I haven't caught up with him one-on-one for an extremely long time... but yup, hope to renew my meetups with this dear friend and bro in Christ... our friendship goes a long way back since 2001 or 2002.
And the Panda show! Panda kicks Indiana... w00t! :D But more seriously, for all its hilarity... it's actually a very good show on discipleship.
I love the part especially where Shifu's master tells him to believe in Po, the pudgy panda. And the classic scene where Shifu tries to stop Po from running away:
Shifu: "Po! You can't run away! You're the Dragon Warrior!"
Po: "Oh, really? Look at me! Just how are you going to make me into the Dragon Warrior?!!!"
Shifu:"..."
Po: "Well?!"
Shifu:"... er... "
Po: "WELL?!!!"
Shifu:"... I DON'T KNOW!!!"
It touched me a lot, 'cos deep down inside, it reminded me of how Christian discipleship is a lot like that.
Just like how the Tortoise, Shifu's master, declared that Po was the true Dragon Warrior, our Master often loves to choose the weak things of the world. Sometimes, God may choose the least-skilled person to fulfill the most important task at hand...
And another lesson: Po really made every desperate effort possible (with hilarious consequences) just to watch the gongfu tournament... likewise, do I treasure the things of God to the extent of being willing to look like a total idiot in the process? Am I willing to be Christ's fool (1 Corinthians 4:10)? Am I willing to become even more undignified than this (2 Samuel 6:22)?
(Not that I'm saying that we should deliberately make ourselves look like idiots... but the $64K question is: are we willing to sacrifice our pride if it's the one thing that stops us from fully immersing ourselves into God's grace, from throwing ourselves into the river of joy?)
And another lesson: Despite the heavy taunts and discouragements by the much more highly-skilled disciples, Po persevered on, with joy even in the face of constant pummellings and continual losings. "Bring it on man! A true warrior never gives up!"
And a shepherding lesson here: The tactics/strategy that we use to train one person may not work as effectively on another person. Each person has his/her own unique strengths and weaknesses, and also, different receptivities and motivations. For the 5 master pugilists, it was rigorous, systematic training, but for Po's case, it was ... go watch the movie, I'm not saying any more haha.
Then the Dragon Scroll... LOL, this one, you go watch the movie. Else I may get beaten (and eaten) up by a giant panda on my way to work tomorrow.
And Po's humility haha... When at the end of the movie, everyone was calling him "Master", his first thought was not, "I'm Master!", but, "Master Shifu! What happened to him?" No wonder he was the one chosen to be the Dragon Warrior...
And... Shifu's exasperation in discipling Po struck a chord in me. 'Cos when your Master tells you that your mentee has great potential... you scratch your head, and ask Him, "How?" And He tells you, "Just believe in him."
And it's a roller-coaster experience, fumbling along even as you try to find ways to connect with him, and to discover what makes him tick, and what doesn't... and to find the key to unlocking his God-given potential... AND to encourage him when he wants to run away or slack...
And when I wonder, I also wonder what my shepherds all along must have thought to God all those times I didn't want to respond or obey or grow or listen or understand or think or practise. I also wonder too what God thought of me all these years. :) Thank God so so much for His unlimited patience with me... even for a wretch like me.
"Bro, I believe in you... because Jesus believes in you! Amen?" :)
Whoa. Such a great movie. I wanna recommend this movie to Hong Teck for HopeKids...
Then! Also for the keys that I found... it was God's providential answer to my prayers. :)
And! the very funny, yet very meaningful prayers that Ellson and I prayed for each other over MSN today... very, very touching and encouraging. God's blessings come from the most unexpected places. :D
I really should keep up this habit of thanksgiving. I realised, after counting my blessings after church camp, that I had about 7 or 8 sweet blessings for every 1 bad thing that I experienced! Thanks Hong Teck for your habit of keeping a gratitude list. :D
No comments:
Post a Comment