Yes, this was the opening line of my Best Man speech at my little brother's wedding on Saturday. I can't explain in words how full my heart is and how happy I am for him and his new bride (my new sister in law). The ceremony and reception were beautiful (and yes, I will stick by that even if you threaten to take my man card for it). I am so blessed to have been able to share in their joy! Marriage is the ultimate denouement for two people, restraining their passion through purity, to solidify their commitment to one another before God and all of their closest friends and family members. Everyone there is happy to share in the joy of the couple and love abounds as smiling faces greet total strangers as they know each have played an intricate and meaningful part in the life of the bride or groom or both. Such was the feeling on Saturday night. Not all weddings are like this, of course, but the ones united in Christ are. These joyous occasions create such a rush of emotion that one feels like it is a glimpse of heaven, and that is exactly what I believe it is.
Heaven will be a literal and figurative wedding feast of the Church and its Savior: Jesus Christ. Since the Church is the bride, then all in attendance will be actually in the wedding. There will be no one heartsick because they are not desired because all will be the purified, justified, unblemished, chosen bride of Christ. At last, our joy will be complete. What a glorious day that will be!
Monday, November 19, 2012
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Hunger Games... how's your appetite now?
After hearing about the whole Hunger Games obsession, I first wrote it off as a bunch of crazy Twilight fans that needed their new "fix." However, after my cousin suggested them to me, I read them. They are very well done. I don't like to call things "art" too often, but when it is, it must be given proper credit. The storyline, the writing style, and the execution of the story is so good, it is breath-taking! The content of the story, however, is not good (in the moral sense of the word). These should not be children's books. I was at first quite upset for how dark it is, but when the author shared her reason for writing the books, it made much more sense. The reason for writing the books was to show how immoral and dark the media can be.
Yet once we know this, it begs another question: "Why are the Hunger Games books so popular?" I would like to say that it is because of the recognition of the great storyline and writing style, but I don't think that is all there is to it. It seems that the violence and the dark parts contributed to its success. If this is true, then that indicates that the whole point the author was trying to make (about the media being an atrociously and unnecessarily dark medium) was all but overlooked for the entertainment value that we get out of such darkness. In other words, we have become so desensitized as a culture that the shock-and-awe repulsion factor had no effect! That the whole point of trying to make people stop and realize the junk they are feeding their minds was never realized because they saw the even more twisted junk in the book as just more entertainment. This kind of thing makes me lose hope for American culture. But who is to blame?
And I would turn on the TV, but it's so embarrassing,
To see all the other people, I don't know what they mean.
And it was magic at first when they spoke without sound,
But now this world is gonna hurt.
You'd better turn that thing down.
Turn it around.
"Well, it wasn't me," says the boy with the gun,
"Sure I pulled the trigger, but it needed to be done,
Because life's been killing me ever since it begun.
You can't blame me, 'cuz I’m too young."
"You can't blame me; sure the killer was my son,
But I didn't teach him to pull the trigger of the gun.
It's the killing on this TV screen.
You can't blame me; it's those images he's seen."
"Well, you can't blame me," says the media man,
"Well I wasn't the one who came up with the plan.
And I just point my camera what the people want to see.
Man, it's a two-way mirror and you can't blame me."
"You can't blame me," says the singer of the song
Or the maker of the movie which he bases life on.
"It's only entertainment and as anyone can see,
Its smoke machines and make up man, you can't fool me."
It was you, it was me, it was every man.
We've all got the blood on our hands.
We only receive what we demand,
And if we want hell, then hell's what we'll have.
And I would turn on the TV, but it's so embarrassing.
To see all the other people, don't even know what they mean
And it was magic at first, but let everyone down,
And now this world's gonna hurt.
You'd better turn it around.
Turn it around.
- Song "Cookie Jar" by Jack Johnson
Yet once we know this, it begs another question: "Why are the Hunger Games books so popular?" I would like to say that it is because of the recognition of the great storyline and writing style, but I don't think that is all there is to it. It seems that the violence and the dark parts contributed to its success. If this is true, then that indicates that the whole point the author was trying to make (about the media being an atrociously and unnecessarily dark medium) was all but overlooked for the entertainment value that we get out of such darkness. In other words, we have become so desensitized as a culture that the shock-and-awe repulsion factor had no effect! That the whole point of trying to make people stop and realize the junk they are feeding their minds was never realized because they saw the even more twisted junk in the book as just more entertainment. This kind of thing makes me lose hope for American culture. But who is to blame?
And I would turn on the TV, but it's so embarrassing,
To see all the other people, I don't know what they mean.
And it was magic at first when they spoke without sound,
But now this world is gonna hurt.
You'd better turn that thing down.
Turn it around.
"Well, it wasn't me," says the boy with the gun,
"Sure I pulled the trigger, but it needed to be done,
Because life's been killing me ever since it begun.
You can't blame me, 'cuz I’m too young."
"You can't blame me; sure the killer was my son,
But I didn't teach him to pull the trigger of the gun.
It's the killing on this TV screen.
You can't blame me; it's those images he's seen."
"Well, you can't blame me," says the media man,
"Well I wasn't the one who came up with the plan.
And I just point my camera what the people want to see.
Man, it's a two-way mirror and you can't blame me."
"You can't blame me," says the singer of the song
Or the maker of the movie which he bases life on.
"It's only entertainment and as anyone can see,
Its smoke machines and make up man, you can't fool me."
It was you, it was me, it was every man.
We've all got the blood on our hands.
We only receive what we demand,
And if we want hell, then hell's what we'll have.
And I would turn on the TV, but it's so embarrassing.
To see all the other people, don't even know what they mean
And it was magic at first, but let everyone down,
And now this world's gonna hurt.
You'd better turn it around.
Turn it around.
- Song "Cookie Jar" by Jack Johnson
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Institution
I was talking with a coworker and his wife at a company happy hour after work. The conversation started off with my coworker sharing about how he saw a picture of me holding some of the orphans that I sponsor from my Ugandan mission trip in 2007. He asked me to share more about that, so I did. Both he and his wife were happy to hear about the work being done over there. I started explaining some interesting stories of our trips in past years, but around the time when I began about changing planes in Amsterdam, the wife told me I have to check out the "coffee houses" there. We laughed a bit considering that "coffee houses" sell a bit more than Joe (they also sell Mary Jane).
Although I hoped she wouldn't, she began telling me that I really needed to go by the Red Light district. She was quite upset because apparently they had been talking about tearing it down and building a business building instead.
"You walk down the road and they had women standing in the windows, but they aren't selling clothes, they are selling prostitutes!" she laughed. "They can't tear that down, it is an institution!"
"I doubt they will tear it down... they surely make too much money from it for that," I resigned.
She saw my face turn more somber and changed the subject again. I don't know what hurt me the most though. Was it the idea of these girls who were the window shopping models for their own sexual exploitation? No doubt transported there under kidnappings or drug inducement or slaves of parent's debt. Was it the laughing of this woman about how it seems like just another business? I think this appalled me most at first. But actually I think the worst part could have been what hit me later: her last statement.
When she said "institution" she meant that it was "an endearing icon of the cultural experience"... a landmark, if you will. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised by this view in a secular society. But what do I usually associate with an "institution"? Two things come to mind, but they are usually negative connotations. One is marriage and the other is the Church. When people speak of the loving committed union celebration between a man and a woman (marriage), "institution" is often "that outdated, oppressive, boring ceremony my grandma is making me do so I'm not gossiped about by her friends." Likewise, the Christian Church is seen as an institution of "those holier than thou, judgmental hypocrites that meet to convince themselves they are earning their way out of hell." It breaks my heart that our culture sees a Red Light district as the endearing kind of institution and the Church and marriage as the institutions that won't go away. We, as the Church, need to become the institution that people won't let go of, and that will only happen through genuine compassion for the lost and broken. Pray for our own hearts and the hearts of our nation!
Although I hoped she wouldn't, she began telling me that I really needed to go by the Red Light district. She was quite upset because apparently they had been talking about tearing it down and building a business building instead.
"You walk down the road and they had women standing in the windows, but they aren't selling clothes, they are selling prostitutes!" she laughed. "They can't tear that down, it is an institution!"
"I doubt they will tear it down... they surely make too much money from it for that," I resigned.
She saw my face turn more somber and changed the subject again. I don't know what hurt me the most though. Was it the idea of these girls who were the window shopping models for their own sexual exploitation? No doubt transported there under kidnappings or drug inducement or slaves of parent's debt. Was it the laughing of this woman about how it seems like just another business? I think this appalled me most at first. But actually I think the worst part could have been what hit me later: her last statement.
When she said "institution" she meant that it was "an endearing icon of the cultural experience"... a landmark, if you will. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised by this view in a secular society. But what do I usually associate with an "institution"? Two things come to mind, but they are usually negative connotations. One is marriage and the other is the Church. When people speak of the loving committed union celebration between a man and a woman (marriage), "institution" is often "that outdated, oppressive, boring ceremony my grandma is making me do so I'm not gossiped about by her friends." Likewise, the Christian Church is seen as an institution of "those holier than thou, judgmental hypocrites that meet to convince themselves they are earning their way out of hell." It breaks my heart that our culture sees a Red Light district as the endearing kind of institution and the Church and marriage as the institutions that won't go away. We, as the Church, need to become the institution that people won't let go of, and that will only happen through genuine compassion for the lost and broken. Pray for our own hearts and the hearts of our nation!
Vulnerability
I know... I don't really have much of a blog but here is my first attempt to start blogging more.
It is now one of those few passing days of "winter" in Houston... yes, that means a cold front has blown through. I actually love the cold more than I like the heat and my roommate and I are also cheap thrifty... so we have decided to not heat the house. The first night I even opened my window. So now it is about 65 degrees F inside my room. What is great about this is that you can curl up with a bunch of blankets to keep warm. What is bad about this is that you HAVE TO get a bunch of blankets to keep warm!
This isn't a huge issue until the next morning when I go from under big blankets to a cold tile floor in the bathroom barefoot and get into the cold tile shower. I'm not excited about this but after a snooze button or two, I do it. Why do I do it? Because it is necessary for my health, my sanity, my job, and my well being. So it is with the Gospel.
The world is a cold place, and sometimes it feels good to get under the cover of our middle-class, good-looking, English-speaking, mentally-there, conservative, Christian friends and family who all think pretty much the way you do. There is comfort in that it indeed can be refreshing. But if we live under those covers, the world stays cold, broken, and hopeless without Christ. If I never got out from under the covers, I would lose my job, go insane, get sore, start to stink, and starve to death. Someone once said that Christians are a lot like cow manure: "If you spread them around, they can do a lot of good, but if they sit there, they just stink."
In our willingness to get out and get vulnerable, God cleans us up, and sends us out to change the world with His hope. In our nakedness, we are vulnerable to danger and the cold, but in this danger we are required to trust in God's provision more, and His grace is that much more fulfilling and renewing (just like a hot shower in a cold bathroom).
Vulnerability is the opportunity for both danger and intimacy. You must choose one or the other. If you fear the danger, then you may doubt whether the intimacy is worth it. If you fear the intimacy... well, that's a bigger issue (but good to realize now). Whether it is now or later that Christ heals your heart, I pray that you too understand as I have come to realize that vulnerability is worth it.
Though people may fail you, God has always got your back.
This isn't a huge issue until the next morning when I go from under big blankets to a cold tile floor in the bathroom barefoot and get into the cold tile shower. I'm not excited about this but after a snooze button or two, I do it. Why do I do it? Because it is necessary for my health, my sanity, my job, and my well being. So it is with the Gospel.
The world is a cold place, and sometimes it feels good to get under the cover of our middle-class, good-looking, English-speaking, mentally-there, conservative, Christian friends and family who all think pretty much the way you do. There is comfort in that it indeed can be refreshing. But if we live under those covers, the world stays cold, broken, and hopeless without Christ. If I never got out from under the covers, I would lose my job, go insane, get sore, start to stink, and starve to death. Someone once said that Christians are a lot like cow manure: "If you spread them around, they can do a lot of good, but if they sit there, they just stink."
In our willingness to get out and get vulnerable, God cleans us up, and sends us out to change the world with His hope. In our nakedness, we are vulnerable to danger and the cold, but in this danger we are required to trust in God's provision more, and His grace is that much more fulfilling and renewing (just like a hot shower in a cold bathroom).
Vulnerability is the opportunity for both danger and intimacy. You must choose one or the other. If you fear the danger, then you may doubt whether the intimacy is worth it. If you fear the intimacy... well, that's a bigger issue (but good to realize now). Whether it is now or later that Christ heals your heart, I pray that you too understand as I have come to realize that vulnerability is worth it.
Though people may fail you, God has always got your back.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Trust
Have you ever thought about the importance of trust? On a large scale, and a small scale, trust is one of the most foundational in any relationship, and it is very difficult to form a successful group/society/civilization without trust. Honesty is one of the biggest values that I have, and it has a good basis. Many of us have been burned before (betrayed by a friend, acquaintance, or even salesperson). Most of the time, that causes us to become a little more skeptical the next time. As the saying goes, "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me." I see our society falling apart right now, and many reasons have to do with a lack of trust of other people (not that this is not rightly-earned skepticism). Yet it is still very sad indeed.
For example, the Bible commands us to give to the poor and needy. I naturally want to meet the need of the grungy man in tattered clothes in downtown Houston asking me for some money. But do I trust him? All of us have heard that right after they give money to that person, he or she goes and buys booze or tobacco to feed their addiction rather than buying clothes or food. I, myself, have offered some food I had with me to a person asking for money for food, and they weren't interested. Thus, our hearts are hardened towards the needy. Likewise, as my dad recalled the story of a van that was stuck in a pothole in Uganda. People around in the market saw the situation and helped lift it up out of the pothole. In America, we would have to call a tow truck. Why? Because anytime we see a car with an issue on the road, we are afraid to stop to help because it could be someone trying to rob us and take advantage of our kindness.
Even our signature every time that we sign a credit card charge receipt isn't really worth anything. It is worth whatever the signer deems his/her signature is worth. You could put a smiley face on the line (and some of my friends do that). A credit card thief could sign his own name or forge your name on a credit card stub and it wouldn't matter at all. The signature is basically useless, which is why I imagine some places stopped requiring it after the credit card swipe. And yet, our entire monetary system is based on debt that we assume is going to be payed back with interest... eventually. I honestly don't trust the very dollar that I use as my primary currency because the United States could never pay back its debt. But I trust it more than any other common currency. The European countries are even less likely to pay back their debts than we are, and Japan's debt is over two times their GDP. If you think you can handle the truth, check out the stats at http://www.usdebtclock.org/
So what is my point? My point is that these days, it is difficult for us to process what it even means to trust completely. When many of us don't even feel like we can trust our own family members because of past scars, how can we even contemplate trusting completely again? Yet God asks us... demands us to be able to trust in Him with the faith of a little child. The faith of a little child that does not know how cruel and untrustworthy the world is.
If you have a lot of difficulty trusting other people completely from wounds in your past when your innocent complete trust got you hurt when it was taken advantage of, re-examine your own heart. It won't be easy, but you must work through these trust issues. The reason is that many people go through life not trusting completely in anything or anyone. How then can that person say they trust completely in Jesus Christ--who allowed it all to happen? Yes, God is good all the time. Not good as in lacking pain, but good as in what is best for us, which is becoming more like Christ.
Trust in Christ with the last bit of childlike trust you have left. Do not trust in the Christ in your head--who will take away all of your problems--but the true person of Jesus Christ, who has the plan for your best life possible (which includes the completely fulfilled life in Him forevermore). And if you complain to God that life just isn't fair, you may hear Him reply, "I know... but it was because Jesus loved you so much that He took all of the punishment you deserve. Justice is fair: the justice that you deserve would destine you to an eternity in hell. But through Jesus, eternal life is offered to you as a gift of grace."
Godspeed,
JMission
For example, the Bible commands us to give to the poor and needy. I naturally want to meet the need of the grungy man in tattered clothes in downtown Houston asking me for some money. But do I trust him? All of us have heard that right after they give money to that person, he or she goes and buys booze or tobacco to feed their addiction rather than buying clothes or food. I, myself, have offered some food I had with me to a person asking for money for food, and they weren't interested. Thus, our hearts are hardened towards the needy. Likewise, as my dad recalled the story of a van that was stuck in a pothole in Uganda. People around in the market saw the situation and helped lift it up out of the pothole. In America, we would have to call a tow truck. Why? Because anytime we see a car with an issue on the road, we are afraid to stop to help because it could be someone trying to rob us and take advantage of our kindness.
Even our signature every time that we sign a credit card charge receipt isn't really worth anything. It is worth whatever the signer deems his/her signature is worth. You could put a smiley face on the line (and some of my friends do that). A credit card thief could sign his own name or forge your name on a credit card stub and it wouldn't matter at all. The signature is basically useless, which is why I imagine some places stopped requiring it after the credit card swipe. And yet, our entire monetary system is based on debt that we assume is going to be payed back with interest... eventually. I honestly don't trust the very dollar that I use as my primary currency because the United States could never pay back its debt. But I trust it more than any other common currency. The European countries are even less likely to pay back their debts than we are, and Japan's debt is over two times their GDP. If you think you can handle the truth, check out the stats at http://www.usdebtclock.org/
So what is my point? My point is that these days, it is difficult for us to process what it even means to trust completely. When many of us don't even feel like we can trust our own family members because of past scars, how can we even contemplate trusting completely again? Yet God asks us... demands us to be able to trust in Him with the faith of a little child. The faith of a little child that does not know how cruel and untrustworthy the world is.
If you have a lot of difficulty trusting other people completely from wounds in your past when your innocent complete trust got you hurt when it was taken advantage of, re-examine your own heart. It won't be easy, but you must work through these trust issues. The reason is that many people go through life not trusting completely in anything or anyone. How then can that person say they trust completely in Jesus Christ--who allowed it all to happen? Yes, God is good all the time. Not good as in lacking pain, but good as in what is best for us, which is becoming more like Christ.
Trust in Christ with the last bit of childlike trust you have left. Do not trust in the Christ in your head--who will take away all of your problems--but the true person of Jesus Christ, who has the plan for your best life possible (which includes the completely fulfilled life in Him forevermore). And if you complain to God that life just isn't fair, you may hear Him reply, "I know... but it was because Jesus loved you so much that He took all of the punishment you deserve. Justice is fair: the justice that you deserve would destine you to an eternity in hell. But through Jesus, eternal life is offered to you as a gift of grace."
Godspeed,
JMission
Friday, July 9, 2010
Back from Uganda and back to work
I know that many of you still haven't seen me though, but that is not because I haven't been avoiding/ignoring you. Actually, it has been all that I can do to drive home after work each day. To say that my sleep schedule is still messed up from the jet-lag is an understatement. Wednesday (the day our plane landed) I went to sleep at 6:30 pm and woke up at 2:47 am. Unfortunately, Thursday was even worse with going to sleep at 6:30 pm again, but waking up at 1:00 am. However, I at least forced myself to go back to sleep again and again until 7:30 am (my usual waking time... sorry if you are jealous). I don't know what time I'll be getting so exhausted I pass out tonight, but we shall see. It seems the older I get, the less my body tolerates adjustments to my sleep schedule. From what I've heard, it only continues to get worse. I remember coming back home from Uganda about 6 years ago and playing Halo on the PC until 1 am and sleeping until 9 am the next day. My parents didn't believe it, and now I see why.
Thankfully, I am not completely overwhelmed playing "catch-up" at work, although I'm definitely staying busy. I still have yet to really go through all of my emails as I have been going straight home to bed after work. Would you believe that before today I had yet to start my PC since I got home? I know I also need to go through hundreds of Uganda pictures and videos as well. Many people at work are asking about it, so I hope to have some sort of picture book put together to show for them on Monday.
Please pray also that I can prepare well for the upcoming Houston Project (mission trip in town through Houston's First Baptist) where I will be giving a message to the youth that come to Iglesia Bautista Grace next week in the evenings. Also pray that my sleep schedule will adjust so that I can be awake and alert by Monday evening (and onward).
Godspeed,
JMission
Thankfully, I am not completely overwhelmed playing "catch-up" at work, although I'm definitely staying busy. I still have yet to really go through all of my emails as I have been going straight home to bed after work. Would you believe that before today I had yet to start my PC since I got home? I know I also need to go through hundreds of Uganda pictures and videos as well. Many people at work are asking about it, so I hope to have some sort of picture book put together to show for them on Monday.
Please pray also that I can prepare well for the upcoming Houston Project (mission trip in town through Houston's First Baptist) where I will be giving a message to the youth that come to Iglesia Bautista Grace next week in the evenings. Also pray that my sleep schedule will adjust so that I can be awake and alert by Monday evening (and onward).
Godspeed,
JMission
Friday, June 18, 2010
Welcome to whoever you are!
This will be my second blog, and first in a while (did Xanga back in the day). I can't say it'll be all that often that I will post, but it is what it is.
Jesus is the reason that I continue breathing (and I guess my brainstem too when I'm not thinking about it), but seriously, He is everything to me! Most people know about Jesus but don't really know Him. The Bible says that to know God and Jesus is eternal life (1 John 5:20, John 17:3). I like to think of it as the difference between the two words for "to know" in Spanish. "Saber" means to know information, but "conocer" means to know a person or place. The difference is an intimate acquaintance, or an experiential knowledge. God wants us experience Him, and He wants to experience that close relationship with us as well. My end goal in life is to be just like Jesus. I know I'm not even close to being there, but I try to imitate His love and humble leadership through His power.
For all those interested in my upcoming trip, visit the blog tomball2uganda2010.blogspot.com and drop me a note as a comment there from June 24th-July 8th. I'm so excited about the trip and seeing all of my old Ugandan friends and the kids I've watch grow up at the orphanage!
I just got a new point-and-shoot for the trip that should be the best one I've ever had (hadn't opened it yet). It is a Canon PowerShot 1200 IS but I got it refurbished for about $120. I used to have a good little Nikon but I took it to Galveston and it got sand all in it. Photographer FAIL... But at least I didn't lose my keys in the ocean like my friend did (who had driven down there), but I did lose my glasses in the ocean. It wasn't the best weekend, LOL.
Anyway, I'll be packing for the two-week mission this weekend and going to the wedding of my "son." Garrett went with me to the EZTag store and the lady working there asked me if he was my son, and the rest (as they say) is history. I'm excited about that celebration, so if you can pray for he and his new wife, that would be awesome.
Godspeed,
JMission
P.S. Pride is saying that we are first. Pride ignores God. Pride seeks self. Pride is the poison that led to satan's rebellion. Pride is why we feel we don't need God. Pride is idolatry. God hates idolatry. God hates pride. "But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: 'God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.' " (James 4:6)
Jesus is the reason that I continue breathing (and I guess my brainstem too when I'm not thinking about it), but seriously, He is everything to me! Most people know about Jesus but don't really know Him. The Bible says that to know God and Jesus is eternal life (1 John 5:20, John 17:3). I like to think of it as the difference between the two words for "to know" in Spanish. "Saber" means to know information, but "conocer" means to know a person or place. The difference is an intimate acquaintance, or an experiential knowledge. God wants us experience Him, and He wants to experience that close relationship with us as well. My end goal in life is to be just like Jesus. I know I'm not even close to being there, but I try to imitate His love and humble leadership through His power.
For all those interested in my upcoming trip, visit the blog tomball2uganda2010.blogspot.com and drop me a note as a comment there from June 24th-July 8th. I'm so excited about the trip and seeing all of my old Ugandan friends and the kids I've watch grow up at the orphanage!
I just got a new point-and-shoot for the trip that should be the best one I've ever had (hadn't opened it yet). It is a Canon PowerShot 1200 IS but I got it refurbished for about $120. I used to have a good little Nikon but I took it to Galveston and it got sand all in it. Photographer FAIL... But at least I didn't lose my keys in the ocean like my friend did (who had driven down there), but I did lose my glasses in the ocean. It wasn't the best weekend, LOL.
Anyway, I'll be packing for the two-week mission this weekend and going to the wedding of my "son." Garrett went with me to the EZTag store and the lady working there asked me if he was my son, and the rest (as they say) is history. I'm excited about that celebration, so if you can pray for he and his new wife, that would be awesome.
Godspeed,
JMission
P.S. Pride is saying that we are first. Pride ignores God. Pride seeks self. Pride is the poison that led to satan's rebellion. Pride is why we feel we don't need God. Pride is idolatry. God hates idolatry. God hates pride. "But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: 'God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.' " (James 4:6)
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