Our spiritual metabolism

I recently had a revelation about training ourselves in godliness..

"The apostle Paul warned Timothy, “Have nothing to do with godless myths and old
wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly.” 1 Tim 4: 7.
In an age when everything is instant, we expect transformations to happen quickly but
there is no such thing as instant godliness. The apostle wrote, ‘Train yourself to be
godly’. He exhorted Timothy to be disciplined in order to attain godliness."

Here, we can see that godliness isn't something that comes naturally, or without any hard work, but something that requires exercise; training; discipline.

The Bible constantly urges us to be holy, to live lives that please God, hence to do that, we need to discipline our flesh and here's what I learnt:

My boyfriend explained to me about our metabolic system.
He says that to get our metabolic system going, we need to be constantly pushing it beyond its limits. Like for example, when we run, we need to push it beyond what we can bear, so that when we stop, the body is still in gear; the metabolic rate is still in motion. And as for our daily lives, even when we are doing mundane things like taking the lift, we can lift our bags to work our arms, and such little exercises keep our body going. This is so that even when we are not doing anything, our body's metabolism goes into auto-pilot, and is always in gear.
I see it as the same way as our spirituality.
In training ourselves up in godliness, we need to constantly crucify our flesh, such that on its own, we are always in tuned with the Spirit. Like, for example in little ways like praying.. Whenever we don't feel like praying when we should, we should crucify the flesh and push it a little such that even when at rest, the body (us) is always in the Spirit zone.

..And now, time for a little pushing ;)

Revelation about love

I had a revelation about love..

The bible says, Love bears all things, hopes all things, believes all things, endures all things (1 Corinthians 13:7);
To bear all things evil, and is not overcome. This is the idea of bear. Love bears up against the tide of evil, as the rock against the waves. Believes all things, is not distrustful and suspicious; Hopes all things, is hopeful instead of despondent and hopes for the best. How hard for the loving mother to give up on her recreant son! Endures all things; To endures patiently persecution and suffering. And here, the cardinal quality of fortitude, hardihood and unyielding persistence is meant.

Love is not on the basis of how the person is to you. It is to love irregardless. That loving someone is not on the basis of how well he treats you, or if he has a mood swing you love him less. That is not love. But the real kind of love is one that is borne purely inward (not out of an outward reciprocration), regardless of how the person treats you. And when you love that way, nothing the person do can affect your love for him. And even when the other party hurts you or upsets you, or even if it seems like the other party does not care, one can continue to love and give. For that kind of love is not circumstance nor person-driven.
And there can be greater joy in loving this way; to love irregardless. For half a heart is not a whole. To love wholly, is to give it your all. The same way God loves us.

We love because he first loved us. 1 John 4:19

too long..

It's been too long since I last wrote in my good news journal..
Did God not bless me? Did He not speak to me? Of course not! He never stopped speaking; never stopped blessing. He is faithful. Always.
I was reading today's Daily Bread (February 6, 2007) on Spiritual Passion:

I have this against you, that you have left your first love. —Revelation 2:4

"Why does spiritual passion fade so easily? When we first experience God’s love, we spend hours thinking about Him, studying His Word, and telling others how much He means to us. Then it happens. Our busy schedules slowly dampen our passion. Our longing for Jesus and our study of His character become an occasional glance. Surely the object of our affection hasn’t changed!

The church at Ephesus wrestled with maintaining its spiritual passion. Jesus, through John, wanted to help them restore and maintain their love and zeal for Him. Although He commended this church for their work, Jesus saw that they had abandoned their first love—Him (Rev. 2:4).

The Ephesians had lost their spiritual passion for Jesus. It had become a cold and mechanical orthodoxy. I wonder if they had allowed the stealthy culprit of religion and busyness to enter their hearts. Whatever it was, something had stolen the affection they had once reserved for the Lord.

Have you allowed something to steal your passion? If so, it can be restored and maintained when you consistently remember His amazing love demonstrated at Calvary. Repent of your sinful, unloving attitudes, and out of love for Jesus repeat your "first works" (v.5). —Marvin Williams

What once was filled with wonder
Lies cold within my heart;
Return, O Lord, that wonder,
And may it not depart. —Sper

Devotion to Jesus is the key to spiritual passion."


... and so I decided to continue from where I left off..
Hence my first entry for the year :)

No matter what happens, we will never cancel out God's love for us.
The bible says, Draw close to God and He will draw close to you (James 4:8) and it cannot be more true than that. Which is why, no matter how spiritually low or dry you feel, never stop seeking Him. When troubles come, run TO Him, not away from Him. Even when you feel guilty, ashamed or even embarrassed, go TO your Father. When we take one step towards God, He will take a thousand steps towards us. Don't entertain thoughts of condemn and escape from Him. Should you feel low, my advice is to squeeze out any ounce of energy to seek after Him, and you will be glad you did so, for you will be rewarded. I have been, that's why I can testify to that.

He never fails.
He is faithful, and His mercy endures forever.

my tongue is the pen

I've always loved to write. Sometimes when I don't know how to speak to God, I start by writing to Him. Tonight, as I sit on my desk attempting to write Him a song or a poem, I prayed, "God, let me worship You with my pen." I proceeded to write and then God said, my tongue is the pen of a skilful writer. Ps 45:1

Speak, keep on speaking, the Lord says.
If you think your prayers are weak, keep on praying.
The Lord does not despise every prayer you make.

I couldn't ask for a better friend, Lord
You're my Saviour and my God
With You I find eternity
In You I trust completely

Every page of my life is a new beginning,
so wonderfully written by You.
Every chapter is a revelation,
Every journey is a discovery.
Thank You Holy Spirit,
for You are with me.

Doing

Why I do the things that I do.

Not so that I may earn or keep my salvation but rather cos I love Him and I wanna please Him, no more than a child wanting to please her parents just by being a good girl. EVEN with the knowing that they love me all the same.

I remember this song my 5 yr-old friend taught me when I was 10...

"Jesus loves me this I know
For the bible tells me so
Jesus loves me when I'm bad
Tho' that makes Him very sad
Yes Jesus loves me
Yes Jesus loves me
Yes Jesus loves me
For the bible tells me so"

On my bible reference, it says, "How hard should we obey the bible?"
Then the king stood in his place and made a covenant before the LORD, to follow the LORD, and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of the covenant that were written in this book. (2 Chronicles 34:31)

I thank the Lord God for His encouragement and assurance that all things we do, no matter how little and whether it is done in the secret or in the open, He knows. And I wanna encourage all of us to continue to be faithful in the little things, for they do not go unnoticed. Tho' we do not do it for a reward, but we do it out of our love for our Lord Jesus Christ, who is always faithful and ever loving.

Forgiveness

To a dear friend,
I write to you with love... on what I know to be biblical; to be God's word and truth... I preach not, and will not impose this upon you, for God gives us free will, and will never force Himself upon us. Hence, I write in here to share with you on the topic of forgiveness...

"Teach us how to pray," the disciples said to Jesus. (Luke 11:1) He answered by teaching them the prayer we call the Our Father or The Lord's Prayer:

"...Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. "

This petition of the Lord's Prayer is a demanding one. Not only do we ask God's forgiveness for our daily offenses, but we link God's forgiveness of us with our forgiveness of others. Forgiving others is not always easy to do. We need God's help to do it. But it must be done or we ourselves cannot receive God's mercy.

The parable of the unforgiving servant:
“But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’ (Matt 18:28)
Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?’ And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.
“So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.” (Matt 18:32-35)


When I speak of the unforgiving man, I speak of the man who is stubborn, whose heart is hardened and who finds no room in him to offer forgiveness to others even as he is forgiven. I trust that my friend has been offered grace by our Lord God, and has rendered forgiveness to others even when it is difficult. Surely our Lord is bigger than any of our sins, but He asks that we forgive others as He forgave us.
“And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. (Mark 11:25)

And with so many verses from the bible where God asks us to forgive, surely it is His will that we forgive so that we may too be forgiven.

Dear friend, I write to you with grace and peace in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and I trust that you have forgiveness as the Lord has been gracious in forgiving us. The unforgiving man I speak about is not you, but the one whose heart is hardened, who finds no room in his heart to forgive. For if God's spirit is in us, surely we will always have room to love and to forgive, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. (1 John 4:7-8)

Amen.

So you think it is not fair..

When I was younger, I used to hold anti-Christ sentiments, thinking that it was not fair that one man could save all. I mean, but of course, he's God, isn't he? Surely it's a breeze for him, doing all that he did.
"That's so unfair!"

But here's what made me see the light, so thought I really oughtta share it:

"I have heard some people complain that if Jesus was God as well as man, then His sufferings and death lose all value in their eyes, 'because it must have been so easy for Him'. The perfect submission, the perfect suffering, the perfect death were not only easier to Jesus because He was God, but were possible only because He was God. But surely that is a very odd reason for not accepting them? The teacher is able to form the letters for the child because the teacher is grown-up and knows how to write. That, of course, makes it easier for the teacher; and only because it is easier for him can he help the child. If it rejected him because 'it's easy for grown-ups' and waited to learn writing from another child who could not write itself (and so had no 'unfair' advantage), it would not get on very quickly. If I am drowning in a rapid river, a man who still has one foot on the bank may give me a hand which saves my life. Ought I to shout back (between my gasps) 'No, it's not fair! You have an advantage! You're keeping one foot on the bank'? That advantage - call it 'unfair' if you like - is the only reason why he can be of any use to me. To what will you look for help is you will nt look to that which is stronger than yourself?"
(Mere Christianity, CS Lewis)


The perfect penitent.

level of faith

I have a thing about waiting for buses and praying for them. So, just wanna share one of them:

That day, I was leaving from work and since I was late, I prayed for my bus to come. As soon as I did that, I started to hurry to the bus stop, for I knew in my heart that God was gonna send the bus to me. And the moment I set foot on the bus stop, my bus arrived! At that point, there was only one thing on my mind,

"If you have the faith to believe, God will be faithful to deliver."
..just a revelation to a very simple example.

when you believe, believe with all your heart, mind and body.

Waiting, in the Hope

I have been praying in THE hope, for the bible says, "Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently." (Rom 8:24-25) And I am waiting patiently in THE hope :)

But the hope is not passive.

For the waiting is not moving from nothing to something, but from something to something more, as I learn in "Finding My Way Home" by Henri Nouwen.

"..there is none of that passivity in Scripture. Those who are waiting are waiting very actively. They know that what they are waiting for is growing from the ground on which they are standing. If we wait in the conviction that a seed has been planted and that something has already begun, it changes the way we wait. Active waiting implies being fully present to the moment with the conviction...

Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38)

A waiting person is a patient person. The word 'patience' implies the willingness to stay where we are and live the situation out to the full in the belief that something hidden will mainifest itself to us. Impatient people expect the real thing to happen somewhere else, and therefore they want to get away from the present situation and go elsewhere. But patient people dare to stay where they are. Waiting, then, is not passive. It involves nurturing the growth of something within.

Waiting is also open-ended. Zechariah, Elizabeth, Mary, Simeon and Anna were filled with hope. Their hope was trusting that fulfillment would come, not according to their wishes, but according to the promises of God. Their hope was open-ended."

I pray that even as I wait, I do not lose sight of the call of God and get too obsessed over what I am waiting for, but rather to remain open to the call of God; to be sensitive to His voice, that I may be so versatile to move in His ways, according to His will for me. Thank You Jesus for the hope that I have in You.

Guard against thieves

Praying for deliverance, I received another tip on how to guard/ consecrate our minds:

"One of the early fathers said: "When thieves approach a house in order to creep up to it and steal, and hear someone inside talking, they do not dare to climb in; in the same way, when our enemies try to steal into the soul and take possession of it they creep all round but fear to enter when they hear that...prayer welling out."

That is why the bible tells us to pray unceasingly.

Amen.

sin in your dreams?

Knowing how I could ask God if I had any questions, I wondered out of curiousity and asked if we could sin in our dreams. Then when I was reading Reaching Out...

"What is the source of those unbecoming nocturnal phantasies? he said: "They arise out of the disordered movements of the soul that occur during the day. But if a man should occupy himself with the judgements of God and so purify his soul and concern himself constantly with good matters and things pleasing to God, then these things will fill his dreams (instead)."

I love how God answers me all the time :)

Solitude

With regards to a certain dispositional problem, I kept questioning myself as to why I had reacted that way, so I sought God for help..and I asked Him to help me understand the problem. I also asked God about solitude and loneliness...

I prayed that God speak to me.
And He is faithful (ALWAYS) to guide me as I walk with Him.


I always try to be like Jesus as best as I can; to be compassionate; to be more tolerant; to be patient, but more often than not, I fail, and I snap at my family or friends. Although my latest achievement is that I am getting slightly better at being more patient with strangers. Nonetheless, I still feel inadequate.
And as I asked the earlier question, God showed me the importance of sorting out my personal issues (for the first and most important aspect of healing is 'diagnosis'), and in my case, an intra-personal diagnosis.

He pointed,
"As long as we are lonely, we cannot be hospitable because as lonely people we cannot create free space. Our own need to still our inner cravings of loneliness makes us cling to others instead of creating space for them."

And as a response to my personal problem I was facing, He had this to say,
"When we feel lonely we have such a need to be liked and loved that we are hypersensitive to the many signals in our environment and easily become hostile toward anyone whom we perceive as rejecting us."

Solution: To empty your heart and mind. To become completely poor. For when you have given of yourself totally, even the thief has nothing to rob you of, hence there is nothing to defend.
[Henri Nouwen, Reaching Out]


Drowning in the sea of sentimentality,
I struggled to swim.
As I battled in blindness,
I started to see..
Till I learn to love,
I cannot cope.
Till I learn to loose,
I could not contend.
But as long as I am faithful to seek,
God is faithful to speak.

if you want Him, show Him you want Him

I pray often for God to change me.
I want to be more like Jesus.

..and then I realised: If I wanted to be more like Jesus, where is that 'wanted'?
I mean if I 'wanted' to be more like Jesus, surely there should be greater discipline in working at it. It definitely wouldn't be sincere if I just sat in front of my computer at work, wishing I could glorify Him, and then after that, doze back off to sleep. Where is the 'want' in this case? Where is the effort? It is ironical to say I love Him, and then expect Him to change my heart so I can love Him more.

I must demonstrate more of the 'want' in my day-to-day life.

I thank that God is full of grace and mercy, and He loves me nonetheless.
I thank that I can lean on Him for strength. God IS my strength.

I do my best, God will do the rest.

Thank You Jesus.

Don't seek after a sign

About a day later, after I thought about what I did back home.. staring at the sky, hoping to see what my future would bring, I was reminded of a bible verse in

Matthew 16:
' Hypocrites! You know how to discern the appearance of the sky, but you can't discern the signs of the times!
An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and there will be no sign given to it..

I shouldn't attempt this again; staring at the sky, hoping for a sign.
Ya, getting up and getting back to work was correct.
mental note: Don't do this again :p

work

For a long time, I have lost the passion for my work.
I drag my feet to the office and I am always late.
I hate to admit it, but the way I work brings no glory to God.

God said, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men." (Col 3:23-24)

Martin Luther said, "A dairymaid can milk cows to the glory of God."

"Do everything as it you were doing it for Jesus and by carrying a continual conversation while you do it", that is the secret to a lifestyle of worship. (2004, Rick Warren)

I learn..

focus your eyes on eternity

This morning, I woke up feeling rather sombre and God comforted me,

"If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. (Col 3:1-2)

An eternal perspective means that you look at today's events in light of eternity. Does today's 'crisis' have any bearing on eternity? Will it matter when you get to heaven? Will it even matter in 100 years? Is it worth all the anxiety, worry and pain? Since you have been raised to life with Christ, then think about things with a heavenly mindset."

Yes. I must.

definition of judging

On Sat morning, after I finished my prayer, as I was keeping my notebook, something came to mind.

"Not judging is not forming a conclusion or an opinion about something."

As soon as I had that thought, I wondered where that came from.. I mean, I wasn't even praying about anything close to that that morning..

But I wrote it down anyways.

And then I smiled at the thought knowing that God has just drawn the line for me :)

cos to tell the truth, I am a rather judgemental person, so I pray often about it, and I ask God to forgive me of my sin of judging. And that morning, God has made it easier for me. How better to avoid making the mistake than to know exactly what is wrong so you do not do it.

"You, then, why do you judge your brother? For we will all stand before God's judgement seat. Therefore let us stop passing judgement on one another."
(Rom 14:10, 13)

Amen.

Put your trust in the Lord

Some people say, "You can't trust men but you can trust God."
Some say, "You can trust God but you can't trust men."
Seemingly similar but each appears to send a different message.
I should think the 2nd statement sounds more pessimistic..
and then I think.. so what is it?
Which should come first?

..and then I realised of course the Bigger one has the final say.

What I mean is, no matter what happens,
ultimately we can always trust God to set everything right,
for "In everything God works for good with those who love him, who are called according to his purpose." (Rom 8:28)

amen.
We have a good God.

Talkin to Jesus

Y'know, keep talkin to Jesus. Cos He is listening. God says seek and you will find, ask and you shall receive. You have not because you ask not!
"Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete." (John 16:24)

So anyways, this noon, I was getting exasperated with myself, so I asked God. "God, what can I do with these thoughts of mine? Why do they keep coming? Am I thinking these thoughts knowingly or unknowingly and what can I do about it? God I pray that You will teach me. Holy Spirit, You are my guide, my shepherd and my teacher."

And... this evening, strange but not so strange, God taught me what to do.

"Suppose I ask you to take care of my house while I am out of town. You pledge to keep everything in great shape. But when I return, I find the place in shambles. The carpet is torn, walls are smeared, furniture is broken. Your explanation is not impressive: some bikers came by and needed a place to stay. Then the rugby team called, looking for a place for their party. And of course there was the fraternity-they wanted a place to hold their initiation ceremony. As the owner I have one question: "Don't you know how to say no? This is not your house. You don't have the right to let in everyone who wants to enter.
Ever think God wants to say the same to us?

GUARDING OUR HEARTS

You've got to admit some of our hearts are thrashed out. Let any riffraff knock on the door, and we throw it open. Anger shows up, and we let him in, Revenge needs a place to stay, so we have him pull up a chair. Pity wants to have a party, so we show him the kitchen. Lust rings the bell, and we change the sheets on the bed. Don't we know how to say no? Many don't. We think much about time management, weight management, personnel management, even scalp management, but what about thought management?

The answer is surprisingly simple.
We can be transformed if we make one decision: I will submit my thoughts to the authority of Jesus.

To have a pure heart, we must submit all thoughts to the authority of Christ. What I mean about authority? Here's how it works.

A GUARD AT THE DOORWAY
The Holy Spirit is ready to help you manage and filter the thoughts that try to enter. He can help you guard your heart. He stands with you on the threshold. A thought approaches, a questionable thought. Do you throw open the door and let it enter? Of course not. You 'fight to capture every thought until it acknowledges the authority of Christ' (2 Cor 10:5) You don't leave the door unguarded. You stand equipped with handcuffs and leg irons, ready to capture any thought not fit to enter. For the sake of discussion, let's say a thought regarding your personal value approaches. With all the cockiness of a neighbourhood bully, the thought swaggers up to the door and says, "You're a loser. All your life you've blown relationships and jobs. LOSER." So rather than let the thought in, you take it captive and march it down before the judgement of Christ. "Jesus, this thought says I'm a loser and will never amount to anything. What do You think?"
See what you are doing? You are submitting the thought to the authority of Jesus. If Jesus agrees with the thought, then let it in. If not, kick it out."

See? If we ask God, God will be faithful to answer. How? Some may ask. How would I know that it is Jesus who is talkin to me?

1) Walk close with Him
To understand someone really well, you communicate with the person a lot. Dwell with the person. So, same with God. Talk to Him, sing to Him, dwell and bask in His presence. Feel His love and let Him surround you everyday; Spend time.

2) Read the word
The Word is God.
How can we know God without reading the word? 'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.' (John 1:1)

3) Be sensitive to Him
If a voice within your heart is tellin you something and you think it is God and you want to be sure, confirm it with Him. Ask Him and He will be faithful to answer. Or talk to someone about it; Ask an elder, for 'in the multitude of counselors there is safety' (Prov 24:6)

Amen.

"Y'know, God I love Your voice, I love when You speak to me cos You teach me so much and most of all, You teach me to be more like Jesus. I love You. You bring joy to my heart. You bring water when it is dry, You bring peace where there is noise. You are love. I can love You because You first loved me. You teach me how to love You. Oops, I'm blabbering as I speak to You. I love You so. Words are not enough. Thank You Lord. I love You. I want to walk in righteousness."

'If you love me, you will obey what I command.' (John 14:15)

Amen.

Convicted

I prayed to God to fill me with greater compassion, patience and tolerance. I had felt that I was such a lack-love that I told God I must be the most unsympathetic Christian around. Yet God was faithful to answer my questions and prayers promptly each time…

Prior to this, I have had to nurse a sick friend albeit unwillingly. Then God told me “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality.”
Romans 12:9-13 (NIV)

And then, another time, I had gotten upset with a friend. I went home thinking I’ll probably not want to go out with him anymore but I asked God to speak to me nonetheless, and He said, “We are to resolve the differences that divide us.” I was taken aback, for that surely called for obedience. So I quickly picked up the phone and smsed my friend to clear things up.

During this whole period of time, I was feeling physically lethargic and was reluctant to avail myself for many church-related activities, even my ministry, giving myself the ‘reason’ that I should lead a balanced lifestyle by not stretching myself. Then God spoke to me amidst my tiredness, “I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others.”
2 Cor 8:8 (NIV)

By now, I was pretty blown away. I mean, for every doubt I had, God had an answer and more amazingly, He spoke to me in verses that couldn’t have been more specific.

One fateful day, I had woken up a little tired and while sitting on the bus reading my bible, I felt that Holy Spirit tell me, “Do not take His grace in vain.” Later that day, God was to speak to me about a statement I made.. It was this day that I told God I must be the most unsympathetic Christian around. And God showed me the narrative of a leper:

“For five years no one touched me. No one. Not one person. Not my wife. Not my child. Not my friends…
What is common to you, I coveted. Handshakes. Warm embraces. A tap on the shoulder to get my attention. What I would have given to be bumped into, to be caught in a crowd.. But for five years, it has not happened. I was not allowed on the streets. I was not permitted in my synagogue. Not even welcome in my own house. I was untouchable. I was a leper. And no one touched me. Until today..

The banishing of a leper seems harsh, unnecessary. The Ancient East hasn’t been the only culture to isolate their wounded, however. We may not build colonies or cover our mouths in their presence, but we certainly build walls and duck our eyes. And a person needn’t have leprosy to feel quarantined..

At the sight of me, fathers grabbed their children. Mothers covered their faces. Children pointed and stared. I grew so tired of the damnable bell I was required to wear around my neck to warn people of my presence. One glance and the announcements began, “Unclean! Unclean! Unclean! The rags on my body couldn’t hide my sores. Nor could the wrap on my face hide the rage in my eyes. I didn’t even try to hide it. What did I do to deserve this?

Moved by desperate anger, I stepped out. “Master!”

“Lord You can heal me if you will.”

“I will.”

But He wasn’t satisfied with speaking to me. He drew near me. He touched me. Energy flooded my body like water through a furrowed field. In an instant, in a moment, I felt warmth where there had been numbness. And I will never forget the one who dared to touch me. He could have healed me with a word but he wanted to do more than heal me. He wanted to honor me, to validate me, to christen me. Imagine that..unworthy of the touch of a man, yet worthy of the touch of God.”

The book then went on to ask,
“Jesus touched the untouchables of the world. Will you do the same?

Let he who has ears to hear, use them. How long has it been since you had your hearing checked? When God throws seed your way, what is the result?

May I raise a question or two to test how well you hear God’s voice?

How long has it been since you let God have you?
I mean really have you? How long since you gave Him a portion of undiluted, uninterrupted time listening for His voice…”

At this time, I was deeply convicted in my heart. My tears flowed down my cheeks as I walked out of the MRT train. “God.. Your touch… I can never live without Your touch, I can never leave You.. I never want to drift away from You..”

What I experienced that evening was immense. And it wasn’t just the book or the very anointed service I subsequently attended. It was God. I was completely overwhelmed. I think when God wants to speak, there is no hiding from it. God is faithful. God is real. We can never walk away from Him. I wouldn’t want to. I couldn’t.

Pastor Phil was right. Prayers open heaven.
For something to happen in the natural, it must first happen in the spirit. For the past weeks, I had prayed for God to convict my heart towards Him. Amen.