Ok, for those who are religious hardcores, your journey ends over here. For the rest, please proceed as you deem fit. Thanks.
Prior to the exams, I've been reading some blogs from friends, cousins and some other random readings (due to plain sickness of the notes). Throughout the examination duration, I've also seen and heard some stuff which forms the basis of what I'm going to blog about now.
To start things off, I find some things rather disturbing. In particular, I read my cousin's blog about her success story in the national examinations. The gist is, she goes to the Sunday class(for church) and the teacher/pastor requests for her to tell the class whether was there holy intervention to which she said she felt it throughout the entire examination duration. For a long while after this, I still can't make sense out of it. I'm not sure about you lot out there but the whole idea of linking one's success to holy intervention is like...overly idealistic? She's the success story of Jesus Christ and there was a positive response to her faithfulness to her religion. Yes, God is great!!
But just hold on a second, so am I getting the signal that whatever is going good and exceptional is the work of God whereas whatever's not smooth-sailing is attributed to the lack of faithfulness? What about the rest of the class over there? Didn't they share the same faith as my cousin? What about those in the same class that did not score well or even failed the examinations? Am I to infer that they aren't praying hard enough or God has a ruler of sorts to determine who succeeds and who fails?
Similarly, throughout the exams, group prayers prior to entry into the examination hall is a common sight. I usually don't pay much attention to what they say but there was once I walked past this group that was praying real loud. It went something like :" ....we pray that whatever we studied will come out and what we didn't won't.....". Sorry but I almost laughed out if I didn't manage to suppress it. I was thinking...what if all of them in that group focussed on different topics? So if God heard their prayer, wouldn't it cancel out all his holy intervention? Ultimately it still boils down to diligence. Study hard and you won't need God to magically remove questions you won't want to deal with. Inferring slightly deeper, I wasn't really pleased. Am I right to infer that only Christians who pray hard should do well and the rest who didn't pray and succumb to the faith should be a level below them?
Honestly speaking, I've been to church when I was a little kid but I've stopped the weekly routine for almost 20 years now. On a personal note, I'm really just coping fine with things around me. All these while I've worked and studied, I've always held the belief that there are always solutions to everything and nothing is linear. If this way doesn't work, let's go by another until we get to the target. I don't condemn the occurence of divine intervention or miracles, I just hold more belief in the fact that through crisis and hardship, it had not been God that aided me. When I required help, it was always people...common man like me and you, people whom we call friends, relatives or even acquaintances. When I was hungry back in camp, my sergeant brought me food. When I was down at the pits, it was my friends who showed me the way. When it was time to grow up, I learnt it the hard way.
If I had to give thanks, it won't be to God, I have lived 23 years of my life without holy interference of any degree. Instead, I have to thank my seniors for guiding me along during school life. I have to thank my mum for her chicken essence. I have to thank Qing Yuan and Eugene for their timely help at many times this semester. I have to thank my relatives for solving Melisa's visa problem at a time I had no time to make other arrangements. I had to thank some friends for understanding that I really have no time to contact them and the list never ends.
So people, why not look around you and appreciate the more practical stuffs of life? The immediate comfort of your friends, your family. Give thanks to them more than you have to give God. God might or might not aid you in times of need....they will.
Till then...
To start things off, I find some things rather disturbing. In particular, I read my cousin's blog about her success story in the national examinations. The gist is, she goes to the Sunday class(for church) and the teacher/pastor requests for her to tell the class whether was there holy intervention to which she said she felt it throughout the entire examination duration. For a long while after this, I still can't make sense out of it. I'm not sure about you lot out there but the whole idea of linking one's success to holy intervention is like...overly idealistic? She's the success story of Jesus Christ and there was a positive response to her faithfulness to her religion. Yes, God is great!!
But just hold on a second, so am I getting the signal that whatever is going good and exceptional is the work of God whereas whatever's not smooth-sailing is attributed to the lack of faithfulness? What about the rest of the class over there? Didn't they share the same faith as my cousin? What about those in the same class that did not score well or even failed the examinations? Am I to infer that they aren't praying hard enough or God has a ruler of sorts to determine who succeeds and who fails?
Similarly, throughout the exams, group prayers prior to entry into the examination hall is a common sight. I usually don't pay much attention to what they say but there was once I walked past this group that was praying real loud. It went something like :" ....we pray that whatever we studied will come out and what we didn't won't.....". Sorry but I almost laughed out if I didn't manage to suppress it. I was thinking...what if all of them in that group focussed on different topics? So if God heard their prayer, wouldn't it cancel out all his holy intervention? Ultimately it still boils down to diligence. Study hard and you won't need God to magically remove questions you won't want to deal with. Inferring slightly deeper, I wasn't really pleased. Am I right to infer that only Christians who pray hard should do well and the rest who didn't pray and succumb to the faith should be a level below them?
Honestly speaking, I've been to church when I was a little kid but I've stopped the weekly routine for almost 20 years now. On a personal note, I'm really just coping fine with things around me. All these while I've worked and studied, I've always held the belief that there are always solutions to everything and nothing is linear. If this way doesn't work, let's go by another until we get to the target. I don't condemn the occurence of divine intervention or miracles, I just hold more belief in the fact that through crisis and hardship, it had not been God that aided me. When I required help, it was always people...common man like me and you, people whom we call friends, relatives or even acquaintances. When I was hungry back in camp, my sergeant brought me food. When I was down at the pits, it was my friends who showed me the way. When it was time to grow up, I learnt it the hard way.
If I had to give thanks, it won't be to God, I have lived 23 years of my life without holy interference of any degree. Instead, I have to thank my seniors for guiding me along during school life. I have to thank my mum for her chicken essence. I have to thank Qing Yuan and Eugene for their timely help at many times this semester. I have to thank my relatives for solving Melisa's visa problem at a time I had no time to make other arrangements. I had to thank some friends for understanding that I really have no time to contact them and the list never ends.
So people, why not look around you and appreciate the more practical stuffs of life? The immediate comfort of your friends, your family. Give thanks to them more than you have to give God. God might or might not aid you in times of need....they will.
Till then...
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