Walking Down the Aisle

Christine and Edward met in a small rural church. They were both university students. Though they were deeply attracted to one another, they agreed to wait till they both finished university before getting married. Parents from both sides gave their blessings to the couple.

A small wedding of some thirty guests was planned. Then something unexpected happened. Christine’s father died two weeks before the wedding. So what did Christine do at the wedding? She walked herself down the aisle, clad in a pale pink dress she had worn during her graduation from university.

Later when asked if she was nervous at the wedding, she shook her head. The reason was simple: “He was waiting at the other end”.

Christine is now 92 and Ed is 95. They were recently interviewed by a reporter of the local newspaper at their 70^th anniversary. When asked what their secret recipe was in maintaining love and devotion in their marriage, Christine was straight forward: “Our faith in God keeps us together. We have differences in many matters and we don’t even vote the same. But we never have differences as far as our faith is concerned.”

Edward was more serious when he was pressed for advice on how to stay married. “The other person is going to have different opinions and so forth. Respect them. Realize that most of them aren’t worth arguing about. They don’t have to change them.”

Every time I read their story, I admire their love for one another but it was Christine’s walking down the aisle by all herself that impresses me most. “He was waiting at the other end” stay etched on my mind.

As Christians, we look forward to the wedding when Christ will come again and take the church as His bride (Rev.19:6-9). While waiting for the big day, we may at times feel lonely and deserted. We seem to be walking down the aisle all by ourselves. Doubts and fear may fall upon us. It is during such times that we really need to fix our eyes on the Groom who is “waiting at the other end.” He is the Lamb that was slain. We need to remind one another: we are not really alone. Jesus has sent the Holy Spirit to accompany us.

Seeing Jesus waiting at the other end is all that we need to keep walking down the aisle.

Clement Yeung

Oil, Mid East & Bible Prophecy

Crude oil was first mentioned in Genesis 11:3-4, “They said to each other, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly. ” They used bricks instead of stone, and tar for mortar. Then they said, “Come let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens….”

In BC 450 Herodotus, an ancient historian, mentioned the discovery of an oil well in Babylon. The usage of crude oil was also recorded in a stone inscription found in Persia. During BC 420 – 589, the exploration of crude oil was recorded in Chinese history. In the 13th century, Marco Polo mentioned that in the oil fields of Azerbaijan, several hundred barrels of oil were produced daily.

In the US, the exploration of oil well was started in Pennsylvania in 1859. In the Middle East, crude oil was first found in Iran in 1908 . During the Second World War, the USA supplied 60% of the crude oil to the world, while the Middle East only produced less than 5%.

However, in the later-half of the 20th century, crude oil became the most important fuel in the world. Crude oil became the ‘blood line’ of the world’s economy as all industries depend on crude oil. Unfortunately, the crude oil reserve around the world is rather limited. One day in the future, the world will definitely face the shortage of fossil fuel.

Today, many of the Middle Eastern oil rich countries such as Saudi Arabia and UAE are using their oil revenues, competing to build the world’s highest towers, just like they are trying to re-establish the former glory of Babylon. But Sheikh Al Maktoum, the former Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates forewarned : “My grandfather rode a camel, my father rode a camel, I drive a Mercedes, my son drives a Land Rover, his son will drive a Land Rover, but his son will ride a camel.”

Before the age of the crude oil, the Middle East was just a barren desert. The wealth of the Arab tribal leaders could be loaded up onto a camel. But now, 56% of the world’s crude oil reserves are in the Middle East. Hence, the Middle East has a de-Facto control on the economy of the whole world.

About two thousand six hundred years ago, Ezekiel prophesied in 38:1 -9. “The word of the LORD came to me: … This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. I will turn you around, put hooks in your jaws and bring you out with your whole army—your horses, your horsemen fully armed, and a great horde with large and small shields, all of them brandishing their swords. Persia, Cush and Put will be with them, all with shields and helmets, also Gomer with all its troops, and Beth Togarmah from the far north with all its troops—the many nations with you…. You and all your troops and the many nations with you will go up, advancing like a storm; you will be like a cloud covering the land.”

Furthermore in Ezekiel 39:2 ‘I will turn you around and drag you along. I will bring you from the far north and send you against the mountains of Israel.’

Geographically, the area from Isreal looking towards the “far north”, has traditionally been interpreted as being Russia, and it will be that country which will lead many countries to invade against Israel. Although Russia, in the form of the former U.S.S.R. was completely broken up in 1992, the nation and people of Russia remain sitting firmly in the far north of Israel.

We should not forget that even after the collapse of USSR, Russia was able to easily conquer its’ former state of Georgia without much resistance in the summer of 2008.

More important of all, we must realize that Russia has the largest natural gas reserves in the world, representing about 34% of the world’s total, and Russia’s crude oil reserves of Russia accounts for about 7% of the world’s total. Russia is the largest exporter of natural gas and the second largest exporter of crude oil. Russia’s global political influence is increasing in parallel with the continuing increase of fuel prices. This will continue to boost the ambition of Russian leaders to regain the former glory of its ‘super power status.’ Furthermore, Russian leadership has recently authorized the use of half a trillion dollars to rebuild its war machinery.

According to Ezekiel 38:10 – 12 “This is what the Sovereign Lord said: On that day thoughts will come into your mind and you will devise an evil scheme. You will say, “I will invade a land of unwalled villages; I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people – all of them living without walls and without gates and bars. I will plunder and loot and turn my hand against the resettled ruins and the people gathered from the nations, rich in livestock and goods, living at the centre of the land.”

Then if Russia has so much oil and gas reserves, why should it attempt to invade Israel?

Even though Russia is the second largest exporter of crude oil, its reserves are far less than those of Saudi Arabia and Canada. This implies that Russia’s production rate of crude oil far outpaced the proportion of its oil reserves. According to the estimate appearing in Wikipedia, the current oil production rate of Russia will only sustain it for 17 years.

So, what would be the response of the USA and her European Allies on a Russian invasion of Israel ? According to Ezekiel 38:13 ‘Sheba, Dedan, the merchants of Tarshish, and all their young lions will say to you, ‘Have you come to take plunder? Have you gathered your army to take booty, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to take great plunder?’’

Many Bible scholars think that ‘the merchants of Tarshish’ refer to Western Europe which includes France, Spain and British. ‘Young lions’ refers to USA, since lion has been the traditional symbol of the British Empire, and therefore young lions refer to the “off springs” of the British Empire such as the USA, Canada and Australia.

If this interpretation is correct, then Western Europe and USA will only be able to protest against the invasion of Israel by Russia and some of its Muslim allies.

During the cold war, it was difficult to believe these bible verses. The USSR was an atheistic “evil” empire, so how would it be possible for atheistic Russia to ally with Muslim countries who believe Allah, in attacking Israel. But today, Russia is no longer an atheistic nation. On Aug. 6, 2005, the London Times reported that “Russia is moving to Muslim.” The article quoted that: “Among the 1.44 billion Russian populations, 23,000,000 are Muslims. Since 1989 the growth rate of Muslim communities is 40% -50 %. There were about 300 mosques in Russia in 1991, but now there are about 8,000 and half of these were built with foreign money coming from Turkey, Iran and Saudi Arabia. ‘‘Aleksei Malashenko, a specialist on Islam, said “I don’t think Russia will become a Muslim country in a few years, however, in half a century there will be a significant change. Some specialist forecast that 40% of the Russian army will be Muslims.

So today one can postulate, one day, when Russia used up its oil reserves, and the USA has lost its super power status, then it is fully possible that Russia will exploit the opportunity to attack Israel.

But why would it attack Israel? Isreal has never been known for having much in the way of natural resources, especially oil and gas. Golda Meir, the 4th prime minister of Israel once pitifully complained that Moses led the Israelites through the desert for 40 years to bring them to the only place in the Middle East without oil.

But, is it true that there is no natural resources in Israel?

In 2009, “A US Geological Service report estimated Israel’s gas discoveries in the Levant Basin at 120 trillion cubic feet” of exploitable natural gas reserves. This is within the territorial jurisdiction of Israel. The exploration in the northern coast of Israel has proved the existence of massive natural gas deposits. This is the greatest discovery of natural gas fields in the last ten years.

Now, Israel has an ambitious plan to develop shale oil and natural gas in the Shefla Basin. Harold Vinegar, the Israel Energy Development Council Chairman believes that the shale oil deposits in the Shefla Basin are equivalent to the deposits in Saudi Arabia. Compared to the USA deposits, Israeli shale oil is much easier and cleaner to extract. If the extraction is successful, Israel will one day become an energy super power. Obviously, the God of Abraham and Moses did not lead Israelites to the wrong place as thought by Golda Meir. We need to read the Bible and its prophecy with an open mind.

Then, which are the countries that will attack Israel? Refering to Ezekiel 38:1-6, the consensus of most Bible scholars is that: the land of Magog refers to Russia; Tubal refers to the Scythians in the Southern part of Russia; Persia refers to Iran; Cush refers to North Sudan and Ethiopia; Put refers to Libya; Gomer refers to Eastern Europe; and Togarmah refers to Turkey.

As the USA declines from its super power status and Europe faces the tremendous burden of financial crises, some of the Eastern European nations will lean back towards Russia. Recently, Turkey as part of the NATO alliance, has decided to establish stronger alliance with Iran.

As the Jasmine revolution of 2011-2012 swept through many of the Middle Eastern nations, the Islamic terrorist organizations, will take advantage of the political vaccum to strengthen their power base. The governments of Tunisia, Egypt and Libya have fallen. In some of these nations, the fundamentalist Musliim extremist organizations such as the Muslim Brotherhood have been elected to power through the democratic election process. The present governments of Saudi Arabian, Bahrain and Yemen may eventually be overturned. Iran will have much greater geo-political influence in the Middle East. 2600 years ago, the Bible prophecied about an alliance that would attack Israel. The alliance of Russia, Libya and Iran is lining up before our eyes.

But here is the outcome of this war: Ezekiel 38: 18: “This is what will happen in that day: when Gog attacks the land of Israel, … Ez 38:22-23: I will execute judgement on him (Gog) with plaque and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him. And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”

Today, even though we have tumultuous changes in the Middle East, because of the huge oil shale deposits in Israel, it is not difficult to imagine why Russia, the northern king, wants to ally with some of the Muslim nations, the southern king, to invade Israel. However, one must be amazed that Ezekiel prophecied 2600 years ago that those nations invading Israel will be completely defeated, so that the whole world will see God’s greatness and holiness.

Before the discovery of oil and gas in Israel, I could not understand:

1. Why Russia would ally with Muslim nations to invade Israel ?

2. Why the Anti-Christ would sign a peace treaty with Israel to protect the safety and security of the Jews?

3. How could the Jews rebuild the Temple?

4. Why the beast and the ten horns will hate the prostitute and bring her to ruin, leaving her naked; why they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire. (Revelation17:16)

Now, the keys to the possible answers have started to come out.

However, one must be cautious because no one can fully understand all the Bible prophecies. What is presented here, could only be used as a possible reference, with great possibility of being totally wrong.

Now let us assume that one day Israel were to become an energy super power. Since at that time, Israel has just come in as a new boy on the block in producing oil, so she takes time to build up her oil producing capacity. Her OPEC oil producing neighbours, as well as the Russians may have used up much of their crude oil reserves. Then at that time, the unexploited shale oil in Israel would become so attractive to the future Anti-Christ that this would entice him to befriend Israel. In order to secure much of the remaining oil and gas in the world, the Anti-Christ would be willing to sign on the dotted lines, to protect the safety and security of the Jews, including the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem. This, in spite of the fierce opposition of all the Muslim nations. So, as the OPEC nations such as UAE turn back to riding camels, the Anti-Christ will have no more need to please them. Then the Anti-Christ, as the leader of the ten horns, will turn around hating Babylon, the great prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire.

So Israel could conceivably become the world’s largest exporter of shale oil soon. We can sense that the Lord Jesus is coming soon. ‘Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” (Revlation1:7-8)

Translated by Amy Chew from Dr. David Liang’s article in Chinese Christian Mission magazine 594 edition Oct. 2010.

Second Chance: How knowing God Makes a Difference

Life is full of unexpected incidences! For example: Tim got snowed in with flight delay in Seattle airport recently on his way to Phoenix, Arizona. A friend of mine claimed that it took him 47 hours to fly from Los Angeles to Jakarta, Indonesia. What do we do with detours in life? How do we feel? Life is full of uncertainty! Praise God there are second chances in life! Second chance is about us- Christians. We believe that we are a ‘community that believes in second chances.’ (Slogan of CMDS –see the 2012 Calendar)

Not long ago I adopted an orchid plant that looks like it had given up its soul. I picked it up from a parking lot of The Four Season’s Hotel in downtown Vancouver. I took it home nourished it with utmost care by  placing it in a bright spot, watering and fertilizing faithfully and one day, it bloomed just like the other orchids in my home. I was so delighted that even plants when given a second chance in life, will flourish and thrive successfully! How much more are we human beings made in the image of God? God declared his creation of Adam and Eve to be “very good.”

I have always wanted to study theology even after high school. I went to medical school, got married and had three children. God gave me a second chance in an amazing way! I just live near Regent College and it has been a long journey of delighting in God’s Word and basking in His presence! To my pleasant surprise, I completed my Master of Divinity in 2009 at Regent by the grace of God. Thanks be to God!

Recently, a 42 year old lady walked into the office with pain and suffering i.e. toothache and demanded to be seen with swearing tone and bad attitude. She claimed: “I am a prostitute since my teenage years; I live on the streets. I have robbed banks, shop lifted and did drugs. You all have a better life than me. I don’t have my care card or any money to pay your bill.” I instructed my receptionist to just let her go in peace and let her have a second chance by helping her to find ways to care for her immediate needs i.e. pain medication and antibiotics and access to free clinic with referral.

I am confronted with these questions in my mind: Do I see myself and my ministry as a missionary outpost in a dark and hurting world? For whose benefit am I ministering to? (God and people, and not myself) I am reminded that I am here on earth to serve and not to be served. And more importantly, I am not any better than this lady without God’s grace. She needs a second chance. Above all, she needs forgiveness and restorations not just physical wellness but spiritual well-being.

The parable of the wicked servant rings a bell! “We need to forgive the debts of others because our debts have been forgiven.” Jesus Christ Himself paid for our debts on the cross. He who is sinless became the ultimate sacrifice for our sins. We are set free and been declared righteous because of one person- Jesus Christ. We need to give thanks!

To the woman who was caught committing adultery? Jesus said: “Go in peace and sin no more.”

What should be our attitude when a second chance is offered to us? Grab it with two hands and be thankful. In gratitude, we are empowered to grant second chances to others such as the victims of natural disasters, the abused women and children in Africa, India, China and Middle-East countries; the oppressed  who endured blatant human rights violation including  the poor among us, the homeless people in our back yards, the hungry and thirsty people all over the world. Offering God’s hope and God’s love and God’s truth is an act of granting a second chance to the sufferers of violence, natural disasters and evil doings and practices.

In the Book of Genesis, we are told that everything God created was seen as good and for the creation of Adam and Eve: “It was very good.”  Humanity was given the first chance: ‘to be fruitful and multiply and to have dominion over all that God has created.’ After the fall, God saw how great man’s wickedness had become and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. (Genesis 6:5). The second chance was God’s provision of salvation and restoration of humanity through one family–Noah as recorded in Genesis 9. We are given the second chance through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior who became our salvation.

God continued to provide his people with second chances with forgiveness for calling for repentance and turning away from the evil ways and idolatry. Today, many celebrities such as sports’ heroes and movie stars gave their testimonies of liberation from pornography, drugs, alcohol and other addiction. Accounts of life changing stories and life giving transformation from evil to good are recorded in a book entitled “I Am Second” by Doug Bender and Dave Sterrett. These personalities were given a second chance to live life to the full by trusting in Jesus and His promises as recorded in the scripture.

Some scholars called it the god-gene in humans. This is the ability to respond to the Spirit’s prompting in us. We are created with a natural ability to worship and a conscience to do good. Apostle Paul states that God’s law is written in the hearts of men and women. Eugene Peterson says: “Spiritual transformation is a long obedience in the same direction.”  Christopher Hall affirms that “regeneration is a slow process- the slowest of all human movements on earth.” So my beloved readers: Let us not be weary in doing what is right, take heart and be of good courage and wait upon the Lord for His love endures forever. (Psalm 107:1)  And above, give thanks.

When our hearts are thankful, recognizing second chance comes naturally. Not recognizing the chances before us has consequences good or bad) Second chance is what we do when we are confronted with “unexpected incidents in life.”  King Saul did not repent when confronted by the prophet Samuel about his behavior that displeased God, he remained autonomous in his decision making and his kingdom was taken away from him. On the other hand, King David was repentant and he recognized his own sins when confronted by the prophet Nathan about the tragic death of his servant Uriah and his adulterous affair with Bathsheba. His sins were forgiven and God declared him to be ‘the man after God’s own heart.”

The familiar story of Mary and Martha gives us an example of a second chance. Mary has chosen the best as commended by Jesus. Martha was given a model that she too could have a second chance to be like Mary and yet Martha ignored that second chance by complaining and did not take the appropriate action to be in the same posture as Mary- listening to the Lord’s teaching wholeheartedly. She was given a second chance.

No wonder Mary of Bethany understood the Lord’s heart more than any other disciples as recorded in the NT. Mary was the first female theologian in her own right.

Bethany Hamilton’s incredible story portrayed in the movie” The Soul Surfer” is a great example of taking hold of second chance by the grace of God .It is a true success story of her  courageous faith. She survived the shark’s attack with one arm being bitten off, continued to surf and became a champion surfer at age 19. She was given a second chance in life to which she claimed: “I came to surf and not necessary to win.”

May our prayer be: Lord, grow us to be patient, peace loving, kind and gentle, merciful, friendly, doing good to all our encounters and above all practice and delight in things that delight you: love, justice and righteousness. (Jeremiah 9:23-24) Amen!

Lastly, if you are an unbeliever, this is your second chance to believe and ask Jesus to come into your heart even now. If you are already a believer, this is your chance to share the Good News with your friends and loved ones! The Good News is even Jesus Christ, the Son of God was given a second chance: He resurrected. He is alive and He lives!

Submitted by: Remy Fu-Tam M.D.

February 9, 2012

2012 – END OF THE WORLD ?

Now that 2011 is over, will 2012 be the year the world ends? While we still celebrating the beginning of the year of Dragon, do not let the doomsday theories to spoil your mood.

I read about many end of the world predictions on websites and Youtube, just discuss a few here:

Mayan Calendar

The Maya civilization has high degree of interaction and cultural diffusion that characterized the Central America regions. It is interesting that the ancient Mayan calendar coincides with the Christian (Gregorian) calendar by a few seconds. There are 360 days in Mayan calendar, Chinese calendar and Jewish calendar. While the Mayan’s had some interesting beliefs and insights about life and the cosmos and some of them reflect scientific observations today, there are other beliefs that are unscientific. For example, the Mayans believed that the sun is a god powered by blood from human self-sacrifices. Among all other system of calendars, such as Aztec calendars and Chinese calendar, the Mayan calendars are the best documented and easily understood. The long term Mayan calendar will run out on December 21, 2012 but I don’t think that means the end of world.

Planet X: NIBIRU

There’s belief that a Planet X:Nibiru will pass through the solar system around 2012 causing polar axis shifts on earth. This may turn the earth upside down. This topic has been discussed over the internet for a number of years, however NASA of USA has declared that there’s no such proof and therefore no need to freak out. We need to understand that it is easier to find a needle in the ocean than to locate a new planet in the universe. According to scientists, if it would happen, this process would probably take up to 5,000 years.

Aliens Invasion

There have been lots movies and talking about Aliens from outer space. The stories of abductions and sights come from all kinds of people that make me think how they communicate to Aliens. I wonder whether these Aliens are from other planet or beings from another dimension. Even though nobody knows the answer, but one thing everybody knows is the earth has been damaged by human beings.  That’s why everybody is trying to save the world.

The earthquake and tsunami that happened in Japan on March 11, 2011 had made people thinking about the end of the world. The melt down of nuclear power station has probed the global thinking of the end of the world. On May 21, 2011 the Harold Camping Prediction about the rapture and final judgment failed. Will something else happen in 2012 that will bring about the end of the world. The bible states clearly that we will not know the time. “While people are saying, ‘peace and safety’, destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.” (1 Thessalonians 5:3)

Even though we don’t know the date, the bible does say that we will be able to see a sequence of events that will lead up to the world’s destruction. You will agree with me that the date is near. We may be able to witness the catastrophic disasters described in Revelation 16:21. “From the sky huge hailstones of about 100 pounds each fell upon men. And they caused God on account of plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible.” We don’t need to know the date, just live each day as if it is the last day. One thing we know for sure: One day, we will die. It’s just a matter of ‘when’ and ‘how’. Each new day is a blessing from God.

By Amy Chew in Calgary, Feb. 1, 2012

Hyphen between the dates

During the Christmas holiday, my family and I went to the cemetery to pay our respects to deceased family members. As I walked past each memorial marker on the ground, I could not help but noticed that person’s name, date of birth, and date of death. But there is something else that I saw. I saw a hyphen between the dates – and that’s the real story. It represents the trail of that person’s life.

All of us are somewhere on that trail. We’re moving along that hyphen. You may be in your twenties and just starting out, or you may be in your thirties or forties with a house full of kids and a mortgage that won’t go away any time soon. Perhaps you’re in your mid-life trying to figure out what’s next. Then again, you might be in your seventies or eighties and already retired. No matter what your stage in life is, you’re on the trail.

Psalm 71:5-20 (NKJV) reads, “⁵For you are my hope, O Lord GOD; you are my trust from my youth. ⁶By you I have been upheld from birth; you are he who took me out of my mother’s womb. My praise shall be continually of you. ⁷I have become as a wonder to many, but you are my strong refuge…⁹Do not cast me off in the time of old age; do not forsake me when my strength fails…¹⁸Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, do not forsake me…²⁰You, who have shown me great and severe troubles, shall revive me again, and bring me up again from the depths of the earth.”

In this passage, King David looks back over the past trail he has travelled, looks at the present, and looks forward to the future and sees all the marks of God’s goodness and care in his life. From the time he was a boy shepherding his father’s flock, he has seen God intervening for him time and time again. It’s very apparent that God has sustained him throughout his life and the old king’s heart swells with gratitude.

David is long gone, but like him we’re all on a trail with a past, a present and a future. God is behind us, forgiving our sins and helping us deal with our past mistakes and shortcomings. He has also mapped out a future for us. He’s gone ahead and blazed a trail that is full of good works, significance, and fulfillment. As Christians, we’re His “workmanship” and He is planning to utilize us for His purpose. We have a hopeful future because He has ordained our trail.

Here, in the present, His hand is on our lives wherever we are along the trail. He is sovereign over our lives. He has a plan. He has outlined a trail for each one of us, and if we’re smart, we’ll stay on it. Perhaps there is no better time than at the start of a New Year to just stop and think about the trail God has placed you. Ask God to help you see what David saw – that your life, like his, is also full of God’s goodness and care. When you remember what God has done for you in the past, it should give you confidence for the future path that God has ordained for you. We worship a great and awesome God!

Wishing you much joy and blessing in the New Year,

Bill Wong

The Limitation of Willpower

For many people, the beginning of a new year is a time for resolutions. Some may resolve to lose weight and do more exercises. Others plan to take upgrade courses to keep themselves up to date at work. Some Christians may decide to read the whole Bible from cover to cover in the coming year. All these are noble goals.

The problem is that some of us have made the same resolution for many years and failed miserably. Deep down inside we may even feel a little guilty for not having enough self control. While I may be able to change some of my outward behaviour, I simply cannot make the spiritual changes that I want on my own. Sense of guilt, no matter how strong, is not enough to change my heart and make me surrender my life to God. When it comes to the matter of willpower, we all have severe limitations. For example, I know I should forgive the co-worker who has repeatedly insulted me but I cannot will myself to do so.

Concerning such limitation, psychologist Leslie Farber writes: “I can will knowledge, but not wisdom; going to bed, but not sleeping; meekness, but not humility; scrupulosity, but not virtue; self-assertion or bravado, but not courage; lust, but not love; commiseration, but not sympathy; congratulations, but not admiration; religiosity, but not faith.”

So what should we do? We need to hear Jesus’ invitation again: “Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Mt. 11:28-29) Listen to the call of Jesus so that we can come to Him for the rest that results from taking up His yoke and His cause. Receive the gift of love that Jesus represents – not out of obligation but out of a change us into wanting to make His will ours. Then and only then can we will without pride and rigidity.

If you need a proposed resolution for 2012, try this one: “He must increase and I must decrease.” (John 3:30) So often our willpower is limited because we are more interested in building our own empire than advancing God’s kingdom. This is why Jesus asks His disciples to pray these words: “Your kingdom come. Your will be done.” We need to remind ourselves constantly that we live for God and Him alone. We can trust Him because He is our Father in heaven. He alone knows the future and He holds our hand. In the final analysis, it is not about us or our willpower but trusting God and resting in His love.

Happy New Year! God bless you and your resolutions.

Clement Yeung

A Christmas Message for Those in the Workplace

by Bill Wong

With the Advent season upon us, another year is quickly coming to an end. Our focus now shifts to celebrating the birth of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

As I reflect on the Christmas story told in Luke 2:1-20, two interesting features are apparent – its workplace setting and its implied invitation for us to enter the story and reflect on our response to Jesus. In this passage, we see three main characters: Caesar Augustus, Mary, and the shepherds. Who do we relate to most in our response to Jesus?

Caesar Augustus was one of Rome’s greatest emperors. Luke mentions Augustus in a workplace context – ruling and taxing the world. He had a vision for the world which he was privileged to carry out. At that time, the Roman Empire consisted of all the nations bordering on the Mediterranean Sea. People did whatever Augustus decreed. Yet, for all of Augustus’ vision and abilities, he did not include God. Life in his workplace, the Roman Empire, was all he could see. So, when God came into Augustus’s empire, he was too busy to even notice or care.

Today, many people are like Augustus – gifted with extraordinary talents to make their visions come true. Luke’s story prods us to ask ourselves – how are we like Augustus? How do we respond to God? How do we find God’s presence in this world? Who or what is our spiritual centre – our careers, our ambitions, or God?

Luke’s next character is Mary, whose ‘workplace’ was the manger where Jesus Christ was born. Luke described Mary as being devout, obedient and faithful to God. Luke also made an interesting remark about her – “…Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.” Although Mary had always loved God and experienced His love, God called her to go deeper. Her heart pondered what God was doing in her life, as Luke tells us elsewhere in his Gospel. She gradually recognized that religion, which calls for devotion, obedience and faithfulness, is really a relationship centered in God’s love. These are responses in love which we give to God. But, the depth of God’s love is what Mary pondered and perhaps struggled with at times – likely for the rest of her life.

How are we like Mary? How do our responses to God develop beyond devotion, obedience and faithfulness into love? Is Christianity a set of truths, packaged in our creeds? Or, does it embrace the very person of God, who loves each of us more than we can imagine? Mary went further in her relationship with God than many other Biblical characters did. But, since God is always more than what we imagine, she needed to ponder in her heart for the rest of her richly blessed life.

Luke then tells us about some shepherds. Shepherds, at that time, were not known for piety or faithfulness. They were considered religious outcasts, economically disadvantaged and social rejects. Yet, God’s angels went to their workplace and invited them to meet Jesus. Overwhelmed by what they heard and saw, they went to Bethlehem and met Jesus. We don’t know what transpired between them and Jesus when they met, but something dramatic must have happened! Luke said they returned to their workplace, praising and glorifying God. All who heard them were amazed, including Mary, who pondered what she heard and saw.

Are we like the shepherds? Are we unemployed, under-employed or overworked? Are we unappreciated as people and in what we do? Do our employers treat us indifferently? God’s heart aches for us! God wants to bless us with purpose and meaning which only He can give. The Good News is, in the shepherds’ experience, we have a measure of how much God loves us and how real His love is. The shepherds’ work did not change, but they did. We, too, can go to our less-than-ideal jobs and workplaces, rejoicing in our spirits and praising God. The shepherds’ experience should encourage us that God will love and act for us, as we open ourselves to the possibility of God in our lives.

God offers us the same love as He gave to Caesar Augustus (who didn’t notice or care), Mary (who pondered His love in her heart), and the shepherds (whose lives were transformed by their encounter with Jesus). Who do we identify with most in our response to Jesus?

Wishing you and your loved ones a Merry Christmas and Blessed New Year!

Ministering to Women in the Workplace

by Cindy Shum

“You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit — fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in My name.” – John 15:16

It’s mind-boggling whenever I read the above passage of Scripture! Even what we think as coming from ourselves – our love, passion, and dedication – for Christ is in fact coming from Him. Jesus is the Initiator, Jesus is the One Who choose us, Jesus is the One Who appoint us to bear fruit for Him! He is the One Who call us to work for Him. And it is in response to His call that we would receive what we ask in His name!

Praise the Lord for giving us what we ask in His name in this past month: The good response to the WHEN (“Women’s Heart-Engaging Network”) Vision Event – 9 Christian ladies who have a heart for reaching out gathered with 7 WHEN ladies at the residence of Kari Leoganda. We had a great time of connecting with each other, hearing of very touching testimonies, sharing of past experience and future vision of WHEN. Praise and thank God for the presence of His Spirit in our midst! As a result, 5 new ladies would like to embrace the WHEN vision and committed to participate in the ministry for a year. Please pray along with us that a WHEN English-speaking team will birth at God’s own wonderful time with His own chosen women!

As Henry Blackaby mentioned in Chosen to be God’s Prophet, “He (God) wants you to be available to Him, and more important, to be obedient to Him. God is looking for a person in whom He can entrust His leadership. The key is not what a person can do, but what God will do in and through a person’s life.” (p.5) Thank God for the obedience of these women to His call! As the Kingdom of God starts with a humble beginning just like a mustard seed, we trust God will grow His Kingdom through these faithful women in His time!

And if you feel the burden to pray for this ministry, rest assured that it is indeed Him Who has chosen you to bear fruit by asking on our behalf in His name! Let’s be faithful to the call of God and respond by doing our parts regardless of how we feel and what we see! It’s such a joy to partner with you in this exciting and meaningful ministry!

Christmas is about Immanuel

by Clement Yeung

The omnipresent God whose name is Immanuel is not distant but nearer to us than we can imagine. The story of incarnation reminds us that God is not alien to the circumstances of our lives but comes to us in them. Our challenge is to unmask the Divine in the natural and recognize the presence of God.

It is relatively easy to meet God in moments of joy or bliss. In these situations we correctly count ourselves blessed by God. How about in the midst of doubt, depression, anxiety, conflict or failure? The God who is Immanuel is equally present in those difficult moments as in our happy moments.

Why is it so difficult for us to see God in our daily lives? Part of the problem is that we artificially put a gulf between heaven and earth. Paul Stevens puts it this way: “If God has come in the flesh and if God keeps coming to us in the fleshly existence, then all of life is shot through with meaning. Earth is crammed with heaven, and heaven (when we finally get there) will be crammed with earth. Nothing is wasted. Nothing is lost. Nothing secular. Nothing absurd …. All are grist for the mill of a down-to-earth spirituality.”

Richard Rohr writes: “We cannot attain the presence of God. We are already totally in the presence of God. What is absent is awareness.” This is the core of the spiritual journey –learning to discern the presence of God, to see what really is.
But nothing is more dangerous than presuming that we already see when we do not. We tend to put God in a fancy gift wrapping and think that He only belongs there. That is our religious life. The truth is God is to be found in all parts of our lives –even and especially in the painful, tragic and unpleasant events. Through incarnation, Jesus came to suffer and die for us. He knew every temptation and negative human experience that we can ever know. God’s heart contains every conceivable human emotion. As a matter of fact, we cannot run away from God’s presence even if we sink to the depths of the sea or rise to the heights of the heavens (Psalm 139:7-12).

Christmas is about Immanuel. It is about God’s presence with us every day, not just on a certain day in December. Religion is man seeking God but Christmas is God seeking man. Christmas is about incarnation. It is God seeking us on this planet earth in this bodily life. Ever since the first Christmas, earth indeed has been “crammed with heaven”.

Acknowledgement: Many of the ideas have been adapted from The gift of Being Yourself by David Benner.

Dancing with the Star

In Ottawa, we have a network of workplace bible study groups. Annually, we got together to share what God is doing in our midst, and to encourage one another with God’s word through His servants. This is our 11th year of having our so called annual faith at work forum, and we have been blessed in the past by speakers including a Deputy Minister in Federal govt, a former chairman of National Energy Board, and the present director of Trinith Western University’s Laurentian Leadership centre.

Our speaker this year is Mr. Gerry Organ, who is a well-known former Ottawa roughrider footballer. Gerry is actively involved in encouraging and gathering leaders from both churches and the marketplace to foster greater unity and warmer synergy. Along with his extensive career in the CFL, he co-founded The Ottawa Athletic Club, served as a Family Therapist in Guelph and was a Director with Focus on the Family. After pastoring at The Peoples Church, Gerry served for 10 years as Executive Director of Christian Business Ministries Canada.

The forum started with singing, followed by sharings among various bible study groups and then the message by Gerry. He used the imagery of life as a dance, and Jesus as the morning star who aspires to dance with us. We need to learn to respond to Christ’s invitation, and to focus on Him in the dance. However, Satan also desires to de-track us from the dance by posing to be another attractive star. We need discernment to fight distractions. Gerry used the movie “shall we dance” to illustrate the importance of having the right love and relationship in life. He also shared how he and Pinball Clemen danced with Christ in reaching out to needy people in Africa.

A young professional in attendance filed the following report: I was encouraged to see how many Christian fellowship groups exist at various workplaces and their stories of how God has work and continues to work in their group. Gerry has many messages that are noteworthy. For me, I’m glad to be reminded that one has to abide in Jesus (the life source) as the priority, to act in partnership with the Holy Spirit, before any fruit is possible. Also, the message about we, the church, are in some ways modern day pharisees as we attempt to create God in our image and are content with staying in the pews (being nowhere close to what God has intended).

Another young professional shared as follows:  I enjoyed the forum -thanks for another well organized event. Since about mid-November, I have heard a number of talks on the general theme of ‘idols’. It is not co-incidence that although I did not seek to find out more about this, different programs have had this as a theme lately, making me focus on what my idols may be. This was repeated at the 2011 forum when Gerry talked about being a partner with God and ‘ditching’ all our other partners (ie. idols).  Not all ‘idols’ are bad-work, hobbies, activities or even our family, are all good, but it’s our focus on them that could make them our idols as we move away from what God wills for us in those areas.   The other things that I noted from Gerry was that we are to put our lives into the context of God’s will. Our primary calling to to be filled with the Spirit and do His will, then we are to work diligently at our employment. We are to work in such a way that we attract others to ‘dance’ with our partner-Jesus.
 
A third young professional added the following: It was good seeing you guys again last Saturday, and I enjoy the presentation and the discussion….dancing with God, how exciting and fun….let’s pray that we have courage and fuith to follow His lead….

The forum concluded with small group discussions regarding questions posed by Gerry. In what ways are we dancing with Christ? Are we open to Christ’s invitation to dance in a new field? Are there people out there that need to be encouraged to dance with Christ in a way that glorifies God?

Let’s respond to Christ’s invitation to dance with Him, the Morning star.