The Great God Experiment

heavenward
Originally uploaded by mincaye.

The last of the Lent Meditations was on Focus. The reflection question was:

"What are the main areas of commitment in your life? How can each of these areas of your commitments be focused on the values and the cause of the Kingdom of God?"

John Donne wrote, in Meditations XVII:

"No man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main... any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind..."


Let this week be an experimental one. Dad will be taking the camera to Vietnam, so I won't be taking any photos for the next five days. Also, I will refrain from blogging.

In the place of these two passions of mine, I will devote time to prayer and poetry. There are some things I need to sort out with my Master. There are friends who need prayer.

I shall list them:

A is struggling with her sense of identity, seeking balance in an off-kilter world, and desiring to live without fear.

B is having a tough time dealing with crises involving his committee, and feeling that his sense of authority is being undermined.

C has the delicate responsibility of juggling his studies and shepherding his flock. He also happens to be under the weather presently.

D is trying to forge a better attitude towards his studies, while yearning for freedom which now lies a year away.

And then there's E. Jesus said to pray for enemies, so I will. I do not know him well; in fact, I hardly know him. But I will pray for his needs and for grace to overcome his fears, because we all need that. And I will also pray that our conflict be resolved, much as I want to exact revenge upon him.

My friends, if you recognise yourselves above, I ask for only one thing: that you also remember me in your prayers. And those descriptions, though they be primarily of you, are truly a reflection of what I am going through myself.


Last week, while I was at Jon Siao's house for debate prep, Wilson drank some water from my bottle. I was irritated, but he just smiled and said, "Oops, sorry. I was thirsty."

Thing is, he was somewhat ill, and I think that was the cause of the sore throat which has now afflicted me. But I shall not blame him, because this sickness has driven me to this point where I realise just how far I've strayed from God.

This is what it truly means to be 'one,' as in the U2 song:

We're one, but we're not the same
We get to carry each other
Carry each other
One

And being involved in mankind (see Donne above) means sharing the pains of others as well. So, my friends, your burdens are mine, that the grace of God given to each of us may be shared too.


And to tie together the various strings of the entries over the last few days, indeed I thank God for the trials I'm facing simply because I have come to experience and know, as a ray of light in a dark jungle, his never-failing grace.

Life was never meant to be easy, but I have to agree with T.S. Eliot:

"I had far rather walk, as I do, in daily terror of eternity, than feel that this was only a children's game in which all the contestants would get equally worthless prizes in the end."

The next five days be yours, O God. And as I have asked, heal me only when this week's mission is done. Let the experiment begin!