Nov 2009

Beloved Evangel Family,

Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ...

When Iris and I woke up one recent morning, we found ourselves locked inside our own room. The door lock was jammed and we could not open the door.

So we shouted for help. Our domestic helper tried to twist and turn the knob, and kicked the door. But the lock was still jammed. Eventually, she took a screwdriver and hammer, and tried to loosen the lock from its position. She tried to be gentle at first but when the lock refused to come off, it was fierce and loud banging all the way.

Finally, the lock came off but a piece of the locking devise had been dislodged and prevented the opening of the door. It took a few more minutes to break off part of the door before that piece could be removed and the door could be opened.

We created so much noise early that morning that a neighbor came down to us. He came not to offer us any help but to voice his great displeasure. We had abruptly awakened him from his beautiful slumber.

We left our house that morning realizing that we would need to spend some money to fit in a new door and lock. Our younger daughter, Stacey, left for school late because she could not change into her school uniform earlier as it was in our room. A neighbor came down to us not to offer help, but to give us a piece of his mind.

It was definitely not a good start to a new day. In spite of that, Iris and I were definitely glad to be “released” from our locked room that morning. Indeed, it is a blessing to find new freedom and space as one released from a lock-up.

In my reading recently, I have been reminded that many city dwellers like us are still locked up in our own “Tower of Babel.” This notorious tower was a human attempt to “make a name for ourselves” (Gen 11:4). In this tower were human pride and a desire to live without God. The Lord saw that it was not only foolishness, but also a threat to the human race. So, he caused linguistic confusion so that people could not understand one another. Hence, this building project was frustrated.

However, the desire to build the Tower of Babel has never been really abandoned in the human heart. It is embedded very much in our sinful human nature. And we still live in that Tower today. Inside the Tower, we live our busy pattern of daily life—buying and selling, comparing and competing, winning and losing.

Many people have been so locked up in this Tower ideology and become comfortable with this “imprisonment.” But I believe the Lord wants us to come out of that Tower so that we can live differently—being thankful for what we already have, doing our best without making others look worst, rejoicing in the success of others because they are better.

As 2009 draws to a close, may a new day dawns for you because you have come out of the Tower to live differently for the Lord. And may you be exceedingly glad to discover the new freedom and space you can have to be human and loved by God in life outside the Tower.

Great is His Faithfulness,
Pastor John

Tel: 6749-2990 (O) 9789-2414 (HP) Email: johnyuencw@gmail.com