Wow…tihs is rlleay ietetrnsnig!

What some kids was doing the whole 14+ hours on my flight home .  I kid you not…

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae.  The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm.  Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wolhe.  Amzanig huh?

New Year’s Resolution 2009

“I don’t want to be a product of my environment.  I want my environment to be a product of me.” –Jack Nicholson

What is home?

a tree someplace in Australia

Is it a place where one feels the company of like minded people, where conversations revolve around topics of similar interests, humor, and pursuits, where one could speak and others listen, comment, and/or consider with mutual commitment to each other’s value and worth? Is this one’s home?
Is it a place only where one does the  most activities, has meetings, needs to communicate the most, where they are called upon to do ‘things’ or ‘duties’ such that their absence would affect the function of the operations at hand, a place where should the duty, job, or activity cease so too would the relationships with the others cease also? Is this one’s home?
Is it a place that holds the fondest memories in life, where one had  some of the greatest experiences, though long gone and over with, and holds great joy whenever one thinks about it?  Was this one’s home?
Is it a place of friends, comrades, those with whom one can become transparent, vulnerable, tough, and honest all at the same time, a place of strong individual identity yet held together by the group’s unity no matter what the situations call for? Is this one’s home?
Is it a place where one’s blood family (mother, father, sisters, brothers, cousins, aunts, etc) reside regardless of their closeness or interaction, a place where one’s immediate and extended family reside? Is this one’s home?
Is it a place where one finds supreme solitude and sanctuary, where culture doesn’t matter and one is free to be oneself wholly, where everyday vernacular is understood, commonality is comforting, and an underlying thread of a shared history is apparent, where the food, weather, and the like make one say in their heart, “ahh…”?  Is this one’s home?
(I suppose it is nice if a person could reside in a place where all of these renditions of what a home is were true at the same time.  For me, each of these places is a different place…hardly the makings of a comfortable existence. To constantly juggle these does become wearisome at times. However, this reality doesn’t sadden me, at least not too much.  For those whose home include all of the above it is hard to explain.  But there is one more definition I’ve thought about…one that has kept me on this journey of life thus far:
Perhaps one’s true home is a place of destiny, a place one has yet to know, but one that is sure to come,  a place promised by a Greater One preparing for those who realize that home is no where to be found on this Earth, a place of promise, of rest, of joy, of never ending love, of enduring peace…a place where eyes nor ears have yet to experience, a place of no death, face to face reality, a place that many of us are living…and dying…for.
There are others who looked for the same thing…
8 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God….For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country….they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.
Heb 11:8-10, 14-16 (KJV)
28 Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee. And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's, But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life. But many that are first shall be last; and the last first.
Mark 10:28-31 (KJV)
24 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? 25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.
Romans 8:24-25 (KJV)

Home Part 2

A few things that have happened since I've been away from home....
1. My sister has graduated university.  :-)

2. My hometown (Ridgefield) hasn't changed much.  Still has that good ‘ol New England flavor, feel, and familiarity. 
3. My dentists (both of them) got married to each other. At least now they have something to talk about when they go home.
4. My mom became an ordained minister.
5. One of my cousins had 2 kids, another had 3, another had 1. Haven't met any of them as of yet.
6. My winter clothes still fit me! I've been happy as a bee wearing my favorite type of clothing - sweaters, jackets, gloves, boots, etc.
7. My dad took down our fence that separated our front from our back yard.
8. Everyone in my family has aged...especially my granddad. Missed a lot over the years…
9. One of my cousins won the state championship for football in Texas. you GO boy!
10. None of my equipment at home is broken (my DVD player, TV, tape deck, VCR deck, amp, speakers)
11. My mom's library has increased in size. She has many of the books I have to read for PI.
12. Memories that have waited for me have only grown stronger and were welcomed with more gratitude and appreciation than I expected from my own heart.
13.  Me.
In reality, it feels as if I never left.  Like I was just here yesterday.

Home Part 1

Click here to play!

On describing God..she's still got it

A dear sister in my church a while back posted this on her blog. Of all the things I've read in my life that attempt to describe God, her words still have no rival. I adore these words....words born from a heart that adores Him.

"and i still dont know what to say about God. i am always afraid that He will be reduced in the saying, that i'll end up making Him sound cliche or redundant, the bread of the masses, the point the weak cling to because they are afraid of the blankness of eternity. and so at the end of this post i still cannot describe to you what He is like, this constant Song. But if i did, it would be something about wholeness, and rest and love, and other deep unexplainable things."

"It is a hard thing to be a walker when you are surrounded by eagles. But sometimes walking is the best we can offer God. WALKING COUNTS TOO. Keep walking, because what we wait for is not more important than what happens to us while we are waiting. Now it is just a matter of time.”
-Bishop Willoughby (2006)

And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or not. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live....Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end.
(Deu 8:2-3, 16)

Others may. You may not.

The road rough, the way weary,
but the path powerful, and the in the end eternity....with Him. -db

If God has called you to be really like Jesus He will draw you into a life
of crucifixion and humility, and put upon you such demands of obedience,
that you will not be able to follow other people, or measure yourself by
other Christians, and in many ways He will seem to let other people do
things which He will not let you do.

Other Christians and ministers who seem very religious and useful, may
push themselves, pull wires, and work schemes to carry out their plans,
but you cannot do it, and if you attempt it, you will meet with such
failure and rebuke from the Lord as to make you sorely penitent.

Others may boast of themselves, of their work, of their successes, of
their writings, but the Holy Spirit will not allow you to do any such
thing, and if you begin it, He will lead you into some deep mortification
that will make you despise yourself and all your good works.

Others may be allowed to succeed in making money, or may have a legacy
left to them, but it is likely God will keep you poor, because He wants
you to have something far better than gold, namely, a helpless dependence
upon Him, that He may have the privilege of supplying your needs day by
day out of an unseen treasury.

The Lord may let others be honored and put forward, and keep you hidden
in obscurity, because He wants to produce some choice fragrant fruit for
His coming glory, which can only be produced in the shade. He may let
others be great, but keep you small. He may let others do a work for Him
and get the credit for it, but He will make you work and toil on without
knowing how much you are doing; and then to make your work still more
precious He may let others get credit for the work which you have done,
and thus make YOUR REWARD TEN TIMES GREATER WHEN JESUS COMES.

The Holy Spirit will put a strict watch over you, with a jealous love, and
will rebuke you for little words and feelings or for wasting your time,
which other Christians never feel distressed over. So make up your mind
that God is an Infinitely Sovereign Being, and has a right to do as He
pleases with His own. He may not explain to you a thousand things which
puzzle your reason in His dealings with you, but if you absolutely sell
yourself to be His love slave, He will wrap you up in Jealous Love, and
bestow upon you many blessings which come only to those who are in the
inner circle.

Settle it forever, then that you are to DEAL DIRECTLY WITH THE HOLY
SPIRIT, and that He is to have the privilege of tying your tongue, or
chaining your hand, or closing your eyes, in ways that He does not seem
to use with others. Now, when you are so possessed with the living God
that you are, in your secret heart, pleased and delighted over this
PECULIAR, PERSONAL, PRIVATE, JEALOUS GUARDIANSHIP AND MANAGEMENT
OF THE HOLY SPIRIT OVER YOUR LIFE, then you will have found the vestibule
of Heaven.

-by G. D. Watson (1845-1924)

what an angry world!

An accelerated season of waiting quickly for the fast growth of slow patience.

Trusting in the Good Book.
-picture from The Neverending Story (a favorite childhood movie of mine)

haha...

Nostalgic picture of my taiko group

A testament to the old adage that relationships consist not so much in words, but in meanings.

In other words, I could hardly understand them, they could hardly understand me (much to the chagrin of those who think I'm fluent in Japanese..haha)...but, over time, we began to understand each other. Relationships take time, tests, and testimonies of shared victories and defeats...laughter and tears...smiles and frowns...misunderstandings that birth understandings...and love. Tenacious love.

Without the meaningful contact, purpose, and mutual affinity to want to want to be close that Musashi Kengo Taiko had with each other, the above photo could never have been taken on my last day in Japan. Sure, it was a nice gesture to send me off to the airport, but the tears that followed this photo are etched forever in my memory of a supreme principle I strive to invoke for every encounter I have with people: treat others the way you want to be treated.

I think someone said that a long time before me...

And as you desire that men should do to you, you do also to them likewise. -Jesus
(Luke 6:31)

"Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed?..." -a question by Paul to those who already believed on Jesus in Ephesus (Acts 19:2)

~truth only works for the hungry~

When a person is baptized in the Spirit, he receives the Spirit of Christ in his life on a permanent basis (Romans 8:9; Ephesians 3:16,17). He becomes a part of God’s spiritual family, and God’s Spirit begins to guide him. The Bible describes this in several ways: (1) By the Spirit we are born into the kingdom of God (John 3:5); (2) the Spirit adopts us into the family of God (Romans 8:15,16; Galatians 4:5,6); (3) the Spirit baptizes us into the body of Christ (I Corinthians 12:13); (4) the Spirit sanctifies us (I Corinthians 6:11; I Peter 1:2); (5) the Spirit is the seal of our salvation (Ephesians 1:13); and (6) the Spirit is the earnest (pledge, guarantee, first installment) of our inheritance (Ephesians 1:14). In short, receiving the Spirit is part of our salvation. Of course, as Chapter 4 discussed, we should not sharply separate the baptism of the Spirit from water baptism since they join together to complete the new birth and bring all the benefits of salvation.

In addition to being part of salvation, the baptism of the Spirit brings power (II Timothy 1:7), which includes: (1) power to witness and be a living testimony that Christ saves from sin (Acts 1:8); (2) power to overcome sin, live righteously, and mortify the deeds of the flesh (Romans 8:4,13); and (3) resurrection power when Christ comes for His church (Romans 8:11).

The Spirit bring rest and refreshing (Isaiah 28:11,12; Acts 3:19), and gives a sound mind (II Timothy 1:7). The Spirit becomes a teacher, a guide into all truth, and an illuminator of the Word of God (John 14:26; 16:13). He also becomes our intercessor and way of access to God (Romans 8:26,27; Ephesians 2:18). Finally, the Spirit works in our lives to give the ninefold fruit of the Spirit; namely love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentlness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance (Galatians 5:22,23; Romans 5:5;14:17)

All these works of the Spirit reinforce the doctrine that receiving the Spirit is essential to salvation. Without all the above workings of the Spirit, we cannot successfully live a victorious Christian life that is pleasing to God. Anyone who tries to be saved without receiving God’s Spirit is attempting to be saved by his own efforts and is doomed to failure.

-David Bernard, The New Birth

Do not settle for less that all God has for you, my friend. Empty thyself of thyself. Yearn for that which brings power, life, peace, joy, victory, salvation, renewal, refreshing, anointing....the Holy Spirit. If you long for this, it is not unwise to ask yourself the same question Paul asked to believers in Ephesus (Acts 19:2). I want to be like them - not trapped in my own thoughts or belief systems or even of those around me, but to be open to the move of God founded upon His Word. God can only fill an empty vessel...not one full of itself. Even though they believed, yet there was more to their relationship with Christ then they had experienced...(Acts 19:1-6). They could have held onto their traditions and belief system when confronted with further revelation, or they could have done exactly what they did: believed to the point of obedient action in receiving the Holy Spirit and being baptized in the name of Jesus. (Acts 19:5,6)

There was a man who believed his daddy had an inheritance for him that would allow him to buy a house when he is older. However, his belief never turned into obedient action to go and get the statement, the title, the check at the bank that would give evidence of his belief. One day, he shows up empty handed to buy the house and simply declares to the landlord on the front porch, "I believe with my whole heart that I can buy this house. I've believed it every day of my life. That belief has given me peace, joy, satisfaction...wow! Ok, where are the keys?" Is it any wonder why the landlord laughed and walked away?

Matthew 7:21-27

Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it. Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it. Hatred darkens life; love illuminates it.
-Martin Luther King Jr.

Dear friends, we must love each other because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born from God and knows God. The person who doesn't love doesn't know God, because God is love. God has shown us his love by sending his only Son into the world so that we could have life through him. This is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the payment for our sins. Dear friends, if this is the way God loved us, we must also love each other. No one has ever seen God. If we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us.
-John (1Jn 4:7-12)

His river for your desert

Forget what happened in the past, and do not dwell on events from long ago. I am going to do something new. It is already happening. Don't you recognize it? I will clear a way in the desert. I will make rivers on dry land.
(Isaiah 43:18-19)

God bless the person who invented sms

A walkway back in my hometown of Ridgefield, CT.

The following is an sms from a member in my church here in Singapore on a recent night full of doubt, fear, heaviness, oppression, weariness, and confusion...something they could have never, ever known. Herein do I glory in the providence, the love, the understanding, the power, the victory, and the concern of my Jesus. His Words do more than any mere man's ever could...

"Don't lose heart, I'll lead u back 2 dr road of life, yr feets were created 2 walk on my words throughout yr life, u will find my truth inside of u that gives u wisdom n direction 2 begin a walk 2 discover dr real joy of life a journey togather with Me in truth clinging with My word that is supernatural mixed with faith that need 2 b used on a regular basis n My words are set as a cornerstone that creates boundary 2 establish life in abundance forever."

"How Far Will You Trust Me?" -God

The right hand of the LORD is held high. The right hand of the LORD displays strength. I will not die, but I will live and tell what the LORD has done. The LORD disciplined me severely, but he did not allow me to be killed.
(Psalms 118:16-18 GW)
During times of trouble I called on the LORD. The LORD answered me and set me free from all of them.
(Psalms 118:5 GW)
Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty: For he maketh sore, and bindeth up: he woundeth, and his hands make whole. He shall deliver thee in six troubles: yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee.
(Job 5:17-19 KJV)
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
(Romans 8:28 KJV) 

I've been stupid like an animal before...

 
When my thoughts were bitter and my feelings were hurt, I was as stupid as an animal; I did not understand you. Yet I always stay close to you, and you hold me by the hand. You guide me with your instruction and at the end you will receive me with honor. What else do I have in heaven but you? Since I have you, what else could I want on earth? My mind and my body may grow weak, but God is my strength; he is all I ever need. Those who abandon you will certainly perish; you will destroy those who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, how wonderful to be near God, to find protection with the Sovereign LORD and to proclaim all that he has done!
(Psalms 73:21-28 GNB)

Need Help in Prayer Time?

1. Praise - Psalm 22:3; 63:3; Hebrews 13:15
2. Forgiveness - Matthew 6:14-15
3. Confession - Psalm 66:18; 139:23-24
4. Petition - Matthew 6:9-13; James 4:2-3
5. Intercession - Matthew 9:37-38; 1 Timothy 2:1-2
6. Bible Reading - 2 Timothy 3:16
7.Meditation - Psalm 1:1-2; 77:12
8. Thanksgiving - Philippians 4:6
9. Praying the Word - Personally apply, out loud, the precepts of the Bible.
10. Singing - Psalm 100:2; Ephesians 5:19
11. LISTENING - 1 Kings 19:11-12
12. Praise - Matthew 6:13

Rare does an album repeat this many times in my mp3 player, but...

Click here to play!

...The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford soundtrack is one such album.

Those who know me well know that I have more movie soundtrack albums than any other genre. I used to hold up an old tape deck next to my mom's 1980 TV set when I was a kid to record like 10 seconds of a musical part from a film. Didn't care about what movie it was...but if something caught my ear I recorded it. In fact, I still have my first cassette (remember those anybody?) back in my home in CT.

This movie in itself is a masterpiece...more a film and character study than anything else. The two main characters powerfully portray America's most notorious criminal and the man who worshiped, hated, and killed him. However, it was the music that did it for me. And when that happens, the medium through which I heard the music becomes immaterial. Such is the case here.

It's been a long time since I've heard music that caused me to imagine...to dream..to long...to believe...to think about my God in a way I've not in a long time.

Music with words and our contemporary styles have their place indeed. But I wonder about David out on the hills thinking of God. He had no mp3 player, no top 10, nothing but the music in his heart. What music did he hear when pondering the awesomeness of the Lord?

What kind of music do I hear when meditating on the goodness, long suffering, mercy, fear, and love of God? Click the photo above for a sample...this is what I hear.

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky displays what his hands have made. One day tells a story to the next. One night shares knowledge with the next without talking, without words, without their voices being heard. Yet, their sound has gone out into the entire world....(Psalms 19:1-4)

Love Beyond

By far my favorite comic strip of all time.

"You are loved beyond your failures, you are loved beyond your past."
-MSN tag of a friend

"But God is rich in mercy because of his great love for us."
-Ephesians 2:4

Worship

This is a beautiful pic...in many ways.
Worship is the submission of all our nature to God.  It is the quickening of conscience by His holiness, nourishment of mind by His truth, purifying of imagination by His beauty, opening of the heart to His love, and submission of will to His purpose.  All this gathered up in adoration is the greatest of all expressions of which we are capable. -William Temple

Yes We Can - Americans

Click here to play!

Suffice it to say that I've no idea what's going on with the American elections and candidates. Ok, yes...Obama is black and so am I. But that doesn't mean I support him. He's got his views (of which I don't know), Hillary's got hers (of which I don't know about...though I know her history), etc. etc.

I am American. Not Japanese, not Singaporean. And I'm proud to be so! Tact demands one not to stand on a soapbox and announce this while living in a foreign country, but every now and then something comes along that causes me to remember where I'm from...

...and this video is such a moment. It touched me. The message in the song is what is powerful (which are verbatim Barak Obama's words...total PROPS to the producer of this song...what genius). Human beings are moved and motivated by words. And these words ring a bell in my heart. I believe it would ring a bell in anyone's heart. One thing is sorely missing though - God! Then they'd have to change it to "Yes He Can"

Of course, politically backing up those words is a completely different story...only time will tell. Nevertheless, I like the words, I like the music, I like the vision, and I like the black and white of the video. Who will I vote for? That's for me to know. And with such an important decision as who will be the next leader of the most powerful country on the earth I'll not be swayed by mushy gushy music videos....haha, no way. But still, I like the video.

For all its shortcomings, failings, craziness, like any good patriot, I still believe in my country and would never lose hope in change for the better....America.

Yes We Can.

p.s. I think it goes without saying that the only way I know "we (Americans) can" is through repentance, faith, and obedience to the Word of God. A return to the values and morals that the country was built on (minus the slavery part..haha. I mean the fact that a black man is running for office is AMAZING considering the history of my people in America). Jesus was, is, and always will be the answer to our nation's issues. Until then, it's just a song. But as long as we have praying believers for our country, I have hope for my nation.

Can't wait...

Click here to play!

The angel showed me a river filled with the water of life, as clear as crystal. It was flowing from the throne of God and the lamb. Between the street of the city and the river there was a tree of life visible from both sides. It produced 12 kinds of fruit. Each month had its own fruit. The leaves of the tree will heal the nations. There will no longer be any curse. The throne of God and the lamb will be in the city. His servants will worship him and see his face. His name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night, and they will not need any light from lamps or the sun because the Lord God will shine on them. They will rule as kings forever and ever.
(Revelation 22:1-5)

More than Conquerors

The Word of God declares that our lives are hidden in Christ.  Jesus said that if a man desires to find his life in this world he should pursue losing it.  One way of looking at what Jesus said is that he is telling us that if we lose our life, for His sake, then we will really find it.
It is interesting that our world is filled with the spirit of 'finding oneself' by looking inward.  The desire to want to find one's purpose, one's meaning in life, is not bad in and of itself.  It is the means by which we seek to find out this understanding that is troubling.  While the world says look inside oneself, Jesus says look outside of ourselves.  Specifically, in Colossians 3:3 the life we seek - our true lives - is found hidden IN Christ.  Notice that even though it is hidden, the bible tells us where it is: in Christ. 
It follows that this is in line with the bible's encouragement to seek God, His face and His person.  As Christians, the life we seek is found in Christ.  Thus it behooves us to seek Him.  For in doing so not only will we find Him, but we will find ourselves as well. 
Keep your minds fixed on things there, not on things here on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
(Colossians 3:2-3 GNB)
Col 3:2=3  あなたがたは、地上のものを思わず、天にあるものを思いなさい。 あなたがたはすでに死んでおり、あなたがたのいのちは、キリストとともに、神のうちに隠されてあるからです。
For in Him we live and move and have our being, as also certain of your own poets have said, For we are also His offspring.
(Acts 17:28 MKJV)
そのように私たちは神の子孫ですから、神を、人間の技術や工夫で造った金や銀や石などの像と同じものと考えてはいけません。
(Acts 17:29 JSS)

I've Come Too Far

Click here to play!

I have come too far. I have come too far. I've come too far to turn around, a higher plain Ive found. This I know: I'm gonna make it, I cant turn back now.

Though the storms may rise, though winds may blow! I know the Lord is by my side, to comfort and to guide. This I know: I'm gonna make it, I cant turn back now.

Forgetting those things which are behind me. I'm reaching to those things which are before me. Oh I press towards the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Jesus Christ!!

-Richard Smallwood