Meekness

Sorry for such the late post..

Yesterday's passage was kind of hard to understand.. but what I did get out of it is that meekness is not a bad thing. We are supposed to be humble beings and that means being meek in front of others. We are not to act as if we have the authority in the world, or act worldy.. to act meek is like showing the worldly things do not take precedence in your life. Paul says, "We do not fight with weapons of the world." The power of God and the love He is, are our weapons. Being humble is especially one way to fight the things of this world.

I want to practice being more humble.. sometimes i certainly think that i am better than some people in some ways, but i have no right to do that because i am a sinner. we are all the same in God's eyes - His children. So let us not be boisterous and haughty, but humble and meek.

Christ's Character

"You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion."

Wow what a humbling verse. I try so hard these days to save up my possessions - money, time...energy (haha) - only to be reminded that these are not my own, nor are they things that I should be hoarding by myself. God gives and provides so that we can share.. and not share just what we're willing to give away.. but be generous and share what God has willed us to give away from the beginning. I've been really selfish lately, and this verse feels like a good scolding =) I need to remember that I am God's, and what is mine is God's, too.

환란속의 하나님의 위로

바울은 마게도냐 지방에서 극심한 환란을 당합니다. 그러나 그는 그 환란속에서도 주님의 위로를 받고 믿음으로 견뎌냈습니다. 그리고는 고린도인도 교인들에게 "봐라, 하나님을 섬기는 나도 환란을 당했다. 하지만 하나님께서는 그 속에서 나를 주님의 은혜로 위로 하셨다."라고 말합니다.

주님께 쓰임 받는 일은 생각처럼 순탄한 것은 아닙니다. 하나님을 섬기는 일은 밑지고 살아야 하는 것입니다. 한나라의 왕이었던 다윗도, 국무총리였던 요셉도, 어찌보면 자기 자신을 의지하며 살법도 한데 그들은 그러지 않았습니다. 그들의 지위를 놓고 보면 고생을 한번도 안했을법 한데, 하나님께서는 기나긴 환란을 그들에게 주셨습니다.

어려움속에서 그들이 택한것은, 슬픔과 애통이 아닌 하나님의 위로를 바란것이었습니다. 환란속에서 고통당할때 우리의 기도를 들어 주시는 주님이 있기에 우리는 더 큰 소망을 더 큰 꿈을 꿀수 있습니다. 모든 상황 속에서 모든 것을 내려놓고 주님의 이끄심을 느끼는 하루가 되길 바랍니다.

Being One With God

The part of today's passage that stuck out to me the most was about opening our hearts. Last night I just found a song that will be added to my favorites list - "You'll Come." In the chorus, there is a part where the lyrics are "flood into our empty hearts again." In order to do that, we must open our hearts. Often times, as our Christian lives go on we tend to harden our hearts because of a dry spot in our relationship with God, or because God is willing for our hearts to be hardened for a revelation when we fills us again. I would say I am still in a pretty dry stage right now.. and listening to that song, I really want to open my heart again to God..

In the second part of today's passage, I agree and disagree with not interacting with non-believers. I understand it is not good to be in a place where you can compromise your Christian beliefs, but I believe if you are strong enough in your faith, you can fight the temptations that come in that setting. It is good to grow up in a community with Christians, but then again, sometimes people become sheltered to what is outside of them, namely non-believers, and possibly will come to think of non-believers as people that are not as good as them. This is all hypothetical, but I think it is okay to be friends with non-believers, just as long as you have a faith that is strong enough to not be influenced by worldly things.

All in God's (good) Time

This was a hard passage for me. I didn't feel like I got anything out of it. But then I realized why - I don't wait on God. Instead of trusting that God is never late, never early but always on time, I try to take my life into my own hands. And if it were on purpose, that would at least say something about my acknowledging God's perfect timing, right? Instead, I don't even realize that I try to make decisions and handle the pettiest and the greatest problems all by my lonesome. That's kinda bad. It says that I rely on Him so little that I forget about Him and how perfect His will and His timing really are.

So what do I do about this? I think it could be really easy for me to choose a vague application and just.. kinda do it (last like time...) but this is something I really wanna fix. I know that prayer is something I'm really really lacking because most of the time, I just don't feel like stopping and praying. It takes a lot of discipline to become a strong woman of prayer, but if prayer can help me rely on God more and just be still and know that He is God (and it can), then I want to be disciplined in prayer. I want to trust that God is faithful in hearing my prayers and in answering them according to His will and His timing, so I'm gonna pray. Keep me accountable!

Looking Heavenward

I have to be honest in confessing that QT hasn't been happening regularly in my life lately, and that I consciously skipped last week after conjuring up a string of excuses not to do it. Obviously, having a strict self-discipline is not at all an easy thing for me... and I probably need accountability more than ever in times like this when I'm spiritually struggling to grow. Nevertheless, I found today's passage really blessing and I thank God for it.

I've always wondered if there will ever come a time when I'll be able to finally settle down somewhere and just live a stable life forever. My life seems to be always on a journey somewhere, uprooting me from the places I found comfortable and placing me at a strange place, only to grow comfortable once again and follow this vicious cycle. First, my family never lived in one house for more than five years. Likewise, I didn't have many friendships that lasted more than five years. And there was no church that I could call my home church for more than five years. I really wish things were different.

But the Scripture tells me otherwise. "Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands." The building from God is where God wants me to call home. It's indestructible, it's always there, and it's open for me - and God tells me that I belong there. I can live in the grandest of all mansions a man could build, but to God, it'd only be as feeble as a tent.

I realized today, that my deepest desire is still set on reaching the utopia of stability and comfort. And I also realized today, that this desire will leave me in a tent, in a desert, without a solid place to call home. Living a stable life is desirable, but it's such an empty purpose for life. Where I am now, whether I'm doing spiritually/materially doing well or not, is only a temporary stopover - but not a permanent dwelling. If I ever desire a home, I want that be in heaven. (And take comfort in knowing that.)

자유함

오늘 주님께서 제게 주신 말씀은 "주의 영이 계신 곳에는 자유함이 있느니라" 입니다.
물질, 학업, 지위, 또는 관계들 속에서 우리는 진정한 자유함을 얻지 못할때가 많습니다. 이런 저희에게 주님께서는 우리 가슴속에 성령님이 임재 하시면 진정한 자유를 얻는다고 하십니다.

우리가 주님안에 거하면 자유를 얻게 되는 이유는 하나님께서 저희를 만드신 창조주이기 때문에 가능한 일입니다. 노예제도가 있던 시절 주인이 그의 노예에게 자유를 주기 전까지 노예들은 평생을 노예로 고통받으며 살아갑니다. 왜냐하면 노예들은 그들의 주인에게 속해있기 때문입니다.

하나님안에 속한 우리들은 종들이 그 주인을 섬기듯 하나님을 섬기며 살아갑니다. 하지만 주님게서는 우리에게 자유함을 주셨습니다. 세상에 얽매이지 않고 살아갈수 있는 자유를 주셨습니다. 주님이 우리를 위해 예비하신 영광의 면류관을 바라보며 세상것들에 치여 걱정하기 보다는 주님의 참 자유를 느끼며 즐겁게 주님을 섬겨야 하겠습니다.

Confidence in the Gospel

I liked the first part of today's passage because I feel it gives us a responsibility. When I think of letters of recommendation, I think of the letters that professors and teacher, etc write for someone to make that person look good. But the Christians back then, as Paul said, did not need them because we were their letters. And even today, there are the letters of recommendation in our hearts, because it is God who sent the Spirit into them. The covenant we have in our hearts is the real letter that shows how good we are. The goodness in our hearts is what is supposed to exude from us. We are the face of God, meaning what people see, so we must be emulators of Him. We are made in the image of God, so let us live up to it. At least try to, and that makes all the difference.

At first I didn't get the second part of the passage because it kind of goes around and around. But the gist of it is that there is glory in God and nothing in law. All that is going to matter is God's law only.. not the law of man. We worry about the world a lot and the things that are in it, but once we remember that those things aren't eternal the stress slightly goes away. School, jobs, friends, money are not eternal, so we constantly need to be reminded that glory is in the ministry that brings righteousness, not condemnation.

The only words that stood out to me in today's QT were "aroma" and "fragrance". The devotional explains that these words are referring to the burnt offerings from the Old Testament. Even though we don't physically give God sacrifices or offerings anymore, we still need to offer things up to Him - control of our lives, our hearts, our money, etc., etc. It's interesting because this past week, my Bible study class looked at how our views change when we consider ourselves offerings to God. It drastically changes everything. What was once easily overlooked in the past can no longer just be ignored - how can we possibly offer something dirty up to God? We should offer up something that will leave a sweet aroma, a sweet fragrance for God. But when our hearts are filled with sin to the brim, then what will inevitably spill out when we stumble.. is sin.

I desire to be the aroma of Christ, a sacrifice in which God is well pleased. In order for that to happen, I need a clean heart, a heart that will spill out Christ's fragrance rather than sin. "It's not that we are good or important enough to be the fragrance that pleases God, but it's Christ in us that gives off the fragrance to the world around us." That is both liberating and humbling. But how I can apply this practically is the real issue. I want to try this one day at a time, so tomorrow I want to try going through the day with Christ in control. I always get so frustrated and irritated with things that are out of my control, but I want to change my mindset and have a prayerful heart so I can be at peace with whatever God throws at me tomorrow. Wish me luck hehe!

The Victory through Jesus

Today's passage is kind of related to what Pastor DeWayne talked about on Sunday. The life we live now is not limitless. We have a fixed amount of time on earth and we are ultimately waiting to go see God and spend eternity with Him. I never really wondered how that process would be, though. In verse 52 it says, "in a flash." When I read the heading for this portion of the passage I was kind of amused, and I thought "What does this mean?" It really is just unfathomable that the change from mortal to immortal is going to happen that fast.. when you hear stories of going to heaven there's that one question that you're going to be asked, "What makes you deserve to be in heaven?" or something along those lines. Is it after the question that you're going to transform? Thinking about it is scary and truly amazing.

That is the victory we have in Christ. Our lives will not end when our natural bodies die, but we will have eternal life in the spiritual body like yesterday's passage says. The victory in Jesus is life, but while we are in our natural form, we should still make the best of it and life according to God's plan. He has plans for everyone and while we fulfill them we should reflect God's heart - love, kindness, forgiveness, mercy, grace.

So I want to live my one life and be happy in it serving God. I do not want to waste the time God has given me on this earth, so i want to be more loving, supportive and prayerful towards those around me. Don't you?

Heavenly

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today's QT talks about the resurrection we will experience with Christ on the Day. I'm honestly a little confused about the first part, but this entire passage just seems so beautiful as I imagine what that Day will be like, whether I fully comprehend this passage today or not. "What you sow does not come to life until it dies." We don't experience true life until after death -- whether he's talking about spiritual death or natural death, I'm not so sure -- but what an awesome idea to know that after death, we still have life! And after death, we will "bear the likeness of the man from heaven." When we are resurrected, we will bear the image of Christ, of Heavenly beings. We will be raised imperishable, in glory, in power, in Christ's image.

As beautiful as this image is, it's saddening to think that many of our loved ones won't get to share in this same happy ending. We can change that though, with lots of prayer and through continual interaction whether they're small or big, significant or not. I need to have a greater sense of urgency in letting my friends in on the world's best kept secret. I want to believe in the power of prayer and in the power of the Holy Spirit to work in me through small and big acts so that those that I love get to look forward to such a beautiful eternity with our Father.

The Remnants

Verse 24 reminded me of the "remnants" from the Old Testament. God reserved for himself a several thousand Israelites who have not bowed their knees to Baal to bring about spiritual awakening to Israel, when the nation was falling into idolatry. It's so awesome that God has the power to wipe out an entire nation, but still chose to use the weak - so that the weak can be strengthened and empowered with godly power - to carry out His will.

I pondered about my weaknesses, and how God can strengthen me to fight in these areas. One of them is money. Whether rich or poor, money is a big issue in our lives. Even if I had millions of dollars, it'd still bring me problems. If I don't have much money to spend, my biggest struggle would be that I can't get what I want to get. (Or even to survive). Since money is oftentimes the test between godly wisdom and worldly wisdom, I want to conquer this area in my life. I first need to learn to conquer the money, not be conquered by it.

하나되는 예배

하나님께서는 한사람 한사람에게 각기 다른 은사를 주셨습니다. 우리는 그 은사를 통해 하나님안에서 하나가 되는 완전한 예배를 드려야 합니다. 주님께서 우리를 주님의 지체로 부르셨으니 우리는 주님의 손과 발이 되어야 합니다. 손과 발이 하는 일이 다르듯이 각기 다른 직분을 가지고 주님을 섬기지만 우리가 추구하는 것은 같습니다. 하나님의 영광을 드러내는 것입니다.

오늘 말씀은 바울이 고린고교회 성도들에게 주님이 주신 은사를 주님의 몸되신 교회의 덕을 세우는데 사용하라고 합니다. 주님께서 주신 능력을 단지 우리의 만족을 위해 사용하는 것이 아니라 하나님께 영광을 돌리도록 해야 합니다. 하나님의 뜻을 나타내는것 그것이 예배의 참된 모습이 아닐까 합니다.

주님안에서 하나되는 예배를 통해 날마다 성령님이 함께 하심을 느끼고 주님께서 인도하심을 몸소 깨닫는 저희가 되길 소원합니다.

Gifts to the World

Paul says that prophesying and speaking in tongues is the best way for unbelievers to see God's glory. But that is very difficult for some people to do. Although prophesying is one of the gifts God gives us, it is not the only thing we can do for nonbelievers to see that God exists.

Being made in the image of God, we are expected to portray the essence of God: Love. Everything we do reflects God even if it's picking up something another person dropped, or holding the door for someone. I found this passage kind of difficult to handle because I have never spoken tongues nor have I really seen someone speak it.

The passage says prophesying is the best way to show God is real, but for those who are not strong in that department, we should find other ways to show God's love - God's presence.

That is what I want to do.. I want to exude God's love.. say hi to people i normally don't say hi to, hold more doors for people..stuff like that..

Edifying Gifts

Paul tells us to desire gifts that will edify the church, and he also says that we should follow the way of love, God's love. Putting these together, Paul says that we should desire to edify the church out of the love we have for our brothers and sisters--this love should be rooted in the love we have received from God: selfless love. So when we use our God-given gifts and talents, we should use them not for our own gain.

It's so easy to serve the church with selfish motives. When we seek to edify, how often are we actually thinking of the church rather than ourselves? This is a challenge and an area of sin that I am constantly struggling with. I fall into pride so many times when I serve because it's so easy for my initial desire to serve the church to turn into a means of showing off my capabilities. Edifying the church quickly gets lost in the picture, and glorifying God quickly turns into glorifying myself. I want to pray for humility this week as I try to reevaluate my heart in serving God and those around me.

Pursuing Love

Today's passage is such a common passage,
but when I looked at it in QT manner, I was so confused
as to "What is love?"
It says in today's writing that Love is something that is
timeless and infinite, something that can be fully realized
when we meet God (v.12)
On the other hand, it says that every other gift such as
speaing in tongue and phrophecy, is something that is
limited to time and perhaps just a brief even that
will take place on earth...

One things that gives me impresison is that wecan fully love
God when we go meet him and it says that "I shall know fully, even
as I am fully known." This means that God's love for us is as FULL as it
can be, and we don't have a clue what that is about.

There are many things that we can pursue in life, but
I think timeless elements of life can be the most Godly
and Spiritual things that we can pursue. If we can only have
LOVE, towards others and towards God... I think all the rest will
follow well ~~ But LOVE is at times hardest thing...

I guess there are TIMES when I can feel God's love and presence,
but there are also times when I can loose that so quickly. As verse 7 says,
I think we need to DELIGHT IN TRUTH in order to know how to
have the mind and heart of Jesus Christ. Truth must drive us to a closer place
to our God.

I guess I can start by asking God to grand me his own will,
and to give me determination to die to my will and follow his and
only his...

Christianity is a long way to go.. ~~
but it starts with today's passion .. ^^
May God grant us his passion today..

One Body of Christ

As human beings we have a longing to be appreciated. Even a simple gesture of appreciation gives us motivation to do more. Likewise, bosses need to learn to appreciate their employees to improve productivity and teamwork. Disgruntled employees probably find their work taken for granted, without any recognition. I'm really particular about receiving appreciation for what I do. It's probably not a very humble attitude to have. I also have to ask myself if I'm showing appreciation for the things that I receive.

I feel like, just as much as our church is in need of servants, we need people who can encourage people by appreciating them. It's really everyone's job. Sharing in the joy and the pain of every individual can unite the body. Everyone is different, but we all have to learn to embrace (and appreciate) everyone's unique qualities, and take a step further to love them for it. Instead, too many times I'd been caught up in comparing myself to others.

I'll train myself with encouraging words. That's my application.

One Community of believers

Paul is explaining the gift of Holy Spirit to the church of Corinth, and it is interesting how I found that the gifts are given to people at the will of God, according to His purposes. Not according to ours, but according to His.
I suppose this is an obvious statement to us Christians, but if you think about it, and how we ought to apply it to our lives, it takes on another meaning. A church cannot properly function with only an arm. It needs legs to move, and so on; the different gifts are given to us to fulfill the church as a whole body, and we must remember that each and every part must function properly for the entire body to function in a healthy way.
Going back to the topic, there have been times where I feel one particular gift is always more desirable than others; if I could sing like angels, I would trade that for my little knowledge around computers and HTMLs any day! But all this is God-given, and we must respect and treasure the God-given talents and spiritual gifts, as well as those of our brothers and sisters, and work to-ge-ther to build up the body of Christ, this body of Church.

Spiritual Gifts

I think it's amazing how God knows us so well... how He created us to be so unique... and to give each of us a perfect gift to fit the individuals we are... what's more amazing is how God calls us, people who can be so different from one another, to be one body... each with a different gift... so that His work can be done...

Looking at the students in RY, there is so much potential of what God can do through them... for some, their spiritual gifts have been discovered... while others are still in the search... When I was in the youth group, I used to wonder why some people were so great at things I weren't... I remember wanting to be like them... to play the piano like them... to sing like them... all for the wrong reasons... It wasn't until I was an older member of the youth group that I learned that we are given different gifts... and that these gifts weren't used to impress others... but to be used for God's glory... I hope that our students will realize this early on... that as they grow closer to God and the Spirit reveals what their gifts are, that they own it and use it to glorify God... how awesome that would be...

참된 예배

오늘 말씀은 바울이 고린도성도들에게 그들이 교회에서 하는 행동들을 탓합니다. 그들의 행동들이 바울을 얼마나 화나게 했었는지, 바울을 그들을 절대 칭찬하지 않는다고 하였습니다. 이 당시 고린도 교회에서는 부자들이 가난한 자를 위한 나눔이 없었고 성만찬을 거룩히 여기지 않았으며 심지어 예배시간에 잠이 든다고 하였습니다. 이런 것들에 대해 바울은 많이 화가 난듯 합니다.

그러나 중요한것은 이 고린도 교회의 모습이 아직도 우리의 모습과 같다는 것입니다. 바울이 지금 저희에게 돌아온다면 우리도 같은 질책을 당할 것입니다. 저희는 교회 안에서 조차 주안에서 완전히 하나가 되지 못하고 마음이 맞는 사람들끼리 함께 합니다. 주님의 풍성한 은혜를 깨닫지 못하고 나눔을 실천하지 않습니다.

어제 SAM사역을 위한 예배를 다녀왔습니다. 지금 이순간 북한에서는 주님의 사랑을 미처 깨닫지도 못하고 굶어 죽는 아이들이, 사람들이 많이 있습니다. 가난한 형제 자매들을 모른척하는것이 비단 고린도교회의 모습이 아니라 지금 우리의 모습임을 고백합니다. 그들은 분단이후 처음으로 하게 된 성만찬때에 흐르는 눈물을 주체할수 없어했습니다. 한달에 한번 하는 성만찬을 우리는 어떻게 받아 들이고 있습니까?

우리에게 허락된 많은 것들 때문에 진정한 예배를 드리지 못할때가 많습니다. 우리가 생각하고 있는 당연한것들에 대해 주님께 감사하며 진정한 삶의 예배를 드리길 원합니다.

Authority

Today's passage really confused me.. I did not really connect with some parts of the verses.. like the ones about hair.. but then again it is probably because of the cultural difference of now and in the Roman Empire.

What I did get out of the passage is that there is always going to be someone who is above us who has authority: Pastors, bosses, teachers, parents, elders, the law. These things we have to respect and obey because it is our duty to do so, so that there can be peace (at least i think so..)

I know a lot of people are prone to wander and want to do things that go against authority, but as children of God, He is the one we have to obey because He is our Master who loves us and died for us. I have learned before that is the first and last thing we can do for what God has sacrificed for us. Being in an ethnic studies class, I learn about social hierarchies but the hierarchy presented in this passage is not based on race..

Man is the head of the woman, Christ is the head of man, God is the head of Christ. This does not mean women should worship man. BY NO MEANS will women worship men because God is at the top. The highest place belongs to God and we should be ones to being glory to his name.. so let's be examples of what God represents because that is one way to worship God and respect that He is our God.

JOY

So, when I was younger, I learned about JOY in Sunday School. JOY is putting Jesus before Others before Yourself. Corny as it is, it's true. But true as it is, it's hard. It's easy to have YJO, YOJ, and maybe even JYO; but how many times do we put ourselves last and live out JOY? Our calling to be ambassadors of Christ is three-fold, just like JOY. J - We are ambassadors of Christ; O - we are ambassadors to this world; Y - we are ambassadors.

Paul tells us that to live this out, we need to live for the glory of God, first and foremost. But next in line is "not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved." We should be careful not to cause anyone to stumble, whether they are in Christ or not. That's really hard for me to do, I realize. All I focus on is what I need and what I want, and when that comes in direct contradiction with what someone else needs and wants, I am likely to disregard the other. But when we remember not only that there is joy in being last but that there is purpose in putting others before ourselves (so that they may be saved), there is even greater joy.

Serving Two Gods

As I am reading these passages of scripture,
I wanted to think about what is my IDOL these days...
I guess my biggest enemy is TIME...
I have too many things that I want to do, and too little time
and I have too many things that I have to do, but too little time

But what I oftentimes find myself do, is not fulfilling any
but putting my hand to all of it!!

I guess I have a little bit of problem focusing too much on the
"not so necessary stuff" and vs. "must do it stuff"
And because my focus is not there, my BODY
(which belongs to God) is being abused in different ways...
How I spend my time can be serving idolatry or serving God

Just like it says in Bible that 'you can't serve two gods'
I guess my plan is to serve ONE!! but do one thing with my body
as well... serve the ONE god with ONE goal in mind.. being all sold out
for one goal... and organizing my time towards that..

hm.. ok, gotta go do HW (can't wait till i graduate)

Warnings to the Saints

How ironic, that the times I feel the strongest are also the times I'm the most vulnerable. v.12 really convicted me today, and I really feel like I need to regurgitate on the gospel message and be "saved" every day. But it's comforting to know that God won't let me be tempted beyond what I can bear, and that He'll provide a way out. Actually, since as our hearts weather more storms they become tougher and more resilient, our ability to be able to hold fast to the Word will increase - so maybe that's what Paul means by "a way out". That means those are struggling with various kinds of sins and addictions can have hope in that God is in control.

I resolve to pray for the church that is struggling to come together as a body to share in the joy and love of Christ. I'll pray that their eyes will turn to God and find Him as the only source of comfort and strength, and that God will strengthen them to be able to fight temptations.

Laying Down Our Rights

In the past few weeks, Pastor DeWayne has preached about community... what it is about... and how to become one... It all comes down to this: LOVE... love for God... love for others...

As Christians, we feel that we have certain privileges that others do not have... for example, there are Christians who feel that they have the "right" to judge those who are in sin... to point fingers at others for their wrongdoings... yet, we don't have that "right"... we are called to love others as Christ has loved us... to lay down ourselves for the sake of others... this comes so much easier when the "others" are people who love us and share their love with us... we are more inclined to reciprocate their love for us.... however, when it comes to people who are "unlovable" in our eyes, we hesitate and have less of a desire to love them... which is why, we can't do this on our own...

I think we are fortunate to have such an awesome group of students in RY because they make it easy for us to love them... I think I've taken that for granted... and have only done the "minimum" to show that I care about them... I've heard it said once before that love = time... Therefore, I want to commit more time to share Christ's love with them... through more personal contact... and definitely through more time praying for them individually...

My place in the world

I studied hard in my high school years in order to get into a good college, which can help me get a good job and be successful in this society. But I always thought that getting a job was not the end goal; it was simply a way of allowing me to do more of God's work in this world.
But over time, a job became more than just a job; it became a career and I needed to spend more time to develop my career and goals, and to be the best in what I do, not only to further glorify God but also to be happy in what I was doing.
I know that this is not simply a way of making a living, but an area though which we can glorify God, but I find it difficult at times to be able to bring God into my daily picture. I ask for His help in my daily activities and I remind myself that I cannot do this without His help; yet I am not sure how I can further God's kingdom through my line of work.
What's funny is that I know, at least in one particular occasion, one of our customer is the Church of Latter Day Saints, who would like to use our product to further their propaganda and trying to reach out to other people in the world. And though I am not a direct part of that, just knowing that a product from my company is being used for such a case, what does that make me? I know there are more questions than answers, but I think all this is part of the reason why I need to walk with God and commune with Him on a daily basis...

천국의 소망

모세 율법에 곡식을 밟아 떠는 소에게 망을 씌우지 말라 기록하였으니 하나님께서 어찌 소들을 위하여 염려하심이냐. 전혀 우리를 위하여 말씀하심이 아니냐 과연 우리를 위하여 기록된 것이니 밭 가는 자는 소망을 가지고 갈며 곡식 떠는 자는 함께 얻을 소망을 가지고 떠는 것이라.

우리는 하나님의 일꾼 (소)입니다. 하나님께서는 하나님을 위해 일하는 자들을 탓하지 말라 하십니다. 하나님은 그를 위해 일하는 일꾼을 염려하시고 걱정하시기 때문입니다. 이런 하나님의 보살핌속에서 우리는 우리의 주어진 사명을 감당하고 살아갑니다.

밭가는 자나 곡식떠는 자가 추수할 때의 소망을 가지고 살아가듯이 우리도 주님이 맡겨주신 사명을 감당하며 주님 오실날의 소망을 가지고 살아갑니다. 천국의 소망이 있기에, 주님의 약속이 있기에, 주님 말씀을 따르며 충성된 일꾼으로 살아가야 합니다.

우리가 비록 바울처럼 독신으로 모든것을 버리고 주님만을 위해 살아가지는 못하지만 그의 충성된 모습과 천국을 향한 소망을 가지고 살아가길 바랍니다.

Critical Choices

As children of Christ, we have to be an example for those who come to us for advise and things, like our students coming to talk to us about issues in school or in their life. The Corinthians did not bother to think of the consequences after they decided to eat the sacrificed meat for the pagan gods. Non-believers would see that they are eating the meat of a pagan god, which is the sign for worship, and believe that there is more than one god. That Corinthian did not make the right choice because it did not help the lost get closer to God, the One and Only.

Like everyday Christians today, there are many choices we have to make... and they have to reflect the love of God and the care He has for all his children (believing and non), for if the people around us know we are Christians and we do not do the right thing they would not think Christians are, in truth, good people. We would lead them astray, so we have to be good examples, good shepherds to the people around us... for we should want to lead our brothers and sisters closer to God or to God.

For my challenge.. I just want to have the sense in doing the right things at the critical moment so that God's love would be reflected - not to make myself look good, but so that God may be glorified and in the core of what I do.

What Drives You?

I'm a little confused by what Paul is saying when he says that we should remain in the state we were in when God first called us. Is he saying that we shouldn't focus so much on how our holiness is apparent to others but rather focus on actually trying become more holy?

Paul goes on to say that although we accumulate many responsibilities and distractions as we continue on in our journey to Christ, we need to live as though we don't have any of them. Because time is short, we can't afford to lose the time we need in order to bring God's kingdom. Taking on more responsibilities will inevitably take time away from our ministries and our time with God. But we need to know where our priorities are. It's easy to think that the more we take on, the more we're doing for God, but when we do that, it's also easier to forget the "why" because we're so focused on the "what." My Bible study class learned about worship for a few weeks now. And what we've learned over and over every week is that it doesn't matter in what form you worship or where you worship, but God desires our hearts to be in the right condition. As we serve God (in whatever way you are) let's remember that Christ is at the center, and our hearts should be set on Him alone.

Called to be there

One of the questions that I ask many times in my life,
is whether I am doing what I'm called to do.
Calling is such a complicated thing, there is never end of
a calling, and there is no "doing enough" for the calling!
It always pushes, pulls, hopes, and expects something
more everyday.

I guessPaul was commanding Corinthians church for their
up and down spiritual path. Their church is known for
abusing so many spiritual gifts that they have. And Paul
says, "Stay where you are"

As RY is starting their 2nd official meeting at Albany High
I think I had about 3 different dreams of scenario that may
happen... I woke up very confused... not knowing what's
going on. But I realize that my role is to be there, and to
encourage and to do best I can, for God does not critisize
beyong what we can do at our level !! ^^

Pray for this Thursday !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A Peaceful Relationship

It's cool how Paul promotes a peaceful (and thereby a blessing, edifying) relationship, because he's concerned not about whether it's right or wrong, but for the spiritual well-being of Christians with a desire to marry. It's his advice, a proverbial wisdom, rather than a Levitical law; and this speaks to me because Paul really cared for them and understood their position. The advice didn't come in the form of harsh rebukes.

Another thing I realized was that family's happiness reflects spiritual happiness too. Paul says that marriage comes with certain responsibilities, but that these responsibilities ultimately lead to peace in the family. For a lot of us, home is synonymous with family, and that is the place where we seek comfort and love. If there is no peace at home, it is bound to reflect elsewhere in a person's life.

Speaking of marriage, I voted Yes on Prop 8 today. It's sad that the No campaign is avoiding the terms "gay" and "lesbian" to focus on how Prop 8 would undermine a basic human right. Marriage is instituted by our Creator, and a court ordering that same sex marriage is not legal could only mean that we'd be forced to accept (note that accept is different from tolerate) this perverse form of relationship "whether we like it or not". (In the words of Mayor Gavin Newsom of SF) To me, it's not an issue of being unfair, or a threat to our rights - it's about our basic moral and ethical values that we need to protect. But regardless of the outcome, there's no doubt that the Christian community needs to understand and welcome the gay and lesbian community without passing harsh judgment on them. (But that's where we need to draw a clear boundary. This is outside the premises of Prop 8.)

Honoring God in Real Life

In today's society, we are constantly bombarded with images of sex in our surroundings... Yet, I feel that it's taboo in the church... where people who struggle with sexual sins are unable to share it openly with others, even though they may need to seek help... Because it is the reality of our world today, I wonder if our students have these struggles in their lives... and if they do, I wonder if they would ever feel comfortable to seek help from us... I think this is why we have to constantly strive to love one another through the eyes of Christ... we don't have any right to pass judgment on others, but because we do so often, people are hesitant to be completely honest... sharing things only at the surface in fear of rejection...

I think that my students would feel more comfortable to share their struggles with me and with one another if I were able to create a safe environment for them... where they will feel accepted no matter what they are going through or have already experienced in their lives... and in order to create such a place, it has to start with me, where I make myself vulnerable to them, letting them know of the struggles I had growing up and how I sought help to overcome them in my life...

Free to choose

God has given us freedom in our daily lives, but not everything we do is beneficial for us, especially we all ought to consider the fact that our bodies were brought at a price; by the blood of the lamb, and our bodies are no longer our own, but it is a temple where the Spirit resides.
In this age and days when the society has become so liberal in expressing so many sins freely, we must remind ourselves and each other that our bodies were bought at the cost of Christ's suffering, and as we share the gospel with the children of God, we have to teach them not to be swayed by the cultures of this world and these times; and that we will learn to discern the truth from lies, and become children of God who do not abuse the "freedom" that He has given us.
We ought to live this one life, not to our own benefits, but for God and it ought to show through the choices that we make, that we do not choose to follow the free ways and thinkings and practices of this age, but we choose to follow God.

세상의 판단

우리는 종종 아니 자주 세상의 판단을 받게 됩니다. 오늘 말씀은 세상이 우리를 판단하는 것이 아니라 우리가 세상을 판단할 것이라는 선포의 말씀입니다. 세상의 기준에 의하면 우리는 날마다 잃으며 살아갑니다. 주님과 함께 하는 시간, 주님께 드리는 예물은 세상의 시각에선 wasting time, wasting money입니다.

그러나 우리는 주님과 함께 하는 시간이 무엇보다도 가치있는걸 알기에 세상의 기준을 무시하고 살아갑니다. 어떤것과도 바꿀수 없는 주님이기에 세상이 판단하는 돈과 지위보다는 주님을 위한 봉사를 우선으로 합니다. 주님의 아이들에게 주님의 사랑을 알리는것이 급선무 이기에 저희는 주일학교 선생님으로 부르심을 받았습니다.

주님의 영광을 나타내는 주의 자녀가 되길 바랍니다. 마지막 날에 세상은 우리에게 판단을 받기에 오늘도 주님 오실 그날을 기다리며 주님 말씀을 붙들고 하루하루 살아가길 소원합니다.

Infesting Sin

You know.. I never really sat down and really thought about all the sin in the world for a long time.. today's passage really shows me that sin is really strong and it can even attack the best of he church.. Sin is the farthest from what we want to be; it is the farthest of what we want to do. Like the Corinthian church, the sin that plagued it was sexual immorality. It is a sin that is so strong, it still happens today..

Paul said to take sin away is like taking the old yeast out and putting new yeast into dough. The old yeast is the old self - sinful and mean - and the new yeast is the new life we have in Christ, I think..
When we invite Christ into our lives we can not have the old yeast still within us.. with it the new yeast Christ offers will never be able to grow and rise. The only way to get rid of it, now, is to confess to God our sins.. He already knows we are sinners, but what are we doing about it? like in James 5:16 - "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective."

So let's pray for each other. Keep each other accountable.. for Christianity is about relationships.. a relationship with God and a relationship with others. We are here for each other! prayer requests anyone? :]

Spiritual Parents, Not Guardians

As teachers, we have students put into our "spiritual care," as the devotional puts it. Of course, we know that this isn't something we should take lightly. But how often do we actually care for them like parents instead of just watching them like guardians? As Paul did for the Corinthians, we need to urge our students to follow us, imitate us. But before we can do that, we need to show them a Christ-like life that they can imitate. And for us to be able to do that, we need to look to Christ (duh).

The title of today's QT is "Becoming an Effective Minister." Having an effect starts not with eloquent speech or man's skills. It begins with Christ. That's it. If we earnestly follow Christ, He will make that impact for us. When we urge our students towards Christ, they need to see why, and they should see why through our life. Our life needs to be able to speak for itself--we should ooze with the goodness of Christ. Let's ooze this week :)

True Holiness

I probably grew the most spiritually through the college years. It was at a big church where everyone seemed to be fired up for God, and having biblical wisdom and living a holy life would earn respect from all the people around you. But then, for many people, including myself, have become so self-consumed in trying too hard to be Pharisees.

In today's passage, Paul says "the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight." And also, "no more boasting about men!" He is so right. It's not how I can change on the outside so I can gain the respect and love of other people, but it's all about my internal transformation in Jesus - and me becoming less so that Jesus can become more of me. But such thought is nothing new to me. I have been making far too many commitments to set my life rooted in Jesus, without having much of a practical plan to follow through with them.

I have been feeling the power of morning QT and prayer lately. It started as an ongoing accountability thing with a friend, and the couple minutes in the mornings with God's Word really made a lot of changes throughout my day. I began to see ways that I've been selfish, and also saw how the day's QT passage fit into that situation. Then I realized, within these smaller battles throughout my day, I really felt God's big presence in my life, and the joy of victory.

Recipe for the Mature

I wonder what our students would say if we asked them "who do you follow?"... I wonder if they would respond with the "right" answer or if they would be totally honest about it... Having had grown up in the church, I often feel like I know the "right" answers to the questions being asked... Before, I would rather say what I'm "supposed" to say than be honest about what's really going on in my life... But now, with our desire to be a community, where honesty really matters, I am challenged to be "real"... to be honest... to say what it really is than what it should be...

I thank God for the opportunity and the privilege of being a worker for Him... Knowing that He is in control over all things, including our growth and the growth of our students, gives me comfort because I know I lack in many areas of my teaching and reaching out to my students... We have been given the opportunity to plant seeds and water the seeds in our students' hearts... Let us continue to serve God with humble hearts, giving Him all the glory and praise for the work He is doing in our lives as well as in the lives of our students... and let us continue to encourage our students to build an intimate and real relationship with God... so that when the time comes, they, too, can recognize how God is causing them to grow...

One Community

Recently the RBC EM ministry reviewed and decided on a new name for the group: One Community Church.
The name does not necessarily portray that our church is currently a true, one Christian community, but I believe it places the hope and dream, a vision for our community to achieve that goal, to be the one community of believers where the Love of Christ becomes evident to those around us and thus get to know God through the group.
It's interesting to note that the reason the church of Corinth could not achieve the unity; instead there was jealousy and quarreling among the group. And this is because they are acting like mere men.

We are the same. We all are mere men/women by nature, but Christ called us to be more than that, to be a mature Christian who can take solid food, not just mild from our leaders/pastors.

The problems that Paul was dealing early churches almost 2000 years ago still exist among us today, and in order for us to be different, we must be mature Christian, not looking for simply milk, but start taking in "solid food."

I think there are those of us who only wants to get what they want out of Church experience. Those who only want to hear what they want to hear from their pastors. But we need to be mature about things, and be able to train and encourage one another to grow more like Him, and at times it may mean we need to correct each other, and be able to take in "solid food", sometimes not so pleasant but all the more necessary to grow.

하나님의 영

오늘 말씀은 성령님에 대한 말씀입니다. 어리석고 모자란 저희들은 저희의 지혜로는 하나님의 뜻과 계획을 알수가 없습니다. 하나님께서는 자기를 사랑하는 자를 위해여 성령님으로 주님께서 예비하신 것들을 볼수 있게 하셨습니다.

이렇게 하나님의 영을 받은 우리들은 늘 하나님의 은혜를 감사하며 살아야 합니다. 그러나 우리는 종종 하나님의 축복을 망각하며 살때가 많습니다. 주어진 은혜에 감사하고 만족하며 살길 원합니다. 주님께서 주신 성령님을 통해 육에 속한 사람이 아닌 신령한 자가 되기 위해 노력하기를 소원합니다.

God's Power

For the first part of today's passage.. I do not really have any experience preaching sermons.. but I have taught some Bible studies and i realize that it is important to have some side dishes with your main meal.. which means it is good to have some stories to go with the main message you want to get across.. however the ultimate goal IS to teach a lesson that God wants us to know.. it is important to connect with your peers/group of people you're talking to.. but we have to make sure it does not muddle our main message.. I am sure with more practice, everyone will be able to have a good mix of both..

The second part I really take to heart because Paul does something I really don't do.. Paul let's God's power take over his ministry.. our ministry is our lives.. are we willing to let God fully lead our lives and lead it? I admit I am scared of the unknown and I seldom let God take the reigns of my life.. What class should i take? What job should i apply for? What do i want to be in the future? I always wonder able these things and worry about them. I know the Bible says not to worry about tomorrow, but being in a world as this, it is really hard not to! I would love to leave and give everything to God.. so that is my challenge.. small baby steps.. to let God take the lead in my life and let him call me to what He wants me to do.. Take the Lead God!

The Lord in You

God transformed us from people who are not to people to are. We are, not in our own names but in the name of Jesus. Though we're still weak in our human nature, God constantly lifts us up to be strong men and women of Christ. Through the story of our weaknesses, the power of God shines through because it's only through God that we were made strong. When we stand proud in the weaknesses that God has redeemed, we boast in Him, the only one in whom we should boast.

So, our lives should reflect that we have the power of God within us. The things that we do day to day can do one of two things: exalt us or exalt God--let's exalt God.

Seeking God's wisdom ...

Yeah.. it's fater 12 pm.. T.T ;;
I'm working on homework with DeWayne and..
completely forgot about this ~~
Breakfast on me.. kk

I really like today's reading..
how that gospel can look very foolish to human eyes ~~
I've been witnessing to this one guy who I happen to see
every week these days. He recently admitted that he has no
personal relatoinship with God although he's been coming to church every week.

I began witnessing, but the process is not as easy.
Whenever I tell him the word, he quickly turns the question around
to bring about weird questions, that no one can answer (like.. many of Genesis stuff)
and what happens to people in OT are they in heaven.. that kind of stuff~~

I realized through today's word, that God's wisdom is much wiser than
what we ever ask for. Maybe it is simply time to ask God... "I need your wisdom!"
I need God in this process .. I think this is same in teaching all the
teenagers these days.. we don't have all the answers, but we can offer for them
God's wisdom in their lives, just like Solomon asked God for his wisdom.
His foolishness is better than our wisdom..

Kingdom Vision

Many times, I feel inadequate to be serving. And sadly, the feeling of inadequacy is the most overwhelming when I fail to please a church leader. Sometimes I feel like I need to put my life together before coming before God to answer the calling. But these are such unworthy excuses for "waiting" a little bit longer to answer the calling - when in fact God has called me already, along with the courage and desire to carry it out.

It's not the leader or pastor I'm serving. And it's not myself that I'm worshiping. Just as Paul calls the church in Corinth to turn their eyes from selfish things to Christ. I need to put the focus back on Christ and be humble...

Inheriting from God

As I read today's passage I was actually reminded of the earlier passage in Numbers where the daughters of Zelophehad had made a bold request for their father's inheritance and received not only his inheritance but also a change in the law for other families in the same situation... From that passage, we learned to go to God and ask with boldness...

In today's passage, the lesson continues...
In my life, there are some things I feel I have control over and others that I know I have no control over... so when there is a problem, I ask myself "do I have control over this?" and if I do, I try to take care of it on my own... and if I don't, I seek help... but from today's passage, I see that it doesn't matter if I have control over things or not... With anything that is going on with my life, especially things that bring me trouble, I should go to God... because HE is interested in my life... and HE can help me through my problem...
And in order for HIS solution to work, I need to obey... no matter what...
Even if it is not something I would prefer... or it seems unfair... the best outcome results from complete obedience...

This week, I will spend more time talking to God... sharing my life with Him... especially the stresses in my life... and after I finish talking, I will sit and listen... so that I can act in obedience

Obeying God - Say what?

There are times when God seems to work in His mysterious ways, beyond our understanding and imagination. And there are times when God seems to ask us to trust Him, and obey, when taking that giant step of Faith seem like an impossible task. Sometimes we find it hard to give up our control over our lives, and tell God what we want, instead of simply obeying.

The people of Israelites spent the (extra) years wandering in the desert due to their disobedience, and though most of the time when reading the OT, we wonder why were the people of Israelites so dense, as to disobey God when He was so close to them? Yet we do the same thing. After the death and resurrection of Christ, what do we have to fear? And why do we still chase after the things of this world, when we know that Christ, our King, has defeated the king of the worlds?

The daughters from the tribe of Joseph were given a challenge and a command; in order to protect God-given blessing and vision/prize for the tribe, they had to obey the command, which meant they could not marry anyone of their choice. Say what? You mean I can't marry anyone I want to? Given the history of Israelite's disobedience in the past, they could've said that plenty and went out and marry the person of their choice; instead, they decided to obey, for the sake of the tribe and the greater good/vision.

Do I obey God at all times, despite personal sacrifices I have to make? Do I obey God, staying true to the provisions of God? Are we obeying God in all things, as we continue to protect a God-given provision called R.Y.?

피난처 되신 예수님

하나님께서는 오늘 우발적으로 살인한자를 위한 도피성에 관하여 말씀하십니다. 죄의 가벼움이나 무거움을 떠나서 하나님께서는 그들을 위한 도피성을 마련하시고 그들이 온전한 재판을 받을수 있도록 하십니다. 죄를 지은 자들이 갈수 있는 유일한 곳, 죄를 지은 자들이 두려움없이 지낼수 있는 유일한 곳이 바로 이 도피성이었습니다.

날마다 알게 모르게 죄를 지는 우리들에게 예수님이 바로 우리의 도피성이십니다.

구약시대엔 고의로 살인한 자는 죽음을 죽음으로 갚아야 했습니다. 지금 우리가 의식하고 저지른 죄에 대해 우리가 벌을 받아야 하는것이 마땅하지만 주님께서는 우리를 위해 십자가를 지셨습니다. 우리의 죽음으로 죄를 갚는게 아니라 예수 그리스도의 죽음으로 우리의 죄를 사하여 주셨습니다.

우리의 피난처 되신 주님. 세상의 어려움과 고통속에서 지치고 시달릴때 죄인들이 피난처로 달려나갔던 것처럼 저희도 주님앞에 모든것 내려놓고 달려가길 소원합니다.

Holy Devotion - Wholly Provisioned

The Levites and the Israelites are holy people, set apart by God. For them, God has also set apart land for their pastures - places where they can settle and grow their food. This just shows how much God has for us, the potential of what we can gain for being holy children of God. If we become holy.. he will provide.. because we are Christians.. he provides for us.. he blesses us with the roofs over our heads, the food in our stomachs, and the love we have from our families and friends. We really do not recognize all that He gives us, He truly is THE provider. Let us not take it for granted, like i have already done so many times.. I want to think of God more.. I want to be proactive and think of God more in my daily life..

Because he sets land for refugees, it's just a glimpse of the forgiveness, the grace, the justice he has.. even though we are sinners, he loves us and choses to exercise His love by providing refuge for those who killed others. His love for us is still unfathomable to me.. we should be able to show a love like that too.. my challenge is to love.. not to be bitter.. and forgive..

A Personal God

God was so meticulous is outlining the boundaries for the Israelites. I was really blessed to see just how carefully God prepared a place for them. It shows me that God had a good and detailed plan for them. He thought deeply about what he wanted for the Israelites and he was faithful in fulfilling his promise to them. It also shows just how much he loved them to have such specific territories laid out. He made this promise because he loved them that much.

He has also made amazing promises to each of us and each of our students. This challenges me to be a better teacher, to show them how much God loves them and how much he has prepared for them, just like he prepared a way and a place for the Israelites. As I prepare Bible Study, I need to be mindful of their needs are and really seek out what God desires to do through me to meet those needs. It's not about how eloquent I can be, or how quickly I can whip up a lesson just to spit it out and send them off. It's about humbly taking part in revealing what God wants for their lives and helping them see a glimpse of how much God loves them. So, in order for me to be able to do that, I need God. My challenge is to pray over each student before I prepare Bible Study so that I can become a better mouthpiece.

barbs and thorns

The Israelites had were given a task to
drive out all their possessions and inheritance,
as they faced another battle at hand...

And the Lord's command was to not keep any of their
inheritance, so that it will not become "barbs and thorns to their sides"

As Christians, Holy Spirit always allowed us to understand some of the
things that we need to get rid of...
It's just like my room, I know what to clean up, but I tend to wait a few
more days to clean them up... of course, when I don't clean up,
something will bother me, like "where is my cell phone??"

We all are given the priviledge to live our lives to the best but
we're algo given a task to let go of anythying that hinders our
'living to the fullest'
At the YS convention, I was challenged by so many things that
Pastors have to "give up" and "take challenge" ...
My task for this week is to learn to get go of some of the things
that may hinder me from going further in God's work processes...

Journey

I'm actually glad I got this passage today... tho it's just a long list of names that are hard to pronounce, I got curious and Googled up the journey of the Israelites to find these places on a map.

My first reaction was... what da heck? Why in the world did they take this route? No wonder it took 40 years... distance wise, it looks like I can drive from Egypt to Canaan in about 13 hours. I did hear that this passage was the only passage through the desert that could provide water and food for the people, but still.

Like it says in the reflection section today, I'm glad all these events at their camps are recorded. All their mistakes through these 40 years, as well as God's blessings, are written in the Bible. From Egypt to Canaan, the things that God revealed to the Israelites still speak strong to me today because my heart is just as prone to wander as those of the Israelites. And God is still the big, mighty and awesome god that he was back then. I want to journal my own journey with God too.

My Rights vs My Responsibilities

There are people who likes to insist in their Rights, yet when it comes to their responsibilities, they don't really care. And although I do not see myself as one of those people... is that really true?
And then there are people who simply wants to take and take and take, and get everything out of a church, yet they themselves do not wish to give back to the church, for whatever reason.
And yet there are those who do serve and perform their responsibilities, with a sense of bitterness and/or out of selfish motives/reasons, to feel self-righteous, and/or to be able to boast.

I think Christ emphasized on the condition of our hearts, and this was a point Jesus brought up over and over again; what is in your heart? what is the true motive? are you doing it to truly serve the Lord and to serve the people? Or are you doing it out of your own motives/reasons?

Sure, we can say that at least, the job got done, and we were able to do whatever was needed, but like Paul said, without love, without the right reason, it was all meaningless...

So I must watch my heart, my motives, the reason for doing whatever I do, and I hope that as I continue to align my hearts with the heart of God, that my actions will automatically be aligned according to His will, and that whatever I do, will be for the right reasons.

I kind of ended up on a tangent from the main topic of today's passage, but for me, I would like to watch the condition of my heart, when I am fulfilling my responsibilities.

하나님이 보시기에 좋은것

오늘의 말씀을 통해 하나님께서는 우리가 얼마나 이기적인 존재인지를 알려주십니다. 자기들의 가축을 쉽게 기르기 위해서 주님이 예비하신 약속의 땅을 거부하려는 르우벤 자손과 갓 자손을 보며 우리도 얼마나 눈앞에 보인것에 안주하려고 하는가에 대한 생각이 듭니다.

분명 우리의 눈에는 드넓은 목초지가 더 좋아보입니다. 그러나 하나님의 눈에는 요단강 건너 황무지가 더 좋아보이신다고 하십니다. 우리는 날마다 우리가 보기에 좋은것들, 우리가 좋아하는 것들을 쫓아서 살아가는 실수를 합니다. 하나님이 보시기에 좋은것들, 비록 그것이 우리 눈에는 아름다워 보이지 않더라도, 비록 그것이 우리 눈에는 부족해 보일지라도, 우리는 하나님이 원하시는 것을 우선시 하며 살아가야 합니다.

그 넓은 가나안땅중에 가장 거칠고 황폐한 지역을 주님이 주신 땅이라 굳게 믿고 나아간 갈렙처럼 우리는 세상의 기준으로, 세상의 잣대로 사는 것이 아니라 영원히 변하지 않는 주님의 기준으로 살아야 합니다.

하나님이 사람을 창조 하시고 보시기에 가장 좋았다고 하셨습니다. 하나님이 보시기에 가장 좋은 일들만 하는 주님의 자녀가 되길 바랍니다.

Blessing and Trust

Today's passage just really shows me that whenever we do what God wants us to do, when we do His will, he will in turn provide for us and bless us.

God wanted the Israelites to go to war with the Midianites, and little to no men on the Israelite side was lost to war, and they Israelite side won spoils from obeying God.

I can already see the blessings in my life because I am God's child and I am very thankful for it. When we trust God, He blesses us.. what more could we want? I know it is harder said than done because we do not directly see God, but that is what faith is - our trust in God.

Of all the things the Israelites attained from the war, a portion of it was given unto God, and we still have to do that too. We have to give tithes, we have to give thanks, everything we do should be offered to God. It is the least we can do for the blessings He has given us, like eternal life, friends, family, and the most important of all, Love.

Falling Prey to Sin

Today's QT talks about ridding our lives of sin and anything that can tempt us to fall back into sin. Just like the Israelites were ordered to go through drastic measures to do this, we also need to take sin seriously. Sin is a powerful thing, more powerful than we'd like to imagine. So, when we still have temptations left over, it still has control over us. Moses commanded the Israelites to kill the women. That's how far they had to take it. We need to kill sin in our lives, but individually we are powerless against sin. In the name of Christ though, we are strong. =) Getting rid of sin, whether it's sexual immorality like the Israelites or any other sin, is a long process, but it is so necessary if we are to live a healthy and full life with Christ at the head of it. I know I have a long way to go, but I've learned from past experiences that sin will always come back and bite you in the butt unless are you proactive about fleeing from it and allowing God to tackle it because God can and will win! =)

Vows

It's hard to see God's ways. My mom always tells me that I don't understand how a parent sees the child. And of course that's the case - I'm not a parent! Just as much as I don't understand my parents when they tell me things I don't want to hear, when God has his way in my life and imposes things that are out of my control, I just don't get it. But when it comes to God and me, though I've heard enough that I'm a child of God, there's something different about Him from my earthly parents. When God tells me, in whatever way that He chooses to tell me, my obedience occurs at a deeper level. (Regardless of how much I rebel.)

I guess making a vow to God is something very serious. Like, walking up to the altar at an altar call. Or getting baptized. I'm not an altar call-kinda person, but still I've made plenty of vows before. Knowing human beings, there's no way God can expect us to be perfect in loving him with all of our hearts and minds... though I wish that were true. But God still wants us to be committed to him. From God's perspective, maybe it's like having a girlfriend/boyfriend who keeps breaking up with you but keeps coming back, and you're just a fine lad with infinite amount of patience and love to be able to tolerate such act of indecency. But I know it's good to be having a relationship with God, and that's really what I want for my life. God loved the Israelites, even though they turned their backs on God numerous times. Hosea was committed to a prostitute who kept running away. Jesus loved his disciples even when they seemed to betray him.

The Joy of Future Salvation

As I read the commentary on today's QT, I was very interested in the reference to the future... to when Jesus returns... it was something that never crossed my mind before when reading the book of Numbers... I had always thought about it as something of the past... but now with its reference to what is to come gives me a new and different perspective...

As I reflect upon my life... I feel that I live in and for the present... I am so thankful for all that I have in my life right now, enjoying every part of it... but maybe I'm enjoying it too much? being too comfortable with the way things are?... even though I do have plans for my future, I don't think I've planned with the Second Coming in mind... I think because of my personality in how I want to know what's going to happen when making plans, a part of me feels reluctant about Jesus' return... I want to be more excited about it, though... and I think in order to do this, I need to give up the control over my life and my plans to God... to not be so excited in what I want and expect for my life, but to be more open to God's plans and His timing for the things in my life... and let His desires and expectations be of my own...

State of my heart

It is a simple matter of priority: Do you put higher priority on Spiritual things, or things of this Earth? When asked in its simplicity, I believe most of us would say, sure, I put my priority in Spiritual things of God, but in reality, is that true?

I ask because I always grew up believing in that fashion; after all, this life on Earth is meaningless without God, and that is what I am here for. But in my day-to-day life, there are many things and activities that constantly pop-up, asking for immediate attention, attempting to change my priorities, each and every time.

I always believed that my utmost is for God, and then family and friends. But the past couple of weeks, has not been so. I felt like I have placed work in front of everything else, and at times, even God, by choosing to skip the weekly Bible study for work. In the end, what does it matter? Sure, I need the job to pay for the mortgage, but without God, the mortgage, the house, the life on Earth, would've been meaningless anyways!

Knowing the workload that I have ahead of me for this week, a depressing topic in my mind, I am very much tempted to again skip the Bible study for the week. But perhaps I ought to keep "eternity" in mind, when approaching this week.

How can I expect God to bless me in this life, when I cannot stay focused on God in all things?

주님의 보혈

오늘 말씀은 유월절과 칠칠절의 제물에대해 말씀하고 있습니다. 이스라엘 백성이 출애굽을 할때에 그들은 대문에 어린양의 피를 발라 하나님의 자녀임을 나타내었고 이때문에 그들의 첫째 자녀들이 죽음을 피할수 있었습니다. 이는 단지 몇천년 전의 일이 아닙니다. 지금 살아가고 있는 우리들도 예수님의 보혈로 하나님의 축복을 받으며 살아갑니다.

이스라엘 사람들은 이 유월절을 통해서 하나님의 도우심을 찬양합니다. 그들은 온갖제물들을 가지고 주님께 감사를 드립니다. 그러나 예수님의 보혈로 구원된 우리들은 이런 제물들이 필요하지 않습니다. 저희의 진실된 예배가 이모든 제물을 대신하기 때문입니다.

예수님의 보혈로 구원받은 우리들..
친히 이땅에 오셔서 유월절 어린양이 되신 예수님을 높여드리는 하루가 되길 바랍니다.

Offerings

I know this is super late, but I feel like i should still do it. :]

The main point that i got out of this passage is that.. All of these things that the Israelites had to do, we do not have to do anymore because it was already done for us. And i think that is so amazing. Our sacrifice was something that was not ours (tangibly), even people like us, who lived 100s of years after Jesus.. It is His blood that is our sacrifice.. it's a feeling of love, hope, and grace and overflows in my heart..

The least we can do is spend our lives to be a whole sacrifice to God.. we should to show our thanks, we have to show our thanks.. and what a better way than to live for God. I want to live for God.

Straight Talk with Moses

I missed yesterday's QT..
so.. I am writing today's ^^

I don't remember Moses and God having such a plain conversation,
It is the final days of Moses, and God does not hesitate to bring
about what Moses did wrong to Him!
He has not honored God the way he should have...

I realize that a leader is one of responsibility,and one that
should bring God the glory.. Anything less than that, will
cause one to not only walk away from its leadership, but
perhaps even a straight talk from God for such deeds..

I am reminded again, that I have responsibilities
that are linked to God's expectations..
it's a heavy burden, but it's such an awesome priviledge
everytime I look at it~~

May God be please with our ministry !!
all of us are called to be Moses and Joshua..
let's make God happy everyday ~~

A New Shepherd

Moses shows a very obedient heart towards the Lord. He knows that he isn't allowed into the Promised Land, and he knows that his time is coming to an end and he is still obedient to God til the very end. God tells him to commission Joshua as the next leader, which Moses does. I can't imagine what it must feel like to be Moses during this moment. He went through so much to get the Israelites to this point, even though he did make mistakes along the way, and now they're at a place where they can see Canaan. But Moses can't go any closer. God tells him that this is where a new leader will rise up and Moses will step down. That kinda really sucks for Moses.. We always hear that we need to be willing to listen to God when He calls us to lead, but we see in this passage that we also need to be willing to step down when God tells us. Whichever way the calling goes, we need to be in intimate contact with God to know His will for us like Moses. I haven't kept the commitment I made last week, so I'm going to work on that again this week..

The Division of Land

So many times it's really hard to see where God is taking me. For the Israelites to have reached this point, where the land is being divided amongst the tribes, they had to go through so much pain and suffering that established a somewhat love-hate relationship with God. It all began when God first told Abraham of what is to come. And that was generations before.

I feel so blinded by my own selfishness. There's so much I need to lay down before God, and I want to be able to see what Abraham saw, and what God can see from me. The Israelites lost the vision that was initially planted by Moses, and took some wrong turns in pursuit of instant gratification. I want to make a commitment... that now is the time to come in repentance, and worship God with my life. It doesn't matter whether this commitment will last an hour, half a day, or a week - because faith is the condition of my heart at the present moment, and God honors that.

Death of 24000

God is a jealous God; we always knew that, but the number of deaths due to the disobeying Israelites is kind of like a "wake-up alarm." Certainly these things don't happen these days; we do not see God smack down a nation with plagues and killing them for bowing down and worshiping idols (or perhaps we do...), but one thing I do see and feel is that the American religion (American Christianity) has numbed most of us, made us feel less sensitive as we simply watch images and images of starvation, people under tyranny and persecution, and grown accustomed to our "comfortable" lives here (sometimes we think the life we have here is just as hard in many different ways, and while certainly true, most of us do have a shelter and clothes and food but most of all the freedom to worship).

But loving God and leading a Christian life is a serious matter. So serious that back in the days, turning away from God and worshiping idols meant death in many ways. And yet, we must search our hearts and confess that we may have other forms of idols in our lives, that we must once again turn our eyes from worldly things and needs, and focus on God.

Most of us do not worship another "god", but we do follow hard after money, care very much for our family and friends, and our work/school grades. Certainly these are God-given blessings and responsibilities that we must be responsible for, but I think we must continuously check our hearts to make sure we are not idolizing any of them... and always give the best to God.

하나님의 완전한 계획

우리는 날마다 계획을 세우고 살아갑니다. 그러나 우리가 세운 계획이 모두다 실현되기란 생각만큼 쉽지가 않습니다. 하지만 하나님의 계획은 완전하십니다. 그분의 계획은 그분의 약속은 단 한번도 실패하거나 깨어진적이 없습니다. 하나님께서 계획하지 않으신 일은 결코 이루어지지 않습니다.

발락은 하나님이 택하신 이스라엘 백성을 저주 하려고 몇번이나 시도를 하지만 그일은 결국 수포로 돌아갑니다. 그가 그렇게 열심히 노력(?)을 했음에도 불구하고 그의 계획이 실현될수가 없었던 이유는 바로 하나님이 원치 않으셨기 때문입니다. 하나님의 계획과 달랐기 때문입니다.

종종 저희는 우리의 계획이 실현되지 않는다고 절망하거나 슬퍼합니다. 그러나 우리가 염려하지 말아야 할것은, 우리 모두는 하나님의 계획안의 일부라는 것입니다. 하나님께서 이스라엘을 택한것 같이 우리를 택하셨음으로 하나님의 자녀인 우리는 하나님의 말씀에 순종하고 살아야 합니다. 하나님의 뜻을 거역하려는 발락의 모습이 아닌 하나님의 뜻을 따르는 삶을 살아야 하길 원합니다.

A Change of Heart.. and Keeping it that way..

First of all.. I think it is really funny that Balak keeps trying to get Balaam to do things but the seer is just not doing it! It just goes to show that if it is not in God's plan, then it ain't gonna happen! He just kept on trying! Okay.. onto the meaningful things..

What Balaam is doing is exercising his free will - his free will to please those who ask of him. Even though he was not an Israelite, there was a small resemblance of how Christians are supposed to be: serving those around them. But he was probably paid to do this or scared because they were going to threaten his life. Even though God told Balaam not to curse His chosen people the first time, Balaam did it again. But God exercised HIS patience and HIS grace and calmly told Balaam that it is not favorable to God's plan.. Through this, Balaam's heart changed and he was set straight by God.

How seriously do I take my freewill? I think I take it for granted sometimes.. Because I know God is a loving God and a forgiving God, sometimes I do something, without really thinking of the repercussions and I feel horrible after. I want to be more careful with the gift that God gave me.. I want to be a more responsible Christian and be more not take for granted what God so graciously gave his children..

Trying a Different Angle

I definitely relate with Balak in this passage. If I don't get what I want the first time, I try again differently the next, and again and again until I get what I want.. =) I do this with the people I interact with for sure. BUT what strikes me most after doing my QT is not what I read in this passage but from my own reflection--I don't ask God for things much. Of course my prayers shouldn't consist of just requests and no thanksgiving, but I really don't ask much of God.. I don't fully give my life and my desires up to God enough to even feel like I pester Him. Of course, I shouldn't be pestering Him like Balak does (and like I pester other people) but I want to be at that intimacy level where I can freely ask God for things and be content that He is in control. Of course, God's ways are above my own.. so I also need to be content when His mind is set, even if it's not what I want, because it is set with good reason.

I don't know if I'm making much sense. But basically, I want to have more hope. I need to pray more and have hope because He hears my prayers and know that if it's pleasing to Him, He'll answer them. Not only is our God a God that listens, but He's a God that interacts! I want to set some topics that I can consistently pray for, and I want to be able to see God moving in my life through those prayers, whether it's to tell me yes, no or to wait.

Doing what God says...

Recently, as I preach from the book of Acts...
I have determined to speak what the Bible says
about the book of Acts. It may sound very obvious but
the truth of the matter is, it's sometimes really tough
to speak the plain truth to the students, because
it is very tough for them to chew... some of which
I feel like I am hurting them.. (well .. God is)

Today, I loved the last verse that says,
"Must I not speak what the Lord has put in my mouth?"
As Christians, we tend to compromise a lot of things..
evangelism, fear of the Lord, being Christ-like...
we tend to walk away from these ideas, so that
we can fit in in both the world and church doors at the same time!

I think it's time for me, ry, all of us to re think of how serious
God's matters actually are. As I am sharing from Acts these days,
I am really touched by a phrase in Acts 1:6 when the disciples as
if Jesus will at last.. finally going to restore the Kingdom of Israel.
Jesus' answer is very plain, be only concerned with Kingdom of God..
Kingdom is Israel is for God to determine!!

I think we all have our own Kingdoms that we want to have.
Just like disciples, we want to create our best lives, our best Kingdom
with our desires put in place.
It's time for all of us to get to basics...
"Must we not do what God has laid in our hearts, what God speaks of
in the Bible?"

Let's all be enriching agents for this world..
By the way, today's See you at the pole was a great turnout !!
God took our prayers.. and kids' prayers.. we are a step
closer to high school evangelism !!

A talking donkey humbles gentile prophet

It's like Shrek... and I wonder how I would have reacted. It was probably a new thing for Balaam too, but we can't tell exactly how he felt coz he's not the one writing the story here. Why God chose a donkey to humble Balaam, I don't know - but maybe his heart was just that hard. God could have used a little girl to humble him and make him change his mind... But enter the talking donkey - and it does the magic.

I think about how I feel when I'm humbled by someone I thought were less than me. I feel very defeated and purposeless, thinking that I've tried so hard in the past to get to where I am right now, only to be bettered by someone younger or lesser experience than me. But I don't think there's any other way to learn how to deal with this more biblically than by going through it many times and prayerfully fighting to see the blessings of humility. Actually, the more I learn to lower myself, the closer I am to Jesus.. coz that's where Jesus meets me.

I thank God for the talking donkey. God had the power to change a gentile's heart and bring him to repentance, and I have no doubt that he has the power now to change this sinful heart and bring him to repentance.

A People with God's Blessing

It's definitely comforting to know that God is faithful to His promises and that He is unchanging... It's even more amazing when I think about God's unconditional love... Since I've gotten married, I've come to realize more just how great God's love really is... To love someone unconditionally can be challenging because we are human and we make mistakes all the time... we often change our minds so easily... yet God doesn't... and He loves us even when we fail Him...

I've always believed that things happen for a reason... that there is a greater purpose for the things I experience in my life... sometimes, I wonder just how specific God's plan is for my life... When I think about my future plans, I often wonder if it coincides with God's plan for me... Though I pray that God's will be done in my life... and that I be able to trust Him more in all aspects of my life, I find myself hoping for things to happen in "my" timing... I want to give up control over my life and really let Jesus be the LORD of my life... fully trusting in Him and His plan for my life...

승리의 하나님

이스라엘 백성이 가데스에서 에돔 왕에서 왕의 대로로 통과 하게 해달라고 했을때 그들은 두번이나 거절 당하고 결국 가까운 길을 놔두고 먼길로 돌아가야만 했습니다. 그러나 하나님께서는 이스라엘 백성이 에돔 왕보다 더 강한 군대를 가진 아모리 왕 시혼과 바산 왕 옥을 이기게 하십니다. 에돔 왕에게 거절을 당한 후 벌벌 떨었던 이스라엘 백성이 이제는 하나님의 능력으로 더 큰 자들을 떨게 만들었습니다.

우리도 때로는 작은 일을 성취 못했다고 해서 슬퍼 하거나 낙담할때가 많습니다. 하지만 승리의우리 주 하나님께서는 더 큰 일을 예비하고 계십니다. 우리에게 과분한 더 크나큰 일을 우리를 위해 준비하고 계시며 말씀하십니다. "두려워 말라"

내가 너와 함께 있으니 두려워 말라.
네가 감당할수 없는 일이 눈앞에 놓여있더라도 두려워 말라. 내가 너와 함께 함이니라.

날마다 주님을 의지하고 두려움없이 승리하는 삶이 되길 바랍니다.

Sing! For the Lord Provides!

A part of this Friday's QT is very similar to last Friday's. The passage tells about God's grace of how He provides for the ones He loves. From last week, He provided the priests of the Tent of Meeting with food and provisions because they were doing the work of God. This week, he is leading the Israelites through lands with water, which is very important, when they need it so bad. It seems like these QTs are sending me a continual message to rely on God because He will provide and that I don't need to worry because He has a plan for me. He has a plan for everyone and it will be revealed when it is time.

The second section of today's QT is very funny because it pertains to me! I love to sing, and the Israelites were singing in praise to God while they were walking through the lands. The first time I drove on the freeway, I sang Christian songs the whole way because I was scared. The reasons of singing in both scenarios are different, but the fact is that singing to God is a comfort, and it glorifies God so SING!!!

gg, God

God's pretty cool. I like the part where He sends venomous snakes to bite the Israelites because they were complaining. :)

Okay. Seriously, though. I felt two things when I did my QT today.
1. When we face hardship, if we seek to dedicate it to God, He gives us victory. The Israelites were attacked and captured by the Canaanites, and they probably felt really defeated and were really scared. But they promised God that if He delivered them through it, they would destroy the land completely, aka dedicate it to God. It says in the interpretation portion that the Israelites experienced "wonderful victory." :) I thought of Albany High when I read that. We are walking through unknown grounds, and we don't know if we will be "captured" like the Israelites, but if we dedicate the school to God, and if we dedicate ourselves to work towards the victory, God will grant that to us. He will carry us through it, and the school will belong to no one but God. What a wonderful victory!

2. I was also moved by Moses. Even though he knows he won't be allowed into the Promised Land with the rest of the Israelites, he still has a heart of prayer for his people. When they come to him and plead with him to pray, he prays. This is a really selfless act on his part. How often do we pray for people around us that need prayer? After Moses prays for the Israelites and against the venomous snakes, God tells Moses to make a bronze snake to cure the snake bites, and he does it. How often do we pray for people and then do something about it? Moses wasn't perfect, but he had a good heart, and he was a selfless leader. We should be like Moses~

Meribah

Moses' decision was seemingly very insignificant, but because of this God did not allow Moses to enter the Promised Land. Later on Moses would plead with God to allow him to cross the Jordan, but God would not budge. Likewise, I think the leaders' decisions carry heavy consequences later on, whether good or bad. Especially as a Bible Study teacher, there were so many times I just passed on my responsibilities lightly because I was tired or burnt out. Just as Moses did not live to see God's chosen people settle in and prosper in the Promised Land, me being selfish at the present moment will cause a negative ripple effect in the future... Though I'll learn my lessons. It's like stealing from the future for the instant gratification.

Serious Cleansing

In today's passage, I was able to see just how much people had to prepare and go through to receive forgiveness for their sins before Jesus' time, where even the priests had to watch the young cow be slaughtered before his very eyes. I wonder if I would have sinned less if I lived in those times because of all the work that had to be put into asking for forgiveness... Because of Christ's sacrifice, the process of receiving forgiveness has become so much easier for us... so easy that we often forget the price Christ had to pay... I am definitely guilty of taking forgiveness for granted... Though taking part in communion every month helps to remind me of what Christ did for me, I know it's not enough. I want to make a conscious effort to thank God everyday for His love and sacrifice and I pray that God will help me to fully understand the cost of forgiveness so that I become more aware of it in my daily life and stop taking it for granted.

To be cleansed...

The Old Testament is full of descriptions on how the people of Israelites must come before God with appropriate sacrifices to be forgiven of their sins. However, in today's verse, we get to see how the priests must also cleanse themselves before coming before God.
This goes to show how we must fight to get rid of all of our sins in our lives completely, no matter how trivial and small they seem. We must fight against each and all areas of our lives where there is sin, and bring all of them before God and ask for forgiveness.
We like to keep some to ourselves, while giving the rest up to God. I think the verse is reiterating the importance of complete surrender to God, where we are giving all of us to Him, including all of our sinful ways, so that we can be completely clean, 100% ready to be used for His works.
Imagine how much of an impact we would bring to those around us, if we are 100% effective; well, I think that's how it will be like, if we can live with His presence, getting rid of all of the sinful areas in our lives...
-dK

채워주시는 하나님

하나님께선 어떤 이유에서든지 자신을 시험하거나 의심하지 말라 하십니다.
그러나 단 한번 자신을 시험하라고 하신 말씀이 말라기 4장 10절에 나옵니다.
십일조를 통하여 내가 너희에게 복을 주나 한번 시험해보라고 말씀 하십니다.

우리가 하나님께 드리는 것은 정말 일부에 지나지 않습니다.
하나님께서 주신것 100중에 겨우 10만 돌려 드리는 것이지요.
생각해 보세요. 어느 누가 100을 빌려주고 10만 돌려 받는데 좋아할까요?

십일조를 드릴땐 "낸다"라고 하는 것보단 "돌려드린다" 혹은 "갚는다"는
표현이 맞는것 같습니다. 하나님의 은혜를 갚는것...

제 모든 삶을 드리지 못하는것을 죄송스럽게 생각하며 드리는 십일조가 되길 원합니다.
십일조가 단지 월급의 일부분이 아닌 주님을 향한 저희의 고백이 되길 소원합니다.

God the Provider, God the First

The first part of today's passage tells of Aaron's gains as he is serving the Lord in the Temple - all the food he and his family will eat. This shows that as people who are serving God, He will provide for our needs. Like we are always told, where we are short, God makes up that 20% or 80% or however much that we are missing. Like the Bible says, we should not worry what to wear or what to eat the next day, because God will provide. I think of the things that I am blessed with, the things that I have only because God gave me and I am so thankful. Most of the time we do take the things we get for granted, bought and things given to us. I need to remember that it was provided to me by God and I do not want to waste the things that I receive. I need to be more humble and as sad as it is, need to realize it is not money that gave me the things I bought, but God.

The second portion of the today's passage brings up a point that I never realized. The reason why there is an emphasis on the first born is because the first born of God, Jesus, is an important person in our lives. He is God's firstborn and he is the one who suffered for us, was sacrificed for us. It was just something that amazed me.. and something that I should think of more often..

An Awesome Privilege

We saw God choose Aaron's staff in yesterday's QT, and in today's, we see the responsibility that comes with being chosen. Right away, God tells Aaron that he and his family alone are responsible for any and all offenses, and if anyone doesn't follow God's commands, Aaron's family and all of the Levites are at risk of death. That's a really intense warning that God gives. But God also gives Aaron gifts of community and authority, not because Aaron deserves them but so that he is fully equipped to do God's work. So, not only does God give Aaron an "awesome privilege" but He gives him what he needs in order to take care of the responsibility placed on his shoulders. That's really cool of God :) He's not only this really magnificent and powerful God who can be really scary (when He needs to be), but He's also really compassionate and personal, and He wants to provide for us where we're lacking. Aaron GETS to be in the presence of a God like this.

But so do we! We are totally free to be in the presence of the same awesome and loving God. Too often do I forget about God and take my privileges for granted. I leave Him at home or at church, and all I can remember are the responsibilities of being a Christian that I forget to BE a Christian, a "little Jesus". So, instead of thinking of everything I have to do, I'm just going to do it. (That's a bold statement, but I'm really gonna try.) God doesn't have to wait until I get home, finish all my day's work and I'm all ready for bed. I can be in His presence as I walk to class, as I (try to) study, aaanyyyytime. I'm going to try to constantly be in a prayerful state this week and try to find and be in God's presence especially during the times when I'm most prone to forget Him (ie. at school). God's really cool, and we all get to be cool with Him :)

WED: Aaron's Staff

Today, is a special day to me...
pretty much, until right now.. (2:20 AM)
I've been struggling to find a path out of military
service in Korea...

I pretty much talked to all the representative that
Korean Petagon (병부청) has to offer, regarding
extention of stay for students like me...

So.. althought it took me couple of days to find out
which of the 20 different methods of filing application
was more applicable to me, I realized that
the way I talk to those representatives, and the way
I understand what the application paper meant..
gave me different results as to if I can stay in US
or not...

Well ~ I guess the one method that best applies to me
is to consider my 'residential stay' in Romania with my parents..
and to consider myself, a student to United States... while
my residency is kept in Romanis..

It kind of sounds like I've made up my own status, but
that's the last chance I have for this ..

Seeing God choose Aaron's staff, only gave me this thought..
"I hope that God will choose my staff" (application
and I hope that God will do his miracle as this is being passed
through many people that will look over and consider my stay in US..

Sometimes, life is beyond the NORM..
and that's when we need the HAND OF GOD that can
reach beyond the NORM..
Is it the sovereinty of God? or it is my effort and faith that creates
path and result in my life? I think it's both..

There is another passage that came to my mind that gives me comfort these days..
"You have granted him the desire of his heart and have not withheld the request of his lips."
Psalms 21:2

What we know is that God knows and understands our heart...
There is great comfort in knowing this..
God !! You do your thing !! You best about me and my path..

Numbers 16:31-50, Purity Challenge

Two big lessons I learned from today's QT: 1) holiness is not to be taken for granted, and 2) a human prayer can change the way God acts. First, our endlessly merciful God is willing to punish these poor unfaithful Israelites by death - for unholiness. God cares a lot about our purity and it's definitely not something we should pass on lightly. We may not be punished by sudden death for our unholiness, but we still believe in the same God who did in the past. God detests sin. Second, this passage exemplifies how God's course of action can be changed by us, mere humans. Moses and Aaron, while they carried special titles, weren't above God. Moses' instruction to Aaron was in the love for his people - er, God's chosen people. In a way, God is granting his humble request to forgive them and keep them from death. (But the death of 14,700 people by God's direct punishment was probably unheard of in Israel's history until then. Even though God came short of his original intention, it was probably a big enough punishment for the rest to understand God's heart for purity.)

It's not something I can take lightly, either. I feel so unholy so many times, and my heart feels like a deep, dirty pot that hasn't been washed in weeks. I need to know and experience the deep cleansing power of Jesus' blood, that I can strive for a pure and holy life for Christ. But the one big application I drew out of this QT comes from the second lesson I learned: the power of prayer. I was very moved from the way Moses interacted with God. My application this week is to pray 15 minutes before I sleep every night. =) And my clock's hitting 11:57PM so I'm on time!

Popularity vs Righteousness

As I read the passage and the reflection in the English SENA, I couldn't help but think of the students we teach. Everyday, we are exposed to the ways of this world we live in and oftentimes we do not realize the power or influence the world has on our lives. Our students face a number of temptations in their daily lives, where the "popular" ideas are often far from the "righteous" ones. I remember having such a struggle when I was their age, making the wrong decisions just because I wanted to be popular. It was a while before I realized that I was impressing the wrong people, that I shouldn't live my life to please others around me, but to live it in way that pleases God. Even though I know this now, it is still difficult at times when my desires conflict with what's right before God. This is more difficult when I know that my relationship with God is not at its best because it is harder to hear His voice in my life. Because of this, I am motivated to spend more time with God on a daily basis, but I know that I need others to keep me accountable!

Being Extra Careful...

It seems that the Israelites never stopped giving God, Moses and Aaron trouble, during their journey out of Egypt into the land flowing with milk and honey.
Today was no exception, as a few key folks from the tribe of Levi started to rebel against Moses and Aaron, saying things like, who gave you the right to stand over us and tell us what to do. I say that sounds very similar to what we would hear, around us.
The SENA asks all of us if we have ever been in such a position, where we are spurring the congregation against the leadership of the church. I think it's easy for us to read this passage, and learn that, ah, we should always depend on God for wisdom when there is trouble in the church leadership. Or think, ah, we should follow the leader and don't be rebellious.
But what hit me was the statement in SENA that said, "you should be extra careful, especially if you are in the position of affecting other people around you, not to create any fights/divisions amongst the group..."
As one of the leaders and servants of the church, and as a RY teacher, I have been given tremendous opportunity and responsibility, to affect those around me, and I realized that I need to be "extra careful" not to cause any fights/divisions, and that a small thing I do and say, could affect others in negative ways, especially our kids in our classes... so we must watch ourselves, in all ways... all the time. Lovely. :-)

WORD of GOD

Wow.. I've never seen such a passage
that describe so plainly the importance of the Word of God.
I have been trying to keep up with a Bible Reading accountability partner,
and I've been always few chapters behind in my reading ~~
but the passage today asks me
to NOT be hypocritical but that I should just
want to have spiritual hunger like a baby that
is craving for spiritual milk...

I want to ask why... why should I be craving spiritual milk..
but the passage already explains it.
It is because we have "tasted what is good"
Surely God has been showing good things in my life~~
and do I crave more? yes !!!

let's us all crave spiritual milk !!
The Word of God and his majesty..
let it reign in our lives !!

HAVE A BLESSED EM RETREAT EVERYONE !!
May you find God's sweet sweet favor !!

The Promise of Salvation

I like today's passage because it tells me, gives me reassurance, that my decision was the right one. The verses that touched me the most are v. 6 and 7:
"In this greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith - of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire - may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed."

This is actually the first time I have read these verses, I think, and as a Christian who has never read these two verses it really helps. All those trials and tribulations - splits, fights, depressions - were all worth it. Even though they are horrible things you would think, "Why God?" but then again it is necessary for us because if our faith was not tested, who's to say we are true believers? How can we really be sure if we don't rely on God during those tempests of our lives?

Sometimes we forget how privileged we are to have Jesus Christ in our lives. Like the passage says, it is what our souls are longing for. We are longing for a better life, longing to be loved, longing to be saved. Ours is the time we can reach that salvation - the people in the Old Testament were waiting to see these days. Jews during the times of the Roman Empire Jesus was going to return after the war against Vespasian and his son Titus.

But now is the time. We have received that love, grace – the Son of God. This challenges me to keep in mind that all is not lost. Things happen for a reason, and God will always be a God that loves, protects, and corrects but loves nonetheless.

Good and Bad

What stuck out to me in today's passage was a line that was repeated a couple of times or variations of it.. v. 14 “Seek good, not evil..” and v. 15 “Hate evil, love good..”

This reminds me of a part of what Jun JDSN said in yesterday’s sermon, “There are two part of me, a human Jun, and a holy Jun.” And that also reminded me of what Jonathan said when we were praying in the EM service, “There are two sides to us, a good monkey and a bad monkey.” To seek and love good is to feed the good monkey, however when seeking evil and loving evil we feed the bad monkey.

When we give into our fleshly desires, we feel the evil monkey that hides in our closet aka, our hearts. Whether it is driving 25 miles over the speed limit or buying the super expensive sweater at the mall, we are feeding into our own desires and giving into idolatry. With all the temptations in the world, it is hard to not feed that monkey.

I guess asking for forgiveness is like relieving the bad monkey of all the food. By repenting the bad monkey loses its nourishment and the good monkey can now be fed. This can happen anywhere. It should happen especially before service because with the bad monkey full and happy you'll focus on what makes you fleshly happy. This is what the people of Israel did. They were not worshiping with unpure hearts and God was unhappy.

So when I go into worship i want to make sure i have a pure heart and at that time i ask for forgiveness and hope to not fill my evil monkey so much..

All that we need

Amos 1:1-12

So we're back to the prophets, reading about God's punishments on Israel and her enemies. Israel was actually very prosperous when Amos prophesied - but was falling away because they were indulged in luxury and corruption. It seems like Israel never enjoyed prosperity without falling away from God. In today's passage, God speaks through Amos about all the punishments he'll bring on Israel's enemies for their sins. But later in Amos, God will speak of the punishments he'll bring to Israel for its own sins.

It's funny how we can't seem to have the best of both worlds. When we have what we want, we fall. But we cry out to God when we're in need. One time I was talking with a pastor in Chicago, and he said he actually prayed for one of his sons to grow up to be really rich. The pastor saw in his son the potential to be used for God's kingdom from the boy's gift of generosity. If godly men and women who have give to those who don't, with a kingdom vision that sees the world through God's eyes, man.. wouldn't that be an awesome world?

I tend to carry a "my glass is always empty" mindset. I say, I'll give when I have - but when I do have, I feel like I need more before being able to give. Jesus laid down his life for his sheep - regardless of the circumstances. Laying down his life was his calling. And he called out to us to go and make disciples of all nations. And taught us that we'll have everything to gain by laying down our lives. The Great Commission is a call to die to ourselves.

It may sound funny, but I really had to fight myself in deciding whether I should go to the youth group's summer retreat. Only when I realized that even my vacation time can be used as an offering to God was I able to decide comfortably. My personal plans for this winter will have to change, but if I need rest and vacation, I'm sure God knows the best place and timing for giving them to me. Please pray that I can connect with the kids and continue serving as a dedicated teacher to these children.