A young lady in a restaurant waved her hand to signal me to go over. I went up to her even though I had no clue who she was. As I drew near, she started to recite her order to me without giving me a chance to interrupt. When she finally stopped, I told her that I was not an employee of this establishment. Without apologising or any embarrassment in sight, she told me that I looked like a waiter as I was wearing a black pants and white long sleeves (my clergy attire). Without saying more, I took my leave and joined my friends at their table. We had a good laugh at the “waiter.”

Come to think of it, I am a servant— a servant of Christ. It is not easy for many to think of ourselves as servants as we come from an affluent society. Being “up there” matters. In terms of education and reasonable wealth, we are right there. It is no wonder that many people here treat others with a little bit of “richer than thou” and “serving me is your privilege” attitude.

Christ did say that “the Son of man did not come to be served but to serve.” That would make many Christians here rather uncomfortable. Like I said, to serve is not an easy thing to do. It means that we have to bring down our pride, put aside our “top class” abilities and to count others more significant than we are. For many who are influenced by the material living of the world, these are difficult attributes to live with. “Maybe for a day or two, but for life on earth you must be kidding!”

But I am not kidding. That is not my teaching; it is the Lord’s. He served with humility and expects all his disciples to do likewise. It is by serving in His name that we glorify Him. It is the ultimate weapon with which to change the world. The world deteriorates because people become self-centred and selfish. When we are released to serve one another, the only way is up and up.

Brothers and sisters, let us take heed of the Word of the Lord. Let us learn to serve one another and glorify God.

God bless!

Two brothers had a 100m dash race on a beach one morning. At the end point they both stood there and looked at the footprints that they left behind. One set, belonging to the one who lost, was straight. The other set strayed at various points during the race. Upon reflection, those were the points when the leader of the race looked back to check on his lead. The wonderful thing about the race was that both brothers finished the race.

So often in our journey of faith, we stray. By God’s mercy we would return to the straight and narrow, only to stray again later. Living in a world as such, it is inevitable that we do stray at times. Some of us more and some, less, but we all stray some times. More importantly, we repent and return. Prayerfully, we finish our journey without mishaps or being shipwrecked.

How do we minimise going wayward? The apostle Paul exhorts us to fix our eyes on Jesus and on attaining the goal of our salvation. Do not look to the left or right. Jesus is who we should concentrate our sights on. If we keep our sights on Him alone, then we will not have too many problems staying in the straight and narrow. Jesus did say that anyone who set his hand on the plough and looked back was not worthy of the kingdom. We really have to take such warnings seriously.

Fighting the good fight and completing the race are important. Equally important is helping one another finish the journey well. We never walk alone but as a family. We should look out for one another. On this journey, there will be some who are weaker or may momentarily become weak. At those times, the stronger must “carry” the weaker brothers and sisters. The spiritual journey is not a race where there is only one winner and the rest eat dust. It is a race that we all win together. By helping one another, we all win and complete the race well and rejoice together at the Great Banquet in heaven.

Set our eyes on Jesus resolutely and race on. Together we move ahead as a family.

God bless!

I had a small tiny piece of wooden splinter in my left index finger for about a week. It hurt a lot at first and became a small nagging pain in the background after a while. At first, I thought it was just a cut (bad eyesight) as I could not see the splinter. Then as I was standing by the window under bright sunlight, there it was. Very quickly I cut away the skin and took it out. Voila, the pain was gone.

A lot of people have sins that are not obvious to them. In the beginning such sins cause great discomfort and pain. By and by, they go into the background and tolerance for such sins becomes acceptable. They soon become a small nagging discomfort that can be ignored until one day, such sins are exposed under the bright illuminating light of Holy Scripture and Holy Spirit, then only can we see the sin as it is. We repent and seek God’s forgiveness, then we are set free from the bondage once again. Voila, the chains are broken and the pain, gone.

We have to constantly measure our lives against Scripture. That would mean that we read and study Scripture in the first place. It is too easy to underestimate the vices of the world and take it as something that we can overcome easily. Before long, we end up being enslaved by them. We need the Word of God and His Holy Spirit to help us discern what is right and what is wrong. Even more so, we need the power of the Holy Spirit to help us overcome our sin. If it needs to be cut off, it needs to be cut off; do not hold on to it.

Scripture teaches us to “judge ourselves before we are judged”. We will do well to take heed. When we check ourselves, we will not be embarrassed. Otherwise, our glaring sins will put us in the spotlight when we least expect or want it.

God bless!

It is interesting to look at the “zombies” listening to very loud music plugged into their ears. I termed them “zombies” as they show neither emotion nor reaction to the “music” in their ears, be it high tempo or smooth melodramatic. It makes one wonder why they even bother to “listen” to music. Maybe they are just doing it to demonstrate that they are in with the crowd or to showcase their latest ifruit phone. Whatever it is, it appears that they are neither hot nor cold.

It is difficult to follow the Lord if one is neither hot nor cold. If the word of the Lord does not stir your heart; or the concern of the Lord is not your concern, then you really have to watch out. Scripture warns us of the danger of being lukewarm — God will cast us out. There is no trying to circumvent the word of God, however good a debater you are. God does not play games. His yes is yes, and no is no.

Believing in Jesus Christ is a love relationship with Him. It is not a religious game where one gains points along the way to make it to heaven. Playing church is the biggest pitfall that will cause many to go to hell. There is no such thing as “once saved always saved” despite the teaching of some pastors. People can lose their salvation. Be warned. Read the Scriptures carefully for yourself. Do not be fooled into thinking that the way of Christ is child’s play. Believing in Jesus is easy, thus gaining salvation is easy. The devil will make it very difficult for one to keep it, he will do everything possible to “help” you lose it.

Being a lukewarm church “player” is one of the easiest ways to lose it. What is worse is that you may not even know it. You will be thinking that you are on the way up but what if the sign was upside down?

Do not be a “zombie” in following Christ. Engage in knowing Him well and serve Him in where you are called. If His word does not move you because your heart is hardened, then repent and come back to Him. Heaven is too precious to lose because of taking Him for granted. Be hot, really hot, for God.

God bless!

Someone was telling me how obedient and wonderful her friend’s child was. How he listens and does his school work and assessments diligently. What an obedient child! Wonderful! I told this person that a child is not measured by his or her willingness to do school work and assessments. There are other aspects of a child that may tell a different story. What if this wonderful school work- and assessment-finisher is selfish and heartless? He cares only for himself and bullies others. Can he still be considered obedient and wonderful? There are many cases of academically clever children who are rotten eggs in other aspects. What do we say then?

Unfortunately, this is the phenomenon in an examination-mad society. Just look at the proliferation of tuition centres and “making your child a super brain” centres and the number of people flock to them, and you will understand what I mean.

My dear brothers and sisters, people are differently gifted. If you ask a fish to climb a tree, by that yardstick of achievement, it will always be an idiot. Similarly, if we expect the monkey to swim well, then the monkey will always be deemed a great failure. Both creatures are differently gifted. Put the fish in water and see how it swims, or see the monkey get up a tree. Clear now?

Give the children a chance to experience their childhood beyond just examinations. We are all different and we want others to respect that. Why then are we not giving the child that chance?

Likewise the church is made up of people with different talents. We must learn to respect each one as special in the sight of the Lord. The auntie who may not read or write English as well as you do may cook a way tastier meal than you or me ever will. That uneducated cleaner may be able to do and endure more hardship than any of us. For all you know, they may live a better life than most so-called educated people.

Let us learn to respect the difference in one another, beginning with our own children. Do not compare with other. Let us grow together on this journey of faith.

God bless!

How does one deal with disappointments? Examinations marks that were not up to expectations, the promotion that did not come, the prince charming or beautiful princess that did not materialise, or the marriage that failed. Life’s disappointments come one after another, some more than others. Some resort to deception of self and others, pretending that all is well. Others seek consolation everywhere they can find – self-help, religions and gurus, counselling, etc… When all fails, blame others.

Is that how we deal with our disappointments? To be honest, we all indulge in one of the above mentioned methods at one time or another. We are not immune to disappointments nor bad reactions to them. So, how should we deal with them?

I am not about to say the textbook answer: “Believe in Jesus and all will be well”, although that saying by itself is not wrong. Nor will I say that we should just grit our teeth and bear with it. We have to come to terms with our feelings and emotions; there is no denial here.

We have to start the healing (yes healing not just dealing) with God. We come to God with a contrite heart, and surrender the whole issue to Him. There is no need for padding in our crying out to God; just straight honest truths and facts. Listen to it ourselves, as we rant to God. After all is said, leave the whole matter to Him. Do not attempt to give or suggest the solution that satisfies us to God. He is God, not you or I. He knows what to do better than you and I. Next comes the difficult part – wait and listen. This is the most difficult part because it comes in His good timing, not ours. If you get it instantly, praise God. If it tarries, praise God also. Then put into action diligently what you hear God wants you to do. Remember it is what God wants; Do not disguise what you want in the religious garb, “Thus says the Lord.”

You may now know that I was referring to prayer all this while. Therefore, my brothers and sisters, PRAY without ceasing. That is how to deal with disappointment.

God bless!

There I was, a volunteer of SACS, selling flags at one end of the escalators coming out of the MRT station. As expected, many just passed by me as they got on with their lives. Some saw me and approached to donate some money, while others gave as I approached them. It was nothing out of the ordinary. It would be a breeze to me since I had done it before. After a while, though, the disdainful looks of some of the people got to me. I began to wonder what right they had to look at me like this. After all, I am doing a charitable work. Then arrogant thoughts about how virtuous I was came into my mind. Almost immediately I wanted to throw in the towel, so to speak.

Then the Lord spoke to me and reminded me that humility is the key to victory. I responded by asking Him for forgiveness. I kept praying silently, asking the Lord to help me humble myself. Before long, I was just enjoying myself (though it was a little tiring) serving the needy by selling flags. It was a very humbling exercise for me, one which I thank the Lord for. It will help keep my feet firmly rooted on the ground as I continue to serve Him in the days to come.

It is so easy for us, living in an affluent nation, to forget that what we have is a blessing from God. Of course we worked hard for what we have and cannot be faulted for saying that we deserve them. It is so easy to fail to give thanks to the Lord. It is this danger of arrogance that we need to be aware of, to keep from falling. The key to success is, therefore, humility.

Humbleness helps us to remain thankful. By it we are at peace with our real self and situation without experiencing despair. We can then appropriate things and situations well. Life can be balanced in an affluent and fast world. Then, and only then, can we move on to know true success and realise that it is not measured in the way of the world. It is good for us to have a reality check, time and again, to keep us rooted firmly to the Lord.

Humility and Thankfulness work hand in hand. They will keep us in good stead and close to the Lord. My brothers and sisters, work at it.

God Bless!

While talking with a parent of three children, he shared with me his insight on studying for major examinations (PSLE, ‘O’ level). He had come to the conclusion that the most important time to get up to speed for the PSLE examinations is not in P6 but in P5. The time in Primary five will strengthen all the foundations and the time in P6 merely adds to it. Starting to prepare in P6 is akin to a last-minute rush. I must say that I fully agree with him.

Many well-meaning Christians think that the way to go is to live it up when you are younger and start to prepare for “heaven” when older. Then you will have more time and experience; you will have no worries about finances and other considerations. These are pretty convincing and compelling excuses, but for all intents and purposes they are just excuses and really bad ones at that.

I know that a believing Christian will go to heaven, no question about that. Many may pass their PSLE if they languish in their digital endeavours, but the few who endure the rigour of hard work will score and reap the benefits. Too often then, many give up the eternal rewards for the temporal gratifications of this earth. Sadly, some even lose their salvation for such. Taking the final “examinations” for granted is dangerous. With diseases like “face glued to phone,” “will die without social media,” many are going to ignore what is really important, to their own peril. Just ask or look around, do children more likely to ask their parents for a book to read or for an iPhone to play games?

It is important for us to get our relationship right with God at the onset. Many things in this world can wait, because they become obsolete faster than the speed of light anyway. Contrary to many people’s assumption, heaven cannot wait. Think carefully about instant and temporal gratifications versus eternal rewards. It is your call for your own life; I am merely pointing it out. Your choice to make for yourself. I cannot make it for you.

Think wisely and act upon it early.

God Bless!

A recent report of a car knocking down a two year-old toddler in China shocked many people. It is not just the driver who knocked the girl down but also the reaction, or non-action, of the people around that is atrocious. A young child was very badly injured and nobody cared, not even a little. Finally, in true Biblical parable fashion, an elderly rubbish collector was the one who rendered help. Others passed by without giving any attention. Another driver did not care and drove over the girl as if she was some piece of rag lying on the road.

Does it remind you of the parable of the good Samaritan? We thought that it was not possible for people to pass the other side? It was just a parable that Jesus used to “shock” the establishment then, yadda yadda… Well, you see it in real life here, with video to boot. If you are still not convinced that the world is getting heartless and cold, then I urge you to seriously re-think. The Bible tells us that the love of most will turn cold in the last days. In such times, people would only want to hear what scratches their itching ears. The truth will be shunned; of course, in the guise of very clever arguments.

Let me tell you, the last days are here. Look at the signs of the times – increased frequencies of natural disasters, coldness of hearts, idolatry (in various forms), and turning away from the truth for false religions. I am no doomsday prophet. I am just pointing you to the truth in the Holy Bible. I am only asking you to take heed of what is written there. If you are not reading it enough to know, then it is a good time to start reading and living it out. Nobody knows when Christ is coming again. It will be a sad day to find that out at Judgement Day.

Brothers and sisters, let us work while it is still day. Do not let our hearts turn cold. Keep it warm and caring with the love of Jesus Christ. Care for and love one another. Live a life worthy of the gospel. When the night comes, no one can work. Scripture is clear and is fulfilling before our eyes all that is written in it. Be warned. Do not procrastinate; there may not be time tomorrow.

God bless!

Two factions within a Christian organisation took their internal dispute to a civil court. After spending close to half a million dollars in legal fees, the case was thrown back to them to settle between themselves. As a result of the entire fiasco, the two factions disgraced Christ, the teaching of their organisation’s founder, and wasted a big sum of money that could have been put to better use. Is it worth it? Wise up.

The Bible teaches us not to have civil lawsuits between Christians. We are to work the dispute out amongst ourselves. Have we forgotten the Word of the Lord? Maybe our “superior” education caused us to think that portion of scripture does not apply to us?

My feel is that it is more difficult to love than to hit out. As I did mention before, to love is painful. It means that we need to bear all things. Someone argued that the other person will take advantage of the forgiveness and keep doing it to irritate you. Then again, the Lord did say seventy times seven, didn’t He?

Yes, to love and to forgive is painful. I would even venture to say that it is extremely painful. If it is so easy to love, the world would not be what it is today. The world is filled with hatred, deceits, wars, killings and whatever bad things that you think of. What the world needs is the love of God, exhibited through His disciples (all of us). Jesus went through extreme pain (emotional, mental, physical and even spiritual) as he went to the cross. He did it out of love for the Father, and for us.

To love is painful, but it will be worth its weight in gold. Take for example, parents forgiving their children. The pain that they bear all those years till the prodigals return are replaced by joy in that moment.

Love one another. It is God’s commandment that we do so. It is how the world will know of our Father in heaven – by our love for one another. Forgive one another. Do not bear it to heart. Give it to the Lord who judges. He is fair and just. He will return to you the due justice and reward. Do not take it in your own hands, leave it with God.

God bless!