As we're going through the O levels peroid, I trust that many of you are firmilar with the title of this post. But lets look at the heartbeat of this title. Does it have a heart really?
When ever we do debrief after service for the sermons, what are these questions really for?
Questions like:
What have you learnt in today's sermon?
How then shall we live?
and the list just goes on...
I have been too firmilar with these Ten Years Series (TYS) answers,
answering: Pray and Seek/ Seek and Fast/Read the Word and Apply etc...
I've been seeking and I found these questions really irrirtating, always asking the same questions, like c'mon! Didn't I tell you my answer last week?!
Lets Side track for a bit.
What is a Heart?
Anatomy. a hollow, pumplike organ of blood circulation, composed mainly of rhythmically contractile smooth muscle, located in the chest between the lungs and slightly to the left and consisting of four chambers: a right atrium that receives blood returning from the body via the superior and inferior vena cavae, a right ventricle that pumps the blood through the pulmonary artery to the lungs for oxygenation, a left atrium that receives the oxygenated blood via the pulmonary veins and passes it through the mitral valve, and a left ventricle that pumps the oxygenated blood, via the aorta, throughout the body.
yes i know its really chim.
But the question i want to ask is: "Is that all it is?"
You might be thinking: "Thanks Bernard, more questions."
I'd say, Yes! In fact the more questions we ask, the more we know, naturally! So why are these 30 odd years old men asking me these questions.
They are either taking care of you or they're your cell leader
They need something to do (well, a bit off track but its true right?)
Emphasis on my first point, "taking care" these questions are driected at you to "care" for you.
It might be shocking but they can actually tell your story from the answers you give. They want to know what your stories are, everyone does have a unique story to tell, quite often these questions are questions about our present situations and the firey darts thrown at us. Everyone has problems, they just want to walk through the problem with us.
So instead of giving TYS answers, let's give our heartfelt answers, the answers on our hearts. Who cares if you give the most brilliant answer in the world if it dosen't come from your heart? The answers we give in life, reflect the answers of our heart.
To Do List
Check your heart, is it just an organ or a living and active tool that needs the maker's hands to re-mould?
Throw away the TYS answer booklet, they're not really your answers.
Reflect! These questions were never ment for just one person (cell leader/yourself) it goes both ways, you want to know how they're doing just as they want to know you, as well as to know yourself better.
Let's pray.
Dear Lord Jesus, Heal the hearts of your people today, cast our doubt, hurt and deciet. I pray upon your people that there'll be an awakening in their lives to truly seek and understand your heart as well as they're own. Protect them for dark days are approaching. In our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ of Nazereth, that place in Israel on that third rock from the sun's name we pray.
Amen
BLESSED AT,
10:51 AM
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Standing firm in the Lord
What word do you see in the picture? For most of us; we would see the word 'GOOD' in the picture at first glance. However after some time, you would notice that there is also the word 'evil'. What I'm trying to point out is that many of us always judge someone by our first impression. It takes time to understand and know the intentions of the heart of a person.
I was never a real 'christian' even though I was born in a Christian family. I was once caught in whirlwind of confusion by the influence of friends I once hanged out with, that church was boring and stuff like that when I was young. Thus, I developed this perception that church was indeed boring and my spiritual eyes and ears were covered whenever I went to church. There was a time when I decided not to go to church altogether, often feigning illnesses or saying that I'm busy. I was 13 at that time and I guess I was really stubborn in my actions. But thanks be to God, for He was always reaching out for me, waiting for me patiently to draw back to Him and indeed he brought me back in a rather unique and amusing way that I would never forget, His way. Coming from a rather humble family background, my grades were often compared to my younger cousins and I was often pressurised in a competition I did not want to be in. When I was in my secondary 3 class, I became proud as I took things for granted that I have gotten into the top class in the faculty. In fact, I did not like my teachers nor the friends I had in the class due to bad memories and so I totally shut off. I just became a sleeping lion through out the year and had no intentions of graduating with the class I had. I got back my results saying that I will be retaining for that year as well as dropping to the last class.
Initially I did not feel anything, but I realized that I have broken the hearts of my family who love me, whose intentions was for me to be successful and walking right with the Lord. I began to work hard again, humbling myself even when I was the top student in my class as well as getting good grades for my O's. It was this time that I decided to walk this life of mine with God once again, for I realise that God has planned all this to happen with His intentions in breaking and moulding me into a person that he wanted me to be.
Thus, I was brought me back to Him. I'm really touched by how God has always been there for me through times of encouragements as well as times of discouragements. Through those times, I was reminded of standing firm to the faith I have in Him. Each time when I feel burnt out, God is always there to refresh me with His love, and my fire to seek His kingdom first continues to burn for Him . However, standing firm with God to the end is not an easy thing to do. It is really not by our own might nor by our power but by His spirit that we are able to do. I was going through the scripture about the end times and indeed, I have been reminded about the events which are happening around the world. It has come to a time of holding on to our faith in God with perseverance and hope to the race which we have been running with God.
In 2Timothy 3:2-5 about Godlessness in the last days, it has been said that 'People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.' From the scripture, the 'people' whom are referred here are actually the christians. It just goes to show that each one of us have the potential to be a lover of pleasure rather than lovers of God during the last days. If we do not cling on to God's word, we would very well be deceived by the very things this world has to offer.
In fact in Matthew 24:4-14, 'Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumours of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains. "Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.'
The first sign of the end of the age is deception. Not only that, it is also written that we will be persecuted because of our faith.
In 2Timothy 3:12, it is written 'In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.' The scripture does not say that we "may" be persecuted, rather we "will" be persecuted.
It will definitely not be easy living a christian life, there might be things that we can never do and we will be persecuted by the people around us. But I choose to stand firm to my faith in God for I do not set my eyes on earthly riches but rather the heavenly riches that God will provide me with. Be glory to the Father in heaven as I will run this race He has marked out with perseverance and faith in Him.
I pray that we will stand strong in God, for He is strong in our weaknesses. For God is good all the time. Amen...There is only this one simple important thing for us to stand firm in Him that is to read our bible consistently, the word that is inspired by the almighty God our saviour. Discerning what is true and false, what are the right and wrong things, and what are the good things that pleases our Father in heaven.
Would you read your bible as of today?
BLESSED AT,
5:10 PM
What word do you see in the picture? For most of us; we would see the word 'GOOD' in the picture at first glance. However after some time, you would notice that there is also the word 'evil'. What I'm trying to point out is that many of us always judge someone by our first impression. It takes time to understand and know the intentions of the heart of a person.