Prosperity Assured?

(Written in Jan 2003 for Ezra Resources http://www.ezraresources.com.sg/resources/index.html)

Deu 6:3 “Hear, O Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your fathers, promised you.”

Heb 11:13 “All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance.”

A friend shared with me his belief that there is a purpose for prosperity, that God delights in the prosperity of His children. God blessed Christians, not just for ourselves but for the world to see so that God would be glorified. In his view, in the OT, it was already God's plan that His people should be prosperous. That was why He led them to the land flowing with milk and honey. Further, God had given the Israelites a set of commandments and statutes that would lead to a great social order and when followed would ensure that they walk in prosperity so that they would be the envy of the nations. He quoted Deuteronomy which stated that it is God who gives us the “ability to produce wealth”. (Deut 4:5-8, 8:6-18)

Indeed, God had promised many blessings to the Israelites in the days of old. In the OT, the blessings of God were in material terms (abundance of food, productive wombs, long life). They were conditional upon the Israelites' obedience to God. While Moses exhorted the Israelites to love the Lord, to walk in all His ways and to hold fast to Him, he also warned of the dire consequences of turning away from God. In the OT, blessings came with obedience and curses with disobedience (Deut 28). Scripture has ample records of the disaster and destruction that fell quickly upon the Israelites whenever they forgot the Lord and followed other gods.

In the NT, Jesus brought a different perspective to material success and wealth. Reward and retribution may no longer come in our earthly lives. In 2 Cor 11:23- 33, we see the Apostle Paul suffering hardships, imprisonment, floggings, danger, hunger, thirst, cold, sleeplessness. In Heb 11: 35-38, we read of the early Christians being tortured, jeered, flogged, stoned, sawed in two, executed, persecuted and mistreated, going about in sheepskins, living in caves and holes in the ground. "These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised." (Heb 11:39)

What, then, is the hope and promise that we have, if we may not receive material success or wealth in this life? Scripture assures us that God had planned something better for us (Heb 11:40). We await the blessed hope of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, we look to the New Jerusalem where God Himself will be with us and live with us, where there will no more death or mourning or crying or pain.

Meanwhile, what do we do? I think it's not so much what we do, but the motivation behind what we do, our response to whatever comes along. Whatever we do, we do for the glory of God, whether in our personal and family life, in our pursuit of education and career, in our dealings with people, in good times or bad. "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God" (1 Cor 10:31) And our response when things don't go well or smoothly? We trust in the Lord, that He will see us through everything.

Finally, let me share a hymn inspired by the verses from Habakkuk 3:17-18:

"Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines, the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet will I rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation."

William Cowper wrote:

Sometimes a light surprises the Christian while he sings;
It is the Lord, Who rises with healing in His wings:
When comforts are declining, He grants the soul again
A season of clear shining, to cheer it after rain.

In holy contemplation we sweetly then pursue
The theme of God's salvation, and find it ever new.
Set free from present sorrow, we cheerfully can say,
Let the unknown tomorrow bring with it what it may.

It can bring with it nothing but He will bear us through;
Who gives the lilies clothing will clothe His people, too;
Beneath the spreading heavens, no creature but is fed;
And He Who feeds the sparrows will give His children bread.

Though vine nor fig tree neither their wonted fruit should bear,
Though all the field should wither, nor flocks nor herds be there;
Yet God the same abiding, His praise shall tune my voice,
For while in Him confiding, I cannot but rejoice.

My friend put my mind to rest, after reading what I wrote, with this comment: “When prosperity is absent, we can still hold on to love, hope and faith, which the Lord also offers to us.” Amen.

Good Luck, Bad Luck?

"I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it." A speaker at my niece's commencement (graduation) ceremony last week quoted Thomas Jefferson (3rd US president), urging the graduates to work hard as they commence their working life.

I find the Thomas Jefferson quote somewhat tricky. On first hearing, he seemed to be talking about luck. I have to think hard before I conclude that hard work is advocated and not so much luck. First, you have to work hard; then, you may have the so-called "luck".

What's the context of Thomas Jefferson's quote, I wonder? I tried in vain to find from the web to have better understanding. Wikiquote (http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Thomas_Jefferson) alleges that the quote "I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it." is misattributed to Jefferson. So maybe Jefferson did not say this after all.

Anyhow, I found more quotes about luck on the web (http://www.famousquotesandauthors.com/topics/luck_quotes.html). Some quotes (eg by Alfred Hitchcock, Donald Trump) stake everything on luck. Others (eg by Ralph Waldo Emerson, Voltaire) allude to the senselessness of luck, maintaining that nothing can exist without a cause. I like the quote attributed to Homer: " 'Tis man's to fight, but Heaven's to give success."

I'm a great believer in Heaven, in the guiding of God's invisible Hands. Sometimes, when Christian friends share with me about fortuitious happenings in their lives, I would respond that these are the blessings of God who, in His goodness and mercy, watches over us and brings us through the ups and downs of life.

The words of the Apostle Paul, in his address to an assembly of philosophers at Athens, have left a great impression on my mind:

"24 The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. 25 And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. 26 From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. 27 God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us." (Acts 17: 24-27)

With God determining the course of our lives, nothing happens by chance or accident, contrary to the belief in luck. But what about bad things that happen? Does God determine the bad things that happen to us?

The author Paul Little, in his book "Know Why We Believe", provides a Christian response on the age-old question "Why Does God Allow Suffering and Evil?" When my cell group discussed this difficult topic, we were comforted that even when bad things happen, God would somehow bring about good from the bad that He has allowed to happened.

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. " (Romans 8:28)

Whether good or bad, we can trust in our Lord God. Whether good luck or bad luck, it's irrelevant.

This World Is Not My Home

My 姑婆 passed away last month, aged 93, having been bed-ridden for the last three decades. Yes, thirty long years of disability, during which one of her 7 daughters faithfully took care of her.

I was awed by the 陪葬品 prepared for my great-aunt's funeral - heaps and heaps of 金纸,银纸 in big black garbage bags, a multi-storied paper house, a car, ...... and a pair of paper 金童玉女. "She asked for servants to be burned and sent to her. She had chabokan (servant girls) to serve her when she was young, you know," her daughter told us during the funeral wake. My great-aunt had bound feet and lived a pampered life in her younger days.

Would my deceased great-aunt receive all the goodies that she deemed necessary for an afterlife of ease and comfort? From my Christian perspective, I think not; whatever is burned would just be carbonised - ashes to ashes, dust to dust.

"Do not be overawed when a man grows rich, when the splendor of his house increases; for he will take nothing with him when he dies, his splendor will not descend with him. " (Psalm 49:16-17)

At one time, my late mother told us that she would go and squat at the 五脚基 (veranda) of my deceased father's house in 阴间. My father had passed away earlier and sent off under Taoist funeral rites.

By God's grace, my mom became a Christian before she died. As she laid on her deathbed, I assured her that Jesus Christ had already prepared a big house for her in heaven and we, her children, would join her there. She only needed to keep the house spick and span and wait for us there.

"In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am." (John 14:2-3)

We are aliens in this world (Leviticus 25:23, 1 Chronicles 29:15). Our eternal home is in heaven with Jesus and He has promised to come and take us to be with Him. What greater promise is there?

Not By Bread Alone

I borrowed 20 bread-making cookbooks from the Bishan Library in the last one over week. One cookbook says, "Place the dough in a container, except metal, to rise." Why not metal container, I wondered? I found the answer in another cookbook - metal container may impart metallic taste to the dough and conduct heat which hasten the dough to rise too quickly. Oh, ok, I'll use ceramic container then .....

My sis can't understand why I have to read so many of the cookbooks. While I've already learned from a baking demonstration class to bake a fairly decent white bread , the bookish me find the cookbooks very interesting in providing detailed explanations not only of the what and how, but also the why and when of bread-making.

And so as I enjoy the heavenly aroma and taste of freshly baked home-made bread, I savour the ingestion of information nuggets in the cookbooks. Food for the stomach and food for the brain.

What about food for the soul? Scripture says, "Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God." (Deueronomy 8:3, Matthew 4:4) The psalmist says, "But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers." (Psalam 1:2-3)

I think at some point in time, food for the soul becomes more important than food for the body (or brain). As we grow older and our material needs have been satisfied, life may feel empty and needing something beyond the material. Recently, when I asked my bro-in-law about his religious life, he said his belief in God is "a matter of timing". He agreed with me that belief in God is a 精神寄托 (which I roughly translate as spiritual commitment).

The Life Application Bible says:
Many people think that life is based on satisfying their appetites. If they can earn enough money to dress, eat, and play in high style, they think they are living 'the good life'. But such things do not satisfy our deepest longings. In the end they leave us empty and dissatisfied. Real life, according to Moses, comes from total commitment to God, the one who created life itself. It requires discipline, sacrifice, and hard work, and that's why most people never find it.

It has taken me a long while to find the real bread of life and the true living waters - Jesus Christ. "Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him." (Psalm 34:8) I've tasted His goodness. Have you?

"An empty mind is the devil's workshop."

"Be careful about emptying our minds," my friend reiterated after our taichi class last night. During the cooling down routine, our taichi teacher had asked us to empty our minds and relax our bodies. "I said a prayer when she asked us to empty our minds," my friend added. Coincidentally, I had also said a short prayer taught by a pastor friend: "Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner." This is the Jesus Prayer of the Eastern Orthodox Tradition.

Some years ago when I was under severe stress which contributed to an illness, my pastor friend taught me the spiritual exercise of Silento (Silence) to mediate and relax my mind and body. The purpose of this exercise is to focus our attention on Jesus and discard all other thoughts in our minds. Here's how it's done:

Relax and take deep breaths.

While inhaling, pray in your heart: "Lord Jesus Christ , Son of God".

While exhaling, pray in your heart: "Have mercy on me, a sinner".

Repeat 10 to 20 times.

(Source: "Conversation with God - praying in the Scripture" by Goh Nai Li)

My pastor friend also taught me to relax my head, neck, shoulders, chest and abdomen progressively in tandem as I inhale and exhale while reciting the Jesus prayer in my heart. I find this spiritual exercise to be very helpful in quietening my heart and mind.

Granted that we should focus our hearts and minds on God when we enter into communion (conversation) with Him, but why is it risky to empty our minds as part of physical and mental relaxation?

Jesus tells the story of an evil spirit who comes out of a man. It goes through arid places seeking but not finding rest. So the evil spirit decides to return to the house that it left. It finds the house unoccupied and swept clean. Then it brings into the house another 7 spirits more wicked than itself. And so the man is worse off than before. (Matt 12:43-45)

The moral of the story? Just cleaning up one's life without filling it with God leaves plenty of room for Satan to enter (Life Application Study Bible). Likewise, emptying our minds during meditation or for relaxation and leaving our minds unguarded even for a moment may give the evil one a foothold in us.

Another friend had also advised me several years ago against learning yoga, as yoga teaches the practitioners to empty their minds. "An empty mind is the devil's workshop," she said to me. I didn't pay attention to her advice at first and proceeded to attend a 2nd yoga beginners' course. In the middle of this 2nd yoga course, I found my mind blanking out for a few seconds during the "corpse pose" (part of yoga cooling down routine, whereby we stretch out on the floor, totally relaxing our bodies and emptying our minds). This jolted me - gosh, I had emptied my mind for a few seconds! I promptly quitted the yoga course.

"Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things." (Philippines 4:8)

The same friend told me that she has been learning to memorise this verse to try to prevent the occurrence of memory loss due to ageing. Selwyn Hughes, the Welsh preacher, suggested in one of his devotions (Everyday with Jesus) that the first thing on our minds when we wake up in the morning should be God and the last thing on our minds when we go to bed in the night should be God. Godly advice worth taking up.

Many Tribes, Many Tongues

Last night, I dreamt that I failed a Chinese oral exam. I had not been dreaming about exams for a long, long time. Even after leaving school, I used to have recurring nightmares about failing Math exams. The nightmare was usually the same - going to the exam hall and not able to do the Math exam paper at all because I had not attended Math classes the whole year. It was a strange, traumatic experience in dreamland, filled with anguish and agony over calculus and differentiation. It was strange because it was contrary to my typical kiasu Singaporean nature, not like the real me who's always mugging up and faithfully doing my ten-year series.

Some people say dreams in our sleep reflect our thoughts in the day. I suppose my nightmares about Math exams are the vestiges of the stresses I went through during my school days. Might the exam stresses be so deeply ingrained that my nightmares occur long after I left school? It goes to show the long-lasting "damage" that the exam-oriented school system inflicted on my mental well-being even today?

But why the dream about failing oral Chinese exam last night? For the past one over year, I've been trying to brush up my Chinese-speaking ability, relearning hanyu pinyin (which I learnt as a working adult in a one-to-one course conducted by my sis's friend) and reading primary-school-level Chinese books which I bought from Shanghai two years ago. Sadly, my progress has been painfully slow, mainly because of distractions from other activities and not enough time spent on real study. My aspiration to become effectively bilingual still has a long way to go.

If only we have only one language for all peoples, life would be simpler and perhaps richer since we can devote more time to learning and enjoying the fine things of life instead of grappling with a 2nd or even 3rd language. After the earth was first created, the whole world indeed had one language and a common speech (Gen 3:1). But pride caused this idyllic state to be changed.

In the days after the big flood, Scripture tells of men building a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that they may make a name for themselves. God saw the tower of Babel that the men were building and He said, "If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan will be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other." (Gen 3:3-9) And here we have the genesis of the multiple languages in the world today - men's pride and ambition to build a monument to their own greatness, for themselves rather than to God.

Will my aspiration to build up my Chinese-speaking ability become my "tower of Babel"? Admittedly, I'm most envious of Singaporean friends who speak well in Chinese. Speaking as well as them will increase my sense of self-worth and significance. But I need to guard against pride in any human achievement. The story of the tower of Babel is a good reminder.

We Are Family

Wow, S$6m left to the maid - a 47-year-old Filipina, who served her employer faithfully for more than two decades since 1986 and whom the late employer treated "like a daughter". My immediate thought was: how many people would treat their maids as part of the family to the extent of leaving them a huge inheritance, especially in an Asian context where blood is thicker than water and where paternal blood-ties often matter much more than maternal blood-ties? We are the "inner" grandchildren or nieces/nephews when we carry the same surname but "outer" grandchildren or nieces/nephews on the maternal side, and being the "inner" grandchildren or nieces/nephews, we enjoy privileges and favouritism.

I employed a maid for about three years some time ago, initially to take care of my bedridden mother and after my mom passed away, to cook and do the household chores. What struck me during my pre-employment interview of my maid was a statement that she wrote in her application form - that she hoped her employer would treat her as part of the family. And so, I had sought to treat her well, being reminded of what the Bible says when Moses gave God's commandments to the Israelites:

"Do not mistreat an alien or oppress him, for you were aliens in Egypt." (Exodus 22:21)

At the root of all relationships (including our relationship with our maids) is love and mercy. Jesus often taught this. In the story of the good Samaritan, a Jew was robbed and injured while out travelling. A priest saw the injured man but he passed by on the other side of the road. Then a Levite (member of the Israelite tribe chosen by God to serve in His temple and assist the priests) came by and saw the injured man, but he too passed by on the other side. Next came a Samaritan who took pity on the injured man, bound up his wounds and placed him under the care of an innkeeper. So who is a neighbour to the man who was robbed and injured? "The one who had mercy on him." (Luke 10:29-37)

The action of the good Samaritan was unusual as a deep hatred existed between Jews and Samaritans. The Jews saw themselves as pure descendants of Abraham, while the Samaritans were a mixed race produced when Jews intermarried with other peoples. The Life Application Study Bible says:

Only the Samaritan treated him (the injured man) as a person to love. From the parable we learn three principles about loving our neighbour: (1) lack of love is often easy to justify, even though it is never right; (2) our neighbour is anyone of any race, creed or social background who is in need; (3) love means acting to meet the person's need.

Whether we are Christians or not, we need to remember that our maids are humans too, with their personal needs and failings that we should give allowance for. We grumble and murmur when we feel over-worked and unpaid by our bosses; but when it comes to our maids, are we making them work day and night to get our "money's worth"? Do we have one set of values for ourselves and another set for our maids? Scripture says:

"Do to others as you would have them do to you..... Be merciful, just as your father is merciful." (Luke 6:31, 36)