Gentleness

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."

Galatians 5:22-23

Gentleness, one of the fruit of the holy spirit.

Recently, I have been reading a book "Men are from Israel, Women are from Moab". It talks about the characteristics of Ruth & Boaz. And there was so much that I learnt. One of the things that really stood out to me is the characteristic of GENTLENESS in Boaz. It says that healthy women are attracted to gentle men. Despite the fact that the society may see gentleness as a feminine trait, but the Bible holds up men as the model of gentleness. As read in the different scriptures:

1 Thess 2:7 "As apostles of Christ we could have been a burden to you, 7but we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children."

1 Tim 3:3 " not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. "

2 Tim 2:25 "Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth,"

The book mentioned that "gentleness" is a character that God places a high value on, and just like Boaz, he has demonstrated his gentleness in how he treated Ruth although she is a "foreigner" on his land, not only did he not chase her away or humiliate her, but he told his men to take care of her and they were instructed not to be rude to her either. Only one with such gentleness will be able to shower such grace over others.

As I think about how much gentleness is seen as a weakness in the society today, it needs to be a perspective that has to be changed. Personally when I look at it, I realise that God is so faithful to grant me such a gentle man like Han. It has never occured to me that such character has got such great strengths, until I look deeper, then do I realise that there is so much beneathe that gentleness. The patience that he has shown me has taught me to show more grace and patience; The love he has given has made me want to love God's people more; The care he has showered me with has brought me to be more caring; The person he is has brought out the strengths in me. I am truly so blessed.

"Greatness lies not in being strong, but in the right use of strength." Henry Ward Beecher

One Life, One Love and One Heart

The lyrics of this song tells of my prayer to God...........


ONE LIFE, I LAY AT YOUR ALTAR
ONE LOVE, I HAVE WITH YOU
TOUCH ME AGAIN
FILL ME AS YOU HOLD MY OUTSTRETCHED HANDS
ONE WORD, YOU KNOW I WILL FOLLOW
ONE HEART, BROKEN TO YOU
USE ME AGAIN
YOUR MERCIES FOLLOW ME FOR ALL MY DAYS



When i heard this song, I was very touched by it, because it says of my heart so much, to want to give it all to God, and God alone. It was like a renewal of my love unto God again since my salvation.

That one life, one heart and one love is for God alone. Is it truly just for God, or is it for the things of the world. Where does your one life, one heart belongs? As for me..........my one life, one heart and one love belongs to the Kingdom of God. It is not about me, it is about God. I like what Ps. Jeff preached today, he said that it is not about you. That reminds me once again that it is not my achievements, or my skills, and etc....... but it is God's achievements, glory and it is His and all His alone.

This is a constant call and reminder to humility, that no matter how much and well you perform, it is not about you (or me), it is about God.

God is in control

Since I came to know Christ, it has always been evident to me that God is in full control, and He always know what is best. However, the human mind sometimes questioned whether God knows what is best. I'm not sure if any of you may have felt the same as I did, where in our heart, and logical thinking, certain things seem so clear to us why God shouldn't give or allow it to happen in our lives. And of course, as we wait, it didn't happen, and then we start to question if God truly knows what He is doing.

I have been reading the book of Exodus, and praying through it, just as we listen to the weekly expository sermons on Exodus. I am personally blessed by the hand of God over the Israelites, and it just brought me to a greater revelation about God's soverignty and the notion that HE IS the COMMANDER, IN CHARGE. I was reading the part when Moses and the Israelites were at the red sea, and at then there was no way ahead, and the people started to complain and get angry at Moses, and as Moses cry out to the Lord, there was the assurance that God will fight for them, and that God will be with them.

"Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 14 The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still."

Exodus 14:13-14

It was clear that God has it all in control. Even when He chose to harden the hearts of the Pharoah, and allowed Pharoah and his army to pursue the Israelites. God allowed that to happen, but that's just because He is in control, and He will not let the Israelites perish in the hands of the Egyptians.

This whole story led me to think and ponder over my situation, where I've been anxiously and eagerly searching for a new job. There have been a couple of times that I thought and reasoned, that that's the perfect sort of job for me to learn and eventually use those skills for church full time ministry, and in my heart, prayed "according to my own will" that I'll get the job, and setting it like a condition to God. But when I look at it all now, I felt that I have been deceiving myself. And as well, have set myself on such high expectations, that when I didn't get any of those jobs, I wondered if I've done something wrong, and that's why God is not giving me the job "I desire". I learnt, it is more important to allow God to do what He knows is best, and to leave it in His control. He may have harden the hearts of those employers, but in His good timing, He will open the right door. I don't understand it myself at times, but can only come back to the basics of Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." It is just simply coming back to trusting God, even when I can reason it out with my mind.