Friday, February 20, 2009
What do you see in this picture? Adapted from www.aad.gov.au/default.asp?casid=2880 Yes, you see a lot of penguins huddling together. This is what you can liken to a penguin 'ritual' every winter. It is their form of survival in the extreme cold conditions that they live in. By literally sandwhiching each other together, they allow their body heat to transfer among each other to prevent them from chilling to death. This is the only way they can survive the blizzard. Anyone who separates from the pack dies. It is not hard to tell that those standing in the middle of the pack will be the ones that gets the most heat and thus, the most comfortable. For those standing at the edge, they are the ones suffering the most. As we can see from the picture, thick coats of ice crystalize on their feathers. Not very bearable yeah? Can you imagine being coated with ice? This image captivated me so strongly that I decided to share. It just suddenly cross my mind and I believe I have the obligation to share it with all my Christian brothers and sisters. We can compare ourselves to penguins. Each and everyone of us as Christians are like penguins. We are surviving in the cold, harsh world. As Christians, we need to continually give each other spirtual support in the form of fellowship and encouragement. However, we should always remember the great commission that Jesus gave us, that is to go out and make disciples for his kingdom. Many times, I find many Christians, myself included, being too caught up within our own comfort zone. We are just like the penguins in the middle of the pack. We only like to associate with people around us, people we are farmiliar with. Some may even choose to associate with just Christian friends. That's where we find the most warmth as the farmiliar faces of brothers and sisters in Christ never fail to comfort us. But we can't always stay in the center of of the herd. We can't always be the one enjoying the most warmth. When the time comes, we need to pull ourselves out from our comfort zone and venture into the colder, harsh outskirts. It is those that are located in the outskirt that are of paramount importance to the survival of the herd. They are the ones that guide other penguins back into the herd. They are the ones that welcome the other penguins to join. They are the ones that gets the least warmth but doing the most important job. Without them to guide the returning penguins, the incoming penguin will not be able to bring the food back into the herd. Likewise, as Christians, sometimes we need to venture beyond our comfort zone. We need to go out and invite new people to join us within this circle of huddle. Only when the numbers increase will there be more people to share the warmth and love together, ensuring our continual survival. The world may be harsh, but if we congregate together, Christ's love will bundle us with joy and peace. It is not easy being at the frontline of the herd. Many people choose to remain in the centre of the herd. We can't just ensure our own survival. We need to have the goal of bigger picture in mind. We've got to move on to bigger things, greater responsibilities. We've got to step out of our comfort zone and venture into places where our help is needed the most. Once, you received the most warmth. Now it is the time to show the same love and kindness to people whom you've never known. May it be that God grant us the courage to be that penguin on the outskirt of the fellowship. May He grant us the strength (or the fats, haha) to keep us warm by stepping out for Him. May we have His will in our minds in place of our own selfish wills. May He be the rising sun across the horizon that gives us all hope. Thank You LORD. http://www.splashofcolour.net.au/Image/PenguinChick.JPG SO WHAT KIND OF PENGUIN ARE YOU?
Friday, February 13, 2009
Sometimes, it is simple worship songs like this that touch the innermost part of my heart. No fanciful melody, no bombastic words. Simple and sweet, straight forward, just like God's love to us. Praise You LORD...
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
The atheist asked me, "If your god is so good and almighty, if he loves us, why would he make people on earth suffer?"
Hmm... Tough question. What am I to answer him?
First, my atheist friend, isn't the whole world suffering? Whoever's god we are talking about, aren't we all still suffering? Hmm.. By your logic, I guess all other gods in the world don't love us too. None of the gods seems to care about us, don't you think so? Not a single one of them. Well, that's explain it. That's why you are an atheist.
My dear atheist friend, let me ask you this now. Your question just summarised the concept as shown below.
"If your god is so good and almighty, if he loves us, why would he make people on earth suffer?"
GOODNESS + POWER + LOVE = NO SUFFERING
When I was still a very young kid, my mum has always been there to take care of me. She is good to people around her. She is always genuinely concerned with people around her. That easily satisfy your criteria of being good. She has the power to discipline me too. She dictates my schedule. When I have my meals, what time I go to the school and when I play too much computer games, she has the power to discipline me. Seems like she satisfy the criteria of possessing certain amount of power too. Does my mum love me? Definitely! No doubt about that. She loves me to the bottom of her heart.
My mum satisfy the following:
GOODNESS + POWER + LOVE
But that didn't prevent me from suffering once or twice in my life. There were times when my mum asked me not to play in the rain. I chose not to listen to her. I ended up contracting a bad cold and that was suffering. There were times where she asked me not to over eat in buffet lunches. I did not listen to her and I end up having a very bad stomach ache and vomitting for the rest of the day. That definitely was a form of suffering.
GOODNESS + POWER + LOVE = NO SUFFERING????????
My friend, the problem lies with you. Yes you. Why do you expect to not suffer just because God is good? Why do expect God to deliver you from your suffering just because He has the power to do so? Why do you expect God to take away your suffering just because He loves you? WHO ARE YOU MY FRIEND? Who are you to demand all these from someone you've just described as good, almighty and loves you? Yes friend, you are the selfish one who expects things to happen. Your mind expects things to follow a pattern you so think should be the case. You think you understand what you said. You think a lot my friend, but you don't understand.
If you truly believe in what you've just said my atheist friend, then promise me one thing. When you have a kid next time, don't ever let him or her suffer. You know what will happen if your child suffer? It means, you are not good to your child. You are useless because you don't have the power to control your child so that he or she will not suffer. You definitely do not love your child at all because she suffered! You are a lousy father my friend.
My dear atheist friend, I don't think that is possible right? I am sure you will love your child and you would want to give the best for him or her. But to let your child not suffer?
Also my dear atheist friend. If you know that people around are suffering my friend, what have you done to help them? You ask God where is the solution to the suffering in the world. I see you my friend. I see your willing and kind heart as the answer to your own question. God empowered you and I with perfect health and wealth. How much have you contributed that to ending someone else's suffering. You may not be the solution to suffering, but are you even part of it?
My dear atheist friend, with so much being said, I hope you don't just think, understand what you are saying. I want to tell you my friend, even with you unjustifying so much about God, He has not forgotten you. He wants to justify you. You ask Him where is the solution to your suffering. I tell you the truth, the solution is Him. You thought you could catch God with His words by asking Him where he is when you see so much suffering. But He actually bothered about you my friend. He actually died just to give an answer to your solution. He didn't die to free you from your sufferings on earth. He died to free you from your sufferings for eternity. Do you believe that? All you have to do is just to believe that He has done it for you.
But would you believe what I just said? Would you believe me my friend? Or would you think that I am just some lost fellow following a blind faith? Whatever the case my friend, don't just think, understand.
God is always there for me and you. Were we always there for Him?
Friday, February 06, 2009
Today is an emotional day for me. It is my ORD. Today, I've officially regained my civilian status. Today, I've officially become an NSman. Today, I've put a full stop on one of the most important chapter in my life and a new one is beginning.
There are so many things going through my mind now. There are so many things I want to express. But there are just too many things for me to put them into words. My time in the army has been so rich, full of joy and pain. I don't think I'll ever get to experience so much things in just 2 years. They said national service changes a guy. Many people think it is nonsense. I don't agree. I've seen the change it has done to me. It has been amazing.
With so many things to say, I think it'll be easier if I could just theme this entry. I would say my NS experience is a time of many firsts. Let's begin with the sunny morning of 09th April 2007.
That morning, is a morning I can never forget. It was a morning of mixed emotions. For the first time in my life, I've never felt so confused. Much have been said and heard about the NS experience. I didn't know what to expect. Will it be enjoyable or will it be painful? Will I be able to pull through this 2 years. Many people told me not to worry because I don't have to worry. But still, worrying isn't much of a choice for me then. I couldn't stop worrying. My parents brought me to Pasir Ris Bus Interchange and over there were many sergeants politely ushering us to a bus that brought us to the SAF terminal. Little did I know that all these "polite" sergeants will soon be the first line that SAF has put in place in our lives to "tekan" us. I was soon brought to this place called "Botak Island". "Botak Island" was nice on first sight. It looked some what like a holiday chalet.
My parents and I were then having lunch at the cookhouse of "Botak Chalet". Sitting there seeing many other guys that are going into the same fate as me wasn't exactly helpful. All their faces were glum and sad. It was then that I bid my parents good bye. For the first time in my life, I will be seperated from my parents for more than 2 weeks. Knowing that it is on an island is not very helpful either. My parents left and for the first time in my life, I felt so alone. Alone with so many other people that were left alone too.
There were many other firsts in "Botak Island" too. But I can't share all the details. Soon, it was time to leave "Botak Island" into somewhere in the west. That somewhere is OCS. OCS is the climax of my training days in the army. It was a place where it pushes one to his limits. It is a place of self discovery for me. Again, due to the sensitivity of the content, I am unable to divulge the many firsts that I've experienced in OCS. But thank God for them. Because it was here that I've totally change the perception of myself. I was pushed beyond to what I can thought I couldn't achieve before I come into army. Before entering the army, anyone who can run a distance of more than 2.4 km was crazy to me. The 4.8km cross country run in high school was like THE CHALLENGE for me and I felt so good about completing it. When I came into OCS, they pushed me beyond what I thought was crazy. 5km, 8km, 10km. 10km endurance runs became like part of the training every week and soon, I became accustomed to it. Subsequently, in my days of officership, I went on to run the 21km half marathorn. Right now, I am training up for my first marathorn of my entire life. The Adidas Sundown Marathorn. Without all these training in OCS, I would never even dare to think about going for all these. But right now, I did beyond what I used to think was crazy.
OCS training also saw me going through many other firsts. I was thrown into a foreign jungle with a bunch of other guys and we were supposed to survive in it for 9 days. That was REAL jungle survival. Finding your way through the thick vegetation, drinking from river water, building your own shelter and also surviving 9 days with little food while carrying a very heavy load. When I say little I really mean VERY LITTLE food. Killing a cute bird by twisting its neck wasn't exactly very pleasant either. Its blood flowing out onto your hands. Never in my whole life then would I be expecting myself to be doing that kind of thing. Never! Seriously, that experience was once in a lifetime and nothing can describe it. That experience made boys like us cry when we exit the jungle! I didn't cry but I was so touched to see a bunch of army boys hugging and crying with each other the moment we stepped out of that hell like jungle. That experience made me so much more confident about myself. There is nothing I can't do. It is just a matter of whether my mind wanted to. Of course, God was with me. I really want to thank God that He gave me the strength to pull through the experience. I came out without a single injury. No exaggeration but people do die from that kind of training and it wasn't too long ago. I was worried of my safety but God was with me.
Then, there was the comissioning parade that saw me wearing such a nice military uniform for the first time. For the first time my parents came down to the parade square and put on my rank for me. It was a proud moment. You would feel like you are the coolest looking dude around wearing that uniform but then you realised there were hundred more others. And then there was the first time I attended a ball. It was my comissioning ball. Wearing the SAF No.2 uniform looks a bit funny at first but after a while, you'll actually find it quite nice. It was like a world of difference to the uniform I wore in the jungle a few months back then. That's the amazing thing about my stint in the army. It provided me with the most down to earth experience, to the splurging end of the experience spectrum. All within 2 years.
My stay in the army also humbled me a lot. You start to realise that you aren't actually as good as you think you are. People whom you never thought much of could actually surprise you big time. I started to get to know people I've never thought I would come into contact with. I get to know guys who had criminal backgrounds. I have to led men that some people think are beyond any control. But it was great to know them. You start to see the good in people. There is good in everyone of us. My men are my source of encouragement. Used to think it should be the other way around but reality proves us wrong sometimes.
There are really really much more things I would love to share but there are just too many of them! Today, as I stepped out of camp, I felt a sense of sadness. ORD is supposed to be a happy event for many people. But for me, it was an emotional one. There are many things that I don't want to leave behind. But everything have their place and time. What stays within the camps compound can't go out. But I know the memories will be with me forever. I'll not forget my days in the army. It's time for me to move on. I used to questioned God so badly why did He not let me get into Medicine and disrupt from army to pursue my dream of becoming a doctor. In retrospect, God seems to understands me the best. These 2 years have moulded me into someone I've never thought I would become. My mental strength is way stronger than what it was before. I start to see the bigger picture of things now. God has a better plan for me. I can see that it is way better than what I expected, which is why I am so looking forward to what is installed for me this year. I am so much more confident in Him that He will pull me through studies in Dentistry. Not quite something I would expect myself to be doing before but now, I really think it suits me better.
These 2 years will become the foundation for me for the next 4 years. God, you've put me here and I am going to run with you. I really want to thank You for the 2 years in army, because it made me a stronger and better person. You moulded me into someone You want me to be and not what I want to be. For all the past experience, may they be a testimony to Your love and grace for me. Thank You LORD.
The 2 years was great. Thank you SAF. :)
Sunday, February 01, 2009
Today is the LORD's Holy Communion Sunday. Normally, I would be sitting among the congregation, waiting for my turn to receive the grace of God's Holy Communion. However, it was different for me today. As I was serving in the worship team, I had the chance to be at the backstage, facing the congregation as they make their way up to partake in the Holy Communion.
As I was sitting there observing the crowd, a few people caught my attention. Among them were the elderlies. As they were old, it took them quite some effort to kneel down before the pulpit to receive their portion. Unknowingly, a beautiful thought came into my mind. I wondered to myself, "There can only be two reasons why these elderlies are still coming to church and willingly humble themselves in front of LORD our God. They could have been Christians for all their lives or majority of their lives. I give thanks to You God because it meant that your grace and mercy was sufficient to keep them going all these years, providing them with strength and refuge, so much so that they've continued to walk in Your light after so many years. Alternatively, they could be new believers, coming to know God only towards the later part of their lives. I gave thanks to God for them too. It is because God's grace and love is so powerful that they have decided to follow Jesus during their aging years. Having gone through so much in their lives, it is never easy to let God into our hardened hearts at such an age. Their lives were salvaged at the later part their lives. I give thanks to you God!"
I came to realise one thing, no matter which part of our lives God chose to intercept, it is never too late. It is in God's timing and will that all things will fall into place. I began questioning myself. Would I be able to see myself kneeling down there 40 years down the road, humbly partaking in God's Holy Communion? It is not going to be an easy journey to be a Christian, but the end result is more than what we all deserve. This experience also reminds me of how so many out there have yet to come to know our Lord Jesus. It is never too late. Any time is a good time to love God because God loves us all the time.
God, if it is by your will that I'll ever live to that ripe old age, I want not only myself to be kneeling down in front of that pulpit, partaking in your Holy Communion. Let my children and my wife, my family and friends be kneeling beside me, joining me in this remembrance of Your amazing grace. Let my footsteps be steadfast and never far away from You. If I ever do stray from You Lord, do not forget me. Pull me back to Your side. I never want to feel far away from You. I felt that distance before and it feels exceedingly lonely. Lord, I do not want to be far from You. Keep me within Your reach, within a word of prayer.
I want to be with You for eternity. Let it be at Your will Lord...