Moving Forward

"Let us lay aside every weight and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us" - Hebrews 12:1

A friend once shared this verse with me through a painting she drew me. The texture, color, and heart expressed onto the canvas was amazing. As you can tell from the above picture, she's an amazing painter! Just now, I was reflecting upon my day and I realized how liberated I am from some of the weight of my past. The last few months has been difficult. I'm the type of dude that punishes themselves when they make a mistake. I spend hours/days/months trying to 'understand' or 'diagnose' why I did what I did. If my friends are angry at me, I'd probably self destruct...LOL

2012 has been a good, but rough year. Moving on from friends, assumptions, and mistakes is a difficult thing. It's so easy to be caught up with this baggage. But one thing the Lord has been showing me is an image of a river. Rivers flow all directions, up and down, left and right then more ups and downs and so on. Life unfolds much like the streams of a river. Our choices determine the flow of our rivers. We move on as well as we get moved on. What is truly and deeply edifying is that in Christ, all our rivers end at one same eventual destination that is the ocean of God's grace, love, and justice. 

My river is moving on and is being moved on. No matter how separated I may feel from 'friends', I look forward to one day intersecting again as the Spirit anoints. If not, we will all meet and celebrate in God. 

Love thy neighbor

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these" - Mark 12:30-31

I've been struggling a lot to love my neighbours. I've also been questioning a lot about who I am and whether or not there's something wrong with me. These questions and feelings of emptiness surfaces so often when I hear or think about certain people/experiences.  This passage has been echoing in my head for the past few days. OK... I exaggerated. This passage probably popped into my head only twice for the last two days. The words "...as yourself..." kept rippling out of the pages. When Jesus said '...as yourself,' does that mean that loving yourself precedes loving other people?

I forgot where I heard this from, but the story goes like this. There's a hammer lying on the forest ground. The hammer looks at itself and has no idea what it's purposed for. The efforts of discovering what it is made for only leads itself to utter failure and feelings of inadequacy. It begins to question its existence and how it's good for nothing. It's evident that the hammer cannot know what it is made for unless it has a creator and is used by the creator. You may argue, what if the hammer had a user manual? It could know what it is made for then! True! To have a manual means there was an original purpose written by an original designer. We could receive a manual on how to assemble a table or bed frame if we have a manual. Once assembled, we can begin using it to its manufactured potential. Likewise, the Bible (our manual) serves a similar, if not the same, purpose. The more we read God's heart breathed through his Words in scripture, we will begin to discover more of who we are and what we were made for.

So does loving yourself precede loving other people? Perhaps the focus should neither be on loving others or loving yourself, but on loving God. As you discover more of Him through committing your heart, soul, mind and strength to Him, you begin to discover more of your original purpose. I believe it is then that you are able to love your neighbors as yourself.

This principle of loving your neighbors and discovering your purpose and identity is something I struggle with very much. When numbers of people judge you or view you in a negative way, when people question your actions and do not give you a solution or recommendation, or when the people you once found security and comfort in are no longer there, you can't help but assume there's something negatively wrong about yourself. But God has been doing something very interesting in my life. As people release me from their life, I am noticing how God is also releasing them from mine.

I know, but I don't know

"The more of it (knowledge) we get, the easier it becomes to slip into a mode of life that assumes accumulated information equals gospel maturity. It doesn’t. Left unchecked, there is an inertia in gaining knowledge that moves us away from grace — away from a passion for God’s purpose for the world, away from the sufficiency of Jesus, and away from our small part in it all. " - Jonathan Parnell

“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.” - Stephen Hawking

I don't understand people these days. Why do you find the need to stalk old/current friends, ex/current girlfriend, and the random people with a cool picture as their display picture on Facebook or Twitter? When conflict occurs between people, people, including myself in the past, have snooped around seeking information about the other party because they are too prideful or fearful to approach them directly. There's just so many ways to supplement your approach to satisfy your curiosity or desire in knowing more about someone. Knowing more about someone doesn't mean you know them. Being selective in what you want to know about a person is not knowing a person at all especially if all you want to know are their mistakes. 

When people question someone's actions or character, instead of approaching them directly, the common trend is to have a discussion with a third party. What is the point of "finding out more" about someone when it's not even from the direct source? Let's say the direct source leaves out some facts. Is it really necessary to go search for those missing facts? We really gotta ask ourselves, does finding out more facts promote grace, love, peace and unity the way Paul encourages the churches to pursue? Being ignorant is not what I am promoting. If the realities of one's mistakes are evident, does that deter us from seeing the bigger picture? If missing information about someone stops us from living Heaven on earth and stops us from living as a community we are called to live, then we have potentially subjected ourselves to believe that more knowledge equals gospel living. 

The common reason to confront someone is to "rebuke" him or her. I believe in the need and necessity of rebuking when a close friend is found misaligned to the truth of the Gospel. But you gotta really ask yourself "are you actually rebuking?" or just listing out your frustrations? Some people are afraid to rebuke. And rightfully so because they probably don't know how to. From the lips of a good friend, "rebuking should be a beautiful thing because God is aligning someone back to Him." If rebuking is beautiful, why do we fear it so much? I think some people got rebuking all wrong. Rebuking isn't laying out your perceptions of a mistake onto someone. Rebuking is initiated by God, centered on Christ, foundation on love, and focused on the gospel of peace. What does that all mean? It's about praying for the individual. It's reminding the individual where they could be. It's about expressing God's love to them. It's about walking alongside them. It's not leaving them in the cold or their misery after you say what 'you want' to say. It's not stating the issues and leaving them to figure things out on their own. Even if mistakes are a reality, it's about seeing the bigger picture - that God loves the person not the mistake. What happened to seeing people the way Christ sees people? The administration of grace is not a subjective activity. We don't select who we want to extend grace to. Grace was given to all. Who are we to selectively choose who deserves grace? 

We are a complaining generation that lists out only the bad and never a solution or a way out. I understand "we're all imperfect and that we live in a broken world". But I think we need to step back and ask if we're using the spiritual state of humanity as a copout excuse to avoid approaching a tough situation to love the way Christ would.

God loves me

Just a few nights ago, I was lying on the floor while Michelle was on the phone with her best friend. I started to smile. I cannot believe how much I enjoyed being around this girl. I was genuinely excited to hear her voice, anticipate the topics of our next conversation, and smell the aroma of her natural human scent. But as these emotions began to take its place in the back of my mind, the song Michelle and I were listening to began to push its way forward. All I heard was "...there is power, in the name of Jesus. To break every chain..." I began to cry as I realized that as my joy of being around, smelling, and hearing my girlfriend, I realized that that's how Daddy feels about me. He enjoys my presence, my eagerness for Him, and my desire to speak to Him. The intensity of how I felt for my partner is obviously a lot less than how God loves and desires for us. Nonetheless, it definitely put things into perspective.

Functional Saviors

Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, "Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights." But Ahaz said, "I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test." Then Isaiah said, "Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of men? Will you try the patience of my God also? Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel..." - Isaiah 7:10-14

Ahaz was a king that introduced many pagan and idolatrous customs. Furthermore, he committed the infamous evil act of killing his own son. This guy was king... He was king. Being king meant that he had leadership, influence, and power over a HUGE body of people. If you are in a position of influence, the influenced would, usually, adapt to what you do whether or not it is right. Regardless, God never gave up on Ahaz and even met with him saying (Isaiah 7), "How can I prove to you I exist? Ask me for any sign." But what was his response? "I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test."

In my initial reading of this passage, I thought his response was one of humility! But when the pastor read this, he expressed the shallow and wayward heart of Ahaz. This reminds me of the time when I was working at my local church as a Children Ministry Coordinator. The youths that attended our summer VBS program would, without shame, overtly break every rule they knew that were required from them. I remember asking them, "How can we prove to you we love you? What is holding you back from listening/participating? Ask us [sunday school teachers] and we'll do what we can!" The youths responded, "Nah... you're good!" essentially implying I don't want to test you. People don't naturally intend to test people unless you're a fool/punk/jerk! But the question is, when you do test people (i.e. of their patience, generosity, hospitality, etc), you can't help but ask "Why?"

Ahaz had a hidden purpose when he responded in a way that seemed 'humble.' His purpose was to look righteous and humble before people. Why? He believed that in responding in such a way would save him from his functional hell (i.e. judgement). In so doing, he became his own functional savior. We all have many functional saviors most of which we don't even know about. The pastor from today's service shared how when he was in his mid 30's, he began to yearn for a partner, a career, and family. He realized that in doing so, he had made these factors a functional savior. When he got married, he realized that him and his wife were not able to have children. Through the frustrations and heartache, Holy Spirit revealed to him how 'having children' became a functional savior within his marriage. Functional saviors are usually personal to our desires. God responds, "I will then give you something personal to me. My Son." What this means is that the things we hold personally dear to us can now be released because we can take on something so much greater. What God holds personal - His Son.

In the end, functional saviors are self directed and geared towards a failing effort to be free from our own functional hell. I need to recognize the Ahaz in me. What are the areas of my life where I put up a front to sound righteous and just to make myself sound spiritual when the reality of my heart is dry and thirsty? I need to abandon my 'self' daily and rejoice in the grace of Immanuel. That God gave us something personal to Him to be with us. He didn't just give us something personal... He is personal.

Band brothers

I've been thinking a lot about the relationship between Jonathan and David. The moment those two met, they were knitted together (1 Samuel 18:1). You often hear pastors and guidance counselors advise you to take relationships a step at a time; never be "swept off your feet"; save yourself; take things slow. But how could Jonathan and David be so connected to what seems so immediately?

Every time I meet with one of my closest friends, he always asks me 'Are you right with the Lord?' I think the answer to that question reflects the spiritual condition of my heart and whether or not my heart is rightfully abandoned for Jesus. In my honest confession, there are times where I make decisions and go about my day not after God's heart but my own. The snippet from 1 Samuel 18 that paints the beautiful relationship between two friends is breathtaking. I truly believe that the condition of both their hearts, preceding their encounter to one another, is one that was completely for the Lord. Is it possible that I can share in such a relationship? I believe so... If myself and [whoever] are right with the Lord first.

Despite the knitted relationship Jonathan and David had, I wonder if they ever felt alone? What happens when your close friends radically mature, obtain promotions, or do amazingly well in life compared to you? Often, I find myself jealous, left out, or alone. What happened when David was anointed King and Jonathan wasn't? Jonathan continued to encourage David (1 Samuel 23:17). Even when he got nothing, he still encouraged. Even though he didn't get promoted, he continued to uplift David. His focus wasn't on the situation, it was on the bigger picture of Kingdom advancement. Somehow, what we perceive as 'being left out', Jonathan saw it as a participatory invitation from God. I have not been an encouragement or support to my brothers and sisters that have needed it lately. My own perceptions and diagnoses of their needs has led me to sulk only in my own selfishness. I need to abandon my 'self' daily and I need Christ's blood to pump through my veins each and every day. There's obviously many ways to do this. But I really need to go after God's heart and allow Him to knit me into relationships with those that can encourage and move me towards my destiny.

Where You at?

Below is an email discussion I have been having with some of my team members from my Nairobi, Kenya missions trip on the age-old topic "Community." I know it's super late. As some of you may know already, I don't sleep -_-

I believe that trying to please everyone is foolish. Even god can't do that - lol. Before we even create programs and slap the title "ministry" onto these programs to make them "holy", we gotta ask ourselves why are we doing this program? Furthermore, is God even at work in this program? If He's not even at work in this program, we have created a program separate to where God is at. Emphasis cannot be on what you can do or are doing, but rather on what god is doing and has done. As leaders, we don't create things, we simply join God. Example is Moses. Moses didn't create a freedom program to liberate the Israelites from Egypt. God literally welcomed Moses to join Him in His pursuit after His people. God wanted a relationship with Moses. In developing that relationship, God was able to do awesome things not only in Moses, but through Moses! I think that it is an awesome idea if we created a more intentional community based business/ministry (a Team Member's business proposal). But is that what God is currently at work doing? Maybe... I don't think any of us on the team have the answers to that yet! My fear, however, is that we will be known as a Christian based on our doings as opposed to our relationship with Jesus. From Micah, it says "walk humbly with your god." Literally, this means first recognizing that we are walking with God, not Him with you. In addition, there's two truths from this passage: there is a god, and second, we are not Him - lol!!!

Somehow, our culture has taught us that we do therefore we are. But the gospel says otherwise. The gospel says we are, therefore we do. What are we? We are his sons/daughters saved by His grace. We don't operate for our salvation, we operate from our salvation. The temptation so many of us fall into is the belief that we need to "work" for God. We need to get this out of our heads. God doesn't 'need' us. We need Him. We're just lucky to even partake in whatever He's doing. I understand the frustrations of not seeing things get done the way you want them. The reason why so many Christians make little forward progress in their faith-journey is probably because they haven't yet come to an end of themselves. We need to die to live/gain (Galatians). From one of Pastor Tim's sermons, he said: Our crucified life must occur in order for their to be a transformed life. It is only then that we are able to live an obedient life. Do we honestly think that we could work and hold onto god and feel safe? No... We are safe because he holds onto us and has already completed what needs to be done.

Focusing on "community," let us not focus on one tree, but focus on one forest. We are not isolated as trees, but connected together identified as one forest. Our church has to be visioned above. We need to do what He is doing. It is not about us. When you live a life visioned above, your values change. You place higher value on relationships and character instead of fame, wealth, achievements or fun. You begin to see the bigger picture (i.e. the forest) as opposed to your segregation from it.

Knowledge is sneaky. I speak this as a confession and as a concern. The more of it we get, the easier it becomes to slip into a mode of life that assumes accumulated information equals gospel maturity. It doesn't. So if you're discouraged because you feel like you don't know enough about Christianity, do not fret. It's not about how much you know (do not get me wrong, I believe knowledge is important), it's about your relationship with Jesus. Example, the Pharisees taught on prayer, but the disciples experienced the prayer. Don't focus on the prayer. Focus on god. Get to know God.

I feel like my writing is all over the place right now. Cut me some slack, it's 6:30 AM! This encouragement is from a sermon from pastor John Piper (I think it was him...lol). During the times of discouragement because things aren't happening, excel even more. Just as Paul said to the church in Corinth (I think he also says it to Timothy): "So it is with you. Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in gifts that build up the church" (1 Corinthians 14:12). "But just as you excel in everything–in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us–see that you also excel in this grace of giving (2 Corinthians 8:7). People want something from you? Cool. Give it to them, but challenge them to be a part of your life. That way, you don't just give and let them live reckless. People hold crap because they don't have anything else they can hold onto. People throw crap at each other because that's all they've been trained to do. We need to show them and let them know they can let go of the crap in their hands. Once they do, they wipe their hands, lets go, and we place on them blessings. If they hold nothing, they'll just continue to resort to that crap. Mission of the church and the mission of god are not in odds against each other. Both have a mission to bring god glory. Where is He? What is He doing? Join Him...

Mistakes

Being unemployed for the last few months has given me extensive time to reflect on my life. Still, I see the operations of my life as a teeter-toter where on one end, it is so easy to fixate myself on the mistakes I committed. And on the other extreme, I repress them. Fixating on my mistakes causes me to sulk. Repressing them disallows me to function effectively. The more I reflect on how my life has been the last few months, the more I begin to notice the carnality of my flesh. I have complained and become bitter at people. In addition, I have numbed myself and repressed every hurt and frustration I have been feeling. My bitterness and repression has become an indicator of an internal condition of my heart. It's pretty obvious that these two extremes are unhealthy and yet they're the most common ways of handling human issues.

I could not sleep last night until 7AM. The time I had being awake allowed me to recognize that the mistakes I committed were not dead ends nor did they label me as a "failure". My mistakes actually reminded me of my original goal/hope/dream. Yeah, I might have slipped up, but the fact that I feel remorse, guilt or even regret revives the notion that there is something greater. Does this mean that what I did was OK? Absolutely not! It just means that there is hope for reconciliation and healing. If anything, mistakes should propel one forward to realign with their original goal. Not cripple them from it.

So what do I do from here? HAHA... No idea. But as cliche as this may sound, God knows. As I continue to rest in Him, I pray that He may open my blind eyes to see what He has accomplished and is completing in my circumstances so that I may join Him.

PDL - Day 4

There is more to life than here and now. We were made for eternity, and how we live now prepares us for that. Pastor Rick Warren and Enoch Tang shared a homecoming story about a missionary and a president. Both individuals came off the same plane, however, the missionary was not greeted with a party of people like the President. In fact, he was not greeted by anyone! The missionary went home that night and told God His frustrations about how he was on missions, while the president was probably on vacation and yet he had no one welcoming him home. That same night, the missionary heard God whisper: "...This is not your home."

This story is a strong reminder to live kingdom-minded. Paul even talks about how our body is a tent. A tent is a temporary place to rest. It is also a mobile place. Our future is a house with many rooms. And Jesus is preparing it for us.

PDL - Day 4 reminds me of Pastor Bernard's sermon. So many of us Christians place so much emphasis/focus on money, title, career, and brands that in the end, it covers the power of the cross in our life (i.e. cross is covered in the picture). An example is buying a home. If your focus is on purchasing a home, the way you live NOW will change dramatically. The way you spend, eat, go out, have fun will all change. When we begin to live a life for eternity, our values will change. We will start placing higher premium on things that matter such as relationships, and character building as opposed to fame, wealth, achievements, or fun. I am not saying fame, wealth, achievements, or fun is 'bad'. But a continuous influx of these factors can lead to a higher risk of complacency. We essentially become plastic Christians (i.e. not alive). Instead, allow the enjoyment of these areas become a channel to honor and glorify God.

PDL - Day 3

A few things stood out from this chapter. First, Pastor Rick Warren writes: "We are all products of our past, but we do not have to be prisoners of it." My past has been my greatest fear. I find it difficult to serve sometimes when I remember the vast amount of people I had hurt, the damage I incurred in my family, and the selfishness I birthed in all my relationships. I 'know' that the old Gabe is dead. But my heart struggles living it out sometimes. It is incredible to see how my past is so involved with the process of my sanctification. "Resentment kills a fool, and envy slaves the simple" - Job 5:2 reminds me to let go of all resentment. Even the resentment I have about myself.

Making right choices has great return value. Sometimes, these values are not evident until years later. I am currently deciding on a lot of things - what to do after graduation, what is my role in the church, where is God working, where is He leading me? At the moment, I honestly do not know all the keys or decisions to success. But one way to failure is to try and please everyone. From day 3 of PDL, I am reminded that I am not placed on earth to be remembered, but to prepare for eternity. My hope comes from recognizing that I am made with a purpose, and that I will come to discover it as my relationship with Jesus grows.

PDL - Day 2

In day 2 of PDL, Rick Warren spoke about how God created us for Himself. Going further into this, in my opinion, we have a tendency to overemphasize that God is for us. Yes, I believe that God loves us, wants to bless us, and does not want to harm us. I also know that God wants us to experience an overflow of His joy, that all He has is for us too, and that we have complete access into his kingdom. At the end of the day, I honestly believe that the greater picture is that God is essentially for God. We need to get over the belief that God is for 'me.' Thinking things are for me disrupts the family, friends, children, etc. How? You begin telling yourself that these people are to meet you at your needs and wants. You start convincing yourself that God placed these people in your life to bless you. These people (i.e. family, friends, partners) have essentially become your servants.

Keeping the mindset that people are for 'me' will get you easily angered and frustrated. Example, when people cut you off on the road, you would probably flip out because 'they did not see YOU.' What if they just cut you off because they needed to change lanes? - lol. With this everything-is-for-ME mindset, anything that does not go your way will just get you wild up. On the contrary, if it is not about you (and is about God), you are free and you are more able to extend grace. Breathing and resting would probably be made more possible too. When it is not about you, you are able to be joyful in all circumstances regardless if someone hurts you or not. The more it is about you, the more you become miserable.

Day 2 also discussed that if there was no God, we would all be accidents. The 'scientific' explanation of the 'big bang' simply states that the world was 'accidentally' made and all life on it was 'accidentally' made too. Accidents do not have purposes. We were not accidents. God has a purpose for us.

Purpose Driven Life (PDL) - Day 1

So I am currently reading the book "Purpose Driven Life" with one of my small group members. It has definitely been a delightful read. Ricky Warren, the author of PDL, really lays out the foundation of this book by telling its readers that we were all made by God and for God. The title of the book could be deceiving in the sense where we may feel the drive to 'do things' to fulfill our life on earth such as more money, more friends, more fame, more more more... But the age old question of 'What is our purpose' can only be discovered if we, the created, discovers our Creator.

Until we understand that we were made BY God and FOR God, our life will never make sense. Imagine a hammer attempting to discover what it was made for. It is only possible for the hammer to discover its created purpose if it discovers its creator (or reads the user manual). Likewise, it is only in God that we discover our origin, our identity, our meaning, and our destiny.

I have been thinking about Christ's second coming a lot more lately. With the rising price of fuel, people are not going to react well with the drastic rate increase. All I can imagine, here on, is chaos with certain markets beginning to crash. As gas prices rise, market prices will increase too. People simply will not respond well. Country's will go to war and people will be in a frantic search for personal purpose (or possession). What is the purpose of this craziness? The more people 'try' to discover their purpose, the more distant they become from the creator. Created things do not find their purpose in creating more things.

This surfaces a frightening question. If this is new news to us - that our purpose is to be in a relationship with God through Jesus - what are we in relationship with now?

...

What comforts is not an explanation from god, but the presence of god.

Suffering for Christ

My cute sister says: I enjoyed cleaning away the dust bunnies. It was like washing away my sins.

Cute!!!!!! But I am sure there's worse ways to suffer for Christ than to vacuum... lol

Suffering for Christ

I just got a text from my sister telling me how she vacuumed the entire home. She was also expressing to me how frustrated she is with vacuuming - hahaha. I was super impressed and proud of her. Actually, those feelings are understatements of how I actually felt. The house is usually vacuumed by either my mom or myself (mostly my mom). To be honest, I started vacuuming because I didn't want my mom suffering so much as she's getting old. But the more I did it, the more I began to love vacuuming. It kinda reminded me of 'suffering for Christ.' The more I persevered, the more I began to recognize my mother's heart for her family. Likewise, I could see how to suffer for Christ enables us to take on His heart, encounter His deliverance, and experience what He suffered. In the end, suffering for Christ is better than suffering for nothing.

Where I'm At

It is so easy to say things should not be as rough as they are. It is so easy to say wrestling leads to no where because in the end God reigns. It is so easy to say follow your heart/gut-feeling and yet it is so easy to say your heart is the most evil arena in one's life. Am I pouring out excuses upon excuses. Sometimes, I feel like people assume I am shoveling crap on top of crap so that the original crap won't smell as bad. There's just too many voices around me at the moment that is confusing my decisions and choices. It wasn't an easy decision, but I know it was the right one. I obviously did not administer the decision as well as I could have. I obviously hurt a lot of people. But just cause I made the decision does not equate to me not being hurt. In the end, I recognize that there are too many issues within myself and I simply need to be alone. Some say I am not a man. I'm probably not - which makes it more of an issue for me to drag on a relationship.

After praying and seeking forgiveness from the Lord, I am compelled to apologize. I am utterly sorry and I write this in tears. In many ways, I have hurt many people and made this my own responsibility to carry out which I should not have done. In many ways, this issue could have been carried out much better, but it is vital for me to continually give thanks to God even in these circumstances. I am sorry, everyone, for the hurt I have surfaced during this process of directing my decisions.

Currently, I am just soaking in the Father's love. I need it desperately. It is so easy to walk away and be bitter at the Word during this season. The area that hurts the most is that the ministry I felt the Father's love most is the one area being tested in my life at the moment. Community.

Old MTC (Transformer) Post - February 4, 2010

Read the first blog post I have ever written. Tracking how things have changed for me the past few years has been intense. I've been wrestling with why I journal my thoughts on my blog and not on paper anymore. Furthermore, I've been questioning whether it is appropriate for me to continually spill out my flaws/shortcomings on my blog. Listening to Matt Chandler for the first time this morning, I was reminded that sometimes, people do not need us to be strong. They need us to be weak and it is through our weakness that they may be encouraged. In the end, our Christian faith is not about us being great, but God being great.

Here's my old post:

from your post: And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idel, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.

So often do we find cars that are idel. Either they're at the front of a mall entrance, the church, or simply on the side of a parking lot. Idel vehicles seem to be EVERYWHERE *annoyed*. That reaction of annoyance seems so 'natural'. But in Paul's writing, it challenges us of our attitudes towards those who are idel. I'm almost 100% confident that we can list out a list of brothers/sisters who are undergoing idleness. ...why?

Timidity... why is it that so often individuals are timid to share? What holds them back? Here's a thought: how many of us have friends who we've been friends with for a LONG TIME, and throughout the period of knowing this person, it seems as though you never 'knew' this person at all. It almost seems as though they've created a barricade; but with you outside. ...why?

The one thing that amazes me about Christianity is the challenge Christ places on us who follows Him through faith. Comfort (which i believe would lead to some sort of idleness), and timidity (which leads to the formation of relational-walls) aren't part of the Christian repertoire. Don't make sense? Ok, here... lets think about it this way:

The world today defines joy as a byproduct of success, comfort, abundance of wealth, and security. But the scriptures challenges us that whenever joy is present, there too is suffering. We read this during bible study! Romans 5:3-5. So, family, be encouraged to not be too comfortable for too long because that may lead to idleness (no movement). Second thought: be BOLD BOLD BOLD!!! You want to know others right? You want others to be real to you right? You don't want others to hide things from you right (well...certain things)? then FIRST, ask YOURSELF if you are doing just that...

Lastly, if a car was idle inside a garage for a period of time, what happens to the individual driver (and possible everyone inside the house)? They all risk the possibility of DEATH. Naturally, we would blame the driver for leaving the car on idle. But how about the individuals in the house that recognizes the idle car as well? Isn't it worse to know a car is idle, and do nothing about it? Family, when we see a brother/sister or a TRANSFORMER that is idle, realize that it will affect us too if we do not do something about it. Be encouraging; be an instrument of love and light; be imitators of Him.

Trust in the Lord

The first passage in the Bible that I ever memorized was the one in Proverbs, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understandings. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your path straight." Such a beautiful promise - but a promise so difficult to walk out.

God has showed me time and time again how He has all things under control. In all my honesty, the area of 'personal finances' has been an ongoing issue in my life. I do not know how to save, and I do not know how to steward what has been given to me. A month or two ago, God opened up a door for a birthing of a new community of brothers. To be honest, I don't even know how it all happened. God placed on my heart a role to support my small group leader by building up a group of men that were willing to challenge one another to grow more intimately with the Lord. In brief, God congregated six guys together. We meet biweekly to study the book of Acts. We challenge one another with deep hearted questions regarding our life personally and corporately. Lastly, we share not only the sins seen, but also the sins unseen by other people.

Today, God has used His servant to humble me. Through his demonstration of love and support, I was reminded of how God has things under control. It was literally out of the 'normal' schedule meeting them on a "Thursday night at Tim Hortans." But through our yearning for more and our desire to be stretched, transformation is occurring and they are unmistakably unrecognizable now! Praise God for adopted grace. We are now all brothers because of what He has done.

Psalm 23 - Shadows

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down on green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

There are times when I hear God's audible voice. And there are times when I question whether I heard Him correctly. There are so many uncertainties and so many opportunities for me to be bitter at Him. Perhaps I am too hard on myself. Indeed, I need to show myself some grace. Psalm 23 has been my meditational passage this day. I couldn't function at school, so I simply left for home. The sequence of this passage never fails to compel me of how much Daddy loves me. I need to lie down and experience His protection and security. It is through receiving that I am enabled to walk (beside quiet waters). But even in my walking, He is leading. And it is not until we begin to walk out in obedience are our souls then restored.

What I need to hold onto now is the truth that the valley of the shadow of death is in fact a shadow. A shadow is something that doesn't hurt me. It brings fear - but it will never hurt me. Although I feel as if I am walking in darkness, the enemy can never hurt me for He is with me.

...Easier said than done.

Bless the Lord, oh my soul and forget not His benefits.

Urban Benediction

http://illseer.bandcamp.com/

It's been a rough half week for me. Been stacked with exam, assignments and essays (as usual). But the unusual things are the internal battles I am encountering. There are decisions I will need to make that will affect the future. God works in an interesting timing and everything seems to work out so perfectly - like the email I received from my brother Cyril.

My buddy is the pastor at Freechurch Toronto (http://www.freechurch.ca/). He recently emailed me his first digital album (URL above). Long story short, I listened to his versus and they're awesome. It feels as if he's rapping his benedictions! I require these blessings especially in dark times like now. It is amazing to witness God redeeming the things our society has lost back to Him. I officially met him this year through an event we were both involved in called Fluid Gathering. Check out his tracks.

Looking Ahead to August

There are currently two things on my heart for August. Mission trip to Kenya from August 3-20, and Camp Eulogia from August 23-26. Could I do both? Yes. But is it wise?

The plan for Kenya is PEACE:

• Plant Hope and the Good news through visitations
• Equip leaders by doing bible and computer training
• Assist the poor by teaching finance and accounting knowledge
• Care for the sick by providing free medical consultation (I think that's out of my realm - lol)
• Educate the next generation by mentoring and counseling youths

The plan for Camp Eulogia is to love and support. I had helped out last year at Camp Eulogia and it completely deepened my faith by stretching my heart capacity for God's children. Camp Eulogia is a Christian summer retreat for children with disabilities, their parents and siblings. (http://villageeulogia.com/camp.html)

At camp Eulogia last year, I had the opportunity to share with a boy why my dance name was 'Floodgatez'. I also shared with him how the name of an individual in the Bible was very important because it essentially defined who they were (i.e. the apostle Peter = the rock). I then asked him if he would protect his sister if a punk boy began to date her. The boy said he will punch the guy in the face :p

I asked the boy if he would make up a new name for himself. The name could be an object, event, or thing he looked up to. To be honest, I actually did not think he'd be seriously thinking about this. But two days later, the boy came up to me during camp fire and told me that he found a name - "Water!" He explained that water is not mean to hurt people. Although people drown in water from waves, it is because of circumstances that causes the waves to be so aggressive. He said he has these angry waves that hurts people such as his family and he does not want to hurt them anymore. He declared that he is not meant to hurt anyone. I asked him what is he meant to do? He responded, Water is naturally calm and peaceful. It is the wind that causes it to be aggressive. He wants to be calm and peaceful like water.

I responded telling him that if he surrendered himself to Jesus, he'll be transformed into new wine. I can't wait to see him again...

Redemption

I just came home from a dinner with Adrienne's family. Prior to that, we were at a conference called Fluid Gathering. My act of service at this conference was to worship in dance - breakdance.

I find it incredible how Satan can mess up our perceptions on what is beautiful (i.e. children, dancing, drums, marriage) and tempt humanity to use or view it as evil. It is also insane to see how Christians agree that these created things are 'evil' and thus demonize such beautiful creations.

From my youtube trailer, I noted at the end of the video that my career started from 2006 and ended in 2009. When I had stopped dancing, I literally demonized the art. I thought all dancers were screwed and steered towards hell. However, from 2009 to 2012, God has done some pretty crazy heart surgery in me. People have prophesied over me saying that I will go back in to dancing eventually but with a new heart. Brothers and sisters have exhorted me and encouraged me to recognize the talent that the Lord had blessed me with. Others have even rebuked me saying that I am not a good steward of what God had blessed me with. Overall, I feel like Moses where he had left Egypt, encountered God, and is now called to go back to Egypt.

I still ponder over a question my brother had asked: "if Floodgatez stopped dancing in 2009, then what are you now?" A 'floodgate' is essentially a gate that admits or restrains a powerful outpour or flood. The old Floodgate was a poor regulator of his own energy and emotions. I had hurt many people including my family, friends, and church. But the old is dead. From Malachi 3:10, whomever I come across with, I would like them to experience an opening of Heaven's floodgates and receive an outpour of blessings. God has redeemed what was tainted back to Himself. The new Floodgatez begins from 2009 until eternity. Thus, it will no longer be 'evil', but beautiful.

CLIU - Freedom in Christ challenge

So I sent an email challenging my small group with my thoughts from yesterday's small group bible study on Colossians 2:6-23. In brief, I challenged the group with the closing summary our small group leader (Karen) stated. She eloquently closed by saying the title of the passage - "Freedom From Human Regulations Through life with Christ". My challenge to our small group is to first and foremost grasp the meaning and application of living a life WITH CHRIST. Do not focus solely on the 'freedom from human regulations'. Freedom will follow if our lives are with Him.

Here are some questions I asked them to consider and ponder over:

• Are we a people that yearns for freedom more so than a relationship with Jesus? Does a relationship with Jesus equate to the absence of freedom?
• Some interpret 'human regulations' as going to church, going to small group, attending church festivities, attending fellowship, etc. If this is the case, has freedom from human regulations become an excuse for some of us (example: I am free in Christ therefore I do not need to attend small group)? I agree, we aren't supposed to be like Asian pharisees that come to every church event. But if you are not right with the Lord, would you not want to attend these church events?!

When our group split into men and women, my prayer is that our small group would be a place where boys become men. That the men would begin to lead and care for the hearts of our sisters and our partners. My hope is to see lives within the small group transform. The harvest is ready...

Stewardship - my physical body

I don't usually lent, but I am going to fast from any food that could 'harm' my body more excessively than normal. I know ALL food given in extreme portions could cause a lot of bodily harm. So I am going to focus more so on fast-food, excessive meat, chips, candies, excessive alcohol, and soda. I know that's a lot, but I realized how obsessed I have become with food. In the end, I want to be a good steward with the body the Lord has given me. I need to care for it not only spiritually, but physically as well. I think that I have been focusing so much on caring for my 'spiritual life' that I absolutely neglected my physical. Nothing too fancy or 'spiritual' about this. I am simply going to start exercising more often, eat carefully, and sleep better.

Regulating Health and Safety vs Sin

I have always questioned why I am pursuing a degree in Science. I always loved Psychology and Sociology. I love discovering why people do what they do, or how culture shapes our behaviours. Never would I imagine pursuing a degree in science enrolled in the program of Occupational Health and Safety (OHS). In brief, my field of study researches, regulates and controls a company's Health and Safety culture. Long story short, I essentially do what Homer Simpson does (excluding the donuts and beer)!

As I was studying, the more I began to recognize a connection between OHS and sin. Before regulating a company's health and safety, the safety inspector would research/calculate workers risks of exposure to hazards. These hazards include chemical, biological, radiation, physical. 'Risks' include forms of cancer, but can extend to other toxicological outcomes and reproductive disorders. The calculation of risk is therefore performed as a risk of [cancer/death/reproductive-disorders] occurring within the lifetime of the individual(s). Secondly, the inspector would perform a risk assessment. A risk assessment essentially discovers the magnitude of the effect of the exposure (i.e. cancer, death, acute, chronic, disability). Lastly, risk management is the development of ways to regulate internal, public and environmental exposure.

As disciples of Jesus, we also need to do our research, assessment, and management. Exposure to certain social mediums such as music videos, social icons, celebrities (even Christian ones), fast-food, alcohol, rock music, rap music, shopping, bars, etc are not necessarily 'evil' or 'sinful'. But to some, exposure to these may lead to serious effects. I am a dude, and I recognize my weaknesses when I am exposed to certain things. For example, I used to disallow myself to hold my girlfriend because I was aroused by her physical touch. Overtime, I realized that what I thought was righteous and pure, literally became the opposite - pharisitical and demonized. I absolutely failed to recognize God's redeeming grace over ALL things in my life - past, present and future.

As disciples, we also need to assess the cost of exposure to certain social mediums. We already know that the wages of sin is death. If you know that exposure to [for example] social icons, alcohol or shopping would lead you into sin, don't even 'test' yourself.

Lastly, managing the risk of exposure could be explained simply or it could be hard. The simple explanation is 'put on Christ' and you'll be fine. Follow His Spirit and do not satisfy the cravings of your inner desires. LOL But it's the 'how' that causes us to stumble. In OHS, all accidents are caused by a source, but most accidents are not caused directly by the source. From the source to the point of employee contact, there is a path that acts as a transport medium (i.e. air ventilation, absorption, slip, trip and falls). To manage a worker's safety, the inspector would create barriers along the path so that the risk of employee contact is decreased. From personal experience in my spiritual quest, my barriers that decreases my risk of exposure are:

• Stick to a solid system of spiritual men that is willing to care for your soul
• Dig deep into His Word and let that be your foundation. Do not be afraid to ask questions
• Submit to the authority of scripture and quit debating over foolish things such as is it right to date a non-Christian; is it OK to have premarital sex; does God really disallow homosexuality? The last time I heard these questions was in Genesis 3 (i.e. "did God really say you will die?").
• Pray, pray, pray, pray

We are obviously imperfect beings in need of a continual relationship with Jesus. If we fall, confess and disallow your sins to harden your heart from God's Spirit. By no means am I demonizing all things and encouraging all disciples to cut themselves off from social mediums. I simply recognize that we all need to regulate the health and safety of our new heart.