I just want to post a collection/summary of thoughts that I got through the different sharings done by Selene, Jason, Berenice, Priscillia and myself. There will also be some points made from different people, both in and out of the choir. For the sake of their privacy, I will not credit individual points to the people who made them. So without further adieu, here we go:
1. Forgive, Forgive, Forgive
Long before we fall onto our knees to seek forgivness for our transgressions, God has already forgiven us. But forgiveness is not a one-way street. We have to be ready to forgive others and ourselves in order to receive the grace of God's forgiveness and healing. Reconciliation (confession) is one good example of seeking God to find forgiveness of self. It is only by acknowledging and voicing out our sins that we make them tangible to ourselves and to God, hence allowing His grace to free us from the weight of our sinfulness (healing).
2. Do Not Resist
We can easily say we believe in God, but how many of us actually trust in Him? To have faith is to be able to 'leave it in the hands of the Lord' and expect nothing except His love. To have expectations is to resist the way God wants to act in and through you, and our God is a gentle God. He does not force Himself on those who resist Him, for that would be a crime against our free will.
3. Hurting People Hurt People
Always remember that if you find yourself hurting others, you have probably been hurt before, or are still hurting. Seek God's healing when you find yourself being mean or spiteful to others, and always ask for forgivness. Similarly, be ready to forgive when someone hurts you, for that person is probably hurting too.
4. Doubt Your Doubts Before You Doubt Your Beliefs
Another quote by Fr. William Goh. God works in many mysterious and wonderful ways, around, through and in us. Don't doubt His power, for to do so would be to resist. If you ever find yourself doubting God's existence or presence, ask yourself why you are doubting before you throw your beliefs away.
5. The Intensity of God
Our God is an intense and passionate God. Often, when He works through us, we can feel it. But most of the time we deny it. He often moves us to cry, to laugh, to give praise and to sing. Don't resist Him when you feel Him moving in you. That warm fuzzy feeling, that burning sense of hope, that tightness in your heart, that Bible phrase which strikes you: those are all ways God speaks to us. Listen to His intensity.
6. God is Perfection
God is perfect, and in all that we do, we strive to be like Him. For it is human nature to desire perfection, subconsciously or otherwise. But be conscious: we are striving to be like God, and for that to happen we need His help, not the help of this material world. Why search elsewhere for perfection when the epitome of it is just a prayer away?
7. God Changes Us, Not the World
Whatever retreat, camp or spiritual talk we attend, we must remember that God does not change the world around us. Life doesn't revolve around a single human being. No. It is US who are changed. The world around us remains the same, but it is our perspective of it that has been made right. Because in God's eyes, all He created is good. So do not let your spiritual uplifting be snuffed out by reality--trust in the Lord always, and remind the devil at all times who your Daddy is.
8. Procrastinate!
We are so good at procrastinating. "Oh I'll do this tomorrow." "Oh I'll get to it next week." Why not use procrastination to our advantage? Tell yourself, when dealing with sin, that you will sin tomorrow, and reserve today for God. Wanna smoke? Do it tomorrow! Pray today and tell yourself you'll take a prayer break the next day! Use the devil's tool against him, and smile innocently when he throws his hands up in exasperation. =)
9. Make Decisions Worthy of God's Praise
Often in life we have to make decisions, and it is this exercise of free will that we usually feel the most distant from God. We don't know whether or not our plans coincide with God's, and if they don't, are they doomed to fail? Always ask yourself if you'll be able to praise God for making a certain choice, and if you can't, then it's very likely the wrong one. More importantly, trust that God will provide, no matter what the outcome might be.
10. We Are a Family
At the end of the day, we are one body in Christ. We are a community and a family, and this very fact will be our biggest advantage in life. To be in communion with Christ is to be united with each other in love, and when we act out of love, truly God is with us. There is no force on this world that can tear apart God's love, and if we exercise this love in our daily lives, then we are indestructible. Always love, no matter how hard it gets, no matter who tries to stop you. Always love, always lean, and always support one another, come what may.
Praise the Lord for mighty are His works!
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Random Thoughts: Waiting
I really liked the sermon last Sunday, so I've decided to do a short write-up on it. This will be the start of my Random Thoughts posts. If anyone has any random musings they wish to post up here, do drop me an email ;)
So the day before, which was a Saturday, my family and I were making a trip to Malaysia to visit some relatives. To our frustration, we got stuck at the immigration custom for a solid 4 hours. The waiting nearly killed us and brought out the worst in us. All in all, it was a terrible experience.
As Fr. Thomas Curran pointed out, most of us dislike waiting, basically because it renders us helpless. When we find ourselves having to wait, it's usually because we have done all we could and no longer have control over the situation. We wait because there's nothing else we can do; we are powerless to affect the outcome any further.
When we put God into the equation, waiting becomes a test of faith. Our attitudes towards waiting show in the way we pray. One would think that God, in all His power, would hear your request if you asked Him just once. Yet very often we pray repeatedly, asking again and again for the same thing, detailing when, how and what we want of God.
There's nothing wrong with asking God for things. In fact, it's a healthy form of prayer. But, as we have figured out in Lent, God is not a fairygod mother. He is not some magician who answers to our every whim. He is love, nothing more, and nothing less. Love functions in a way that logic cannot, and God knows us in a way that nobody else does. He understands our wants, but He also sees our needs, which we often overlook, and provides. All He asks of us is a bit of patience, and a bit of faith.
The worst thing about waiting is thinking. When there's nothing else we can do, and our prayers have been said, often we start to worry. We start contemplating the outcome, and we start building up expectations. We formulate the perfect fantasy setting where everything comes out perfectly, and wonder how terrible life would be if things did not play out that way. As we do this, we start leaving God out of the equation. Why? Because we no longer allow God to answer our prayers His way and in His own time. We start to have preconceptions on how our prayers should be answered, how our problems should be fixed, and ultimately, how God should act.
What we should do is ask God for the best possible outcome, whatever that might be. God will definitely answer our prayers; it's just a matter of when and how. We should do well to remember that it is a blessing to wait, because by waiting, we are atesting to our faith--and we are atesting to God's awesome love.
So the day before, which was a Saturday, my family and I were making a trip to Malaysia to visit some relatives. To our frustration, we got stuck at the immigration custom for a solid 4 hours. The waiting nearly killed us and brought out the worst in us. All in all, it was a terrible experience.
As Fr. Thomas Curran pointed out, most of us dislike waiting, basically because it renders us helpless. When we find ourselves having to wait, it's usually because we have done all we could and no longer have control over the situation. We wait because there's nothing else we can do; we are powerless to affect the outcome any further.
When we put God into the equation, waiting becomes a test of faith. Our attitudes towards waiting show in the way we pray. One would think that God, in all His power, would hear your request if you asked Him just once. Yet very often we pray repeatedly, asking again and again for the same thing, detailing when, how and what we want of God.
There's nothing wrong with asking God for things. In fact, it's a healthy form of prayer. But, as we have figured out in Lent, God is not a fairygod mother. He is not some magician who answers to our every whim. He is love, nothing more, and nothing less. Love functions in a way that logic cannot, and God knows us in a way that nobody else does. He understands our wants, but He also sees our needs, which we often overlook, and provides. All He asks of us is a bit of patience, and a bit of faith.
The worst thing about waiting is thinking. When there's nothing else we can do, and our prayers have been said, often we start to worry. We start contemplating the outcome, and we start building up expectations. We formulate the perfect fantasy setting where everything comes out perfectly, and wonder how terrible life would be if things did not play out that way. As we do this, we start leaving God out of the equation. Why? Because we no longer allow God to answer our prayers His way and in His own time. We start to have preconceptions on how our prayers should be answered, how our problems should be fixed, and ultimately, how God should act.
What we should do is ask God for the best possible outcome, whatever that might be. God will definitely answer our prayers; it's just a matter of when and how. We should do well to remember that it is a blessing to wait, because by waiting, we are atesting to our faith--and we are atesting to God's awesome love.
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