Bearing Fruit In and Out of Season

[S] Revelation 22:1-2 --
 ¹Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, ²in the middle of its street On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

[O] The tree of life bears twelve kind of fruit where the number twelve usually signifies the abundant and completeness therefore must mean that it is bearing all the possible fruit.  As I close this year of 2010, I am wondering if my life was abundant this year bearing all the potential fruits I can.  On top of that, this tree yielded its fruit every month -- was in season all months of the year.  When I'm feeling good, bearing fruit such as serving or forgiving others are easier to produce but when I'm down and under, those are the last things I want to produce.  That is to say, the fruit of my life are seasonal.  Not only the fruit of this tree is important but its leaves also heal the nations.  Come to think of it, I haven't seen any fruit trees without any leaves, so they are part of the mix, too, where the leaves soak up the sun to bring life to the tree and if the tree is damaged, this will bring healing.  What may seem like useless leaves on fruit trees are actually very important.  The leaves in my life relates to all the busy-ness of my spiritual activities.  They may just seem non-critical but God's sunlight is soaked up through those activities and will bring healing to my life such that I may bear all of my potential fruits throughout the year.

[A] The year 2011 is just around the corner, and my mission statement for 2011 will be:  Soak up God's sunlight through my devotional times and bear all possible fruits in and out of season.


[P] Dear Father, please bring me deeper into Your word in 2011.  May my life be richer with the signs of bearing all potential fruits all year round.  I anticipate next year to be a year where not only my life but my family's dynamics will clearly point to serving You together.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Best Plan for Ministry

[S] Revelation 15:3-4 --
 ³And they sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,
          "Great and marvelous are Your works,
         O Lord God, the Almighty;
         Righteous and true are Your ways,
         King of the nations!
    ⁴"Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name?
         For You alone are holy;
         For ALL THE NATIONS WILL COME AND WORSHIP BEFORE YOU,
         FOR YOUR RIGHTEOUS ACTS HAVE BEEN REVEALED."

[O] Another singing song captured my attention because this is the song of praising God's awesomeness.  And following this, the "temple of the tabernacle of testimony in heaven was opened."  How I desire for the door of heaven to open up and reveal His wondrous vision and power and yet I lack praising God for who He is.  As I face another new year and planning for how I may live for God in 2011, I am reminded from this passage to praise God foremost; in fact, that may be all I should be doing and let God take care of the rest.  The vision of "all nations" coming together to worship God continues from day before yesterday's devotion.  That picture is really wonderful one to envision where people from all nations gather just to worship God for who He is and what He has done.

[A] Sing a song of Moses in my daily living by praising Him for what He has done for me and for the whole world.  Praise Him for doing the impossible because He loved me.  Praise Him for giving me the opportunity to abide in Him and glorify His name.  Thank Him for bringing all nations to worship Him and to use me as an instrument to do that.

[P] Dear Father, please accept my praise to You for all that You have done.  May the praises of lifting up You name high not cease from my mouth.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

The Sweet Promise of His Breath of Life

[S] Revelation 11:11 --
 ¹¹But after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God came into them, and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were watching them.

[O] The two prophets of God who proclaimed about God were killed by the beast and after three and a half days of their dead bodies left in the streets, God breaths in them the new life and that pretty much crashed the party the for the people of this world who witnessed this scene.  God is going to return and the people of this world will be totally shocked by what He will do with His people.  No matter how well they may seem and despite how they may kill Christ followers, Jesus Christ will return and when He does He will take His people home and the rest will be just watching in awe, but having lost the opportunity.

[A] Live like a child of God who will claim the liberty of His fullness of life despite what I may go through here on earth.

[P] Dear Father, thank You for the real life You will give me to be called home to Heaven.  I want to live a life with that eternal perspective in mind.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

New Song of All Nations

[S] Revelation 5:9 --
 ⁹And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.

[O] The new song is sung by a new community of people from every tribe, tongue, and nation.  Not only would this be a combination of different spoken languages, but it will also be the unity of all nations.  This new song isn't simply a different generation's tunes but it's really about the new level of praising God for what He's done for all people from all nations without any discrimination.  Just like how Jesus told His disciples in John 4:32,34, how He has food to eat that they know nothing about which is to to do the will of God, this new song may be a totally new paradigm of singing His song for what He has done for us.  This new song is a vision for our church where literally people from many nations are gathering and with our different tongues we will sing this new song of His wonderful salvation for us all.

[A] As I look forward to the year 2011 for our small group ministry, I will seek this vision of singing a new song to our Heavenly Father because He is totally worthy for slaying His own Son to purchase us from all nations.  It's going to be about unity in one spirit to sing this song in one voice.

[P] Dear Father, Your story of salvation is a superbly wonderful one.  May I along with many others at my community sing a new song for You throughout year 2011?  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Fulfilling My Priesthood Duty

[S] Revelation 1:6 --
 ⁶and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father--to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

[O] One of the inherent nature of the society we live in is about holding certain positions in that society and fulfilling the duties.  When everyone's doing their duties well, that society functions harmoniously but when people only pursue to gain the title of the positions only, then that society will suffer from disunity and confusion among members.  John's description of us is that He made us to be a kingdom of priests to worship and glorify God.  Our position in our Christian society is to be the priests and when we realize this and fulfill our positions then we will create a harmonious community.  If we just hold on to the title of being priests, then we will contribute to the confusion.

[A] The education and training I've received desires me to set goals to achieve and that overflows into my spiritual life where I am driven to set some goals to accomplish (for the Lord).  However, before I do that as the kingdom priest, I must unceasingly give Him the glory and dominion forever and ever through my worshipful life, praising His presence in my life.  This can be done anywhere and can be done all by myself -- it's very simple.  So I must carry out my duty as the priest whenever I can.

[P] Dear Father, Your appointment of kingdom priesthood was taken too lightly by me and I want to remember this more often to fulfill my duty as the priest.  In a nutshell, I want to recognize Your awesomeness of being my God and my Savior and I want to worship You with such a praising heart.  Please take joy as I do that in Your name.  Amen.

Revive Me According to Your Lovingkindness

[S] Psalm 119:87-88 --
    ⁸⁷They almost destroyed me on earth,
         But as for me, I did not forsake Your precepts.
    ⁸⁸Revive me according to Your lovingkindness,
         So that I may keep the testimony of Your mouth.

[O] The psalmist's expression of standing firm while facing challenges in life is very encouraging, refreshing and strengthening for me.  After voicing his desire to stand firm, he quickly requests God to revive him for the purpose of testifying His lovingkindness to others.  I can certainly do my part to keep my faith and stand firm against the challenges of life, but in the end it's God's sustaining power that will revive me.  As I wrap up this year 2010, part of me is relating to this author where I feel like to I'm almost destroyed with the exhaustion of carrying on my responsibilities in all aspects of my life, especially in carrying on the small group ministry at church.  At my workplace, my years of experience sustains me to carry on the tasks at hand.  At home it's a growing relationship with my family as we adjust to the turns of life together; it's challenging and at times frustrating but deep inside there is an assurance that walking along faithfully will carry us through these challenging phases.  However in the small group ministry I feel the most resistance from the enemy because God is on the move and we're right in the middle of that "storm."  It's very exciting moment, but comes with that territory is the beating from all the darts being shot at us.  Revive me according to Your lovingkindeness!

[A] Memorize v. 88 and claim it for my own life.

[P] Dear Father, revive me from the beaten state of my mind.  As I heard the message today from our pastor that as 2011 begins it's about making the journey I'll be making with other community members towards the "manger" to worship Him is what matters so please revive me to carry on with this tough, long, and sacrificial journey.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Proof of Abiding in Him

[S] 1 John 3:24 --
 ²⁴The one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him We know by this that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.

[O] Abiding in God takes more than the willing heart although that is a good starting point.  It must be complemented by keeping (action) His commandments. This act of obedience can only be done by the Spirit given from God because on our own it is impossible to complete.  So in order for me to abide in Him, having the Spirit in me is a must and so the fact that I can abide in Him means I have the Spirit in me.  Jesus came 2,000 years ago in order for me to abide in Him through the Spirit He sent us after His ascension into Heaven.  And I am glad I had received His Spirit into my life many years ago, however, the fact that I still struggle to abide in Him on daily basis points out that my inner struggle between my self will vs. the Spirit is an on-going phenomena that I have to observe carefully and guide wisely to bring out His Spirit's fruits.  In many ways, I must minimize my will power and submit to the leading of His Spirit because in the end by revealing the works of the Spirit in my life that I will prove that I belong to Him.

[A] As I daily meet with Jesus, I need to learn to hear His voice teaching me in which area I need to let go of my will-power and to surrender and submit to His Spirit.  This is not to put a show to others, but this way others will recognize that it is His Spirit working in my life that sustains me.

[P] Dear Spirit, thank You for coming into my life and working in me.  I know I need to surrender more areas of my life to reveal my abiding in You.  I desire this very much and I also realize this is a "dangerous" request because You will answer my request and that potentially means I need to face some challenging circumstances to burn away the impurities in my mind -- i.e., difficult.  Continue to give me strength, wisdom, and healthy outlook to carry on with my life highlighting Your wonderful fruits in my life.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Critically Wrong Image of God

[S] John 19:7 --
 ⁷The Jews answered him, "We have a law, and by that law He ought to die because He made Himself out to be the Son of God."

[O] These Jews were so sure of the image, or concept, of their God and His Son such that they were confident Jesus was pretending to be the Son of God.  Although the Jews original intentions began with the right motive of sustaining their relationship with God as His chosen people, their image of the true God had warped into something they had fabricated through their self-righteousness and that led for them to such a lethal position of denying and killing the true Son of God.  This shows how critical it is for me to have the right and accurate image of God in my heart because when I miss that baseline, my life is going to be total mess, ending up ripping apart other people's lives even with a totally good intentions.

[A] So crucial for me to retain the clear picture of who my God is and what He desires for me to do on daily basis.  This is not some degree or certification that I cram for to achieve it but a daily adjustments of my own life based on His word for me.  This is also a path that may be lonely as mentioned in John 19:17 as God calls me to obey and follow.  It is not some glorious martyrdom either.  It is a simple walk every moment immersed in His guidance through the Word and relationship developed through prayer.

[P] Dear Father, allow me to slip into such a relationship so tight and close in order for me to understand the accurate picture of Your purpose and the message for me on daily basis.  Let it be the purpose and vision for my life and family.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Chosen Appointment to Calling His Name

[S] John 12:16 --
 ¹⁶"You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.

[O] There is an interesting thread here going from "chose" to "appointed" to "bear fruit" to "fruit would remain" to "ask in My name".  It begins with being chosen by Jesus, not the other way around and being chosen sets the basis for appointment or empowerment to carry out a task.  The task here is bearing fruit and for it to remain.  This is not a cramming for results approach but something that will be matured into a way of living permanently.  Through such a progression I can call His name to make my supplications.  Just calling His name when I am not even chosen and appointed by Him will not carry the power that He mentions in this passage.

[A] This progression needs to take place daily where I begin the day by surrendering my life to Him to be chosen & appointed to carry out His ways of bearing fruit.  Then throughout the day I can call out in His name to get whatever I need within that calling, or to accomplish that calling.

[P] Dear Father, what a privilege it is to be chosen by You and to carry out Your bearing fruit.  Please use me to do this every day and I realize asking for this is dangerous because by doing so I will face challenges in life to plow through in order to accomplish this calling.  In those moment, please grant me Your grace for me to call on Your name to get whatever I need to do just this within Your calling.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

The Real Purpose of Selling the Perfume

[S] John 12:4-5 --
 ⁴But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, who was intending to betray Him, said, ⁵"Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and given to poor people?"
* denarii is equivalent to 11 moths' wage.

[O] Judas' question itself is perfectly a valid one, however as seen in verse 4, his motives are in question.  Why did he ask this question when his heart had already left Jesus' ministry?  Even before his heart leaving Jesus' ministry, he pilfered the funds which he managed and so perhaps another motivation was that if the perfume was sold for 11 months' wage, then he'd have more opportunity to pilfer that money for his own use.  From this basis I can see how someone with an ulterior motive acts in the midst of ministry.  They would shift the focus of ministry and efforts of participants away from worshiping Jesus to the very act of our own.  So, either it will be a self-praising or a criticism (like in this case) of the acts themselves.

[A] Be on the alert for those who voices their opinions loudly as if they care about the ministry but shifts the focus of the people away from worshiping Jesus for who He is and what He will do through us despite our faulty plans and executions.

[P] Dear Jesus, I seek Your wisdom as I partake in Your ministry through the church and workplace ministry efforts because as I work with many people I would like to have insights to distinguish the "Judas" who on the surface says all the appropriate things but deep inside they incubate evil and destruction.  I lean on You daily for this wisdom.  In Your name.  Amen.

Finder's Question

[S] John 9:35 --
 ³⁵Jesus heard that they had put him out, and finding him, He said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"

[O] After Jesus healed the man born blind, he was questioned multiple times by the Jewish leaders who couldn't accept this because they were too focused on the rituals of the Sabbath day when Jesus made the clay to heal this man.  Even when this man was brought to the Pharisees by others they were blind to see the miraculous power so engulfed in their own world of religion so they mistreat this man and when he gets kicked out Jesus finds him and affirms his belief by asking the question in this passage.  Jesus knows where I am physically, mentally, spiritually, and He will come find me to comfort me and to encourage me to carry on with my faith in Him.

[A] Even when this world and friends around me may reject me, I must hold on to the fact that Jesus will not forget me especially during those times and He will come find me to comfort and encourage me.

[P] Dear Jesus, from the beginning when Adam & Eve sinned, You're the one who initiated to find them, and today that has not changed -- You continue to come and search me out whenever I'm in need or whenever I'm walking the path leading away from You.  So great to know this because I will have to lean on this with my faith many more times in the future.  In Your name.  Amen.

Don't Try to Pack in The Word

[S] John 8:37,43 --
 ³⁷"I know that you are Abraham's descendants; yet you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you.  ⁴³"Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word.

[O] Especially during this time of Christmas where Joseph and Mary couldn't find any room in the inns so gave birth to Jesus in the manger, this passage about having no place for His word stood out today.  Not having room (place) means other things are already fully pre-populating so unless they are offloaded there won't be anymore capacity to withhold anything else.  With my full-plated life I can relate to this dilemma of wanting to retain what God has in store for me while having no room to hold on to His word, and as mentions in verse 43, my senses become more insensitive and I become dull to His word.  This includes the fact that I may be reading His word daily but it will not sink in to the already-crowded heart of mine.

[A] In preparation for reading God's word and absorbing the right nutrients, I need to clear out my crowded heart first to make room for His word to stick.  How can I unclutter my heart more to create space for His word?

[P] Dear Father, just like trying to fill the overflowing glass with more water, may I not just go through the motion of reading Your word when there is no room for it to stick around.  I want to first prepare my heart to make room and time to soak up Your word.  Please give me wisdom to trim out the right places in my life to make such a room.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Eyewitnesses Question Less About Unknowns

[S] John 5:10-13 --
 ¹⁰So the Jews were saying to the man who was cured, "It is the Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet." ¹¹But he answered them, "He who made me well was the one who said to me, 'Pick up your pallet and walk.'" ¹²They asked him, "Who is the man who said to you, 'Pick up your pallet and walk'?" ¹³But the man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away while there was a crowd in that place. 

[O] Neither the healed man nor the Jews knew who the healer was that said, "Pick up your pallet and walk" but their responses were different.  The healed man's unknown was not as important because he experienced and witnessed himself what Jesus did to his own life whereas the Jews focused on who allowed this man to carry the pallet breaking the law of Sabbath.  The focus of an eyewitness is what was witnessed, not about other what if's while the focus of those who did not experience the action is the unknowns because they lacked the personal experience.  The Jews were merrily going about with their feast unable to look into this gathering place of the sick, blind, withered, and lame and so they were unaware of this 38 year old invalid's need or healing that took place which had made him a new person filled with joy and hope.  Isn't this the picture of my own life where once I used to be the spiritual invalid before Jesus came and told me to "pick up my pallet (old way of crippled life) and walk"?  And after that experience now I am to let others know how great it is and how they also need to be made whole again.  But the questions I'll get often is "Who is this guy who told you so?  I don't buy it unless I see it myself."  I wish I could have more and more people to experience this wonderful transformation in their own trapped lives.

[A] How am I letting others see the pallet I'm carrying which is the sign of how my life had transformed from before and now.  How I don't need to rely on things other than God as the crutch to sustain my life.  This comes and goes in waves, but I need to be more consistent about letting those close to me know about my witnessing of what Jesus had done in my life.

[P] Dear Jesus, thank You for healing me from my spiritual immobility.  Would you guide me and give me the confidence which comes from deeply experiencing Your word in order to represent Your power of transformation in my life with others around me?  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Had To Pass Through Samaria

[S] John 4:4,6 --
 ⁴And He had to pass through Samaria.
 ⁶and Jacob's well was there. So Jesus, being wearied from His journey, was sitting thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

[O] As you know, Jesus didn't have to do anything but He chose to pass through Samaria with a purpose -- to meet this Samaritan woman at the well.  He didn't have to be born into this world just to die on the Cross but He chose to do just that.  Because He was a full human, his body was wearied from the long journey He took to meet this woman; and for the same reason He was physically broke down when he took the path of the Cross.  Why all this for?  Because He had the purpose of being the pure sacrifice to wipe away clean our sins.  To the last breath He took, He chose to live out a purpose-driven life here on earth.

[A] Being wearied cannot be an excuse for not choosing to live out God's purpose for my life.  I am physically beaten lately due to many things going on and tendency is to put my life on neutral and just coat along for a while but Jesus' model here encourages me to switch my focus on how I may live out an intentionally driven life for God's purpose for me.  This means even if I may slow down a little to give some breathing space, I must go to God with urgency to find out His calling for me so I may live it out intentionally.

[P] Dear Father, continue to show me Your ways and purpose for my life.  I want to overcome the weariness by going all out to live out Your purpose for me almost like a good offense is good defense.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Becoming Eyewitnesses of His Majesty

[S] 2 Peter 1:16 --
 ¹⁶For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.

[O] Jesus came into this world as a physical human being, born as a baby and grew up just like each of us.  He isn't someone without origin, a mythical character who came and gone but He worked with people just like us to pass on the message of His purpose and He left behind the eyewitnesses who could not sit still but to proclaim His majesty throughout generations leading up to now.  Today, we are those eyewitnesses and unless we are witnessing His majesty right in our own lives, there won't be much to proclaim.  The beauty of it all is that this isn't some cleverly devised story that just got passed on from one generation to another but it's about a real future reality of our Lord Jesus Christ powerfully returning to continue and complete His original purpose of coming to earth as the baby Jesus.

[A] Being a follower of Christ is much more than reciting what you learned about Jesus Christ.  It needs to be aimed at the power of His coming back and how much I can testify His majesty based on daily witnessing of His majesty.  I need to meditate more on His majestic aspect especially during this time of Christmas where it can get boiled down to just being a little baby.

[P] Dear Jesus, come and take the center seat of my heart and allow me to be a strong witness for Your majestic power of Your coming back to lead us home in Heaven.  In Your name.  Amen.

The Right Use of Freedom

[S] 1 Peter 2:16 --
 ¹⁶Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God.
(NLT) ¹⁶For you are free, yet you are God's slaves, so don't use your freedom as an excuse to do evil.

[O] I like NASB's wording of: don't use freedom as ... but as ....  NLT's wording gives me more practical perspective.  The concept of applying freedom is two contrasting way caught my mind because I always thought freedom can only be used for good where in this verse it can be used to cover, or excuse to do, evil.  Haven't I heard others say, I can be free to do whatever I want?  What do you say to that?  Now I know what to say: don't abuse it to justify your evil deeds.  Freedom cannot be above moral standards where the good gives into the bad.  Who'd want to live in a place where everyone pursues evil in the name of freedom?  Or reversing that around, have you seen anyone spend their money to go suffer in the freedom of evil?  Most people get upset if they are ill-treated a little by a customer service people, say cab driver, why would they want to buy themselves more ill-treatment?

On the other hand, when I use my freedom of choice to choose to be a bondslave of God, then what appears to be a restriction will actually free myself to fully live out my life's potential without any limits.

[A] The latter is where I want to be.  I want to fully utilize my freedom in this country to surrender my life to Jesus so I would live out my life's potential He planned for me. to reach out and build up the community of believers.

[P] Thank You, Jesus, for giving me the freedom to choose You freely in this coutry.  I would like to use that freedom to conform my life for Your mission here on earth.  Please let me explore to the max while in Your realm of discipleship.  In Your name.  Amen.

Doing vs. Judging

[S] James 4:11 --
 ¹¹Do not speak against one another, brethren He who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it.

[O] Doing the law means obeying it without complaints or any preconceived ideas.  Even though both doing and judging are action verbs doing involves mobilizing my physical body while judging is really just a state of mind.  It is so easy to judge because it can all take place inside my head while putting what I learned into action is much more difficult to carry out because it must leave my mind's virtual world into the reality.  In fact, the beginning part of this passage implies that judging damages brotherly love by speaking against one another where as obeying the law by doing (without making a fuss about it) springs for the humility before God.

[A] Obedience of God's law must happen before my mind engages into any judgments of others.  But because I have to interact with others by nature of ministry, this is very difficult to "do."  I need to obey (put things into action) more than thinking (by making judgments).

[P] Dear Father, despite the trainings I've received to process things in my mind before putting into action, Your principles spoken through James seems more like put things into action according to Your law first without processing a whole lot.  I want to deposit more of your law into my heart so I may put more of these into action to be known as the "doer" of your law.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Go To Where There Is No Lasting City

[S] Hebrews 13:13-14 --
 ¹³So, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach. ¹⁴For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come.

[O] Just like the Mosaic times of giving sacrifices to God (vv. 11-12) the animals used as offering for sin are burned outside the city gate, Jesus suffered outside the gate as well symbolizing that He was our sin offering.  Denying myself to follow Christ is to go outside the gate myself to a place of outcast where Jesus was crushed selflessly.  It is not a place of establishment of a lasting city but a place where God will establish His city in the future for eternity on that foundation.  If you ever looked at the construction site preparing to build a large building, it's a mess with all kinds of equipments and foundational materials digging away into the dirt.  But once that process is over and then the actual construction of the structure takes place, before we know it an awesome building will take place on top of that messy place of nothing but dirt.  That's what I envision here because in the desolate and "messy" scene of the crucified Christ outside the gate is only a temporary and yet necessary foundation for the lasting city to come.

[A] How am I going to join the crucified Christ outside the gate rather than staying inside the comfortable city?  For me, it's about dying to myself more by smoothing out the rough edges of "pride" that sticks out, at times even without my awareness, through interactions with people close to me.  This time it was feeling self-righteous or self-justifiable caused me to pride over others.

[P] Dear Father, why is that I keep failing to follow the footsteps of Jesus' humility outside the gate?  More I reflect, more I am so awed by Christ's complete humility (when He didn't have to at all).  Please grant me just a fraction of that humility to rule my life.  Lead me to that desolate place where there isn't anything so that I will witness Your everlasting city establish itself there to live in there forever.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Just Like a Jigsaw Puzzle

[S] Hebrews 11:39-40 --
 ³⁹And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised, ⁴⁰because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect. 
(NIV) ³⁹ These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, ⁴⁰ since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.

[O] One of the requirements of completing God's promises in the midst of our community is for us to unite and collaborate to connect our own pieces with one another.  Individually, I am unable to see or receive the promise because I will only retain a portion of that.  It is like each of us holding on to a piece of the jigsaw puzzle where with that piece alone (or even with a few more pieces next to it, until all pieces are placed in their proper positions) I will not see what the whole picture looks like.  There will be a lot of trial-and-errors, efforts of changing approaches to find that perfect spot for that unique piece of the puzzle, and frustrations at times to persevere on one piece at a time.  God's "better" plan is to get us working together in harmony for the purpose of seeing His promise come to its perfect fruition.

[A] Just like all jigsaw puzzle pieces are equally critical and significant in completing the puzzle, each one of us is equally precious to bringing forth God's promise of His saving grace and I need not forget that especially when involved in ministry at church.  We're all doing this as a same team to bring out His plan and this is a good principle I need to keep reminding myself.

[P] Dear Father, Your secret sauce of completing Your wonderful promise only when we unite is so simple and yet effective because that "forces" us to collaborate.  Please forgive my forgetfulness of this simple principle when I'm caught up with so many things going on causing me to think I can do it all or at least think I'm more important.  I humbly bow before You to take reign in my life so as I collaborate with other saints in the Lord, Your promise will bear much fruit.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

It Is Impossible for God to Lie

[S] Hebrews 6:18 --
 ¹⁸so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us.

[O] In this society we live in now it seems it's a rarity to find honesty, especially when you read newspapers.  If it's not one person's dishonesty being exposed it's about how not to fall for deceptions such as your Internet identity.  God, on the other hand, cannot lie and so His standards are totally against what I'm used to seeing around me.  Even though God said nothing is impossible with God, there is one thing that is impossible with God -- to lie.  What He sayd will always come to fruition as He says and that's the power of God I need to tap into in order to go against the grains of this world.

[A] My standard of excellence is lowered when I put too much focus on all that's in the news.  I need to wear the clothes of God's honesty and truth in all I do in parenting, marriage, workplace, and with friends.

[P] Dear Father, while I know that being honest to myself is the beginning of being honest to everyone else I also know that this is not that easy because I have so many blind spots.  Please continue to work in my life so my blind spots will be revealed by others around me.  It may be painful to acknowledge these but help me to set my mind straight at all times through humility and willingness to correct my heart.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Unbelief is Deciced by My Mind

[S] Hebrews 3:19 --
 ¹⁹So we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief.

[O] This particular verse refers to the Israelites who could not enter Canaan due to their unbelief but it very well extends anything that I do which will rob me from receiving God's promise.  Whether I believe or not, God will continue with His miraculous wonders here on earth -- the key is whether I believe and take part in them or disbelieve and be left out from experiencing His strength and power.  The difference between believing and unbelieving is really just a click in my heart and so it really depends on what my mind wills vs. having to do research for years and reading a ton of books, per se.  So believing is really setting my mind to have faith in God to deliver what He already promised and from which the linkage from my heart to His is established.

[A] It seems like every challenge in my life is really an opportunity to believe in God which leads to experiencing the awesome power of Him.  I have a few challenges I'm facing now and so instead of being stressed out, I WILL turn them around to experiencing God right in my life so I may testify of His awesomeness.

[P] Dear Jesus, thank You for allowing these challenges in my life, at home, in ministry, at workplace because You are providing me to experience You through them all.  I am going to set my mind to transform these challenges into moments for You to define my life's purpose.  I want to yield to Your shepherding heart.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Stand By Me So Gentiles Might Hear

[S] 2 Timothy 4:17 --
 ¹⁷But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that through me the proclamation might be fully accomplished, and that all the Gentiles might hear; and I was rescued out of the lion's mouth.

[O] After mentioning how many people have left him and God's ways as well as those who harmed him, he warns Timothy to watch out for these dangerous people.  He then goes on to say how Jesus stood with him and strengthened him despite all the hardships both mentally and physically.  Trying to think through what Paul must've gone through and yet still testify this encourages and strengthens me a lot especially going through the phase of struggling through various challenges in life both at home and at church ministry because it is the Lord who is going to stand by and with me.  Paul continues with the purpose of God's desire for strengthening him which is so all the Gentiles might hear the great message of His saving grace.  It is not so I may be listed in the Hall of Faith, but so I may bring more people into His fold.

[A] The phases go like this: 1) get bombarded with lots of stuff; 2) get wearied physically and mentally; 3) get lonely as if there is no one who cares enough to collaborate; 4) God reminds me that He will stand by me so be strong; 5) get encouraged and begin to see things in God's perspective; 6) then realize God's ultimate purpose for strengthening me is so I may share His love with "Gentiles"; 7) energized to engaged into His ministry.

I think I'm around phase 3 to 4.  I need to revitalize my purpose in the way of sharing His message with others.  I need to defocus from the snares of various factors in life (but deal with them wisely).

[P] Dear Father, You know where I am more than I know myself.  Please hear my cries and send Your Spirit to minister to me in order my bearings in life will be clarified and refocused to strongly carry out my purpose You intended for me.  I pray for my children so they, too, will be protected by Your angels and for them to continue seeking Your ways in humility.  In Jesus' name.   Amen.

Deprived Truth Leads to Depraved Minds

[S] 1 Timothy 6:5 --
 ⁵and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain.

[O] Paul describes root motivation of those who "advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness" (v. 4) which stems from not having the truth in them in the first place while thinking they do.  To me this is like hydrating our body -- if we don't drink any water, then the body will eventually dry up and go into dehydration leading to death in the end.  No matter much one believes his/her body is well hydrated while not taking in any water is only fooling him/herself.  Likewise it is so critical for us to intake the truth from God in order to thrive no matter how we may "feel" on our own.  Without the truth, we have only one outcome -- depraved mind and the lifestyle following it.

[A] I saw God's grace in a new angle through this passage.  Without having His grace as the foundation of my life, I will only be trying to fill it up with my own achievements and no matter how honorable and decent they may be, it is not enough to save me from a depraved mind.  Just like how a shark will sink to the bottom of the sea if it stops moving its back fin, I must intake His good word and truth daily.  The pulling force of this society is so strong that by not doing this, I'm defaulting to giving into the depraved minds.

[P] Dear Father, although the surroundings are so dark, I'm so grateful for Your providing a way out of that and to insulate myself from that through the truth You provided for me in the Bible.  I will hold on to it daily, and pray in the spirit of truth daily.  Please show Yourself in my life not because I achieve this goal, but because my heart will be saturated by Your grace.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

How Not to Remove a Living God

[S] 1 Timothy 3:15 --
 ¹⁵but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.

[O] There are two perspectives to look at.  First is the physical church community (including the sanctuary where the community worships in) where a living God is present.  So, while we shouldn't be too superstitious about elevating certain locations as holier places but when we enter into the place of worship, we should realize the living God is present also and that is who we worship and not the figures on the screens on the wall.  Second perspective is the spiritual aspect of the church community.  Even thougu we're not congregated in a single building the church community as a whole must realize we stand together as a body of Christ followers knowing He lives in the midst of us every moment.

This concept is fought strongly against our society because it wants to remove this living God out.  The prayer's been removed from our children's schools which fades away our children's reverence for God, and now the true living God who came to suffer, die, and gave us life is being toned down right in our churches.  We are successfully replacing the living and true God with a beautiful and yet quite lifeless image on the walls.

[A] When I worship God on Sundays, worship Him as if he's right there in the room and know that He is a living and true God who hears every beat of my heart.  Make it a real experience of "worshiping" God rather than falling into just going through the motions of the rituals.

[P] Dear Father, I worship You as my living God as real as anything that is alive around me.  I want to honor You as that real and living God in my life throughout my life.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

God's Word Dwell-o-meter

[S] Colosians 3:16-17 --
 ¹⁶Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. ¹⁷Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

[O] One of the key indicators of how well the word of Christ dwells in me is how joyful I am with others around me.  The joyfulness can be measured by how I am high spiritually filled with hymns, songs, and thankfulness in my heart for knowing that I belong to God.  It also follows with admonishing one another, uplifting others.  Overflowing the love of God has for me to others seems like a good indicator for me to track as I interact at work, home, church, and many other places I visit.

[A] It seems like this passage was God sent after I sought after some wisdom on how to communicate some points with my children.  What it meant to me was more so than the concept itself, I need to do it with a heart full of joy and thankfulness so the word of Christ will overflow into them foremost.  Thankful heart + admonishing others around me indicate my richness in the word of Christ

[P] Dear Father, please continue to teach me how to follow Your footsteps of being a father.  How it is all about surrendering my rights for the sake of teaching the true love to my children.  Please grant me wisdom so I do not hinder that with all sorts of details.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Forget My Past

[S] Philippians 3:13-14 --
 ¹³Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead,  ¹⁴I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

[O] Ability to look and move forward without being all caught up in the past is a blessing from God because it is much said than done.  I think my brain is wired such that it will latch on to some ideas from the past and won't let go trying to play out all sorts of "what if's" as if it will make any difference in my life going forward (other than learning from the past and applying the lessons learned from them).  I'm sure Paul had a bunch of life-impacting moments to the point of almost losing his life, but he says he's going to reach for what lies ahead and pressing toward the calling of God in Christ Jesus forgetting what lies behind.  Someone once said, all, except one, aspects of our body are designed to go forward (eyes, ears, nose, mouth facing forward for example) therefore our mind should also continuously move forward and not get hung up in the past.

[A] Even just living out the rest of this week, I want to spend more of my thoughts in preparing and planning for the future of what and how God had called me to live them out in comparison to regretting, worrying, and even dwelling on successful achievements.  If I were to quantify it, 75% future planning; 25% reflection and gratitude of the past.

[P] Dear Father, I give You the glory for creating me in a way to move forward in order to enjoy and explore Your callings for my life rather than to dwell (and get stuck) in the past.  Please continue to reveal in me what Your callings are for me and the heart of obedience to follow them.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Anything But What Christ Accomplished

[S] Romans 15:18-19 --
 ¹⁸For I will not presume to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me, resulting in the obedience of the Gentiles by word and deed, ¹⁹in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Spirit; so that from Jerusalem and round about as far as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ. 
(NLT) ¹⁸ Yet I dare not boast about anything except what Christ has done through me, bringing the Gentiles to God by my message and by the way I worked among them. ¹⁹ They were convinced by the power of miraculous signs and wonders and by the power of God’s Spirit. In this way, I have fully presented the Good News of Christ from Jerusalem all the way to Illyricum.

[O] Paul testifies his evangelism plan which is nothing but to boast about what Christ has done through him. If he had a plan, it would've been to let the miraculous wonders of Jesus Christ shine through the actual power of God.  It's almost like stepping aside so God can show off what He can do instead of attracting the attention of men toward what he is doing.  Seems like a very simple and yet dynamic plan of not only bringing the Gentiles to God but putting all the glory to God and not on any man.

[A] It is so easy to get all the attention of doing God's ministry and Paul's model is an excellent one to keep in mind and to model after in all my ministry involvements.  Additionally, whenever the plans of doing God's ministry get too complicated, it should be a warning sign to me that I may be getting in the way of God.

[P] Dear Father, I want to stay aside from getting in the way of Your miraculous wonders to take place to impact the "Gentiles" from drawing closer to You.  Thank You for giving me this model to follow after.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

When I Feel All Alone Taking All the Beating

[S] Romans 11:4-5 --
 ⁴But what is the divine response to him? "I HAVE KEPT for Myself SEVEN THOUSAND MEN WHO HAVE NOT BOWED THE KNEE TO BAAL."  ⁵In the same way then, there has also come to be at the present time a remnant according to God's gracious choice.

[O] God responded to Isaiah's question (almost a complaint out of fear) of why he is left all alone as a fugitive.  Isaiah just didn't realize the bigger plan God had of preserving His people according to His grace.  Even though he could not see himself, Isaiah was reminded that there are 7k other men who have sustained their obedience to God despite the oppositions prevalent in that society.  God not only knows where he was but also did not leave him alone to carry on the bigger task of God by also preserving more men.  This begs the question of how will they network and find each other without having facebook.com but even there, God is bigger than facebook.com!

[A] I am going to lift up my pastor because at times being in the frontline receiving all the beating may make him feel like Isaiah.  I want to lift him up so he will be uplifted from God's provision of fulfilling His purpose by sending more men with the same heart and spirit.

[P] Dear Father, please let my pastor be soaked up by Your uplifting message of strength through other men sharing the same vision and purpose.  Please allow him to be protected from all the spiritual attacks and may his heart be filled with the hope that comes from You.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Get in the Right Pipeline

[S] Romans 5:18 --
 ¹⁸So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men.

[O] Before contemplating on how a single person -- Jesus who also was fully God -- can save the world, we must first understand that through another single person's act of disobedience, the whole world got on the crash course just waiting for the doom's day to take place.  Of course this is according to God's message in the Bible and if I deny that fact, then I will live as if everything is fine and won't feel a need to get saved PERIOD, let alone through Jesus Christ.  Grasping this overall cycle from start to finish is key in understanding how apart from our choice or control, we're already in this pipeline of passing through the first entry point of heading to one of the final points -- 1) face the consequence of the condemnation introduced by the first transgression; or 2) justification of life by the righteous act by another person, Jesus Christ. The choice is mine.

[A] Re-organize my thoughts on how I may clearly present this concept of the saving act of Jesus Christ who, likewise how Adam's disobedience caused all of us to face the consequence of spiritual death, alone provides a way out for us to avoid the deadly consequence of Adam's act.

[P] Dear Father, as much as the Book of Romans covers the core of Your saving grace, may my mind clearly understand and prepare such that I may present this clearly to those who need to hear it.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Faith-to-Faith Resuscitation

[S] Romans 1:17 --
 ¹⁷For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."

[O] Just like how mouth-to-mouth resuscitation is an integral routine for CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) to revive a failed heart, faith-to-faith resuscitation seems to be a key factor in passing on the righteous lifestyle in God to subsequent generations.  It is not concept-to-faith, rhetoric-to-faith, or dream-to-faith.  It must be a genuine faith in action passing on from one generation to the next which also is actively living out such a lifestyle.  Such a lifestyle cannot be passed on just by heritage, or by writing a wonderful manual (we already have "the" manual called the Bible).  You never see a mouth-to-mouth done with a straw or a hose -- it's done through one mouth pressing against the other to breath in the air minimizing any loss of air.  Likewise, faith-to-faith must be done from one faith to the next tightly pressing against each other to minimize any loss of faith.

[A] Such a timely message for me because we're currently going through some issues to deal with at home with our children and I am realizing how critical it will be for me not to lose focus of passing on the righteous lifestyle by pressing my own faith hard against theirs to pass on this message of attaining the righteousness of God through their faithful living.

[P] Dear Father, grant our family to live by faith alone, to please You and to live out a life that will be passing on such a faith from generations onward.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

When Jesus Returns

[S] 1 Thessalonians 4:17 --
 ¹⁷Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.

[O] The picture of meeting Jesus when He returns is pretty awesome, beating any Hollywood movies.  Not sure exactly how it'll look physically but meeting Him in the air (watch out Michael Jordan) is definitely going to be an experience of a life time before we spend the eternity with Him.  At this point, the whole world will be aware of the returned King.

[A] In light of this, all that goes on here on earth seems so irrelevant.  This does not mean I will be lazy for the rest of my life but it means I will not put too much emphasis on what we do here on earth in contrast to preparing for the eternity I'll spend with God.

[P] Dear Father, there are so much worries in this world I live in -- some for good reasons -- but in light of this passage even those need to be surrendered.  I want to live the rest of my life expecting the great return of Jesus who will take me up into His arms in the most awesome way.  In gratitude and anticipation I pray in Your name.  Amen.

Authenticate the Truth

[S] Matthew 28:15 --
 ¹⁵And they took the money and did as they had been instructed; and this story was widely spread among the Jews, and is to this day.

[O] The guards agreed to spread the wrong rumor of Jesus' body being stolen by His disciples during the night by accepting the bribe money from the chief priests and elders.  The funny thing is that this rumor spread widely for a long time highlighting the fact that what goes around (the Internet these days) are not always true.  This was no secret but the point is we should always confirm and verify the source before we pass on any of the "rumors" which seemingly pass as the latest "news."

[A] In this day and age of speedy "forward" or "reply-all" to the overflowing information I need to be careful about passing on information to others such that they are accurate.  Also continue to dig into God's Word through Life Journaling such that I would extract the truth and nothing but the truth about our Heaven Father and His love and grace for us.

[P] Dear Father, You are truly my Father in Heaven and I want to stay true to Your purpose for us by passing on the truth that I extract from the Bible.  Please continue to instill in me Your wonderful news and truth.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Not Everything Has a Return Policy

[S] Matthew 27:4-5 --
 ⁴saying, "I have sinned by betraying innocent blood." But they said, "What is that to us? See to that yourself!"  ⁵And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple sanctuary and departed; and he went away and hanged himself.

[O] Judas realized the fault he had committed and wanted to reverse it the next morning by going back to the priests willing to return the 30 pieces of silver they gave him as the payment of leading them to Jesus.  But the priests already got what they wanted and had no desire to refund.  In despair, Judas throws the money back and then goes away to hang himself.  I see the result of repenting in wrong places.  Only God through the life of Jesus on earth can accept our repentance and forgive, there is no one else who may do this.  In fact, short of God, we will only make things worse as we see in this situation.

[A] With my faulty commitments, I need to bring them to God and surrender to Him in exchange for His peace and forgiveness because if I bring them to any one else, including holding them within myself, it will only rot away my mind and will lead me to self destruction.

[P] Dear Father, I'm so thankful for Your forgiveness through the Cross Jesus carried for me way before I was even conceived because through that all of my faults can be lifted up freeing me to live a life that will please You alone.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Preparation Now Matters In The End

[S] Matthew 25:5 --
 ⁵"Now while the bridegroom was delaying, they all got drowsy and began to sleep.

[O] All ten virgins (five foolish, five prudent) faced the same challenges in their circumstances and suffered the same consequence of getting drowsy and falling asleep.  However when the bridegroom came, the two groups of the ladies responded completely different based on their preparation for this moment.  The foolish didn't have enough oil and thus could not meet their bridegrooms while the prudent were able to welcome and greet their bridegrooms while their opportunity was at hand.  They could seize the moment which they were longing for a long period of time (while the bridegroom was delaying).

[A] How well I'm prepared for the moment will make that significant difference when that moment finally arrives.  How am I preparing myself for the significant moments in my life starting from my immediate presentations, work tasks, children's future, and eventually meeting Jesus when He returns?  I need to continue to increase my personal prayer time with the Lord as well as Scriptural memorization.

[P] Dear Father, I love You for guiding my life to be closer to You.  I want to prepare my life just like the prudent ladies from this passage such that even though I may fall from the challenges of my life, when You return I will be fully prepared to meet and to receive You to spend the eternity with You.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Let's Not Be Speechless

[S] Matthew 22:12 --
 ¹²and he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?' And the man was speechless.

[O] The man ended up in the marriage banquet and enjoying the feast with others but when he was asked how he came in there without the proper clothes, he could not answer, meaning he didn't know how that happened either -- i.e., who gave him permission to join the banquet.  Before he was asked this question, he did not think about why he was enjoying the feast.  This is one of the traps we must avoid where we just do things without really knowing why.  It could be just going with the flow or peer pressure, but in the end it's I need to know what I am doing rather than mindlessly going along so that when I am asked this type of a question, I would have a clear response back.

[A] Today on the Thanksgiving Day, I'm inviting some guests over for a dinner time together for a fellowship.  I am preparing my heart so that there may be a time to share about how we need to guide our lives with a clear purpose so that we won't be "speechless" when asked of how we got where we are headed.

[P] Dear Father, please grant through the working of Your Spirit today to have a wonderful time with guest and may Your love and presence fill this place.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Have Achievable Goals in Life, not just Wishful Thoughts

[S] Matthew 18:26-27 --
 ²⁶"So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.'
 ²⁷"And the lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt.

[O] Here is an excellent example of how a wrong set of assumptions or expectations can lead to a greater error.  The slave asked for a delay of payment until he can make enough money to pay it all back while the master in verse 27 actually released his debt completely.  The slave's "good intention" of paying back his debt was actually impossible to achieve because of the amount was something more like millions or billions of dollars in today's term.  Based on his (wrong) assumption of paying it back, however, drove him to start gathering all the money he can and that determination turned him into a merciless man only purpose in life is to make more money to pay back the master.  Instead of living a life filled with his own plans to achieve a goal and purpose that is unachievable, he simply had to accept the pardoning of his master and live a freed life filled with gratitude.

[A] This story speaks into my heart every time I read it because I find myself not really living out the "freed" life with gratitude of God's pardoning of my inability to pay Him back with my life's efforts.  I need to grasp onto His gift of forgiveness so I may enjoy this life for Him.

[P] Dear Father, please correct any wrong assumptions in my life so that I won't live a worthless life like this slave.  I want to enjoy the fullness of your joy based on the freedom You gave me to live without worrying about my faults.  In Jesus' name. Amen.

Crumbs of Thanksgiving

[S] Matthew 15:27 --
 ²⁷But she said, "Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters' table."

[O] This statement always warms my heart.  This mother's love and care for her daughter's well being as well as her belief on the feasibility of Jesus' healing allowed her to have a tremendous heart of gratitude for even an infinitesimally small amount of Jesus' grace and touch of love.  She had already surrendered everything else and all she needed was just a drop of God's touch which she was ready to receive with utmost thanksgiving.  There were no strings attached.  Her motives were pure.  And Jesus used that to bring forth God's glory.  Or stating differently, her fully surrendered self was prepared to display the amazing grace of God.

[A] How is my scale of "thanksgiving" especially during this time of Thanksgiving?  Am I still trying to reach a certain level before I can have a "thankful" heart?  Or am I going to be thankful even if just a drop of God's grace skims by my life?

[P] Dear Father, I want to have a heart like this woman to be thankful even for crumbs of Your love and grace dropping into my life. And through that may Your glory be revealed as I pray in Jesus' name.  Amen.

Seek Repentance, not Miracles

[S] Matthew 11:23 --
 ²³"And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will descend to Hades; for if the miracles had occurred in Sodom which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day.

[O] Capernaum was one of the city that did not repent (v.20) faced the consequence of descending to Hades.  Jesus also mentions that enough miracles took place in Capernaum and yet people's overwhelmingly unrepentant hearts could not save from the city ending up in Hades.  At times, I wish God's miraculous power be revealed in this world falling away from God every day as if that's going to turn the ship around, but this passage set me straight by explaining that it's not the presence or God's miracles that's going to save people (city, nation, or the world) but the repentant hearts of the very people Jesus died for on the Cross that is going to save us.

[A] As I face the challenges of daily life, and the struggles I must face, I wish for some sort of God's miracles to take place in my life to lift me out of these circumstances.  Instead of that mentality I must examine my own heart to make sure it is aligned with His through repentance, commitment, and devotion to His wonderful grace and love because my own pure heart for Him is what's going to bring forth His beauty and in turn lift me out of my own struggles.

[P] Dear Father, I want to increase my commitment for You out of gratitude for Your wondrous grace.  May I not seek an easy way out by way of some lightning bolt from Heaven to set my life straight because it is my dedicated and pure heart You're after.  I humbly offer up my heart to You in surrender.  In Your precious name.  Amen.

Even Through Generations of Glitches

[S] Matthew 1:5-6 --
 ⁵Salmon was the father of Boaz by Rahab, Boaz was the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse. ⁶Jesse was the father of David the king. David was the father of Solomon by Bathsheba who had been the wife of Uriah.

[O]  The generations these two verses cover reveal what appears to be "failures" to the plan of God for bringing His own Son to this world in His purest form of God let alone a Jew because Rahab and Ruth were not Jews and Bethsheba didn't really take a legitimate route of becoming a queen.  This was a period of back-to-back glitches leading to the birth of King David.  And he almost didn't get picked as the anointed one when Samuel visited his family because his father ruled him out as one of the possibilities for being just a boy.  However, despite all this God's plan still came through without a hiccup.

[A] Even when things seemed to derail from the plans set forth, I need not to focus too much on the failures but need to turn to Him for His guidance through those tough times.  If He reveals my faults in that, then I need to repent and correct my heart but need to be sensitive to His voice about the hope and peace when all I have to do is to persevere through it to see the glory of His plans unfolding.

[P] Dear Father, I want to recognize that You are in full control regardless of how I may interpret circumstance I'm in leading to the recognition of Your ultimate plan coming through.  There are so many times in a day when my mind would doubt Your plans so I want to work on more of letting those thoughts go in order to believe in the hope that has been promised by You.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Keep It Simple and Straighforward

[S] 2 Corinthians 11:3 --
 ³But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.

[O] The key operatives here for me were: craftiness, simplicity and purity.The serpent's deception was to complicate the simple relationship to God and out of this confusion Eve fell for the trap.  Another concept of simplicity is purity because by definition, purity means absence of impurity.  It stays simple with just the pure elements.  Based on this concept, sticking to simplicity of my devotion to Christ is one sure way of not falling to the traps of the enemy.  Definitely K.I.S.S. (keep it simple & straightforward) applies here.

[A] Whenever I feel confused about the love of God for me, a red flag should go up inside me to make it simple once again.  God who didn't have to do anything, abandoned Himself in order for me to live with Him eternally.

[P] Dear Father, Your simple grace and love is just too powerful!  I want to keep it simple and powerful in my life so please protect me from the spell of confusion coming from the enemy.  May my life and mind stay pure and simple to devote my life for You.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Keep Multiplying Seed of Thanksgiving

[S] 2 Corinthians 9:6,10-11 --
 ⁶Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. ¹⁰Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness; ¹¹you will be enriched in everything for all liberality, which through us is producing thanksgiving to God.

[O] It is one thing to not look for what I had not sowed in the first place, but saying that I didn't have enough resources to sow in the first place is not going to work with God (or Paul) because God has an abundant quantify of His resources for us to sow to reap His harvest of righteousness which eventually produces thanksgiving to God.  I may run out of things to sow if I'm seeking for other results than what God is intended but as long as my purpose stays within this boundary, we won't have to worry about running out of sees to sow.

[A] In this time of Thanksgiving Day I want to receive His abundance of His seed of thanksgiving and create opportunity to sow them into hearts of those who may be in need of just that during this time season of the year.

[P] Dear Father, please provide Your abundant seed of thanksgiving to hand out to those we're reaching out to some people during this Thanksgiving Day.  May Your Spirit permeate through the time we'll have together.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Works From Outside or Life In Me?

[S] 2 Corinthians 4:11-12 --
 ¹¹For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. ¹²So death works in us, but life in you.

[O] I could see the relationship between external influence vs. implicit nature built right into my life.  The power of death works externally to influence my life while the life of Jesus manifests in my life implicitly.  Verse 12 speaks to this contrast clearly by saying, BUT life IN you.  Now the question is which should have a greater impact of my life?  The external influences trying to change my implicit way of thinking, or what I'm already born with in my DNA?  The answer should be simply what I am born with, however, the external influences seem to bring greater impact at many times.  What gives?

[A] Application of what I read and learn from His word needs to strengthen my innate nature of the life of Jesus and not let the external influences.  Just like how the salt-water fish are insulated from the saltiness of the water even though they live in it all the time they do not taste salty, I need to insulate myself from the external influences of the world I live in so I an preserve the freshness of Jesus' life.

[P] Dear Father, in the life-stream of this whirlwind, I can easily lose focus of where I'm leading my life or my family toward.  Please instruct me in my devotional time with You the bearing I must hold on to.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Retirement Model from Job

[S] Job 42:12,17 --
 ¹²The LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning;
 ¹⁷And Job died, an old man and full of days.

[O] After all that Job went through, the completion of his life displayed the splendor or His beautiful and wonderful provision for His children.  It is not only because God restored the material wealth and his family, but because of the greater intensity of Job's life in the latter days than his beginning as well as how he was able to die full of days.  He maximized his life in the Lord even through the "deadly" downturn of his life.  My take away here is: I will surely go through challenges of my life no matter how closely I walk with God but that shouldn't be my excuse to not live out my life full of days, giving it all for Him.

[A] As I'm bombarded with lots of interruptions and challenges of my life stage, I need to defocus the strain coming from them and redirect my heart to focus more on the hopes and visions God intends for me to catch and to figure out a way to live the rest of my life giving it all for Him.

[P] Dear Father, Job's beautiful example of living out his life for You inspires me today.  I also want to follow his footsteps of living my days full for You.  Just like how someone once mentioned that on his tombstone, he wants to put a gas gauge with the needle pointing to "E" (for empty) signifying how he's given it all he had during his life.  I want to follow that model so please continue to teach me how I may do that until You call me home.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Fallen Even After Experiencing Resurrection

[S] 1 Corinthians 15:6 --
 ⁶After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep;

[O] Jesus appeared to more than 500 people after His resurrection and most of them have remained abiding in Jesus' promise but some have fallen away from following Christ even though they have experienced Jesus' resurrection in person.  At times I wished I experienced some tangible miracles of Jesus in my life like starting tomorrow morning I will miraculously wake up early every morning to start the day with my devotion because I am thinking such an experience will just totally transform my life.  This may be the case, but then just like some of these fallen asleep people after seeing the resurrected Jesus, it may not last for long before I lose the impact in my life.  So, I shouldn't wish for such an experience to sustain my spiritual life but to be faithfully purify my heart on daily basis.

[A] Don't get too hung up on the time of my waking up time but focus on when I go to bed and with what type of a heart after a hard-working and tiresome day.

[P] Dear Father, may I not seek for miraculous powers but a faithful heart purified to hear your voice every day.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Love Is In All Things

[S] 1 Corinthians 13:7 --
 ⁷bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

[O] In this chapter of "love," Paul writes these gem qualities of love of bearing, believing, hoping, enduring all things.  Love is not just the warm and fuzzy emotions but a firm and disciplined actions to bear, believe, hope, and endure ALL things.  Today, the love is so loosely defined as my own preference of "liking" something or someone before I can start to love.  However, Paul seems to be telling me that love starts by first committing to bear, believe, hope, and endure all things with and toward someone, and by sustaining that commitment through all circumstances, the true love will blossom into a full fruition.

[A] This is the model of Jesus' love for me.  He first chose (committed) love me and thus went all the way to bear that fruit of love for me through His complete surrender and sacrifice for me.  I can apply this to many areas of my life, but want to re-examine my heart toward my wife.  After years of marriage, I don't want to assume anything here and make sure my "complete" love for her still is about bearing, believing, hoping, and enduring ALL things with and for her.

[P] Dear Father, praise You for providing me such a wonderful and beautiful life partner.  Please allow my heart to be set to apply the gem of Your true love for her.  Thank You for this principle to keep in my heart.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

The Heavenly Choir in the Morning

[S] Job 38:7 --
 ⁷ as the morning stars sang together
      and all the angels shouted for joy?

[O] I love singing, especially praising God for who He is, but never thought of the beautiful morning stars as the Heavenly choir singing to us each morning, not to mention the angels harmonizing together in the background.  God starts each day with this awesome orchestration and I have not been paying much attention to it.  The description from this passage hit home for me to join in on the singing.

[A] Now that the jet lag is passed I should get back to the normal cycle of waking up early to join the morning choir and to praise Him and to soak up His instructions for me through the Word.

[P] Dear God, I praise You for providing such a beautiful surrounding for me to wake up and join You to start off the day with a resounding singing from the bottom of my heart.  Please continue to shine your grace upon me to move beyond my physical limitations to join you each morning.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Do Voluntarily or as a Stewardship

[S] 1 Corinthians 9:17 --
17For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have a stewardship entrusted to me.

[O] Paul refers to his preaching of the gospel here and points out that certain aspects of a Christ-follower's life has no option but to do it whether voluntarily or not -- there is no compromising here.  I feel that I'm so used to the customization of this society offers and quickly and easily apply that to my walk with God when it's God who sets the pace and the rules for me to follow.  It's not about God being so mean or strict but His nature is such that He is perfect and that means the followers like me also need to abide by His perfect nature and that translates into certain aspects of following Him is not optional or customizable.  I just have to do it -- voluntarily when it becomes a joy and until then as a stewardship entrusted to me.

[A] Need to work on missing less of my daily devotions, especially on weekends when there are just too many activities going on (so I should wake up earlier to do this).

[P] Dear God, touch my heart with Your Spirit such that I will spend that time with You not as a stewardship but a joyful volunteering.  I've tried a lot of stuff but I give up on all of them because they're just not working completely.  I want to totally surrender to Your Spirit's leadership in this area.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Two-way Love Story

[S] 1 Corinthians 8:2-3 --
² Anyone who claims to know all the answers doesn’t really know very much. ³ But the person who loves God is the one whom God recognizes.

[O] While knowledge is important, just having the knowledge is not everything because that only establishes just one side of the equation.  It's like having a one-sided love while the other person doesn't even know me.  Even if there is a way to completely understand the heart of God by our own human comprehension (without the intervention of the Holy Spirit), unless God recognizes me also my own understanding means nothing in the eyes of God.  Am I recognized by God as the one who love Him?

[A] Talk to Him in a quiet and private place within next week to share my love with Him to ask Him if He recognizes me and to guide me based on Psalm 32:8.

[P] Dear God, I want to love You and be recognized by You.  Please whisper into my ears that You know me and love me.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

At the Cross-roads of Foolishness and Power of God

[S] 1 Corinthians 1:18 --
 ¹⁸For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

[O] Lately, I've been prompted frequently to the message of the Cross as if God was asking me:  Do you really understand the message behind the Cross Jesus Christ carried?  I knew the textbook answer but somehow I couldn't answer with a confident "yes" because deep inside I knew it was much deeper than the simple definition of where Jesus died for our sins.  It is where my God exemplified what sacrificing His all for me was and in turn for me to do just that because only then I will rise up in the power of God which raised Jesus Christ from the dead.  So, while the spiritual climate these days are so hostile towards Christianity just the thing they consider foolish -- the message of the Cross -- is where I can draw the supernatural power from to live out the life God called me to live out.

[A] Without applying this message of the Cross in my life, there is no way I can serve God because anything short of that will just be fooling myself in thinking I'm doing something for God.  But He does not really need my help, does He?  He wants my heart of obedience leading to total surrender/sacrifice.  As I am disturbed by this thought right now, I am sure He will clearly show me the application as I continue to chew on how to apply the message of His Cross into my own personal life.

[P] Dear Father, You taught me through las Sunday's message about how Your will be done in my own life first.  I want to ask You to do just that as a scary request it may be.  I want to go back to Job 28:28 where he concluded the fear of God is the wisdom and I will claim that You will plant the wisdom based on my awesome fear of You who sent me the message of the Cross.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Got Wisdom? Get Fear!

[S] Job 28:28 --
    ²⁸"And to man He said, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom;
         And to depart from evil is understanding.'" 

[O] Job covers all the possible places and ways to attain wisdom in this chapter but concludes with this verse that "fear of the Lord" is the only way to get that.  No money or precious gems of this world can bring me wisdom.  To Job, God's wisdom is the key to living out his life because nothing on earth -- as he had the luxury of attaining many things of this world by the way he knows well what they are -- could satisfy.

[A] What is my irreducible minimum in my life to live out a Godly life?  If it is wisdom like Job, then my basic posture should be to fear the Lord from the moment I wake up to the time I go to sleep.

[P] Dear Father, teach me to fear You such that Your wisdom will never leave me.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

What Are My Signs?

[S] Mark 16:17-18 --
 ¹⁷"These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues;
 ¹⁸they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover."

[O] These are awesome signs of miracles.  Why is it that my mind is so faithless when it comes to God's miraculous signs working through my life?  As I'm reading this passage I'm thinking that this is for someone else but me.  I seem to lack the faith of a mustard seed (small), in this department and I sense God desiring to expand my faith here such that my mind won't restrict what God can do through my life only if I totally surrender to His glory and power.  In fact, my life could use some miracle these days because it seems like I am being bombarded with tasks without having much margin in my life to enjoy some of the things God placed in my life.

[A] Praise God for His wonderful power.  Praise Him for who He is and what He can  do.  Praise Him that He's already integrated my life into His plans.

[P] Dear Father, I know You love me and want to include me in Your plans.  I want to totally throw my life at You and have You take care of it.  I want to have the message of the Cross written all over my life.  Please continue to uphold my faith and my children's faith such that through the life's journey we would grasp on to Your promises and hope, not of this world's.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

What is My Question for Jesus?

[S] Mark 9:22-23 --
 ²²"It has often thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!"
 ²³And Jesus said to him, " 'If You can?' All things are possible to him who believes."

[O] The father of this demon-possessed boy asked the question "If you can do anything ..." and to that Jesus responds by saying "If you can?  All things are possible to him who believes."  At first, I felt like this man asked a "dumb" question, but as I reflected more on this passage, his question led him to experiencing Jesus' miracle right in his and his son's lives.  What question am I asking Jesus now with the issues in my life?  Am I too calculative in forming my question to impress Jesus or others?  I need to be like this father who simply wanted his son to be healed and sincerely asked Jesus to reach that goal.

[A] The questions I ask Jesus reveal my utmost interest in life now.  Make a list of my questions for Jesus to examine my own heart's motives.

[P] Heavenly Father, I want to align my mind with my heart so that my mind is fully occupied with what is most important to follow and worship You.  I want to ask the right questions like this father regardless of worrying about how well it sounds.  Please let Your response take place in my life because I want to experience Your miracle -- only what You can do -- in my life.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.