Dear...,
Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning;
for in thee do I trust:
cause me to know the way wherein I should walk;
for I lift up my soul unto thee.
Psalms 143:8
Tumbler
was the word that easily rolled off the word "humbler" as I penned the
title of the thoughts our good Lord has placed in me.
"Humility." I
am about to enter the land of great politeness, and I am reminded of an
earlier trip I made with my beloved family a few years back, which was a
joy, for we started with the Land of a Thousand Smiles, "Thailand,"
enroute to the Land of Many Bows, Japan."
As shared previously, I
have had a few dramatic falls in my life, but by the grace of God, I
have always never been seriously injured. But what about life's
tumbles? Pride comes before a downfall, and thanks be to God, He has
always allowed me to be knocked off the perch before I could climb very
much higher up the ladder of insolence.
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=OoUnHnMlYYM
This
Mandarin worship song, is worth a listen. It draws her inspiration from
the above verse from Psalms 143:8. And it reminds me of the humbling
God allows us to go through, to ensure our hearts will not wander off,
to prepare us for His service.
Make me to know your ways, O Lord;
teach me your paths.
Psalms 25:4
Wait
upon the Lord and He will lift us up. Indeed our Lord is bringing me to
the paths He has set for me when He called me to leave my comfort zone.
"Insouciance," a state of calm, untroubled. This word has its
origins from the French language. It's been a year since I embarked on
this journey, I worked in the midst of Francophiles, but have I attained
this emotional utopia? But it is more than an utopian dream, for peace
and joy in all circumstances, Christ promises to give to all who seek
and trust Him.
Can I truly let go and let God? My carnal self
wrestles with my spirit man. But in those moments when I just stopped
and turn to Christ, He affirms.
Our good Lord sent a hitherto
stranger to me last Thursday. An English speaking Japanese, who can be
an additional bridge for my ministry in Japan.
He leads the humble in what is right,
and teaches the humble his way.
Psalms 25:9
Brazil
is the land of the samba. Japan, there was a feature in the newspaper
on walking tours that allows one to ramble through the Tokohu region of
Japan, to retrace the journeys of past, long before the pristine
northern part of Japan became associated with the Fukushima nuclear
fallout.
Land of rumbles, Japan is, and for a very hard ground that
this nation is, God is bringing about a great stirring. The harvest
fields in Japan is ripening.
How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness
and grieved him in the desert! They tested God again and again
and provoked the Holy One of Israel.
They did not remember his power or the day when he redeemed them from the foe,
when he performed his signs in Egypt and his marvels in the fields of Zoan.
Psalms 78:40-43
As
I ponder upon what is the will of our Sovereign Lord for this trip, the
thought did struck me as to what will constitute "success?" But
conclusion is from our Lord, obedience must come from us. I am reminded
that many times in my walk in the desert this past one year, my thirst
for success has shifted me away from the fear of God to the fear of
failure.
Have I behaved as badly as the wandering Israelites in the Sinai desert?
“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old.
Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
Isaiah 43:18-19
Like
me, if you are willing, God will use you to prepare the way before
Christ returns. It will be off the old beaten track, for His ways are
not the ways of the world. Will you trust Him by putting aside our
preconceived notions, and instead learn to wait upon Him every new day?
And
be in awe of the wisdom of His wonderful ways. When I left my comfort
zone, I have never imagined going to Japan for business. And God affirms
twice over. For come Dec, I will be in Kyushu for a holiday. That was
planned before for this trip was even seeded.
God blesses
Eng Hieang
My trip
I will heal their apostasy; I will love them freely,
for my anger has turned from them.
Hosea 14:4
As
my plane approached Fukuoka City, I was reminded of an earlier era when
the feared Japanese warplanes flew into Singapore, to supposedly
liberate us from the British colonial masters. "Syonan-to," which means
"Light of the South" was the new name given to Japanese ruled
Singapore.
that you may be blameless and innocent, children of
God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation,
among whom you shine as lights in the world,
Philippians 2:15
Like
the growing number of Christians from Singapore, we are the post war
baby boomers who are in a role reversal. Being used by our Lord to shine
His light into this long oppressed land. And at the crack of dawn, what
a privilege that God gives me, to be able to pray over this land at
10,000 meters, starting at its southernmost tip, the bedrock of this
water filled land.
The Lord Answers Jeremiah
“If you have raced with men on foot, and they have wearied you,
how will you compete with horses? And if in a safe land you are so trusting,
what will you do in the thicket of the Jordan?
Jeremiah 12:5
God
is bringing us the willing to new heights. On reflection, the struggles
He allows us to go through in the past is a preparation for ministry
that He wants to bring you to. It is daunting if on our own strength,
but awe inspiring when we look to and lean upon Christ the author and
finisher of our faith.
Then you will call upon me and come and
pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you
seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord,
and I will restore your fortunes ....'
Jeremiah 29:12-14
God
is a faithful God. Other than the very strong winds, being down South, I
was spared the inconvenience of the mighty typhoon that buffeted
Central Japan. I am gratified and humbled by the care that our Abba
Father has always given me through all circumstances.
And it always
bemuses me as to not just the prescience but the wit our Father in
Heaven in the way He shows us His guiding presence.
"What makes the desert beautiful is that somewhere it holds a well."
Quote used in an article by Professor Hiroshi Arakawa, Aichi Tokyo University
This
was from a coffee table book "Japan Now," in my hotel room. And the
dear Prof penned an article on the symbolism of water in Japan, a well
watered land. And he quoted from the Bible on the "Spring of Life," much
as it was from a non believer, academic perspective.
Indeed, much as
it has been a humbling experience this past one year working in the
desert, it has been a spirit filled experience and as God continues to
broaden my experience to an even harder ground, what is impossible for
man, God will make possible.
As it is written in Isaiah the prophet,
“Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way,
the voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight,’”
Mark 1:2-3
“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old.
Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
Isaiah 43:18-19
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