Life is like dew on a blade of grass...
I got to know about the disaster while I was vacationing in Florida. Ironically, it was while I was in line waiting to get on the Earthquake simulator at Universal Studios. I’m not kidding. Lynn was nice enough to call me and tell me what happened. Of course it didn’t sit too well with me especially knowing that my hometown of Penang was affected.
I feel bad to say this in view of the insurmountable loss that people have faced, but I was really relieved that no one in my immediate family or people I knew lost their lives. However, my heart does go out to those people who have lost their loved ones. I pray that those that have do not lose heart but carry on with their lives, sieve out the good from the bad out of this experience, and continue to be optimistic of the future.
It’s really scary to think that a natural disaster as such could reach the Malaysian shores. I have always been comforted by the fact that my home was sheltered from the disastrous effects of volcanoes, hurricanes, earthquakes and tsunamis. After last week, I learned that there’s really nowhere safe on this earth. It also strikes me as a sign that the end times are imminent.
While on vacation, I was watching CNN when I could, closely following the news as the death toll kept on rising. I also looked for pictures of my beloved island of Penang. Seeing how familiar places were muddied and ravaged by the huge waves sent shivers down my spine. It struck home as a very real reminder of how fragile life is, that at any moment, someone could lose it.
“Why would God allow something like this to happen?” A message I heard a while back resonated in my head. “It’s so that God’s love and mercy can be shown.”
It may sound like a contradictory statement, but it’s so true. Countless accounts of people experiencing miracles during the tsunami can be heard on television. Millions of dollars in relief have flown in from various sources. Numerous acts of philanthropy by individuals have been reported. Countries are uniting together in their effort to alleviate the situation. Miraculous stories of survival and the resilience of the human spirit have been aired. Evidently, God’s grace has been shown both directly and through His people. If anything, people’s faith should be strengthened, and not shaken.
I must mention that I felt really glad that the American Government has taken this opportunity to show to the Muslim world that they are in no way against the religion of Islam or any Islamic nation. I felt that there was a huge need for America to redeem itself in the eyes of the world after the number of debacles in the Middle East. On the other hand, I do wonder how effective this effort will be as many speculate that it won’t.
On the flipside of things, just considering that the most badly hit country, Indonesia, is the country with the largest population of Muslims, where are the supposedly “Muslim” terrorists in the Middle East? Don’t they believe in helping their fellow brethren? Is terrorizing “infidels” all they do? Forget them. They’re probably sitting on their own hands due to lack of funding or fear of the US Marines all over the place. I guess we should all consider the fact that they haven’t sabotage the relief efforts as their contribution in this matter. At the same time, Middle Eastern governments such as Saudi Arabia have been heavily criticized for being scrooges. They only offered a measly $30 million. Pale compared to America’s $350 million and Japan’s $500 million offerings. That may change as they are getting more and more heat from the press.
This may have been the worst way to usher in the new year, but life goes on. All we can do now is help where we can, appreciate life and living, and most of all pray for among many other things, peace and restoration.
I feel bad to say this in view of the insurmountable loss that people have faced, but I was really relieved that no one in my immediate family or people I knew lost their lives. However, my heart does go out to those people who have lost their loved ones. I pray that those that have do not lose heart but carry on with their lives, sieve out the good from the bad out of this experience, and continue to be optimistic of the future.
It’s really scary to think that a natural disaster as such could reach the Malaysian shores. I have always been comforted by the fact that my home was sheltered from the disastrous effects of volcanoes, hurricanes, earthquakes and tsunamis. After last week, I learned that there’s really nowhere safe on this earth. It also strikes me as a sign that the end times are imminent.
While on vacation, I was watching CNN when I could, closely following the news as the death toll kept on rising. I also looked for pictures of my beloved island of Penang. Seeing how familiar places were muddied and ravaged by the huge waves sent shivers down my spine. It struck home as a very real reminder of how fragile life is, that at any moment, someone could lose it.
“Why would God allow something like this to happen?” A message I heard a while back resonated in my head. “It’s so that God’s love and mercy can be shown.”
It may sound like a contradictory statement, but it’s so true. Countless accounts of people experiencing miracles during the tsunami can be heard on television. Millions of dollars in relief have flown in from various sources. Numerous acts of philanthropy by individuals have been reported. Countries are uniting together in their effort to alleviate the situation. Miraculous stories of survival and the resilience of the human spirit have been aired. Evidently, God’s grace has been shown both directly and through His people. If anything, people’s faith should be strengthened, and not shaken.
I must mention that I felt really glad that the American Government has taken this opportunity to show to the Muslim world that they are in no way against the religion of Islam or any Islamic nation. I felt that there was a huge need for America to redeem itself in the eyes of the world after the number of debacles in the Middle East. On the other hand, I do wonder how effective this effort will be as many speculate that it won’t.
On the flipside of things, just considering that the most badly hit country, Indonesia, is the country with the largest population of Muslims, where are the supposedly “Muslim” terrorists in the Middle East? Don’t they believe in helping their fellow brethren? Is terrorizing “infidels” all they do? Forget them. They’re probably sitting on their own hands due to lack of funding or fear of the US Marines all over the place. I guess we should all consider the fact that they haven’t sabotage the relief efforts as their contribution in this matter. At the same time, Middle Eastern governments such as Saudi Arabia have been heavily criticized for being scrooges. They only offered a measly $30 million. Pale compared to America’s $350 million and Japan’s $500 million offerings. That may change as they are getting more and more heat from the press.
This may have been the worst way to usher in the new year, but life goes on. All we can do now is help where we can, appreciate life and living, and most of all pray for among many other things, peace and restoration.
posted by Mike Ng at 10:01 PM
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