Walk in Grace, Grow in Faith

Sudden and completely unexpected. Our helper and caregiver to my father-in-law sat up in bed this Monday morning, had a drink of water and a spoonful of porridge, then said she was breathless, before collapsing on her bed. She had been ill on Sunday and had lay in bed sleeping. We thought it was her usual stomach ailment, which had caused her pain, on and off, since she joined us in December last year. This pain was usually relieved within a day or two by arcoxia and it appeared to be the same this time round. I was already at work in the clinic when Lwin collapsed. As God had ordained it, my daughter was at home today, because she was told to start her first day of work as a newly minted Medical Officer only on Tuesday. We had thought it unusual not to start work on a Monday, but this was another lesson on God’s timing and providence. Lwin was found in her collapsed state by our other helper, Thandar, who called Jan for help. Jan quickly realised that Lwin had no pulse and was not breathing. She immediately applied CPR and called 995. Within 5 minutes, a First Responder arrived at the scene. He was a member of the public, who happened to be in the vicinity. Paramedics arrived another 5 minutes later in an ambulance. Other responders arrived soon after. Jan followed Lwin to the hospital in the ambulance and resuscitative efforts continued for a good 15 minutes, at the emergency department. Unfortunately, Lwin could not be revived and was pronounced dead at the hospital. What are the blessings on a day such as this? I saw God’s hand at work, directing the events. They may have been shocking to us, but not to God. He sent angels in the form of responders to our distress call (there were at least 10, comprising 4 paramedics, 3 persons from our neighbour across the road and 3 members of the public). God was assuring us that we were not alone. One of the paramedics spoke to me on the phone whilst I was in the clinic and assured me that they were doing their best to revive Lwin. The eventual outcome was tragic, but there was peace throughout. Jan was guided by the Spirit and her presence of mind to start CPR and call 995 for help was the work of the Holy Spirit in her. I was not part of this morning’s story. But I know God was present. Postscript: I went to the mortuary the following day to identify Lwin’s body after the postmortem. Her face was serene and she seemed to be smiling even. I thank God for Timothy and Angie, who helped me through the process of collecting Lwin’s body, arranging for her cremation (on Thursday) and repatriation of her ashes to her family in Myanmar.

The nature of Scientific theories is always evolving: Science relies on a process of questioning, testing, and observing. Old theories are regularly modified when new data appears. Scientific models are rooted in evidence, it’s provisional and limited by human observation. But we don’t stop Science. I do wish science will continue to investigate creations. Einstein didn’t believe God played dice with the universe. We need to know our origin. We need to know the purpose. But I believe science cannot give an answer. We cannot investigate a universe outside of God. We are meant to trust God. We do not need to know the future to live faithfully today. “For from him and through him and for him are all things.”— Romans 11:36 Ecclesiastes 3:11 reminds us that human beings, although conscious of eternity, cannot comprehend God's work “from beginning to end.” We observe reality from within a limited temporal perspective; God is not confined by that limitation. There is only one answer to the deepest mysteries and tensions of Science. “All things have been created through him and for him… and in him all things hold together” - Colossians 1:16–17. Only in him, all things hold together. Not mathematics, not physics, not cosmology. Science doesn’t hold and cannot hold any theories of creations. God is the Creator and ultimate ground of all reality that exists. God was never a scientific object waiting to be discovered by a telescope. Perhaps the mystery is not that humanity has failed to see everything. Perhaps the mystery is that we can see anything at all. 2 Corinthians 4:18 says "So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” We should. We understand that the universe was created by the “word” of God, so what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. “God’s word is fixed and eternal in heavens”. - Psalm 119:89. His word stands firm forever, no revisions needed and cannot be revised. Proverbs 30:5-“Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him”. This does not need updates or corrections to match any shifting human trends. This is how I believe it’ll be: “For now” we see only a reflection as in a mirror; “then” we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; “then” I shall know fully. — 1 Corinthians 13:12 Then, “The dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.”— 1 Corinthians 15:52 And then we saw, and “I saw a new heaven and a new earth.” — Revelation 21:1. Until then… Amen and may God's Word bless us all and give us peace. Numbers 6:24–26: "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace”.

Previously: Why does time appear to flow if fundamental physics does not require a universal moving present? Ecclesiastes 3:11“He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” This striking parallel shows humanity experiences time locally while being unable to comprehend existence “from beginning to end.” God makes all things appropriate, right, and beautiful in His own time, not always according to human schedules. People cannot fully grasp or map out the entirety of God's work from start to finish, which invites a posture of humility and trust. The science quest continues: quantum mechanics arrived in 1925 to build on top of Einstein theory and then came quantum entanglement. It discovered that when two particles (like protons) are entangled, measuring a property of one particle (such as its spin) “instantly” determines the property of the other particle—even if they are light-years apart. Because this happens at the exact same time (instantaneously), there is no time for a light signal to travel between them to "share" the information. That defy Einstein own physics - nothing can travel faster than the speed of light. Einstein was deeply uncomfortable and called it spooky action at a distance. He believed the particles must have hidden, pre-determined settings from the start, a concept known as local “realism”. Colossians 1:16–17 “All things have been created through him and for him… and in him all things hold together.” Colossians do not contain quantum-gravity equations, rather Physics has not yet found the deepest unifying description of reality, the ultimate unity of creation rests in God ! Scientific theory of consciousness, reality and observation later developed along side Einstein theory. John Stewart Bell in 1964 directly addresses the “conflict” between Albert Einstein’s concept of local realism and the counterintuitive nature of quantum mechanics. Decades later, Alain Aspect, John Clauser and Anton Zeilinger performed landmark experiments involving entangled photons. Their work was recognized with the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics for experiments establishing “violations” of Bell inequalities theorem and pioneering quantum information science. While Bell’s Theorem remains a pillar of quantum physics, modern scientific exploration into the actual mechanics of consciousness later has refined towards theories like Sir Roger Penrose and Stuart Hameroff's Orch-OR theory (which links consciousness to quantum gravity collapse inside brain microtubules) or Integrated Information Theory (IIT). We see that for hundreds of years, science has been studying creations. It has disagreements, tensions and faces constant refinements. But Isaiah 40:8 states that whilst grass withers and flowers fade, the word of God stands forever. Matthew 24:35 quotes Jesus, saying heaven and earth will pass away, but His words will never pass away and Psalm 119:89: God's word is fixed and eternal in the heavens. Science does not prove God, but its deepest discoveries and unresolved tensions implicitly makes the case for God! “Now we know in part; then we shall know fully.” 1 Corinthians 13:12 to be continued….