this is the first article i typed for the bethany bugle 100th issue. Yeap, i'm helping to type out lots of articles for my church's 100th booklet, this issue is very special cause..its the 100th issue lah..haha..anyway, take time to read this article. Was really touched by it. Don't let the length scare you, just read it cause i promise it'll be of good use to you. By the way the article was written by Mr.William Doraisamy.
Do you know that the fruit mangosteen is known as ‘garcinia mangostana’ in Latin? It is also known as ‘mangook’ in the Thai language, ‘san jook’ in Cantonese and ‘mangostina’ in Spanish. You may also be interested to know that it is the facourite fruit of the ‘orang utan’ and many of you!
The mangosteen tree takes more than ten years before it starts to fruit. I did not know this until recently when the tree I planted behind my house started to fruit. It was truly exciting when I peeped out through the shutters of my dining room and saw, for the first time, little berry-shaped fruits hiding between the leaves. I rushed and shouted with excitement that the tree had finally borne fruit. Painstakingly I counted and there were more than a hundred of them.
This reminded me of my childhood days when mangosteens were aplenty and grew almost everywhere. It was then that I learnt something many people do not know even today. On top of the fruit is a brown flower-shaped protrusion. The number of petals of this ‘flower’ indicate the number of pulps inside the fruit. If there are five petals, then the fruit has five pulps. We used to look for fruits with four and eight petals because these are rare.
Isn’t it interesting that what is outside the fruit indicates what is inside it? This often shows what we are like too. Our countenance displays quite clearly what we are inside.
When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, after receiving the two tablets of the ten commandments from God, his face was radiant because he had spoken with God. (Exodus 34:29) . He did not realize this but his presence with God had done something in his heart and mind that expressed itself on his face. There are some important lessons that we learn from this as we consider our place in the church.
The Christian who has truly communicated with God in prayer will show a difference in his or her countenance. There will be the expression of joy after being in the presence of the almighty and holy God. This is because only a few have this privilege of entering boldly into the presence of God. Jesus, through the shedding of His precious blood, has cleansed us, sanctified us and justified us to enter into the courts of God. When we come out of the courts of God, our minds should feel refreshed and our spirits as a family. The effectiveness of any worship meeting is seen in the conversation we engage in immediately after the meeting. What do we talk about? How do we look? Sometimes of course, it is possible that we rise after the worship meeting bleary-eyed because the speaker has more or less led us into a peaceful slumber. How many people wish they could sleep with their eyes open when the speaker is speaking so that no one would notice that they are in dreamland!
Our faces should also show our confidence in God. Moses had to cover his face with a cloth because it shone so brightly. But that did not deter him from telling the people what the Lord had commanded. The glow on his face indicated the confidence and the courage he had in his heart. He was able to face a rebellious nation and command them to obey God. After we have met with God, we should have the confidence to face all life’s challenges. We should be able to stand in the midst of turmoil and display peace and stability. People who see us should realize that God is with us and there is no need for us to look despondent or discouraged.
Our faces should also show that the cares of the world, the disappointments and failures in life do not affect our standing with God and our participation in the service of God. These ‘drawbacks’ are part and parcel of life. Sometimes we are disappointed with people. Sometimes leaders may not be what we expect them to be. Sometimes people we lead may fall out of line. A sullen face or a face that shows dramatic mood changes is an indication that we cannot trust God to fulfill His will in and through us. It is an indication that we doubt God’s ability to bring us out seemingly difficult situations. We must believe that with God, nothing is impossible. The vilest sinner can be made whole. The heaviest burden can be made light. The deepest and darkest valley of despair can open up in the light of God’s glory. So, why should we feel discouraged? Why should our faces show that there is no hope?
In extreme conditions, the Christian shows the rare gift of inward strength and peace. Are we like the mangosteens which have the four or eight petals? Are we that rare breed of people who have the power of God within and unconsciously, like Moses, display it? Whatever we have, our faces certainly show it
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2 comments:
hey,where u got this article frm eh?its very good n ya,first time i read of something tht has the word Moses n mangosteens in one sentence.haha
haha cool eh? i got it from my church's bethany bugle. it was from a very old issue but i typed it out to put it in the 100th issue. if u want some articles liddat thn i'll gladly pass it to you through barney or email =). anyway u can take this article and post it on the ACS blog..haha
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