The Prodigal God: Part 1 (Luke 15:11-13)

Hello All,

Today’s poem has been adapted from one of Timothy Keller’s bestselling book entitled ‘The Prodigal God’.

This poem I have written is a really long one as it has 20 stanzas so I’m splitting it into Part 1 until 5.

You might think that I have gotten the title wrong as this parable is commonly known as ‘The Prodigal Son’, not ‘The Prodigal God’ but I will reveal the reason Timothy Keller renamed this parable as ‘The Prodigal God’ in Part 5.

The Prodigal God: Part 1 (Luke 15:11-13)

By Joanne Liaw Sook Ling (20^th June 2012)

There was a man who had two sons

The story begins with the younger one

Who demanded a share of his estate

His father he regarded as good as dead

His father’s name he placed at stake

He would get his land at any rate

So sure was he that it was no mistake

To tear his father’s life for his own sake

The father acquiesce his son’s demand

His land he divided between his sons

Not withholding what belonged to him

Graciously gave in to his younger son’s whim

 

The younger son gathered his wealth and left home

He set off to a distant country to roam

He drifted away from his father’s teachings

Plunged himself into wild frivolous living

TO BE CONTINUED…..

Points for Reflection:

Like the younger son in this parable,

·         Have you, at certain points of your life, left God, our heavenly Father, for worldly pursuits, entertainment and/or pleasures in your quest for self-discovery, thrill and/or meaning in life? 

·         If you have not outwardly forsaken the Christian faith, are there times when you are tempted to?

·         Do you sometimes find walking closely with God restricting on your freedom to live life your way?

·         Are you at times only interested in the material blessings which you can get out of God and could not care less about loving and pleasing him as your heavenly father?

·         If you have answered yes to any of the questions above (which I’m sure all of us would have), just take some time to talk to God and ask him to soften your heart, return to him and live the way he wants you to live.

Turnaround

Hello All,

Was there ever a time when you wished for the clock to unwind a few hours back so that you could have a second chance to undo a mistake, a promise or perhaps a bad choice made?

Have you ever wished you could tap that imaginary rewind button of your circumstances, delete past regrets and record the decisions you wished you have made instead?

I am sure we have all felt this way before. I know I definitely have...

Turnaround

By Joanne Liaw Sook Ling (23^rd June 2012)

Why should Christ die for a wretched sinner like me?

I can give no answer to that profound mystery

His saving grace and mercy I do not deserve

Nothing goes deeper than the depth of his love

Too many times I have stumbled into sin

There are paths I wished I have never walked in

Boundaries I wished I have not crossed

For sin's consequences bear too high a cost

Time after time God has given me a second chance

To turn around and find forgiveness in his arms

For Christ has taken the penalty for my sins

He will now give me the strength to live for him

Points for Reflection:

·         Although it is a solid fact that we are unable to turn back time and undo the past, there is one thing that Christ has reversed for us on the cross - the penalty for our sins. Christ has borne our sins and because of that, we are made righteous before a holy God. Therefore, we are adopted as God's beloved children and are given new life in him.

Ephesians 2:4-5:

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—

       

·         However, after receiving God's forgiveness for our sins, we are still imperfect humans with flaws and are  prone to sin, be it in our actions, words or even thoughts. But the good news is, each time we sin against God, Christ's atoning death on the cross gives us second chances to truly repent, be resolute in making a U-turn from our sinful ways with the help of the Holy Spirit and start afresh. That does not mean that we are given the license to freely indulge in sin and then just say a mere sorry to God but we are to make the conscious effort to cooperate with the Holy Spirit in our combat against sin.

1 John 1:9:

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

2 Corinthians 7:10

For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.

       

·         Are there any sinful ways which you have not turned away from? Ask God to give you the strength to turn away from them and follow him whole-heartedly.

Ephesians 4:22-24:

Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

The Builders (Matthew 5:24-27)

Hello All,

Happy reading! =)

The Builders (Matthew 5:24-27)

By Joanne Liaw Sook Ling (27^th October 2012)

They felled great trees and gathered much wood

Quarried as many stones as they could

Reeds were bound with fibre for the roof

Building materials were fine and good

The foolish builder started construction

For his house during the hot season

The sun-baked sand was his foundation

It seemed like a secured decision

The wise builder dug through the sand

Unswerving in the work of his hands

When things got hard he did not relent

Till he reached the rock beneath the sand

This rock was where his house was built on

The foundation where his house stood strong

The firm ground on which he could depend

For all other ground was sinking sand

And then came the heavy rain and storm

That brought in the raging floods and winds

The house founded on the rock stood strong

But the house built on the sand caved in

 

My dear readers, is your life built on

The shifting foundations of this world?

Or is it firmly rooted upon

The solid rock of Christ and his Word?

Points for Reflection:   

Since there are quite a bit of metaphors here, I thought it would be helpful to define what the imageries mean:

a)      The House (v.24-27)

·         Beliefs, convictions, aspirations and choices in a person’s life.

b)      The Sand (v.21-23, 26-27)?

·         Any unstable foundation for life apart from Christ.

·         e.g. money, career, intellect, achievements, human relationships, fame, etc…

c)       The foolish man who built his house on the sand (v.21-23, 26-27)?

·         Anyone who builds their lives on any unstable foundation for life apart from Christ (Non Christians & even those who claim to be Christians).

·         During the hot summer months in Jesus’ time, the sand around the Sea of Galilee was hard on the surface. It seemed secured enough & even convenient to build a house on the sand until the rain, floods and winds come.

d)      The Rock (v.24-25)?

·         Jesus Christ, the solid foundation for life.

e)      The wise man who built his house on the rock (v.24-25)?

·         Christians who build their lives on the bedrock of Jesus and his Word are truly wise, regardless of the shifting, unstable and temporal foundations of this world.

·         A wise builder knew that he needed to dig several feet below the surface to the bedrock in order to establish the foundation for his house.

·         The act of ‘digging’ requires hard work which can be divided into 2 parts:

(i)                  Reading & studying God’s Word diligently (Psalm 119:15-16).

(ii)                Putting God’s Word into practice (James 1:22–23 and 2:20–22).

·         The evidence of whether one is truly a believer is in whether one does the words of Jesus (cf. James 1:22–23 and 2:20–22)

f)       The rain, floods and winds (v.25, 27)?

·         Problems and trials of life and ultimately, the Day of Judgment (after physical death or when Christ returns).

What does your house (beliefs, convictions, aspirations and choices in your life) consist of?

Is your house founded on the solid Rock of Jesus Christ or on the shifting sand of this world?

Are you the wise man who built his house on the rock or the foolish man who built his house on the sand?

In what ways can you grow increasingly dependent on God instead of putting your security and hope in earthly & temporal resources?

How has learning & putting into practice the Word of God helped you to stand firm in God during trials and testing?

Comforting Grace

Hello All,

Hope you experience God's comforting grace in the message of today's poem.

Comforting Grace

By Joanne Liaw Sook Ling (20^th October 2012)

There are times I cannot comprehend                                              

The purpose of my troubles at hand

I cry out to God now and again

To bring despondencies to an end

When this life inundates me with its cares

And my weary heart gives way to despair

I know that Christ Jesus is always there

My heavy load he will lovingly bear

God's grace is more than sufficient for me

To traverse the paths of adversities

I am never alone for I can see

His guiding light in the darkest valleys

When I gaze at the cross of Calvary

Where Jesus bore my sin to set me free

From spiritual death for eternity

My trials are but droplets in the sea

2 Corinthians 12:9:

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Points for Reflection:

·         Are the cares and troubles of this life wearing you thin?

·         Are you tired of the neverending problems that life floods you with?

·         Do you have moments when you question God's purpose for allowing overwhelming trials to come your way?

·         Do you feel at times that you are walking through the paths of adversities all alone?

·         Well, the good news is during trying periods of our lives, God does not leave us alone to fend for ourselves but he is always there to comfort and guide us. I can recall many instances when life's burdens became too heavy to bear, I just cried out to God in despair. The amazing thing is, when I brought my earnest and desperate prayers to God, I felt such comforting peace in my heart which no words could adequately describe and no one else could bring.

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. (Psalm 46:1)

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. (Psalm 23:4)

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)

·         We will never be able to fully understand God's purpose for our trials but we can be sure that he has a plan for all of us and we can entrust our lives into his loving sovereign hands. He is always in control of everything.

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

       

·         Not only that, our biggest problem which is the penalty for our sin has been borne by Christ on the cross. We can take comfort in the fact that our earthly problems are just temporal as we look forward to the eternal hope that we have in Christ.

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)