Thinking point: It starts with you

Acts 3:1-10

One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon. Now a man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, "Look at us!" So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.

Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong. He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. When all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

There is a saying that the art of communication is very important, be it among ourselves or to other people. There was a story about a blind man, who sat begging for money by the sidewalk. In front of him was a sign, "I am blind, please help me." He has been there for a long time, but only a few people cared enough to dropped several coins into the container in front of him. One morning, a man walking by dropped a large sum of money into the container, paused for a while, then proceeded to take the blind man's sign, turn it around, and wrote something on it. Soon, the blind man started to hear coins pouring into his container, as many people gave. One thing about blind people is they tend to be sensitive in their hearing, so upon recognising the footsteps of the man who came in the morning, the blind man grabbed him and asked, "Were you the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write on it?" The man answered, "I wrote what you meant, but in a different way. It read, "Today is a beautiful day, but I cannot see."

Peter was a short-tempered, brash person who tends to talk or act before thinking. John on the other hand, was more of a reflective person who would think through something before expressing himself. Put 2 such people together and you might witness a clash of egos and personalities sooner or later. If we look at the context of the church today, how can 2 people from seemingly diverse and extreme backgrounds walk and serve together? There are bound to be conflicts, but if not because of this vision, it would have been impossible.

Some people may be able to do something faster and more effectively than others, but when you are assigned the job despite your lesser ability, are we willing to be faithful in such little things to be a blessing to others? On the other hand, there might be times when we felt annoyed at other people's apparent weaknesses / slowness. However, God has given you the best, He puts people in your life to mould and work with you. At the end of the day, you never know that you might probably gain more out of the relationship. John Maxwell pointed out that 'The journey with others is always slower than the journey alone - for the friendship of 2, the patience of 1 is necessary'. Therefore, when we felt like complaining / annoyed over somebody, always remind ourselves that we ourselves are the one that needs to change, whether the other person eventually improves / changes its not up to you to decide. It starts with you, don't point fingers at other people, 10 fingers will point back to you, coz everybody has shortcomings. Learn lay down yourself to appreciate and be a complement to one another, not look at others as a thorn in our eyes.

We might cover up the superficial and pretend as if everything is ok on the outside, but what is actually inside your heart, God knows and He is able to change it. Everything starts with a change of heart. Looking at many problems around us today, if you trace the root of the problem, the origin and what needs to be changed starts from the heart. Example: Some say that better education can eradicate the problem of crime, since most criminals come from lower socioeconomic and educational backgrounds, but its not necessarily true as it can also produce criminals who are smarter at what they do.

When John and Peter looked at the beggar at the Beautiful gate, the person only wanted money. Born lame since birth, he has depended on others throughout his life coz he can't work for a living. Peter and John could have given him money, but they gave him something better, a new beginning in a person's life. Do we dare to believe and claim God's miracle from His word? Maybe we are looking at the wrong places, expecting big things (eg blind seeing and the lame walking) but we missed that every life transformation (big or small) is a miracle. John and Peter may not have much, but they gave what they have wholeheartedly, and in that moment, God accomplished more than they could imagined.