Take Heed

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"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."

(Rev 3:14-22)

Familiar chapter on lukewarmness, but never fails to make me uncomfortable, because it paints a reflection of me that I would rather not see. No Christian wants to be called "lukewarm", but the unfortunate fact is that many of us are. I am definitely a culprit as well.

I am neither "hot nor cold" when I can go through most parts of my life without a conscious sense of dependence on God. I am lukewarm when I think I am doing well in the sight of God and men, often making many decisions without first seeking the guidance and direction of the One I call Lord, so ften neglecting and ignoring the presence of God in my life.
I depend on my gifts, my abilities, my resources to get me through situations, in making decisions, often taking so many things for granted. I often pride myself on how capable I am to be able to do all that I can. How often do I pause to give thanks to the Source of my the resources, gifts and abilities? How often do I really allow God to decide for me, instead of assuming what I want for my life will have the approval of God?

When was the last time that I have rejected the easy path, and chosen God's narrow path for me, to forego comfort so as to allow God's fires to refine me?

What am I wearing now? Clothes that look good in the eyes of men, which is nakedness to God, or the white clothes of righteousness of Christ?

What are my eyes looking at now? Is my vision so tuned to the ways of the world that I have become blind to what really pleases the Lord?

Ps YC gave us all a good reminder recently from Psalm 147 on what really pleases the Lord:

His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of a man;
the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.

We may have gotten many things wrong, especially if we think that it is our earthly achievements that gain us His favour and delight.

But there is hope. The loving & heartwarming words from our Heavenly Father are in Rev 3:20-22.

It starts with me. Take heed. Repent. Overcome.
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Thoughts at 38

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Watched Iron Man yesterday on my 38th birthday. Good movie; definitely one of the better superhero movies. Casting Robert Downing Jr as Tony Stark was an excellent choice, possibly as good as Hugh Jackman/Wolverine. Wrong casting will kill any superhero movie. (Remember George Clooney as Batman/Bruce Wayne? That was really BAD...)

But I digress..... actually what left a deep impression from the movie was the dialogue between Tony Stark and Yinsen when they were prisoners in Afganistan. Yinsen basically told the hedonistic Tony Stark that despite the fact that he may be one of the richest and most intelligent man alive, but if he lives just for himself and not for loved ones and family, then he is but "a man who has everything, but in fact has nothing".

And Yinsen's final words to Stark: "Don't waste your life".

Profound words....not too far from what Jesus said in Luke 12:15b - "..Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions."

Words to ponder as I approach mid-life. The things I pursue in life, how I live, and who I live for. What is the legacy I want to leave behind?
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Being Watched Over

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I lift up my eyes to the hills— where does my help come from?
My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip— he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
The LORD watches over you— the LORD is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.
The LORD will keep you from all harm— he will watch over your life;
the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.

(Psalm 121)

It dawned on me how often we take things for granted. We forget that when things go well, it is because the Lord God Almighty is watching over us.

We travel safely to work and back home each day...
We don't fall down and break a bone when we walk...
We don't succumb to the millions of viruses and bacteria all around us...
We have good food and clean water each day...
We are not ravaged by cyclones and earthquakes...
We have peace and a good government in the land...
We can worship God freely without persecution...

It is by the love, grace and mercy of the one who watches over us faithfully without slumber.

I had an experience recently which vividly reminded me of God's invisible hand watching over even the "more mundane and less important" area of my life. Let me elaborate:

Every month, 10% of my salary goes into a savings plan with the company. Every 6 months, the money accumulated is used to buy our company's shares on Wall Street at a discount, after which I can choose to hold on to the shares or to sell them via a computer stockbroking system in the company.

Just his month, another lot of shares came into my account. I needed some money to balance the accounts, so I decided to sell these shares, but I have no idea what is the best price to sell them. So I arbitrarily set a significantly higher price than the recent stock price, hoping that the price will rise to that level, at which the shares will be automatically sold, and the money transferred to my bank.

Imagine my surprise when I went back to the office the next day and found the shares already sold (while I was sleeping). It seems that the share price, for some unknown reason, spiked up within that trading day hitting the price I set, before closing much lower at the end of the trading day.

That was not all. A couple of days later, my company announced a multi-billion dollar acquisition of another company. As a result, the share price tumbled 15% overnight and has not recovered since.

Looks like I sold the shares at the best possible time, despite being clueless about all these. It is better than having the best stockbroker in the world looking after your investments...
Nothing beats the One who watches over us, because He is in full control of ALL the wealth on the earth.

Wow...

"The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore..."

Thank you Lord.
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Pray for Myanmar and China

The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love.
The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.
All you have made will praise you, O LORD; your saints will extol you.
They will tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might,
so that all men may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The LORD is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made.

The LORD upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time.
You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.
The LORD is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he has made.
The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.
He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.

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(Psalm 145:8-19)

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Let us intercede and appeal to the mercy and grace of God...that indeed His love for people will drive Him to hear the cries of the people and to save them, from death, from hunger, from sickness and despair.

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