【Tears Of My Heart】20. Tears of Joy

Author: Raymond Eng
Translator: Abraham Koo

You make known to me the path of life, in your presence there is fullness of joy, at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Psalm 16:11)

I received a call from a couple in China this morning. They love the Lord greatly. They set their eyes on the great harvesting field in China, thus a few years ago they decided to go from Canada to China to do mission work. The husband serves in the church as a deacon, and he is also a seminarian, sometimes he has to fill the pulpit. He will be graduating soon and the church he is serving has planned to hire him as a minister and will ordain him in the near future. I was delighted to hear such great news, and my tears of joy streaming down, thanking God on their behalf.

This couple has made a great impact on my life. I met the wife first. I recall one day while accompanying a friend to the hospital. As we were waiting, I saw a middle-aged woman looking forlornly helpless sitting on one side. Since she did not know how to speak English, I served as her interpreter, and inquired about her life and why her countenance was full of sadness? She was between a rock and a hard place. She had no job, no legal status, she was also sick with no loved one near her, worried about her livelihood and what was ahead, and her mental distress was tremendous. She was a music teacher in China, and she thought when she come to America, she could use her talent to find a stable job. But reality didn’t match with her American dream was, her dream was utterly shattered!

So I asked one of my friends to locate a job for her in Chinatown, and in the process I led her to the Lord. After she became a Christian, her faith grew and she is serving God with fervent zeal, which brings me great comfort. Later on, I helped her to apply for Canadian residency as a technically skilled person, she got her status and was able to move her husband and daughter from China to join her in Canada. They lived in a stable and comfortable environment in Canada, but in her heart, she wanted to bring the gospel back to China. So I supported them by helping them to work with the ‘Left Behind Children” in China, and through this ministry, the gospel is able to have a greater reach! I am very happy for their willingness to submit their whole lives to serve God.

In my first book ‘Tears of Prayer’, I mentioned one brother I know from the fellowship. He is Rev. Johnny Chan. By faith, I supported his seminary studies and after he graduated, he stayed at the church. Later on, he was ordained as a pastor and used by God greatly. I still remember the blessings of God on me based on this faith giving, especially on my business venture. Though in the midst of it I got cocky and stumbled big time, but when I returned to God and repented, God blessed me more than just materially, but also in spiritual blessings. I hope I can train more Christian soldiers to be my gifts to God, through which I will be more blessed by God with a fruitful life. For a true blessing is more than just abundance of material possession but is the spiritual growth and one’s deepening relationship with God, so that my life will have more meaning, more abundant and outstanding.

In Luke chapter 12, verses 16 to 34, Jesus teaches his audience with the parable of the ignorant rich man. This is part of the story. “There is a rich man whose field produces abundantly. He thinks to himself, ‘What am I going to do, as my produce has no more place to be stored?’ Then he said to himself, ‘I know what I will do. I will take down this storehouse to build another bigger one. There I will store all my food and wealth, then I will say to my soul: “Oh my soul, you have much wealth stored for many years’ expense to come, so just rest, eat and be merry”. But God said to him, ‘You ignorant, tonight I will take your soul, who will inherit what you have prepared?’ Therefore, those who accumulate their own wealth, but not have abundance before God, is one of the same’.

In reality, the rich man’s successful earning isn’t a wrong thing. To take down the storehouse to build a bigger one to store more stuff isn’t wrong either. What is wrong is his focusing only on his own life, this life! He has not prepared where his ‘spirit’ shall be in the future. He has fulfilled his physical needs, yet totally ignored the need of his spirit. His focus is on how well his earthly life enjoyment is, and has not planned where his eternity will be, this is where he failed.

One pastor used ‘cotton candy’ to illustrate ‘money’, I find that quite an interesting comparison. The cotton candy looks big, but take one bite it melts, you can’t fill your stomach with it, it is indeed the vanity of vanities! Only by gathering our treasure in heaven, then we shall have eternal value. I am a successful businessman; I know when a correct investment shall bring about its value in return. Similarly, a wise Christian who invests in the Kingdom of God will receive rewards from eternity.

The Bible says in Matthew 6:33 ’Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, all these things shall be added to you.’ There is a deeper meaning to ‘seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness’, it’s not wrong to pursuit life’s ideals and goals, but in the process our building foundation must be grounded in the Kingdom of God, in the heart of God, and in the word of God. Having the correct foundation, then God can entrust with us more things to manage as stewards. If our foundation isn’t right, that which God gives us ending up hurting us. So, as we keep our target correctly, God our Father loves to give us His gifts, for He is a giving God, we have nothing else outside of Him.

Christians should have dreams. We should dream for Jesus, and pray for those dreams to be fulfilled, pleasing to God! I pray as long as I live; I live for my Lord with all my might, thus when my time comes, I dare declare, ‘I have fought the good fight, I have ran the race, I have kept the faith, from now on the crown of righteousness is kept for me, the Lord who judges righteously to give me that day, more than just me, but to all those who desire his appearance’, 2 Timothy 4:7-8

May the Lord bless and use each one of us!