Hearing aid lost on Sunday.
Bike wheels stolen today.
Cactus plant literally falling to pieces this morning.

Was feeling quite shocked by the loss of my wheels. And the chain too. And surprisingly, I felt quite sad about the cactus - I had grown quite fond of it. Perhaps it's due to overwatering...

Nevertheless, Romans 8:28 came to mind: "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."

So reflected about it, and yah, I decided to start giving thanks in this circumstance. "Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

And as I prayed, wow, thank God, I realised that actually, there's so many things to thank God for. =D God's sovereign hand was upon everything, even the lost hearing aid and the stolen bicycle wheels.

It's very timely, because I had been thinking of replacing the wheels as I sensed they were getting a bit too smooth already. So the thief ended up doing a free wheel-removal service! Hooray! But yeah, thank God the thief left the frame and everything else alone. So it could have been worse. Not just so. Perhaps God might have foreseen a potential accident coming for me on my bicycle, and so probably allowed the thief to commit his crime, in order to save my life.

And the hearing aid that I lost... thank God it was the old one and not the new one. So at least can replace.

As for the cactus plant, well, I prayed for it to be healed. Hee. Not sure how it's going to turn out, but hey! I remember Jesus speaking to another plant (a fig tree) and it wilted... so I reckon God can do the opposite to my cactus plant... if it's His will.

Of course, I will be extra-careful to ensure my hearing aids don't get lost again, and I am so going to buy a U-lock for my bicycle. I may have to adopt some innovate locking techniques that I learnt from the Net too...

And I realised that I neglected to pray for my bicycle's safety yesterday while rushing off. Usually when I park and lock my bicycle, I pray, asking God to send His angels to jaga my bicycle for the night. Because, frankly, most bicycle locks can't stand up to a good bolt-cutter or power tools. They only make it somewhat harder for the thief to steal the goods. So I forgot to pray yesterday.

Still... I must admit that all these losses that happened recently are setbacks, especially in the financial sense. Because that mean my savings will be depleted significantly. But thank God for Peter's sharing, that setbacks are bound to happen when we choose to obey God and go out to where He wants us to go. Like the famine in Abraham's day, we get delayed and detoured by necessity. But God's sovereign hand is always in control. Amen!

In fact, I really want to thank God for the joy and peace that He's given me. Hee. In a way, I'm so glad that He gave me a heart tender enough to care for a dying plant more than a lost or stolen item. It gave me a deeper insight into how God sees His creation and how much He cares for the little birds and the huge trees. Such is the love of God for all His creation... and how much more so human beings created in His image!

Of course, the heart of stewardship must be there, but I guess this particular context is more about where my treasure really lies.

And yes, I felt quite lost and distressed by the stolen wheels. Partly because I wondered where to park my wheel-less bike now. To that, I remembered that in the Ten Commandments, God said, "You shall not steal." I think He said it, because He knows how distressing it is when someone steals your things. And so, in all His care and justice, He put forth this commandment as a warning to anyone who would dare to try stealing.

Still, I prayed for the thief. Asked Father to forgive him/her, for he/she doesn't know what he/she is doing. Hee. Although I must confess that sometimes I really identify with another friend who angrily ranted to me about his stolen bike:

I sincerely hope that the person who stole my bicycle will suddenly slip while riding it and fall into a monsoon drain and drown.

Gosh. Never mind. God's in control... the Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord! Amen! =D Thank God too that I am alive!

Yup! They can take your wheels away, but nobody can take you away from His will! Where there's no wheel, there's God's way! Haha...