Dear…
‘And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us? And where be all His miracles which our fathers told us of, Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?..’
Judges 6:13
This morning, I had a little mishap. My bad driving habits, which my dear wife has been reminding me on to no avail, finally caught up with me and as I drove out of the car park lot, I heard an excruciating scraping sound to my left. The only thankful thing was that it was my own or rather the car belonging to my wife that I scraped against and not someone else.
‘His merciful kindness is great toward us.’
Psalm 117:2
Issues are relative. Damage to both cars can be distracting but by God’s grace, I have come to learn that the soul is even more important. And it was with a clear mind and heart that I continued with my planned visit to a terminally ill dear friend who according to his doctor, is way past his expected expiry date. What was striking about my elderly friend was his willpower and positive attitude. And are these two attributes key to ensuring that the excellent medical care he is receiving have greater efficacy than thought possible? And come to think about it, my thoughts were with him as to how best to minister to him that I never paid much attention to my surrounds when driving out which brought me that little mishap.
‘And the Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with thee…’
Judges 5:16
This friend of mine is not a believer, though by God’s grace, he is very receptive to receiving the two art books that I have published, and may the words of this 2nd book speak to him as the first did a year and a half back and may our Lord lift the blindness in his heart to receive the salvation offered to all.
‘To him give all prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.’
Acts 10:43
At this juncture, two questions come to my mind
- Is his illness, just like the damage to my car avoidable or at least could have been minimized?
We live in a sinful world, so the perfect world that God meant for us which we have chosen to turn away from will not be present till Christ returns. But the impact of our sinful world could be much ameliorated if only we were willing to obey the leading of the Spirit of God.
- What role should I be playing as a firm believer in the saving power of our Lord in such situations?
It is God Who will bring about the increase, but how can I be used by Him to sow, plow, water or even harvest?
At wit’s end I no longer am in such situations for I have come to learn to go to the Lord in prayers and His Spirit will lead and provide for a heart that is desirous to do His will, and in my friend’s case, being a listening ear, just being there helps tremendously, and of course the books will speak what one find difficult to voice out.
‘Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.’
Acts 12:5
‘And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands.’
Acts 12:7
God will respond to a willing and repentant heart. Prayers allow us the faithful to not just cover, but chip away at a resistant heart and my prayers like all are for not just my friend, but many more who are living in the prison of Satan’s delusion to willingly walk free, for the grip of sin and death is no longer upon us.
But just like words, should we stop at prayers or is there the need for works from us in the ministering to people God place in our lives?
'For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.'
James 2:26
“Crutch” is what many often turn to, for them to continue to lean on while they wallow in their own understanding rather than surrender to the leading of the Holy Spirit. As people of faith who must live by example, it is less our role to stand with our non believing friends as a prop for them to lean upon while they dithered as to whether they should really walk out of the Egypt of their lives.
But rather, “plank” should what we must be. At age 50, plank might seem a lousy word for it personifies “deadwood.” Without God, it might be true, but at my “big five” our good Lord brought me to a new understanding of the role that all of us can play in the journey of faith of others.
'But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.'
Hebrews 11:6
“Faith” is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen.” To see the grace of God, we must first take that step of faith into the seeming deep chasm. And like the Indiana Jones movie, when Harrison Ford took that step into the chasm, a once invisible bridge became delightfully visible, and his next few steps became more certain.
The Lord reminded me and all that through the years, He has blessed and equipped us to do His will. And like us, there will be many who will either be taking the first step into His kingdom, and there will also be as few whose faith is so strong that they are prepared to walk by faith and not by sight, wherever the Lord leads them, with no expectation other than the knowledge that God will and has provided. Will you be willing to be used by the Lord as the next piece of plank for our fellow brethren, be it men of tentative or determined faith to rest their step on, as God brings about the increase and uses us to affirm their step of faith?
And I have come to learn that being a willing plank is in itself a step of faith for we have to trust in the Spirit’s leading than our own understanding and needs, for a plank must also step out into the same chasm.
God Blesses
Eng Hieang
(23rd June 2011)
Note
Our good Lord always affirms. And do enjoy this song that a friend who is going through a journey of faith just shared with me and I am sure some of you on this mail. Faith is easy to mouth, but to live it out is only possible if we learn to leave it to God.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiFT_CovKtQ&NR=1
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