12:52 AM
June 16. Midnight. I believed many have heard of the tragedy. And i cant help but feel really guilty, really bad. I used to criticise his teachings, that I am not able to understand after he teaches. I used to say about his dressing. And his very last lesson he taught me, I was half listening, half talking. I didnt cared about his pounding headache. Or maybe I did a little. But he probably did it all for us. Thank You, Mr Kelvin Tan, for all the services you've rendered.
I'm not crying. I just feel sad. I just feel bad. Nevertheless, I seeked out Our Daily Bread once again. A thought struck me. Pastor Johnny Yeoh was right. Today's sermon was about Fathers Day. But he mentioned about this mother who had died in the hospital, and that the daughter was afraid and regretful that she will never see her again, for she was not a believer of Christ. Pastor then said that it is not a priority to grieve over the death of someone, but to urge friends and families around you who still have not accepted Jesus Christ as their personal saviour to transform them, to let them know that the only true everlasting life, is through God alone. Through Jesus. And he urged us to do the same. And then at night, I was informed of this tragedy. Much as i hate to believe. When Pastor's words came to my mind that very moment, I thought of friends who were non believers, backsliders.
Dave. Ivan. Eugene. Jasper. Yvonne. Liyan. Sandra. Dawei. Travis. Stella. Donovan. Beatrice. Li Jun. Yan Yu. Sabrina. Chee Yew. Believe it or not, these names came into my head, i was afraid. Afraid to lose them and not see them should we leave this earth. Life is so precious, so unpredictable. And i want to bring my friends to know the Lord. Calling out to the people who's reading this post, if you're still uncertain of life, you want assurance of your afterlife, you want a saviours, a friend who's always there for you. Just try, try only. To at least go to a church. See if it suits you. And I am sure many christians like me will welcome you with open arms, to let you know more about this God that we will meet when we pass away from this earth.
Anyways, I was reading through Our Daily Bread, and saw a 20 July 2008 post. If you have, read it. Went online to search for more, so I'm just going to dedicate the rest of the post to those who are still non believers of Christ to take some time to read it. Life is precious. And i dont want to lose a friend like you after our life on Earth.
My father (Richard De Haan) had been battling a debilitating disease for many years. We asked the Lord to take him home. But as I knelt by his bed and watched him take that last breath, the tears I had choked back on other occasions came out like a flood. As my brothers and my mother hugged and prayed, the finality was overwhelming.
That event helped me understand the significance of the shortest verse in the Bible: "Jesus wept" (John 11:35). God the Son wept! He knew the reality of heaven. He was the source of all hope of a future day of resurrection. And yet, Jesus cried. He loved His friends Mary and Martha and Lazarus so much that "He groaned in the spirit and was troubled" (v.33). Jesus truly felt their heartache.
When someone we love dies, we struggle with a wide range of emotions. If a young person dies, we ask "Why?" When death comes after long-term suffering, we struggle to understand why the Lord waited so long to bring relief. We begin to think of God as distant, untouched by our sorrow. We may question His wisdom or His goodness. Then we read, "Jesus wept." God is deeply touched by our anguish.
When a painful situation invades your life, remember the Bible's shortest verse. Jesus shed tears too. —
Kurt De HaanIf you doubt that Jesus cares, remember His tears.Dorothy, an elderly woman, was near death. She loved the Lord and longed to be with Him. The nurse told her family that Dorothy would probably hold on until she could see her daughter, who was on her way to say goodbye. The nurse said, "It's as if Dorothy has one foot here and the other in heaven. She wants to take that last step soon."That reminds me of the following beautiful description of dying by Henry van Dyke:
"I am standing at the seashore. A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze and starts for the blue ocean. I stand and watch her until, at length, she hangs like a speck of white cloud, just where the sea and sky come to mingle with each other. . . . And just at the moment when someone at my side says: 'There, she is gone!' there are other eyes watching her coming, and other voices ready to take up the glad shout: 'Here she comes!' And that is dying."Even more comforting for the loved ones of a believer who dies are the words of the apostle Paul: "If our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens" (2 Cor. 5:1). We can rejoice in our sorrow knowing our departed loved ones are now present with the Lord (v.8). — Anne CetasThe death of people whom we loveBrings sorrow and deep pain;But if our loved ones know the Lord,Our loss becomes their gain. —Sper
Because Christ lives, death is not tragedy but triumph.A friend whose young daughter was killed in a car accident in May 2005 told me: "I cried easily before Natalie’s accident. . . . Now I am always crying. Sometimes the tears just slip out."
Anyone who has suffered such intense personal tragedy understands what she is talking about.
Is there anything wrong with crying? Or do we have biblical evidence to suggest that it’s okay to cry?
Jesus gives us the answer. Lazarus, a close friend of His, had died. When Jesus arrived at the home of Lazarus’ sisters, they were surrounded by friends who had come to console them. Jesus saw Mary and Martha and their friends mourning, and He too was overcome. Sorrowing with them, "Jesus wept" (John 11:35).
Sadness, tears, and mourning are familiar territory for everyone on this earth—even for Jesus. His tears tell us that it’s okay if tears "just slip out." And they remind us that the reason tears of sorrow will be extinct in eternity is that "there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain" (Rev. 21:4).
When God wipes out the effects of sin, He will wipe out the need for tears—one more reason to look forward to eternity. —
Dave BranonGod shall wipe away all tears;
There’s no death, no pain, nor fears,
And they count not time by years,
For there is no night there. —Clements
Heaven—no pain, no night, no death, no tears.
0 comments
