Just came across a very good article about what fellowship is: http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/learn-to-fly-in-the-fellowship
It resonates with me very much for what I appreciate about fellowship, which is not just the good times spent together with fellow brothers, but also the labor and service in the Kingdom of God. And the joy to witness a fellow brother loving the gospel that has save us... all these add to the richness of what fellowship is for a Christian.
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
Friday, December 27, 2013
music is nice
A couple of weekends ago, I went to Montreal with a group of friends to attend a concert from "Distant Worlds" which plays orchestra music from a famous RPG game series called "Final Fantasy" (FF).
I have only played FF7, FF10, FF12, and currently playing FF6, but I am growing familiar with the soundtrack of the other FFs. The first time I attended the Distant Worlds concert was about 2 years ago in Waterloo, and I really liked it since this is a game that I really enjoyed and music is great, and in the projector screen they show videos of the actual game.
On this second concert in Montreal, I was very excited because this time a choir was present (there was no choir in Waterloo) which makes a significant difference. While sitting down, we noticed some people cosplaying as FF characters (black mage, white mage, Fang, Aerith) which was kinda neat.
The concert started with the FF Prelude and I was ecstatic, and really realize how beautiful music (in general) can be, and what great music accompanies each version of this famous game. Other great songs that were played: Don't be Afraid (battle theme FF8), Zanarkand (FF10), One-Winged Angel (FF7). One of the most memorable one was the arrangement of "Battle Medley" which include 2 of my favorites (Clash on the Big Bridge and Those Who Fight).
Then I started wondering how much does the music influence the game. Like there are times that I play the game in mute (so that I don't wake up my housemates when I played late at night), and it is still ok. But having this great music accompanying the game during the battle scenes, going in-and-out of towns, cut scenes, boss fights, etc... really make the game so much more enjoyable. Like the music is not the main component of the game, but it does make the experience much more better.
When I think about musical worship, I understand that it is very essential to focus on the lyrics of the songs that tells us truths about the greatness of God, because these truths touch our lives and made us want to sing more about how great our God is.
Though it is not the main aspect, the music that accompanies the lyrics can help make the worship experience better for the congregation. I was involved mainly with AV (Audio Visual), and it is easy to look down on AV because nobody really knows who is doing it, and the task seems that it does not require a lot of skill. Though those statements are true, I think that when an AV person does his/her job well (worship slides are readable, change of slides are correct, the vocals are clear, the volume of the instruments are not loud or soft) it makes a huge difference compared to when the job is not done correctly. So as a fellow AV, I encourage each of us to continue refining your skill to serve the church congregation to facilitate a better worship experience with God.
I have only played FF7, FF10, FF12, and currently playing FF6, but I am growing familiar with the soundtrack of the other FFs. The first time I attended the Distant Worlds concert was about 2 years ago in Waterloo, and I really liked it since this is a game that I really enjoyed and music is great, and in the projector screen they show videos of the actual game.
On this second concert in Montreal, I was very excited because this time a choir was present (there was no choir in Waterloo) which makes a significant difference. While sitting down, we noticed some people cosplaying as FF characters (black mage, white mage, Fang, Aerith) which was kinda neat.
The concert started with the FF Prelude and I was ecstatic, and really realize how beautiful music (in general) can be, and what great music accompanies each version of this famous game. Other great songs that were played: Don't be Afraid (battle theme FF8), Zanarkand (FF10), One-Winged Angel (FF7). One of the most memorable one was the arrangement of "Battle Medley" which include 2 of my favorites (Clash on the Big Bridge and Those Who Fight).
Then I started wondering how much does the music influence the game. Like there are times that I play the game in mute (so that I don't wake up my housemates when I played late at night), and it is still ok. But having this great music accompanying the game during the battle scenes, going in-and-out of towns, cut scenes, boss fights, etc... really make the game so much more enjoyable. Like the music is not the main component of the game, but it does make the experience much more better.
When I think about musical worship, I understand that it is very essential to focus on the lyrics of the songs that tells us truths about the greatness of God, because these truths touch our lives and made us want to sing more about how great our God is.
Though it is not the main aspect, the music that accompanies the lyrics can help make the worship experience better for the congregation. I was involved mainly with AV (Audio Visual), and it is easy to look down on AV because nobody really knows who is doing it, and the task seems that it does not require a lot of skill. Though those statements are true, I think that when an AV person does his/her job well (worship slides are readable, change of slides are correct, the vocals are clear, the volume of the instruments are not loud or soft) it makes a huge difference compared to when the job is not done correctly. So as a fellow AV, I encourage each of us to continue refining your skill to serve the church congregation to facilitate a better worship experience with God.
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
God is good
December is already here, and there are many great things to speak about this special month where we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
As Christians, we read the bible and learn more about our great God, and we always emphasize these attributes: God is love, God is gracious, God is merciful, because we often fall in sin, and experience at first hand that God is loving and gracious.
Sometimes we emphasize on the Holiness of God, on how we ought to be holy as we are set apart to live for Him. On occasions, we also speak about the wrath of God, as the great lyrics of "In Christ Alone" speaks about it:
"Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied "
Because we understand that our sin has offended the just God, and in order to satisfy His wrath, the death of His only Son was necessarily.
It's extraordinary how our worship to God is more refined when we know Him more and more.
A particular aspect of God that we should also speak is the "goodness" of God. I guess we often associate God with being good, and don't really ponder about it too much.
Recently I have been reading a Chinese manga series called "Feng Shen Ji" that takes place in the days of the last emperor of the Shang Dynasty (Chinese history oh yeah). In the story there are many gods that govern everything and puts mankind into slavery, so the emperor starts a rebellion against the gods to give dignity to the humans. It is a very cool fantasy with manly fight and honorable fight scenes. But it made me think about what would happen if our God is not good, and does not always intend to do good to us. The reason the emperor is starting this rebellion is because the gods of the story are only looking after their own interests, and treat humans as toys.
The classic passage of Romans 8:28 assures us that God works for our good no matter what the circumstances are. There is really no reason for All-powerful Almighty God to be good to us, but this is our God, and His goodness compels us to worship Him more.
As Christians, we read the bible and learn more about our great God, and we always emphasize these attributes: God is love, God is gracious, God is merciful, because we often fall in sin, and experience at first hand that God is loving and gracious.
Sometimes we emphasize on the Holiness of God, on how we ought to be holy as we are set apart to live for Him. On occasions, we also speak about the wrath of God, as the great lyrics of "In Christ Alone" speaks about it:
"Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied "
Because we understand that our sin has offended the just God, and in order to satisfy His wrath, the death of His only Son was necessarily.
It's extraordinary how our worship to God is more refined when we know Him more and more.
A particular aspect of God that we should also speak is the "goodness" of God. I guess we often associate God with being good, and don't really ponder about it too much.
Recently I have been reading a Chinese manga series called "Feng Shen Ji" that takes place in the days of the last emperor of the Shang Dynasty (Chinese history oh yeah). In the story there are many gods that govern everything and puts mankind into slavery, so the emperor starts a rebellion against the gods to give dignity to the humans. It is a very cool fantasy with manly fight and honorable fight scenes. But it made me think about what would happen if our God is not good, and does not always intend to do good to us. The reason the emperor is starting this rebellion is because the gods of the story are only looking after their own interests, and treat humans as toys.
The classic passage of Romans 8:28 assures us that God works for our good no matter what the circumstances are. There is really no reason for All-powerful Almighty God to be good to us, but this is our God, and His goodness compels us to worship Him more.
Friday, September 6, 2013
for the epic moments
I really like to watch sports, and I enjoy a lot the Soccer (Futbol) World Cup and the Summer Olympics. I am not too athletic, but I often daydream about being a great athlete accomplishing something great. Hence, I admire great athletes and I am ecstatic about the epic moments, for example:
- Michael Jordan scoring the winning shot against Utah Jazz in game 6 of NBA finals
- Yelena Isinbayeva breaking the world record on Beijing Olympics in in pole vault
- A young del Potro beats the great Roger Federer on US Open 2009
- Nadia Comaneci scoring the first perfect 10 score on gymnastics in Montreal 1974
- Roberto Baggio carries Italy with a fantastic goal that beats Spain on 1994 World Cup Semifinals
For my anime friends, I also enjoy the epic moments of many anime/manga shows like:
- Double upgrade of Alice on Aria
- Homura reveals everything on Madoka
- The last fighting sequence on Teppen Toppa Gurren Lagaan
- Lelouch in his Requiem Zero on Code Geass
- Strauss reveals his intentions on the Record of the Fallen Vampire
Or in movies like:
- Gandalf standing on the bridge against the demon from the mines of Moria staying "You shall not pass!" from the Lord of the Rings
- Harrison Ford kicking the bad guy out of the plane saying "Get out of my plane!" from Air Force One
- Will Smith punching the alien staying "Welcome to earth" from Independence Day
- Hulk smashes the big alien thing from the Avengers
- Bruce Willis on his last decision on Armageddon
I could go on, haha.
Reading on Acts, it's really crazy to see the great things that the early disciples did:
- Stephen's meekness when he was stoned
- Peter preaching the Word courageously
- Philip sharing the gospel when an opportunity opened up (via teleportation)
- Paul rejoicing in all his trials
- Many other great exploits of conversion, healing, preaching, and being bold despite persecution
I think that it would be really awesome to be able to achieve similar magnitude of greatness in my life. For many of us, we have the desire to be part of something big ministry for God, and we wish to be instruments and ambassadors to shine Christ towards others. We would love to speak about our faith boldly, to defend our views on the bible among skeptics, to love even if we are not loved, to be a role model in Christ for others.
It is easy to wish to become someone great, but to forget to hard work and time that is required to prepare us for that. The daily time we spend in the Scriptures and in prayer, and all the experience we get from the good or tough moments are actually useful in forming a stronger character in us and preparing us for God's work in the future. During the process, we might not see the point and we might even complain about the lack of clarity of where we're going, but God uses that to build you up and prepare for greater things.
So let's not underestimate each step of the preparation, because God can do great things through you.
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
An offer you cannot refuse
So I recently re-watched the movie series "Godfather" which is considered one of the greatest movie films. There is a famous quote which is "I gonna make an offer you cannot refuse", which is what the head of one of the mafia family (the Godfather) says to accomplish what he wants. The Godfather has so many power and influence that he can make anything happens. He does that via intimidation and threats. So people will yield to his wishes.
This makes me think about what compels people to follow their "religion". What motives people to follow the "god" they believe in? Some might do it because of fear (if I don't meet the requirement then I cannot make it), some might do it just because of family tradition, some might do it because of physical rewards, etc. What makes Christianity unique (in my opinion) is that we don't obey God because we are forced to or by fear or threats, but we do so because we are willing.
We follow Jesus because we have received a precious offer that we cannot refuse, which is the gift of eternal life that is available to us through faith in Christ because of His death on the cross as an atonement for our sins, and His resurrection. This offer is so gracious that we don't do anything to deserve it, but it's freely given to us. This offer restores us to live in the way that we were meant to live, in our original purpose, which is to glorify our Creator!
However, to follow Jesus is not an easy task, as there will be many struggles since Jesus Himself suffered and was rejected, and as His followers, we should not expect anything different. But the joy to walk with Christ, the sweetness of fellowship, and the constant bombardments of God's grace keeps me motivated to follow Him.
"For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again." - 2 Corinthians 5:14-15
This makes me think about what compels people to follow their "religion". What motives people to follow the "god" they believe in? Some might do it because of fear (if I don't meet the requirement then I cannot make it), some might do it just because of family tradition, some might do it because of physical rewards, etc. What makes Christianity unique (in my opinion) is that we don't obey God because we are forced to or by fear or threats, but we do so because we are willing.
We follow Jesus because we have received a precious offer that we cannot refuse, which is the gift of eternal life that is available to us through faith in Christ because of His death on the cross as an atonement for our sins, and His resurrection. This offer is so gracious that we don't do anything to deserve it, but it's freely given to us. This offer restores us to live in the way that we were meant to live, in our original purpose, which is to glorify our Creator!
However, to follow Jesus is not an easy task, as there will be many struggles since Jesus Himself suffered and was rejected, and as His followers, we should not expect anything different. But the joy to walk with Christ, the sweetness of fellowship, and the constant bombardments of God's grace keeps me motivated to follow Him.
"For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again." - 2 Corinthians 5:14-15
Friday, July 12, 2013
I don't need a gunbuster machine
Recently I watched an anime series called Gunbuster 2, which is about giant robots (called Gunbuster) fighting alien monsters. Well it's more than that. It is pretty enjoyable as there are some epic outrageous fights that are very memorable, and the series emphasizes the importance of hard work, self-confidence, and friendship.
The pilots of these Gunbusters are pilots gifted with special mental abilities that allow them to crazy things (like tunneling), but they are also arrogant and full of themselves because they are the only ones able to fight the monsters. So people see them as a the top of the society class. Unfortunately, their special powers are temporal, so once they lose them, they become devastated.
So one humble girl was able to join their team of pilots because she had the potential to acquire these special abilities. But since she didn't have these abilities, then all the other pilots look down on her, and avoided hanging out with her. So this girl goes on a journey to get herself a Gunbuster machine because she wanted to be recognized by another pilot (who she looked up as an older sister). For the sake of making the story short, the pilots are ambushed, and this girl suddenly comes back and "awakens" her true power which is like thousand times more powerful than the current Gunbusters.
What is awesome is that she realized that having a Gunbuster or not, it is not important, that she is not defined by what she has or by what she can do. Her worth is based on her inner person, and she works hard to cultivate a stronger character in her.
Many times, I struggled with the fact that I tend to define myself with what I can do in school, at work, and in church. And I am driven to do these things so that I can accomplish something and that I can find my worth based on what I have accomplished. This often has led me to be over-worked, exhausted, and burnt out.
Truly, I always need to be reminded on my identity as a loved child of God. Christ has shed his blood for me, so my identity is based on Christ! I don't have to accomplish stuff to prove my worth, because God has already ransomed me at a very high cost. So instead of working hard to prove who I am, I should focus on working on my inner character with the help of the Spirit, so that more of Christ can be manifested in me, and accomplish great things so that people can give glory to God.
The pilots of these Gunbusters are pilots gifted with special mental abilities that allow them to crazy things (like tunneling), but they are also arrogant and full of themselves because they are the only ones able to fight the monsters. So people see them as a the top of the society class. Unfortunately, their special powers are temporal, so once they lose them, they become devastated.
So one humble girl was able to join their team of pilots because she had the potential to acquire these special abilities. But since she didn't have these abilities, then all the other pilots look down on her, and avoided hanging out with her. So this girl goes on a journey to get herself a Gunbuster machine because she wanted to be recognized by another pilot (who she looked up as an older sister). For the sake of making the story short, the pilots are ambushed, and this girl suddenly comes back and "awakens" her true power which is like thousand times more powerful than the current Gunbusters.
What is awesome is that she realized that having a Gunbuster or not, it is not important, that she is not defined by what she has or by what she can do. Her worth is based on her inner person, and she works hard to cultivate a stronger character in her.
Many times, I struggled with the fact that I tend to define myself with what I can do in school, at work, and in church. And I am driven to do these things so that I can accomplish something and that I can find my worth based on what I have accomplished. This often has led me to be over-worked, exhausted, and burnt out.
Truly, I always need to be reminded on my identity as a loved child of God. Christ has shed his blood for me, so my identity is based on Christ! I don't have to accomplish stuff to prove my worth, because God has already ransomed me at a very high cost. So instead of working hard to prove who I am, I should focus on working on my inner character with the help of the Spirit, so that more of Christ can be manifested in me, and accomplish great things so that people can give glory to God.
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Character
This weekend I had a great time in a bachelor's party, and it is truly a joy to witness a brother (who I know for very long time) to grow in the maturity of the Lord, and now committing to marriage.
We did a wide variety of events including paintball, wings night, watching the worst movie ever, manly breakfast, wall climbing, all you can eat sushi, cheap steak lunch... it was pretty awesome. As well, we had a time of prayer to encourage our brother in this new journey. Also, we had very late night sharing, where we talked about various spiritual topics, and it is really encouraging to see a brother sharing about their God-given burdens, and the desire of their hearts to walk with the Lord. Really treasure these times (not sure why it has to always happened at post 1am).
Of course we talked about the role of the man in a marriage relationship, and the aspect of "spiritual leadership" was brought up. For most of us, we see this accomplished through investing time in prayer time and bible study with the spouse, and serving the Lord together. But this brother shared that these activities are very good, but it is not just about that. It is also about growing in the character of Christ, to grow into a man who can love his wife unconditionally, who can make the right decisions in difficult times, who can make sure the relationships stay centered in Christ. I think this is good.
"Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless." - Ephesians 5:25-27
We did a wide variety of events including paintball, wings night, watching the worst movie ever, manly breakfast, wall climbing, all you can eat sushi, cheap steak lunch... it was pretty awesome. As well, we had a time of prayer to encourage our brother in this new journey. Also, we had very late night sharing, where we talked about various spiritual topics, and it is really encouraging to see a brother sharing about their God-given burdens, and the desire of their hearts to walk with the Lord. Really treasure these times (not sure why it has to always happened at post 1am).
Of course we talked about the role of the man in a marriage relationship, and the aspect of "spiritual leadership" was brought up. For most of us, we see this accomplished through investing time in prayer time and bible study with the spouse, and serving the Lord together. But this brother shared that these activities are very good, but it is not just about that. It is also about growing in the character of Christ, to grow into a man who can love his wife unconditionally, who can make the right decisions in difficult times, who can make sure the relationships stay centered in Christ. I think this is good.
"Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless." - Ephesians 5:25-27
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