every week is a new week at the sheep pen. actually, every day is an adventure in itself.
last week, daniyah, the little girl down the corridor came by, feeling bored and restless. she had not gone to school because of a cold she was having. and i was tired having just returned from work and still recovering from the busyness of chinese new year reunion dinners which had taken place at our home over the weekend that had just passed. can i come in? i let her in and thought, there goes my alone time. she wanted to paint and so i went about getting the paper, brushes, paints, makeshift palette, a tub of water and a stack of newspaper. and it was as though she knew the drill, she lined the table and excitedly picked out a colour, squeezed some onto the palette, chose her brush and began painting. daniyah’s choice of colours and how she mixes them into a beautiful palette of colours have always been quite remarkable for a person her age. she’s got colour sense. i decided to join her after watching her paint a couple of pictures. her colour palette was irresistible. and she was good company.
the hours went by and she churned out some really quirky paintings. daniyah’s older sister shruti had joined us midway and she too had a go with the paint. then, it was time for dinner and both girls skipped home seemingly quite pleased at how their afternoon went.
the next morning, i heard her calling while i was watching the morning news and had this grand plan to nua. the gate was unlocked and she let herself in. and she plonked herself on the couch next to me. auntie adddddy, what are you watching? want something to drink? i asked. and i went to get some warm honey water for her. she slurped and she had a ton of questions. and i was trying to watch the news or in all honesty, nua. i must have been a grouch. or at least, looked like one. but this little girl came closer and then, she was leaning on my side. as though looking for comfort. or longing to be near someone. a need to be hugged, accepted. and i remember the call to love. Lord, teach me how to love. help me to be less concerned with, me.
this may seem trivial to some, this need of refinement, for there may be indeed other more pressing needs like the need to work, earn money, live a decent life. but if we can’t love or share in the littlest of ways like to be a neighbour to someone. or to offer comfort to someone at a time of their need. then what is this life about?
watchman nee wrote in his book, not i but christ: if a christian reasons with people, he will feel ill at ease when he returns home. if he murmurs when something is taken away from him, he will not feel comfortable when he gets home. but when someone takes his shirt and he gives also his coat, he will feel so happy that he will want to shout, “Hallelujah.” is it not so? if you hold on to things, you feel uncomfortable. it you refuse to lend when asked, you save the money but you also sacrifice your joy. give to him who asks of you. and if any man would go to court to take away your shirt, give him also your coat. to be christian in this way will fill you with joy. many christians have sad faces because they refuse to go the second mile. because of refusing, their hearts can no longer sing. were they to go the second mile, they would feel so relieved that they could sing aloud for joy. many brothers and sisters have trouble with their reactions because they do not know the Lord. they worry about walking the second mile, turning the left cheek and giving away their coat. they keep saying how unreasonable it is. but let me tell you frankly, it is the Lord who says, “turn to him the other also.” the second mile, the coat, and the left cheek are the Lord’s demands, not the man’s. all who have trouble with the second garment, the other cheek, and the second mile have trouble with the Lord, not with man. the Lord’s command is stricter than the demand of unreasonable people. if you think that man is unreasonable, remember that the Lord is much more unreasonable. if the first garment is unreasonable, the second garment is even more unreasonable. if one cheek should not be smitten, even more so the other one should not be. if one mile is unreasonable, the second mile is more unreasonable. but the second one is the Lord’s requirement, the Lord’s command. so His command is stricter than the demand of an unreasonable man. why is the command of the Lord so strict? because He knows that the life which He gives us is a transcendent life. this life will never be comfortable if it does not transcend. it will not be happy unless it transcends. the more it is subject to disgrace, loss or difficulty, the greater is the manifestation of its power. so this is the christian way of reacting. such a life, brethren, is transcendent, climbing high. it is the believer’s way of living. anything less is unchristian.
the Lord is awesome in His ways. how true it is that it is more blessed to give. to release than to keep. to lavish than to scrimp. if someone wants something, to give him more than what he is asking. if daniyah wants more of my good paper to paint, she can have my scallop shells as well. and if she needs time, attention, kindness, then it shall be so & more.
may this life be completely emptied out. and none of it kept for me.
/February 22, 2010 {refusing a life of mediocrity}
