Easter Monday night, 17Apr17, around 9-10pm. Doncaster East.
I just want to capture the moment where he sank quietly in a moment's thought into that bouncing ball and something in him opened up. It was like a flower blossomed. And he was enabled to think past himself to see the needs of others.
It was supernatural but I saw it. That something he was holding onto so tightly he finally let go. He realised that there are gaps and loopholes. It started with the recognition of Luke 3, when instead of allegorising something into the spiritual meaning behind a passage, he realised that repentance is so tangible. And rather than thinking up who you are and then influencing into what you do, it is the Hebrew thinking that is the other way round -- that what you do defines who you are, and repentance is so practical -- repentance is apparently to give one of you ur tunics to another. Apparently for tax collectors it is to not collect more than you are supposed to...
"John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire." "What should we do then?" the crowd asked. John answered, "Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same." Even tax collectors came to be baptized. "Teacher," they asked, "what should we do?" "Donʼt collect any more than you are required to," he told them. Then some soldiers asked him, "And what should we do?" He replied, "Donʼt extort money and donʼt accuse people falsely—be content with your pay.""
Luke 3:7-14 NIV
http://bible.us/111/luk.3.7-14.niv
And we talked about the painfulness of a defunct brotherhood and I saw him being released from such a pain by God while I mentioned about my own sister and how the faith God is working in her towards is quite amazing ... one that I, a person who is naturally more obedient, may never be able to understand.
For the first time I saw him stressed when he thought about the lack of discipleship in amongst Christ's churches. For the first time we mentioned about leadership, mentoring and discipline intergenerational and asked if he has ever mentored anyone when he mentioned there was a lack. For the first time I saw him see that the church being the state it is in has got something to do with him and how he is part of an active link. For the first time I heard him say he missed KTB fellowship at the car when I was leaving.
I made a fancy observation that the way he behaves in the morning service and the evening service are very different. How he hung out with his close friend during the morning but stepped out of his comfort zone to talk to Kelvin even though awkwardly after a few sentences they ran out of conversational topics. As he sat on that silver bouncy ball, and talked about the church the way he did, I told him that ... I saw a leader in him just then.
For the first time we did a prayer marathon and prayed in turns again and again, because we had more questions and frustrations and stresses and worries and concern than answers. For the first time I held God to His promise to draw all men to Him now that He has resurrected, and for the first time I heard him pray for God's Will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. For the first time out of desperation that we are losing grip on some of our sheep especially those who came from China and are highly and sophisticatedly educated, we cried out for God The Holy Spirit to "do something! If You don't draw them to you who's gonna do the work for You?"
For the first time we concluded with The Lord's Prayer together.
For the first time he mentioned to me to keep him accountable to the effects of this prayer -- to be the leader he wants to see; to be the discipler he longs to be discipled by; to be the mentor for the young the way he never had.
O Lord, make me a channel of Your peace,
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
In giving to all men that we receive
And in dying that we're born to eternal life.
O Master, grant that I may never seek --
So much to be consoled as to console.
To be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love with all my soul.
Last night, I found a soldier who could stand beside me in war. No longer the little kid, he's grown up now into a person fully accountable to God of his own. Just like when the Jews reach 12.
him and I, we can fight together now,
And that's why, he's my beloved co-lead.
I won't give him up for anything. Despite all the struggles and the numerous times his prickles made me cry. Just like this, we will 行完上帝的旨意 fully accomplish the entire will of God, unto the Father in eternity.
That's why, rather than think of anything romantic, I'd rather see him Powerfully Equipped, fully functional and courageous.
Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
It was like he stepped out of whatever shell that encases and trapped him. And it might have to start with forgiveness. And I realized that with Jesus's parables there are always a part II that awaits us to continue -- and in this case, even the coin that was lost at home who didn't know it was lost; the elder son in the prodigal Father / son story -- even the elder son is found. And to be a bystander to witness this supernatural happening of a story -- this is the work of The Lord, and isn't it amazing to me???
