So This Is Christmas?

Dear Leader has died. When someone informed me about it and later another which was more specific - that he died on a train, I thought Dear Leader was in Singapore. When I watched the news in the evening, the unabashed outpouring of grief  was like nothing I have ever seen before. This was not quiet tears in mourning. Even when you put together the deaths of Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, Bruce Lee, Michael Jackson and the Busby Babes you would not have seen such a spectacle.

I am not suggesting that the mourners from soldiers to factory workers and peasants had their pictures taken while facing a firing squad or there was money to be made but even the most beloved person on planet earth has his detractors no matter how great he was. The unison and great pain felt by the North Korean people suggested that the emotions were misplaced. Dear Leader has been chomping on Cuban cigars, fine wine and Hollywood movies, etc. while his people suffered. Only when they stomped Gaddafi's compound did they realise who he was and what he was doing. Now that Kim Jong Il is gone, it has become more tricky. Better the devil you know than the devil you don't. See a Mr. Brown parody on a youth on youtube combined with social issues.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKh4nmzE5SE&sns=fb

Contrastingly, our very own Teresa Hsu who went on to a better place at 113 was the most amazing person you will ever know. I rate her greater than any other persons living or dead anywhere. She went away quietly and without fanfare. I don't have to tell you what she has given and nothing received. Everything she had, money, energy and love, she gave it all. Her love for her fellow humans knew no bounds. RIP, Mdm Teresa! Respect!

I know a church in Hougang, they raised money to help foreign workers who were injured or sick and dumped by their employers and have no money, no where to go and no one to turn to. They have also held a simple gala dinner to honour other foreign workers and constantly involved in the community helping fellow Singaporeans who are poor, aged, sick and whatever. This is very good and admirable. Action speaks louder than words.

So this is Christmas? And what have you done? Another year over and a new one just begun. And so this is Christmas, I hope you have fun.... I want you to listen to John Lennon:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8Vfp48laS8

and Sarah McLachlan:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyJOh9DrH0c

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUOJwDSfMLo (Sarah McLachlan)


It is one of the best Christmas songs. Simple and succinct. Peace not war. Love not hate. Friends not foes. Life not death. At the blink of an eye, 2011 is almost over. There is still so much to do, so much to achieve, so much work to do and so much yet to be done. 

While you party away, do not forget the real meaning of Christmas. Please see my previous article on it:


Yet in our modern city life, there are just too much noises. Not just real noises as in sound but you are bombarded with noises in billboards and advertisements and you frequently face overwhelming data and information from all media. Everyone has 24 hours but it is never enough. In the old days, when God spoke, you could hear him. Modern city dwellers are too far away and in the hustle and bustle of life are hearing without listening. Listen to the genius of Simon and Garfunkel with the Sound of Silence:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZGWQauQOAQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvsX03LOMhI

In biblical times, servants and prophets of God like Moses and Elijah often go to a secluded desert for God to speak to them. To catch God's whisper, you have to be still, you will have to seek a place of stillness so that all disruptions in your human thoughts are emptied. This is the only way a person can free oneself from fleeting moments of thoughts and worldly cares which are constantly pounding our minds and only in so doing, can we experience unity of our inner self. In other words, a complete sense of calm and total freedom from distractions. Alright, how many of us can achieve this? Yes, I am talking about you. Listen to Don Moen:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHV_uEGSTXA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVEpFTm92_o

Sometimes in life, we may hit a dry patch and when the dry patch got bigger it becomes a desert. All sand and nothing else, dry and weary. You hope to find an oasis then you saw pretty ladies in bikini selling ice-creams and beer but when you got there they were merely mirages. You crawl across the desert floor amid searing heat looking for water and you meet a crocodile in the middle of the desert coming from the other direction looking for water too and you begin to think that it is better to be a horse with no name. (Here's America):


At other times, you need to find yourself in a desert situation before we take stock or learn a lesson. It is just like playing golf, you have a wide fairway and you hit your shot into a single tree. This is just like driving your car in a desert and you crash into a tree.


Whatever it is, get yourself aligned this Christmas. Slowdown if you had been going like a runaway train going off the tracks or a over-ran train jammed on the tracks or we may run aground. Be with the family, spend special time with your children, your other half, your friends and family members. Make that phone call. Forgive everyone. Ask for forgiveness. Do something for some one. Christmas is all about love.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRtvqT_wMeY&ob=av2e


Love


If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYc6Sl9zH3c (It's Your Blood)


It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always persevere. Love never fails. 1 Corinthians 13: 1-5, 7, 8a.


And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. - 1 Corinthians 13: 13. 

Be Magnified!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpPTjHpIIOw&feature=related

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Here is Darlene Zschech and Hillsong with :

Mighty To Save: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-08YZF87OBQ 
Show your love and kindness always. Have God's peace! Geoffrey means God's peace. Have a bit of me, that when you have peace within your own being, it radiates out into the world. The world becomes a more peaceful place - one person at a time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1AGDZobZio

Don't wait for Christmas to do things. I wish all my readers and friends a very Merry Christmas! May God Bless you and your family with good health, great peace, abundant happiness, unspeakable joy and overflowing love! Love conquers all!

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