#88 Sandcastles(23may06)

Whereforth let him that thinketh he standeth take heed less he fall..'
1 Corinthians 10:12

Nostalgia does sell. Today, Elvis Presley memorabilia, weather-beaten Beatles records and Beetles of the vehicular-type, do command more than their economic value.
One advantage of being at slightly over the median age of the general populace, is that in my youth, we still could savour the delights of a real beach, with its regular tides and natural habitat. Children today in Singapore get to see crabs and starfishes at the aquarium, hence the big stir over possibly the last unspoilt patch of beach at Pulau Ubin.

'..shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand, and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house and it fell and great was the fall of it'
Matthew 7:26-27

Myth or reality, the belief is that the rich will get richer in all times. Of course, things do equalize a little, in economic extremities, like the Great Depression of the 1920s, the Asian crisis in the mid-1990s and could the present possibly brief but painful India led equities bloodbath these couple of days, be the harbinger of deadlier things to come, in the future.

'Your money perish with you, because you thought that the gift of God could be purchased with money!'
Acts 8:20

Yet, nothing of men's creation is eternal. None of the ancient wonders of the world survived the ravages of nature and men, be it the 'Hanging Garden of Babylon"
"the Lost city of Altantis"
In more contemporary times, British Gilt was better than gold at the zenith of the British Empire, the gold standard did not fare any better in longevity, and who knows, Uncle Sam's printing press might one day have a seizure.

Like most, whose breath are still thankfully with them at the dawn of daybreak, we tend to behave like the bricklayer.
The thoughts that tend to dominate our minds would be the activities for the day, the next and possibly furthur out into the future.
Worries and desires tend to walk in tandem in our waking hours, and as the sun sets in, our minds are never at rest, planning and pining for what the world holds dear.

Like the beautiful ice sculptures in Harbin, China or in Sapporo, Japan, the tears and fears that go into such creations, will as sure as death, go into melted oblivion with the passage of time.

The tsunami and the hurricances last year, did bring into sharp focus the brevity and fragility of life. Yet, the temerity of God's love is enduring and instead of hardening our hearts with the desires of the world, we should allow Him to strengthen our will, as we journey through the storms of life.

'If anyone doesn't how to manage his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?'
1 Timothy 3:4-5

A life built by the loving hands of God, will stand firm and focus on Him, as we go through the trials of life.
Instead of always ferreting for blessings, while not go to our Maker, the source of all blessings.

God Blesses

Eng Hieang