IN THE YEAR OF THE HORSE, REMEMBER THE LORD

 

CELEBRATING CHINESE NEW YEAR

Rev Dr Timothy Tow

To the non-Christian Chinese, this is the celebration of celebrations, the festival of festivals. This is the time for yearly family reunions when the grown-up children come home to visit their aged parents. For a whole week before New Year, all buses, trains, planes between Singapore and Malaysia were fully booked. Private buses, cashing in, demanded a higher fee.

Chinese New Year is a time to indulge in feasting and attire. Despite the recession, the Chinese people can still afford to lavish good things on themselves and their children. Angpows (red packets of money) still exchange hands briskly, the seniors pampering the juniors, even as nephews and nieces call on one anothers’ uncles and aunties, etc.

The philosophy of the Lunar New Year celebrants seems to be: “Why worry, once a year at least, let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” (1 Cor 15:32; Isa 22:13). As for the angpow recipients they compare notes with one another to see if this year’s angpows yield more than last year’s. Then, like squirrels hiding away a windfall of nuts, the juniors will stash the sums earned from the angpows in the POSB with a chuckle.

Let me here give you, young people, a word of advice for your own good. “Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth …” (Eccl 12:1). Learn to honour God from your young days with your substance, Be sure you give back to Him that sacred tenth, worshipfully. If you honour the Lord, the Lord will honour you. When you leave school to earn your own livelihood, you’ll soon find out if my words, based on God’s Word, are true. – Life B-P Weekly of February 9th 1986

Pastor and Session wish all members a happy Lunar New Year in the Lord. Remember to offer a thanksgiving Hong Bao to the Lord in grateful worship.

THANK GOD FOR RECOVERY FROM DENGUE FEVER

Li Shan Shan

First of all, I would like to thank God for His faithfulness in helping me to recover from dengue. Although it was not a pleasant thing to suffer from this disease, I thank God that He permitted this to happen and it was indeed for His good purpose and glory. I have a short testimony of how God saw me through this sickness.

On 13 November 2013, early morning, I had a fever and very bad headache. At the same time, I felt no strength to get up. Even though I tried taking some medicine, it did not help me. Seeing that my problem was getting worse, that I could not even walk, my friends hurried to send me to see Dr Sim. After a few injections, I felt much better and went back to the college at night.

The next day I was so tired I slept almost the whole day, except when I got up to walk for awhile at night. However, in the morning of November 15, not only did I feel weak and feverish, my stomach was really aching very badly. Once again, with the help of FEBC friends, I went to Dr Sim’s clinic. This time my condition became worse. After a whole morning’s treatment, I did not get better. My stomach was getting more and more painful and I felt very cold even though I was covered with two blankets. At that moment, I thank God for Dr Sim. He not only reminded me to trust in God but also called my friends to pray for me. He himself also prayed aloud for me in the clinic. Thank God for giving Dr Sim and our principal Dr Khoo wisdom in making a good decision to send me to the hospital for further treatment. Then in the afternoon of November 15, it was the first time in my life that I was taken by an emergency ambulance to hospital in a foreign country.

I was hospitalised for six days altogether, and it was really the most difficult time for me. In the beginning my platelet count was about 65 which was very low because the normal platelet count is 150 or higher, and my blood pressure was about 70. The doctors had to keep on checking my platelet count and blood pressure, put me on a drip and gave me some medicine in order to relieve my headache and prevent me from vomiting. However I just kept on vomiting and could not drink and eat anything for three nights and three days. Unlike other diseases, there is no medicine at all for dengue. The doctor in charge told me that my body itself must get strength to fight against the virus, she could not do anything more to help me. But how could I fight against the virus since I was so weak? Truly, I could only cry to the Lord for help, just like what the psalmist cried out in the Bible, “God is my present help in trouble” (Ps 46:1). “In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God” (Ps 62:7).

Although I suffered from dengue fever badly, I thank God for the privilege to learn more of the good hand of God by experience. Indeed, God used it to teach me these precious spiritual lessons:

Firstly, I learned how wonderful and needful it is to have God and His faithful Word in my life. If not, I really do not know how hopeless it would be during that difficult time. When I begged the doctor to relieve me of my pain but got negative answers, I felt sad. But then, I thank God that His Word reminds me to be still and know that He is my sovereign God; surely His grace will be enough for me (Ps 46:10, 2 Cor 12:9). Thank God for rebuking me of my sin for wanting to rely too much on doctors or medicines. Truly, in that most helpless situation, the Lord had shown me that He is my good Shepherd and my Deliverer. So I must rely fully on the power and the Spirit of God (Ps 23:1, Zech 4:6). When I could not sleep at night because of the pain and the many thoughts in my mind, I thank God that He reminded me to read the book of Psalms. I thank God that Sisters Sufang and Chunjing were with me and read the Psalms chapter by chapter for me. Truly, when I chose to draw close to God, God made a way for me. Many of the verses came alive in my life. They gave me peace, rest and the strength I needed to fight against the disease and the fearfulness.

Secondly, God taught me the need to show His love through action. During those days in hospital, I had never been left alone to face the problem. This was because Mrs Tow was so concerned for me and advised my friends to take turns to care of me by day and by night. Though there were physical discomforts, my heart was greatly comforted. Furthermore, every day there were friends who visited me in hospital. Thank God for Mrs Tow, Dr and Mrs Khoo, True Life church members and FEBC friends. They brought me God’s Word, prayed for me and also brought nourishment to me. In the six days of hospitalisation, I received about 400 text messages and a hundred phone calls. The great love shown by God’s people really taught me to be thankful and encouraged me to love God more.

All in all, I thank God for His faithfulness in healing me from dengue. My platelet count went up to 300 one week after I was discharged and I was quite well. Thank God for all the good testimonies which encouraged my parents to have the peace to let me continue with my studies at FEBC. Truly, the Lord did great things for me. I thank the Lord for using this event to let me, my friends and family members experience more of the greatness of the Lord. True enough, God works all things together for good to them that love Him, to them who are the called according to His purpose (Rom 8:28). All thanks and glory be unto God.

VERSE FOR THE WEEK

“Whoso causeth the righteous to go astray in an evil way, he shall fall himself into his own pit: but the upright shall have good things in possession.” Prov 28:10

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