St Timothy Presbyterian Church

Mark 12:38-44

When life is not on your terms, how do you respond?

That's an important question we must ask ourselves. It has implications for your life and those around you.

We all try to do our best to make a good life. We understand the rules of the game and work hard to do well within them.

But sometimes, even if you follow all the rules, things don't turn out the way you expect. Sometimes, life is not on your terms.

No one likes that. No one wants to lose control over the terms of your life.

Jesus makes a contrast between the rich people and the poor widow.

He sees the rich people put in large sums of money into the treasury. He then sees the poor widow put in two copper coins.

He says this in response to what he saw:

Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on. (Mark 12:43-44)

Jesus is not criticizing the rich people.

But he's pointing out a crucial difference between the rich people and the poor widow. What was that difference?

The rich people lived life by their own terms. Life was in their control.

Yes, they gave large sums, but it was on their terms. That money came from their surplus. Life was in their control.

The poor widow, on the other hand, did not live life on her own terms.

All she had was two copper coins. That amounts to 1/32 of a day's wage. In today's minimum wage, that would come out to about $5. You can barely buy a cheeseburger from McDonald's with that amount.

No one would choose to have so little to live on.

Life for the poor widow was not on her terms.

Not all widows were poor in Jesus' time. Some were wealthy. They were allowed to own property.

But they were nonetheless very vulnerable. If they didn't have a wealthy or powerful family to protect them, they were susceptible to abuse and exploitation.

Widows and orphans were the most vulnerable people. This is why the Law paid special attention to them. It provided special protection for widows and orphans.

James says this about the perfect religion:

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world. (James 1:27)

As the early church began to grow, the first issue was how to take care of the widows in their community.

The community and the religious system built around the Law was supposed to protect vulnerable people like widows.

But in reality, the system was often broken. They were victims of the community that was supposed to take care of them.

Religious leaders often took advantage of widows for their own gain. Experts in the Law often used their knowledge to cheat or take more from widows.

This is what Jesus was implying when he criticizes the scribes:

Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets! They devour widows' houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation. (Luke 12:38-40)

The poor widow was likely the victim of this abuse.

Life was not on her own terms. She could barely survive day to day. Life was precarious and uncertain.

Life today feels like that for many people. Very precarious. Very uncertain.

It used to be that if you did all the right things, things would turn out okay.

If you studied hard enough, you would get a good, steady job. That job would allow you to afford a house. You could then live a good middle class life.

That situation is harder and harder to come by. Getting a good job is so competitive now.

Even if you do get a good job, they're often not steady like they used to be. There is constant pressure.

More work is contract or gig based. So there's less stability and predictability.

Even if you do get a good job, owning a home is out of reach for so many people.

Everything is so expensive. Our dollar doesn't go as far so we feel more poor. Eating out seems like a luxury.

Life is less and less on your own terms.

When life is not on your own terms, it creates uneasiness. It creates frustration.

When things seem out of control, it makes you anxious. It creates fear.

Fear is the most primal emotion for human beings.

It activates our brain the fastest. It propels us to move fast (Joonie as toddler getting chased by dog). It helps us survive.

But if fear is not managed, it can morph into other things.

Fear can become anger. Fear breeds suspicion. Anger and suspicion lead you to look for people to blame.

Fear divides.

It points the finger at others for the difficulties you face. It creates walls so that you can feel safe.

The world is absorbing the result of the US election this past week.

Donald Trump won because he was able to tap into the sense that things are out of control. He was able to convince people that with him as President, they will be able to once again live life on their own terms.

Whether that is true, or whether it creates more chaos and division, we will have to see.

Fear takes on a life of its own. It's a natural emotion but it can create so many problems.

This is why so much of the Bible addresses fear.

Whenever God speaks to people in the Bible, the first words are often do not fear or do not be afraid . The first thing God does is bring peace to ease your fear.

When things seem out of control, the most important thing is to experience peace.

The poor widow's life was not on her terms. Life was not in her control.

But what she did was remarkable. She gave everything she had to God.

She didn't cling onto the two coins she had. She put in everything she had.

In other words, she surrendered herself completely to God. She placed her total trust in God. For her survival. For her life.

We don't know anything about this poor widow, but we see her faith. Not just a meek faith, but a tenacious faith. A faith that believes and fights against all odds.

It's remarkable!

That is what she put into the treasury – her tenacious faith and trust in God.

The rich people didn't put in faith. They put in their surplus on their own terms.

Faith is not on our own terms. That's what we learned on Friday at our Bible study.

Faith is not on your own terms. It is on God's terms.

To have faith is to live by God's terms. It is to place yourself in surrender to God's terms.

That's how Jesus lived. He lived completely by God's terms. Accepting the cross was his complete surrender to God's terms.

That is what the widow did.

Surrendering yourself is not easy.

Faith doesn't shield you from life's problems. So it brings testing.

The problems make you doubt God's presence. They shake your trust in God. They tempt you to take matters into your own hands.

I'm sure the poor widow was afraid and worried about how she would survive.

Tomorrow was uncertain. Where would her money and bread come from?

But she had a relentless, tenacious faith. A faith that would not be deterred.

No matter what my situation is, I will give to God. Whatever my situation, I will trust in God.

That's how she was able to give even her last penny.

Life was not on her terms, but she gave everything to God.

The poor widow gave all she had because giving was baked into who she was. No matter what her situation, she would give to God.

Worship was a habit built into her. Trusting God was baked into her. It's what gave her a tenacious faith.

Worship is a habit.

Every week, worship needs to be a habit. A habit where you come and give everything to God: your fears, your worries, your anxieties, your money, your future. Where you hear what God has to say to you.

Through the discipline and habit of worship, you will build a tenacious faith that withstands what life throws at you.

This is what James says:

My brothers and sisters, whenever you face various trials, consider it all joy, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance complete its work, so that you may be complete and whole, lacking in nothing. (James 1:2-4)

My friends, build up a tenacious faith.

When your faith is tested, persevere.

When life is not on your terms, don't let fear and anxiety take over your life. Rather, bring everything to God in prayer.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)

When life is not going your way, when life is not on your terms, give everything to God.

God will give you a tenacious faith.

God's peace will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

God will take care of you.

The post When Life Is Not on Your Terms appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

Mark 12:28-34

When I was in University, Mother Teresa once came to U of T to speak.

It was outdoor and so many people came. Like Zacchaeus, I tried to go near to the front and so I could see her.

With excitement, I was waiting for her. And finally she came out.

She was small and her face was full of wrinkles. But she had a charisma. She came to the mic and she started speaking.

All she said was, love God and love your neighbour.

That was exactly what Jesus said.

People saw Jesus' miracles. They saw how profound he was when he argued with Pharisees and Sadducees.

Chapter 12 of Mark – various groups of people came to Jesus and challenged him. They were so called important people.

First, Pharisees came and asked about whether to give taxes to the emperor or not. Then, Sadducees came and asked about the resurrection.

They all asked these questions not because they were really interested in what Jesus had to say but they wanted to trap him.

Jesus was not trapped. He answered each one wisely. His answer was profound.

Today's Scripture passage deals with the third question. But this question was different from other two questions.

The question came from one of the scribes. Another important group.

He saw the interaction between Jesus and Pharisees and Sadducees. He saw how wisely Jesus dealt with their trick questions.

Now he was genuinely interested in what Jesus had to say.

Mark records it this way.

One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, Which commandment is the first of all?' (Mark 12:28)

He really wanted to know what Jesus had to say about the commandments.

At that time, for them, the commandments were everything. They lived for the commandments, they lived by the commandments. Commandments were their life.

So his question can be rephrased in this way. What is the most important about life? What is life all about? What is the ultimate meaning and purpose of life?

That was what he was asking.

Jesus' answer was very simple.

Love your God and love your neighbours.

Like what Mother Teresa said. Everything else is the commentary of how to do it.

There was a famous teacher in Israel. His name was Hillel. His grandson was Gamaliel who was St. Paul's teacher.

He said this.

What is hateful to you, do not to your neighbour. That is the whole Torah, while the rest is the commentary thereof; go and learn it.

Love is the greatest thing. Love is the ultimate purpose one can pursue.

Make money to love. Work hard to love. Get educated to love. What else is there?

God created us to love. When God created the world, every time, he said, it was good.

Then God said, Let there be light'; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. (Genesis 1:3, 4)

God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:10)

Every day, he achieved the masterpiece of his creation. And he said, it was good.

But only once, he said it wasn't good. That was when God saw Adam being alone.

Then the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper as his partner.' (Genesis 2:18)

He created Eve. It was not that he only created another human being. He created love that binds them together.

Adam felt love for the first time. Now he knew what love was.

We can see that in his confession.

This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. (Genesis 2:23)

God created love for them and Adam felt it.

But soon, when they committed sin, he lost the ability to love.

The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate. (Genesis 3:12)

No more bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. This woman you gave me.

Separation. He separated himself from the woman.

That is what sin does. Separates.

Love unites and confesses you are bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.

Jesus came to restore love that was originally given at creation.

Love. That was what Jesus told them to do. Restore love that was lost.

It doesn't matter what you do with commandments. If there is no love, none of them is useless.

Everything else is merely the commentary of love. That is what is the most important.

The scribe now clearly understood what Jesus meant.

this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices. (Mark 12:33)

That's why Jesus said about the scribe:

When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, You are not far from the kingdom of God.' (Mark 12:34)

And Mark ends the story with this.

After that no one dared to ask him any question. (Mark 12:34)

They were all struck by the truth. No one dared to add anything to it.

That is it! The conclusion and the finality. No more frivolous arguments.

The problem Jesus saw – THEY LOST THE ABILITY TO LOVE.

In that way, they were dysfunctional. This world lost the ability to love. In that way, this world is dysfunctional.

We have to restore the ability to love.

How do we do that?

Go back to God. Not for religious reasons. Not for piety.

Go back to God who created love. And experience God's love. Learn about God's love. Ask God to give you love as he gave it to Adam.

The whole purpose of Jesus coming into the world was to restore the love that was lost.

This was what John said.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. (John 3:16)

Through Jesus Christ, we have to restore love. When we don't find love, we are lost.

God loves you. Receive that love. When you find God, you find love.

Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. (1 John 4:7, 8)

You are not alone. It is not good to be alone.

You have God with you and you have sisters and brothers who care for you. Nothing can separate you to be isolated.

This was what Paul said.

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:37-39)

When love is restored within you, you are no more an island. You don't need to live like an island.

But that is the feeling we feel sometimes.

That feeling was well captured in the song of Paul Simon, I am a rock.

A winter’s day

I’ve built walls

Don’t talk of love

I have my books

Jesus came to restore love within us.

Jesus came to tell us that you are not a rock. You are not an island.

I am with you, Jesus says. Let your love within you be restored.

It's like a match stick. It has all the potential to set a fire. All you need is to strike it to the surface. (I got the imagery from the podcast Tom sent me.)

Yes, you have potential fire of love. You need to kindle it.

Let your love within you be kindled.

The post Restore Love That Is Lost appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

Mark 10:46-52

Happy anniversary!

Today is the 28th anniversary of this church.

Once a year, we remember how faithful God has been to this church. Another year, God has been with us.

God has been with our children. God has been with our youth and young adults. God has been with all of you.

On this anniversary, it is good to remember God and give thanks.

God has given us a Word from the gospel of Mark for us today. On this anniversary Sunday, let us hear what God has to say to us.

The whole gospel of Mark is about the journey Jesus takes from Galilee to Jerusalem.

Along the way, Jesus calls his disciples. He teaches and he heals people. Others begin to follow.

While he teaches and heals, the destination is always Jerusalem and the cross.

The passage today begins with Jesus and the crowd in Jericho. Jericho is the last stop on the way to Jerusalem.

It begins with a scene of Jesus, his disciples and a large crowd departing from Jericho.

You can envision the large crowd. They are leaving with a spirit of anticipation.

They were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them; they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. (Mark 10:32)

There was excitement, there was fear, there's a buzz in the air.

But as they are departing, the camera shifts to the roadside. We see a blind beggar, Bartimaeus, on the side of the road.

The story shifts to him. Who was this man? What was he doing there?

We know nothing about him except that he was a blind beggar. It means that he was utterly dependent on the mercy of others.

He could not survive without help from others. He knew he needed help.

When Jesus was near, something stirred up deep within him.

This is what he cried out:

Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me! (Mark 10:47)

Even after people told him to be quiet, he shouted even louder. Son of David, have mercy on me! Nothing could stop him.

Mark took a detour in the story of Jesus' journey to Jerusalem to tell this story about Bartimaeus. Why did he do that?

It was very intentional. He is trying to say something very important by inserting this story.

Mark wanted to say something important about discipleship. This story illustrates the very heart of discipleship.

That heart is this statement: Lord, have mercy on me!

Lord, have mercy on me. Lord, help me.

Help me, for I am unable to help myself. Help me, because I need you.

Recognizing that we need help is the beginning of discipleship. It's the cry that brings us into God's presence.

Without a heart that desperately needs God, there is no faith. There is no discipleship.

Jesus healed Bartimaeus. This changed him. Instead of going on his way, he followed Jesus on THE way.

Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way. (Mark 10:52)

Tradition says that he became a leader in the church. His story became a powerful testimony to the power of Jesus. Imagine the impact that his testimony had!

It became a powerful witness to what God does. He would never forget what God had done for him.

The story of Bartimaeus is not only his. It is ours as well. His testimony is our testimony.

I was blind but now can see! I was lost but now am found!

The details of your story are unique.

But you are here in this church today because of one simple fact: God has been with you when you needed him. God heard your cry.

God has saved me. That is our testimony.

You are a powerful testimony of what God has done. Your life is a powerful testimony to who God is. Do you believe that?

What is the church?

The church is an assembly of witnesses to what God has done in our lives. The story of Bartimaeus is our story.

Whether you are new or old to this community, you are a powerful witness to God's presence in your life.

On this church anniversary, we remember what God has done for us.

I see the powerful witness of what God has done in all of your stories.

You have faced so many challenges. Overcoming doubts and insecurity. Dealing with challenging situations. Facing many uncertainties. Battling anxiety and depression and worries.

But God heard your cries. God has made you well.

Many of you are still struggling with challenges. You're still fragile and vulnerable.

Yes, we are still broken, but filled with grace. That grace has become our strength to carry on.

Our weakness has become the window for God's strength to shine through.

Every week we come to church, we come to say Lord, help me , and Lord, thank you .

On anniversaries, you look back. You smile at the good memories. You reflect on the challenges. You have gratitude. You renew your commitment. You look forward to what lies ahead.

On this anniversary, we remember God's mercy on us.

Like Jesus' movement, this church began as a small group of people. It was just Rev. Kim and a small group of people, no more than 40 in total, from children to adults.

But they had a vision to create a good, healthy church. A church built on the Word. A church that would cultivate faith in the next generation.

Over 28 years, many people have been touched by God in and through this community. Many prayers have been prayed with the simple cry of Lord, have mercy on me! Many prayers have been answered.

God has been faithful to the people of St. Timothy.

I mentioned on Friday at our Bible study how we're like a blue zone for our oldest members in the KSM.

Some of them are 90 and above, but still taking the TTC to come to Bible study and finding so much meaning in them.

They are healthy because they are filled with the Spirit of God. This church has given them meaning and anchor in their lives.

In our ESM, a whole generation has grown up in this church – our young adults as the first generation to be born and raised here.

Many of them have experienced the love and faithfulness of God in and through this community.

Our children are growing up so beautifully under the grace of God, and I know God will be there for them when they too cry out.

No one knows what the future holds. Many uncertainties and challenges lie ahead.

It is so hard to be a church and do ministry in this day and age. But as we look back on how faithful God has been, we are confident with faith as we look ahead.

We may not know exactly how God will lead us, but the Word today makes clear what our focus and direction is.

Like the crowd following Jesus, we are on our way to Jerusalem, toward the cross. That much is clear.

But we do not remain comfortable in the crowd, aloof to those on the side of the road.

The crowd was annoyed by Bartimaeus. They wanted him to be quiet so they could go on their way uninterrupted.

But Jesus stopped. He listened. He called out for Bartimaeus.

We are the presence of Jesus for those sitting in darkness by the road. We are called to hear their cries.

We are to be the presence of Jesus that stops and calls out to them. We are to offer the Word of God that heals and makes well. We are to invite them to join us on the way of following Jesus.

Always, our cry is Lord, have mercy on me! We are people who remember the mercy God has on us.

We are always broken people who are led by the grace of God. We are a worshiping community that comes together every week in gratitude for God's grace.

God who has shown mercy will continue to do so.

Happy anniversary, St. Timothy! May God lead us again for the year ahead.

The post Lord, Have Mercy on Me! appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

Mark 10:35-45

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Jesus summarizes the purpose of his life:

For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many. (Mark 10:45)

He came to restore the essence of life.

We are at our best when we put others first. Life comes alive and flourishes when we do that.

This applies to all of your relationships. Whether it's your marriage, friendships, workplace, community or geopolitics.

US President John F Kennedy had a famous line:

Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.

Joonie played house league baseball this past summer. He had a great experience. Because coaches were willing to offer their time for the kids.

All busy (with their work and family lives) but put in time to develop the kids. Summer was so much fun.

Joonie had fun and improved so much that they put him on a rep team.

Joonie's cousin also played house league baseball, but had a terrible experience. Because no one was willing to serve as coaches. Practices, games, useless.

Church thrives because people willing to serve. Thanksgiving lunch. Fall Fridays (food prep, praise team, clean up, etc). Praise team, teachers, etc.

When people are willing to serve and put the interests of others at centre, life thrives. When people don't, life diminishes.

Today's story begins with James and John's request to sit at Jesus' right hand and left hand in glory.

It sounds so selfish and greedy! Why would they ask that?

But I take a more sympathetic view of them.

James and John were among the very first disciples to follow Jesus. This is how their journey began:

As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him. (Mark 1:19-20)

They just followed Jesus! They dropped everything to follow him. They didn't ask any questions. How remarkable!

They remind me of Abraham. Like Abraham, they didn't ask questions, they didn't try to find out more, they didn't equivocate. They simply followed.

That is faith!

They followed Jesus when he was unknown. When he was still a nobody.

There was great risk in what they were doing, because no one knew Jesus and what would happen. I admire what James and John did.

James Choe and John Chung were our first elders in the ESM. Their willingness to serve paved the way for many others to serve as elders. I admire James and John!

More people need to be willing to serve and put the interests of others. That was not James and John's issue.

So what was their issue?

They were there from the very beginning. They were part of Jesus' inner circle.

Fidel Castro and Mao Zedong: leaders of Cuba and China. Remarkable how they came to power.

Small guerilla forces starting in a tiny section of the country. But somehow survived, went on March and gathered momentum and power on their journey toward the capital against all odds.

I think the disciples were feeling something similar.

Those who were with them from the very beginning got into positions of power. They jockeyed for positions closest to the leaders. You see similar dynamic at play here.

James and John's were among first disciples. They were always part of Jesus' inner circle.

But when you think of disciples, who's the most famous disciple that comes to mind?

Peter!

Peter was the first. He was always the most prominent. Even being called, Peter was the first.

As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea, for they were fishers. And Jesus said to them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people. And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him. (Mark your 1:16-20)

James and John were renamed by Jesus as Sons of Thunder.

No one else was given a new name – except one: Simon > Peter.

Wherever they went, they were overshadowed by Peter.

This must have got to them. It must have made them insecure and uneasy of where they stood.

Jesus' calling to think of others took a back seat as their I became insecure. The I started to take centre stage.

When people mutually put each other first, life is beautiful. Life flourishes.

Problems begin when the I begins to take over.

We often put our I at the centre because we're afraid of losing ourselves. We're insecure. We want to preserve ourselves.

I think this is what happened to James and John.

A strange thing happens: the more you put the I at the centre, the less secure the I is.

It is less at peace. More insecure. More anxious. More concerned about how others respond to you.

The I gets set off more easily and gets in the way. Putting I at centre becomes contagious.

Other disciples upset because they too wanted to be at centre.

I that feels unworthy. That too becomes a barrier.

In any relationship, the I becomes the barrier to true connection. It becomes the barrier to truly serving the other. It becomes the barrier to harmony and community.

It gets in the way of a flourishing life. For life to come alive, the I has to take a back seat.

Jesus did that. His I took a back seat.

Even when he could see what was going to happen to him, he was calm, confident and resolute.

We see this right before our passage today:

They were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them; they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them what was to happen to him, saying, Look, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death; then they will hand him over to the gentiles; they will mock him and spit upon him and flog him and kill him, and after three days he will rise again. (Mark 10:32-34)

Jesus was not a doormat. He carried on with God's will, even when he knew what lay ahead.

How was he able to put God's will and others ahead of his I ?

He gave his I to God. Completely entrusted his I to God.

You see this most clearly on the cross. On cross, everyone had abandoned him. He even felt abandoned by God.

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

But even there, entrusted his I to God.

Into your hands I commend my spirit.

Following Jesus is to give your I to him and follow him. That's what it means to deny yourself.

Denying yourself is not being a doormat and losing who you are. It's giving your I completely to God.

You give your I to God so that it no longer drives your life. When your I is not at the centre, you are free.

You can see God's will more clearly. You are led by God's wisdom. You can put needs of others first without being afraid of losing yourself .

When you give your I to God, you become truly yourself.

My friends, give your I to God. God will take care of you. God will provide your I what it needs.

That should be part of your regular prayer and spiritual life. Give your I to God. Find peace in God's presence. Hear God's affirmation. Entrust your I in God's merciful hands.

Jesus entrusted himself completely to God, even to death on the cross.

Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,

But God exalted him.

Therefore God exalted him even more highly

That is what God will do for you too.

God will protect you. God will crown you with glory. God will make your life around you will thrive.

You will be a blessing.

The post Give Your I to God appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

Matthew 6:25-33

Happy Thanksgiving!

As soon as I walk into my house, I see this sign: Be Thankful! Whenever I come in, I see that and remind myself to be thankful.

We often forget to be thankful.

Being thankful is not a natural thing to do. We have to constantly remind ourselves.

Be thankful because God takes care of you. No matter what you may go through, God will take care of you.

No matter how big the challenges may be, there is no challenge too big for you to overcome with God's help.

So there is nothing for you to worry about. You will be all right because God takes care of you. God will provide you with everything that you need.

That is what our Lord Jesus teaches us in today's passage.

Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. (Matthew 6:25)

God will take care of you and so don't worry about anything. You are in God's good hands.

And yet we worry.

Worrying is ingrained in our existence.

We are so used to worrying that if there is nothing to worry about, we feel strange. And we feel anxious. Why is there nothing to worry about?

So we worry about having nothing to worry about. Worrying is our second nature. It is in our DNA.

It is easy to tell other people not to worry. And we tell them that a lot. But when it comes to ourselves, it is very hard not to worry.

My friends, worrying is a negative energy. It has a negative effect on you.

Worry is about something that didn't happen yet but it deceives us to think that it is happening right now.

We take what's in the future and bring it to the present and we suffer. Not very wise.

Corrie Ten Boom, the Christian who helped Jews by hiding them from Germans said,

Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties today of its strength.

Study says that 90% or more of what people worry about never happens.

They say the average person has three to four worries per day, and 91% of those are false alarms.

To those who worry, this is not a good news. Even if there is 1%, we worry. But there is a 9% chance of our worries coming true?

Worry does not have power to change the outcome. Worry does not make our situations any better.

Dalai Lama said,

If a problem is fixable, if a situation is such that you can do something about it, then there is no need to worry. If it’s not fixable, then there is no help in worrying. There is no benefit in worrying whatsoever.

Jesus knew that very well.

And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? (Matthew 6:27)

Not only worry is useless but it is also harmful. It paralyzes us. It brings us down. It makes us less effective in dealing with our life.

Worry is not just about our future. It is not just about calculating danger that may come to you. Worry is also created by our bad experiences in the past.

Hurricane Milton swept through Florida, causing so much damages and taking away lives. 2.9 million homes and businesses were in the dark. These people experienced terrible loss.

Dangers and threats may be gone in a few weeks. But dangers and threats did not end at the storm.

They are carved in their minds. So next time when they see rain, they will worry that another storm may come.

Both your future and your past create anxiety within you. And this anxiety takes away smile from the present.

So how do we deal with worries? What should be our attitude?

First, as Jesus said, know that it is useless.

Don't use it.

Golfers know very well. When you see water, you worry that you may put your ball into the water and you remind yourself not to do that. And you put it into the water.

Not only is it useless, it is harmful.

Worry can hurt your self-confidence, your relationship, your performance, and your well-being.

Second, don't feel so bad about worrying.

Don't make a big deal out of it. We all worry. It is not just you. We all do. So don't blame yourself when you worry.

But don't let worries control you.

Whatever you worry about, it didn't happen yet. If it happened, you would not worry. You worry it might happen.

Don't act as though it already happened. That is letting worry control you.

Third, calm yourself down and exercise your faith.

To me, that is the key. God will help you. Believe that God will help you.

Change the belief system. Rewire your brain with faith in God.

St. Paul gave us many precious lessons.

We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6)

Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6, 7)

Memorize these passages and recite them whenever worries trouble you.

My previous church bought a manse and they asked us to live there for a while.

When I went to the house, I saw a little container at the front door. So I opened it and there was a piece of Torah.

The previous owner must have been a Jewish person.

They practiced what God taught them.

Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. (Deuteronomy 6:6-9)

Exercise your faith. Exercise your meditation. Exercise your prayer.

What are you focusing on every day? Where is your mind?

If you focus on your problems, you can never defeat worries.

That’s what Jesus said at the end.

But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matthew 6:33)

Focus on doing what is good. Focus on God and his will.

Worries will fly away. You will be able to find peace.

Giving thanks for me is to focus on God.

Whenever I give thanks, I think about God and his grace.

God has been so good. I don't deserve all the good things that I enjoy every day. My life is too imperfect to deserve this kind of abundance.

And yet God has been good to me.

As we reflect last week, what am I that the almighty God is mindful of me.

When we live a life of thanksgiving, worries disappear.

If you worry, do something about it. Do your best with what you can do. What you cannot do, leave it in God's hands. God will help you.

And for you, DO NOT WORRY, BE THANKFUL.

The post Do Not Worry, Be Thankful! appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

Psalm 8

It is a beautiful psalm. It starts with this.

How majestic is your name in all the earth!

And it ends with this.

How majestic is your name in all the earth!

Where was he when he wrote this psalm? Was he in front of Grand Canyon or Rocky Mountain or Mount Everest? Probably Not!

But definitely he discovered the majestic world God created. And he saw the majestic power of God.

I shared with you once. I used to take young people every year to Algonquin. At one point more than 30 people.

We had a night hike. We went through the woods.

It was pitch dark. We couldn't see anything. Even a person right in front of me, I couldn't see.

And then we came to an opening. All of a sudden, the sky opened up and we were surrounded by millions of stars.

So bright and majestic. Nobody spoke. We were just there in complete silence.

That was what David experienced.

He was in darkness. His life was in darkness. He couldn't see anything hopeful.

He was so surrounded by his problems. Enemies were all around him ready to attack.

Today's psalm is Psalm 8.

When you read psalms that lead up to Psalm 8, they all deal with David's darkness and his problems.

When you read from Psalm 2 to Psalm 7, you see David's problems.

Why do the nations conspire,

O Lord, how many are my foes!

How long, you people, shall my honour suffer shame?

For there is no truth in their mouths;

Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am languishing;

O Lord my God, in you I take refuge;

David was in deep darkness, in deep trouble. He was in danger. He was surrounded by enemies. There was no way out.

His life was so dark that he couldn't see any light. He saw no hope.

But when you look at Psalm 8, he came to an opening from this complete darkness and experienced God who created this beautiful world.

So he started this psalm with this.

How majestic is your name in all the earth!

There are times when we feel small.

There are times when we are bombarded with so many problems.

There are times when we are surrounded by complete darkness.

No hope, no light, and no way out. We all feel that way sometimes.

That's why Simon and Garfunkel's song, Bridge Over Troubled Water captured so many young people's hearts at that time, who were disillusioned by so many things including the assassination of JFK and Martin Luther King Jr., and the war in Vietnam.

When you’re weary

He wrote this song while hearing the gospel song over and over again, Oh Mary, Don't you weep.

That's why there is a gospel flavour.

He said, I have no idea where it came from. It just flowed through him.

That's why somebody said this song was written by Paul Simon and God.

We all experience sometimes that we are weary, feeling small. That is when we experience our own frailty, weakness, finitude, and helplessness.

We don't like it. We want to feel powerful. We want to feel invincible. We want to believe that we are capable.

That is why we like super hero's movies.

When I was young, I didn't grow up with Marvel series.

Captain America. Iron Man. The Incredible Hulk. Thor. These weren't around in my time.

I had Bruce Lee. But the effect was the same.

After watching Bruce Lee's movies like Enter the Dragon , I felt like I could fight anyone. 10, 20 people, I felt that I could fight off as long as I have a pair of nunchucks.

I liked that feeling. Feeling powerful!

But that's not our reality. Many times, we feel powerless.

Tremper Longman, an OT scholar, commenting on Abraham, said,

Being human is not being safe, or comfortable.

Yes, that is what being human is.

We are faced with many challenges and often we feel that we don't have strength. We don't have any idea of how to deal with these challenges.

We feel we are not smart enough, strong enough.

Finitude, Fallibility, and ultimate dependence – that's who we are. These are structural to our existence, James Luther Mays said.

We often forget that. We often pretend that we are not. We often deny that.

Then we face our own failures and our own weaknesses and the problem is we don't know what to do.

David didn't know what to do either. That's why he wrote Psalms. That's why he let out through poems and prayers.

When he didn't know what to do, he turned to God. And there he found his solution.

When he turned to God, David experienced God in a new way.

It's like coming out of the dark woods and seeing the bright sky filled with stars.

He realized that he was very small and very insignificant and yet the almighty God was mindful of him.

The almighty God did not forget him. The one who created this whole universe cared for such an insignificant person like him.

This was what he said.

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,

He felt so small and yet God who created heaven and earth was thinking about him.

He was almost invisible compared to the majestic world God created and yet he was so visible to God.

Not only was he important to God, God honoured him with the crown of glory.

Yet you have made them a little lower than God,

He discovered about himself. He discovered who he was.

He realized that he was not just an insignificant dirt but that he was a precious jewel, honoured with the crown of glory.

He discovered this when he felt small. That's mystery.

When you feel small, often that is when God appears to you. And crowns you with his glory.

That is when God becomes real. That is when you become healed and restored.

When you feel small, faith becomes a powerful tool for you. Until then, you don't know how powerful faith is.

But when you feel so helpless and hopeless, you know the significance of your faith.

And that faith will bring you out of your darkness. And that faith will give you honour.

The post When You Feel Small appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

James 5:13-20

The prayer of faith is powerful and effective. That's what I want to reflect on today.

Today's passage begins with this sentence:

Are any among you suffering? They should pray. (James 5:13)

If you have the answers for your problems and challenges, then you don't need prayer. You can figure it out.

But there are times when you can't figure it out. There are challenges that are beyond your capabilities.

The prayer of faith happens when you know you need God.

The Canaanite woman came to Jesus, begging him to heal her sick daughter.

Jesus said that he had come only to save the lost sheep of Israel. She persisted in asking for his help.

This is what happened:

He answered, It is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs. She said, Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table. (Matthew 15:26-27)

She was desperate. She would not give up. She knew she needed Jesus' help and would take even the crumbs he offered.

That is the prayer of faith.

Jesus was moved by her faith and healed her daughter.

When you don't have the strength to carry on. When you are at your wits end. When things are beyond your capabilities.

Turn to God in prayer.

The prayer of faith opens up your heart to God. It lifts up the cries of your heart to God.

When your heart is immersed in prayer, something mysterious happens.

Your circumstances are no different after that prayer. Nothing has changed.

But something in you has changed.

Where before the prayer you felt weak, now you feel strength.

Where before you felt despair and hopelessness, now somehow you are able to carry on.

The prayer of faith brings you into God's presence, and that presence strengthens you.

That has been my experience.

That is what St. Paul discovered. That is why he was able to say:

For whenever I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:10)

The prayer of faith is powerful and effective.

I pray that you may discover this power of prayer when you are feeling weak and hopeless.

But there are times when your strength is so gone that you cannot even bring yourself to prayer.

James says this in today's passage:

Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up. (James 5:14-15)

The prayer of faith is not only something you do. It is something you receive from others.

When you are too weak to pray for yourself, you have the community that prays over you.

This is the essence of a spiritual community.

The prayer of faith will give strength to one who has none. It will give faith to one who is lacking in faith.

In that way, the prayer of faith is a gift not just for yourself but for the community.

When you cannot pray for yourself, turn to this community of faith.

You are not alone.

Turn to your elders and ask them to pray over you. This is why we have elders. They are called and ordained to pray over you when you cannot pray for yourself.

Elders: that is your role above all others. Love them, be connected with them to know when to pray over them.

We receive the prayer of faith when we cannot pray for ourselves. It is also something we give to others.

One of the joys in ministry is doing pastoral visits. I learn so much about people's lives.

Towards the end, I always ask what I can pray for.

I cannot do anything for them. But the most important thing I can do is pray for them.

Prayer is a gift for us to give to one another.

It is not only elders and ministers who are able to do that. That is something we can all give to one another.

Prayer is a gift for the community.

Praying for one another brings God's presence near.

Jesus said this:

For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them. (Matthew 18:20)

When we pray for and over one another, Jesus is right there with us.

The weight of the world is heavy. Sometimes it is too much to bear. So many people bear that burden all by themselves.

But we shouldn't have to. That is not God's will.

God gave us this community to bear one another's burdens. God gave us the gift of prayer.

I am so thankful for our youth ministry. It is such a precious ministry.

We have such strong young adults in our church because of the foundations laid during their youth.

Retreats are powerful, formative times for them. That's why we place such importance on them.

And the singular most powerful part of retreats are the moments when people pray for each other. They share their burdens and they invoke God's presence on each other.

God is truly there as they pray.

But the gift of prayer is not only for youth.

I pray that this church can be a place where people's burdens are lifted through prayers we offer for one another.

The prayer of faith is powerful and effective.

The prayer of faith gives you strength when you have none. It is a gift we can offer to one another.

The prayer of faith is powerful and effective in another way: it brings about God's will for peace, healing and reconciliation.

This is how St. Paul articulates God's will:

For he (Christ) is our peace; in his flesh he has made both into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us, abolishing the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and might reconcile both to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. (Ephesians 2:14-16)

That is why Christ came.

To break down the dividing walls. To create in himself one new humanity. To reconcile us to God and put to death hostility.

The will of God seems so far off from the reality we see in the world.

The conflict in the Middle East is escalating as we speak.

There is so much hostility to immigrants and migrants in the United States that's also spilling over into Canada.

All around us, we sense hostility.

A friend of mine who returned to Toronto from LA recently asked, Why are people so mean here?

What can bring about God's will for peace and reconciliation?

James says this:

Therefore confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. (James 5:16)

God's will for peace will happen in communities bound together by prayer.

Prayer and confession go hand in hand.

We confess our sins to each other and we invoke God's power in prayer to bind us together.

We invite God's supernatural power to overcome divisions, heal the animosities and hurts in our hearts, and make us one in our differences.

Only prayer has the power to do this.

I experienced the power of prayer in Sioux Valley.

Sharing is very important. Sharing your heart creates the opening.

But that is just the setup.

THE most powerful impact of that trip was praying with them. Prayer is what gave them strength.

As we mark this year's National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, we can't do anything to change the past.

But we seek healing for the present that will create a new path for the future.

Healing will happen in spiritual communities built on prayer. Prayer will bind hearts together and give new vision for the way forward.

The prayer of faith is powerful and effective.

When you have no strength, turn to God.

When you cannot pray, turn to others to pray for you.

When your heart is filled with hostility, let prayer heal you and bring reconciliation.

The post The Prayer of Faith is Powerful and Effective appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

James 3:13-4:3, 7-8

Today's passage begins with this question:

Who is wise and understanding among you?

Everyone on the internet and social media has something wise to say. Everyone's an expert.

But who is truly wise among us?

The Scripture says this:

Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. (James 3:13)

A good life is rooted in wisdom. We need wisdom to live a good life.

But the passage today talks about two different kinds of wisdom. Depending on which wisdom you have, your life will be very different.

There are two wisdoms, two paths.

There is wisdom that comes from above, and wisdom that is from below. Wisdom that comes from God, and wisdom of the world.

The passage says this about the wisdom of the world:

But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be arrogant and lie about the truth. This is not wisdom that comes down from above but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. (James 3:14-15)

This wisdom of this world uses smarts to make yourself look good. It tries to display your own importance to others.

But it does so in a way that masks the truth. It masks what really lies underneath: bitter envy and selfish ambition.

Digging deeper, envy and selfish ambition are really manifestations of fear.

Fear at your core that you are not good enough. You are not enough. What you have is not enough.

That insecurity gets triggered very easily.

If something good happens to someone, instead of being happy for them, you are filled with envy because it makes you feel even more insecure.

When you boil it down, the goal for wisdom of the world is to keep up with or have more than the next person.

When you're driven by these things, the result is clear:

For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind. (James 3:16)

So many of the world's evils stem from envy and selfish ambition.

We see this right from the beginning.

Adam and Eve gave birth to Cain and Abel. God approved of Abel's offering but not Cain's.

Cain was filled with envy and rage, so he committed the first murder by killing his brother.

The Greek word translated as disorder also means unstable, restless and unsettled.

When your heart is insecure, the heart is unstable. It is not at peace.

That disorder bleeds into your life. It bleeds into your relationships. It bleeds into your families and communities.

Those conflicts and disputes among you, where do they come from? Do they not come from your cravings that are at war within you? (James 4:1)

This world leaves you unsettled. It leaves you always feeling there's more you need to do and be.

We use the world's wisdom to feel at peace.

But even if you've succeeded in creating the desired circumstances, the heart is still not at peace.

The world constantly fuels your insecurity by saying you're not enough.

After I graduated from university, my first full-time job was in marketing at a global consumer packaged goods company.

They know the consumer better than they know themselves.

They know how to tap into your beliefs and make you feel that you're not complete unless they buy your product. Ads reinforce the message that you're lacking until you buy it.

That was twenty years ago. It's even worse now.

The whole business model for smartphones and social media is to fuel your insecurity and feed off of it.

The wisdom of the world does not bring peace to the insecurity in your heart. It is very different from the wisdom from above.

The passage says this:

But the wisdom from above is first pure (James 3:17)

In what way is it pure?

The wisdom from above is pure of envy and selfish ambition.

It is pure of insecurity and feelings of nothingness. It is pure of desire and cravings for things that stem from fear and insecurity.

When your heart is pure from these fears and insecurities, you experience peace.

The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. (James 3:17)

When you have the wisdom from above, you're no longer driven by fears and insecurities.

Your heart is at peace. You can see and think clearly. You can be more generous. You can be led by the right motivations.

There is a difference between ambition and selfish ambition.

Ambition itself is good. The desire to succeed is energy and an engine that propels you.

There's a famous book in the world of business titled Good to Great . It talks about companies that went from good to great in a lasting way.

The main finding is that its leaders have great ambition. But that ambition is directed toward the success of their company.

By directing their energy toward the success of their company, they also achieve great personal success.

But that personal success is a result of their service to the success of the company.

We know many of these companies today, but we don't know the leaders behind them. That's what makes these companies great.

I think that's the key to success for all of you too.

I want all of you to be ambitious. But be ambitious for something beyond yourself.

I want all of you to strive for excellence in what you do. But do that so that you can contribute your absolute best for the people you serve.

I want you all to be very successful. But I want your success to be a result of being ambitious for the company you work for, the community you serve, the people you love.

You will find that success when your heart is set free from fear.

Wisdom from above brings peace. Peace in your heart. Peace in your communities.

And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace. (James 3:18)

Do you want to make a difference in this world? Then seek out the wisdom from above. Become a spiritual person.

You will bring peace to those around you. You will bear good fruit in your life.

The wisdom of the world is acquired by your effort. It becomes your possession. It becomes your property that you use to elevate yourself.

But the wisdom from above cannot be acquired by your effort. It cannot be your possession.

The wisdom from above is a gift given by God.

The passage today tells us these things:

Submit yourselves therefore to God Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. (James 4:7-8)

Submit yourself to God. Submit all of your insecurities, cravings and fears of your heart to God.

Then draw near to God. God will draw near to you.

Seek the wisdom that comes from God. Ask for it. Pray for it.

King David wrote this psalm:

Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?

With clean hands and pure hearts, we seek the wisdom of God.

We no longer lift up our souls to what is false. We no longer lie to ourselves.

Two wisdoms, two paths. Seek the wisdom that brings peace.

You will live a good life that bears good fruit.

The post Two Wisdoms, Two Paths appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

James 3:1-12

Language is God's precious gift for human beings.

Because we have language, we can communicate with each other.

We can express our sorrow, our joy, our dreams, our appreciation, and our love. How wonderful it is to be able to do that.

My sister came from Korea in August. She doesn't speak much English.

My nephew Peter and Annie invited her for lunch. Annie's mother came out too. She doesn't speak English at all – Only Chinese.

My sister only speaks Korean and Annie's mother speaks only Chinese.

So, they just sat there for the whole time not being able to speak at all. Just look at each other with smile. And just eat.

That's how I survived when I first came to Canada. I was 19 when I came to Canada.

I couldn't speak a word of English. In the bus, people talked to me and I could not understand a word of what they said.

If they smiled, I smiled. If they were serious, I was serious. But I didn't know what they were saying.

Sometimes I get responses from people about the Inner Voice they received.

Somehow the words touched and moved them on that particular day. Simple words lifted them up.

Some time ago, I received an email about the sermon that is on our website. It is somebody I don't know.

He happened to come to our website and listened to the sermon. That particular sermon deeply touched him.

He just came out of prison and tried to live a new life. He said it was hard to do that in this cruel world.

He said the words I spoke helped him tremendously. So, he wanted to thank me.

The sermon title was Dignity in the midst of Humiliation.

Because we have the language, we can experience life more fully.

Our relationships can be deeper. We can express how we feel to each other.

I am sure you all have books, or poems that have affected you profoundly.

God created the world with his word. Jesus is the Word that became flesh.

The language is the greatest gift that God gave to us.

But at the same time, because we have the language, we can hurt each other. We can harm each other.

Our tongue is small but what it can do is enormous. James said the tongue is a fire.

How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell. (James 3;5, 6)

He saw the danger of our tongue.

The most beautiful gift God gave to us can be the most dangerous weapon that can destroy people.

People use the words to curse each other. When we are angry, we are searching for the word that can hurt the most.

Also our tongue is very delicate and very difficult to control.

James knew this characteristic of the tongue when he said,

but no one can tame the tongue a restless evil, full of deadly poison. (James 3:8)

He said because it is so difficult to control your tongue, if you don't make mistakes in speaking, you are perfect.

For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. (James 3:2)

So, it is very important for us to think about our tongue and use it wisely so that God's most beautiful gift can be used to edify our life and enrich it.

Don't let God's most beautiful gift be used as a weapon that destroys not only yourself but also others.

Let your tongue be an instrument to lift you up and inspire and encourage others not to discourage, disempower, and destroy others.

That is how God wants you to use your tongue.

Your spirituality is very much to do with the way you use your tongue.

I would like to say three things briefly.

1. Don't use your tongue to manipulate others.

That's not why God gave us this beautiful gift.

God gave us this gift to express your love for others, show your appreciation of others, to praise God, and thank God.

Not to manipulate others. When you use your tongue to manipulate others, God's most beautiful gift becomes ugly.

Japanese says that we have three faces.

The first face is the face you show to the world. Your public face.

The second face is the face you show to your family and close friends.

The third face is the face you never show to anyone.

People use language so that they can hide their true self.

People use language to present a false image about themselves and manipulate people's opinions of themselves.

They don't care who they really are; they care more about how others see who they are.

Don't use words to manipulate others. Don't use words to get away with difficult situations.

When you use words to manipulate others or your situations, your words become cheap; Deceptive, Empty, Insincere, Unreal.

That leads us to our second point.

2. Speak from your heart.

Don't say empty words. Say what is in your heart.

Be connected to your soul and speak what's in your soul. Speak who you are. Say what you really mean.

Your words will be connected to you and they will have the power.

Jesus never said empty words. Jesus always spoke from his heart.

When you speak from the heart, people will become connected to what you say.

Because what you say is who you are. There is no discrepancy between who you are and what you say.

Your words become authentic, genuine, sincere, real, and truthful.

Jesus gave us an interesting parable.

A father had two sons. He told them to go out and work in the vineyard.

The first one said no but went out any way. The second one said, yes, I will go, sir. But didn't go.

He just said yes, to get away with the situation.

Empty words have no power. Words by themselves are nothing. There is no energy.

Saying always right thing is not what's important. Saying what is in your heart is what is important.

What you say and who you are should not be disconnected. Don't separate who you are and what you say.

Speak who you are.

When you know what's in your heart, then you can speak clearly, with passion, and energy.

So many people don't know what they are talking about because they don't know their heart.

Take the journey of examining your heart.

When you speak from the heart, you can be connected with others.

Every heart sings a song, incomplete, until another heart whispers back. (Plato)

When you speak from the heart, you become connected.

3. Know when to speak, what to speak, and how to speak.

Speaking from the heart does not mean speaking from your emotion.

When you speak from emotion, sometimes emotion takes over you and you will say things you will regret later.

Because you will speak without knowing when to speak, what to speak, and how to speak.

For example, when you are really angry, often the anger consumes you and you say what you will regret.

Your emotion of anger takes you over and you cannot know when to speak, what to speak, and how to speak.

Know your heart and speak from the heart.

You will know when to speak and when to be silent. You will know what you need to say. And you will speak with care and love.

Develop the skills of knowing when to speak, what to speak, and how to speak. That is a spiritual discipline.

When you are able to do that, you will become perfect as James said. It is a very high level of spirituality a human being can achieve.

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James 2:1-10, 14-17

Faith is complete trust in God. It is your heart's loyalty to God and God alone.

Faith begins when you recognize your need for God.

Faith was a powerful presence in the lives of second generation Koreans because we needed God. We needed something the world wasn't giving – love, acceptance and a community.

But as time goes on and life's challenges continue to come, faith gets tested. Instead of trusting God through tough times, many people start looking elsewhere for help.

That's when faith begins to die.

This was the issue that James' community faced.

They used to be a tight community in Jerusalem. They discovered the good news of Jesus Christ. That faith gave them life.

But persecution scattered them away from Jerusalem. They became immigrants in the diaspora.

Out in the diaspora, they were poor. They were oppressed and taken advantage of by rich and powerful people.

They were a minority with a strange faith and belief. They saw that the rich and powerful people had all the advantages in life.

Their faith became shaken.

Instead of looking to God in their difficult circumstances, they looked to the rich and powerful for some advantage.

James used this example to illustrate the issue:

For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, Have a seat here in a good place, please, while to the one who is poor you say, Stand there, or, Sit by my footstool, have you not made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? (James 2:2-4)

The world we live in honours the winners.

We show favour to those with money, position, access and resources. We try to be around them and benefit from them.

The poor are seen as the losers in life.

They have nothing to offer us.

We judge them and have negative views of them. The best they can do is stay out of the way and be invisible.

Jesus saw the poor in a different way.

Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? (James 2:5)

In the kingdom of God, the poor are honoured. They are the inheritors of the kingdom.

That's what Jesus said.

Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. (Luke 6:20)

Is it because God loves them more?

No – it is because they are rich in faith.

Which is the key requirement to enter the kingdom of God.

The poor know that help doesn't come from the world. The world is not kind to them.

They are more ready to hear the good news of God. Their hearts are ready to turn to God.

This is how they are rich in faith.

I experienced this richness of faith at Sioux Valley.

In Sioux Valley, the adults we met are not thinking about how much money they'll make.

They're grieving over the death of loved ones. They're worried whether the youth will make it through another day.

They're worried about the effects of drugs and addictions in their community. They're dealing with all kinds of issues in their families.

They know they are powerless against these overwhelming forces.

Their hearts are much more open and ready for faith. They are ready to hear about a God who is for them and on their side.

An interesting thing happened to us.

As we listened to their stories and prayed for them, we were the ones who shed tears. Our hearts were broken and affected.

Their openness to faith increased ours.

Jesus knew this truth: WE NEED THE POOR FOR OUR SALVATION.

It's not that the poor need us. We need the poor.

This is why the kingdom of God belongs to them.

At Sioux Valley, all the surface level things we're so preoccupied with here melted away.

We got down to the raw realness of life. We tasted life.

I think they were the missionaries for us more than we were for them.

Connecting with those who suffer strips away the superficial and materialistic things.

You cannot talk about your money and how you spend it. You need to connect at a deeper human level of what they're going through.

That brings healing to your soul. It makes you whole. It makes you richer than any amount of money can.

Jesus knew this secret of what we really need.

Faith brings healing to the community.

James was the brother of Jesus. He wasn't one of his disciples, and didn't follow him while he was alive.

But somehow, James retained the teachings of Jesus. He saw the implications of Jesus' teachings for how people live.

As the community turned away from faith, he saw what that was doing to the community. He saw clearly the ethical implications of faith that is alive or dead.

That's why his nickname was James the Just.

When faith is alive, this is the kind of community that faith creates:

If you really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, You shall love your neighbor as yourself, you do well. (James 2:8)

The kingdom of God is defined by the royal rule.

Jesus expanded the definition of neighbour in the Good Samaritan parable.

Our neighbour is not those just like us.

The neighbour is the one in need. The neighbour is the poor among us. The neighbour is the stranger in our midst.

The one left on the road to die, the one discarded by the rest of society.

In the kingdom of God, no one is left behind.

When faith is alive, the community of faith is ruled by compassion, mercy and grace.

But for this to come about, our hearts need to be totally committed to God.

Jesus said this about rich people:

Truly I tell you, it will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God. (Matthew 19:23-24)

Is this because God loves them less?

No. It is because it is so hard for a rich person to have faith in God and place their utmost trust in God.

They trust in their own resources more than God. They live by the values of this world.

Faith is our heart's desperate need for God. The world of wealth and power draw our hearts away from God.

Faith in God is challenged at every corner.

For people of faith, everyday is a battle for our hearts. It is warfare for the the allegiance and loyalty of our hearts.

For those of us living in a society of abundance, it is so easy to turn our hearts away from God.

Jesus said this:

No one can serve two masters, for a slave will either hate the one and love the other or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth. (Matthew 6:24)

There is no middle ground.

Your heart belongs to God, or it belongs to this world.

We live in this world, but we not be of it.

We must equip ourselves for battle. Every day, you must strengthen your hearts' allegiance to God.

There are two things we must do:

1. Make Church a mandatory rhythm of your life

The world will always make demands of your time.

As a parent, I am really struggling as my kids begin to play more sports. There is no consideration whatsoever to people's faith.

God gave the Sabbath so that we would not be enslaved to the world's demands.

Every Sunday: make worship a fixed part of your life for yourself and your family.

Re-dedicate your life to God. Confess your sins and set your heart right with God once again.

Hear the Word of God, and let that shape you.

Worship is like a detoxification from everything you've absorbed in the world.

Letting worship become a casual thing is the first step to losing the battle for your heart to the world.

2. Seek out the poor and those who are marginalized

Don't just hang out with those like you. Intentionally seek out those who are different.

Those who are poor. Those who are suffering.

It won't just happen casually. Our society is too stratified and divided for this to happen naturally.

You have to make intentional effort to make this happen.

Block out time for you to serve or volunteer in a setting that serves the poor.

We are looking for opportunities at Willowridge community with St. Philip's Lutheran Church.

That will open your eyes and strengthen your faith.

I have a heavy heart for the second generation of Korean-Canadian immigrants.

So many who once felt close to God have left the church. Their hearts have been drawn away from God and into the world.

I pray for them.

For those of us who still cling onto God, trying to have faith in this world that pulls us away from God, keep pressing on.

Make church and unshakeable rhythm of your life. Seek out the poor.

Your faith will come alive and your life will be filled with purpose and meaning.

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