Fear the LORD

I’ve been writing on the book of Malachi. Here's something that came up. Enjoy!

2 Kings 17:24-26 (NKJV) - Then the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Ava, Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel; and they took possession of Samaria and dwelt in its cities. And it was so, at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they did not fear the Lord; therefore the Lord sent lions among them, which killed some of them. So they spoke to the king of Assyria, saying, "The nations whom you have removed and placed in the cities of Samaria do not know the rituals of the God of the land; therefore He has sent lions among them, and indeed, they are killing them because they do not know the rituals of the God of the land." 

A little background: the people of Israel (not Judah) finally ran out of time. God kept calling them to repent but they refused. So he gave the land to the king of Assyria, and the Israelites were exiled and carried away to other countries.

The king of Assyria also resettled other people groups in the land of Israel. That led to problems, because those peoples did not fear the LORD and he sent lions amongst them to kill them.

I must admit this did not sit well with me. Doesn’t God know that those people had absolutely no clue of what his law and judgments require of them? Wasn’t he too harsh with them? But this showed me two things:

• 1) The God of all the earth is very territorial - when he set his heart upon the land, he pays special attention to it, and expects a lot more from those who dwell there; and

• 2) God could have been that harsh with the Israelites immediately when they departed from him to serve other gods. But he didn’t. He patiently and painstakingly wooed them over many generations. These new settlers were not in covenant with him at all, and so he answered them with judgment immediately.

Side note: I don’t like what God did here. It still doesn’t seem right to me. But it is not my job to make God and his ways acceptable to other people. He is the Judge of all the earth, it is OUR job to make ourselves acceptable to him!

2 Kings 17:27-28 (NKJV) - Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, "Send there one of the priests whom you brought from there; let him go and dwell there, and let him teach them the rituals of the God of the land." Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear the Lord.

What exactly did this priest teach? Did he teach the entire Pentateuch? The sacrificial system? The moral law? I believe this unnamed priest taught the entire Torah to the people there. But the people were not receptive.

2 Kings 17:29-33 (NKJV) - However every nation continued to make gods of its own, and put them in the shrines on the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in the cities where they dwelt. The men of Babylon made Succoth Benoth, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima, and the Avites made Nibhaz and Tartak; and the Sepharvites burned their children in fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim. So they feared the Lord, and from every class they appointed for themselves priests of the high places, who sacrificed for them in the shrines of the high places. They feared the Lord, yet served their own gods--according to the rituals of the nations from among whom they were carried away.

This was very messy. The peoples took on SOME aspects of worshiping the Lord God of Israel, but yet kept their previous ways. They continued to worship their own gods, even sacrificing their children to them.

We need to watch out for this in this day and age. Many other religions are now freely available in the world. Obscure Asian religions have made their way to Europe and America, Africa and Indonesia have always had their own native animistic religions. And that is before we include various worldly philosophies that have as much power over people’s hearts and minds as a religion would have.

As the gospel of Christ takes new ground and regains lost territory, we will have people in our churches who used to worship other gods before they turned to Jesus. It is up to us to ensure that they fear the LORD and reject their old ways and practices!

As for us…

I see a parallel to my life in this passage.

The promised land, where the Israelites dwelt, were for the Jews. God also promised them a Messiah who would deliver them. As the pagan settlers found themselves in a land that was not originally intended for them, likewise I found myself resettled by God into a salvation that was originally intended for the Jews first.

Romans 1:16 (ESV) - For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

In order to fully understand this salvation, I have to not only know what Jesus did, I also need to know the old covenant that he came to fulfil. More importantly, I have to choose to let go of my former way of life and my old way of thinking in order to embrace this salvation fully.

Ephesians 4:22-24 (NIV 84) – You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires, to be made new in the attitude of your mind; and to put on your new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

If I choose to keep my old way, the Word of God says that I am NOT fearing the LORD.

2 Kings 17:34 (NKJV) - To this day they continue practicing the former rituals; they do not fear the Lord, nor do they follow their statutes or their ordinances, or the law and commandment which the Lord had commanded the children of Jacob, whom He named Israel.

What I find interesting is that God chose to tolerate all this. He could have continued to send the lions until all the people there followed his laws completely, or were totally driven out of the land. But he did not. He chose to show the people mercy, just as he had shown to the Israelites earlier.

Like those people, we have a lion to watch out for.

1 Peter 5:8 (NIV 84) – Be self-controlled and alert. You enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

I personally believe that because of our highly exalted status in Christ and the great mercy of God, we don’t need to be very devoted to God in order for the devil to be rendered powerless in our lives. In fact, if you read the accounts of great men of God falling, you will discover that they had to throw open the front doors of their lives (through greed, lust or ill-temper) before the devil could destroy their lives and ministries. And even when they did that, it took the devil years to finally bring about their downfall.

Which leads to the question: are you serving God because you are afraid of the devil ruining your life, or are you serving God because you really love him?

In the end, the new settlers there missed out. Check this out.

2 Kings 17:35-39 (NKJV) - … with whom the Lord had made a covenant and charged them, saying: "You shall not fear other gods, nor bow down to them nor serve them nor sacrifice to them; but the Lord, who brought you up from the land of Egypt with great power and an outstretched arm, Him you shall fear, Him you shall worship, and to Him you shall offer sacrifice. And the statutes, the ordinances, the law, and the commandment which He wrote for you, you shall be careful to observe forever; you shall not fear other gods. And the covenant that I have made with you, you shall not forget, nor shall you fear other gods. But the Lord your God you shall fear; and He will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies."

This is what God had spoken to the Israelites. This was his covenant with them.

2 Kings 17:40-41 (NKJV) - However they did not obey, but they followed their former rituals. So these nations feared the Lord, yet served their carved images; also their children and their children's children have continued doing as their fathers did, even to this day.

Now we see that the same covenant, the same opportunity was extended to the settlers. God wanted them to enter into that same covenant with him, that he might extend to them the same benefits and relationship he extended the children of Israel. But they rejected that opportunity, and settled for a half-baked truce with God, just enough for them to avoid the lions and yet keep serving their old gods.

I can understand that.

Those settlers were sent to the land pretty much by fluke. It was the luck of the draw, a whim of the king, that led to them being sent there instead of other territories conquered by the Assyrians. They could have just resented the king for sending them to a place where the God was fussier and pickier than the other gods they knew before. The settlers could have also resented God too. Why impose the requirements of his covenant upon them when they were not the ones God rescued out of Egypt?

But I have no excuse

It was not just a fluke or the luck of the draw that brought me into my salvation in Christ. God paid for my salvation with the blood of his Son, Jesus Christ.

Acts 20:28 (NIV 84) – Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.

And now God calls me to forsake my old ways and walk closely with him. He calls me to fear the LORD, not half-heartedly as those settlers did but whole-heartedly. He punished the Egyptians of old to rescue the Israelites, but he punished Jesus for my sins to rescue me.
 
And so I have no excuse, just a high call of God that, by the grace of God, I will fulfil. Will you join me? I pray you do! 

Missed Church Yesterday

(personal blog post)

I missed church yesterday, in both senses of the word.

Jess was unwell ever since Friday. He had vomiting and fever. It seemed to go away by Saturday, but by evening time it resumed. So on Sunday I brought him to the doctor.

Along the way he kept puking. He just couldn't keep any food down, whether fruits, regular food or even clear soup. He also complained of giddiness, so every once in a while we would have to stop and rest before continuing to the doctor.

How about faith and healing and all that?

I gotta admit, I did pray, and got mixed results. Whenever the fever got worse I put my hand on his head and spoke out Psalm 91 twice. And the fever would clearly, obviously recede. But that didn't seem to stop the vomiting, and besides, I couldn't keep that up the whole night. So in the end I brought him to the doctor.

Not an epic testimony of faith and healing, right? It's OK. God is still secure on the throne, my worry does not diminish his power one bit and he doesn't need me to lie to protect his reputation! :)

So I missed church. It just happened that I was not scheduled to serve that week anyway, so the rest of the people didn't have to scramble to find a replacement. But I was looking forward to being at church, being a normal congregational member, just one of the crowd.

Ah well, life happens!

A friend of mine asked me (via Facebook chat) "A test from God?" I was actually thinking a lot about that recently. Ever since I came back from Japan life has been getting tougher. And at the same time I have been feeling this burden ("oracle"?) to write down my thoughts and musings on Malachi. I am not done with chapter 2 and the whole thing is already about 8 pages. Maybe it will get to 16-20 pages when I am done?

So all these struggles ever since I came back from Japan, a mountain-top experience for me, could be because of spiritual opposition to my writing. The thought of that puzzles me, because what I have to write doesn't seem as important as my Invisible Worship Musician.

And besides, what authority do I have to write on Malachi anyway? I am not some Old Testament professor, just a worship leader/musician who has things to say about the book. *shrug*. When it is done I will probably ask around for people who would like to read it and give feedback. Wanna volunteer? :)

OK, gotta get back to my sons. Elder one on medical leave, younger one on school holiday, and I have to coach the younger one on his school work. Be blessed!

When God Grants Your Desires

One thing about me, I am a very austere kind of person. I value
saving money, living simply and things like that. That is most
likely because I have to provide for my two sons (life in Singapore
is expensive!!!) and so I pay more attention to securing the
necessities.

That very much carries over to my goals and ambitions in life. I am
a father, and fathering takes a serious time commitment. So I tend
not to pay much attention to other matters than work, my sons and
ministry at church.

Do I have personal goals, interests and hopes? Of course I do! But
since there is a limit to my time, budget and energy, these tend to
get put on the back shelf. “I’ll get to them later” I always tell
myself. But the later never comes. Know what I am talking about?

Luke 5:1-3 (ESV) - On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in
on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of
Gennesaret,  and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen
had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one
of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little
from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

I can identify with Peter in this incident. He was caught up with
day-to-day survival, making ends meet, business as usual. Even
though I already know Jesus and want to live my life for him, the
fact is, like Peter at that moment, I am only giving God leftovers.
Granted, more and better than Peter’s (since the Holy Spirit has
been working in me for decades), but leftovers nonetheless.

Luke 5:4-7 (ESV) - And when he had finished speaking, he said to
Simon, "Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch."
And Simon answered, "Master, we toiled all night and took nothing!
But at your word I will let down the nets." And when they had done
this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were
breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come
and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that
they began to sink.

Peter and his partners were experienced fishermen. If they could
not consistently catch enough fish, they would have gone out of
business a long time ago. Did he ever wish to have such a huge
catch of fish before? Of course! But he would have dismissed it as
idle fantasy. Come on, let’s be realistic. He’s human, with human
limits, and there are all the limits of nature, like how many fish
are there in the lake itself and whether they would do the
equivalent of committing fish-suicide all at the same time.

Very unrealistic. Quite impossible. But it happened!

Likewise for me. I had a hope and achievement I wanted but didn’t
dare believe I would get. It was pretty much my teenage dream
(albeit better than Katy Perry’s), and just as useful, which is not
at all! To top it all off, when the money actually started to come
in to finance this, I spent so much time and effort into financing
this achievement and settling the logistics (who is gonna take care
of the boys when I am not around?) that I pretty much forgot to
prepare myself. It’s like taking a long trip to take an exam but
forgetting to actually study for the exam. Come on, let’s be
realistic. How am I going to pull off a stunt like that?

Very unrealistic. Quite impossible. But it happened!

Luke 5:8-11 (ESV) - But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at
Jesus' knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O
Lord." For he and all who were with him were astonished at the
catch of fish that they had taken, and so also were James and John,
sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to
Simon, "Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men."
And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything
and followed him.

So when God gives me my desires, and it is obviously God because I
was woefully unprepared and unready, what do I do now? Ever since I
succeeded I have been on my knees daily thanking God for it. What
touches me deeply is the fact that what God did for me is purely
for me. I dare to expect good from God when it comes to provision
for my family, or when it comes to success in ministry, because it
isn’t selfish, other people benefit, not just me.

But for this personal goal, no one else benefits. Just me. And God
granted me success anyway. So what comes next? For Peter, Jesus
called him to the full-time service very quickly after that. But
how about me? What is a fitting response to God’s tender mercies
and kindness in my life?

Psalm 116:12-14 (ESV) - What shall I render to the LORD for all his
benefits to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the
name of the LORD, I will pay my vows to the LORD in the presence of
all his people.

Blindingly Obvious Lessons

First, such blessings do NOT fall into our lap without any effort
on our part. For Peter, he had to obey the immediate instruction –
launch out into the deep and let down the nets. In my case I had to
believe that God was leading me to take the necessary steps, and I
had to put myself in the place where I can receive a supernatural
blessing.

Second, our God is often more generous than we give him credit for.
He richly gives us things for our enjoyment (1 Timothy 6:17). Of
course don’t be irresponsible with the resources and provision of
God, since as stewards we have to give an account to God of our
stewardship. But at the same time recognize that sometimes God just
wants to leave us totally awestruck at the depths of his goodness
to us.

God just did that for me. I pray that he does it for you too. Be
blessed!

Strong and Courageous?

Joshua 1:9 (ESV) - Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.

I now know for sure I am NOT courageous.

Over the past 8 years or so I have faced all kinds of trials. Some have been distressing, like the time loan sharks threatened my family in order to get neighbours to pay up the money they owe. And though the trials have bothered me (I am not Superman, for crying out loud!) none have been able to make me feel THAT scared.

Until now.

Ironic, isn’t it? Actual physical danger to my sons and I didn’t disturb my sleep, but the thought of traveling to Japan for my own personal upgrading gave me sleepless nights. And on the actual day of departure, the fear was so acute that it even upset my stomach.

Embarrassing!

Why does this trip trouble me so much? It’s like an onion, I’m sure I can find many layers of reasons should I be honest enough to look. But at a basic level, I have the full responsibility of making all the arrangements (flight and hotel), travelling to a country where I know very few people, and where I do not speak the native language. My usual support group isn’t there and I am totally unfamiliar to the place. Good enough reasons to feel uptight?

2 Timothy 1:6-7 (ESV) - For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

 

Paul tells us that God has not given us a spirit of fear, which tells me God does not want me to get uptight or anxious over the situations or matters that arise. But on our part we have to fan into flame, to awaken, to stir up, the spirit of power, love and self-control that God has already given us.

 

In other words, don’t sit back and expect it to work out without any deliberate effort on your part!

 

What are some of the ways we can stir up that spirit within us?

 

1)      Speak Directly

 

Open up your mouth and speak to your spirit. You can say, “Spirit of power, love and self-control, arise within me!” And do that a few more times, until it feels good!

 

There will be people who will criticise that as being merely mindless chanting, positive affirmations and all that. But the fact is, we already have clear Scriptural precedent of speaking to ourselves:

“Bless the LORD, O my soul” (Psalm 103:1, 103:22, 104:1)

And calling upon the LORD to arise:

2 Chronicles 6:41 (ESV) - "And now arise, O LORD God, and go to your resting place, you and the ark of your might.  

And

Numbers 10:35 (ESV) - "Arise, O LORD, and let your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate you flee before you."

2)      Speak the Scriptures

 

John 6:63 (ESV) - It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.

If the words of Jesus are spirit and life, won’t they resonate with the spirit of power, love and self-control within us? 

John 16:33 (ESV) – “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world."

To be totally frank, I don’t see any reason Jesus’ words in John 16, especially that last verse, would help me overcome fear. Jesus didn’t promise anything concrete and tangible here, so I don’t have a logical reason to find his words comforting. They are too vague for me.

 

But when I made the effort to speak the whole of John 16 to myself, reading it aloud 3-4 times in a row, I did receive courage and comfort in the midst of my trials and fears. And it was be a comfort that does not make logical sense to the un-spiritual. I don’t care. I’ll take anything God wants to give me!

 

3)      Pray it out

Philippians 4:6-7 (ESV) - do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

God has given this promise, that if we will commit our problems to him, via prayer, supplication AND thanksgiving, we will have a peace that surpasses all understanding. In other words, a peace that makes no logical sense. To our hearts and minds this peace is like a strong and gentle father consoling a frightened child. “Rest assured, child, Daddy is here and Daddy will take care of everything!”

 

Just take this Scripture at face value, and pray about everything!

 

Bonus Tip – ignore pride

 

In my most recent struggles with fear, it wasn’t the fear that caused me so much emotional pain. It was my pride. I was supposed to be the one who had it all figured out. I was the one who had fought with and overcome fear so many times. I was the one who had successfully taught others how to deal with fear. How could I be so scared now? My pride did not want to accept that I had to deal with fear again.

 

The reason why the Bible has so much to say about dealing with fear is because it is a universal problem. You can be a church leader, extremely wealthy businessman, battle-hardened soldier or internationally acclaimed musician. Whatever your earthly reasons for confidence, no matter how many times you have overcome fear before, you will still have to face fear again, and deal with it using the same spiritual tools as the rest of us.

 

Since we all have to deal with fear some time or other, do share this with other  believers if what I wrote is helpful to you. In the meantime, be blessed!

 

Prayer Life Lessons

At the very beginning of the book of Daniel, we see that Daniel started small. He set himself apart from the rest of the unbelieving culture around him by his food choices. By the time we got to the second chapter, we know that Daniel had faced his first major test in Babylon, and passed. Did he have a powerful, dynamic prayer life before the test? The Scriptures do not tell us, but we know for sure that he had one by end of the first test!

For me, every trial and test that I passed with the help of God only served to cement the importance of a living relationship with God into my mind. I can get busy, distracted or even rebellious, but sooner or later I will return to seriously worshipping God, praying to him and seeking him in his Word. This was probably the case with Daniel. After he cleared the first major test he probably realized that he needed to walk close with the LORD in order to survive and thrive in Babylon.

Daniel 6:3 (ESV) - Then this Daniel became distinguished above all the other high officials and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him. And the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom.

By this time Daniel was no longer merely the royal dream interpreter or the head of the astrology and sorcery department of the Babylonian civil service (the thought of that always tickles me, though I am sure Daniel and the magicians of Babylon did not find it funny). He was actively involved with the day-to-day running of the Persian Empire. And he performed his duties faithfully AND flawlessly (Daniel 6:4).

So his foes sought to make praying illegal, just for the sake of catching Daniel out. Sometimes, I wonder how many other schemes and plots they tried before they figured out that Daniel was only vulnerable through his prayer life. Did they try to tempt him with illicit gain? Did they try to catch him showing partiality to special interest groups? Did they call for audits on his accounts to uncover misuse of government funds? Whatever else they did, nothing worked.

Since I have a lot less responsibilities than Daniel did, that was something for me to really think about!

So the decree was passed. Daniel had just received the news that he could be jailed for his prayer life. What did he do?

Daniel 6:10 – (ESV) … he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously.

That verse, with core Hebrew words put in, looks like this:

… He kneeled (b^erak, Strongs’s H#1289 to kneel or to bless) upon his knees three times a day, and prayed (ts^elâ', Strong’s H#6739, to bow down), and gave thanks (y^edâ', Strong’s #3029, to throw up the hands) before his God…

So even at Daniel’s advanced age, prayer was a physical activity. He kneeled, he bowed down and he raised his hands to the LORD. He kept to a private place, yes, but if you ever watched him there you will know for sure he was praying.

Daniel 6:11 – Then these men assembled, and found Daniel praying (b^e‛â'  b^e‛âh, Strong’s H#1156, to swell, to gush over, to desire) and making supplication (chănan, Strong’s H#2604, to move to favour via petition, to implore a benefactor to bend over to show favour) before his God.

If the earlier verse didn’t convince you of the intensity of Daniel’s prayer life, this one certainly would. He was literally gushing over to God. He was also imploring, beseeching, earnestly begging that God be gracious (show favour) to him. No timid requests from Daniel, he prayed as if his life depended on it.

And later on we would see that it did!

Another point – When speaking to Daniel, King Darius referred to the LORD as “Your God, whom you serve continually…” The word “serve” in both vs 16 and vs 20 is p^elach, which can also be translated as “worship”. Bear in mind, Daniel was not a priest serving at the Temple of Solomon, he was a full-time civil servant involved with the running of a massive empire. He spent the bulk of his time on secular matters. But consistent, intense prayer three times a day caused King Darius to see Daniel’s prayer life as a life of continual worship and service to God.

Would he say the same of OUR prayer lives?

Conclusion:

There is so much for us to learn from Daniel’s prayer life. We can learn from it

1)      Consistency, even in the midst of a busy and productive secular job;

2)      Frequency, three times a day;

3)      Expressiveness; you can see from even his physical posture he was praying;

4)      Variety, he would engage in worship, thanksgiving and supplication; and

5)      Intensity, imploring, beseeching and pleading for God to be gracious.

More importantly, for those of us holding full-time jobs in the secular world, we can see here what it takes to live a life of continually serving and worshipping God. Praying like Daniel will be a challenge for some of us but it can be done. And I believe even trying for it will cause us to walk closer to God.

So what are you waiting for? Let’s get praying!

Small Start, Big Test

I didn’t plan to earlier this year, but since I wasn’t too familiar with the Minor Prophets (the prophets other than the big three, Isaiah, Jeremiah & Ezekiel), I thought I’d read through the Minor Prophets this year also. Because of that I have been pondering the life of Daniel a lot recently.

Daniel 1:3, 6 - Then the king commanded Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the people of Israel, both of the royal family and of the nobility… Among these were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah of the tribe of Judah.

This is the very first mention we have of Daniel. We know he was of the tribe of Judah, and was of noble or even royal blood. Nebuchadnezzer did something radical in his day; instead of totally wiping out the remnants of the leadership of conquered nations, he incorporated them into the running of his empire. By doing so he secured their loyalty and reduced the hassle of having to deal with uprisings and rebellions. He also got a civil service that already knew the customs of the conquered people, and could begin administrating them with minimal disruption.

Sounds smart to me!
We don’t know anything about Daniel’s life before the downfall of Jerusalem. Was he a devout believer who mourned the wickedness of his people, prayed for the deliverance of Jerusalem from her enemies and who was heartbroken when God judged them still? Or was he a hedonistic, pampered young man, used to the life of luxury, and shocked to the very core of his being by the hardships of war and the Babylonian invasion? The Scripture doesn’t tell us, but of one thing we can be certain: he saw horrors that most of us cannot even imagine. And I suspect that was what drove him to seek the LORD God of Israel, even in a foreign land.

Now that was a VERY difficult environment. He was smack in the centre of foreign nation, with the state religion firmly entrenched in power. I can imagine the sneers and jeers from the native Babylonians. “Those Jewish boys are so quaint, holding on to their powerless gods even here. Oh, you mean, they only have one? Obviously it didn’t work very well, maybe they should have taken a few more as back-up!”

In the midst of all that, Daniel and his friends chose to remain faithful to the LORD. And they expressed their faith not through maintaining the morning and evening sacrifice, the burning of incense or even through the songs of Zion.

Daniel 1:8 - But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king's food, or with the wine that he drank. Therefore he asked the chief of the eunuchs to allow him not to defile himself.

That was all. That was how he got started. The Bible did not say he had an active, vibrant prayer life at that point. All we know for certain was that he was serious about God and he chose to express his faith through his eating choices. How about us? What is that small measure of obedience we can offer unto the LORD first?

My Story - When I was 20, I wasn’t serious about the things of God, nor did I have a prayer or worship life worth speaking of. But remembered one day, I decided that I would at least read the Bible. I loved reading ever since I was a young kid. So reading the Bible itself wasn’t that difficult for me, and I knew it. I remembered praying, “God, I don’t believe all of what is written in there, I don’t understand much of it, and I am certainly not going to promise to obey it. But I can just open the pages and at least give it as much attention as my favourite fiction novels. God, will that do?”

Daniel’s small gesture of obedience to the LORD did not come without objection.

When he told the steward in charge of their meals that their little Jewish fellowship did not want to eat the same luxurious food as everyone else, the steward was worried that Daniel and his friends would look less healthy than the rest. And that was a legitimate concern. I have met people who only eat vegetables, as Daniel did, and those people looked really scrawny. Daniel and his friends took a small step of faith, God answered them in a small way by keeping them healthy, and I am sure that encouraged them to see that their small act of obedience did not go unnoticed by the LORD.

Small Start, Big Test
Starting small is always great, but sooner or later, a big test would come. Daniel’s test came when Nebuchadnezzer had a dream that really perturbed him (Dan 2:1). Showing unusual insight, he insisted that the astrologers and magicians tell him his dream first to prove that they had the supernatural insight to interpret his dream (Dan 2:6). When the astrologers and magicians objected, Nebuchadnezzer ordered that all of them (including Daniel and friends) be executed (Dan 2:12).

Daniel tactfully asked for more time (Dan 2:16) and then started praying fervently with his friends (Dan 2:18). We don’t know if he had a serious prayer life before this crisis, but we know he certainly had one now! And God answered him and gave him wisdom, knowledge and revelation.

My Story - My big test came in the middle of my university days. For some reason I was not able to cope with my studies. It wasn’t that I was trying and not getting it, my mind would totally shut off once I opened my books. I would fall asleep, I couldn’t help myself. So I faced the real possibility of flunking my exams.

Since I was a typical Asian, that was a BIG crisis to me!
At around that time, I came across the idea of meditating on the Scriptures, which by Hebrew definition meant not reading them silently but actually chanting them aloud. I remembered being very unsure about it. No one in my immediate circle of friends did it that way, I never heard it preached by my pastor, and it seemed too mindless. And besides, I was already reading the Bible silently, you mean that wasn’t good enough?

I did it anyway. What did I have to lose?  I spent an hour a day in the book of Psalms (30 minutes in the morning and again in the evening). At the beginning I felt stupid, but soon after I started experiencing a strange kind of energy, as if another dimension of me was waking up, as if I had senses that were being activated.

All this affected everything I did in university and at church. It gave energy to my prayer life and fixed up the problems with my school work.  When interacting with people, I started saying the right thing at the right time more often, and I found myself making wild guesses about something, getting it right and looking as if I was REALLY smart.

Important – all these benefits took time to manifest, and they were not permanent. They would gradually fade off if I did not maintain that kind of time in the Scriptures. But the important thing was that now that I had tasted that kind of life, I knew it was possible for me, and I knew exactly what I had to do if I wanted to live life that way.

Conclusion:
If you are new to the things of God, start small, but start somewhere. Remember the principle in 2 Samuel 24:24, “I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God that cost me nothing." Whether it is just turning up for church, praying a few minutes a day or reading the Bible like a novel, if you have been doing nothing, start by doing something.

But remember, when the crisis seasons hit, odds are the little things aren’t going to be enough. When you need God in a big way, you need to seek him seriously. I am not talking about epic deeds to purchase your own salvation or to deserve God’s love. We know Jesus did it all for us on the cross. I am talking about walking with God, facing the trials of life the way he wants us to, receiving the power he has ordained for us, by the Spirit and the Word of God.

And also, don’t face your trials alone. By the time Daniel and his friends faced the crisis of chapter 2, they had at least 3 years of fellowship and encouraging each other to stay faithful to the Lord. Daniel called on them to seek the LORD with him (Dan 2:17-18), and they did. We, likewise, need to invest our time and effort into a community of believers NOW, that we may receive support from them during our trials and that we can encourage them during theirs.

I hope this sharing has encouraged or helped you in some way. Be blessed!

From My Day-Job Again

(personal blog post)

“Huh? This flat is only owned by one person, and he is selling it off? Must be cashing in…”

Singapore public housing is weird. It is the only public housing system in the world where the prices are allowed to (in fact, manipulated to) skyrocket to nose-bleed levels. It takes a typical Singaporean couple 30 years (on dual income) to pay off the housing mortgage.  So I don’t often come across one person being the sole owner of a flat.

(one man of God I highly respect said before that this system is what keeps many Singaporean believers in bondage and unwilling/unable to step out and fulfil their God-given calling, but that’s a different matter…)

“Hey, the seller is my age! Must be some high income fellow. Better flip over to the last page of the land title search to double check the spelling of his name…”

You can tell a person’s year of birth from their IC numbers, that is how I knew the seller was the same age as me. I flipped over to the last page of the title search to get the name for the legal document I had to prepare for the relevant government body. Then I saw on the words:

Notice of Death - The surviving tenant is hereby registered as sole proprietor of the above lease

The Notice of Death was dated May last year. Scanning back, the flat was transferred to the seller and his wife 10 years before that. 

10 years. A lot of life can happen in 10 years.

You can build loads of good memories in 10 years. That is 10 years of Christmas, Chinese New Year, birthdays and anniversaries. During 10 years you can have kids and have them grow up to a schooling age. A lot of life can happen in 10 years.

The date of the transfer was at the end of November 11 years ago. That means the couple had properly moved over and settled in by Christmas that year. That flat was near a part of Singapore where a lot of expats stay. So they must have had a really special Christmas that year, moving into a part of Singapore where they celebrate Christmas in style.

The wife died last year in May.  I had this picture in my mind of the man, now facing his first Christmas without his wife. Now the fact that they celebrate Christmas in style at that part of Singapore probably doesn’t mean much anymore. He can walk the streets there and remember the first time he saw the sights with his wife. And those memories will just drive in deeper the pain of his recent loss.

Now selling off that flat makes sense. Maybe he’d just want to start afresh, somewhere new, where the memories won’t be so poignant and painful. Does he have kids? I wonder what his kids think. Do they want to start over again somewhere else? Knowing kids, I think they would rather not move. They already suffered a massive, tragic change in their lives a year ago. Moving now would probably be nearly as traumatic a change for them.

Maybe the dad has already thought it through? But if he was already too overcome with grief, he might have just imposed the change upon them anyway. I don’t agree with that, but I can’t really blame him either. I can’t imagine how I myself would deal with things if anything that tragic ever happened to me.  

Conclusion:

Over time, there are more opportunities for bad things to happen. Someone’s life can be massively turned around overnight. And we usually can’t tell when such things will happen. We can only walk closely with God and trust that he will prepare us for the trials and challenges that come ahead.

I guess I identify with this faceless stranger more because he is my age. In my mind I am using my imagination to fill in all the details about his life. I might even try my hand at writing a short story about it someday, but I don’t know what the point of the story is.

Okay, I gotta stop thinking about his life and get back to living MY life. I have already typed in more errors than usual in the legal documents for this case!

When Life Happens...

(personal blog post)

I know I haven't been posting. Life happens, work piles up, time slips away and I end each day tired and unsatisfied. Not with God, but with what little I have managed to do each day. Distracted, frustrated and worn out.

Genesis 50:20 (NASB) - As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.

Nope, I haven't been struck with delusions of grandeur, thinking the trial I face has epic ramifications. But I do see hope for my future, hope which I did not have before. And it comes from someone trying something bad, thinking that it is a viable threat to force compliance from me. 

And it is amusing. Threatening to leave is bad only if their absence means less good stuff happening, or more bad stuff coming my way. And some people are such losers that their absence means less burden and more room for me to manuever. Such people should not threaten to leave. 

I call their bluff. 

I will not give in. Now what are they going to do? They have to either leave (and show that their "threat" was real) or back down (and lose face, as i will certainly rub it in). It is such a relief, I finally feel released from obligations that were imposed on me through responsibilities and (dare I admit it?) guilt. And freedom feels strange, but good... 

What's next? I don't know. Today is my birthday, and I am typing this before I rush off for a day of work (bills don't give me a day off). But I will schedule in time to worship God and pray and seek his face. This I do every day, how much more on my birthday, right? 

God willing, I will post soon, and something that will edify properly. Be blessed!

When God Offends You

Looking back, I realized that my university days were when I was the most zealous for Jesus.

I would spend hours in the Bible, prayer and personal worship. I was active in a church worship band, evangelistic concerts and in music lessons, to hone my skills. And I would practice both the piano and the guitar a lot. I wanted skill, and skill that would last, so that I had more to use when serving in the worship ministry.

“Did you get any studying done those days, JJ?” Errr…

Ever since then I have gone down a lot. Life responsibilities, such as work and family, make me more like a normal Christian, who has to be seriously disciplined to seek God. Practice time is less (ironic for a music teacher, right?) so I have to make the best use of whatever little practice time I have.

Now I could be disappointed. Given the amount of zeal I had in those days, I was expecting that I would be a hard-core, effective servant of the LORD, teaching the Word and being used in healing the sick and all that kind of stuff. But even though I am nowhere near what I dreamed of in my university days, at least I am still walking with God. He has been holding on to me all these years.

And I am grateful!

Not all the people I knew from those days are still walking with the Lord. A few have fallen and are no longer serving God or walking with him.

And it bugs me. I remember looking at them, seeing how different they were from me in terms of personality and giftings, and yet sharing the same purpose: Glorify Jesus with whatever we had and in everything we could do. I was thinking things could only get better, and we would, working together but in our own unique ways, keep on serving God, achieving more and winning our nation for Christ.  

Then offences struck. And people stumbled.

Offences can come from men

Luke 17:1-2 (KJV) - Then said he unto the disciples, “It is impossible but that offences will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come! It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones.               

People in church can offend you. And to get a sense of what kind of offence we are talking about, the word used for “offences” is the Greek word from which we derive the word “scandal” from. It means to trip up, to stumble or entice to sin. Jesus said that it WILL happen.

Knowing that it will happen is our best defence. When we know that it will happen, we will not lose our faith just because people in church fail us. Guess what? If we set our hopes on people, rather than on the LORD, they will disappoint us.

Psalm 118:8-9 (ESV) - It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.

So people disappointing us is no excuse. So what if your pastor is a hypocrite? So what? So what if your church people don’t love you as God commanded them to? So what? I mean, if love was so easy, God wouldn’t need to admonish us to love one another, right? Obviously, divine love is not nature to us in our fallen nature. Did God ever promise us that the rest of the believers will love us properly, as he desires? I don’t think so. So why let yourself be stumbled just because people in church let you down?

Offences can come from God

John 6:61-62 (ESV) - But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, "Do you take offense at this? Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before?

 

Again the same Greek word for offense appears. In effect, Jesus is saying, “Does this scandalize you? I am still holding back. You ain’t seen nothing yet!” Jesus then delivered his doctrinal bombshell.

John 6:65-66 (ESV) - And he said, "This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father." After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him.

 

Maybe it won’t be salvation doctrine that offends you. How about the way God forgives and blesses sinners?
 

Luke 15:29-30 (ESV) – 'Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends.  But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!'

 

When the Gospel, preached in its entirety, offends, some people turn away from God entirely. Sometimes they go doctrine shopping, looking for a church, religion or philosophy that excuses their pet sins or justifies their beliefs and preferences.

2 Timothy 4:3-4 (ESV) - For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions,  and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.

 

How do we hold firm when God himself offends us?
 

John 6:67-69 (ESV) – So Jesus said to the Twelve, "Do you want to go away as well?" Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God."

 

Jesus has the words of eternal life, which means they cause us to know God, to perceive and be sure of him (John 17:3). His words are Spirit and they are life (John 6:63). But they are no benefit to us unless we actually let his words abide in us (John 15:7). We need to actual taste and experience God’s goodness (Psalm 34:8), especially through the Word (Hebrews 6:5). We start by believing that Jesus is the Holy One of God, then when we grow in our experience of his Word and his goodness in our lives, we end up knowing for sure.

My Faith Crash

I had a massive faith crash years ago.

It was so painful. I was experiencing the presence of God in worship and the Word. I had answered prayers and many significant signs that hinted that I was on the right track. I was returning back to serving God in ministry, and re-discovering the joy of setting my hand to the plough for the Kingdom of God and being fruitful in ministry.

And then the crash came. What I prayed to God earnestly for, I did not get. Even worse, I got the opposite of what I really believed God would give me. He brought me so far, why would he not complete it, right? I clung on in prayer, stayed faithful in ministry and in my own personal time of seeking God, and continued to experience his presence and even answered prayers.

Yes, God continued give me what I asked for. Except for what I wanted the most, desired the most and had reasons to expect the most. For this part of my life I still have no answers, no resolution, no completion. I cannot come up with some spiritual-sounding lesson and say that I now understand why God did things that way during that season. I still don’t.

So what do I have? I still have God with me. Nudging me forward when I totally doubt that he was going to lead me where I am supposed to go. Answering prayers still. Meeting with me in my own personal prayer and worship time still. There is just only one matter, over which I wanted nothing but his will, worked out his way. And when I had finally come to believe I knew what it was, and that I was going to receive it, I didn’t get it. And the shame still remains. Did I ask God for the wrong thing? If so, how could I have missed it so badly?

Isaiah 54:4 (ESV) - Fear not, for you will not be ashamed; be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced; for you will forget the shame of your youth, and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.

What kept me going? It was the eternal life of God. It was continuing to experience God, even when in one matter I was disappointed. I did get one lesson I can share from that season though: You don’t need trust when someone does what you understand. You need trust when that someone is doing a whole lot of things you don’t understand. That is when you have to decide if you will trust that the person knows what he or she is doing, and has your best interests at heart.

And when it comes to people, your trust can be misplaced. But not with God. He has shown his faithfulness to me many times before and many times ever since. Will I stumble and be offended with God over one matter, or will I look at his past faithfulness and trust, even when I don’t understand? 

Conclusion:

I know this is really long, and I have shared some personal stuff. But I hope that some of what I shared here will be useful to you or to those around you, who are struggling with God offending them. Be blessed!

My Sons are Taken Care Of!

Working in a law firm makes the realities of day-to-day living even more real for me.

If I only taught music, I would seldom come across the harsh side of life, such as joblessness, serious illness and death. Wisdom tells us to be aware of these realities and prepare for them. We are to give thought to estate planning, to ensure we leave a good inheritance to our children (Proverbs 13:22) and to prepare at least one alternative income channel (Proverbs 27:23-24) in case of financial reversals (job loss or economic downturns).

But sometimes life hits us when we are unprepared. Take the example of the widow who approached Elisha in the following passage.

2 Kings 4:1-2 (ESV) – Now the wife of one of the sons of the prophets cried to Elisha, "Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the LORD, but the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves." And Elisha said to her, "What shall I do for you? Tell me; what have you in the house?" And she said, "Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil."

We see in this situation a devout man, who maybe wasn’t as careful with his money as he ought to have been, or may have been cut down in the prime of his life through sickness. You think such things don’t happen to godly people? Go have a heart-to-heart chat with your pastor and you will find out the truth. It is one thing that I don’t think I will ever understand this side of heaven, how mighty men of God, some greatly used by God to bring healing miracles to others, can sometimes die of illness too. 

So when human effort fails us, does God leave us to our own devices? Or does he intervene to help his people and show us mercy?

2 Kings 4:3-7 (ESV) – Then he said, "Go outside, borrow vessels from all your neighbors, empty vessels and not too few. Then go in and shut the door behind yourself and your sons and pour into all these vessels. And when one is full, set it aside." So she went from him and shut the door behind herself and her sons. And as she poured they brought the vessels to her. When the vessels were full, she said to her son, "Bring me another vessel." And he said to her, "There is not another." Then the oil stopped flowing. She came and told the man of God, and he said, "Go, sell the oil and pay your debts, and you and your sons can live on the rest."

It is easy for me to get this miracle by Elisha mixed up with the one by Elijah, when he met the widow of Zarephath, described in 1 Kings 17:9-15. In a nutshell, God directed Elijah to Zarephath, where he met a starving widow who only had enough for one meal. She gave a small portion of it to Elijah, and God multiplied the rest to last them for the rest of the famine.

As a Word-of-Faith person, I saw in that account Elijah teaching the widow to use the law of sowing and reaping for her benefit. She sowed a token amount of food into Elijah’s life, and she received enough food to sustain her son and herself for possibly two to three years.

But the widow in Elisha’s case received a lot more than that. She received enough for her sons and her to not only pay off debts but even last until her sons grew up and started working. The Bible doesn’t give us the details, but I would not be surprised if this provision miracle was at least twice as rich and twice as long in duration as the one given to the widow of Zarephath.

Why did this disparity? I personally believe it is because of the difference in the seed sown. The widow of Zarephath sowed a token amount of food to a man of God. The prophet who died before his time sowed his life to seeking God. He feared the LORD and lived in a community of people who sought the LORD too.

And the issue of community is very important. We are not called by God to seek him by ourselves. We are to live in community with other believers, knowing that we can mature only in fellowship with other believers…

Ephesians 4:15-17 (ESV) - speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

And that also means being willing to supply the needs of other believers also.

Ephesians 4:28 (ESV) -  Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.

The connection between sharing with others and receiving provision is clearly stated in the following verse.

2 Corinthians 8:14 (ESV) - your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness.

This is a verse that does not get preached about very much. Think about it. The lazy, who want to find ways to sponge off others, want verses that tell them that they can expect to receive money without having to labour for it and without having  to sow financially into the lives of others first. The diligent who are prosperous and giving to church and the poor don’t want to hear that someday they may lose the material possessions they have laboured for and have to depend on the generosity and kindness of others

How often do you find a verse that manages to offend two very different groups of people?

Conclusion:

I am not sure what God will speak to you from this passage. For me, however, this is very assuring. I know I live my life as unto the LORD, but I have made financial mistakes before. Frankly, I end up worrying about how to provide for my sons. Will they have to suffer for my mistakes and wrong decisions?

So this account in Scripture tells me that no matter how I may have messed up financially, God is still there. He still has the desire to provide for my sons. And knowing that just gives me the assurance to just keep living my life for serving God. I know that my sons will be taken care of!

And I am also firmly reminded to look for opportunities to give, to sow financially into the lives of others. And I am especially serious about sowing into the bereaved families of servants of God. Like it or not, there will be men and women of God who have given their lives to serving the Lord, but have been taken from this life before their time.  They will leave behind families who need help and it is our role, our responsibility and our privilege to be used by God to supply for their needs.

What then are the lessons in this that God wants you to take to heart? Do share, that I too may be edified and encouraged by your faith. Be blessed!