"Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen and called its name Ebenezer; for he said, “till now, the Lord has helped us…"
Today, I received my new laptop, a Lenovo T250, which was ordered a few weeks ago... Since today is Christmas eve, I will consider this as my Christmas present, unwrapped early. For the opening ceremony, I would like to start using this new computer by making a blog entry on honouring God. Based on a bible passage that I have been meditating on recently, it concerns the Ebenezer Stone which Samuel erected after a successful battle with the Philistines.
The background to this verse:
I. A long time has passed (some
20 years), and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord (7:2).
Note that since 4:1, we have not read about
Samuel; he was not mentioned till now… as if he was unconcerned (which is probably
not the case). More likely, Samuel’s labours among the people are not mentioned
until the time is ripe. Often, a lot of our good and hard works remain unseen and unmentioned; they remain in the background until the appointed time.
II. When he perceived that the house of
Israel was ready, Samuel exhorted them to:
Return to the LORD with all their
heart – this involves putting away the foreign gods and directing their heart
to the LORD and serve him only.
Gather at Mizpah for a leaders’
retreat – for dedication, fasting, prayer & repentance…
III. The Philistines mistook the general meeting (for
repentance and prayer) to be a rendezvous for war. So, they decided to invade
Israel first. Henry Matthew added:
…they had no just cause for this suspicion; but those that
seek to do mischief to others will be forward to imagine that others design mischief
to them.”
... how evil sometimes seems to come out of good; The religious meeting of the Israelites
at Mizpah brought trouble upon them..., which may perhaps tempted
them to wish they had stayed at home and to blame Samuel for calling them
together; often we may decide to walk in God’s way and yet meet with distress; often when
sinners begin to repent and reform, they can expect Satan to muster all
his force against them, and set his instruments on work to oppose
and discourage them.”
... they were here
unarmed, unprepared for war - they came together to fast and pray, not to fight, and
the only weapons they brought along were prayers and tears… Thus, Israel could never be threatened more seasonably
than at this time, when they were repenting and praying, nor could they
have been better prepared to receive the enemy; nor could the Philistines
have acted more impolitely than to make war upon Israel at
this time, when they were making their peace with God.”
IV. Israel
cleaves closely to Samuel in distress;
though he was no military man, nor ever celebrated as a mighty man of valour,
yet, being afraid of the Philistines, for whom they thought themselves an
unequal match, the Israelites engaged Samuel’s prayers for them: Cease not to cry unto the Lord our God for us
(7:8)
V. Samuel
intercedes with God for them, and does it by sacrifice. (7:9)
VI. God
gave a gracious answer to Samuel’s prayer (7:9): The Lord heard him. Israel
had the pleasure of triumphing over their oppressors. They pursued the Philistines... How soon did they find the
benefit of their repentance, and reformation, and return to God! Now that
they are engaged with God, none of their enemies can stand
before him.
Samuel erected a thankful
memorial of this victory, (1) to the glory of God, and (2) for the encouragement of
Israel. Interestingly, the place where this memorial was
set up was the same where, 20 years before, the Israelites were beaten before
the Philistines (4:1).
Now, the intention of
Samuel in erecting the Ebenezer stone is clear: If
ever the people’s hard hearts should lose the impressions of this providence,
this stone would either revive the remembrance of it, and make them thankful,
or remain a standing witness against them for their unthankfulness.
Three
lessons to remember:
1. That we should often review our past mercies
All have received mercies in abundance, which we ought
from time to time to review, in order to impress a sense of them the more
deeply on our minds. For the lack of this, how many mercies are forgotten! And
what a loss do we sustain by means of our forgetfulness!
- Blessings that are
unnoticed are no more to us than they are to the brute creation: but if we
bring them frequently to our remembrance, we have frequently in the retrospect
a sweeter taste of them than we had in the actual possession.
Let us learn to pass over no mercy without labouring to imprint
it on our minds, and to retain the remembrance of it to our dying hour. -
Charles Simeon
2. That we should especially view the hand of God in them
And to whom can we trace all our mercies, but to God? Look at
our temporal mercies;
- the time, and place of our birth, when the light of the Gospel was shining all around us - our preservation during the helpless state of infancy;
- the many deliverances, seen, and unseen, which we have experienced since;
- the blessings of health and abundance.
View but the last year (2015), and see how many have been plunged
into deep distress, from which you are exempt; or been called away into the
eternal world, whilst you are left with protracted opportunities of working out
your salvation… For who is it that has made you to differ?
Will I, or can I, trace these blessings to my own superior wisdom, or goodness, or
strength? Surely, not. Humbly, I acknowledge the hand of God in them, and
say, “Hitherto hath the Lord helped me.”
3. That we should make our experience of past mercies the
ground of expecting all that we can need from God in future
From what we have received “hitherto,” we know what to expect henceforth. And so should the memorials that are raised in our
hearts:
“Thou hast been my help; therefore under
the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice [Psalms 63:7.]:”
"Because the Lord hath
inclined his ear unto me, therefore will I call upon him as
long as I live [Psalms 116:2.].”
This is the key purpose of preserving memorials of past
mercies in our minds! What holy confidence will it introduce into the soul, and
what a happy anticipation even of eternal blessedness! Only let the “Ebenezer”
which Samuel erected teach us this, and we shall ourselves raise in due time a
similar memorial in the realms of bliss.
source: LAB, Henry Matthew, Charles Simeon
As we get older, time seems to pass by more quickly. One of the hot discussion topics in Singapore this year is the residual value of their homes as they get older. Singaporeans are worried that their flat will decline in value and eventually become worthless at the end of their 99-year lease. 
TRAVEL: Our travels in 2018 took us to the US, UK and Japan. We received warm hospitality in every places that we visited. It was particularly thrilling to experience the sakura blossoms in spring and the bountiful apple trees of Central Pennsylvania in autumn. They are a good reminder of the seasons of life… there is a time to sow, there is a time to wait, and there is a time to reap. But nowadays, travelling for my wife and I is less of seeing new places and more of meeting people, especially to catch up with old friends and ex-students. 
Can we top-up the number of years in our life? Just like topping up the lease by paying a premium. Better still, could we exchange the leasehold tenure for a perpetual freehold estate? But alas, our life is a leasehold. Despite modern medicine, we will die sooner or later. From an appraisal viewpoint, what would be our terminal value? 
In my quiet contemplation, I am reminded of the inspiring sculpture, “Way of Life” by Jonathan Clarke in the Cathedral of Ely, England. The sculpture depicts life’s many unexpected twists and turns as we journey on the winding road from darkness to light. Highlighting its symbolic impact, the Cathedral of Ely noted: 
I. A long time has passed (some
20 years), and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord (7:2). 
“Thou hast been my help; therefore under
the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice [Psalms 63:7.]:”
We do have a good life: I am truly blessed with a wonderful wife. We live in a private apartment, we enjoyed doing simple things together. We are healthy… physically, emotionally, socially and financially. Job-wise, I find meaning in what I do... I love to do research, teach and inspire my students, who are really the hope and future of the nations. All in all, we are happy and humbly grateful for God's protection and grace.
Where am I in the seasons of life? 2015 is also a very special year. It marks Singapore's 50th year of independence. Most Singaporeans will also remember 2015 for the passing of Mr Lee Kuan Yew, the founding father and chief architect of modern Singapore. Born in 1965, I also celebrated my 50th birthday this year. If you take age 20-35 as spring, 35-50 as summer, 50-65 as autumn, 65-80 as winter, then I am at the stage where summer has just passed. So, here I am, staring into the autumn season of my life… reflecting the season of transition, the changing colors of autumn leaves (and white hairs) can make one more contemplative on life... While this is the season for gathering the harvests and for giving thanks, it is also a time for preparing for the coming hibernation of winter. 
the seconds as they pass, and occasionally it "blinks" in seeming satisfaction. The creature's constant motion produces an eerie grinding sound and the hour is tolled by the sound of a chain clanking into a small wooden coffin hidden in the back of the clock. Below the clock is an inscription from 1 John 2:17: mundus transit et. concupiscentia eius ("the world passeth away, and the lust thereof").
