What is life?<\/p>\n
Is it just series of habits? Everyday routines?<\/p>\n
Is it just series of appointments?<\/p>\n
Accumulation of things?<\/p>\n
If life just merely any of the above, it’s a very sad one. How to call it blessed life? When life series of habits, appointments, projects, schedules….<\/p>\n
Probably blessed life would means successful life? When every meetings, projects, appointments being fullfilled \/ met their objectives?<\/p>\n
Probably it could also means a trouble-free life? Free from sickness, poverty, harms, calamities, etc? Sounds good, but is it really a blessed life?<\/p>\n
Some people will look into lives of Abraham and called it blessed life. He lived long age, died in peace, very rich and not lacking. Little do people know the kind life he went through….left his people, family, friends to foreign country. The Bible recorded he was afraid and lied for his life, then God intervened. Another time he faced battle to rescue his nephew. God demanded him to sacrifice his one and beloved son at his old age…….what do you call that?<\/p>\n
Some other look into the lives of Joseph and called it blessed life. Yes, he suffered when he was young, but eventually, he became authority in Egypt. The thing is nobody know how life would like tomorrow. Not every life would turn out well at the end. Would anyone want to go through Joseph’s life? To be hated by all the siblings? To be sold as slave? To be thrown into jail?<\/p>\n
Worse still for anyone who dreams to have the life of Job. Would anyone in their right mind want that kind of life experience? To lose everything in a single day? To lose all the riches is probably hard enough. And to lose all 10 children in a day?? After that, he’s stricken by disease that unbearable……. Watching and being with my pregnant wife for 1 day is already a big struggle. To see her in weak, pain, and helpless state…..not comparable to the pain that Job went through……<\/p>\n
What then is blessed life? If the end does not justify the mean? Could it be blessed life just an ideal? Where one live peacefully and die peacefully?<\/p>\n
I’m intrigued by one man’s life, name Paul. He went through so many things in life. He had experienced shipwrecked, thrown into jail, beaten, stoned, canned. He also experienced hunger, in need, nakedness. He went through hard labor, sleepless night, troubled days, abandoned by friends, chased by enemies. And he died by sword (according to church’s tradition). Could anyone call it blessed life?<\/p>\n
These are some his description of his life:<\/p>\n
as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses;\u00a0in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; i<\/strong>n purity<\/strong>, understanding<\/strong>, patience<\/strong> and kindness<\/strong>; in the Holy Spirit<\/strong> and in sincere love<\/strong>;\u00a0in truthful speech<\/strong> and in the power of God<\/strong>; with weapons of righteousness<\/strong> in the right hand and in the left;\u00a0through glory<\/strong> and dishonor, bad report and good report<\/strong>; genuine<\/strong>, yet regarded as impostors;\u00a0known<\/strong>, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on<\/strong>; beaten, and yet not killed<\/strong>;\u00a0sorrowful, yet always rejoicing<\/strong>; poor, yet making many rich<\/strong>; having nothing, and yet possessing everything<\/strong>. (2 Cor 6:4-10)<\/em><\/p>\n Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?\u00a0As it is written:<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cFor your sake we face death all day long; \u00a0No, in all these things we are more than conquerors<\/strong> through him who loved us.\u00a0For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,\u00a0<\/strong>neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,\u00a0neither height nor depth, nor anything else<\/strong> in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n I thought, I found the answer.<\/p>\n The following verse especially caught my attention:<\/p>\n But when God, who set me apart from my mother\u2019s womb and called me by his grace, was pleased\u00a0~ (Gal 1:16)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n As an expecting father (expecting my wife to give birth), the fact that God set apart even from mother’s womb gives great comfort & confidence. It talks about God’s sovereignty, also of God’s mercy & choosing. Why did he do that? I can only think of one answer….Because he loves.<\/p>\n As Paul says, a blessed life is ..being loved by God<\/em>. Nothing beats that. Nothing greater than that.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What is life? Is it just series of habits? Everyday routines? Is it just series of appointments? Accumulation of things? If life just merely any of the above, it’s a very sad one. How to call it blessed life? When … Continue reading
\nwe are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n