God is big on gifting. In God’s economy, there are no return policies for the gifts that He gives us. When we acknowledge that what we have are gifts from God, and because we know Who God is, we know that we have to keep His gifts even when we don’t know how to open it, what to do with it, and even when we often find it hard to hold on to.

We often think that self-care is about how well we guard ourselves against hurt, but it is really about how well we guard our hearts against unforgiveness. Because let’s face it, people hurt people. The world is full of dysfunctional people in families and organisations whose action or lack of action cause injury and injustice to others.

This week, missionary couple Bounsoeuth and Syna Lao, joined us as our guest speakers from Cambodia.

As Christians, we try our best to avoid doing or saying the wrong thing to others, yet we do not see Jesus obsessing over the same thing in his relationships and interactions with people. The Lord appeared to be more concerned about doing what was important to God that was in alignment with the Word.

Many of us automatically subscribe to societal ideas of how people should live, and how realities should play out in their lives according to their biology, personalities and choices. With very little prompting, we say people are too this or that for them to experience anything new.

How would you describe a spectacular firework to someone who has never seen it before? You may show a photo of it, tell them how you felt when you were watching the vivid explosion of light and colour, their perfect synchronization, and the memories it evoked.

THERE IS SOMETHING ABOUT suffering prolonged distress and hopelessness that can make us feel invisible, even to God. We wonder if He sees what we are going through as we struggle to stay buoyant in our faith in Him - from hours that stretch to days and months, trying to appear as normal as we can manage to. We are in a place of existence that is discernible to very few, if anyone at all.

We have all read or heard of biblical accounts of people who were called by God. Seemingly overnight, their lives were turned upside down and transformed into epic biographies. Think of Noah, Moses, Joseph, Esther and the apostle Paul. They make getting a call from God the epitome of Christian living. Suddenly, their lives had purpose and a definite sense of mission that gave meaning to their mundane existence, and the drudgery they endured a grandiose justification. All of us are called; yet, not everyone embraces God’s call with open arms.

Most people find optical illusions mind-bending. But while they take practice and time to solve, once you see the embedded images, you cannot ever ‘unsee’ them again. How many fish do you see below? Almost instantly, the brain tells us four fish because we see the head, tail, eyes and shape of four fish. If that is our conclusion, we move on without a second thought.

WHAT IS THE PASSION OF CHRIST? Some of us may recall Mel Gibson’s evocative movie that depicted the epic life and suffering of Jesus leading to the crucifixion. The dictionary describes passion as a powerful human emotion or expression. Those who prefer less intense and dramatic connections with people may find it undesirable and dangerous!

Remove, Replace or Remain.

Would you use an AI-generated avatar to replace someone you wish you could have a better conversation or relationship with? No matter how real the avatar looks and sounds, you know it is not the real person and you are only using technology to trick your emotions and entertain your fantasies of perfection.

When glitches appear in our plans for the future and our perfectly laid out assumptions of realities, we are quick to see the people at fault and the problems they cause. Then, we look for solutions that make sense to us.

Today, if someone from the past caught up with you, what kind of Christian will they see? Will they find that the intervening years and seasons of life have brought no real change in you? Or will people sense something intrinsically different about you that inspires them to not let life slip away for one more day?

Firstly, the Holy Spirit is a person who carries God’s heart: He grieves when we sin, He cries with us in our emotional pain, He quietly cheers us on when we face daunting ordeals. We can break the silence in our relationship with the Holy Spirit by talking to Him audibly just as we would speak with someone present.

Humans are plagued by all kinds of fear. We struggle with the fear of rejection, the fear of being wrong, the fear of losing friends, the fear of looking inapt, the fear of criticisms and the list goes on. Invariably, they point to our fear of other people and their opinion of us. Think of a time when you were in a position to help or protect someone but stopped short.

Today’s question addresses the hard topic of whether we have made Christian discipleship an option because we prefer a customizable relationship with God that is less demanding on our commitment of time, interest and reciprocity. We are happy if we could just be tagged as ‘followers’ with the occasional catchup with God without being accused of neglecting Him.

There is moral panic in today’s society about the power and peril of artificial intelligence (AI). While we love the benefits of AI in healthcare, transport and manufacturing, we are also wary of the unpredictability of its output in many other applications.

Living with a high degree of predictability and routine may be beneficial in some settings and for a season of life. But for Christian growth, we must leave the door open to some degree of spontaneity, change and even disruptions in life.

Christians today live in a post-truth world where we prefer to emphasize our emotions and opinions over our obedience to the Word of God. Many of us let our friendships run primarily on the basis of amiability and reciprocal goodwill. We are guided by cultural norms to leave many things unsaid to avoid embarrassing our friends, or making them feel uncomfortable.

If we don’t live out the realities and redemption of Easter in our Christian life, we will always people walking around in ‘funeral clothes’ doing what people do during mourning – relying on self-soothing habits to cope with hopelessness, constantly seeking activities to divert our attention from feeling gloomy, and staying in echo chambers with other ‘mourners’ constantly crying over spilt milk.