He Changes The Times

By Lunminthang Haokip *

A bash hosted by The State IAS Association at Officers' Club, Lamphelpat, Imphal in honour of four retiring IAS Cadre officers, Shri I.S Laishram, Shri Binod Kispotta (re-tyred), Shri V.Thangzasiam and Shri R.K Sukumar

24th March, 2012: The evening of 24th March, 2012 marked the official entry of the newly conferred IAS officers of Manipur-Tripura Cadre (Manipur Segment) into the charmed circle. A bash hosted by The State IAS Association at Officers' Club, Lamphelpat, Imphal in honour of four retiring IAS Cadre officers, Shri I.S Laishram, Shri Binod Kispotta (re-tyred), Shri V.Thangzasiam and Shri R.K Sukumar, for three of whom IAS became "I am sixty", was well attended.

Majority of the members of the said Association turned up and warmed up the evening with inputs of social nicety. The Chief Secretary of Manipur, Shri D.S Poonia graced the occasion as the Cheer-Guest and delivered a befitting grand speech on his observations on the honoured officers after the retirees and a few senior bureaucrats spoke briefly on the service experiences they shared with the retiring former-incumbents. For a fresh entrant like me, being admitted into the top club gave me the elated feeling of a hypochondriac in a medical convention. It also reminded me of my poor testimony as a Christian.

Morning Service at LEF, Moreh: Come what may, I was hell-bent on making it on time in the morning service of Laymen's Evangelical Fellowship Church, Moreh. I woke up at 3 am and after readying myself, started off for Moreh at the wee hours of 4 am on 25 March, 2012. My hectic schedules, at times, placed me in awkward situations.

There was no way I could ask my driver to come for duty so early that morning. So I was compelled to drive by myself all the way on the 109 Kms, recently improved, stretch of the Imphal-Moreh highway. Being twin-minded, like dual-core facility in Laptops, helped me to silently prepare the messages to be given to congregations in the two Churches that day.

Strengthening of Belief: Some of the residents of Moreh have not woken up by the time I landed at the border town at 6 30 am. After savouring my favourite idli breakfast at a road-side dhaba, I headed for the Church meeting. Brother Thomas of Moreh centre was surprised to see me arrive so early. Brother Mangkhup Aimol took the prelims. The message I delivered with blessing from God was on how God spared me to serve Him.

There were many occasions when I could have been abandoned by the Almighty for my sins of omission and commission. But His grace saw me come out triumphant from circumstantial odds and trials in my personal and professional life.

The way my Lord shepherded a foolish "sheep" like me, who knew not his next step, from hay-dry to lush-green pastures had impacted deep down in me to strongly believe all the more that, " God changeth the times and the seasons, He removeth kings and setteth up kings; He giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding: (Daniel 2:21)".

Meeting At Valpabung: Across the international border, two Kms into Myanmar territory, near Namphalong Market, half a Km from the imposing under-construction Teddim Baptist Church, there is a sleepy scattered Thadou-Kuki village called Valpabung that awaits spiritual stir-up.

The 25th of March, 2012 happened to be the day the different denominational Churches of the village came together at KVTBA Church for the "Khopi Maicham" day. The Church leaders and members gathered at 2 pm IST when the scheduled time was 1 pm. It made me wonder whether putting on a wrist watch was at odds with the people's sense of keeping appointed time. I was invited there to grace the service as the Preacher.

Meeting At Valpabung, near Namphalong Market

The Theme: The theme of the event was taken from 2 Chronicles Chapter 7 verse 14, " If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land".

Are We His People?: The nondescript Myanmar village desired restoration and spiritual revival as the theme suggested. They, for that matter, are not better or worse than other Thadou Kuki Church-folks. They represent the tepid general will. In the order of the service, what I saw belied what the host Church desired.

God's people must stand for God's Word. Exodus Ch. 32: verse 26 vouched for the staunch stand of the tribe of Levi for the Lord in the face of future-defining challenge, "Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is in the Lord's side? Let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him". The singular step of obedience and faith to and in the call to be on God's side provided all the physical and spiritual needs of the tribe of Levi till the New Testament times.

Pray For Change: How could we say we are God's people when we have no basic discernment as to whether we should sing folk-songs in a Holy Church service. If desire is not to bring about event-mismanagement by lifting up the flesh through un-sanctified song items, we better repent deeply and set the order of our services right.

Until then, repentance, God's hearing from heaven, seeking His face, restructuring and revival are far dreams to achieve and healing of the land will be s contradiction in terms.

God honours those who honour Him, says 1 Samuel 2:30. All said and done, as a community, the pulls and pushes of the moorings of our traditional comfort zone still hold us back from "turning from our ways". Let us all pray fervently that the good Lord, in His infinite mercy, may reverse the self-defeating trend in the days to come.

Lunminthang Haokip

* Lunminthang Haokip, a resident of Old Lambulane, Imphal and posted at Moreh, Manipur is a regular contributor to e-pao.net. He can be contacted at lunminthang(dot)haokip(at)gmail(dot)com or his blog here
This article was webcasted on March 29, 2012.