It's God's fault

I don't know whether to be amused or angry, to laugh or to cry. Human nature is so self-contradictory at times. We live as if there's no God, in fact many profess not to believe in a divine being, yet at almost every turn we blame this purportedly non-existent divine being for a lot of things in life.

Take floods or earthquakes as a simple example. Insurance policies exclude liability that arises or is consequent upon such catastrophic occurrences. They call it 'acts of God'. What has God to do with it, when clever science can tell us precisely how such things happen? In fact we have become so smart we have invented tools to predict when these things will happen. Of course, we conveniently forget it's humans who actually have a hand in contributing to such incidents by our flagrant disregard for the environment we live in. Whether it's stuck drains or rivers dumped with tonnes of rubbish (originated from humans), or deforestation or gases we pump into the atmosphere, we are blithely oblivious of the truth that we reap what we sow. We attribute it all to that fella called god who's wrecking vengeance on poor earthlings for daring to ignore him. Yet in the same breath, we have people who say that those very floods and earthquakes prove there is no God, otherwise he should/would have prevented them from happening. Geez, we can't seem to make up our mind which is what.

There are many who even think it's God's fault that people kill people, all in the name of religion. Really? That's some convoluted thinking. So if everybody became atheist, nobody would kill anybody. Seriously? Wars have broken out over much much lesser things than God. Check out that guy impatiently honking at a slow driver in the fast lane - he's got murder on his mind, even if he hasn't actuated the deed. Let's not even get into all that stuff about violence, hatred and crimes. All I can see is it isn't God's finger that pushes the buttons on bomb-rigged vests and whatever the reason, the hands that beat up a wife or throws away an unwanted new-born baby are a human’s hands, not God’s.

  
And whilst we are on a roll, I am very sure the God of my bible would never condone  any cheating, corruption or financial mismanagement of any man-created institution, no matter that it lays claim to being religious. In fact Jesus reserved His harshest words for the religious leaders of His day, pointing out their hypocrisy and erroneous assumptions that merely following the rules of religion would justify them as righteous saints. He called them "whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean." My, that's rich.... and He got so angry at God's house of prayer being turned into a market-place He overturned tables and threw people out. Which just goes to show God isn't into  'religiousness'.

No, it isn't religion that covers over a multitude of wrongs, as someone puts it sweepingly. Let's be honest with ourselves and own up our sin and not confuse religion  with God.   Interestingly beyond the normally accepted definition of religion as a belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, Google also defines religion as a pursuit or interest to which someone ascribes supreme importance. In that sense everyone has a religion - all of us 'worship' someone/something. I dare say even an atheist has a religion - he is his own god.

It strikes me as odd that as much and as often as we blame God for all sorts of bad things happening in this world, we never 'blame' Him for the good things...How often do we 'credit' God with the infinite beauty of the world all around us (ie if we care to look beyond the ugliness which we caused)? Do we ever think of God when we watch the sun rise or notice a flower bloom? Of course not, that's nature... it just happens. Like humans just happen ... to come out from a monkey, and the monkey just happen to come out... from a fish...or whatever our puny little minds  think happened.

We never question how come we can wake up the next morning still breathing. Or how we still have a job to work at. Or that we are able to do the 1001 things we think of doing (and some things impossible to do even). Nope, the good stuff is all our doing, never God's. After all, it's our brains, our bodies, our efforts, our hard work that get us a life.

We seem to forget all too easily our life is really not our own; in fact we could just drop dead at any moment - of sickness, accidents, and oh yes, don't forget the bombs. My patience has been sorely tried these days, as I keep receiving well-intentioned messages over social media about which places to avoid in the aftermath of the terrorist attack in Jakarta. If I were to heed them, I would have to give up shopping for much needed groceries at this, that or the other mall. I would have to cease my usual Saturday activity of feeding the homeless since it's right slap in the very heart of Petaling Street, which is an obvious target for racists and/or terrorists attacks. Forget about going  into KL city centre at all,  since it's a 'very hot' spot. Perhaps I should 'jump state' - Penang? Too touristy, maybe Trengganu or Kelantan. Or maybe just emigrate... avoid Europe - too many refugees,  Australia is a better bet  - that's everyone's fave. Actually,  I think I might as well  never venture outside my house.

We don't need some intelligence report to tell us a terrorist attack is 'a real and tangible menace' in our country. I salute the authorities for already doing their job - they are on red alert, which they should be. Still, they are but human; they can't be everywhere, they can't guarantee absolute safety. They can do their best, and that's all that can be reasonably expected.

So in the meantime, what are we ordinary mortals expected to do? Stop frequenting crowded places? Right, common sense. So tell me, for how long can we hide in the 'security' of our brick houses - what about the thieves and the robbers - where do we hide from them? Heck, come to think of it,  I could die from a simple fall in the bathroom of my own home.  Do we not realize the plain truth (unpalatable as it is) is no one is safe from death- anywhere? When our 'time' is up, it's up, despite all the preventive steps we take to 'not die'. And if it’s not yet our ‘time’, nothing can kill us.Yes, we should be careful, but  why do we need to be get all paranoid and obsessed with 'taking care' of our lives?

Perhaps the real issue isn't about terrorists, but about death. If we can't come to terms with that, we will always be fearful of the 'what if's' that can happen to us. So what if..... I die today...of a heart attack, in a road accident, blown apart by a bomb? So what? I know my God holds me in the very palm of His hands. I know the moment I cease to breathe here, I go back to my Maker who loves me, who has already prepared for me an even better experience called eternity.  Knowing all that, I am free and freed to live ....without fear of anyone, any power or anything that threatens my life on earth.

Now, where is my shopping list? I need to go to the mall.

 
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."- Philippians 4:6-7

Published MMO 18/1/2016

A Matter Of Perspective

The Bible says God knows our heart's desires and will grant them as we delight ourselves in Him. Indeed He knew how I wanted to get away from the madding crowd and just be alone to seek His face as 2015 wound down to a close. So He sent me a gift - a $900 per nite fully furnished apartment up in the cool of Genting, complete with the luxury of a private room jacuzzi, plus all the other trappings of a 5 star hotel with heated pool, sauna, steam bath etc etc. I got to stay absolutely free, thanks to a very dearly beloved sister in Christ. How blessed can one be...
For 2 days I retreated into a world where the only sounds were the chirping of birds outside the verandah and the rattling of the wooden sliding doors as the wind whooshed its way in and around the apartment.


2 days is a lot of time to spend alone, waiting. I have never been very good at keeping still, since I am the go-getter type. I grow impatient very fast.  The last time I retreated to Frasers Hill , God spoke a lot to me.  So I was full of expectation this time round, hoping for all kinds of deep spiritual revelation. But I have found God never lives up to my expectations; He simply goes beyond them. I think He delights in surprises. After 2 days I only got 1 word out of Him - I am His beloved. That wasn't even something new; in fact ever since I 'heard' those words in my heart  months  ago, I have hung onto them as a very very precious treasure.  Still I was sort of disappointed... I come all the way, and that's it? Immediately the rebuke came, "Isn't it enough, child?"                                                                                                        
Of course it is, coming from God, it (whatever it may be) is always enough. And with that I had to be content. Who was I to insist God must tell me everything I want to know? If He deigns to reveal something to me, it's all because He is gracious; not because I deserve or am entitled to know. My husband used to say I only need to know the things I need to know. Guess it works same way with God. As it turned out, the 2 days were in no way wasted; my rest in the presence of God was sweet and complete as only He can make it.


To cap it all, I got to spend another 2 days relaxing in the company of some of my staff who had responded to my open invit to join me after my solitary sojourn.  It was simply R&R fun, playing monopoly, swimming, eating, and having a surprisingly great time together exploring the local strawberry farm.

Yep, God always dishes up surprises. As we drove back down from the mountain and hit the big city of KL once again, I thought that was it. But He wasn't finished with me yet. The next day I resumed my early morning jog round the park. The sky was a deep dark blue with but a few bright stars twinkling in the still dark predawn hour. However as I looked harder and longer, I realized actually there were multitudes of tiny stars littering the whole canopy of heaven. Their light was dim, but they were shining. And then I saw the bright yellow half-moon directly overhead. I hadn't seen it earlier because I was looking from a different angle, not straight up. Science of course explains it easily with theories of planet rotation through the seasons and all that jazz.  But what caught me was the moon hovering over me all the time, no matter in which direction I stood, ran or walked. It seemed to be 'following' me all the way. And to think  I wasn't even aware of it.


Isn't that so like how we regard God? Many people miss God altogether because they are looking from the wrong angle. He could be standing right in front of our noses and we could still miss Him. What's more pitiful is we wouldn't even know it. No wonder so many don't 'get' what Jesus Christ stands for. For all the miracles He performed, people in His time thought of Him as merely a human carpenter, the son of Joseph and Mary. To this day, people still think Jesus is simply a great (human) teacher. Then and now, people want proof - a sign - of His claim to be God. His answer then and now stands - No sign will be given to a wicked generation. He declared simply He Himself is the sign - He is Jesus the Christ, crucified, risen and coming again, with life and liberty to all who believe. It all boils down to simply a matter of perspective - not what we see/don't see, but how we see.

On the way Jesus asked them, “Who do people say I am?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.” 
Mark 8:27-29

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