If one wants to experience God's loving and very real presence in life, one only has to surrender situations one does not have much control over.
I just got home from a two-day trip to Melaka where I had to run a number of necessary errands in a very limited space of time. Needless to say I was not looking forward to going up prior the trip, even dreaded it.
Before I left, I was already frantically squeezing in pre-trip tasks and had to put up with discouraging comments that left me feeling disheartened. So I prayed a prayer of surrender, placing an itemized wish list before the Lord.
It was an incredible time. I accomplished everything I intended to do, and more. The bonus was the way things just fell into place in a way I could not have planned myself. Even glitches were resolved so easily and quickly that one barely noticed the inconvenience caused.
People were friendly, full of smiles and so willing to help. I really love Melakan folks for they embody the kampong spirit. A good example is when I took a wrong turn and went up a one-way street in the town centre yesterday. Before you say woman driver, it used to be a two-way street and the arrows on the road were not erased, thereby misleading me (there was no No Entry sign I could see either). I even spotted another driver ahead of me who made the same mistake, a man, so I didn't feel so ditzy after all. Whew.
Anyways, we soon realized our mistake when we created a jam. A shopkeeper kindly directed me to pull into his shopfront while he stopped traffic and enabled us two clueless tourist drivers to make a three-point turn and drive down the street the correct way.
Such kindness and the willingness of strangers to lend a helping hand really touched me. Everywhere I went people went out of their way to help without prompting. Simple things like the gift of a few parking coupons when I only asked where I could purchase a book made my day.
The minor miracle of the trip was the ability to find the perfect parking spot in the heart of town where parking spots are a premium. I was waiting to know where to park when the spot behind me magically appeared as a car drove off. And it was right in front of where I needed to be as well. I could not stop being awed and thanking God.
Even the traffic cooperated, as did the queue in the bank. The bank tellers were genuinely nice and intent on saving me money... the list just goes on and on and I was there effectively for one day.
The highlight of this "business" trip was that Mummy and I even had time to meet up with her cousins. It is always nice to see them and spend time with them for every meeting is grace - they are all octogenarians.
When I shared how well things went with my cousin, she simply said: God loves you my dear.
Yes He does! I say this with a hint of surprise and a deeply grateful heart. He even gifted me with things I did not think I had time for such as a dental checkup and the chance to eat satay celup and cendol. Yummers! Yes, I know, talk of food and dental appointments go together so well.
I thank God for all the many things that went right, for the things that went wrong but were, on hindsight, blessings in disguise, and for just loving me so much.
I will endeavour to invite God to take the driver's seat more often in future for He does a far more superior job than I ever could. No contest.
I just got home from a two-day trip to Melaka where I had to run a number of necessary errands in a very limited space of time. Needless to say I was not looking forward to going up prior the trip, even dreaded it.
Before I left, I was already frantically squeezing in pre-trip tasks and had to put up with discouraging comments that left me feeling disheartened. So I prayed a prayer of surrender, placing an itemized wish list before the Lord.
It was an incredible time. I accomplished everything I intended to do, and more. The bonus was the way things just fell into place in a way I could not have planned myself. Even glitches were resolved so easily and quickly that one barely noticed the inconvenience caused.
People were friendly, full of smiles and so willing to help. I really love Melakan folks for they embody the kampong spirit. A good example is when I took a wrong turn and went up a one-way street in the town centre yesterday. Before you say woman driver, it used to be a two-way street and the arrows on the road were not erased, thereby misleading me (there was no No Entry sign I could see either). I even spotted another driver ahead of me who made the same mistake, a man, so I didn't feel so ditzy after all. Whew.
Anyways, we soon realized our mistake when we created a jam. A shopkeeper kindly directed me to pull into his shopfront while he stopped traffic and enabled us two clueless tourist drivers to make a three-point turn and drive down the street the correct way.
Such kindness and the willingness of strangers to lend a helping hand really touched me. Everywhere I went people went out of their way to help without prompting. Simple things like the gift of a few parking coupons when I only asked where I could purchase a book made my day.
The minor miracle of the trip was the ability to find the perfect parking spot in the heart of town where parking spots are a premium. I was waiting to know where to park when the spot behind me magically appeared as a car drove off. And it was right in front of where I needed to be as well. I could not stop being awed and thanking God.
Even the traffic cooperated, as did the queue in the bank. The bank tellers were genuinely nice and intent on saving me money... the list just goes on and on and I was there effectively for one day.
The highlight of this "business" trip was that Mummy and I even had time to meet up with her cousins. It is always nice to see them and spend time with them for every meeting is grace - they are all octogenarians.
When I shared how well things went with my cousin, she simply said: God loves you my dear. Yes He does! I say this with a hint of surprise and a deeply grateful heart. He even gifted me with things I did not think I had time for such as a dental checkup and the chance to eat satay celup and cendol. Yummers! Yes, I know, talk of food and dental appointments go together so well.
I thank God for all the many things that went right, for the things that went wrong but were, on hindsight, blessings in disguise, and for just loving me so much.
I will endeavour to invite God to take the driver's seat more often in future for He does a far more superior job than I ever could. No contest.
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