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Your question
reminded me the first and
also the last convention
that my daughter attended in
Singapore in 2009.
Before
attending the convention,
the elders told the friends
that the workers wanted them
to dress standardly clothes
and to set example to other
people when coming in
Singapore.
The dressing
is not a problem with
elderly people such as me
but it is a problem to young
ladies, among them there was
my daughter. Sometimes
sister workers contributed
their ideas or reminded the
friends.
After the
convention, on the day we
returned to Viet Nam. While
we were waiting the
departure time, some workers
and friends gathered to sing
hymns. I also sat down to
sing with them, holding my
grandchild in my arms in
order my daughter could be
free her hands to pack the
suitcase. After finishing
packing, she went about to
look for me and the child in
order to bottle feed the
baby and give him drug to
take (the baby had fever, I
and my daughter had taken
him to the hospital in
Singapore to see the doctor)
When seeing
my daughter going convention
and being strenuous with the
baby, uncle Châu saw Nguyện
entering to look for me and
the child, he was
compassionate to her and
asked her to join to sing
the hymns. He also took the
picture of that cosy place.
Only a few
minutes after that, a young
sister worker, named Hải
(English name Ruby) came and
talked into my ears: “You
should tell you daughter to
change the dress more
secretive!!!...”
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Sharontheriches,
thank you for your analysing
and sharing…there are many
issues that we need to think
of in order to see which is
the most important. Which
one brings us to the
salvation: the dressing of
clothes or the Spirit.
Turning back
the story of my daughter in
Singapore in a convention in
2009. I knew that my
daughter had done all her
effort and overcome many
difficulties in order to
attend the convention.
Now,
everybody in the room could
see the young worker coming
between me and my daughter
and talking something into
my ears. Immediately after
that my daughter embraced
the child out of the room. I
couldn’t let my daughter in
such state of mind, I ran
after her…
Looking the
picture you can see my
parents and my youngest
sister sitting in the
opposite row, my elder
sister on the left of me.
When seeing
me standing up running after
my daughter, my younger
sister yelled (perhaps she
wanted to let everyone know
her spirit): “you should
not defend your daughter,
you should stand by the
workers!!!”
Despite
what she said, I ran after
my daughter, keeping up with
her at the top of the
staircase. She both walked
and cried. My daughter and I
were not a type of talking a
lot, and everything happened
too fast for me to know
something to talk to her. I
only cried with my daughter.
My daughter said: “When I
want to endeavor to better
myself, I will be trampled
into a deep pit…why they
much value the outer
appearance.
Until
now when I retell you this
story, my tears still shed,
I can not express all the
state of my heart at that
time, the difficulties that
I and my daughter
experienced before, during
and even after the
convention. At that time my
son would have an access
examination into the
university so my husband
stayed at home with him.
My
daughter returned to her
room in a nearby hotel, I
stopped at the banister
alone. A moment later, that
young lady worker coming
near me. When I exposed to
her my daughter’s heart and
ideas, she said: “Excuse me.
Normally I don’t put much
attention to the
outside/appearance. I don’t
know why today I care much
about it.”
In fact in
that convention, there were
some foreign ladies wore
dresses freshly(I don’t have
English word here but I
think you understand) even
in the gathering.
I
don’t defend my daughter,
but I see that the dresses
is not the most important
thing. Otherwise, at that
time it was not a fellowship
gathering, it was only a
sudden singing gathering to
fill up the empty hours
while we waited the bus to
the airport.
Traveling
near the midday, holding the
child in fever, of course my
daughter had to choose the
most appropriate dress in
that situation, me also.
With that dress it was still
normal when she was on
board…but a trauma has left
a scar in her heart until
now.
Your question
reminded me the verses in
the Bible
In Psalm
51:6 “ Yet
you desired faithfulness
even in the womb”
Jesus reminded the Pharisees
. Matthew
23:27 “Woe
to you, teachers of the law
and Pharisees, you
hypocrites! You are like
whitewashed tombs, which
look beautiful on the
outside but on the inside
are full of the bones of the
dead and everything unclean. |
