de bi t ch. [Happiness is a journey, not a destination.]

Friday, July 17, 2009

Hey!

Just thought I'll share this message with you which I heard in church last week. Not sure when was the last time you when to church, I for one haven't been in a while. And without fail, each time I return to church, God's message is just so powerful. Try to go to church when you can. He never fails to amaze and touch me.

First watch this video: Hillsong: I Heart Revolution ; to me this is an amazing amazing powerful video. The contrast it makes of the two different world that exist in this world is so clear and yes unfair.

These people are:
1. Victims of circumstances - they were born into these circumstances, they were given.
2. Out of control - It is out of their control as to what is given to them, and these circumstances
3. Dependent on someone else to save them - dependent on people like me and you to help them as much as we can

And yes, this is basically the message of the day. To help the poor; freely we receive, freely we should give; to recongise where we come from.

Here's a verse from the Bible:
James 1:26-27

26If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. 27Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world

Another, but just highlighting one line:

Galatians 2:6-10

10All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do

The Bible, the Lord says to "look after the orphans and widows in their distress", and we as children as God should do as He wants us to do. The pastor mentioned that the church isn't a humanitarian organisation. We are doing this not because it is a humane thing to do, but because to bring out God's colour and to obey and spread His words, as he would want us to.

He then gave another passage from the Bible, the story of the Good Samaritan:

Luke 10:25-37
25On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

26"What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?"

27He answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself."

28"You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."

29But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"

30In reply Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead.31A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. 35The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'

36"Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?"

37The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him."
Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise."

Yes - "Love your neighbor as yourself" ; These people in the video, the ONE billion people in the world that aren't as fortunate as us, are our neighbours. In this story, the lawyer asked who his neighbour is, and Jesus replied with this story. It doesn't matter who the neighbour is, doesn't matter who your neighbour is, it is who you are to them. You are the neighbour to them. The people who needs your help, are your neighbour.

The pastor also mentioned, don't be a sympathetic christian, but be a compassionate christian. A sympathetic christian feels for these people, but just feels and does nothing. A compassionate christian is one who not only feels but actually does something. I pray that you all will be compassionate christians, and be it donation or actually doing something for them, you are helping them.

I for one, am more certain than ever that I will go down the path I have thought about for a while. My first encounter was in my 3rd year when I met this consultant who specialises in tuberculosis (TB). He goes to Zimbabwe at least once or twice a year to help with the situation in regards to TB. Subsequently I went to Thailand and South Africa and thoroughly thoroughly enjoyed myself. At some point, I hope that when I reached my consultancy as an Oncologist, I will be able to give back just like this consultant. But am thinking more of China, see how :) Whatever my path will be, I know God has a plan for me and I have Faith. :)

I'm not a saint or some super good christian. I am just one of God's children. But I just want to share this with you guys, because I know how ugly and unethical the world has become. And I just want to remind you that there is more than just money and career in life. There is more purpose in life.

Lastly, the pastor gave an analogy right in the beginning; about how you know when we first started driving, there's so much to watch out for and remember. There's the mirror to adjust, where the signal and wipers are, checking for blindspots, handling the wheel, changing the gear, the clutch and accelerator, that we actually forget the most important thing - to drive forward.

However now, after driving for a while, all these have become a part of us. It has become an instinct to us; they come instinctively. And the pastor reminded us, to go forth and have Faith in the Lord. The rest - career, friendship, love etc etc will come instinctively. He will bless us with what we need. So stay focus, spread His words and be a compassionate christian. The rest will come instinctively.

Hope this email will give you some thoughts. The sermon touched me a lot and made me more sure of what I need to do. This email might not have the same impact as it did for me, but I hope you get what I'm trying to say.

May God bless you always and SMILE always :)

Love,
Sophia

S ranted at 7:32 am | 0 comments

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