Oh, God. part 2

At the age of ten, I was struck by an illness that almost cost me my life. I lost my appetite and eating certain food made the sickness even worse. Gradually, my parents were losing hope of a cure. Not that they did not try. I was taken from one doctor to another but to no avail. Was it small-pox or chicken-pox? I cannot remember what it was. My poor mother told me not to die as people might think they did not give me enough attention. At that age I was not even worried about death.
We then rented one of the rooms in a big house with a big compound in the front portion. The landlord was wealthy as there was constantly a number of lorries parked there. In one corner of that compound was a tall, big tree where, at its roots was a soil-filled red container, with a number of joss-sticks sticking up from its top. It was placed between two of the tree's huge roots. Here, people from the surrounding area would come to pray to something. Was it a deity or some kind of spirit? Well, I was too young to know.
It was to this place that my parents took me to on one morning. In their despair of finding a cure for my sickness, they place all their hopes on whatever was there. I suppose anyone in their predicament would have done such an act. They bought some fruits, a pair of candles and some joss-sticks to offer whatever was there at the foot of that tree. Their desire for my recovery was sincere and great enough to place all their hopes there. They prayed very hard, asking me to join them in praying for my life. And believe it or not, (Well, I am still strong and healthy at the age of seventy-two.) I slowly but gradually recovered. I took no new batch of medicine but my appetite and strength returned little by little. After a few months of absence from school, I was eventually able to return to school to the surprise of my form-teacher and my class-mates.
A miraculous recovery without the use of any medicine, it definitely was. When I related this to a friend who belonged to a certain religion, he told me it was the work of the devil. Was it the work of the devil? If it was the devil's work, he must have been a good devil, a godly devil. He saved my life, didn't he? Was the devil trying to convince me too join him? To be his disciple? No, it cannot be when that so-called devil was so godly in his deed. He saved me. He gave hope to my despairing parents. Instead of being devilishly delighted with the sadness and hopelessness of my folks and I, he brought in rays of happiness.
So, I believe it is the work of almighty God. If religious people, people who belong to a religion and who believe in God, almighty God, who can reach us in His powerful, mysterious ways, then all God-believing people like me, should believe He has the power to assist us in whatever way necessary. As He is almighty, there is no place he cannot be. His love and blessings will be available no matter the situation. I believe all is possible where God is concerned. No obstacle is too great for Him. Such obstacles only exist in the mind of mortal men who think it is impossible.for this or that to happen. Thank God for that

Oh, God!, part 1

Since young I have believed in the existence of God. I would not have been alive today or be doing what interested me most today if god had not directed me towards it.

When I was young, I was sickly and weak. One such health problem was rheumatic arthritis which attacked me at a most unexpected age, at least for most of the folks at that time, when I was merely six years old. They claimed it was an old person's sickness and here was me, too young to be struck by this kind of pain in the joints. Once it became so painful and the swelling as so bad that I could not walk. I was living in Caunter Hall, Penang at that time. Not far from this Chinese village where my parents rented part of an upper portion of a wooden was a temple where, neighbours told my parents, was a medium who had miraculously cured many who seek her help. So, I was taken there one afternoon when the medium was in a trance. The medium told my parents to leave me on the floor just outside that temple. I must admit her looks and prancing behaviour  in no way gave me any confidence that she was going to be my saviour. Run? I could not even raise myself off the floor. The rheumatic pain was that bad. If i could even walk I would have broken any walking record to disappear from the scene. Helpless, I was. Before I could even cry for help, the huge lady medium was stepping over my feet. But she was fast and soon the torture was over. What a relief! Next, she ordered me to stand up and walk. Well, i did just that. there was certainly no need for a repeated instruction. And i did walk! I walked home all by myself. Unbelievable? For everyone else, perhaps. For me, it happened. What cured me? Was it fear? Was it the work of God? I did not really know. But, looking back after a number of other incidents, I believe it is the work of God through that medium. Why not? After all, we do know that God, no matter where you religious belief lie, is all almighty. He does his will, sometimes through mysterious ways.

Of course, there are those who say that it is the work of the devil, to convince me of its power. If it is really the work of the devil, then these people have to admit that the devil does do good and at least once relieved a poor, painful innocent little boy from agonizing pain. Anyone would have to admit that was a good deed for any devil, even if this little boy could have been a wee bit naughty during that young age. No, I did not become any devil's disciple, as anyone who truly knows me can confirm. So, I would like to think that God, in His mercy, gave this boy, me, a chance to build his health, become more active in activities good for the immune system and the opportunity to be a state gymnastic coach when I became a teacher until my retirement at age fifty-six in 2002. For all this, I have God to thank. Thoughts of Him is constantly with me to this day and the reason for this will be revealed in the next few remembrances of His presence in my life.