Young Adults' Group

Ending The Year On A Note Of Thanksgiving

by Pastor Mark
December 31, 2021

A sobering yet thankful end to the year

2021 ended on a sobering note for Chen Kee and I. Chen Kee’s mom passed away suddenly on Monday and it was a shocking moment for the family. But when we see things with eyes of faith, there are many things that we are thankful for. Let us reflect on all that we have been blessed with. I thank God for Pastor Charles’ messages over this last week that have become even more real to me. What are some of these precious lessons learnt?

Precious lessons

1. He has done great things

When Mary magnified the Lord in her Magnificat, she did not only realise that she was undeserving of becoming the mother of the Lord Jesus Christ but also recognised the great thing that God had done for her (Luke 1:48,49). It was not a common thing but a great thing to give birth to the Son of God.

As I reflected on Mom’s life, I recognised that God did a great thing in giving Dad and Mom salvation. Once, they worshipped idols and rejected Christianity, and it would have seemed “impossible” then that they would be drawn to Christ. But the Lord did reach out to them in a powerful way, and they turned from idols to the living God. The Lord had done a great thing, and I’m encouraged to magnify the Lord.

2. The mercy of God

Another great thing to appreciate is the mercy of God. I recognise how profound the mercy of the God is. His mercy is limitless as He extends this mercy from generation to generation (Luke 1:50). Mom had to deal with many health issues…a heart attack, a major stroke, a few more minor strokes and dementia. But the Lord was indeed merciful to Mom in preserving her all these years.

Over the last few months, we saw Mom’s dementia worsening and her quality of life reduced drastically. It was by the abundant mercies of the Lord that He took her home to be with Him. As I catch a glimpse of how great the mercy of God was in Mom’s life, I have become more enlightened as to how profound His mercies are…that extends from one generation to another.

3. The will of God

At Tuesday’s memorial service for Mom, Pastor spoke about having faith rather than seeing things as fate. Our faith must be in the will of God. His will for man is to believe and have everlasting life (John 6:40).

During the wake, I was asked how I had felt as Chen Kee and I experienced the third death in our immediate families over the last one year or so. My response was one of faith. We see all these deaths as part of the will of God. We believe and have faith in the plan of God and trust that all things are done according to His will. Let us be challenged to have certainty of faith concerning His will.

A heart of great thanksgiving

I end this year on a note of great thanksgiving. My soul is full as I seek to magnify the Lord for all the great and profound things He has done for us. Let us all end the year giving thanks and magnifying the Lord. Wishing you a Blessed and Happy New Year!

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