Dear..
'For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows....and this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all nations, and then the end will come.'
Matthew 24:7-14
The live television pictures of the fast creeping "hands' of the tsunami that engulfs and destroys everything in its path does look truly like one of those Hollywood disaster movies. And prayerfully, as I feel led to put pen to paper the thoughts God placed in my heart, it is not with the intention of taking this opportunity to pick a couple of Bible verses to remind everyone who cares to listen of the End Times intensified, much as it is indeed happening.
'....that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.'
Hebrews 2:14-15
Does lightning truly strike twice? Not too sure, but troubles seem to come in a trio. The convalescing global economy which is starting to show some signs of real recovery has in past one week, been buffeted by the possibility of the ongoing Mid-East crisis touching the "holy grail of the devil's brew" ie Saudi Arabia, coupled with the possible relapse of the European debt contagion with the downgrade of Spain, a bigger fish in the pool of indebtedness besotting the once might colonial masters of the world, and now, this earthquake in Japan, with possibility of more to come.
And what about Japan? It is like a triple whammy of earthquake, even more devastating tsunami and now the possibility of a nuclear leak from its disabled power plants. The world is indeed one depressive place especially in the past decade with the increased frequency and intensity of disasters. It does put in perspective that all the strive and strife in the pursuit of the things of the world is not only meaningless but can be easily snuffed out in one unexpected disaster.
'..I will cast abominable filth upon you. Make you vile. and make you a spectacle. It shall come to pass that all who look upon you, and say, Nineveh is laid waste...'
Nahum 3:6-7
This verse came to me as I pondered upon what is happening in Japan yesterday. Is
Japan the modern day Nineveh? During World War 2 and even before that, with the Meiji Restoration, a modernizing Japan was an aggressor in its immediate neighborhood, colonizing the Korea Peninsular, and engaging in territorial wars with a flailing China, with an eye on the resources in Manchuria. And through it all, the Japanese were far from benign conquerors and imposed their worship of idols upon their conquered subjects. And some might recall a book I shared where the Japanese were forewarned by a Korean Christian lady of a major catastrophe "a fire from the sky" if they do not repent of their ways and of course, that became a reality with Japan having the dubious honor of atomic bomb attacks in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
'Judge not, that you be not judged.'
Matthew 7:1
As I penned the thoughts on Japan, I was a little reticent of falling into the sinful tendency of us humans especially the misguided Christians to sit on our pedestal of self righteousness while passing judgment on others. This is never my intention, for the world is a sinful place, and each and everyone of us have sinned, and continues to, though for those who seek the Lord, His Spirit will correct and we will respond. And much as we must remind all and sunder of the consequences of a continued disobedience to a faithful God, it is not for me to throw the Bible at anyone, no different from the mythical Justice Pao who bang his table and throws the petition of the aggrieved on the proven accused, as he passes sentence.
'...and after the wind an earthquake; the Lord was not in the earthquake, and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire, and after the fire a still small voice...'
1 Kings 19:11-12
But rather, I am reminded that healing of the soul and spirit often has its beginnings in the midst of dire circumstances. What is needed now is truly fervent prayer for the many distraught in Japan and in all the other places where disaster has struck, be it Chile, Christchurch, Queensland, Yunnan and the Middle East. That in the midst of all the cacophony as their life shatters, that they be still and hear the voice of God as His Spirit sanctifies their parched soul.
'My little children, let us not love in word or tongue, but in deed and in truth.'
1 John 3:18
And indeed, even as we pray, God will show us not just what to pray for, but also the works that we need to do and He looks for a responsive heart.
'....your God, Whom you serve continually, He will deliver you.'
Daniel 6:16
What about us who seek and know the Lord our God. God never promises us no storms, but He will shelter and He will walk through it with us. One often hears of testimonies of the divine protection of God and indeed it is such experiences that transforms many from mere believers to fervent followers of our Lord Jesus Christ.
'Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. For You are with me.....Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me. All the days of my life. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord. Forever.'
Psalm 23
But being a follower of Christ does not mean that we will always be spared from going through the worst of disasters, though I believe that it is the case in most times. But more importantly, God will always prepare us for what is to come in His plans for us, and if we learn to let go and let Him, He will bring us through the valley of death and into His rest, be it to continue our temporary journey on Earth till He brings us home, or He might even bring us home.
'For You have delivered my soul from death. Have You not kept my feet from falling. That I may walk before God in the light of the living?'
Psalm 56:13
I have come to learn that indeed God will intervene for He knows our limits. And I have also come to learn that it will always be in His way and timing, not ours and often on that, many find it difficult to accept, especially in a disaster where many innocent lives are lost. Who are we to question God is the truth, but not likely palatable to many. But God is looking at eternity, we the finite man are looking at the temporal. But the faithful know that all things from God are for our good.
Let me close by bringing you to a sharing(see link below) I wrote back in Dec 2004, in the day after the tsunami that killed many in South and South East Asia. It has been 6 years, yet the haunting memories are now replayed in Japan, but with a more sinister new element, a possible nuclear fallout. Do take time to read and reflect upon these thoughts from 6 years back and may the Lord use that to clarify and speak to you, even as possibly the next disaster is waiting in the wings somewhere in the world.
And on that, much as the silly British and French colonials used to divide up their largess in Africa by using a pencil and ruler to draw lines across Africa to determine their sphere of influence, ignoring tribal realities. In an inspired moment or maybe more like moment of madness, I also took a ruler and pen and did a little doodle on a map showing the "ring of fire" in the Pacific. And interestingly, the earthquake in Chile is just about horizontally across the ocean from Christchurch, New Zealand. And vertically up from Christchurch is where Sendai, Japan is. And if one was to complete this box, directly to the right of Sendai, Japan is San Francisco, California.
It is given that San Francisco, sitting on the San Andreas fault, is long overdue just like Tokyo for the big one. But rather than speculate on when, would it not be better to be prepared for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is more certain than certain, though no one knows when, much as the signs for His return as laid out in the Bible are increasingly being fulfilled.
http://hieang.blogspot.com/2008/07/morning-after-71.html
Rgds and God Blesses
Eng Hieang
(13th Mar 2011)
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