FT Chronicle

Have you been angry today? Have you yelled at someone so loud? If so, what did you feel? Did you feel that you should not have said or done that? When we open our mouth without thinking and hurt someone, we always feel regret at the end.

“The heart of the righteous studies how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours forth evil.” – Proverbs 15:28

But, it is true that we may find it hard to think clear before saying such words when we are enraged or full of emotions. When we try to let loose of what we are keeping inside, we always end up hurting others.

King Solomon is not different from up. Even though he is the author of the book Ecclesiastes, he complained “Therefore I hated life because the work that was done under the sun was distressing to me, for all is vanity and grasping for the wind. Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.” (Ecclesiastes 2:17, 12:8). But at the end of the book, he said “The Preacher sought to find acceptable words; and what was written was upright—words of truth.”(Ecclesiastes 12:10)

It is clear that Solomon knew that he must control his emotions where he always asks himself first.

“He who has knowledge spares his words, and a man of understanding is of a calm spirit.” –  Proverbs 17:27

Before anger overcome you, it is better to always put in mind for you will utter such words. We must find the right words to say and also try to understand other’s feeling.

“Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.” – Proverbs 16:24

The most important of all, if we do not have the intention to hurt others when we are about to talk, we must bear in mind “The heart of the wise teaches his mouth, and adds learning to his lips.”(Proverbs 16:23). Of course, we are not perfect and we really find it difficult to find clarity before anything else. But with the help of God’s word, we can learn how to think first and to consider the feelings of others before saying anything else.

Birthdays come once a year in a person’s life. One may ask about what will be your wishes in your birthday. Some wish for themselves, good life and fortune. Some wish for others, world peace and charity. Other also wishes for good health and a longer life.

Long life. Who does not want to live longer? How about an offer to live eternally? It’s a deal, for God gives you the right briefcase.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” – John 3:16

But you may ask, what shall I do to have an everlasting life? You are not alone, everyone seeks for the answer. Jesus once was asked about it.

One man came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?” So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.” He said to Him, “Which ones?” Jesus said, “‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’  ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”

The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept from my youth. What do I still lack?”  Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

When His disciples heard it, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?”

But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Then Peter answered and said to Him, “See, we have left all and followed You. Therefore what shall we have?” (Matthew 19:16-27)

When we forsake what this life can offer and follow Him, He will give us eternal life.

Release of about 10, 000 Bibles were blocked and seized by the Malaysian government for it contains the name “Allah” to refer to God.

Malaysia, a country which has majority of Muslim Malays, sought to stop the copies for the use of Allah is only for Islam and using it in Bibles could disturb Muslims.

Muslims dominated about two-thirds of the country’s population and religion is highly observed there where religious minorities found the government unfair for them.

The administration has confiscated Bibles before, just this March; they have captured about 5,000 copies supposed to be delivered in Indonesia.

The Roman Catholic Church is questioning the prohibition in court saying that although “Allah” is an Arabic word and widely used in Islamic purposes, people there have used it for years to refer particularly to God and even Arabic-speaking Christians have used it before the religion itself.

Because of the Bible seizure, The Christian Federation of Malaysia stated that the religious liberty pledged by the Malaysian constitution was worthless if people were deprived of local-tongue Bibles.

News and photo from BBC

The headlines: storms destroy homes, earthquake wrecks a city and terrorist attacks claim innocent lives. In a world where peace and security seems to be lurking somewhere else, people question God. “Why?” Where is the Lord in these times? Does God really care?

” He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” – 1 John 4:8

It is not wrong to ask God such questions for Habakkuk also asked “Why do You show me iniquity, and cause me to see trouble? For plundering and violence are before me; there is strife, and contention arises.”(Habakkuk 1:3). God did not reprove him but instead those words were written in the Bible. But note what James 1:13 says: “Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.”

Let’s in back to the question, does God really care? Yes!

He gave us the Earth, which is rich in natural wonders, amazing fauna and bountiful land.

“Nevertheless He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good, gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.” – Acts 14:17

“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.” – Romans 1:20

He gave us a marvellous body for us to enjoy everyday which enables us to taste great food, to watch the beautiful sunset, to hear the children’s laughter and to feel the warmth of a tender loving heart.

“I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvellous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.” – Psalms 139:14

He gave us wisdom that helps us to face everyday problems and worries.

“The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple, the statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.” – Psalms 19:7, 8

“Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path.” – Psalms 119:105

“Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, The Holy One of Israel:
“I am the LORD your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you by the way you should go.” – Isaiah 48:17

He provides up hope and the hope to live forever in Paradise and to see our love ones again.

“And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” – Luke 23:43

“Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.” – John 5:28, 29

He sent His beloved Son, Jesus, to die for us being the redeemer of our sins with the promise of eternal life.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” – John 3:16

He established the Messianic Kingdom in heavens and gave us assurance of His great Kingdom to rule the Earth.

“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace of the increase of His government and peace. There will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.” – Isaiah 9:6, 7

“Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!” – Revelations 11:15

He invites us to come close to Him through prayers and through our hearts and He will hear us.

“Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.” – 1 John5:14, 15

He constantly assures us of his fervent love and sympathy.

“In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” – 1 John4:9, 10

God is always there for us, and we must be there for Him. Thank God for everything.

“We love Him because He first loved us.” – 1 John4:19

Photo from growabrain.typepad.com

Just the past few days, spiritualism flooded the mainstream. There are stories of people who see dead people and also speak to the spirits. In most of the land, occult is widespread that it reached its way into the veins of literary works, games and entertainment (TV and movies).

Spiritualism is not just plain entertainment or fun, it is a dangerous thing. It is not just being curious about the “other dimension”. The Bible says “the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten.” (Ecclesiastes 9:5, 10)

If there is no eternal “soul”, to whom they are calling to? “And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14). It is a communication with the demons for the Deceiver, Satan, leads the whole world to the wilderness. “The great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” (Revelations 12:9)

”Whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.” –
(2 Corinthians 4:4)

Like the way a fisherman uses bait to catch fish, it is the same way the demons trick most of us. Same as the fisherman has his sets of different bait for varieties of fish; the demons fool people for a wide range of spiritualism.

It is the prime objective of evil spirits. They want us to be strayed and astray away to God. Being resistors to God’s supremacy, they want to claim millions of lives to be put into oblivion. “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” (Revelations 21:8). The worst of it, in playing on the fire, there is something always in exchange.

” Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: … uncleanness, … sorcery, … heresies, … and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” – Galatians 5:19-21

”There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD your God drives them out from before you.” – Deuteronomy 18:10-12

“Blessed are those who do His commandments that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. But outside are dogs and sorcerers and … idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.” – Revelations 22: 14, 15

The best way to protect up from the deadly harm of spiritualism is to establish an intimate relation with God. Note what James 4:7, 8 says for us to follow, “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

God helps every one who calls upon Him and delivers us from evil. One day, God will set them away eradicating all of them. “They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:9)

Photo from Flicker

Today, people will crowd the cemeteries and pray for their loved ones who already left. We may pay tribute to our relatives for the days they spent with us here in Earth.

We cannot hide our feelings wherever one who are close to us died. We know that death is inevitable but is it God’s will for us to die? The answer is no.

“ For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” – Romans 6:23

God wants us to live forever more. But how? God promised to raise all the dead in every tombstone as it is written in the Bible.

“Your dead shall live; together with my dead body they shall arise.
Awake and sing, you who dwell in dust; for your dew is like the dew of herbs,
And the earth shall cast out the dead.” – Isaiah 26:19

“ Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice” – John 5:28

“ Jesus answered and said to them, “Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard: …the dead are raised…” – Luke 7:22

Who will be resurrected from the grave? Do we all have a chance to be raised when the day come? The answer is yes. As what Apostle Paul said “I have hope in God, which they themselves also accept, that there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust.” (Acts 24:15). Also, note that Jesus has said to one of the criminals hanged with him. “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:39-43)

But why did the unjust be included? It is because of God’s love for all of us. They will be given a period to know things of God’s will and to embrace God’s Kingdom.

The good news is God promised to give His sons eternal life enjoying life on Earth under His mighty Kingdom.

“The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell in it forever.” – Psalms 37:29

Everlasting life is repeated all over the verses of the Holy Scriptures.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” – John 3:16

“For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.” – John 5:21

“And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” – John 11:26

One of the great promises of God is the elimination of death itself when His Kingdom comes.

“The last enemy that will be destroyed is death.” – 1 Corinthians 15:26

“And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” – Revelations 21:4

A great promise indeed to hope for! A paradise we all wait for!

“For He is not the God of the dead but of the living, for all live to Him.” – Luke 20:38

Do you believe in ghosts? Are you afraid of the spirits of the deceased? This theme is the favorite when observing Halloween. But do we really need to be scared of the dead?

“And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” – Genesis 2:7

When God created the first man Adam, he himself is the living soul. One may ask: if a person dies, what will happen to him? What does the Bible say?

“For dust you are, and to dust you shall return.” Genesis 3:19
“The soul who sins shall die.” – Ezekiel 18:4

When Adam, the living soul, died his spirit died too. Since we are of Adam’s blood, we inherited the sin and death itself.

“Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned” – Romans 5:12

In the simplest words to write, death is the opposite of life. But what really happens when someone dies? Consider the moment Jesus visited in Lazarus’ burial. People tried to stop him for Lazarus is four days dead and his body may emit foul smell out of the burial site.

“These things He said, and after that He said to them, “Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up.” Then His disciples said, “Lord, if he sleeps he will get well.” However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly, “Lazarus is dead.” – John 11:11-14

What does Jesus means when he said that Lazarus is only sleeping? The life we are holding can be compared to a candle’s lit. When the fire on the candlewick is gone, it does not mean that it have gone somewhere else. Instead, it does not exist anymore. One will die, the spirit will follow.

“His spirit departs, he returns to his earth; in that very day his plans perish.” –
Psalms 146:4

But, is there anything we really should be scared of?

“For the living know that they will die; but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten.” – Ecclesiastes 9:5

It means that the dead are unable to do things and to know anything.
They do not have memory or senses and capability, for a person undergoes a complete state of coma or simply as an eternal slumber.

“Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice.” – John 5:28

But there is something that we can hope for. God promised to bring all to life for His nearing Kingdom. All will be revived and given a chance to live eternally with God and our king, Jesus.

“But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.” –
1 Thessalonians 4: 13, 14

“I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.” – Psalms34:4

A week earlier, I started a series of prayer to the Lord asking Him to help me and my classmates about our grades. I started to feel nervous a night before the releasing of grades but I put in mind a verse from Matthew 6:34. “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”

The day has come and I find myself holding my grade slip. I cannot believe what I have seen, God answered my prayers! And it is way more than what I wished for!

“He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:24

But most of my classmates did not do it well. Do you feel God isn’t answering your prayers? Are you tempted to doubt His goodness? We may say why we must suffer disappointment, sorrow and failure? What have we done that God should send us trials?

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. – Isaiah55:8

Prayers are nothing without the faith and the commitment. For faith is the seed you’ll plant and commitment is the sickle you use to harvest. Like a good farmer with a bountiful harvest, we must all be productive to accomplish our goals.

”But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26

When we call on God, we must believe that He will help us but in His perfect time and in His perfect way.

“So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” – Luke 11:9-10

We are so grateful that our Almighty Creator of this vast universe who hears all prayers
is close to all. He listens attentively for our plea, our wail, and our prayers. True thankfulness is more than being grateful for what we possess.

“Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” – 1 John 5:14

Do your best and leave the rest.

“And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind. For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things. But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you.” – Luke12:29-31

Have you tried to speak a new language? Or have you encountered a situation where you find it hard to communicate because of the language barrier? There are more than 6000 languages in the world where dialects are not even included. Language seems to be a wall for people of different tongues.

Communication is a complicated thing. Language can produce division, anger and misunderstanding. But throughout history, we can say the language rather communication is important in civilizations. Communication is one of the foundation of the mighty empires and large cities of the written history

“Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.”
1 Corinthians 13:1

The Almighty God who knows everything uses a language in the holy places of angels.

“Now the whole earth had one language and one speech.”
Genesis 11:1

When He created men, He put a language in our tongues with the ability to broaden it. There’s no solid evidence or any to justify that the early language of men consisted of howls and growls.

“Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.” So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they ceased building the city. Therefore its name is called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of all the earth; and from there the LORD scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.”
Genesis 11:7-9

But after God’s command for people to roam the land and to multiply, they decided to establish a cradle of all civilizations at the plains of Shinar in Mesopotamia and started to build the Tower of Babel that aims to reach the top of the heavens.

But language is God-given (Exodus 4:11). Language can be spoken by any soul of any race of any status. Language allows everyone to express what he feels or what he knows. Though language can summon walls, there is something that breaks it.

“For then I will restore to the peoples a pure language that they all may call on the name of the LORD, to serve Him with one accord.”
Zephaniah 3:9

There is only one language in Earth that unites all people of all nations. It is The Word of God, the pure spiritual language the truth about our Holy Father and His plans for all mankind.
The Great Kingdom of God is nearing. There’s a place where all are one living in a world full of unity, harmony, love and faith to God. This is a new world where God will unite all people for one language, in short reversing what He has done in the site of Babel.