Stomach for God's Word

Training Soldiers;

The past week, I saw the first batch of young people that I was responsible for complete the very first phase of their military training and it sobered me by both remembering 1) how fast time passes away, and 2) how influential commanders are.

I have a stake in every of these young men that have passed through me and I can mostly hope that I've been as positive as possible.

It is only now that I learn the degree of my role, I was not prepared sufficiently to be responsible for people. It also reinforced my knowledge that every individual is precious and worth a great deal to me to my Heavenly Father.

To my special 42:
I am sure that you are quality products and my command group has done a great job with you.
My wish for you is that you will have a positive National Service like I am having.

A good day with a good friend;

Managed to catch Toy Story 3 with Megan. It was a good movie, because I used to play with toys like that when I was smaller.

It dealt with growth-growing older and out-growing things of old.
1 Corinthians 13:11 - "When I was a child, I talked like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me."

I probably have taken the verse out of its context where Paul was talking about unfailing love.

The story connected with me, because I am like Andy in so many aspects and I had always wished my toys would come alive and play with me, and love me, and obey me when I ask them to behave in a certain way.

I want all of them to be free and independent, but willing to defer to my directions when I set them up in the imaginary setting I thought up.

I found that God instead has been so gracious to give us our autonomy and also the freedom to go over to His side. To Him, we are so much more than toys or playthings, and He has so much good and love for us because He made us and watched us grow and has the big picture.

He has such a big stake in us and He took us so seriously, willing to do extraordinary things to woo us.

Well, I am also pleased that I have managed to convert Megan, or rather have her come over to the idea that not all cartoons are stupid. The film had some value, I thought.

It was a good day overall.

Have been worked on by God;

Roland and Joyce's wedding re-wrought in me the correct idea of a Christian union and also made me re-examine our marriage to Christ.

We are the body of Christ, and He is our Head. We cannot live disconnected away from Him or His leadership.

I feel more willing to call Christ my King, because I've always been comfortable in serving a reliable leader and I am willing to learn to submit. It will however, take a whole life to do so.

Christ diverted God's wrath from falling on us and instead took it all upon Himself.

Have come off a session of reflection and reading the Word, and have been reminded and convicted of so many things.

My sin was that I have always tried to peel God away from me and limit His effects and workings on my person.

I forgot to consider the thoughts of the One whom I call my King when I ate, and when I spoke.
I need even more deeply, an understanding of my sin, which will give me an understanding of God's Grace and Love, and a deep fondness and appreciation for His Son.

I must glorify God and put Him at His rightful Highest place; not only praise Him on occasion with song, but remember and honour Him constantly. Cue: Jesus must take the Highest Honour...

I must control the substances entering my mind space. I watched Desperate Housewives and Drop Dead Diva yesterday and thought nothing of them, even when I wrestled with myself whether or not to give in to some form of entertainment.

But today I realized that there were a lot of wrongness reflected in the show that was put across to us. It featured adultery, a loose view on divorce, a flexible measure of justice, fornication, irresponsible parenting, dishonesty.

While the shows tried to dish off some good (caution against the acceptability of cheating), it slipped in all the other vices and desensitized us to their abhorrence.

C.S. Lewis was right when he said entertainment was a lousy plug for the our leaking joy.

My loud cry would be for God not to let us alone, but be about and in us.
Another stray thought: Not just not commit, but also not abet sin.

Because I profess faith in Christ, I must value what He values greatly: people.

APRIL 01

These weeks, I've been graced with some time to think and reflect and to have my listless mind drift in as many directions.

I've thought of several things which came to me, whilst my journal and pen were on my lap.

Most are not new, but just strands of thought that I'm throwing my belief behind.

First, I firmly believe men need ruling, although some might attempt to refine this with another word called "governance". Otherwise, we would slacken and become unruly, disorganized and non-motile.

We often want people to leave us alone, but really, we do want companionship but we simply want free rein in living our lives, with no one to judge and rebuke our behaviour.

We are all compulsive sinners - hopeless addicts until we have been graced with mercy and redeemed with Jesus' saving power. We need external help, an infusion of strength to overcome our inherent love for wickedness.

If we are stuck chest-deep or chin-deep in quicksand, no amount of flailing will work. We need some strong hand to pull us out of the predicament we have gotten into.

Psalms 40:2

He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.

Everything we neglect will eventually leave our system. Knowledge, health, fitness, prayer.

We don't want others to succeed at where we fail. Verily I often experience this jealousy and bitterness when I have been outperformed.

Right now, at the phase of my life where choosing an occupation is becoming more pressed, I think that I want to work in a field that invests in people. After all, that is what God did, where Christ found it worth laying down His life in the hope of redeeming humans.

To upkeep my literacy, I will journal fervently and then translate it into pixels here.

Who do I write to impress, I now wonder.