To those of us who inherit salvation,
we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift
away (Hebrews 2:1). The test of faith lies not in the first few years of being
in Christ but in the last few years of my first decade in Him. I have to
jealously guard my quiet time with Him by hiding my handphone in my wardrobe.
However, it takes greater discipline on the mind and heart to tune in to His
word and to rest in Him. To say “no” to even legitimate requests is something
that I am learning. I am beginning to realise that while all things can be done
to glorify God, He does not want me to do all. That is why we need the body of
Christ, each using his spiritual gift and sphere of influence to impact this
nation that our Lord has put us in.
I used to be a very timid person. I
was awfully afraid of authority figures and even now, I dare not talk to Pastors
because I think they know too much and I know too little. Yet I have the
audacity to share my reflections on social media because I sincerely hope to
encourage fellow brethren that each of us has something valuable to offer to
the body of Christ. I may lack a theological background but the Holy Spirit
guides me into all truth (John 16:13). A soul that refreshes others will
himself be refreshed (Proverbs 11:25). Through my sharing, even unbelievers
will know that God is real because they can see the transformation in me.
In recent years, God gave me so much boldness
that it scares me. The past eight years in Christ was a period of connecting
with God and basking in His love. Sadly, I was also totally oblivious to what was
happening in our nation. It was only in the last quarter of year 2014 that the
scales of my eyes were taken away. I did not realise that I live in a world so
contrary to God’s values. We have the most liberal abortion laws, sexual
immorality even among teenagers, high divorce rates, high suicide rates among
youths, with more seeking professional help for mental health issues. I serve a
God who is deeply concerned with our lives because He created man in His image
(Genesis 1:26). What about us? Do I go for church service every Sunday and
forget about God for the rest of the week? Do I go for the best bible study but
I never learn to apply His commandments and His values in my life and in my
relationship with others? What do I do with what I know, if not to be the salt
and light of this nation that God has put me in? God is not real to me until I
realise how applicable His Word is to my life.
And so from year 2015 onwards, I
started to write in to the Forum pages of our newspapers. It takes a lot of
time and mental discipline to produce a decent letter that will either be
published or rejected. I could take as long as four hours at the computer
simply because my mind is not used to writing such letters that require basic
knowledge of the subject, concise language and a certain appeal that would make
an editor publish it. It has been two years since then. It is easier now though
still not easy. I do what I do because Singapore is a democratic society.
Without your voice or mine, who will build a culture that speaks life and
emphasizes the worth and dignity of every individual, even the unborn? Everyone
can write in. What is needed is a willing heart.
Life in Christ is really tough. If
someone had told me so when I first received Christ, I would have probably backed
off. Yet I would tell a prospective believer the truth. If you cannot endure
hardship, please do not receive Christ. It is a point of no return.
Nonetheless, it is the best thing I have ever done for myself because life
without God is chaos and has no meaning or purpose. I used to wake up in the
morning, wondering why I am still alive. I attempted suicide and so nearly
died. Because I did not die, I must live even better for Christ. I struggled
with depression, with my emotions being my deadliest enemy. Yet in Christ, I
learn self-control. Even now, especially now, my spirit and soul are always
wrestling with each other but the Holy Spirit always wins. The soul will feel
very sore before it surrenders to the Spirit. It is a sweet victory, after the
anguish of the soul.
As I walk on this path, I see people
going through similar struggles. My first instinct is to tell them how great
God is. Yet I realize that everyone has to overcome their hurdles with God.
They need a personal encounter with Him, even if it means hitting the wall and
realizing that their ways do not work. It hurts me to see the unnecessary path
that people choose to walk on but my role is just to be there, to be a comfort
to them just like how I was comforted by the God of all comfort (2 Corinthians
1:3-4). While it is our role to point people to Christ, we too need to
understand that it is a process that is at God’s timing and He gives the
increase. When we minister to the broken, let us not forget where we came from.
He brought us up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay and set our feet
upon a rock and established our steps (Psalm 40:2). Let compassion pulsates in our
heart as we tell the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15). Love and truth are not
mutually exclusive.
