Right after our “reverse” mission trip to Malaysia in October last year, we organized 2 major evangelistic meetings, 2 seminars cum workshops and 3 planning sessions with our 3 pastors and their members. It was a period of non-stop action, one event after another in quick succession. When all the activities finally ended in late January, we suddenly realised to our horror that we have over-stayed! Nevertheless by God’s grace, He not only led us through without any penalty for our negligence, He also made us painfully aware of our own busyness, blindness and ignorance.
Thank God for Chinese New Year home break! We were looking forward to a time of catching up with family and friends but some rather unexpected events cropped up. Our laptop crashed and we fell sick. Although we did have plans to rest, we had no choice but to. It was also timely because the bed rest enabled us to replenish all the lost sleep we endured for the past 4 months. Without our laptop, everything slowed down and work was replaced with bible reading and reflection. It was being still before God. It is indeed God’s grace to cause us to cease striving and to know that He is God (Ps 46:10).
Everything is meaningless!…Completely meaningless!” What do people get for all their hard work under the sun?
We met up with one of our former bible school lecturers and she has this to say to us after sharing about the experiences of some of her students in ministry – “The crucial factor in successful ministry is persistence, not giftedness.” The Midrash, an ancient Jewish rabbinic commentary on the Hebrew scriptures, also teaches us likewise – “Do not rejoice when the boat leaves the harbour. Rejoice only after it undergoes the storm and returns to the harbour safely.” This again brought us back to the theme of Ecclesiastes. Fear the Lord always and all your work will not only become meaningful, you will also enjoy the fruits of your labour. Trust the all knowing and all mighty God for He is in charge and you will be able to overcome all difficulties.
