THE SHEPHERD’S CORNER

Last Friday, after taking a few bites of a piece of bread, Oom Peter, Santy’s father, choked.  In just a few seconds he turned blue, and his eyes rolled over.  Thank God, Santy was there.  Right away she turned him to the side and began hitting his back till he began to breathe again.  He was taken to ER and is now receiving care. 

Once again, we are reminded how fragile and precarious life is.  One small bite of bread can block our airway and catapult us to a place where we do not wish to be.  However, in God we know that even that one small bite is in His perfect control. He uses one small bite as effectively as He uses one big bite to accomplish His good and perfect will.  Knowing this and trusting Him give us peace of mind. 

When Santy called to let me know what had just happened, I was in fact on my way there bringing his favorite meal—beef chow fun (cha kwe tiauw). I simply could not imagine what might have happened if instead of bread, he had choked on beef or even on kwe tiauw, which is much harder to chew and clear from the airway.  Thank God, it did not happen; He prevented it from happening.

God does not always prevent anything from happening; there are times He allows something to happen.  When He prevents, it is to accomplish His will; and when He allows something to happen, it is also to accomplish His will.  We can trust Him for whatever choice He makes for us.  This is what faith is.  It can be unnerving; it is like walking in the dark, but it is safe because He is with and over us.

As Oswald Chambers says, “Faith in God is a terrific venture in the dark; we have to believe that God is love in spite of all that contradicts it.”  Bread or beef, big or small, all are from His hands.

Pastor Paul