Last year I sat down in this same chair and blogged about 2013. Asked for joy and a passion for the Lord. Prayed to be broken so I could find my satisfaction and joy and all in Him.
And here I am again, at the brink of a new year, cup of tea in hand, praying that God is delighted with me. That this year has changed and molded me into a woman of God He is pleased with. That 2014 has brought me to my knees more often in realization of my own weakness and His strength. And I think it has.
Looking back to a year filled with speech and debate and school, I find that slowly, I have learned to depend on Him more for strength and wisdom. A cramped schedule, difficult homework assignments, and speech and debate tournaments have humbled me and taught me more and more that I need God's strength and peace each day. It's a lesson I'm still learning, to lean on my Heavenly Father instead of my own limited capacity. I remember His hand over my life during those two blessed weeks in Manila, strengthening and teaching me through the examples of others, imparting me with a desire to one day serve Him overseas, humbling me and working in me. And that week in Worldview Academy allowed me to see my shamefully faltering love for the Father and gave me a new thirst to develop my relationship with Him. This new school year has been the busiest yet, but somehow, I've survived the first semester with God's grace.
Here I stand, in awe of God's provision. It reminds me of the Psalms when David recalled God's faithfulness in the past and praised Him for His hand over His people. And that's a bit of what I feel right now. I'm so very thankful that He is working in me and has strengthened me and has drawn me closer to Himself this past year. I truly am a work-in-progress, and it really is mindblowing to reflect on God's hand over my life. I don't and will never deserve His love and faithfulness, but through His grace, I can do what little I can with the life I have now to live more fully for Him. So here's three attributes I want to focus on this year so I can reflect my Father's love to those around me for His glory. (If you're reading this and know me personally, please hold me accountable. Thank you.)
1) Reverence
I want to develop a deeper reverence for the Lord. And this may sound strange and uncommon, but too often I worship myself. Too often I place my own thoughts and desires above God, and I fail to notice the truth, that I am so small and insignificant and weak and sinful compared to my Creator God who is perfect in righteousness and strength. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. And this year, I want to develop a healthy fear for my Heavenly Father, that I may see myself and this earth in light of who He is. That I may develop awe for Him and that I may never eclipse His glory with my own idols. That I may be humbled and encouraged by meditating on His attributes and reflecting on the awesome God we serve.
Father God, teach me more about Yourself. I desire to know You more. May my knowledge of You not puff me up, but rather humble me and empower me to worship You in light of the awesome and glorious God You are.
2) Servanthood
This ties in together with reverence and my desire for humility. When we notice God's character and attributes and His promises and faithfulness for His children, it should naturally cause a desire to serve and love those around us as an outpouring of our love for our Father. I want to serve more this year, to learn to give up my own interests for the interests of others and to love others before myself. I want to do the hard things, the little things, the dirty things because that's what Christ has commanded us to do and what He exemplified by coming down to earth and sacrificing Himself on the cross. May this year bring opportunities to serve my family, my friends, my church, and those I interact with for God's glory and for my good. May I have the courage and strength to reach out and love others, even at the cost of my own self-interest.
Lord, You exemplified servanthood in Your birth, life, and death. I desire to serve and love those around me as You did. This world focuses so much on self, but I want to stand against the culture by loving You and loving others sacrificially in return. Give me strength to do the hard things this year, so that others can see the immensity of what You have done for me through my actions.
3) Joy
Too often I disregard everything my Father has done for me and overlook my privileges and blessings as a child of God. I want to find joy, not in my circumstances, but in God's promises and His attributes. As I grow to know Him more this year, I want to not only serve others, but to be thankful and rejoice in who He is. I desire that my emotions and my joy be based not on other people or the things of this world, but on my God who is always good and faithful and never changes. May my joy point others to the true joy that is only possible through knowing Christ.
Lord, I look back at this year and I am in awe of Your goodness and provision and faithfulness to me. I know that I stumble and fall so many times, but You have never abandoned me. Even through difficult times, I have never walked alone. Thank You, Lord, for Your sovereign hand that works everything to the good of those who love You and fear Your name. You are an amazing God, and it is an honor and a privilege to be called Your daughter. May You be glorified through me this next year. May Your light shine through me, that I may serve and better encourage others with the strength You provide. May this upcoming year bring both times of blessing and times of trial to bring me closer to You and increase my love and worship of You.
Wednesday, December 31, 2014
Sunday, December 7, 2014
And That's What Christmas Is All About: Seeing Calvary Through Smokey Mountain
{excerpt from my journal on 6/28/2014}
These people have nothing and it breaks my heart. Really, nothing. Yet they're happy and glad to be alive. The Christians are so willing to serve and so joyful. I can't say I enjoyed it. Seeing all that poverty was heartbreaking. But it opened my eyes. I'll never forget the feeling of loving and reaching out to grimy kids with blackened bodies and sticky hands who have probably never bathed for months. Or seeing kids gnawing on bones atop a pile of trash or climbing Smokey Mountain with a grand view on top of a hill that almost looks natural, if not for the garbage and pieces of glass protruding from the dirt. It's. . .hard to find a word to describe the conditions there. It's very difficult to wrap my mind around it all without crying. Yet God is faithful.
I will always remember one little boy who stood naked from the waist down, blackened and grimy and tugging on my shirt, arms outstretched, begging to be held. A half-naked little boy. Dirty. Just wanting to be loved. And I tried to hide. I tried to say no. I tried to withdraw. His filth and nakedness repulsed me, and I wanted to shrink away and cry. Everything Western and sanitary screamed at me not to touch him.
But in that moment, I was reminded of Calvary's love. If Christ left all the glory in heaven above to live among the filth and waste of our sin, if He sacrificed everything He had for His glory and our salvation, if God Himself came to live and die among sinners in the slum of our hearts, in the depravity of our sin, how could I not love this child? How could I not give myself up and follow after the example of my Savior? If Christ died for me, how could I not love others?
And in that moment, God taught me a precious lesson.
Because now when I think about the incarnation of Christ and Christmas, of Christ coming down to earth and being made man, of Him leaving His heavenly throne and the riches of heaven for earth, of being born in the lowliest of places, of living among sinners who repelled Him with our wicked hearts in rebellion against Him, I think of the slums of Manila. I think of Christ, coming down to the filth of our sin and the garbage of our dark hearts, to work and live and love us. Our sin and our hearts were like garbage to Christ, like those sticky, blacked hands and that half-naked body and the human waste lying everywhere on the path. We were repulsive to Him with our thieving, lying, murderous, adulterous hearts. Yet Christ saw us in the spiritual slum of our depravity and He loved us. He loved us enough to come down and live among us, to die for our sins, that we might be freed from our bondage of sin and become adopted sons and daughters of the Most High.
And that's what Christmas is all about. How Christ came down to our level, to the spiritual equivalent of Smokey Mountain, to the filth of our hearts, for His glory and for our good. What an incredible God we have, a God so compassionate and loving and merciful, a God so patient with us in our sin and a God full of grace and blessings that we do not and cannot ever deserve.
Lord, may we live life each day in light of all that You are and all that You've done.
Friday, November 7, 2014
Reflections Over a Cup of Tea: Identity Crisis and Isaiah 43
I'm a junior.
And some days I struggle with my identity.
There are days when I roll out of bed, and I wonder if I am worth more than what I do, what I wear, what people think of me.
Because life is crazy hectic between school and karate and driving places and learning things and getting decent grades and checkmarks in speech and debate. Crammed full of taking and prepping for all those three letter tests. And suddenly, everyone has figured out colleges and careers and majors, while balancing relationships and a healthy social life on the side.
Am I worth more than a good SAT score?
Am I still worth something if I'm not dating a guy, if I don't know what college I want to go to, if I can't keep up a 4.0 GPA?
It's so difficult. When there's pressure from all areas of life to conform and be popular and wear the right things and listen to the right music and get asked out by guys. Years have passed, and it's still the same basic struggle. The battle to not fall back into depression or a low self-image, but to wake up and live without always feeling horrible about myself. The desperate fight to find my worth and value and identity, not because of who I am or what I can do or what other people think of me, but as a daughter of the King who sent His Son down to earth to redeem this broken heart, so I now have worth and value and identity because I am cloaked in His love and grace and strength and peace.
I know all this by heart now. I've said these same things to myself for ages, as long as I can remember. Yet, truly believing these things with heart and soul and mind doesn't come easily.
Lord, help my unbelief.
I turn to Isaiah 43 and its words wash over me, overwhelm me, comfort me.
"But now thus says the Lord,
he who created you, O Jacob,
he who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name, you are mine.
2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.
3 For I am the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.
I give Egypt as your ransom,
Cush and Seba in exchange for you.
4 Because you are precious in my eyes,
and honored, and I love you,
I give men in return for you,
peoples in exchange for your life.
5 Fear not, for I am with you;
I will bring your offspring from the east,
and from the west I will gather you.
6 I will say to the north, Give up,
and to the south, Do not withhold;
bring my sons from afar
and my daughters from the end of the earth,
7 everyone who is called by my name,
whom I created for my glory,
whom I formed and made.”
I am precious and honored and loved and cherished by the Creator of the universe. Nothing, no one can remove me from the unfailing, constant, irreplaceable love of God.
I bear His name, and through the turbulence of life, I do not walk alone.
I wish I could say reading Isaiah 43 entirely replaced my doubt and insecurity with trust in God. But in all honesty, I can't. I'm just a sinner trying to renew my mind with the truth of God's Word, and it really is a constant, daily struggle, and sometimes I do feel discouraged and not worth much. However, I'm just so grateful that we have a God who is patient with us in our stubbornness, who works through our unbelief that we might truly see and know and understand His amazing love for us. That in everything, through all of life's ups and downs, He loves me, forever and always. We serve an amazing God.
{Safety is found only in His sovereignty, security in His love, and satisfaction in His presence.}
May I find my security in Him.
And some days I struggle with my identity.
There are days when I roll out of bed, and I wonder if I am worth more than what I do, what I wear, what people think of me.
Because life is crazy hectic between school and karate and driving places and learning things and getting decent grades and checkmarks in speech and debate. Crammed full of taking and prepping for all those three letter tests. And suddenly, everyone has figured out colleges and careers and majors, while balancing relationships and a healthy social life on the side.
Am I worth more than a good SAT score?
Am I still worth something if I'm not dating a guy, if I don't know what college I want to go to, if I can't keep up a 4.0 GPA?
It's so difficult. When there's pressure from all areas of life to conform and be popular and wear the right things and listen to the right music and get asked out by guys. Years have passed, and it's still the same basic struggle. The battle to not fall back into depression or a low self-image, but to wake up and live without always feeling horrible about myself. The desperate fight to find my worth and value and identity, not because of who I am or what I can do or what other people think of me, but as a daughter of the King who sent His Son down to earth to redeem this broken heart, so I now have worth and value and identity because I am cloaked in His love and grace and strength and peace.
I know all this by heart now. I've said these same things to myself for ages, as long as I can remember. Yet, truly believing these things with heart and soul and mind doesn't come easily.
Lord, help my unbelief.
I turn to Isaiah 43 and its words wash over me, overwhelm me, comfort me.
"But now thus says the Lord,
he who created you, O Jacob,
he who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name, you are mine.
2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.
3 For I am the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.
I give Egypt as your ransom,
Cush and Seba in exchange for you.
4 Because you are precious in my eyes,
and honored, and I love you,
I give men in return for you,
peoples in exchange for your life.
5 Fear not, for I am with you;
I will bring your offspring from the east,
and from the west I will gather you.
6 I will say to the north, Give up,
and to the south, Do not withhold;
bring my sons from afar
and my daughters from the end of the earth,
7 everyone who is called by my name,
whom I created for my glory,
whom I formed and made.”
I am precious and honored and loved and cherished by the Creator of the universe. Nothing, no one can remove me from the unfailing, constant, irreplaceable love of God.
I bear His name, and through the turbulence of life, I do not walk alone.
I wish I could say reading Isaiah 43 entirely replaced my doubt and insecurity with trust in God. But in all honesty, I can't. I'm just a sinner trying to renew my mind with the truth of God's Word, and it really is a constant, daily struggle, and sometimes I do feel discouraged and not worth much. However, I'm just so grateful that we have a God who is patient with us in our stubbornness, who works through our unbelief that we might truly see and know and understand His amazing love for us. That in everything, through all of life's ups and downs, He loves me, forever and always. We serve an amazing God.
{Safety is found only in His sovereignty, security in His love, and satisfaction in His presence.}
May I find my security in Him.
Tuesday, September 23, 2014
Understanding the Culture: The Liturgists
Christian musicians are promoting a new kind of Christianity, one that incorporates meditation and silence, supernatural mysticism, and Eastern philosophy. It's a water-downed version of the Truth mixed with universalism and pantheism, and it's destructive. Its ideals and values are corroding the theology and beliefs of the evangelical Christian church, yet modern Christians embrace and welcome its teachings, unknowingly swallowing poison and waging war against truth and God itself.
Meditation, as found in Eastern religions, filled with emptied minds and inner peace, is not a viable activity for Christians. God commands us to worship Him in spirit and in truth. We are not to worship in any way we feel like, but to worship correctly according to what we know of God through Scripture. In this way, we do not misinterpret Scripture or create our own "truths," but we worship God in accordance with who He really is and what He wants from us.
Additionally, meditation results in emptied minds, while the Bible generates minds filled with Scriptural truth, thoughts that are excellent, noble, and pure. Christianity is a religion of discernment, preaching vigilance in our hearts and minds. We must take every thought captive, testing and measuring worldviews and ideas according to Scripture. Christianity demands us to think and to think well. And so Christians must be on guard against the corrupt teachings of this world and our own sinful minds. Emptying our minds only lowers our defenses to the blasphemies and lies of the world.
But the idea's been catching like wildfire, and friends have emailed me directly about such links. So here's my attempt to shine the light of biblical truth on the Liturgist group. Here's an attempt to poke holes in its foundation. Here's my contribution to uphold the banner of Truth above this chaotic worldview and reveal the cobwebs and loopholes in this new movement. If this post can increase discernment in my readers, if this post can promote God's truth, then my goal's been accomplished.
So before I go any farther, I recommend checking out and reading the Liturgist's website {http://www.theliturgists.com} You may be surprised to see the list of Christian bands and artists who are part of spreading Christian heresy.
Let's start by dissecting their values, found at: http://www.theliturgists.com/manifesto/
1. Beauty- "We believe that beauty is the heart and perhaps primary truth of the Gospel. If it's not beautiful, it's not worth speaking of or working on."
Where is this concept found in Scripture? How has the Gospel become so decentralized that it fails to focus on God's glory and goodness and love? God is the center of the Gospel. The Gospel glorifies God. It reveals His power over sin and death, His love towards such undeserving sinners, His righteousness and justice in fulfilling the payment of sin (death). The cross glorified God in bringing sinners to salvation, emphasizing man's utter depravity and God's grace. God is beautiful, of course, because He is perfectly good. But beauty was not Jesus' goal. He wasn't beaten and stripped and tortured and killed for beauty. He died for God's glory, that the Lord of all might be glorified in the victory over sin and death and the salvation of sinners.
Skipping over #2 to #3 in their manifesto...
3. Unity - "The Liturgists is made up of people with varying thoughts, philosophies and theologies, and we seek to integrate our diversity into a healthy unity. While we have no desire to cater or pander to worldviews that are destructive, we do seek the good in every perspective and believe that all human beings are connected to each other and the Cosmos at large, and that a deep sense of unity ought to trump any differences that we create with one another."
I'd like to first point out the concept of Pantheism that pervades this mentality. That all human beings are connected to each other and the Cosmos (note the capital C) is quite equivalent to saying God is in all of us and all of nature, or that we are all one with nature. In Romans 1, the Bible specifically warns against the danger of worshipping creation, rather than the Creator. Creation is not equivalent with the Creator, in the same way as a painting is vastly different from its painter. Scripture emphasizes this by describing God as the holy Creator of a fallen creation. Also, mankind is not equivalent with God. Simply listing God's attributes (omniscience, omnipotence, holiness, etc.) and comparing them to the limited, finite nature of man should suffice to disregard this argument. Lastly, man is not equal with nature. We were created in the image of God as stewards of creation to take care of nature.
I'd also like to emphasize the universalist and postmodernist mentality diluted and hidden within this third point. "Seeking the good in every perspective" essentially embraces the good in all religions, rejecting the absolutes of Christianity and believing truth can be found in every worldview. When in reality, there is an absolute Truth and all other religions and worldviews are distortions and lies of that perfect Truth. When all other beliefs are roads leading to a hell away from God and everything true and beautiful. The Liturgist movement digresses from the Truth found only in the Word of God and accepts all other beliefs in the name of tolerance.
4. Christian Theology - "Atlhough we value people of all beliefs, the Liturgists is decidedly Christian in practice. We see exceptional value in the life and teachings of Jesus, and while we may experiment with influences and ideas from multiple traditions, we find it useful to utilize specifically Christian language and sacrament for the purpose of creating good liturgical experiences."
The life and teachings of Jesus are not just valuable. He was not simply a "good person" who taught "good things." He was either the Son of God who deserves to be worshipped as Lord, or else a liar or a lunatic. And this just saddens me to no avail. That Christians, Christians in the church and music industry, glaze over the main root of Jesus' teachings. Christ emphasized our depravity and need of salvation, which only comes through belief, repentance, and surrender. And Jesus' words were fighting words, not simply "good words" or words with moral value, but words that still demand and invoke a response.
The last part of the statement irritates me. "Good liturgical experiences?" Like emotional heartpulls or Pentecostal babblings? These Liturgists are employing the Truth found in Christianity and manipulating it for their own "experiences". And that makes me mad. Indignant that they should be so presumptuous to play with the Truth and extort it into something they find "more beautiful" than knowing God Himself through the Holy Scriptures. When Christ is enough to satisfy us completely.
-
If you've read this far, visit this link: http://www.theliturgists.com/god-our-mother/ and listen to tracks 3-5.
In response to track 3, "God Our Mother," God teaches us to address Him as "our Father" in Scripture. Believers are taught to pray to Him as our Father in heaven. Referring to Jesus as our Father brings to mind the protection, care, provision, control, leadership, discipline, authority, and love of God. Though the Bible does use feminine forms to address wisdom or Jesus, when He longed to gather Jerusalem and His people together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, God wants us to address Him as our Father. And we do so, out of respect and obedience to God Himself.
Meditation, as found in Eastern religions, filled with emptied minds and inner peace, is not a viable activity for Christians. God commands us to worship Him in spirit and in truth. We are not to worship in any way we feel like, but to worship correctly according to what we know of God through Scripture. In this way, we do not misinterpret Scripture or create our own "truths," but we worship God in accordance with who He really is and what He wants from us.
Additionally, meditation results in emptied minds, while the Bible generates minds filled with Scriptural truth, thoughts that are excellent, noble, and pure. Christianity is a religion of discernment, preaching vigilance in our hearts and minds. We must take every thought captive, testing and measuring worldviews and ideas according to Scripture. Christianity demands us to think and to think well. And so Christians must be on guard against the corrupt teachings of this world and our own sinful minds. Emptying our minds only lowers our defenses to the blasphemies and lies of the world.
So, to conclude a rather long and hurriedly written post, the Liturgists have no place in Christianity. Their claims and manipulations of biblical truth should be a warning to us to increase our awareness and knowledge of Scripture, that we might obtain discernment and wisdom in dealing with the philosophies of the world. For we fight a battle not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces of evil and wolves in sheep's clothing.
"For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience."
{2 Corinthians 10:3-6}
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
Seeing God Behind the Headlines
I read about pain and suffering and tragedy, all in the comforts of a typical suburban American home, while scrolling through the Wall Street Journal on my Macbook, feet resting on plushy cushions, chips near at hand. I can walk across the room to a fridge packed with food or open my closet to a myriad of different outfits.
Suddenly I look at everything, and I cannot believe that I live among the lucky few, while millions are living in pain and suffering and hardship. It seems hypocritical to read about India's caste system, where untouchables earn less than $4 a month cleaning out latrines and shoveling out human excrement, and then later spend $4 on a Starbucks drink. It saddens me to contemplate the raping and killing and brutality carried on by Boko Haram or the Islamic State. Such brutal murder and anger and fear throughout the world, such trauma as people are beheaded and killed for their faith, as families flee from all they know, all they hold dear.
And here I am. Typing on my Macbook, indecisive over today's outfit or lunch, worrying about PSATs and subject tests and getting all my schoolwork done.
In times like this, when I feel so useless and hypocritical and monstrous in this safety and comfort and wealth, when I ask the whys and I cannot understand the seeming contradiction, I pray. The only comfort I can rely on on this earth comes from above. And in dark times like this, I am led to the Rock that is higher than this storm of havoc and destruction, and I am comforted by God's attributes. In this pain, in these horrific circumstances of death and suffering, He is sovereign and He is good.
He is sovereign.
And I stare at those three words until they can penetrate into this thick skull of mine, until they form a picture of God wielding the conductor's wand, holding the painter's paintbrush, molding the clay. The earth is His footstool. He is in perfect control. All this pain, all this destruction is part of His plan. Nothing happens outside of His control, not even all this.
In fact, I know how this story ends. It ends in a fantastic display of God's goodness and holiness and justice, where all tongues from all nations will bow down in worship and recognition of who God is. Just like the cliche action novel, before the author concludes his tale, things seem dark and unreasonable. It seems impossible that the hero or heroine will ultimately escape from all this madness and things will be made right. Yet, at the end of the novel, all is well and everyone lives happily ever after. In the same way, we already know this story has a good ending. This evil in the world will pass and fall away, but my God will reign forever on high where there is no pain, death, or sorrow.
And so I trust Him. I delight in His sovereignty and supremacy and control.
Even though news headlines are hard to reconcile, even though I cannot understand why these awful things are occurring, I know and believe and recognize God's hand above it all. There is a reason for this madness. And because this is all part of His plan, because I can see the magnificent conclusion of this story, I trust Him.
God is just.
My heart cries out for justice when I look at pictures of murdered civilians, when I see the faces of families fleeing their hometowns, or when I see the corruption in the world and how the rich thrive on top of the bones and blood of the oppressed. In these moments, when my passion spurts out in red flames and I cannot hold within me the anger directed at these men with guns and knives, I recognize that God is just, and justice will be delivered to each individual.
Justice.
That word brings me to terms with my past. For I deserved death. I deserved a living, eternal, forever kind of death. I was no different than these murderers. My heart was just as black as these killers and the people they murdered. I was once one of them, and only by God's grace did Jesus regenerate my broken heart. I have received grace. Yet who am I to hate other sinners when I was once like them?
I demand justice. Yet, do I truly know what I'm asking for? Because justice would require an extermination of all unbelieving human life, including my agnostic or atheist friends alongside Islamic terrorists. Which leads me to a recognition of the importance of God's patience and timing, as well as His justice. Not only do we serve a just God, but we serve a patient God, who desires that people come to know Him.
Justice will come. In the meantime, I wait with Him, for the predestined to repent, for His children to believe, and for all to bow one day before His throne.
God is good.
This sin and death and misery is because of us. We fell into depravity. Our hearts became desperately sick. We rebelled against our Creator, and because of our rebellion, pain and death and suffering came into the world. The evil in this world is a result of sin, not a creation of our Heavenly Father.
In fact, He sent His one and only Son, so that those who believe in His Name and surrender their lives to Him may have life. Instead of passively allowing us to remain trapped in this dark world, Christ unlocked the cage. All we have to do is to simply accept the cage is open and jump out. When we acknowledge and worship Jesus as Lord, when we repent and turn from our sins, we can be truly free. Because of God's free gift, because Christ died so we have a way out of this dark world, we can live life here on earth with rich spiritual blessings and the hope of an eternal life with the King.
And so, though headlines and newspapers may shake my emotions, I know and believe and delight in the fact that my God is sovereign and just and good. Even though I don't understand, though I may never understand the height and depth and width of God's ways, I trust Him. He is faithful. The best is yet to come.
Suddenly I look at everything, and I cannot believe that I live among the lucky few, while millions are living in pain and suffering and hardship. It seems hypocritical to read about India's caste system, where untouchables earn less than $4 a month cleaning out latrines and shoveling out human excrement, and then later spend $4 on a Starbucks drink. It saddens me to contemplate the raping and killing and brutality carried on by Boko Haram or the Islamic State. Such brutal murder and anger and fear throughout the world, such trauma as people are beheaded and killed for their faith, as families flee from all they know, all they hold dear.
And here I am. Typing on my Macbook, indecisive over today's outfit or lunch, worrying about PSATs and subject tests and getting all my schoolwork done.
In times like this, when I feel so useless and hypocritical and monstrous in this safety and comfort and wealth, when I ask the whys and I cannot understand the seeming contradiction, I pray. The only comfort I can rely on on this earth comes from above. And in dark times like this, I am led to the Rock that is higher than this storm of havoc and destruction, and I am comforted by God's attributes. In this pain, in these horrific circumstances of death and suffering, He is sovereign and He is good.
He is sovereign.
And I stare at those three words until they can penetrate into this thick skull of mine, until they form a picture of God wielding the conductor's wand, holding the painter's paintbrush, molding the clay. The earth is His footstool. He is in perfect control. All this pain, all this destruction is part of His plan. Nothing happens outside of His control, not even all this.
In fact, I know how this story ends. It ends in a fantastic display of God's goodness and holiness and justice, where all tongues from all nations will bow down in worship and recognition of who God is. Just like the cliche action novel, before the author concludes his tale, things seem dark and unreasonable. It seems impossible that the hero or heroine will ultimately escape from all this madness and things will be made right. Yet, at the end of the novel, all is well and everyone lives happily ever after. In the same way, we already know this story has a good ending. This evil in the world will pass and fall away, but my God will reign forever on high where there is no pain, death, or sorrow.
And so I trust Him. I delight in His sovereignty and supremacy and control.
Even though news headlines are hard to reconcile, even though I cannot understand why these awful things are occurring, I know and believe and recognize God's hand above it all. There is a reason for this madness. And because this is all part of His plan, because I can see the magnificent conclusion of this story, I trust Him.
God is just.
My heart cries out for justice when I look at pictures of murdered civilians, when I see the faces of families fleeing their hometowns, or when I see the corruption in the world and how the rich thrive on top of the bones and blood of the oppressed. In these moments, when my passion spurts out in red flames and I cannot hold within me the anger directed at these men with guns and knives, I recognize that God is just, and justice will be delivered to each individual.
Justice.
That word brings me to terms with my past. For I deserved death. I deserved a living, eternal, forever kind of death. I was no different than these murderers. My heart was just as black as these killers and the people they murdered. I was once one of them, and only by God's grace did Jesus regenerate my broken heart. I have received grace. Yet who am I to hate other sinners when I was once like them?
I demand justice. Yet, do I truly know what I'm asking for? Because justice would require an extermination of all unbelieving human life, including my agnostic or atheist friends alongside Islamic terrorists. Which leads me to a recognition of the importance of God's patience and timing, as well as His justice. Not only do we serve a just God, but we serve a patient God, who desires that people come to know Him.
Justice will come. In the meantime, I wait with Him, for the predestined to repent, for His children to believe, and for all to bow one day before His throne.
God is good.
This sin and death and misery is because of us. We fell into depravity. Our hearts became desperately sick. We rebelled against our Creator, and because of our rebellion, pain and death and suffering came into the world. The evil in this world is a result of sin, not a creation of our Heavenly Father.
In fact, He sent His one and only Son, so that those who believe in His Name and surrender their lives to Him may have life. Instead of passively allowing us to remain trapped in this dark world, Christ unlocked the cage. All we have to do is to simply accept the cage is open and jump out. When we acknowledge and worship Jesus as Lord, when we repent and turn from our sins, we can be truly free. Because of God's free gift, because Christ died so we have a way out of this dark world, we can live life here on earth with rich spiritual blessings and the hope of an eternal life with the King.
And so, though headlines and newspapers may shake my emotions, I know and believe and delight in the fact that my God is sovereign and just and good. Even though I don't understand, though I may never understand the height and depth and width of God's ways, I trust Him. He is faithful. The best is yet to come.
Saturday, August 16, 2014
Understanding the Culture: Noah - Heresy Played in Theaters
Noah was a direct, heretical mockery of Noah, Scripture, and God.
And here's why.
1. The plot *spoilers alert*
The whole film was painful. The Watchers, fallen angels who were banished from heaven because they helped Adam and Eve, beings who looked like a cross between Transformers and ents. Because fallen angels aren't demons by any chance, but nice little rock giants who helped Noah's family build the ark.
Also, how the animals were innocent and the ark was built to save them, not mankind. How those who ate meat were portrayed as living devils, while Noah and his family were commended because of their vegetarian, subsistence living, only taking what they needed to the point of not even picking wildflowers. How there were only 6 of Noah's family on the ark, plus one evil man who snuck in to kill Noah. How Noah decided God wanted him to kill everyone for their sin, to the point of almost murdering his own granddaughters to prohibit new life.
Two psycho guys with knives on the ark. Great. Now where was that in the Bible? Where was Ila and the miraculous healing of her barrenness? Or drugging the animals so they slept peacefully on the ark? Really. One needs only to turn to Genesis 5-9 and read the true historical account found right there in God's Holy Word.
The plot bothers me. It bothers me when a producer, a mere man, would choose to interpret and change and twist the Word of God into some sort of fantastical story, a myth of fire and healing powers. Nothing more than a mere story. Is that how the Word of the Living God should be portrayed? As a book of fairytales? Not only does Noah mock Scripture, but it mocks God. It derides the power and goodness of God when the story of Noah is portrayed as an illogical fairytale, instead of the historical account of God's faithfulness to a righteous man.
2. Noah
God didn't pick Noah because he was good. God chose him because he was mass-murderer material, a man who could destroy all of mankind, including his own family. Or so it goes in the film. Because according to Noah, Shem had a wife named Ila who was barren. When she was magically healed by Methuselah and became pregnant (show me that in Scripture), Noah threatened to kill her babies if they were girls, so the human race would end. He believed in original sin so strongly that he wanted to carry out justice for God. Yet he looked down on those babies and he couldn't kill them. To quote Ila, he "saw the goodness in man." He chose to have mercy and love, rather than "obey God."
Actually, as a side note, for those who are pro-abortion, would they agree with Noah's decision to murder the babies? Would they remain consistent with what they believe and simply accept the murder of the innocent? I wonder...
Anyway, I have three problems here.
The first: Noah was not chosen because he could complete the task of destroying mankind and saving innocent animals. According to Scripture, God chose Noah because he was righteous and feared God. Scripture says he was righteous and blameless, and he walked with the Lord and found favor in His eyes (Gen 6). Truth is, God hates evil, and though Noah was still born sinful, Noah feared God. Noah followed after Him. And that separated him and his family from the rest of the world.
The second: The film teaches that the goodness in man outweighs the evil within us. And that is heresy, pure lies. We deserve hell. We have rejected God. There is no one good, no, not even one, and our hearts are desperately sick. When we die, we will go to hell because God's standard is perfection. We all have sinned. And no matter how many good things we do, God will judge us because of that sin. We cannot be good enough on our own. Our good deeds are like filthy rags in God's eyes, and the little good we do cannot even compare with our wicked hearts.
The third: Obeying God is more important than "love". Let me first go back and point out that God never commanded Noah to kill his own family. This part was strictly never in the Bible but added in by the producer. Also, God will never call us to go against His commandments and murder someone and take justice in our own hands. Let that stand as a warning to us to correctly interpret what we think is God's will in the light of God's Word. However, this movie reminds me of Abraham and Isaac. There, God did command Abraham to sacrifice his only son. At the last second, God stopped Abraham and provided a ram as a replacement for Isaac, both to test Abraham's faith and provide an example of what Christ would do for us on the cross. We see here that Abraham chose to obey God and was rewarded for his faith. Obedience to God should come before everything and anything.
3. Testimony
After I watched this movie, I wondered to myself what an unbeliever would think of such a illogical, strange, and mythological work of fantasy. After seeing Noah, would it cause a hunger to know God, this powerful Creator who designed everything and who loves justice, yet has mercy? Would it produce a desire to talk about the things of God and ask other Christians more about what they believe? It's doubtful, but perhaps.
And even for Christians, is this movie beneficial? Does it cause a praise and adoration of God or an appreciation for Noah's faith and righteousness? Does it make us admire his trust in God and his steadfastness and perseverance? I think not. I think not.
Noah was a disappointment. I had heard negative things about it, but never had I dreamed Noah would be portrayed as someone who thirsted for murder or the animals pictured as the main point of building the ark. I never dreamed that such a strong pro-vegetarianism and environmentalist mentality would pervade the entire film. And that saddens me. I wonder what God thinks when He looks down on this film. I wonder what He feels when He sees Himself portrayed as a fantastical being or his servant Noah as a person who refuses to pick wildflowers.
Yet at the same time, I pray that God would use this film, even in its brokenness. That coworkers and friends and family would ask about the Truth, that conversations would blossom, that the Gospel would be proclaimed and the truth shared. God can use even the weak and broken and diseased and secular as Areopaguses to display His glory.
And here's why.
1. The plot *spoilers alert*
The whole film was painful. The Watchers, fallen angels who were banished from heaven because they helped Adam and Eve, beings who looked like a cross between Transformers and ents. Because fallen angels aren't demons by any chance, but nice little rock giants who helped Noah's family build the ark.
Also, how the animals were innocent and the ark was built to save them, not mankind. How those who ate meat were portrayed as living devils, while Noah and his family were commended because of their vegetarian, subsistence living, only taking what they needed to the point of not even picking wildflowers. How there were only 6 of Noah's family on the ark, plus one evil man who snuck in to kill Noah. How Noah decided God wanted him to kill everyone for their sin, to the point of almost murdering his own granddaughters to prohibit new life.
Two psycho guys with knives on the ark. Great. Now where was that in the Bible? Where was Ila and the miraculous healing of her barrenness? Or drugging the animals so they slept peacefully on the ark? Really. One needs only to turn to Genesis 5-9 and read the true historical account found right there in God's Holy Word.
The plot bothers me. It bothers me when a producer, a mere man, would choose to interpret and change and twist the Word of God into some sort of fantastical story, a myth of fire and healing powers. Nothing more than a mere story. Is that how the Word of the Living God should be portrayed? As a book of fairytales? Not only does Noah mock Scripture, but it mocks God. It derides the power and goodness of God when the story of Noah is portrayed as an illogical fairytale, instead of the historical account of God's faithfulness to a righteous man.
2. Noah
God didn't pick Noah because he was good. God chose him because he was mass-murderer material, a man who could destroy all of mankind, including his own family. Or so it goes in the film. Because according to Noah, Shem had a wife named Ila who was barren. When she was magically healed by Methuselah and became pregnant (show me that in Scripture), Noah threatened to kill her babies if they were girls, so the human race would end. He believed in original sin so strongly that he wanted to carry out justice for God. Yet he looked down on those babies and he couldn't kill them. To quote Ila, he "saw the goodness in man." He chose to have mercy and love, rather than "obey God."
Actually, as a side note, for those who are pro-abortion, would they agree with Noah's decision to murder the babies? Would they remain consistent with what they believe and simply accept the murder of the innocent? I wonder...
Anyway, I have three problems here.
The first: Noah was not chosen because he could complete the task of destroying mankind and saving innocent animals. According to Scripture, God chose Noah because he was righteous and feared God. Scripture says he was righteous and blameless, and he walked with the Lord and found favor in His eyes (Gen 6). Truth is, God hates evil, and though Noah was still born sinful, Noah feared God. Noah followed after Him. And that separated him and his family from the rest of the world.
The second: The film teaches that the goodness in man outweighs the evil within us. And that is heresy, pure lies. We deserve hell. We have rejected God. There is no one good, no, not even one, and our hearts are desperately sick. When we die, we will go to hell because God's standard is perfection. We all have sinned. And no matter how many good things we do, God will judge us because of that sin. We cannot be good enough on our own. Our good deeds are like filthy rags in God's eyes, and the little good we do cannot even compare with our wicked hearts.
The third: Obeying God is more important than "love". Let me first go back and point out that God never commanded Noah to kill his own family. This part was strictly never in the Bible but added in by the producer. Also, God will never call us to go against His commandments and murder someone and take justice in our own hands. Let that stand as a warning to us to correctly interpret what we think is God's will in the light of God's Word. However, this movie reminds me of Abraham and Isaac. There, God did command Abraham to sacrifice his only son. At the last second, God stopped Abraham and provided a ram as a replacement for Isaac, both to test Abraham's faith and provide an example of what Christ would do for us on the cross. We see here that Abraham chose to obey God and was rewarded for his faith. Obedience to God should come before everything and anything.
3. Testimony
After I watched this movie, I wondered to myself what an unbeliever would think of such a illogical, strange, and mythological work of fantasy. After seeing Noah, would it cause a hunger to know God, this powerful Creator who designed everything and who loves justice, yet has mercy? Would it produce a desire to talk about the things of God and ask other Christians more about what they believe? It's doubtful, but perhaps.
And even for Christians, is this movie beneficial? Does it cause a praise and adoration of God or an appreciation for Noah's faith and righteousness? Does it make us admire his trust in God and his steadfastness and perseverance? I think not. I think not.
-
Yet at the same time, I pray that God would use this film, even in its brokenness. That coworkers and friends and family would ask about the Truth, that conversations would blossom, that the Gospel would be proclaimed and the truth shared. God can use even the weak and broken and diseased and secular as Areopaguses to display His glory.
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
When 490 Seems Too Big
70 times 7.
1.
And I stare at that number one. I stare, until that single digit is tattooed onto my brain. I stare, hoping if I stare enough and grasp the simplicity of the digit, forgiveness will become easier in the process, and my bitter heart will be able to open up and truly love those I despise.
But some days, forgiving even once seems impossible. For when there is so much anger and hurt and bitterness, how can I simply embrace someone who caused me so much pain and regret? How can I forgive mistakes and inconsiderations and words?
Lord, how can I forgive?
How can I forgive the simplest of mistakes, the slightest of inconsiderations, the shortest of words? And if I cannot even forgive the little things, how can I pardon the big things? The thick scars upon my heart that prevent me from forgiveness. The words said to me that I've never shared with anyone, words that still cause tears, and with them, anger.
Yet, in my bitterness, I cannot justify myself entirely. I think upon the words I've said, the deeds I've done. Those words are inscribed upon my heart too, words that hurt many and still bring me the deepest shame. My actions fall short also, actions full of insensitivity and blunt cruelty.
My finger strokes the surface of my heart and comes away grimy.
But in this depressing pit of anger and hatred, my thoughts move beyond me to Christ. He never wronged anyone, yet the world wronged Him. And though we acted towards Him in hostility, bitterness, and hatred, He dealt with us in unconditional love, leading ultimately to His death on the cross. Despite the pain we caused Him, Christ died for us. And because Christ died for us, so we must also forgive, for the entirety of our debt has been paid in full.
So 490. A huge number.
But say we've sinned 10 times a day.
10 times 365 times about 17 years.
That equals 62,050.
I've sinned a minimum of 62,050 times in my lifetime.
If Christ has forgiven me more than sixty-thousand times, how can I withhold my forgiveness from anyone? How can we demand pennies from our neighbors when Christ has cancelled our trillion dollar debt? How can we stand in hypocrisy, condemning those who inflict our hearts with paper cuts, while we ourselves crucified our Savior on the cross of our sin?
I am utterly self-righteous.
Christ's example puts me to shame when I examine the bitterness of my heart, as I see how willingly and sacrificially He loved His enemies. Enemies who deserved eternal judgement and everlasting death and His righteous hatred but yet received agape love, adoption into the kingdom, and spiritual regeneration.
Forgiveness is a battle for me. It's hard to disregard the scars upon my heart and welcome those who hurt me with open arms. It's hard to show them Christ's love. And some days, it's a continual process of a renewed hatred remolded into love. But it's a process of sanctification, where our hearts are continually fashioned to become more like our Savior.
Lord, teach me forgiveness. Reveal to me the extent of my sin and the enormity of Your love. Let my self-righteousness wither away at the sight of Your grace and mercy. It is hard to forgive. It is hard to love, Lord. But when I finally come to terms with what You've done for me, forgiving once seems a little less impossible. I recognize that I cannot forgive on my own, but it's because of You that I can love and forgive others. Give me a heart of love and compassion, that I may love others as You love them, unselfishly, unconditionally. I am weak, and often I fail. But You are strong and You delight in using those who are weak. So use me as a channel of love and grace, even to my enemies. I thank You for You are an awesome God, who has forgiven us beyond reason. May You would enlarge my heart to the same proportions as Yours.
1.
And I stare at that number one. I stare, until that single digit is tattooed onto my brain. I stare, hoping if I stare enough and grasp the simplicity of the digit, forgiveness will become easier in the process, and my bitter heart will be able to open up and truly love those I despise.
But some days, forgiving even once seems impossible. For when there is so much anger and hurt and bitterness, how can I simply embrace someone who caused me so much pain and regret? How can I forgive mistakes and inconsiderations and words?
Lord, how can I forgive?
How can I forgive the simplest of mistakes, the slightest of inconsiderations, the shortest of words? And if I cannot even forgive the little things, how can I pardon the big things? The thick scars upon my heart that prevent me from forgiveness. The words said to me that I've never shared with anyone, words that still cause tears, and with them, anger.
Yet, in my bitterness, I cannot justify myself entirely. I think upon the words I've said, the deeds I've done. Those words are inscribed upon my heart too, words that hurt many and still bring me the deepest shame. My actions fall short also, actions full of insensitivity and blunt cruelty.
My finger strokes the surface of my heart and comes away grimy.
But in this depressing pit of anger and hatred, my thoughts move beyond me to Christ. He never wronged anyone, yet the world wronged Him. And though we acted towards Him in hostility, bitterness, and hatred, He dealt with us in unconditional love, leading ultimately to His death on the cross. Despite the pain we caused Him, Christ died for us. And because Christ died for us, so we must also forgive, for the entirety of our debt has been paid in full.
So 490. A huge number.
But say we've sinned 10 times a day.
10 times 365 times about 17 years.
That equals 62,050.
I've sinned a minimum of 62,050 times in my lifetime.
If Christ has forgiven me more than sixty-thousand times, how can I withhold my forgiveness from anyone? How can we demand pennies from our neighbors when Christ has cancelled our trillion dollar debt? How can we stand in hypocrisy, condemning those who inflict our hearts with paper cuts, while we ourselves crucified our Savior on the cross of our sin?
I am utterly self-righteous.
Christ's example puts me to shame when I examine the bitterness of my heart, as I see how willingly and sacrificially He loved His enemies. Enemies who deserved eternal judgement and everlasting death and His righteous hatred but yet received agape love, adoption into the kingdom, and spiritual regeneration.
Forgiveness is a battle for me. It's hard to disregard the scars upon my heart and welcome those who hurt me with open arms. It's hard to show them Christ's love. And some days, it's a continual process of a renewed hatred remolded into love. But it's a process of sanctification, where our hearts are continually fashioned to become more like our Savior.
Lord, teach me forgiveness. Reveal to me the extent of my sin and the enormity of Your love. Let my self-righteousness wither away at the sight of Your grace and mercy. It is hard to forgive. It is hard to love, Lord. But when I finally come to terms with what You've done for me, forgiving once seems a little less impossible. I recognize that I cannot forgive on my own, but it's because of You that I can love and forgive others. Give me a heart of love and compassion, that I may love others as You love them, unselfishly, unconditionally. I am weak, and often I fail. But You are strong and You delight in using those who are weak. So use me as a channel of love and grace, even to my enemies. I thank You for You are an awesome God, who has forgiven us beyond reason. May You would enlarge my heart to the same proportions as Yours.
Saturday, August 2, 2014
To Love Missions is To Love Worship
Missions exists because worship doesn't.
Because people bow down before wooden idols in self-love and pride, recognizing and seeing only lies and an exaggeration of self, denying the glory due the One who deserves all praise.
And because there is this lack of worship and people fail to bow down before their rightful Creator, missions exists. A call to the peoples to know and obey and love their Creator God, to bow down and give Him the praise and honor He deserves. To worship.
And to love missions, to love the salvation of souls, to love evangelism and discipleship is to love worship and desire God's glory.
The true heart of a missionary is that God be praised and honored above all things.
God is most honored when He is worshipped. Missions exists because He is not completely glorified among His creation.
Yet, a lingering question still remains unanswered. How is God glorified? How is God most honored and most praised?
To quote Piper directly, God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.
In order for God to be glorified, we must be satisfied with who He is and what He's done for us. We must be content in His power and majesty and sovereignty. We must find fulfillment in His plan for our lives and His control over every circumstance. We must rejoice and find completion in Calvary's blood shed for our sins and delight in the resurrection of Christ.
We must realize that God is enough. Enough to conquer our sin and give us love, joy, peace, and strength for each day. Enough to sanctify us until we are made perfect and complete, lacking in nothing, one day in heaven.
And when we find that God is enough, when God completely satisfies our desires, God is glorified and He is worshipped.
But that leads us back in a full circle to missions.
In order for people to be satisfied in God, they have to hear of Him first. They have to grasp the enormity of the Gospel and Christ's sacrifice on the cross and His resurrection. They have to confess their sins and acknowledge Him as Lord of their life. And only then they can worship and glorify their Creator in full satisfaction in the knowledge of Him.
Missions exists because worship doesn't. Missions exists because we are not completely satisfied in God and fail to bring Him honor and praise.
Yet missions also exists because of our thirst to see God glorified and honored and praised in the world, from every tongue, tribe, and nation.
Mission exists because our satisfaction in Christ causes us to worship.
As a believer, how can we not desire that God be glorified? How can we not desire others to find true satisfaction in Christ? How can we not pursue and delight in the pursuit of missions, whether through praying, giving, sending, or going?
Missions is a command. A command for us as believers to seek God's glorification that all people might come to worship God for who He is.
So prioritize missions, with a heart and passion and desire for God to be exalted above the earth. God is great, and it is our privilege to honor Him as best we can.
{Inspired by John Piper's book Let the Nations be Glad}
Because people bow down before wooden idols in self-love and pride, recognizing and seeing only lies and an exaggeration of self, denying the glory due the One who deserves all praise.
And because there is this lack of worship and people fail to bow down before their rightful Creator, missions exists. A call to the peoples to know and obey and love their Creator God, to bow down and give Him the praise and honor He deserves. To worship.
And to love missions, to love the salvation of souls, to love evangelism and discipleship is to love worship and desire God's glory.
The true heart of a missionary is that God be praised and honored above all things.
God is most honored when He is worshipped. Missions exists because He is not completely glorified among His creation.
Yet, a lingering question still remains unanswered. How is God glorified? How is God most honored and most praised?
To quote Piper directly, God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.
In order for God to be glorified, we must be satisfied with who He is and what He's done for us. We must be content in His power and majesty and sovereignty. We must find fulfillment in His plan for our lives and His control over every circumstance. We must rejoice and find completion in Calvary's blood shed for our sins and delight in the resurrection of Christ.
We must realize that God is enough. Enough to conquer our sin and give us love, joy, peace, and strength for each day. Enough to sanctify us until we are made perfect and complete, lacking in nothing, one day in heaven.
And when we find that God is enough, when God completely satisfies our desires, God is glorified and He is worshipped.
But that leads us back in a full circle to missions.
In order for people to be satisfied in God, they have to hear of Him first. They have to grasp the enormity of the Gospel and Christ's sacrifice on the cross and His resurrection. They have to confess their sins and acknowledge Him as Lord of their life. And only then they can worship and glorify their Creator in full satisfaction in the knowledge of Him.
Missions exists because worship doesn't. Missions exists because we are not completely satisfied in God and fail to bring Him honor and praise.
Yet missions also exists because of our thirst to see God glorified and honored and praised in the world, from every tongue, tribe, and nation.
Mission exists because our satisfaction in Christ causes us to worship.
As a believer, how can we not desire that God be glorified? How can we not desire others to find true satisfaction in Christ? How can we not pursue and delight in the pursuit of missions, whether through praying, giving, sending, or going?
Missions is a command. A command for us as believers to seek God's glorification that all people might come to worship God for who He is.
So prioritize missions, with a heart and passion and desire for God to be exalted above the earth. God is great, and it is our privilege to honor Him as best we can.
{Inspired by John Piper's book Let the Nations be Glad}
Sunday, July 27, 2014
To Sharpen Iron: 3 Lessons Learned from Worldview
It wouldn't be stretching the truth to say that Worldview changed my life. Again.
As I think back upon this past week, I see the faces of my small group. Girls who changed the way I see God's heart. Who stood by each other through bleary-eyed mornings and tough lectures and intense discussions and six-pack-developing laughter. I see my small group leader Michelle, who imparted words of wisdom I will never forget and who sacrificed her time and energy and heart to six girls last week. I see the faces of our next generation, guys and gals who stand side-by-side, cupping the truth within our fragile hands.
And we are not afraid. Not afraid to ask the tough questions and wrestle with issues of government and law and biblical authority. Not afraid to step onto the streets of greater Seattle to witness to the Light. Not afraid because we have been trained to testify to the Truth.
I have the greatest admiration for these young men and women, who have a desire to know God and know Truth. For when we know God, we know Truth. And Worldview enables us to know both God and Truth. And to not only know Truth, but to share it with the world and empower others with what we've seen and learned.
On Wednesday, all 160+ students headed out to Fremont and Queen Anne for evangelism, armed with tracts and God's truth. And that's where I met Richard and my eyes were opened to God's heart.
Here was a man, stubborn in his belief that the Bible was contradictory and illogical. That the maximum IQ was when two people converge and how the Bible undermines women and promotes slavery. How the Bible was full of errors, while he himself was the supreme authority on what was right and wrong. How he believed he would simply disintegrate in death and how he believed he was a good person.
Oh Lord, forgive him, for he did not know what he was doing. Open his eyes. Break through to his heart. Show him Yourself in all Your glory and grace and love.
It was in that moment that I saw God's heart break. I saw a glimpse of God's immense pain for this man. He was God's beloved creation that He had sacrificed His only Son for, and yet he remained hostile with his sick heart in direct defiance of everything good and right and pure. Psalm 81:13 reads, "Oh, that my people would listen to me, that Israel would walk in my ways!" That day, I felt God's heart cry out in pain. I felt God's agony when He looked upon His creation and saw a disobedient people.
Yet, at the same time, I felt utter frustration, like I was beating against a wall of stone.
For how do you describe light to a blind man? How can you simply make someone see the box of lies he's been living in all his life?
That day, my eyes were opened and I saw the thousands upon thousands of people so blind and lost and dead in Seattle. Not just in Manila, but here in hip, coffee-drinking, tattooed Seattle. We are surrounded by the living dead.
Yet, so often, I am so selfish. I have the antidote to the poison permeating the world's population, yet I do nothing. I sit home on couches and watch TV and go about my daily business, when people are living and dying in their sin in direct rejection of the Truth.
Oh Lord, how can I be so selfish that I would withhold Your life-saving grace to the blind?
Richard showed me God's heart. And for that, I am eternally grateful. Please pray with me for Richard. Pray that God would turn His heart around that he might see God's eternal, unchanging, unconditional love and accept Christ as Lord over his life.
Christianity is a relationship, not a religion. And it is my privilege to study God's Word.
Growing up in a Christian home, we take a lot of things for granted. Often times, I read my Bible because as a Christian, it's the "right" thing to do, but I forget that Christ bought and paid for my relationship with Him. Jesus died for me, so I can know Him and love Him.
Similarly to romantic dates, we have the opportunity to "make a date" with Jesus. I don't mean that to be cheesy, but it's true. People who are in love with each other treasure each moment spent together and cherish each opportunity to spend time with one another. It's never a chore or a burden, but a gift.
It's the same with Christ. He loved us so much He died for us, and how do we repay Him? By treating His Word and our relationship with Christ as a duty or another task on our to-do list? Something to skim through each morning, so we can move on with our day?
Father, forgive me for abusing this beautiful gift of having a relationship with You. Draw me ever closer to Your heart.
Do we have to pray? Do we have to read the Bible? Do we have to do devotions each morning?
No. But we get to. We get to approach the throne of the Almighty God whenever we want and open His Word to learn more out our Creator and Heavenly Father. We get to make a date with Jesus whenever, wherever.
And so often we forget the immense privilege it is to approach our Lord Jesus through prayer and through His Word.
Recently, I've been struggling with imposing my own Christian standards on unbelievers through law and government, regarding issues like gay marriage.
One day at Worldview, I got to eat a meal with one of the speakers at Worldview, along with some other debaters and speechers. Mike Schutt explained it, not as imposing morals found in Scripture, but as upholding the Truth, found not only in Scripture, but in the natural order of things. Regarding the issue of legalizing gay marriage, he explained it as looking at how men and women were created physically and the natural process of childbirth and sex. Instead of only looking at Scripture to find what legislation to approve or oppose, he taught that upholding Truth was the more correct principle to apply to situations regarding religious beliefs and government.
And that really helped me reconcile the issue, because as a believer, it's important to always look first to God's Word. But realizing also that God's Word is truth and the natural order of the world supports truth helped me see that there are more reasons to endorse legislation than simply religious beliefs. And that'll help me in turn explain my political opinions to an unbelieving world.
As I think back upon this past week, I see the faces of my small group. Girls who changed the way I see God's heart. Who stood by each other through bleary-eyed mornings and tough lectures and intense discussions and six-pack-developing laughter. I see my small group leader Michelle, who imparted words of wisdom I will never forget and who sacrificed her time and energy and heart to six girls last week. I see the faces of our next generation, guys and gals who stand side-by-side, cupping the truth within our fragile hands.
And we are not afraid. Not afraid to ask the tough questions and wrestle with issues of government and law and biblical authority. Not afraid to step onto the streets of greater Seattle to witness to the Light. Not afraid because we have been trained to testify to the Truth.
I have the greatest admiration for these young men and women, who have a desire to know God and know Truth. For when we know God, we know Truth. And Worldview enables us to know both God and Truth. And to not only know Truth, but to share it with the world and empower others with what we've seen and learned.
-
1. RichardOn Wednesday, all 160+ students headed out to Fremont and Queen Anne for evangelism, armed with tracts and God's truth. And that's where I met Richard and my eyes were opened to God's heart.
Here was a man, stubborn in his belief that the Bible was contradictory and illogical. That the maximum IQ was when two people converge and how the Bible undermines women and promotes slavery. How the Bible was full of errors, while he himself was the supreme authority on what was right and wrong. How he believed he would simply disintegrate in death and how he believed he was a good person.
Oh Lord, forgive him, for he did not know what he was doing. Open his eyes. Break through to his heart. Show him Yourself in all Your glory and grace and love.
It was in that moment that I saw God's heart break. I saw a glimpse of God's immense pain for this man. He was God's beloved creation that He had sacrificed His only Son for, and yet he remained hostile with his sick heart in direct defiance of everything good and right and pure. Psalm 81:13 reads, "Oh, that my people would listen to me, that Israel would walk in my ways!" That day, I felt God's heart cry out in pain. I felt God's agony when He looked upon His creation and saw a disobedient people.
Yet, at the same time, I felt utter frustration, like I was beating against a wall of stone.
For how do you describe light to a blind man? How can you simply make someone see the box of lies he's been living in all his life?
That day, my eyes were opened and I saw the thousands upon thousands of people so blind and lost and dead in Seattle. Not just in Manila, but here in hip, coffee-drinking, tattooed Seattle. We are surrounded by the living dead.
Yet, so often, I am so selfish. I have the antidote to the poison permeating the world's population, yet I do nothing. I sit home on couches and watch TV and go about my daily business, when people are living and dying in their sin in direct rejection of the Truth.
Oh Lord, how can I be so selfish that I would withhold Your life-saving grace to the blind?
Richard showed me God's heart. And for that, I am eternally grateful. Please pray with me for Richard. Pray that God would turn His heart around that he might see God's eternal, unchanging, unconditional love and accept Christ as Lord over his life.
-
2. DevosChristianity is a relationship, not a religion. And it is my privilege to study God's Word.
Growing up in a Christian home, we take a lot of things for granted. Often times, I read my Bible because as a Christian, it's the "right" thing to do, but I forget that Christ bought and paid for my relationship with Him. Jesus died for me, so I can know Him and love Him.
Similarly to romantic dates, we have the opportunity to "make a date" with Jesus. I don't mean that to be cheesy, but it's true. People who are in love with each other treasure each moment spent together and cherish each opportunity to spend time with one another. It's never a chore or a burden, but a gift.
It's the same with Christ. He loved us so much He died for us, and how do we repay Him? By treating His Word and our relationship with Christ as a duty or another task on our to-do list? Something to skim through each morning, so we can move on with our day?
Father, forgive me for abusing this beautiful gift of having a relationship with You. Draw me ever closer to Your heart.
Do we have to pray? Do we have to read the Bible? Do we have to do devotions each morning?
No. But we get to. We get to approach the throne of the Almighty God whenever we want and open His Word to learn more out our Creator and Heavenly Father. We get to make a date with Jesus whenever, wherever.
And so often we forget the immense privilege it is to approach our Lord Jesus through prayer and through His Word.
-
3. Government and God's TruthRecently, I've been struggling with imposing my own Christian standards on unbelievers through law and government, regarding issues like gay marriage.
One day at Worldview, I got to eat a meal with one of the speakers at Worldview, along with some other debaters and speechers. Mike Schutt explained it, not as imposing morals found in Scripture, but as upholding the Truth, found not only in Scripture, but in the natural order of things. Regarding the issue of legalizing gay marriage, he explained it as looking at how men and women were created physically and the natural process of childbirth and sex. Instead of only looking at Scripture to find what legislation to approve or oppose, he taught that upholding Truth was the more correct principle to apply to situations regarding religious beliefs and government.
And that really helped me reconcile the issue, because as a believer, it's important to always look first to God's Word. But realizing also that God's Word is truth and the natural order of the world supports truth helped me see that there are more reasons to endorse legislation than simply religious beliefs. And that'll help me in turn explain my political opinions to an unbelieving world.
-
Worldview Academy was incredible. It revived my personal devotions and strengthened my desire for evangelism. It united me with my brothers and sisters-in-Christ, who sharpened me as iron sharpens iron. It taught me incredible truths of leadership, apologetics, and worldview and satisfied my hunger for intellectually challenging, biblical teaching. For what God has done through Worldview, I am eternally grateful.
Worldview changed my life. And I would highly suggest you to let it change yours.
{To watch the Seattle video, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm5Y2J624_Q&list=UUvhBE_nSIkeioS6_OX5yr4Q }
{To watch the Seattle video, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm5Y2J624_Q&list=UUvhBE_nSIkeioS6_OX5yr4Q }
Friday, July 11, 2014
Pursuing the People Instead of the Process - Fighting Against a Task-Oriented Mentality
A lot of people ask me how I get my schoolwork done.
I don't know. I shrug. There's no trick to it, only that I find satisfaction in the done, in the checking off the task, in the putting down the pen and shutting the laptop and unplugging the guitar.
And I find that's how I get through life. Day by day. Hour by hour. Assignment by assignment. Ticking off my little checkmarks.
Sure, I can accomplish a lot.
But I also miss a lot in the process.
One of my favorite quotes by John Steinbeck reads, "I wonder how many people I've looked at all my life and never seen."
Because that's me. Caught up in the task, so intent on pursuing the done and the finished and the completed that I never enjoy the pursuit or the process or the people. So self-absorbed that I miss the people in my life who make my tasks possible. In my selfishness, I forget that I'm not the only one on this planet. That this life is not about me, but the One who made and died for me.
And I think about the pastors I met in the Philippines. I think about their service with such open-hearted self-abandonment and how they gave up their careers and jobs and goals in life for the dirtiest, the poorest, the neediest.
They saw people.
They put down their books and phones and jobs and money and decided to give. To serve. To love.
And that is what I'm missing. That heartfelt dedication comprised of sacrifice, of realizing the importance of others above ourselves.
Isn't that how Christ lived? In complete self-abandonment, with a heart and mind focused on people. He had God's will in mind, yet lived in complete self-denial. In Matthew 14, Jesus withdrew from the people to a desolate place, probably to pray and spend time with His Heavenly Father. Yet, even then, a great crowd gathered when He went ashore. Instead of sticking to His to-do list, instead of doing what He set out to do, Christ abandoned His plan, had compassion on the crowd, and and healed the sick and loved the lost and held the children.
If even Jesus, God Himself, gave up His own plans for the sake of others, how much more so are we, as His disciples, supposed to sacrifice our own agendas to love and serve those around us?
And in America, in this busy society where everything is a blur and time never stands still because there is always one more thing to be done, always one more thing on our to-do list, do we ever truly see? Do we ever take a moment off of our busy selves and our packed schedules to see the people? To appreciate those who love us and pray for the unreached and the missionaries and the church and our families and do we thank those who are never thanked or talk to those who don't have anyone to talk to?
Because more and more, the Lord's convicting me of my task-oriented heart, how I care more about getting things done than about knowing and loving and serving those around me. How I only see myself and my own goals in life rather than others.
James 1:27 reads, “Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.” Not to finish reading the Bible ten times or memorize the entire Westminster Catechism or donate X amount of money. Not about checking things off a list, but about caring for people. Things, not people. And the second most important commandment is about loving our neighbors as ourselves. Again, not things, but people.
Because the truth is sometimes tasks and to-do lists are easier to love than people. People mess up and betray our trust and friendships get messy and relationships may fail. And it takes a lot to be able to trust and accept and love, despite knowing that things may get real and it might not be comfortable or nice or pretty to love our neighbor. Things are easier to control. It's easy to sit down, finish X amount of math problems, be done with it. That's in our control. But people aren't.
And I think God understood this. He understood that it's easy for all of us to become self-absorbed in our tasks and love things because that's within our comfort zone and it's safe.
It's so easy for us to be selfish but so hard for us to be sacrificial.
Yet that's what Christ called us to do. To give up and reach out, to love the people around us as He Himself did. To be willing to sacrifice our own agenda for the sake of others.
For if we are called to live like Christ, if our actions should follow after our Creator, then that's our calling isn't it?
To love even when we don't feel like it.
To love even when we have other things we want to get done.
To put others first.
So let's lose ourselves today in the pursuit of loving others. Let's lose ourselves today that we might abandon our self-love and encourage those around us, for we were called to be fishers of men.
"Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." Matthew 10:39
I don't know. I shrug. There's no trick to it, only that I find satisfaction in the done, in the checking off the task, in the putting down the pen and shutting the laptop and unplugging the guitar.
And I find that's how I get through life. Day by day. Hour by hour. Assignment by assignment. Ticking off my little checkmarks.
Sure, I can accomplish a lot.
But I also miss a lot in the process.
One of my favorite quotes by John Steinbeck reads, "I wonder how many people I've looked at all my life and never seen."
Because that's me. Caught up in the task, so intent on pursuing the done and the finished and the completed that I never enjoy the pursuit or the process or the people. So self-absorbed that I miss the people in my life who make my tasks possible. In my selfishness, I forget that I'm not the only one on this planet. That this life is not about me, but the One who made and died for me.
And I think about the pastors I met in the Philippines. I think about their service with such open-hearted self-abandonment and how they gave up their careers and jobs and goals in life for the dirtiest, the poorest, the neediest.
They saw people.
They put down their books and phones and jobs and money and decided to give. To serve. To love.
And that is what I'm missing. That heartfelt dedication comprised of sacrifice, of realizing the importance of others above ourselves.
Isn't that how Christ lived? In complete self-abandonment, with a heart and mind focused on people. He had God's will in mind, yet lived in complete self-denial. In Matthew 14, Jesus withdrew from the people to a desolate place, probably to pray and spend time with His Heavenly Father. Yet, even then, a great crowd gathered when He went ashore. Instead of sticking to His to-do list, instead of doing what He set out to do, Christ abandoned His plan, had compassion on the crowd, and and healed the sick and loved the lost and held the children.
If even Jesus, God Himself, gave up His own plans for the sake of others, how much more so are we, as His disciples, supposed to sacrifice our own agendas to love and serve those around us?
And in America, in this busy society where everything is a blur and time never stands still because there is always one more thing to be done, always one more thing on our to-do list, do we ever truly see? Do we ever take a moment off of our busy selves and our packed schedules to see the people? To appreciate those who love us and pray for the unreached and the missionaries and the church and our families and do we thank those who are never thanked or talk to those who don't have anyone to talk to?
Because more and more, the Lord's convicting me of my task-oriented heart, how I care more about getting things done than about knowing and loving and serving those around me. How I only see myself and my own goals in life rather than others.
James 1:27 reads, “Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.” Not to finish reading the Bible ten times or memorize the entire Westminster Catechism or donate X amount of money. Not about checking things off a list, but about caring for people. Things, not people. And the second most important commandment is about loving our neighbors as ourselves. Again, not things, but people.
Because the truth is sometimes tasks and to-do lists are easier to love than people. People mess up and betray our trust and friendships get messy and relationships may fail. And it takes a lot to be able to trust and accept and love, despite knowing that things may get real and it might not be comfortable or nice or pretty to love our neighbor. Things are easier to control. It's easy to sit down, finish X amount of math problems, be done with it. That's in our control. But people aren't.
And I think God understood this. He understood that it's easy for all of us to become self-absorbed in our tasks and love things because that's within our comfort zone and it's safe.
It's so easy for us to be selfish but so hard for us to be sacrificial.
Yet that's what Christ called us to do. To give up and reach out, to love the people around us as He Himself did. To be willing to sacrifice our own agenda for the sake of others.
For if we are called to live like Christ, if our actions should follow after our Creator, then that's our calling isn't it?
To love even when we don't feel like it.
To love even when we have other things we want to get done.
To put others first.
So let's lose ourselves today in the pursuit of loving others. Let's lose ourselves today that we might abandon our self-love and encourage those around us, for we were called to be fishers of men.
"Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." Matthew 10:39
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)