One + One

I believe in the power a few. One person can change the world.

Abraham for example, is called out by God and through this man God will establish a lasting people whose numbers will be like the sand. Moses is another example. One man called by God to lead 2.5 million people out of the yoke of slavery. To do that, he had to face the superpower of his time, Egypt and its Pharaoh. I believe in the power of one.

But the key to the power of one is two. When the number one is multiplied to the nth power, it is still one. One to the 1000th power is still one.

But two to the 1000th power is a whole different story. The power of one is nothing without another. The power of one is powerless without a community, a team. 

Abraham needed Sarah to accomplish the impossible. Moses needed host of people…Aaron, Miriam, Hur, Joshua, Caleb. It’s the power of one + another that changes the world. It is true with the church. DC is only possible because there is a community that is willing to give and serve for the glory of God. Without the community, there is no DC. Without the community of people loving, caring and serving unto the Lord, DC will no longer be the church Jesus desires. 

So again, I want to express a deep felt gratitude to our community that serves and gives regardless cause you do it unto the Lord. One thing I know is that when I stand before Jesus, I want to hear him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.” (Matthew25:23). I want our entire community at DC to hear Jesus say these words. So live with passion, making disciples of all nations, for His glory. Amen!

Seeing the Voice

I have not posted much on this blog for last few months. I think I'll start again...

In the movie Star Wars, Luke Skywalker learns to lean into the force not by “seeing” but by hearing. Yoda tutored him with blindfolding headgear to suppress his natural inclination to “look” and instead was trained to “hear” and “feel” the Force. 

I learned to drive my first car with a clutch this way. In the mist of stalling out, grinding gears and rolling backwards, I learned to hear the hum of the engine, to sense the vibrations of the car, and to “feel” my way forward.

What language does nature speak? The language of sound. We live in an ocean of sound. What do you hear?

There is an odd expression in Exodus in the Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) version: people “saw the voice of the Lord.” Habakkuk 2:1 says something similar… “…look out to see what he will say to me…” Revelation 1:12 echoes same thought… “Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me…”

Perhaps we are too keen on looking when we should be listening. Our natural inclination to “look” is hindering us from training our eyes and ears to see and hear the very presence of God surrounding us. 

I believe Jesus spent his time alone with God to hear and see the voice of the Father speaking to Him. We too must learn to do this. And we are given a wonderful tool call quiet time to train our eyes to hear the voice of God and ears to see the presence of God. This kind of listening and seeing is essential for Christians for the voice of God beckons us and guides us continuously if one is willing to see what he is saying. This week may you see the voice of God speaking into your life. And in obedience live with passion.

Daisies...

Do you enjoy your work? God does! Genesis records that at the end of each day of creation, God relaxed and surveyed His creation, and with genuine delight, told Himself how good His creations were. God created because it brought Him joy! He expressed Himself in His creation, and all that He created glorified Him.

G. K. Chesterton, an English writer, theologian, apologist, suggested that God has a childlike excitement out of his work. As a matter of fact, he contended that God may be the only one left in the universe who has childlike emotions about work, while all the rest of us have grown old and cynical due to sin. God never tires of what He does. He enjoys it all!

When Esther, my daughter, was three, I’d throw her into the air, catch her and then throw her again in the air and catch her. And when I set her down on the floor after few times, she’ll say, “Do it again!” I’ll repeat this process dozen times, and she’ll never grow tire of these antics.

G. K. Chesterton believed that God may be that way about creating daisies. He asks us to imagine God creating the first daisy and enjoying it so much, something down inside Him exclaimed, “Do it again!” And when He made the second daisy, He is even more excited and shouts to Himself, “Do it again!” Imagine God continuing to create daisy after daisy, and after making the hundred billionth daisy being even more filled with joy and delight then when He began. God is a God who delights in what He does.

Bible says you and I were created in the image of God who loves His work. John Piper suggests in his book Desiring God that failing to delight in our work is denial of part of what we are supposed to be. Therefore, being like God implies delighting and finding joy in our work. 

But you say, “There is no way someone can enjoy what I do. There is no meaning and fulfillment in the work I do.” Really?

There is a story of a factory supervisor. He asked a new worker, “What was it like at your last job?” “It was miserable! I didn’t like the work and the supervisors were unfair to me,” replied the new worker. To which the factory supervisor replied, “Unfortunately, you’ll find it much the same here.”

Few days later another new worker was hired by the factory; and the factory supervisor asked the new worker the exact same question. “What was it like at your last job?” “It was wonderful. The work was interesting, everybody was good to me. The working conditions were ideal,” replied the new worker. To which the factory superior answered, “I’m happy to report that you will find this place as wonderful as the last place where you worked.”

People’s dispositions often determine what they experience. Some people will find reasons to complain even if they were in heaven. There are those who, as John Milton said, “can make a Hell of Heaven.” 

How about you? Do you enjoy your work? May you enjoy all that you do. And may you live with passion! 

Ice Water Anyone?

Deep down in every human being, is a desire to do something of worth that will last beyond this life. According to Spanish existentialist Miguel de Unamuno, “There is an urge in every man to render himself indispensable.”

People think that ‘indispensable’ means they have to do things that receives public recognition with bigness and fame. We think that to so something ultimately worthwhile, we must write a great American novel or pain some artistic masterpiece. There is a common notion that significance in life depends on some kind of public recognition. But such is not the case. Really gratifying deeds are often done quietly and with hardly any recognition. 

Barnabas is a familiar character from the Bible. He never wrote an epistle. He founded no major churches in his life time. And yet Acts 11:24 says this about Barnabas: He ‘was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith; and people were added unto the Lord.” He was a man who never earned a lot of titles, but he certainly earned a lot of testimonies.

Barnabas never did big stuff that would have made him the biblical standout that Apostle Paul became. He was committed to doing what might at first seem like little things for christ and the church. On the other hand, the precious kindness of Barnabas would be remember by those who survived him. If I had a choice of hanging out with either Paul or Barnabas, I would choose Barnabas. I am sure that a nice guy like Barnabas, who was constantly earning testimonies by doing little things, must have been more fun to be around in the long haul. Beside, there is no Apostle Paul without Barnabas! May we become like Barnabas, a man who encouraged people to be better than they really are!

Some of the most significant things we do in life are often ordinary. Happily on the Judgment Day, Jesus will reward a lot of people who hardly remember the important things for which they will be honored. Sending a card of encouragement to someone who is a bit down, baby sitting for few hours for stressed out single mom, calling someone on the phone to show that you care, and giving a glass of ice water in the name of Jesus! These are some things we do that we hardly remember doing after they are done. But the people we do them for often remember, and Jesus never forgets! 

Disciple Church, be faithful in the ordinary! Be faithful in lending a hand… calling to show that you care… sitting next to a new comer to show the warmth of His church…etc. No one may see it. But that does not matter, because Jesus sees it all! It is He who said, “If you have done it unto the least of my brothers you have done it unto me!”

Ice water anyone? Blessings. Live with Passion!

Go For It!

In the book of Exodus and Numbers, we discover children of Israel at the edge of the Promise Land. Moses sends 12 spies across the Jordan River to survey the land.

When the twelve spies return, they give a report on what they had seen. Ten of the twelve spies are horrified. In fear and trembling, they give a report on giant warriors. In their minds, they determined, to challenge the people in the land was foolish as surely it’ll lead to death. They said, “It’s foolish! We can’t win. Moses, did you bring us out of Egypt to kill us in the hands of these giants?” Ten spies were afraid to take risks needed to possess the Promised Land, which God had set apart for them and their children.

But Joshua and Caleb were different. They saw the same giants the ten spies saw; yet they were filled with confidence and determination. They said, “Let’s do this. Let’s go for it!” They held on to the promise of God. They were filled with faith. They resonated with the challenge that lay before them. They were not afraid to accomplish God’s dream. They remind me of Daniel’s three friends who, in the midst of certain data in a fiery furnace, said, “Even if God does not save us, we will not bow down to you!” They were filled with courage and faith!

Joshua and Caleb were risk takers. They would become the heroes of God among the people of God. They challenged the status quo and lived out a dream God has seeded in their hearts! They were willing to climb an insurmountable obstacles to live by the promise of God, who led them out of even greater obstacles, Pharaoh and Egypt! They were letting God given dream to pulse and breath! They were risk takers.

But what if they fail and people mock them? Mockers are not important! Mockers never make any differences. Critics change nothing. They only point out problems, but who can’t do that? Even a five year old can do that. The promise land belongs to those who take risks, whose face is marred with dust and sweat, covered in blood, who strive valiantly while daring everything, who may err and fall, but who has done his/her best! Their place will never be among those who are lukewarm and timid, who know neither victory nor defeat!

I love Nike’s slogan - “Just do it!” What is God calling you to do right now but you are too afraid to even try? Just do it! What is humming in your heart but the humming is drowned by the sound of fear? 

Just do it!

Never allow your fear to drown your God given dream! God is calling each one of you to ‘go for it.’ The Promise Land is waiting for you. Live with passion!

To Really Live

One elderly person said, “I just didn’t spend enough time experiencing how good a hot bath really feels.” In other words, he wished he had taken more baths and fewer showers. I think the elderly person is saying I wish I had ‘lived.’

Can I ask you a question? “How long have you lived?” Not how long you’ve been breathing… but how long have you really lived?

I remember driving to Yosemite National Park many years ago. I am not a nature lover, but when I was driving down to the National Park, I saw the Yosemite Dome that was so beautiful, I stopped to take it all in. I was overpowered by the awareness of how small I was and how big it was. In that moment of awareness, I felt like I stepped outside of myself and watched myself living and experiencing Yosemite! I sucked in the scene as I inhaled. In that moment, what I saw was so intense, if I were to live a million years, that moment would be part of who I am. What I saw was nature glorifying the beauty of Jesus. I lived that day!

How long have you lived? Most people walk around like a walking dead, and those who are alive are all to seldom truly alive. C.S. Lewis once said, “Our age is marked by moderate vice and moderate virtue.” Perhaps this is Satan’s greatest feat… deadness of spirit, indifference, passionless living! At least passionate sins are interesting but this lifeless living is unbearable don’t you think?

Jesus referred to such life as ‘lukewarm’. Neither hot nor cold! Jesus offered so much more than an entrance to heaven and deliverance from hell. Jesus offered a new life, different kind of life, a radical life… an abundant life, which is characterized by His indwelling, life-giving presence. 

When we have Jesus living in us, he offers so much more than a promise of an everlasting life. He offers life of joy that erupts from His own joy! An elevated life here and now! When we give the pilot seat of our life to Jesus and allow Jesus to live fully in us, which is to say to live in obedience to Jesus, we can live life on a whole new level of joyful intensity! Perhaps this week, it’ll be prudent for us to reflect on life we live and all that it has to offer in Jesus… perhaps you will experience new abundance in Him! Blessings. Live with Passion!!!

Reflecting on Relationships

In Thornton Wilder’s play, Our Town, Emily, the main character, dies while giving birth to a child. In the afterlife, Emily is granted one wish, and she chooses to watch herself and her family live out one day of the life she left behind. Emily chooses her twelfth birthday. She watches herself and family as they talk and interact and carry on the ordinary daily activities.

From Emily’s perspective, as an invisible observer, she is disturbed and horrified by what she witnesses and hears. Neither she nor her family members seem to give any serious attention to one another. Newly aware of how precious life is, she becomes upset and angry because none of them are emotionally involved in their interactions. Everyone is casual in what they say and do, not understanding as she does from the other side of death, that they will never get this day back. She agonizes over the way the day transpires. She cannot stand to watch herself and her family waste what she knows to be so precious. She is shocked that they live life with so little reflection on its importance. 

In the play, Emily turns to the audience and cries out, “Do any of you ever really live life while you're living it?” 

Are you really living? We fail to spend ample time reflecting on our lives.

I remember one night, when my kids were still babies, very small and precious, sleeping in their room. I can still see their beautiful faces and their peaceful innocence. I stood by them for a long time, just watching their chests rise and fall in complete peace. I now know I can never get that moment back. I wish I had done more such reflecting. I wish I had taken less for granted during our precious time together.

This week reflect on your relationships… and live life with passion!