The Narrow Path

Quick Thoughts

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 15:56:00 +0000

If we were to treat God as a person, and not an object or label; our paths would be less treacherous to walk.

We talk to our friends about God only when they are visibly ready to listen. If not, we say nothing about God for fear of hurting their feelings. But are we not fearful of hurting God's feeling by abandoning the Great Commission?

As shepherds, we rebuke others' indulgence in sin only when they are visibly ready to listen. If not, we say nothing about it for fear of hurting their feelings. But are we not fearful of hurting God's feeling by abandoning our role as shepherds?

The Sad Story of God and his People

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 02:06:00 +0000

"You have rejected me," declares the Lord.

"You keep on backsliding.
So I will lay hands on you and destroy you;
I can no longer shown compassion." (Jer 15:6)

"My eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden from me, nor is their sin concealed from my eyes." (Jer 16:17)

"Now therefore say to the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem, 'This is what the LORD says: Look! I am preparing a disaster for you and devising a plan against you. So turn from your evil ways, each one of you, and reform your ways and your actions.' But they will reply, 'It's no use. We will continue with our own plans; each of us will follow the stubbornness of his evil heart.'" (Jer 18:11-12)

I myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm in anger and fury and great wrath. (Jer 21:5)

I warned you when you felt secure,
but you said, 'I will not listen!'
This has been your way from your youth;
you have not obeyed me. (Jer 22:21)

Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him?" declares the Lord.
Do I not fill heaven and earth?" declares the Lord. (Jer 23:24)
--
I have been captivated by the love story of God in the book of Jeremiah for the past few weeks.

I felt so sad. God's heart is absolutely shattered in pieces.

Through his servant Jeremiah, he pursued his ever-sinning covenant people relentlessly, desiring them to return to his embrace to enjoy him. Yet time and time again, they chose lifeless idols over him, stubbornly choosing to live a sin-bounded life than to live within the boundaries of a blessed life. God used Jeremiah to persuade them to repent, even to the extent of warning them of the imminent destruction if they do not repent. Yet, they followed the stubbornness of their evil hearts, deceiving themselves that nothing will happen to them. They lived sinfully, as if God could not see their wicked ways. Eventually, grace period was over. The most dreadful thing that could happen happened: God himself fought against his people, bringing death and destruction to these arrogant people who think that they could escape the fury judgment of God!

The same applies exactly to us today. Even if we have already become the adopted children of God, many times we still choose temporary pleasures over him, stubbornly choosing to live under the bondage of sin than to live under the freedom of Christ. We deceive ourselves that God will not take action against us, because he will forgive us the moment we confess our sins. This is true, but by doing so again and again, we are abusing God's grace. We lived sinfully, and even if the whole world does not know it, God knows it.

The book of Jeremiah is a stark reminder to us that God is holy and just, and if we think that we can keep abusing the grace that is given to us through the death and resurrection of Christ, we are either too naive or we are trying to deceive ourselves. I would not want to wait until God's wrath reaches the level that he decides to wage his war against me. I do not think anyone will want to end up there either!

Stop deceiving ourselves, pretending that it is OK to keep sinning and confessing. Quit our habit and addiction to sin and return to God!

Choose God over sin.

This Season's Lesson: 'Be HER'

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 15:47:00 +0000

After much prayer and observation, I gathered that the Lord has three lessons that he specifically wants me to learn during this season of my life. I named this season as 'Be HER' season. (I know, it sounds feminine)

The Lord wants me to learn to be:

H for humble

Key verse: "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." (Matt 11:29)

Comment: My fragile emotions are easily affected by the perception of others. A word of praise can make my day, but a word of criticism can cause me to feel wounded, angry and discouraged for some time. I need to take pride down from its throne, and learn to be humble at heart. Like Jesus, I need to say "It's OK!" when others perceive me negatively, because at the end of the day, what matters most is to please God and gain his favour! Nothing else matters.

E for evangelistic

Key verse: "But if I say, "I will not mention him or speak any more in his name," his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot."(Jer 20:9)

Comment: I tend to fear man more than God. The fear of rejection and mockery from others often rob me of the courage to proclaim God's love and salvation to them. Recently, thank God that he has been doing many amazing work in me. He has given me the passion for the salvation of others that compelled me to share the Gospel to people around me. As a result, I had the privilege of being used by God to lead many into his kingdom. Hey, it is not as difficult as I thought in the first place! The more I do, the easier it becomes, the more confident I become! I still fear man occasionally, but I am improving. Just like Jeremiah, I pray that God's Word will be in my heart like a fire...and I will be weary of holding it in! What am I still waiting for? Spread the seeds of the Gospel NOW!

R for relaxed

Key verse: Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? (Matt 6:27)

Comment: I must admit, perfectionism runs in my blood, although the degree of it varies in various seasons. When there is something that I need to do, I must do it NOW. I will feel restless until I have completed the task. And when I do that something, I must do it to the best I can, if not, I will feel bad about it. Even when I was young, I already had it in me. For example, when I was in primary school, when I was given a stack of weekend homework for me to do during the weekends, I would start doing it the moment I entered house after school, and I will finish it before I have my dinner. Homework that was supposed to be spread out nicely for the weekend, but I gobbled it up in a few hours time. Now that I have become a pastor, you can see the imminent danger that is lurking around all the time. As a pastor, there is always work to do, needs to attend to, things in church and ministry you want to improve on. Thus, if I am not careful, I can always remain in a state of stress and intensity. If this goes on, my health will deteriorate fast. Thus, in this season, God is teaching me to learn to relax. It is OK to leave the work and need aside and enjoy time with my loved ones, enjoy time even with myself. I need to learn not to worry, as I always tell others, "Worry is an insult to God."

May God help me as I embark on mastering these three things: Humble, Evangelistic and Relaxed! Remember me in your prayers! :)

Reminder of the Sender

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 07:31:00 +0000

Yesterday, we experienced a rare rainy day. A much anticipated one amidst long seasons of hot and dry days. Thank God for sending down rain from above.

Let rain be a sign to remind us of the Sender of rain and the absolute hope we can put in this awesome Sender.

Jeremiah 14:22
Do any of the worthless idols of the nations bring rain?
Do the skies themselves send down showers?
No, it is you, O Lord our God.
Therefore our hope is in you,
for you are the one who does all this.

Only What God Thinks Matters

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 07:11:00 +0000

It's not about what I can do for God, it's about what God wants me to do.

It's not about who I can be for God, it's about who God wants me to be.

Only what God thinks matters, not what others think, not even what I think.

Be still before him. Wait upon him. Don't rush into being a hero or saviour of this world.

Remember His Faithfulness

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 03:48:00 +0000

Psalm 77:7-15
"Will the Lord reject forever?
Will he never show his favor again?
Has his unfailing love vanished forever?
Has his promise failed for all time?
Has God forgotten to be merciful?
Has he in anger withheld his compassion?"

Then I thought, "To this I will appeal:
the years of the right hand of the Most High."
I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.
I will meditate on all your works
and consider all your mighty deeds.

Your ways, O God, are holy.
What god is so great as our God?
You are the God who performs miracles;
you display your power among the peoples.
With your mighty arm you redeemed your people,
the descendants of Jacob and Joseph.

Thoughts:
Whenever you feel that God seems to be turning his face away from you, ignoring you and remaining in silence even as you plea and beg with him in times of trouble, think about how faithful he has been all this while in loving and caring for you.

Don't even for one second listen to the thought of doubt and deception that the devil is trying to plant in you.

God is near, and he will help you, simply because he can, simply because he care! Amen!

God is awesome. Indeed, "What god is as great as our God?" How can we even doubt him? Trust in him at all times.

The Most Dangerous Thing - My Answer

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Sun, 24 May 2009 16:05:00 +0000

Previously:

What is the most dangerous thing for a driver to do when he is driving?

What is your answer?

My Answer:
Sneezing.
You cannot stop your eyes from closing when you sneeze. What do you think?

Link: Killed All the Day Long

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 16:10:00 +0000

Read this thought-provoking post. Makes you wonder how you will respond in times of religious persecution.

Dan Edelen writes, "We love this life too much because it’s the only thing that seems real to us." How true it is. We are still very used to live by sight, and not by faith. Worse still, we are satisfied to live that way.

The Most Dangerous Thing

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 16:10:00 +0000

What is the most dangerous thing for a driver to do when he is driving?

What is your answer?

The Lizard and the Ant

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 16:10:00 +0000

If you see a big, fat lizard waiting silently, with its eyes fixated at a tiny ant which is moving obliviously towards the lizard, what will you do?

You will...

A. Ignore the imminent disaster. Life goes on with or without the ant around.

B. Scare the lizard away, knowing that this can only be a temporary solution as the ant might be eaten by the lizard the next time you are not around.

C. Kill the ant. It is better for the ant to die an instant death than to be tortured in the mouth of the lizard till death.

D. Turn yourself into a tiny ant and beg the lizard to eat you and let go of that ant forever.

"Hey, which fool will choose D? "

Oops, Jesus did.

Note: Illustration has its limitation.

Further Thoughts on "Beautifully Imperfect"

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 15:35:00 +0000

How do we handle another person's imperfection?

We try to make minimal contact with that person through avoidance, lest his imperfection causes annoyance, irritation and eventually an outburst of anger in us. That will be ugly and unbecoming of us in the eyes of others.

What if we cannot avoid the person? Too bad, we just do our best to tolerate and swallow the pain and irritation as a result of his imperfection. We see this as God's challenge for us to master the art of self-control.

What if we try to see his imperfection as a reminder of our own imperfection?

What if we try to see his imperfection as something that makes him uniquely him?

What if we try to see his imperfection as something that brings flavour and colour to our otherwise black-and-white lives?

We might be annoyed by a person's imperfection when he is alive, but it is also his beautiful imperfection that will make an irremovable mark in our hearts and memories when he is no longer with us. By then, his imperfection will be the only sweet thing we can cling on to tightly.

Perhaps it is time to look at the imperfection of others from a different perspective.

Video: Beautifully Imperfect

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 09:56:00 +0000

I first saw this ad on Channel 5 (Singapore) on Maundy Thursday while preparing for the Stations of the Cross together with my cell group members. I was very touched by the words that were being said. Today, I came across the video clip on Charles' blog and watched it again. It never fails to touch my heart every time I watch the ad.

I felt very touched by her last words, "So to my beautiful children, I hope one day, you too find yourselves life partners who are as beautifully imperfect as your father was to me."

If only we were able to look at our neighbour as someone who is truly beautifully imperfect...as we are - beautiful because we were all created by God in his beautiful Image, imperfect because we are still "on the way" to perfection - then maybe, just maybe, the commandments of Christ, "Love your neighbour as yourself" and "If you hold anything against anyone, forgive him" might be a little bit easier to follow.

Grace and forgiveness are much needed in this hurting world. Let us learn to offer.

Via Dolorosa - Sandi Patty

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 06:32:00 +0000

One of my favourites. One of the videos we played during Stations of the Cross as well. Painfully sweet.

Good Friday Service at Hebron

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 04:08:00 +0000

Blessed are you who still remembers this blog.

After being a Christian shepherd (OK, I mean "pastor") for few months now, I begin to scratch my head in puzzlement and amazement at how some pastors are able to blog so frequently amidst their hectic schedule, one of them would have to be Sivin Kit. Perhaps I should suggest to him to conduct a course called "The Complete Pastor's Guide to Time-Saving Blogging." Perhaps... :)

Good Friday Service:
The main feature of this year's Good Friday service at our church (Hebron Presbyterian Church) was the Stations of the Cross. After twice experiencing this tradition in my theological seminary, I suggested to the church that we should embrace this tradition for this year's Good Friday service to make it a meaningful and meditative service. After getting the green light, I chose ten stations (modified from the traditional fourteen stations) and assigned a station to each youth/young adult cell group to work on it.

After two weeks of hard work (hmm...to be more exact, many groups started doing it few days before Good Friday), we successfully set up the ten stations on that night itself right before the service. In fact, I was very impressed by the creativity and hard work that the youths and young adults put in (although this was our first time) that I am compelled to post some pictures here for your view:

Station 1 - Jesus praying at Gethsemane
As you kneel at the designated spot, pondering upon the possible thoughts on Jesus' mind, you feel the intense struggle that he felt as he awaits betrayal, humiliation, suffering and death.

Station 2 - The Betrayal of Judas
As you picture the scenario of Judas - one of the Twelve who Jesus had been patiently and faithfully guiding - betraying Jesus, you ponder upon those moments in life when you denied Jesus or felt ashamed and afraid to introduce Jesus to your friends. Are you Judas?

Station 3 - The Arrest of Jesus
Looking at the Lamb who was God himself being willingly arrested by the men that he had created, you feel the depth of his love for you.

Station 4 - The Scourging
The blood that flowed out from the deep wounds and shredded flesh as a result of the scourging was supposed to be yours, not his.

Station 5 - Humiliation of Jesus: Crowning of thorns,
hitting on the head with a staff and spitting on him
Watch the reenactment of the humiliation of Jesus by the sinful, fallen human beings that he had created and feel the love of God for you.

Station 6 - Jesus carried the Cross
Carry the heavy, rough wood and walk along Via Dolorosa, accompanied by the jeers and insults of the crowd that adored him just a week ago.

Station 7 - Jesus nailed on the Cross
Confess or write your sins on the Confession Card, sign on it and nail it on the Cross, telling the Lord that you want to walk the path of holiness and no longer want to live under the slavery of sin.

Station 8 - Jesus died on the Cross
"It is finished," said Jesus. After much torment and suffering, Jesus finally accomplished his mission of redemption for the human race. How great is his love for us!

Experience the miracles that took place at the moment of Jesus' death: darkness over the whole land, the earthquake, the resurrection of the dead and the temple curtain torn in two. Surely, Jesus is the Son of God, as proclaimed by the centurion guarding Jesus.

Station 9 - Jesus laid in the tomb
Thank God, although the dead body of Jesus was laid in the tomb, the promise of his resurrection was about to be fulfilled!

Station 10 - Notes to Jesus
After going through the nine station, write a short letter to Jesus thanking him for what he has done for you.

Every one experienced an amazing Good Friday night, as God used the stations to minister to the 'pilgrims'. Several observations of this tradition:

1. It is a powerful platform for the sharing of Gospel to our friends.
Some friends joined our service on that night. Those who had invited them had a wonderful opportunity to explain the Passion of Christ to them as they journeyed from station to station. Through the creative drama, objects and pictures, surely the experience would have left an indelible mark in their hearts. The seeds of the Gospel have been sowed in their hearts on that night.

2. It is a powerful platform for the parents to explain the Passion of Christ to their children.
Just as God appointed special feasts during the time of the Israelites to ensure that the parents will explain to their children what the Lord had done for them in the past; on that Good Friday night, parents had the opportunity to explain in simple terms to their young children of the Passion of Christ through the eye-catching pictures and objects. They children were very attentive to the parents' explanation, and some kept on asking questions until the parents did not know how to answer them anymore... :)

3. It serves as a powerful reminder to us - forgetful Christians.
Another reason why God appointed special feasts was because of the forgetfulness of man. It is so easy for us to forget the love of God and the cost he had to pay in order to bring us back into his family. Thus, such a tradition with visual and audio aid serves as a powerful reminder to us of his love for us. Therefore, it is important for us to observe these special occasions of the Christian calender to remind ourselves on a regular basis on the love of God for us.

That's all for now. Hmm... Still very time-consuming (blogging) but I seem to be enjoying it...again.

Still Here...

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 04:06:00 +0000

Soon, really.

I'm Learning (1)

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 02:29:00 +0000

I like to read. I like to learn. But I realised that it is very natural for me to treat the Scripture merely as a piece of information for cerebral stimulation. I feel that it is pointless devouring the Scriptures in depth and in length without taking conscious effort to apply the truth in my life. Furthermore, I realised that I can only apply a lesson (or at most a few) at one go. So, for this period of time, I am learning this:

Esteem not thyself better than others, lest perhaps in the sight of God, who knoweth what is in man, thou be accounted worse than they... It doth no hurt to thee to set thyself lower than all men, but it hurteth thee exceedingly if thou set thyself before even one man. Continual peace is with the humble; but in the heart of the proud is envy and frequent indignation.

Thomas Kempis
Imitation of Christ

Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your owe eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.

Matthew 7:1-5

Commentary from NIV Life Application Study Bible:

Jesus' statement, "Do not judge," is against the kind of hypocritical, judgmental attitude that tears others down in order to build oneself up. It is not a blanket statement against all critical thinking, but a call to be discerning rather than negative.

I Was Terribly Sick

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 15:30:00 +0000

Just when you thought that this blog has been permanently abandoned...

Yes, there was a time, a long period of time, when I was entertaining the idea of giving up blogging.

There was a time I was terribly sick. I was sick of reading blogs that insinuate others sarcastically with an attitude of superiority. I was sick of reading blogs that pretend to be nice and diplomatic but ended up saying nothing. I was sick of reading blogs that boast about nothing but the authors themselves. Worst of all, I was sick as I realised that I was guilty of such now and then.

I did not like what I read. I did not like what I wrote. Lest I continue to fall into such fatal traps, lest I accidentally abuse blogging again, I stopped blogging for a long time.

But, after a long period of reflection and prayer, I decided to pick up from where I have left. It is no longer important to ask why I have decided to continue, but it is important for me (and for all bloggers) from now on to learn to write humbly and sincerely with the single intention of building others up. It is my prayer that our hearts be examined before we write.

May God help us.

The Harsh Reality

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 03:30:00 +0000

Friends come and go, but enemies accumulate.

Anonymous

Too Proud

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 05:48:00 +0000

For many of us, the older we get, the more life experiences we gain, the prouder we become.

We become too proud to admit our mistakes, often putting the blame on the other party (parties), hoping that by doing so, everyone including ourselves will forget that we are to be blamed.

We become too proud to utter the word 'sorry', often trying to reconcile with the other party by treating the person nicely and pretending as if nothing has ever happened, hoping the other party will forgive us through a sorry-less but friendly gesture.

We become too proud to reveal to others our inadequacy, thus when others willingly share their insights with us, outwardly we pretend to be uninterested to learn, but in reality, we are listening and digesting intently.

We become too proud to share our problems with others, thinking that others will see us as weaklings and capitalise on our weaknesses if we become vulnerable to them.

No wonder. No wonder our wise Master once said that only those who change and become humble like little children are qualified to enter his kingdom. All along, he knew the fatality but commonality of pride among grown-ups.

About Prayer

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 09:03:00 +0000

"The true relation in prayer is not when God hears what is prayed for, but when the person praying continues to pray until he is the one who hears, who hears what God wills."

Soren Kierkegaard

"On many occasions we find ourselves unsure of the specific action that God would wish to do in the situation that confronts us, and so we present our requests, but we qualify them with the condition "if it is your will." This is not a lack of faith; it is a lack of knowledge. We believe that God will do what is best, but we are uncertain what that is and so we ask according to our best wisdom."

Terrance Tiessen

"Be slow to pray. Praying puts us at risk of getting involved with God's condition...Praying most often doesn't get us what we want but what God wants, something quite at variance with what we conceive to be in our best interests. And when we realize what is going on, it is often too late to go back."

Eugene Peterson

Afterthought: The Bucket List

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 30 May 2008 09:45:00 +0000

The Bucket List (2007) is a story about two complete strangers (featuring Morgan Freeman who is a wise (as usual) and knowledgeable car mechanic and Jack Nicholson who is a very rich but arrogant man who owns private hospitals) crossing one another's paths when they ended up in the same bedroom in Nicholson's hospital as both were suffering from terminal illness.

When they received news from the doctor that they had only six months to a year's time to live, rather than spending their last days in the hospital to receive an experimental treatment, they came up with a list called 'bucket list' which consisted of things they wanted to do before they die. From then on, they journeyed around the world to complete the bucket list, doing crazy things (especially as they were elderly people suffering from terminal illnesses) like riding a motorbike up the Great Wall of China and skydiving etc.

The central message of the movie became explicit in the middle of the movie when they were sitting on top of a pyramid in Egypt. Freeman told Nicholson a story:

“The ancient Egyptians had a beautiful belief about death. When their souls got to the entrance of heaven, the gods asked them two questions. Their answers determined whether they were admitted or not."

As Freeman was about to reveal the questions, he wanted Nicholson to answer them as well.

Freeman asked, "Have you found joy in your life?" To this, Nicholson did not take much trouble to say "Yes!"

But when it came to the second question, "Has your life brought joy to others?" Nicholson struggled to answer.

Both eventually died at the end part of the movie (sad ending), but both brought genuine joy and meaning to one another's lives as they spent their last moments together. Not only have they found joy in their lives, they have truly brought joy to others as well.

Have we found joy in our lives?

Have our lives brought joy to others?

Joy, a rare virtue in a seemingly bleak world, and that includes the Christian world, or perhaps even more in the Christian world. Christians seem to be so serious that you seldom hear any laughter coming from them (Oh, I mean us). It is true that we need to recognise the depravity of man and the implications of such depravity that are manifesting in this world; it is true that Christians need to count the cost and carry the cross of suffering; but that does not give us the license to remain sorrowful and sulk in despair. We need to stand strong and find hope and meaning amidst our adverse environments. We need to put our "trust-in-God" mentality into practice. We need to pursue joy, now.

Only when we have found joy, can we bring this joy to others. Or else, gloomy faces, sulky appearances, negative mentality, critical condemnations...can such lives bring joy to others?

Please, find joy. Then, bring it to others. Easier said than done, but do it anyway!

Ugly Souls

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 30 May 2008 05:45:00 +0000

Sophisticated cosmetics and trendy apparel have become necessities for many in this age where exterior of the self is more important than the interior. Once deemed as luxuries items, these goods are now relentlessly pursued to provide self-confidence and image for the pursuers. We feel secured and confident in cosmetics and gorgeous outfits because they complement our physical imperfections that are constantly haunting us.

Just observe what these things do to the actors and actresses we watch on the screen. With these things, they become the gorgeous and stunning idols that everyone wants to imitate. Yet, when they are stripped of cosmetics and covered with plain clothings, they look just like everyone else, ordinary with faces covered with pimples, scars and freckles etc.

Therefore, we recognise the power of these items in making one look better than one actually is, and we make them indispensable in our lives to hide our exterior imperfections from others' sight and perhaps, from ours too.

Unfortunately, we are also equally good in hiding our interior imperfections. We fulfill our religious obligations faithfully, attending weekly services, prayer meetings, cell groups, evangelistic rallies. It started out as pure piety towards God, but slowly as others heap spiritual praises upon us for our faithfulness, piety becomes pride. In order to feed our insatiable pride, we waste endless time to prevent the ugly creature within us from popping out, ensuring that no one (especially fellow Christians) sees our interior imperfections lest praises cease.

However, pride makes us callous and careless. We are so preoccupied in hiding our interior imperfections from others that we have forgotten to actually attend to the imperfections themselves. Thus, amidst the praises of others that make us think that we are on the narrow trail towards God, we may actually be wandering further away from God. Just as we think that we are doing everything right, we may have already forsaken the fruit of the Spirit for the rotten fruits of this world.

Most importantly, we may have forgotten that hidden beneath each and every beautiful mask of religious piety and spiritual pride lies an ugly soul which loves wickedness and deceit. How do we know we have forgotten this reality? We show our forgetfulness when we become proud of ourselves and boast of our earthly successes and spiritual achievements. We show our forgetfulness when we become contemptuous and judgmental of others when they intentionally or unintentionally reveal their ugly souls.

When was the last time we look at the mirror and really have a good look at ourselves? Most of the time when we are in front of the mirror, we are looking for ways to cover up our exterior imperfections. Next time, let us have a good, long look at ourselves and be reminded that we are all ugly souls which are going through the beautifying treatment by the Great Beautician.

--
Since it was this quote by Soren Kierkegaard that provoked this blog post (thanks to Sakti), I shall end with it.

It is true that a mirror has the quality of enabling a person to see his image in it, but to do this he must stand still.

Soren Kierkegaard

Have We Forgotten?

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Wed, 28 May 2008 11:57:00 +0000

We are so used to our frenzy pace of life, that we have forgotten how to remain still and enjoy silence.

We are so equipped with wonderful knowledge and facts about God, that we have forgotten who God is.

We are so obsessed with our perceived obligations to work and serve the Lord, that we have forgotten how to enjoy God.

We are so afraid of exercising our faith, that we have forgotten what God can do in us, for us and through us.

It is high time to recover what we have forgotten.

The Small Kid

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Mon, 12 May 2008 11:30:00 +0000

Inside each one of us, there lives a small kid. This small kid is constantly battling against our natural growth for it is reluctant to grow up.

When we were young, we could do and say what we want for we know that our parents would bear the consequences for us. We had the freedom to make mistakes. As we grow up, we are confronted by tons of responsibilities and commitments that will cause us to be condemned by others if we fail to fulfill them. We are fearful of mistakes.

When we were young, we could put our trust in everyone that we meet. We could be ourselves without any masking or packaging. As we grow up, we are confronted by the sinfulness and imperfection of human beings. We can no longer put our trust in every person that we meet. In front of different people, we can only reveal certain aspects of our true selves in order to protect ourselves from hurts.

The small kid in us wants to remain in a world of innocence and purity, and struggles daily so that he/she can live in that world.

The small kid will eventually have his/her say, not now, but when the Kingdom of God comes in its fullness, for in God's kingdom, there are only "kids".

Human Reasoning

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Mon, 12 May 2008 03:30:00 +0000

Life is full of sticky decisions.

In a world of complication and chaos, we are constantly bombarded by multiple choices and decisions. Often times, these decisions do not wait for us, for when the deadline is reached, the absence of a decision is also a decision by itself.

In life, many of our decision-making involve morality. In ethical decision-making, each situation varies and it is crucial for us to learn to scrutinise each situation before we apply the appropriate moral principles to the specific situation. It would be naive and simplistic for us to assume that every principle is to be applied universally in all situations regardless of the context of the situation. Thus, we get frustrated when others are quick to make moral judgment without first looking into the situation, quick to point out what is wrong and forbidden without examining the context.

Thus, it is important for us to learn to use our human reasoning in every ethical situation and to be able to make sound judgments and wise decisions. Unfortunately, human reasoning can be abused too. We can use the power of human reasoning to justify decisions that we make by explaining that it is not wrong to make such decisions, and not pursue the highest form of right: the ideal.

It is one thing to recognise the fallen condition of the world and the depravity of man, but it is another thing to capitalise on this reality and use it to justify the less ideal decisions that we make, and forget and forgo the pursuit of the ideal.

Human reasoning - use it but not abuse it, for it can make or break you.