Start well to finish well is a familiar adage we often hear. But just because it’s easy on the ear doesn’t make it a reliable truth because it fails to capture the reality that the middle journey significantly shapes the ending more than the beginning alone. For all followers of Jesus, it is more important to start faithfully, be mindful to grow in depth and move with purpose towards the finish.

MENTION UNCOMMON LIVES and we think of Jackie Pullinger who answered God’s call to set sail for the East in the 60s and spent decades serving addicts and the marginalised in Hong Kong’s Walled City. We think of missionaries in Ecuador, Jim and Elizabeth Elliot (as penned by their only child, Vallerie Elliot Shephard). We think of Jemima Ooi who left a comfortable life in Singapore to serve in conflict active areas of East Africa.

TO MOST OF US, IT WAS NOT LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT. None was looking for Jesus, though we needed Him, and some had not even heard of Him. While still uninitiated, our salvation was the best thing that happened to each of us.

When we don’t sense God’s immediate intervention in a time of crisis or uncertainty, we are quick to become distressed even though God’s faithfulness does not change according to our situations. However,  our perception of Him tends to change according to the realities we are experiencing. 

If your younger self met you today, what would you say to the person you have become? Would the earlier version of yourself even know it’s you? 

Jacob had to face that question when he returned to the place where his life unraveled. Looking back, he said, “I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two camps.” (Genesis 32:10). He had left Beersheba as a single man with a sense of destiny, and now, returning with a sizeable household with servants and livestock in tow, he faced the prospect of reuniting with his estranged twin brother, Esau, with ‘great fear’. His homecoming was marred by an important historical detail: he had earlier cheated his brother of his birthright, and deceived his ageing father into giving him the blessing intended for Esau.

SALT SHAKERS AND LAMPS ARE ORDINARY HOUSEHOLD ITEMS that provide basic utility in ordinary life. We notice when they are missing: saltless meats taste bland and a room without adequate lighting makes simple tasks difficult. Yet, as a condiment, salt does not change the physical appearance of what it is added to. Its presence can be tasted, though not seen. Similarly, light is intangible yet it fills up space, and its presence and absence is easily noticeable to anyone.

Who in their right mind would ever volunteer to be stricken by cancer or a disorder that won’t respond to treatment? Who is ever prepared for unprovoked attacks or freak accidents? But when they happen (to us or someone close), we come face to face with our own frailty and mortality. Our response determines how quickly we descend into the rabbit hole of despair. 

BEINREACH MINISTRY WAS LAUNCHED IN SINGAPORE in a most uncertain time during a global pandemic lockdown. Its mission is to reach some people so they would not give up on their faith when their lives fell under the weight of the most synchronised lockdown in history. Forced to isolate, technology made it possible for people to come together in new ways. Across the globe, people sought a different kind of connection: apart yet together. Virtual groups of all kinds sprang up overnight and gained rapid traction; from pilates workouts to wine parties, classrooms, celebrations and movie nights. While conventional thinkers decried this as a fad, realists were quick to wake up to a new normal and recognise that things had changed quickly and irreversibly.

ANYTHING WE DO OUT OF SELF-PRESERVATION will invariably involve minimizing personal pain and discomfort. On the other hand, there are people who will not let tragedy numb their emotions, pain to silence their voices, or disappointment to discolour their hope in Christ. These are people who know that they live for something larger than their own existence. They see their lives as threads handpicked by God Himself and weaved into the interconnectivity of life in the body of Christ, and they recognise the effect of personal choices on their shared destiny with others. They have a resilience that doesn't give them permission to give up easily even when they experience great distress because they know that their individual action can leave permanent marks in the fabric of their communities.

Book titles, song titles, movie titles, programme titles and even sermon titles are simply introductions: they don’t tell the entire story. Nobody reads a book title and says they have read the book. Or seen a movie title and say they have seen the whole movie. 

It is unfortunate that Christianity is widely perceived as a rules-based religion that prioritizes group conformity over a genuine relationship with God. It doesn’t help that many believers also lack the ability to discern the difference when they face conflicting loyalties, and choose to keep up a unified front instead of doing what is right with God.

Doctors rely on blood analyses to make medical diagnoses and decide on the best treatments for their patients. Like it or not, our bloodworks reveal scientific truths about our health that we can either confirm or deny. But what will reveal our spiritual health everyday?

People everywhere bear visible distinguishing marks that others can readily recognise, especially when they travel away from home. These distinguishing marks can be dressing, language, food culture, social behaviour and mannerisms and even physical appearance. In addition, there are non-physical traits like what the apostle Paul and also our Lord Jesus Himself are known for: being risk-takers, strong leaders, strategic thinkers, and also, controversial figures. 

ARE YOU AFRAID TO GO DEEP? In conversations,  do you stick to safe topics to avoid bringing up personal opinions and feelings. Do you prefer surface-level interactions, sharing general updates without saying much about yourself. Are you constantly busy and occupied, yet lack relationships with real depth?

VALLEYS are low-lying areas situated between elevated landforms like hills and mountains, distinguished by a river or stream flowing through them. Scenically beautiful, they can also be symbolic of difficult circumstances. It's mentioned in Psalms 23:4, assuring us of God’s presence with us in that “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”

People generally have a pretty standard assumption that messy situations always lead to bad outcomes. But consider the childbirth experience – lengthy involuntary contractions, the intense pain and the amount of blood in the picture. What appears chaotic produces the much-anticipated birth of a child. Or picture surgery of any kind: the living body is not made of neat compartments but overlapping parts constantly reacting to what is being done on any part. The operating theatre is not a place of beauty and order but where precision, time and patient safety are prioritized over appearances. Finally, step into a busy restaurant kitchen: nothing resembles the beautifully plated dishes that is capable of producing.

The last month of the year can be a time of ambivalence to many. December marks the end of a calendar year and the beginning of another. It is a time that triggers powerful memories of personal milestones, as well as moments, people, or seasons of life gone, and mistakes made. With a mix of gratitude and regret, we recall what went well, what was lost, and what never happened, and quietly resolve to “do better” next year. Except that without the right self-reflection and taking deliberate steps for change, next year becomes pretty much the same (if not a worse) version of the current one.

In every major city, elaborate Christmas trees decked out with expensive ornaments, lights, gold and glitter draw huge crowds and encourage festive spending. Meanwhile, overhead speakers supply an unbroken soundtrack of Christmassy songs of silver bells and dreams of a white Christmas. Businesses and social media influencers create a world of make-believe – snow in tropical climates, picture-perfect relationships, and the ‘magic of Christmas’ replaces the meaning of Christmas. People rush from store to store searching for the “perfect gift” as if joy could be bought, wrapped, and placed neatly under a tree.

Hitting the wall is an idiom for describing a point when we encounter a barrier that halts progress where further advancement is not possible. In life, we hit the wall when we face the hard moments that test our ability to persevere. The only way to avoid hitting the wall is to move in repetitive circles that makes no progress. In trying too hard to avoid pain or failure, we also avoid growth: we may never crash, but we also don’t evolve or improve either.

When our emotional age does not match our physical age, we will act in childish ways to cover up a myriad of struggles. We recognize childish adult behaviour when someone lacks the ability to negotiate and talk through issues and instead make demands and throw tantrums when they don’t get their way. Or they are habitually so self-focused that they are unable to empathize with another person’s experience of realities. In relationships, childish adults may put themselves in groups but like toddlers, they do not share anything personal or engage with people on any deep level.