This blog looks so sad at not having any posts, so I decided to paste one of my blog posts here. Teehee. Anyway, it is something I would have shared in cell if I didn't have that sore throat. And nope, the devil isn't going to stop me from sharing the joy of God in my life with the people in the wonderful cell I'm in. Amen!

6 A voice says, "Cry out."
And I said, "What shall I cry?"
"All men are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.

7 The grass withers and the flowers fall,
because the breath of the LORD blows on them.
Surely the people are grass.

8 The grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of our God stands forever."

9 You who bring good tidings to Zion,
go up on a high mountain.
You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem,
lift up your voice with a shout,
lift it up, do not be afraid;
say to the towns of Judah,
"Here is your God!"

10 See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power,
and his arm rules for him.
See, his reward is with him,
and his recompense accompanies him.

11 He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young.

Isaiah 40:6-11 (NIV)

At about 10, 11 pm yesterday night, I was feeling burdened over various issues. There was stress over the impending preliminary examinations and how I seem to lack so much in facing up to it; sadness over all the darkness that clouds the hearts and minds of people worldwide, as well as people by my side.

I began to reason, and went through the rationality of my being affected by all these circumstances. I remained in deep thought for an extended period of time - until the Spirit startled me with a question: Why reason?

The Bible is clear about the place for reason in a Christian's life. Peter exhorts us to be prepared to give a reason for the hope that we have in Christ. In the modern context, this intellectual defence of Christianity is called Apologetics. However, the Bible does not claim that reason is the primary thing. Nowhere in the Bible states that we should resort to reason, simply because reason is insufficient. As finite human beings, we reason only with a limited human reason, a human reason that is tainted by the influence of our emotions and predispositions. In John 15:25, Jesus says that they (unbelievers) hated him without reason. This is in spite of the fact that the Pharisees etc are men who conduct intellectual discussions over the books of the law and the like. Clearly, their reasoning (at least with regard to the position of Jesus) was flawed. Only God is capable of exercising pure reason.

But I digress. The Spirit's prompting reminded me of the time when I sought to rationalise my belief in Christianity. It failed, for as I wrote in the previous paragraph, reason is not the primary thing. The link between us and our Father God is not the mind, but the Spirit. God doesn't become more real to you if you try to justify his existence with human arguments. Instead, we come to experience His overwhelming presence when we meet Him face to face in the Spirit. And that is exactly what I was called to yesterday night: prayer.

And so I prayed. I prayed the Word in my life. I held on to the promise of life, peace, joy, and love in Him. I put aside all my worries and declared them dead, choosing instead to tell God from the Spirit that in Him, I know I have life. And I was filled with inexplicable joy - not the kind that makes you go "Shout Your Fame!" but one that just made me drop to my knees and say, "Lord, you are indeed my God." I couldn't stop praying and worshipping Him. As the Spirit revealed to me more and more of His Word, I began to rejoice in the realisation of what it really means to belong to Him. He really is wonderful.

You could ask me to explain all that, but I really can't, and I wouldn't want to. Why? Simply because it isn't because of some intellectual point that I rejoice, but because of the spiritual grasping of what that really means. In Colossians 3, we are called to let the Word dwell richly in our lives. Merely hearing the Word isn't enough - it doesn't dwell richly that way. The Word also refers to Christ Jesus. He dwells in us, and that I don't rejoice because that is a fact, but because I have experienced the reality of Him in me.

You may now ask why I quoted from Isaiah to start off the post. That passage tells me in a very powerful way how He really is the primary thing. When God comes into the picture (breath of God - God-life), everything else just dies (fades away). When you truly see and experience God, nothing else matters. Exams, circumstances, strained relationships; all these aren't an issue anymore because I have Jesus in my life. And He brightens up my world.

Here is your God! Taste and see that He is good.

Jesus, life-giver, I love you and praise you. Indeed, I am transformed in you.