Dakona - Richest Man

Don’t drag me down when you fall
Don’t you know it’s a privilege
You’ve got so much, got it all
Still you’re counting your riches

And I could be ten years old
With a hole in my belly
No shoes on my soul

Chorus:
But I am here
Take my car, take my girl
I’m the richest man in the world
Steal my gold, take my pearls
I’m the richest man in the world

Amazing. Take my car, take my girl, steal my gold, take my pearls, yet I am the richest man in the world. The power of Christ to transform our mentality, where material wealth is not coveted, no longer sought, but all that matters is God.

Just like celibacy is a spiritual gift, I believe abstaining from (unnecessary) material possessions is another. I can only really think of a few people I know that don't care much about material possessions, and yup they're all Christians who only care about God. How awesome is the Lord!

Personally, I openly admit that electronics, especially video games, are still priorities in my life. I've thought whether or not I can better serve God without these "distractions". I think I'd like to reach a point in my life, where much of society's entertainment, i.e. movies, television, video games, no longer have weight in my life. Oh how many times I've shunned reading the Holy Word in favour for surfing and gaming...ugh...

Today's my 20th, and I've been searching for inspiration to write today's blog...but nope, nothing. S'ok though, cause I think I give a lot of God-given encouragement snippits. So today will be something different.

God has touched my heart immeasurably with the people He has placed in my life. I want to give those of you who have had an impact on my life (everyone has, but some have had undeniable influence) something, be it a word of encouragement, or thanks, or a weird inside joke. This is in no particular order. Hopefully I don't miss anyone...



My Family:

Dad - My earthly influence, the man who's gone above and beyond what it means to be a father.

Mom - My hub of love and compassion. Thanks for keeping me real with myself.

Sarah - Thanks for showing me how to be semi-cool, even though I'll never be as with it as you...

Cats - aiya, too cute...

Rest of my relatives - For the kind words and warm thoughts, for the caring that has sustained us as a family and as friends.




Torontonians:

Shaun - What a great guy. When I get married, I'm confident you will be my best man. Here's to our many years of stiff-talking and straight-walking.

Paul - I still remember the times we shocked the world in badminton and tennis. Who would've thunk you had that much power?

Andy - Keep balling buddy.

Pritam - Enjoy life and loosen up! haha.

Ice - Thanks for shaking up my foundations and contending with me.

Cara - I'm overjoyed that things are working out for you!

Jo and Jen - Who would've thought doing fobby things would be so fun??

Ray and Eric - We sure did do some crazy things in our youth...yo Eric, you're at Western! Why aren't we chillin?

Jon - I can feel a lifelong friendship with you coming on.



ACF and London:

Ada - Sarcastic attitude and beaming smile. Seriously, I value our friendship more than you realize..!

Adrienne - Enjoy University more!!

Anthea - Ivey is God's gift to you. Look to the positives!

Austin - This previous summer spent cooped up at Bri's for days on end actually provided more than games and fun: it made me realize how special you truly are.

Bri - I still can't believe how similar we are...but seriously, as we continue to transform, I hope the ways of our past melt away like intolerable filth. Cause that's what it was.

Cal - Your gift tonight, and taking time out of your schedule to have some nice one-on-one, demonstrates the enormous change God can cause. I still remember that picture when you were keeled over drunk in first year, and look where you are now!! You're truly God's personal warrior.

Cindy - How is it that everytime we hang out, you always cause me to have a huge smile on my face?

Connie - As unique as they come.

Cora - The heart you have for the Lord is AMAZING.

Cho - Hate to call you Cho, but it's the only way I can differentiate from Cyn Tang, haha. Keep up your walk with the Lord, follow your statutes, and your transformation will complete!

Cynthia - Zah! I wanna be at your wedding!

Derek - Your coming to true faith was one of the most poignant and sincere moments I've witnessed. Continue to seek the Lord, and He will reveal Himself to you in ways you can't imagine.

Glendon - Your ability to make others happy with your mere presence is a gift from God.

Grace - Study buddy! Your work ethic and smile amaze me.

Heidi - So very special.

Jesse - You said it best a few weeks back when you told us that you think too much about God. Oh gosh, is that ever a good thing! I pray that you keep up His ministry here at UWO.

Justin - Golden smile, golden heart.

Karyn - Another warrior for the Lord. Karyn, you may not realize this, but I truly believe that one of God's tasks for you was to bring me to Him. You've succeeded, and for that, my lifelong thanks.

Kim - Thanks for the apartment! Haha seriously, thanks for your consistent kindness.

Lillian - Our friendship has blossomed quickly, and our relationship will continue to grow in an awesome direction. I know it.

Mikey - What effort you've put in at LCAC! Too good.

Michelle - Sammi's got a keeper!

Nathan - Why is it you seem to be able to laugh at anything..?

Pam - Provider of many delicious treats and tasty spiritual goods. Thanks for your love, Pam.

Paul - If anyone marries my zah, I'm glad you're him.

Rebecca - Thomas has a keeper!

Rob - ACF this, ACF that. What an awesome chair we have this year!

Roger - You were part two of setting me on the true path to God. Again, just like Karyn, I'm so glad that the Lord put you in my life.

Rosey - Brilliant laugh, even brighter heart, with a love for anyone and everyone. Your mentorship to me has changed so many aspects of my life.

Sam - "I wanna be like Sam" I can't believe people still remember that line...yikes. But Sam, it's amazing how open our speechwaves are with each other, isn't it? I feel that if there's anything ever that needs to be talked about, you're just the man.

Sonj - Craziest laugh ever! I absolutely love your personality and your smile.

Stephen - Triad turned counsellor. Another amazing influence, and testament to what God is capable of.

Theresa - We're just getting to truly know each other now, but here's to what will be a keeper relationship.

Thomas - Rebecca's got a keeper!

Victoria - Sweetest girl, with an attentive listening ear to boot. You STILL work too hard!

Yvonne - I wonder who seriously wears more hoodies...

Alan - My infectious roommate. Man, if I didn't have someone like you to balance out my antics....

Yan - You sure you wanna take Korean again...?

Sarah-Jane - I seriously can't believe we're such good friends! I swear, I'll go to one of your CSO events...promise!

Varun, Ben, and Thomas - My wicked wicked roommates of Elgin fame. We had such a blast last year!

Ground West Crew - Thanks for putting up with my midnight visits (seems like that was the only time I was home...)

My brother Billy has posted an awesome question regarding spiritual gifts on his website. It's a great read, and well-worth some meditation time.

Also, one of the sweetest girls I know, Lillian, is going through a rough spot. But praise the Lord, as His mercy will get you through it. And realize that you're in our prayers, girl!

New template! Anyways...

One thought that has occupied my mind for quite some time now is how real and sincere our connection to the Holy Spirit is. Yes, the Lord did promise that when we bring ourselves to faith, the Spirit will rush in to our lives and fill us. But seriously, do we listen to It, or do we just shove It to the corners of our lives?

According to the Trinity (for those of you who don't know, the Lord states that the trinity is God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Three seemingly different entities, which are really all the same person), the Holy Spirit is just as divine as God is. Sooooo...if a divine nature existed within us, shouldn't it dictate how we act and how we think? Well, it doesn't, cause it goes along with the whole idea of free-will. Only here, we can choose to listen to and call upon the Spirit, or we can walk our own way.

I honestly believe the Spirit is not consulted anywhere close to as often as it should be by present-day Christians. Seriously, we have this divine nature indwelled in us, yet we so often choose to live and act in the flesh by reverting to the ways of our past, a part of our lives that should have dissolved when we took up the cross!

My counsellor once stated that if the Holy Spirit vanished from the earth, 90% of the churches (and I assume believers as well) would continue on with their lives, indifferent to It's absense. 90%!!! Truly unbelievable.

I guess what I'm asking you, the reader, is if you can truly count yourself part of the 10% that has true communion with the Spirit. It's all about being honest with yourself; ask yourself if you live a life Christ would be overcome with joy with, ask yourself if His Spirit dictates how your life is played out on earth.

I can truthfully say that I too often forget to consult God on many things, including many important LIFE-ALTERING decisions. In fact, I am downright disgusted that I do not follow Jesus' will as close as I know I should. However, thank you Lord, cause I have a genuine chance to redeem myself. I have faith that if I call upon the Lord for all of life's tumults, He'll be faithful and show me the correct road to walk. I just have to make the decision to do it.












Well, here's that decision. I hope you sign as well.

God's willingness to allow the seemingly ordinary to do His extraordinary duties is almost perplexing. It's like making your 4th-line winger take a penalty shot to win the game for your team! I mean c'mon, God could use the strong speakers, or those filled in spirit. But often, it's just some ordinary dude.

Case in point: our fellowship's speaker tonight. Short girl, just got married, new mother, new to the faith. Her manner in speaking is nothing spectacular, and her message was not the most substantial. Yet, I could tell so many people were touched and moved by her speaking. Also, if I may add, her topic was about as generic as you get when speaking about the Lord.

But alas, He is Lord. He does things His way....





WHICH IS A GOOD THING!

--JT

I've discovered, recently, a truth that has been unfairly overshadowed in the Christian faith today. We need to strive for a point in our lives where we stop seeking the Lord's grace and blessing, and instead we just seek to know Him, period. What an awesome deviation this is to what present churches and teachers of the Word would have you think!

But it's true that many of us become mushy sweetie-pies who get brutally emotional over His grace overflowing and how Jesus committed for us the ultimate sacrifice. Praise Him for Jesus, but I mean, c'mon, God is so much more than love! He's a powerful God, He's a just God, He's a jealous God, etc.

There should be a point in our walk where we push forward, past the initial stage of thanksgiving and forgiveness, and we start to earnestly seek the Lord. It's one thing to recognize God's love for us, it's another to understand what it is about God that would compel Him to act as He does.

--JT

To live with the expectation that today may be the last.

I don't necessarily think this is fear, but rather, it's more of an acknowledgement that Jesus can truly come down at this very moment, even while I'm blogging...whoa...

The truth is, so many scholars and know-it-alls have predicted His second coming, and so far, uh uh. I wonder how it'll work...like for God, time is irrelevant right? So does that mean that His arrival may come in different times, and under different circumstances for different people? Cause the way I see it, the Lord doesn't like to use "spectacles" to administer and display His authority (thankfully!) So who's to say that Jesus will come down in one fell swoop, appearing like a Savior in the sky that we all depict Him as? Didn't the Jewish people believe He would come as an almighty King to save them from Roman oppression, rather than the manger baby with a modest upbringing?

Remember the time of his resurrection, how He didn't rise up in a cloak of glory for everyone to see? Only a few priviledged were. Perhaps things will happen like that...like those who truly have faith in Him will see Him, while everyone else will be like "huh? are your legs ok? why are you on your knees?"

Either way, when He comes, we'll know.

Take me away, Lord. I hope we can all say that with confidence.

--JT

You know how Jesus speaks in parables? I find it almost grievous that the mysteries of the universe and of the world and of the Lord have to be diluted just so that we can understand them.

Imagine for a sec if Jesus spoke to his followers the true language of God. It'd be snowing like crazy, cause we'd all be scratching our heads in confusion! It kinda goes along with the theme that no matter how many adjectives and descriptors we use to vainly attempt to describe Him, it will but capture only a fragment of His true benevolence.

Poor God...

--JT

Sitting here reading, I saw an ant crawling across my desk. After some deliberation, the kleenex was broken out, and the crawler promptly squashed.

But curiosity overtook me. Knowing it's sometimes difficult to actually take them out, I peered in, and was surprised to see the ant alive, but not well. The hapless animal seemed to be stuck, as the front portion of its body squirmed, but its back laid motionless.

And it dawned upon me: I just killed one of God's creations. Wiped it out of existence. And I can't get over the idea that I thought I had the right to kill an animal for the simple reason that it was annoying me? What if the Lord swatted us down every time we annoyed Him with our actions?

This summer, I went on a short camping trip. Seriously, I know little to nothing about camping. In fact, I went to the campsite with the full expectation that there would be public lighting and private showers! But one thing that surprised me a lot was the liberal use of bug zappers by my fellow campers. Naive as I was, I opened wondered why they were always on. According to one of them, it was "cause they annoy the heck out of me."

Now, don't get me wrong, mosquito bites can get tiresome, but does that give us the right to smack and kill one?

And right, animals don't have souls like us humans do, but do we not treat them with respect, knowing that they are the Lord's creations?

--JT