Where Is My Focus?
My mother, who was a single parent in Singapore, employed a nanny to take care of us children while she was at work. Only many years later did I realize how profoundly my nanny had influenced my thinking and behavior. She used to tell us, "If people treat you well, treat them better than they have treated you; but if they treat you badly, treat them worse than they have treated you!"
Meaning And Purpose
When our daughter was 3 years old, my wife and I introduced her to the "fine art" of dishwashing. It amuses me that many preschoolers want to wash dishes but parents refuse to let them. Then, when they become teenagers and no longer desire to clean plates, parents insist that they do.
Meaningful Work
In the London Tube, England's underground rail system, one travel agent's advertisement declared: "Your work is meaningless. And you'll die having achieved comparatively little. You need a holiday." Those words do indeed describe the feeling of many who are "sick and tired" of their work.
For The Name Of The Lord
Matthew Henry, the famous Bible scholar, was once accosted by thieves and robbed. In his diary, he wrote: "Let me be thankful first, because I was never robbed before; second, because they took my purse and not my life; third, because although they took my all, it was not much; and fourth, because it was I who was robbed, not I who robbed."
Knowing God's Will
I tell my friends in jest that I make three difficult decisions every day: What should I eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner? I live in Singapore, where we enjoy the food of the Chinese, Malay, and Indian cultures, to name just a few. We are spoiled by having so many choices.
Finishing Well
I read a humorous story about a bloodhound. He started chasing a deer but a fox crossed his path, so he started chasing the fox instead. After a while, a rabbit crossed his path, so the hound chased the rabbit. Yet later, a mouse crossed his path and the hound chased the mouse into a hole. The hound, which had begun his hunt on the trail of a magnificent deer, ended up watching a mouse hole!
Right Timing
I live in Singapore, so I had more than a casual interest in the 1997 Asian economic crisis. It came suddenly and caught most people offguard. One day people were rich and the next day they were poor.
Paying The Price
Imagine being able to do anything you wanted to do without having to be concerned about costs or consequences. You could have success without risk or sacrifice. A happy marriage without having to work at it. Education without exams.
Why Am I Not Blessed?
When my friends from the United States came to visit me in Singapore, I was surprised that they walked into my home without removing their shoes. Because of our cultural differences, I thought their lack of concern about tracking in dirt was strange.
