Running the race #27 The next wave (16Jan09)

ear..

'But one hath somewhere testitified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? Or the son of man, that thou visitest him? Thou madest him a little lower than angels; Thou crownedst him with glory and honor. And didst set him over the works of Thy hands….'

Hebrews 2:6-8

Today was one day I felt literally naked. By choice, I left my watch at home, given a slight wrist injury. But by a momentary lapse of memory, I also left my wallet at home. Strange I never for a moment sensed the absence(until I reached the office carpark) of that necessary but burdensome bulge that I carry with me all my waking hours.

Time with God does keep us better balanced to handle the unexpected. Not too sure if my credit risk is still good in this time and season of economic pessimism, but it matters not, for today is my regular Wednesday fast.

Still it was a pleasant surprise to have an unexpected $10 on my table in my room, by the kindness of my colleague who left it there to pay for a purchase from me.

'Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows'
Matthew 10:31

God truly provides. And not just in the 'big" issues of our lives, but in the seemingly little matters like this. It is my desire to encourage all and sundry to come unto the Lord's presence always, for faith comes from Him, a thankful heart will emanate from being in His presence, and being imperfect, it is always good for one to journal the umpteem times that life has been truly blessed by our God, even as we enter the next descent or rather desert of our lives.

'Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines……and there shall be no herd in the stalls;

Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength, and He will make my feet like hinds feet, and He will make me to walk upon mine high places….'

Habakkuk 3:17-19

In tropical Singapore, desert there might not be, but for many, the emptiness of having lost or about to lose one's usual accourtements and status quo, can give one that sense of feeling deserted. No job, no certainty of an alternative job, but an increase presence of a less friendly creditor(s) and a greater awareness of one's recurring bills coupled with the greater clarity of the protestations of one's long neglected physical health, is a potent mix that can literally drown an already limpid soul, struggling in this sea of sorrows.

But hold your horses, is there a bigger ocean of pain and despair beyond the horizon just waiting to drink up any surviving stragglers?

Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord's wrath, but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of His jealousy…'

Zephaniah 1:18

As God leads was the Word that the Lord placed in my heart at the beginning of this year. It is now truly a practical reality for many of us, for much as many are in self-denial, just as some continue to engage in furthur acts of deceit, we have all entered a maze where no one can truly be certain of where the exit from the present economic woes will be.

Revenue growth, or even revenue itself is a byword that will take some time to reassert itself. The easier prognosis for many would be to enter the vicious cycle of cost-cutting and much as one would hope otherwise, fear and selfishness, will be the intoxicating drink for this ongoing massacre of economic livelihood, just as greed, pride and fear were the bubbly that supplied the crazed and senseless dictum of supranormal growth in revenue the past few years, matched only by the free fall in ethical standards.

'What profiteth the graven image that the maker thereof hath graven it, the molten image, and a teacher of lies, tha the maker of his work trusteth therein, to make dumb idols. 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 2:18-20

For many, the recent months must have been a sobering and humbling time. And looking ahead, the need to even cope with basic provisions will be a challenge for many of the once privileged and safely ensconced minority of this globe. For wealth has always been inequitable, the difference is that poverty and deprivation is now more broadly spread out. To lose US10mio these past few months is almost like a dime a dozen. But it is mind boggling to know of individual losses of US$1bio and everything in between.

Our wants might no longer seem attainable or prayerfully even necessary, but God knows our needs and He has provided. Are you prepared to not just trust in His promise, but recognize that His grace is indeed suffice for the day and focus not on the provisions but on the Provider?

'Who was there among all the gods of those nations that my fathers utterly destroyed, that could deliver his people out of mine hand, that your God should be able to deliver you out of mine hand?'

2 Chronicles 32:14

It is interesting that a few friends on my mail list, for whatever reasons of coincidences, chose to enquire about my present place of work. I have been here 14 years, but guess not everyone remembers. Like all, one can no longer be certain of one's employ as the days progressed, but it matters not, what matters is where God places us, and how we honour Him by our lives, wherever He places us.

One can be retrenched from one's job, but one can never be retrenched from the real purpose that God has for all of us, which is

'to sow good deeds though life be grim. And leave the harvest time with Him. Lets give and serve as to the Lord. And look to Him for our reward"

(Daily Bread Jan 3oth 2009)

But we will never walk alone, for

'Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness……..'
Psalm 112:4

It is time to move away from our needs, real as they are, and unto God's presence. No one can predict the next day or even the next minute, but imperfect as my faith might be, I know that God has provided and will provide.

'Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I understood……..'
Psalm 73:17-24

The next wave of pain, might seem obvious to me, for the real economy must now reflect the same consequences of the fallout from the financial economy. But it is not what one's think that matter, but rather, the need for us to come back unto a loving and waiting God, that many of us have long ignored.

'…..but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence..'
Jeremiah 14:12

'So will I send upon you famine and evil beasts, and they shall bereave thee; and pestilence and blood shall pass through thee; and I will bring the sword upon thee. I the Lord have spoken it.'

Ezekiel 5:17

Much as our bodily needs are important, it is the soul that is paramount and the shaking will intensify, if we continue to show that inattention to the very danger to our souls.

Would the next wave be not in the economic arena, but in a different form where our very lives are at risk, that it will make our continued angst with lost material wealth, seem so immaterial?

'Who is there among you of all His people? His God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel(He is the God,) which is in Jerusalem…'

Ezra 1:3-4

Now is the time to build that house of God, in our lives, in our hearts for only a life built on the Rock our God will ensure that we will not just be able to withstand the buffeting of the next series of waves, which will surely come, but that like the down and out Asaph, we will finally be able to declare

'Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is none upon earth that I desire beside You. My flesh and my heart fail; but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. For indeed, those who are far from You shall perish; You have destroyed all those who desert You for harlotry. But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord God, that I may declare all Your works'

Psalm 73:25-28

Do take that first step by searching and trying your ways, and turn again to the Lord. Let us lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the heavens. We have transgressed and have rebelled….'

(from Lamentations 3:40-45)

God Blesses

Eng Hieang
(14th Jan 09)