A Grace Observed

“There is nothing we can do to make God love us more.
There is nothing we can do to make God love us less.”
(Philip Yancey, What’s So Amazing About Grace, Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1997, p70)

I like Yancey’s rendition of what grace means. It is a down-to-earth definition. It is beautifully captured in God’s love. It removes from us the burden of having to work for something in order to be affirmed in our humanity. It is given to us freely. Grace is something that is more easily conveyed than explained, as Yancey would attest. How can we ever define what an act of grace? There are far more expressions and nuances of grace than one can ever know. It is one of those things that is better felt than thought, better practiced closely than observed at a distance; better lived out in the present rather than stored up for a future which may never come. Of course, one cannot be overly dogmatic about grace. The arms of grace must be long enough to embrace the people from all walks of life. It is wide enough to make room for people of different shapes and sizes. It needs to be deep enough for people with much more profound needs. It ought to be tall enough to encourage people to pursue the heights of their vocation. Grace is like water which freezes in order to retain the freshness of people; which steams up to reawaken the coldness of society; which eases itself into liquid form under conditions of normality. It is like what Yancey writes, ‘the last best word.’

Living in Grace in a World of Ungrace
Some learns grace by actively doing good works. Some exercises grace best when they are in a giving mode. Others know grace instinctively when there is a need to let people show kindness to them. Some needs to be introduced to grace via a classroom approach. Others prefer to be educated in the school of hard knocks.

In a broken world, it is a constant ordeal to live against the backdrop of an environment where ‘ungrace’ seems more prevalent than true Christian grace. Sometimes in Christian organizations, there are more instances of ungrace than anticipated. Christianity Today has an article about the state of ungrace in the Church. This is sad. Perhaps expectations have been painted too unfairly. Those who work in non-Christian places seemed to be under a different expectation ruler compared to people working in churches and Christian based societies. The work might be the same, but the expectations are different, too dissimilar for comfort. For example, it seems to be ok to have disputes in a business being fought out in the law courts. Yet, when church conflicts get publicized openly in the media, people shake their heads even more. Sometimes, the world seems to think that ‘Christian people’ ought to be sinless in their behaviour. The fact is that all people including Christians, still belong to the human race that has sinned. “For all has sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” writes Paul in Romans 3:23. Believers of Jesus may not be sinless, but they are called to sin less. Biblically, the word ‘grace’ is an oft-mentioned word. In the New Testament, the word ‘grace’ is used in every one of Paul’s epistles. Each time it is used, Paul acknowledges the source: God. The word χάρις (charis) is a noun that can be translated as grace, favour or simply ‘goodwill.’ It is not merely to be analyzed or admired but to be received with open hands. Like a bottle of vitamins, merely holding up the bottle and analyzing the ingredients on the label will not provide additional nutrients to the person’s physical body. The bottle has to be uncapped, the number of required capsules to be taken out and swallowed via the mouth often with water. Grace cannot be simply studied for itself. It needs to be accepted with gratitude. It takes grace to receive, grace to give. Like air, grace is not something that is an object that is visible in any one specific form. It is only seen through acts of love. When a person listens carefully to a grieving party, that person is showing grace in desiring to comfort the anguished. When a driver slows down to let another car on the shoulder join a busy highway, grace is demonstrated. When one gives up an entitlement for the sake of another, grace is illustrated. When a wife refrains from comment when her husband is in a foul mood, grace is lived out in love. In an electronic age, when one is offended by an email, one can choose to give the sender the benefit of the doubt with an attitude of grace. Sometimes, it may be necessary to do a reply to clarify certain things. A gracious answer will be one that is sprinkled with grace. It will be one that is honest to God, self and neighbour. When placed under the care of God’s grace, it will be measured with considerable quantity of self-control.

THE GARDEN OF GRACE
Grace tilts the balance between the left and the right unto truthful talking. Grace saunters the tightrope of gentleness between two opposing viewpoints unto graceful walking. Grace tiptoes across the garden of roses to avoid trampling the roses while shunning the thorns. Grace navigates the ship gently when caught amid the stormy waters of disputes and conflicts. Human grace is never complete without God. The grace of God is the best fertilizer, the perfect sunshine and the most hydrating fluid in the garden of humanity. Grace extends through all kinds of human relationships. Luci Shaw paints a beautiful portrait of God as the Gardener and our struggles as parents.

“Just as young parents learn, from the experience of having children, a great deal about the Parent heart of God – his delight in our growth and success, his disappointment and yearning when we ignore him or rebel against his guidelines – so the illustrious and creative gardener learns much about the God who wants to make of us a garden, where with abundant water and sunshine, with heat and cold, with sowing and growing he can see the fruits of his loving labors.” (Luci Shaw, Water My Soul, Vancouver: Regent College Publishing, 1998, p45)

As friends, grace is also shown in terms of the willingness to let our friends be who God has made them to be. True friendships are usually seen in rocky moments of life. Jesus failed to find any friend among his disciples when he was arrested and tried for crimes he did not commit. All his disciples and all who knew him deserted him in his darkest hours of need. It is important here not to become too absorbed in the sufferings of Christ, that we forget about the purpose of his suffering: To bring us closer to one another in Christ.

“But, for a Christian, there are, strictly speaking, no chances. A secret Master of the Ceremonies has been at work. Christ, who said to the disciples, “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you,” can truly say to every group of Christian friends, “You have not chosen one another but I have chosen you for one another.” (CS Lewis, The Four Loves, Harcourt, 1991, p89)

Only in Jesus, who is fully man and fully divine, can we learn true grace. The late American playwrite, Eugene O’Neill describes the relationship between humanity and divinity beautifully as follows.

“Man is born broken. He lives by mending. The grace of God is glue.” (Eugene O’Neill)

Let me end this article with a lovely blending of friendship and grace in the garden of love. Essentially, let us all start by planting this garden, and over time, the flowers will bloom and we obtain the sweet fruits of God's love. Credit goes to this website.

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A Garden Just For You

For the garden of your daily living plant three rows of peas Peace of mind Peace of heart Peace of soul

Plant four rows of squash: Squash gossip Squash indifference Squash grumbling Squash selfishness

Plant four rows of lettuce: Lettuce be faithful Lettuce be kind Lettuce be patient Lettuce really love one another

No garden is without turnips: Turnip for meetings Turnip for service Turnip to help one another

To conclude our garden we must have thyme: Thyme for each other Thyme for family Thyme for friends

Water freely with patience and cultivate with love. There is much fruit in your garden because your reap what you sow.

May the Lord be blessed as we observe grace more frequently in our lives.
ks

Karoshi and Work Spirituality

It has that familiar ring to it. The questions: “Does your work have meaning and purpose?” “Have you ever considered what meaningful work is and how to go about making it so?” For some of us who have attended marketplace theology classes, these are issues we think about all the time. Different stages of our learning reveal a different kind of flavor in our approach to it. The core belief is largely similar: Glorify God in all we do, including our workplace efforts. For Christians, the approach is usually from the biblical perspective. Dr Kenneth Boa and Gail Burnett observe that many people in the workplace tend to view work in a negative light.

• The daily grind
  
• Overworked and underpaid
  
• Work like a dog
  
• Slaving through the day

While these stems from an unhappiness that gets released at the end of the day or during coffee time, some become extreme forms of stress leading to death.

In Japan, the recent series of deaths arising from overwork have led the greater use of the word “Karoshi,” a Japanese word for ‘death from over work.’ This word was first cited in an organization interested in the study of work and stress. With rising deaths due to karoshi, an crisis web site has been created to try to help people cope with overwork. Recent cases of karoshi only have highlighted the rising problem. The highly regarded British publication, The Economist, picked up on this recent trend with an article “Japanese employees are working themselves to death,” published in Dec 2007. Interestingly, the two recent prominent karoshi cases involve the leading carmaker, Toyota, currently on the verge of becoming the top car company in terms of sales of number of vehicles. I have been reading up on Toyota these past weeks and have been impressed by their culture of excellence and quality. The Toyota Production System has been used as a case study at top MBA schools. Books like “The Toyota Way (Jeffrey Liker)” and “How Toyota Became #1 (David Magee)” have been written to help business leaders emulate their success. However, I can hardly find any warning messages about overwork and the need to take care of the soul at the workplace. Isn’t it obvious, that an unrealistic optimism renders one depressed when reality kicks in? Behind every success lies thousands of hours of hard work and failed attempts. It is a pity that business books often paint the positives so well that it disguises this fact. We need a reality check every-time we read business publications that trumpet the glory of any one method or organization. Jeffrey Liker, who wrote about the Toyota Culture, trumpets Toyota’s human systems as part of their success factors. However, I feel it is fails to go deep enough, even though he calls it the ‘heart and soul’ of the company. For instance, Liker calls culture as something that is ‘all in the head’ (Liker, Toyota Culture, 5). The purpose of people in the books is to make the company successful. Thus, management is called to care for people because people are the reason for their success. Yet, when the economy slows down, and when profits are at risk, cutting jobs (and people’s livelihood) become almost the de-facto management strategy to ‘stay afloat’ or ‘be responsible to shareholders.’ Of course, it is not fair to blame karoshi on just one company. Even restaurants have been known to have become factors to karoshi cases. I believe it is the entire work ethic gone astray. Though karoshi has largely been confined to Japanese situations, I do have some concerns.

Firstly, many have tried to emulate Japan as a model for their own successes. Are they unwittingly digging the graves for an eventual karoshi themselves? Secondly, can anyone of us realistically recreate Japan’s context for business success? Japan is a unique country, with a history that is not repeated elsewhere. Being the only country in the world to have suffered a nuclear detonation, their economic rise from the ashes of war have built in them a unique resilience. Thirdly, the Japanese culture cannot be easily replicated. There are not many cultures I know that retains their traditional culture in spite of technological advancement.

Workplace Spirituality on the Rise
Protestant Christians generally pride themselves as being part of the ‘Protestant Ethic,’ popularized by the Puritans in the 18th Century during the New Awakening revival, as well as Max Weber, the German economist who wrote “The Protestant Ethic and the Rise of Capitalism.” The core motive is the increase of wealth, rather than the pursuit of healthy working individuals. If the pursuit of money is the overarching goal, then isn’t it obvious that all other things, including people become the means to that end? Like it or not, Dilbert has painted this as a top management lie.

"Employees are our most valuable asset.”

For the skeptic, they see this both ways. People become valuable assets because in good times, they can be used to increase profits. In bad times, they can be quickly offloaded to cut losses. That will be far too cruel on management, who are people themselves. Having worked in the marketplace for 13 years, I am familiar with this conundrum. Not all workers are angels. Wherever possible, some will attempt to take advantage of the organization for selfish reasons. Others will try to maximize gains even at the expense of community within the company. We cannot be too hard-and-fast about any one rule. However, to run a successful company, we need to adopt and practice a healthy people philosophy. Having said that, publishing a grand philosophical statement is not enough. The key is in the implementation of these principles. I think one of the key elements is the spiritual factor in any business. The need has always been there. We only need to recognize it. Patricia Aburdene’s Megatrends 2010 lists ‘Spirituality in Business’ as one of the seven ‘Megatrends’ for the new century. In fact, out of seven, she lists ‘spirituality’ TWICE! For companies to succeed, even survive, there is a need to evoke ‘human consciousness’ in the workplace. In contrast to the previous Megatrend books, this latest publication is significantly more ‘internal’ and more ‘spiritual.’

I am a little suspicious here of the modern books on spirituality. Firstly, it is not explicitly Christian in perspective. While some authors claim the importance of spirituality, they left it pretty much open to all kinds of spiritual things, which is very new-age or postmodern new-age. If people are a means to an end in the previous two to three decades, the next decade is using gods as a means to an end. The objective of a capitalist organization is the same: Make more profits regardless. How should a Christian then work in a world confused about their own values, while conscious of the need for spiritual consciousness? I think education remains a key component in the revival of Christian spirituality in the workplace. Dr Paul Stevens is a pioneer in the field of marketplace theology, and I like his reading of Thomas Aquinas’s ‘seven spiritual alms deeds’ for the marketplace.

• To feed the hungry (the food industry)
  
• To give drink to the thirsty (beverage)
  
• To clothe the naked (clothing, design)
  
• To harbor the harborless (hospitality)
  
• To visit the sick (medicine, counseling)
  
• To ransom the captive (police, military)
  
• To bury the dead (funeral business)
  
  [Paul Stevens, Doing God’s Business, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2006, p214]

The list can be longer, but the point is, we need to see everything from the perspective of God and from our neighbours. Whatever we do or work, if we can see it as part of being obedient to the call of God to love God and to love neighbour in all that we do, this world will be a much better place to live in. Our workplaces will not be prisons of chore and toil, but a garden in which we tend lovingly, gratefully and joyfully.

ks

Spiritual Olympics

Nothing is for Free

Those of us who have seen the Beijing Olympics 2008 opening ceremony on the 8th of August would have been wowed by the spectacular display of Chinese pride, Li Ning’s sensational flight to light the Olympic torch and the pompous pyrotechnics all around. Reported to cost more than US100 million dollars, this single event drew in more than a billion viewers worldwide. The whole event was directed by the famous filmmaker, Zhang Yimou. No expenses were spared to put China on display for the world to see, that the middle kingdom has come of age. Even the date was deemed auspicious. The Games began on the 8th of August, 2008 at exactly 8pm.

On a smaller scale, the Olympians have been known to invest huge thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours into their preparation for the games. In an article, “What price glory?”, two athletes were compared side by side with one thing in common: Their sacrifice to get to compete for the gold medal.

“The bills for coaching, training facilities, tournaments and other expenses easily add up to tens of thousands a year. For young American athletes, that financial burden falls squarely on their parents; for Chinese youth, the government picks up the tab - if they're good enough.

Either way, the Craig and Luo families have learned it takes gold to make gold. And both have sacrificed much along the way to make their daughters' Olympic dreams possible. To get to a similar place, though, they've taken very different journeys.”

Nothing is for free. Sometimes, we watch the Olympics on TV, and we envy the fame and glory that the winners of the respective events get to receive at the medal award ceremony. That one moment of glory disguises the tremendous sacrifices put in by the athletes, their families, friends, sponsors and many supporters. We can also forget that for every one medal winner, there are many others who have paid the price for competing in the event, and went home without winning anything. Many vie for the gold, but only one gets it. Many seek the glory but only the best and the fittest receives it. How unfair can it be for the hardworking, the multi-talented young ones, to be deemed ‘not good enough’ for the grand prize?

The apostle Paul is one who is most aware of the cost of competing to win.

You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier. Also if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not win the prize unless he competes according to the rules. (2 Tim 2:1-5)

The Christian is compared to as a soldier and also as an athlete. The common themes for both soldier and athlete are the components of FED (Focus, Endurance & Discipline). The ‘prize’ or the ‘crown’ referred to in verse 5 is referred either to the wreath of victory or the prize given out to the champions during the Greek games in those days. The origin of the Olympics is from Greece, so this verse in 2 Timothy holds a special meaning for Olympians, especially those who are Christians. Do we need to participate officially at the Games in order to compete? No. There is a long running spiritual marathon that Christian believers have been called to run. Like the athletes we see on TV, Christians are called to invest heavily in their spiritual walk. It is not necessarily always money, though monetary terms are considered a common quantifiable. Some of us will pay lots of money for training and education to equip others. Some will spend lots of hours to keep relationships warm and healthy. Yet, some will venture into lands far away to reach out to various rural people groups needing to hear the gospel. For every single one of them, the truth is that the spiritual race demands hard work, faithful endurance and to obey the rules of the competition. The rules are enshrined in the Word of God, like the Ten Commandments, the Sermon on the Mount and many others in the Bible. In the Spirit of the teachings of Christ, we compete in the world stage by observing the rules of the game. No cheating. No drugs. No corruption. No devious forms of cheating or breaking the rules. No dishonesty. These are the rules. What good will there be for one to win the world, using dishonest means? It will soon be found out, and the net result is shame not only for oneself but the family as well. Look at Marion Jones (took drugs to win 5 medals at the 2000 Olympics) and Ben Johnson (took drugs to win the 100m dash at the 1998 Olympics). They brought not only humiliation to themselves but embarrass the countries they represent. It is one thing to win the gold medal. It is yet another to win it in fairness and with integrity. Not all of us are called to win the games at the Olympics. Not all of us will get to stand at the podium to receive the medal. Yet, all of us are called to run the race of our lives, in integrity, in truth and in love.

Nothing is for free. It will cost us something, and for some, it will cost us everything we have. The key to willingness to give it all up is not simply winning the prize. It is not even the expectation of getting the results according to the amount of investment we put in, for some will inevitably fail to reap the required results. For the Christian, it is essentially the faithfulness to endure all hardship in order to glorify God. Love is the fuel that will sustain the journey. Love is the compass to focus our drive for excellence. Let love provide the faithfulness needed to stick to our stated paths. Let love form the discipline for us being a good soldier or an athlete. While nothing is for free, all things can be FREELY given. That is what love is all about. Love is not love until it is freely given away. In Christ, we see the greatest love ever known.

My readers, compete aggressively with a prize-driven mentality and a God-led integrity. Run earnestly and be willing to pay the price to get a chance to run the race. You may not win every earthly battle or competition before you. You may not even come close to qualify for the finals. However, it isn’t finished until it is finished. It will not end until the kingdom of God fully appears in all its glory. Yet, there is an interesting twist about running and winning the race. This is best demonstrated by telling the story of love, which can also be referenced here.

“A few years ago at the Seattle Special Olympics, nine contestants, all physically or mentally disabled, assembled at the starting line for the 100 yard dash. At the gun, they all started out, not exactly in a dash, but with a relish to run the race to the finish and win.

All, that is, except one boy who stumbled on the asphalt, tumbled over a couple of times and began to cry. The other eight heard the boy. They slowed down and looked back. They all turned around and went back. Every one of them! One girl with Down's Syndrome bent down and kissed him and said,"This will make it better."

All nine linked arms and walked across the finish line together. Everyone in the stadium stood, and the cheering went on for several minutes.

People who were there are still telling the story. Why? Because deep down we know one thing. What matters most in this life is more than winning for ourselves. What truly matters in this life is helping others win, even if it means slowing down and changing our course.”

As we compete to win, remember that whether we win or we lose, it is love that makes everything meaningful.

ks

Forgiveness

One of my favourite authors is the late Lewis Smedes, former professor at Fuller Theological Seminary, who passed away in 2002. He left a legacy of excellent heart-felt communications and set a benchmark on what forgiveness meant. I heard of Dr Smedes way back in the late 80s, (or early 90s) where one of my pastors then mentioned him as a ‘great communicator.’ He was in Singapore and gave a series of talks at the SLF Building at Thomson Road. Indeed he is a master at communicating simple truths. His words about forgiveness and commitment in relationships remain one of the most memorable lessons for me as a young Christian. In a ChristianityToday classic republished in Dec 2002, just after his death, he talks about forgiveness being an act that has the potential to change our past. That is a very healing way to look at broken relationships or shattered history. Truly, one of the greatest human emotional moment is that instant of forgiveness between two parties. In that special time, what was previously far apart is now drawn closer together. What was damaged yesterday is now given an opportunity for reparation works today. In the act of forgiveness, the miraculous power to change the past becomes immediately available. This is not saying that we can wind back the clock to change events. It is not even talking about going back to the past to prevent unhappy circumstances from ever appearing. It is about establishing the peace to an otherwise tumultuous future resulting from an unresolved past hurts. Without forgiveness, we will continue to live under the shadow of brokenness and despair. We unwittingly allow the past to dictate our future. In forgiveness, we loosen the chains of blame; we release steam that threatens to blow up our humanness inside us; we empower others by granting them wings to freedom in their relationships with others as well. Smedes says it very well calling forgiveness and promises as twins to can change the past and secure the future respectively.

“God offers two answers to our deepest anxieties. He is a forgiving God who recreates our pasts by forgiving them. He is a promising God who controls our future by making and keeping promises. By forgiving us, he changes our past. By promising, he secures our future.”

The Apostle Paul may not have a degree in Psychology but he understands the spiritual need of Christians in the church. He prescribes forgiveness to the Corinthians, who are in constant bickering, paralyzing the church there with internal strife. Not only do they cause bad blood among the members, they do the gospel of Christ a great disfavour. Ron Susek, author of Firestorm agrees:

“With every church conflict, the first causality is the gospel of Jesus Christ because when the church is survival oriented, it cannot be salvation oriented.” (Ron Susek)“

No church is more than 24 hours away from a major conflict breaking out.” (Dr Roy Roberts)

In Firestorm, one of the key errors of leadership during times of conflict is indecision. When pinned to a corner to choose a side to support, leaders typically tend to take the middle ground or not making a decision in order to keep the peace. Indecision is not simply refusing to make a decision. It is a BAD decision in itself. I will suggest that the best way in times like this is to make an immediate decision to work at forgiveness, bringing in a mediator immediately if need to.

“If you forgive anyone, I also forgive him. And what I have forgiven – if there was anything to forgive – I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.” (2 Cor 2:10-11)

Being a Peacemaker, not Peacekeeper
Paul here is playing the role of a mediator. He uses himself to come between two opposing parties and draw their attention to Christ. One may claim to speak FOR Christ, but it takes a peacemaker to act IN Christlikeness. Matthew 5:9 says: “Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called sons of God.” Indeed, there is a distinction between being a peace-MAKER versus a peace-KEEPER. One is active while the other is passive. The former acts actively to ensure that peace is preserved. The latter simply tries to keep the peace but will withhold active participation. Peacemakers look forward to a brighter future of peace and harmony. Peacekeeper tries to maintain the status quo. How can we allow ‘peacekeepers’ to maintain a status quo of internal squabbling? How can we ever keep the peace if it was never peaceful in the first place? Like a canoe going downhill on a rushing river, having only peacekeepers in the church is like asking everyone in the canoe to stop rowing at all. On the other hand, having peacemakers is like getting everyone in the boat to paddle upward to safety. Here, Paul seeks to make the peace by exhorting the Church to forgive, even as Paul in Christ has forgiven them.

There are five observations I want to highlight:
Firstly, the Greek form of ‘forgive’ in Paul’s letter to the Corinthians is χαρίζομαι (charizomai, to show favour, to give freely). The primitive word in this verb is charis, which is grace and kindness. It appears to be an active verb that takes the initiative to bless and grant grace to another. This act of forgiveness is something that is done freely. In contrast to the other Greek word for ‘forgive,’ ἀφίημι (aphiemi, to send away, to leave), which has the image of abandoning one’s state of unforgiveness or negative behaviour. It is like putting away and leaving behind in contrast to chariszomai which is a putting ON of an attitude of grace.

Secondly, Paul’s use of the middle voice here is very curious. In Greek, the middle voice means two things: to initiate an action and to participate in the response or the results of that action. Paul wants the feuding groups to make the peace by initiating forgiveness and participating in the atmosphere of grace. In one word, Paul brings out two actions of initiating and participating. In forgiveness, we become vulnerable to the other party’s responses. No one can guarantee what kind of reply to be expected.

Thirdly, the audience is unnamed. It can mean the left or the right. It can mean anyone reading the epistle, including us. This letter is written for the benefit of all Christians, even though it is addressed to the Corinthians directly. Isn’t it so wonderful that the Word of God can have such timeless applications? That is one way that the mediator can behave, by not taking sides straightaway, but to teach the fact that any dispute involves all parties. It is not simply the aggressor against the aggrieved. It also involves the many silent majority, especially those who chose to watch on the sidelines without behaving like peacemakers.

Fourthly, forgiveness is made in the name of Christ. This is important. If a perfectly blameless person like Christ, chooses not to cast stones at the sinful woman, how dare we, as sinful beings encourage another toward culpable acts? The way to forgive one another is to do so in the spirit and person of Christ.

Fifthly, by forgiving, we pull the carpet under the devil’s feet, who is standing just outside the doorway of church divisions. Satan is most pleased when there is infighting among the children of God. In forgiveness, we pull ahead of any devilish schemes that can break down a church. We ‘outwit’ the devil as a result. Paul emphatically states that he is ‘not unaware’ of the devil’s schemes, indicating that he is careful not to exclude the possibility of spiritual warfare going on. Here, I will like to add a quick comment about blaming the devil. It is sometimes very difficult to distinguish whether the cause of church divisions is due to the whims of the flesh or the darts of the evil one. While both deceives, their origins are different. It has been said that while not all church divisions are due to the presence of the devil, it is certainly true that disunity comes largely because of the absence of the Holy Spirit. I will not go to the extreme of casting this statement in concrete. As much as we try to be aware of the schemes of the devil, we must be even more conscious of the leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit. The leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit is in the way of forgiveness.

Truly, forgiveness is the key to any healing of rifts; the catalyst for bonding of relationships; the essence of being human. It is enshrined at the core of the Lord’s prayer. It is to be done unto others and for others to do unto us. It is something that we can do on our own, yet makes us dependent on others to reciprocate willingly. That is why it is grace epitomized.

Indeed, when we forgive others, not only do we set others free, we realize that when that happens, the greatest beneficiary is us. Let us shake loose the chains of hatred and enmity. Let us open the prison doors of pride. Set ourselves free from self-imposed incarceration. Recognize that the act of forgiveness not only set others free to forgive and forget. It turns one narrow path of relationship and transforms it into a highway of goodwill and peace. In forgiveness, we learn one of the basic tools of being a peacemaker. Let me end with Smedes's five things about forgiveness:

1. "Forgiving is the only way to be fair to yourself after someone hurts you unfairly.
   
2. Forgivers are not doormats; they do not have to tolerate the bad things that they forgive.
   
3. Forgivers are not fools; they forgive and heal themselves, but they do not have to go back for more abuse.
   
4. We don’t have to wait until the other person repents before we forgive him or her and heal ourselves.
   
5. Forgiving is a journey. For us, it takes time, so be patient and don’t get discouraged if you backslide have to do it over again."

Great tips indeed. This last quote should get us all eager to forgive.

“To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.” (Lewis Smedes)

Amen.

ks

Working with God in mind

Thank God Only on Fridays?
“Thank God It’s Friday” or TGIF took on a cult phenomenon when it was first coined in the late 70s. Many have attributed the early beginnings to a movie and song of the same name. There is also an American restaurant that uses the acronym in their name so as to epitomize the meaning of their business, to help people wind down after a hard week.

The basic use of the term TGIF is to celebrate the end of the workweek, a time for people to let down their hair and hang loose. After five toilsome days at the workplace, Friday represents the day where workers can finally start becoming more like themselves, in contrast to working days where they have to either put on a façade before people they do not like, or to do things their bosses ask them to do, against their own wishes. Working is not seen to be a glamourous thing. For some, it is downright burdensome, and if they have a choice, they would rather quit. Few people like Mondays. Assuming a typical Monday-Friday workweek, most prefer Fridays. Many workers I know prefer Fridays. Some dress up more casually on Fridays. Some take extended coffee breaks. Others simply choose to start that day early so that they can go home earlier. Moods on Friday are lighter. Some companies like US Cellular was reported even have a ‘No-Email’ Fridays! Intel has even piloted one program to do just that, to address the ‘stilted cubicle communications,’ where two engineers sitting next to each other communicate through email rather than face to face conversation. Some Intel staff have even taken a further step to explore ‘Quiet Time’ in the office. The report however gives a qualified statement about the effectiveness of No-Email-Fridays, that they are more effective for people who sit in the office most of the time. This is an astute observation and should help us avoid throwing a wide blanket to banish emails on Fridays. The point is clear. The idea is not simply to say that email is evil. It is to recognize that we are humans after all. We cannot forget that while emails are important for our daily work, having that face-to-face contact keeps us human.

Three Observations Gen 1:22b-23
1) In the creation narrative, God made the sea creatures and the birds in the air on the fifth day. He did not give thanks to himself only on that day. He declared the goodness of creation every single day. ‘… And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning.’ (Gen 1:22b-23) I have three observations on this verse. One, the ‘evening’ was stated first, before the ‘daylight.’ A day essentially starts in the evening! This is in contrast to the popular use of ‘day and night’ rather than 'night and day.' Many people see the day as the beginning. However, looking at chronological time, the start of a new day actually begins at 12AM, which is that moment past midnight. If we were to see the day beginning at 12AM and ending at the 11:59:59 PM, evenings are essentially the markers to distinguish the actual day. You may ask, what’s the significance of such an observation? What is so special about a day that begins and ends in evenings? The Jews actually take it even more literally. If the clock-day begins at midnight, the Jewish day actually begins at ‘sunset’ the day before. For example, Saturdays for a Jew begins on Friday 6PM or about an hour after sunset. Thus, a typical Jewish day starts in the evening and ends at the last moment of daylight. This is the Jewish interpretation of ‘evening and daylight’ in their understanding of the Genesis narrative. For the Jews, a 24-hour day begins in the ‘evening’ and ends in ‘daylight.’ This literal interpretation is best seen in the light of beginning a day in the evening sundown, and ending in the daylight sunset. In contrast to our normal definition of a day beginning with work, by starting a day from evening, it is an opportunity to give thanks, first thing in the beginning, to remind us that God is in control from the start. If we were to hurriedly start a day without being mindful of our Creator, we will be like entering a day ‘blindfolded’ into thinking that we know the way to do our work. Starting our day correctly involves a proper disposition of the heart and mind, so that we can start the day purposefully and intentionally. If we do not have an intentional stance, our work will lack meaning. Our attitude toward work will be less thankful and our quality of work will be negatively affected. Max Lucado lists the following depressing statistics:

• One-Third of Americans say, “I hate my job.”
  
• Two-thirds of your fellow citizens labor in the wrong career.
  
• Others find employment success, but no satisfaction.
  
• Most suicides occur in Sunday nights.
  
• Most heart attacks occur on Monday mornings.

Lucado goes on to give us this advice: “Before you change professions, change your attitude toward your profession.” (96)

Like an engine that takes time to start up, evenings can be seen to be a time for one to get ready for a busy workday. If one did not properly prepare for the day, he or she becomes vulnerable to a negative view of work. I encourage you, my readers to move a level deeper. See the day not simply as a time for useful work. Sleep/rest 8 hours. Work for 8 hours. Have other activities (eating, drinking, miscellaneous activities like travel etc) for the other 8 hours. This is living a balanced life.

2) A second observation I have is that God reflected on his work at the end of the work day. A pause for a cause; A recess after the progress; a hiatus to take stock of the status. At the end of the day, by taking the time to reflect and be thankful, we appreciate more of what we have done, learning from them precious lessons and preparing for a new day to improve ourselves and our work. Without such a meaningful break, we will not be able to adequately take stock of our lives. Time becomes an endless and cruel master, imprisoning us in hours of despair, minutes of dejection and seconds of desolation. Mark Littleton describes our ‘hurry-scurry society’ people like those reduced to:

“cutting their showers so that they do their backs on Mondays, the feet on Tuesdays, and a rinse only every third day (underarms, every day, of course – they do have some respect for others)…” (15-16)” [Mary Littleton, Escaping the Time Crunch, Moody Press, 1990, 15-16]

Littleton laments that “Time no longer just ticks. It crunches. It squeezes people from waking to retiring until they literally feel like a used toothpaste tube.” (Littleton, 11)

For Littleton, he says that the solution to escaping the time crunch is ultimately a supernatural one. More specifically, only God can help us, and time is not supposed to be our enemy but to be used for the glory of God. Indeed, Genesis may be teaching us this lesson subtly, that just as God the Creator taking a step back to admire his creation and call it good, we must also take a step back at the end of the day to reflect and give thanks for all that has been done, and not to be worried about things that are not done. Worry will propel one’s sense of anxiety into disproportionate amounts and make time an enemy to be grappled with, rather than a friend to accompany us in our glorification of God’s name. If we do not take time to pause, even in our most honourable causes, we will not only find 24 hours insufficient, we will eventually wear ourselves out (burn-out) and we will be physically and emotionally weakened.

3) Thirdly, this reflection was done every day of the week. Every day for God is good. Fridays are not to be deemed a better day than any other day. We live ‘seven days for God’ as advocated by Paul Stevens. When we do so with an attitude to give God the glory, we will learn the cure for monotony in our daily living. When we worked with God in mind all the time, when we rest with God in our hearts all the time, we learn the truth about God and ourselves. Let me end with Lucado’s excellent words on using our uniqueness for God daily.

What if everyone worked with God in mind? Suppose no one worked to satisfy self or please the bottom line but everyone worked to please God. Many occupations would instantly cease: drug trafficking, thievery, prostitution, nightclub and casino management. Certain careers, by their nature, cannot please God. These would cease. Certain behaviours would cease as well. If I’m repairing a car for God, I’m not going to overcharge his children. If I’m painting a wall for God, you think I’m going to use paint thinner? Imagine if everyone worked for the audience of One. Every nurse, thoughtful. Every officer, careful. Every professor, insightful. Every salesman, delightful. Every teacher, hopeful. Every lawyer, skillful. Every corner of every chapel, glistening. Impossible? Not entirely. All we need is someone to start a worldwide revolution. Might as well be us. [Max Lucado, Cure for the Common Life, (W Publishing Group, 2005) p94]

These three observations are to be seen as one whole. If we can practice adequate pauses in our waking hours, if we can take the time to reflect and be thankful throughout the day, and if we can do the same on a daily basis, we can make every day a blessing not only for ourselves, for others but most importantly, for God. We will learn that we are mortal beings under the mercy of the Immortal God. Bernard of Clairvaux has this to teach us.

"If you are wise, you will show yourself rather as a reserviour than as a canal. For a canal spreads abroad water as it receives it, but a reserviour waits until it is filled before overflowing, and thus communicates, without loss to itself, its superabundant water. In the Church at the present day, we have many canals, few reserviours." (Bernard of Clairvaux)

Truly, we may live for a day being the most effective and efficient canal. That should not be the purpose for our lives. We must become like a reserviour to receive God's blessings in all its fulness, so that we can become a channel of blessings not simply for many, but for any who is in need. This is the gospel of Christ. The good news of becoming a reserviour for God, so that we can work out the glory of God among people, always with God in mind.

ks

Wandering (a curse?)

“When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.” (Gen 4:12)

This curse on Cain is a terrible one, one that reflects the gravity of sin. Cain brought it upon himself. His life was a graphic display of the extent of sin. Selfishness, jealousy, murder and defiance. The question I will address in this blog is: "Is wandering a bad thing?" Is it too harsh of God to impose such a sentence on Cain? My quick answer is no. God has a purpose when he tells Cain to be a nomad. Unfortunately, Cain bit the hand, over and over again. A hand that offered him hope and an opportunity to turn over a new leaf.

Cain’s Life of Defiance
His selfish desire to keep some of his produce to himself made his offering a lesser one compared to his brother Abel, who gave ‘fat portions’ to the LORD (Gen 4:3-4). Instead of learning from his mistake, Cain became ‘very angry’ and ‘his face was downcast’ with the LORD’s treatment of him (Gen 4:5). Cain behaved as if the LORD is the one who is supposed to take-it-or-leave-it. He wanted the LORD to accept his offering on his own terms. It is like whatever Cain gives, the LORD should equally accept regardless of the quantities or intent of the givers. It is like a 'beggars cannot be choosers' kind of an attitude toward God. It was Cain who was born first, and he was the first to give an offering to the LORD. Yet, the first-mover advantage for Cain was overshadowed by his inadequate willingness in his heart to give. He failed to honour the LORD fully. His offering was eclipsed by Abel, due largely to his inner heart's attitude of not willing to honour God, the giver of all produce and life. He lacked the faith that the LORD is looking for. His jealousy turned into dangerous covetousness leading to an unrighteous form of anger. The NASB records Cain as being ‘very angry’ that leads to a crestfallen disposition. Immediately the LORD addressed Cain, asking him why he is so angry and downcast. He gave Cain advice to control his anger, and not allow sin to dominate his life. Interestingly, God’s conversation with Abel is unrecorded. Instead, Gen 4:1-16 is a recurring series of events about Cain and his rebellion against the LORD.

• The LORD looked on Abel’s offering with favour and Cain rebelled with anger.
  
• The LORD asked Cain to control his sin, but Cain allows sin to lead him to commit murder. He murdered Abel in cold blood.
  
• The LORD inquired of Cain about the whereabouts of Abel. Cain rebelled with a smut comment: “Am I my brother’s keeper?” Such defiant behaviour revealed the rebellious steak in Cain.
  
• The LORD banished Cain to be a vagrant and wanderer. Cain rebels again by ‘settling down’ at the East of Eden. Worse, he built a city as an open defiance against the LORD (Gen 4:17). Called to be a wanderer, to be constantly on the move, Cain rebels by sinking his roots in one place, refusing to move.
  
• Cain called the city he built after a human person, his son. This is in contrast to the way that Abraham names his cities and places, which is related to God’s name or to praise God. Such defiance is preposterous.

The list is depressing. At each point, we see the LORD giving Cain a chance to repent, but repeatedly, Cain wants to be lord over his own life, thinking that God should bow down to his wishes. Interestingly, Cain’s son ‘Enoch’ also means ‘city.’ It is the ultimate mark of defiance that he refuses to obey his calling to be a wanderer, but makes his place defiantly at a single location. Like blood getting clogged in one place, the fresh flow of blood to the rest of the body is curtailed. There is a reason for Cain to be on the move all the time. This is a way to prevent sin from crouching at his door and making inroads into his life. Yet, Cain refuses to repent from the multiple opportunities presented to him by God. He simply insists on his own ways and subsequently led to the devastation in the form of the great flood. Dr Bruce Waltke says: “He will be a nomad without home and security,” which aptly verbalizes Cain’s condition. Instead of continuing a nomad life until the LORD says otherwise, Cain draws his own conclusions and assumes control of his own destiny, instead of obeying God. God wants him to remain a wanderer until sin is no longer crouching at his doorstep. Instead, Cain wants to remain in the city, and entertains sin by inviting sin into his life and household.

Wandering in Christ
Here, there is a lesson on what faith entails. Faith is trusting God to reveal the next step to us, as we obey what has been clearly communicated to us. We do not presume God’s next step. Our next step is being faithful to what has been given us, until otherwise stated. When God gives us instructions, even harsh ones, he has our ultimate renewal and blessing in mind. He wants us to trust him, and not the world. He wanted a long-term relationship built on faith and trust, rather than a short-term fling that is erected on lust and worldliness. Wandering includes an element of running away from sins. I recall Paul’s instruction to Timothy that says:

“Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.” (2 Tim 2:22)

Unfortunately, Cain allowed his rebellious attitude to be personified into a city-like monumental challenge to God’s garden of Eden. By building a city on the East side of Eden, it is a work of confrontation against the rule of God. Being human, all of us have a wandering spirit. It is important not to see it as something that is all-bad. Instead, we must see the purpose of being a wanderer. It is not for the sake of restlessness for the sake of restlessness. It is not to become a nomad because God likes us to be aimless in life. It is for the sake of avoiding sin. It is to run away from sin as much as possible. It is an effort to be holy, a lifeline of spirituality for us to be holy once more, sanctified for God. Jesus Christ came to earth and wanders around from place to place. People tried to hold on to him, but he was quick to avoid being crowned and institutionalized in a single location. He would have been crowned king of the Jews in Jerusalem, but he chose to walk according to where the Spirit of God leads him. Obedience is greater than the desire to settle in one place. For Jesus knows that sin is always crouching at the door. He said that to Peter. He knows the danger. He experiences and triumphs over the temptations. In Christ, we no longer need to wander around aimlessly. We wander around in Christ. We wander along with the presence and companionship of the Holy Spirit. We become pilgrims on the journey of holiness. Do not adopt Cain-like defiance in our wandering. Do not even settle at being Abel-like in our giving. Become Christ-like in our obeying. Then we shall say to God in Christ:

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith;” (2 Tim 4:7)

In a nutshell, when we wander about, in all our restlessness, use it as an opportunity to run away from sin, toward the open arms of God. That said, wandering no longer becomes a curse, but an opportunity to embrace God.

ks

Andrew Widman (1978-2008)

This morning, I woke up with a shock from news about a former seminarian. A former missionary to Thailand, and a graduate of Gordon-Conwell, he felt a call to become a police officer and was completed his police academy training in September 2007. At a tender age of 30, he was killed in the line of duty as a police officer in Fort Myers, FL. He was not fighting a military war. He was not entering into to any gangland neighbourhood. He was simply trying to break up a domestic violence in the community that he was serving in. In the ensuing mayhem, he was suddenly shot in the face, without any time to defend himself. Andrew Widman leaves behind a wife and three young children (4 years, 20 months and a 5 month old infant). Cruel is an understatement. Gut wrenching. One word best describes my reaction: Devastated.

How can anyone justify such a killing? Just yesterday, I was teaching my kids that ‘anger’ is one letter away from ’danger.’ Kids do need to learn how to deal with their anger. Isn’t it true that anger is a behaviour that can become destructive if not dealt with appropriately? Rod Wilson and Glen Taylor describes anger as “an experience that occurs when a goal, value, or expectation that we have chosen has been blocked, or when our sense of self-worth is threatened.” Anger is a natural human emotion. Jesus has been angry before, but it was controlled anger. If our sense of self-worth is secure in God, we will not be easily shaken. The Psalmist cries out to God for mercy, knowing that God is the source of all comfort. When fallen into the deepest valley, the God of the highest mountain is able to lift him up. When drowning in the deepest waters, the God of the widest horizon is able to scoop up any sinking person. When trapped in the tiniest of crevices, the God of the universe is able to detect and sense the smallest squeak, the tiniest murmur and the minutest emotional movement. God is able to draw unto him every struggling person, attracting them to him like iron filings to magnet. God as a loving father constantly listens out to the cries of his people. He is close to the hearts of the Widmans. God, in Christ, alone is able to right all wrongs, cleanse all from sins, and deliver people from evil. Until that time arrives, we can only wait upon his comfort. We pray with all earnestness that God will be gentle upon the souls of the Widman family, to hear them out, to seek their attention, just as he seeks to give them the attention they needed.

Like most mourning, it takes a long time for healing to take place. I have previously described Elisabeth Kubler-Ross’s advice after a dear friend’s funeral service. I reproduce the stages of mourning here:

1. Shock stage: Initial paralysis at hearing the bad news.
   
2. Denial stage: Trying to avoid the inevitable.
   
3. Anger stage: Frustrated outpouring of bottled-up emotion.
   
4. Bargaining stage: Seeking in vain for a way out.
   
5. Depression stage: Final realization of the inevitable.
   
6. Testing stage: Seeking realistic solutions.
   
7. Acceptance stage: Finally finding the way forward.

Meditation on Ps 130:1-6

"Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord;
 O Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive 
 To my cry for mercy.
If you, O LORD, kept a record of sins,
 O LORD, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness,
 therefore you are feared."

(Ps 130:1-4)

This psalm is a cry for the Lord to listen and to show mercy. The psalmist knows in his deepest sorrow that the safest comfort comes only from the Lord. There is no other better source of consolation. There is both a desire to be encouraged, and also an awareness of personal sins and weaknesses. For one to be able to struggle from within, to seek help from above, and realize that one still needs to be forgiven is indeed a quality of a spiritual person. In it lies the secret of inner healing. So often when one experience bad times or suffering, there is a tendency to blame external factors and forgetting the inner aspects.

"I wait for the LORD, my soul waits,
 and in his word I put my hope.
My soul waits for the LORD
 more than watchmen wait for the morning,
 more than watchmen wait for the morning."

(Ps 130:5-6)

Isn't that a wonderful way to start our mourning or plea for help? It is an exercise of patience, anchored on God's Word? 'My soul waits' indicates the posture of the whole person. It includes heart, mind and will. It causes the physical action and the inner emotion to stay in sync. Neither will go prematurely before the other. Both waits for God's inner prompting and outer guidance. Verse 6 is unique. I want to make 3 observations of this verse. Firstly, the words 'more than watchmen wait for the morning' is repeated. Having a statement repeated is an important point in Hebrew literature. It shows the seriousness of the whole matter. A double emphasis coincides with the level of deep mourning and sorrow. Secondly, the Hebrew word for 'watchmen' is a verb. This teaches us that becoming a watchmen is a disposition to look out intently in hope. It is not a title or a mere job. Thirdly, there is a strong reference to hope. Morning will come, and one waits intently and expectantly for the coming of dawn. What a picture of hope! What a wonderful way to expect the coming of the LORD. This attitude of hope is so necessary in times of tragedy, struggle and suffering. May the LORD bring the Widman family close to him during this time of grief.

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More information below.

• Fox 4 news has it covered here.
  
• The statement from the Widman family can be read here.
• There are some efforts to raise $100k for the family.
  
• Fort Myers Police Department Memorial Page.