Your Best Life Now

I am reading the book Your Best Life Now, by Joel Oesteen. It is a good book and I recommend it for you to read it.

I once met one of my good friend -whom I always admire of his sharp mind and spirituality - at Coffee Bean Orchard. I brought the book so I could read it along the one hour trip from my home. I would have guessed that he would welcome the book too, on the assumption he stays with a modern charismatic church, where I am now with a traditional conservative laid back church.

I think my belief has been swinging extremely right-left-up-down like roller coaster (of course within boundaries). From a pagan, grew up in mixed belief that Jesus co-exists with deity of other religions, then was born again and shot into radical Christian. Then the ride has been bumpy so far, all kind of theology, or even almost lost my faith ( I mean purpose - not belief)...

I commended the book, however, as I was struggling in my new job. For the first few months I had to recite some of the books' quote of Oesteen, to give me confidence and bravery in my daily work and not to feel down and inferior.

But, my friend's comment did strike me a bit. What is this book for - or whom? What does it mean by "best life"?

I remembered, for example, the other prosperity church that I attend sometimes, teaches that the meaning of God's discipline cannot be poverty, diseases or the lost of beloved. That means we are meant to be healthy, rich, and die in old age - always. God would discpline us in ways, i.e. giving us a troublesome boss, putting us behind a slow car to train our patient, etc. The only catch of this, is that he would have problem of explaining the book of Job, on which his rival whose service is at Expo now has been going deep into this book.

I am contemplating on this and I think the key issue is the defintion of 'best life'?

What does it mean? What is the definition? And who defines it? What does the Bible say? The problem of the Bible - those of you ever sit in Bible School know what I mean - you can interpret almost anything out of your Bible.

We have no doubt - absolutely not - that God wants the best in our life. God wants us to live a good life. (Ok, to be honest, my mentor, an SMU Professor told me: 'No, it is not God's purpose for you to have good life, but to glorify Him' Ok, I didn't buy it. I think it should be both).

Does God really mean that the best life is abundant of money? Perpetual perfect health? Sanity of tragedy? What is the definioin of best life?

I still don't have an answer. But I remembered when I was 14 years old, when I was just born again, neither did I have an answer to this, yet I was overwhelmed with a feeling, belief, emotion, thought that God will take care of everything and I could just rest in peace (not RIP, please). The belief, I could not formulate it into some wordy definition, but I just believed.

I still recommend the book.

One Dawn at Orchard

It was dawn (my definition is just 8 plus) at Orchard, cold after rain morning. What was I doing in Orchard at that hours? It's been a long time I had not been walking around on Orchard in the morning, since I left Bethany.

It started with a couple of SMS-es in one boring Satuday, sent to some friends I had not a chance to meet for some time. One guy picked it up, althought the initial reply was 'Who is this?'.

Okay, it's okay. So since that friend would be around at Orchard in the afternoon after his church related activities, then I met him at Orchard and we spent a very wonderful time of hours chatting from social-faith-hacking. I had called another friend to book his time to meet -yep in Orchard- and planned to watch movie, after the session with him.

Alas, I could not find the movie with the right time, so we had to wait untilk 9 pm. We then had the Indonesian food dinner, I haven't had for some time, at Lucky Plaza. Then I suddenly I remembered, why not pay a visit to my friend who was hospitalised in the nearby hospital.

My friend was supposed to undergo a quick operation, and by now the original plan for him was to go back to work already. Hailed over from Indonesia, hoping for better treatement in Singapore, the doctor accidentally cut his nerves causing him to be immobile. Adding to it, the hospital put him in the wrong ward, and he was infected by his next ward-mate suffering from lung infection. The wardmate died not long after that.

So, now he was immobilized, got lung infection and the nurse was careless that the drug drips, was leaking, adding to the fact that his medication was delayed then. The expensive private hospital added the onus by not having enough paramedics working on the long weekend, so he had to stay longer.

Ok, so I visited him. He was companied by his wife and mother. His wife then asked if I could company his mother at night, which mean I slept at the house she stayed. Ok, I thought, afteralL I was already in Orchard.

Then I left for Mark Zuckerberg's Social Network. Awesome movie, inspiring but mixed feeling. I still don't understand why Facebook can make it. Nothing fancy in technology, and they were not the first mover. Friendster and myspace was already there.

Finished movie, it was late, I ran under the grizzling rain to the house nearby hospital. The house belong to -at one point of time was one of the richest man in Indonesia -. well the family is still rich now, and his name will always be respected.

Could not sleep well. Or should I put it I almost did not sleep. So I woke up in the morning, sending my friend's mother to hospital, walking like zombie to the MRT.

And that explains why I walked in the dawn on Orchard.

Megamind

I like the movie. Another good one to remember.

The world is a stage of judgment and it has no mercy. Megamind is a story to explain why some people behave the way that was badly perceived by others. And the ordinary Mr Nice Guy that is not a publich enemy, not necessarily is a good guy, it's just that he doesn't have a chance, i.e Titan.

I remember long long time ago, when I was young, naive and zealous and tried to shared my faith to a foreigner in a broken English. He told me, that the reason I have my belief is becaue the environment I grew up with. I disagreed, as I grew older I understand what he meant. In the movie, it started about the comment about destiny.

Everybody deserves a second chance, and third, and fourth and so on. Everybody has their past that 'made' them to be like the way they are.

But one day, we'll find our own calling. That's was the advise of Metroman. He has been doing all the good things, but of all the good deeds he has done, is portraited in different perception in the movie. Only that one piece of advise he gave to Megamind, perhaps is the real good deed worth to remember in the movie.

I like the movie. Another one worth to remember.

Everyone will find their calling, everyone deservers the second chance.