The last month I have been busy working on a writing project. Lorraine has written an awesome blog describing her ministry God is growing in her everyday life. Next week I will post about my "Double Portion Holidays" In the meantime, "Take It Easy in all of God's Blessings" this Christmas Season
Pastor Tom
If you have been following my
unfolding story on My TIE, you may notice that God has been using my dual storms
of family and work to prepare me to do His work.
Hope Is Where the Lord Is
A terrible tragedy happened on June 4,
2014 in a small city called Moncton in New Brunswick Canada. Three Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)
officers were killed recklessly by a 24-year old gunman. It was a tragedy that turned the entire city,
country and the police community into a state of mourning.
One of the three
fallen officers was a young father 32 years of age. He was survived by his wife who was six-month
pregnant at the time and his then 18-month old son. This police officer received a call about a gunman walking through the city’s north
end. He was making dinner for his family at the time but he
ran to the rescue immediately leaving the barbecue lid and the garage door
open. He never returned home – he was
shot and killed in the line of duty.
This young RCMP officer was someone
who loved the Lord, his family, and his community. He had always wanted to serve the Lord and
his country as a police officer. He
wanted to live where hope is. This is
exactly where he is today – with Jesus his Lord.
Jesus is our protector, He stands between
us and danger because He loves us – and this RCMP officer, together with his
two colleagues did just that to protect their community and gave their lives
for the safety of the people they serve and love.
We may not know exactly why God
allowed this terrible tragedy to happen, nor do we know why He put us through
life’s many storms; but we know the ultimate purpose is to let His glory be shone. RCMP officers are frontline servants whose
mandate is to serve and protect. As Christ’s
followers, we are also frontline servants whose mandate is to serve the Lord
and to bring His people to Him by shining His light everywhere He places us.
At the funeral service where the country
bid our final farewell to these three fallen RCMP officers, we were encouraged to
find hope in Jesus as the pastor of the 32-year old fallen officer reminded us that:
·
“Life is a gift to be lived one day at
a time;
·
Life is not about what you get, but
what you give;
·
The only true lasting hope that brings
comfort in a tragic world in which we live is found in a relationship with
Jesus Christ; and
·
This is not about putting our hope in
something, but putting our hope in someone – our Lord Jesus Christ.”
*Message
of Pastor Jerry Reddy delivered at the regimental funeral for the fallen RCMP
officers on June 10, 2014 in Moncton.
Every Opportunity Around Us is an Urgent Call
It has been five months since my mom
has gone home to be with the Lord and God has continued to call me to be His
hands and feet in this broken world. I
now have an increased passion to bring hope to those who are struggling as I
continue to live through my dual storms of family and work.
Since then, I have received more
urgent prayer requests of co-workers or their family members battling serious
health challenges. Like me, others at my
work are struggling to find morale in a darkening environment. Many are trying to look for work elsewhere and
some of us have not had much luck despite our tireless efforts. Facing such a situation five days a week, there
is only one thought in my mind: we need to find hope that would strengthen us
to persevere.
God would prepare us for His good work
in a broken world. To do so, He puts us
through challenging situations as “basic training” so that we can increase our
confidence, strength and resiliency to build endurance to do His work. Through these challenges, He is asking us to
add to our faith the characters of “goodness; knowledge; self-control;
perseverance; godliness; mutual affection; and love” 2 Peter 1:5-7 (NIV) so
that we can serve Him everywhere.
All these saddened events, including
my mom’s passing have motivated me to share the good news with others who may
not yet have a chance to get to know Jesus – God is indeed calling us to serve
Him everywhere, even when we are struggling ourselves.
God tells us in His Word,
“Therefore, my brothers and sisters make every effort to confirm your calling
and election. For if you do these
things, you will never stumble, and you will receive a rich welcome into the
eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” 2 Peter 1:10-11 (NIV). God is asking us to respond to His urgent
call to bring hope to those around us.
Let us lift each other
in prayers as we serve our Lord together everywhere. May His glorious name be praised!
Lorraine Fung
December 1, 2014
