Your Grace is Enough

Only when we can be broken to God, can we be open to others.

So many thoughts, I'll just pen them down.

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Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace & not of evil, to give you a future & a hope.

This week marks the start of the trial in court. For some, the significance or impact might not have come to us yet. For others, we might already be feeling the heat, of well-meaning questions that become too probing. Or perhaps we're struggling with pressures at work or adjusting to a new chapter in life. Whatever it is, there seems to be some form of upheaval in our lives.

Yet the Bible says that God wants to give us peace, a future & hope.

In the best of our struggle, God longs to give us peace. To be better instead of bitter.

Remember Joseph, who was sold to Egypt? God's deliverance didn't come in the form of stopping the pain & removing the struggle. God's deliverance came in the form of His continuing Presence throughout the period beginning from the betrayal of Joseph by his brothers, his enslavement & time in prison & even to his rise to power & eventual reconciliation with his family. "And God was with Joseph," was repeated at least 3 times through this period in Genesis 39:2, 21 & 23.

Just as God was with Joseph, so God is with us. In this time, let us believe & seek God for His peace that as described in Philippians 4:7, "guards our hearts & minds in Jesus Christ".

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Prepared this message on WhatsApp group chat while waiting to conduct training but didn't manage to send it in time. Later on, the insecurity & self-doubt took over. What if no one receives it well? In principle, I am convinced that I am only the messenger, that whatever response given is between the respondent & God.

But life is not about theories; the emotions (of fear & self-doubt) are so incapacitating. And I struggle.

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I'm really thankful for Victor & the book he gave me, The Land Between: Finding God in Difficult Transitions.

The title is really misleading; it is way more than just about transitions, but about the space between our Egypt & our Canaan. Our previous comfort zone & the Promised Land. The land between is harsh. It is a desert & it is suffocating. If we are not careful, we can meltdown into despair & anger.

But the land between is also the choicest land for transformational growth. Because we are refined as gold through the fire of trials. And the land between, the wilderness has plenty of that.

Just got to remember that God is with us & like the burning bush, we will burn but if we hold on to Him, we will never burn out.

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Thankful for that time spent with Aaron, Louisa & Chan Tong. It was an unlikely combination, but I'm really thankful for the shared times together. Even though we have our challenges & struggles, we can be open to one another.

With them, I feel I can let loose, there isn't much fear.

That friendship can be this easy & carefree.

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Thankful also for the time with Marc & Rhoda, as they prayed & ministered to me. That I can be open during my prayer about my insecurities. I try to be strong, but that's exactly the problem. God doesn't need perfect, empowered vessels. All He asks, is that we are open to Him.

With God, all things are possible.

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I'm really impressed by Joseph the son of Jacob. Going through all that pain, suffering & yet still finding enough in him to love & forgive those who have hurt him.

I'm sure the pain must have been phenomenal.

But the real miracle, I feel, is that Joseph can trust God enough in those painful situations to let go & let God. It must have been quite a struggle. But each time, he resisted temptation (Potiphar's wife) & stood steadfast in believing God & doing the right thing.

And God delivered. Sometimes God allows us to encounter pain so that we will turn away from our mistakes. But many times, this pain is wasted, when we choose to go our own way. I pray that I always turn back toward Him.

And I want to be like Joseph, achieving success but always with the purpose that God had intended in mind; to reign over his brothers in love, generosity & compassion.

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It struck me how much, in the past 4 months I have chased success & excellence only to lose the entire meaning of it all by giving up peace & joy.

I knew I wanted success, but I never knew I needed peace & joy as much as I now know.

I went about talking about the purpose I've found in God, but forgot about the person I was to become in the midst of the process.

Life should be like this; Appreciating others & being appreciated. There can be no fulfilment if there is no love.

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Some experiences in our lives are there as lessons. I believe the emotions I am going through this season, is for a lesson. What comes after, I have no clue & neither do I want to mull upon.

But what I do know is that God has great plans for me & He has the right person for me.

In the right time, of course.

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If I had a say in things, I would love that the cell group be strengthened & bonded.

Dear God, I believe You will see us through.