Acts of Kindness

Have you ever experienced a stranger doing a random act of kindness? Last Sunday at my favourite bakery a stranger I had a short conversation with just offered her discount card to me to use it to pay for my purchase. I did not  ask her nor influenced her in any way that I know of but she just offered it to me. The savings was only 50 sen but it certainly left me surprised and impressed! I can't help but think what our world would be like if more people continue to do random acts of kindness to strangers. People that will never be able to repay you back or you will ever meet again.

On Monday I read in the newspapers of more stories of how some people show kindness to strangers without expecting anything in return. Wow! As Christians, are we not called to be kind? Is kindness not a part of our new nature in Christ (fruit of the Spirit)? Are acts of kindness not a reflection of God's image in us, which ultimately reflects who God is? Who knows that we may very well be ministering to angels unaware?

Have you experienced a random act of kindness? No? Don't wait for one! Why don't you do an act of kindness to some stranger? Think of ways to bless someone who least expects or deserves it. Let your light so shine before men!

Ps Ben

But I Did Not

Last month I organised a dinner with some old friends from Grace EFC and wanted to invite a couple that had joined us for our Bible Study despite attending another church. We had a great time of fellowship in the past but over the years it became less and less frequent. Last Sunday I heard that the husband had passed away the previous week. I should have invited him but I did not. Why should I really be surprised by death? It is an appointment that we must all keep unless Christ returns first. But I always seem to think that my friends will always be around! Surprise, surprise! Death comes when we least expect it. One can never be fully prepared for it in life. I don't like death and the surprise it brings. It makes me feel so helpless.

The last time I met this brother was last year at a church service where he served faithfully as a greeter. I will miss him. But I hope to see him at the Resurrection Day! That's my consolation. Thanks be to Christ who is the hope of our salvation! There are yet others who have not heard about this gift that I need to tell. I don't want to say again, "But I did not"

Ps. Ben

A Different Life

In his eulogy for his wife of 63 years, former PM of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, said that without his wife, he would be a different man with a different life. What a tribute to a woman whom he loved and had shared his life with. A woman who devoted her life for husband and family. I wonder what our lives would be like without the significant partners, family and friends who made a difference in our lives? What would your life be like without your spouse? It is only in times of final separation that we feel the heaviness of heart, one filled with sorrow and grief that is difficult to console. Love them now.

If this is true in the physical realm, what then would life be without Christ? It would be a different life. We would be a different person. A life without Christ would only be a life filled with emptiness and hopelessness. Such a life would be difficult to console. I dare not imagine of such a life. I can only thank God that by His grace He has called me to a different life. A life devoted to Christ and His family. A blessed life.

Ps Ben