"Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains. Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached to the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come."
Matthew 24:7-14
This were the words of our LORD Jesus to His disciples some time before He was handed over to be crucified. It didn't had much impact on me before, until recently.
News of the Sichuan earthquake and the Cyclone Nargis that hit Mynmmar spread quickly. It was heart aching for me when I read through the papers and watched the news reports. It seriously was. I can't help asking myself what made me so special that God chose to put me on this little island called Singapore. All around her were tragdies and yet, she was unharmed. It wasn't by chance that God had put me here.
I was asking God, why are there so many of such disasters happening? It wasn't too long ago when the prowess of the sea was unleashed on Indonesia during the tsumani disaster. Why do I live to see so much pain on earth? It wasn't until then that I remembered the passage from the Bible which I quoted from earlier.
Indeed, careful observation of the happenings around us testify that what Jesus said was true. We see wars and conflicts of differing magnitude happening around us. The Gulf War II, the Lebanon war, the uprising in Tibet etc. We see natural disasters of catastrophic nature striking more frequently. We see famines which in turn rocketed the price of basic commodities. Imagine us feeling the pinch of the rise in food prices, what's more for those in proverty stricken countries?
It is a demoralising world that we live in. There's a tendency to ask if God really exist. Why is He not preventing all these things from happening? Why? It is this tendency that lead us to doubt God and in turn, move away from our faith. People who didn't believe would not believe. Even those that used to believe would give up their faith.
The next question I asked myself, "Would I be the one who give up on Him?" I couldn't imagine my life without God. I couldn't imagine how wasted I would become without the guidance from God. It was by God's grace that He had given me so much. He gave me a comfortable life, an education many people would die for and a close knitted family. Was I more lovable than the people suffering in Africa or in China? I wasn't. Why then did God give so much to me. Only then did I realise something. God gave me so much so that I could give it to others. It was my responsibility and duty to give to others the blessing that God has showered upon me. I had to do something, something useful, something pleasing, something for God...
"Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."
Isaiah 40:30-31
I guessed I was like a baby eagle. God fed me, gave me shelter to live in. He took care of me, He protected me from harm. I grew in His love and grace, growing stronger each day. I am where I am today because of Him. I guess He is telling me I am ready to fly, to fly together with Him. I need to step out the fearful first step. It is like the baby eagle learning how to fly. His parents will not help him. What they have done they have done. It is now up to the baby eagle to take his first step out of the nest into the sky. There are 2 outcomes. He can stay in the nest forever and eventually die a useless eagle or he can overcome the fear of height and soar into the great blue sky. God has been kind of silent to me recently. I guess He is waiting for me to take the first step? I need to step out of my fear, my fear of the world and its vices. He is waiting...
I guess time is running out. There will be many decisions at this stage of my life that I have to make and God is watching. I guess His calling and instructions for me is very clear now. It is time I start planning, not for myself, but for God.
I've made up my mind, it is time......