Strong Root

(Source: www.igadgetszone.com)

A gardener tried to do an experiment, a simple one. He planted two similar plants at the same soil. What differentiate them is how he takes care of the plants.


He would water the first plant every afternoon, but the second plant are watered once every two days.


Now, he wanted too see how strong their roots are. So he pull out the plants and the results are clear. He managed to pull out the first plant easily, but the second plant takes longer.


Why would it happen?


Simply because the first plant is spoiled from all the water that it gets daily, and didn't bother to look for other source of waters with its root.


While the second plant didn't get all the waters it needed, therefore it have to search for the water source. The only way is to go deep into the ground with its root. That's why its root are stronger.


How God nurture us is the same as the illustration above. Imagine if God spoiled us by granting all our request and never allowed pains in our lives. Then our root will be weak, and the moment problem comes, we are uprooted.


But God definitely wouldn't do something like that, He loves to train our spiritual root. By allowing pains, problems, pressures of life or every unhappy things that happened. He hoped that we would always search for the true source and grow strong.


When problems come, stand strong!

Diamond in the Making

When people found the so-called diamond, it was merely a rough stone with the quality of becoming a diamond. But they need to process the diamond, which is very difficult. It requires specialized knowledge, skill and equipment.

(Source: www.diedikz.blogspot.com)

Well, Christians are like diamonds. We are merely a rough stone when God found us. Let's just leave the "diamond cutting" to God.

Basically a diamond cutting process consists of planning, sawing, girdling, polishing and final inspection.

In the planning process, the manufacturer will need to analyze the final shape the diamond will take, taking into account the weight, the color and its value.
Same goes with us, imagine God when He first found you and say, "This is where I am going to put you. This is how I am going to used you."

In the sawing process, the diamond are being separated into pieces to be completed as separate gems.
As a Christian, growing in spiritual life is absolutely a must. That's when God began to take away pieces of us that aren't good.

In the girdling process, two diamonds are being set to grind each other to shape each of the diamond into a round shape.
Growing in Christ can't be done solo. We need to have fellowship with other Christian. This is so much needed because it's the way we could keep our spiritual life strong. Aren't man created not to be alone?

In the polishing process, facets are being cut onto the diamond and final polishing is performed.
As we go through difficulties in life, and we will, we must get stronger and stronger. It's a definite process that determines your worth.

Then there is a final inspection, where the diamonds are being cleaned and inspected for one last time.
Don't you want God to say, "Well done" when He inspected you?

You are the diamond in the making. Believe!

The Potter & His Clay

What sorrow awaits those who argue with their Creator.
Does a clay pot argue with its maker?
Does the clay dispute with the one who shapes it, saying, 'Stop, you're doing it wrong!'
Does the pot exclaim, 'How clumsy can you be?'
~ Isaiah 45 : 9

A beautiful pot / vase or an elegant tea cup, all these come from a clay which go through tough and long processes.

What are those processes?
* The potter picked up a lump of clay from a giant pile of clay from the floor. By this time, he would already has an end design in mind.
Just like how God picked us up, chose us and prepare us. Even before we were born, He already had a design for our lives.

* The clay is then being patted and rolled. The potter will start pouring some water to soften the clay.
At first, we must receive the Word of God in our lives. It's about rebuke and learning. Don't harden your heart, but soften it just like the clay.

* The potter would put the clay on the center of spinning wheel, and keep it spinning while shaping it, taking out any rubble.
The clay on the centre represent our lives to be centered with Christ, so that God can start to shape our lives. While doing so, He will also picked out any mistakes or bad stuffs in our lives.

* The potter will then put the  shaped-clay into the oven and burnt it.
This is the process of sanctification. As our old-selves died with Christ, we are being purified. And believe me, this process is not as easy as it seems.

* After the process, the shaped-clay is then put on the shelf waiting for it to cool down. Then the potter would continue to brush and paint it.
God always wanted to test our patience. Could you wait? In the midst of waiting, remember that God would always put colors in your life. You would never be forgotten by Him.

* Then the potter would once again put the shaped-clay back into the oven. But this time, twice as hot as the first one.
God will only put us into the world when we are ready. The world is like a fiery furnace, keep on burning us, but make us stronger.

* The potter would take out the vase out from the oven and put it on shelf, for it to cool down. Then he will look at the vase and say, "You're beautiful."
At the end of the day, surely we would want God to say "well done".

Note from The Potter:
I want you to remember. I know it hurts to be rolled and patted, but if I had left you alone, you'd dried up. I know it made you dizzy to spin around on the wheel, but if I had stopped, you would have crumbled. I knew it hurt and was hot and disagreeable in the oven, but if I hadn't put you there, you would have cracked.
I know the fumes were bad when I brushed and painted all over you, but if I hadn't done that, you never would have hardened; you would not have any color in your life. And if I hadn't put you back in that second oven, you wouldn't survive for very long, because hardness would not have held. Now you are a finished product. You are what I had in mind when I first began with you.

The journey of Christianity was never easy, but once you are in, strive to the end, for the result is always good.

Grass

"God wants us to live like the grass. Even if it's stepped on, crushed, burned & cut; it always persists & grows back even greener & stronger!"  - Franky Aw

Saw this quote post by my brother. It gets around my mind, then I thought I should do a blog on this.

It's kinda funny how in my previous post, I said that we must be like Palm Tree and Cedar of Lebanon. And now, GRASS!

But grass, do have its own uniqueness. It lies in its ability to keep on growing, persistence I must say. As well as its ability to adapts to different places. Wherever we saw grass, we can be sure that there will be sources of water, be it in desert, forest, mountain or even in the river / sea.

Grasses do have a lot of use, but sometimes it can be annoying because of the speed it grows. people tend to cut & burned it. And because it grows under our feet, it get trampled often. Nonetheless, it still grows back.

Let us learn to be like grass; even when we are hurt, let down, ignored, or even trampled

~ Let us get back on our feet, stronger than before ~

Palm Tree & Cedar of Lebanon

"But the godly will flourish like palm trees and grow strong like the cedars of Lebanon. For they are transplanted to the Lord’s own house. They flourish in the courts of our God. Even in old age they will still produce fruit; they will remain vital and green. They will declare, “The Lord is just! He is my rock! There is no evil in him!”" - Psalm 92 : 12 - 15

After I read these verse, I realize there must be some features from palm trees and cedars of Lebanon that we can learn.

 Let's look at PALM TREE:
1. Flourish at desert
A palm tree can survive in a desert, because its root goes deep into the ground searching for water.
As a Christian, we should also be rooted deep in the Word of God, also in our relationship with God. So that when we are in a "desert-like" / harsh environment, we will still be able to survive. But not just surviving, we must flourish. It means we shine in the darkness.
2. Withstood the storm
In a desert, sandstorms will be inevitable. A palm tree will be bend down, but every time the storm is over, it gets back up again.
A Christian should be strong to withstood any problems. And stand back up every time. Be encouraged!
3. Fruits' sweeter over age
As a palm tree gets older, the fruits its produced gets sweeter and sweeter.
As our walk with God gets longer, we should produce a sweeter fruit. So that through us, people will be rejoiced and recharged.

Let's look at CEDAR OF LEBANON:
1. Tall and Magnificent
Cedar of Lebanon can grows up to 40 Meters, and it grows wider as well.
A Christians should grow, upwards in our spiritual life and sidewards in our mentality. So that we would not fall down when a problem strikes.
2. Long living
A cedar of Lebanon could live up to a 1,000 years.
Of course I'm going to tell you to live up to 1,000 years. But let our legacy be remembered for a thousand years. Let us contribute to the society, and shows that we really care.
3. Useful
A cedar of Lebanon can used differently, in a building, in a furniture.
A Christian should also be multipurposed. Let us do our work with great attitude, and give our best shot everyday of our life.

Both these trees are actually evergreen. Which means their leaves will always be green. We must not lose the fire burning in us, because the Passion that keeps us going never died.

A Sailing Ship

Going through life is like traveling on the vast ocean, with many directions to take. Sometimes it is so calm, but some time storm will come.

Ain't that the same with life, when sometimes our life is so smooth, with no problem at all.

But, there will always come a time with all the difficulties to face, all the trouble around us.

But why must we be like a sailing ship, and not any other type of ship? Let us look at it one by one.

What makes a sailing ship?

The most common things can be found in a sailing ship are these:
1. Hull
This is the part where the ship meets the ocean. This part is the most important part of any ship. There is so many consideration in building the hull. The builder will need to consider the balance of cost, the load, the speed.
This is the basic on which we build our life, how we go through life. We need to consider the load / burden we are carrying through life, and how fast we are going in life. In other words, our character and attitude.

2. Rigging
Rigging is the essential part of the ship that determine where the ship move. It includes cordage to manipulate spars and sails position and shape, sails to catch the wind, and spars on which sails attached to. It is such a complicated feature that must be moved by the captain and the sailors of the ship. No one is allowed to even looked away for a second, especially during a storm.
There are 3 type of people in a sailing ship:
a. Captain (Yourself)
b. Sailors (People who helped us)
c. Passengers (People that know us)
In life, we are the captain, we determine where our life must go. And the sailors are the people around us who helped us to go the direction we wanted. These are the people that shape and mold us. Going through life isn't easy, it required hard work and determination. That's what you need to go through difficulties in life. But some people are just passengers. They come and go. We must remember that!

3. Mast
A mast is the arrangement of spars that held up the sails. A strong mast is required to hold the sails when a strong wind blow.
A mast is like our faith in God, and God is like the wind. Will we be able to hang on to our faith, when God isn't moving, when God moves in His own way, or when God Moves mightily. A sail ship can't fight the wind, because it will only find itself in the same spot, or it will have a hard time trying to get to the destination. Don't that happen us quite often? Trying to fight against God's will, even when it's so obvious. If you want to be success, follow God's will!
Easier said than done? A captain will always know where the wind is blowing because he has experienced it before. Same for us, we need to experience God more.

A sailing ship has a certain character. It went on a voyage bringing just enough supplies to get the other town / destination. Due to the weight that they need to maintain. Of course, the more load it has, the slower it moves. Since it is moved by wind.
In life, we bring far too much burden, so much that it slowed us down. We need to learn to choose our load. Prioritize our needs!

Lastly, if the ship wants to move fast, it will need a strong wind. But expect storm! If it is not strong enough, it will only end up ship-wrecked.
So, if we want to move fast in life, we'll need God's strong push. But are we ready to face the trial in front? That's why we need to have a strong foundation (good character and right attitude), have the right person in our life, and be wise in choosing our path.

~ Now, sail through the ocean of life ~