Be Thankful For The Roses

“Praise the LORD, O my soul;

all my inmost being,

praise his holy name.

Praise the LORD, O my soul,

And forget not all his benefits –

who forgives all your sins

and heals all your diseases,

who redeems your life from the pit

and crowns you with love and compassion,

who satisfies your desires with good things

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle.”

(Psalm 103: 1-5)

It’s said that we can worry to sickness. On the other hand we can will ourselves to health. Whatever the circumstances, our state of health depends upon our frame of mind. With changing times and circumstances we need to learn to tune our attitude positively along.

As the years ahead of us diminish with the accumulation of the years behind us, living beyond the three scores and ten years of age is by the grace of God. We should be thankful for the bonuses ahead, and all the more grateful for the good health that we enjoy. Understandably, health and life are not within our power of control. Therefore, cherish lest you perish!

In the rose garden, people admire the different hues of beauty of the roses. However, there are those who complain about the thorns. But life is never meant to be a bed of roses without the thorns. As a young man, I love roses but never wanted to grow them simply because of the thorns. With love and admiration for the roses, I learnt to accept and respect their thorns.

All things are beautiful, but circumstances and motives of gain, greed, power and control turn them otherwise. For instance, gunpowder initially in the hands of the Chinese was used for celebration purposes as firecrackers. No sooner when discovered by the Westerners, guns and ammunition and other weapons of destruction took over.

In this beautiful Psalm above, there are seven meaningful verbs, well chosen to instil a process of hope and positiveness . . . forget, forgives, heals, redeems, crowns, satisfies, and renewed. Let our lives reflect these positives and steer onwards and upwards towards our ever-forgiving God, faithful and true.

Paul Chong