When tragedy strikes

Jas 1:2-4   Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

I have been around long enough to know that life is not always constant. No two days are the same. With each new day comes different set of challenges and problems. There is no such thing as a trouble free life here. We are all prone to disappointment, misunderstood, adversity and hardship. If you want a trouble free life you might as well leave this earth because Jesus said in John 16: 33 in the world you will have tribulation.

Back in the first century, Christians were persecuted because of their belief in Jesus. They have no problem with suffering because they esteem dying for Christ as more desirable than their own lives and comfort. They literally count it all joy when faced with difficulties.

In those days Christian leaders rejoiced over the scars on their maimed bodies as a testimony of their devotion to the LORD and also to their office. Remember the apostle Paul mentioned about the 40 minus 1 strips on him to silence his critics that he doesn't qualify for the apostleship. Action speaks louder than words then. It is strange that in today’s modern Christianity the opposite has taken place. A life with God without suffering is commonly preached. And personal comfort is more desirable than going through inconvenience for the sake of gospel.

Few weeks back I have some problems relating to my colleagues at work. Sometimes people can be rude and mean but for me I choose to forgive despite being mistreated. There will always be contentions, misunderstanding and problems when working with people. No one is perfect anyway.

Recently more than 14,340 have died and 11,889 are still missing due to a massive earthquake and tsunami that shook Japan. Who would have predicted that so many people lost their lives in a modern and advanced country like Japan? Tragedies can happen at anytime and anyplace.

A few years ago, a Christian couple with their children met with a road accident on the way back from ministering in a church in Johor. The couple and their children died in the accident. David Wilkerson, a prominent Christian leader who authored the book The Cross and The Switchblade had a road accident and died recently. It is sad to hear that the worst can also happen to God’s people. It is wrong to conclude that only the evil and wicked are liable for the worst calamity. It can happen to anyone.  

The worst atrocity in history must be the Holocaust that took place during Hitler Germany. More than six million Jews were massacred and butchered by the Nazi in concentration camps all over Germany, Poland, Yugoslavia and other German occupied territories. Very few ever survived to tell the tale of the ordeal. Where was God during the most tragic period of the Jewish history? Has He forsaken the people whom He has loved dearly?

No one fully understands why everything happened the way it happened. Why innocent people has to suffer? Why God did permit the Holocaust to take place? But looking back, sometime good has come out of the disasters of the Holocaust. The Jewish nation was born out of adversity.

For more than two thousand years, the Jews were without a homeland. They were scattered all over Russia, Eastern Europe and North America. Most of them have virtually lost their identity and attachment with their ancestral land where Abraham, Isaac and Jacob once lived.  But after the Holocaust, the Jewish people saw the importance of coming back to their ancestral homeland and the survival as a people. So the nation of Israel was born in 1948. God turned something meant for evil to be good.

We may not fully understand the reasons for our sufferings when tragedy strikes. It is easier to blame God for a tragedy and harbor hurt, anger and bitterness in our hearts. Like Job in the Bible we may question God and His justice for allowing tragedy to happen to us. How could God allow such a thing to happen to me?

The key to our healing and restoration is refusing to become hurt and angry against God in the midst of our suffering. We may not understand everything but still worship God even with our questions. 

David was anointed as king over Israel but he didn't reign until much later. It never occurred to him that he must suffer as a fugitive, fleeing from the hands of Saul. In spite of all this, David ministered to the LORD. He didn't harbour bitterness against God for the ordeal he went through. David knew how to strengthen himself in the LORD at the lowest point of his life. Isaiah 40: 31 Those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength. He moved on with God and God was with him. 

Never allow hurt or bitterness to stop us from moving on with God. He may reveal the reasons for our suffering or He may not. But if He doesn’t, trust Him that He is in control and He knows best how to handle our situation. God can turn something meant for evil to be good for us.

A year ago I had a vision from the LORD while worshipping the LORD in church. I saw multitudes and multitudes of saints praising God with the song, “I love You LORD”. Then a revelation came to me that the saints were singing to the LORD out of deep appreciation for what He has done for them during the times of crisis and adversity despite not fully understand the reasons why, but now has been revealed to them. One day we will all understand fully the mystery of suffering and appreciate Him for all He has done for us in the midst of our sufferings. God is truly awesome.

Serving God in the working place

Eph 6: 5-8  Bondservants, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ; not with eye service, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free. (NKJV)

Eph 6: 5-8 Servants, respectfully obey your earthly masters but always with an eye to obeying the real master, Christ. Don't just do what you have to do to get by, but work heartily, as Christ's servants doing what God wants you to do. And work with a smile on your face, always keeping in mind that no matter who happens to be giving the orders, you're really serving God. Good work will get you good pay from the Master, regardless of whether you are slave or free. (The Message)

There was this cardio surgeon who gave up his practice and served full time as a pastor in a local church. For a few years, he did his best to serve in the church but without much success; there wasn’t much numerical growth or spiritual development in the church.

Finally the man became demoralized because of lack of progress in the ministry; he sought God earnestly to find out where he went wrong. And the LORD told him that He did not call him into the full time ministry in the first place so He couldn’t bless him anyway. So the surgeon gave up the ministry and went back to be a cardio surgeon. And as a heart surgeon he helped more people than he ever did as a pastor. The moral of the story is to serve God in whatever work He has called us to and remain faithful in it.

Don't get me wrong. I am all for full time ministry. It is a noble profession. But most important, do what the LORD asks us and then we will have success in what we do for Him.

One of the drawbacks of the Western mindset (which is based on the Greek culture) is the segregation of what is sacred and secular; separation between what is of religious use and the non religious, the spiritual and nonspiritual. But there is no such division in the Bible. We are to live our lives fully separated unto the LORD; in our daily affairs, employment, family, relationship.

For many Christians, serving in church is sacred, spiritual and desirable whereas serving in the working place is secular, nonspiritual and spending least time at best. This has created a culture of avoidance for what is deemed secular, lack of pursuit for excellence in our jobs and low self esteem. How many of us see ourselves less important, inferior or insignificant in the kingdom of God because we hold a job compared to a full time pastor.

If you look into the church, over 95% of the members hold daily jobs eg. Doctors, engineers, secretary, farmers, police officers, house wives, truck drivers. That leaves only less than 5% are full time pastors, ministers etc.

I personally believe this is not a coincidence that the majority hold jobs. God could have allowed more full time pastors, ministers in the church if He wanted to. But He preferred to put most of the believers in the working place for a purpose. Like a wise general, He places His troops in the most important battlefield in order to win the most significant victory.  

Believers in the working place have a significant role to play to win the world for Christ. The working place is our platform to speak about the goodness of God (not many believers have the opportunity to speak on the pulpit) and also to change the world with godly values through our lives. The only bible that most of the people will ever read is through the interaction and working with believers in the offices, schools, shops, construction sites etc.  

So let us appreciate God’s calling in our lives to serve Him in the working place. Don’t see ourselves as insignificant in the work of the LORD compared to the full time ministers. I believe God values both the work in church and in the working place as equally important. Otherwise He won't place so many of us in it. He wants to use us in church, our jobs and wherever He sent us.

God doesn't leave us alone in our offices, construction sites, shops, police stations etc.  He is always there with us and assist us to make an impact for Him with our jobs. Use whatever talents we have to glorify Jesus in the working place and make Him known. Ask God to show you how you can minister to your colleagues, business partners, clients. Pray for them too.

John Wesley once said that the world is his parish. Yes, I agree that our mission is in the world and not just limited in the church.

God is our Master Creator

Psalm 143:14   I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;Marvellous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.

Our body is such a complex and intricate machine; a testimony of God’s great wisdom and ingenuity. I always marvel at the thought that God created us to breathe through our noses and also our mouths if we have a blocked nose. Of course, there are more marvels of the human body that make us who we are and how we function. Truly, God is so great and He is the Master Creator of us all.

Our lungs inhale over two million litres of air every day, without even thinking. The surface area of the lungs is approximately the same size as a tennis court. .

The average adult is made up of 100 trillion cells.

There are more bacteria in your body than the number of cells in your body. There are an estimated 75 to 100 trillion cells in the human body.

Our brain is more complex than the most powerful computer and has over 100 billion nerve cells.

Capillaries are so small that red blood cells can only travel through them in single file. .

Each cell in your body has an estimated 6 to 8 feet of DNA.

Research has shown that guilt damages your immune system by lowering your immunoglobulin levels.

The total length of your circulatory system stretches an amazing 60,000 miles. That is more than twice the distance around the Earth.

Except for your brain cells, 50,000,000 of the cells in your body will have died and been replaced with others, all while you have been reading this sentence.

Your heart beats about 100,000 times in one day and about 40,000,000 times a year. In one hour the heart works hard enough to produce enough energy to raise almost one ton of weight one yard from the ground.

The liver is often called the body's chemical factory. Scientists have counted over 500 liver functions.

The central nervous system is connected to every part of the body by 43 pairs of nerves. Twelve pairs go to and from the brain, with 31 pairs going from the spinal cord. There are nearly 45 miles of nerves running through our bodies.

Messages travel along the nerves as electrical impulses. They travel at speeds up to 248 mile per hour.

Your body has about 5.6 litres (6 quarts) of blood. These 5.6 litres of blood circulates through the body three times every minute. In one day, the blood travels a total of 19,000 km (12,000 miles) - that's four times the distance across the US from coast to coast.

Our eyes can distinguish up to one million colour surfaces and take in more information than the largest telescope known to man.

We give birth to 100 billion red blood cells every day and about two million red blood cells every second.

We make one litre of saliva a day.

If you yelled for 8 years, 7 months and 6 days you would have produced enough sound energy to heat one cup of coffee.

During the first month of life, the number of connections or synapses, dramatically increases from 50 trillion to 1 quadrillion. If an infant's body grew at a comparable rate, his weight would increase from 8.5 pounds at birth to 170 pounds at one month old.

The big toe is actually one of the most important elements within the body, as it balances the skeleton and enables the owner to move forward when walking without it, we would simply fall over.

On average, you breathe 23,000 times a day. You take about 600 million breaths during your lifetime.

It is normal to lose 100 hairs per day from the scalp.

And God knows the number of your hair. Since God is the One who created our bodies with all its complexity and uniqueness, (of which we can't function without) what than are the issues of life that He cannot handle. Nothing is impossible for Him. He is the all wise, all powerful, all knowing and ever living God. He will take care of us.

Marriage is so wonderful

Marriage is so wonderful. Sometimes we need a good laugh at ourselves and enjoy the company of our spouses. I hope you have a good laugh at the lighter side of marriage.

An Illinois man left the snow-filled streets of Chicago for a vacation in Florida. His wife was on a business trip and was planning to meet him there the next day. When he reached his hotel, he decided to send his wife a quick email. Unable to find the scrap of paper on which he had written her email address, he did his best to type it in from memory.

Unfortunately, he missed one letter and his note was directed instead to an elderly preacher's wife, whose husband had passed away only the day before. When the grieving widow checked her email, she took one look at the monitor, let out a piercing scream and fell to the floor in a dead faint. At the sound, her family rushed into the room and saw this note on the screen:

DEAREST WIFE: JUST GOT CHECKED IN. EVERYTHING PREPARED FOR YOUR ARRIVAL TOMORROW.
P.S. SURE IS HOT DOWN HERE.

Hahahahahah

Her husband had been slipping in and out of a coma for several months yet she stayed by his bedside every single day. When he came to, he motioned for her to come nearer. As she sat by him, he said, "You know what? You have been with me all through the bad times. When I got fired, you were there to support me. When my business fell, you were there. When I got shot, you were by my side. When we lost the house, you gave me support. When my health started failing, you were still by my side. Well, now that I think about it, I think you bring me bad luck!

Hahahahahah

A wife was making a breakfast of fried eggs for her husband.
Suddenly, her husband burst into the kitchen. 'Careful,' he said, 'CAREFUL! Put in some more butter! Oh my gosh! You're cooking too many at once. TOO MANY! Turn them! TURN THEM NOW! We need more butter. Oh my gosh! WHERE are we going to get MORE BUTTER? They're going to STICK! Careful. CAREFUL! I said be CAREFUL! You NEVER listen to me when you're cooking! Never! Turn them! Hurry up!
Are you CRAZY? Have you LOST your mind? Don't forget to salt them. You know you always forget to salt them. Use the salt. USE THE SALT! THE SALT!'
The wife stared at him. 'What in the world is wrong with you? You think I don't know how to fry a couple of eggs?'
The husband calmly replied, 'I just wanted to show you what it feels like when I'm driving.'

Hahahahahah

A woman who died found herself standing outside the Pearly Gates, being greeted by St. Peter.
She asked him, "Oh, is this place what I really think it is? It's so beautiful.
Did I really make it to heaven?"
To which St. Peter replied, "Yes, my dear, these are the Gates to Heaven. But you must do one more thing before you can enter." The woman was very excited, and asked of St. Peter what she must do to pass through the gates. "Spell a word," St. Peter replied. "What word?" she asked.
"Any word," answered St. Peter. "It's your choice." The woman promptly replied, "Then the word I will spell is love.L-o-v-e."
St. Peter congratulated her on her good fortune to have made it to Heaven, and asked her if she would mind taking his place at the gates for a few minutes while he went to the bathroom.
"I'd be honored," she said, "but what should I do if someone comes while you are gone?"
St. Peter reassured her, and instructed the woman to simply have any newcomers to the Pearly Gates to spell a word as she had done.
So the woman is left sitting in St. Peter's chair and watching the beautiful angels soaring around her when a man approaches the gates. She realizes it is her loser husband.
"What happened?" she cried, "Why are you here?"
Her husband stared at her for a moment, then said, "I was so drunk when I left your funeral, I was in an accident. And now I am here? Did I really make it to Heaven?"
To which the woman replied, "Not yet. You must spell a word first."
"What word?" he asked.
The woman responded, "Czechoslovakia."

Hahahahahah

When a woman got married she put a shoebox in the closet and told her husband not to open it. After over 50 years of marriage she was dying and told him to open the box. When he opened it there were 2 doilies and $85,000.00 He ask why this was in the box. She replied “when I got married my mother told me to crochet a doily every time I got mad at you. He smile thinking she was only mad twice and ask what the $85,000.00 was. She replied that's the money from selling the doilies.

Hahahahahah

A couple is sitting on the porch sipping wine. The wife says, "I love you."
The husband says, "Is that you or the wine talking?"
The wife replies, "It's me, talking to the wine.

Hahahahahah

A little boy was attending his first wedding. After the service, his cousin asked him, "How many women can a man marry?" "Sixteen," the boy responded. His cousin was amazed that he had an answer so quickly. "How do you know that?" "Easy," the little boy said. "All you have to do is add it up, like the Bishop said: 4 better, 4 worse, 4 richer, 4 poorer"

Hahahahahah

A couple had been married for 45 years and had raised a brood of 11 children and was blessed with 22 grandchildren. When asked the secret for staying together all that time, the wife replies, "Many years ago we made a promise to each other: the first one to pack up and leave has to take all the kids."

Hahahahahah

A little boy walked down the aisle at a wedding. As he made his way to the front, he would take two steps, then stop, and turn to the crowd, alternating between the bride's side and the groom's side. While facing the crowd, he would put his hands up like claws and roar. And so it went-step, step, ROAR, step, step, ROAR-all the way down the aisle. As you can imagine, the crowd was near tears from laughing so hard by the time he reached the pulpit. The little boy, however, was getting more and more distressed from all the laughing and he was near tears by the time he reached the pulpit. When asked what he was doing, the child sniffed back his tears and said, "I was being the ring bear."

Hahahahahah

An explorer goes into an undiscovered tomb for the first time, and in the center of the tomb there is a lamp. So he picked it up and started to rub the dirt off of it, and out came a genie out of the lamp and he said "I want to know the person you hate the most" The explorer said "That's gotta be my ex-wife. Why?" "I am a cursed genie, I will grant you three wishes but whatever you wish for your ex-wife will get double the amount." "OK, I wish for a billion dollars" "Granted, but your ex-wife gets two billion" "I wish for a mansion in California with a swimming pool, and tennis courts, everything" "Granted your ex-wife gets two. This is your final wish" The explorer walked around the room and came back to the genie with a stick and said "Ya see this stick, I'd like you to beat me half to death."

You look beautiful

Psalm 143:14   I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvellous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.

A newspaper article caught my eye this week. Men no longer shy away from getting beauty treatments such as Botox and filler injections. Now there are more men visiting plastic surgeons and dermatologists than before. For the past two years, there is an increase of 30% of man customers seeking aesthetic treatment, 15% of male customers who opt for such treatment are paying RM3000 for each session. The trend is the older men would seek Botox, fillers to uplift the skin, reduce wrinkles, and eye bags in order to look younger. Those seeking invasive surgery such as liposuction to shrink beer bellies has also seen growth recently.

Personally I am not against people wanting to look good but what motivates people to seek such treatments may lead to a greater heart issue at hand. People are so afraid how they will look like to others and feeling insecure of themselves that to gain self esteem they are willing to take health risks with such treatments. They will never be satisfied with their looks despite going through treatment after treatment.

A few years ago there was a lady who died of complication in a botched liposuction procedure. Botox can also cause blood poisoning if spread to the whole body. I am sure there are many more cases of death or injury must have taken place during treatments. By the way Botox injection can reduce wrinkles but it impairs facial expressions.

A few months ago, I was in the bathroom brushing my teeth. Suddenly there was a voice, very clear and distinct voice speaking in my heart. It was not an audible voice but it sure sounded like a person speaking to me. (For those who are not familiar, God can speak to us in this manner) I know the LORD was speaking to me. He said to me, “I love your eyes”

For those who are not acquainted with me, I do not have beautiful eyes. They are a bit slanted and small, typical of Chinese descent. But for reasons I do not know, to Him my eyes are beautiful. He sees us different from the way we see ourselves or what others see us. He is “crazy” and attracted to the way we look. Isn’t it wonderful that God desires for our looks whether we look normal, young or old? We don’t have to look different than who we are. God is still drawn to us.

Psalm 45:11 so the King will greatly desire your beauty; because He is your Lord, worship Him.

Hence, I don’t have to feel pressurized to change the way I look to please others. I know He loves me the way I am. I am contented with my looks because the most important Person in the universe loves the way I look.

Please don’t neglect personal grooming and hygiene. But you don’t have to go through Botox, plastic surgery to look good. You already look good to Him.

Our Marriage Anniversary

Eph 5: 22- 29   Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Saviour of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,  that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church.

Today is our 14^th anniversary. Lois and I were married 14 years ago this exact day in July 17, 1997. Time really flies. Lois and I are now 14 years older.

Anyway, we still love each other the same since the first day we were married. Yes, there were many obstacles and heartaches that we have to go through just like any couple would. It has been quite difficult for us in our first few years as a couple. We have to battle through disappointments, personality clashes; unrealistic expectation and dispute over money etc. We are not perfect anyway. But thank God we have overcome them and still kept our love for one other.

I wish to dedicate this article to my dear wife, Lois:

Lois, you are such a blessing to me. You are the best wife and companion I ever have. I thank God that He has brought you to me. Though we may have bad days but they are just a tiny blot compared to the great time we had together. I will look forward to the time we will grow old together. I will always love you. Happy 14^th Anniversary. Love Philip your dear husband.

What is the secret of a successful marriage? Well, let me share with you what I think is the secret of a successful marriage.

1) Both partners must have the same passion for God.

2) Have a common interest or hobby that both of you can share together eg. Watching movies together, going for holidays, attending gym together etc.

3) Avoid speaking words that offend or demean one another. You cannot take back what has been said though you may regret saying it.

4) Have some fun time together eg.  Tell a joke, play silly games. Stop being too serious all the time. Relax.

5) Know your spouse. What excites him or her? What belittles him or her? Try to minimize the latter.

6) Keep communication channels open all the time.

By the way the Liverpool football team is in town today. I am an avid fan of Liverpool since the 70s. I saw some of the Liverpool legends in action like Kevin Keegan, Alan Kennedy, Ian Rush, Phil Neal, Alan Hansen, Kenny Dalglish, John Barnes etc. Bill Shankly was the best manager ever. Back in the 80s, Liverpool was the best in European and British football. WOOH.

The most memorable matches I ever watched; the FA cup final in 1986 between Liverpool and Everton. Liverpool won 3-1. The 1985 European Cup final was a tragic. Liverpool lost to Juventus 0-1. 39 fans died because of a stampede. This was also known as the Heysel Stadium Disaster. You’ll never walk alone.

Spiritual exercise

1Tim 4:8  For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come

Recently I became a member of a gym nearby where I am staying. I don’t really fancy doing routine exercise and never did any all my life. But a visit to the doctor for my check up changed me. I couldn’t go beyond stage 2 over the treadmill test (which is very slow by the way) and the doctor told me to do more exercise in order to be physically fit.

For the past few weeks, I have to push myself to go to the gym, run on the treadmill which can be quite strenuous for me. What to do? Never exercise before. But each time I did the treadmill and other apparatus, I feel refreshed, relaxed and de-stressed. The adrenaline boost must have done wonders for me.  Even though, I dreaded going to the gym but I feel better after exercise and glad that I went.

Similarly, we may have reservation, obstacles in doing spiritual work. How many times do we have to push ourselves to attend prayer meeting, bible study, doing evangelism etc.

Last night, we had prayer meeting in church. At first, I was tempted to skip because of the rain and also the tiredness after work. But then I decided to go anyway. It was a wonderful time in the Presence of God. I could sense the glory of God coming to me like many waves. Each of the waves of glory contains spiritual matter or quality eg. wave of His love, wave of His joy, wave of His peace, wave of His strength. The waves of glory strengthen me and I felt much better than before. I am glad that I came for the prayer meeting.

Each time I am tempted to skip prayer meetings; I would remind myself of the benefits and joy of coming into the Presence of God.  Till now I have never been disappointed for coming. Jesus is always there waiting for me to come to Him. By the way for WHC members, prayer meeting is on every Friday 8 pm.

The Liverpool football team is in town. Hoooray. You’ll never walk alone.

Grace and Peace

Eph 1:2  Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Last night we had a  wonderful time together in a cell meeting. Cheong and Janet were great host. James and Galilee served great sandwiches. Really good lahhh. The topic of our sharing was on Pastor's message last Sunday, Grace and Peace from God.

Have you ever wonder why Paul always greets the churches with the phrase Grace and Peace from God to the churches or believers. I think that is what every Christian needs most today ie.Grace and peace from God in our daily living. Paul prayed for the impartation of grace and peace from God so that we have a victorious Christian living. With so much of temptation and challenges today, there is no doubt we need more grace and peace from God every day.

The grace of God is His unmerited favor for us. He favors us by loving us unconditionally, giving us what we need and taking care of us. He provides for our daily needs. He gives us good health everyday. Last week I had a terrible stomach pain. The doctor said it was gastritis. I prayed for healing and getting much better now. But it occurred to me how blessed are we that we do not have to suffer great pain or sickness.

A year ago I was ministering to a cancer patient from the church. He was going through chemo and he has to endure great pain due to the medication. He could not have proper meals. Each time he ate, he will vomit everything. And that was daily suffering for him. Ohhhh how wonderful His grace to us that we need not suffer for sickness. For those who are sick, God can heal you of any kind of sickness if you ask Him to.

Peace means the state of wellness, wholesomeness or well being. It includes all areas in our soul, relationships, profession, health, spirituality, emotions; both the inward and outward aspects of our lives. God wants us to be well in our whole being.

I heard of believers complaining about their jobs. They have great Sundays in church but come Monday, they are demoralised, lack of zeal and feeling unhappy with their jobs. I believe God wants us to be happy with our jobs too. He is the One who gives us jobs to do and we can expect Him to give us the best. We can have peace in our daily work.

There are a lot of sick people around. Not just sick because of cancer or other diseases but also the emotional, intellect etc. There are so many suicidal cases, emotional breakdown, extreme obesity, mental cases happening today; the underlying cause is due to the sickness in the inside.

For the Jews, peace or shalom is well being for the whole person, his or her personality, health, emotions, intellect, profession, spirituality, the future etc. So I pray that God will grant you all grace and peace. Shalom.

God is awesome

Yesterday I have the privilege of reading a testimony about an Indonesian Christian who was murdered, went to heaven and came back alive. There were pictures of his neck almost cut off and other gruesome stuff. While in heaven he was sent into a room and waited. In his mind, he was contemplating whether he made it to heaven or not. Below is the excerpt of his testimony:

I was taken by the angels to the next room or second room, the same with the first room, but here my soul saw people with the same face and same body posture. Then i was taken to the third room, which is the same like the first room. And my soul said: "This is people who believe in Jesus Christ, taken here." Then my soul was taken to the fourth room which is the last room, on this time i was alone, the angels wasn't with me. That room was empty then my soul said: "This is the last judgement, am i going to heaven or hell."

1 Peter 4:17-18 For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? Now “ If the righteous one is scarcely saved, Where will the ungodly and the sinner appear?”

Then my soul walked about 3 to 4 steps, in front of me there's a shine and that light so bright like a sun, so that my soul couldn't see or stare. I closed my eyes and heard: "Kneel!" On that moment my soul knelt down, then I saw a bible being open and from the inside came out words...... My soul spoke: "God...! this is what i did last week, last month, last year. I did those evil things and i did not confess personally, so You write them in here." “"God...! I want to be like the brother and sister's in the first room, always sings and worship You. God...! I know You died on the cross to take away my sins, I long to be like the others in the first room, second and third who always Worshiping You."

After that the written words that came out of the book disappear, the book became clean without written words on it, then the book disappear and the bright light disappear and there's a voice said: "Go home! Not yet time to serve Me."

I was deeply stirred by this testimony thinking to myself what if I died today without knowing Jesus. It would be dreadful coming into the Presence of Jesus, feeling guilty and condemned. God is the holy Judge. There is no escape from the inevitable punishment for what I deserve.

But then Jesus came to die for me at the cross so that I would not be judged for my sins. I can rest assured that if I die today, I will not be condemned. How awesome is His grace towards me.

Rom 5:6-10 For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.