Driven By The Breath of God

Waves hitting the Twelve Apostles Coast, Melbourne

"People will respect the name of the Lord … for He will come like a raging flood tide driven by the breath of the Lord." Isaiah 59:19

We envision that God will speak to us in a still small voice. He often does but there will be times when God can be relentless, coming at us with power and emphasis like the waves of the ocean crashing upon the rocks. The Bible clearly informs that 'the Breath of God' will be driving us towards God's purposes: What has it done and what will it do?  

The breath of God informs, instructs and commands. The Prophet Jeremiah wrote, 

"Is not my word like fire declares the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks a rock to pieces". Jer. 23:29. 

A friend shared this verse nearly 50 years ago and it has left a very lasting impression on me. My friend said to me that sometimes when reading God's Word, he would have a headache because it would be repeated again and again in his mind. Paul wrote that 

“All scripture is breathed out by God” (2 Timothy 3:16). 

This remarkable phrase about the breath of God gives us a look into the intertwining relationship between God and Scripture. Therefore, bible reading and study should not be trivialised because the Bible will open up to us the lessons of life. 

The breath of God creates life. There is a special relationship, an affinity, between God and Man.

 

"The Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and the man became a living creature" Gen 2:7.

God breathed into man and gave him life. Man was formed in the image of God. This relationship is priceless and described elsewhere in the Bible as a 'Pearl of Great Price'. However when man rebelled against God and sinned, this relationship was broken, the pearl was lost. The broken connection was restored when we become Christians and now we must live as if we are reflections of God's image.

The breath of God lifts up the Church. Ezekiel painted a dramatic picture of raising an army from lifeless and dry bones in the desert. 

"I will make breath enter you and you will come to life. Come from the four winds, O Breath, and breathe on these slain, that they will come to life. I will put My Spirit within you and you will come to life, and I will place you on your own land. Then you will know that I, the Lord have spoken and done it." Ezekiel 37:5,9,14

Like a mighty army moves the church of God. God is spurring us on as a church in triumph. But the lively and triumphant church begins with the single person who has the Holy Spirit in him. The Holy Spirit can empower the Christian to accomplish God's purposes. 

Let us ask the Holy Spirit to begin God's great work in us: 'Breathe on Me, Breath of God.'

1. Breathe on me, Breath of God,
   Fill me with life anew,
   That I may love what Thou dost love,
   And do what Thou wouldst do.
2. Breathe on me, Breath of God,
   Until my heart is pure,
   Until with Thee I will one will,
   To do and to endure.
3. Breathe on me, Breath of God,
   Till I am wholly Thine,
   Until this earthly part of me
   Glows with Thy fire divine.
4. Breathe on me, Breath of God,
   So shall I never die,
   But live with Thee the perfect life
   Of Thine eternity.

Lionel

Updated 1st published 29 Dec 2019

You've Got A Friend

"Greater love has no one than this; to lay down one's life for one's friends. You are my friends.." John 15:13-14a

Songwriters write songs of love and romance. Seldom do they write about friendships; the pure and warm relationships of sisterly or brotherly love. Christians call this Agape, a love that comes from God. 

One of my favourite songs is "You've Got a Friend" written by Carole King. It is rare to find a song expressing the special relationship between friends without tingeing it with expressions of romance and love. Carole stated that "the song was as close to pure inspiration as I've ever experienced. The song wrote itself. It was written by something outside myself, through me."

One can understand why Carole felt that way. The words, simple in themselves, convey a pure down to earth message.

When you're down and troubled
And you need a helping hand
And nothing, nothing is going right
Close your eyes and think of me
And soon I will be there
To brighten up even your darkest night

You just call out my name

And you know wherever I am
I'll come running, oh yeah baby, to see you again
Winter, spring, summer or fall
All you've got to do is call
And I'll be there, ye, ye, ye
You've got a friend

If the sky above you
Grows dark and full of clouds
And that old north wind begins to blow
Keep your head together
And call my name out loud
Soon you'll hear me knockin' at your door

For a long time I felt quite uncomfortable with Agape, the Christian concept of brotherly or sisterly love. If a certain fondness develop towards another brother or sister, I would instantly recoil from it, fearful that such relationships could lead to romantic attachments or nuances. So my relationships with the ladies tend to be superficial and at arms length. As a result the same superficiality is applied to friendships with men.

With time, however, I learnt that striking up deep and sincere friendships need not be a taboo. I started making very good friends without worrying about giving wrong impressions. Friendship can be a distinctively personal relationship that is grounded in a concern of each friend for the welfare and well being of the other. One need not fear it or shrink from it. How else would long lasting friendships be made?

Friendship started with God Himself. At creation God extended His hands toward humanity and sought the company of those He created. This special relationship was broken by the original sin and adulterated with the Fall. Some may fear to make good friends as we fear what is good and pure can become soiled. 

Thus good friends are hard to find. If made, they will stick as close to you as family, yet make space when needed. In moments of weakness they will be there to strengthen you. When life falls apart they do not forsake you. Albert Schweitzer once said, "At times our light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame in us". 

That is why at every New Year's Eve, we sing the song Auld Lang Syne. The lyrics come from a poem written by the great Scottish poet, Robert Burns in 1788. It is set to an old folk tune which Robert Burns apparently rediscovered. The poem consists of rhetorical questions on friendships best illustrated by this version from James Watson.

Should old acquaintance be forgot
and never thought upon?
The flames of Love extinguished,
and fully past and gone?
Is thy sweet heart now grown so cold,
that loving breast of thine?
That thou canst never once reflect
On old long syne?

The song is often sung over many a tankard of ale or jug of beer. When Auld Lang Syne is sung, one must be completely drunk or dead if one cannot appreciate the value of reconnecting with old friends and thinking about old times.

Let's celebrate friendship!

Lionel

Updated 1st published 22 Dec 2019

Walk A Mile In My Shoes

Building Bridges

"Love must be sincere... Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves." Romans 12:9-11

The ease of connectivity through the Internet has resulted in lesser face to face encounters. Thus, despite the phenomenal improvement in communications technology, people still find themselves isolated, lonely and misunderstood. Virtual conversations do not show endearing, emotional expressions and human communication skills used in conversations, letter writing and telephone calls.  They are  replaced by terse and short sentences over texting and Twitter. Such communications can unintentionally appear harsh and abrupt. Misunderstanding can arise because we do not spend enough time in meaningful, bridge-building conversations. 

One family example, the Lee Family communicates everyday through the WhatsApp three -continents conversations, Singapore, Australia and the United Kingdom. However, when sitting at a table with my grandchildren at their Marlborough home or in a restaurant, I would soon be adrift fiddling with my iPhone. So I decided that in order to get close to any of my three grandchildren, I would walk a mile with them to school every morning whenever I am staying with them in the UK.

Elvis Presley sang a song written in 1969 by Joe South entitled ‘Walk A Mile In My Shoes’ which suggested that true friendships can be built by stepping into each other shoes and seeing each other through the eyes of the other person. That is empathy! 

"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"

In trying to understand each other, we reveal ourselves and enable a reciprocal reaction. Understanding things, principles and concepts are very different from understanding people. Understanding people is possible only at a very personal and emotive level. The more deeply we understand other people, the more appreciative we are of them. We cannot achieve this by just communicating through the Internet. We need face to face personal interactions. We build bridges.  This is costly; we pay not only with our time and effort but also with our privacy, pride and ego.

Many think that 'walking a mile in my shoes' mean active engagement, doing something with that person. This is not always necessary. Often it is only about being there for and with that person, spending time in silence. I recall spending time with a Christian brother while his newborn son was undergoing surgery for a severe congenital heart condition. I heard of the birth of his son and the rush to surgery. I went to the waiting room, found my friend sitting all alone and just sat with him in near silence for the four over hours of the operation. Only the two of us, in silent prayer for the boy during the surgery.     

That was a true and treasured experience of empathy for a friend. I do not know how encouraged he was but I was ministered to as I spent those hours of silence in his shoes. 

The Bible adds the idea of love among friends, "Be devoted to one another in love".  It then states that "Love must be sincere." Sincere means proceeding from genuine feelings, free from pretense or deceit. It is a deep feeling and from the heart. The Bible asks us to spur one another towards love and good deeds.  

'And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds' Hebrews 10:24a

'So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing.'

This rendition of 'You Raise Me Up,' is a one of the best expressions of empathy. 

Let us walk miles in each other shoes!

Lionel

Updated 1st published 15 Dec 2019

Shaping a Tree, Raising a Child

“Start a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not turn from it” Proverbs 22:6

Japanese gardens provide a stunning visual experience as one walks through it and enjoys the setting. This photo was taken on 1 May 2007 as Pat and I walked through Seiryu-en Garden in the Nijo Castle in Kyoto Japan. We were attracted to the beautiful trees across the pond on the small island. They have been shaped so nicely. The view is very pleasing to the eyes.

To achieve this effect, gardeners prune and sculpture trees during the early growth periods. Shoots are guided around round wires. The twist and turns of the stems and branches of the young trees are supported until the trunks are stronger. In the end these trees are shaped to their natural inclinations and bents. 

On 25 Sep 2013, then Minister for Education, Heng Swee Keat articulated some core beliefs which have guided  Singapore's educational principles. 

• First, every child can learn, whatever his starting point. We can and must help them find success in learning.

• Second, every child is different - siblings, even twins, can have very different interests and strengths! Each child will therefore succeed in different ways. 

• Third, our children will need different attributes to succeed in the future, because the world will be different - just as it is dramatically different today from even a decade ago.”

The clever gardener can envision the potential beauty of each young sapling and guide its growth so that eventually each tree will be differently shaped yet become equally pleasing. In the same way, every child is different. 

Similarly, the wise teacher and parent will teach and guide children understanding their natural inclinations, their ‘bents’. They can recognise, support the desirable tendencies whilst smoothing the rough patches and shaping out the bad and undesirable attributes. 

The Bible teaches that every child should be given the chance to start right. How do we start the child right? By initiating them to the love of God, as emphatically stressed to us,

'And you must love the Lord your God with all heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. And you must commit yourself wholeheartedly to these commands that I give you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.' Deuteronomy 6:5-7 (NLT)

This is the sacred duty of every Christian parent. 

'Children are a gift from the the Lord; they are a reward from Him' Psalm 127:3

Unfortunately, in today's world, single parent families have become common place. While this is not optimal for the children who thrive best when both parents are present during their upbringing, the responsible single parent can still have great success in raising children. The key is the nurturing of bonds of love within the family; single or both parents present.

These same bonds of love can be found in the church. The church as a family also has a duty to help nurture young children where we learn to show love and learn to cooperate and make friends. Coincidentally today, my church Charis Methodist Church celebrated Loving Families Sunday, an initiative led by the Chinese Annual Conference of the Methodist Church in Singapore. At the end of the worship service the congregation recited the Family Life Pledge.

There is a song by Jack Hartmann entitled 'We are Family,' that expresses this aspiration.

We’re big 

We're small
We’re young
And we're old
We’re all different people living together with love.

We laugh
We play
We learn everyday
We’re all different people living together with love.
Together with love.

And we are family 

Living, playing together
Together – together

We are a family
Wherever We may go
We are a family
I can feel our love grow
I can feel love grow

We hug
We care
We help

And we share
We’re all different people living together with love.

We sing

We hope
We dream
and we grow
We’re all different people living together with love.
Together with love.

And we are a family
Living working
Together – together

We are a family 
Wherever we may go
We are a family
I can feel our love – grow
I can feel love grow

The family, the church and society can help children to start right. 

Lionel

Updated 1st published 21 May 2007

Simplify Yourself

 

'Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in heaven. And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.' Matthew 18:2-3

The opening episodes of 'The Chosen' the multi-season drama series on the life of Jesus Christ contrasted the simple minded attitudes of little children ( Season 1 Episode 3) towards Jesus with the confused, complexity of the Pharisaical mind of Nicodemus (Season 1 Episode 8) trying to understand Jesus. Nicodemus approached his faith in a highly intellectual manner; the children accepted Jesus with childlike faith. The series devoted an entire episode on the interaction of Jesus with a group of children, how he accepted them and how he gently taught them. Why?

The contrast between the cynical questioning adult to the innocent acceptance of the child believer underscores the need for simplicity in the heart of every Christian as we exercise our faith. Bishop Robert Solomon, in his book Spiritual Disciplines for Urban Christian (Ref 1) selected Simplicity as one of six spiritual disciplines. Bishop said this is the quality of being single hearted, 'the simplicity of having one heart that is not divided or fragmented, one that has no duplicity.'

Christians are to serve God with an undivided heart.

'Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forevermore.' Psalms 86:11-12

Christianity is not so much a religion of the mind as it is a religion of the heart. St Paul warned that we are not to be confused with the theoretical doctrines but practical simplicity of a loving heart.

'We won't be tossed and blown about with every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever that they sound like truth. Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more like Christ.' Ephesians 4:14-15a (NLT)

Bishop Solomon wrote that 'the undivided mind is focused on Christ. James warns us against being double-minded.' 

'Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as the wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.' James 1:6

'Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.' James 1:8

This is the simplicity of serving God alone of having a childlike faith. But living in the modern world especially in affluent Singapore can be very distracting. There is too much to buy, too much to possess, too much to hoard that modern Christians can end up serving two Masters, God and Mammon. 

That is why Bishop Solomon suggested that we continually ask, "Where is my treasure?" He wrote, "Our heart (which in the Bible is the personal centre of our will, emotion and reason) will be where we hold our treasures."

Dallas Willard (Ref 2) wrote, "... love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. It means to treasure Him..Our only wisdom, safety and fulfillment lies in so treasuring God."

So let us make life simple, Jesus loves the little children of the world.  

Lionel

Ref 1: Robert M Solomon, Spiritual Disciplines for Urban Christians, Genesis Books, 2021

Ref 2: Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life in God. HarperSanFrancisco, 1998.