Today's Passage - Acts 20:25-32

Acts 20:25-32   Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again.  Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men.  For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.  Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood...  Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.  Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.   According to the letters written by Paul, each time he shed tears it was because of love of God.  2 Corinthians 5:14 says that "For Christ's love compels us...  And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again."  Love of the Lord was his momentum for serving God and his comfort during all the hardship.   It's the love of God, not the sense of mission and responsibility, that can keep our relationship with Him alive.  If we serve God only to fulfill our duty and do devotions out of obligation, then one day our faith life will be exhausted; the more we serve, the quicker we'd be exhausted.  Whenever I'm under tremendous pressure and burden, God always helps me to turn back the cross and think about His love.  I'm often like a lost sheep who's gone astray, but God always uses His staff and rod to guide me and comfort me, and just thinking about it makes me shed tears.  I truly understand now that we can love only because God loved us first, not because of anything else.   Not only does God's love make us cry, thinking about God's kingdom and glory also makes us shed tears from inside.  I often cry out to God, asking "Lord, may your glory come, so that the world would once again see the glorious beauty of your presence."  Many times I cry for the church and for God's people, and I also cry for the sin of this land.  How about you, what do you cry for?  When was the last time you cried for the kingdom of God?  How about crying for the  love of God?  May the Spirit of the Lord touch us and let us think about his grace, so that we will once again offer ourselves for God to use!   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, we ask that you once again put the passion for God's kingdom inside.  Let us not live for ourselves, but to live for you.  Let us be like Paul and cry for your love and your kingdom.  Let us truly understand your heart and make us your vessels.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen! Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - Follow the project on Facebook ! Help us to reach our Phase I Target, and witness how God expands His Kingdom on earth!  Click here to donate online.

Today's Passage - Acts 20:21-24

Acts 20:21-24   "I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.  "And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there.  I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me.  However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me - the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace."   Paul preached this message when he was on his way to Jerusalem to face all kinds of hardship and oppression.  He clearly knew that it was God's will to put him through the hardship in order to accomplish the mission that God entrusted him.  Throughout his lifetime of ministry, Paul experienced all kinds of hardship and persecution, some of which even he thought came out of nowhere.  None of the hardships, however, made him lose faith and hope; instead, suffering strengthened his faith.  He understood more clearly that the world and things of the world will eventually pass away, and only the Lord's kingdom will last forever.  Our Lord alone will be the same yesterday, today and forever.   God allows hardship to come to us so that we can solely focus on Him instead of desiring things of the world.  Paul said that "I consider my life worth nothing to me" - We can only know how to live for the Lord if we first learn to die for the Lord.  What does dying for the Lord mean?  It's not death of the body, but rather being willing to suffer for the Lord.  No matter what God wants us to experience, we need to be willing to learn what God wants us to learn with a humble and submissive heart.   Sometimes God is determined to harm us through suffering.  His goal is not just to make us suffer, but rather He wants us to learn our weaknesses through all the suffering so that we will turn back to God again and again and really know that He is filled with abundant grace.  Paul was able to face hardships without any fear because He truly knew that God was still sitting on the throne, and even his life is in the hands of God  He knew that while he was suffering, he was in the almighty arms of God and God will open ways for him with signs and wonders.  If God didn't allow it, nothing would have happened to him.  Paul set an example for us to live and die for God; if we are determined to die for the Lord, we can then truly live for Him every day.   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, please help us to be determined in our hearts to die for you, so that we'd be willing to give ourselves up to live for you each and every day in order to witness your glory and grace.  May the Lord use us to be His vessels.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen! Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - Follow the project on Facebook ! Help us to reach our Phase I Target, and witness how God expands His Kingdom on earth!  Click here to donate online.

Today's Passage - Acts 20:13-20

Acts 20: 13-20   We went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Assos, where we were going to take Paul aboard. He had made this arrangement because he was going there on foot.  When he met us at Assos, we took him aboard and went on to Mitylene.  The next day we set sail from there and arrived off Kios. The day after that we crossed over to Samos, and on the following day arrived at Miletus.  Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus to avoid spending time in the province of Asia, for he was in a hurry to reach Jerusalem, if possible, by the day of Pentecost.  From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church.  When they arrived, he said to them: "You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia.  I served the Lord with great humility and with tears, although I was severely tested by the plots of the Jews.  You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house.   Wherever Paul goes, he always first finds a group of brothers and sisters to work together with and to provide mutual encouragement and support.  Therefore, before he left Ephesus and was preparing to go to Jerusalem, he gathered the elders whom he worked with for the past three years to encourage one another.  These are people whom Paul lived with and grew together; not only were their lives molded through Paul, Paul's life was also molded by God through them.  God often uses people around us, such as family or brothers and sisters at church, to discipline our lives.  It's the purpose of God to reveal our shortcomings and weaknesses through these relationships and even conflicts.   Some have said that God often places unlovable people around us so that we'd learn how to love, but the reality is that God always places lovable people around us to show us how unlovable we are so that we may turn back to Him to receive more love and virtues from God.  Our physical family shapes our natural life, and in the same way our spiritual family shapes our spiritual life.   Many years ago I was serving with others in a bible study group in Philadelphia.  I was there chairman and there was a coworker in charge of devotions.  One day he called me and told me that I was weak in the spirit.  I was depressed after his call, and I wondered why he could say that I was weak in the spirit.  When I looked back, however, I realized that he was right after all.  I thank the Lord because through all these setbacks my life has become more abundant, and my personality became more cheerful and I became more open-minded.  May the Lord help us, mold our lives so that we may become more like Jesus.   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, we thank you because your hands are still working in my life.  We give thanks and we surrender ourselves before you.  Please continue to work in our lives so that we become more like Jesus Christ, and may your grace be manifested in our lives.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen! Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - Follow the project on Facebook ! Help us to reach our Phase I Target, and witness how God expands His Kingdom on earth!  Click here to donate online.

Today's Passage - Acts 20:7-12

Acts 20:7-12   On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight.  There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting.  Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead.  Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. "Don't be alarmed," he said. "He's alive!"  Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left.  The people took the young man home alive and were greatly comforted.   Paul was preparing to leave, but the brothers and sisters there didn't want him to go, so they surrounded Paul and he started preaching.  Perhaps it was his last word, because he spoke from evening and dawn.  A young man named Eutychus fell asleep and fell to the ground to death.  Paul went down to hold and pray for him, and the Holy Spirit worked on the boy to bring him back to life.   The God we believe in is one who can bring dead people to life, so in our life we must expect signs and wonders to happen.  If we believe in a living God instead of a dead God, He will surely move in our lives.  I often say that we must not become "old Christians."  Who are the old Christians?  They are those who have lost great expectation on God and they no longer expect God to perform any miraculous work or change them in any way.  One who loses expectation on God cannot be used by God as His vessel, so may God help us not to become old Christians.  Many come before God without such great expectation, and they may feel bored during meetings and fall asleep like Eutychus, because they don't think or expect God to do anything spectacular.   The truth is that God is real and alive, and he will surely bring forth the power for turning things around in our lives.  If we are always in deep sleep inside and our spirit is surrounded by the scent of death, may God help us and let His light shine on us and lift us up.  Let us be resurrected from death and be filled with joy and power because God is working on us right now.  In our daily life, let us bear witness for God's glorious beauty, and let us stand firm for God!   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, we thank you and we give you all the glory because you are such a faithful God who resurrected Eutychus from death.  Today, you will also resurrect us from the scent of death in our lives so that we may bear witness for your glorious beauty.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen! Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - Follow the project on Facebook ! Help us to reach our Phase I Target, and witness how God expands His Kingdom on earth!  Click here to donate online.

Today's Passage - Acts 20:1-6

Acts 20: 1-6   When the uproar had ended, Paul sent for the disciples and, after encouraging them, said good-by and set out for Macedonia.  He traveled through that area, speaking many words of encouragement to the people, and finally arrived in Greece, where he stayed three months. Because the Jews made a plot against him just as he was about to sail for Syria, he decided to go back through Macedonia.  He was accompanied by Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, Gaius from Derbe, Timothy also, and Tychicus and Trophimus from the province of Asia...   No matter where Paul went, he was always gathering people or disciples to encourage them.  If we had encountered all these troubles like Paul did, we would probably be filled with complaints.  Paul, on the other hand, didn't complain at all and always encouraged people wherever they went, which was truly precious.  This is an important virtue while we serve God - No matter what troubles we encounter, we need to stay faithful to the mission that God entrusted us.  One I passed by a church, and three English words on its door drew my attention and made a lasting impression inside me: Never give up.  May God help us - Never give up and never be afraid!   When we serve God, we should never give up easily.  No matter how many times we are hurt and defeated, we must keep in mind that God is still sitting on the throne.  We need to encourage one another so that we can lift the morale of all brothers and sisters in serving God, and we also need to depend on the word of God and power of the Holy Spirit.  An army is capable of fighting because of its morale; when the morale is high, it can defeat the enemy no matter how vicious it is.  The spiritual army works the same way; no matter how vicious is the enemy before us, if we have strong morale, we can depend on God to defeat the enemy.  We need to encourage each other to lift our spiritual morale so that we may all be edified.   Paul understood the importance of high spiritual morale; therefore, no matter where he went, he already encourage people and disciples.  Also, Paul never gave up and was not afraid because he had an optimistic attitude.  He didn't just only look at the circumstance, but he trusts the Lord who's master of the circumstance, and that became the motivation for his ministry and source of his strength.  May God help us to keep on moving forward and to depend on him everyday no matter what kind of difficulty we encounter!   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, we thank you because you are already victorious, and you are the master of our life.  We ask that you bless each brother and sister daily so that we can proclaim victory by your might.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen! Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - Follow the project on Facebook ! Help us to reach our Phase I Target, and witness how God expands His Kingdom on earth!  Click here to donate online.

Today's Passage - Acts 19:35-41

Acts 19:35-41   The city clerk quieted the crowd and said: "Men of Ephesus, doesn't all the world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven?  Therefore, since these facts are undeniable, you ought to be quiet and not do anything rash...  They can press charges.  If there is anything further you want to bring up, it must be settled in a legal assembly.  As it is, we are in danger of being charged with rioting because of today's events. In that case we would not be able to account for this commotion, since there is no reason for it."  After he had said this, he dismissed the assembly.   In this passage, an bizarre riot took place.  We don't usually understand why these riots happen around us, but from the perspective of spirituality there are often reasons why these hardships come upon us.   First, sometimes they're caused by our negligence.  For example, when we have a flat tire on the highway, we might say that it's an attack from the enemy, when the reality is that we've been negligent in taking care of our car; we often fall into hardship because of our negligence.  Before David committed the sin of adultery, the Bible said that when the Israelites were fighting a battle out there, he was sleeping in the palace till late in the day; what a sluggish lifestyle!  After he woke up, he was pacing around on the patio, where he saw Beersheba bathing and was tempted into adultery.  David didn't stay alert, and thus he gave the devil room to tempt him into sin.   Second, sometimes hardships are indeed attacks from the enemy.  The early church, for example, did encounter all kinds of obstacles.  Paul mentioned all the hardships that he encountered, including getting whipped by people, running into accident on the sea, being persecuted all over, worrying about the church every day, etc.  The enemy can use all kinds of things to deter the work of God from expanding.   Third, sometimes hardships are the work of God in order to manifest His glory.  One time Jesus and the disciples were walking on the road, and a man who was born blind came to them.  The disciples immediately asked: Whose sin caused the blindness, his parents' or his?  The answer from Jesus intriguing - It was neither of them.  Lord, however, said the God's glory will be manifested from this man.   When we encounter any hardship for no reason, let us come before God to ask for His will so that we may respond accordingly, and we will then be blessed more abundantly.   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, we ask that you bless the brothers and sisters; no matter what hardship they are encountering right now, I believe that your hands are behind it, and you will turn it around to become more blessings on them each day.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen! Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - Follow the project on Facebook ! Help us to reach our Phase I Target, and witness how God expands His Kingdom on earth!  Click here to donate online.

Today's Passage - Acts 19:23-34

Acts 19:23-34   About that time there arose a great disturbance about the Way.  A silversmith named Demetrius, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought in no little business for the craftsmen.  He called them together, along with the workmen in related trades, and said: "Men, you know we receive a good income from this business.  And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus and in practically the whole province of Asia. He says that man-made gods are no gods at all.  There is danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited, and the goddess herself, who is worshiped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty."  When they heard this, they were furious and began shouting: "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!"  Soon the whole city was in an uproar....   When Paul was preaching the gospel in Ephesus, he encountered a great obstacle related to the worship of goddess Artemis at the place.  Who is Artemis?  According to Greek mythology she is the goddess of moon who's also named Diana, and she's responsible for reproduction.  Her upper body is covered with multitude of breasts and there's a snake hanging over her.  Many ancient civilizations and countries that were influenced by them have similar practice of worshipping queen of heaven or earth, such as Mazu of Taiwan.  These goddess bound the spirits and lives of people, causing difficulties for the gospel to spread in these areas.   We also often encounter obstacles when we want to spread the gospel wherever we are.  These obstacles can be related to regional strongholds, such as idols that are worshipped locally or trend and fashion of the time that bind people's hearts just like idols.  It could also be materialism that deters hearts of people from coming to God.   In addition, these strongholds may also be the sins in the hearts of people; not just personal sins, but they can also be sins of the family or of earlier generations that have been inherited.  These sins can bind the hearts of people so that they cannot open up to God and receive His grace.  When we preach the gospel, we must clearly understand the strongholds of a particular area.  May the Holy Spirit open our eyes to see these strongholds, and may God help us to stand firm on the foundation of the precious blood of Jesus Christ.  Let us proclaim victory in the name of the Lord in order to break all the bondages from the strongholds, so that the hearts of people will be released to turn back to the true God.   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, please reveal to us the strongholds around us; we ask that you break all of them so that the hearts and souls around us may be set free and open up to you, and get to know you better.  Let us engage in this spiritual warfare and be victorious.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen! Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - Follow the project on Facebook ! Help us to reach our Phase I Target, and witness how God expands His Kingdom on earth!  Click here to donate online.