Sunday, 10 January 2021

The Rat Race

'In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.' Proverbs 16:9
'Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world and we can take nothing out of it' 1 Timothy 6:6-7.
 
The Rat Race is a perennial struggle of human beings to get to the top. It is a endless competition to get ahead at all cost. This expression was introduced in the 1930 to describe a exhausting, pressured urban life spent in trying to get ahead with little time for rest. Here is a tragic depiction of modern society in a cartoon feature by Steve Curtis entitled Rat Race.


The Rat race runners try to burn the candle at both ends, they are always busy, busy, busy. It is an incessant push for success. Centuries ago King Solomon condemned it as an endless, self-defeating, or pointless pursuit. Since then, we have not learnt from the wisdom of Solomon.

In the Book of Ecclesiastes, King Solomon spoke of the uselessness and monotony of everyday life. He used the term 'under the sun' when he described that life as useless (Ecc 1:3). One can interpret this term 'under the sun' as life on earth. Solomon said in Ecc 1:4, "You spend your life working and what do you have to show for it."

Charles Swindoll in his bible study guide on the Book of Ecclesiastes entitled 'Living On The Ragged Edge' (Ref 1) gave a realistic appraisal of this futile race
  • People Living Under Oppressive Conditions. Ecc 4:1 'Then I looked again at all the injustice that goes on in this world. The oppressed were weeping and no one would help them.'
  • People Living Under Aggressive Competition Ecc 4:4 'I have also learnt why people work so hard to succeed: it is because  they envy their neighbours. But it is useless. It is like chasing the wind.' 
Charles Swindoll wrote, 'Solomon is not referring to healthy, ethical competition. What he has in mind is the one-on-one rivalry of pushing, fighting and clawing - the vicious determination of two people to outdo one another at any cost.'

The saddest insanity of all is the man who is alone without any relatives or children labouring endlessly to make his millions to leave to nobody. Ecc 4:7-8 'I have noticed something else in life that is useless. Here is a man who lives alone. he has no son, no brother, yet he is always working never satisfied with the wealth he has. For whom is he working so hard and denying himself any pleasure? This is useless too and a miserable way to live.' Here is a perfect picture of someone who is enslaved to the Rat Race, the pursuit of wealth.

But Solomon in the Book of Ecclesiastes did not paint just doom and gloom. Yes, the book exposes the realities of life but it qualified this by making the claim that this is only true when applied to an existence without God. The only way to get out of this cycle of futility of life is to believe in God and to live as He intended for us.

In the same way, the young people would do well to prevent themselves entering the Rat Race by believing in God early. 'Remember your creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, I find no pleasure in life' Ecc 12:1.

Living God's way as a Christian does not automatically mean we will have no struggle with life. Life was difficult for the early Christians and also for some today. Nevertheless we are told to persevere. Indeed Christians enter a different race of endurance and keeping the faith despite hardships and even persecution for some. 

St Paul told the young disciple, Timothy, 'Join me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs but tries to please his commanding officer' 2 Timothy 2:3-4. 

Like a soldier under discipline we do not get entangled in the rat race or be sucked into the lures of this world. 'Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs' 1 Timothy 6:9-10. Ecc 4:4 and 6 advised 'it is better to have a little, with peace of mind, than to be busy all the time with both hands, trying to catch the wind'.

We may plan all we like but eventually God will direct our paths. So what is God's way? In Ecclesiastes 9:11a, Solomon advised, "I have seen something else under the sun; the race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favour to the learned; but time and chance overtake them all" Yes while man proposes God disposes and He has a way of leveling even the best plans of clever, powerful and assertive people. 

Hence St Paul advised young Timothy, "But you, man of God, flee from this and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of eternal life for which you are called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses" 1 Timothy 6:11-12.

Many people run the Rat Race but Christians should walk with Jesus. Enjoy this song, Just A Closer Walk With Thee.


I am weak but Thou art strong
Jesus keep me from all wrong
I'll be satisfied as long
As I walk, let me walk close to Thee

Just a closer walk with Thee
Grant it, Jesus, is my plea
Daily walking close to Thee
Let it be, dear Lord, let it be 

Through this world of toil and snares,
If I falter, Lord, who cares?
Who with me my burden shares?
None but Thee, dear Lord, none but Thee.

When my feeble life is o’er,
Time for me will be no more;
Guide me gently, safely o’er
To Thy kingdom shore, to Thy shore.
 

Lionel

Ref 1: Charles R Swindoll. Living on the Ragged Edge - Coming to terms with Reality, Insight for Living, 1976
  

Sunday, 3 January 2021

The Masking of Nations

'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and Love your neighbour as yourself' Luke 10:27

Covid-19 pandemic forces several countries in the world to mandate mask wearing as a preventive health measure. It was felt that since this Corona virus spread by way of droplets, mask wearing could prevent infection from coughing and sneezing whilst at the same time protect the wearer. While many obeyed this rule dutifully, many others revolted against it claiming that mask wearing cramped their styles.

The masking of nations exacerbates a well-known but largely ignored condition of modern society - loneliness, withdrawal, seclusion and self-imposed confinement. In crowded urban societies individuals exist with glassy looks speaking to no one, glued to their computers, TVs and reduced to texting on their mobile phones. These individuals eventually become very depressed and suicidal. The social distancing and mask wearing imposed in the wake of the pandemic invoked a wave of suicides.

This condition is not new, the masking of nations only serves to unmask a condition which, as early as 1963, Paul Simon starting writing about. In 1964 the famous duo Simon and Garfunkel recorded the 'Sounds of Silence'.
 

Hello darkness, my old friend
I've come to talk with you again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seed while I was sleeping
And the vision that was planted in my brain still remains
Within the sound of silence

In restless dreams I walked alone
Narrow streets of cobblestone
'Neath the halo of a streetlamp
I turned my collar to the cold and damp
When my eyes were stabbed 
By the flash of a neon light that split the night
And touched the sound of silence

And in the naked light I saw
Ten thousand people, maybe more
People talking without speaking
People hearing without listening
People writing songs that voices never shared
No one dared disturb the sound of silence

"Fools," said I, "you do not know
Silence like a cancer grows
Hear my words that I might teach you
Take my arms that I might reach you"
But my words like silent raindrops fell
And echoed in the well of silence

And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made
And the sign said, "The words of the prophets
Are written on the subway walls
and tenement halls."
and whispered in the sound of silence

Paul Simon was expressing his angst towards the extent of alienation in this modern world. Garfunkel summed up the meaning of the song as the inability of people to communicate with each other. In the end these become people who are unable to love each other.

Nothing was done to alleviate this condition and in the 2019-2021 pandemic, the mask became symbolic of people unable to speak to each other. 

In this silent crowded world, the Bible speaks loudly of love and of being brotherly, sisterly and neighbourly. We learnt about reaching out to the lonely, the marginalised and ignored people of this world by way of a trick question posed to Jesus Christ, Who is my neighbour? In response, a parable was told by Him. It will do well for the world and especially Christians, to learn and live the way of the Good Samaritan:
  • Help a friend, a stranger, even an enemy
  • Render assistance at  anytime and anywhere
  • Give personal care and attention 
  • Act from good underlying attitudes and inner beliefs
  • Be consistent and not just offer a one-off act of kindness         
Yes Jesus Christ emphasised a deep abiding community spirit and rejected the  alienation in modern societies, Luke 6:35-38:

"But love your enemies, do good to them
and lend to them without expecting to get anything back.
Then your reward will be great
and you will be children of the Most High
because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked
Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
Do not judge and you will not be judged.
Do not condemn and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven
Give and it will be given to you. 
A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over will be poured into your lap."

There is an old forgotten song, a favourite of the late Rev Martin Luther King, that is worth listening to once again at these times when people are hearing without listening, 'If I Can Help Somebody As I Pass Along'.


If I can help somebody as I pass along,
If I can cheer somebody with a word or song,
If I can show somebody that they're travelling wrong
Then my living shall not be in vain

Then my living shall not be in vain
Then my living shall not be in vain
If I can help somebody as I pass along
Then my living shall not be in vain

If I can do my duty as a Christian ought
If I can bring back beauty to a world up wrought
If I can spread love's message as the Master taught
Then my living shall not be in vain



Lionel








Friday, 1 January 2021

Day By Day

 
'Who is a God like You, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of His inheritance? You will again have compassion  on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depth of the seas.' Micah 7:18-19

Today is New Year's Day for 2021, a year that all of us hope to be much better than the Covid-laden 2020. Having faced the pandemic how would we live 2021? What will be our New Year resolution? 
At the close of his book the prophet Micah asked the question Who is a God like You? It is a question many of us should ask. Who is God? And do we know our God? Perhaps we can make this our 2021 resolution, to know God better.
This brings us to a song Day by Day in the musical Godspell. Day by Day is a very catchy tune, like a modern day nursery rhyme. This song became a top hit as many people were attracted to the simple repetitive tune. It is based on a prayer ascribed to the 13th-century English Bishop Richard of Chichester.  
"May I know Thee more clearly,
Love Thee more dearly,
Follow Thee more nearly."
 

We know that the uniqueness of Christianity is the restoration of our relationship with God. However, many of us after being restored, fail to further this relationship. Perhaps we can use this song to deepen our relationship and to
Know Jesus
Love Jesus
Obey Jesus 
There is another song with the same title, Day by Day (and with Each Passing Moment), a hymn written in 1865 by Carolina Sandell Berg, known as the Fanny Crosby of Sweden. On a voyage with her father, Pastor Sandell, the boat they were on lurched to one side and her father was thrown overboard. He drowned as Carolina looked on. In this tragedy, she discovered that God's comforting presence is always near and this, inspired her to compose the hymn.   

Day by day and with each passing moment,
Strength I find to meet my trials here;
Trusting in my Father's wise bestowment,
I've no cause for worry or for fear.
He whose heart is kind beyond all measure
Gives unto each day what He deems best--
Lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure,
Mingling toil with peace and rest.

Ev'ry day the Lord Himself is near me
With a special mercy for each hour;
All my cares He fain would bear, and cheer me,
He whose name is Counselor and Pow'r.
The protection of His child and treasure
Is a charge that on Himself He laid;
"As thy days, thy strength shall be in measure,"
This the pledge to me He made.

Help me then in eve'ry tribulation
So to trust Thy promises, O Lord,
That I lose not faith's sweet consolation
Offered me within Thy holy Word.
Help me, Lord, when toil and trouble meeting,
E'er to take, as from a father's hand,
One by one, the days, the moments fleeting,
Till I reach the promised land.

So how would we make good this New Year resolution? We turn to God for every encouragement, help, mercy and strength to walk through life one step at a time, day by day, using this prayer hymn. The secret to a deepening relationship with Jesus, to know, love and obey Him, is to pray day by day.

May 2021 be the year where we discover God, His will, His purposes for our lives.

Happy New Year 


Lionel 

Sunday, 27 December 2020

Give Me This Mountain

The Dolomites

 'I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith' 2 Tim 4:7


Caleb was a man that could truly claim that he had fought the good fight and finished the race. He was one of two spies that Moses sent to recce the promised land across the Jordan who came back with a positive and optimistic analysis of the terrain and enemy. The other spy with the same analysis was Joshua. Ten other spies brought back negative and depressing news that obstacles before them could not be surmounted. In Joshua 14:7-8 Caleb recalled, "I brought him (Moses) back a report according to my convictions but my fellow Israelites who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt in fear.
 
So at age 85 years, just as the the Israelites were dividing the conquered territories of Canaan amongst the tribes, Caleb staked his claim, "Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me." Joshua 14:12 

Caleb in Hebrew means 'faithful, devoted, whole hearted, bold, brave'. True to his name, Caleb was a remarkable man, resolute and tenacious. Dr Alan Redpath who wrote Victorious Christian Living, Studies in the Book of Joshua (Ref 1) described Caleb's legacy as 

  • A Faith that never wavered
  • A Strength that never weakened
Caleb left an example for all who are living out the Christian life for many years. Our faith should not grow dim even as our eye sights may be failing us. Dr Redpath hoped that "the faith which is ours in youth may be undimmed in old age, that the vision of the Lord shall be clearer as we grow older, that when life's journey is almost done we shall not be content merely to survey the past but be ready and eager still for battles with the enemy".

Alan Redpath hit the nail on the head when surveying the challenges of the older and grey-haired Christians. Many of us who had retired from our lifelong employments think also that we can retire from our Christian duties and service. We feel that we have done enough and now it is time to sit back and relax and allow the younger Christians to take up the cudgel. Nothing can be more threatening to our continuing faith if we take a backseat, trying to rest upon the laurels of past service as though we can now cash in on our past investments. 

When we become Christians we have a perspective of eternity which has no place for retirements. Harry Blamires wrote, 'A prime mark of the Christian mind is that it cultivates the eternal perspective. It looks beyond this life to another one'. (Ref 2)

Caleb at a ripe old age said, "So here I am today, eighty-five years old! I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I'm just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then" Joshua 14:10-11.

Most Christians do not live like Caleb who was wholehearted in his faith and steadfastly resolute to defend it. Bishop Solomon told the story that when the Irish tribes were baptised, their warriors raised their right hands above the baptismal waters, the hands that wielded their swords. The Bishop commented that they were willing to give up certain parts of their lives but hold back other parts from God (Ref 3). Most Christians are like that, half-hearted sacrifice and half hearted surrender. Hudson Taylor, the founder of the China Inland Mission, now known as OMF said, "Christ is either Lord of all or is not Lord at all".

Where are the Calebs today? In 1874, Frances Havergal wrote a familiar hymn, 'Take My Life'

Frances enacted her lyrics, a line of which says "Take my silver and my gold; not a mite would I withhold." In 1878, four years after writing the hymn, Miss Havergal wrote a friend, "Take my silver and my gold" now means shipping off all my ornaments to the Church Missionary House, including a jewel cabinet that is really fit for a countess, where all will be accepted and disposed of for me...Nearly fifty articles are being packed up. I don't think I ever packed a box with such pleasure."
  1. Take my life and let it be
    Consecrated, Lord, to Thee.
    Take my moments and my days,
    Let them flow in endless praise.
  2. Take my hands and let them move
    At the impulse of Thy love.
    Take my feet and let them be
    Swift and beautiful for Thee.
  3. Take my voice and let me sing,
    Always, only for my King.
    Take my lips and let them be
    Filled with messages from Thee.
  4. Take my silver and my gold,
    Not a mite would I withhold.
    Take my intellect and use
    Every pow’r as Thou shalt choose.
  5. Take my will and make it Thine,
    It shall be no longer mine.
    Take my heart, it is Thine own,
    It shall be Thy royal throne.
  6. Take my love, my Lord, I pour
    At Thy feet its treasure store.
    Take myself and I will be
    Ever, only, all for Thee.

This is a hymn of total surrender, a hymn of consecration, a hymn for the Calebs of today

Lionel
Ref 1: Alan Redpath. Victorious Christian Living, Fleming H. Revel, Baker Book House Company 1955. 
Ref 2: Harry Blamires. The Christian Mind, SPCK, 1963 
Ref 3: Robert Solomon. Growing Old Gracefully, Following Jesus to the End, Discovery House, 2019