Love All...

Today is the 7th day of year 2019 and within a week I have met different kinds of people.
Some were lovely ones, some were annoying ones and some really need helps.


This is the first story.
On the 5th of January, my cell group hosted Christmas and New Year party for the members as well as welcoming those who are interested in coming.
We are very open for whoever wants to come to our door.
I was the PIC and I have appointed some to help me out during the preparation and on the day itself because I can't do everything by myself.
Those I have contacted were agree to help out. I contacted them early December before all went out for holiday.

I deliberately didn't ask them until the new year came because I didn't want to ruin their holiday time.
Then when New Year came, I started to remind their tasks because time was the constraint.
Each of them took the responsibility and I appreciated them for the great length they took but there's one person who has agreed to take this important responsibility for this party but did nothing.

I was fuming mad at her but I couldn't express it directly. Three days before the event, I almost wanted to cancel the event and was very irritated the whole day.
Then, during my evening shower, I just kept silent and took the opportunity to do contemplation with God.
I told Him my feeling, then I remembered the New Year Prayer to pray and love whoever come to my path.
Holy Spirit consoled me and reminded me whenever you met an annoyed person, be grateful because it's in fact a privilege to be like a Christ.
When you feel pain and annoyed, means that you partake in Christ suffering and this is the opportunity to love them as Christ loves me.

I felt peace afterwards, my negative feelings have changed to become a joyful and grateful heart.



There's another story of the person who annoyed me which is my close family - my little sister.
When she told me about her predicament, I went out all the way to help her in whatever I could.
I helped her finding new opportunities through my contact, I let her to stay in my place. I encouraged her to be savy with money and don't give up looking for the job.
But what she did was the opposite.

She took her own sweet time finding new job, she's very generous in spending money not in good way and I felt that she took for granted in whatever I have done for her.
I had doubt in myself whether whatever I had done was endangering her instead of helping her.
However, when I asked myself, did I have heart to let her suffer ?  I couldn't.

Thus, in my doubting, I asked God whether I have done the right thing.
God gently answered me, as long as you didn't feel guilty after that, you have done the right thing.
It's not what I did that are wrong but my expectation was too high.

I wanted to take role as God. I expected her to change in an instant, I expected her to do what I wanted her to do.
God reminded me, I am not Him. My job is to love her, not judging her by the cover.
I may not know what she's been going through, and what makes her like this. But again it's not my job. It's between her and God.

To love someone is not to ask her / him to change as what I want. It's to love him/her unconditionally without asking anything back in return.

After getting this consolation, I felt peace again.

Another interesting story

Yesterday after packing all the groceries into the car boot, I was startled by an old lady who stood in the side of my car. I thought she wanted to cross the road and waiting for my car to pass first because she walked very slow.
At first, I just smiled at her and quickly opened my door car and wanted to go as soon as I can, then suddenly she talked to me in Mandarin. I didn't understand at first then she repeated something like tumpang to the church.

I was not very clear so I asked her again and she repeated her request that she wanted to tumpang my car and go to church.
I was still in disbelief but I allowed her to come in to my car.
Then I repeated her request one more time, do you want to go to Holy Cross Church ?
And she said yes.

Then to break the ice with this stranger and made sure I met the real person, I asked her where did she live and whom she lived with ?
And she told me that she lived with her son but her son usually walked to the church and she walked very slow thus she needed to come early and there's no bus passing by to the church from clementi ave 1. After she told me everything, it was make more sense for me.

I dropped her in front of the church lobby and I left.
Once I left, I felt so much love and joy. I almost cried and gave thanks to God to give me this privilege to help this old lady.

Last but not least

Last December during small xmas party gathering, I found out that one of my lady friends was suffering breast cancer stage 2. She's still young, single, alone and not working.
I knew that she's still in disbelief that she was contracted the cancer as I was.
She had low self-esteem after what she knew that she had cancer and didn't want anyone know about her condition except her close friends, even her parents didn't know about her predicament.
I felt pity for her. I could imagine how hard for her to journey this alone.

Thus, I asked her to go light exercise with me this week.
I may not be able to take all her burdens, but hopefully I could lighten her burden a little bit by helping her to see things positively.

Well, those are four interesting stories despite other lovely people that I met in day to day.

After all, I gave thanks to God for this experience, opportunity and privileges to love whoever come in my path.
I know the journey is still very very long way thus I ask grace of God to enable me to love those who will come to my life.


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