Deeper Longings with Manwin
21 July 2020
Hello RHC! This is Manwin from the 1st congregation. It’s truly a delight to be sharing some biblical reflections and a prayer with all of you.
As I reflect on 2020 thus far, for me, it’s been a year of disruption. So much of our lives have been disrupted - people losing jobs, some families even struggling to make ends meet, daily/ weekly routines for so many of us completely thrown in disarray. On a lighter note, not being able to play and watch sports, not being able to meet face to face with family and friends. I, myself, finally got to spend quality time with my parents face to face just two Sundays ago for the first time in months. The world really has been brought to its knees in so many ways. I’ve missed, and in some respects, grieved certain simple joys of life like going out for a meal with my wife and kids, meeting friends for a coffee, having my parents and my brother and his family over to my home, playing a game of basketball with my sons, going out for a walk without a mask. All these little things… and so, these things in life that I get much joy from have been stripped away.
And so it has forced me to reflect on where I find my joy - what is my anchor in life. Thankfully, God in his great mercy, grace and love has not been silent as I’ve searched for answers. So much of life as we know it has been shaken to the core as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet the end of Hebrews 12 tells us that God himself is unshakeable. So, while things around us are being shaken, God’s kingdom is unshakeable. What a glorious truth! And no better place for us to anchor our hopes, joy, and our peace than our unshakeable God.
Hebrews 12:26-28 says “At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, ‘Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.’ This phrase, ‘Yet once more,’ indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe...”
I think God even goes one step further. What’s even better is that he actually invites us into this unshakeable kingdom with him. We’re right there with him. And so, during this season, I have been reminded, firstly, of the unshakeable rock that is God’s kingdom, and secondly, I’ve also been reminded from Ephesians 2:17-20, that as part of this kingdom, I have the joy of union with Jesus himself. So this is what it says in Ephesians 2:17-20, “...he came [Jesus] and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone”.
And so, my heart has been greatly encouraged through this disruptive season by the truth that my identity is in my union with Jesus and peace with the Father all thanks to Jesus’ work on the cross. So in my daily routine, I have really sought to remind myself, preaching to myself, daily, that Jesus loves me. He is with me through all my daily endeavours, however challenging and different they may be from the pre-COVID period. I’m not alone. I have my Saviour by my side and I have my brothers and sisters at RHC with whom I have union as well in Christ. And in these truths I have found much joy and peace. The unshakeable kingdom of God - pre-COVID, post-COVID - this kingdom and Jesus’ love for us and presence with us is unchanging.
So allow me to pray for us. Gracious and heavenly Father, I thank you for being a father who cares for us, who shepherds us, and loves us. I thank you for your Son, Jesus Christ. Thank you, O Lord, that we are not alone, but have union with Jesus and union with each other as the body. Lord, would you shine your face upon us? Would you draw near to us? Remind us, O Lord, that while things around us seem to be so different these days, so fragile, your kingdom, Lord, is unshakeable. Your love for your people is unshakeable. You, O God, are our rock. You are a God who is gracious, merciful, abounding in steadfast love. Remind us, O Lord, as your people, who we are in your eyes - our identity as your beloved children, clothed with the righteousness of Christ. Father, fill our hearts with your love for us. Draw close to us, Father. Deepen our relationship, our fellowship, with your Son, Jesus, and then work in us for your good pleasure. Work in us and through us by the power of the Holy Spirit to pour ourselves into the people you have put in our midst, according to your purposes for us and to the glory of your name. I pray this in Jesus’ mighty name. Amen.