Monday, July 30, 2012

Love “Litter” for the “Saints”

Here are some  beautiful spots where rubbish is collected. Photos are taken at Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.











Lovely pictures they are. Notice how the plastic bags are arranged in no particular order. Very artistic. Healthy and environment friendly Styrofoam food packets are also amongst these plastic bags. Look! Look!  at the wonderful colors.  Imagine the smells. Did immaculately dressed, pretty May toss it there after consuming her jambu with assam?  What’s this? Dog poo? What a relief for cute doggie to have had its excrement out?!  Will the flies come to join in the party?  Will our cars have the privilege to run over poo? Will our kids get the opportunity to point at the said poo and say “dog poo - poo”?

Why are these works of art not in our own backyard? Why are they not displayed in our gardens or our balconies when visitors come? After all, we love the sight and smells of garbage.  Perhaps we have at our own homes become suddenly hard working (and of course there are maids). We actually move our butts from place of eating or the sink or sofas to the bin. We actually pick up the trash bag and place it in the bin for our friendly garbage collectors. Should our pets accidentally poo in our garden (when we fail to take them out to decorate the streets), we actually pick poo up! Could we not be as LAZY and SELFISH at home as we are when we are in public areas? Our visitors and family members are deprived of these works of art and the lovely aroma!

Christians, let us not join the apathetic world, let us not take advantage of the lack of enforcement. Instead let us remember and teach our children*:-
[*I noticed a kid of an acquaintance throwing an  ice- cream wrapper at the public park without an iota of guilt. Not unusual in our culture but this is a kid of an active church going parent who preaches Jesus. Apparently she did not see it necessary to educate her kid not to litter (i.e., to care for God’s creation and to obey God’s command of submitting to authority].
  • God made the earth.  He said it was good.  He put us in charge of it. If you respect Him, will you not respect His creation? If you love Him, will you not care for that which is His? Will you not obey His command to care for it?  Disciple, will you not take His command seriously? Do you not feel privileged to be given such a responsibility (any responsibility for that matter from the Almighty?).  If your loved one said to you “Here I build this house. I am so proud of it. Care for it” Will you then move in thrash it pollute it?  (Just read Genesis 1 with fullest imagery. Also Psalm 8:6-8 (Holman CSB version  “You made him lord over the works of Your hands. You put everything under his feet…”)).
  • We are to obey the Word. Never mind that the authorities will not spring on us from behind the bushes when we litter. We have a higher authority and this higher authority requires that we submit to governing laws. It IS against the law to litter. (Romans 13).
  • Love your neighbor as yourself. Do unto others as you would others to do unto you. These are not clichés. These are our Lord’s commandments! Are you loving your neighbor by tossing your unwanted trash in the drains- clogging it up? Are you loving your neighbor if you fail to pick up poo “presented” by your pet right outside his house? Or at the pathway where he takes pleasant evening walks? Would you not like to have a clean neighborhood? Clean roads? (Matthew  22: 39, Leviticus 19:18, Matthew 7:12 Holman CSB version states “ Therefore, whatever you want others to do for you, do also the same for them…”).
  • We are to be DISCIPLES of our Lord Jesus, SLAVES of our Lord Jesus. We are to be a reflection of God’s glory. Salt of the earth (Be salt not throw salty stuff on earth). Light of the world. This means that we are to emulate our Master and be an example to others.  Our Master was full of humility (he served), he obeyed the law, submitted to his father (he was not lazy), he was and is the light and he loved. These are characteristics to emulate.  (Not throwing tissues with snort out of our car! No light there) So though it requires “effort “ to walk to the rubbish bin or hang on to the trash until you come to a bin and it requires “effort” to recycle or to teach our kids (our colleagues, our parents(!), our church friends etc.) these habits- MAKE THAT EFFORT. Is it too much to ask?  It is your service to the Lord. (Matthew 20:28, John 13:12-15, Psalm 8:6-8).
  • We cannot run away from God’s commands. At the end of day, “…The time has come for the dead to be judged and to give the reward to Your servants the prophets, to the saints, and to those who fear Your name both small and great AND THE TIME HAS COME TO DESTROY THOSE WHO DESTROY THE EARTH” (Revelation 11:18). No expansion on this point needed.
Ultimately, what better way to prove to ourselves and to others that we are truly Christ (he lives in us) then to evidence by our works that we love God with all our heart, soul, mind and body caring for His creation, earth and all that live in it. Let us cease to be lazy and selfish. Let us cease littering enthusiastically, doing it unto the Lord! (Colossians 3:23).

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

The Fortitude of Anyway

  1. People are unreasonable, illogical & self-centered - love them anyway.
  2. If you do good, people will accuse you of being selfish & having an ulterior motive - do good anyway.
  3. If you are successful, you will win false friends & true enemies - succeed anyway.
  4. Honesty & frankness make you vulnerable- be honest & frank anyway.
  5. The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow - do good anyway.
  6. The biggest people with the biggest ideas can be shot downby the smallest people with the smallest minds - think big anyway.
  7. People favour underdogs but follow top dogs - fight for some underdogs anyway.
  8. What you spend building for years may be destroyed overnight - build anyway.
  9. Give the world the best & you will get kicked in the teeth - give the world the best you've got anyway.
When you were born, you cried & the world rejoiced. Let the rest of your life be in such a fashion so that when you die, the world cries & you rejoice.



Temple Of God, how shall I care for you?

 
By loving your owner (God), with all my heart, mind & soul.  If I truly love God this way, I shall have to care for you, temple of God:-

  1. With LOVE (If I love your owner, is there any other way to care for His house?).
  2. With RESPECT (If I love your owner, how can I not respect His house?).
  3. By PRESERVING you, (exercise, healthy eating, healthy habits).
  4. By ACCEPTING you,(in whatever form you may be), as a unique gift of God which by the wonderful grace of God lives and remains alive every second, USEFUL to Him .
  5. By CLOTHING  you with :
  • comfortable, neat, appropriate (to environment)  “my personality” attire, not conforming to clothing which society tells me I should cover you with;
  • attire that represents all that your owner is – HOLY, PURE, CONFIDENT, HUMBLE, BEAUTIFUL, HAPPY, STABLE, CALM & AT PEACE (we are ambassadors  of the owner!) ;
  • attire that does not draw attention away from that which I am communicating  i.e., away from my face where my eyes are!;
  • attire that does not tempt others  to desire you in a lustful or sinful way;
  • attire that enables you to not only APPEAR professional at work but enables you  to work professionally for your owner – serving employers, employees, clients and others for the glory of your owner, the glory of GOD.