Godlief Wesley

He Giveth More Grace

2010-01-22T23:06:00.003+08:00

Annie Johnson Flint lived most of her life in pain. She was orphaned when she was very young and adopted by flint family. She had a frail body and later she was weekend by cancer and rheumatoid arthritis. When she was interviewed, the interviewer saw that she was in full agony. She even needed several pillows to cushion herself from raw sore from being bed ridden.

Her autobiography interestingly entitled the making of the beautiful. But how can a life of sick and bed ridden person be beautiful? We can find this answer in one of a poem written by her in her sick bed, which later being used as a lyric of a song.

He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labors increase;
To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.

Ref:
For His love has no limits, and His grace has no measure,
His power has no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Christ Jesus
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.

Fear not that thy need shall exceed His provision,
Our God ever yearns His resources to share;
Lean hard on the arm everlasting, availing;
The Father both thee and thy load will upbear.

by: Annie J. Flint

Mark the first paragraph of the song. I think it is the most comforting and the most beautiful peace of poetry, and yet this peace can only be understood by one that love him.

Bible scripture: James 4:6

But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

Listen to the song:

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Meditation on Sin and Grace

2008-05-03T03:24:00.006+08:00

Cheap Grace

Grace alone which God supplies,

Strength unknown He will provide,

Christ in us our corner-stone,

We will go forth in grace alone.

The verses above are taken from a song written by Scott Wesley Brown, Grace Alone. A word in this song which burns my heart is the word “Grace”. As we recite the song we encounter a verse that said God will supply grace to us. However what kind of grace it will be? It is not a cheap kind of grace but a grace that handsomely paid by God.

No body will understand grace without, at first; understand the weight of sin that resides in one life. People who are without a remorse feeling over their sin will never be willingly admit grace into their life.

We all have crossed over God’s moral law and sinned against Him. Fourteenth question of the Westminster Shorter catechism has cited: What is sin? Sin is any want of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God. Sin describes here as both passive (sin of commission) and active (sins of omission). We sin when we fail to conform to God’s will. For examples: when we have a duty to prune the garden and we are not performing that duty. From the example, we can see that we sin because we have not done what God requires us to do.

On the other hand, we also actively do what He prohibits. This means we sin because we do the thing that God does not want us to do, transgression unto God’s moral Law. If we transgressed a law written by a state or country, we can expect a punishment. However to transgress the Law of God (sin) is a “cosmic treason”, as rightly pointed by R. C. Sproul. In His book, The Truth of The Cross, he expounds that: “the slightest sin that a creature commits against his Creator does violence to the Creator’s holiness, His Glory, and His righteousness. Every sin, no matter how insignificant, is an act of rebellion against the sovereign God who reigns and rules over us and as such is an act of treason against the cosmic King.” Never overlook sin that you done because it is a serious matter, it is an act of treason against the cosmic king and it required a severe punishment.

10 Reasons Why I Am Thankful for the God-Breathed Bible

2008-04-25T08:02:00.002+08:00

1. The Bible awakens faith, the source of all obedience.

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. (Romans 10:17)

2. The Bible frees from sin.

You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free. (John 8:32)

3. The Bible frees from Satan.

The Lord's bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will. (2 Timothy 2:24-26)

4. The Bible sanctifies.

Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. (John 17:17)

5. The Bible frees from corruption and empowers godliness.

His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. (2 Peter 1:3-4)

6. The Bible serves love.

And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment. (Philippians 1:9)

But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. (1 Timothy 1:5)

7. The Bible saves.

Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you. (1 Timothy 4:16)

Therefore, I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole purpose of God. (Acts 20:26)

[They will] perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. (2 Thessalonians 2:10)

8. The Bible gives joy.

These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. (John 15:11)

9. The Bible reveals the Lord.

And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord. (1 Samuel 3:21)

10. Therefore, the Bible is the foundation of my happy home and life and ministry and hope of eternity with God.

By John Piper.

Published 20 November 2006

God is everywhere, 4/4

2008-04-20T21:26:00.002+08:00

Where to Run?

If a criminal run away from police, he might felt save once he thought he has find a perfect hiding place and eludes the police forever. However can we ever do the same when we try to run away from God? If you want to do a secret sin you might withdraw from public place to your house. If you suspect some one is spying on you might withdraw to your room. If you still feel being watch you might withdraw to your heart. However, God is still presences in that little spot of your heart when you meditate upon sin that you are trying to commit.

God will never chase us but we are the one that fleeing from him. He is always presence, so you can’t flee. I have read it some where: “We Got no place to flee from Him but there is a place to flee unto Him.” Repent and confess your sin then you can be sure that He will be presence to bless.

Psalm 139:7-10

7. Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
8. If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
9. If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
10. even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me.

God is everywhere, 3/4

2008-04-15T21:46:00.002+08:00

Hell and Heaven

Have you ever think that God is not presence in your life? Have you ever think that He is leaving you? If the answer is yes, then it will be an apparent contradiction to the notion that God is presence everywhere. If God is truly presence everywhere, how can He be absence or leaving you?

Hell

How about Hell? Does God presence in Hell? In Matthew 18:9 the word hell is describe in Greek language "Gehenna" or often being called "Gehenna of fire". This was originally the valley of Hinnom, south of Jerusalem, where the filth and dead animals and often dead body of the city were cast out and burned; a fit symbol of the wicked and their future destruction. Hell is known as a place of eternal punishment. God does presence in hell; however His presence is not of His benevolent but his wrath. His presence is to punish the wicked. Thus God’s omnipresence is a bad news for bad people.

If you ever have a thought that God is leaving you might need to evaluate yourself (remember God is always presence). You might be trying to run away from Him all this while and you just exhaust yourself. See in yourself if you did sin against God. If you did, you have set yourself away from God. The absence of God is not because of He is leaving you but you are running away from Him. Stop distancing yourself from Him. Instead of dwelling in your sin and guilt, why not you bow down to your knees and humbly pray, “Forgive me a sinner.”

Heaven

Many people thought heaven as a dwelling place of God. However, heaven is not a dwelling place for God; He is not presence in heaven more then anywhere else. Heaven is just the place of focus of his character and presence of his blessing and glory are abundant.

In bible we encounter many of God presences to bless his people. And in our life He will also presence to bless us if we glorifying Him. To glorify Him does not mean that you try to do something to earn your way toward His blessing. To glorify Him means to make Him becomes the focus of your life. To glorify Him means to be more like him.

In our life His presence can be either to bless or to punish. Which one of His presence do you desire?

God is everywhere, 2/4

2008-03-30T07:50:00.003+08:00

What is God?

John 4:24 said that God is a spirit and this is means that God is a being that does not have size and dimension. He is not a being that neither can be contained in space nor occupy any space. Beside our physicality we also have a soul. Can our spirit be in different places in the same time? The answer is no. There is a different between our spirit and God. Our spirit is a finite (created) and God is infinite.

Some people thought of God’s omnipresent attribute as something that extends infinitely as an unending space. This wrong conception has categorised God as a bigger space. Another misconception is a pantheistic believes, which assumes that every thing created (this including us, plant, etc) is part of God. Since there is an apparent qualitative different between us and God, how can be the creator be the very thing He created?

Note: I will not discuss my rebuttal toward pantheistic believe in this writing since it required me to explain in a lengthier manner in order for us to get the bigger picture.

God as a spirit presence in every space in the same time, and He not only present part of Himself (1/3 in Australia and 2/3 in Indonesia) but he presence fully in every spaces in the same time. So we can enjoy his full presence in every time and space. This fact will encourage us in prayer where we no need special place to pray (not temple mosque or church) yet we still have God special attention. Most importantly we no need to have appointment with Him.

God is everywhere, 1/4

2008-03-24T19:31:00.005+08:00

Limitation

Tsunami was a natural disaster that known to us. This disaster wipes many lives away in a blink moment. In respond to this, a first wave of rescue and relieves worker has been sent immediately. When this group attended the need of people in one place, they couldn’t, likewise, provided cares and relieves unto people in another places of disaster in the same time.

Human have a limitation in space and time continuum. We has size, we has dimension we can only inhabit one space in the same time. Unlike human, God does not have size or spatial dimensions and He presence at every point of space with his whole being. And yet God acts differently in different places. (Grudem, 2003). We are living and experiencing time in a linear fashion, Past-Present-Future. However God is outside and beyond the time, before time He was and He created time.

There is a qualitative difference between God and us. He is the creator and we are the creature. He is living totally in a different dimension compared to us. Although sometime it is hard for our mind to comprehend this, yet it does not mean we can’t understand it. There is a qualitative different between a chair (thing that we created) and us (the designer). Chair does not have mind but we have. Let us parallel this example unto human-God qualitative different: We, human are created by Him and God is the creator. The vast mind of God is totally out of our reach, His mind compared to ours is liken to an ocean and a drop of water. This qualitative different is equally true to His attribute, Omni presence, God is presence every where and we are not.

I have drawn you with loving-kindness

2008-02-29T08:07:00.003+08:00

(Jeremiah 31:3)

The thunders of Law and the terrors of judgment are all used to bring us to Christ, but the final victory is brought about by loving-kindness. The prodigal Son returned to his father’s house from a sense of need, but his father saw him a great way off, and ran to meet him. So that the last steps he took toward his father’s house were with the kiss still warm upon his cheek, and the welcome still joyous in his ears. The master came one night to the door, and knocked with the iron hand of law. The door shook and trembled upon its hinges, but the person within piled everything possible against the door and declared, “I will not admit the man.” The master turned away, but after awhile he came back, and with that part of His hand where the blood had flowed from the piercing nail, He knocked again --- softly and tenderly. This time the door did not shake, but, strange to say, it opened, and there on bended knees the once unwilling occupant was found eager to receive the lord. “Come in, come in. you have so knocked that my heart is open to you. I couldn’t think of Your pierced hand leaving its blood-mark on my door, and of Your going away homeless. I yield, I yield. Your love has won my heart. So it is in every case --- Loving-kindness wins the day. What Moses with the tablets of stone could never do, Christ does with His pierced hand. This is the way God effectually calls lost sinners to his son.

Taken from:

Spurgeon. C. H. 2000, “Morning by Morning”, February 29: I have drawn you with loving-kindness, Bridge-Logos, United States of America.

Understanding Love, Part 7/7e

2007-12-03T16:47:00.003+08:00

Translate/ Terjemahan: Indonesia

– Love is unconditional and Unconditional Love will Transform Us– Part B

One of God attribute is “Love”. God is in no needs for our love in return. He is the source of love and He gives it freely and unconditionally (through His grace). We are God’s creature; we are to reflect some of His attribute, in this case is Love. Unlike God, we are in a desperate of “need for love”. We are looking for fulfillment and meaning in life through love. We might be able to find it elsewhere but it soon depleted; and we keep searching and gradually our attempt exhausts us. Ultimately, full joy and love only can be found in God who is the source of love that is never exhausted.

As we received His gift of love, we are also enabled by Him to give Love to others freely. Gift love is charitable love, unselfish and willingness to deny ourselves. Sometime our selfish nature does not allow us to give back the love that we received. Only God can transform our heart and mind so we can gift our love unconditionally to others.

He once in a time, in history, gave us a perfect example of his sacrificial and unconditional love. So we can visualised those love and grasp what is a true love is. The sacrificed is so graphic and it rendered our definition of love to ashes. He shows a love which should properly be called Agape; it is charitable in it totality and totally unconditional. None of our merit can made us deserved this kind of love. This kind of love is different kind of love. This kind of God is different kind of God.

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References

Shaunti and Jeff Feldhah, 2006, “For Man Only: A Straightforward Guide to the Inner Llives of Women”, 3^rd ED, Multnomah, Oregon.
Shaunti and Jeff Feldhah, 2006, “For Man Only: A Straightforward Guide to theInnerLives of Women”, 3^rd ED, Multnomah, Oregon.
Chapman, G. 2004, “The Five Love Languages: How to Express Heartfelt Commitment to Your Mate”, Northfield publishing, United States of America.
Chapman, G. 2004, “The Five Love Languages for Singles”, Northfield publishing, United States of America.
Henry, Mathhew A REMEDY AGAINST THAT FOLLY, IN BEING MADE SENSIBLE OF THE BENEFIT OF SOCIETY AND MUTUAL ASSISTANCE
Zachariah, R. 2004, “I, Isaac, Take Thee Rebekah: Moving from Romance to Lasting Love”, W Publishing Group, United States of America.
Zachariah, R. 2002, “Cries of the Heart”, W Publishing Group, United States of America.
James. D. 2001, “Bringing up Boys”, Tyndale house Publishers, United states of America.
Yancey, P. 2006, “What’s So Amazing About Grace”, Strand Publishing, Australia.
Augustine, 2005, “The Confessions of St. Augustine: Modern English Version”, Baker book house, America.
Lewis, C.S. 2002,”The Four Loves (10^th ED)” Harper Collins, London

Back to Front

Understanding Love, Part 7/7d

2007-11-19T11:55:00.000+08:00

Translate/ Terjemahan: Indonesia

– Love is unconditional and Unconditional Love will Transform Us– Part A

As I outline earlier, “Gift love” arises from our “Appreciative Pleasure”. It is our respond toward something beautiful, good and awe-inspiring which we gained or acquired unexpectedly. Although it can be given unconditionally, it still arises by of a certain cause, which can steer is our sense of appreciation.

Our “Gift Love” to God arises from love, providence and goodness that we got from Him. However, “Gift loves” from God unto us is without any cause. His “Gift love” is un-obligated and solely based on own will. He decided to give His love freely.

By our own nature, we are God-hater (this might sound extreme). We only started to love God when we starting to received His grace, mercy and love. Our “Gift love” is a respond and a sense of gratitude of what we experience or received; it is not fully unconditional. On the other hand, God’s “Gift love” is truly unconditional. While we trespasses His Laws - He forgives and elect us, when we depraved - He shows us mercy, when we hate him - He draws us to him and love us. It is unconditional; we got it freely although we are undeserving.

Cont. to Part 7e

next articles will be posted in 1 December 2007 (maybe earlier).

Understanding Love, Part 7/7c

2007-11-12T07:38:00.000+08:00

Translate/ Terjemahan: Indonesia

Philosophising Love

– Gift love –

There is third element of love that we must ponder is “Gift Love”. “Gift love” is a love that often foreshadowed by “Appreciative Pleasure”. We have it when we see or experience something that is good; as if we owe it to someone. C.S. Lewis has rightly stated it: “When it is offered to a woman we called it admiration; when to a man, hero-worship; when to God, worship simply.”

Need-love cries to God from our poverty; Gift-love longs to serve, or even to suffer for, God; Appreciative love says: ‘We give thanks to thee for thy great glory.’ Need-love says of a woman ‘I cannot live without her’; Gift-love longs to give her happiness, comfort, protection – if possible, wealth; Appreciative love gazes and holds its breath and is silent, rejoices that such a wonder should exist even if not for him, will not be wholly dejected by losing her, would rather have it so than never to have seen her at all.

(Lewis, C.S. 2002, p.21)

Gift love, in one sense, is a charitable kind of love. It is unselfish. A perfect example that we can drawn is the sacrificial love of a mother toward her baby. While the baby in need of care and love of the mother and the mother, on the other hand, give her all of her to him/her --- “gift love”.

All these elements of love often mix and overlap each other. However, only “Need-loves” can exist by it own without the other elements of love.

Cont. to Part 7d

. Sorry for publishing it late......I got car accident few days ago....cheers

Understanding Love, Part 7/7b

2007-11-01T07:03:00.000+08:00

Translate/ Terjemahan: Indonesia

Philosophising Love

– Loving It and Loving the Beloved–

A parallel can be drawn for the case of love. We can see that “Need Pleasures” foreshadow “Need Loves”. “Need pleasure” is goes hand in hand with “Need loves”. Need Pleasure is momentary so does the Need Loves. We see “the beloved” is in a relation to our need as a thirsty man sees the water tap. Need Loves which left unaided with moral principles (sense of gratitude, faithfulness, etc) is a mockery. Once these moral boundaries are removed, love, sexuality and relationship are dehumanised. Instead of choosing to Love “the Beloved”, we are choosing to Love “It”. We will see human being as a mere object of our appetite.

Sigmund Freud believed that we are sexually driven creature. He claimed that our purpose in life is to pursue happiness through a sexual love. (Nicholi.A, 2003, p.126) This philosophy has explained every relational-behaviour theme in sexual term and had caused a certain sexual revolution in time to come.

Let us see one of his theories in order to grasp a better understanding of his view. He believes that a close relation between a daughter to a father and a son to a mother is caused by sexual love. Children will think of their same sex parent as an adversary. This notion is termed as “Oedipus Complex” by Freud. The term derives from the Greek myth of Oedipus, who kills his father, Laius, and marries his mother, Jocasta. The philosophy is emphasis in seeking after “Needs Pleasure” with the absence of true joy.

“Need Love” is a natural need that human has ever has. However, if we are limiting love and joy in a matter of need (sexuality), we have asserted an insult to human dignity and reduced ourselves into a degree of barbaric creature. The notion of love is much more than sexuality. History has shown that bankruptcy is rendered in live of each individual who profess this belief. The attempt to desacralize sexuality only leaves them empty and thirsty. Ultimate joy cannot be found and this is the reason why we are often seeing a broken lives and relationship.

The “Appreciation Pleasures”, on the other hand, foreshadows the “Appreciation Loves”. The pleasure in the “Appreciation Pleasures” is not arises from sexuality but beauty. This kind of pleasure is a pleasure that is not selfish. In the “Appreciation Love”, a sense of appreciation is arises from who the person is. It is neither based on our desire nor is limited to the beauty that is shown in a physical attribute. It is beyond those criterions, it can also from the person inner being. If we can understand this we will love and see a person as a “beloved” instead of seeing and loving the person with the term “It”.

Cont. to Part 7c

Understanding Love, Part 7/7a

2007-10-27T19:29:00.000+08:00

Translate/ Terjemahan: Indonesia

Philosophising Love

– Need Pleasure and Appreciation Pleasure–

C.S. Lewis dwelled on the topic of love in a very comprehensive way. He formulated his idea on love from analogies on pleasure. There are two kinds of pleasure : "Need Pleasure" and "Pleasure of Appreciation" (Lewis, C.S. 2002).

The "Need Pleasure" is a pleasure which is preceded from our desire and we comply with it because of our obedient to it. "Appreciation Pleasure" is pleasure that you get in when you are in a state of total contentment; you are in no need of anything. This pleasure is a super-added gift; it can be unplanned; it is a pleasure in its own right.

Lets us see the following illustrations so we can have a better understanding on both of “Need Pleasure” and “Pleasure of Appreciation”. If you are just finished a hundred miles of running, you went home and you drank a glass of water. You do not normally do it because of fun of it but thirst that you have. This kind of pleasure is a pleasure that arises because of our need. However, during your hundred miles run, you have come across a bed of flower. The view is so captivating and the aroma is so good. It made you stand in awe as if it’s giving you a glimpse of heaven. When you arrived home, you voluntarily called your wife and tell her about the phenomena that you had encountered earlier. This kind of pleasure is known as "Appreciation Pleasure".

Sometime “Need Pleasure” and “Appreciation Pleasure” overlap each other. A good example is when you are drinking a glass of wine, where you have the element of need in it (to quench your thirst) and also the pleasure of it (the nice taste). However, the appreciation pleasure can become bad through the addiction of it.

"Need Pleasure" is momentary. A food is smell so different before and after our breakfast. When we relate ourselves with “Need Pleasure”, we often refer it as past. On the other hand, “Appreciation Pleasure” is due to our appreciation of thing. We are not enjoy it because of our need but because the thing in it self (for example: view and smell) are deserved to be enjoyed. We often attempted to preserve it and share it enjoyment to other. We normally owe it to them, to savour it, to attend to and to praise it (Lewis, C.S. 2002, p.18)

Cont. to Part 7b

next articles will be posted in 1 Nov 2007 (maybe earlier).

Understanding Love, Part 6/7J

2007-10-23T07:50:00.000+08:00

Translate/ Terjemahan: Indonesia

To Love is Means to Lets Go

-Encouragement Factor-

Grief is real for people who lost their love one, especially through a sudden death. To let go this memory is not an easy task and it cannot be smothered by mere academic explanation. This heartfelt adversity is a real experience and thus a real solution is needed.

Pain and suffering is unavoidable experience for all. However, a caring friend may play a pivotal role encourage them in their misery ----Our presence and support normally will speak louder than your solution in encouraging them---. Although an internal grief can be soften through external encouragement (through a consistent presence of friend), their courage still needs to be braced internally. This will happen if we are able to see the providence of God.

Enablement to perceive "providence of God" will help us see a purpose in our suffering. Our enablement to see this will give us hope and strength in the wave of adversity. We will be able to face the adversity easier compared to the one who don’t.

Let us see an example to understand this. Just imagine that you are watching your favourite team’s foot ball match. It happened that in the first 5 minutes a goal is made by the rival team. And another goal is made in the next 2 minutes. As a football fan, you might be crushed beyond measure. In the next 20 minutes, the situation changed, and your team manage to even out the score. This moment might bring excitement to you. And in the second half of the game your team lead the game and won the match. This triumph obviously brings a great satisfaction and contentment in your heart.

When you watch the video of the match again, after a few days, you might not experience the same emotional roller-coaster as what you experienced when you were watching the live match. When you see your favourite team was losing earlier in the game, you can respond to it with a big smile on your face. This is because you already knew the outcome of the game. You already have a full assurance that your favourite team will win the match. Likewise, when we able to understand and see the providence of God at work, we are also be able see our misery with a full assurance that there is a purpose for every adversity.

There is a man who lost his daughter in a plane crash. He did respond to this problem of pain as what we normally do. As the time passed, He said “I used to think that time was a healer. I no longer belief that. I now believe that time is only the revealers of how God does the healing”. (Zachariah, R. 2002) Confident in the providence of God will bring us much relief when we want to let go our past. And the assurance of the providence of God can only be found in a close walk with God. God is a relational God and He will understand all of our despair that arises from relational lost.

Cont. to Part 7a

Understanding Love, Part 6/7i

2007-10-17T12:12:00.000+08:00

Translate/ Terjemahan: Indonesia

To Love is Means to Lets Go

– Necessity–

When we lost or let go of someone that we deem important, we might candidly claims that we are all good. However, if everyone is honest enough, they will indeed recognise how shattering it was to experience such a lost.

To be able to let go is a necessity. Many people are not only hurting other but also themselves if they don’t learn to let go. These people are often live with a deep agony that slowly will alter their emotional health and their obsession will become greater.

To let go is never been an easy task but it is a right thing to do. There would be few steps that we might want to consider. However different situation required a different treatment, therefore I do not want to generalise this method. In this essay I only will list down the situation that I know, for the case for people who break up or for the one with an unrequited love:

Do not have a contact with the person that you desire/ like for at least one month and try to avoid everything that will make you remember her.
After a month try to make friend with her. Purely as a friend. During this time we are most likely able to see thing objectively.
After all this, you have to know that the feeling for her will not just disappear immediately. It might be around for a while or maybe stick in you forever. Due to this respect, do not look for an alternative target. When you do it I will assure you that you only wanted a replacement to curb your loneliness and will not genuinely love this new person (The replacement). Often your feeling of her will bounce back.
If you wanted to start a new love chapter wait and stay intact for at least six months. This period is a “cooling period” and you will learn how to control your emotion and I confident that at the end of six month you will be likely able to control your feeling. (It might be longer for female)
Patient will be the key. You will grow into maturity even more when you gone through this and this broken experience will be your greatest life lesson.

Cont. to Part 6J

Understanding Love, Part 6/7H

2007-10-14T23:52:00.000+08:00

Translate/ Terjemahan: Indonesia

To Love is Means to Lets Go

This part of love allegory is considerably the most painful. When we love someone, sometime, we have to know what its means to let go. The moment we persist to posses the love (person), we will begin to contradict the claim of loving her in unconditional manner.

I have an acquaintance who loves a girl so deeply. Sadly, his persistence was only hurting her instead. He finally realised that his love have been so stained with a possessive desire, instead of to love her unconditionally. Thus, he decided to love her in a right way, and this means he has to let her go.

– Pain of Letting Go–

Letting go of someone that so dear to us is not an easy task to bear. Sometime it can cause aguish to our soul. St. Augustine in his book, “Confessions of St. Augustine”, wrote about how he was drawn into a state of despair when he lost his only friend who was so dear to him. He even equated his relation with his friend as a half of his soul, one soul in two bodies. Without him, he will be utterly incomplete.

Admittedly he mentioned that he focused on a heartfelt despair much more than his affection toward his friend. His self-cantered thought and orientation had dawn him farther into a deep agony. I belief he was hardly out of it.

Whatever the reason, I was wretched. Every soul is wretched that becomes bound in friendship to perishable things. The soul is torn apart when the thing loved is lost. The wretchedness was perhaps always there, masked by the beloved thing that has been stripped away.

So it was then with me; I wept most bitterly, and took solace in resentment. I now understand that I had become so degraded that I held my miserable life more dear than I did my friend. Though I might willingly have changed things in my life, I was more afraid to leave behind my proud ways than I was to part with my friend.

(Augustine, 2005, p. 50)

Cont. to Part 6i

Note: Sorry I published this article late. coz i celebrate my 27th birthday in 10 of October and have to attend to few friends invitation. Cheers.

Understanding Love, Part 6/7G

2007-10-06T09:29:00.000+08:00

Translate/ Terjemahan: Indonesia

To love means to be kind to one another – Loving Kindness

Loving kindness is a sweet melody for many of us; and it might be most desired attribute in the case of man-woman relationship. Though, it is also the most forgotten virtue. Many relationships are on stake because there is no kindness expressed in a daily relation.

The essence of a lasting love is an act of kindness. Without it, love is just a tragedy. It is true to say that kindness is a virtue that one already possessed naturally. Nevertheless, it will be untrue if we assume that we can’t develop a kindness within us.

We know that time and circumstances will help in our attempt to develop our character; in the same time, it’s also capable to develop kindness within us if we willing to:

--- restraint ourselves from selfish self-impulses,

--- always looking for the interest of other,

--- deny ourselves although it is against our own nature,

--- train ourselves to listen to heartache of others with compassion

--- willing to give to other freely and unconditionally (time, love, etc)

Ravi told a story of his friend’s parent who was never set their eyes on each other until the day they were married. In the first night, when the lady first looks upon the man, her heart was in despair because the man is not as what she expects him to be like. Recognising this, the man told her that she owed him nothing and that if she never wanted to share the same room with him he would accept that decision. Every night, he would take his clothing out of the bedroom and sleep elsewhere in the house, never once complaining but making sure she was comfortable and unthreatened. Afters months passed by she decide to give the marriage a chance of survival.

(Zachariah, R. 2004, p. 94)

I belief the man’s kindness, character and courtesy won her over. Kindness not only able to strengthen love but it also will make love possible and it will also cure broken relationship. As we contemplate in the story of unkindness we understand that hatred and anger is the seed of destruction in relationship. In contrast, kindness is the healing devices that will patch back the entire wound in relationship that has been altered by conflict and hatred. Through time, a broken love/ relationship will again be flourishing as the other party recognised the changes.

Cont. to Part 6H

Understanding Love, Part 6/7F

2007-09-30T18:37:00.000+08:00

Godlief Wesley

He Giveth More Grace

Meditation on Sin and Grace

10 Reasons Why I Am Thankful for the God-Breathed Bible

God is everywhere, 4/4

God is everywhere, 3/4

God is everywhere, 2/4

God is everywhere, 1/4

I have drawn you with loving-kindness

Understanding Love, Part 7/7e

Understanding Love, Part 7/7d

Understanding Love, Part 7/7c

Understanding Love, Part 7/7b

Understanding Love, Part 7/7a

Understanding Love, Part 6/7J

Understanding Love, Part 6/7i

Understanding Love, Part 6/7H

Understanding Love, Part 6/7G

Understanding Love, Part 6/7F

Understanding Love, Part 6/7E

Understanding Love, Part 6/7D

Understanding Love, Part 6/7C

Understanding Love, Part 6/7B (Additional Information)

Understanding Love, Part 6/7B

Understanding Love, Part 6/7A

Understanding Love, Part 5/7C

Understanding Love, Part 5/7B

Understanding Love, Part 5/7A

Understanding Love, Part 4/7

Understanding Love, Part 3/7

Understanding Love, Part 2/7

Understanding Love, Part 1/7

Worship, Part 5/5

Worship, Part 4/5

Worship, Part 3/5

Worship, Part 2/5

Worship, Part 1/5

Is Universe Eternally existed? Or it has a beginning?

Paradoxes

Sleep and Peace of Heart

I Will Go Straight to God

The Valley of Vision