All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth...my two front teeth...yes my two front teeth. That's quite a well known children's favourite Christmas song.

But for me, perhaps, what I want for Christmas this year is a REPLACEMENT MAID. Our maid is acting up again and early this morning, she calls it quits. Not for the first time though. But I think enough is enough. Many friends and relatives have asked why we have been so patient with this maid of ours for the last 3 1/2 years. We also ask ourselves why. Why do we get ourselves into mental distress over a maid who is goes into insubordination moods as and when she feels like it? Why do we keep forgiving her over and over again?

Because Jesus, that's why. Because we identify ourselves with Jesus's suffering. Because despite our stubbornness and insubordination to God, God still forgives us when we repent. Of course, forgiveness shall require that the party at wrong does not repeat the same mistakes. It is not a blanket forgiveness as some might want to believe or are led to believe. Some think that Christians have a free passport where all they need to do is just to ask for forgiveness from God everytime they do something wrong. But they continue to repeat the wrongs wilfully. Take for example, gambling. It is forbidden by God. Let's just say I go to the casino and placed some bets. After that I ask God for forgiveness. Feeling "cleansed", I go about my life and a couple of days later, go back to the casino to try my luck again. And then I ask for forgiveness again. Afterall, God forgives, right? Right. But one would be wrong to assume that there will be no consequences for such repeated and wilful rebellious acts against God.

John 8:1 - 11 illustrates this:-

1But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. 3The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group 4and said to Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" 6They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.

But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." 8Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.

9At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. 10Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"

11"No one, sir," she said.
"Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin."

Neither will I condemn my maid for her wrongful ways. I am not going to stop her from leaving. I have done all I can to correct her in her ways and my conscience is clear. I just hope that when she leaves this place, she would have learnt the things that we were trying to teach her thoughout the 3 1/2 years.

Meanwhile, will someone get me a replacement maid please??


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