Ecclesiastes

Our bible study group meets on alternate Saturday afternoons, which can be a challenging time of the day if you are in a habit of catching a short nap. I can't quite remember how long we've had this arrangement, but long enough to have gotten used to it. There is of course food involved and good conversations. We learn a lot from our different perspectives on life and we remind each other of God's presence in all our circumstances. We took the last 18 months or so to get through the book of Numbers - I must admit it felt like we were wondering through the desert for 40 years!  

Two weeks ago, we started a study on the book of Ecclesiastes. Whether you are from a Jewish or Christian faith or not, you may well have stumbled across the words from Ecclesiastes. The Byrds recorded Turn! Turn! Turn! back in 1965, which adapted the words from Chapter 3. Bible historians believe that the book was written by King Solomon, who having experienced all the great riches and pleasures, in his old age declared that everything in life is meaningless. Right from the start, this book goes into a rant about life being an unending cycle of pointlessness. It feels like it was written by someone experiencing deep depression rather than someone supposedly renown for great wisdom. I would caution against reading the first two chapters of this book if you are prone to Monday blues. 

Yesterday our small group covered Chapter 3:1-15. It was a contrast to the earlier chapters - rather than life being an unending cycle of toil, it talks about life having seasons. It talks about a time to be born, to plant, to heal, to build, to laugh, to dance. Everything in its appointed time. But actually, with each of these, it also makes reference to their antithesis - a time to die, to uproot, to kill, to teardown, to weep and to mourn. It talks about the striking realities of our lives, things that we have no control over. This is the portion of the Bible that is so philosophical that you may think it is written by a humanist. This passage points to some of the ugly downsides in life that, as Christians, we want to get as far away as possible. We quietly hope and pray that we are more fortunate. Yet what it really says is that this is how life is in general. 

I had been following Nabeel Quareshi's vlog over the last couple of months and I shared his story and his condition to the small group. Only 34, so fervent for God, achieved so much yet capable of so much more. Throughout his battle with advanced stomach cancer, he trusted that God was fully capable of healing him, yet at the same time believing that whatever the outcome God is loving and sovereign. This morning, we learnt that Nabeel had gone home to be with the Lord. Even as he took that very difficult final journey, he pointed others to Jesus. He knew that Jesus understood what he was going through because Jesus faced a far worse ordeal. He had assurance that his faith was not in vain because Jesus showed him that beyond death is eternal life. And that too is the wisdom from Ecclesiastes 3:11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. 

Life, with its ups and downs, will remain a mystery to all of us until Jesus returns to make all things new.


1 There is a time for everything,
    and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2     a time to be born and a time to die,
    a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3     a time to kill and a time to heal,
    a time to tear down and a time to build,
4     a time to weep and a time to laugh,
    a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5     a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
    a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6     a time to search and a time to give up,
    a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7     a time to tear and a time to mend,
    a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8     a time to love and a time to hate,
    a time for war and a time for peace.


9 What do workers gain from their toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. 12 I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. 13 That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God. 14 I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him. ~ Ecclesiastes 3: 1-15

The Old and the New

Today we brought the kids to the Victoria Concert Hall for Peter and the Wolf. We started them on piano lessons a couple of months back and their music teacher recommended the concert. Over the last few weeks, she gave them a preview to the concert by introducing them to the story and its characters. It was my first time watching anything at the VCH and I was awed by the beautiful interior.  Conducted by Joshua Tan, the concert combined the wacky performance of the Magic Circle Mime Company with the acclaimed Singapore Symphonic Orchestra. I think it succeeded in helping the kids appreciate how music tells a story. My son kept humming the hypnotic tune and said that he couldn't get the music out of his head. Talk about getting my money's worth. On the other hand, my daughter exclaimed towards the end of the concert, "There were no real birds!"

After the concert, we walked about the Civic District to look at the outdoor sculptures. I love this part of Singapore - there is so much history here and it is beautifully weaved into the modern bustling cityscape. You feel it particularly at this time of the year, when Formula One is back in town. The fences and lights for the night road races are up, right next to the Victorian buildings in Empress Place. You're reminded that although Singapore has changed so much, in many ways it is still the same - a meeting point for people around the world. On our way back, we walked along Anderson Bridge and stopped by The Fullerton Hotel for tea.

After tea, we visited the hotel's heritage centre, which was opened over a year ago. I learnt quite a few interesting facts - apparently Singapore used the red British pillar mailboxes up until 1950; the stretch where the hotel stands along with a couple of other buildings that have been torn down since was referred to as the Singapore Bund; that aside from once housing the internal revenue office and the General Post Office, the EDB and MAS also had their offices here.

The walkabout and the exhibits at the Heritage Centre reminded me of my parents. I remember seeing a black and white photo of them taken at Elizabeth Walk, near where we were. It's possible that the photo was taken on their honeymoon. Taken at a time when they did not know how many kids they would end up having, much less that their youngest son would settle in Singapore and start a family here. Taken at a time when they knew they had to work hard to make ends meet, but not knowing how much their grandchildren would prosper from the hope they held. When I was younger, my mother would remind me that through the hardship of each generation, the next generation will lead a better life.

Today is my late mother's birthday. In two days, it would be my late father's birthday.  I thank God for their lives and their perseverance.