Month: November 2016

I spend a great deal of time in prayer when I prepare for my time of leading worship in my church. There are technical musical issues, equipment concerns, and above everything else, seeking the Holy Spirit’s guidance to select songs that will be sensitive to the Pastor’s message and uplifting to the congregation.

This past worship session was a mighty spiritual struggle.  It began a month earlier as we sought to learn several new songs. Scheduling conflicts with several worship team members led to a last minute rescheduling of rehearsal on Saturday evening, instead of the usual Friday evening. During the rehearsal, it became clear that one of the new songs we intended to perform was not ready. Reluctantly, we decided to substitute another song. The next morning was Sunday and we arrived one hour before service for a final rehearsal. We began with prayer and dedicated the service to the Lord. But as I prayed, I sensed Satan’s attempts to derail our service. Within the next 45 minutes, unusual technical complications such as my vocal microphone completely going dead and sound imbalance of the instruments occurred. There was a potential error in one of song arrangements, previously undetected. Because of all the delays, my voice was insufficiently warmed up. As I sang, I began to experience a sense of nervousness, fearing the music would not come together in time for the service.

I was flustered and knew there was only one thing to do. I stopped the rehearsal and announced, “We need to pray!”. We stopped and prayed two more times during that rehearsal. The technical failures stopped, the songs came off, and God was faithful as He brought us through that battle.

After the service, a dear sister in the Lord came up to me and thanked me for leading worship. I shared with her the spiritual attacks that occurred and recounted how we had to interrupt our rehearsal three times that morning to pray and claim God’s promises. I told her that we were definitely under attack by Satan, for he hates to hear God’s people worship and praise God. We could have focused upon our problems but we chose to focus upon Jesus Christ and His promise that He would never leave us nor forsake us.

Her eyes widened and she slowly replied, “I’m getting chills.”

I was puzzled. “Why?”

She spoke in measured tones, “I grew up in the church but I always thought of Satan as this comical character, with horns, a tail, and a pitchfork. I never took him seriously. As I grew older, I realized that my understanding of him was distorted and wrong. Satan is very real and he attacks us in many different and subtle ways. What you just shared with me is a reminder of this.”

I nodded and thanked her for sharing. I recalled historical essays of the origins of the appearance of the devil. In medieval times, Christians naively thought that depicting Satan as a caricature of a horned creature with a tail and pitchfork would annoy and humiliate him, eventually chasing him away by wounding his pride. Good thought but completely misdirected and wrong.

Satan wants us to think he is an impotent and forlorn creature who exists to make our life annoying. Satan is real and far more dangerous than we can ever imagine. He not only wants to make our life annoying, he wants to destroy our very soul. The Apostle Peter described him as a lion, prowling around and waiting for opportunities to devour us. (1 Peter 5:8)

Thanks be to God that He has already won the victory over Satan through the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ. Satan knows he is defeated and does everything possible to hide and subvert this truth, interfering in our lives, hoping that we will take our eyes off of following Jesus Christ and, instead, focusing upon on our problems.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

Ephesians 6:12 (ESV)

The episode that occurred with the worship team was a sobering reminder to myself and others that life is a continual spiritual war. Satan can use technical glitches and pray upon my insecurities, making me believe the lie that God is not in control. But God is supreme, always in control, and has already defeated him!

Place your trust in Jesus Christ, the Lord of the all creation!

Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.

In my bathrooms, at home and in my office, I keep a bottle of mouthwash. Several times a day, I will rinse my mouth and savor the clean refreshing taste and hopefully prevent any embarrassing episodes with anyone I encounter.

But it was not always that way.

When I was a teenager, my father and I were having a discussion. He suddenly interrupted the dialogue and declared, “Son, your breath smells like a sewer!”

“What?” I exclaimed.

“You really need to watch it! People are going to be disgusted!”

Wow! Thanks a lot, Dad! My father was a dentist so I reluctantly concluded that he knew bad breath when he smelled it. I took his advice and began to brush my teeth after every meal. I also went one step further and used mouthwash as often as I could. After a few months, I asked my father, “Dad, is my breath better?”

He just grunted and said, “Yeah. Keep it up.”

I did. Thanks Dad!

Open rebuke is better than love carefully concealed. Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.

Proverbs 27:5-6 (NKJV)

My father expressed his love to me in a blunt and sometimes hurtful manner. But I knew he loved me and meant it for my own good. Years later, I can look back in grateful reflection for his chastisement.

When a close friend or family member points out one of my many faults, in a loving manner, my first inclination is to bristle and pull back. But sometimes, this is how God speaks to me. After careful and prayerful reflection, more often than not, I find the chastisement is merited and I endeavour to remedy the situation. It is embarrassing and usually painful, but I am always grateful for the opportunity given to me.

Today, my breath doesn’t smell like a sewer..at least I hope it doesn’t! But if I lapse in my oral hygiene and am reminded again, I will be sure to gladly accept the admonition!

Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.

….”Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” The man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.”

Genesis 3:12 (ESV)

Eve gets a bum rap.

Men sometimes point out that it is a woman’s fault that sin entered into mankind. After all, it was Eve who succumbed to the temptation of Satan and first ate the forbidden fruit. She then shared it with Adam who also ate it, sharing in the guilty action. When God questions Adam, he ducks and gives an excuse that throws both God and Eve under the bus. For years, I bought into the notion that Eve was to blame for our fall. But this is not fair nor is it that simple.

Adam’s actions demonstrate the virulence of sin, rupturing a beautiful and perfect marriage, and degenerating into naming and blaming. God created Eve to be Adam’s help mate. Adam and Eve were married; they were of one flesh. His role was to protect and defend her, not blame her and abandon her. This is a sobering reminder to myself.

It is easy for me to slip into old habits, pointing the finger at my wife if things go awry. But all I am doing is pointing the finger at myself. My wife is reflection of me and how well I love and protect her. Like Adam and Eve, If she falls, I fall. If she fails, I fail. The burden is upon me as the head of the household and marriage to uplift, encourage, and strengthen her faith in Jesus Christ.

Protect and defend my wife. I must continue to look to Jesus Christ, the author and perfector of my faith for my guide.

Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.

The recent rains in Southern California are a welcome relief for our drought-stricken land. Many people, including myself, have been praying for rain. But I am also keenly aware that while some rain is welcome, too much rain can also be a disaster.

Back in 2006, the islands of Hawaii experienced an unprecedented 40 days of rain, evoking ominous Biblical comparisons. Numerous businesses were affected. One popular shopping mall, located near my childhood home, had to shut down because of flooding. My sister related an eye-witness account of a friend who was sitting in the movie theater viewing a film when water started rushing in. Thankfully no one was injured but the experience was certainly unnerving. I can only imagine the horror that the movie patrons experienced if they were watching a movie like The Titanic and water began accumulating around their seats!

Life imitates art-sometimes the reality of life breaks into our times of mental escape. Movies, plays, and amusement parks all serve to enable us to experience events that we would probably never wish to truly encounter. Thus, when something occurs, that is reminiscent of a fictional event, it captures and arrests our attention.

When Jesus was resurrected and raised from the dead by God, the Father, it was the single most arresting event in the history of the universe. It was not a fantastic story written by an imaginative playwright. It was not a wishful thinking of dejected disciples. It was not art. It was life. It was a riveting reality, more true than the most incredible story anyone could ever believe.

For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.

Romans 1:20 (ESV)

Life sometimes imitates art. But when we are faced with the true reality of Jesus Christ, our lives should imitate Him. God has created us so that our very being knows this reality. For in Him and through Him we have salvation.

Amen!

Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.

In an interesting advertising move, a restaurant in China attempted to draw in customers by offering a “Pay What You Want” policy. It was an abject failure. Customers paid the equivalent of a few cents for their meals. By the end of the week, the restaurant lost an equivalent of $15,000. Even more disheartening was the fact that after the restaurant ended the promotion, no one returned. Apparently, no one thought the food was even good enough to return. In the opinion of the customers who initially came, the food was only worth the paltry sum that each of them paid.

For food or services, setting a price is not a burdensome task. It is a subjective pricing that most people would be able to agree. But what about naming a price to relieve ourselves of our sins and guilt, what would we pay? For a rude remark to store clerk, five dollars? For a small lie to cover up a mistake, twenty five dollars? What about a major crime like a murder? A thousand dollars? A million? The more one thinks about it, the more ridiculous it becomes.

You were bought with a price; do not become slaves of men.

1 Corinthians 7:23 (ESV)

There is no amount of money that can resolve our sins or relieve our guilt. Only God can pay that price and He did, by dying on the Cross for all of our sins-past, present and future.

Pay whatever you want? For our sins, only Jesus could pay that price. Thanks be to God that He did it for us.

Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.

An employee had to resign his position from the company he had just joined. His mother had serious health issues and she was unable to watch his daughter who had special needs and needed constant supervision. Although he had siblings, they were unwilling to help their own mother. Thus, the responsibility to care for his mother fell upon his shoulders, even though it meant he would not be able to work. He needed the job and he needed help for his daughter but no family member was willing to step up.  As he related to me in exasperation, “Nice guys finish last.”

This sentiment is rooted in the idea that the world is not fair. If one puts the need of others first, the rest of the world will walk all over them, taking advantage of their generosity. The only way to get ahead in this world is to look out for your own needs first. Don’t be a nice guy, be the best guy.

So the last will be first, and the first last.

Matthew 20:16 (ESV)

In God’s Kingdom, Jesus turns these worldly expectations upside down. He came to serve others first. Did people take advantage of Him? No doubt many who came to Him to be healed did not understand His mission but gladly accepted His kindness. Did people attempt to use Him? The pharisees wanted to make him a martyr to appease the Roman government. Did people betray Him? Twelve disciples spent every moment of over three years living and learning from Him. And in the end, He was betrayed by one of them and nearly all of His disciples abandoned Him when He was arrested, tortured, and crucified.

Nice guys finish last. Did Jesus finish last? After being spit upon, scourged and beaten, stripped naked and humiliated before thousands at the Cross, God raised Him from the dead and restored Him to His position in the universe-King of Kings and Lord of Lords! Jesus finished the race for us so that we could gain everlasting life and victory over death.

This does not guarantee that others will never take advantage of us, nor does it mean that we will always be successful in all of our endeavours. But it does guarantee that the moment we die, we will see Him first, the author and finisher of our faith! In this life, we will have tribulation and trials but we can take comfort and encouragement that if we confess our sins and accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, He will forgive us of our sins and allow us to enter into an eternal relationship with Him.

Thank you Jesus, for finishing the task set before You for our salvation!

Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.

The other evening, my wife called me into the family room and excitedly asked me to sit on the sofa to view a video. It was a recording made when our children were much younger, about 6 and 9 years old. One clip showed my son counting the candles on his birthday cake in anticipation of lighting it and then singing happy birthday. As we listened to him counting the candles, “One…two…three….”, his voice sounded strange.

“Is there something wrong with the audio? His voice sounds so high!”

My wife laughed and nodded. As we continued to watch, we both realized the obvious truth. There was nothing wrong with the audio! This was how our son sounded at that age, over 7 years ago. Since then, his voice had gradually changed and deepened, as all young boys do when they become teenagers. We had not noticed this change until confronted with this delightful reminder!

So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.

Psalms 90:12 (ESV)

God reminds us of the passing of time in beautiful and, sometimes, humorous ways. Our children are growing older as we all are. The video is a precious reminder of their fleeting youth and our ephemeral life. We must linger over these days and savor the love that God has allowed us to capture and experience.

Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.

I have a guitar amplifier that my mother purchased for me in 1985. It was my first truly professional amplifier and I used it on many gigs and concerts during that period in my life. Since then, I have purchased other amps but this one still occupies a special place in my heart.

Recently I was reading a music publication devoted to guitar players and a particular section caught my eye, antique finds. As I read the article, the accompanying photo brought a smile to my face. It was my amplifier! Apparently, my amp was so old that it was now considered an antique! As I read, with interest, the familiar description of the amp, I realized something, I am becoming an antique! I am not ready for a senior living home but time is slipping by.

For a thousand years in your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night.

Psalms 90:4 (ESV)

The passage of time is marked by many events, places, and people. In the United States, the average lifespan is about eighty years of age. I am more than halfway to this. If I chose to focus on my limited lifespan, I cannot help but be discouraged. But if I choose to focus upon the life in Heaven and an eternity with God, I cannot help but be excited! In Heaven, eighty years, two hundred years, or even a thousand years has no meaning. In God’s presence, all time is but an instant in eternity.

My guitar amp. It’s an antique! I’m becoming an antique! Thanks be to God that nothing is old in His sight! He renews me daily for a life in eternity!

Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.

I am a proud alumnus of Pomona College, part of the five Claremont Colleges in Southern California. I received a wonderful education, which more than adequately prepared me for medical school and my career. The college has maintained its excellent academic reputation since I matriculated. But as renowned as its academic prowess, the school’s athletic program has never quite achieved the same level of excellence. Yet for a brief moment in its history, that changed for the basketball program. 

 

Pomona College competes in Division III as a combined team with fellow Claremont college, Pitzer. Unlike the familiar names of Division I basketball of UCLA, Duke, and Michigan State, the Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens compete against such well-known athletic dynasties as Caltech! In 1979, Gregg Popovich arrived at Pomona College and became the head coach of the combined Pomona-Pitzer men’s basketball team. From a dismal starting season record of 2 wins and 22 losses, he led the team to its first  Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship in 1986, ending a 68-year drought.

 

Coach Popovich is familiar to anyone with a passing interest in professional basketball.  He is affectionately known as “Pops” by his colleagues and students. It was his achievement at Pomona College that caught the attention of the Spurs head coach, Larry Brown, who recruited Pops. Since 1988, he has been with the San Antonio Spurs, first as an assistant coach and since 1992, as the head coach. He led the Spurs to five NBA titles and has been voted NBA coach of the year three times. He is one of the most successful NBA coaches. Despite his many NBA championships and awards, the only trophy he keeps in his office is the Pomona-Pitzer trophy from 1986. His heart is still with Pomona College. He will always be a Division III coach.

 

In the Bible, we read about the prophet Amos, who was a shepherd and fig farmer when God called Him to be His prophet. He obeyed God’s calling and preached to the northern kingdom of Israel about social injustice. Amaziah, one of the corrupt priests of Israel, was angered by the message and commanded Amos to leave. Amos clung to his humble origins.

 

Then Amos answered and said to Amaziah, “I was no prophet, nor a prophet’s son, but I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore figs. But the Lord took me from following the flock, and the Lord said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’ “

Amos 7:14-15 (ESV)

 

Amos never forgot his roots. He proudly proclaimed to Amaziah that he was not a formally trained intellectual. He was and would always be a herdsman and farmer. But God used his knowledge and background to be a prophet to His people. 

 

Like Amos, Pops never forgot his roots. We should always remember our roots. God brought us into this world for a purpose. The lessons that He shows us as we grow in knowledge with Him are our very identity, given to us by God for His glory!

 

Amen!

 

Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.