Thursday, 10 December 2020
Title: Launch Out In Faith!
By: Cecilia Tan 陈俊芳

Psalm 40:2 “He brought me up from a desolate pit, out of the muddy clay, and set my feet on a rock, making my steps secure.”

This is a true story…my story! The year was 2012. I sank unexpectedly into a desolate pit and became a shadow of myself. My friendly and zestful persona was replaced by one plagued with an overwhelming gloom and unexplainable fear.

In early March 2012, after a 10-day stubborn cough, I saw the doctor and was prescribed very strong antibiotics which I had never taken before. When I was half-way through the course, my appetite disappeared into thin air and my taste buds completely changed. I became fearful of chillies when prior to this, I was a chilli queen! Soon I developed a phobia for food except for porridge (my comfort food) and a little steamed fish.

I gradually began to lose weight. That was a huge concern to me as I am one person who tries to put on weight but is never successful no matter how much I eat! Besides losing appetite, I was soon suffering a variety of symptoms including restlessness, anxiety, insomnia, dry throat syndrome, weakness, lethargy, loss of confidence, constipation and fear of the cold! I walked around the house like a zombie, and was hardly able to perform my normal tasks. Thankfully at that time, we had a live-in Cambodian helper who kept the household running smoothly.

I consulted three specialists from March to May 2012. Blood tests and scans were done and the results were all good! These three doctors must have thought their patient was imagining a lot of ailments even though I had informed them that I was inexplicably losing weight. In fact in that three months, I lost a precious 8 Kg!

Family members and other prayer warriors were in fervent prayer for my healing. I am most grateful for their prayer support, for indeed their prayers were answered and I was miraculously healed! This is how it happened…

Sometime in February 2012, my husband registered both of us for the church camp from 26-28 May. He registered early to get the early-bird discount. (We both love early-bird discounts… and discounts of any sort, the more, the merrier! 😆) On the morning of 26 May, I was still undecided about going to the camp, given all my many anxieties and fears. I worried about the hotel food, the hotel air-con and wondered whether I could endure the hectic programme with my very low energy level!

Camp participants were instructed to arrive in the hotel by 3pm on 26th May. On that morning, I was reading John 5:1-18 about our Lord Jesus healing the man who had been paralyzed for 38 years. Jesus had simply commanded him to “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk!” The man did so, was instantly cured and began to walk!

That same command “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk” kept ringing in my ears that morning. I somehow decided to ignore it as I rationalized that it had nothing to do with my condition as my legs were perfectly healthy and strong and I had no problems with walking!

After reading John 5, I decided to check my e-mail. I switched on my laptop and accessed my G-mail “Inbox”. Lo and behold! The first words I saw on the screen were “ LAUNCH OUT IN FAITH!” – it was the title of the most recent incoming mail, in capital letters! It seemed as if God was instructing me in plain and simple language, to put aside all my fears and just go to the camp! And so I did just that.

My husband drove us to Melaka for the camp. Our first meal at the camp was Saturday night buffet dinner. Wonder of wonders! – I dived into the sumptuous spread of food like my old hungry and healthy self again, as if to make up for the three months of deprivation, and to immediately seek to regain the lost weight! Every dish was awesomely tasty 😋… spicy curry, chicken, beef, fish, prawns, salads, desserts, etc etc! Going on my rounds at the buffet table, I certainly did not look like someone who had lost her appetite!

I enjoyed the camp thoroughly and my fears were certainly uncalled for! Upon returning home, my healing took off at a pace beyond my wildest imagination. I began to again enjoy eating a wide variety of food again and all the earlier symptoms gradually disappeared! Soon I was my cheerful, charming and vibrant self again, praise the Lord!

And so I was brought out from a desolate pit, out of the muddy clay, and had my feet set on a rock, making my steps secure, because I obeyed God’s command to “LAUNCH OUT IN FAITH!” Praise the Lord our God who heals in mysterious ways!

So if you ever find yourself in a similarly challenging situation, do reflect on the contents of Psalm 103:1-3,
“Bless the Lord, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases.”

Prayer:
Our Heavenly Father, we praise You for Your goodness and mercy towards Your children. We thank You for Your unfailing love which sees us through the darkest of times. Thank You that we do not walk through tough times alone for You always walk alongside us, strengthening us and keeping our hope alive. Indeed Lord, You move in mysterious ways, Your wonders to perform! We praise and thank You, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

每日灵粮
星期四, 2020年12月10日
标题：凭信心出发！
作者：陈俊芳姐妹
翻译：薛秀合姐妹

诗篇40:2 “他从祸坑里，从淤泥中，把我拉上来，使我的脚立在磐石上，使我脚步稳当。”

这是一个真实的故事…我的故事！那一年是2012年。我意外地陷进了一个荒凉的坑里，变成了我自己的影子。我友善又热情的形象被一种强烈的忧郁和无法解释的恐惧所取代。

2012年3月初，经过10天的顽固咳嗽后，我去看了医生，医生给我开了非常强的抗生素，这是我以前从未服用过的。当我服用了半个疗程时，我的食欲消失得无影无踪，我的味蕾也完全变了。在此之前是个辣椒王后的我竟然变得害怕辣椒了！不久，我对食物产生了恐惧感，除了米粥（令我舒适的食物）和少许的蒸鱼。

我的体重开始逐渐地下降。这对我来说是一个巨大的担忧，因为我是一个试图增肥的人，但无论我吃多少都从没成功！除了食欲不振，我很快就出现了各种症状，包括躁动不安、焦虑、失眠、干喉症、虚弱、嗜睡、失去信心、便秘和怕冷！我像一具丧尸在房子里走动，
几乎无法完成我的日常任务。感恩的是，当时我们有一个住家的柬埔寨帮手，使居家运作平稳有序。

2012年3月至5月之间，我咨询了三位专科医生。进行了血液检查和扫描，检验报告都很好！这三位医生一定以为他们的病人幻想了很多疾病，即使我告诉他们我的体重莫名其妙地在下降。事实上，在那三个月里，我降了宝贵的8公斤！

家人和其他祈祷勇士热切地为我的康复祈祷。我非常感谢他们的祈祷支持，而他们的祷告确实蒙了应允，我神迹般地痊愈了！事情是这样发生的..。

2012年2月的某个时候，我丈夫为我俩报名参加了5月26日至28日的教会营会。他很早就报名以获得早鸟优惠。(我俩都喜欢早鸟优惠……任何形式的折扣，越多越欢喜！😆)。5月26日上午，考虑到我所有的焦虑和恐惧，我仍未决定去不去营会。我担心酒店的食物、酒店的空调，我也担心我极弱的气力能否承受紧凑的节目！

营员们被指示于5月26日下午3时抵达酒店。那天早上，我正在阅读约翰福音5:1-18，关于我们的主耶稣治愈了瘫痪了38年的人。耶稣只是命令他 “起来！拿起你的褥子走吧！”那人照着做，立即就痊愈了，并开始行走！

那天早上，同样的命令 “起来！拿起你的褥子走吧！” 一直在我耳边回响。不知怎么的，我决定置之脑后；我合理化地认为它与我的状况无关，因为我的腿非常健康又强壮，而且我走路也没问题！

阅读了约翰福音5之后，我决定检查我的电子邮件。我打开笔记本电脑并进入我的谷歌邮箱G-mail的 “收件箱”。真没想到！我在屏幕上看到的第一句话是“凭信心出发！”（LAUNCH OUT IN FAITH!）这是最新收到的邮件的标题，都是大写的字母！这似乎是上帝在用简易明了的语言指示我，要我放下所有的恐惧，直去参加营会！因此，我就这样做了。

我丈夫开车送我们去到马六甲参加营会。我们在营地的第一餐是星期六晚上的自助晚餐。奇迹中的奇迹！–我又像往日饥饿而健康的自己一样，一头扎进丰富的食物中，像是要弥补三个月的匮乏，并要即刻寻回失去的体重！每道菜都非常美味😋……辣咖喱、鸡肉、牛肉、鱼、虾、沙拉、甜点等等！我在自助餐桌前巡回，我看起来根本不像是失去了食欲的人！

我彻底享受那次的营会，我的恐惧当然是没必要的！返回家后，我的康复速度之快远超出了我的想象。我又开始享受吃各种各样食物的乐趣了，而且所有早先的症状也逐渐消失了！

没多久，我又恢复了开朗、富有魅力、充满活力的自己，感谢主！

就这样，我从一个荒凉的坑里被带出来，从淤泥中被拉上来，使我的脚立在磐石上，使我脚步稳当，因为我听从了上帝的命令：“凭着信心出发！”赞美我们的主，以奇妙作为治愈的上帝！

因此，如果您发现自己处于类似的挑战境地，请反思诗篇103:1-3的内容：“我的心哪，你要称颂耶和华！凡在我里面的，也要称颂他的圣名！我的心哪，你要称颂耶和华！不可忘记他的一切恩惠！他赦免你的一切罪孽，医治你的一切疾病。”

祷告

我们的天父，为祢赐下慈爱与怜悯予祢的儿女，我们赞美祢。我们感谢祢以永恒的爱伴我们度过最黑暗的时刻。感谢祢让我们不在困难中独行，因祢常与我们同行，坚固我们并叫我们常存盼望。是的主，祢以奥秘的方式行事，创造神迹奇事。我们感谢赞美祢，奉耶稣的名祷告，阿门。