Things that count with God

This morning on my way to work, I was praying to God and I asked Him for godly principles to how to lead my life, and He showed me...

(7) Things that count with God - Matthew 7:

1. Do not judge and you won't be judged (v1,2)
1 “Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.

2. Do not share your holy revelations with those who do not understand it (v6)
6 “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.

3. Ask, Seek, Hunger, Thirst (v7-11)
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!

4. Whatever you want men to do to you, do too to them. (v12)
12 Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

5. Choose the narrow way (v13)
13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

6. Discern men by their fruits (v 15-20)
15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

7. Hear and do God's word. (v24-26)
24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
26 “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand


Amen. I must remember to meditate on this, cos confidence has always been my stumbling block. I get anxious when I do not know my authority and I dare not perform even when given the opportunity. Knowledge is power.. and I know I can walk with greater victory when I am sure of His word and what His word says about my life. My breakthrough is coming!

nail-pierced hands

Had a wonderful service this weekend - God's presence... So tangible... His voice.. so audible...

Jesus came and the Lord Himself spoke to me..

As I was in deep worship, I was struggling within myself.. I knew there was something I had to let go but I couldn't, it was really tough.. and as I continued to worship and sing to Him..
I felt Jesus Himself come right in front of me..

He stretched out both His hands toward me and showed me His palms.. Using a finger and pointing to both palms (the sign language for "Jesus"), He said, you see these hands? I have taken your sins and crucified them with me upon the cross.

And as He said that, I cried. I felt deliverance.. and understood that that I have been set free by His blood, and from now on, that handsign was going to serve as a reminder to myself to crucify my flesh, and that whatever I go through, He's gone through it for me, and I no longer need to struggle as I lift it up to Him.

Tears rolled down my cheeks as I looked down at His nail-pierced hands again, I sensed the pain that He went through for my sake and I was touched by His love.. His great love..

Jesus, I'm grateful to You..
and truly, like the song goes..
"what's not to love about You
Heaven and earth adore You
Kings and kingdoms bow down
Son of God You are the one
You are the one
I'm living for"

Jesus, You are whom I live for.
Forever.
I love You because You first loved me, because You sacrificed~

Know the Lord all over again

Two weeks ago during service, Pastor called Jesus as Counselor, Prince of Peace..and as he called God by those names, I began to reflect upon my own relationship with God, and what do I know Him by...? My best friend? My Saviour? I then felt in my heart a determination to know the Lord all over again..
And so began my quest to seek after Him more on a personal Bible study:

1) Jesus fulfilled all righteousness (Matt 3:15)
He asked John the baptist to baptise Him - He did what was right even when it wasn't necessary.
Sometimes we don't do what is needed cos it doesn't feel necessary, so it is important to follow in the footsteps of Jesus to fulfil all righteousness.

2) Jesus knew the word of God (Matt 4:4-11) - vital for defeating the enemy
That's why it is necessary for us to also memorise God's verses...How else to wield the sword of the Spirit?

3) Jesus prayed for God's will to be done when things seemed trying (Luke 22:42-44)
Each time I experience difficulty to do what is right, I recall the picture of Jesus in the garden of Gethsamene praying, saying, Father if You are willing, remove this cup from Me. Yet not My will, but Yours be done. And being in an agony He prayed more earnestly. And His sweat was as if it were great drops of blood falling to the ground.
So we can take heed that even when things become very difficult at times, we should follow the example of Jesus and get up and pray.

4) Jesus taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law (Matt 7:29)
Therefore, teach out of conviction, with conviction and don't just preach.

5) Jesus was calm in times of trouble and storm (Matt 8:24)
When the storm came, the disciples were panicking, yet Jesus Himself was totally unaffected by the storm. But He woke up from sleep and rebuked the winds and the waves.
Speak to the problems and not let the problems overwhelm you.

6) Jesus was embracing of everyone (Matt 9:12-13)
He never despised anyone/ sinners, and even sat with them for dinner.
Sometimes, we fnd it hard to accept those who don't share our same level of faith, and we view them with eyes of judgement and despise. And Jesus has this to say, "I desire mercy, not sacrifice"

7) Jesus never stopped 'working' (Mark 3:2-4)
Even on the day of Sabbath, He was healing people and He even challenged the pharises not to be legalistic. This reminds me of what pastor Mike Connell did as he was leaving the hall to rush for the next service.. As he was walking out, he was laying hands and praying for every single person he met along the way. To me, it certainly felt like it was no longer a job. Pastor Mike Connell had taken full ownership and responsibility of his call and was faithful to it. In the same likeness as Pastor Kong who is always serving... be it counseling or preaching etc. Yet, it is of prime importance that we never neglect to commune with God so we will never need to come to a stage of burning out.

8) Jesus was compassionate to the needy (Matt 9:36)
We should be emphathetic to people's situations, for they, in Jesus words, "are like sheep without a shepherd."

9) Jesus empowers (Matt 10:1)
Even though He had all authority, He gave His disciples to perform them (miracles).
And a friend reminds me of this verse from John 14:12 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do.." what Jesus is really saying here is that as the risen Lord, who dwells in us by means of the Spirit, He will do greater things through us than He did when He was here in the days of His flesh. Hallelujah!

10) Jesus hated wickedness (Ps 45:7)
In fact, He hated wickedness so much that He bled to wound it to the heart; He died that it might die; He was buried that He might bury it in His tomb; and He rose that He might forever trample it beneath His feet.
Even when I struggle, the Spirit Himself reminds me that I am a co-heir with Christ and that He died so that we are no longer slaves to sin.
And tonight, all the more I am decided that I want to follow Him; to walk on the narrow path.
(there can hardly be any goodness in a man if he be not angry at sin; he who loves truth must hate every false way.)

It's so hard to do what is right sometimes

God, it's so hard to do what is right.
It's so hard... to say, "Father, if You are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will but Yours be done."

And the answer is found in Jesus' advice to His disciples, "Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation."

Well, God never said it was going to be easy. Even Jesus Himself prayed till His sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.

So, get up and pray
Get up and pray
Get up and pray..

Pray and enjoy a moment more with Him..

A friend of mine recently asked this question, "Why do we need to pray since God already knows what's going to happen to us? Does God change His mind?"

And in answering that, I came to seek Him more....

I told my friend, I had thought about that question before; about praying, but it subsequently became an easy question to answer especially when you open the Bible and it's filled with Jesus praying.. asking His disciples to pray, asking you and me to pray.. etc etc

Why there! Praying IS the way to go! Especially when Jesus HIMSELF is praying too!


And here's what I also told my friend..

1) our finite mind isn't able to understand an infinite God, so we can only rely on how far our finite mind can possibly take us. Yet, we should not let it handicap us in understanding God
"Lean not on your own understanding but in all your ways acknowledge and He shall direct your path"

2) Even if the twists and turns in life have already been planned and decided for us, not praying only discounts us from having an encounter with God, much less experiencing His miracle. (A miracle is not quite the same without a prayer) and it shortchanges us of His revelation. Cos' we NEED God, not the other way around. So say, even if the results are going to be the same whether or not we pray (God loves us the same even when we don't pray) when we don't pray, we are really cutting ourselves short in our relationship with God.
So, each moment we don't pray, is a moment less with Him, each time we don't seek Him, is time lost with Him.


Given that He loves us all the same, don't you want to encounter Him in a deeper and more intimate way? So pray and read His word, and He will give you wisdom and show you a glimpse of future, and He can speak to you when you seek after Him.

James 4:8 says to draw close to God and He will draw close to you.

do not go back to the old days

As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy."
1 Pet 1:14-15

Amen.

Be content in any and every situation

Things hadn't been very rosy of late, and I've been feeling rather discouraged. At work and ministry.. especially at work - Things just didn't seem to go right. And with the little remuneration for the amount of work done, it certainly wasn't very encouraging.. But I decided to comfort myself by imagining that I am a villager.
I think about those poor but happy villagers who live in the mountains in China, and as I sit by my bed counting my blessings, things didn't feel as bad afterall.

Godliness with contentment is great gain
1 Timothy 6:6

In order to meet with the various challenges that faced me, I decided to keep confessing I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

That night when I was reading the word of God for encouragement, I turned to Phil 4:19
..my God shall supply all your needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

And that was when God spoke to me, He said..
Be content in any and every situation.. whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.

..
you know how different people can comfort and dispense great advice and yet sometimes you may still find it hard to overcome your fears and worries? But when God speaks a rhema word to you, the peace of God comes upon you and you know that God has spoken and you fret no more.
And that's exactly how I feel right now..

I thank God for His rhema word, for His comfort.
Surely as I become content in any and every situation, as I seek first the kingdom of God and all His righteousness, all things shall be added to me.

Thank You God for Your peace in me..

One day in the house of God is better than a thousand elsewhere

I was feeling rather tired last night, so I thought maybe I should skip prayer and head straight to bed.. but a thought came over me, and I wondered if it really was going to be worth it to lose time with God just to gain sleep, or would I rather lose sleep and gain time with God. After all, if heaven is where Jesus is, I really should be clearly aware of which is a more worthy way to spend my time, and so with that, I walked into my room and started praying..

That's when I felt the Holy Spirit tell me, "One day in the house of God is better than a thousand days elsewhere.."

So, I took my Bible out and meditated upon Psalm 84:
1 How lovely is Your tabernacle,
O LORD of hosts!
2 My soul longs, yes, even faints
For the courts of the LORD;
My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.

3 Even the sparrow has found a home,
And the swallow a nest for herself,
Where she may lay her young—
Even Your altars, O LORD of hosts,
My King and my God.
4 Blessed are those who dwell in Your house;
They will still be praising You. Selah

5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in You,
Whose heart is set on pilgrimage.
6 As they pass through the Valley of Baca,
They make it a spring;
The rain also covers it with pools.
7 They go from strength to strength;
Each one appears before God in Zion.[b]

8 O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer;
Give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah
9 O God, behold our shield,
And look upon the face of Your anointed.

10 For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
The LORD will give grace and glory;
No good thing will He withhold
From those who walk uprightly.

12 O LORD of hosts,
Blessed is the man who trusts in You!

Indeed.. no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.
What comfort we get, when we rest in God..
Amen.

Much knowledge is also vanity upon vanity

Two nights ago, when I was doing my quiet time, I sat down with my Bible and asked God what He will say to me tonight,
And then quietly I felt Him tell me to refer to Ecclesiates. While looking for the book of Ecclesiates, I felt the Holy Spirit say, “everything is meaningless, it is a mere chasing of the wind..” As I was pondering upon that verse, I found the book of Ecclesiastes only to realize that the verse came right from the book of ECCLESIASTES! I then knew without a doubt that God was really highlighting that text to me. I then subsequently read up the Commentary to find out more on Ecclesiastes and to search for what God wanted to say..

It said, “If this world, in its present state, were all, it would not be worth living for; and the wealth and pleasure of this world, if we had ever so much, are not enough to make us happy. What profit has a man of all his labour? All he gets by it will not supply the wants of the soul, nor satisfy its desires; will not atone for the sins of the soul…Solomon tried all things, and found them vanity. He found his searches after knowledge weariness, not only to the flesh, but to the mind. The more he saw of the works done under the sun, the more he saw their vanity; and the sight often vexed his spirit. He could neither gain that satisfaction to himself, nor do that good to others, which he expected. Even the pursuit of knowledge and wisdom discovered man's wickedness and misery; so that the more he knew, the more he saw cause to lament and mourn. Let us learn to hate and fear sin, the cause of all this vanity and misery; to value Christ; to seek rest in the knowledge, love, and service of the Saviour.”

You see, I happen to be one who is rather critical, seeking to define the rights and wrongs in the things I see, I judge, I thirst after knowledge. And this is merely one part of me.

Then, there’s the other part of me that struggles.. I struggle constantly upon this ‘thorn of my flesh’ – it is my weakness, it is the cross I bear, and I struggle to overcome it. One night, I even had a dream. I dreamt of my secondary classmate whom I bumped into on the streets one day. I asked her what she was doing and realized to my surprise she is a praise and worship leader in her church! (She had never been the religious type as far as I knew) Not long into the conversation, I invited her to go clubbing one of these nights, which in the dream, was symbolic of going into a past lifestyle.. But to which she refused.. She replied with utmost sincerity, “I have sacrificed a lot to be where I am and worked very hard to come all the way to become the leader today.. I really do not want to throw it all away – it would be a waste.” Hearing from her made me identify with my own situation. I too, have come a long way. Am I prepared to throw it all away in exchange for temporal gains?

I woke up the next day pondering upon that dream, knowing that there was a message behind it, and God was helping me make a godly choice about the temptations that I face.

Truly, the pursuit of all things material is nothing but vanity. Vanity upon vanity, vanities of all vanities, and it is meaningless; a mere chasing of the wind.


--
I continue to pray for God’s guidance and His divine protection upon my life; that I will have His wisdom to make the right choices in life.

Without You God, life would be a hell, but as long as I have You, even hell would be a heaven.

I thank You God for being close by my side. I feel You with me. And I feel blissful and secure..

We all speak a different spiritual language

I read this this morning..

For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but so that the world might be saved through Him.
He who believes on Him is not condemned, but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God…

I do not know why but what stood out as I read that was the word, ‘condemn’; that I suffer no condemnation now that I am with Christ. As I meditated on it, it struck even deeper that God really doesn’t condemn – NOT ONE BIT, not when I am with Him at least.

I had been a victim of condemnation… and to know that I need not suffer a bit of it is to say the least, a revelation.

And then I go on to read this from the book I’m currently on..

“Spirituality is not ‘one-size-fits-all’. There is a wonderful variety of ways to relate to God that are equally compelling…

• The Pathway of Tradition
These people love God through rituals, sacraments, and symbols. Their life of faith is marked by disciplines and structure. They may read daily from a devotional text or have a routine time of kneeling in prayer. Others may view their pathway to God as legalistic, but traditionalists define their faith largely by their conduct.

• The Pathway of Vision
These people love God by dreaming a great dream. They have their mind set on the future and are focused on what they can be. They are energized by a mission that allows them to be part of something big, something that will result in bringing others to a deeper relationship with God. They feel closest to God when they are a part of something big on his behalf.

• The Pathway of Intellectual Thought
These people seek God with their minds. They study to better know and understand ideas and models that bring them – and perhaps the people they teach – closer to God. They love the world of ideas and concepts. Faith, for them, is something to be analysed and understood as much as experienced. They feel closest to God when they are reading a stimulating book that brings them fresh understanding of something related to God or the spiritual life.

…

Les’ Spiritual Style: I am an intellectual. I don’t know if it’s in my blood – I share this style with some family members – or if my years of academic training set me on this path. Whatever the reason, I feel closest to God when I am learning a new truth. If I can wrap my mind around a truth, I come alive in my relationship with God..


As I read that, I was deeply consoled to know that all these time I did not have to feel I was being legalistic nor carnal-minded! I now know..

When I kneel to pray,
- I was not being legalistic.
When I pray to God at a set time everyday,
- I was not being ritualistic.
When I get most excited about God speaking to me,
- It was not because I suffer from a lack of faith.
Even when my blog largely contains only of what God spoke to me,
- It was not because my spiritual walk is single-dimensional.

That’s why God said He doesn’t condemn! Not even if you think otherwise..

We all feel close to God in our own ways, we all connect to Him in our own SPECIAL way – one where we can call our own.

And God...
“You are my special God.
You make me feel so special.”