Similarities sustain a relationship although it’s always the opposites that attract. Hammond thinks that when 2 people are too similar they do not make up for each other’s lack. Imperfectitons, in her opinion, are crafted by God for iron to sharpen iron.

The pursuit of a goal involves struggles. This is the essence of perserverance. No one perserves in the face of a smoothsailing task, but rather difficulties, sometimes being on the brink of giving up. During the pursuit we are tempted by the easy way out not because we are lured but it is in our nature to indulge ourselves. Those who have the big picture understands that in order to reach our goals, certain amount of sacrifice is needed.

For 2 days I played the role of timekeeper. So I had a lot of time staring at the timer. The 1/10th of a second was travelling at an incredible speed which made me feel anxious. I wondered how much faster Time would be if we break it down even more. Not wanting to be stressed out by its sheer speed, I blocked out that part of the timer. Strangerly, time simply slowed down and so did my heartbeat.

It occurred to me how most of the time we think that time is crawling when we are waiting for God to scaffold the purpose of our lives. When is that answer going to come Lord? When will I know if he is your will for me Lord? Should I take that job Lord? Is that your will for me Lord? Won’t you tell me Lord? God’s timing is everything. God says, Wait. Be still. I am God. Or perhaps He really wants to tell us, my timer is like speeding away lor so it’s not slow what!

God sees time in terms of eternity (we on the other hand are obviously shortsighted), with time perhaps broken down beyond hundredths and thousandths of a second. It is perhaps not as slow to Him as to us when we are waiting for something to happen or for an answer. Because all things will happen right on cue and time.

Trust His timing. He makes all things beautiful in His time.

And He means it.

had a very interesting discussion on what we do to abide in christ last night during CG.

do we work on our spiritual life with the focus that our “doing” will bring us closer to God? do we focus on our “doing” to foster intimacy with God? or do we work on it with the view that God has already done it all? that we have His unmerited favor, his grace.

there is nothing we can do–we can’t be any more faithful, holy–to earn God’s grace and love. we can’t do 1-2-3 to get from A to B. because Jesus has already done it all. we are already at B.

the element of doing is still very much present in enjoying God’s grace. but it becomes a top-down experience, not a bottom-up experience.

like a wife who doesn’t have to do anything to earn a husband’s love, but she still does things to please her husband to show her love towards him.

it’s not about how faithful we can become to earn God’s love. if it is the case, Jesus didn’t have to die. We will continue to have to work on our salvation to keep earning His grace.

We work not because we need to maintain a state of holiness to keep ourselves in God’s favour in order to be blessed by Him. He died for us when we were sinners, when we didn’t deserve His mercy and grace at all. He didn’t wait for us to be holy but simply because His sacrifice was an expression of his love for us. How do I put it? We reciprocate because God is wooing us. I love Freckles even though she is wilful. She didn’t have to be any more obedient for me to love her. I love her because. This is perhaps our Father’s heart. I am sure there is a lot more depth than we can ever comprehend.

I feel wooed. i simply enjoy His wooing and our bond. not for the things He will give, but simply bask in His grace. my faith arises (or grows) not because I do anything to make it grow. but that I see that He is faithful. my faith grows in proportion to the vision I caught of Jesus. Not in what I can do (cos I can’t) but what He can do, His omnipotence.

Matt 6:33 makes a lot more sense to me now. In a way, as I wait for certain things to happen, certain blessings to come, my focus is not on exploring my options to get there or obtain them. The focus is not on the blessings, but simply resting in the knowledge that it is in God’s nature to provide and God will arrange it all. It is in believing and knowing that God is powerful enough to provide. Therefore the cares of the world dim compared to the largeness of my God. Like what Jay and Jayme said, we find that we are secure. We find that we do not worry. Because God will provide even when the circumstances seem stacked against us. Their faith stems from their vision of God as a provider. It is not placed on their capability.

Joe is right. We still need to do. For the longest time my doing was undoing me. Because I misunderstood it.

Why are you doing what you are doing?

Awesome! My own answer from God!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

By Warren Wiersbe
Taken From: Prayer, Praise and Promises

Read Psalm 77:7-10
Asking questions is much easier than answering them. If you have children or grandchildren, you know how true that is. These verses contain a series of questions from a discouraged man. “Will the Lord cast off forever? And will He be favorable no more? Has His mercy ceased forever? Has His promise failed forevermore? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has He in anger shut up His tender mercies?” (vv. 7-9). Then he concludes by saying, “This is my anguish; but I will remember the years of the right hand of the Most High” (v. 10).
It’s normal to ask questions when we are going through difficulty and pain. David prayed, “My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Ps. 22:1). Jesus also quoted those words on the cross (Matt. 27:46). When we are going through difficulty, we expect God to move in, help us and deliver us. And when we are waiting for that deliverance, we get impatient. That’s when the questions come.
Don’t be afraid to be open and honest with God. Tell Him how you feel and what you’re thinking. He would rather you be honest about your feelings than hypocritical. But remember this: As Christians, we do not live on explanations; we live on promises. Suppose God started to answer these questions. Will the Lord cast off forever? No. Will He be favorable no more? Of course, He’s going to be favorable. Is His mercy completely gone forever? No. If God answered all of these questions, would it make any difference? It might ease your mind a little bit, but it wouldn’t really change your situation. Live by faith, not by sight. Trust the promises of the Lord. He will not change.

* * *
God does not always provide explanations for your difficulties, but He does provide the promises of His Word. The next time you find yourself in the midst of discouragement, bring your questions and concerns to Him in prayer. Then rely on the promises of His Word. God knows your needs and will meet them.

Some of my questions that arise from the teaching of prosperity by Ps Prince:

If Christ has redeemed us, but because we are still subjected to the natural laws, we still suffer. How does the gospel of prosperity fit into this picture?

If we are God’s responsibility, with what kind of boldness can we dare to enter into His presence and ask or even demand for our rights/ inheritance/ blessings?

Does the teaching of prosperity mainly mean wealth?

How do you separate this: it is not your faith that heals you but that it is Christ who does? Faith comes by hearing the word of God. We still need to believe in order to receive the healing no? We are not saved by the works of our faith but we still do need faith in order to claim God’s healing although we are taught that it is already done.

Pain causes us to search the meaning of life, and for answers we need. Is the teaching of prosperity too quick to refute the role pain play in our lives? If Jesus has become the curse and borne the pain on our behalf, where then does the pain and suffering in our lives come from? Why then we do still suffer? As a result of the fall of man from the first sin? If Jesus has already borne it all, and there is no more condenmation, shouldn’t we be experiencing heaven on earth, and suffer no more consequences?

If we suffer as a result of the curse, but we are already redeemed. So whyfore do we still suffer? Natural law aside, unless the healing refers to a healing in another dimension. Is the teaching of prosperity really able to explain away pain and suffering? Or is pain and suffering really just part of a broken word and here to stay until Christ comes back for us?

If our prosperity is based on what Christ has done for us, what then do we say of God turning evil around for good for character-building in faith-stretching? What place does it have in our lives as juxtapose with this teaching of prosperity?

Perhaps it’s a different slant of perspective. Christ in us, the hope of glory. It is not what we can do, but what Christ has already done.

I am still seeking answers. In my search for answers, I am really desiring to know more about God. Perhaps what I am really asking is, how does disciple-making fit into the teaching of prosperity?

Does The One or My Type exist?

It amazes me how malleable our thought processes can be. I tend to think that one’s perspective is usually pretty resilient but when it does bend, it’s usually due to a life-changing experience. It will not be an overnight change but chizelled with time to reveal a crystal-clear vision of what it should have been. I likened it to a tree that has weathered the chill, and heat, and witnessed the blooming flowers and falling leaves. Perhaps it’s us who have gone through a season of change, and now hold a different view to the world accordingly. Perhaps we learn that seasons do not endure, but we do, and thus we view the same subject matter differently. Only time can tell if we’ve become wiser. 

Rev Price said this,