New Year '11

Christmas has come and gone; and the New Year is almost here.  It's that time of the year which naturally prompts reflections on the past year and contemplations of the coming year.

I look back over the year with gratefulness for having made it through another year in all areas - work, church, family&friends, etc.  I'm glad to have had the opportunity to serve at church, COA, etc.   It is a blessing to be a part of a church in which I can visibly see God causing growth and being at work.  Also, in these tough economic times, I'm especially grateful for God's provisions.  Even, as the year winds down, I'm glad to have had the time to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas, to make preparations for the New Year, and to spend time with family & friends.  It was nice to spend Christmas day with my family, riding the gondola, playing miniature golf, and going out to eat.

Looking towards the coming year, I already have my area of focus; and both my new Bible Study and Small Group series; and I am praying about new areas in which God will stretch, use, and develop me.

Acts 1

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."  (vs 8)

This verse essentially gives us the structural outline of the Book of Acts:

• Chp 1-7  - The Church in Jerusalem (Jews)
• Chp 8-12 - The Church in Judea and Samaria (Transition)
• Chp 13-28 - The Church in the ends of the known world at the time (Gentiles)

While Chp 1-12 primarily narrates Peter's ministry, Paul's ministry to the Gentiles is the focus Chp 13-28.  In the Book of Acts, we will see the transformation of a group of frightened Christians in the Gospels after the Crucifixion, into Leaders of the Early Church, being models of courage and faith, spreading the flame of the Holy Spirit to the world.

Through the use of Scriptural quotes, Peter pointed out that everything that has happened was a fulfillment of prophesy, including the betrayal of Judas.   In this passage, we see that the leadership of the Early Church were formed by Apostles, chosen by Christ; witnesses to Christ's ministry, Resurrection, and Ascension; taught authoritative truths, given the mission of being His witnesses, and were people of prayer.

Hands and Feet

My Church Sunday Fellowship class had the blessing of experiencing what it was like to be the "hands and feet" of Christ to some of the needy and homeless in the community tonight at COA.

We had enough food to be able to generously give seconds and even thirds.  The pineapple glazed ham and cream of mushroom green beans actually turned out really well.   And several of the people we served commented on how much they enjoyed the food.

We also were able to give them each a gift package as they were leaving; and one person even called the pre-dinner worship service speaker to say how much they appreciated what we put into the gift package.  The worship speaker said that he was going to take the leftover gift packages to pass out at another location where many other homeless people "live".

Not only were those we served blessed; but, we were also, maybe even more so.  There were some who were newer to the class, and this was their first time - several of them commented about what a fulfilling and special experience it was.  Many also said they would definitely continue to be involved ongoing in our monthly outreach.

There were other similar stories of blessings; and I'm sure that God was at work in other ways that I am not even aware of.  What a blessing to be able to take part in God's Work!

Hope

Reading a story today that described "hope" as a wishy-washy emotion, I had to disagree, particularly for Christians.  Similar to "faith", when founded upon God, the "hope" that we have in glory and our "hope" in God is assured.  We know it will happen and we can rely upon Who God Is.  It is not something that should constantly change or is fleeting.   It is actually needed for motivation in life and to inspire endurance.

Last night, I heard a comment that everything that is built has a foundation; and it reminded me that having the right foundation is important.   In applying this to hope (and faith), the foundation that our hope is built upon is essential for its stability and fulfillment.

This brings to mind the hymn "The Solid Rock".    It's lyrics reflect what has just been said:
"My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
....
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand,
All other ground is sinking sand."

Giving

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16)

God provided the ultimate example of sacrificial giving, when He gave His Son to be born on earth and to die for our sins.  That's what we are really celebrating this time of the year.

In the spirit of giving, it has been special to be able to plan what we will be giving and serving at COA this week.  Since our scheduled outreach this month happened to fall on Christmas week, we have the opportunity to make the meal a little more special and to give a package gift.   My prayer is that all will work out and go smoothly; and that it will be a blessing to those who receive.  May they catch a glimpse of the Father's love and compassion and the true meaning of Christmas.

We bought the food last night:   Smoked Ham, to be sliced and served with a pineapple slice with glaze made from the pineapple syrup and brown sugar; Green Beans mixed with Cream of Mushroom soup; Hawaiian rolls; and cookies.   The prep and re-heat should be relatively simple - we will slice and "assemble" the ham, pineapple, and glaze on baking sheets.  And we will bake the cookies.  At COA, we will just put the baking sheets in the oven to heat the ham; and cook the green beans and cream of mushroom soup on the stove.  It should make for a nice pre-Christmas meal.

For the packages, we had some of the Church children decorate brown paper bags with Christmas pictures and messages.  Then we are planning to pack in donated items (McDonald's gift certificates, Christmas cards with verse, hygiene items, food (candy, cookies, etc), and a pen, pencil, or notebook).   We will fold the tops, punch two holes, loop and tie with curling ribbon.   Should serve as a nice simple gift.

May God be glorified and may all those involved be blessed.   I place it all in God's Hands.

Flexible

This weekend, I was accused of being rigid and inflexible.   I suppose I can understand, since it was coming from a person that I considered to be undisciplined and lacking in organizational skills.  However, as always, it is worth taking the time to evaluate the credibility of the criticism, and see whether there are areas I can improve upon. 

My first thoughts would be that this person's perspective is still incorrectly skewed by earlier false accounts, which have biased his view; and he does not have the capacity to see beyond that earlier impression and form his own opinions.   Add to that,  the contrast to his own personality, and resultantly, it's not surprising that he would hold to this view.

While this picture I have painted of my "accuser" is less than positive; that is not the intention.  In actuality, I consider him a generally nice person and would even call him a friend; which is one of the main reasons I am not dismissing his remarks outrightly.  And my view of him is not just a defensive response, but is really based on evidence and observation from the years we have known each other.

However, beyond the expectation that an unstructured person would consider organization and details "rigid"; is there any solid basis behind the accusation?  Well, my other thought is that this person probably doesn't know me very well and hasn't seen me outside of the "leadership" role; for, I do have friends who consider me extremely flexible, to the point where I have earned the nickname "Gumby".    I find it somewhat amusing, that I have been placements at opposite ends of the flexibility spectrum.

So, where am I in reality?  And is there something I need to address? 

Alright, here is what I think.  In areas that are not so important, I believe that I am very flexible.  However, in the areas that are essential, I will stand firm.  Also, in situations where I am in a "leadership" capacity and thus have responsibility, I will do my best to ensure that I pay attention to the details; for as it is often said, the difference between good and great is in the details. 

In areas relating to this person, I have actually worked hard to give as much leeway as possible; but, have stepped in whenever I felt necessary.  And, I am aware of what might have happened were I to leave it all up to chance.  It is definitely not the case that I discount divine intervention; however, my approach is to use prayer as well as planning and action.

So, I conclude that I have not been unnecessarily inflexible; and that I know when to be flexible versus when to stand firm.  I can picture the results of what would happen were I to change from what I am currently doing; and do not see that as good or beneficial.  So, I will "stay the course"....

Imaginary Friend

I watched the sweet and touching Lifetime movie "Sundays at Tiffany's" yesterday, and it had me wishing that I had an "imaginary friend" like Michael.  Is "the soul mate you're destined to marry" just a myth?   Would reality be hard-pressed to live up to the made-up imaginary dream?  I can see why kids would have imaginary friends - it's easy to want someone there who will be with us all the time, who loves and cares for us, who understands us, and who fulfills our need for companionship and friendship; especially when there is no one else who fills those areas.

Christmas '10

"I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end He will stand upon the earth.  And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God"  (Job 19:25-26)

This verse has been in my mind ever since we did the study in Job a few weeks ago.  I've associated this verse with Christmas ever since I heard the musical piece in Handel's Messiah that was based on it.  In a way, it is also related to our "Beauty for Ashes" theme, in that it gives the eternal perspective in the midst of suffering and  expresses hope in the resurrection.

I am grateful for time to pause and ponder the true meaning of Christmas.   The presents have been wrapped and the cards are written.   I was actually pleased that the card I sent this year to those in my class reflected the "Beauty for Ashes" theme nicely - the front had a picture of the manger, and the inside was a picture of the crown of thorns; and the verse quoted was Matthew 1:21 "You shall call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins."  Christ's resurrection was the Beauty raised from the Ashes of the crucifixion.

It is in "stillness" that we are better able to listen to God's "voice"; and in taking the time to be still, I did feel led to give an additional gift and send another card.  I already received a response for the card; and I trust that God uses these as part of His Plans, whatever they may be.

I have time now to focus on the Person whose birth we are celebrating - Jesus Christ.....  Another passage that has been on my mind is Philippians 2:6-11 about Jesus, "Who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.  Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.  For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. "   That's the Christmas message, that Jesus though equal with God, chose to empty Himself, took human form, died on the cross for our sins;and then was resurrected and is worthy to be worshipped.  Amen!

2 Corinthians 4

We are concluding our "Beauty for Ashes" series with the 2 Corinthians 4 passage for several reasons....

The passage touches on several of the topics we've studied in the series, like light shining in the darkness, and death to life; as well as some of the subtopics like focusing on our calling, ultimately giving glory to God, etc.

Also, the last verses, "For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."  (vs 17-18), basically give the reason why we have Hope and "do not lose heart".   We believe that God can raise beauty from the ashes, based on the eternal perspective and the blessings that we have through salvation.

In vs 7, "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us."; essentially, Paul is saying that even if we have weaknesses; God can use weak vessels and it only makes it more clear that any great results are from God and not us.

And, vs 8-9 have always been encouraging verses in the midst of troubles:  "We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair;  persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed."  This illustrates the trust that God is able to deliver and save.

To summarize the series:  Essentially, in this fallen sinful world, we inevitably face Ashes (i.e. mourning, broken hearts, darkness, death, etc); but, in the midst of it all, believers have the HOPE that God is able to raise Beauty (i.e. dancing, healing, light, life, etc).  When God bestows Beauty for Ashes, it is ultimately for His Glory, and our natural response is to PRAISE Him, because of WHO HE IS.

Acts - The Early Church

I just finished the outline for the next Bible Study series in my class, which will be "Acts - The Early Church".   It will be interesting to study in detail how the Early Church began.  It will be, at the same time, a good complement to the "Journeys of Paul" Tour. 

As I started reading "The Church Awakening", I'm thinking that maybe studying Acts may reveal areas the church today may need to re-address, particularly in areas related to the original design for the Church.

Also, in studying and reading more about the apostle Paul, I cannot imagine how he must have felt after becoming a Christian and realizing that he had persecuted and watched other Christians being martyred.   But, that was probably what made him such an effective and amazing apostle, for he truly understood what it meant to experience GRACE.

The Acts study will cover almost all of 2011, finishing in November.  I am in anticipation of what God will reveal to us through this study.

Back on Track

The last few weeks, I wandered off the main path and onto side roads; but, I think I'm back on track now.  I realized that I was going down the wrong road when I started noticing all the "signs":
Not keeping my mind on things above,
Lamenting my thorn again,
Losing motivation, and
Hiding from facing the challenges of real life.

Fortunately, I had not wandered too far away; and in fact, had kept on a road that didn't take me too far off.   I have actually been diligently exercising pretty much every weekday, taken care of things on my To Do list, and even hosted my visiting relatives for dinner.  I had also started outlining my next Bible Study series and also preparing for my Community Group series.

So, it really is just in one main area that I went off track, although I did get a chance to read a few inspiration and sweet stories.  One of the story books involved Mrs Miracle, which was made into a Hallmark movie, and there were some quotes from the book that I especially liked:

• "People are like tea bags—you have to drop them in hot water before you know how strong they are."
• "It’s hard to stumble when you’re down on your knees."
• "When you flee temptation, don’t leave a forwarding address."
• "The best vitamin for a Christian is B1."
• "God isn’t politically correct.  He’s just correct."

And now, I've started reading some books that will actually be useful in preparation for my next series and for my Journeys of Paul tour next year:  "Paul" and "The Church Awakening", both by Chuck Swindoll.

John 5

"“Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life."  (John 5:24)

Death to Life is the ultimate example of God being able to raise Beauty from the Ashes.   While Jesus is able to heal physical illness like He did with the invalid at the pool of Bethesda, more importantly, He is able to heal spiritual illness and death due to sin.   As the Son of Man, He is given authority to judge and to give "life to whom He is pleased to give it"; and He has the power to do it because He is equal with God, and judges justly because of WHO HE IS. 

Committed

I heard the group Committed for the first time last night on Sing Off.   They were really talented; and in my opinion, were clearly the best group in the show.   There were actually quite a few good groups, and it takes a lot of ability and talent in order to sing acappella and make the accompaniment sounds that they do.   I enjoyed listening to them sing - it makes me wish I could sing like that.  In addition to showcasing their talent, it was great that Committed was able to talk about their faith, church, and gospel roots.  It's wonderful that they were giving glory to God.

Encouraging Others

"Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear."  (Ephesians 4:29)

I blogged about "words" earlier this year; and as I thought about what area I needed to focus on most next year, "Encouraging Others" came to mind.  While I can include encouragement through deeds and actions secondarily; I will primarily focus on encouragement through words and communication; since this in itself is a big enough area to improve upon.

I've observed what a positive effect it can have on others when they receive words of appreciation or encouragement.   I know that for myself, having "words of encouragement" as my love language, it helps fill my tanks and meet a need.  Ephesians 4:29 is the perfect verse to reflect my theme for next year - it's a reminder to watch what I say, to focus on edifying others with my words and seeing their needs, and to ensure that my words "give grace".

There is so much in my life that negatively affects my ability to encourage others.  I am extremely shy, and when nervousness is added to that, my ability to communicate is greatly diminished.  I also did not grow up in a family whose cultural background includes encouraging others.  On the contrary, it is one that often uses criticism as motivation instead.  Even in general, communication was never one of my strengths.  I grew up being taught that it was better to listen than to speak; and for the most part am more comfortable just being quiet.  I am just now starting to purposefully try to communicate better and be more encouraging.

So, I really look forward to seeing what God will teach me in 2011 related to "Encouraging Others".  This truly is an area that I would benefit greatly growing and becoming better in.

Home

Since a home can give some insights into the person who lives there, what does my home reveal about me?

• Built well and in a good neighborhood - Quality and reliability is important; and I'm also practical and careful in my choices
• Comfortable, Organized, and neat, but not extravagant or sterile -  I enjoy spending time here and I like to be organized and neat; but, I don't overspend, am not focused on the material aspect, and have other priorities (so, not overly focused on being spotlessly neat and clean).  Being welcoming is important, without guests having to worry about being overly careful or neat
• More attention focused on the inside than the outside -  I do consider the heart and character of a person more important than the externals
• Contains a variety of different items (e.g. piano, pool table, library of books, etc) - I try to be well-balanced and have a variety of interests like music, reading, etc

Come to think of it, my car actually says similar things about me (i.e. reliable, practical, organized, etc)

CHRISTmas is here

Like the song says, "It's Beginning to Look a Lot like Christmas".....

I've always loved Christmas decorations, and was just able to finish putting mine up around the house.   Then, the women's ministry at my church put on a Christmas event over the weekend, and I was able to help with the video projection for that.   I was blessed by the encouragement and words of appreciation from several people.

Everything at the event was also decorated beautifully, and I was able to use one of the ideas for my dinner gathering with my family and aunts last night - folding a napkin where the edges meet in the middle in the back so the front is almost a diamond shape with a long pointed end.  For the dinner:

• The turkey turned out very moist, since it was small enough (10 lbs) to fit into the bag and fully into the roasting pan with the cover on.  It was also able to fully cook, fairly evenly (breast-side down).   However, with it fully enclosed, it didn't have the browned outside skin as it would when exposed directly to the oven; and seemed to have a more "steamed" appearance; but, I suppose that's the trade-off with having it less dry.   I debated just putting it under the broiler to brown it the last few minutes; but, I didn't want to risk drying it out.
• The yams, mashed with honey, cinnamon, and nutmeg; and then baked with marshmallows on top is fairly easy to make and is good.   This method is preferable to the cutting of them into pieces and putting a couple of marshmallows on each.
• For the stuffing, I used the boxed mixture I bought before Thanksgiving; but, it came out salty.   In the future, I just plan to make it from scratch, like I did for Thanksgiving.
• The Chinese dishes I incorporated turned out okay -  Singapore noodle with shrimp, stir fry (bok choy, baby corn, and straw mushrooms), and beef rice noodle.   The only thing with the beef rice noodle, is that I used flap meat, and it was still a little chewy, not quite "soft" enough  (not sure what's the best type of beef to use).   

However, in the midst of all this, I am constantly trying to remind myself that CHRISTmas is really about CHRIST.  That's why I love nativity scenes, as a reminder that CHRIST was born.  On my tree, I also have cross ornaments, as a reminder of why CHRIST was born.

Job 42

"The LORD blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first." (Job 42:12a)

Job's name seems to be primarily associated with suffering; yet this last chapter in the book reminds us that God restored him and blessed him abundantly after the major calamities in his life, and Job lived out his days "an old man and full of years".   In line with our study series, Job was literally sitting on the ashes; but, out of all that God did raise beauty.  While God may not always restore losses; but, there are blessings that can come out of the experience.  In Job's case, we see that he learned to recognize God's sovereignty and "saw" God in contrast to  just "hearing" of Him.  Essentially, he was able to grow closer in his relationship with and increase in his knowledge of God.

It is so true, that often, it is through our greatest sufferings when we grow most.   Our faith is refined, character is developed, and we learn more about God and of ourselves.   I would not be who I am today, if I did not experience the trials encountered in my life.