what an interesting coincidence this morning

that Pastor Raymond gave examples quite similar to what I blogged

valentine's day

flowers, chocolates, presents etc
it's everywhere around campus these 2 days
it's really lovely seeing how much people look forward to bringing that smile on their loved ones faces

a thought came to me:

we spend so much time, money and effort in our relationships with people
so if we say that God is our first love and the greatest love ever

why is it that?
- we walk into church with our grim faces
- striding in late sometimes
- mumbling through some songs,
- being reminded through a sermon
- and maybe, stirred to a response
- thinking "well, that feels good"
- and then end of service,
- "thank you God, that was great. I will do better next time"

often I have to ask myself,
has my love towards God dwindled that much that it pales in comparison to my relationships with people?

how much more, or less, is our adoration and affection towards him?

I remember reading it somewhere
"If you do not enjoy spending time and worshipping God while on this earth, what makes you think that you will enjoy doing so for eternity?"

I pray that this valentine's day
we will all be reminded of our perfect Groom - who's very much alive and showering us with love beyond measure

His name is Jesus

Revelation 3:20
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.

saw this on a forum on someone's siggy

"The only necessary thing for evil to triumph is when good men do nothing"

Today's thought:

One of Satan's key strategies to cripple the church of Jesus Christ is to confine the people's worship within the walls of the church

Matthew 7:13-14 (The Message)
Being and Doing

Don't look for shortcuts to God.
The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time.
Don't fall for that stuff, even though crowds of people do.
The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires total attention.

Practicing the Wrong Presence

Ask most charismatic church-goers what the focus of their worship service is and they will invariably say something about the presence of God.

"We just want God to show up."

"We want to make room for God to move."

"It's all about experiencing the presence of God."

It sounds so good, so spiritual, so other-wordly that we don't easily recognize how misguided it is.

Think about it: is there any doubt that God will be present?

First, we know from Psalm 139 that God is omnipresent. But secondly, through the promise Jesus gave in Matthew 18:20, we know that whenever believers gather-- whenever, not just when they sing-- God will be there in a special, more manifest way.

The focus of the Baal-worshippers at Carmel was to get Baal to do something, to act on their behalf. The Baal worshippers danced, chanted, cut themselves, cried out in loud voices, all to coax their god to make his presence felt. The scary thing is, if you take away the whole cutting bit, it sounds like a good revival service!

Contrast that scene to the one that follows with Elijah, the prophet of Yahweh. He simply speaks the word of God. God responds at Carmel with fire. But later, when Elijah is hiding in the cave, God speaks not in dramatic fashion, but with a still, small voice. God is present in both scenes but in very different ways. When we make the focus of our singing and dancing and worship the attempt to "experience God's presence", we fall in the trap of thinking God is present only when we "feel Him". But He is already there.

So, why do we sing and dance? Not to coax God into acting. Not to make ourselves feel His presence. We sing and dance-- and all the other physical activities-- to make ourselves more present to God, to engage God with our whole being. In a sense, the focus of the worship is not on whether God is present, but whether we are.

Are we really present to God? Our minds, our thoughts, our plans, our desires, our fears-- are all those things hidden and withheld from Him, or laid bare before Him? Are we presenting our whole lives to God? In Romans 12:1, Paul writes, "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God-- this is your spiritual act of worship."

The word Paul chose here for "worship" is latreia. In the Greek translation of the Old Testament, that is the word chosen to describe the priestly functions of worship...and it's the word Paul used earlier in his letter describing Jewish Temple worship. Paul is saying that for New Testament believers, our worship is the presenting of our selves before God.

So, the next time you're in a worship service, stop worrying about whether God will show up or not. He will. God is present whether we feel Him or not. The only question that remains is whether we will be present to Him.

Source:http://glennpackiam.typepad.com/

I wrote a note to jon today

"When the tough gets going, remember, God is tougher"

This is a reminder for myself too

《耶稣给你平安》

这世界虽有苦难
主耶稣是避风港湾
他要给你他要给你平安
源源涌流不断
耶稣耶稣给你平安
耶稣给你真正平安
深深在你心里
源源涌流不断
哦 耶稣给你平安

Philippians 4:4-7
Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.