The Reward and Shield

The dark night sky was lit with twinkling stars and the slumber of moon made the twinkle as if the tiny little stars were smiling and inviting us above. We were quite young, in our primary school along with our father standing in the terrace watching the night sky!  “As you see”, father was telling: “there is the great hunter with his sword, belt and his dog”. He was referring to the constellation of Orion with its bright stars. It was the practice that our father had to show the night sky and explain whenever the occasion comes to educate and enthrall us children. Father’s long hand was protruding in the sky as if he will touch the star “Rigel”, the sixth brightest star. Father told us that these seven groups of stars are among the most distant stars which can be seen with the naked eye. As we children watched with bated breath, father went on to tell about the story of the great Nimrod, the hunter who earned the wrath of God for his act of building the tower of Babel and was thrown into the sky as the group of stars which formed the Orion. “However”, father added, “you should know that the entire universe including our planet earth was created by God with His one word.” Later on we learnt in our Sunday school that creation of God is really awesome.  Orion is mentioned in the Holy Bible in several places like Job 9:9, 38:31, Amos 5:8. The mighty LORD asks in the book of Job: “canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades or loose the bands of Orion?” Almost half a century later, I still remember the night sky and the amazing stories told by my father. It appears that not only man but Almighty God is also as fascinated about the vastness of the space and stars that several times He quotes the stars in His conversations with man: “And He brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward the heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and He said unto him, So shall thy seed be”. (Genesis 15:5). The holy Bible further says that Abraham believed this blessing and God counted it to him for righteousness.

Our loving father taught us good English, learning skills and need to have a scientific temperament which always enabled us to look at anything and handle any situation objectively. Father also taught us about the heavenly Father above, who is the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2) and His abundant love for us. Looking back at the days, the homes of yester years were filled with grandparents and elders in the joint family system who were the guiding lights of the family even though some occasions viewed as stumbling blocks because of their “old school of thought” in family decision making.

Several things in this world attract and amaze us right from our childhood. We imbibe the value systems taught by our parents and always there is peer pressure right from the childhood till the late years when we adore a few successful people who have blazing careers or having  bright children.

Seldom we have looked back and see the gay abandon we had (at least till this generation) with our parents and grand parents and friendly neighbourhood during our formative years viz  a viz the disappearance of joint family system and the grand parents being relegated to old age homes and  busy parents running around always to make both ends meet. The children enslaved to electronic gadgets and mobile phones. The friendly neighbourhood has been replaced with boxes of residential flats limited to square feet of living place. The children bogged down with the ever increasing curriculum and tuitions, preparatory study centres. The only guiding force is the brute urge to be number one and get into premier institutes of learning to secure a financial future. The very definitions of teaching and learning have changed in the ever increasing competitive environment. It is anathema to use such words as “all round development of personality” in any centre of learning par excellence. The only parameter being how many went to top professional courses or alternatively campus recruitment by top employers with hefty packages.

No scientific analysis seems to have been made regarding the paradigm shift in such socio cultural change as stated above.  No scientific study seems to have been conducted by psychoanalysts of repute regarding the psychological makeup of young adults grown under situations described above. No doubt, the standard of living has increased multifold, abject poverty disappeared and economic status redefined by number of premium cars in each family. However, within the family circle whether the welfare of each person is ensured as it used to be and whether such “affluent and successful” person is happy with himself is a great question.    The ever increasing suicides, divorces and “living together” and aberrational behavior from the family as an institution of sacrificial living only for the welfare of other family members endorse this hypothesis. In good old days, every story ended with “they lived happily ever after…….” Now this dictum is redefined as “recruited by …….MNC for ……package”. The words “happily lived ever after” do not make any sense in the world of financial security and affluence.

The holy Bible tells us clearly that God made man and woman to live a long, happy and contended life. Before man sinned, there was no question of toiling for food, leisure and other life requirements. The only rule was to obey God blindly and be faithful. The problem started when man crossed the boundary and sinned, after which he became a mortal, self seeking man. The Bible also tells us regarding how the mighty God himself came down to earth as a human being, like any of us and lived a model life, suffered and died on the cross for wiping our sins and transgressions. Jesus conquered death for us and not for Himself as death could not hold him. Jesus suffered and died for each one of us, for our diseases, sins and transgressions (Isaiah 53:5). The life of Jesus Christ is a stunning example of how a man should live. It is also the last reminder for God as the impartial judge and a loving father awarding punishment for sins on one side and bearing the punishment on Himself.

So what is the good news that Bible tells us? :  As Isaiah the prophet says, “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound. To proclaim the acceptable year of God, and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all the mourning” Isaiah 61:1-2).  Isaiah wrote these divine words much before Jesus Christ came and lived in this earth.

How do we define success in life? With what we will measure happiness? How to redirect the children to the play ground again? How to measure prosperity in life? What are the parameters for economic and social well being? What is the real meaning of a blessed family? ….

Uncertainties galore….

The simple answer lies in the word of God, which says:

 “Fear not Abram, I am thy shield and thy exceeding great reward”. (Genesis 15:1).

Yes, the LORD is our reward!

 In fact He is the ONLY REWARD required in our life.

When the Lord is our reward, our life will be in full bloom. The Lord who has clothed the wild plants and flowers will cloth us better. The Lord who feeds the birds of the sky will feed us better.  We will always abound with Joy and our pots full and still overflowing. The mighty LORD who has declared that “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last” (Revelations 22:13)  is our LORD and he comes quickly to judge all of us. At that time He will not see our economic or social status, or caste or our material wealth or our earthly achievements but He will judge us by our deeds. There is nothing wrong in achieving laurels in our life. There is nothing wrong being a topper in college or landing in a flamboyant career. It is equally nothing less in being poor or belonging to the deprived sections of society. God only sees the heart and whether we have obeyed his simple statues and commandments He has given. Jesus said : Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you (Mathew 5:43).  While this may seemingly appear to be a unwise idea to love your enemy, this is God’s love for us, as shown by the living example of Jesus Christ, and we are only reciprocating His grace and love shown to us which we have received by His grace and not by our worth.

My dear brothers and sisters,

YES, 

JESUS IS OUR SHIELD AND OUR REWARD …….. 

SEEK HIM EARNESTLY AND RECEIVE BY FAITH. 

BE A WINNER ……………….. 

IN HIM…………. 

IN JESUS. 

AMEN.

Bro G E AMALANAND

God’s love missions family