Wednesday, August 12, 2009
There's this story that i heard today about a couple. As the story went on... it grew on me. A story of how two different lives, brought up in their own lands yet sharing a similar trait - a story of poverty, a story of God's providence.
This man & woman were born in two different countries. The woman - born to be an orphan from birth upon the demise of her mother. The man - born to two parents, only to lose his father at the tender young age of 5 and thus ending up as the sole breadwinner for his family at such a tender age.The woman, upon birth, was given to an orphanage. An orphanage run by Christian missionaries from America and then Britain. And there she grew; the formative years of her life. A growth not only physically and emotionally, but even spiritually due to the much placed emphasis on the Bible & God by the missionaries running the orphanage. Even so, as this woman grew, there would always be a time where she would have to leave the orphanage to go out into the world to further her education beyond the adolescent days of junior high, high school and college. Who would then take care of her? Who would provide? The orphanage definitely couldn't afford to for each and every single of their children. And so, along came this American pastor's wife, who graciously provided for this young woman - covering her university fees and seeing to it that this young woman would never be lacking in her education simply because of her state of poverty. After completing her education, this now-young woman, blessed by many in her life, went to work in the local church. And there she was for a good 13 years, till came the day, where she would venture overseas with her beloved to a foreign land to start a new life.So what about the man? Well, upon the demise of his father when he was 5, there were people in the village who took him and his family under their wings. Providing financially and giving the help that every young growing boy needs - these uncles and aunties helped him out greatly as a young lad so that he wouldn't just roam the streets mindlessly. Even so, as they helped, he still had to walk the streets to sell fruits and do odd-ball jobs to earn some money for the family who now had the addition of two growing younger sisters. He studied... he studied hard and he worked hard. And when the time came for him to be old enough to work officially - he set off to the seas to earn his living as a seaman. One day he met the young woman mentioned above. And they grew to love each other and eventually decided to get married. Though the now-young man was earning, much of his money was being taken by his family back at home in the village; and the woman, working in church - well in those days it wasn't much. Peanuts they called it. So they got married and two years later they had a boy. Funny thing is that, when they had the child... they had no money too -_-'. And so this young woman's childhood friend from the orphanage (who was like a sister to her and had grown and was also married by now and financially better placed) took the young woman and her child into their home and for a few months provided financially and lovingly to the upbringing of the child. And to the young woman the support given was invaluable. Here's something right out of the movies. When the boy was born, the father was out at sea. For more than a month following the boy's birth, the father had no idea... that he had become a father. Telegrams and letters were sent in vain. Talk about poor communication!.jpg)
Through the story i see God's hand working in tremendous ways. Matthew 6:26 tells us, "look at the birds of the air, they do not sow or reap or store away in barns but yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" (Emphasis added) The young man and woman are my parents. And that boy child is me. (I was shocked to hear that my dad had no idea i had been born for more than a month!) I am amazed and very much grateful to the Lord for how He hath provided greatly for my parents. The Lord is very true to His word. My mum was sharing how the Christian missionaries would really take pains to teach the girls at the orphanage to grow in the Word and teach them to lead Biblical lives. Though yes, these things can only be taught to an extent because the rest of it is really determined by where your heart is, i see that legacy of the missionaries still carried on daily in my mum's life. Though yes, different generations do not always see eye to eye on certain things, faithfulness cannot be changed. You are either faithful or you are not. There's no two ways about it. And this i see in my mother, morning to night, she rises to feed her children and nurse them with much love and care, always impressing the need to pray, read the Bible and grow as children of God, putting forth her family before herself as she faithfully fulfills the duties of a biblical mother. Many times i see her sitting down quietly at the table, reading her Bible along with RBC's Daily Bread. And from these moments with the Lord she draws much strength, she shares. Despite her having to bring me up without my father by her side (he was sailing out at sea most of the time, remember?), she did. I learnt that there were many struggles she faced by herself when we moved to Singapore. Can you imagine, settling the buying of the house (which as foreigners with no CPF was a bomb!), the loans, ensuring your son grows well and at the same time having to come to grips with life in a whole new world for yourself plus i-dunno-what-else? And my dad? His difficult childhood caused him to be a man of much responsibility and leadership. Though i may not always have liked the ways in which he tried to teach me (like i said, different generation), i now see the value and the truth behind his words as i grow older. I can't really say everything in detail on the Net. It gets ardous. And though it may seem like i've painted my parents in a perfect light, let it be known that they are still humans and like every other human is, they're fallible too. And by no means do i intend to make it seem like my parents suffered more than others and hence because of that are even more blessed!
To some, it may seem it's not much. But to me it is. It is much to me because it makes me realise how MUCH the Lord has led and provided for my parents and for me too, all these years. I cannot imagine growing up a orphan, poor and destitute & i cannot imagine growing up having to think about supporting my family from the age of 5. What does a kid understand about supporting a family at that age?? But today, i am so blessed to be provided with a house to live in, with parents to go home to amongst many other things...I wonder, is our current generation of youth so happily caught up with the comforts of the world that they're content to be lazy and sit back? So much so that even asking them to do a bit of work can be a pain to them...Do they see the comforts of the world as blessings granted by the Lord or do they see the comforts of the world as a door for them to ignore the hardships of life and just waddle in their own happy little world? I know that at times i have been guilty of the latter.I have been so blessed. I wonder sometimes, is my life a blessing in return unto the Lord? He has given much, but am i giving back my life unto Him for all He has done. You know, reflecting on how the Lord provided soooo abundantly for my family and me too as i grew - there's one thing that He provided that stands above all. And that is the purification of sins (Hebrews 1:3). He provided salvation. One thing that i thank God for providing to my parents more than all the material and emotional blessings, is that He planned their lives in such a way that they grew to know Him personally as their Lord and Savior at some stage. (My mum said that despite growing up parent-less, she was thankful because it opened the door to her to grow up with Christ-like influences all around her every minute & somewhere through those years the Lord convicted her of His role in her life - What an encouragement and joy to hear!) But does my life reflect a "desperate" thankfulness for His work on the cross for me? I mean it's easy to be thankful... but if we're "desperately" thankful we would go to extents to "repay" that kind act that someone has done unto us, won't we? Am i "desperate" for God? Am i "desperate" to be personal with Him? Am i "desperate" to be His servant? Am i "desperate" to be his child (like how a child would love and seek his/her parents)?Ecc 12:1 Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, "I find no pleasure in them"-
1:16 AM
Monday, August 10, 2009
What a long day!!...But oh so funnnn....Biking, service, work,digging, floorball, National Day BBQ cum Police & Thief, biking back...I'm beat...But oh so funnnn....Woohoo!
1:22 AM
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