Hi!

I chanced upon this song by the band Delirious and I was deeply moved to share my thoughts immediately. The lyrics describe the fallen state of this world. Remember that chart we've plotted during our OT overview. We started @ such a high point (perfect state) but from the moment Adam & Eve sank their teeth into the forbidden fruit, creation fell as sin crept into hearts of man.

We read of high school/university shootings in America
We read of car bombs exploding in Iraq
We read of starvation and civil war in the African nation
We read of the rise in promiscuity, rise in tolerance towards homosexuality, leading to broken families and children born with HIV
We read that success in life equals to wealth, looking good (nip & tuck), popularity while moral values, integrity are sidelined.

Surely "the god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God." 2 Cor 4:4
Where is the hope for our future?

The poignant words of the song remind me of Psalm 73, where Asaph, the worship leader of Jerusaleum then, struggles with maintaining a pure heart because he sees the evil prospering

"They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong.
They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills.
Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence.
From their callous hearts comes iniquity;the evil conceits of their minds know no limits..
This is what the wicked are like - always carefree, they increase in wealth." Psalm 73:4-7, 12

However, Aspah ends the Psalm with this resolve:

"Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand.
You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.
Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.
But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge;
I will tell of all your deeds." Psalm 73:23-28

Living in comfortable/secure Singapore, we are shielded from many of the above. With the Global Day of Prayer round the corner, my prayer is that we do not allow ourselves to fall into the trappings of complacency but to lift up our prayers for our world/family/ourselves that we may see restoration, through peple who will say that "it is good to be near God", living changed lives. Perhaps it starts with ourselves, from the inside out.

"For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. " 2 Cor 4:6

Shine Jesus Shine! OUR GOD REIGNS!