Return to the Lord with All of Our Hearts

Because of sin and disobedience, God’s people drifted away from Him. God reminded His people of His unchanging character: “gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love,” one who is “relenting from sending calamity” (2:13). The “day of the Lord is near” (1:15-20) and another call to gather God’s people for fasting and prayer (2:12-17). God called His people to return to Him “with all your heart,” accompanied by “fasting…weeping…and mourning.”

While He is gracious and compassionate, our sins should lead us to a deep sense of repentance that cuts to our hearts and spirits (2:12).

The entire community was called together urgently to fast and repent. They were to leave the comfort of their daily routines to repent of their sins and pray to God. Who knows? God may turn and leave a blessing instead of punishment (Joel 2:14).

During this season of Lent, let us come before God in repentance and fasting, and seek His face. Who knows? We may experience God’s blessings as we seek Him.

Reflection: How willing am I to step away from my usual routine to spend more time with God in the next 40 days?

Prayer: May God search our hearts and help us to know Him dearly and intimately, day by day.

Ash Wednesday 2026

For this year, Ash Wednesday falls on 18th February. Ash Wednesday is a significant event as it marks the beginning of the season of Lent (the 40 days before the victorious Easter).

Ash Wednesday reminds us of our mortality, that all of us will leave this world someday.

It is also a time for repentance. We grief over our sins (ashes are used in the Old Testament to symbolise grief and repentance) and recommit ourselves to follow Jesus Christ.

May we experience the love of Christ afresh this season of Lent. 🙏

Year of the Horse 2026

In the Bible, horses are depicted as creatures of strength and courage.

As we look at this verse, we are reminded that yes, we have to do the work God has entrusted to us.


But at the same time, we are working in partnership with God. He is the sovereign God who invites us, His children, to join Him in His work to proclaim the salvation He gives to a whole world full of sins.


In our daily living, let us lean upon His wisdom and strength. Not our own’s.

Friendship and Holy Communion

Luke 22:19-20 teaches us that the Eucharist is the source of Christian friendship which is shared in the Christian community. Eucharist was a sharing of a meal among believers.


From the Gospel stories, many wonderful encounters happened when Jesus Christ was eating with His friends. Jesus ate with sinners. He spent time with them. It was at the Passover meal that Jesus called His disciples as His friends, and not servant. It was also at a meal that the disciples of Jesus whom Jesus met on the road to Emmaus recognised Him. Likewise, when we share ameal with our friends, our friendship is renewed and deepened.


For John Wesley, what binds Eucharist and friendship together is the experience of Presence of God. In Eucharist, we are invited not only to share the bread broken for us, but to share our brokenness; the friendship we share invites us to share not only the wine pour out for us, but to pour ourlives for each other as well . At Eucharist, Jesus’ invitation for us to remember that His body broken for us and His blood poured out for us takes on new meaning on what it means to be a friend to one another.

Reference:

Ripple, Paula. Called to be Friends. Indiana: Ave Maria Press, 1980.

O Holy Night, the Night Jesus was born

Would you come into a filthy manger on a dark and cold night? Would you identify with the poor and rejected in society? If you were the king, would you stoop down to be a servant?

​Most likely, we would not. Yet, God’s Son did.

Jesus, the Son of God, came into this world as a helpless baby. Jesus, the Creator of the universe, was not born in a palace with servants waiting upon Him. Instead, He was born in a stable: a smelly, dark, and dirty place. He was born among the lowly and, therefore, identifies with the rejected and the poor in society.

Why? Because He loves us. Jesus chose to forsake all the glories of Heaven and enter into this world as a human being like us, just to show us that this is what love is.

Fourth Advent Candle: Love

We lit the 4th candle on the Advent wreath. This 4th candle symbolises Love.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). 💕

God loves us while we were sinners (Romans 5:8). He sent His only Son Jesus for us so that we can be reconciled to Him and be His children.

Love should be the hallmark of a Christian. We love because God first love us (1 John 4:19).

How can you show love to others this Advent season?

Who do you need to reconcile with?

May this Advent season reminds us how deep and wide God’s love is for us and that we are to love others just as we love ourselves.

Third Candle of the Advent: Joy

We light the pink candle in the Advent wreath today, which symbolizes Joy. Joy does not equate with happiness. Rather, it is deep-rooted in peace that we can rest in God admit life’s difficulties.

Jesus came into this world as a baby. His birth was a great news of great joy because He, the Son of God, Emmanuel, came to live among us. died for our sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Today, we can wait with joy that He will come back again for us and bring us into His eternal Kingdom.

Second Candle of Advent: Peace

The second Sunday of Advent pepares us of the coming Kingdom of God: one that is of peace, justice and righteousness. In God’s Kingdom, there will be no division, no disunity, no hatred.
In our everyday living, God also gives us peace. Though we are living in challenging times, the peace that comes from God shows us that we are not alone. We know He is with us.