How Is Your Heart Today?

Our local newspaper carried the news of reactions from "netizens" in response to a donation drive by the NTU Student Union for one of its student who was suffering from Leukaemia.

The New Paper reported that an informal online poll on a local forum showed that close to 80 per cent of the 120 forum users did not want to donate money to help 18-year-old Li Bingbing, who is a scholar from China. The reason is because he is a foreigner.

I was rather disturbed with this reaction. I mean, donation is purely personal. You can decide to who or what you want to donate to but why do you need to brand them as not worthy of your help simply because he is not one of us? Is he not a human being?

There was a follow up story after the story broke of how a Singaporean man, Mr Lim whose daughter was saved through a transplant where the bone marrow was donated by a man in China.

Mr Lim felt that even if those netizens did not want to donate, they should not have condemned the donation drive.

'They may be disgruntled, but to deny someone an opportunity to life reflects badly on themselves.

'Such reactions are very revealing of the heart of the person,' he said.

How true!

The classic story of the "The Good Samaritan" needs to be repeated here. Jesus narrated this parable in response to a question being asked, "Who is my neighbour?"

Being a neighbor to someone is not limited to family relations or proximity. It is showing the love of God to all who are in need, who ever they may be, where ever they may be.

I pray that as Singapore progressed and becomes more and more affluent, our hearts will continue to be more and more compassionate towards all in need, regardless of race, religion or status. After all, we are all created equal.

Luke 10:25-37

On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?". "What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?" He answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" "You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live." But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" In reply Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'

"Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?"

The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him." Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise." ( NIV )