Make a Stand, but Make it a Win-Win Stand!

Was on the MRT back with Bowen and Yufen. We talked abt piracy and what's our response to that. I gave my opinion on it, and Yufen shared, "God sees our hearts." Quite a few things here and there, we shared.

After that, Bo and I chatted some more. He shared with me about what his shepherd had shared with him regarding taking a stand in difficult, "gray-area" situations... e.g. (to paraphrase Bo) what if your whole army platoon want to go to a sleazy bar, especially the higher-ranking ones? A few Christians just went with the rest of the group, but Bo decided to take an absolute stand, saying, "No." But it was very difficult for him, because the rest of the group were definitely very unhappy.

So Bo asked his shepherd for advice. In a nutshell, Jason said, "Take a stand, and make it a win-win situation."

I thought about this, and it's really an excellent piece of advice. Because when I enter the working world, it's really a dog-eat-dog world out there... Jesus said, "I am sending you out like sheep among wolves." I've experienced a bit of it during Army times, and I also didn't know what to do, so I just made an absolute stand. But that didn't really endear me to my colleagues, so in a way, I wasn't able to impact their lives or make closer friends as well as I could have.

*******

"Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves." Wisdom. I really lack it. And I really need it - lots of it. As I walked back home from the MRT, I thought about this, and what Peter shared with me last week about media. This struck me - just how many of the most popular blogs are written by Christians? And how many of the best movies in history have been made by Christians? And about comics - how many of them?

I was thinking about the humour section in Crosswalk.com. Sorry lah, but to be honest, I think the comics there are ... just not funny. Really. So bland. And the comics that I really really love to read - they're definitely hilarious - e.g. Liberty Meadows, Monty, Sherman...

Then thought about the blogs... oh man, Xiaxue and Rockson... Rockson's one is damn hilarious one... and super-vulgar! And thought about our own blogs... my own blog, and what one of my good friends said about it - he doesn't like to read the contents - but he reads it simply because he's my friend. Yeah, he's not a Christian.

Ok, here's a lot of points, but I think the real question really is, when you take a sober look
at it, just how much impact are we Christians making in this society? In this city? On this planet? Different people have different level of impact, to be sure, but even within our own circles, are we shining?

Jesus said that we are the salt of the earth. It's a cliched statement, to be sure - but if you read it in a contemporary context, to describe a group of people as "hey! they're the salt of the earth", it somehow conjures up the imagination of a refreshing and fun group of people - the type of people that you'd really enjoy hanging out with - Christian or not.

Thought about it - being salt means that we are flavour-enhancers. I tried cooking some sausages without some salt. It was ... bland. Heh. But after that, I rubbed in some salt. Wow... it was delicious! The sausage... just tasted more sausage-y!

*******
So I'm thinking about the point on wisdom. Somehow, I'm realising, in addition to my life lacking depth, I also realise that my life really lacks wisdom. Think it was a few Divine whispers here and there... small snippets of Bible verses that came into my mind throughout the day... and I feel more and more convicted of my need to grow in wisdom.

Wisdom. It's so important... wisdom doesn't just only apply to living a right life spiritually - it also applies to my dress sense (which I'm getting terribly convicted about), the way my room is packed, the way I treat my body (going without regular sleep does weird things to my mind AND body), the way I can't squeeze the most out of my time...

The way that I relate to other people (social wisdom), the way that I plan for my future work (practical wisdom), the way that I make sense of ongoing global events...

Wisdom is so important - I mean, when God puts an entire book devoted to wisdom in His Word, I think it's definitely worth taking a look at. Wisdom transforms your facial appearance (really - it does!), wisdom transform your thinking, wisdom makes you powerful and attractive, wisdom makes you grow in depth of relationships, wisdom makes you influential and able to impact others for good purposes... and best of all, wisdom helps you share the Gospel with more and more people. "The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins soul is wise."

So if I want to be a shepherd, I really need to grow in wisdom. I'm struck by the various aspects of wisdom that I see in various people, e.g. Jits for the way that she can really squeeze time, Eric for his managerial skills and stewardship, Peter for the social skills that he taught me, Shirley for her wisdom in her work life, my mum for her shrewdness (yes, it CAN BE a good thing)...

*****

I was feeling really burdened, and I decided to turn to the book of Proverbs. Proverbs 30:2-3 jumped out at me: "

2 "I am the most ignorant of men;
I do not have a man's understanding.

3 I have not learned wisdom,
nor have I knowledge of the Holy One."

So something I know that the road to starting to grow in wisdom begins with admitting that, "God, You were right all along - I really know nuts. So please teach me today..." And God smiles and says, "I will. I was waiting for you all along to ask me. Ask, and you shall receive!"

In other words, humbly getting down on my knees and depending on Jesus to give the wisdom that I so lack. Really praying to grow in wisdom starting from today. Lord, I know nuts... but You know EVERYTHING. So ... teach me, Daddy! :) In Jesus' name, AMEN!