, without complaining. Each of you has a gift to use to serve others. Be good servants of God’s various gifts of grace.” 1 Pet 4:8-10.

Let the Lord deal with us gently to establish and keep our fellowship. Let the love of Christ heal.

Lionel

1. Max Lucado God's Inspirational Promise Book, Word Publishing Inc 1996

Look to the Hills

2009-01-11T06:16:00.019+08:00

Look to the Hills
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

"I lift up mine eyes to the hills and I wonder from where comes my help?
My help, it comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let you stumble, He will not let you fall, the Lord is your keeper.
The sun will not strike you by day nor the moon by night, the Lord will keep your life
I lift up mine eyes to the hills and I wonder, I wonder where comes my help ".

Psalms 121 is a wonderful promise and assurance of the Lord God protecting His people. What was the Lord God protecting us against when the Bible made mention of the sun striking by the day and the moon by night? Yes, the phrase expresses the notion that God’s protection is ubiquitous and all-encompassing, at all times of the day and in every hour. The phrase can also point to two negative emotions, fear and guilt, aptly described as a night time terror and a day time shame from which we all need God’s protection.

When we are young, we are all afraid of the dark. Darkness can hide things - secrets, sins, sinister motives, evil intentions. Night brings a dark foreboding feeling of terror and evil. We all have experienced the pilo-erection of the hairs on the skin and the cold sweat on our brow when we walk down lonely, dark lanes. It is the fear of the unknown, of danger lurking in dark corners.

My grandson, James has learned to sleep by himself from about 6 months old. He used to require us to pat him to sleep but not any more. I often have visions of James waking up at night fearing the darkness. But James is a brave boy and he settles back to sleep quickly; secure in the knowledge that his parents and grandparents are always there for him, even when he cannot see nor feel our presence.

Like James, most of us learn to deal with our fears but some can be crippled by irrational and chronic anxieties. Such people conceive impending doom and worry over every little thing. When and if that happens, walk under the protection of Jesus, the Good Shepherd. “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me” (Psalms 23:4). Then, you will not be afraid of the terror by night.

In contrast to darkness, light exposes everything. When the sun rises, other threats loom, guilt and shame. Light exposes sin, even hidden ones. In the Garden of Eden after committing the original sin, Adam and Eve covered their nakedness with fig leaves and hid from God. Why? Sin produces guilt.

The way most Christians deal with their shame is to confess our sins and accept Christ’s forgiveness. But some continue to remain crippled by their guilt. They enter into a deep misery; feeling they must pay for their sin. Jesus has already paid the price and penalty; we confess our sin, we must let Jesus forgive.

Forgiveness brings release but guilt brings remorse. Some never experience release because they remain trapped in their remorse. They go around perpetually feeling bad about themselves. This is probably what is meant with the statement that the “sun will strike you by day.” Every morning after waking up with the sunrise, they wallow in their remorse.

Charles Swindoll (Ref 1) wrote, “If God had wanted you to be a worm, He could have very easily made you one! He’s very good at creating worms, you know. There’s an infinite variety of the wriggly creatures. When Watts wrote about worms, he was merely using a word picture. Many others, however, have framed it as a model to follow, calling it humility. The ‘worm theology’ creates enormous problems,”

Guilt can bring us to God to ask for forgiveness and to find release. Guilt can also have the effect of obscuring God (Ref2). We become so self occupied that we cannot see beyond our selfish needs.

Fear and guilt, the threats of the sun by day and the moon by night; How do we deal with these? The Bible says to look to God. He will protect us. Dr Robert Solomon, Bishop of the Methodist Church in Singapore advised that we repent, we renounce, we relinquish. Then, we will find release.

Lionel
1 Charles R Swindoll, “Starting Over” Multonomah Press, 1983
2 Calvin Miller, “ into the Depths of God” Bethany House, 2000

In the Palm of God’s Hand

2008-12-31T07:10:00.023+08:00

Jade Dragon Snow Mountain

In my greetings to friends at Christmas and the New Year, I appended this old Irish Blessing,

"May the roads rise to meet you,
May the wind be ever at your back,
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rain fall soft upon your fields,
And, until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand".

I was particularly struck by the last phrase, “May God hold you in the palm of His hand. We have seen those pictures by trick photography where the subject would stick out his palm and a miniature image of himself or others would be standing on the palm. That image does not impress me. It connotes control or lording over the other person. It makes the person standing on the palm look so small.

The idea of the Lord as the potter and us as the clay is better; the potter painstaking moulds the clay into shape. The clay is at first nondescript without form or definition. The potter visualises the final product and using his hands molds and defines the clay, smoothening and embellishing it; giving the clay shape and character.

This is the kind of ‘being in God’s hands’ that I imagine myself to be in. Mind you ,the potter is still in complete control and can do with the clay as he wishes to. But compared to the trick photography, this imagery of the potter working the clay is a picture of activity and of tender loving care.

The Psalms 121 describes the constant watch of God over us, "I lift up mine eyes to the hills and I wonder from where comes my help? My help, it comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.He will not let you stumble, He will not let you fall, the Lord is your keeper.The sun will not strike you by day nor the moon by night, the Lord will keep your life".

For permanence and glaze, the product is not finished until it is fired in a kiln. The Bible speaks often about a test of fire, wherein anyhing without value, will be eventually burnt. That which is intended to last, the pot, comes out of the fire a finished product.

On the 30 Dec 2008, I attended the Ministry of Education’s investiture for new school principals. The theme of the appointment ceremony was “Through Your Hands Passes The Future Of Our Nation”. This slogan captures the essence of the vocational calling of teachers and principals. The first paragraph of the letter of appointment to these principals read. “In your charge are many lives in the making, each one different, every one important, all with hopes and dreams for the future. They depend on you to guide, mould and nurture them to become better individuals and useful citizens“.

What these principals will seek to do with the pupils under their watch, will be small representations of the work of God; moulding us in His hands. It is comforting to note that this will be a life long process. Isaiah 64:8 notes “Yet, O LORD, you are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand”

Lionel

Hard Times

2008-10-16T17:24:00.005+08:00

The Murray in Drought
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

The Murray River Valley is one of Australia's bread baskets. Fed by waters from the Murray, this basin is lush with vineyards, olive groves and fruit orchards. From 10-16 Oct 2008, all 6 of us, Pat, Becky and I, John, Debbie and James, shared the rural pastoral experience of a town named Yarrawonga. It is located at the dam across the Murray River and the resultant lake, Mulwara.

We swam, kayaked down the river, golfed, visited farms and wineries. The perceptive visitor will sense that there is a certain dryness, a land hardened by drought in this particular part of Australia. Shayne Preer, the shop-owner who rented to us two kayaks informed that the drought had so far lasted 10+ years. He had stopped taking tourist for kayaking tours because the interesting creeks along the river had all dried up.

A farmer's wife at the Uniting Church where we worshipped, that Sunday informed Pat that the smaller farms had to burn their crops if there was insufficient rain. The church members are all senior citizens. They were so pleased to see us and to hear baby James cry in church. They informed that the younger people had long left to seek their fortunes in Melbourne or Sydney.

Droughts are hard times. The week we were at Yarrawonga, coincided with the global financial crisis. International banks had failed, the stock markets crashed and a global recession was looming. Many governments had to step in and underwrite their national banks. Australia was no exception. We can expect many people to suffer huge financial losses.

Kevin Rudd, Prime Minister of Australia, rallied the Australians to tide over the global financial crisis with these words. "Anyone who grew up on the land knows that you can't control the weather," he declared. "Sunshine every day and rainy nights. That's what you dream of. But life's not like that. There are good years and there are hard years. And you don't choose the order in which they come. But the hard years teach you never to give up."

I think that Kevin Rudd was not just politicising. He was referring to character building; hard times whether in farms or in corporate rooms can bring out the best in character provided one learns life's lessons humbly.

Life wasn't meant to be easy. Christians despite our special relationships with God can fall on hard times, as many must have in these days of global recession. Our faithfulness and the promised blessings do not shelter us from the hard knocks of life. The Apostle Peter writing in 1 Peter 4 warned the early Christians to expect the suffering, preparing them for the persecutions that were to come. He wrote In 1 Peter 4:12-13, “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.”

Bishop (Dr) Robert Solomon wrote in his book, The Race(1) , “In suffering, we need to find meaning. We need to also find love. It is difficult to suffer alone and many people feel they do. But we are not really alone when we suffer. God offers us His loving presence.” Bishop wrote on, “And when we allow Him to walk with us, we will find that suffering is redemptive. It changes us and makes us like Him. It gives depth and brings new life.” As Kevin Rudd said, the hard years teach us never to give up

Lionel
[1] Robert M Solomon, The Race – Finding the Real Journey in Life. Genesis Books 2008

You Never Walk Alone

2008-10-09T17:01:00.007+08:00

Seeing through the mist
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

The morning was enveloped with a thick mist as I walked alone on a lonely country road in the Snowy Mountains region in Jindabyne, Australia. The fresh air laden with dew was cold on my face but I did not mind; walking alone that morning brought serenity and solace. These lonely moments are hard to find.

The road before me was obscured by fog but it was sufficiently visible to ascertain the direction of my path. I realised that the ability to see through the mist, even with some degree of uncertainty, is exactly how I have obtained guidance from God throughout life. My limited vision and mind cannot completely comprehend God nor let me view life with definite clarity.

Fogginess can be a natural aspect of life. When we try to perceive life, spiritually, we must be prepared to peer through the mist and accept some mystery. Calvin Miller(ref 1) said "Mystical is that wonderful word we apply to things that have ultimate meaning but elude our understanding." He advocated that Christians need not always perceive life cognitively. We should lose the desire to always want to be in control. We should drop false pragmatism and embrace the practical reality that the Holy Spirit like the wind brings some uncertainty. We can sense its presence but will be uncertain where it comes from and whither it will go.

But we are not left alone groping. That morning when I walked through the mist I was not alone. I prayed and sang as though God walked with me and indeed He did. Although, we see through tinted glasses of our own inadequacies and sinfulness, there is comfort in the Christian understanding and experience that God is close at hand.

There is a song

I'm not alone while walking o'er life's journey.

I have a friend who walks along with me.

I'm not alone although I'm often lonely.

My saviour God is by me constantly.

So when the storms of life assail me

and earthly friendships fail me,

I'll sing and smile o'er every mile

till I reach my heavenly home.

St Paul wrote in 1 Cor 13:12, Now we see but a poor reflection of life and it's journey as in a mirror; then we shall see distinctly as if face to face. Now I know of life, in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known by God (italics mine).

1. Calvin Miller “Into the Depths of God” Bethany House, 2000

In Search Of Worship – Sanctity

2008-07-27T07:42:00.007+08:00

The Bible records the prophet Isaiah in a vision of the Lord God Almighty seated on a throne, high and exalted. A train of angels attended the Lord, worshipping and calling to one another, "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory." At the sight of the majesty and grandeur in encountering God, Isaiah shuddered and uttered, "Woe to me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty." Isaiah 6:5.

The Rev (Dr) Ben Witherington, expounding on this passage in Singapore, made the statement that an encounter with God in true worship paradoxically widens and narrows the gap between God and us. Worship happens when we realize the distance and distinction between the Creator and the creation. This was precisely what hit Isaiah as he exclaimed “Woe is me. I am a man of unclean lips yet I see the Lord.” God is the Holy One and Isaiah knows that he is not. “Such encounter will make clear that God is God and we are so not god“ said Dr Witherington, “worship happens when the creature realizes he is not the creator and bows down to the One who is.”

But as we bow down before God, He condescends to come down and inhabits our praises and honour our worship. Here God communes with man and as often been our experience, we were overwhelmed at the sheer presence of God. “Worship creates a communion which maintains a separation between us and God.” In worship we know our station in life. We know who we are and we know that God is God.

Is this happening in our evangelical Sunday worship services today? I am afraid the answer must be seldom or not at all. Why? The modern evangelical worship service is in danger of becoming more and more a show for man, directed to man, with man-pleasing songs and entertaining music and performance. Do we come to church to worship or to consume? Many young people have left one church or another in recent years. When asked for their reason the answer is usually, “I do not get much out of the worship.” Why would anyone worship to get something out of? Surely what can the worshipper give, what can he bring to offer to God is what counts.

We come to church to satisfy ourselves. What audacity! It is all about ourselves, we need to be inspired, we need to learn, we need to feel good, we need to enjoy the singing, we need to enjoy the music. We approached worship as a consumer but we failed to be consumed by the presence of God. Are we a congregation or are we an audience? A Christian congregation gathers to worship Jesus Christ and to glorify him, while an audience assembles to see and hear a performance. Are we ministering or offering or are we performing? We minister publicly primarily to express God’s truth in sermon, songs and testimony; but we perform to impress, using our abilities to give people “their money’s worth” of enjoyment and entertainment.

Have we thrown the sanctity of worship to the wind? Come back to the heart of worship (Click here)

In Search Of Worship - Stillness

2008-07-23T13:04:00.008+08:00

Photo taken at Scotney Castle, Kent 23 June 2005

One can reflect properly only when one is still. When we can still our selves the Bible says we can know our God. Psalm 46:10 states "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." One way to come into right frame of mind and atmosphere for worship is to be silent and still. In that contemplative mood, seize the opportunity to worship the Lord. So often our 'busi-ness' detracts and subtracts from intimate moments of our thoughts and feelings. If we can release ourselves from the noisy distractions around us, we can come into a time of worship

There is song to help us come into a time of worship and exploit the stillenss of the hour, "Be still."

"Be still for presence of the Lord, the Holy One is here

Come bow before Him now in reverence and fear

In Him no sin is found, we stand on holy ground

Be still for the presence of the Lord, the holy One is here"

There is a fascinating book entitled Small Graces which I would recommend to you all. The book helps me to reflect and understand life. One snippet should entice you -"We dream our lives in grand gestures, but we live our lives in small moments. From our first rising at the dawn, to our last conscious thoughts at night, our lives are spent in tasks that absorb our attention and keep us from contemplating the great issues of life. Why are we here? What is love? Does God exist? What lives behind the veil of death? These are questions that make us human. But their answers, and even their contemplation, seem far beyond the ordinary realms in which we live our days

Kent Nerburn is a sculptor, writer and theologian. One reviewer wrote "one of the clearest, most exquisite books I have read in a long time. I believe it will become a classic." Share with you, one passage from this book "The silence is profound this morning. It is not portentous; there seems to be nothing in the waiting. It is a gentle silence, liquid and pastel, a shimmering on still water. It is good to listen to the silence that surrounds the each day. In the same way that music is made alive by the silence that surrounds the notes, a day comes alive by the silence that surrounds our actions. And the dawn is the time when silence reveals herself most clearly." What does this say about being still and knowing God?

Lionel

In Search Of Worship - Sincerity

2008-07-20T18:55:00.017+08:00

James&AhKong
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

I sing the praise song, “I love you Lord” to my grandson James. Like every 5 month old, James will fight sleep but when he listens to this song, he would stop crying, become calm and would soon be ready for bed. It is a simple four line tune: “I love You Lord and I lift my voice to worship you. O my soul rejoice! Take joy my King in what you hear. May it be a sweet, sweet sound in Your ears.” James just loves to hear this song repeated to him over and over again. In the singing I imagine we are praising God together, grandfather and grandson.

Worshipping God with a five month old in tow does not trivialise the act of worship. True worship is hard to find. If one could capture the right inspirational moment, a poignant and unfettered time, one should take the opportunity to worship. And it is quite natural to worship with James in hand, for this baby is indeed a blessing from God; a clear and present evidence of God’s creative power and of His goodness.

Once, when Jesus was in the temple in Jerusalem, the little children were shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David," The priest and scribes were indignant at the commotion and they complained, ”do you hear what these children are saying?” meaning to accuse him of instigating the children to blasphemy, "Yes," Jesus replied, "have you never read, “from the lips of children and infants, You have perfected praise ?" (Matt 21:16 and Psalms 8:2). Why make such a remark? Perfect praise exudes from pure sincerity. Babies, by their very lives are testaments to God’s unchanging grace.

In contrast, there is much that is contrived and showy when adults worship. Words that come out appearing forced can also become hypocritical. Catchy tunes are sung repeatedly without thought to the adequacy and appropriateness of the lyrics. The Rev (Dr) Ben Witherington, Asbury Theological Seminary speaking in Singapore at the Aldersgate Convention in May 2008 asked the question, “Who is doing the worshipping? Who is the beneficiary?" Is it not true that we worship more to satisfy us than God? It is all about ourselves, we need to be inspired, we need to learn, we need to feel good, we need to enjoy the singing and the music.

Speaking about congregational worship Dr Witherington(ref 1) said, “We often hear people say I don’t go to that worship service because I don’t get anything out of it. But who is supposed to be doing the worshipping here? If it is the congregation, then the primary question should be where can I go to best give praise and worship to God, not where I can go to get the most out of it. Any experience that put us on God’s level is not worship. It is inappropriate and even shocking familiarity; indeed it can even be called idolatory. God condescends and remains God, we do not ascend and become as gods. Worship happens when the creature realizes he is not the creator and bows down to the One who is.”

In speaking to the Samaritan woman at the well, Jesus told her that where one worships, what styles one would use does not really matter. He told her one day, the true worshipper will be worshipping in spirit and in truth. No hypocrisy. God is more concerned with the attitude of the heart than the melody of the song; the motive of the people than He is with the performance.

A poor Methodist woman(ref 2), probably a labourer in the work houses or a farmer’s wife in 18 century Britain wrote, “ I do not know when I have had happier times in my soul than when I have been sitting at work with nothing before me but a candle and a white cloth, and hearing no sound but the sound of my own breath, with God in my soul and heaven in my eye. I rejoice in being exactly what I am – a creature capable of loving God and who, as long as God lives, must be happy. I get up and look for a while out of the window and gaze at the moon and stars, the work of an almighty hand. I think of the grandeur of the universe, and then sit down, and think myself one of the happiest beings in it.”

When we truly worship and praise, it is not just fulfilling an obligation. It is not only a human necessity and a human requirement, but it is also a human delight. It brings us great joy!

Lionel
1 Methodist Message 110(7) Jul 08
2 Mary Tileston, ed. Daily Strength for Daily Needs

In Search of Worship - Spontaneity

2008-07-16T07:52:00.003+08:00

I recently viewed a movie entitled “August Rush.” (Click on hyperlink to view the trailers and reviews). It is a heart rending story of a 11 year old boy, Evan Taylor a.k.a. August Rush who lives in an orphanage. Despite taunting by fellow residents, August continues to believe his parents are alive. The film begins with August standing in the middle of a vast wheat field, lost in listening as the wind rushes through the field. He utters the tagline for the movie, “the music is every where, all you have to do is listen.” His parents are a charismatic young Irish guitarist and a sheltered young cellist who had a chance encounter one magical night above New York’s Washington Square. They were soon torn apart, leaving in their wake an infant, August Rush, orphaned by circumstance. Eventually, led by the music and his prodigy musical talent, a fairy tale ending occurs. August reunites with his young parents in a musical concert at Central Park.

I am currently reading a book “Into the depths of God” by Calvin Miller. A reviewer noted, “Drawing upon the Word of God and rich treasury of spiritual insight, ancient and modern, Calvin Miller makes the familiar phrase, ‘the deeper life’ mean something personal to the searching contemporary Christian.” On the cover of the book, there is an expanded version of the title and it reads:

Into the Depths of God
Where Eyes See the Invisible
Ears Hear the Inaudible and
Mind Conceive the Inconceivable.

Armed with both taglines from “August Rush” and “Into the depths,” consider for a moment this thought: Where a Christian seeks after God deeply, his eyes will see the Invisible, his ears will hear the audible and his mind will conceive the inconceivable.

There is a familiar hymn, “This is my fathers world.”

This is my Father's world,and to my listening ears
All nature sings, and round me rings the music of the spheres.
This is my Father's world:I rest me in the thought
Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas;
His hand the wonders wrought.

So what does this hymn tells us? We need to go to the place where eyes can see and ears can hear and minds conceive. Do we see the beauty of nature?. Do we hear In that natural beauty a beautiful harmony? The birds raise their carols, the lilies declare God’s praise. And do we conceive in our minds that nature acknowledges the creation and the creator – All nature sings the music of the spheres. We should be stirred with a inner spiritual insight, an underlying music that should spontaneously incite us to worship and praise God. “This is my father’s world, his hands the wonders wrought.”

But the problem with al of us, is that we are all just too busy. Our eyes are cluttered with short TV clips and 15 sec sound bites. There is hardly a moment when we can stand aside and savour one brief shining moment of inspiration. We can learn from both the searches of August and Calvin. Seek after God, “Open Your eyes, open your ears, open your mind.”

Lionel

No Man Is An Island

2008-07-12T14:23:00.016+08:00

A sad commentary of our individual-centric modern living reality is found in the words of Simon and Garfunkel ‘I am a rock. I am a Island’ This song drums in all the loneliness of life without companionship or friendship. The second verse reads,
“I've built up walls, a fortress deep and mighty,

that nothing penetrates.

I have no need of friendship; friendship causes pain.

(photo Swans in Kew by Keith Toh)

It's laughter and it's loving I disdain.

I am a rock, I am an island.”

In Tokyo, a guide informed that there are many homeless people in the city. And it is entirely by personal choice and preference that they desert friends and families to wander the streets alone. They are not poor. They are never hungry because the Japanese strict laws on the validity period of food ensured that they had lots to eat. Food sold in supermarkets had to be discarded immediately, once expired. These people are spoilt for choice as far as food is concerned. They chose to become distant islands in a sea of humanity.

In time, they will indeed be left alone. Pitiful sights of old men and women left to wander alone in crowded cities. The song, "The Streets of London" laments their plight,

"Have you seen the old man in the closed-down market
Picking up the paper, with his worn out shoes?
In his eyes you see no pride and hands held loosely by his side
Yesterday's paper telling yesterday's news.

So how can you tell me you're lonely, And say for you that the sun don't shine?
Let me take you by the hand and lead you through the streets of London
I'll show you something to make you change your mind."

Why this state of affairs? Probably busyness; we are too busy with getting up the corporate ladder, too busy for anyone. Along with this busyness is a healthy dose of selfishness; too much of worrying of one's self to be concerned with others. The Cat Steven’s song, “The Cat’s in the Cradle,” is a case in point. The kid is always asking his dad when the dad is coming home. The father replies soon enough but he does not know when. But when he does they are going to have a good time together. This never happens. So tragically when they father finally had the time, the kid is grown up and this time is too busy for his dad. No time.

Of late, Pat and I have taken to holidaying at least twice a year. We enjoy the privilege of scenic views, different cultures, different cuisines and understanding different histories. We realised that the world has diminished in size; people and places are not that far away after all. It is good to be able to view life and world together. On a personal level, these trips help us devote more time to each other, away from needs of office and home. We were ever so busy, growing our marriage, my career and our two daughters. Watching our children through their childhood and formative years was a delight. Before we know it we have been married 32 years now. The time to build a career and raising a family has taken all our attention. Before we grow too old, we should appreciate what we have, the love, the companionship and to make time for each other.

There is a song by Jim Croce, “Time in a Bottle.”
"If I could save time in a bottle, the first thing that I'd like to do. Is to save every day till eternity passes away, just to spend them with you." This is our wish; that we will have enough time for each other. But as the chorus of “time” goes, “…there never seems to be enough time to do the things you want to do, once you find them.” So in the many places that we have visited around the world, we view with sad pity the lonely lives of old men and women. The old and lonely may be ever-present in the streets of London and New York. They are less obvious in Tokyo and Singapore. Perhaps they are tucked away, hidden in small rooms. They are there, no less, a sad reflection of modern societies that revere individualism and independence and less so dependencies and community. Could it be that in their younger days, these destitute never learned to save time in a bottle?

John Donne, who was left alone and expected to die of bubonic plague wrote this insight in 1623. "No man is an island, entire of itself; Every man is a piece of a continent, a part of the main..." Loneliness should not be the case amongst Christian communities. An understanding of the fellowship and interdependencies between men and women should be evident. 'They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer' (Acts 2:42). Appreciating neighbourliness and friendships is a counterpoise to the more proud and boastful, "I am a rock, I am an island."

Begin The Journey With The End In Mind.

2008-04-05T07:56:00.006+08:00

The long long road
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

We bade farewell to Sim Hee Wan, a long time church friend today. He fought a 2 year battle against pancreatic cancer. I can sense the difficulty our church had in bidding our farewell to Hee Wan. He was still a young father, leaving behind a young wife and two small children. At the wake and cremation, his wife and friends shared strong and stirring testimonies of being touched by a quiet, unassuming witness of a Christian who has the gift of encouraging others. In 1 Tim 6: 12, the Apostle Paul wrote “Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” They spoke of a man whose life exemplified this verse. Although this verse is often quoted at many a funeral wake, Hee Wan had a special claim to this verse and it would do well to learn the lesson he was teaching us.

The last two years of Hee Wan’s journey and good fight was tough and difficult. He shared his thoughts of this journey once:- “My family took the 4 hours drive up Malaysia to attend the church camp. As expected the question from the back seat ever so often during the drive was "Are we there yet?" The journey really felt unending to my two children. I find myself asking God the same question. "Am I there yet?" It has been 6 months since I started on my chemo treatment. The good news first, the cancer marker count has gone down from the 600+ to 80+. The recent CT scan in May 2007 also showed a small shrinkage in size of the tumour. My doctor told me that the treatment is working for me. I would need to continue with my chemo for 2 more weeks, from 5 June, before he decides on the next course of action. Currently, my physical condition is quite good, hardly experiencing any pain, living quite a normal life, thank God! At this moment, I really don't know how long this journey is going to be. All I know is "He" is doing the driving, and me asking Him the same question over and over again. I believe in good time I will arrive! Well in the meantime, will just have to do what St Paul said, "Whatever that is of good report, think of these things"

Hee Wan showed me the secret of beginning a journey with the end in mind. Somewhere in his ‘fighting the good fight of faith,’ he learnt that life on earth is about transforming the soul and not about sustaining the body. We are always more preoccupied about our physical selves, more nurturing of our health than about being conscious of our souls. Consider what Hee Wan wrote on 24 Sep 2007, "I want my life to fulfill God's purposes. In worship to Him through every act I make! In fellowship with His people by putting aside time for them. In having the mind of Christ to be more like Him. In serving His people to be a giver of strength, time and money and to teach people who do not know Christ by being a friend to them."

Psalms 1:2-3 “His delight is in the law of the Lord and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruits in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does he prospers” describes a man who nurtured his soul properly under God. That man is like a tree planted by steams of water. No matter what the weather and storms of life, the roots go down into the water sources and bring up life. By doing so he becomes a man who is able to respond to the situations of life in ways that are good and right. He provides thoughts, feelings, actions, relationships and behaviours that are right and in agreement with truth, fulfilling God’s purposes.

He achieves meaning in life. That is what all of us want, meaning for all that we do all and all that we are. Work, rest, struggles, family, friendships, parenting, community, beliefs, contacts must find meaningful experiences and expressions. This is what the Apostle Paul meant when he said in 2 Tim 4:7 “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” Did Hee Wan’s journey end? On the 1st April 2008, when Hee Wan drew his last breath, he arrived at heaven’s doors. You see Hee Wan began his journey with the end in mind and death is not the end.

Lionel

Man Does Not Live On Bread Alone

2008-03-07T07:09:00.005+08:00

James and John
Originally uploaded by Leefamily

James Gifford, my grandson is one month old today. We watched with much anxiety in the past month. How he dipped in weight the first three days and regained it by the end of the first week. How he learnt to suckle and get into the routine of feeding from his mother’s breasts. How he recognises his father’s face and studies the look, shape and form. How he uses his cries as a means of communicating his needs and wishes. By the end of the first month he has put on 1 kg in weight and grown 7 cm.

It is going to be a grandfather’s joy to watch James grow. God has given me a special gift of time; the sheer delight for being there to witness his first faltering steps, the forming of the first few intelligible words and then the chuckle and laughter of the simple joys of childhood. I pray everyday that God will protect James. Give him the strength and energy for his physical needs. While we watch anxiously for the clear evidence of growth and development, a more important dawning and shaping is taking place yet unseen, the shaping of character and spirituality.

“Man does not live on bread alone,” said Jesus in Matt 4:4. What does this mean? Co-incidentally, my dear brother, Robert Goh gave me a book this week for my 57th birthday. It is Dallas Willard’s ‘Renovation of the Heart.’ The first paragraph of the first chapter hits home as I contemplate James growing. “We live from our hearts. The part that drives and organizes our life is not the physical. You have a spirit within you and it has been formed. It has taken on a specific character. ..The spirit within us takes on whatever character it has from the experiences we have lived through and the choices we have made. That is what it means for it to be formed.”

To some extent, we can manage and guard the physical growth of our grandchild. We can ensure his feeding and provide a save and proper environment. James growing from strength to strength will become obvious to us. But another growth is taking place in the depths of James’ being, in his spirit, his will and his heart. That growth is much more difficult to influence.

Proverbs 4:23 warns us, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” Is there any doubt which of the two is the more important? The Bible describes a inner existence that is a wellspring of life, the very source of all that is worth the living. I learnt that for James to live life abundantly and to experience the fullness of God’s gift of his destiny, James must nurture his heart. I pray to God that I can help. More than my help, James will require God’s help. He cannot live on bread alone.

Lionel

There's Got To Be A Morning After

2008-03-01T09:29:00.014+08:00

Morning Beckons
Uploaded by LeeFamily

Hope. Someone in church, whom we have been praying for, taught me about hope. She is going through chemotherapy and she wrote, “But I will hang on to God no matter what. He promised to take away all my sins and sicknesses. He has a purpose to give me this new hope at this worst moment of my life. This is my first GOOD NEWS, my first HOPE and my confirmation that GOD has not given up on me yet.”

“God has not given up on me yet” reminds me of the lamentations of Prophet Jeremiah. He was devastated when the Babylonians invaded Jerusalem in 586 BC. He saw the horrors and ravages of war inflicted upon his people. They were left with no food, no rest and no peace. In the depth of that despair Jeremiah found hope in the faithfulness of God. He called upon his previous experiences and he wrote, “I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him. The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.” Lamentation 3:19-24.

Kent Nerburn talked of his experience with a total stranger one night, “He stared back at me with the saddest eyes I had ever seen. Tears rolled down his cheeks. I do not believe that I have ever seen, before or since, such a tortured look upon the face of another human being.” This stranger in the night was a respected judge who that morning had run his car into a young girl who stepped unexpectedly on to the road. He had killed her instantly. Since then he had been walking the streets aimlessly and drunk.

Kent had tried to console the man but was told, “Don’t talk. I don’t need words. I just need to be near somebody.” Kent wrote, “I stayed with him on that street long into the night. He did not wish to go anywhere. He did not wish to talk. Occasionally he would take my hand; occasionally he would be overcome with deep and heaving sobs. But whenever I tried to leave or allow him the privacy of his own grief, he would grab my hand to make me stay.”

St Francis prayed that where there is despair let him bring hope. Despair hits the human spirit; a darkness that snuffs off the dim light of every possibility. No logic, no consolation, no word can heal. As Nerburn had experienced, all the despairing spirit needs is our presence and the quiet witness of our redeemed souls. When we keep vigil with a person trapped in that darkness, we are denying that spirit from plunging into the emptiness. We provide good, silent Christian witness, a light that defy the overwhelming darkness until the morning comes.

“There’s got to be a morning after, if we can hold on thru the night” is the signature song of a disaster movie, the Poseidon Adventure. Comfort, reassurance and hope can be found in the Bible. My church friend derives her optimism from the hope found in reading her Bible. The Lord will bring healing to her, for sure, in her spirit and maybe in her body. But guess which of the two, brings eternal and lasting consequences? Psalms 30: 5 states “Weeping may remain for a night but rejoicing comes in the morning.” Similarly the song goes, “We have a chance to find the sunshine. Let's keep on looking for the light.” May these words bring comfort and encouragement to both the despairing spirit and the one who consoles.

Lionel

The Way of Suffering

2008-02-22T20:07:00.018+08:00

Via Dolorosa

There is a street in Jerusalem upon which I have walked about seven times in my life. It is an alley way lined by small shops on both sides where the Arab merchants sell their merchandise of copper and silver ware, decorated pottery, carpets and souvenirs. Meandering upwards of, a now imperceptible, low hill, this street led to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher – Calvary.

Someone else walked that street, nearly 2000 years ago. It was not an easy or pleasant “sight-seeing” walk. This street, then, was the last walk for a prisoner condemned to die and on his way to the gallows. Jesus, having endured torture, carried the cross and trudged up this hill, with difficult, painful and stumbling steps. On both sides of his path, the multitudes, many of whom tourists, scorned, mocked and derided him. The street is called the Via Dolorosa, the way of suffering.

This experience of Jesus, tortured, scorned and derided, is a hallmark in the history of Christianity. Christianity began in pain. For several centuries afterwards, the early Christians, endured the same risk Jesus endured whenever they professed their faith. With the passing of time, Christianity became an internationally accepted faith; persecution stopped and Christians began to enjoy the bountiful blessings of God.

Yes, Christians now enjoy acceptance, security, peace and well being. We become surprised and disoriented when we face a different experience. But pain and suffering can become a cross that some Christians will experience. When this happens it is easy to blame God. We lived with the presumption this could not happen to us. How can a good God, who bestows goodness, allow this to happen? The Via Dolorosa is a poignant reminder, etched upon the pages of history that pain can and will happen to Christians.

Woody Allen was purported to have said, “How do you expect me to believe in God, when only last week I got my tongue caught in the roller of my electric type-writer?” We do not have to respond with Woody-Allenian smugness. There are many fine examples of people who have endured suffering and come out more mature; their responses more elegant and erudite.

Thomas Dorsey's "Precious Lord" presents itself to us a song of hope and faith. People around the world know it, sing it, and love it because of its profound message. Few know the song was inspired by a horrific tragedy in the life of its composer. In August of 1932, Dorsey was scheduled to be the featured soloist at a large revival meeting in St. Louis. At the time his wife, Nettie was pregnant with their first child. He kissed her goodbye and made his way to St. Louis for the revival meeting. The next night, as soon as he finished playing, he received a telegram and and pasted on the yellow sheet were the words: 'Your wife just died.' Nettie had given birth to a boy but later the baby died. In the midst of despair, a friend visited Dorsey and arranged for him to be left alone in a music room with a piano. For the first time in many days, he sat at a piano using his fingers to browse the keys. Soon, the young artist experienced a personal revival, "I felt at peace. I felt as though I could reach out and touch God. I found myself playing a melody, one I'd never heard or played before, and words for "Precious Lord" came into my head—they just seemed to fall into place."

Another well-known and oft-recorded hymn, ‘It Is Well with My Soul’ was borne of another tragic circumstance. Having recently lost their only son to scarlet fever, Horatio Spafford and his wife suffered major financial losses in the Chicago fire of 1871. On their way to attend evangelist Dwight L. Moody’s tour of England, the ship on which Spafford’s wife Anna and four daughters were traveling was struck by another ship and sank. All four daughters perished. During his voyage to rejoin Anna, Spafford’s ship passed by the area where his daughters had died. At that time, he inscribed the emotional words of this beautiful hymn, which turn the pain and anguish of loss into acceptance and trust.

The hymn, ‘All The Way My Saviour Leads Me’ was written by Fanny Crosby. It contained a line, “For I know whate’er befall me, Jesus doeth all things well.” It probably was not always easy for Fanny Crosby to believe that. When she was six weeks old she lost her sight because of a doctor’s error.

These song and hymn writers drew inspiration from above and out of their despair penned beautiful verses and tunes that have become legacies of faith and healing. There is a morning after the night of despair, an Easter after the darkness of the crucifixion. Psalms 30: 5 states “… weeping may remain for a night but rejoicing comes in the morning.”

Lionel
PS You can click on the song titles to hear a YouTube rendition of the songs.

A Miracle Called James

2008-02-07T17:08:00.003+08:00

James Rui-An Gifford

Baby James Gifford arrived on 7 Feb 2008 (1st Day of the Lunar New Year) at 6.58pm. He weighs 3 kilos and measures 51 cm long. He is a beautiful baby with lots of dark brown hair and a small handsome looking face. Debbie was very tired after a long day and we were too, waiting at home for news from John who was by her side.

All day long I was mulling over the birth of my first grand child; not knowing what we will receive. Parents and grandparents relied entirely on God’s grace. Awed by the miracle of birth and groping to find its meaning, the song “I believe” came to mind. There is line in the lyrics - “Every time I hear a new born baby cry, I believe”.

“What’s the nearest thing to proof that God exists?” David Frost, the famous TV interviewer asked Dr Billy Graham the evangelist once. “The birth of a baby,” Graham answered, “I watched my younger son being born. And the doctor that was delivering the baby looked up at me and he said, “How can anyone see this without realizing that there is a God?”

I was anticipating James throughout these 9 plus months of pregnancy the same way as I was anticipating his mother’s birth 28 years ago. Back then I was more naïve. I was more excited for my firstborn. Nevertheless, I felt the same anxiety and restlessness over the uncertainty of what will come. The same resignation that we can do nothing and that the gift we will receive is entirely up to God. Hardly a day passes without invoking God’s grace, mercy and provision for our family.

Kent Nerburn wrote in Simple Truth, “A child whether of your blood or someone else’s, whether healthy or ill, whether beautiful or misshapen, is one of life’s greatest miracles. It opens your world into a new sunlight and is a gift greater than a dream". Similarly, David the psalmist and king, contemplated, “Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous -- and how well I know it” Psalm 139:14.

I am blessed to be a grandfather. We received a miracle called James. Praise God along with us.

Lionel

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God

2008-01-01T12:00:00.004+08:00

JapArtStorm Originally uploaded by http://www.flickr.com/people/leeclan/

2007 was a challenging year for the family. Pat had two surgeries, one to remove a cyst in the maxillary sinus and the other to remove an obstructed gall-bladder. Becky had an ENT operation to remove the adenoids and tonsils. For most of the year, she had severe upper respiratory tract symptoms. Pat lost her beloved brother, Jimmy to cancer. Debbie and John relocated to Singapore and suffered a cultural shock in trying to adapt to new working situations and unforeseen difficulties. For the first time in many years, Lionel had problems and difficulties at work.

Even so, in times of prayers and seeking assistance from God, we are reminded that God always protects those He loves. As we turn into the New Year, we know that we have been sheltered “under shadow of the Almighty”. The year 2008 is for the Lee Family a glorious declaration of “A Mighty Fortress is our God”. (Click to receive YouTube video of hymn) Described as the Battle Hymn of the Reformation, the lyrics are inspired by Psalms 46.

One can imagine the numerous times when the singing of this hymn assisted Martin Luther through many a difficult year, as the reformation movement took on the might and influence of the Roman Catholic Church.

Psalms 46 is divided into 3 scenes:- raging seas, streams and peaceful waters.

When one is buffeted with life’s difficulties and challenges, it can be a very frightening experience. One problem follows another much like the relentless waves of a raging storm. Caught in that situation, it is easy to see how one can become depressed. Yet, Psalms 46:1 resonates across the waves, “God is our refuge and our strength, an ever present help in times of trouble".

In sharp contrast to the stormy sea, one is then transported to a scene of gentle streams; a river runs through this quiet place. Despite the external turmoil, there is peace within. God’s injunction is to “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalms 46: 10). Twice in the Psalms in vs 7 and 11, against the backdrop of violence, chaos, wars and desolation, the Psalmist echoed, “The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress”.

199Stillwater, originally uploaded by http://www.flickr.com/people/leeclan/.

We received a New Year greeting from a friend, Elisabeth Tan in which she added a prayer from St Thomas Becket

May God make your year a happy one!

Not by shielding you from all sorrows and pain,

But by strengthening you to bear it, as it comes;

Not by making your path easy,

But by making you sturdy to travel any path;

Not by taking hardships from you,

But by taking fear from your heart;

Not by granting you unbroken sunshine,

But by keeping your face bright, even in the shadows;

Not by making your life always pleasant,

But by showing you when people and their causes need you most,

and by making you anxious to be there to help.

This prayer reminds us of how God had dealt with us throughout a most difficult year.

Fireworks (24), originally uploaded by http://www.flickr.com/people/leeclan/.

The best news of the year and the anticipation for 2008 is the 'stardust' coming our way. “Of course, the greatest gift that God has given us this year is the little bit of stardust that is coming soon to our little family. Baby James Gifford is residing comfortably in Debbie’s womb, growing fast and more active with each passing day. We expect our little life-changing bundle to arrive around Valentine’s Day 2008, and we hope that he will be a bonny and blithe baby” wrote Debbie. So, despite a difficult year past, this hymn will resonate for us in this Happy New Year.

Lionel

A Time for Peace

2007-12-14T06:18:00.001+08:00

Sleep in Heavenly Peace
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

In the late 1960s, Simon and Garfunkel made a recording of “Silent Night” superimposed over the typical 7 o’clock news over the US TV channels. (Click on silent night to hear a YouTube video). One cannot mistake the sarcasm; how can one think of sleeping in heavenly peace at such a time as this? Today, after nearly 40 years, things have not changed; there appears an irrelevancy to the Christmas message of peace and goodwill among men against the backdrop of current affairs.

The cornerstone of the United Nations quotes from Micah 4:3, “They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nations shall not lift up sword against nations, neither shall they learn war any more.” Micah was prophesying the day of the Lord when mankind, “ain’t gonna study war no more.” The United Nations subscribed to this lofty ideal with a creed that reads, “Our purpose is to maintain international peace and security and to that end take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to peace.” That was in 1945, today if the failure to bring peace to all nations wasn’t so tragic, the whole idea would be downright hilarious; laughable.

The question surrounding the lofty ideal of the UN is whether peace can ever be achieved between nations when it first cannot be achieved between individuals. Most people do not live at peace with themselves. And so it stands to reason we cannot be at peace with others. We are critical and intolerant. We are wrestling with insecurity. We lack confidence. We always strive to be better off than the next individual.

But a Chinese proverb reads,
“If there is a light in the soul,
There will be beauty in the person.
If there is beauty in the person,
There will be harmony in the house.
If there is harmony in the house,
There will be order in the nation.
If there is order in the nation,
There will be peace in the world.

How can peace begin with me? Jesus says, “I am the Light of the World.” In Christmas God gave us Jesus; a light within our souls. Isaiah 26:3-4 states, "You (God) will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You. Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, is the Rock eternal.” The prophet is speaking of an individual at peace with himself, with God and with others. Such is the peace given to the person who is right with God; “The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever.” Isaiah 32:17. When we are right with God, there is tranquility within the soul and spirit. It frees us from fear and removes the barbs of our anxieties. This personal peace can bring the most satisfaction, the greatest relief and the deepest comfort.

Despite this rendition of Silent Night over the seven o’clock news, since that first Christmas peace has come. It came when God reconcile man to Himself and gave a light in our souls. A political peace can come later, but first God will deal with us individually. Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.

Lionel

Christmas - When God Ran

2007-12-10T10:35:00.000+08:00

Tonight, the lights switched on along Orchard road. This is the time of year again, the Christmas season. The shops are loaded with goods and the streets aglow with Christmas lights and decorations. Christmas is celebrated all over the world, the holiday of the year, exploited for its commercial value to the extent that it is celebrated by everybody; no matter one’s beliefs or culture.

The glitter and the glow of this very commercial Christmas entice people into believing that the message of Christmas is good tidings for everyone. Now here lies the danger, the celebration of Christmas has achieved such a universal “for everybody” status, so “religiously” followed, that we enjoy the trimmings but miss the core – the message of Jesus.

MangerScene NotreDame
Originally uploaded by LeeFamily

What is the core? The message of Christmas is this; that Christ came from heaven to earth and with His birth and in Christ’s person, God dwells among us. All religions teach of the hunger for God. What is unique to Christianity is that God reaches out to establish a warm and personal relationship with us. Emmanuel - God with us. As Zephaniah 3:17 states
“The Lord your God is with you.
He will take great delight in you
He will quiet you with His love.
He will rejoice over you with singing”

Pastor Andrew Peh in a recent sermon, spoke of the balance between God’s Transcendence (God on High) and God’s Imminence (God with Us) in Christianity. At Christmas, the overpowering message is that God is imminently with us. Remember the parable of the Prodigal Son? Andrew explained that the story could have been renamed the Parable of the Prodigal Father. The word prodigal means extravagance. Taken in the light of the son, it is a story of an extravagantly wasteful person, who took his inheritance prematurely from his father and squandered it. Taken in the light of the father, it tells of the father's extravagant love for his two sons, who in spite of the grievous insults done him by both, was profusely abundant in forgiveness and reconciliation. This is what happened at that first Christmas, the amazing grace of a prodigal father. Like the father in the parable who lifted up his garments and ran to embrace his son, at Christmas, God ran.

This story of the Prodigal Son/Father was put to song by Benny Hester and John Parenti, “When God Ran." (click at title to get to a YouTube rendition courtesy of Kazim2U). The lyrics are repeated below;

Almighty God, the Great I Am

Immovable Rock, Omnipotent, Powerful Awesome Lord,

Victorious Warrior Commanding King of Kings, Mighty Conqueror

And the only time

The only time run I ever saw Him run

Was when He ran to me

Took me in His arms

Held my head to His chest

Said “My son's come home again"

Lifted my face

Wiped the tears from my eyes

With forgiveness in His voice

He said "Son do you know I still love you?"

It caught me by surprise (It brought me to my knees)

When God ran

The day I left home I knew I'd broken His heart

I wondered then if things could ever be the same

But one night I remembered His love for me

And down that dusty road ahead I could see

It's the only time, the only time I ever saw Him run
I saw Him run to me

And then I ran to Him Holy One,

Righteous Judge He turned my way

Now I know He's been waiting for this day

And then He ran to me

Took me in His arms

Held my head to His chest

Said “My son's come home again"

Lifted my face

Wiped the tears from my eyes

With forgiveness in His voice I felt His love for me.

Do not miss the central message of Christmas. Enjoy the presence of God in our lives. If you are not a Christian you should seek to receive this precious gift of Christmas, the presence of God in Jesus Christ in your lives. Choose the grace and not the glitter of Christmas.

Lionel

Was blind but now I see

2007-12-08T07:24:00.000+08:00

Or did he? The romantic notion of John Newton, is that he turned from being a captain of a slave ship to a minister of the Gospel when he was converted a Christian. Thereafter he wrote this enduring hymn Amazing Grace which became the signature tune of the Evangelical Movement that began in the UK in the 1700s. After his conversion John Newton having repented became a minister of the Gospel. I discovered having recently read the book “The trader, the owner and the slave” by James Walvin that this was not quite the truth.

John Newton wrote the hymn in Dec 1772 when he was forty-seven years old. He cut his sea-legs working in the Atlantic Slave business plying between the shores of Sierra Leone to the Caribbean islands and passing though the port of Liverpool. He was already a pious Christian with an interest in theology by the time he became fully engaged in slavery. He became a Christian after escaping a shipwreck earlier. While berthing at the island of St Kitts discharging their cargo of African slaves, Newton kept the company of a fellow slave captain, Alexander Curie, with many hours of bible study and intense discussions on theology.

Walvin wrote, “Everyone involved in the world of Atlantic slavery, from the captains of the ships through to slave owners in America and the British-based shippers – all of them measured in their thousands, were lured by the hope of profit. Today it seems obvious. But what is surprising perhaps is that few of them seemed to have any moral or religious qualms about what they were doing?” That it wreaks misery on an epic scale for untold millions barely registered among people like Newton who profited from such a business. He would discharged his human cargo, made a handsome profit, discussed God’s word in his cabin and stepped ashore without a scruple.

Years later, after he became a preacher, he regretted and recanted of his past life. For a long time his sermons followed the theme of “Amazing Grace,” often laced with anecdotes of his past life and sins with much remorse but without ever so much as a hint of his role as a slave trader. In the 1780s, slavery had become a political issue in England. William Wilberforce having been acquainted with him sought his counsel but Newton still maintained his silence on the issue. It was likely that Wilberforce persuaded him to take a public stand. In 1788, John Newton published his “Thoughts upon the African Slave Trade” and explained, “I am bound in conscience to take shame to myself by a public confession, which, however sincere, comes too late to prevent or repair the misery and mischief to which I have, formally been an accessory.”

Since then Christians have lived through Hitler’s Germany, the Rwandan massacre and many other such tragedies, oblivious to injustices done to their fellow men and sometimes even perpetrating them. It is no wonder that the Bible declared in Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? Our Christian conscience can be blind-sighted, our behaviour laced with “holier than thou” notions and our minds prepared to rationalise evil intentions.

What do we do then? Any idealistic notions I may have had surrounding the composition of this hymn, “Amazing Grace” had been dispelled. But wait a minute. Try separating the hymn writer from the hymn itself. Imbibe the message of its verses. Try listening to this "Amazing Grace" by Wintley Phipps (Click on title). Understand how in spite of and despite everything he did or not have done, there could still be reconciliation and final resolution between John Newton and his God. It is this compelling message that justification comes from grace and grace alone that dawned upon Martin Luther and started the Christian reformation. Newton's tombstone reads, "John Newton, Clerk, once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slaves in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned, and appointed to preach the faith he had long labored to destroy." Truly amazing

Shades of Nature, originally uploaded by LeeFamily.

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.

’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved.
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.

Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far
And grace will lead me home.

The Lord has promised good to me
His word my hope secures;
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures.

Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
and mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, who call'd me here below,
Will be forever mine.

A People After God's Heart

2007-12-01T07:32:00.000+08:00

One of the strangest way to describe Christians is “a peculiar people” found in 1 Peter 2: 9. It reads, “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that you should show forth the praises of him who had called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

This peculiarity describes a special relationship of Christians as a people belonging to God. Why? There is a covenant made between God and us. Covenant is a formal agreement between two or more persons or groups of people. This covenant was first described in Exodus Chapter 19. Here God tells the Israelites that they will be His chosen people, ”out of all the nations you will be my treasured possessions.” These people will enjoy special privileges. Their part of the bargain was to obey God fully. After hearing from Moses the covenant God had offer, the people responded together in Exodus 19:18 “We will do everything that the Lord has said.” The Israelites were to be a God centred people; “I will look on you with favour and increase your numbers and I will keep my covenant with you. I will walk among you and be your God and you will be my people.” Leviticus 26:9 and 12.

We know from the Old Testament that Israel failed miserably to keep to its side of the agreement. Even at the Sinai Desert, through the times of the Kings and Prophets we read of numerous occasions when the Israelites deliberately disobeyed God. By the time of the Gospels, this blatant disobedience had turned the people towards a self-centredness, that brought forth the legalism of the Pharisees; a religion built on man’s ability to meet the demands of religious laws.

But Christ came and the covenant relationship was renewed. In the Last Supper, Christ’s mentioned this new covenant which He said is sealed in His blood. He was referring to the imminent sacrifice for us on the Cross by which we are set free from sin. We now enjoy this special relationship between God and Us.

How do we now translate our part of the covenant? There is a question in the Scottish catechism which asked, “What is the Chief aim of man?” To which, the answer is “the chief aim of man is glorify God and to enjoy him forever.” The apostle Paul wrote in 1 Cor 10:31 “whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” In the simplest of terms this is the answer to why we exist, to our purpose in life and to the mission of churches.

How to make this practical? Charles Swindoll had written 3 suggestions which are worth repeating.

(1) Cultivate a habit of including God in every segment of our lives. Everything we do, every plan we make; Is God in it? Is God getting the glory?

(2) Refusing to accept any of the glory that belongs to God. Our selfish nature are huge sponges always ready and willing to soak up all praises. Sometimes we can hide this so effectively with false modesty or false humility. We should constantly remember to claim nothing for ourselves and give all the glory to God.

(3) Maintaining a priority relationship with Him that is more important than any other on earth. There are many challenges to this priority e.g our children, our spouses, our families. Nothing wrong with loving our families or planning for the future but keep our total commitment to God.

This special relationship between God and Man is not to be expressed only in personal terms but collectively as well. A church tells God that its members share values together in a collective desire to be His Chosen People. That is why our church motto is “A people after God’s heart.” Lionel

“If you carry the weight of the world upon your shoulders, I know my brother that He will carry you.”

2007-11-12T21:31:00.000+08:00

For some of us, life has become tough. We hope to find the true meaning for our individual Christian lives and experiences and yet in the living of it some suffer pain, some are struck with illness or handicap; others with emotional burdens. The verses in Heb 12:6 and 7, ‘The Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son. Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons’ bring little comfort. It is not easy to bear this pain, this cross, this discipline. We accept that the Christian experience can be a life of strenuous pilgrimage of endurance and perseverance. But we ask, “Where is the end of this journey? Is there a light at the end of the tunnel?”

There are no easy answers. Only God knows. We marvel at the fortitude of St Clare who stated “Ever since I have known the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, no suffering has been bothersome, no penance too severe, no infirmity has been hard.” But most of us cannot claim to possess such strength.

Perhaps we can take some comfort in a prayer by St. Augustine
“God of our life, these are days when the burden we carry chafe our shoulders and weigh us down;
when the road seems dreary and endless, the skies are grey and threatening;
when our lives have no music in them, and our hearts are lonely, and our souls have lost their courage.
Flood the path with light, run our eyes to where the skies are full of promise;
tune our hearts to brave music, give us the sense of comradeship with heroes and saints of every age;
and so quicken our spirits that we may be able encourage the souls of all who journey with us on the road of life, to Your honour and glory.”

Perhaps we should know that Christ does not set us on the long and winding road alone. In Matthew 11:28 to 30 Jesus said to all who are on this long road,
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

If you carry the weight of the world upon your shoulders, I know my brother that He will carry you.
Lionel

Do we want to be more like Christ?

2007-10-27T08:37:00.000+08:00

Do you want to become like Christ at any cost so that you are prepared to pay any price? Heb 12: 2 -3 “We must keep our eyes on Jesus, who leads us and makes our faith complete. He endured the shame of being nailed to a cross….So keep your mind on Jesus, who put up with many insults from sinners. Then you won't get discouraged and give up.” Who has lived a life like Christ?

ItalyBasilicaSanFrancesca
Originally uploaded by Hollandia93

In Sep 2007, Pat and I went to Assisi to retrace the footsteps of St Francis in the Umbrian and Tuscan countryside of Italy. I wanted to discover who this man was? What did he bring to the Christian faith? What was he trying to tell us? Was he a recluse? Was he callow fellow who melodramatically stripped himself naked in the public square to repudiate his past rich and material life; returning to his father every possession to embrace poverty? Was he a lunatic who would speak to animals and birds? Was he an idealist who did not think a second thought when he kissed a leper and ministered to their colony? Was he a masochist who inflicted on his physical body, the very physical sufferings of Christ?

Contemplation
Originally uploaded by Hollandia93

In visiting the places that venerated his memory and learning about his life, I discovered that St Francis was a Christian who took seriously, the commandment to become more like Christ. What was remarkable was that he physically and not just symbolically or spiritually lived out the life of Jesus as he understood from the Gospels. If Christ said he had no place to lay his feet or to place his head, St Francis did that. If Christ said to go two by two to witness without bringing anything other than the cloak on their backs, Francis complied to the letter. If Gospel described this witnessing event as also to depend on the hospitality of others and go a-begging for food, Francis followed.

I wrote in my journal after visiting Carceri, a mountain top retreat that Francis frequented. “Ever so often (rather ever so seldom I must say) in the church's history, there comes a man or woman whose life and witness come so close to mimicking the life of Jesus that they reflect a semblance of God's image so as to inspire all of us. By his life, ministry, writing and witness, Francis was an example extraordinaire. Francis pointed many in his generation and for 8 more centuries afterwards, towards God. It is not any wonder then, that the Basilica of St Francis and all Assisi celebrate the saint. In fact, the brochure claims that it is a spirit filled place. I do not feel that there is anything wrong to admire St Francis, as I do, so long as one understands his position as a reflection of the infinite beauty of our Lord Jesus.” One of his biographers wrote, “Francis presented to the world a new fascinating way to live a Christian life. His greatest contribution was to demonstrate how to live the gospel Beatitudes literally and by doing so to solve the problems that plague his society. He did that by renouncing its affluence and privileges and taking on poverty chastity and complete obedience.”

To underscore this, a prayer he made kneeling at a crucifix towards the end stages of his life clarifies:
“All highest, glorious God, cast your light into the darkness of my heart. Give me right faith, firm hope, perfect charity and profound humility, with wisdom and perception, O Lord, so that I may do what is truly your holy will. Amen”

One would have thought that such an example would be so hard to follow that few could give up all and join Francis in his calling to live both spiritually and physically the example of Jesus’ life on earth. Instead in just a few years, more than five thousand disciples chose to renounce their riches and to live like him, a life of poverty and service. By the time he died, Francis had already been venerated as a saint; his life has become a stirring example of True Christianity. Lionel

The Transition of a Good Life

2007-10-24T19:26:00.001+08:00

Contemplation
Originally uploaded by Lees@Hollandia

Death is not a snuffing out of life; it is a transition into eternal life.

In the early morning of the 3 Sep 2007, my brother in law, Jimmy Goh died. A small malignant tumour in the lung had spread relentlessly over three years. It eventually spread to the brain. By God’s grace, in a coma, unaware of pain and other discomforts, he drew his last breath.

Jimmy was once a rotund, ruddy faced man. A man of sure faith who will not give up, the kind of faith that should God have willed it, he would be healed. All throughout his three years of struggle, he never gave up hope in the miracle of healing.

With every visitor to his bedside, he would always share the simple graces God has bestowed on him that day. There were many stories of his relationship with fellow patients almost always ending with the sharing of the Gospel of Jesus. His journey with God during his illness became a source of inspiration to visitors, many of whom were members of his cell group. They would later share of his optimism, his endearing friendship, his genuine love, his faithfulness to God, church and friends. Many spoke of his practical piety. Some shared that he always interpreted scripture in manner of attesting the goodness of God to him. He was a grateful fellow, testifying always to the faithfulness, grace and providence of God towards him and his family.

At some point in time, Jimmy must have discerned that it was not God's plan that he would receive a miracle healing. God must have gently alerted him that he would die soon. It did not break his faith. He did not intimate this to his family. If he had any complaints he probably admitted them quietly before God, never betraying his belief that God had his best interest at heart.

At the point of realisation that healing will not come, how does one interact with God and live the remainder of one's days? Frankly, I would not know how. All I know is that part of the Christian witness is to value the sanctity of life and the dignity of death.

As friends and relatives we may have to accompany these loved ones onwards in their journey. I greatly admire the pastors and priests who have been called ever so often to take on this journey with the dying.

One such person I found on the internet is Norman Ingram-Smith, who was Director of Saint Martin-in-the-Fields Social Service Unit from 1965 to 1985. He wrote an article, Facing Death.

"When companioning dying people I have always felt, at the moment of death, a going away rather than a snuffing out of life. The first time that I was asked to companion a dying person I spent a great deal of time preparing myself for what I then pictured to be a difficult matter. I thought about my attitude as I was to sit by his bed in that hospital ward. I rehearsed the words, both of my own and of scripture, that I would say to him as together we waited for him to be dead. In the event I found his bed in the ward, pulled up a chair and settled myself ‘to do this thing’ as I saw it. I was still young enough at the time to think that my greatest contribution to any situation was bound to be wrapped in words. I started on this dying man. Barely had I begun when his fleshless hand came from under the bedclothes and he said to me, ‘There’s no need to talk – just holding my hand will do.’ Not very many minutes later, still smiling, he slipped from his body which would now be pronounced as being dead and the essential ‘him’ had crossed, by dying, into whatever state there is for those for whom Jesus conquered death.”

Death is not the worst thing that can happen to us. After all, it is the spirit that gives life - the body is useless without it. Norman Ingram-Smith said, “Christians can only view life and death as parts of a single continuum. To see the process of dying as a sort of cut-off point is to deny the eternal life in which the body and blood of Christ are keeping us, which is the assertion at every communion service.”

Prayer

2007-08-18T15:53:00.000+08:00

prayinghands
Originally uploaded by Wyscan

I tend to hang out a lot online. By hang out, I mean I'm a member of a number of prominent message boards.

One particular message board which I've been on for the past five or so (maybe even more) years recently started a little thread for prayer requests. The introduction of which is as follows...

"I am placing this thread here as a place for Christian players to request prayer. I plan to check the thread regularly, and pray for the requests (as long as they aren't un-Christian.) I encourage others to also pray in response to the prayer requests.

I'll make the first request. Please help me pray for the wisdom, knowledge, and strength to be a better servant of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the Son of the one true God.

I hope that God is glorified through this thread." - Shaper Geneson

Although the thread itself isn't really popular, it being predominantly Christian, there have been a number of requests for prayers from people who don't follow the way and it's heartening to see prayer being used as a tool to help others. I check the thread daily to pray for friends that I know, and a fair few people that I don't even know the real names of. I figure, God knows who I'm talking about, even if I don't.

I have had online friends who had troubles and told me about them. Seeing as I can't get out to Canada or Switzerland or America in the blink of an eye to give them hugs or advice directly, my best way of helping is to pray for them. I'll tell them that I'm doing it and pray with them over the microphone or just over chat in a chat room. God knows best, and it's almost surprising how much comfort people can take in prayer. And the prayers are answered, sometimes in very specific ways, I get feedback from friends about it. This keeps me going, even if I do feel embarrassed praying over a microphone for someone that I haven't even met.

In fact, I've had people tell me that they've never been prayed for before.

I cannot imagine not being prayed for. Praying for others and being prayed for is something I remember from way back when. I remember waking up early in mornings sometimes, lying in bed, I can see Papa or Mummy kneeling by my bedside praying for me. It is something comforting, knowing that God has my back and that I'm not the only one struggling to pray for myself - that other people care as well.

To me, prayer is probably the most powerful tool that we Christians have. I mean, to be able to talk with God? That's pretty important stuff! I recall that one pastor in my church once observed that in Jerusalem, they rock when they pray. Why? Because it's GOD that they're talking to when they pray. Why shouldn't they pray with all their heart and soul, mind and body? It's GOD.

So, take some time off sometime today and do some praying. I generally do every day before I sleep. I take time to tell God what I've done today, thank him for the funny addresses (simple pleasures that keep me going) in my work as well as for the many many blessings he has given me, I thank him for dying on the cross for my sins. I pray for my family, for friends that I know the names of, for friends I don't know the names of and for people I don't know from Adams. Then I pray for myself. Then, I thank God for listening to it all and being patient enough. Praying really reminds me of everything that I have to thank and praise him for. The words come out easily. Sometimes, I have so much to say, I fall asleep saying it. But, it's a good thing, because I've touched base with God.

So, take some time now, today, whenever... and just sit down with your family, or someone that you know, or someone that you don't even know but you've been listening to (My pastor even prays for complete strangers he's met on the bus!) ... and pray.

Because it's important.

Becky Lee

Time's Running Out! Find Purpose

2007-08-15T22:09:00.001+08:00

Bright candle in the darkness
Originally uploaded by Markus Merz

John 12:35-36 - Then Jesus told them, "You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. The man who walks in the dark does not know where he is going. Put your trust in the light while you have it, so that you may become sons of light."

26 Dec 2004. Time is running out. For myself, half a century of age has gone past, opportunities that were missed cannot be retrieved and time had slipped away. But Christians have eternity with God. This means that we will always and forever stay in the light. We could say that there is no need for any sense of urgency for us. Yet, Jesus reminded us, “Walk while you are in the light before darkness overtakes you.” What can we do in the remaining time to influence others for good? If we do not walk in the light, the wisdom, the guidance, the influence that could have shape and mold us is lost for the time that has past. Such a light can also shape our friends and family by virtue of our witness and influence. So in the little time that we have in this world we are to use it wisely and stay within the influence of the light – without which life on earth may wasted and time that has passed could have been better used.

15 Aug 2007. This same theme recurs in the current 40 Days of Purpose Campaign which was launched recently in Charis Methodist Church. It is centred on the book “The Purpose Driven Life” by Rick Warren. Our Pastor, the Rev Yeo Lay Suan introduced the campaign asking the question “What on earth are we here for?” The take home message for me and my personal reason to participate actively in the campaign is not to waste the remainder of my life away. How can I maximize the remaining time I have here on earth? Pastor Yeo gave an anecdote of an eaglet who fell into a farmer’s coop and was raised amongst the chickens. All its life, the eagle thought that it was a chicken and never knew the truth of what it is like to fly and to feel the wind beneath its wings. How tragic? I was always perturbed by the first verse of the Bible book Ecclesiastes in which the teacher which lamented, “Meaningless! Meaningless! Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless!” It will be meaningless, if those of us who are destined to be eagles go through life as chickens.

Life meaningless? No! Life matters! We need to be in the light to see that we are no chickens but eagles. In Jeremiah 29:11, the Lord said, “For I know, the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Find Purpose. Find Meaning. Find God.
Lionel

The Distinctive Marks of Strong Christian Families

2007-07-28T08:16:00.001+08:00

Barnstorming
Originally uploaded by dkendig

Civilizations and nations that thrive understand that underpinning their strength is the attention and priority to strong family principles and values. But, these days, children like to be independent at very early ages. This streak of independence and self-help is not wrong in itself; what will be missed is the sense of community and togetherness of a strong family when times become difficult. In Singapore and Malaysia there is a Malay word ‘gotong-royong.’ ‘Gotong Royong’ exist in the Malay kampongs (enclaves) where families will chip in and help another family in need or the whole community in a spirit of co-operation. You see this same spirit in the Amish community as noted by barn raisings. Neighbors freely give of their time and their skills to help one another. When children leave home too early without first capturing the gotong-royong or family spirit something will remain missing in their lives.

The Lees@Ban Thao Beach Phuket

Christianity emphasises the importance of keeping the family strong but at no other times are family values threatened and undervalued than in these modern times. To prevent this it may be useful for us to heed the guidance of God in establishing strong Christian principles of keeping our family together. Effective family life does not just happen; it’s the result of deliberate intention and practice. If countries are underpinned by strong families then strong families are undergirded by God's teachings. What are these principles?

Hear the Truth Continually. “Hear O Israel, the lord is Our God, the Lord is one.” Strong families lean hard on some unshakeable facts and this is a major one. The Lord is OUR God is not a statement to be uttered like some mantra but to be lived. The pronoun is in the pleural so this is not a personal matter. This must be our family statement. We acknowledge His presence, His uniqueness, His place, His right to rule over us. We seek His will. We walk in His ways. And just as the Lord is One, the family is also One.

Love the Lord fervently. “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words, which I am commanding you shall be upon your heart.” Underline the word ALL. Our love for God must be complete. It is not possible to transfer to our children a principle and then to propagate through the succeeding generations if we as parents do not personally embrace a love for God that permeates all of our being. The family’s love for God must be a deep down dedication.

Teach the Young Diligently. “And you shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. And you shall write them on the door posts of your house and on your gates.” The take-home message here is one of intensity, to teach every time and every where. To do this, teaching must be such that it is done in very natural setting making use of every opportunity that life presents to point the children to God and His love. The teaching has to be consistent and in many ways repetitious. It is not only to be communicated with verbal cues but with visual cues, body language - parents must live the teaching.

Extended Lees in Malaysia

Fear the Lord Greatly. “...God brings you into the land ...to give you, great and splendid cities which you did not build and houses full of all good things which you did not fill and hewn cisterns which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant, and you shall eat and be satisfied, then watch yourself, lest you forget the Lord who brought you from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall fear only the Lord your God; and you shall worship Him...do not follow other gods...for the Lord your God in the midst of you is a jealous God.” The things we own, our wealth, our other blessings comes directly from God. God is always looking out for us. There is a saying 'do not bite the hand that feed you.' How easy when blessed to adopt a presumptuous and arrogant spirit? We are surrounded by other gods of materialism, fame, riches, power, ambition etc We need a healthy dose of the ‘fear of God,' the reverence and a wholesome respect for His sovereignty and primacy in our lives and our families.

Strong families build strong houses and Proverbs 18:10 says ‘the name of the Lord is a strong tower, the righteous runs into it and is safe.’

Lionel

Eking out a Living

2007-07-20T07:18:00.000+08:00

7 Jul 2007, Pat and I were along Jonker’s Street, Melaka. We chanced upon a family of six. The parents were setting up a stall, which was no more a simple 3-legged wooden stand supporting a cylindrical container about 30 inches in diameter and 5 inches high. Seated on a stool each, they began selling hardened maltose flakes that we used to call ting-ting sweets. The name is derived from the sound of hammer and chisel the hawker makes as he breaks off bits of hardened maltose in the cylindrical receptacle. The children are about ages 7, 6, 3 with the youngest, an infant. I was impressed at how the children were able to fend for themselves. The older daughter probably 6 years old carried her baby brother in her arms so securely and comfortably as any adult would. These children could have been playing computer games or watching cartoons on TV on a Saturday night. Instead they were with their parents at a 'pasar malam' along Jonker's Street in Melaka on a Saturday night. Probably the parents wanted every chance to earn an honest living, even if it is meager and the kids must come along in tow.

Another shot
Originally uploaded by simalem

That's life but an honest day's living nonetheless. Many people in Malaysia and Singapore try to make an extra dollar working hard setting up make-shift stalls to sell their wares at night. This is called the Pasar Malam. There is a lesson to be learnt here about honest industry as a means to get out of the poverty cycle. People who are born to poor families are often trapped. Poor nutrition, poor education, poor work habits, and poor family relationships can easily condemn an individual to perpetual poverty. But those that make their way out, do so by grit and hard work, seizing every opportunity to earn a living. St Paul in his advice to young Timothy, stated : "It is the hardworking farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops.” (2 Tim 2:6). John Wesley preached “Gain all you can. Gain all you can by honest industry. Use all possible diligence in your calling. Lose no time. Every business will afford some employment sufficient for every day and every hour. That wherein you are placed, if you follow it in earnest, will leave you no leisure for silly, unprofitable diversions. You have always something better to do, something that will profit you, more or less. And "whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might."

Not only were the hawker parents at Jonker Street working hard, but by having their four children accompany them they are surely imparting to the children a lesson in honest industry. Perhaps these children might seize the opportunities that come their way. Opportunities, the parents never had or missed, e.g. a good education. Then they will be able get a better break, a better start. As I sat there watching this family in their current struggle, I knew that the example the parents were setting will help this family. Eventually, they will be set free from their current poverty not by the charity of others but by the industry of their own hands.
Lionel

Must Life be a Struggle?

2007-07-14T15:35:00.003+08:00

CardinalsGold
Uploaded by Lionel

I have a small pond of Oranda goldfishes. Two of them in particular strike my fancy. One red fish had a slice of its long broad tail bitten off. The poor thing is no longer able to swim properly. It is a struggle for it to stay afloat and to fight for food amongst seven other goldfishes. Yet it is feisty fish and is determined to have its space within the pond. For this red one, life is a struggle.

The other is a silver Oranda with a red cap. Pat calls it the Cardinal. In contrast it swims gracefully and effortless, spreading fins and a broad and long flowing tail.

When I watched these two fishes, I long for that gracefulness of the cardinal and yet I best identify with the struggle of the red oranda.

What has life in store for us? Is it one of struggle instead of graceful peace? What does God require of us? The Bible in Micah 6:8 answered this question "He has showed you, O man, what is good and what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." God requires from us, not the usual outward show and outcomes of Christian witness but the depth of inner character. We are asked to walk humbly with our God. My vision of this is akin to gliding through the gentle waves of a quiet pond like a graceful goldfish.

Jeremiah 29:11 reminds us, “I know the thoughts that I think toward you,’ says the Lord, ‘thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope”. It is comforting to know that God has our best interest at heart.

I used to think that we have to struggle to prevent ourselves from backsliding; like the red oranda goldfish. I imagined myself clinging onto God desperately in case I fall. Psalms 37: 23-24 states "The steps of a man are established by the Lord; and He delights in his way. When he falls, he shall not be hurled headlong; because the Lord is the One who holds his hands". Should life be a struggle ? If keeping up a good Christian witness becomes a struggle, then consider this - it is God who holds us.

I hope that I can treasure the times when God helped me and learn to accept from Him the grace He gives me everyday. Then I can live honestly, be just, perform small acts of kindness and walk humbly before Him.

Lionel

Generosity - the Joy of Giving

2007-07-04T07:21:00.011+08:00

generosity
Originally uploaded by richbeechina

In a consumer society, all of us are tempted to buy more than we actually need. The sales in town entice us to buy our 13th shirt, our 8th pair of shoes and 10th colour of lipstick. Yet wealth is not fairly distributed, while we spend our wealth many of our neighbours struggle to put food on the table.

We should heed the warning given in Ecc 5:10-11 ‘Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless. As goods increase, so do those who consume them. And what benefit are they to the owner except to feast his eyes on them?’ Perhaps many of us could forego our irrational wanting of extras and learn to give generously.

What is generosity? It is the act of helping and giving willingly without expecting anything in return. A friend, Rev Tony Tan, shared this poem:

Why should we give money to save the heathen abroad when there are heathens in our own country yet to be saved.
Why should we give money to those in other parts of this country when there are needy ones in my own state.
Why should I give to those in other parts of the state when there are needy ones in my hometown.
Why should I give to the poor in the town when my own church needs the money.
Why should I give to the church when I should give to the family
Why should I give to the family what I want for myself.
Why?
Because I am a Christian and I am not a heathen. And a Christian is called to be generous.

We rationalise about the extent we should or could give. We become calculative with our tithes. Rev Sharon Koh, daughter of Victor Koh and Kah Kiat, our very close friends, spoke in church on 1 Jul 2007 on the topic 'Joy of Giving'. She spoke of the first offerings described in the Bible in Gen 4:3-7 by Cain and Abel and of their differing attitudes to offerings. The Bible recorded that Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. She explained that God’s preference of the offerings has nothing to do with meat over crop offering. Cain’s attitude in giving back to the Lord mirrors the attitudes of many Christians, we give what we think is good enough for God and not the best. Not our first fruit.

In Proverbs 3:9-10 the injunction is to ‘Honour the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.’ Many of us chose to interpret this verse as a guarantee to wealth. Give and you will get more. This is diametrically opposite to the message of grace in the Bible. Grace taught to us in the bible is not a result of a bargain or trade. Instead God promises us rich blessings but not in terms of material wealth. To give generously in is to honour God. Sharon challenged us to consider, what are our first fruits?

How can we be generous Christians?

Generosity comes by Purpose: Pastor Andrew Peh shared with us John Wesley's sermon “The Use of Money " Wesley had this to say “The love of money, we know, is the root of all evil; but not the thing itself. The fault does not lie in the money, but in them that use it. It may be used ill: and what may not? But it may likewise be used well: It is full(y) as applicable to the best, as to the worst uses.” The first lesson about being generous is to learn to use money for the good that can come from it. For most of us giving is an impulsive behaviour of throwing some coins into a can during Flag Day. Cor 8:3,4 notes, "For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing the gospel". Instead of giving impulsively, give purposefully. Purposeful giving is planned giving, you give because you believe in something and you want to give to it.

Dr David Livingston, missionary and explorer extraordinaire said “I will place no value on anything I have or may possess except in relation to the kingdom of Christ. If anything I have will advance the interest of the kingdom it shall be used or given away. Only as by giving or using it, I may promote the glory of him who I owe all my hopes in time and eternity.” Another great doctor-missionary Albert Schweitzer said, “One thing I know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who will have sought and found how to serve.” These men knew how to give and they gave with a purpose to serve God.

Generosity comes by Grace. 2 Cor 8:6 “ so we urge Titus that as he begun so he would also complete this grace in you as well…meaning he would continue to encourage you to give as God’s grace enables you to.” We often think that only rich people can be generous. Rev Tony Tan preached "when we meet a truly generous person – we know that it is a gift from God, a person given by God the grace of generosity; that is really the truth. That is why those who really give a lot don’t crow so much. They know deep inside that they can give only because they have experienced the love of God, the touch of God and they feel gratitude for God - so they must give. If we struggle to give, it is because we have not yet learn to trust God to teach us to give."

Rev Tan told a story of Hudson Taylor, who as a poor medical student, chanced upon a widow with many children. One child was sick and in need of medicine. Hudosn Taylor was filled with compassion; he started to pray. As he was praying he heard a voice whispering to him, “hypocrite.” He continued praying but the voice again said, ‘hypocrite.’ Hudson reached into his pocket and he felt a half a crown which was the next week’s tuition fees. Hudson gave that half crown to the widow and left, not knowing when he would eat his next meal. The next day, in the mail Hudson received a letter from a friend. The friend had written that he was moved to hand some money to Hudson. In that envelop was money seven times that half a crown.

Generosity comes by Giving. 2 Cor 8: 5 “And this they did not as we had expected but they first gave themselves to God and then to us by the will of God. They first gave themselves to God." John Wesley in the same sermon on the use of money said, “let not any man imagine that he has done anything, barely by going thus far, by "gaining and saving all he can," if he were to stop here. All this is nothing, if a man go not forward. Add the third rule to the two preceding. Having, first, gained all you can, and, secondly saved all you can, then give all you can."

If there is someone who has given generously all the time, we will find in this person a man or woman who has given himself, herself to God. Our lives are in God’s hands. If you are truly consecrated to God what do you have to fear? That you have no money?

Lionel

Sleeping easy at night - Letter to Becky on Wisdom and Decision Making

2007-06-23T08:06:00.001+08:00

Decisions
Originally uploaded by barnabybretton

4 June 2007
Dear Becky,

Uncle Johnson loaded the Daily Bread so that whenever we turn on our desktop at home we receive one Bible verse. This morning the verse was Prov 3:24 “when you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.” Immediately I thought of you, how the other night you did not sleep well because you were frightened by something you read. I thought that you should claim this verse especially since, living alone, you need protection from God. I remember telling you to be careful about what you read and watch. If these were horror stories or horrible pictures, as had happened, you should discard them straight away. Well, I hope that you have recovered from that episode. Anyway, I sought to read the passage to find out what is it that the Bible has to say to help us with peaceful sleep most nights of our years.

The text is Prov 3:21-24 “My son, preserve sound judgment and discernment, do not let them out of your sight; they will be life for you, an ornament to grace your neck. Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble; when you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.”

Being an older person, I also realise that peace in our lives comes when we learn to exercise sound judgement using the wisdom God provides. Then we will make decisions and choose options that are usually right. We will make less (not no) bad decisions that can “haunt” us many years later. If we want to avoid a bad decision, the best is to ask the Lord for wisdom and discernment. Who else can be to us a sound resource and a wellspring of guidance for the choices we have to make of our lives? Prov 3 has many many tips and general guidance. It is written like a father’s advice to his son. Maybe you should bookmark the page in your Bible and refer often to it. Such decisions often have very long-lasting impact. Good and godly decisions will show on your life. They become like the ornaments you wear, everyone can see. Good decisions make you sleep easy.

How do you make good decisions? These days the art of decision making has almost become a science. Tools are being developed to help big businesses, corporations and governments to arrive at good decisions via computer aids, algorithms, data fusion and early artificial intelligence. The term “sensemaking” is in vogue wherein computer scientists and psychologists derive methods, processes and systems to help decision making in complex situations.

No one can guarantee that you will make good decisions all the time. The trick is to minimize the bad ones. How? I think there is no other way but to seek counsel from parents, family, sincere friends BUT most importantly, to seek God’s counsel. God does not often speak so loudly like your Dad. In fact God is often subtle and we can easily make decisions we like and still think that it is God’s choice. Ask questions like: Will it bring honour to God? Will God like it? What general principles can be found in the Bible to guide you? Will what I do bring dishonour Jesus’ name? Will I have the blessing of my parents? Will God be pleased with me? Maybe don’t be hasty rather, take time and ask "what ifs?". This is call discernment. The Christian family and Church can help us discern what is right. There is a posting on the Internet by Jim Thomas (Intervarsity) entitled True Wisdom in the Kingdom of God that is worth reading. Jim wrote, “Ultimately, discernment means rejecting some information as untrue, inconsistent with one's values, or simply inappropriate. Discernment often works best as a communal effort. This role is central to the church. As we cultivate relationships with insightful believers by worshipping, learning and serving with them, we receive valuable insights about ourselves and our thoughts. In the context of meaningful relationships, fellow believers are able to struggle with our ideas and how they pertain to our core beliefs, motivations and particular situations.”

Finally, no one can guarantee for you, in any advice, that it will be the right one. Sometimes guidance that is right and righteous can even be painful at first. Only later will we realize their longer lasting wisdom.

Papa

Be Authentic

2007-06-16T04:27:00.001+08:00

Blue White China

In the face of an increasingly self-centred world, Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount challenges us to a lifestyle that is completely and radically different. This sermon which is recorded for us by Matthew in his chapters 5 to 7 is a call for us to move from superficial, shallow and “plastic” religiosity to a sincere, authentic, practical faith. Jesus was not looking outside at the non-Jews rather; he was looking inside and at his own people, his own family, the religious leaders of his days, the Pharisees. Likewise the Sermon on the Mount looks at us, the church and the people of God and offers a paradigm change in thinking and behavior. Time and again in this sermon, Jesus states the way things were and then offered a change in conduct and attitude. He used the phrase, “You have heard….but I say to you.” So Jesus in Matthew 6:1-18 told us to cut out the play-acting, the hypocrisy and get down to genuine and authentic behaviour. There are 2 lessons for us:

a. The World is not a stage – Don’t Play Act. The root word for hypocrisy is “play acting.” This is how Jesus described hypocrites, play actors. He said “Be especially careful when you are trying to be good so that you do not make a performance out of it. It might be good theatre, but the God who made you won’t be applauding.” (Peterson – The Message). It may not be obvious but Churches turn away far more people from Christ than winning them for him by not ‘walking the talk.’ The non-Christians and the young Christians are quick to detect hypocrisy within the church. In contrast authentic Christianity when it is manifested never requires advertisement or publicity. Jesus taught “When you do something for someone else, don’t call attention to your self, When you help someone out. Don’t think about how it looks. Just do it – quietly and unobtrusively. That is the way your God, who conceived you in love, working behind the scenes, helps you out.” The problem is that we divide our lives into two compartments – spiritual and secular. We keep our Sunday spiritual behaviour in one compartment and the rest of our lives in another. As a result we do not relate what we hear on Sunday to the way we run our businesses from Monday onwards. Very soon we will have the need to act up on Sunday, to don our Sunday best and play act.

b. Don’t demonstrate prayer – Just pray. ‘And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you,’ Matt 6:5-6.

XianVase

The Latin word for sincerity is ‘Sine cere’, which when translated literally means ‘without wax”. And the Greek word for sincere has its roots in the notion of being “sun-tested.” Fine porcelain is greatly valued and therefore expensive. Often in the making of a vase when the porcelain is fired in the kiln tiny cracks would appear if the standard of the material were not good enough. Dishonest merchants would smear pearly white wax over the cracks, and try to pass off the lower valued stuff as fine porcelain – unless held up to the light of the sun. Similarly, our cracks will appear when held up to Jesus the light of the world and we dare to fake it in prayer? When we over demonstrate our spirituality in a put-on fashion, the non-Christians are quick to notice the fault lines. Can we withstand scrutiny when we are held up to the light? What will show when our books are open?

I have struggled with this problem for many years. In the office I am noted to be a very harsh person. I am quick and sharp in meetings and have been known to be ‘brutally frank and open’. At first I thought that this was a sincere way of doing things - ‘tell it like it is.’ But there were times when I overdo myself and the words I used could be said to be offensive. My staff saw me as a very strict man. I am not so sure now if I was being sincere or I am just a hypocrite. A more caring and soft approach is more consistent with my ‘Sunday’ behaviour? How to be sincere without having to be brutally frank? Unless we question ourselves we cannot often spot our hypocrisy. I think there is no better way to put up ourselves to the light than to hold ourselves to the light of God – He knows. King David knew when he prayed in Ps 139 “O LORD, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD."

There was a king once, who was fashionable and pompous. He likes to wear beautiful clothes and make a display of himself. On his birthday he commissioned for himself the most beautiful outfit, one that has to be resplendent and fitting for the grand occasion of his birthday parade. But being the pompous man that he is, he was not satisfied with any of the fabrics and designs that were shown to him by the many tailors of the land. As the day of the parade approaches, he still had not made up his mind and he had no new outfit to wear. One day, two tailors came to the palace. They “showed” him a beautiful cloth supposedly made of the finest material. It was said to be dazzling in colour and texture. It was a cloth so special that only a person of the appropriate stature and ability would appreciate its beauty and subtlety. We know, of course, there is no such cloth but the tailors took advantage of the king’s pride. They described the illusion so splendidly that the king, not to be outdone, joined in the charade. So did all the people at court. On this birthday everybody remarked how beautiful and resplendent the new outfit was. The king wore his splendid new clothes and went on a parade through down. All the town people cheered and clapped and hailed. They strained their necks to see the clothes that glittered until a young boy sitting on the shoulders of his father shouted, “Look mum the emperor has no clothes on.”

In 2 Cor 5:17, we are described as a new creation. “Therefore if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation; the old has gone and the new has come.” The emperor’s new clothes were visible only to those who pretended that it is there. We may be guilty of putting on a new man that is scarcely discernable to the outside world. And all of us in church clap and wave as we parade and strut about each Sunday. Perhaps it is time to cut the hypocrisy. Be authentic. Lionel

People hearing without listening

2007-06-11T23:35:00.001+08:00

Osino Hakkai Cold Springs

Yesterday Pastor Evan Seah preached from Amos 8:11-13. "The days are coming," declares the Sovereign LORD, "when I will send a famine through the land - not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the LORD. Men will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, searching for the word of the LORD, but they will not find it. In that day the lovely young women and strong young men will faint because of thirst.” He warned that this generation may face the danger of a famine of the hearing the words of the Lord. Notice that the Bible did not say that there is a famine of the Word of God but a famine of Hearing of the Word. It is not that there are no bibles. The Bible has been the most popular best seller for many decades. Each Christian household probably has more than 2 bibles of differing translations. Then, Christians have been known to smuggle bibles into China only to discover that more bibles are printed in China than in any other country in the world. It is not a famine of preaching and preachers either. Today many sermons can be received or downloaded from the Internet in MPEG format. Evan described a tune off phenomenon in listeners whenever God’s word is read and preached. The eyes of many a congregation member turned glassy and sleepy. Yes, this generation knows how to put on a screen-saver mode.

To be fair, given the competition for attention in advertisements, entertainment, internet and a info-deluge world, dull preaching should be given no time of day. Moreover, church attendees nowadays are attracted to entertainment mode preaching. Christian especially the young seem to have no time nor patience, if they cannot be entertained. They switch off and go look for churches that provide ‘entertainment’ either in the music or in preaching. This is not so much an indictment on the churches as it is an indictment on the modern day Christians: Is there something plastic in our spirituality that we listen and yet not hear, hear and yet not listen? Is there today a famine in the midst of plenty? Why has this happened to Singaporean Christians?

Pastor Benny Ho, in his series ‘Seek God and Live!’ on the Book of Amos made this statement, “Today we practise religiosity and not righteousness.” Drawing lessons from the circumstances surrounding Amos’ days and the pseudo-religion introduced by King Jeroboam, Pastor Ho obliquely warned that we may have the same circumstances existing today as did exist in the Old Testament days which provoked the prophecy of Amos. Jeroboam set up the trappings of religiosity of false religion in Bethel and Dan but lacking the righteous truth (1 Kings 12:25-31). He made idols, ordained priests and set up his own holy calendar. In the same way we look for the trappings of religion, we come to church to be entertained and when the preaching turn to issues we do not want to hear, we simply switch off. If we continue in this fashion soon we will face a famine of the hearing of God’s Words. We will search for God’s words and truth at all the wrong places and we will not find it. There is going to be an unquenchable thirst. This can be dreadful.

In contrast, we could look at the discourse between Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4:7-13. The woman saw significance of the water from that well attached to popularity of Jacob. She could not see beyond mere cult popularity in attesting to the significance of the water she was drawing for Jesus - mere religiosity bearing on superstition. What did Jesus offer? Jesus taught her that there is a new water which He shall provide, that water which will be a cure for the thirsty young people of Amos' days. Jesus, the Living Word of God, provides water that shall make us never thirst again, the drinking of which will well up to the righteousness of eternal life. It was God's design that before the sermon, Hock Yun the song leader chose this song, the "Heart of Worship." Matt Redman penned these words

When the music fades and all is stripped away and I simply come

Longing just to bring something that's of worth that will bless Your heart

I'll bring You more than a song, for a song in itself. is not what You have required

You search much deeper within, through the way things appear You're looking into my heart

I'm coming back to the heart of worship and it's all about You; All about You, Jesus

I'm sorry, Lord, for the things I've made it when it's all about You; All about You, Jesus

Doesn't this speak of stripping away all religiosity and coming back to the Fountain whose water when we drink of shall never make us thirst again?

Lionel

Immanuel - God with us

2007-06-09T21:17:00.000+08:00

Many religions teach of the hunger for God. This quest is vividly described in Psalms 69:2-3, “I sink in the miry depths, where there is no foothold. I have come into the deep waters; the flood engulfs me. I am worn out calling for help; my throat is parched. My eyes fail, looking for God. ” Like the Psalmist, we have honestly searched for a meaning in life, we have hungered for a special relationship with God but some of us have not found Him.

Recently neuroscientists tried to understand the experience of the ‘presence of God’ through studying the excitation of different parts of the brain during the ecstasy of a religious experience. In an article in the New Scientist entitled ‘In Search of God’ Bob Holmes described scientific experiments by Andrew Newberg and Eugene d’Aquili of deep meditation during which eight meditation practitioners underwent brain imaging. These neuroscientists noted a relative deactivation of the parietal lobe areas which regulate attention and self awareness. In contrast the limbic system which regulate emotions becomes activated. Apparently the same findings will occur for Tibetan monks as for Franciscan nuns. This means that whatever the religious faith there is a common pathway in the brain for the ‘touching God experience.’ Now skeptics have used these findings to argue that God has no real existence, that the presence of God is actually just a result of chemical induction of brain functions. On the other hand, one can argue that God made and designed us so that we, human beings his creation, would have this neuro-ability for God-man interaction.

In awe of the cliffs at Solva, Wales

The search for God is not novel. It is a natural yearning for man because we are created in God’s image. What is unique in the Christian faith, is the fact and belief that God reaches out to establish a warm and personal relationship with us to the extent that Jesus came and manifest to us, God. Being God himself, Jesus established His presence in us and amongst us. This is what is meant by Immanuel – God with Us. Enjoying God’s presence with us is perfectly natural, not lofty nor difficult. “The Lord your God is with you. He will take great delight in you; he will quiet you with His love. He will rejoice over you with singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). So, Jesus offers to all of us, regardless of colour and race, the poor and the rich this same privilege of a relationship with God. He admitted us, who believed in Him, into that special relationship on the condition of our faith and belief in Him. For some, especially the religious mystics amongst us, the relationship will indeed go into realm of parietal lobe deactivation and limbic system activation. However ordinary our relationship with God or however profound, this relationship is not on account of good deeds or any sacrifices we can offer. It is a grace, which we receive, a present, which we do not deserve.

For the Christian going in search of God is a second order event, the primary truth is that by grace God has establish a personal relationship with us. But for some of us, our lives may have become dry. We need once more to feel the presence of God in our lives. Sometimes we think this communion with God is an intellectual pursuit. With this mindset, that God’s presence seems to occur only when we engaged in Christian thought, in church, at bible study, at praise and worship or in deep meditation. But the presence of God is not something we do. It isn’t a matter of achieving God’s presence but of surrendering to the presence that is already within us. God is with us in every moment, in every aspect of life, not only in thinking and the practice, but also in feeling, in sensing, in seeing, in listening, in moving.
Lionel

Church Under Construction

2007-06-04T06:37:00.001+08:00

Sagrada Familia
Originally uploaded by Edith Frost

There is a church in Barcelona, the Sagrada Familia which has not been completed to date. It started in 1894 under the illustrious architect Antonin Gaudi and is still under construction. Gaudi replied, when asked why has it taken so long, with the classic, "The patron of this project is not in a hurry."

SagradaFamiliaBarcelona

Pat, Debbie and I visited the Sagrada Familia, the Church of the Holy Family in Apr 2001. The picture we took showed a grand and imposing structure but there is still no roof. It reminded me of a sermon I gave in church on 21 Feb 1996 from 1 Cor 3: 3-15 -- Don’t you think that it is unrealistic for imperfect Christians to expect their church to be perfect and the church community to be a utopian society? We are sinners saved by grace. If the church is made up of people such as us, then it is naive not to expect any problems. So why are Christians often intolerant of their local church? How often have we broken away from the congregation to move on to seemingly better churches, where there was to be better worship, better fellowship, better teaching, better pastors, better leaders, better ministries only to find after a few months in the new church that same old “church” problems resurfaced in different angles and dimensions. It is the same problem of an imperfect community trying to become perfect and never quite reaching there.

Sometimes we are led to believe that the New Testament church was a perfect congregation but we have the New Testament letters precisely because these churches were imperfect and required some corrections and rebuke. The Galatians were wrong on a basic point of doctrine. The Philippians were suffering from disunity. The Colossian church was suffering from a group within the church who regarded themselves as better than everybody else. Corinth had a variety of problems, problems of immorality, of factionalism and unsound doctrine. Martin Luther once said; “The face of the church is the face of the sinner.”

It would help us to stop church hunting for the perfect church if we realise that the church is a building still under construction. Most buildings under construction look a terrible mess until the last stage is reached. The dust and dirt, chaos and confusion make it hard to believe that this will be the temple of God. Our Charis Young Praisers sang a song once which I will never forget; it is call "Kids under Construction." Our church, Charis Methodist Church, is still under construction. It is not yet finished. This fact of our imperfections should be clearly recognised and accepted. We would be foolish to expect to find anywhere, and certainly not in Charis, a perfected congregation at this stage. So instead of trying to find a better church let us unite with one another to improve the church because it is also equally clear that in the long run, God’s aim is finish the construction and to perfect it. We are called to be co-labourers in Christ to build a church on firm foundations. Then let us be grateful for God's patience with us, 'our patron who is not in a hurry.'

Lionel

The Beauty of Holiness

2007-05-27T17:21:00.000+08:00

Rev Tan-Yeo Lay Suan in today’s sermon on the Holy Spirit spoke that a key indication of a Spirit-filled person is the expression of the ‘Beauty of Holiness” in that person’s life. This struck me as a distinctive thought/lesson different from the usual ones we would associate with sermons on the Holy Spirit. Often these ‘Holy Spirit’ sermons emphasized an external display of spectacular gifts which could be exploited for evangelism and mission e.g. the gifts of miracles and healing. Here, Rev Yeo expounded on an inner gift arguing and indicating that such a gift can equally attract others to Jesus. She went on to illustrate this by quoting an example of a Christian businessman who ran a ranch for tourists. He also wanted to witness and evangelise the gospel to his tourist guests without being direct and intrusive. His method was to staff his ranch by asking 3 questions: Do you like work? Do you like life? Do you love Jesus? Depending on the maturity of their answers he would engage the staff for this ranch. Soon his guests in the ranch would be asking him how he managed to get so many attractive staff. They had noted a certain quality displayed in the attitude of the staff, the way they carried out their work, their zest for life and these became evidence of a rich Christian witness. Soon this businessman could speak of his method of selection and by the next few days his guests would be so attracted to the Christian witness that they were eager to know what Jesus taught and gave. Did not Jesus say that He shall give us life and life abundantly?

In searching the Internet to find what other Christian writers have to say on this topic, I found surprisingly few. The Bishop of Winchester in a sermon 16 Jul 2006 stated that there is a “fundamental beauty of holiness which is the holy life, obedient to the truth of God in Jesus, humbly and penitently expectant of his changing us “into his likeness from glory to glory” so that we embody and express the love of Jesus in every aspect of our lives. It is thus not surprising that Rev Yeo should preach that the key to a Spirit Life lies in the transformation of what is within and not the reception/display of what is external. Another, internet writer who I shall not name wrote, “First, the beauty of holiness is imperceptible to the natural man, and therein it differs radically from the beauties of mere nature….. the natural man is totally incapable of discerning the excellence of that which is of great price in the sight of God.” I cannot agree with this writer. I believe that Man God's creation, has the ability to discern beauty when it is really there. I think beauty attracts us like bees to honey. When one really possess the Spirit filled qualities that person is an attractive person, not by external and physical attraction but by the winsomeness of an inner character. And contrary to my Christian brother-writer, such a beauty can be readily recognized and admired by believers and non-believers alike. Hence, the businessman rancher mentioned by Rev Yeo understood perfectly that the evidence of a spirit filled life is not just in the outward gifts but also the inner qualities, the effective evangelist is not just in the inspiring message but in quiet witness and the faithful churchmen is not only in the doing but in the being.

Don’t we all want as Christians to have the beauty of holiness in us? Kent Nerburn said in his book Simple Truths, “We all share the same dream of loving and being loved of having a life with more joy than sorrow.” On the 19 Feb 2004, I was reflecting on Psalms 27:4-5, “One thing I asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and seek Him in His temple. For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in His dwelling: He will hide me in the shelter of His tabernacle and set me high upon a rock.” I wrote this piece in my journal that day, “If you dwell in His shelter which is staying faithful in the Lord and within His protection; and gaze upon his beauty thus being able to is appreciate worship and the beauty of God’s holiness; then you should realise how fortunate you are to have gained this gift of insight. Seek after Him, yearn for this meaningful relationship with God. He will do three things for you. He will keep you safe – He will be with you in times of trouble. He will shelter you – including your thoughts and feelings and intentions from the emotional storms that may beset you in this world. You will be set upon a rock, by which He shall lift you high so that you can see far ahead and have a good perspective of life - a personal vision. However, it would be very tragic, having counted our blessings and realising our fortune, that we stay still and within our safe comfort zones. Instead girded by such promises of security and safety we must go out, reach out and touch somebody.
“Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me —All his wonderful passion and purity!O Thou Spirit divine, all my nature refine,Til the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.”
Lionel

To appreciate life

2007-05-25T06:15:00.001+08:00

Recently, a close girlfriend of mine emailed me to ask me to pray for her. She is expecting a child and was told that she would have to undergo special investigations to test for genetic disorders, one of which is Down’s syndrome.

To her horror, her husband and parents-in-law suggested that if the child was diagnosed with Down’s syndrome or any other similar congenital problem, they wanted her to undergo an abortion. Fortunately, God answered our prayers and the tests were negative – the baby is likely to be normal.

When John and I were discussing my friend’s case, we came up with the following options for what could happen if the child was abnormal:

Option 1: Abort it (not a good option if mother unwilling)
Option 2: Keep it and raise it (not an option if family unwilling)
Option 3: Keep it and put it up for adoption.

Now, I don’t want to discuss the ethics of abortion or genetic testing in this post. My concern is my attitude to people born with a handicap.

My initial reaction to Option 3 was that it was not a true option because nobody would want to adopt a handicapped child. This led me to ask myself the following questions:

1. Why wouldn’t anyone want to adopt a handicapped child?

Expectant Parents will never expect their child to be handicapped – they hope and pray for a whole, healthy baby. Adoptive Parents get to pick their child. Knowing that raising an adopted child is a difficult enough process, it is unlikely that a handicapped child (who is far more stressful and more expensive to look after) would be preferred over a healthy child.

2. Am I really saying that I would not want to adopt a handicapped child?

Yes, I am.

3. Why is this so?

John and I are young and at the stage where having a kid is feasible – if God chose to give us a handicapped child, then we would accept this as God’s will for us. However, I cannot see myself going out of my way to adopt such a child.

4. Does this make me a selfish person?

Maybe.

At this stage, I was starting to get quite upset with myself.

However, John pointed out to me that choosing a child to adopt is not a rational process. People who are adopting a child have already made a life-changing decision and are prepared for the challenges that lie ahead. They are not using mere logic to make their selection. Thus, they may decide to adopt a handicapped child, because God has laid it on their hearts to do so.

In fact, if one really thinks about it, all children come into the world with their own set of inbuilt limitations. A child who is born physically perfect can still have learning difficulties or even mental and psychological problems like autism or schizophrenia. Children can even suffer from debilitating chronic health issues such as epilepsy, diabetes or asthma. Yet these children are not unwanted before birth and they are not at risk of being destroyed whilst still in the womb. The Down’s syndrome infant has the advantage of predictable physical and mental restrictions yet many parents will choose a therapeutic abortion.

A person who has chosen to adopt a handicapped child has the ability to see people for more than their physical or mental limitations. That is, they can see through the imperfections of the flesh, they can appreciate a person because of who they are. This is different from appreciating a person despite of who they are.

My attitude towards handicapped people stems from the fact that I have difficulty seeing past their physical flaws. As a doctor, I am trained to locate what is defective in a person and seek to correct or minimise it.

However, as a Christian, I should also seek to see people the way God would see them – equal human beings deserving of love. After all, God loves each of his children so much that He chose to die for them. I should appreciate them. I should appreciate life.

My Heavenly Father Watches Over Me

2007-05-25T06:02:00.000+08:00

Hai Yong made this comment to the posting Shaping a Tree - Raising a Child, "Oftentimes we as parents are overly anxious about our children. Are they doing well in school? Are they mixing with the right company? Are we providing enough for them? Then, this thought came to my mind – no matter how much we love and are concerned about our children, God loves them and cares for them infinitely more. I am emancipated!" I was reminded of this picture that my father in law the late Rev Kao gave us. It was a picture that hung on the family wall for many years. I chose this picture amongst many that he wanted to pass on to his children because at that time the song "My heavenly father watches over me" came to mind and this picture epitomises the sentiments. John 10:14-16 states "I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me — just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.' When we were in the MYF we sang the song 'there were ninety and nine that safely lay in the shelter of the fold, but one was lost on the hills away, far off from the gates of gold." The song went on to indicate how Jesus the Good Shepherd will go out of His way to search for the lost sheep. Hai Yong is exactly right, we Christian parents can rest in the assurance that Jesus is the Good Shepherd.

Let me share with you one email I wrote to the my girls on 20 Oct 2001 when the world was filled with uncertainty. We, as parents, living so far away from our children, what can we do but to trust in the Good Shepherd? This email went :"Psalms 65:2 reads "O You (referring to God) who hear prayer, to YOU all men will come." Just one month ago, we witnessed a dastardly terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre, New York. Now, there are the Anthrax letters attacks on Washington DC. These are times of uncertainty. No one knows what the terrorists might do. Should we not turn to God? That God answers prayers is a statement of fact. It is not only when we turn to him that he hears our prayers. No, it just a plain fact that God hears prayers. And because he does, he draws us to Him, people like us who acknowledge His presence and preeminence at these times. I would you both to go to God in prayer often. We may not have the inclination to spend hours or even minutes in prayer. Few people do. But at every chance and every remembrance, whisper a prayer. When we travel and we remember someone say a prayer. When we wake up and when we go to sleep just pray a few sentences. If we have a need or know of a need, pray to God. A few short sentences any where and at any time will do. We will then cultivate an attitude within us that acknowledges God as someone beyond us, someone greater and yet to whom we can always bring a need, a fear, an anxiety, a joy, a laughter, an inspiration, and He will hear us.

Psalms 65:3 reads "when we are overwhelmed by sin, you forgave our transgressions." Today there are evil men. They have tainted the earth e.g. spreading germs as some now do. They do not acknowledge God. They do not worship Him hence there will be no seeking of forgiveness. But for Christians, no matter what sins we have committed, when we turn to Him, He forgives us. Now, this does not give us a license to sin. So, don't make it a reason to sin. Instead it is a door to forgiveness and reconciliation. When we are overwhelmed by sin, God forgave our transgressions and our relationship with Him will be restored. It is like, if you offended mummy or I and because of that naturally there is something strained in our relationship. But the both of us will always be there for you both. Soon we will forgive and restore that parent-child relationship. Even if you disown us, does that make us any less a parent? In the same way, relationship with God can and will always be restored.

Psalms 65: 9 says..."You care for the land and water it, you enrich it abundantly." This verse is really encouraging. Despite what these evil men can do to spread disease, they cannot compete with the restoration God provides. God will heal the land. All they can do is create trouble, some mischief. Soon it will pass and they will be gone but God's creation remains.

The picture of the Good Shepherd makes me feel secure. See how the lamb is folded within the left arm of Jesus! and on the right hand is the staff to ward away things evil, destructive or predatory.

Lionel