Take a risk? Sure...after the Swallow has run through a mental checklist, and the result is a satisfying swing to the side of the positive. More often than not, when an immediate and necessary choice has to be made, without the benefit of deliberation or hindsight experience, the Swallow would probably say, "No, thank you, I'll pass." Call her cautious or fearful, but she rather be safe than sorry. Two incidents yesterday drove home that point.
The first incident happened in the morning. After hanging out the laundry, she went to a nearby supermarket to get some groceries. Halfway there, a glance at the sky brought gray clouds into view. Continue on to the store, or turn back home to collect the laundry and bring along an umbrella? Her thoughts fought with her heart. Only a few gray clouds...look, the sun is still shining...make a quick trip...take a risk...
At the checkout counter, what had been a few gray clouds had quickly become an expanse of gray clouds. The sun was hidden from view. The light of the day had dimmed. After making payment for the groceries, the Swallow hurried home, trying to outrun the gray clouds but it was futile. The Swallow was drenched just a short distance from her nest. A (mis)calculated risk...standing at the cross junction, the Swallow realized that she should have listened to the Holy Spirit's prompting in her heart. An immediate downpour seemed to emphasize this thought.
However, the silver lining in this gray cloud was that her laundry was kept almost dry. Her Sovereign Lord kept the rain away from it! His mercy is from everlasting to everlasting, even though His faithful ones err from time to time...
The second incident happened in the night. There was a collision between a car and a truck at the spot where a previous accident had happened less than a week ago. Two accidents at the same spot within a week. (Mis)calculated risks by the parties involved...for some risks, the result may be a matter of life and death...
Thursday, 28 July 2011
Sunday, 24 July 2011
Guilt or Forgiveness
No different from most young ones, the young ones in the Swallow's nest need adequate sleep to ensure that they wake up refreshed and ready to face the challenges of the next day. The same goes for herself and her mate.
This morning, suffering from the effects of a late night, getting ready for church was a less than satisfying experience. The young ones dragged their feet...slow to wake and even slower to move. The Swallow's reaction? Suffice to say that it was not a patient mother's response to her young ones' behaviour.
On their way to church, the Swallow was reminded again how easy it was to sin. Imagine if she had to find her own way to heaven, and that way was from doing good works, the Swallow would have fallen short again and again.
Romans 3 : 10 (NKJV)
As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one."
Romans 3 : 23 (NKJV)
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Romans 6 : 23 (NKJV)
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
1 John 1 : 9 (NKJV)
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
So it was, when she chose to receive the forgiveness offered by the Lord God as she confessed the sins of this morning, instead of dwelling on the guilt of doing something wrong (again!), she was able to worship with a heart of gratitude and a heart welled up with praise to the Living God for His precious gift of the Lord Jesus Christ who took away her sins by His death on the cross.
How wonderful it is that the Swallow need not depend on herself to get to heaven!
This morning, suffering from the effects of a late night, getting ready for church was a less than satisfying experience. The young ones dragged their feet...slow to wake and even slower to move. The Swallow's reaction? Suffice to say that it was not a patient mother's response to her young ones' behaviour.
On their way to church, the Swallow was reminded again how easy it was to sin. Imagine if she had to find her own way to heaven, and that way was from doing good works, the Swallow would have fallen short again and again.
Romans 3 : 10 (NKJV)
As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one."
Romans 3 : 23 (NKJV)
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Romans 6 : 23 (NKJV)
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
1 John 1 : 9 (NKJV)
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
So it was, when she chose to receive the forgiveness offered by the Lord God as she confessed the sins of this morning, instead of dwelling on the guilt of doing something wrong (again!), she was able to worship with a heart of gratitude and a heart welled up with praise to the Living God for His precious gift of the Lord Jesus Christ who took away her sins by His death on the cross.
How wonderful it is that the Swallow need not depend on herself to get to heaven!
Thursday, 21 July 2011
Life is Unpredictable
Sounds of tyres screeching, followed by a dull thud, then the non-stopping blare of a horn broke the stillness of the late morning. Exiting her nest, the Swallow rushed out to the corridor overlooking the cross junction nearby. The horrific result of a four-vehicle collision greeted her.
A delivery truck was partially lying on its side. Its container had crushed the driver's side of the white car next to it. A black car had jumped the divider and was head to head with a gray car. Policemen, with patrol cars, were already at the accident site and taking control of the traffic. From the sight of a policeman carrying a white cloth with him, the Swallow deduced that there might be a fatality.
Paramedics arrived shortly after and conducted checks on the victims of the accident. The driver of the delivery truck was carried, motionless, in a stretcher to a waiting ambulance. Another two people, a boy and a woman (his mother?), who were initially sitting at the side of the road when the Swallow first saw them, were guided to the same ambulance. A second ambulance, which arrived a few minutes later, ferried the driver of the black car and another victim. All this time, the blare of the horn had not stopped.
Firemen in a fire truck, firemen in red rhinos (aka light fire attack vehicles) and firemen on motorbikes arrived too. The horn stopped its blaring only when the firemen removed the body of the driver from the white car. The body was bundled up in the white cloth and placed on the grass patch at the side of the road. A blue police tent was erected above the body.
The Swallow did not continue looking at the gruesome sight after that, but two hours later, when she had to run some errands, she saw several firemen still at the accident site, trying to get the blood stains off the road. Her mate reported to her that all he could see, on his way home from work several hours later, was a broken divider. For anyone else who was returning home from work but had not heard an account of the accident, all would have seemed normal. For these, life would go on as usual. However, for the Swallow who saw the after-effects of the accident, for her family who heard the account of it, and for those who read this post, it is a grim reminder that life is unpredictable.
Isaiah 40 : 6 - 8 (NKJV)
The voice said, "Cry out!" and he said, "What shall I cry?" "All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, because the breath of the LORD blows upon it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever."
Hebrews 9 : 27 - 28 (NKJV)
And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgement, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.
A delivery truck was partially lying on its side. Its container had crushed the driver's side of the white car next to it. A black car had jumped the divider and was head to head with a gray car. Policemen, with patrol cars, were already at the accident site and taking control of the traffic. From the sight of a policeman carrying a white cloth with him, the Swallow deduced that there might be a fatality.
Paramedics arrived shortly after and conducted checks on the victims of the accident. The driver of the delivery truck was carried, motionless, in a stretcher to a waiting ambulance. Another two people, a boy and a woman (his mother?), who were initially sitting at the side of the road when the Swallow first saw them, were guided to the same ambulance. A second ambulance, which arrived a few minutes later, ferried the driver of the black car and another victim. All this time, the blare of the horn had not stopped.
Firemen in a fire truck, firemen in red rhinos (aka light fire attack vehicles) and firemen on motorbikes arrived too. The horn stopped its blaring only when the firemen removed the body of the driver from the white car. The body was bundled up in the white cloth and placed on the grass patch at the side of the road. A blue police tent was erected above the body.
The Swallow did not continue looking at the gruesome sight after that, but two hours later, when she had to run some errands, she saw several firemen still at the accident site, trying to get the blood stains off the road. Her mate reported to her that all he could see, on his way home from work several hours later, was a broken divider. For anyone else who was returning home from work but had not heard an account of the accident, all would have seemed normal. For these, life would go on as usual. However, for the Swallow who saw the after-effects of the accident, for her family who heard the account of it, and for those who read this post, it is a grim reminder that life is unpredictable.
Isaiah 40 : 6 - 8 (NKJV)
The voice said, "Cry out!" and he said, "What shall I cry?" "All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, because the breath of the LORD blows upon it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever."
Hebrews 9 : 27 - 28 (NKJV)
And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgement, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.
Sunday, 17 July 2011
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