the potter

Click.

Thump.

The whir of the wheel.

She throws

for mere delight

Wets her hands

because her father tells her to

Plows and anchors

blinded by hate

Hands hugging, she glides

to puff up the ego

Decisively makes a hole

for the sake of drawing smiles

Pulling up

to encourage the weak

Smoothens

to honour her Maker

Shapes and carves

just for the sake of it

The clay complies

until it is bone dry

The Furnace beckons

she enters the flames

only that which is tested

remains.

transmission intercepted

a letter to High Command, only for the eyes of General Levav. From Chief Advisor Sophia, while on a mission of diplomacy. Regarding the potential alliance with newly founded Medgard and her general, Grand Chancellor Eros. (intercepted for your viewing pleasure)

MISSION REPORT 3001182349

(Apologies for the delay sir. This report was intended to reach your hands two days earlier, the Comms Unit were held back by their frivolous relations with the Medgardians. They have since been appropriately disciplined.)

Our diplomatic talks with Medgard have been going well. Terribly well, if I might add. There seem to be a slight issue though. I can’t (for the life of me) ascertain their true intentions. For a lack of a better word, there seems to be mixed signals here. These people seem so chummy one moment, yet frigid the next.

Truth is, we don’t need this alliance. At least not as of yet. Well, only if it’s within the Divine foreknowledge. The Divine knows and fulfils the need of our nation. Our duty and pleasure to seek that which He deems Right and ordained His kingdom. Regardless of diplomacy (however attractive it might seem to our sovereignty) the Omniscience is and should always be the priority.

As with all matters concerning foreign affairs, this doesn’t concern us alone. I put to you that it might be in the Medgardians benefit that we rush not into this marriage of nations. For history repeats itself like the noria at the banks of the rivers. And many a coalition have turned sour from hurriedly signed treaties (for they fear that either party would turn tail or back stab). Therefore, we cannot be rash.

As uncertainty and confusion already seem to have struck the Medgardians, we must not join them in their folly. In this way, we are not merely preserving this friendship, but the Divine would be pleased, for it is an act of love. I propose we call off a number of the combined exercises with the Medgardian military. Postpone a few of the free-trade zones. And, with all due respect sir, your personal correspondences with Chancellor Eros might have to be cut down. Remember the reason for which we exist.

I am aware that Sir Nephesh of the Palace Guard disagrees with me. That old fool. You’d think a man as in tune with the soul as him would detach himself from the natural Affections for once, for the sake of the body.

Heed not my brother Shacal. He sides with Sir Nephesh on this matter for his own mischievous purposes (which I know not of). Do not forget how he has brought us to the brink of ruin on multiple occasions. The guy doesn’t even make his own bed. Mock him. Laugh at him. But follow his advice, and our nation will crumble.

Lev, my dearest friend, I’m speaking to you as Sophia now. I still remember when you picked me up from the open squares, the gates of the city. Has my counsel ever failed you? Not many have regarded my words Lev. You have seen those whom on which my words have fell on deaf ears. Terror and destruction like stormy whirlwinds. My friend, I wish not for you to suffer their end. Whether this alliance passes or not should be of far less importance to us as of this time. But your moves tell me otherwise Lev. Maybe it will pass, maybe it won't. Regardless of the outcome, remember our duty and pleasure my friend.

I wish I could take over and rule the nation, like you’ve always asked. But you know I can’t. The Divine has ordained it to be you. Lev, it’s your choice to make. Do better this time.

Yours forever,

WISDOM

Advisor Sophia

beware the apparent victory

To my dear soldier-in-the-Lord. 

I have received news that you seem to be doing well! It’s seems to be a bit of time that you have gone without displeasing the Lord in that particular way you often fall prey to. Praise the Lord for His protection thus far. Dear brother, do be encouraged and strive to further the fight as we look towards the hope of glory together (:

My heart is pleased and my soul is warm. Yet I write to you as one who has re-entered the enemy’s inner courts too many a time. I know the next temptation that will befall you all too well. Therefore, I must see to it that you be ever aware of this.

For it is written: “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!”

Beware the apparent victory you have over the accuser now. None of us are completely free from the marauding sin in the heart. For it takes a mere tweaking of the pitchfork, an alteration in his devious schemes, to ensnare you within the self-spun web of self-righteousness. You’d be crawling back to your phone in a matter of days.

Recall, dear friend, that it was never by your will, nor effort, that you gained this foothold against the roaring lion. Only by the undeserved provision of your Redeemer, were you able to walk thus far. Do not be deceived.

I command you, precious comrade, to rally the troops. Never allow the impending fight to reduce your men to cowering worms. Be nourished by the God-breathed words handed down since generations past, and they will be strong. Nothing in Scripture is written in vain, and it is indeed our wisdom and duty, dear friend, to learn from it.

The truth is, oh dear heart of mine, my security against sin is found in my distrust of you. I’d be lying if I denied the anguish awash upon my soul now. Sometimes it’s the civil wars that hurt the most. But it has to be. For you have led me nowhere but into the slough over and over again.

For this reason, I yearn for the day that you and I might be reconciled when the Maker hammers you into glorious conformity to His perfect design. Whilst I endure the wait, my assurance is this, that my faithful King will never allow temptation beyond what I can bear. At the height of its apparent unbearableness lies the escape route He has paved for me to slip. How merciful is the Almighty indeed!

Keep at it. Remember the enemy seeks to war against our soul. Fight to flee.

May the Lord find us faithful.

a letter to the defeated

The very fact that you are reading this is a miracle. Your heart is so fickle, it's truly by God's grace that you're brought back here. Recognise that as much as it was God's will to humble you (and therefore go back to seek His face), it was your full decision to engage in the very act that drove the nails into His hands and feet.

How are you feeling? Detached? Everything's in a haze? Don't wanna think about it? Fearful? Prideful? You'd do better to humble yourself sir. I'm praying for you to. Hurry up and confess it to the people you keep accountable to! The longer you delay it, the less the urgency shall be felt. Lest you forget (as you are prone to), I request that you do it now. 

Entrust yourself to this group of saints that He has blessed you with! Give thanks for their relentless brotherhood. God is so good to you. You better believe it.

So, what was it this time? Morning idleness? Boredom? Breaking your no-phone rule? Whatever it was, cut it now. Whatever it is that caused you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is truly better to suffer this temporary hurt, than to risk deviating from the Divine an inch. Though you don't ever admit it, you're really not wise. If you're even a tad bit unsure of how to cut it, ask. Talk to the brothers our dear Lord has sent your way.

Quiet your hazy heart and ask God to clear the fog. Pray for Him to let you see once more, that which was clouded by the enemy. Cast aside the lies of compromise and believe only that which is Believable. Read His word, and trust in the hope of eternity. Cling not, cherish not the world. For the umpteenth time (do not be discouraged at this), turn your back on the temporal ticklings, look for eternal Joy.

It doesn’t end here. The enemy will use your failure as a despicable opportunity to hammer in the nails of unfaithfulness. If you, by God’s mercy, take a closer look, you’ll see that the ferocity in which he hammers is fuelled by your very own sloth. Do not, ever, for an instant, take your eyes away from the kingdom work. Remember your commitments to our Lord. Never let the tumour of sin metastasize to the ministry. And let’s continue to look forward to the Day, when our dear Master returns to call His good and faithful servant ok?

We are never deserving of His Love, that’s why it’s called Charity. Yet He, oh how He loves the unlovable! Pray for an inkling of Love Himself to rub off on you, that we can pursue Him with a fraction of the intensity in which he runs after us.

Go to Him, my broken spirit. Yet remember that we are indeed victorious. This was written not to affirm you of your filth, but to encourage you, dear Daniel, that the battle is truly truly truly already won! That’s the reason we fight, remember?

Do better now, dear friend.

my red lizard

I have a red lizard, 

he scratches my itches.

His sort is not

allowed in the Holy City.

I know

but he scratches my itches.

Shall I remove him?

It will hurt though.

I don't know... 

he's not that bad...

Do you trust Him?

Help me to.

I decided to post some of my daily reflections I record when I read the Bible. Hopefully it reminds me of what God has revealed to me already. I'm praying that it encourages whoever's reading as well (: Praise God for His beautiful revelations.


23/11
HOW DO WE RESPOND TO JESUS
Mark 5:1-20

• Jesus met a man possessed by a legion of demons
• The man fell on his knees before Jesus and the demons recognised Jesus as God's Son
• Jesus cast out the demons and news of this spread to the town
• The people pleaded with Jesus to leave because they were afraid
• The man wanted to follow Jesus, but Jesus told him to go home and share how Jesus had mercy on him

I think it's quite easy to take accounts of Jesus casting out demons and skim through them, especially when we've read them many times before. So I think sometimes it's good to pause and take in the gravity of these accounts. I don't think I've ever come across a demon (at least not that I know of...), but I'm pretty sure I would be terrified at the sight of such possessions. I'm already pretty scared when I watch movies like The Conjuring, so if I happened to witness this sort of thing in real life, I'd definitely be afraid. Who wouldn't right? An evil supernatural being who has power over you? I'd probably be crying.

Only when we understand this, then we might have a shot at taking in the power of Jesus. He had complete authority over this legion of demons! So much so that they couldn't even run at the sight of him! Only when He gave the permission, they were allowed to go into the pigs. In theory, in terms of power, one ought to be more afraid of Jesus. Coincidentally, that was the exact response of the people who had heard of this miracle. They were terrified at his power...

Yet the man who was healed had a completely different response. He wanted to follow Jesus. So why the different response? He personally witnessed the extent of Jesus's power, wouldn't he be more afraid? Maybe there's something about personally experiencing Jesus that differentiates itself from mere hearing about Jesus's works. Okay I'm just speculating here, but maybe the man saw more than the power of demons. Maybe he saw love. Or compassion. So strong that it compelled Jesus to have mercy on him. He saw that and he made up his mind. I want to follow him!

I don't know whether I can fully apply this to our lives but I do see some similarities here, at least when I observe how people respond to Jesus. It's clear that to date, not everyone who has heard of Jesus has believed in Him. Not everyone who has had the gospel shared to them  has decided to follow Jesus. Some are afraid of the consequences of what it might mean to follow him. Some are afraid because they've "lost" family members to Christianity.

 Reading this passage, I suspect the reason for this to be the lack of that personal encounter with Jesus. Just like the demon-possessed man, I've been in (and sometimes still am) in that filthy, broken state. And I've been healed (and encountered Jesus) in a way only the demon-possessed man will know. So, I conclude, within the core of my being, that I need Jesus. Maybe that's what it takes to compel us to follow Jesus.

31/10
DO NOT BE DECEIVED
1 Corinthians 6:7-11
James 2:14-26

Before I begin writing I think I need to pray for God to grant me a discerning mind. May my words be glorifying to Him, and true of His Word.

The longer we spend gathering in Christian communities, going to church and doing Christ-related stuff, we're bound to hear of doctrines like the "perseverance of the saints" or even hear things like "once saved always saved". However, the tendency then would be to take these reassuring doctrines and pump them into our system, without a complete understanding of them. The result of this is frightening.

Those of us who do this only prove one point right. The point that Karl Marx was making when he proclaimed, speaking of religion:

"It is the opium of the people."

I think it's terrifyingly easy for us to convey (and even BELIEVE ourselves) the absurd misunderstanding that salvation is by "admittance". There is a twisted misconception among us that being a Christian is akin to a "stamping of our eternal passport". And once I pray the sinner's prayer, I'm secured. Signed. Sealed. Insured.

Because my passport is choped, I'm free to enjoy life. After all, I'm saved by His grace right? All that repentance, fellowship, evangelism stuff are just a “good-to-have”. I'm good where I am. Plus, the body is just temporal! Whatever I do with it shouldn't have any lasting consequences right? All that matters is that my soul is guaranteed eternal life. 

If indeed we subscribe to this line of thought, Paul has a stern warning for us, as he wrote to the Corinthians. Do not be deceived. The unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God. This is the point when I cringe and prepare to defend my stand against those of us who exclaim:

"But PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS!"

"But Jesus's blood has made us righteous in God's sight! So, I will inherit the kingdom!"

"But I thought we are saved by grace through faith! Not works!"

Yes, I completely believe that we are justified through faith! In my faith that Jesus's bought my righteousness before God at the infinitely excruciating price of His death. But if our faith does not compel us to hate sin, if our faith doesn't cause us to desire above all else to make Him known, can we truly consider it faith? James echoes this when he writes in James 2:26.

For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

Yet we don’t consider this for fear of contradicting the “perseverance of the saints”. 

Do you realise what we have done? We've taken a truth that is meant to bring us assurance in Christ our Lord, and used it as a drug! To numb the promptings of the Holy Spirit which scream at us to REPENT! If my "faith" in His death does not bring about an intense hate for the very thing that caused my Saviour to be crushed; that "faith" that I so desperately cling on to, while awaiting the day that my passport is approved, is dead.

You know, it's tragically ironic. We often use the analogy of a drug addict to describe how the world is steeped in sin, inescapably addicted. So, pastors exhort their congregations, mentors warn their younger ones to avoid these worldly influences, for they are lethal in that they draw us in and leave us dead in sin. We fail to realise this: In our attempt to wean off the world's nasty influences on us, we pump our veins full of misunderstood doctrines. I plead with you, do not be deceived.

Salvation faith is sin-killing faith. Salvation faith is daily-on-my-knees-repentance faith. Salvation faith is evangelism-doing faith. Do you not know this? Salvation faith is God-granted faith.

We need to be warned about this! Does my faith in Christ's death and resurrection COMPEL me to have daily communion with my God who continually loves and pursues me? If not, Paul says to us, do not be deceived. By our apparent "faith". When I recognise how dire of a situation this is, I see that the only rational thing for me to do is to pray and depend on the Lord. If you agree with me that the only faith worthy of salvation is a God-given one, pray along with me that God grants us that faith in Him. Faith that is alive and results in every good work.

Considering how deceitful our hearts can be, we ought to be cautious when applying this truth to others. By no means are we to judge our fellow Christians on their works or apparent lack thereof. Who are we to assert that their faith is not God-given? Only God Almighty sees into the hearts of men. Plus, there could be a myriad of reasons as to why a Christian doesn't seem to be actively evangelising or even engaging in daily repentance. The lack of genuine faith is but a mere needle in the haystack of possible reasons. Could it be that they simply don't know how exactly to go about doing it?

I have to admit, I'm quick to judge, especially when it comes to things of faith. I often fail to recognise that I was once reluctant to share the gospel. I kept my secret sin for years. Who am I to judge others for having "fake faith" and cut them off or shun them? 

In the end, I've come to understand this: because of the subjective nature of faith, because we cannot see into each other’s hearts; what else are we to do but to hold fast in our journey of faith together as a community consisting of those with mature and immature faith? What else are we to do but pray that God completes the work of sanctification He starts in each and every one of us? For only God grants that genuine faith that His elected have, by no other means are we saved.