Life Spoken Inspired

overcoming circumstance

2006-12-04T02:40:00.000-05:00

      So here I am again, trying to get rid of this inability I’ve received when it comes to writing. Sorry for forcing any of you who actually read this to have to drudge through anything I have to say, but hopefully you can somehow find it worth your time. I’m going to try to start writing regularly again, and hopefully within a short period of time I’ll be back… but either way, time for me to start writing away… So, here goes.

      There’s a 1 in 48,000,000 chance of winning the lottery, a 1 in 30,000 chance of contracting food poisoning the next time you go out to eat, a 1 in 800 chance of getting into a serious car accident within the next year and a 1 in 5 chance that your next relationship will be with the person you spend the rest of your life with. What does this all mean? No, it does not mean you should stop eating out… or start checking out the first five people that come to mind. All that these statistics mean is that we don’t have much control when it comes to our lives. Yes, your life is yours to make decisions and to run, but how about for these unforeseeable, unpredictable and uncontrollable events in our lives.

      Now, despite the fact that I believe in a higher being that has complete control over the world, I’m not trying to persuade anyone that by believing in God, any of those statistics will change for the better, because frankly, I don’t believe in that happening either. I’m not writing to say why you should or shouldn’t believe in God, but what do we do in these uncontrollable circumstances that we are put in regardless of beliefs. When it comes down to the whole scene of our lives, yes, some people have it lucky and some don’t. There are people who grew up with rich families, poor families, a close family or a broken home. There are those who have been popular all their lives, those who have never been able to call someone their best friend, some get a car once they get their license (so jealous…), and some people don’t even have the physical capabilities to drive (and now I feel stupid).

      No matter who you are, or how lucky you may be, you’re bound to hit brick walls in your life. Something that every single person will face in their lives are the painful, dreadful and excruciating events that seem to hold us back from being able to “live”. Sometimes (if not many times) we find ourselves stuck in a rut for so long that we feel unable to escape, and unable to overcome. Sometimes things are just so out of our control, so what are we to do? What do we do when it gets so rough and it’s so hard to move on? What’s left for us? Hope.

      Hope is the understanding that after today is through, tomorrow will begin. This is something so amazing because no matter how much our minds may play tricks on us, one of the few things that is completely solid in this world is time. We know this because ‘tomorrow’ has always come for us. No matter how long, lonely and gruesome ‘today’ may have seemed or become, tomorrow always came. And what is tomorrow? Tomorrow is new challenges, new events to change and cultivate us. Tomorrow brings time to just relax and refocus ourselves. Hope. Tomorrow is hope. Hope that there is more time, that there’s something more than just ‘today’. And once tomorrow comes and becomes today, we still have hope that another tomorrow will come. This means that each and every new day is something we can use to change us, to help us and to bring us closer to where it was that we wanted to be in the beginning.

      No matter how hurt, lonely, and unsatisfied you may be with today, tomorrow is always there to bring you hope, to bring you a new day where you can start fresh and show the world what you got. So how do we overcome circumstance? We remember that tomorrow is always around the corner. We have hope.

what are we here for?

2006-08-08T16:55:00.000-04:00

        Looking back up to a year ago, I can tell how much I’ve changed. How I used to care nothing of credentials and awards or titles. What mattered to me was personality, how someone handled themselves, how they really lived through all the trials and tribulations. The claims and assertions that people had for themselves held no value to me, what mattered was really, who they were beneath it all.

        Lately I’ve been working on my resume as the next school term draws near and I have to start applying for co-op jobs. For some reason, I’ve always had distaste for working on my resume and I couldn’t really put my finger on why. Working on my resume always brings a question to my mind… What am I here for? Yes… it is somewhat irrelevant and slightly more imperative of a question than one would hope for when thinking of a co-op placement.

        To tie the two previous statements together: I disappoint myself. Lately I’ve been so focused on my own credentials and awards that I seem to forget all together what I’m here for in the first place. The whole ordeal reminds me of a something I was told before, and I’ll pass it on to you: Think of your funeral. When someone goes up to give a speech of your life, they begin reading out all your credentials. “Derek was the receiver of the such and such scholarship entering university, Derek was placed number one in the such and such competition.” To me, it’s all crap. Frankly, I wouldn’t want to be remembered for these personal achievements. Much rather, I’d want my eulogy to sound more like this: “Derek was kindhearted, giving, and will be dearly missed amongst friends. He impacted those around him in such a way that no one else could.” That sounds much more like a life worth living than one used to fulfill titles and credentials. To sum this all up, do you want to be remembered for the titles, the qualifications that you obtained over the years, or do you want to be remembered for the countless lives that you impacted for the short time that you were alive. I know which of the two I prefer.

        No, I’m not saying that making a resume is a bad thing; I’m going to continue working on mine. But this is just a frank reminder to myself, and to anyone else reading, that there is much more out there. Many of us are caught up in living in the prospect to make what’s left of our short lives as luxurious and frivolous as possible, when we forget that what we can do in a lifetime, can resonate throughout generations as long as we impact those around us.

        Let this be a reminder to myself, not to live for credentials and minute satisfaction, but to live for the sole benefit and pleasure of others. Yes, the time before I die might be only a short time, but if I play my cards right, the life I live will last lifetimes.

I’ll start posting regularly once school kicks in again. See you all soon. God bless.

reckless abandon

2006-07-18T23:42:00.000-04:00

        Imagine yourself in a place… a large place. This place is dimly lit with the colorful lights of dawn pouring throw the artistically stained windows. The ceiling is high and beautifully crafted, just like the walls and supporting pillars. Yes, you’re in a church. Many times we find ourselves inside a church for two different types of occasions. 1. It is a joyous occasion, a wedding, baptism, youth night, Sunday service (for some of us), etc, or 2. A time of sadness, a funeral, or a Sunday service (for the rest of you). Guess why you’re here today, yup, you got it, the taming sound of mourning fills the air. You stand and look around, many faces you’ve seen before, they were there… There with you that day when a friend, greatly dear to you was lost, lost to you, your friends and to the world.

        You find yourself at a loss for words, and you’re not quite too sure what you should be feeling right now. Your first instinct is to feel saddened, so your eyes water slightly. Then the gut wrenching pain of anger fills your veins, and you can’t help but think, “Why not me? Why couldn’t I take his place? He was so much more deserving to continue on with life.” Once the adrenalin fades, you finally realize it’s hopeless and want to break down on your knees in tears… He left so suddenly, no one could have seen it coming, why why why? WHY do I feel so lost? Why? Because you devoted your life to Him.

        I’m sorry, I lied about the ‘being in a church’ part, but the feeling is the same. If you haven’t guessed yet, you’re an apostle of Christ, yup, one of the eleven who sat in a dank, damp, dark little room after the death of the one you called ‘Lord’. The day is Saturday, and it could just as well have been any other day, but you’d still feel the same; lost, scared and at a loss for words. All this because you don’t know what else to do, what else is there to do? Someone who was more than a friend and more than a king to you was just murdered.

        You thought you had it that time, you felt like you were so close, he was so different, the children were fond of him… The poor too… also the prostitutes and tax-collectors… when you come to think of it, it seems all in a haze why you were also so fond of him… it was just that feeling he gave… almost as if… he had the answer to life. And you really thought he did… until… until Friday came…

        That was it, it was all over, what was left to do but hide in this dark room. Can’t go back to our old jobs… collecting taxes would seem too unfulfilling… the fishnets would just remind you too much of our recently departed friend… and there was absolutely no way you could continue to follow a dead God. Who ever heard of a dead God in the first place? Thoughts like “What a fool I must have been to believe Him”… “A God on earth? He was a carpenter for Christ’s sake! (no pun intended)” must be plaguing your mind. This emotional roller coaster, plaguing you all day, what is a person to do?

        It’s Sunday now, and you decide that it’s best to finally take a deep breath and continue on, because really, what else is there left for you to do with this dead God. You finally stand up and start heading for the door, and as you reach for the handle it bursts open. “GONE!!! GONE!!! He Has RISEN!!!” just like all your doubt in that split second you heard the news, His body was gone from the burial site. He really must have risen, risen and taken away your fear, your doubt, and your uncertainty. You feel renewed again, almost as if he was standing there beside you again, speaking with his clean, crisp voice. Everything is good again, better than good really; you’re reassured, confident and ready to take on the world. Why? Because today is Sunday.

All you need

2006-06-18T23:48:00.000-04:00

I still stick by what I've always lived by. Live, Love and Laugh.

Live life to the fullest. As cliche and abused that quote has become. A life with no regrets is a life worth living. It would be a shame to reach the end of your days, look back and wonder what would have happended with the road not taken. Mabye this, mabye that, but with the decisions you make in life, make them and be happy with them. We can't change the past so it's useless wondering what could have or would have been if things were different, so save yourself the trouble and stop stressing about it. Be happy with where you are, and take tomorrow as a new day, new decisions, new ways to find happiness within your life and a new day for a new perspective on life.

Love is not reserved for the boyfriends and girlfriends. Spread the love to those around you. You never know the impact a nice call to check up on someone can make. If you sit back and think you'll begin to see those whom you hold dear and those whom you are held dear by. Close friends are rare to come by, but just one can change your whole life. Cherish your family and good friends, the number of them that you'll have at any given time will most likely not exceed the number of fingers you have. Give them your all, they deserve it.

Laugh till your stomache hurts. No matter how serious things get, or how stressful you will be. There's always time for a good laugh with friends. Take the hardpoints in life with those who bring you joy. Although the real pains in life can't be eliminated with a few laughs, it can always remind you of better times, what awaits you on the other side of the hill. Let it remind yourself to push forward, to enjoy as much of life as you can, and that there is always another way you can look at things. The cup aint half empty... it's just too big for my liking.

Cheesy.. I know... but you think of something better. Take care guys, God Bless

perseverance pt2: suffering

2006-02-15T15:56:00.000-05:00

        I wish this pain would go away, this exhaustion, this soreness. I wish I wish I wish. So many times we sing the song: “rain rain go away, come back another day” when in reality we never want it to come back at all. Without the rain, there’s no food for the plants, the grass and the trees, no trees means no oxygen, which means no humans.

        Related to my previous post on perseverance, suffering. Being able to stand up under suffering is considered a virtue, so what would you call it when you run away from suffering. Without the rain we’d be no more, we need it in our lives, to feed us, to teach us and to build us. Yes, maybe sometimes it’s so much, that when it rains it pours. But when it pours, God reigns. Where is God amidst all the suffering? There in the eye of the storm, the voice pushing you to persevere. Through the greatest sufferings come out the greatest victories. Even with all the technology out there, there isn’t something to make you physically fit while you stand and do nothing. Everything requires your effort, diets, exercise plans, personal trainers. Diet pills and liposuction may make you skinnier, but you still lack the fitness to maintain that body.

        So once again, this is just a little add-on to my previous post. As you walk down the path of daily living, try to remember that the greatest victories are won through the greatest struggles. So I urge you, to run the race with all you got, take the path less traveled, and last but not least, persevere through your daily struggles. The reward is just… beyond words. Amen.

perseverance

2006-02-15T02:58:00.000-05:00

        Hello and welcome back to the Life Spoken Inspired show; where the price is low and the food tastes great. With none other than your most friendly host: Derek… Ok… sorry for that, I was just bored =). So yup, been a while since I’ve been writing consistently, but I’m hoping that through this, each post will have more of me within it. Well, here goes.

        Perseverance. You say it, your pastor says it, your friends, your family and the bible all say it. What is it to persevere? How many times do I fail to persevere? How can I persevere better? These are some questions that we continually ask ourselves consciously and unconsciously. It seems that all I’ve done since I became a Christian was make choices. Choosing between good and bad, the choice of whether to follow the moral conduct I’m supposed to, the choice to go to that party if I know I’ll end up a mess, the choice of turning my head to watch that girl with the nice figure walking by, the choice to go back to everything I left behind when I became a Christian. Sometimes we feel restrained by Christianity with all the choices we face, but in reality, whether we were Christians or not we are still constantly plagued with choices, only that with Christianity it seems so much more of a burden because we’re living a standard that is at odds with that of society.

        I think that one of the things people around me are suffering most at is the choice between whether to persevere as a Christian altogether. Hopefully when you became a Christian (those who weren’t born into it) you weren’t persuaded by people saying that it is an easier life. Big big big lie. On a scale of one to ten on how much more difficult a Christian life is over a secular one, I think it hits around 17. I’ll never deny though that living a life of a Christian is great; it makes me smile and brings me joy daily, but there are those trials and tribulations we face daily, which is why it is so necessary to persevere. I’m deeply saddened by those who were close to me who give up on God. There’s not much I can say about it without sounding overly offensive on my part, so I’ll avoid it and just leave it there by saying that it hurts deep. The only thing I can say to those who are having troubles persevering with their faith is: keep at it, in all honesty. “Don’t forget your roots, and what God meant to you at some point in time, because however real he was to you back then, he’s just as real today, tomorrow and forever.”

        A big issue that a lot of people like using to persecute someone is that they have no right to talk about a certain subject. I.e. saying that someone is too young to preach, or too unknowledgeable to share his wisdom. People will say this because they feel that it’s not right for someone to say something they don’t have much experience on. Although I only half agree with a couple things I’ve said in this paragraph, just to support this writing I’ll relate it to my life now. Basically, I’ve taken up swimming again. It’s been a solid 3 years since I’ve done any sort of swimming outside of floating in beach waters. All I can say is that it is a very very sad sight to see me going at it under the knowledge that I used to be an OFSAA swimmer. How sad it is indeed. I basically hit a break between my sets of midterms and decided to go swimming as much as I can, to bring an old past-time back into my life and also to burn off that turkey fat that still pesters me from Christmas. So to relate my experiences to swimming, here goes.

        Sore, exhausted, itchy, and beat-down. That’s how I feel right now. It’s only been twice that I’ve been on my swimming routine and it is beyond painful. Yes, it would be so easy to just call it quits and translate my pool time into sitting in my chair time, but of what benefit would that be. Yes, swimming is THE pain in my life right now, but it’s also doing so much for me. Every lap I do, I burn that much fat, every lap I build that much muscle, every lap I get that much better at refining a smoother stroke. I love swimming because I know how beneficial it is for me. Yes, maybe right now it’s painful and makes me somewhat immobile for the day, but I know that the more I do it, the less that it’ll hurt, the more I’ll enjoy it and the more of a habit it’ll be.

        So why persevere? Simple. Burn fat, build muscle, refine yourself. Through persevering we achieve these three things. We burn fat, our dead weight. This is the stuff that appears out of no where when you don’t exercise enough. Exercise what you ask? Exercise your body, your spiritual health, your mental capabilities. Fat is what will increasingly keep us from doing something the more we avoid that ‘something’. The less you exercise, the fatter you get. And yup, it’s so depressing, but I got fat. Another reason why I need swimming. Next on the list, build muscle. Another lil treat swimming can provide is the muscle. I’ll be building myself a stronger, healthier body. This applies to our spiritual lives as well. The more we practice a certain act, the stronger our muscle gets, making other things easier, and future practice of this act easier as well. How do some people “make it look so easy”? It’s because they got the muscle. The muscle it takes to do whatever it is. They’ve got the practice and experience under their belt. The last thing, it refines ourselves. Sadly, my strokes look like that of a child learning to swim, once again knowing that I swam ofsaa and I was a certified instructor. I know that the more I continue to swim, the better my strokes will look. Not only look, but the better they’ll produce. The more I practice the action the more it comes to me without thinking, more “routine”. Similar to muscle building, refining yourself will make persevering easier. It’ll subconsciously motivate you and guide you.

        In terms of running the race of Christianity. It usually isn’t till those on the sidelines see us running the race with all we have till they decide to take up running themselves. Thus it is important that we run this race with the utmost fervency, such we can attract others to run this race with us. A phrase I used to say, “Never give up, never give in. it's the shout of those who believe in Him. We are his sons and daughters. Let us live it loud.” Yes, let us live it loud, loud and strong forever, and ever amen. Persevere my brothers and sisters, the prize behind the finish line is that beyond what we could ever hope for. So to finalize, I ask you, what are you persevering through today? What are you lacking the perseverance for? And to put my own spin on a popular quote, “Got Fat?”

1 Corinthians 8:6

2006-02-05T02:21:00.000-05:00

        As it stands right now, I have no idea what to talk about, but I feel extremely inclined to just sit here and type something. Well I guess no one had the audacity to attempt to read my post on Paul. Haha, but that’s alright, didn’t expect many to. Well now, I think I have something to talk about. I was really stuck at a wall so I just started looking around my room. It so happens that I wrote down some verses on sticky-notes and taped them to my laptop. One of the verses I’ve really taken light to. 1 Corinthians 8:6 “Yet for us there is but one God the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things and we exist through Him.

        So yes, basically those two bolded parts that I’ve really come to love. We were created by God, and we were created for his pleasure, so lets please Him and fulfill our original purpose here. Although, that’s not it, he sent his begotten son such that we may have a chance at living a life of purpose. A life where we can actually please God if we put as much of ourselves into it as we can. Through Christ and His sacrifice are we given a chance to live by whom are all things, a chance to fulfill our purpose and a pretty much a second chance at living and we exist through Him.

        This sums up the life I’ve been chasing after these past 3 years now… almost 3 years now and I find myself here, with nothing I want more than to please my God. This verse is the accumulation of who God is, and what He wants of us. Live a life, pleasing to God. We are able, because His son gave his life. Reminds me of 1 Corinthians 6:20 For You have been bought at a price: therefore glorify God in your body. Glorify who He is, for what he’s done. You are my Lord, I’m ready to take this head on.

Faith and Prayer

2006-02-02T02:48:00.000-05:00

9"So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it will be opened. [Luke 11:9-10 NASB]

        How many of you talk to walls? How about to your dolls? How many of you talk to the air? Dumb questions? How many times do we pray, seeking results and change from God and we wait… and wait… check our watches… and wait some more. Eventually we reach a point that we have to take the time to reconsider whether the God we believe in, the one who made us well when we were sick and gave us sight when we were blind, is even listening to us. Sometimes we feel that God doesn’t have power today, he’s sorta around… not really doing anything though. We look at Luke 11:9-10 and once again make the assumption that things were different back in the day… God doesn’t knock anyone to the ground and blind them with light… he doesn’t feed the thousands with single loaves, not these days, God just… doesn’t answer my prayers.

        I’m sure we’ve all seen it, felt it, and believed it at one point in our lives. “Prayer is hit and miss.” When we pray, sometimes we get results, sometimes we don’t… it’s like coincidence… and we believe that, and lose touch with who God is altogether. God turns into walls, into the air and our prayers get so barren and so tedious that we forget who we’re praying to in the first place. “Well, it’s not my fault… God ignored my prayers” what a sad sight; to see someone saying this. Whatever happened to faith?

        Faith seems to be a concept of the old days, along with God’s power and his kingdom rising. Less and less people are able to stand up for what they believe in, lay themselves down on the altar and give it their all (fine, I’m not perfect either, but there’s a difference b/w those who try and those who just sit in the audience). God calls you to pray through faith: “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” [Matthew 21:22 NIV]

        Mabye this will seem hypocritical to you, but the reason I write this is because I have this problem. My friend approached me with a word from God (a sign that someone is on good terms in his walk), and told me to avoid certain words when I pray. Words that reduce the power in my prayers; i.e. “sorta” or “just”. I took a while to think about what he told me and came out to reason that I’ve lost myself in my prayers as well. My prayers have become unfulfilling (for both the giver and hearer).

        So what is God asking? God is asking you to pray through faith to Him. Everytime we pray without faith, without our affirmation and belief, we’re pretty much speaking to the walls. God doesn’t take to liking when you treat Him as a wall, so think about why your prayers haven’t been answered, why they aren’t being answered, and why they won’t be answered if you continue to pray the prayers that seem so outlined. The only rule to prayer is: there is no rule on what is proper prayer. It’s a conversation between you and God, speak from your heart, your needs and your struggles. Speak up with a strong voice, and see where God takes you. Once again, “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” [Matthew 21:22 NIV]

Paul

2006-01-27T16:33:00.000-05:00

        Ok guys, well I’ve been well overdue for a post for a while now. I guess it was a bit hard for me personally to take the time to relax and dwell upon His word and become inspired for something to share. Hopefully this post can make up for any ground I’ve lost with this blog and the inspirations in me can help inspire you guys as well =) take care and enjoy. God bless.

        So yeah, I’ve been working my butt off in school, so much work that I’ve been spending my life in class, studying or sleeping… barely even time to eat (although I make time). This whole past week I’ve been working on all my subjects, except for my religious studies course. For this course, I have no midterms, no exams, just three papers due over periodic times. My first one is due on Tuesday and I tried to finish everything such that I could have a lot of time to work on this assignment. For the assignment I had to write about Paul and his life as told by the Acts of the Apostles. As you can imagine, that means going through the book of Acts and reading each verse carefully to extract any information relevant to Paul. The actual note taking process took me around 7 hours last night, and writing the report today took me another 4 or so hours. I still have editing to do, just… not now. Haha. Well yeah, basically through writing this assignment I reached a point where I was so inspired. Really, if you have time and the will power... read acts... it’s an awesome read. Learn about Paul... either that or ask me to send you to my assignment (8 pages double spaced) and read it. The life of Paul is really amazing, I never realized. It fully shadows the life of Jesus, the preaching, the miracles and all. (Paul even revives a guy too, funny story, how many of you guys actually knew that?) But I won’t ruin any more for you.

        I’m here today because I was so inspired by Paul’s story. This guy shows boundless faith and perseverance. He was beaten to the brinks of death, like what, 5 or more times? And the best part of it, he either got back up on the spot or the next day and just started preaching again. What a guy. How many of us get beat down by our daily lives and we’re down there for days, for weeks, for months or ever years… There’s so much more too. Paul was thrown in jail, down to the dirts and stuck behind bars. What does he decide to do? Him and his pal Silas begin to pray and sing praises unto God. Like WHHHAATTT?? In jail? Like… how many of us even think of singing praises when we’re in school let alone jail. This God must be some amazing dude for this Paul fella.

        I was having a conversation with my friend Bryan. I guess, safe to say somewhat discouraged about not hearing about many miracles here in North America? Correct me if I’m wrong. We were discussing how the amazing things we here about happen in the more underdeveloped countries (I didn’t agree with this, but just making a point). He finds it hard to compare to the miracles of Christ and even Paul. Paul, who like Jesus, revived a dead man, healed the masses, preached with scripture and led those who were lost. I guess my point is, how did Paul get to this point of shadowing Jesus move for move?

        Many of us have heard the story of Saul on the road to Damascus. I often use it as an analogy to our lives (will tell it again later). One of the things I found most surprising is that Saul’s transformation doesn’t really happen there when he’s struck blind. (I think it is a big misconception that Saul transforms into Paul there and becomes an amazing instrument for God). Saul, although he does change at that moment, has barely begun his transformation. Saul is struck blind early in Ch. 19. From there he is guided to the town and then Ananias returns his sight to him. From there he begins his preaching and sermons in the synagogues, and right away is persecuted.

        Right now, Saul is still known as… Saul. He’s preaching and getting beat up and all that. Many people (including myself) believed at this point that Saul has transformed, that he was made new. But no… he isn’t. It is not till chapter 13 that Saul completes his transformation. A whole four chapters pass until it really happens. In chapter 13:9 Saul performs his first miracle and strikes an evil sorcerer blind, and is from now on, called Paul.

        Paul’s miracle was a sign of the completed transformation because that is when he was then on referred to as Paul. Now, why you ask when he performed a miracle? Well the analogy I tell my friends is that, “God is not going to strike you blind on the road to Damascus.” Meaning, stop waiting for God to do something ‘amazing’ to you. No, I’m not doubting God’s power. If it is in His will, then yes he will strike you blind and kick you in the butt, but you shouldn’t be sitting idle till then. Yes, Paul was struck blind; the power of God was so evident in his life, thus he was justified to preach with fervor and persistence. But then again, no, these were all acts of faith on Paul’s part. Paul was not considered transformed until his faith was at a level that he performed a miracle. At that moment is when God was so pleased with him that he gave him a new name. What I’m trying to say here is not to go trying to strike your enemies blind, but that you need to have acts of faith. God wants to see you do something for him, out of faith, without him needing you to be struck blind. At that point is when God will really fill you up with the Holy Spirit and use you as part of his perfect and pleasing will.

        How many times do I have to say? Failure is not doing something wrong. Failure is missing the opportunity to do something amazing. God wants you to have faith. He wants you to do something amazing for the cause. Be like Paul. Have faith, take initiative, persevere and you can see what God can do with you. Paul was God’s
“Chosen Instrument” (Acts 9:15). What name does God have for you? No matter who you are, where you are, and what you’ve done, I’m so sure that God did not create you to live your lives day in and day out doing absolutely nothing.

        I hope you don’t see it that I put any of your levels of faith into question; I would hate to do that. But, yes, you can argue, you don’t need to do works to believe in God, or to get into heaven. But I argue on pretense of James 2:14-26; if you have faith, where are your works? I’m sorry to say, maybe you think you have faith, but maybe your works say otherwise.

        I write this for encouragement. God can do so much with one man. The planet was changed from the actions of Jesus Christ, Paul, Silas, Luke, the Apostles, all just men. Men with sandals on their feet and not a clue in the world how much their lives would change the world (excluding the first dude). Today I call upon you to be a man or woman with nothing but a passion in their hearts to do something amazing for God. No longer can we sit and watch the others like Paul do all the dirty work. Paul was a hero of the faith. What have you contributed to the faith?

excuses...

2006-01-16T01:59:00.000-05:00

        Kay good… no one reads this anymore so I can finally talk without censorship. Not censorship that I swear… because I don’t really tend to swear much at all… But basically, having to dim things down, or watch what I say because it’s offensive to some people... I feel I haven’t “unleashed the fury” as some would call it, for a while now. I don’t think I’m in the mood right now to write a full fledge angry at society post, but I’ll blurt out a few things just to make me feel better.

        I’m tired of excuses… how many people say that already, but really, sometimes excuses get on my nerve. Fine, a valid ‘pardon’ from something is fair, but excuses… like… c’mon. Sometimes it can get hard to part from these harsh realities, but people who turn something down because their heart was never fully into it from the start, or even just prior to the situation, your excuses are worth nothing. Fine, something that happened helped you make a decision that you were going to end up doing eventually. I hate it when people expect things to go perfectly well and when it doesn’t they jump off the car and complain about their scrapes n bruises.

        This isn’t geared towards anyone specifically… it’s a cumulation of things that have been going on, much so with my old youth group back home. Although I feel extremely distant and severed off, they’re family. Hearing so much of the pains going on back home really pains me. Seeing the brothers and sisters whom I was raised with just quitting the race, just sucks. Yeh, it hurts and I’ll admit it, but I gotta keep running my race, if anything with more incentive. I have a whole mission field here waiting, and it’s time to learn from others mistakes and do something for God today.

        I really just don’t understand sometimes, I’ve been through the same situations, maybe not exactly the same, but I’ve felt many of the pains the world can throw at me. Although I say this and it just leaves a WIDE open door for God to test my faith, then bring it. If that’s how much it’ll really take to humble me down to the level of those whom I see. I’m not trying to be cocky or anything, I just can’t stand it when others try and “walk” the race. Too many times do you people just give up when you see those who are actually running, race over the horizon. Stop seeing this whole thing as a battle or competition. I don’t claim to be doing well, because I know how great others are doing. But, enough is enough. I talked about apostles and disciples. Being an apostle doesn’t distinguish the runners and the walkers. It just separates the leaders and followers. But you gotta be in the race.

        I really just pray that God can help these people out. I’ve tried and prayed so much for them. The countless suggestions from experience and offers to help. If you’re hurting, seek help from someone. If you’re lost, stop and ask for directions. If you’re unable to walk, get someone to carry you along. No no no no no more excuses. Run the race. Run it with Perseverance. Finish strong. No giving up, no giving it. This is the cry of the persevered heart. No more letdowns.

make me...

2006-01-10T02:18:00.000-05:00

        Lord, it seems as if I have reached a dead end in my life now. I don’t know where to go. It’s not that it’s a dead-end… it’s more like I lead myself into a four sided confinement. I remember a long long time ago, when I was very much so a baby Christian, I remember just praying for someone, a sort of prophetic prayer for them, and reminding them: When we feel trapped, and the walls are closing in around us, we always have a way out. And that’s upwards. God is there to help us out. But I still feel trapped.

        Lord, I trust you. I guess it feels like a humungo maze. I’m lost and it feels like I’ve been running this maze for so long now. But I know you’re up there. And I trust you. Not because I know you see me on a different level. Not that you’re up there and you can see my path out. I trust you because you’ve lead me out of situations like this before. I trust you because I know it’s in your character to be there for me. Because I know you love me and I’ll embrace that. But I still feel lost.

        Lord, I want to be all I can for you. Over dinner I was talking about life in general, and mentioned how short life is. We’re here, we die and we’re gone. In this short time I have, I want to do something great… I’m not willing to take the risk of doing something that I’ll look on in shame for the rest of eternity. I want to regret nothing, give it my all, run the race with deep perseverance and never give in. I want to be more than everyone thought me out to be. But I always cut you short.

        Lord, I want to leave a legacy. When I die, I want people to see, to see how great you are. How great you were in my life. No, I couldn’t care less for the title, I’ll be dead anyways. But I want to leave something for people to benchmark. Maybe I’ll be their role model, their mentor, or guide. Hopefully people will use what I left, and surpass it. I want to leave something behind that was worth the pains and struggles of today. But I find it hard to even see myself as a good Christian sometimes.

        Lord… It’s not you… definitely not, it wouldn’t be. It’s me, I cut you short, I underestimate your ability, and I ignore your advice for my life. Lord, make me an apostle. I want to show you, I can overcome the dead ends, I can find me way through the maze, I can run the race of perseverance and I most definitely will leave a legacy of you behind when I’m gone. I proclaim it now, none of this is for me, this is for You. I owe you too much to let up now. Lord, all I have is from you. Make me so that all I have to offer to others is you.

Lord, make me more.

institutionalized

2006-01-09T10:40:00.000-05:00

        Well, finally back. Please excuse me for anything that doesn’t make sense… I haven’t written for a while and it’s pretty early right now. I’ve been back in classes for a week now, (those of you starting today, feel blessed) but I guess I’ve been doing some thinking and I feel utterly “trapped” in ways. I’m back in my educational institution of choice, here to bring my GPA back up such that I don’t get kicked out of my program. Sometimes the hardest part of doing all this is really not knowing where I’m headed in the future. To have goals not exactly in line with what I’m doing now really has its toll on my original goals. I’ve really adopted a set of new goals (hopefully temporarily) just because I need to change my focuses right now to stay institutionalized.

        I’m no expert on the topic of institutions… or on many things for that matter, but I just find it interesting… or rather weird how society developed so much in such a short period. It was only during my grandpa’s time when everyone had a “trade” profession, taught by a parent or by a mentor of sorts. What happened to those days? I wouldn’t say it’s the cause but through things like school, where the ‘elite’ of society only survive, we’re creating larger and larger gaps between the poor and the rich. Even for myself I find myself gaining an awful sense of pride over some other people, who may not be in as prestigious a program, or university.

        I’m not quite too sure where I’m going with this all, but I guess the reason I feel somewhat trapped is that I always saw myself as some sort of ‘free spirit’. I feel as if my life is getting taken away by school. Yes, of course I love it here, the people I meet and the times I have, and I’m not even too sure where I’d be if not for school. In general I hate the whole institutionalized society. I hate it because I know that it is killing me to live in four month sections, living and working to attain some numbers that are supposed to tell me who I am. Am I worthy to graduate? Do I have what it takes to live in the business world? Am I more than ‘the rest of society’? All these questions… and they supposedly have simple answers: numbers. Two digits numbers that tell me who I am. It just hurts to live for that. If I had a choice, of course I’d go for something else, but I’m here. This is society today, and it’d all be in vain to try and bring back the old times. Times of a simpler life, without all the hate, all the crime, all the killing, all the attitude. Oh, how sweet it would be to get away from all this attitude people have adopted these days.

        I REALLY don’t know where I’m going with this whole thing… I guess I wanted to mention the institutionalization of the church as well. I find that the church tends to be one of the last things to jump onto societal bandwagons, I guess because they are so strong to hold traditions, but in a sense, I guess you can consider the church as some sort of measure of society then. The church itself has become an institution now. We have titles, designations and requirements for the church now. I’m not saying that the church is wrong for this, to want pastors who have their masters of divinity, of course you’ll find better picks out of the litter when made exclusive, but really, I’m tired of living for these titles and reputations. Yes, it’s probably nearly impossible to find many churches that have committees that leave everything “open for God”. We need to have a say, we need to use our logic, our discernment and our judgment. But since when have we been logical, been good at discerning, or been righteous with our judgments. Yes… it’s important, and I guess it was inevitable, or else we’d keep hearing about homosexual pedophiliac pastors and priests. Sigh. Well now I really don’t know where I’m going with this. Downfall of society, veil of distortion put over our eyes and the reluctance to think twice about all that we’re living for… something like that I suppose.

        I think it’s somewhat futile to be talking about this anyways. I don’t believe that God has put me here to bring back the ‘old ways’. I think that in itself is futile. But I’m here now, so what can I do? That’s my question now I suppose. Something I learned over the weekend, I think over the radio, but, the term apostle means ‘to be sent’ in translation. I’m not 100% sure but I think I remember hearing that the translation of disciple means ‘to follow’… I suppose that makes sense. For anyone reading this seeking some spiritual food you guys can chew on (I’m surprised you’re actually reading my blog in the first place :p… but thanks) but the question is. When will you, or when have you made the transition from disciple to apostle. Yes, we are all called to be disciples. Jesus had thousands upon thousands of disciples, but don’t be confused, he only had twelve apostles. He only ‘sent out’ those twelve to change nations. Now, are you ready to make the transition?

Fresh Start

2006-01-01T18:31:00.000-05:00

        Well, it’s now officially a new year. Once again a new set of 365 days. A new set of time. Time for change, for growth and for broken promises.

        Each year, gyms across the country hit an all time high of memberships during the start of the year. By about march they hit a scarcity of attending members. Why? Broken promises. Yes, with the new year comes practically new anything. New resolutions? New goals? New ______? Fill in the blank with what you’re hooked up on this time of year. Something I ask myself is why people over and over keep applying for these year long gym memberships, only to go for the first three months and get lazy for the remaining 9 months of membership. And it’s not like they realize their mistakes after one year, year and year again you’ll find the same people applying for the same year-long gym memberships and stopping after three months.

        Pondering this paradox I came to one final answer. Why? Because maybe this time is different. Maybe… maybe not. Although most of the time we fall under the category of “maybe not”, at least we gave it a try. There’s a saying that goes, “for good men to go bad, they need only do nothing at all.” Picking up the attitude of “there’s no point in trying because I know I won’t accomplish my goal” is worse than trying and failing over and over. Although you may think you’re being logical by “saving time” or “saving money”, you’ll end up missing out on a simple lesson: Perseverance. 3Not only so, but we[a] also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. Romans 5:3-5 (NIV)

        So why perseverance? Why should we keep trying to run faster than Donovan Bailey, or swim faster than Ian Thorpe. Why should we keep trying to jump over the hurdle we trip over every time, why do we even try opening a locked door without a key. Why should we fight against 135,000 when we only have 300, why should we blow our trumpets at a brick wall. Why? Because the lord leads us under his perfect and pleasing will. Maybe it seems futile that we should keep trying at something we never seem to be able to get right, but if we don’t try at all, we have no chance at all. Something will never happen without attempting.

        It doesn’t matter how unlikely something may seem to you. Even if you see a small 0.001% chance, guess what God sees. God sees a choice. A choice between whether what happens is in His will or not. No slim chance is too small, nor certainty to great for Him to change what you think will happen. He who imagined the sun and gives source to its light, he who placed the stars in the sky and he who tells lightning bolts where to strike (ref, indescribable – Tomlin), yet you still doubt in his power to change who you are.

        This being said, why join the gym if you know you’re going to just be paying for nothing once you stop going a fourth of the way in. Why give God another chance if you think He’s been holding out on you all this time. Why? Because a “maybe” is definitely better than a “never”. Give it a chance, I guarantee, you’ll be much closer to success than you might think.

        Happy new years guys, I hope this is one where you can all grow and see things in a better light than you have before. This being said… I’ve picked up a lot of fat from holiday eating… maybe I should look into these gym memberships =). God bless.

abandoned and delivered

2005-12-24T12:59:00.002-05:00

Alright, for once I shall post a pretty short article. I’m going to share a story. This is a story about a donkey in a well.

One day, a donkey fell into an old well shaft. The village that this donkey belonged to weighed the effort of rescuing the donkey versus its value to them and decided to just bury him in the abandoned shaft. The villagers started shoveling dirt down into the shaft, but whenever the dirt fell down and hit the donkey, he just shook the dirt off his back and stomped it onto the ground. With each shovel-full of dirt the donkey was able to get lifted towards his exit. Eventually, he reached the top and walked out of his would-be grave. His would-be killers thought they would bury him but actually delivered him.

Are you getting buried these days?

Merry Christmas guys.

Me? lie? never.

2005-12-15T02:27:00.000-05:00

I'm living for this cause
I lay down my life
Into Your hands
I'm living for the truth
The hope of the world
In You I'll stand
'Cause all I want is You
    (ref. Hillsongs – For This Cause)

        Sorry, I won’t be putting up this song to play, but really just look at the lyrics. No better way I could have put that. I think I could write a couple essay on just those seven lines… sooo here I go!... No, just kidding =). But really, those lyrics hold so much value in them. Of course we reach one of the “controversies” of some worship songs. Should we really sing them? Because sometimes we just realize… we can’t stick by the words we say. I was asked this by a friend over the summer, and the answer I gave? Yes. We should sing these songs and we should sing them with all our heart, mind and soul. But won’t we have a full congregation of lying, sometimes off-pitch singers? How can we even call that worship? Regardless of whether it’s worship or not, how many times have we lied to God then? We lie to him every time we procrastinate, every time we say that he’s number one in our lives, every time we act as we shouldn’t, every time we just “don’t feel like going to church”, every time we love with our words but hate people with our actions, every time we’re on the altar and commit our lives to him, time and time again. We’re liars. We lie. The ironic part is that we believe he knows everything and yet we lie to him, maybe thinking that he won’t catch us when we break that promise.

        So finally we can draw some conclusions. As Christians we don’t just lie as we sing songs about things we’ll never commit to, we’re also great actors. We act as if we’re all spiritual and tight with God on Sunday, but on Monday its back to our normal selves. Christians aren’t better people. We’re just better liars and better actors.

        Now, seeing by the fact that I haven’t been struck by lightning yet… (looks up), I think God understands where I’m going with this. No, it wasn’t all sarcasm, it’s true. I accept it. I’m a liar and a faker, I’ve said things and I’ve acted ways that don’t live up in my everyday life. But we all have. And how can we even talk about “holy living” if that’s the case? Simple. It’s called the heart. The heart is mentioned in the bible just about as many times as the words “love” and “humble” are. Why? Because God cares about your heart. He wants to know what’s going on inside. Are you singing because the person beside you is singing? Are you clapping your hands because you don’t want to be the only one not doing it? Are you leading this worship song just because you thought it’d get the crowd going? Hopefully not. Because God looks to your heart. He doesn’t care much what you do on your outside, it’s what’s inside that counts (Intel… anyone?). What are your motives, your reasons, your incentives behind saying “I love you Lord, and I Lift my voice”, your motives behind giving that girl help with math, your reasons behind leading that cell group.

        I ask you to think now, because God knows now. How sad will it be on the day that you meet God face to face and you're asked to give an account of your life and he says that you did nothing to exemplify Him on earth. Yes, maybe you have led cell groups for all your high school life, maybe you were worship leader, maybe you are a pastor. God doesn’t care if you have your Masters of Divinity (MDiv, “thanks Aaron”), or if you’ve mastered the art of chewing gum while you walk. God cares about what’s driving your life. Is it because you want to love Him? Is it because you desire to follow Him? Is it because you want others to know of the amazing love you’ve received? I would surely hope so.

        Yes, being a Christian makes you a liar (still waiting for the lightning…), but God looks for why you’re saying such things. I’m so thankful that I follow a God with such great mercy. Although he knows we’ll say things with our lips, and turn and repudiate those things with our actions, He said that he’d love us all the same. I probably could go on about how God is merciful and how he gives us such an abundance of grace, but summed up, don’t get yourself down the next time you can’t stick to the promises you’ve made, just give it your all and God will be pleased with your efforts. He wants to see your heart, a heart pumping for Him. Where every beat of it pushes a desire to do something radical and unheard of, just so you can let everyone know: My God loves me… and I love him back.

        All this being said; I’m living for your cause. I’m laying down my life into your hands. I’m living for your truth. You are the hope of the world, and in you alone I stand. Because, my Lord, you are all I desire. Amen.

Extra: I would like to say thank you to Melissa. What you’ve written in your blog/livejournal/whateveryoucallit has inspired me in such an amazing and unexplainable way. Thank you for sharing the simplest of thoughts you had just because you felt the need to write it down. May God bless you and guide you on all your endeavors and on your journey to being the revolutionist God wants you to be. I encourage anyone else to go read her page (linked on the side). Just look for the “rant”.

feeling: broken

2005-12-07T23:43:00.000-05:00

Currently my brain has been strenuously overused from a day-long mixture of studying papers and staring at my laptop’s screen. It’s hard to think of things to say but I’m going to give it a try anyways. My room is extremely cold and my left eye is still a bit swollen from getting hit in the face during football yesterday (but was so worth it). I also have a limp right now because I strained one of my legs while footballing. My bed is looking so warm and comforting after a long day like this. I think that the only thing that’s keeping me going right now is my vanilla coke that I’ve been sipping at for the past hour. Once again I’m here typing out my thoughts/feelings/beliefs instead of cramming in more information for my management final tomorrow. I’m feeling pretty much dead right now. Body tired, brain hazy and no will power at the moment, sorta broken down and in the dirt.

No, I’m not building this up to be a depressing blog, but going to share a bit about what I read in my book today. Right now I’m reading “Next Door Savior” by Max Lucado. He’s an amazing writer whom I wish I could write as well as sometime in the future. Reading the most recent chapter in this book it questioned me to think about Christ’s life. Of course I know about His life, what He’s been through, the pain, the suffering, the teaching, the losses, the gains, the pains, the battles won, and the feeling of helplessness. Mr. Lucado asks “why?” Why do we have heaven’s perfect son enduring the earth’s toughest pains? Natural reaction for Christians would be to say that we are saved because of his suffering on the Cross, for the up-taking of our sins and for our cleansing. He was the sacrificial lamb, the one of atonement. Our scapegoat. Yes, Lord we already have so much to be thankful for, but there’s still more. Everything Christ went through; the betrayal, the disappointment, the persecution, temptations, pains, losses, ridicule, hate, abandonment, fear, scorning, weeping, uncertainty, brokenness, dirtiness, depression, disease, and being spat on. Christ has seen it, felt it, experienced it. Even death He has experienced. And for what? Not only to save our souls in the end, but to save us today too. Today in our pains, our sufferings and our troubles. Christ has been there. It’s already so much that a God would become man and die the cruelest, most degrading death possible, but to go feel every single pain we’ve ever felt, is just, beyond words I can think of. For me, my uncertainty, my physical pains, my desire to call it a day and sleep my troubles away; Christ has been there. He held fear for the future, He experienced the worst physical pains, He wished he could “call it a day” but kept on pushing. "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will." Matthew 26:39 (NIV).

And for you, the suffering, the pains and the losses you feel. The depression, the loneliness and the weeping we all have. Christ has been there. He’s been there and he overcame. He overcame to show us: There is no summit to high, nor depth too low, that our Jesus Christ hasn’t overcome such that he could help you overcome your highs and your lows. “18Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” Hebrews 2:18 (NIV). Try replacing the word “tempted” with whatever you feel is holding you down right now. Christ was ridiculed, so he can help me when I am ridiculed. Christ was betrayed, so he can help me when I am betrayed. Christ was broken, so he can help me when I am broken. I am thankful for a loving God. A God so loving, that when I turn to Him for help, he runs to me to help. Why? Because he knows how I feel. He’s been there. He overcame death; just so I could overcome my own life. Amen to that, Lord. Thank you.

Revolution ~

2005-12-03T04:13:00.000-05:00

      This post is to be somewhat of a continuation of something my friend, Aaron, wrote about. If you have a lot of time… I suggest you to go read his post “Christian? Am I Worthy?” it’ll be a good starter to this. If not, just read it when you have time or not at all… up to you I suppose. Lol.

      It pains me so much to think about the world and where we are headed. I’m not personally sure whether you’ll all believe me, but a while ago, religion played a significant role in every single person’s life. At the least, whether a person was accepting of Christianity or not he had some basis of knowledge about who God was, and the story of Christ’s life. In today’s day and age it seems that the holy name of Jesus Christ is used more as a curse word than as something sacred. Now it just pains me to hear MY Lord and saviour’s name used in that way. Not only is it just used that way, it’s joined with the other favorite words which society decided to pick up. And oh, it doesn’t stop there. The most painful thing is that people picked up the habit of putting everybody’s favourite F word INBETWEEN His name, as if it was his middle name. Now I’m not writing to talk about my pet peeves of the lingo of those around me, because there really are bigger things out there. But just through this example, it’s easy to see that society and religious society really has gone downhill, more rather, off a cliff.

      Now, my beef today isn’t with general society. And when I say that I mean those who are in the dark, or non-Christians, for it is written “12For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? 13But those who are outside, God judges.” 1 Corinthians 5:12-13 (NASB). So, my beef is with you “Christians”. You guys who call yourselves Christians, but you’re still out, getting drunk, getting high, picking up and sleeping with girls/guys. Why I write is to comment on what I’m sure everyone, even outsiders, have noticed with Christians. So many of us are no different than the world. We believe that we have a secured future in heaven, but I say, don’t be so confident about that. No, I’m not blaspheming but I tell you that to truly accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and saviour, you’re at the same time accepting his teachings and his morals. Now if you don’t know Christ’s teachings or morals then you have some work to do, but if you do know it, why don’t you follow it? No, I’m not expecting anyone to be perfect, and I’m nowhere near it myself. But as a Christian we should be SOMEHOW different from the rest of the world. There has to be something different in our lives other than our Sunday morning schedule. A Christian should show change in his life, carry some sort of story of how Christ has made him a better person, or changed his life, and it should never stop. As a Christian you’re expected to change, there, I said it. You’re expected to lose the bad and take in the good, you’re expected to see change in your own life and see change happening in others who are real Christians. If you call yourself a Christian and others can’t see some sort of way in which you differ from the people who are not, then you really need to think if you are worthy to be called a Christian.

      Now I’ll tell you how to defeat this disease of being a “Sunday Christian”. At a point in their lives, every Christian will face this decision which will be the turning point in their spiritual walk. I believe it’s easy to say that all Christians have a desire to be “good” in their heart, whether they’ve been Christians for 5 weeks or 5 years. Now when I say “good” I mean following the guidelines of your own religion and faith. Now as Christians face this desire to be good in their hearts, they also feel an opposite force in them. One that tells them, being good is no fun, that getting high is much more fun, that it’s OK to sleep around a bit, that getting drunk is fine because it doesn’t “harm me”, that it’s just a phase and they have their whole lives to become good. This pessimistic voice which seems to follow us wherever we go is the other choice we have. Now this turning point I spoke of in each Christian’s heart follows that they have to choose between following the goodness they have in their heart or to submit to the voice and carry on with their lives as if nothing ever happened.

      The turning point is one similar to the choice of becoming a Christian. It’s the choice of becoming a good Christian. Of being a man or woman of God, to give your all, to lay it all down, to submit your life, to sacrifice yourself, to be the hands and feet of God. I call this the call for revolutionists. Those who are unable to live up to this call are people who are destroying the plans God had for them. Many of us become Christians when we decide to accept Jesus as our Lord and savior one day at an alter call, and those who are true continue to grow as a Christian until they hit a certain plateau. This plateau is something many people reach, and where most turn back. The way to get beyond this plateau and continue on with God is made by a simple decision. This decision is a pivot point in your life, the one moment in time when you finally decide to give it ALL up for God and be a real man of God, a real follower, a real Christian. I tell people that there aren’t many Christians who show ‘gradual’ growth into a strong Christian. Strong Christians are built up by those people who one day make the decision to give it their all and stick by it. So I’m tired of hearing the excuses from you people. It’s pointless to say that “I need to get some things straightened out first” or “There are some things I need to take care of first and then, I’ll get involved with God.” Because that is what God is there for in the first place. If he isn’t there to make your life better, to take up your burdens then what are you believing in?

      Once again, looking at the world, it’s hard to see much. To see a future, to see a way out, or to see any hope. With so many corrupt, fallen away, and lost it’s easy to see why I call this the call for revolutionists. The world is fading, everyday, every second; this is the cry for revolutionists to change the world, to bring back the reign of God. No more Sunday Christians and no more lip service. These are the times when the world is in need, the times when only those who stand up strong will remain, there’s no time left for waiting around and playing your juvenile games. The world is aching for help, for those who will stand up strong and firm and change their ways. This is the cry for revolutionists. You game?

D-R-I-V-E-N

2005-11-27T02:53:00.000-05:00

“4Look at the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires.” – James 3:4(NASB)

      The premise of what I write today entails driving. I give my condolences to you youngsters who are too young to drive. I must say, you are missing out. Not only the thrills of incessant Toronto traffic jams, weekend drivers and Chinese parking lots, but also the thrill of being in control. Being in control of a multi-tonne piece of metal, wheels and windshield wipers is much more intense than the old initial d races. We can see how we relate this to our lives. Although we’re not furnished with dent-resistant doors and a set of wheels (unfortunately), we share this one same concept: we are able to choose our destinations and the route(s) we take to get there.

      To break this all down and look at it, I’m going to refer to the verse I mentioned at the beginning of this article. The verse here outlines two main concepts that I want to talk about: driving force and direction. Here, it talks about a boat, driven by winds (the driving force), as well as the rudder, which guides the course of the whole boat giving us direction. Now we can relate this to cars, we have our gas pedal (although there’s much, much more at work than just that, just to simplify things), and we have our steering wheel. When we drive our cars we take for granted the amount of power put into both those parts. The gas pedal, requiring not much force will cause this car to accelerate and move it. But not only do we use the main function of our driving force, but also direction, which comes from the steering wheel. Again we use a small amount of power and we can control and alter the direction of our accelerating vehicle. And now, with these two functions, we have an operating vehicle that can take us from point A to B. The simple question, is where is “point B” and “how” are we going to get there. To avoid a waste of time and money (thankfully, gas is getting cheaper), your average driver would take time to find his destination and plan out a route before even starting the car. After a plan is made, we begin our journey to make ends meet and achieving our goals, whatever they may be.

      Now, departing from the confusing analogies which I love to use, I’m going to relate this to our lives, and how we live. I’m sure most of you have picked up on it already, but first things first; I want to talk about our “point B”. What is it that we want, that we desire, place as the priority of ourselves. I’m not only talking about common goals we may share, but more eternal things. Where do you want to go with your life, where do you believe you are being called, what is it that makes you come alive? I ask these to make you think. Have you spent time to think about this? Do you know where you’re headed? Why? There are an infinite number of answers that people can come up with, but for myself as a devoted Christian, I believe in letting God decide my “point B”. A choice given to Him such that I can work for Him in all the ways he destined me to.

      I talked about two parts that build up the functions of a car. And it also relates when we think about our lives. Living our lives to reach point B entails our own driving force, better known as motivation, and also direction. Without either of these two we would experience similar situations as a car that lacks the steering wheel or gas pedal would. Living without motivation or direction can leave us in very dangerous situations. Motivation lacking direction can cause crashes, whether it may be into pedestrians, other cars or brick walls, none are desirable. Direction lacking motivation can be just as distressing, like a bird without wings, aspirations without action, or a cure with no sickness. Useless.

      Living a life where we want to reach point B requires motivation and direction. How we attain these two things is another story in itself as well. For a car, we need to constantly fill up our gas tanks, and use maps to guide our ventures. So in your life, what is your gas station? And what is your map? Where do your fill yourself up, and what with? A car running on premium will maintain much better than one on regular. This brings up our need for our constant relationship with God. Our need to come to him, to allow him to fill us up and satisfy our appetite, “26 The laborer's appetite works for him; his hunger drives him on.” - Proverbs 16:26(NIV). And when we think about the maps we have in our lives, what are we using to guide and direct ourselves, whether it may be people, media, God or other, how would you rate the quality of your map?

      As confusing as I may have made a simple topic, I’m avoiding giving all the answers. For this I leave it to you, to think, reflect and contemplate on the motivation and direction in your life. What is it that motivates you? That guides you? Think about what has given you motivation and direction in the past, what motivates and guides you now and what you want to motivate and direct you in the future. Summed up in 4 words: What Drives Your Life?

      Extra: I would like to add an irrelevant part to this article, but promoting my friend, Aaron’s xanga, where he too writes about his thoughts and beliefs. Give it a read if you have time, the link to his page is on the right side. And since I’m not a member of xanga and unable to post comments, keep up the faith bro. Keep letting the Holy Spirit work through you and move into those around you. Peace out, thanks for reading.

Daron Meeto

2005-11-22T16:43:00.000-05:00

      Sometimes I find it hard to escape the fact that I'm still a kid at heart when it comes to these things, but I can find no greater joy than when I’m able to just joke around with those closest to me. Above is a drawing I did on a sticky-note, and for those of you still clueless right now, Daron Meeto is a mixture of me and one of my best friends. (Derek Ma + Aaron Szeto = Daron Meeto - "The Cool by day and Superhero by night"). Yup... young and stupid we still are but the friendship I have with him is one of the rarest in the world. I think myself blessed, and thank God everyday, when I look onto the friends and people I confide and take refuge in. On a whole, I suppose my whole life has been a never-ceasing blessing since that day a couple years ago I chose to give my life to God.

      I had the chance this past weekend to finally sit down with Aaron and just talk over some hot bbt. The weirdest part is that even for me to think back on our conversation, it must be one of the least expected talks between two eighteen year old guys that could happen. Before I open up into it, I suppose that shedding a little light onto history is required. So, Aaron and I have been friends for only about a year or so now, but he’s been one of the people I’ve been able to talk to when I need advice, have an urge to blurt something out or just need someone to unload on. Although I know quite a few people have friends like that, Aaron and I differ a bit, where both of us come from the same background. Both of us have a past that were so directionless and crooked that it just broke us down and led us to God. Both of us became Christian a while back and have been able to help each other out, overcoming our past and becoming conquerors of our future. Both of us pretty much share the same past, and very likely will share the same future. Both of us have received a calling from God into Youth Ministry, and don’t even second guess that we’ll be working together to achieve a common goal. Aaron and I have both been raised as non-compromising, give-it-all-up, thinking-of-eternity Christians. This is something I find closest with him in, because I can safely say that there are not many other Men of God that are able to take the calling God has given them and live it without compromise.

      Back to our conversation, we talked about where society was headed. The failure to live up to a moral code for all people has become a daily thought and nothing more. It seems that people everywhere are loosing a sense of integrity and don’t give a second thought about it. We extended this even further into saying that it’s hard to believe that as Christians, we’re following the ‘Risen Lord’ when so many of our brothers and sisters don’t even differ from those who are “without God”. The carnal Christian lifestyle (a Christian who shows no difference with a person who is not of God) is becoming ever-increasingly popular and it is a saddening thing that we, the chosen ones, cannot even live up to a standard which we originally created. We as Christians have been too easy-going with our brothers and sisters that have now changed their focus of life onto living “on one side of the line”. I’m sick and tired of people trying to define what is good and bad. My brothers and sisters, if you truly care for your life as a Christian, please understand that the life we are living is not one of living on the “good” side. It is NOT about getting AS CLOSE to this “line” we have created between good and bad as we can. As a Christian you are called to live as GOOD as you can. This, my friends, means that we are asked to live as far away from a line as we can. Living a Christian life is NOT living a life that is ‘good’, it is living a life that is as good as possible. So many times we get caught up in wondering why God isn’t able to perform miracles any more. Even for myself I sometimes doubt in God’s power on this world because we’ve become a society that sees him as a counselor, nothing more than someone we turn to when we need help, when we need something and when we feel we are lacking. If God really is ruler and king of your life then he is the one you turn to ALWAYS. He is there for your praise, your worship, your love and your sorrows. Everything you have, turn to God and renew, for our lives were never ours to begin with.

      Aaron and I worry about our future, because it’s a pain to think about what we’re going to do as youth pastors when the carnal Christian lifestyle has become one that is a norm for all. This is why God is calling us now, all of us, to reverse the effects of the downfall of society and Christians. No longer can we provide a watered down religion or else we’ll keep on producing watered down Christians with watered down faith. No longer can we sit idle and just watch others stand up and fight alone. It’s time for change, time for God to reign. Now, is the time for revolution.