There is a story of an exceptional God-centered young man seeking the hand in marriage from the father of the girl he is fond off. This story should be shared so that our belief and faith in God will not somehow end up making a joke out of God.
Young lady Jane brings her boy friend John home to meet her parents to get their blessings for wedlock.
After breaking the ice and a good meal, Jane's mother tells her business man father to find out about the young man.
The dutiful father ushers the bashful John to his study room for tea. "So how is your relationship with my daughter getting along?" the father asks John.
"I am a religious scholar and intends to marry Jane" he replies in matter of fact manner.
"A scholar," the father says. "Good, but what can you do to provide a nice home for my daughter to live in, as she has been so accustomed to?"
"Simple, I will study," John replies, "and God will always be around to provide."
"And how will you buy her a diamond engagement ring, for which she deserves?" asks the father.
"I will concentrate on my religious studies," John replies, "God will provide. This has been promised by God."
"And what about children?" asks the father. "How will you two support children?"
"Don't worry, God will surely provide," replies John.
The conversation simply drags on in same fashion. Every time the father poses further issues, young John will just insist that God will provide.
At the end of it all, the anxious mother asks Jane's father, "Well, how is the going so far?"
The father has only this to say, "Well, he has no idea at all, no job and no plans, but the good and wonderful part is that he already thinks that I am God." Isn't this pathetic?
Yes, indeed, it is. John never fails to insist that God will provide and is dead honest on this which is in a way good.
Indeed, God will provide but what happens if this is carried too far? The believer will make a joke out of himself. Devotion is necessary but must be coupled with wisdom and insight.
God and saints will always provide but it may look different from what we expect of God. This insight the man of true spirituality will want all to know. Well, it depends on which side of the coin we are looking at.
"God helps those who help themselves" is a well known saying. This will be at odds to the belief that "God provides." They are probably perspectives of the same truth. They are meant to complement and not to contradict. Like religions though different they may be, they do complement somehow.
Lord Bo Tien (武天菩萨) adds that a candle flame if sheltered will grow and glow brighter. Seek the shelter of God and heavenly saints. Then small issues will end up as no issue and big issue however big it may be will at least end up as small issue. But there is element of fate and men must accept this or they will blame God and saints as well as themselves. He also adds that we must learn from the mistakes of others and be wiser from the learning. We too must learn from the story of the potential son-in-law above.
Young lady Jane brings her boy friend John home to meet her parents to get their blessings for wedlock.
After breaking the ice and a good meal, Jane's mother tells her business man father to find out about the young man.
The dutiful father ushers the bashful John to his study room for tea. "So how is your relationship with my daughter getting along?" the father asks John.
"I am a religious scholar and intends to marry Jane" he replies in matter of fact manner.
"A scholar," the father says. "Good, but what can you do to provide a nice home for my daughter to live in, as she has been so accustomed to?"
"Simple, I will study," John replies, "and God will always be around to provide."
"And how will you buy her a diamond engagement ring, for which she deserves?" asks the father.
"I will concentrate on my religious studies," John replies, "God will provide. This has been promised by God."
"And what about children?" asks the father. "How will you two support children?"
"Don't worry, God will surely provide," replies John.
The conversation simply drags on in same fashion. Every time the father poses further issues, young John will just insist that God will provide.
At the end of it all, the anxious mother asks Jane's father, "Well, how is the going so far?"
The father has only this to say, "Well, he has no idea at all, no job and no plans, but the good and wonderful part is that he already thinks that I am God." Isn't this pathetic?
Yes, indeed, it is. John never fails to insist that God will provide and is dead honest on this which is in a way good.
Indeed, God will provide but what happens if this is carried too far? The believer will make a joke out of himself. Devotion is necessary but must be coupled with wisdom and insight.
God and saints will always provide but it may look different from what we expect of God. This insight the man of true spirituality will want all to know. Well, it depends on which side of the coin we are looking at.
"God helps those who help themselves" is a well known saying. This will be at odds to the belief that "God provides." They are probably perspectives of the same truth. They are meant to complement and not to contradict. Like religions though different they may be, they do complement somehow.
Lord Bo Tien (武天菩萨) adds that a candle flame if sheltered will grow and glow brighter. Seek the shelter of God and heavenly saints. Then small issues will end up as no issue and big issue however big it may be will at least end up as small issue. But there is element of fate and men must accept this or they will blame God and saints as well as themselves. He also adds that we must learn from the mistakes of others and be wiser from the learning. We too must learn from the story of the potential son-in-law above.
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| Lord Bo Tien (武天菩萨) |
