Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Excerpt


"I know that you are very important to me and that at this point, I cannot imagine how it would be like not having you in my life. The details of your life, how you feel and what you think matter greatly to me. If you are sad or happy, I will be affected, because we are emotionally and I think in more ways than we know, much closer now. I very much want to continue building our relationship in Christ and take it longer than we see at present. It will not be easy; from another perspective it will even be hard. Sometimes I may be discouraged. But when I look at where we are hoping and praying to be at, I am reminded that our faith and love is being built and refined."

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Our Lives are Purposed.

I opted to live today very differently and stay home. The purpose was to have some mental clarity, helped by distance from others, and to clock more sleep, and to spend time in prayer so I may be worked on by His Spirit, and to finish the invisible, but tangible list of to-dos.

I made a phone call today to Lim Boon Kai, to rouse him from his sleep with a birthday greeting. I know it is very heartening to have someone remember your birthday. I recognize him as a dear friend, and a loved person in the many phases of my younger life, and very hopefully, my longer adult life. I remember how we were in school together and it is very good to have accumulated a close friend as him.

May every birthday be a landmark, showing much growth and maturity, and very much of God's great blessing in his life.

It took me a while to get into the Word, but there was a very great reward today after I had gone before it, and studied the clear words of Scripture. We are to learn from the Words of Christ Jesus.

I was reminded that the central theme of my life is my labour for Christ and His gospel. This is my life's purpose, to bring glory to His very great Name.

My attitude to this process of life was corrected.

While I am struggling with this life and the troubles that come along with it, I read -

John 14

 1 Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”


The Word reminds me to rest my heart and trust fully in Christ Jesus; He is preparing us to dwell with Him forever. He is truthful and faithful, and He will come back to bring us to be with Him. I must not allow this hope to harmed in any way.

We walk on the same way as Christ did, in Him and through Him, also to go to the Father. We are to be reconciled to the Father, our Father.

Christ's Words bring us the full measure of His joy in us. And in preparing His disciples for His death, departure, and ascension, He prayed for them this way,

John 17

13 “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. 14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify[b] them by the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.


The disciples received over the Great Commission from the Lord. They were not to be taken or removed from the hostile climate of the world, and instead of being exempted from the human life, they were enabled to do the work for the gospel they had been left with, and were guarded as they were sent out.

Christ Himself said this -

John 12


   27 “Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name!”

I may not be exempted from life, and it is not right to ask that I be taken out of this time and world. My life is purposed.

In the same attitude of my Lord, while I am troubled and in difficult circumstances, my prayer must be higher and better, to ask God to glorify His Name above my present circumstances.

My labour is for God's glory. I am not to hope that my life can be passed over quickly, but to work for the gospel, that Christ Jesus and other better men have poured out their lives to advance. 


If you are a friend, pray for me, to be wise, loving and faithful to the Lord. That He will make known clearly His will for me in this time and in this life. Your brotherly kindness and love for me is very appreciated!


Saturday, February 11, 2012

I will not always have something edifying to share, though I must be careful so my personal expression may not harm the faith of any persons. 

None of this life is easy, but some things are harder than others. I would like to be doing well in all areas or at least give off the projection that I am, but looking like you are doing well uses up too much effort-energy I do not have. 

A year ago today, I was in Hendon Camp, feeling extremely sorrowful because my friends were ORD-ing and I did not have the chance to say goodbye to them because I was in airborne training. I eventually went back to my office on a Sunday and saw their Post-It messages on my wall, bidding me goodbye. 

This means that I have been an Army Regular for over a year, and I look back to wonder if I had made the best/right choice, in staying on with the force. I certainly wondered then, when my friends left service for good. 

I see that I was able to do so many additional things in the later part of the year, beyond the 1 Year 10 Month expiry date, and took on assignments, activities that friends envied. Although my decision-making was not made with complete acknowledgement of the Lord, He has been gracious in my placement and my predicament.  

However, I'm growing surer that everything in this life must be based on Biblical principles. How we live and why we live must be in obedience and conformity to Christ. He has redeemed us from wickedness for Himself. Our lives are not our own independent ones, but lived most to the fullest through submission and trust in our God. 
 
The areas of doubt and vexation are new and heavy, but I need to continually acknowledge that my God has sovereignty over me, and that I must be in line with His Word, and that His will be done, on earth as it is in heaven, and especially in, on, through my person. 

While I am unsettled and in some distress, I know what to hold on to, and where my strength and my life comes from. My God is trustworthy, even while men may not be believed easily. 

I believe, the powerful Word of God is a powerful authority. We must be as faithful to it as possible. We do not allow so much room for modern culture or changed times to affect the principles and recommendations the apostles imparted and made to the early church. 

Must the Gospel be reinvented or re-represented to be relevant to our very much "advanced" society? I do not think we are advanced at all, in the spiritual sense. Rather our civilisation's improvements give room for more wickedness and godlessness. We may not say that now society and culture is different, so we take/use the Word differently.

If anything, we are more godless today and our human strengths has increased our pride. We stand on our own independence and intelligence now. God is not necessary. We are progressive, but we are more destructive. The Word however, is still accurate about the condition of men even today. 

I am still vexed, but I will need to continue exercising my trust and dependence on Him, and wait upon Him to direct my paths. He has been good and faithful to me. I am to put my confidence and hope in Him.