Running the race #14 Standing firm(25sep08)

Dear…

'Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit, serving the Lord'
Romans 12:11

Standing firm was the thought that came to my mind, this lunchtime as I finally had some time to be still with our Lord. As always, God is prescient and Romans 12:11 was the verse He brought me to as I read His word, just (note: actually 'just' meant on 19sep, but as I prepared to send this out this morning ie 29th sep, as is my usual practice to ask God for an affirmation before sharing His Words, our good Lord brought me to the same verse again).

'And He said unto them, why are ye so fearful? How is it that ye have no faith?'
Mark 4:40

For many in the world today, wobbly knees, a nervous heart, and standing on still very unstable grounds are more a fact than myth, so it is natural when the Federal Reserve in USA promised a solution, with the Trust Resolution company,many cheered. The solution is indeed the right one, but is the quantum suffice, and would there be enough resolve to see it through, for many recalcitrants would now take this opportunity as the chance to avoid the accountability that is long overdue? A correction of their immoral ways either by repentance or by compulsion is more likely to be effectively implemented in a collapsed situation. We might not be there yet, for leopards don’t change their spots, you can only skin them( "Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots.." Jeremiah 13:23)

'Rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer…'
Romans 12:12

There are many walking dead in the streets of the world today. We are not talking about zombies, but close enough, for many have seen their life savings devastated, as their financial investments blew up literally in their faces. There are also many, where fears exist in the sublimal, but is ready to burst forth at the mere drop of a pin. The world now waits with some bated breath for the rescue package to be approved by Congress. Prayers will be on the lips of many, but to which gods are they placing their hopes in, and is the subject of their prayers still very much focussed on recovering the temporal rather than looking to eternity?

'But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.'

James 1;6-8

For many of us who have come to the faith, that first desire to turn away from the world and to God, usually comes after a major shake in the very foundations of our settled life. But to continue to grow in our faith will require many more aftershocks, for to be tranformed from the imperfect man to near Christlikeness is a process of refinement.

So what can keep us steady, and not waver in our resoluteness to be unto the presence of the Lord our God, even as the world shakes?

"O God, my heart is the altar. And my love for you is the flame; I will keep the fire burning for You, Lord. And I will rejoice in Your name."

(Daily Bread 12th Aug 2007)

God is love. The thought just struck me a couple of days back that in loving Him and in loving our fellow men, love brings us into communion with God, for God is love.

Faith comes to us from God. It cannot be earned or worked for. But to receive faith, we must love, for that will bring us into one with the Lord our God.

Hope is the substance of things hope for, the evidence of things unseen. Hope is the other side of God given faith. It is the exercise of our free will to be willing to trust and obey the unseen, yet very visible God.

'For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God……But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.'

Hebrews 3:4-6

On the subject of houses, I was just reminded that houses built by men, are always imperfect. The fixed glass panel of my toilet decided to redecorate itself by a loud implosion last Friday night. Thankfully, my daughter was in the other bathroom and so was not an on-site witness to the birth of a very transformed glass panel, whose shattered beauty was held together in one piece by the 3M film that I have placed in all my toilet glass panes, after the last incident 2 years back.

My imagination does run wild a little and is it not wonderful how a thin film of plastic could hold together what is now truly a collection of shattered glass pieces, albeit beautifully fragmented. Is it not like the shattered faith of many investors, whose very taut emotions are now held together by hope put forth by the very thin layer of plastic being put together by Paulson and Bernanke?

'Wherefore(as the Holy Ghost saith, Today if ye will hear His voice, Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness…'

Hebrews 3:7-8

Moving away from what the finite men can do, what about many of us believers in the Lord our God? Have not many of us found when our very lives were first shattered, that even when things looked like falling apart, in finally reaching out our hands to the always present and loving hands of our Lord Jesus Christ, we are never crushed, for His love keeps us together.

'What? Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?"
Job 2:10

With the latest unsubstantiated bank run in Hong Kong, and with Ukraine better known for the nuclear fallout in Cherynobl, then its present financial woes, much worse than ex mother Russia, and not forgetting the 3 ongoing banks rescue in Europe now, globalization of the world's woes have now truly come to our shores. What is ahead, none of us truly know, for man plans, God directs. But the picture does not look too pretty and while bleak might be an understatement, is there a need to freak out?(forgive me for my choice of street words)

'He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied…..'
Isaiah 53:11

The Bible is not a feel good book, where every story has a scripted 'happy ending' in man's sinful ways. It is also not a book where we look for the answers to our lustful desires, But rather, the Word is God, and God is the Word. The Bible is where we spend time in the presence of God, where we learn to let go of our imperfect ways and let Him. Like the many men and women in the Bible, correction has to start with us, and there are times where like Job, we go through 'unjustified' challenges in our lives, but like Job and many men of faith, it matters not, once we truly come into the presence of the Lord our God.

'I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept My word, and has not denied My name…'

Revelation 3:8

God is looking for obedience, not for excellence. Even as one storm passes, the next is gathering and as some might have realized by now, there is truly no safe place to hide, for even the proverbial cash stashed under one's pillow, rather than in the once hallowed, but now increasingly hollowed-out financial instittutions, will not preserve well its purchasing power, in a possible era of runaway stagflation.

A man's treasures are where his heart is. Reality is no temporal treasures will be able to assuage one's fears, be it real or perceived and one can only truly stand firm, if one's heart is with the Lord our God

'Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.'

Revelation 3:10

Thankfully, many of us who truly desire to follow our Lord Jesus Christ, can attest to the fact that God stands not just with us, He shelters and guides us, He is Sovereign.

Are you willing to be his sheep while He is still there for you? Or will you continue to let your desires and fears drive you like lemmings over the cliff?

'For thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I, even I, will both search My sheep, and seek them out…….I will feed My flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord God.'

Ezekiel 34:11-16

A humble and contrite heart, a heart that is willing to yield to God is the beginning of our healing. Where the fear of God is the only fear we should have, for the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.

Forget about standing firm on your own strength or understanding, for what is to come, no man can stand unruffled. If you are already not brought down to your knees by the present averse circumstances, then prayerfully, it is time to come down upon you knees, into the presence of the Lord our God, the source of all peace and comfort and joy, three words that are very much missing in the lives of many.

'My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.'
Isaiah 32:18

God Blesses

Eng Hieang
(25Sep2008)

Running the race #13 Poignant 18th sep 08

Dear…

'My people will dwell in peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.'
Isaiah 32:18

Like me, if you happen to be working or used to be working, the latter not by choice, but by real default of one's once venerable institution, but now consigned to memory, the above verse Isaiah 32:18 seems furthur for all of us, than Siberia. The so called second wind of the hurricane is upon us, and surreal it might seem, once proud institutions are either being brought down to their knees or are scrambling hard to find shelter before the forces of fear and panic and greed combine to knock not just the wind out of them, but to bring down the very foundations of businesses built over several generations.

Fear has never seem so palpable.

'Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach! Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it.

But the Lord is in His holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before Him.'
Habakkuk 2:19-20

The alchemists in our midst in the financial world, who have been recklessly tinkering with the potent mix of greed, pride and deceit, who have for so many years lured many to the promised riches of financial engineering, have of late not just seen their many toxic brews blown up in their faces, but along with it, the very laboratory or rather, financial institutions that their predecessors have taken generations to build.

The demons of fear have been released. The domino effect will be a self fulfilling momentum, as men, who not too many months ago were irrationally exuberant, now begin to break free from the anchor of rationality and instead allow their imaginations to go wild and turn them into a thundering herd of fearful lemmins, that will probably culiminate in their jumping over the proverbial cliff, believing that the imaginary monster behind them is more real and scary, than the reality of the deep ravine that they are about to plunge into.

To witness a run on banks is an experience that our parents might have been more familiar with, but to witness a run on insurance companies, now that might be setting new grounds, but who knows, we could be about to witness even newer scarier experiences!!

''Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, unto Thee do we give thanks: for that Thy name is near Thy wondrous works declare.;

Psalms 75:1

Lately, or more like in the past couple of months, the Lord has woken me up an hour earlier than my normal 6a.m. But unlike the past pre-follower days of our Lord Jesus Christ, the solitude of the morning is no longer spent pondering upon the concerns of the world, or letting one's fears or greed, ever have that chance of renewing its grip upon one's soul. But rather, the time for me is now spent wonderfully with the Lord our God in prayers, in reflection in His presence and in His Word.

'I cried unto God with my voice, even unto God with my voice: and He gave ear unto me.'
Psalm 77:1

Tearing for me, as brought forth by the Spirit of God, though slightly less regular than stockmarket crashes, have always been a great experience, if not defining moments for me. This morning, as the Lord brought met to Psalms 76-77, as I pondered upon His Words, He brought this great sense of gratefulness on my part, that tearing(one don’t call it crying, at least not for the macho man) was the only response a thankful heart can give to our Abba Father, for His love and grace. The Lord our God has truly brought all of us who work in this still venerable institution, into the shelter of His love, even as the marauding financial vultures were ready to collect us as their next scalp, after successfully bringing about the downfall of another venerable Investment Bank the same weekend. Appropriately, in the newspapers in Singapore a couple of days back, there was this very expensive piece of live or rather a very dead bull, soaked in preservative compounds and showcased in a transparent box and positioned as a piece of art, to be displayed in our local museum. For many who are in this business, clearly just a day more of delay and the chapter would have closed on our very existence. But it was not to be and now the vultures have moved on to feast on AIG, next across the Atlantic ocean, to the Brits, who are srcambling harder than an egg in the pan to arrange quickie marriages, to ward off unwanted intrusions.

My strength is made perfect in weakness.'
Romans 8:26-28

The journey for all of us have just entered a new phase. The financial pandemonium is likely to move globally the next few weeks, but just like a shooting star, a large part of the fear will as quickly burn itself out in a matter of weeks, rather than months. Short as it might seem, the wreckage left behind will be tremendous, for wealth will be lost, jobs thrown out of the window, and personal health issues and the very foundations of families will be shaken. A client just sms me as to what does "misery index" mean't. I have no idea, just like one can never measure the exact nadir of fear, but one can tell when we are near the peak of irrationality just by looking at the masses.

Similarly, poignant moments cannot be measured, but it can be observed. But only the Lord our God knows what is truly in our hearts, and the exact moment when in allowing the mighty hurricane to finally blow away the darkness that have encapsulated our very hearts and view of Him, to allow His light to shine forth into our broken and contrite spirit.

'Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary: Who is so great a God as our God?'
Pslams 77:13

The shakings in the financial sector is no longer a localised situation, specific to just a few of us. The reveberations of man's greed and now fear will emanate forth into the global economy, and in turn magnify itself into the political, social and down to the very family structure. The present coundrum that we find ourselves in has its origins in man's own sinfulness. In letting greed, pride and now fear take precedence over contentment and stewardship. Good banking practices, decent standards of honesty and integrity had little value in the go go years, where Kylie Minogue's couple of million dollars paycheck for a gig in oil rich Dubai pales in comparison to that of the hundred of millions, and for some hedge fund managers, billions in compensation.

'Give ear, O My people, to My law, incline your ears to the words of My mouth.'
Psalms 78:1

The Americans have in their coinage, "in God in trust" but like many who are Christians in name, but secular in heart, the only thing that many placed their trusts in was mammon.

With the season of fear now upon us, many once greedy investors, would soon be literally "throwing out the baby with the bath water." Just a few months back, many in their rush for the material delusions of the devil, have long thrown out their moral character, and the commands of God.

Are we in Asia, in the process of going down the same road of swapping God's will, for the desires of the world?. Now is the time, in the midst of this shaking, to repent and come back into the presence of the Lord our God. If we as the present generation do love the world more than God, there is a very real possibility that the present character of our next generation, our children will gradually be transformed into the ways of the devil, and what our forefathers take to build these past few generations, can also go the same way of USA today.

'We then, as workers together with Him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain. (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.')

2 Corinthians 6:1-2

Cycles will come and they will go. This is not the end of the world yet, at least not if it is based on our fears that postulate too much into the depths of despair. Our Lord Jesus Christ will return, no one knows when, but till then, He will allow the world to be shaken that much harder, increasingly, for our souls are at stake, and while it is our sinfulness that often bring upon our own sorrows, God will allow us to fall that much harder, if it is necessary to awaken us to the dangers that lies ahead, for indeed it is not just our very souls, but the souls of our loved ones that is at risk of eternal damnation.

To lose our material comforts or even our very lives is indeed a painful experience, but it will be more than poignant when you realize too late that your very soul has been lost for eternity, because you have not invested well, by coming unto the presence of the Lord our God always.

'That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born: …..that they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments'

Psalms 78:5-8

God Blesses

Eng Hieang
(18sep08)

Running the race #12 Cooking up a storm (15sep08)

Dear…

'Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.'

Colossians 3:13

With the ex-Thai Prime Minister Khun Samak being ruled out of office, on a technicality, for receiving payment(notwithstanding that it was a stipend rather than a largess), for displaying his culinary skills on television, the entire episode has brought the term "cooking up a storm" into a new dimension.

So for all aspiring political wanabees, the next time you toss your salad in public, do bear in mind that you could soon be tossed out of high office, if your fair weather political friends do decide to bring out their kitchen knives and go make a meal out of your political ambitions.

Politics is a process upon which a group of people make decisions. It involves social relationships involving authority and power. Though generally associated with institutions be it government, civil or even corporate life, political interplays or more like human machinations cut across all spectrums of society. Robinson Crusoe would have gone stark mad fighting his own shadow, if not thankfully for a savage he saved from the cannibals' cooking pot and named Friday. At least old Robinson had someone to talk to, but not with. Put two homo sapiens together and before long, they wish that they were all alone. Add one more to the equation and the only thing less complicated than their relationships would be a Rubic's cube

'Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Consider your ways..'
Haggai 1:7

Men did spent umpteem hours thinking about their ways. The Apostle Paul was suitably struck by the length of efforts the Athenians spent in philosophying about life. They even have a tablet to the "unknown god." besides their own potpurri of Greek gods like Zeus, Apollos, and many more as long as there are suffice marbles to put them up. The Chinese recent extravagant display of their centuries old history is not without cause. The Chinese philosopher Confucius(551-471 BC) was one of the first thinkers to adopt a distinct approach to political philosophy. He believed that only a morally upright ruler should be able to exercise power and that the behavior of an individual ought to be consistent with their rank in society. By the time China turned communists, seeking that egalitarian dream of a classless society, clearly, quite a few less than ideal Emperors of China were confused about what Confucius mean't for many confused upright for sole right.

For the history buff, if you were to throw in the names of other great philosophers like Aristotle( "man is a political animal or more like natural sinners), Machiavelli('man is manipulative'), Karl Marx("a classless society"), there are indeed plenty of willing cooks who have come up with some great delectable thoughts. But what is reality?

'For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?'

Matthew 16:26

Some mainstream religion do acknowledge our Lord Jesus Christ, but only as a minor prophet, not the the Son of God. Some others just ranked him alongside the great philosophers above and would just be happy to cast him in an alabaster cast, while they search for the next great thinker. And some think that Jesus Christ is just a myth, no different from that of the Holocausts and the only thing the Nazi Germans put in the steaming gas chambers was a Jewish kosher meal.

But who truly is our Lord Jesus Christ? The one and only Son of God, who came into this sinful world, to be like us, yet He is perfect, while we are not. Who died for our sins, by his sacrifice on the cross. Yet, by His resurrection, has broken the grip of death upon all, and we no longer need to have our whole life and emotions evolve around the need to "keep alive." For what grips many of us is this need to be on top of the world, so we can partake in its sweet temptations, and the need to not just stay with wealth, keep healthy, and seek the adoration of the fickle world.

God has given us peace and joy on Earth, and eternity with Him thereafter. Is this a philosophy or a Divine promise?
Is this possible or just one of those concoctions cooked up and sold as the proverbial cure all "snake oil" that was hawked by itinerary salesman of old in the West, but now repackaged and re-tweaked for eg in the present Western financial system, the end result is the present coundrum that the world find itself in.

'….Yet once, it is a little while and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts.'

Haggai 2:6-7

As one recommitted follower of our Lord Jesus Christ, I have tried to live my faith, albeit not with near perfection. And I have answered God's call to share His journey with me on the public forum.

Like the magician who have just tried for the umpteem time to pull the missing rabbit out of his hat, the sometimes, rather distracted audience that I have been placed with in my journey must be questioning, when is God going to do a couple of convincing acts in my or their lives, so that they can want to believe Him?

'That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness.'

Zephaniah 1:15

Expectations of the unbelieving might never be met, for our Lord will answer prayers asked in His will, not ours, but trepidation and fear is what we are about to enter or have entered and will pick up speed the next few weeks. But God is good. With my change of employer as announced in the papers today, God has taken myself and many faithful colleagues out of the hurricane's path. The hurricane will now move on to the next series of financial institutions, and the shakeout in the lives of many will intensify as more financial institutions comes under the radar of the vultures who will test the resolve of the Central Banks to rescue more institutions down the line.

That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever.'

Joshua 4:24

God wants to bring all of us back into His fold. The cauldron is about to boil over, but instead of the negative implications of the proverbial from the frying pan to the fire, if one truly look unto God, the fire that many are about to be tossed into will not char them, but refine them. Being out of the path of the hurricane does not mean that there will no new storms. For this is hurrican season. But it matters not, for God is faithful and we must stay faithful, by coming and staying unto His presence. The world will see the difference between the faithful and the faithless and know that truly there is a Sovereign God, and prayefully, will want to know Him.

'For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosover will lose his life for My sake shall find it.'
Matthew 16:25

'Be strong and courageous, be not afraid nor dismayed….with us,is the Lord our God to help us, and to fight our battles'

2 Chronicles 32:7-8

God Blesses

Eng Hieang
(15th Sep 2008)

Running the race #11 Schindler's List (15sep08)

Dear…

'Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;……
………Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.'
Romans 12:12-15

Schindler's List was a movie that recently came back into my life when my two kids started to do a duet on the piano lately on the lovely but haunting music, in preparation for a performance in school sometime in the future. The movie itself was a poignant reminder of the Holocausts, where in the name of a superior Aryan German race, Hitler and his Nazi party decided that the world should be rid of the 'scums" of the world, namely the Jews, the gypsies, the disabled, the sexually disorientated and anyone else who does not fit the mould of the "perfect" race.

I decided to surf the net for a bit more information and interestingly, the Jewish diaspora has been a much maligned and castigated group, where in the majority of instances, they were consigned to the slums of their host society, yet despite the odds, they have not just survived but very often were both derided yet courted by the powers to be, for their wealth and intellect.

In the film, "Schlindler's List," the man, Schindler might have been somewhat lionised, as films tend to be, but one cannot take away the fact that Schindler was a man who moved from personal interests to sacrificing personal gains for the greater good of the Jewish people under his charge. By his efforts, he saved countless souls from the gas chambers and as a direct result, lost most of his personal wealth.

'For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?'

Esther 4:14

What makes a man who by all accounts was very focussed on personal enrichment do what seem to be a totally out of character behaviour in his one man crusade to save the wretched lives of many a Jew during Hitler's Third Reich, where the final solution in Nazi terminology meant the extermination of the Jewish race?

But Schindler's selflessness and courage was just one of many shining examples that dotted the bleak landscape of human wretchedness and evil since time immemorial. What brings forth such Christlikeness in many?

'For whosoever will save his life will lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for My sake, the same shall save it.'
Luke 9:24

As believers who desire to seek the Lord our God, we are all cognizance of His command to love our neighbours as ourselves. All of us profess a desire to do that, for God is good to us and what better way to be like our Lord Jesus Christ than to show agape love for our neighbours, for God is love.

'Love worketh no ill to his neigbour; therefore love is the fulfilling o fthe law.'
Romans 13:10

The proof of the pudding is in the eating of it, but reality is that most of us will probably fall flat on our nose, at least at the first instance, for our sinful natural self will take precedence over the spiritual calling of our Lord. There are usually very good reasons to excuse ourselves from loving our neighbours and as recent events have shown in the petition amongst some of the residents of Serangoon Gardens, a middle income enclave of Singapore, a place dotted with churches and likely to have a proportionately larger than national average of Christians, who were not too keen to have "the lower category" foreign workers converged upon the neighbourhood, as a result of proposals to house them in a disused school. Indeed, by our "justified attitudes," we are living out the words in the Bible, ie doing what we do not want to do, and not doing what we are called upon to do.

'For you were once darkness, but now your are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light'
Ephesian 5:8

When Adam took the bite of the forbidden apple, he also took with him the right to make judgements based on his flawed and sinful understanding, without the need to lean upon God. With this less than glorious heritage in all our DNA, it is understandable that most of us will react from our will rather than the Lord's.

I must confess that often, my first reaction to issues around me tend to be based on my own biasedness and whatever that might have looked like a cloak of Christlikeness around me is very quickly flung aside as my natural sinful selfish self takes over. Our Lord is indeed right, for none of us can really play judge on the seemingly less than Christlike behaviour of our neighbours be it in Serangoon Gardens, or once mighty but now turbulent Wall Street, the highly discriminatory caste sytems of India or even the illusory egalitarian communes of China, for all of us are imperfect.

But is imperfection the proverbial skirt that should allow many of us who know the Lord to continue to do otherwise?

'Deliver me, O Lord from the evil man: preserve me from the violent man. Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war.'

Psalms 140:1-2

Even if we are prepared to put aside our natural biasedness, what about fear of the consequences of our actions to do the right thing? And what is the right thing? For how do we know this is the will of God?

'This people honours Me with their lips. But their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me. Teaching as doctrine the commandments of men…'

Mark 7:6-7

Life for all of us, always seem to be a series of twin-forked roads. For many, they just plod along, never giving much thought to the consequences or if they do, it will be guided by their needs and driven by their fears and desires. What about us believers who seek to follow our Lord Jesus Christ. Do we have a clear idea of what is ahead and do we have a global positioning system that tells us specifically the next turn to make, so that we will be on track to reach our destination? How can we be sure that our very actions and thoughts are aligned with the will of the Lord our God?

'And a certain Jew, named Apollos, ….an eloquent man, and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John……..Then said Paul, John verifly baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, Christ Jesus.'

Acts 18:24 Acts 19:4-5

To love, for God is love is a daily experience all of us must aspire to. But to be able to move from loving ourselves to loving others, we must start by loving God. To know the very heartbeat of the Holy Spirit, so that our very will will be aligned to His. Once we are one with God, for His Spirit resides in us, it will not be too difficult to know when we have moved away from His will. But have you moved from your thoughtful desire to seek Him, to a real disciplined determination to follow Him?

When was the last time you read the Bible? When was the last time you prayed for others, for God's leading rather than reminding Him of your wants? When was the last time that you praise God for all situations, and not just for the "good" ones? Have you ever given thought to the fact that your very next action or thought might not be pleasing to the Lord our God?

'For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?'

Esther 4:14

God is a faithful God. In the Book of Esther, the Jews were at risk of being totally annihiliated as a human race. Yet, in the story, God has shown He is in control, even as man plans, He directs. God create circumstances and places His people in not just positions of power or weakeness, but in the right circumstances, to enact one of the greatest turnaround from near grief to total joy for His people. All things are in His control but God allowed His people, Mordechai and Queen Esther, to participate in His plans, to live out their faith, even in situations where to be unfaithful and disobedient seems the more logical approach to dealing with personal dangers.

Then said Jesus unto His disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.'

Matthew 16:24

How is it possible for Mordechai and Queen Esther can be so steadfast in their faith. To place God before self. To place others before themselves? And how is it that most of us professed believers of our Lord Jesus Christ find it so difficult to deal with simpler matters like having people who are different from us, as our neighbours??

'Since we live in the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit'
Galatians 5:25

With man, it is not possible. With God, everything is possible.
I am reminded by the Lord that being imperfect, we are incapable of doing His will by our own efforts, much as we might truly desire to. The Lord understands. God sent us His only Son Jesus Christ not just to make right a wrong that by our own sacrifices, we are incapable of. But our Lord Jesus Christ by example showed us the way to live. And God sent the Holy Spirit to reside in all who believe in Him, to be our guide and teacher till He returns.

The Bible did not expand much on the lives of Mordechai and Queen Esther. But I believe that they must have been faithful seekers of God all their life. Christianity is a relationship. For one to "instinctively" move in tandem with the leading of the Holy Spirit, almost seamlessly, comes from a prolonged period of spending time to know each other.

God's command to all seems almost too easy. To love Him with all our heart, soul and mind and to acknowledge Him in all our ways. And to love others as much as we love ourselves.

It is easy. But to let go, and to let Him, is a life long process of refinement. How Mordechai and Queen Esther could do less effortlessly, is a result of a proven faith, strengthened by a daily obedience in the presence of a responsive and graceful God. And as Queen Esther has shown, much as we think that we might be there with God, it is still a daily renewal process, for circumstances can be different, but it is the same God.

And while some of us might have issues with their neighbours, others might have concerns with the fast intensifying wealth destruction globally, or even their very job security. Should we be doing the sensible thing, which is, looking after our own fast diminishing interests, for how can we take care of others, when our very own survival is at stake? No wonder the show "Survivor" appeals to the carnal attributes in most of us. Or should we truly learn to be still and ask God, what is His will? And will you be prepared to respond in obedience, just like countless Schindlers, Mordechais, and Esthers did, for they know that God is faithful. And our being faithful or being faithless does not change God's faithfulness nor His Sovereignty. But by not being faithful, we have lost the wonderful chance to partake in His plans.

'And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the Lord…'
….Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord's wrath….'
Zephaniah 1:17-18

God Blesses

Eng Hieang
(10Sep08)

Running the race #10 In the eye of the storm(5sep08)

Dear…

'…the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of His people, and the strength of the children of Israel.'

Joel 3:16

'For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness…'

Romans 1:18

'The Spirit of the Lord spake by me, and His word was in my tongue.'
2 Samuel 23:2

By the time this is completed, Hurrican Gustav should have made landfall in Louisiana and prayerfully, plenty of its erstwhile residents would have fled the "accursed" land, for to be hit twice in 3 years, almost to the exact date of the last one, Katrina, does give many a sense of foreboding, for lightning do strike twice or as the retired US General who was in charge of rescue operations during Katrina was quoted when asked to comment on Gustav, stated that God does bring nature back(maybe to remind us of His presence and our follies).

Interestingly, the difference this time is in the attitude, in Katrina, many were sitting pretty thinking that the levees would hold up well, come any storm or fury, and reality brought great grief. This time, fear brings to life, the phrase, "once bitten, twice shy" and many scooted town in a hurry.

But other than awe of nature, have many truly revisited the very meaning of life and for that matter, the very purpose for their existence or even the very efficacy of the "many gods" that they have placed their faith in?

'Tribulations and anguish upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile'
Romans 2:9

Symmetry seems to be the pattern of choice. The present global crisis which started as a US problem, restricted to the financial sector, seems to be broadening out globally, across the real economy this past couple of months. Almost a decade to the year 1998, when the Asian crisis which has been simmering since late 1994, boiled over into a full scale debacle. We have entered the phase of capitulation in the financial markets, but will we witness a terrifying firestorm to bring matters to a conclusion?

The eye of the storm is that physical space between the two walls of a hurricane. Within this space, the atmospheric pressure is the lowest and there is a quiet calm. Many have been caught out by this, when they come out of their shelters to examine the impact of the hurricane that just past through, not realizing that at the tail end of this spatial eye of the storm, is a more devastating 2nd wall of the hurrricane that is about to hit home. "The calm before the storm."

'Destruction and misery are in their ways: And the way of peace have they not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes.'

Romans 3:16-18

After the great upheavals in the financial markets in the first half of this year, culminating with long low valued items like soft commodities putting on tremendous growth in values, and to then fall off the precipice, but not onto to the deep ravine, but thankfully, on to the ledge a few meters below, markets have sobered up and gone limpid. Are we truly at the bottom or are we just biding time in the eye of the storm before the full force of the hurricane hit us all.

In the movie, Jaws, just when you think that it was safe to go into the waters, out from the deep pop up the menacing jaws of the great White shark, making a meal of those who truly believed that the azure blue waters were now safe.

Having just returned from one of my regular sojourns to Bangkok, still very much the Land of Smiles, though somewhat battered by recent events, thankfully I was not on holiday, for then I would have been caught out by the airport closure in Phuket, and like some, might have taken that arduos 10hours overnight drive to Bangkok to take the next available flight home. My week in Bangkok last week was in the midst of the stirring of the disaffection with the present government, but conditions were generally peaceful. It is still relatively peaceful this week, though things did ratchet up a little with what a journalist who was one of two foreign correspondence to witness the ensuing violence, termed as a medieval battle, between the two opposing camps. Are we still in the eye of the storm, and the present calm is just a temporary reprieve?

God is always presecient and just last Wed, amongst the reading materials I brought for my trip to Bangkok was this little booklet entitled "Anchors in the Storm" by Joe Stowell, printed by the Daily Bread in their Discovery Series. Quite an apt read given the many storms that we are undergoing, be it natural, economic, social or political. The author shared certain Biblical truths that will hold us steady and I do encourage all of us to give this booklet more than a glance over, irregardless of whether your emotions are in tatters, or teethering over or amongst the privileged or more liked blessed few, probably tethered or anchored, come what may. What matters is not how badly we have lived our lives as of today, but what matters is, are we prepared to reorientate our whole focus away from the illusory and now very painful lusts of this present secular world, towards the certainty of our faithful and graceful Sovereign God, Who is the same today, yesterday and for eternity.

The author shared on 6 mental anchors in Scripture that give stability in the midst of trouble

1. Commonality

'…No temptation has seized you except what is common to man…'
1 Corinthians 10:13

2. Bearability

'…And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear…'
1 Corinthians 10:13

3. Supernatural options

'…But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it..'
1 Corinthians 10:13

'…The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished.'

2 Peter 2:9

4. God's power

'And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.'

Romans 8:28

'We are troubled on everyside, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair…
…Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body."

2 Corinthians 4:7-10

5. God's Divine Support

'And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee; for My strength is made perfect in weakness…'
2 Corinthians 12;9

6. A process with a purpose

'Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.'

James 9:3

'Partly, whilst ye were made a gazingstock both by reproaches and afflictions; and partly, whilst ye became companions of them that were so used.'

Hebrews 10:33

'I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost. That I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart…'

Romans 9:1-2

Much as the first part of this sharing might seem to imply that disasters will strike only the ungodly. It is far from the truth. For just like God allows the rain and sun to fall and shine upon all, sinners or not, all of us will sometimes find ourselves caught in difficult situations. The difference is that for a true believer and follower of our Lord Jesus Christ, we will know how to anchor our responses not upon the natural but the spiritual. We will learn to let go of our own understanding and start to look unto the Lord our God. We will be thankful for all situations and in doing that, we will not be mired in our own emotions be it fear, greed, pride, anger or whatever is sinful. But rather, we will learn to be still and seek to respond to the will of our God. In letting God, the world will see the glory and grace of God upon our lives and will see the true difference between one who leans faithfully upon our God and one who leans otherwise.

Does it mean that a believer will not suffer collateral damage or even possibly lose one's life in a hurricane? That is never God's promise, for God looks at eternity, we tend to cling on to the temporal. But the world will begin to see in us that certainty of our faith that come what may, the only fear that we have is the fear of our God and nothing else.

'I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth..'
Psalm 34:1

God Blesses

Eng Hieang
(5sep2008)