In His Time

Ignoring what they said, Jesus told the synagogue ruler, "Don't be afraid; just believe."

(Mark 5:36, NIV)

He pushed through the massive crowd. In his desperation, this father made his way right in front and threw himself down at the feet of Jesus. This is the man he needed to see. He heard of his incredible reputation of healing the sick. His only hope. This anxious dad pleaded Jesus to go to his house and heal his ill child. Although Jesus agreed to his plea, they were drowned in the sea of people pushing to get a touch of Jesus. The anxiety of this dad increased with Jesus’ relaxed composure. Jesus did not seem in any hurry at all. He even stopped to attend to other people along the way.

Soon, the worried dad received news from home that his precious daughter died. His only hope – Jesus, was not a hope at all?! Now all he could see and hear was a numb silence in his own spirit. Is there really hope? As he struggled to think rationally, he could hear the commotion around him. “It’s too late.” “Don’t bother Jesus.” “Your girl is dead.”

The message rang in my head and heart throughout this week since I read this familiar story of Jairus running after Jesus to heal his sick daughter to my toddler. Although the words are simpler in his small illustrated children’s bible, the Spirit spoke to my heart with clarity and hope.

How many times we look at our hopeless situation and are left numb?
How many times we see our vision die?

Jairus was standing with his living hope. He was face to face with Jesus. He pleaded. Jesus heard him. But his girl still died!

Have we thought we found hope but to see it slip through our fingers?
Have we screamed at God for deliverance and waited with anticipation, but He seemed to be silent? We thought it’s urgent but He seemed relaxed.

Jesus ignored the commotion and spoke with authority. He said, "Don't be afraid; just believe."

It calls for courage to keep believing which seems hopeless. When we encounter God and hears him, he empowers us to be brave and to continue to trust him even when we are face with impossibilities. As long as we are with Jesus, we are safe. Just believe…

As soon as Jesus reached Jairus’ home, he turned the overwhelming sadness into unspeakable joy. Jesus ordered the girl to get up and walk. Indeed she did!

…when we continue to believe and trust God, he makes all things beautiful in his time. When we wait and trust with believing heart, he turns a bad situation in which we mourn into a ball whereby we can dance. He turns our begging into banquet. He resurrects dead dreams and recover vanished visions.

So, don’t be afraid, just keep believing! A room for miracle to make God famous.

“Heavenly Father, give me strength and grace in the waiting. I know there’s nothing impossible when we are together. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Mummy, Milk… Mummy, Mummy, Milk!

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.

(Psalm 42:1-2, NIV)

Time out is good for me. It is necessary. Whenever I return home, I can see and hear an excited child running to greet me. “Mummy, mummy…” The child will jump on me and snuggled up under my arms. Next, he will burrow his way through while giving me a smile, “Mummy, milk.” Grandparents will always laugh and tease him that he needs his fix. The moment he latches on, he will be contented and enjoy his moment nursing in the warmth of my arms. A typical picture of our home for the past years. This has been the normal experience of nursing four babies till toddlerhood, and one till preschool. The best antidote to soothe a distress baby or wounded child is to nurse him.

The child finds immense comfort and contentment nursing in the mum’s arms. The intimate bond brings forth unspeakable joy. Here in the secure and loving arms of mummy, the child receives gentle whispers of love, assurance and affirmation of his identity. The eyes of the innocent child meet the loving eyes of mum. They exchange smiles. My little one even hums and dances during his feeds. He purely enjoys his moments while being satisfied with nature’s best food. I remember how one of my girls told me, “Mummy’s milk is the best” after tasting cow’s milk for the first time!

One of the greatest joys of motherhood is that God has designed the woman’s body not just with attractive curves and aesthetic assets, but with a higher purpose. To nourish her young! It is an excellent and enriching experience for both mother and child. Along with it is a great analogy of Psalm 42:1-2. Here the psalmist pants for God like the deer pants for the water. It is so similar to the nursing child’s longing after mum’s presence and milk for they satisfy like no other, we should long after God’s presence and living water. Truly none can satisfy like the Giver of Life.

My child would chase me down if he doesn’t get his milk. Are we God chasers?
My child would plunge into my arms once he gets hold of me and he won’t let me go till he is being satisfied and full. Do we hunger and thirst after God and cling on to him till we are satisfied in his presence?
My child will look at me and wait for me to whisper to him my love as he nurses. Do we wait on the Father and hear his whispers of love?
My child has learnt to say, “Thank you, mummy” after he is done. Do we say, “Thank you, God” after we are done for that moment.

O Loving Father, here I come running to You…receive me into Your arms of love and satisfy me. I am hungry and thirsty, for You, the living God. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Shh…Look at the Mynah

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

(Matthew 6:26, NIV)

Looking out the glass door…against the usual natural backdrop of our little porch is the mighty old tree which stood strong for ages. Its simplicity never fails to give me calmness and serenity. It’s a home to many birds and the source of the morning music. Oh, I love the chirpings. My ears have been attuned to this natural alarm clock. Ashton loves it too!

A mynah flew over and perched on our black gate. Its movement very quick yet gentle. I moved over to Ashton and softly whispered into his delicate ears, “Shh…look at the mynah…” He mimicked me. We watched the creature intently, following every movement. From the gate, it flew down to the ground inside our compound. It looked to the right, then to the left as if being very careful not to be caught. If only it knew it has been watched.

Slowly it took a step forward. Halted. Looked around again. This same process repeated a couple of times.
Ashton stayed very still and quiet giving full concentration to his lesson for the morning. A natural provision for his curriculum - bird watching. Isn’t it cool to let God be our Teacher and his world is our classroom?! The boy learned to be still, attentive and patient as he followed the bird’s moves. He listened. He watched. Suddenly the mynah bent down and pecked on the remnants of bread left on the floor. “Oh,” The boy exclaimed at the highlight of nature’s show. It ate to its satisfaction before it flew off. “No more,” Ashton called out declaring the end of the wondrous display.

How many times God nudges us and whispers, “Shh…look at the bird…”?
If the Loving Creator provides for these creatures and care for their needs, there is absolutely no reason he won’t care for us, his beloved children. We can count on the immensity of his love to be concerned of all our needs. Perhaps you argue, “I don’t want the ‘remnants of bread’…” The Creator of the Universe knows exactly what (and when) we need. Whether it is scraps of bread to fill our immediate hunger, or a piece or two to make us full, or a big sumptuous loaf to lavish us, the Father is always wise to give accordingly. We are definitely more valuable than the birds.

Shh…pause…take a moment and watch the birds…
Soak in Matthew 6:26 and be full today!

Heavenly Father, Teach me to watch and learn. I trust You will provide all my needs as I seek You daily. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

He Gives Good Things

Fear the Lord, you his saints,
for those who fear him lack nothing.
The lions may grow weak and hungry,
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

Psalm 34:9-10


My daughters came home after their ballet lesson one day telling me that their teacher said it was time to get new leotards. I had thought they needed a change too looking at their faded and overstretchced pieces. The garments had lost their elasticity. I was hoping their use could be prolong as much as possible since these are not cheap goods. I promised to look into the matter. I contacted the "angel" who had been sending us used toe shoes over the time. We never knew this person till we met up face to face one and half-year ago at a youth camp. In our exchange of conversation, we found out that she was the kind soul who was the source of my girls' toe shoes. In turn she was glad too to meet us for the first time. What happened was our mutual friend was the one who had helped to arrange this.

I was privileged to get to know this really nice lady and we talked about dance a lot over the short time together. Apparently she works in a dance school in another city and that's how the supply of used toe shoes came about. We never shun used stuff. Frugal living is good. So this time having known this new friend, I took up her continuous offer for used dance materials. I called her personally to check if there are any leotards available and furnished her with my girls' body measurements.

The weeks gone by and I had no reply from her. I thought perhaps this time I just have to fork out the money somehow to get them new leotards even though the season demanded many financial commitments. A surprise came just before Christmas. A cheque was addressed to our four children. This "angel" friend responded and told me to get the girls new leotards! Yes, my girls are very grateful and beamed with joy as they received their new leotards last week.

It is a promise of God that his children will not lack any good thing. Not just lack nothing. But lack no good thing. He is a good God and He gives good things. The Father never witholds good gifts from His children. He generously lavish upon us. He doesn't just give. He gives what is good. The psalm gives a contrasting picture of the lion, being the ferocious beast with a voracious appetite may still lack and be hungry while those who fear and seek after God will receive the best of his blessings.

We would gladly settle for used leotards but God blessed us with brand new ones. Luke 11:11-13 remind us that every father desires to bless their children, even those who are evil know how to give good gifts to their children. God is good and He gives good gifts. All fathers stand extremely pale in comparison to our Father. No one can compare to His generosity. Is there any desires in our hearts which are not fulfilled? Dare we come before God and ask confidently for His blessings? Whom do we fear and seek after in life? If we fear and seek after the True God, then believe He will bless us with the best. And I like what one of my dear friend said to me, "God has no favourites." However, I do believe He knows what's the best for each child and when is the best time to release that gift.

Heavenly Father, I love you and seek to do Your will and follow Your ways. Teach me to pursue You in deeper manner and long after You always. Thank You for loving me so much and recognize that You will not withold good things from me. I place before You____(your desires) and await for the unfolding of these gifts in Your beautiful time. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Just Enough for Today

Then the Lord said to Moses, "I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions.
However, some of them paid no attention to Moses; they kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggots and began to smell.

Exodus 16:4, 20

My dear husband promised to take me to Tasmania, Australia where he pursued his bible studies almost 20 years ago. Our hearts were thrilled when the opportunity came one and a half year ago when we took our sabbatical year and rested Down Under for more than two months. In Tasmania, we stayed in Smithon, a small town nestled in the north-west. It was simply lovely to be away from the hustle and bustle of busy cities.

Every morning, my daughter, Nat being the early riser loved to date me for morning walks and get our day's groceries from the nearby store. We would bundle ourselves up snugly and head off in the cold winter mornings just enjoying each other's company while getting to know the little town where her dearest daddy had talked so much about. Indeed everything is simple in Smithon - the place and the people. Friendly faces greeted us everywhere we went. It seemed like there's no strangers in this community. It gave us a very secure feeling to roam around. One of the best thing was to hunt for the best deal in the grocery store daily in the reduced to clear section.

Budget was a crucial matter for us. Every dollar and cent needed to be stretched to the fullest to feed the whole family especially when the currency conversion rate was high. We were very glad and grateful to be able to find food daily at an outrageuos marked down prices. I will never find them in our local scene. It was delightful as we went through the items and picked out our daily needs like bread, authentic Aussie pies, milk and desserts. Often we would enjoy a variety of pies for our meals. One time we indulged in a A$6.00 chocolate mudpie for the whole family at the price of 50 cents! Our Aussie friends marvelled at this particular finding. They confessed they never came across such a cheap deal. We believed it was God's gracious provision for us. Nat had really wished for the mudpie during her stay there and God blessed her (and the whole family since the mudpie was 1kg).

One weekend, we decided to drive 5 hours to Hobart, the capital city of Tasmania. Being a melancholy woman, I wanted to be as prepared as always for the trip. So I insisted to pick up our daily needs from the store before shooting off for the long drive. That would save us some bucks instead of eating at cafes along the way. Lo and behold! The sale section had so much to offer that day. One of them was multigrain bread which we never bother considering since we could not afford it. It was more than six times the price of our usual plain white bread. My eyes twinkled in delight as I chose from the selection. I checked the expiry date. Good news. Still a long way to go. At least long enough for our trip and few days' stay in the city. I grabbed two loaves along with other stuff. Proudly I announced to my husband and kids of my treasure for the day since I am pretty particular about nutrition. Multigrain was definitely a premium choice compared to the cheap white bread.

The next day or two, I discovered to my horror the bread had turned stale and molded. We haven't even finished a loaf! My heart ached with regrets and instantly remembered the words of the Lord spoken to Moses instructing the Israelites to collect the manna just enough for that day. Just like the Israelites, I had disobeyed and collected more for the day's ration. God's instruction in Exodus 16 became alive for me. I was supposed to be resting in the Lord and trusting His faithful and timely provision but had in my own wisdom stored up unnecessary.

We are living in hard times. The global hit by economic crisis causes many to be in despair. Many lost their jobs or experiencing pay cut. Others wondered what entails. Are you worrying about tomorrow? What you will eat and wear? Your job or education? Your future? Matthew 6:25-34 calls our attention to God's mindful provision in the field. He feeds the birds and clothes the lilies. What more - we, as His precious children?! Will He not give us what we need? Perhaps we need to trust Him just enough for today.

Heavenly Father, forgive me for not being able to surrender all my needs. I acknowledge You are the Giver of life and my Gracious Provider. Thank you for supplying all my daily needs. Help me to be grateful. Forbid me to be trapped in anxiety and caught up in the race of greed. Release Your peace and give me a trusting heart. In Jesus' name. Amen.