Serendipity?

I am watching (well it's playing in the background) the movie Serendipity. And it reminded me about a Whatsapp text I sent to you guys recently about how I had resumed the Wesley Bible Reading Drive and the reflections for the reading that day. I will come back to this later.

The reading was Deuteronomy 6. I am reading it again, and verses 5-7 spoke to me. "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."

Mummy and I recently recounted how we dutifully sent you boys to Sunday school even when we weren't attending church. I guess it was all part of God's plans for you, and we were just the instruments. The verses reminded me of those days - though I cannot claim that they were on my mind then. And they are also a good reminder of our primary duties as parents.

Many parents want their kids to do well, to be better and more successful than they are. My parents never openly said it, but I knew they wanted me to go to university. (They weren't very educated themselves, though my father taught himself English - after he passed away, I found notebooks where he had written down English words he had looked up.) And the good thing was they never really pushed me into any particular area of study or work, for which I am very grateful. I found my own way in life, occasionally taking the scenic route, and looking back now I know God was watching over me.

That's not to say though that this is the only way to parent. Many kids do well when guided in a particular direction by their parents, though it is not always appreciated at the time, or later in life. Some become successful but are unhappy. No one can really tell how it will all turn out.

If that's so, what then is the primary duty of parents? It is those verses above. "Impress them on your children". Teach them to love God with all their hearts, all their souls and all their strengths. If parents show their love for God, and teach their kids well, they will also genuinely love God and love others. That is the real mark of success. Not their status.

And so, I am incredibly proud of you boys. Not because you are a lawyer, or church worker or scholar. I am proud of the wonderful servants of Christ you have become, far more than I have ever been. This is the real success story of my life and mummy's.

But back to the theme of Serendipity. The movie is one of those romantic comedies about fate, about pre-destination. And the premise is really silly but you cannot help but be drawn in by the storyline and the reason is clear. We all yearn for a deep spiritual connection - without God, we try to find it in the idea of a soul mate, of someone out there who is made for us. The movie circles around the principal idea and goes through a formulaic plot about coincidences, missed opportunities etc. But it never once asks the most important question. So what is this mysterious force called destiny and how does it work? What's behind it? But Hollywood isn't going to spoil a romantic comedy with these questions haha...

So when I texted you guys about how I restarted the bible reading drive, and read that particular day's reflections, my initial reaction was "What a wonderful coincidence this is!" The writer talked about his daughters who live overseas and how they videochat and once a month he asks them what they would like prayers for. This was his way of telling his daughters of how "God is wonderfully active in my life".

A timely reminder. I had also started this blog for the same reason but had lapsed into silence for a while. So it is not a coincidence. God has worked in my life in many small ways that is easy to overlook if I am not paying attention. And that is the subject for a blog another day.

So I hope you read this and tell me what you need prayers for whenever. God bless.