Editor's Note
This year GCCC has experienced joy as well as sadness. In the beginning of this year, Mr. and Mrs. Fu consecutively were admitted into the hospital; then our brother Dick and brother Yu also were hospitalized at different time for different diagnosis. Brother Shuwei passed away in a fatal car accident. In October, our Emeritus Pastor Fook Tin Ho went back home with the Lord. This month brother Harry also rested in the Lord.
Human cannot escape from the natural laws of birth, aging, illness & death. Someday we all will finish our days on earth. Genesis Chapter 3 was a tragic scene. After Adam and Eve sinned, they faced their consequences. Since then the sting of death trapped us with no hope. However, God is love, He prepared mankind an eternal life through His salvation. Despite our inevitable death, there is an eternal way. That is the Lord Jesus Christ because He is the way, the life and the truth. Christmas is a time to celebrate Jesus’ birth; I hope we enjoy this festival season and think about our relationship with the Lord.
Our joy is Mr. Fu’s condition has been stabilized. Mrs. Fu has returned to our church and served as our pianist again. Brother Dick and brother Yu have also been discharged and recovered. Our Pastor He, since his arrival in September and had already attended or conducted three memorial services. Mrs. He and their second daughter also moved to Chicago, all of these were led by God.
Our editorial board has been extremely busy these days; first we worked on Pastor Ho’s memorial issue, and then with our December issue. We often worked until 1 to 2 in the morning. Thank God that both publications were published on schedule.
We thank all the writers for their articles: Michael’s “Psalm 23:6”, Frail Soul’s “Our concept of God reflects our understanding of Him”, Hongmei’s “Learning to Pray”, Laurie’s “Never Changing”, Mrs. Chang’s “Thank the Lord again and again”, Mr. Yu’s “Thank God for my Recovery”, Mrs. Fu’s “Experiencing God’s Caring again” and Mr. Hu’s “The Obstacles to the Development of Christianity in China”.
Human cannot escape from the natural laws of birth, aging, illness & death. Someday we all will finish our days on earth. Genesis Chapter 3 was a tragic scene. After Adam and Eve sinned, they faced their consequences. Since then the sting of death trapped us with no hope. However, God is love, He prepared mankind an eternal life through His salvation. Despite our inevitable death, there is an eternal way. That is the Lord Jesus Christ because He is the way, the life and the truth. Christmas is a time to celebrate Jesus’ birth; I hope we enjoy this festival season and think about our relationship with the Lord.
Our joy is Mr. Fu’s condition has been stabilized. Mrs. Fu has returned to our church and served as our pianist again. Brother Dick and brother Yu have also been discharged and recovered. Our Pastor He, since his arrival in September and had already attended or conducted three memorial services. Mrs. He and their second daughter also moved to Chicago, all of these were led by God.
Our editorial board has been extremely busy these days; first we worked on Pastor Ho’s memorial issue, and then with our December issue. We often worked until 1 to 2 in the morning. Thank God that both publications were published on schedule.
We thank all the writers for their articles: Michael’s “Psalm 23:6”, Frail Soul’s “Our concept of God reflects our understanding of Him”, Hongmei’s “Learning to Pray”, Laurie’s “Never Changing”, Mrs. Chang’s “Thank the Lord again and again”, Mr. Yu’s “Thank God for my Recovery”, Mrs. Fu’s “Experiencing God’s Caring again” and Mr. Hu’s “The Obstacles to the Development of Christianity in China”.
Our concept of God reflects our understanding of Him
Author: Frail Soul
This evening, soon after dinner, for some reason, I went to the kitchen to find something to eat. I opened the refrigerator and took out a box of cinnamon butter and put a lot of it on some sweet rolls, and enjoyed myself. Then I went to my study room to write this article, realizing that I just ate some sweet and unhealthy “junk food”, without thinking about that. It was really ironic, exactly a picture of our spiritual life!
Nowadays, most “junk food” taste good, even though it is unhealthy. But we often think they are alright if we only eat them once in a while. This is also how we are spiritually. May be we love the world more than God. We desire fame and fortune, and we love an easy comfortable life with a secular value system. When God blesses our career with success and our material life with abundance, what do we continue to pursue, more success in our careers and more prosperous in our lives?
I remember that during a small group meeting, a brother shared that he had never thought that he was a greedy person. However when he thought that after he had obtained a higher degree, and came oversea, he was seeking more success in his career, and his heart was never satisfied. For the first time he realized that he was greedy. I think many people are greedy. Worldly things are quite attractive and we become enslaved without realizing it. Even Christians spend a lot of time and most of their lives seek after these things that will pass away. I am not advocating that we should be like the Puritans, but what do we desire after we have a stable life and career in this world? Is desiring and pursuing God alone not able to satisfy us?
In the past in the wilderness, a month after God rescued them from Egypt, the Israelites began to complain and desire the good food that they had as slaves in Egypt. Today, after we have been saved by God from sin, we might still desire the former days when we enjoyed our sinful lives.
In Exodus Chapter 16, God did not repay their complaints, but gave them quails and manna and provided for their daily needs. On the sixth day of the week He even gave them double portions for 2 days, so that they could keep the Sabbath Holy. But some of them did not follow God’s directions and instead saved extra food but then the food all got spoiled the next morning. A lot of times, we know God’s instruction but we do not follow. We would rather do what we want with our own thoughts and our own strength. In the end we get into trouble. There is a precious lesson we can learn from this chapter: to rely on God and His provisions daily. God knew their weakness because the Israelites only saw their immediate needs and forgot about what they had gone through and did not understand God’s mighty power.
How can we stay away from these “junk food”? First we have to replace the thoughts of “what we want to do” with God’s words. “When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, O Lord God Almighty.” (Jeremiah 15:16)
Please consider how much time we spend to watch the news, watch TV, watch movies or TV soap operas, surf the internet, and social media (Facebook, Wechats, Blogs, etc.). I admit that these media have their functions. But if we are ensnared by them, they become our masters and control our time management so that we can neglect God. Some people’s “junk food” may be gardening, sports, parties, cooking, home maintenance, etc. These may be fun, but if fun overtakes the deeper pursuit of God’s words, then they will affect our spiritual growth.
Secondly, is the source of our joy in our hearts from God? Or do the interests and media mentioned above satisfy us more? Earlier this evening my husband was saying to me in the kitchen, “Why are you eating these sweet and greasy rolls?” But I just wanted to eat something sweet; compared to the healthy dinner I had just finished, the buttered sweet rolls were tastier. My husband has diabetes and is very self-disciplined. He knows those food are not good for his health. I also knew that eating so much of these was not good for me but they could satisfy my desire at that time. If we eat “junk food” all the time, that becomes a habit and we will no longer have the appetite for healthy food.
In our spiritual growth process, we will have some struggles. We may not be able to persevere with our will power. But we can learn to pray like the psalmist has written, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My heart thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?”(Psalm 42:1-2) Think about it: how do we set our priorities in our lives today. Is God our master or are we our own masters as before? When we are pursuing our personal enjoyment or successes or are lazy doing nothing, do we realize that we are in a dry and weary land where there is no water? David said, “O God, You are my God; earnestly I seek you, my soul thirsts for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. “ (Psalm 63:1) David wrote this psalm when he was in the desert of Judah. He knew how to seek God in his troubles. The tragic thing is that we don’t even realize that we are trapped in a spiritual desert.
I hope that you “do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Roman 12:2)
In our everyday lives, we reflect whether we truly know and follow Him.
This evening, soon after dinner, for some reason, I went to the kitchen to find something to eat. I opened the refrigerator and took out a box of cinnamon butter and put a lot of it on some sweet rolls, and enjoyed myself. Then I went to my study room to write this article, realizing that I just ate some sweet and unhealthy “junk food”, without thinking about that. It was really ironic, exactly a picture of our spiritual life!
Nowadays, most “junk food” taste good, even though it is unhealthy. But we often think they are alright if we only eat them once in a while. This is also how we are spiritually. May be we love the world more than God. We desire fame and fortune, and we love an easy comfortable life with a secular value system. When God blesses our career with success and our material life with abundance, what do we continue to pursue, more success in our careers and more prosperous in our lives?
I remember that during a small group meeting, a brother shared that he had never thought that he was a greedy person. However when he thought that after he had obtained a higher degree, and came oversea, he was seeking more success in his career, and his heart was never satisfied. For the first time he realized that he was greedy. I think many people are greedy. Worldly things are quite attractive and we become enslaved without realizing it. Even Christians spend a lot of time and most of their lives seek after these things that will pass away. I am not advocating that we should be like the Puritans, but what do we desire after we have a stable life and career in this world? Is desiring and pursuing God alone not able to satisfy us?
In the past in the wilderness, a month after God rescued them from Egypt, the Israelites began to complain and desire the good food that they had as slaves in Egypt. Today, after we have been saved by God from sin, we might still desire the former days when we enjoyed our sinful lives.
In Exodus Chapter 16, God did not repay their complaints, but gave them quails and manna and provided for their daily needs. On the sixth day of the week He even gave them double portions for 2 days, so that they could keep the Sabbath Holy. But some of them did not follow God’s directions and instead saved extra food but then the food all got spoiled the next morning. A lot of times, we know God’s instruction but we do not follow. We would rather do what we want with our own thoughts and our own strength. In the end we get into trouble. There is a precious lesson we can learn from this chapter: to rely on God and His provisions daily. God knew their weakness because the Israelites only saw their immediate needs and forgot about what they had gone through and did not understand God’s mighty power.
How can we stay away from these “junk food”? First we have to replace the thoughts of “what we want to do” with God’s words. “When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, O Lord God Almighty.” (Jeremiah 15:16)
Please consider how much time we spend to watch the news, watch TV, watch movies or TV soap operas, surf the internet, and social media (Facebook, Wechats, Blogs, etc.). I admit that these media have their functions. But if we are ensnared by them, they become our masters and control our time management so that we can neglect God. Some people’s “junk food” may be gardening, sports, parties, cooking, home maintenance, etc. These may be fun, but if fun overtakes the deeper pursuit of God’s words, then they will affect our spiritual growth.
Secondly, is the source of our joy in our hearts from God? Or do the interests and media mentioned above satisfy us more? Earlier this evening my husband was saying to me in the kitchen, “Why are you eating these sweet and greasy rolls?” But I just wanted to eat something sweet; compared to the healthy dinner I had just finished, the buttered sweet rolls were tastier. My husband has diabetes and is very self-disciplined. He knows those food are not good for his health. I also knew that eating so much of these was not good for me but they could satisfy my desire at that time. If we eat “junk food” all the time, that becomes a habit and we will no longer have the appetite for healthy food.
In our spiritual growth process, we will have some struggles. We may not be able to persevere with our will power. But we can learn to pray like the psalmist has written, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My heart thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?”(Psalm 42:1-2) Think about it: how do we set our priorities in our lives today. Is God our master or are we our own masters as before? When we are pursuing our personal enjoyment or successes or are lazy doing nothing, do we realize that we are in a dry and weary land where there is no water? David said, “O God, You are my God; earnestly I seek you, my soul thirsts for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. “ (Psalm 63:1) David wrote this psalm when he was in the desert of Judah. He knew how to seek God in his troubles. The tragic thing is that we don’t even realize that we are trapped in a spiritual desert.
I hope that you “do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Roman 12:2)
In our everyday lives, we reflect whether we truly know and follow Him.
The Obstacles to the Development of Christianity in China
Author: Mr. Hu
Everywhere in China today, we can hear prayers and beautiful hymns. More than 30 years of reform and openness have helped the spread of the gospel in mainland China and give plentiful spiritual food for the hungry and thirty hearts and souls of its people. People are drawn closer, societal environment has been cleaned up and spiritual culture has been advanced. However, due to various external and internal factors, there still are many problems blocking the spread of the gospel.
I. External environment affecting the development of Christianity
China today is a country under highly concentrated power of the communist party leadership. There are various limitations to different parties and religious faiths. Especially when international and national political changes lead to threats to the communist party rule, Christianity experiences limitations and even oppressions from the authorities. For example, a while ago, Zeijiang local authorities took down crosses from churches by force, some area authorities locked up some ministers and pastors in the name of societal stability. For years, house churches have developed without the permission of the authorities when situation are relatively stable, the authorities might quietly allow the existence of the house churches. But when the situations are unstable, house churches may face pressures or even prohibitions. Also, some religious organizations may commit illegal activities using the name of Christianity, giving excuses for the authorities to oppress Christianity, causing obstacles for the spread of gospel.
II. Internal negative factors in the church causing obstacles for church growth
1. Secularization of church structure
Some Chinese churches, especially Three Self Church, because of government control, divisions and internal fights occur, with no tolerance or trusts for each other. Some deacons and co-workers fight for leadership using relative and friends to get votes causing the churches to split up into small factions. This causes major damage to churches.
2. Consolidation of Ministry Staff
Some Three-Self Churches never change their preaching staff and never allow outside speakers, and they don’t train new ministers. Their staff rarely participates in continual education or training from seminaries or other organizations. They don't grow spiritually and they lack vitality. Some churches require speakers to have certification. Therefore they don’t have new speakers for many years and the churches lack new energy.
3. Diversity of church members
Membership of some churches are becoming diversified. Some come to church because they have spiritual emptiness or curiosity. Some were Buddhists or Daoist or had other faiths that did not work and so come to Christian churches. Some have disabilities or serious illness. Some come for peace and blessings for their families. Some come for wealth and prosperity and longevity, etc. Therefore even though many have been baptized and come to church regularly, they never change spiritually. We came from dust and we will return to dust. But spiritual life is eternal and our ultimate goal is eternal life. Many Christians know only their earthly birthday but not their spiritual birthday. Many churches seriously lack spiritual feeding of their flocks and the churches cannot grow normally.
4. Financial difficulty
As most Christian families are poor, and cannot donate much, churches suffer financially. They cannot afford to hire pastors to shepherd the flock and cannot grow or spread the gospel.
In summary, even though the Chinese churches are developing very quickly, the development is unbalanced with a lot of deficiencies. There is need for more ministers to go to all parts of the country to help the healthy development of churches and to spread the gospel love fire to the ends of our motherland.
Finally, may God’s love, the Lord’s grace, and the Holy Spirit’s power be with our motherland forever and ever! Amen!
Everywhere in China today, we can hear prayers and beautiful hymns. More than 30 years of reform and openness have helped the spread of the gospel in mainland China and give plentiful spiritual food for the hungry and thirty hearts and souls of its people. People are drawn closer, societal environment has been cleaned up and spiritual culture has been advanced. However, due to various external and internal factors, there still are many problems blocking the spread of the gospel.
I. External environment affecting the development of Christianity
China today is a country under highly concentrated power of the communist party leadership. There are various limitations to different parties and religious faiths. Especially when international and national political changes lead to threats to the communist party rule, Christianity experiences limitations and even oppressions from the authorities. For example, a while ago, Zeijiang local authorities took down crosses from churches by force, some area authorities locked up some ministers and pastors in the name of societal stability. For years, house churches have developed without the permission of the authorities when situation are relatively stable, the authorities might quietly allow the existence of the house churches. But when the situations are unstable, house churches may face pressures or even prohibitions. Also, some religious organizations may commit illegal activities using the name of Christianity, giving excuses for the authorities to oppress Christianity, causing obstacles for the spread of gospel.
II. Internal negative factors in the church causing obstacles for church growth
1. Secularization of church structure
Some Chinese churches, especially Three Self Church, because of government control, divisions and internal fights occur, with no tolerance or trusts for each other. Some deacons and co-workers fight for leadership using relative and friends to get votes causing the churches to split up into small factions. This causes major damage to churches.
2. Consolidation of Ministry Staff
Some Three-Self Churches never change their preaching staff and never allow outside speakers, and they don’t train new ministers. Their staff rarely participates in continual education or training from seminaries or other organizations. They don't grow spiritually and they lack vitality. Some churches require speakers to have certification. Therefore they don’t have new speakers for many years and the churches lack new energy.
3. Diversity of church members
Membership of some churches are becoming diversified. Some come to church because they have spiritual emptiness or curiosity. Some were Buddhists or Daoist or had other faiths that did not work and so come to Christian churches. Some have disabilities or serious illness. Some come for peace and blessings for their families. Some come for wealth and prosperity and longevity, etc. Therefore even though many have been baptized and come to church regularly, they never change spiritually. We came from dust and we will return to dust. But spiritual life is eternal and our ultimate goal is eternal life. Many Christians know only their earthly birthday but not their spiritual birthday. Many churches seriously lack spiritual feeding of their flocks and the churches cannot grow normally.
4. Financial difficulty
As most Christian families are poor, and cannot donate much, churches suffer financially. They cannot afford to hire pastors to shepherd the flock and cannot grow or spread the gospel.
In summary, even though the Chinese churches are developing very quickly, the development is unbalanced with a lot of deficiencies. There is need for more ministers to go to all parts of the country to help the healthy development of churches and to spread the gospel love fire to the ends of our motherland.
Finally, may God’s love, the Lord’s grace, and the Holy Spirit’s power be with our motherland forever and ever! Amen!
Psalm 23:6 Thoughts and Q & A
(Personal Devotional thoughts, for reference only)
Author: Michael
Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Did I have any experience related to this verse?
I like Psalm 23 a lot. But soon after my baptism, I did not quite understand this last sentence. I could easily understand the prior metaphors regarding shepherding sheep and having meals because they are quite clear and good. Goodness and love, even though a bit more abstract, are still quite good, and are things that people would like to seek after. But what is so good about dwelling in the house of the Lord forever? I did not have any experience about that and so I did not look forward to that. As I attended a CCFC event, during a meal in the basement I asked the senior pastor who had baptized me, “What does it mean to dwell in the house of the Lord?” He answered that it meant being with the Lord. I was satisfied with that answer. Even though I learned a lot more after that, looking back, the pastor’s answer was most appropriate for my level at that time. It communicated to me the sense to seek after the Lord in a simple and sincere way and caused me, a new believer, to begin to seek for a similar good experience to be with the Lord. As the last sentence of this psalm, it was really wonderful to arouse my curiosity and let me gradually realize that even though the green pasture, the banquet and the cup of blessings are all good gifts from the Lord, they are not as good as the Lord, the giver himself!
Is this verse similar to other verses in David’s psalms?
Psalm 27:4, ‘This is what I seek; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord.”
What is the relationship between the house of the Lord and the Sabbath?
The house of the Lord is about worshipping the Lord in a set-aside place, to experience His presence strongly. The Sabbath is about worshipping the Lord in a set-aside time to experience His presence strongly.
What is the relationship between creation of the world and building of the temple?
Creating the world was the work of the Lord. Building the temple was the work of Man. The Hebrew terms used for these were both rarely used. The term for the work creating, melachah, is not the usual term for work, avodeh. Man was made by the creator in His own image, and so can worship the Creator with his own creative work, according to His instructions, with the wisdom and skills that He gave, to build the temple. To set aside a place in the world the Creator created to worship Him is a totally appropriate response of man.
What is the use of such a small temple to such a great Creator?
Some people think that the small temple has a wonderful corresponding relationship to the whole world.
Newton the scientist had researched about the temple and had drawn a picture of it.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Newton%27s_occult_studies#/media/File:Isaac_Newton's_Temple_of_Solomon.jpg
Even though the temple was small, some people look forward to the future when the whole world will become the house of the Lord where we worship the Creator.
David never built the temple, so was the faith expressed by this verse in vein?
Some people think that David will be among the righteous that will be resurrected in the future. Even though he went through the valley of death, he will be with the Lord in the future.
How does the verse relate to eternity?
All the days of my life and forever are words in this sentence that relate to eternity. But the most foundational is the name of the Lord in this verse. He is the eternal being. Because of Him, we have real eternal hope.
How does the Lord’s name relate to eternity?
The Lord’s eternity is beyond our imagination. Eternity in our ideas is usually relative to our life expectancy. A hundred years is a long life. A thousand years is the wish for a prince. Nine thousand years is the wish for a co-regent and ten thousand years is the wish for a king. Eternity must be longer than all these. But the name of the Lord must not just represent the worldly concept of the champion of longevity. He is not limited by appearance. He transcends space because he is omnipresent. He also transcends time as He is eternal. In other words, He all at once fills all times; He exists at the same time in the past, in the present and in the future.
Regarding this, I wrote an article in the Dec 2011 Quarterly, in which I quoted a lot of scripture. The reason I wrote that article was in response to the question my 3 year-old child asked, “Is God in the clouds?” That caused me to think and learn a lot.
A name of God consists of y, h, v, h. These letters, according to Jewish thoughts, are consonants used to construct the 3 different times of existence, the past, the present, and forever = hyh, hvh, vyhyh. As He exists in the past, the present and forever, there is no difference for him with yesterday and today and tomorrow.
He is like the author of a picture book. He has completed every page of the book from the past to the present to the future. And we are like the people in some of the pages now. Even though we are not yet in the future, the Lord has already completed the pages of our future. Therefore even though David regretted that he could not build the temple in his life time, he had the faith to write down, “I will dwell in the house of the Lord (who exists in the past, the present and forever)”, the verse that lasts forever.
Author: Michael
Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Did I have any experience related to this verse?
I like Psalm 23 a lot. But soon after my baptism, I did not quite understand this last sentence. I could easily understand the prior metaphors regarding shepherding sheep and having meals because they are quite clear and good. Goodness and love, even though a bit more abstract, are still quite good, and are things that people would like to seek after. But what is so good about dwelling in the house of the Lord forever? I did not have any experience about that and so I did not look forward to that. As I attended a CCFC event, during a meal in the basement I asked the senior pastor who had baptized me, “What does it mean to dwell in the house of the Lord?” He answered that it meant being with the Lord. I was satisfied with that answer. Even though I learned a lot more after that, looking back, the pastor’s answer was most appropriate for my level at that time. It communicated to me the sense to seek after the Lord in a simple and sincere way and caused me, a new believer, to begin to seek for a similar good experience to be with the Lord. As the last sentence of this psalm, it was really wonderful to arouse my curiosity and let me gradually realize that even though the green pasture, the banquet and the cup of blessings are all good gifts from the Lord, they are not as good as the Lord, the giver himself!
Is this verse similar to other verses in David’s psalms?
Psalm 27:4, ‘This is what I seek; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord.”
What is the relationship between the house of the Lord and the Sabbath?
The house of the Lord is about worshipping the Lord in a set-aside place, to experience His presence strongly. The Sabbath is about worshipping the Lord in a set-aside time to experience His presence strongly.
What is the relationship between creation of the world and building of the temple?
Creating the world was the work of the Lord. Building the temple was the work of Man. The Hebrew terms used for these were both rarely used. The term for the work creating, melachah, is not the usual term for work, avodeh. Man was made by the creator in His own image, and so can worship the Creator with his own creative work, according to His instructions, with the wisdom and skills that He gave, to build the temple. To set aside a place in the world the Creator created to worship Him is a totally appropriate response of man.
What is the use of such a small temple to such a great Creator?
Some people think that the small temple has a wonderful corresponding relationship to the whole world.
Newton the scientist had researched about the temple and had drawn a picture of it.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Newton%27s_occult_studies#/media/File:Isaac_Newton's_Temple_of_Solomon.jpg
Even though the temple was small, some people look forward to the future when the whole world will become the house of the Lord where we worship the Creator.
David never built the temple, so was the faith expressed by this verse in vein?
Some people think that David will be among the righteous that will be resurrected in the future. Even though he went through the valley of death, he will be with the Lord in the future.
How does the verse relate to eternity?
All the days of my life and forever are words in this sentence that relate to eternity. But the most foundational is the name of the Lord in this verse. He is the eternal being. Because of Him, we have real eternal hope.
How does the Lord’s name relate to eternity?
The Lord’s eternity is beyond our imagination. Eternity in our ideas is usually relative to our life expectancy. A hundred years is a long life. A thousand years is the wish for a prince. Nine thousand years is the wish for a co-regent and ten thousand years is the wish for a king. Eternity must be longer than all these. But the name of the Lord must not just represent the worldly concept of the champion of longevity. He is not limited by appearance. He transcends space because he is omnipresent. He also transcends time as He is eternal. In other words, He all at once fills all times; He exists at the same time in the past, in the present and in the future.
Regarding this, I wrote an article in the Dec 2011 Quarterly, in which I quoted a lot of scripture. The reason I wrote that article was in response to the question my 3 year-old child asked, “Is God in the clouds?” That caused me to think and learn a lot.
A name of God consists of y, h, v, h. These letters, according to Jewish thoughts, are consonants used to construct the 3 different times of existence, the past, the present, and forever = hyh, hvh, vyhyh. As He exists in the past, the present and forever, there is no difference for him with yesterday and today and tomorrow.
He is like the author of a picture book. He has completed every page of the book from the past to the present to the future. And we are like the people in some of the pages now. Even though we are not yet in the future, the Lord has already completed the pages of our future. Therefore even though David regretted that he could not build the temple in his life time, he had the faith to write down, “I will dwell in the house of the Lord (who exists in the past, the present and forever)”, the verse that lasts forever.
Learning to Pray
Author: Hongmei
Prayer and Bible reading are the most fundamental and basic spiritual disciplines of Christians, but I am not doing well in either one. Recently I have a lot of thoughts about learning to pray aloud. I am writing them down to share with you all and to encourage myself to pray continually.
Prayer is talking with God in Jesus’ name. May be your have heard more than once from other Christians that prayer is a privilege of God’s children and so should be as natural as talking to your parents. When we are far from home, we usually talk to our parents about positive things only so that they don’t worry about us. Only when we come to God we can tell Him everything. In recent years, as I encountered difficulties in life and work, I have prayed to God in tears and in silence, and I have experienced the joy and thankfulness of answered prayers.
However, praying aloud in public had been a difficulty for me and I have been finding all kinds of excuses for myself to avoid it. I recall once that I really could not get away with it; sister Wendy wrote up a prayer for me and I just read it. I really admire those brother and sister that know how to pray. Then I seriously thought about it and I realized that the main reason I did not want to pray in front of others was that I felt that my prayers were not good enough and others might laugh at me. I felt that the words and sentences I used in prayer were not beautiful or “spiritual” enough. In fact, God cares most about our heart. Good sisters also remind me that we can use beautiful words in the Bible and in hymns for our prayers. This also reminds me that I should read the Bible more so that I know more what I can say in prayer. On the other hand, I also recognize my pride. As we gather together to pray, I often worry about my simplicity in speech rather than focusing on the Lord; I have not been praising and worshipping God with all my heart and all my mind and all my strength. After I thought through these, even though I may still be nervous, I know that we are all talking to God with all our hearts and minds when we pray together with one heart and one mind and I am getting to like to pray aloud. I hope that through prayer. I can experience more God’s blessing together with brother and sister.
God answers prayers. We can pray to Him anytime and anywhere, whether we are driving, walking, running, cooking or washing clothes. A sister in our church is an example for me. Once I was in her car on the way to the airport. As we were getting onto the expressway, she prayed aloud for God’s care and peace. Truly, we can talk to God about all things great or small. He is our help and strength in times of needs. I also love to hear her prayer. She always has great faith and the words from the Bible flows out so naturally from her mouth. As I admire her, I also know that she has spent a lot of time and effort to read and meditate on God’s word.
The Apostle Paul urged us, “Pray continually (I Thes 5:17)”, pray in the spirit in all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests” Eps 6:18). May we learn to pray and rely on God in our daily lives in all things.
Prayer and Bible reading are the most fundamental and basic spiritual disciplines of Christians, but I am not doing well in either one. Recently I have a lot of thoughts about learning to pray aloud. I am writing them down to share with you all and to encourage myself to pray continually.
Prayer is talking with God in Jesus’ name. May be your have heard more than once from other Christians that prayer is a privilege of God’s children and so should be as natural as talking to your parents. When we are far from home, we usually talk to our parents about positive things only so that they don’t worry about us. Only when we come to God we can tell Him everything. In recent years, as I encountered difficulties in life and work, I have prayed to God in tears and in silence, and I have experienced the joy and thankfulness of answered prayers.
However, praying aloud in public had been a difficulty for me and I have been finding all kinds of excuses for myself to avoid it. I recall once that I really could not get away with it; sister Wendy wrote up a prayer for me and I just read it. I really admire those brother and sister that know how to pray. Then I seriously thought about it and I realized that the main reason I did not want to pray in front of others was that I felt that my prayers were not good enough and others might laugh at me. I felt that the words and sentences I used in prayer were not beautiful or “spiritual” enough. In fact, God cares most about our heart. Good sisters also remind me that we can use beautiful words in the Bible and in hymns for our prayers. This also reminds me that I should read the Bible more so that I know more what I can say in prayer. On the other hand, I also recognize my pride. As we gather together to pray, I often worry about my simplicity in speech rather than focusing on the Lord; I have not been praising and worshipping God with all my heart and all my mind and all my strength. After I thought through these, even though I may still be nervous, I know that we are all talking to God with all our hearts and minds when we pray together with one heart and one mind and I am getting to like to pray aloud. I hope that through prayer. I can experience more God’s blessing together with brother and sister.
God answers prayers. We can pray to Him anytime and anywhere, whether we are driving, walking, running, cooking or washing clothes. A sister in our church is an example for me. Once I was in her car on the way to the airport. As we were getting onto the expressway, she prayed aloud for God’s care and peace. Truly, we can talk to God about all things great or small. He is our help and strength in times of needs. I also love to hear her prayer. She always has great faith and the words from the Bible flows out so naturally from her mouth. As I admire her, I also know that she has spent a lot of time and effort to read and meditate on God’s word.
The Apostle Paul urged us, “Pray continually (I Thes 5:17)”, pray in the spirit in all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests” Eps 6:18). May we learn to pray and rely on God in our daily lives in all things.
Thank the Lord Again and Again
Author: Mrs. Chang
Our dear Lord loves every one of us. Our Heavenly Father sent His only Son to the world two thousand years ago to suffer for our sins and to be betrayed and crucified to cleanse us from our sins with His shed previous blood. I shed tears everyday during my devotion and prayer as I think about this. Our dear Lord’s love is eternal and His mercy lasts forever.
Since early 2015 I began to prepare to sell the house. I had to clean up a lot of things but I also got a lot of help from loving brothers and sisters in the Lord: Mr, & Mrs. Ouyang, Mr. and Mrs. Zane, Mr. and Mrs. Lee and Mr. and Mrs., and Jacob Hsiao!
Our dear Lord loves us and knows all our needs. He prepared someone to buy my house and arranged for me to temporarily live in Brother Sidney Hsiao’s home. I am really thankful for this. I am also thankful that God also prepared for me a condo, what I really need, a smaller residence.
Through this period, every time I prayed with tears, I opened the bible and read Psalm 37:4,5, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desire of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this”. And John 14:13,14, “And I will do whatever you ask in my name so that the Son may bring glory to the Father; you may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” Again, I thank brothers and sisters in the Lord for your help, your caring and your prayers. May the Lord bless and repay you with overflowing blessing. Emmanuel!
Our dear Lord loves every one of us. Our Heavenly Father sent His only Son to the world two thousand years ago to suffer for our sins and to be betrayed and crucified to cleanse us from our sins with His shed previous blood. I shed tears everyday during my devotion and prayer as I think about this. Our dear Lord’s love is eternal and His mercy lasts forever.
Since early 2015 I began to prepare to sell the house. I had to clean up a lot of things but I also got a lot of help from loving brothers and sisters in the Lord: Mr, & Mrs. Ouyang, Mr. and Mrs. Zane, Mr. and Mrs. Lee and Mr. and Mrs., and Jacob Hsiao!
Our dear Lord loves us and knows all our needs. He prepared someone to buy my house and arranged for me to temporarily live in Brother Sidney Hsiao’s home. I am really thankful for this. I am also thankful that God also prepared for me a condo, what I really need, a smaller residence.
Through this period, every time I prayed with tears, I opened the bible and read Psalm 37:4,5, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desire of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this”. And John 14:13,14, “And I will do whatever you ask in my name so that the Son may bring glory to the Father; you may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” Again, I thank brothers and sisters in the Lord for your help, your caring and your prayers. May the Lord bless and repay you with overflowing blessing. Emmanuel!
Thank God for my Recovery
Author: Mr. Yu
As a Chinese saying goes, “The weather is unpredictable and our life can be unpredictable too.” During this year’s retreat, because Ginny and Wendy were leading our praise worship songs so well, I was very excited and sang loudly to praise the Lord. Unfortunately, tragedy followed extreme joy. After singing 2 songs, I suddenly felt something wrong with blood flowing up to my brain. Then I could not hear myself. So I immediately told my wife sitting next to me. She signaled me to sit down immediately and rest. Soon after that I was fine. But 3 days later (7/2) I felt bad again at home. I was speaking and behaving strangely. My family was scared and took me to the hospital quickly. The doctor confirmed that I had acute bleeding in the brain and took me to surgery quickly. All these were explained into me by my family afterwards. I thought I was just resting in the hospital and I did not know about all the symptoms. I was wondering why they put me in the hospital and blamed them wrongly. I was really sorry and asked for their forgiveness.
From what I heard, since I got sick, every step was so tense. But the check up, treatment, and recovery were all so smooth and timely with the Lord’s caring!
With rehab for almost 3 months now, I have attended all the necessary procedures carefully so as to avoid any complication and regrets! I really thank the Lord for his everlasting care.
I also thank brothers and sisters of our church for praying for me continually since I got sick on 7/2/15 and for visiting me multiple times in the hospital during their busy schedules. They really encouraged me and I will never forget.
This sickness let me deeply experience God’s grace and witness God’s mighty power. Even though I am still somewhat weak, I believe God will let me recover to my prior state. Thank God! Alleluia!
As a Chinese saying goes, “The weather is unpredictable and our life can be unpredictable too.” During this year’s retreat, because Ginny and Wendy were leading our praise worship songs so well, I was very excited and sang loudly to praise the Lord. Unfortunately, tragedy followed extreme joy. After singing 2 songs, I suddenly felt something wrong with blood flowing up to my brain. Then I could not hear myself. So I immediately told my wife sitting next to me. She signaled me to sit down immediately and rest. Soon after that I was fine. But 3 days later (7/2) I felt bad again at home. I was speaking and behaving strangely. My family was scared and took me to the hospital quickly. The doctor confirmed that I had acute bleeding in the brain and took me to surgery quickly. All these were explained into me by my family afterwards. I thought I was just resting in the hospital and I did not know about all the symptoms. I was wondering why they put me in the hospital and blamed them wrongly. I was really sorry and asked for their forgiveness.
From what I heard, since I got sick, every step was so tense. But the check up, treatment, and recovery were all so smooth and timely with the Lord’s caring!
With rehab for almost 3 months now, I have attended all the necessary procedures carefully so as to avoid any complication and regrets! I really thank the Lord for his everlasting care.
I also thank brothers and sisters of our church for praying for me continually since I got sick on 7/2/15 and for visiting me multiple times in the hospital during their busy schedules. They really encouraged me and I will never forget.
This sickness let me deeply experience God’s grace and witness God’s mighty power. Even though I am still somewhat weak, I believe God will let me recover to my prior state. Thank God! Alleluia!
Experiencing God’s Caring Again
Author: Jane Fu
Recently I got approved to borrow a Digital Talking –Book Player from the Chicago Public Library for free. It can play tapes that I borrow at adjustable speed, tune and volume. It can also fast forward, fast backward, and pause. I can also listen with headphone in bed. As I returned from the lobby carrying the Express package, I could not carry all my things. So a friend about my age helped me to carry 2 boxes behind me. After I opened the door I really wanted to let her in. I was holding onto the walker with both hands but I did not stand steadily. So I fell forward and hit a cabinet. I sat on the floor and could not get up. (Ever since I broke my right leg some years ago, I have not been able to get up from sitting on the floor). The apartment manger wanted to call 911 but I disagreed because it costs money. Then 3 paramedics came, 2 men and 1 woman. The woman got me up and they watched me get to sit on a chair with the help of the walker before they left.
That was a Tuesday, the day that Mr. and Mrs. Hsiao would normally come to see me. They called without any answer and they came anyway because they were concerned. Mr. Hsiao helped me to open the package. It was James’ student’s 70th birthday special memorial magazine. The first page has James’ recent photo. Inside there are many pictures that have him. Mrs. Hsiao asked me if I wanted to see James. I was overjoyed. When we got there, it was already 5.30. James was very excited to see the magazine and wrote a short message to his student. It was already 7.30 when Mr. and Mrs. Hsiao took me home. That day I went though so much and had such a bad fall, I was very tired. But I could not stop but to thank and praise the Lord for protecting me. Again I experienced the Lord’s caring.
Recently I got approved to borrow a Digital Talking –Book Player from the Chicago Public Library for free. It can play tapes that I borrow at adjustable speed, tune and volume. It can also fast forward, fast backward, and pause. I can also listen with headphone in bed. As I returned from the lobby carrying the Express package, I could not carry all my things. So a friend about my age helped me to carry 2 boxes behind me. After I opened the door I really wanted to let her in. I was holding onto the walker with both hands but I did not stand steadily. So I fell forward and hit a cabinet. I sat on the floor and could not get up. (Ever since I broke my right leg some years ago, I have not been able to get up from sitting on the floor). The apartment manger wanted to call 911 but I disagreed because it costs money. Then 3 paramedics came, 2 men and 1 woman. The woman got me up and they watched me get to sit on a chair with the help of the walker before they left.
That was a Tuesday, the day that Mr. and Mrs. Hsiao would normally come to see me. They called without any answer and they came anyway because they were concerned. Mr. Hsiao helped me to open the package. It was James’ student’s 70th birthday special memorial magazine. The first page has James’ recent photo. Inside there are many pictures that have him. Mrs. Hsiao asked me if I wanted to see James. I was overjoyed. When we got there, it was already 5.30. James was very excited to see the magazine and wrote a short message to his student. It was already 7.30 when Mr. and Mrs. Hsiao took me home. That day I went though so much and had such a bad fall, I was very tired. But I could not stop but to thank and praise the Lord for protecting me. Again I experienced the Lord’s caring.
Never Changing
Author: Laurie
The world is changing, time is changing, but God never changes. Living in this world, we have to rely on God’s care in all things. From the beginning to the end of the year, God watches over us; even though we have heartaches and sadness, He never leaves or forsakes us. We do not have to worry about tomorrow.
I am especially thankful that Pastor He and his family have joined our church family and that we also have 2 new babies. These are God’s greater blessings to us to encourage us. I pray that God continues to bless us so that we will serve in unity and the church will grow properly and be the light and salt in the community to lead more families and friends to Christ.
I hope all of us will attend Sunday School so that we can understand the Bible and God’s will more, how the Bible applies to and helps us today, teaches us in our daily lives, God’s great salvation plan, God’s righteousness and God’s love. Through reading and understanding the Bible, we can probably equip ourselves and become vessels that are fit for God’s use, to spread God’s love to others.
The world is changing, time is changing, but God never changes. Living in this world, we have to rely on God’s care in all things. From the beginning to the end of the year, God watches over us; even though we have heartaches and sadness, He never leaves or forsakes us. We do not have to worry about tomorrow.
I am especially thankful that Pastor He and his family have joined our church family and that we also have 2 new babies. These are God’s greater blessings to us to encourage us. I pray that God continues to bless us so that we will serve in unity and the church will grow properly and be the light and salt in the community to lead more families and friends to Christ.
I hope all of us will attend Sunday School so that we can understand the Bible and God’s will more, how the Bible applies to and helps us today, teaches us in our daily lives, God’s great salvation plan, God’s righteousness and God’s love. Through reading and understanding the Bible, we can probably equip ourselves and become vessels that are fit for God’s use, to spread God’s love to others.