Fear of God is Good

[S] Exodus 20:20 --
20 Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid; for God has come in order to test you, and in order that the fear of Him may remain with you, so that you may not sin."

[O] God allows us to pass through some of His tests not just for us to get stronger in faith but also that the fear of Him will remain with us to avoid sinning.  One cannot have strong faith and sin at the same time so His fear is us is a good discipline for us to keep away from sinning which will lead to a closer walk with God resulting in fruitful life.

[A] Just like whenever I see a CHP on the highway, I would make sure I'm within the speed limit, whenever I know that God is with me, I would make sure I am within the boundaries of godly living.  Good or bad times, I must not forgot to honor God and fear His presence in my life.

[P] Dear Father, I honor Your fearful presence in my life such that I would strive to live my life in line with Your principles.  So many times, when I'm just coasting along, I am bound to make mistakes and be pulled to the ways of our enemy.  I want to be soaked with Your amazing grace at all times.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Finding the Bedrock of Leadership

[S] Exodus 32:2 --
 ²Aaron said to them, "Tear off the gold rings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me."

[O] The power of the people was at work here when they protested to Aaron, he seemed to have simply gave in and came up with this idea of the golden calf to appease the people.  If I were in his shoes, it would've been very difficult to stand up against the mod and practically speaking my own doubts would've increased also about what happened to Moses (over 40 days).  In the leadership position, I can be pressured to respond to the people's suggestions or complaints out of my own thinking rather than sticking to the principles.

[A] As I am getting more involved with the ministry while waiting for more leaders to step up, better care for the existing leaders, training materials to prepare, and some fires to put out, I can easily be like Aaron in making my own responses to relieve pressure of the people.  I have to be grounded in God's word daily and pray continuously while being grateful for all that I have in order not to fall into the gold calf traps.

[P] Dear Father, I am crying out to You for allowing me to enter deeper into Your grace during some of these challenging circumstances.  I am so thankful for allowing this opportunity for my heart to be molded by You even more to take on the shape You desire from me.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Just Like Comparing Acorn Sizes

[S] Genesis 31:6-7 --
 ⁶"You know that I have served your father with all my strength. ⁷"Yet your father has cheated me and changed my wages ten times; however, God did not allow him to hurt me.

[O] This statement from Jacob is almost funny because he himself ended up where he is now because of his cheating his brother Esau.  And later we find out Rachel cheats her own father by hiding the stolen household idol (of all things) right before her father.  So, what's the big deal about Laban's cheating Jacob?  Everyone's doing the same and all goes around.  This was a good reminder for me to know that ways of men are so limited and we end up short-changing ourselves because of our shortfalls.  And just like how Jacob concluded that without God we would all be hurting each other more.

[A] Whenever I am irritated by someone else, put that thought on hold and examine my own life to see how much of the same issue I hold.  And based on that confess my own shortcomings before God and be sanctified myself.  By then I should be more forgiving of the other person.

[P] Dear Father, thank You for teaching me how to re-examine my own life for the exact same issues other people have who offend me.  After all, I am born attached with sin, so more than judging others, I myself need more of Your grace and mercy.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Price of the Very First Leather Suit

[S] Genesis 3:21 --
 ²¹The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them. 

[O] Why did God make this leather clothing for them?  After all they are the ones who felt ashamed before God and they already sewn themselves a covering made out of fig tree leaves.  In order to make this leather clothing, God had to sacrifice the animal the skin belonged to and perhaps this was the first sacrifice of His creation in order to cover up the sin of man.  When He created the world at the end of each day He said they were good to Him so there was none that He created reluctantly set apart to be disposed so the animal used to make this leather covering for Adan and Eve had to give up their lives sacrificially.  That same theme continued through Jesus coming to earth to live out a life that did not have to end in a murderous death all for covering our sins.  But He did just that for me.

[A] God's love come alive when I lay my life down sacrificially because the DNA of that love from the beginning of man's sin was based on sacrifice of shedding blood.  That was all done because God loved man (me).  If my heart had captured such a love then willingness to sacrifice must arise from my heart in order to ignite His love coming alive in and through my life.

[P] Dear Father, please kindle the flame of Your love in me as I sacrificially serve Your community starting with my family.  May Your message of sacrifice be embedded into my heart deep inside such that I would follow the footsteps of Jesus's sacrificial love for me.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

What Am I Ashamed and Embarrassed About?

[S] Ezra 9:6 --
 ⁶and I said, "O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to You, my God, for our iniquities have risen above our heads and our guilt has grown even to the heavens.

[O] Shame, repentance, and brokenness come to my mind as I see Ezra's contrite heart when he found out how God's people transgressed against what God had commands.  I have to say that I take sin too lightly as if it's some sort of a cold that's gonna pass through.  I heard from a preacher that if you just found out you had cancer, how would I feel if my doctor tells me, "Did you know that you have cancer?"  It's the same thing to say, "Did you know you are a sinner?"  While this is a true statement, it is a very insensitive statement.  Ezra wasn't fooling around with people's sin.  He broke down completely because God's people sinned.  How am I responding to this generation's sin against God?

[A] I need to develop more sensitivity about man's sin against God.  My heart's been desensitized.  I need to study more about the seriousness of our sin against God.

[P] Dear God, my heart's been hardened.  Please soften it up with Your oil and wine.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Look Out for Unfinished Businesses

[S] 2 Kings 10:28-29 --

 ²⁸Thus Jehu eradicated Baal out of Israel.
 ²⁹However, as for the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel sin, from these Jehu did not depart, even the golden calves that were at Bethel and that were at Dan. (NASB)

²⁸ In this way, Jehu destroyed every trace of Baal worship from Israel. ²⁹ He did not, however, destroy the gold calves at Bethel and Dan, with which Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to sin.  (NLT)

[O] Jehu did a fabulous job of eradicating Baal out of Israel with remarkable plans and execution.  However, he still left the golden calves which was enough for him to follow the sin of Jeroboam in the end.  This picture is so typical of my doing God's work where I always seem to leave a bit of an unfinished business despite the efforts I put in.  I am so susceptible to the gravity pull of sin and in many instances I can easily fool myself to think I've done such a great job for God I can get away with a little unfinished area.  However God desires a complete obedience and so He may work through me.

[A] Especially after doing some task for God, stay humble and seek His mercy in my life.  Do not rely on my achievements to fool myself of thinking I'm worthy of His praise.  Instead, reflect on which areas I've missed and surrender them to His grace.

[P] Dear God, please keep me humble as I desire to serve You in my family, church, and community.  May I not get a big head from serving You as that is my simple duty for what You have done for me.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Power of Sin = Law

[S] 1 Corinthians 15:56-58 --
⁵⁶The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law;
⁵⁷but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
⁵⁸Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.

[O] Verse 56 was a mind twister for me. After reading a few times what I concluded was that through the law the sin gains more power over us. It is so easy to get myself wrapped around the law -- the rules and regulations which on the surface is required to sustain order but I quickly get into the mode of making it to rule over my life and that's where it can also power me over into sinning not because I began to cheat on others, per se, but because I begin to judge others and try to live my life according to achieving certain rules or not rather than to live in the grace and love of God. The latter two verses talk about how I may win over this -- through our Lord Jesus Christ and what He's done for me. This is about His amazing love and care for me and not about following a bunch of rules to judge us by. This is the reason why He's taken the suffering Cross for me and then to raise up from the dead to pave the pathway for me to enter into His presence and not be stuck in my sinful or lawful state.

[A] Lately, I've been challenged by others who seem to lack some compassion and then what's funny is I quick turn around and judge them (no compassion). So, practice compassion to those who lack compassion toward me.

[P] Dear God, fill my heart with You compassion such that it'll overflow into other people's lives. I know You can do that because I believe in the power of the Cross. In Jesus' name. Amen.

The Recursive Grace

[S] Mark 14:31 --
 ³¹But Peter kept saying insistently, "Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!" And they all were saying the same thing also.

[O] Peter's response to Jesus' remark about how he will deny Jesus three times before the rooster crows while other disciples were echoing reminded me how Jesus already knew all this and yet He patiently talked to Peter.  By Jesus' saying this, it is clear Peter would indeed deny Him three times because Jesus always tells the truth, but then why did He even bother telling Peter this?  It was really for Peter's benefit because he was the one with the limitation of not knowing the future and when (not if) it happens to him, he would remember how Jesus even though He was fully aware of Peter's denial in the future still loved him and cared for him to get out of his failure into His grace.

Based on this concept, I began to think recursively (much like what you'd see when you take a TV camera and point at it own TV monitor screen) where God's grace covers Peter's failure which He already knew even before it happened and even if Peter knew Jesus knew it, he committed what he said he wouldn't do in his life time.  Confused?  Yeah, it goes round and round but the good news is that His Cross put a stop to all this and gave us a way out of that into His wonderful and peaceful grace.

[A] Whether I want to or not, I'm in the midst of this recursive relationship with God.  One things I can do is to tap into His grace given through the Cross such that I would not do things I don't want to do which I know Jesus knows that I am most likely going to commit anyways.  Sounds too pessimistic at first but I want to apply this not to be indifferent about my life's courses but as a commitment to live out my life to go against the grain of this world's "gravity."  I want to make less and less mistakes initiated by relying on my own strength that "I can do this."

[P] Dear God, Your grace touches me today deeply through this passage and may I continue to stick close to Your wonderful grace throughout my life.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Three Generations of Spiritual Legacy

[S] Numbers 25:11-15 --

 ¹¹"Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned away My wrath from the sons of Israel in that he was jealous with My jealousy among them, so that I did not destroy the sons of Israel in My jealousy.
 ¹²"Therefore say, 'Behold, I give him My covenant of peace;
 ¹³and it shall be for him and his descendants after him, a covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God andmade atonement for the sons of Israel.'"
 ¹⁴Now the name of the slain man of Israel who was slain with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, a leader of a father's household among the Simeonites.
 ¹⁵The name of the Midianite woman who was slain was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, who was head of the people of a father's household in Midian.

[O] Here I see a legacy of faith from Aaron to Eleazer to Phinehas sustaining the zeal for God.  Phinehas did not waste any time to 1) destroy the sin being committed before God and His people openly; and 2) to stand between the dead and alive to stop the wrath of God as Aaron had done previously.  God honored that and gave him His covenant of peace and a perpetual priesthood.  How I desire such a spiritual legacy from my father to me and then to my children.  My deepest desire is for my children to attain the same, if not greater, zeal for God and live their lives accordingly against the forces and influences of the society they will live in.  Even though they may be surrounded by the sins of our ugly human nature, they would stay with God and stick to uphold His values.

In contrast to this, Zimri and Cozbi, who were both in leadership in their respective communities fell into this blatant sin.  I notice that even these who sinned greatly and paid their consequences were remembered by God by their first names.  He does indeed care for each one of us until the end waiting for us to return to Him.  I also noted that being a leader is not easy as we're the targets for our enemies to attack.  In fact, when the leaders break down the whole ministry suffers as we see here.

[A] Continue to encourage and uplift the small group leaders such that they would walk closer to God each day because that's the only way to surround them with God's armor of protection.  I also need to stay close to God's word daily by starting off the day with His word.

[P] God, Your personal care even for those who fail You (umm that would actually be all of us including me) amazes me and I'm so grateful for your love of second chance.  Please continue to surround me and my family with You angels of protection and please also encourage all the small group leaders in our church as we have recently initiated a new structure.  Please give us wisdom and humility to thwart all the discouragements our enemy shoots our way.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

How The Law Was Abused

[S] Romans 7:11 (NLT) --
¹¹ Sin took advantage of those commands and deceived me; it used the commands to kill me.

[O] Wouldn't it be simple if whoever obeys the law better comes out ahead in the end? But it isn't. Contrary to popular belief, the more you try to obey the law, the worse we seem to get because sin figured out how to abuse the law to keep us further away from God. This does not mean we should ignore the law completely either and this is where it can get confusing. However, this all depends on what purpose I live by -- am I ultimately trying to fulfill all the laws (and expect that I will be considered justified); or am I ultimately trying to fulfill the law to my best ability (knowing I cannot 100% fulfill the law) but be under the grace of God to be considered His justified child? The former concept means I've fallen into the "abused law" trap because I will never be satisfied and will never be under His grace because I will die trying to fulfill the law.

[A] Call out to His grace every morning to come into my heart and reign.

[P] Dear God, shower upon my family, today, Your grace. We will fail trying to conform our physical life to the perfect patterns we desire, but we will never fail living by faith through Your grace. In Jesus' name. Amen.

From Law to Faith to Law

[S] Romans 3:20, 31 (NLT) --

²⁰ For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.

³¹ Well then, if we emphasize faith, does this mean that we can forget about the law? Of course not! In fact, only when we have faith do we truly fulfill the law.

[O] The concept of the Law vs. Faith is a delicate one because it is almost like two sides of the same coin. One cannot exist without the other. Verse 20 explains that one of the key functions of the law is to bring knowledge of sin in us and with such knowledge of realizing how sinful we are, we would need the faith to understand how we may be qualified to have fulfilled the law because this is the only way to be with God once again. In the world today, in US for example, we are bombarded with various perspectives on how to live our lives to the fullest; but how many of these are based on the realization of how sinful we are based on a plumb line God had set before us? My estimate is not many. In fact, most of them are based on our own subjective logic and ideology. This certainly creates a lot of confusion which brings us down further into the whirlwind of corruption and broken lives that are sweeping through this nation.

[A] Living by faith does not mean a lifestyle of "Wild, Wild West." We are all still subjected to the universal Law God integrated into the fabrics of our lives. But we must come to realize that our efforts alone is insufficient for us to fulfill it and thus need to come before God to consider us justified. I must regurgitate this truth in my life daily through my own devotion with God -- a personal appointment with Him.

[P] Dear Heaven Father, I lift up the close community my family interacts with on daily basis. For those who do not know the wonderful truth of Your freedom from our laborious efforts of living day to day trying to achieve the goals we set for ourselves, please use our family members to shed this light of freedom into their lives. I know You are still working each of our five family members and yet we want to be used by You to touch others around us. Humble us and use us mightly. In Jesus' name. Amen.