Dear...
"The best is yet to be" This is the clarion call that all who are associated with the ACS family of schools will be very familiar with. My own take from this is that it is an encouragement to strive to be a better child of God, as His Spirit transform us, if we are willing.
'God....has fed me all my life long to this day.'
Genesis 48:15
Israel, the ex Jacob, in his last days, as he blessed the children of his son, Joseph, acknowledged the Sovereignty and grace of God upon his life.
What about us?
If tomorrow is no longer an option, the best has to be today, for you will be put to rest come "2359 hours," ( ie a minute before today ends), what will you do?
Would you banish such thoughts as the superstitious elders of our pre believer days would do, for death is not exactly the most palatable food for thought. But reality is, we are all but one breath away from the inanimate.
'I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will also give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.'
2 Timothy 4:7-8
Would it be a time for reflection with a thankful heart, or would be one of inconsolable sorrow and regret, or like what the movies portray, a mad dash to make up for lost time?
'Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.'
Joshua 1:9
I can only speak for myself, much as it applies to all, this pertinent question "what if today is your last?" that our good Lord impressed upon me even as His Spirit awaken me to a new morning today.
In the "delusory wonderland" that is our finite world, I would have many deep regrets. I could have taken many of the thrilling but clearly sinful joyrides be it lust, debauchery, sloth, greed....that our fallen world proffers. But on the other hand, maybe there were some thrills that I should have given a miss, given the collateral damage it has brought upon me and my loved ones. Could I have been happier if I was wealthier, or is what I have already burdensome enough?
But has being a believer in our Lord Jesus Christ made a difference?
If I had stayed as a gangly believer, still a stranger to the omnipresent God I doubt it. But thanks be to God, I am not a mere believer but a determined follower as His Spirit leads and I know Him,
'For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.'
John 3:16-17
How do I know this statement in John 3:16-17 is true?
One commonality amongst determined followers of our Lord Jesus Christ is the wonderful testimonies flowing from experiencing His Divine intervention in every moment of our lives. And in ways so prescient that we can only but be thankful much as the circumstances of life would demand otherwise. Our spirit man dance in joy and peace much as our carnal self would prefer to moan and groan.
'I have been crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me, and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself to me.'
Galatians 2:20
To live is Christ, to die is gain. Man is born to trouble, but the spirit man that seeks to be in the presence of our great God, will through experience, realize that God is indeed the potter, we are but the clay, and all things are for our good.
We learn by His empowering grace to let go and let Him, and our old carnal man recedes, our new man, the spirit led man comes to the fore. This process of facets of our old carnal self dying and our new spirit man rising is a daily process.
Mortal death is just but a mere marker that we are going home to be with our Lord for eternity. For if we were to live every day knowing that the grace of God is indeed suffice for the day, wherever He is bringing us, should not this reassuring truth still hold?
'I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified .'
1 Corinthians 9:27
Death's grip upon my inner psyche has loosened. The fear of it has lost its sting. What I fear most is much as I have run the race of faith well, will I in my folly falter?
' Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.'
Hebrews 12:1-2
Thanks be to God, He knows my limitations, yet He appreciates my desire to look to Him, warts and all. And tonight, as I struggle with the issue of temptation, in His inimitable way, through three verses, my beloved Father has shown He cares. If God is with me, it matters not where He takes me.
You should only worry if your heart was never with God.
'Those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word.'
Acts 8:4
God blesses
Eng Hieang
9th July 2012
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