Seeking God? Or the Gifts of God?

December 20, 2013

Most of us have heard the story of the Feeding of the 5000 – when Jesus fed a multitude of more than 5000 people with simply 5 loaves and 2 pieces of fish. It’s probably one of the most well-known stories in the Bible. And why not? It is great miracle where everyone goes home satisfied and thinking Jesus is great.

But somehow, there’s a certain verse in the story that pierces my heart every time I read it.

"Jesus answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.” John 6:26-27

I can’t help but feel that many of us are like the crowd of people that followed Jesus. Sure they were following Jesus (which is a good thing to do) but the question is: why were they following Him? What were they seeking? God, or the gifts of God?

A Note of Encouragement

December 13, 2013

No one wants to admit it. You don’t want to admit it. I don’t want to admit it. No one wants to admit. But it’s a fact of life and we all must face it. And that fact is this…WE ALL GET DISCOURAGED.

We feel guilty admitting it but we shouldn’t. It doesn't mean that we don’t love God or the service we’re doing. It just means that we’re human and that we sometimes get tired.

I know you are happy to serve God at church, at a non-profit, in your home, in your high-powered career, or in the line at Starbucks. I know that you don’t do it because it’s the cool thing to do or because a celebrity told you to. I know that you do it because you have experienced His “unfailing love… [and] great compassion” (Psalm 51:1) and want to demonstrate this love and compassion to others.

I know you do all these things for the glory of God, and that the opinion of others doesn't matter. But I also know that you – like me – are human and that sometimes you get discouraged. Our strength and abilities may come from God, but that doesn't mean we don’t at times need some simple encouragement from our fellow man.

“Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, but a good word makes it glad.” (Proverbs 12:25)

So here is my good word. Listen carefully…WHAT YOU DO MAKES A DIFFERENCE!

The ReBirthday Reward (or is it a gift?)

December 6, 2013

We recently asked our college Sunday school class where they think they would go if they died today and why. All of them, 100%, said they would go to hell because they're not worthy of heaven.

There's something very wrong here that made me want to fire myself from any kind of church teaching that I've done in the past 10 years. I shared a discussion of this incident in a post on my blog. Thousands of views later, it seems clear that there's a real issue here.

It’s been said that half-truths are more dangerous than lies...and we've been victims of a terrible half-truth, "We are not worthy of salvation." But there’s gotta be more to the story.

The Mystery of God's Love

November 22, 2013

"What’s God’s will for my life?" That’s gotta be the #1 question people want answered. But in order for us to decipher God’s INDIVIDUAL will for our lives, we must first discover God’s GENERAL will for us – His overarching desire God for all His children.

The Bible mentions many components of this general will of God (love your enemies, honor your parents, in everything give thanks, etc.) but I would like to share about just one for today – based on two verses from Scripture:

[God] “desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:4)

“And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” (John 17:3)

Reflections at the Pond

November 8, 2013

At a beautiful site in the mountains, I sat at a pond meditating on the beauty of God’s creation as revealed in the majestic mountain, the trees, the farmland, and the farming animals. As I looked in the pond I saw a beautiful reflection of the tall trees and the mountain on the surface of the water. It was a splendid view of God’s creation reflected on the still water of the pond.

Suddenly, a wind blew on the surface of the water and the pond became wavy. The beautiful picture of the mountain and the trees became distorted and unclear as if it was no more there. After a while, the wind stopped, and the water became still again, and the beautiful picture of the trees and mountain appeared again reflected in a splendid view in the pond.

I meditated on this event and thought of what happens in our personal life. When we are still and at peace, and our hearts are pure, the image of God is reflected in our life and we can see God “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8). Also, others can see God reflected in our life: “So that I live, not I but Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20).

"I Know the Plans I Have for You"

November 1, 2013

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for success and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11

The other day, I was reading the Bible when I came across this verse. And it made me pause. There was something about these words that caught my attention. God says that He has a plan for us. And not just any plan, but one that will give us a future full of hope and success.

Every human being wants this future. We work and toil throughout our lives so that we can have a good future. We want to be successful, to have money, nice clothes, a house, a car, and a family. We dream of living happily ever after.

But easier said than done! Life doesn’t always cooperate. It fills our path with trials and challenges. During times of trouble, the future seems so distant and we feel frustrated. We don’t understand what is happening, and why life has to be so hard. All we want is to have a happy future, but right now, it almost seems impossible.

Doesn't it?

"Here We Are Now, Entertain Us"

September 20, 2013

"Here we are now, entertain us."

That’s a line from a hit song by one of the earliest “grunge bands” of the 1990s – Nirvana, led by Kurt Cobain. That one line is a good summary of our culture today. We are obsessed with being entertained.

Tell me, what is the focus of our entertainment? Is it anything more than just an expression of our selfishness? Let’s be honest – our entertainment has nothing to do with producing something useful or of benefit to others. The goal is to consume something for the sake of pleasure. Our lives are like being in a theme park, just looking for the next adrenaline rush to make us feel alive.

As a student, I have found that even our friendships are centered around who is the most entertaining. Don’t get me wrong – being funny and having a sense of humor is a gift from God and not something to apologize for. God loves funny and He loves fun, but not if it comes at a price.

How’s the old saying go? “He who makes you laugh, laughs at you. But he who makes you cry, cries with you.”

The Swan, the Ducks and the Pond

September 13, 2013

One day I sat at the pond and saw a beautiful, elegant, pure white swan sailing in a majestic way on the still water of a pond. She came in my direction and I was amazed at her beauty, elegance, and splendor. She didn't make any noise but kept on sailing swiftly in the pond.

Suddenly, a batch of ducks invaded the pond. I'm not sure if they were fighting each other or what, but they were quacking loudly and making so much noise. They quickly disrupted the calmness and serenity of the quiet pond. The swan did not mix with them; she passed them and went on her way.

After a while, the ducks came out of the pond and started eating the grass around the pond. The swan did not get out with them but kept sailing in the pond in her majestic way. She never mixed with the ducks. Later on, a nice lady brought food to the swan. The lady started calling her to come and gave her food to eat. She talked to her and the swan was happy to be in her company. After she was fed, the swan went back peacefully on her way. She lived alone in the midst of the noisy ducks.

Lessons from a Junkyard

September 6, 2013

I just bought a new car. Exciting, huh? Maybe not for you, but if you’d seen the car I’ve been driving around for the past year, trust me, you’d be excited too.

My last car didn’t have a sideview mirror – I mean it used to have one, but not anymore. It also didn’t have air conditioning. And even if it did, I couldn’t have used it because the temperature knob has broken for months. So I couldn’t even try to pretend that the 900 degree temperature in my car during summer was by choice.

I got to the point where I couldn’t have cared less about that car.

I didn’t care if I parked next to rampant shopping carts in the lot or too close for comfort by a pole. I prayed someone would ram into it so I could at least collect insurance on it. At one point, I got an estimate — it cost as much as it was worth to fix it. I never washed it or vacuumed it. What did it matter anyway? It was a piece of junk. Mind you, I’m normally pretty care free, but that car took me to a whole new level.

But everything’s different with the new car. Not even close. I will guard this car with my life. Everything is now the enemy of my new car.

Saving the World One Soul at a Time

August 9, 2013

A man was walking along the beach and suddenly he saw under his feet a small fish thrown out onto the shore by a large wave.

The man had two choices: either to abandon the small fish and leave it to die, or help the small fish get back into the water and live.

He decided to help the small fish get back into the water by pushing it slightly toward the ocean. Suddenly, a big wave came to the shore with a lot of small fish and the small fish went back happily to live in the ocean with other fish.

This incident made the man think about what goes on in his ministry to human souls.

Seeing through GOD'S EYES

August 2, 2013

Have you ever had a moment when you feel so negative about yourself? It's as though you can do nothing right but everything wrong. You are tired with your current situation and are frustrated with yourself.

I have these days, and they aren't fun. For example, I remember feeling like this when I got a bad mark on one of my exams. Why had I done so terribly? How could I be such a failure? Why is there so much wrong with me? God, why is this happening? I hate myself - there is nothing good about me!

The day kept getting worse. After receiving the bad mark, I realized that I had also forgotten to submit a payment for one of my accounts. Great! Now it would be overdue and I would be charged interest. Later on in the day, I acted out rudely with one my friends and hurt their feelings. Then I went home and was miserable to my family. I was angry - more at myself than at anyone else. I felt so bad about myself.

The Gift of Liberty

July 19, 2013

"If the Son sets you free, you shall be free indeed." - Jesus

Recently, I've been thinking about the idea of liberty and what it really means. Growing up in the United States, I didn't realize how rare it is in the world. Oppression was just a history lesson – an exception rather than a rule. But in traveling to different parts of the world for my job (not to mention in turning on the television every day), I've seen that this isn't the case.

Instead, the world attests to countless people whose souls yearn for freedom but can’t find it. You can hear it in their conversations, in their arguments, in their songs, and in their protests and marches. They come from every religious and social background. They sit in smoke-filled coffee shops and large squares either dreaming of or fighting for their freedom.

10 Things You Don’t Know about Fr. Anthony

July 12, 2013

Hello. We're the "New York guys" – as Fr. Anthony often refers to us – who he has been putting up with us for many years. Road trips to random places, showing up to his house unannounced – you name it, we’ve done it. So we figured we'd write this little post of fun facts. We don't have a blog or twitter but we did end up on TV once! (sort of.)

1) HE'S BETTER THAN YOU AT BASKETBALL…A LOT BETTER!

You know how sometimes on a retreat your favorite priest or bishop will play a sport with you to humor you? And you say things "wow, they're so cool!" or "aww" – so you let the score a few points, you Instagram a few pictures and call it a cute bonding day? That’s not how it is with Fr. Anthony.

When he starts shooting around with you and hits 17 straight free throws, he ain't being cute (though he doesn't usually shoot around much due to his belief that you only get a certain amount of makes per day, so don't waste them on warm ups). You quickly go from "aww" to "oh, snap. I ain’t guarding him." He may teach you a thing or two about humility as he hits some contested step back jumpers in your face.

But overall, he's not really trying to bond with you at the moment, he's trying to beat you, by a lot... but, he's usually pretty cool about it. Usually.

Limitless acceptance with a firm foundation

July 5, 2013

On June 25, 2013 the U.S. Supreme Court made two historic decisions on gay marriage. First, it ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional because it denies benefits to same-sex couples. Second, it denied an appeal to a federal court ruling that struck down California’s Proposition 8, which defined marriage as between a man and a woman.

These decisions on gay marriages are causing many heated emotions to surface. There’s some who are joyful, some apathetic and some furiously angry at this defeat. Is this a call to surrender all our unconditional love for others or is this a wake-up call for introspection? I’m not writing to discuss the details of this ruling or to talk about all the intricacies of how someone becomes homosexual. I would like to present an opportunity to you.

The Power of Knowing Your Weakness

June 28, 2013

It seems to me that we all have a natural desire to discover what makes us unique. To discover the strengths God uniquely knit into our DNA fabric…and, most importantly, how to use them … hopefully, for God’s glory. A few months back, I attended a conference done by The Hope Association entitled: “MOMENTUM” with the goal to do just that. Since the conference, people have been talking about how they’ve been inspired by the God-given spiritual talents and gifts revealed to them at this conference.

My story is different. God has always given me a strong awareness of my strengths. In fact, for years now, I have been trying to use them for God’s glory, but failing at it…miserably failing at it!

What I Learned from a Dream

June 21, 2013

I had this dream several years ago. At this point, I can’t even remember when it was. But it was so vivid that it stayed in my memory till this present moment. I thought I’ll share it with others so that we can all learn from it.

I saw in my dream a big cage where an atrocious monster was inside of it. His face was very ugly and he looked agitated. Outside his cage was another ugly creature but dressed in white. The second creature was surrounded by a fence that prevented him from going outside of it. Then I saw a person who came close to the creature who is dressed in white, and when the person came too close, the creature grabbed his arm violently and gave it to the monster.

The monster grabbed the person’s arm and shredded it with his hands and left his arm bleeding and broken in pieces. It was a very ugly picture that made me wake up from the dream.

Then I wondered what the dream meant and what does it represent. This is the interpretation that came to my mind.

With God All Things Are Possible

June 14, 2013

I struggle with anorexia nervosa - an eating disorder characterized by immoderate food restriction and irrational fear of gaining weight, as well as a distorted body self-perception.

Last year, I became very ill because of this. I had reached a deadly weight and was starting to lose my ability to walk due to muscle weakness. I was immediately admitted to the hospital. Just days later, I caught pneumonia. Then my kidneys failed because of dehydration and my heart could not pump adequately to keep me alive. I couldn't breathe due to diaphragm weakness and the pneumonia. I went to the ICU where I was sedated, had a breathing tube inserted, and was started on 24/7 kidney dialysis.

It was bad.

Seeing Christ through His Brethren

May 17, 2013

The day was finally here – the day we’ve been preparing for and praying about for weeks! It was the day of our medical/spiritual outreach event in an impoverished Atlanta community.

The goal was to serve a shelter for abused and homeless teenage mothers and their children – both medically and spiritually. We had volunteers ranging from elementary school kids – ready to sing their hearts out – all the way up to our competent medical team. We prepared a program for the adults, and another one for the kids. We planned various lectures on health nutrition and even dental hygiene. In addition, we had a lecture on how the message of Christ was relevant to us today.

With over 60 volunteers from all ages from a variety of churches involved, we were ready for this day...

...until two unexpected events took place.

A Spirit of Forgiveness

April 26, 2013

At the start of this year's Lenten journey, Fr. Anthony reminded us that it is a journey of forgiveness -- God's forgiving nature towards us and our forgiveness of others. Whenever I think of forgiveness, I imagine a big dramatic scene like the prodigal son running into his father's arms or friends who haven't spoken for decades finally apologizing to each other in their gray years. It's easy to imagine myself being so magnanimous as to take back an errant child or wayward friend. I'm just arrogant enough to picture my dignified acceptance of his or her apology.

But I don't think that's what Christ meant when He asked us to forgive our brothers 490+ times (70 x 7, see Matthew 18:21-22). Scripture warns us not to judge and that the plank is our eye is much larger than the speck in our brothers' eye (see Luke 6:42).

We are so forgiving of our plank. We are so good at finding rational excuses for our sins. When we snap at a coworker, we excuse ourselves because we were tired. When we cross four lanes of traffic to get to our exit, we excuse ourselves because something distracted us. Do we extend the same courtesy when we are snapped at, when someone cuts us off?

Did You Remember to Take Your Medicine?

April 12, 2013

Being sick is the worst! I should know because my immune system is like that of a toddler, and being in arctic Minnesota doesn’t really help. It’s so frustrating and annoying to always be tired. It affects everything you do! Always nauseous, and short of breath – at school, at work, even just hanging out with friends.

So what is the solution? You go to the doctor, get prescribed a medication and get on that ASAP so you can quickly heal and get back to what you’ve been missing out on.

But we don’t always do that, do we? We know we should, but we instead think we can do it on our own. We can defeat the sickness without the meds. Or maybe we start taking the medicine, but then discontinue its use after a few days because we have deemed ourselves to be all better now.

In arrogance/ignorance, we think to ourselves, “The doctor doesn’t know what he’s talking about. I don’t need to take this medicine for two weeks. It’s been two days and I feel just fine.”

Can you relate?