Today's Passage - John 1:19-28

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english John 1: 19-28   Finally they said , "Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us.  What do you  say about yourself?"  John replied in words of Isaiah the prophet, " I am the voice of one calling in the desert, 'Make straight the way for the Lord'"       At the time of John the Baptist, many people questioned John saying, "Who are you?" John clearly  knew  his role and who he was.  So he  firmly replied that he was the one as quoted in the Old Testament, "A voice in the wilderness crying out, 'Make straight of the way for the Lord.'  In other words, other than his own name, he clearly understood his identity - one who made straight the way for the Lord.  Brothers and sisters, how important is this identity to you! God is seeking for people to work   together with Him in this world. He needs people to prepare  the way for Him, so that God's spirit could work freely on earth.  John was not the only person making the way for the Lord, should we also be the ones  making  the way for our Lord?      When God's spirit works in a family, God needs a vessel and channel through which love can come to this family with His spirit.  In this community and family, He needs a channel and a vessel.    In order for a person to prepare the way for the Lord, he needs to equip himself to become an open  channel.   On the contrary, if our lives are stifled, how could we lead people to the grace of our Lord?       I recall Queen of the Dark Chamber, Miss Christina Tsai, had always told me this story: she used to live in the mountain where her father made  a pipe with bamboo sticks guiding water from the mountain to our house.  One day, water stopped flowing all of a sudden.  My father had to check each section of the bamboo pipe to find out where the block was.  He discovered a big toad stuck in one of the sections. Once the toad was removed, water started flowing again. Miss Christina Tsai always questioned us if there are toads in our lives that needed to be removed? We need to ask God to remove the obstacles in our lives so that the grace of God can freely flow. Let us be like John making the way for the Lord so that His grace can flow out from our lives.                 Pray with Pastor Tong           Dear Lord, search our hearts we pray to see if there are obstacles in our lives that are hindrance to your work.  Grant us strength to remove them so that through us your grace may freely flow.  With thanksgiving we pray,  in the victorious name of Jesus, Amen!