tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75278168545725721202024-03-21T06:43:43.374-07:00food for thoughtUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger189125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-78116068614709621252018-02-28T13:15:00.000-08:002018-02-28T13:15:36.929-08:00Heaven is...<div style="text-align: center;">
Artist's palette</div>
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Sounds of music</div>
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Scented air</div>
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Sweet as fresh figs</div>
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Friends abound</div>
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Foes no more<br />
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Joy from feasting</div>
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Sore cheeks from laughing</div>
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Faith fulfilled</div>
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Death defeated </div>
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Fear vanished</div>
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Perfection's home</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-8013783699655180142013-04-19T20:15:00.000-07:002013-04-19T21:28:10.743-07:00Got to grow upEver seen an eaglet in a tree? I came across one during a morning walk some years ago, but couldn't make out what it was at first. The bird was big and round, perched on a branch motionless like a furry ball. When a passerby pointed out it was a young eagle I was rather surprised by how unimpressive it looked. Nonetheless, it reminded me of this verse in the Bible "<i>but those who hope in the Lord will soar on wings like eagle...</i>" Isaiah 40:31- even though it was hardly an image of the magnificent bird that the verse was supposed to invoke. <br />
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The weird thing was, a joyful feeling came over me and made me realize God was talking, saying I am that eaglet--all cooped up not yet able to fly. So, it was not a compliment...but when someone as magnanimous as God himself paid enough attention to know I am a twit and cares to tells me so, THAT gives me way more confidence than a thousand praises from anyone.<br />
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But God didn't stop with the eaglet that morning, minutes later while I was driving to work, a full grown bald eagle flew so low that I could see it flying across the sky in front of me. I was elated--this is God's picture for me, when he is done with my makeover I will indeed soar!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-63402975058703594402011-08-02T20:57:00.000-07:002011-08-02T20:57:25.619-07:00Trusting God is like joggingWe do both initially because it's good for us; we want to reap the benefit of the habit. But trusting God, like running, is not natural in the beginning. It is a trait that only develops when circumstances, well... require faith. Challenging circumstances. When we first run, our lungs, muscles and joints all protest with pain; their capacity is being stretched and trained. Committed runners know that if they cave in to the pain they will interfere with the strengthening process and so they tough it out. In the Christian life we are required to do the same, trusting God often means enduring difficult situations while choosing to do good or maintaining faith when options for short cuts are appealing and a disgruntled attitude is justifiable.<br />
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Fortunately running and trusting God aren't just all pain. At a certain point, endorphins kick in, altering our perception and supplying us with happy feelings. Likewise, unwavering faith eventually opens up opportunities for divine intervention. Then we realize that God who seemed so abstract and distant before is in fact real and personal; we experience His active work in our lives. THAT personal knowledge of God gives us esteem and happiness that no worldly success ever delivers.<br />
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Jogging and living in faith both get easier as they become habitual. It is our part to maintain the habit and God's part to provide the endorphins. We would be fooling ourselves to think that we can attain happiness apart from God.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-86787390467876842562011-08-01T18:31:00.000-07:002011-08-02T10:55:40.686-07:00Decisions, decisions!<div style="text-align: justify;">A month ago while driving from Vancouver to Chicago, our beloved Toyota Previa's engine overheated and then somewhere along highway 94, in Montana, it started making clanging noises. Our journey was seriously threatened. But we pressed on. And while my husband and I were relieved when we arrived at our destination, two days later, that was not the end of the problem. Our van's engine needed major repair and we faced a sea of options regarding what to do with it. Should we keep the van? Buy an old engine? A used one? Maybe a rebuilt one that comes with warranty? Or find someone to rebuild our own engine? We were almost paralyzed by all the pros and cons, unable to decipher which was the best way to go. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Christians should look for God's guidance in their decisions, right? But how? Do we just use our best judgement and trust He will make the path we choose a good one? How is this approach different from someone who doesn't know God? What criteria should be our guide? Lowest price? Best warranty? Most convenience? </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">As my mind was swirling with the theological questions involved in this very practical decision, a thought came to mind: 'Choose the option and service provider that you want to bless the most.' What? Look for whom or what I wanted to affirm, to build, to bless, rather than the one that gave me the best deal? This idea felt so foreign to my natural inclination...it must be from God. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the end we found a company to rebuild our engine, one that we wanted to encourage. It was not the cheapest nor the most convenient, and only time will tell about the quality. But we feel so much peace from first hearing, then heeding God's advice on how to proceed. His word is true--"<i>Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say, 'this is the way you should go', whether to the right or to the left.</i>" Isaiah 30:21</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-14737306327508566692011-06-19T17:30:00.000-07:002011-06-19T17:41:06.110-07:00Sometimes the worst brings out the best in us<div style="text-align: justify;">When the Vancouver Canucks failed to win the Stanley Cup on June 15, all hell broke loose on Georgia street. The City had installed a huge screen there for thousands of people to watch the game; all hoping for a glorious win. But when it became clear we'd lose, a lot of young people decided to riot. They burned up cars, smashed windows and plundered some local stores--without restraint. Images of lawlessness, violence, stupidity and greed were broadcasted on TV for the world to see. A freak show revealing humanity's ugly side. And it shamefully originated in a world-class city with citizens who are wealthy and free. The riot showed that fallen humanity--even in a great place like Vancouver--is ugly.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">After the nightmare of June 15th, I woke up to another side of Vancouver. By 7am the next morning, an army of volunteers had already shown up, armed with gloves and bags to help the government workers clean up the mess created by the riot. On the Post-Riot-Vancouver-Clean-Up Facebook page, over 16,000 people signed up to help restore our beloved city over the next three days (which, with so much help only took a morning!) Many beautiful citizens here rolled up their sleeves to make our city spotless. I love Vancouver more today because of them. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">So, June 15th saw the worst of us, but June 16th brought out the best in us. This makes me wonder...in the grand scheme of God's salvation plan, is he patient with the worst in us in order to bring out the best in us?</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-7693621258525162802011-06-15T10:20:00.000-07:002011-06-15T10:20:07.164-07:00Pouting doesn't make us winners<div style="text-align: justify;">The Stanley Cup fever has us Vancouverites talking hockey with everyone and anyone right now. One topic that comes up a lot in conversation is how the Canucks have been getting the short end from the referees game after game during this final series with the Boston Bruins. The uneven calls have been so obvious that they've gotten some fans' blood boiling--"How can this be a <i>professional</i> league?!", they ask.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">We have the notion that everything must be fair and square all the time. But complete fairness is very rare; life <i>isn't</i> fair. Fighting through partiality is part of the maturing process. The best teams in any sport don't just possess skill and physical prowess--these are only basic competitive requirements. What sets winners apart is their mental tenacity to plough through obstacles of all forms including, at times, overcoming unfairness. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">We don't have to be athletes to feel the stain of unfairness; ordinary life is full of situational injustices. We ask, "why is this so?" Perhaps God is making us into winners, training us to overcome adversity by permitting these unfair circumstances in our lives. The greatest winner in history also suffered the most severe injustice. He was subjected to enormous unfairness. Try thinking about him the next time you think you've been dealt an uneven hand. As he was hanging in pain for totally ludicrous charges, Jesus overcame, maintaining his spotless character even as he breathed his last breath--<i>this</i> is what a true winner looks like. (<i>Luke 23:34</i>)</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-41858343549518785582011-06-13T16:21:00.000-07:002011-06-13T16:21:28.768-07:00Don't be a closet fan<div style="text-align: justify;">It's hard to imagine it now, but there was a time when wearing a Canuck jersey was not so cool. Years ago, when the team was struggling game after game, they were the butt of a lot of jokes. Back then, you had to be a die-hard fan to brave the ridicule of nay-sayers and admit you believed in the team by openly sporting their colours. Most tended to be closet Canucks fans back then. Not so today; the Canucks just need one more game to win the Stanley Cup! Now the tide has turned. On game day, you feel out of place if you're in downtown Vancouver without a Canuck's jersey or T-shirt.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">A lot of us Christians are like the closet Canuck fans during the team's tentative years. We are very comfortable living in the closet until some star player makes a big splash that makes us look like we're on the winning side. The problem is, Christians aren't called to be fair weather fans; we're not called to be fans at all. We are all players called to win the prize. What is the prize for us? To know God and enjoy him forever. All kinds of distractions and trappings take our eyes off that prize. And like an NHL hockey player we need focus to win something far more precious to us than Lord Stanley's Cup in this game of life. (<i>Philippians 3:13-14</i>)</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-57176700074495335442011-06-09T18:43:00.000-07:002011-06-10T09:44:38.466-07:00Lesson from my basil plants<div style="text-align: justify;">Earlier this spring, I potted a dozen basil plants and put them by the wall of windows in our living room. It's the brightest spot we have and on sunny days, it's warm like a hothouse even when the temperature is low outside. On my part, the plants only require watering once a day--not at all high-maintenance by any stretch. To my delight, the plants are thriving; they have grown tall and strong from just little seeds! Ironically it is well known that basil plants are not <i>that</i> easy to grow, they require a lot of sunlight.<br />
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Everyday without fail each and every plant seeks out the direction of the sun, stretching it's leaves and stems towards the window to maximize exposure to sunlight. If I didn't rotate them regularly, they would have grown lopsided because of their natural and constant bend towards the sun for its sustenance.<br />
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I wish I was like these plants--smart enough to seek out the Son everyday for my spiritual sustenance. Didn't Jesus say that he was <i>the bread of life</i>? <i>(John 6:35)</i> And didn't he say that "<i>man shall not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God" (Matthew 4:4)<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">? Christians wither and droop when we forget Jesus and his words as all this world's offerings fall short of providing sustenance towards our growth and maturity in life.</span></i><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi00umaXMBwjvwdQLWk1v9wMj3S0iTn-UNf-Wm411X75UKy6Jw9VY9mkNqXt7zoDW8NGCmnu9YxHbz_B2hnF2FDJk-woOsV-y7QlITXn0n_9113fD9olGvtYNyxfoZLtdRQ3OBs_87jTq92/s1600/20110427_0012Basil.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi00umaXMBwjvwdQLWk1v9wMj3S0iTn-UNf-Wm411X75UKy6Jw9VY9mkNqXt7zoDW8NGCmnu9YxHbz_B2hnF2FDJk-woOsV-y7QlITXn0n_9113fD9olGvtYNyxfoZLtdRQ3OBs_87jTq92/s400/20110427_0012Basil.jpg" width="265" /></a></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-28111120829978966752011-06-08T12:04:00.000-07:002011-06-08T12:05:07.658-07:00One game at a time<div style="text-align: justify;">The Canucks' playoff run this year has made a hockey fan of every Vancouverite. With a winning team representing our city, it has become very cool to wear the Canucks jersey. On game days blue tops bearing the team logo dominate the visual landscape everywhere we go. And when night comes we're all fixated on the team's performance, riding the emotional roller coaster of wins and losses.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">What seems amazing is that the players themselves don't display the same emotional highs and lows that the fans do. Watch them answer the barrage of questions from reporters after every game--they are always calm and cool. Whether it had been a disastrous loss or a well-fought win, the players neither gloat nor get deflated according to the results. They maintain their poise, focusing on 'one game at a time' to resist the spillover effect of a win or loss onto the next game, working to preserve a fresh start for each game no matter how well or how bad the last game went down. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">There is much wisdom in keeping such short accounts. As in sport, so too in life, neither pride nor dejection from a past victory or failure should affect new opportunities. <i>His mercy is new every morning. Great is his faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22-23)</i> </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-77957942986746717462011-06-07T13:36:00.000-07:002011-06-09T18:48:18.913-07:00Good parents give good gifts<div style="text-align: justify;">Imagine that your six year old child comes to you and asks for firecrackers for their birthday; would you grant their request? Of course not--firecrackers for a six year old?! But what if they asked for a story book instead, wouldn't you go to great effort to find the best book to give? A loving parent is ecstatic when their child asks for good gifts, and goes far to fulfill such wishes. But when our children want things that are potentially harmful we don't hesitate to disappoint them--<i>for their own good</i>.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">This is how God operates too when we pray for things. There is no shame in our asking; asking indicates we trust both God's ability and desire to fulfill our wishes--that we realize we are in a loving relationship. But when we don't get what we ask for, be careful not to conclude that He is withholding good from us. Maybe He has better things for us than what we can conceive in our mind or maybe He is waiting for us to grow up a bit.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Keep asking and keep seeking God for all things. Like a great parent, He will grant us gifts and our hearts' desire in accordance with our maturity. (Matthew 7:9-11, Psalm 37:3-5)</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-75854668260126187202011-03-26T22:52:00.000-07:002011-03-26T23:00:40.154-07:00It depends on me?<div style="text-align: justify;">When I was just a kid, probably no more than 10 years old, I asked one of my adult brothers this question: "Do ghosts really exist?" To my disappointment, his answer didn't really help me overcome my fear. He said that ghosts existed if you believed they did, and that they didn't exist if you didn't believe. Even back then, I thought that was a non-answer, that he really didn't know, but that at least he <i>sounded</i> like he knew what he was talking about. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">To say someone's or something's existence depends on my belief was and still is a dumb answer. Not only is it illogical, it is surprisingly self-absorbed, like saying the world revolves around me. Today we have fancy terms like relativism to label this ego-centric belief system. Let's just call it for what it is. In conversations about 'spirituality' and 'self-actualization', I find it is next to impossible to pinpoint exactly what many people believe. Their relativism--that is extremely self-centric orientation--causes them to constantly re-interpret and re-define normal words on their own terms; we can hardly communicate meaningfully.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Either ghosts exist or they don't. Either God exists or He doesn't. Even a simple "I don't know" is better than saying "It depends on you"!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-76006225127282417872011-03-25T20:33:00.000-07:002011-03-25T20:33:43.122-07:00The pursuit of happiness<div style="text-align: justify;">Being around my two nephews when they were just tender younglings created many happy memories for me. One time I was having dinner with them when a silly idea came over me. I chewed my food real fine and then out of the blue I opened my mouth and stuck out my tongue to show my half-chewed meal. When they saw that, they gave out such priceless expressions that I remember them to this day. First came their look of shock (they were old enough to know this was not normal adult behaviour), then their eyes sparkled with delight, after that came big grins, and before I knew it, they were trying to one up me with their own displays of partially chewed dinner. We laughed so hard; I felt like I was the coolest aunt on earth!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">When I look back on many happy moments in the past, they often happened when I was the least conscious about pursuing happiness. Usually my attention was on someone else--for example, while looking after my nephews--or when I was part of some cause with like-minded people trying to achieve a common goal. The point is, happy feelings almost never came as a direct result of my pursuit of it; they were by-products of focusing on something else so much that any self-interest of mine was diverted.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">We live in an age and culture where the pursuit of happiness is the common and acceptable raison d'etre. We choose schools, careers, spouses, friends, places to live, all for the purpose of making ourselves happy. The irony is that happiness still eludes many despite their best efforts and even 'having arrived'. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Christians should know better than to follow this path. The Bible never tells us to pursue happiness; instead we are to seek God, His righteousness, His Kingdom. There is no promise that we will be <i>happy</i> by pursuing these (in eternity for sure, but not necessarily in the day to day), but we can know that we're not wasting our lives grasping for something that can never be obtained by direct pursuit.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-38429185957323284322011-03-23T23:29:00.000-07:002011-03-23T23:50:56.678-07:00The devil is powerless<div style="text-align: justify;">Last night I had a freakish dream. In it, the devil (who was faceless) asked me a series of questions, the last of which was, "where are you?" After surveying my surrounding I answered that I was in a cemetery. As soon as the answer came out, I felt a force pushing me down into the ground and I saw the shadow of my body in the soil--I was being buried. My mind knew that my body was asleep in a dream, I also knew that the only way to get rid of this demonic nuisance was to call <i>out loud</i> the name of Jesus. And that was a problem, because I was asleep; I had to wake my body up. That I did, and even with my weak groggy voice, the slight whisper of Jesus' name made the devil disappear.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">This isn't the first time I've been harassed this way in my sleep. Every now and then dark spirits enter my dreams. Sometimes they taunt my insecurities; sometimes they threaten my safety. But mostly all they can accomplish is just sleep deprivation. After many experiences like this, I realize one thing--the devil and demons are powerless, the most that they can do to me is wreck my night's sleep. They can't harm me physically; they lack physical substance. They are a vapour. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">No wonder the devil loves this specific deception so much--that is, the lie that our bodies are bad. And no wonder the devil must tempt people to do wrong and use people as agents of evil deeds; on its own the devil has no power to conquer physicality. </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-23186030631928875352011-03-21T22:01:00.000-07:002011-03-21T22:01:35.038-07:00Overcoming fear<div style="text-align: justify;">In a crazy evil sort of way Col. Qaddafi is a very smart man. He is an expert on words that invoke fear; from his murderous threats to his own people on Libya's state television "we will find you house by house, door by door, we will find you in your closets..." to his reaction on the US as they began airstrikes on his military strongholds "You will regret intervening in our internal affairs. You are helping people on the wrong side...it will be a long war". His calculated words are spoken always with the objective of paralyzing people with fear. When people are afraid, they will fail to act, and thereby concede to his control. Qaddafi is a master manipulator who uses the Devil's fear tactics to exert power.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Although we do not fall under evil leadership like <i>that</i> here in the West, we are not free from the Devil's fear tactics. We too succumb to thoughts and whispers of smaller fears in our minds, rendering us inactive at just the time action is needed to right wrongs. When we standby while witnessing bullying in schools and work places, or shun certain individuals because of peer pressure and gossip we concede power to the Devil. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Whether it is petty fear or great fear, scare tactics work as long as we are concerned only for ourselves. Fear stems from our basic instinct for self-preservation. So how can we overcome this basic instinct? Christians have this admonishment from Jesus: "<i>If you try to hang on to your life, you will loose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.</i>" (Matthew 16:25) These are paradoxical words that tells us to save our lives by giving it up. Jesus himself demonstrated it by dying on the cross. His subsequent resurrection is proof that we too will have eternal life no matter what happens to our current body. Therefore we can afford to risk safety for the benefit of others--and <i>gain enormous power over fear and those who would use it against us</i>.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-82359239663955135132011-03-15T21:50:00.000-07:002011-03-15T21:51:03.587-07:00Acts of God<div style="text-align: justify;">In the wake of Japan's calamity last weekend, some have expressed their dismay at God for authorizing such devastation. Others attempt to defend God's goodness by attributing all natural catastrophes to the sin and subsequent fall of man--suggesting that God isn't really involved in the world at all. While its important to think about such things, it is slightly beside the point...really, is anyone of us in the place to judge God? Is he so small (are we so big) that he needs our defence?</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I doubt that anyone who has experienced the terror of an earthquake or a ten-meter wave or a tornado wants to get into an argument about God's goodness. Indeed, having faced such enormous disasters, our insignificance becomes obvious. How small we are.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Christians don't need to defend God because he clearly owns up to his deeds with these words, "<i>I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disasters; I, the Lord, do all these things.</i>" (Isaiah 45: 7)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Instead of making judgement about acts of God, isn't it more productive to mull over acts of men? For example, what happened to all the media coverage over Libya's ongoing man-made and preventable disaster?</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-76631816362363521412011-03-14T12:29:00.000-07:002011-03-14T12:35:33.367-07:00What's in a prayer?<div style="text-align: justify;">Our pastor has been preaching on the topic of prayer this month. This week he quoted celebrities like Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber, who Twittered their prayers for Japan as it grapples with the aftermath of the catastrophic earthquakes and tsunami over the past weekend.<br />
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I am not a Justin Bieber fan, but out of curiosity I looked online and found that he actually wrote a song entitled '<i>Pray</i>'. When I read the lyrics I became impressed; this 17 year-old got something right about prayer that most religious people miss. He sings repeatedly in the song ".<i>..tell me how I can make a change</i>". He didn't write "do something God" or "why is this happening God?". No, he wrote something God would be pleased to hear: "How can I do something about this?"</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I have heard--and prayed myself--so many pie-in-the-sky prayers treating God like a magical Sugar-Daddy that it's hard to believe a wise God would answer those prayers. I'm not saying we shouldn't make requests to God--the Bible tells us to do so(!)--but when we pray we often stop right after we've off-loaded our burdens onto God and fail to listen to him for answers, for direction--for his heart. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Prayer is two-way communication where we should expect God to speak. His most powerful answers come in the form of internal changes that transform our attitude and behaviour towards the situation or person that we are troubled by, thereby affecting an outcome to our situation. Changes like these are so profound that when we experience them we know God's Spirit is at work inside us, answering prayer. Of course, God can answer prayer outside of our influence entirely. But we need to be mindful that he is apparently more interested in changing us (and others) than he is in changing our circumstances. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">We often mistake prayer to be the means through which we solicit divine help to fulfill our agenda, quite the contrary, it is more appropriately the means through which God fulfills his agenda through us. </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-41842418231329718602011-03-09T20:52:00.000-08:002011-03-09T20:56:21.315-08:00Fair weather friends<div style="text-align: justify;">A fair weather friend is someone who is warm when the friendship benefits them and cold when it does not. This oscillation between hot and cold may not be intentional; the fair weather friend may not even know that they're so fickle and utilitarian. We all know people like this in our circle. And, if we're able to see ourselves clearly, we probably notice that we sometimes behave this way towards others too.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">How do we deal with people who treat us like this? Do we avoid them like most self-help gurus would suggest? Are they really 'toxic'? Are we all 'toxic'? </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Jesus was a magnet for fair weather friends. He was very popular when he miraculously healed diseases and fed masses of people, but when persecution came, everyone including his closest friends deserted him. I find it interesting that Jesus was not surprised by this abandonment. He knew all along that his disciples--the very ones he <i>chose</i>--didn't have the wherewithal to stick with him through trouble (Matthew 26:31-25, 41; John 2:24-25).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">And yet their failure as friends didn't seem to bother him. Why not? Probably because his life objective <i>was</i> to benefit others to begin with (John 10:10). If we adopt Jesus's objective in our lives, fair weather friends won't bother us so much either. Who knows, they may even become less fickle--in the end the disciples accepted death rather than betray Jesus... </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-50791516542753975912011-03-08T19:23:00.000-08:002011-03-08T19:23:26.713-08:00Use it or lose it<div style="text-align: justify;">There was a time in my distant past when I could play music by Beethoven, Chopin and Haydn on the piano. My fingers danced on the keyboard; after enough practice, my digits would go on auto-pilot, setting my mind free to fully enjoy the beauty of those melodies. Later on, having gotten bored with piano, I dreamed of being a dancer and willingly put my body through multiple hours of daily practice in the studio. After three years, my body was so fit and agile that doing jetés, pirouettes, and rond de jambe en l'air was as easy as taking a stroll. In both cases, practice was the key to proficiency and enjoyment.<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I can't make such boasts any more. Neither my body nor my fingers dance these days for one simple reason: the lack of practice during the years that have slipped by. I have proven the unfortunate 'use it or loose it' saying. Recently, scientific research has empirically affirmed what we all know. Studies on muscle mass, bone density and brain plasticity indicate, generally speaking, lack of use diminishes function over time. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Knowing all this I found these words from Jesus surprisingly fresh and relevant, even though he spoke them two thousand years ago: "<i>To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away.</i>" (Matthew 25:29)</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-64910989338035194132011-03-07T16:48:00.000-08:002011-03-07T16:48:26.739-08:00Who doesn't have a blind spot?<div style="text-align: justify;">We have all heard of the illustration of five blind men and an elephant. With each man only able to touch one part of the animal--one feeling the trunk, another a tusk, a different man touching a foot, etc.--they each gather a completely different experience and form different beliefs about what an elephant actually is. Some people use this to 'explain' the differences between all religions concluding that all paths lead to the same truth; while all the men describe something completely different, there is just one elephant. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">This sounds open-minded and accepting...except that proponents of this view (and it is just another point of view) assume that <i>they</i> are not blind and <i>can see</i> the whole elephant at once. This assumption of being all-seeing is in fact a similarly close minded view to the ones they critique while being, ironically, the most arrogant position of all religious views(!)</div><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">Richard Wurmbrand once wrote that every perspective has a blind spot. For example, when we look to the ceiling, we will not see the floor, when we look down on the floor, the ceiling exits our view. Therefore the more we fixate on one point of view, the more we will miss other vantage points. In this case, if we fixate on neutralizing differences, ironically, we nullify the legitimacy of each perspective.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">The way to work out differences isn't to pretend they are not there. Instead we are much better off acknowledging that we, finite human beings, have blinds spots and working to understand other people's points of view.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-32379582575129893712011-03-05T11:01:00.000-08:002011-03-05T21:39:31.045-08:00Soaring like eagles<div style="text-align: justify;">Once in a very long while, I see an eagle or two soaring in the downtown sky outside my window. That's right, beautiful bald eagles cruising over the city. When they appear, it is a treat that commands my undivided attention. Unlike seagulls, crows or other common birds, they rarely flap their wings during flight. They simply expand their wings and glide. Naturalists tell us that eagles depend on thermals (rising hot air from the earth) to fly; because their wingspan is so wide, flapping is extremely inefficient for them and it tires them out quickly. On the other hand, those same large wings allow them to soar over long distances and at great heights, as long as the thermal air condition is right. Eagles look for thermals before taking flight to avoid undue exhaustion.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">There is a lesson we can learn from these creatures. From time to time, we feel tired as if we're running in place, going no where. The Bible tells us that we have a thermal system we can rely upon; the words go like this: "<i>...but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.</i>" (Isaiah 40:30-31)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Feeling fatigued and tired of life? It's time to set our hopes on God; he is able to carry us to further and higher destinations than mere flapping of our wings will ever take us.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-75736338804866503112011-03-04T23:56:00.000-08:002011-03-04T23:56:39.808-08:00Who's the alpha dog?<div style="text-align: justify;">My younger brother just got a white terrier pup--Healey--named after his beloved car project, a vintage Austin Healey. This new addition to their family is one hyper pup; she jumps, licks and paws you the moment you enter her territory. Apparently such canine behaviour is not about her trying to be cute; she's establishing her status. The more attention you give her, the more alpha she gets, to the point where you get the impression you are her pup and that she feels responsible for your well-being. That does not sound so bad except when you leave the dog for a few hours it worries itself sick, like a nervous mother, and starts barking non-stop, driving the neighbours insane. That's happened to other friends of mine, who evidently had become their dogs' subjects. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The best way to establish your status with a dog is to ignore them sometimes, not catering to their every whim. It isn't always easy to do, but establishing this proper status, where you're the parent rather than the other way around, actually relieves the dog of burdens that they can't carry. Being an alpha comes with responsibility. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I wonder if that's why sometimes God seems to ignore us when we pray. Shopping list prayers where we just ask for things or where we direct how things should happen can be a little like Healey grasping for alpha status. Sure, we are being faithful by praying a lot and often, but if all we do is dictate what we want in prayer, that's just a subtle way of taking control over <i>our</i> Master. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Instead of praying that way we can let it be a means of re-aligning our loyalty and subjection to our Master. And with this attitude we will find relief from the burdens God lovingly purposes to carry for us. </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-54050513360213646602011-03-03T19:24:00.000-08:002018-08-19T08:56:45.419-07:00The choice is yours<div style="text-align: justify;">
Some years ago when one of my nephews was nine years old, I took him shopping for a pair of shorts. He had a $20 bill and paid for his $15 purchase with cash. The cashier must have had a bad or crazy day because he gave back a handful of coins that added up to at least $10 in change. When my nephew saw how much he was getting back, he just stared at the coins in his hand without moving for a good 10 seconds. Here was a picture of a 9 year-old being tempted by greed, and I will never forget the intensity of that moment. I pretended not to notice and waited to see what he would do.</div>
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My nephew did not succumb to greed that time. He returned the extra cash on his own accord even though it took some serious decision making on his part. After the mini-drama, I put my arm around him and expressed how proud I was of him; his face was beaming all the way home as though he won a million bucks. </div>
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We run into similar dilemmas, not just as kids but throughout our entire lives. Usually there isn't anyone to build us up when we make a selfless decision, but you know inside it was the right thing--and that feels good; it's freeing. On the other hand, I have a theory that if a person goes the opposite way, giving in to temptation, continuously make morally bad choices, their conscience will become so callous and insensitive that eventually they lose touch with reality. I think we're watching this at work in the soon-to-be ex-leader of Libya, Col. Qaddafi. After decades of nursing his own greed, he has clearly gone off the deep end, so to speak.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-19947846762925527892011-03-02T10:46:00.000-08:002011-03-02T15:11:26.698-08:00Greed disguised as virtue<div style="text-align: justify;">In a dream last night I saw someone from my life who personifies greed; she was locked in a room, contorted on her bed as she whispered "it's only $250..." The vision of her bondage to greed was so terrifying that it woke me up. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In my waking life, I think nothing of someone who works very hard for money. Our society considers being industrious to be a virtue. We rightfully think it irresponsible to work little or none at all, expecting to live on other people's charity. Sloth is a bad thing.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">But what if we already have plenty for what we need? Many people who have enough can't stop working solely because they can't let go of the monetary opportunity. Working hard fortifies our sense of entitlement; it justifies self-indulgence. Greed works in subtle ways, it wears virtuous disguises--like being called 'industrious'--as it drains our sense of self away by enlarging our quest for more. The idea of 'I have enough' never enters the enslaved mind. Though when it comes to drumming up reasons to keep on accumulating wealth or status, the enslaved mind exhibits great creativity. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Let the dream serve as a warning for the perils of greed. Someone whose whole being is consumed by one desire--'wanting more'--is not a pretty sight. At the end of this life, what part of such a being will be left to bring to the new life on the other side of death?</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-83271911912861825862011-02-28T22:19:00.000-08:002011-02-28T22:19:55.651-08:00Destined to be prosperous?<div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Proponents of prosperity teaching will pick and choose certain Bible verses to substantiate their claim that material wealth should be the destiny for all believers (Malachi 3:10; Deuteronomy 8:18; John 10:10; 3 John 2-4; James 4:2). And many men of faith in the Old Testament were materially prosperous--like Job, Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, David and Boaz. My previous blog already addressed why someone like Abraham was righteously rich--many people were cared for due to his prosperity.</div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
But we can't ignore that in the New Testament, not only do we see Jesus and his disciples lacking material wealth, we also hear Jesus say, "<i>Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man has no place to lay his head</i>" (Luke 9:58). And more recently, many of our role models in the faith, people like Francis of Assisi, Mother Teresa, Eric Liddell and Jim Elliot, stand out to us for the way they left behind comfort and security to serve others in poor and forgotten places. How do we reconcile this apparent contradiction?<br />
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Teachings that hyper-focuses on <i>either</i> enjoying prosperity <i>or</i> suffering for Christ are simply missing it. Instead, let's look for the common thread between the Old Testament patriarchs and Jesus' followers. What we see is that they didn't live their lives just looking after number 1 (self); they all looked out for others (i.e. loving their neighbours) whether they were rich or poor. And in this love they prospered.<br />
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So, don't pursue prosperity to satisfy greed and don't suffer for the sake of suffering, nor should we avoid either prosperity or suffering if the end result will benefit our fellow man. Loving our neighbour fulfills our destiny and produces biblical notion of prosperity.</div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527816854572572120.post-67291352435157682002011-02-26T21:00:00.000-08:002011-02-27T14:37:24.060-08:00Is it wrong to pray for prosperity?<div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">In many places the Bible suggests and sometimes states outright that God desires us to flourish, to be at peace, to prosper. But what does the Bible mean by prosperity?</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">Prosperity can be considered from two perspectives, with two different results. It feels really wrong to ask God for personal success and riches; there is no peace inside with a prayer like that. But when I pray for success that benefits more people than myself, say for my business--where others are employed--for example, I feel much differently. In this scenario, my prosperity benefits employees; praying for this type of prosperity pretty much becomes necessary because others depend on my success.<br />
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We see this same thing in the patriarchs of the Old Testament. Abraham was abundantly blessed with livestocks and wealth--a material prosperity that flowed over to his extended family and servants. Abraham's faith yielded a prosperity that benefited many beneath the shade of his tree.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">That is not the way prosperity is marketed today. We tend to want wealth and success for personal reasons; its benefit rarely extends beyond one's immediate family. In some instances it doesn't even extend that far! Our individualistic society has lost the ability and joy for communal sharing, the very thing Biblical prosperity is intended to build. Now we rely on the government to aid our poor, to care for the sick, and to provide for our elderly relatives. We say, that is why we pay our taxes!<br />
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God does want to prosper us but it is not for our personal individualistic empowerment. Rather, when he grants us material abundance he intends it to help us be our brothers' keepers.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0