Tangled

Last week I visited some forgotten place that has since been converted to a storage facility for military equipment. It was my duty to inspect the upkeep of giant panels of wood that were occasionally assembled into structures for urban training, and so I did.

Then I saw something not completely unexpected, but rather strange. There were plenty of cobwebs - those were not unexpected. But there was one web, laced with dust and clearly forsaken, with insects trapped in it - on it - whatever. They were two beetles and one moth, all very small varieties, weak, unattended and barely alive. The moth fluttered eerily. Now that was a strange sight. I thought it was rather poignant really, and pitiful, perhaps even pathetic, to be caught by a neglected contraption as if its intent was the only thing that had yet to be abandoned.

How many times does something like that happen in life? One's past is always sticky, sometimes even knotty. Then I wondered when I started sympathising with arthropods. Thankfully, I didn't see any termites.

Post-Results Pre-Voting Post

Does the title sound confusing? It's as accurate as I could have named it, I think. I wrote this on Facebook a few days ago. Just thought it should go into the archives.

How To Remember God During The GE

On the eve of our 2011 GE, which has been the cause of much unprecedented furor, I couldn’t resist bringing something different to the table.

For those of us who pledge allegiance to a higher kingdom without statesmen or politicians, we must be wondering how all this makes sense in eternity. What would honour God in a time like this?

Well, I am part of the group that will not be voting tomorrow. For us, I think we should thankful for the fact that we live in a country that actually holds elections. We should be aware that democracy is biblical because no man, or group of men, in the depths of his sin, should hold unlimited power. Democracy distributes power, which so easily corrupts. Only Christ, in His perfection of grace and righteousness, is worthy of a throne that wields absolute authority. (Admittedly, the degree, form and practice of democracy is another issue to think about, but not what I want to convey here.)

Then there are many of you who will be making the decision tomorrow. I can only say that you should be as saturated with His Word as you can possibly be, so that by the renewing of your mind, you will be able to test and approve of the will of God (Rom 12:2) and its alignment to the perceived agenda of each political party.

Ultimately, whether or not we are casting our votes tomorrow, trust well in the sovereignty of God. Trust that the lot is cast into the lap, but every decision is from the Lord (Prov 16:33); that rulers and powers are raised and instituted by the Lord (Rom 13:1); that the counsel of the Lord is perfect (Psa 33:11); and that justice will always, always belongs to the Lord (Heb 10:30).

We are called to be in this world – to be politically aware, attentive and active if we must. Yet we are not of this world; we look to the Ruler whose governance will soon do without the establishment of imperfect governances. The kingdom is at hand.

In conclusion, let us render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s. Let our anthem and rally be that of God’s sovereignty, and our conviction be that by the time Singapore becomes a footnote in the pages of history, Christ will reign over all tribes and tongues with a glory that the world has never before seen.