28 June 2009 - The Little Ones

And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, that he will certainly not lose his reward. (Matt.10:42)

We often forget the needy people around us. When we are too 'captivated' with celebration of God's goodness within the church, we forget to get out of the church facade and share the love. We often secure our own comfort inside a limited circle of friends and colleagues. We limit our love to those we know, to those who are kind to us, to those who are 'like' us, and to those whom we are comfortable with. But...

How about those poor children on the streets,

those starving beggars walking from home to home for alms,

those hardworking maids who try to earn just enough for their families,

those sick people with no money to treat their diseases,

those illiterate kids who dream of going to school and learning to read,

those young people that must sacrifice their dreams and help their parents collecting garbages?

Where is Christian's love in this sad reality? If all those who do not know Christ do not care about these 'little' ones, what difference do we make, as Christians, if we also close our eyes? What difference do churches make, if they are keeping God's grace within those facades?

The passage from Matt.10:40-42 really prompts us to act, not just being an observer. It is not enough to sympathize these people. Pitying them will not change their lives. Be empathetic! Feel what they feel, stop merely observing, and act! Jesus promised great rewards for those who are willing to share with the needy. Beyond the rewards, Jesus commands us to 'love one another as we love ourselves.' We have been saved although we are unworthy. Even there is no reward for the good things we are doing, we are still obliged to do it, because God has loved us first. So do not seek the reward, but seek the opportunity to do good, to be more and more like Jesus. There is always enough needy people around us. The world will never lack of them. So, there are plenty of opportunities to share our love with them. Use it wisely!

18 July 2009 - Unity in love is destiny

Ephesians 5:22-33
Man must not separate, then, what God has joined together. (Mark 10:9)

Love is a gift from God. God unites couple. God knits their life together into a beautiful love story. God intertwines the strands of their life into one golden cord. Every relationship is beautifully designed by God, the Master of love. God, the love Himself, has shown His greatest love to mankind by giving us His only Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus becomes the groom and we, His church, become His wife. Our love with God is eternal. It is blessed to its fullest. So does the love between a man and a woman, whom God has designed even before they meet.

When a boy and a girl meet and feel attraction between them, it is not just an accident. There is no such thing as accidentally in love. All love, beautiful and successful love stories, are planned and designed by God. It does not happen just like that. When two persons grow stronger in affection and care for each other, it is not by their own effort. We cannot nurture true love without God's help. It is God that keeps supplying us with constant fuel of romance, intimacy, respect, understanding, self-sacrificing, and pure love. Without God's gift of love, no relationship shall sustain the storms.

We must thank God for all the love we have in our life, especially love from the special ones. They are precious gifts in our life. Let's learn to feel their love everyday and return their love abundantly. Let's not find faults and weaknesses from our loved ones. Let's see them in a more positive way. They are there not by accident, but by God's intervention. When God wants us together, nothing can separate us. When God brings two people in unity, He will nurture and grow the love more abundantly.

10 June 2009 - "="

Jesus stretched his hand to touch the man. “I do want to”, he answered, “Be clean!” (Luke 5:13)

Jesus' miracles are not merely a proof of His godliness. It is also a proof of His love. He did not perform miracles for only certain people. He worked wonders in people from all walks of life. He healed the sick, He drove demons away, He cured the lepers, He saved a prostitute, He opened eyes of the blinds. He never chose Whom He will cure. He cared for those whom the society rejected.

We human tend to value others based on our judgment. When we look at the economic status, we look at the rich and the poor. When we look at the health condition, we look at the healthy and the sick. When we look at the physique, we look at the beauty and the ugly. When we look at the education level, we look at the literati and the illiterate. So many judgmental views that our society is grouped by those shallow categories.

But, God never sees human as we see them. In God's eyes everyone is equal. When God sees the sin, He looks at the lost; none of us is pure. When God sees the attitude, God sees the rebel; none of us is forever faithful. When God sees us, He sees sinners who need help. So He came to help, regarding all those barriers we human had set. He broke all those barriers and brought us into unity. Now, God only sees us as the believer, the saved, and the forgiven, OR, the unbeliever, the rebel, and the doomed. Which one are you?

We have no right of discriminating others. If God the Creator loves everyone, what right do we have to differentiate anyone? What God has set to be equal cannot be varied. What God loves, we as His followers must also love. “For those things that you have done for the least among you, you have done it to me”, Jesus said.