Obedience

In studying Co1.1:9-10 much has been
mentioned about being filled with the
knowledge of God.

But David E. Garland in "The NIV
Application Commentary" has this to
say:

" Unfortunately, Christians do not
always put the truth they believe
into practice. We learn enough to
talk about it intelligently but
never follow through on action."

How very true. It is so much easier
to 'study' the Bible, but how difficult
it is to obey.

But Oswald Chambers said, " Obedience is
the means whereby we show the earnestness
of our desire to do God's will."

And George Washington declared that " the
whole duty of man is summed up in
obedience to God's will."

Most importantly, remember what our Lord
Jesus said in Luke 6:46?
"Why do you call Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do
not do what I say?"

Jesus went further: " Everyone who comes
to Me and hears My words and acts on
them, I will show you whom he is like."

He is like the man who built his house
on the rock. And when the rains and floods
came, the house was strong and secure.

Before Speaking

Before speaking, THINK.
Ask yourself:

T - is it true?
H - is it helpful?
I - is it inspiring?
N - is it necessary?
K - is it kind?

Wow! Such quotes always sound
nice to the ears. But to put them
into practice?

For people who just shoot off what
is on their minds, these THINK
business can be quite daunting if
not just plain torture.

By the time they go through these
questions, they might not want to
talk.

But I suppose, the way to go about
it is to just keep on working at it until
it becomes second nature.

Tough work,though.

Who's the Baby of the House?

Who's the baby of the house?

It's Lola, our cat!

Two years ago, he was just a stray kitten

which we unwittingly took over from our

neighbour's boy. He found it straying at

the Novena MRT station and brought it

home. Much to his chagrin, he was

forbidden to keep it because they already

had a dog.

Seeing us, he pleaded us to take him in.

We were in two minds. I never wanted

to keep a pet. But Vince and Jayne were

clearly for it.

Then the boy used the formula:

"If no one takes it, then I have to leave

it in the drain."

And we were sure he just might because

he was driven to a corner; he had no choice.

So we took the little thing off his hand.

We tried to get it off ours by bringing him

to church. Surely the kids would fall in

love with this little cute thing.

They did. But their mothers didn't.

They knew better.

"Cute. But not enough for the troubles

that would follow. And kittens would

grow into cat, right? . And keep a pet cat?"

As Adibah Amin (pseudomym Sri Delima)

in her book "As I was Passing II" wrote

about people's perception of cats:

"Cats are often misunderstood because of

their aloof, unfeeling look.

"It is true that they do not have the

uncritical, undying devotion of dogs.

"Once disillusioned they can walk out

on you with their tails in the air, never

letting the world know their heartbreak."

"But if they are sure of your love, how

beautifully they open up!

They perch on your shoulders,

curl up on your lap,

lie on their backs for you to tickle them,

hide behind doors to pounce playfully

on you. "

"They recognize not only your smell,
voice and footsteps but also the sound
of your car, and it is really something
to come home and find twelve loving
cats waiting for you at the gate."

The writer then recounts how they took in a stray cat too.

" I remember particularly my cat Serah, now long dead of

ripe old age. Someone had tied a wire tight around her neck

and she came to me, thin and wretched out of the rain, to untie

it. I was so touched by her faith after having been so ill-used

by human beings that I spent all my time nursing her back to

health. We called her Serah because of her sweet trusting ways."

As for us, we took in "Lola" because tried as we might, we couldn't

'get rid' of him.

Nobody wanted a kitten, even though he looked cute and pitiful.

The pet shops rejected him the moment they heard he came from

parents who were alley cats.

So Lola stayed.

Jayne presumptously named him "Lola" thinking it was a 'she'.

But as it turned out, Lola was a boy!

And poor boy, we had him splayed/ neutered.

And he stayed and grew..... right into

our hearts.

Today, two years later, he is no

longer 'the little thing.'

But he is still cute in that 5 kg frame.

And his mew as gentle, childlike and

endearing. Used sparingly, he would

usually end up getting what he wanted.

Today, we can't imagine not having our sweet Lola around.
He is the baby of the house and we love him!

Pascal's Prayer

This was taken from Our Daily Bread's devotion
on August 23rd. It was using Blaise Pascal's
prayer as an illustration for the verse:

"Whatever you do, do all
to the glory of God." (1 Cor.10:31).

Apparently Pascal had a prayer along this
vein. He prayed:

"Lord,help me to do great things as
though they were little, since I do
them with Your power;
and little things as though they
were great, since I do them in Your
name."

Was he just playing with words?
"great things as though they were little";
"little things as though they were great".
Sounds very catchy to the ears.

Why " do great things as though they
were little"?

The way I understand it:

Big tasks do overwhelm most of us. Before
we start, we already think of how incapable
we are of succeeding. We want to reject the
jobs. If we can't, we worry over it and get all
stressed out. We lose sleep over them.

But if we turn to God for His power and
depend on Him for wisdom and strength .....
the 'great things' become 'little'. We are not
working alone anymore. God is with us to
help us through.

What we need to get right is to make sure it
is God's work we are doing - whether spiritual
or secular.

Then what about "do little things as though
they were great"?

I understand the 'little things' to be the insignificant
tasks that usually can be done by just anybody.
They don't require special skills, talents or intellect
to carry them out. And precisely because of that,
there is not much reward in doing them. And hardly
anybody clamours or fights to do them.

But they still need to be done.

So the usual attitude is that if we are forced to
do them, we either do them most reluctantly,
grumpily, or badly. Or all three and demand
to be appreciated after that.

Thus Pascal's belief behind his prayer. If we do
them in God's name, then these "little things"
become great.

Seen in that light, we might do them more
cheerfully and well. Because we do them to
please God our Father.

And if we really can't take it anymore, (like
house-keeping), then the duty has become
a 'great' thing. Well, what do we do?

Pray "Lord, help me to do great things as
though they were little, since I do them
with Your power."

What Sustains You

What sustained Eric Liddell to serve in rural
China for some 20 years? Perhaps the answer
lies in what David Roper has to say about serving
people in God's ministry.

This is in Our Daily Bread, 14th August . The text
was taken from John 21:15 - 17 where it talks about
Jesus asking Peter 3 times "Do you love Me?". This
was what Roper had to say:

"Was Jesus unaware of Peter's love? Of course
not. ..He (Jesus) asked His questions to under-
score the essential truth that only love for
Christ would sustain Peter in the work that
lay ahead - that arduous, demanding work of
caring for people's souls ....

Jesus did not ask Peter if he loved His sheep,
but if he loved Him. "

Most of the time, we jump in because we love
the people first. Then we ask God if we can
serve them. But Roper believes that:

"Affection for God's people in itself will
not sustain us."

Why? Isn't love for the people we serve a
powerful motivating force? Perhaps. But -

"His sheep can be unresponsive,
unappreciative, and harshly critical of
our efforts to love and to serve them."

How realistic and true an appraisal of man.
And how real such experiences are in the
ministry. Just ask those who have served
long enough.

So ultimately, it has to come back to the
source - Christ our Lord. Our love for Him.
Otherwise, "In the end, we will find our-
selves defeated and discouraged."

September is here!

Wow! Another month has just slipped by
and September is here!

For August, here are some devotions from
"Our Daily Bread" that have impressed me.

The first one was August 8th's. The life of
Eric Liddell was given as an illustration of a
man who 'crossed the finish line victorious
through love'.

We are familiar about Eric Liddel as the guy
who made his stand not to compete on an event
during the 1924 Olympic Games because it
took place on a Sunday. Then he went to win
a gold medal in the 400 metres which was on
another day.

Then what happened to him after this feat?
Well, according to the account given in ODB,
Eric Liddell went to China ! a year after his
triumph ; Not for a holiday. But as a missionary,
teacher and rural pastor.

To escape from difficult challenges back home?

To spend 20 years of his life in rural China does
not sound to me like escapism. And apparently
during the Japanese Occupation, he threw his
lot with the local Chinese. He did not take a boat
home.

Eric was together with 1,500 other prisoners
in an internment camp. There, he continued to
serve,whether it be 'carrying water for the elderly
or refereeing games for the teens.'

When he died of a brain tumor in February 1945,
one internee described him as a man 'who lived
better than he preached.'

What a testimony. And God in His time saw it
fit to have Liddell's story told posthumously; and
after so many decades of obscurity. I am sure
there are many more saints like Liddell whom
we do not know and may not know.

But what an encouragement to know saints like
Eric Liddell existed. The encouragement comes
from knowing that there are men and women
who would continue steadfastly in the Lord
through "difficult circumstances, war, uncertainty
and disease" and leave behind a testimony worthy
of their Lord. So that God's name will be glorified.

Today we get more news of 'fallen' saints who
start well but get tripped by riches, success,
fame, etc . It's a breath of fresh air to read of
Christians like Liddell.