Ba-ool.. (Paul)

Paul used the gospel and testimonies to help people turn their hearts to God (v.8). This took toil and hardships (v.9) to care for them and train them as parents do to their children (v.7,11). And it's because Paul had to lay down any desires to gain personal respect and had to love the unlovables (v.4,6). Yet he taught with authority and by example (vv.4-5).

He's an awesome model of a servant who laid down his life to become one with God, and to see things from God's eyes. To put this passage into perspective - first, God loves us as his children. Hence Jesus, a God-man, died for us and we now carry the gospel message of our salvation. And striving to live the gospel message builds in us testimonies of how God works in us. Then God's love for us will shine through us, spreading into the world around us.

I started to see that I got the meaning of "serving" completely backwards. I always ask, "how much work?", then "when is it due?" But... am I serving to make other people at church happy? Am I serving to feed my own sense of accomplishment/satisfaction? I bypassed God in my definition of serving.

Paul had it right. Having relationship with God in itself is sufficient, because God represents everything that is good. God does not demand a person to be an elder or a deacon. But Paul boasts in his relationship with God, and that was his sole driving force in serving. He says in Romans 3:27 - " Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith."

Paul says in today's passage that he went through "toil" and "hardships". I'm sure these two words mean a lot, like a LOT, more to him than us who are just reading. But because he had faith - er, relationship with God - he was able to love and serve the people he ministered to. Are you burnt out? Me too. Let's get our focus back on the Word!

The Outcome of Jesus in Our Lives

I think the verse that spoke to me the most in this QT was verse 3:

"We continuously remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ."

It seems like my life is described by this verse. I do what I do now because I have faith that God will be in everything I do. The only reason I do it is because I know God will provide and everything will turn out right if He wills it. I love what I do because it is God who has sent me here for this purpose, and I love God so I continue to do what I am called to do. I endure all the hardships because I have hope that He will make things better and even if I am in a hole for a while, He will extend a ladder to help me out of it. There is a hope only Jesus Christ can extend and it is by that hope that we can live on and pass it on to those who we love.

What I want to do is to produce more from my faith. I want to love more and show my love more. I want to think of God and Jesus more so that I can keep the hope in my mind always instead of thinking of other things.. I will dwell on those things and pray to see what God wants me to do - what God pulls my heart to do.

We are not required to do good deeds - it is the response of the heart that God instilled in us that urges us to do these things.

The Great Commission

Today's QT was titled the "Last Commandment," but we usually say "The Greatest Commandment is to Love God and Love Your Neighbors", and "The Great Commission Is to Go Make Disciples of All Nations"... just a little thought...

Anyhow, the last commandment was to go make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of God, the Son, and the Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything...

And the SENA asks us a few specific questions, one of which is always a challenge, sort of like a self-check question: Am I simply a church "attendee", or am I truly a "disciple"? I am not to be a simple church go-er; instead a disciple of God... and I think one of the things that distinguishes a disciple from an attendee, is the question: Am I going out there and making disciples?

The way Christ started His ministry was exactly that: he discipled twelve, and the history showed that most of his disciples went on ahead to change the world...
I call myself His disciple, then am I following His ways? Am I making disciples? If not, why not?

The Valley of Dry Bones

The passage describes how Ezekiel was sent to a "valley of dry bones," where God's people had gone so far astray... yet Ezekiel was so full of faith... and so obedient... to go and give God's message to what seemed like a hopeless group of people...

...do I have that kind of faith? to be that obedient? I would like to say that I do... but I know I'm not quite there... for one thing, not having been so consistent with spending time with God, I feel that I am not as sensitive to His Voice... but I desire to be closer to God... to know Him better... to be faithful... to be obedient... and so I will pray and speak out my desires... and take steps toward listening for His Voice... to be open to His plans for my life... and be obedient to His will...

and then, there is the need for unity among God's people... which makes me think about our church... It has been such a blessing to be a part of RY and seeing the growth in the body... to see how the students have come together as one... and that's what I long to see happen in our EM... we've been without a pastor for some time now but it's so amazing how God has given our EM members a heart for Him and for His church that we have stuck together thus far... and now with Pastor DeWayne, I pray for an even more unified body... one that truly desires for God... one that will grow stronger in faith... and be obedient to carry out His plans for our church...

To Put it Shortly...

I am not what I ought to be.

I am not what I wish to be.

I am not what I hope to be.

But by the grace of God, I am what I am.


- John Newton

Open the Eyes of my Heart

In today's scripture, Jesus is spending time with the 11, and they do not even recognize it is him. They do not realize it is Him until he breaks the bread.. Okay that was done on purpose by God's will, but what is keeping us from opening our eyes and hearts to see God in our everyday lives? God is there when someone does something nice to you. God is there when you see someone helping another. He is everywhere.

I think we are too engrossed in our own lives that we do not focus on what God has done for us; what He has provided. Humans are very selfish creatures, but by the grace of God, we think of others, and we become sensitive to those around us. We love and care because God loved and cared for us first.

Today, I stood outside the Pimentel (a big science classroom) doors holding the door for many students to come out of Chem 1A.. there were a few "thank you"s, at that time God was there. And when people were going in a nice man held the door for me, I said "It's okay, go in," and he firmly said, "No, you go." God was there. God is EVERYWHERE but many times we fail to recognize his presence. We are blinded by the many things of the world.

Let's sit down and appreciate what God has done, what He has provided, and what is to come.

One day this week, I want to sit and really think of the wonders God has done in my life.. the miracles he has done in my life, and ways that i can somehow show my gratitude.

On their way to Emmaus

This is a story of two disciples on their way to Emmaus, who are deeply troubled at the new of Christ's death. So Jesus walks with them and explains to them step by step, how the scriptures all spoke of Christ's suffering and death...
How often do I find myself lacking faith? How often do I try to stand on my own two feet and solve the problems? How often do I not go back to the basics, to the Word?
I can hear Him rebuke, saying how I ought to go back to the Word, how I ought to trust in Him more... and that is my daily prayer, that I come to Him first, and that I will not try to stand on my own two feet, instead, depend on Him for all things, for guidance and directions...
And I pray that I may find Him in the Word of God, that I may grow once again, grow in my walk of faith, to learn to trust Him more and more, each passing day...

What? Why ME?

I've often wondered why Simon is included in this story. He doesn't seem to be much of a character, yet his name is mentioned. Supposedly there's so much in a name in the Bible, and so I wonder. What was so special about this guy? As it was mentioned in the reflection, he seemed to be there accidentally...or more likely at the wrong place at the wrong time.

But are there "accidents" in God's plan? If He is the Great Orchestrator, there is a reason and purpose for everything and everyone, even when those everythings and everyones may seem so insignificant to us.

I wonder what went through Simon's head as he was commanded to carry the cross of Christ. Did he even know who he was carrying the cross for? Did he find out afterwards? To him, Jesus might have just been another criminal facing the death penalty. To him, Christ might have been a pariah, an outcast...which was precisely who Christ was. Did it matter that he didn't know?

If anything, one thing we do know. Simon was from Cyrene, a city in the country of Libya (a country to the left of Egypt on the African continent). Simon was a foreigner. It was Roman law that allowed soldiers to press any Roman subject into immediate service. Which is funny, because Simon probably was NOT a Roman citizen. He might have been Jewish because we see him in town around the time of Passover. Nevertheless, they probably didn't check to see if he was a Roman subject or not; they most likely pulled him out of the crowd at random.

So why is it that we see a foreigner carrying Jesus' cross? He wasn't even a follower. What was God getting at, sending a foreigner to carry the cross of One who is persecuted by Hebrew Jewish leaders through Roman law? Or, to turn the question around, why was he NOT a Hebrew or a Roman citizen? Did God have a purpose for Simon?

It's important to remember that Christ didn't come just for the Jews or just for the locals. He came for all, regardless of ethnicity or race (or religion). It's also key to remember that throughout the Bible we see foreigners, Gentiles if you will, playing important parts in God's grand plan. Would it be off to think that Simon, this foreigner, was blessed by God when he was chosen to carry the cross of Christ? In the eyes of the world, he might have just been some random, unlucky guy. Heck, he might have thought so, too. But in the eyes of God, Simon had done much, and had, even perhaps without knowing, given the glory to God.

It's hard to come up with a take-home message from this passage about Simon. But I guess it shows us that there is no accident, no mistake, in God's plan. Everything is there for a reason, everything is there with a purpose. We might find ourselves in some "unlucky" situations, but think: does our being there, at that specific point in time, bring glory to God? We may not know why we are placed there at that moment. We may ask, "Why ME?".

I've learned that NOT knowing is ok. God works through that, too, and in ways we probably can't imagine anyway.

Take the First Step

We don't even realize how much of a blessing repentance is.. sometimes I would think, if we repent it means that we are admitting something we don't want to, but being human, we are too proud to say that we are/did wrong. Then I think how stupid that makes us. Due to our pride, we stay wounded and never heal correctly from the hurt we have caused on ourselves and even on others.

That's why God's love is so amazing. If we were to admit to our wrong doings, He can set us to the path of healing. This is the first step to what we want most. Repentance can take us to a level of humbleness that we need to constantly be in. We are sinners, but that is okay, we must not be disobedient. God loves us anyway. Even we are at the level of sinners, and being Christian does not make us any better than anyone else. God gave us freewill and it by grace we have been saved. We chose to accept the gift God so graciously gave us. Let us not waste the things that come with this gift.

Through repentance comes healing. With healing comes restoration of our relationship with our Lord and Savior. Repentance is something not to take lightly.. I will thoroughly think about what i have done and see if there is anything else i unconsciously do that might keep me from restoration.. and pray.

2008 Steps with God...One at a Time.

The command to pray at all times is a definite challenge for me. Not only am I only just getting used to praying, but to be constantly aware of being prayerful and mindful of God is certainly not an easy task for me. (And I'm sure, to some extent, that many others have trouble with this as well.) But God calls us to do so, and to do so at all times.

I know that the act of praying isn't just limited to kneeling on the floor with my eyes closed and head bowed, but what is it exactly? What is the real meaning of the word "pray"? Some of us have defined it to be active communication with God, but what exactly does that entail?

I looked up the word on dictionary.com, which defined it as so: "to offer devout petition, praise, thanks to God." A valid definition, I supposeut I disagree with its ordering of the words "petition", "praise", and "thanks". Shouldn't it be in the opposite order? Shouldn't praise emerge naturally from a thankful heart, and shouldn't petition come after giving glory to God?

...not that I'm trying to make such a simple definition into such a big deal. I'm just saying. It just makes me think about the substance of my prayers. I've noticed that I've been starting off my prayers these days by saying, "Gracious Father, I want to thank You again for being faithful." I don't know when I started praying like this, but now that I've come to think about it, I've kinda taken a liking to it. Yet it makes me wonder. God is faithful to me, whether or not I realize it at all times. But am I faithful to God?

Which brings me to my next dilemma. How am I to be faithful to God? By praying at all times. How am I to be prayerful at all times? By being faithful. 'Tis an perpetual cycle, without an end.

...but it does have a beginning. And it starts now, by praying.

Don't make Jesus angry!

I read the analysis and it's really true that I never really remember hearing/reading that Jesus gets mad easily... except for boasting and hypocrisy.. and when the people were selling things in the temple (thank you Eunice SSN).

There are two points to this passage..

When Jesus is talking about how he can't be the Son of David, I know His connection to David is to show that He is human too, but when you think about it, biologically, he can't be a son of David, because technically none of Joseph's DNA was a part of him.. but that's too literal. Jesus may not be a Son of David, but he is certainly 100% God and 100% man. And historically speaking, a father in those times would never call their sons "Lord." But that is also taking things too literal.

Then the passage talks about high priests and the Pharisees who give their wealth away because they are rich and want to show off. They take pride in how much they give and they want a good reputation it seems. But Jesus HATES that! If the Bible tells you to pray in a secret place that you love, it probably also pertains to all the righteous things that you do. Do no boast!

We are human.. and very prideful creatures. If you think about all the times we boasted or showed off, every time we did these things God did not like it. Just thinking about that is scary - that we would/could do something that would anger God.

Next time we take an action, think about what you are doing. Do not flaunt your achievements. Who cares what others think of you; just as long as you have eyes for God and only try to do what He requires of you, there is no point to think about what you look like to others. Their judgment, opinion, and view of you are not going to matter. That is God's job.

So I am going to try to be more humble and not be prideful... hopefully I will be able to keep myself in check.

주님을 인정하는 삶

오늘 주님이 주신 말씀은 누가복음 20장 1~18절입니다.

예수님이 예루살렘에 입성하셔서 성전에서 백성들을 가르치실때
그 당시 모든 종교 지도자들이 나와서 주님께서 사역하시는것을
인정하지 않고 무슨 권세로 백성들을 가르치느냐고 묻습니다.

예수님때문에 자신들이 그동안 쌓아놓은 기반이 무너질까봐 염려하여
하나님이 보내신 그의 아들을 거부하고 도전하였습니다.
얼마나 어리석은 일입니까. 그들을 구원하려고 하나님께서 보내신
아들을 인정하지 않다니...

우리는 주님을 인정하고 있습니까?
대제사장들과 서기관들처럼 주님을 미워하고 배척하지 않는다고해서
우리가 주님을 인정한다고 말하는것은 잘못된것 입니다.

주님을 인정한다면 주님이 부르실때 우리가 가진것을 내려놓을수
있어야 합니다. 종교 지도자들처럼 자신들의 권세를 주님앞에 내려놓기를
싫어한것 처럼 우리가 우리의 삶을 내려놓지 않는다면
그것은 주님을 인정하는 삶이 아닙니다.

우리를 위해 오신 그분은 목숨을 내어 주셨습니다.
돈보다 귀하고, 명예보다 귀한 목숨을 주셨습니다.

오늘 하루는 그런 주님께 나는 무엇을 드릴수 있는가...생각해보는 하루가
되길 소망합니다.