3 Truths

It's one thing to know a truth. It's another to have experienced it yourself.

Recently, I've experienced 3 truths:

1) "You don't really know what you've got 'til it's gone."

Mike Shinoda got this right when he rapped the song Where'd You Go (Fort Minor).

What can't you afford to lose if you lost everything else?
What can you afford to give away to retain those that really matter?

2) Pain gives birth to maturity.

It increases our pain threshold, our capacity to handle things.

3) God always has a beautiful ending.

This thought came to me yesterday, 

"If you could see the Lord's intended outcome, you would rejoice."

Just like how He blessed Job after his crisis, He will do so for us.

We have every reason to rejoice.

"Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord--that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful." (James 5:11)

Unmerited Favour

I was called upon by my former RSM to assist him in the website he was in charge of. He spoke with my lieutenant, and I found myself within the confines of Sungei Gedong Camp this morning. Finishing what I was instructed to do before lunch, I had the rest of the day off. Praise the Lord.

As I walked out of the gates of Armour Headquarters, I saw a statue of a tank in the middle of the road, its cannon staring proudly into in the sky. Beneath its tracked feet glimmered four silver words, chiseled out of polished metal. They were:

ONCE ARMOUR

ALWAYS ARMOUR

The glorious declaration implied that those who joined the ranks of the Armour regiments would proudly be part of the Armour family forever.

Not me.

Not that I'm not proud of being in Armour, of course. To be politically correct, I had some good experiences there. But for me, it was Once Armour, Now Engineer. And I love the welfare culture of the Singapore Combat Engineers!

Nevertheless, today's experience triggered this blog post. (I felt like doing a blog post *winks*)

Recently I remembered that prior to my enlistment, I prayed hard that I would NOT be posted to Sungei Gedong, after hearing Yaozhong's dismaying experiences there. I prayed instead of being posted to Nee Soon Camp (rumored to be like 'heaven'), Seletar Camp or Khatib Camp, due to their close proximity to my home.

Well, you know the story. I received my enlistment letter, and the words 'Armour HQ' flashed mockingly at me.

But God has a way of answering prayers. 1 year after my enlistment, I crossed the gates of the famed Nee Soon Camp. Turns out that the rumors are true. Lucky you, Qiming. One and a half months after that, I was posted to Seletar Camp. God is good.

He has been good throughout my army life. I went through a few hardships, including the toughest moment of my life, but God was gracious. Those difficult moments were valued lessons, the 'rotan' of a loving father. It seems that His favour follows me, no matter which camp I am in, so much so that some around me become jealous, and even dislike me.

Still, I thank Him for His unmerited favour.

I believe that right now is a season of decisions. God wants to build self-control in me - Responsibility over Comfort. May His grace be sufficient for me.

"And those who are Christ’s
have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires."
Gal 5:24