The LORD will keep you from all harm - he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.- Psalm 121:7-8
The morning after I arrived in Hong Kong, my grandpa told my mum and I that one of our relatives had passed away earlier on in the year. She wasn't an extremely close relative, but I had visited her the last time I came back and was planning to again. She would have been 106 years old this year. I remember being told that she was still really energetic for her age, because she could still walk by herself and speak coherently, albeit a little mumbled. The news of her death didn't really shock us, I mean...she was 106, but it started a few conversations about death which have continued over the past few days.
Yesterday, my mum was talking about how during the last few months she had 'left' Australia and wasn't there anymore. My grandma, who's still a little superstitious on the language, told her off for saying 'left'. In Chinese, my mum said 走 zou (가), which literally means to go or to leave. It's also a more passive way of saying that someone died, which is why my grandma was so sensitive. She reprimanded her immediately and said that my mum should have used 'I was not in Australia', instead of 'leaving'.
When I read this morning's Bible passage, it struck me that my Hong Kong family is still so sensitive about death. As a Christian, I know that I will be going to Heaven when I die, which is why I'm not scared of death at all. In fact sometimes I wish it could come sooner, but that's a different issue. God has promised that he won't sleep or slumber while watching over us, so we shouldn't be scared about anything. He's like Big Brother, but in the best way possible.
(After our mission trip, my mum challenged the whole team to a new year resolution. She asked us to improve in one part of our spiritual life, and I chose to do personal devotions. As you might have read, I'm not really that great at doing them everyday. Therefore, I've decided to keep an online journal of them in hope that I will feel guilty if I miss a day. I won't update them daily, just the ones which I think are important for myself :) )
(After our mission trip, my mum challenged the whole team to a new year resolution. She asked us to improve in one part of our spiritual life, and I chose to do personal devotions. As you might have read, I'm not really that great at doing them everyday. Therefore, I've decided to keep an online journal of them in hope that I will feel guilty if I miss a day. I won't update them daily, just the ones which I think are important for myself :) )
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