THROUGH IT ALL

stumbled upon a testimony and song by Andrae Crouch, a really gifted man.
it has blessed me, may it bless u too.



if i never had a problem, i'd never know that God could solve them, i'd never know what faith in the Word of God could do.

i thank God for the mountains, i thank God for the valleys, i thank God for the storms. through it all, i've learnt to trust in Jesus.

SUFFERING - BY JOHN PIPER: A REFLECTION

a wise man once said, "If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men."

deep words. deep implications. this wise man was Paul, an honourable disciple of Christ (1 Cor 15:19). what made him say what he said? what were his underlying beliefs?

to paraphrase him, he had basically implied that a Christian's life ought to be one that was pitiful. and that the only hope we have is that in the afterlife, some good would be wrought from our suffering. (if there were no afterlife, our efforts are in vain, to be pitied.)

goodness gracious me, what does that mean?

to put it harshly,
this means that as Christians, suffering is expected of our job scope.
this means that a Christian life is not going to be as comfortable as we hope.
this means that Christian living comes with challenges that will cost us.
this means that God didn't just want us to be prosperous and healthy and comfortable and happy and NOT DO ANYTHING OUTSIDE OF OUR COMFORT ZONE.

ouch.

that is honestly hard to swallow. it is indeed very tempting to dismiss it all as radical heresy. extremist. heretical. unfounded.

i wonder how. i wonder why.

let's consider the reverse: if God simply existed to prosper us and bless us and make us happy, wouldn't life be just great? in fact, it would be too great. then what would be different from us and the rest of the secular world? would God then just be a genie-in-a-bottle? something isn't right here, either.

so what is it?

if we follow the life of Paul as an example, we would catch a glimpse of what he meant. he endured hardship to preach the gospel. he suffered for the sake of the gospel. he was even martyred because of it. he was truly a radical. and it was because he understood the weight and significance of Jesus' crucifixion well. the people saw the love of Christ exemplified in his suffering.

simply put, if Jesus means so much to us; is so real to us, then it would definitely be something worth suffering for. if our friends saw that it mattered that much to us, then our God surely must be of some substance.

we don't all have to fly to some far-off country to be martyred (though that would be something, wouldn't it), but are we even willing to risk "losing face" to share God's love with someone? a friend, a loved one? the homeless guy sleeping on the bench?

the question is, what are we doing about it? do we make light of Christianity? are we simply trying to maximise our comfort -- tapping from the best of both worlds?

weighty questions. weighty reflections.


Lord, i need compassion; stir my heart, move me. may i be willing to be used by You -- change my heart. use me to do great things for You, Lord, and may Your joy forever be with me. this is your servant, checking in.

MARCH THE FIFTH

The grasslands of the desert overflow; the hills are clothed with gladness. The meadows are covered with flocks and the valleys are mantled with grain; they shout for joy and sing. - Psalm 65:12-13

the Lord is a Lord of goodness, of abundance, of blessings; not of poverty. let all the Earth shout for joy and sing. glory to God!

THIS IS THE TRUTH

a clever video my friend sent me.

there can be hope... if we do something about it.

DRAWING NEAR

picked up a rather timely book in our focus on intimacy -- i'm currently reading "Drawing Near" by John Bevere, in which he encourages us to know God rather than just know more about God.


some notable points in the book worth pondering about:

"Over the past twenty years of ministry...i've discovered two major groups within the church...the first are those who seek God for what He can do; while the second seek Him for who He is."

"The only way we can create and maintain a hunger for God is to protect our soul by choosing what we fill it with. ...if your soul is filled with...the desires of this world, you'll be full and actually despise the sweet honeycomb of God's fellowship."

am i seeking Him for what i want? (Lord, bless me with this and that..?)
am i full and contented with worldly things? (no wonder i don't hunger for Him..)

WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT

we bring a smile to God's face.

Salvation is wrought because men of God pray; prayer moves the hand of God.

God is the God of the rain. the winds of change is blowing; the end of the drought is nigh. there is water for the seeds; revival is at hand.

God is moving.

welcome, God.

LUKEWARMNESS

i just sensed that we must guard against lukewarmness in our midst, i realise the dangers if we unknowingly become numb.

i feel that i don't love God enough.
God, why don't i love You enough?
- because i am loving other things of this world. i wanted other things, God was only top priority in my head.


Lord, help me put You first in my life where You belong. i pray that i will desire You more than anything of this world. i pray that You ignite the fire within me. thank You for the things You are doing, i want more of You. more than anything.

Amen.

WHO FAST WHAT?

i am fasting my dinners. (stomach grumbles)
and from music. (the horror!)

that's where it hurts for me, and more importantly, that's where i can have greater freedom to p-r-a-y!

so what are YOU fasting from?
let's spur each other on.

"OF ALL THE COMMANDMENTS, WHICH IS THE MOST IMPORTANT?"

"The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: '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 mind and with all your strength.' - Mark 12:29-30

loving God requires our ALL -
our heart. our soul. our mind. our strength. /our feelings. our emotions. our intellect. our body.

do i love God, really?
- may my ALL show it.

LIKE THE REST, WE WERE BY NATURE OBJECTS OF WRATH

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive in Christ even when we were dead in trangressions - it is by grace you have been saved. - Ephesians 2:4-5

hallelujah! thank you, God, for Your great love!

i am alive in Christ! so stop acting like i am dead in transgressions!

indeed God gave us the best Christmas present ever... salvation.

thank you for Your grace.

theTHIRTIETHofNOVEMBERtwoohohseven

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord has said through the prophet: "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" - which means, "God with us." - Matthew 1:22

God endured it all, just to be with us.

He didn't have to do it, He wanted to.

God loves us so much, He would do anything so He could be with us.

theTWENTYNINETHofNOVEMBERtwoohohseven

Surely you will summon nations you know not, and nations that do not know you will hasten to you, because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has endowed you with splendor. - Isaiah 55:5

A LACK OF COLOUR

theFIFTEENTHofnovembertwoohohseven

(10 days to exams.)

Isaiah 48:1
stubbornness. am i?
invoking the God of Israel, but not in truth or righteousness. am i?
what is truth? what is righteousness?
am i truthful? am i righteous? maybe i ought to do some introspection.
have i become stubborn in the name of psuedo-righteousness? worse still - self-righteousness?
hmm. it is time to apply some correction fluid. to make some changes. to die to myself again.

theTWENTYNINETHofOCTOBERtwoohohseven

Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints. For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Soverign and Lord. - Jude 3-4

do i take His grace for granted?
do i use it as a license to sin? "aiya, He's already forgiven me anyway.."
those are not God-given thoughts. they are godless thoughts. they are from the devil.
may i not give in to temptation. may i not give in to sin. may i not cheapen his grace.

Lord, i need Your grace. to make it past the bar. i want to be presented without fault and with great joy. amen.

theTWENTYTHIRDofOCTOBERtwoohohseven

powerless christians in a dark world - also was i pondering over this matter.
i thought, wouldn't it be cool if today someone could be performing miracles on Moses' scale? why isn't it happening?
has God turned His face from us? or is it us?

But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him. - Exodus 3:19

1. When God wants something done, God will stretch out His mighty hand.
- the problem is not with God; when there are kings of Egypt, God wants to deliver His people.
100% God.

2. When God wants something done, God can use anyone.
- All it takes is a willing man, a man who says, "Here I am."
100% man.

3. When God wants something done, God will be faithful to His vessel.
- Signs and wonders accompanied Moses wherever he went, and he performed some of the greatest miracles known to man.
100% miracle.


ARE there people to be delivered?
WILL I stand in the gap?
AM I willing?

Lord, speak to me. Show me Your heart; send me signs. Here I am, may You lead me to do Your will.
Amen.

theFIFTEENTHofOCTOBERtwoohohseven

Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. - Hebrews 5:13

spiritual infants cannot tell right from wrong, or good from evil.
they lack discernment due to their inexperience, or lack of constant use.

WHAT is discernment? - knowing good from evil.
WHO is discerning? - the spiritually mature.
HOW to be discerning? - through constant use.

DOES anyone want to be discerning? - we have to start with constant applications of discernment. it is a growing process. and we cannot discern well unless we rely on God's wisdom. which calls for a close walk with Him.

so let us grow in the Lord and in discernment.
and for goodness' sake, respect the discernment of our spiritual leaders, for most of the time, they are indeed right.

I BELIEVE THOSE WERE MOUSE DROPPINGS

theNINETHofoctobertwoohohseven

Consider what God has done: Who can straighten what he has made crooked? - Ecclesiastes 7:13

do not try to change what you cannot.
who are we to challenge God's working? if it has been done, then so be it.
no point in whining or complaining, instead we should ask ourselves
why did it turn out that way?
God cannot be wrong, it must have been us.

therefore,
BE CONTENT. and maximise your happiness.
BE AWARE. and realise your mistakes.

PANDEMONIUM NOW

theFIFTHofoctobertwoohohseven

Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored his name. - Malachi 3:16

many today neglect the reality of God. even while acknowledging His existence, they conveniently chuck Him away, supposing they can live their lives without Him, and apparently so - they seem to be doing ok.. or are they?

does fearing the Lord these days have any worth? it may seem a futile effort, but do not despair, for the Lord hears and the Lord remembers those who fear and honour His name.

am i fearing the Lord? - be righteous
am i honouring his name? - be excellent


for a true son fears and honours his father.

TRY HARDER FASHION IS FUTILITY

theFOURTHofoctobertwoohohseven

He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. - Isaiah 53:2

flesh is contrary to the spirit.

what really matters in life? it definitely isn't about beauty. or dressing up.
not that we have to dress down, we just shouldn't be too concerned over it.

am i chasing after the right things?
am i placing importance on things that matter?

why are we so caught up with ourselves?
the pride of life chucks the reality of God away into a corner, forgotten.

may i cling to the things that matter. worldy things are peripheral. they are but temporary possessions.

WITH MUCH APLOMB I VERILY SUBMIT

theTHIRDofoctobertwoohohseven

Each one threw down his staff and it became a snake. But Aaron's staff swallowed up their staffs. - Exodus 7:12

the world has cheap imitations, and lo - some of them work!
but do not be deceived, for the genuine work is superior.


am i intimidated?
maybe the pressure in NUS is high. everyone's so hardworking. why are they so driven?

should i be intimidated?
maybe i could succumb to peer pressure and be extra studious, but i don't think that's the way i was built. study i still should - but with God - and by faith, the results shall be excellent.

will i be intimidated?
by all means, no. God's agenda is number one. a degree pales in comparison. the idea of reward through hard work just doesn't cut it for me, because i believe in a God of the impossible.