I was reading the daily bread page about the story of Moses striking the rock in Numbers 20. God had commanded Moses to take his staff and before the assembly of grumbling Israelites, speak to the rock before their eyes and it will pour out water. But instead of speaking to the rock, Moses struck the rock twice - the way it had happened in a previous incident - and failed to honour God as holy in the sight of the Israelites. The moral of the story was that in times of exasperation, we have to be careful in listening closely to God's instruction before acting.

I love the feeling of uncovering nuggets in the bible that reveal some pretty interesting aspects of God. The bigger lesson that I took away from this story was a realization that I always assume that God will work based on an extrapolation of my past experiences with Him. It is hard to imagine God when He is, in the first place, beyond our imagination. But I guess the key is never to assume but to pay close attention and have the faith to expect greater and different things from God.

~

Tonight, I just returned from a full evening of church service and fellowship. It has been sometime since I sat down and thought about the purpose of my time spent week in and week out in church. It became so routine that it got easy to go to church just because it is so. Well, today it was kind of different. I felt like I really gave my heart in serving God, in different ways, and God spoke and encouraged in various ways too. Recalling the gazillion sermons I've heard over the years, this is God's very desire for us in gathering to worship Him. Beyond our physical presence, it is that we have an encounter with Him that brings our faith deeper and higher, and be encouraged and refreshed in the Lord.

Pastor spoke from 2 Chron 3-4 today. At first glance, I thought that he would probably skip these chapters because they're just the knitty gritty about the temple's construction - building dimensions, measurements, specifications, the furnishing, yadah yadah. But when he told me that he was going to preach from these 2 chapters, I had no choice but to take a second look. True enough, the bible wastes no words. Much of the specifics are actually very symbolic and significant to encountering God, even today. After all, this temple was the place of worship where the people of Israel had the chance to encounter God. What really resonated in my mind as I sat listening and scribbling... was how Jesus so perfectly plays the role of our Great High Priest, our sacrifice at the altar, and in tearing the curtain that separates the Most Holy Place with His death. I was struck by how God's standards have never ever changed since the Old Testament time till this very second, and even with those very standards He still provided a way for us to commune with Him the way we do today - through Christ. Genius or what?

Anyway, on a different note, Pastor also left us some indicators of spiritual growth, which I thought was some pretty consolidated insight :)

• A greater level of faith
• More passionate in seeking after God
• Less distracted by things of the world/circumstances
• A more sensitive spiritual radar
• Giving all our heart to the Lord in service
• Going beyond our minds in calculating and analyzing using the human intellect

And the end result is that we will be blessed, as proven by the history of Judah.

(sigh.. you know MOE has gotten into your head when you start trying to form acronyms..!!)

...like the dew drop on the leaf, they are together yet separate.
- Lagaan (a Hindi movie, 2001)

I was reliving the India days with the movie haha. It is by far the best Hindi movie I've watched, recommended to me by Jingyun :) Set in a village of the 1890s, it is a story of Indian patriotism, passion, and cricket. three cheers for anti-colonialism! The quote was taken from the lyrics of one of the movie's (sort-of) love songs. I just liked the analogy a lot haha.

What I really long to do is to re-read Shantaram! But each time the thought comes to mind, I'll always postpone it. The longer the interval between my first read and the next, the better the second read will be!

~

On another topic, this whole series of study on Isaiah and the whole general election fever in Singapore has led to a lot of thinking about my country. A conversation with Kevin a few days ago brought my perspective back to God's sovereignty over our nation.

For many weeks, we have been studying about Isaiah and his prophecies of God bringing His destruction over proud nations who defile His name, and even His chosen nation had turned away from Him. Two nights ago, I really wondered what God thought of our country. I mean.. when I look at my own generation and the next, I cannot help but worry. I don't mean to sound self righteous.. because I'm a part of it. But there are some things that are obviously wrong. Yet, the postmodernist current is extremely strong among the young people. We are so, so eager to embrace every value that sounds good or seems right that it has become difficult to stand up for what I know is right/wrong without getting attacked from all corners. Today, almost everyone operates on a grey scale. But more often than we think, reality is full of blacks and whites.

The morning after GE results were released, my grandpa called from Kedah and spoke to my family. He told us how all the coffee shops in his town was rife with talk about our elections. They have been following the whole process, well aware of all the hot button national issues. Not to demean the plight of people struggling in Singapore, but the Malaysian Chinese are just shaking their heads at us. "Bu zhi zu", they said, which means "never knowing contentment". The level of angst against the government, all the finger pointing at the ministers, all the complains hurled and resentment stirred among the people towards our government. "Over here," he said, "we are like third class citizens and we work hard against all the odds. And over there, you all are first class citizens with a silver spoon to your mouth and you complain like the sky fell over. And you want to punish your government for not giving you an easy life."

The following Monday morning, I walked into class only to hear the same sentiments from my tutor. She is a Singaporean by the way. "Shame on us! Look how pampered we are. All the foreigners are just shaking their heads at us... 7 mins wait time at the MRT station and the opposition also dare to bring it up...yadah yadah yadah."

Well, I couldn't disagree with them. Putting aside all the other arguments about alternative voices and whatnot, it is true that we are becoming a people who believe that we have the right not to struggle much in life. It is especially so among the younger generations. I think that way by default too, until something wakes me up to the truth. I'm afraid that 20 years down the road, we are going to pay a painful, painful price.

Anyway, I've decided to read the WP's manifesto carefully. I really want to know what their agenda is, and exactly what kind of alternative voice our people are bringing into parliament. 5 years later, their number may just multiply. For good or for worse? I want to get a good feel of it.
So far, I'm really happy to read that they are advocating for the mandatory death sentence to be abolished. YES! that is one of the most frightening laws... I'm very sure there have been innocent lives lost. more thoughts on this another time!

The God who watches...

This is what the Lord says to me: "I will remain quiet and will look on from my dwelling place, like shimmering heat in the sunshine, like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest." - Is 18:4

When I first read this verse while doing the bible study homework, it resonated strongly. In times like ours..where the world is one big insane mess. full of fighting and disasters and death and innocent suffering, and even worse.. full of derogatory culture. and everybody wonders where God is? Well...there He is. Looking on from His dwelling place. Sounds like one cold and cruel God? No. It was a knowledge of assurance that swept over me. His eyes are never turned away..He may choose to be quiet and we think He isn't there, but He is always watching. The rich and powerful, the oppressive and God-less of our world may think they have it all..but no...

For, before the harvest, when the blossom is gone and the flower becomes a ripening grape, he will cut off the shoots with pruning knives, and cut down and take away the spreading branches. They will all be left to the mountain birds of prey and to the wild animals; the birds will feed on them all summer, the wild animals all winter.
- Is 18:5-6

There was something else that stood out in another chapter (22) about the prophecy of Jerusalem. There was trouble and the Lord called for them to turn to Him for help. Instead, they were eating meat and drinking wine, saying "Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die!", and the Lord said in response, "Till your dying day this sin will not be atoned for."

Doesn't that "Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die!" sound familiar? I hear that all the time today, just packaged differently. Everybody knows that life in this world is chaotic and fleeting. It is full of trouble and suffering..everybody suffers in their own way. Among the people of my generation, the popular response is this: LIVE FOR THE MOMENT. who cares? life is short and so fleeting.. you may not get to see tomorrow so you better do whatever you want to right now.
sigh.. that is the worst and most dangerous response to the fear of life's uncertainty and the fear of death. People don't believe that they can find an answer that takes us to the very heart of these fears, conquers them, and makes sense of our world's and life's reality. All we have to do is to turn to the very Maker of this life on earth.