Seeking God

Dear Lord, help me thirst for You. Just Your presence alone, that is all I need. I know.

Went jogging today and took my dog along too. Hee, thank God, it was a wonderful time, and just time to pray to God along the way. Quite a few things on my mind, but when I went out into the open, just looking at the stars and the skies, I'm reminded again of Psalm 8 that said, "When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?"

Wow. :) Hee, you know, I think somehow, being in the midst of God's creation really helps me open up to God's presence much, much more strongly. It's been like that, even before I became a Christian - for me, evolution wasn't an issue, because I looked out the window from my books, and really, God's fingerprints are so strongly imprinted in His creation. That's why I love reading the book of Job - when God describes what He made in nature to Job - wow - you can't but help be awed by the sheer goodness and generosity of God! And that's why I enjoy reading about space and physics and the like... it's so amazing to find out what God has made in the heavens and the earth!

Love this quote a lot by William Blake - it's so true:

"To see a world in a grain of sand
And a heaven in a wild flower
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand
And eternity in an hour."

Oh yah. Back to jogging... I took Volvo (that's my dog's name) along with me. But since he'd been cooped up at home for most of the day... and I was jogging for quite a distance, he became (pardon the pun) dog-tired. Woof! But felt a lot of joy, knowing that God is with me all the way. :)

Sigh. God, it's been so so so long. How I want to go somewhere sweet, somewhere deep, just to touch Your face. To gaze upon the beauty of the Lord, and seek Him in His dwelling place.

Oh yes! It was a fruitful time of meditation for me too. I was meditating on the two greatest commandments in the Bible: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart... and love your neighbour as yourself..."

And something that struck me today was this - "All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

Like pegs that hang higher than the objects that are suspended from them. So think this verse spoke to me, reminding me that all the things that I DO, and that I hope to achieve... whether at work or in family or in church or in ministry, etc... all ultimately gotta hang on simply loving God and loving His people.

Mother Teresa was once asked how in the world could she do what she did. She very simply replied, "Love God."

So checked out the commentary and various translation. Some say "hang", others "based". Maybe it's a foundation, maybe it's a peg. Maybe it's both. But what does that matter? The two GREATEST commandments are as clear as they can be - "Love God with everything that is in you, and love your neighbour as yourself."

*******

Work's been real fun too - enjoying myself lots. Thank God, had a quick chat with my manager, who asked me how's my work coming along. Told him I enjoy it :) And I do enjoy it - very fun. Had a good time discussing the merits of functional programming with my colleague - planning to experiment using FP with Visual Basic 6. (Yes, WZ, it's VB6... not .NET... even though VB6 is 6-feet under... haha)

Been praying too that UpThere will come DownHere in my office, my family. "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on EARTH as it is in HEAVEN." And God is giving me renewed confidence in getting to know my colleagues more. =) Thank You Jesus!

And thank God too that I managed to learn more about how to rescue data from a dying hard-disk these 2 weeks. Invaluable experience for blessing other people!

And also that I'm still quite fit enough to enjoy running even after so long! God has been good to me indeed. :) Actually, He always works for the good of those who love Him in ALL things.

And for my mum's wise advice to me to pass her my bankbook so that she can help keep me accountable on my finances. Because I spent quite a lot last month, so my savings were less than what they could have been. Realised the blessings of accountability to those whom God has put in charge over your life. And also that I'm now a stakeholder in my family finances, so accountability REALLY helps minimize any conflicts in financial disputes. Really. And realised how much pride - e.g. refusing to own up to your own excessive spending can really worsen the situation, where you try to make excuses... - can bring on quarrels. But God is so good... my mum was wiser than me, suggesting that I simply pass her my bankbook. She's quite detail-oriented and meticulous, so this is her natural strength. My dad's the opposite, and I think I inherited this aspect from him :P...

So feel more relaxed now, knowing that I have support in a weaker area of my life - financial discipline. Think it'll be a real blessing if my future wife has a natural strength in being detailed and systematic... she could be the "financial manager" in the family. Think Ps Jeff and his wife have a similar arrangement.