Today's Passage - Acts 16:34-40

Acts 16:34-40   The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God-he and his whole family. When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: "Release those men." The jailer told Paul, "The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace." But Paul said to the officers: "They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out." The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed... This scripture passage shows us the example set by the jailer and his family.  After he accepted Jesus as his personal Savior, his life began to demonstrate the example of love. He took the apostles and washed their wounds, brought them to his house and set a meal before them.  This family is not only concerned about themselves. They are willing to live out the love of Christ.  In the church, sometimes in our conversations, we tend to "go by the books" and deal with people in a way that can sometimes hurt.  Let's pray for the church to be a place for healing, a place where we can wash each other's wounds, and not a place where wounds are created.   In addition, we need to honor and care for the people in need, so the physical needs can be met.  The Bible tells us it is more blessed to give than to receive. We hear this truth a lot, but it is rarely practiced.  The Chinese families in North America, typically live their lives, if not for themselves, for their children.  In fact, when you think of people who say they live for their children, the truth is that they still live for themselves. They rarely step out of their circle of friends to get to know the community they live in.  We are part of the community, and have the responsibility to improve society. There are many needs in the city - the low-income and the homeless people who need our help.  We need to remember those people, and not just focus on ourselves so we can live a life of giving.    In addition, when we think about the missionaries who have left the comfort of their own home, to preach the gospel in places far away, these missionaries are really in the front-line or battlefield serving the Lord.  The church who is behind the scenes need to understand that it is more blessed to give than to receive, not that we help only when we have excess.  The early church were still giving when they did not have enough, because they believe that God's faithfulness will cause us to never be in lack. Ask God to help us in our everyday life, not only to receive God's grace, but also to care about the poor, to remember the work of missionaries all around the world.  May the love of Christ flow out abundantly from our lives.        Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, we thank you because you have blessed us so richly that we lack nothing. We ask that you help us to remember the people in our lives who are in need and the missionaries who are far away from home.  You said that it is more blessed to give than to receive, so we pray that your glorious riches will be manifested in our lives. We thank you and we pray in the victorious name of Jesus, Amen!       Participate in Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - by Donating a Seat for a future new believer!

Today's Passage - Acts 16:31-33

Acts 16:31-33   They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved-you and your household." Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his family were baptized. When Paul and Silas were praising and worshiping in songs and prayers, God's glorious presence filled the jail cell.  God's ways are indeed beyond the human imagination, isn't it?  The prison is the humblest of places, yet God's glory filled that place.  When God's people praise and worship him, no matter where we are, whatever sin or evil spirit is there, God can free us from that bondage, and allow us to experience His presence.    I remember that once, our church invited a speaker from Argentina.  He said that while we were gathering at night in the church, there were 976 people who were praying fervently for us in Argentina. These people were all prisoners in Argentina, charged with serious crimes.  The speaker began to tell us how the Spirit of God was changing the prison cell and the prisoners, drawing their hearts towards God, such that these people were now mighty intercessors for God in prison.  We all thought that this was a strange story. Later on, a sister from the church went to visit this prison in Argentina, to minister to the prisoners there.  Instead, when she got there, she realized that the presence of God was so strong in the prisoners, she could hardly stand.  When we praise and worship God wholeheartedly, the Spirit of God can break all the chains of bondage.   That night when the prison doors were flung open, and everybody's chain came loose, none of the prisoners escaped.  This was because their hearts had already been set free and they recognized who the Lord of their lives was.  As such, the first thing the jailer said to Paul was, "What must I do to be saved?" Note that Paul said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved - you and your household." Besides caring for each individual's soul, God is also concerned about the salvation of the entire household.  God wants to pour out His grace through one person, to the people surrounding him.  This is God's promise.  God's salvation can come to the entire household through one person.  This is like the story of Noah in the Old Testament.  Because Noah pleased God, his entire household was saved.  On the other hand, this also represents a responsibility on our part.  God's grace does not automatically come to us.  We need to submit ourselves to God and allow Him to work in our lives.  Let us make a conscious effort, so that through us, our family members may see God's glory!   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, I pray you will bless every brother and sister, so that they may bring about the blessing of salvation to their entire household, and their whole family may know that you are real and experience your presence.   Through prayer, let us bring the souls of our entire family before you. We thank you and we pray in the victorious name of Jesus, Amen!       Participate in Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - by Donating a Seat for a future new believer!

Today's Passage - Acts 16:26-30

Acts 16:26-30   Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose.  The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped.  But Paul shouted, "Don't harm yourself! We are all here!"  The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.  He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"   Paul and Silas were sleepy and exhausted in the prison, so how could they worship God under such circumstance?  They must have been prompted and even driven by God's Spirit, who called them to worship Him.  Worship is not just an expression of emotions, but it's a manifestation of complete surrender.  Paul and Silas obeyed God's calling and surrendered both emotionally and rationally.  Logically speaking, it was irrationally to be worshipping at that time, but Paul and Silas completely surrendered and sang in praise and thanksgiving out of their spirit and truth, and thus all the prisoners listened attentively.  Perhaps it was because the heaven is God's throne and the earth is God's stool, so when God heard such beautiful song of praise and His foot couldn't help but to tap on the floor, the earth and the foundation of the prison were shaken, and all the doors opened.   Actually, the truth miracle in this incident was that after the prison doors were opened and all chains came lose, no prisoner actually escaped.  If you were a prisoner at the time, you must have thought that it was great opportunity to escape.  When the prison guard woke up and saw that all the prison doors were opened, he was going to kill himself because he thought all prisoners must have escaped; Paul, however, assured he was fine because no one actually escaped.  The prisoners could have escaped but didn't because God's presence was among them; it brought such tremendous power that all prisoners felt His presence, became fearful of God and laid down before Him.  Even the prison guard wanted to come before God to be saved.  When God's presence is manifested, people's lives are changed, and that's why we want to praise and worship, because worship brings out the presence and sovereignty of God among us.   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, I thank you because your presence is indeed glorious!  In your presence we can truly be changed by you!  I pray that the spirit of God will come upon brothers and sisters today, so that your presence will be manifested in our lives.  Change us so that our lives may please you.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!       Participate in Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - by Donating a Seat for a future new believer!

Today's Passage - Acts 16:23-25

Acts 16:23-25   After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully.  Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.  About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.   Paul was facing all kinds of attacks, both from inside and outside.  On the defensive side, he stood firm and was able to defend himself against any type of attack, both aggressive and non-aggressive, and he never gave Satan any opportunity to attack.  When an enemy attacks, he always starts from your weaknesses; the weaknesses may not be a physical one or any issue, but could be something that you value, such as money, sense of security, relationship, career aspirations, how others regard you, etc.  Sometimes people are afraid to suffer, but the more you are afraid of suffering, the more the enemy will use suffering to attack you.  Because our weaknesses easy targets for the enemy to attack, we're often repeatedly attacked in the same spot.  Once we are hurt and intimidated, we become weaker and start to withdraw.  There's a saying that we should not bother to chase out rats from a garbage dumpsite because it'll never work, because that where the garbage is.  If we clean up the garbage, the rats won't come back.  Therefore, we need to ask God to first deal with us, to make us more like Paul who's not afraid of any type of attack from the enemy.   Next, on the offensive side, Paul had two important weapons.  First, he knew how to use the authority of the Lord's name.  The Lord's name carries great power, and "in the name of Jesus" is not just an ending statement in our prayer.  Actually, every name of the Lord carries with it the promise to be victorious.  Jehovah Jireh means God will provide us with all our needs and help us to overcome all worries.  Jehovah Rapha means God is our healer, and this name will help us to overcome all diseases on our bodies.  Jehovah Nissi means God is our victory and He can help us to overcome all the attacks from the enemy.  Jehovah Shalom means God is our peace, and He can remove all the fear in our lives.  Jehovah Shammah means God is with us, and this name removes all the loneliness from our lives.  May the Lord help us, teach us how to use the Lord's names to defend against the enemy in our daily lives.   Finally, Paul understood how to use the power of praise.  We've seen in this passage that as soon as they started singing and praying the Lord, God's Spirit started to work among them.  When we praise God, He will bring forth repentance and renewal, and most importantly God's presence will truly be manifested.   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, we thank you because you are the Lord who leads us to claim victory against the enemy.  No matter what our circumstance is, we ask that you help us to stand firm by your grace; also, we ask that you help us to use your authority and the power of praise to overcome all the attacks from the enemy in our daily life.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!       Participate in Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - by Donating a Seat for a future new believer!

Today's Passage - Acts 16:16-22

Acts 16:16-22   Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling.  This girl followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved."  She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so troubled that he turned around and said to the spirit, "In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!" At that moment the spirit left her.  When the owners of the slave girl realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities.  They brought them before the magistrates and said, "These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice."  The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten.   When Paul first arrived at Macedonia, his ministry was tremendously effective, because it was indeed the territory that God granted him.  It didn't mean that everything onward was smooth sailing though, just like what happened when the Israelites entered the land of Canaan.  Canaan was indeed the Promised Land given to Israel by God, but God never promised them that they didn't have to fight any battle in order to enter Canaan.  Instead, it took battles to make any step forward.   When we are pursuing our spiritual journey and our ministry, we must face spiritual warfare but we don't need to be afraid, because God had already won complete victory on the cross.  Our hearts, however, must be sober because the enemy is like a roaring lion that is constantly looking for the next victim to devour.  As soon as Paul entered Macedonia, he encountered attacks from the enemy.  The enemy often attacks us in two ways; first, through ways that are non-aggressive.  The spirit in this passage had possessed a slave girl, and her master had profited much from fortune telling.  The enemy often uses evil spirit or sorcery to let people profit and seduce our hearts.  Not only that, verse 17 says that the spirit followed Paul and Silas, and screamed out "these men are servants of the Most High God," which was to flatter them and make them famous.  The enemy often uses this ploy to corrupt the hearts of people, making us chase after money and fame of the world while our hearts depart from God.    The enemy also uses aggressive ways to attack us.  Verse 19 says that "when the owners of the slave girl realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities."  They were then imprisoned and also beaten up.  The enemy also uses circumstances to persecute us and make us frustrated, to the point that our hearts may complain and even question the goodness of God.  May God help us to know how to discern the schemes of the enemy in our daily life, so that we may stand firm on the foundation of the precious blood of Jesus Christ, and claim victory against the enemy each and every day!   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, I thank you because you are sitting on the throne and you are already victorious.  May your spirit come and help us today, let us understand the schemes of the enemy so that we may stand firm on the grace of Jesus Christ, and claim victory against the enemy everyday.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!       Participate in Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - by Donating a Seat for a future new believer!

Today's Passage - Acts 16:11-15

Acts 16:11-15   From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, and the next day on to Neapolis...  On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there.  One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul's message.  When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. "If you consider me a believer in the Lord," she said, "come and stay at my house." And she persuaded us.   Evangelism must be done by faith and not by sight.  When Paul received the vision of Macedonia, he got up and went there.  He did not hesitate, but rather followed the vision from God by faith.   The work is evangelism is a work by faith.  Jackie Pullinger was the founder of St. Stephen's Society in Hong Kong.  At the age of 19 she received God's calling to enter the mission field.  She asked God where she should go, but God didn't respond to her.  She was only instructed to buy a ticket to board a ship, and then God will guide her way.  This sister of 19 went on the way of evangelism purely by her faith.  When the ship reached Hong Kong, God told her to disembark and go through custom check.  They asked her what she was doing there and where she was going to stay, she didn't have any answer.  They asked her who sent her, and she said she knew that it was God who sent her.  Miraculously, the custom officer allowed him into Hong Kong, and God asked her to go to preach the gospel in the slums and red light districts.  Today, her benevolence work in the slums and red light districts has been so effective that the Hong Kong government greatly praised the ministry of  St. Stephen's Society.   Jackie Pullinger stepped out by faith, and we saw how God provided her needs abundantly.  Similarly, Paul went to Macedonia by faith and began a brand new ministry.  Prior to this, when Paul goes to a city, he used to first go to the synagogue because that's where most Jews were, and then he would preach the gospel with the men in the synagogue.  In Macedonia, however, there weren't that many Jews or even a synagogue.  He heard there was a place of prayer, but only women were there.  Paul, however, started to preach the gospel by faith, and some accepted the Lord.  Hallelujah!  God is faithful, so let us learn to live by faith and not by sight in our daily life!   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, I thank you because you are a faithful God.  You provided for the needs of Paul when he went on mission trips, and today you can manifest your faithfulness to us in our daily life.  Let us live by faith and not by sight.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!       Participate in Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - by Donating a Seat for a future new believer!

Today's Passage - Acts 16:6-10

Acts 16:6-10   Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia.  When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas.  During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, "Come over to Macedonia and help us."  After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.   Paul values teamwork very much, so in Lystra he chose Timothy to go on mission trip with him.  Just having a coworker team, however, is not enough; team is important, but direction for the team is even more important.  We often become lost in direction because according to human nature we like to depend on ourselves.  This is particularly true for the educated in North America.  In the companies we like to brainstorm on ideas and issues, and we think we can use this method before God as well.  I am not against brainstorming, but today the mistake we make is that we want to depend on ourselves.  When we are searching for direction and God's will, the first and most important question is what direction is God and the Holy Spirit going towards.  If we don't answer this question first, then no matter how exciting our discussion is we're merely listening to our own voices, but we won't be in the will of God.  That's why Jesus said, in Gospel of John chapter 15, that "apart from me, you can do nothing."   As we are pursuing our spiritual journey, we need to continuously make this decision - Are we going to follow God or follow ourselves?  What kind of church do we want to establish - A church that we like, where we feel comfortable and convenient, or a church that pleases God?  Paul has a softened heart towards God and he has a sensitive spirit, therefore he was able to understand when the Holy Spirit prohibits him from something, and also see how Holy Spirit wants to guide him.   Whether it's God's direction for a church or God will in your personal life, it is important to have a soft heart and a sensitive spirit.  The Bible says: "Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you." What is a horse or mull?  One who's stubborn and ends up suffering due to failing to seek God's will.  May God have mercy on us, let us seek His will so that we may walk on the path of God courageously.   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, we thank you because you are happy to guide us the way you guided Paul and Silas with the voice of the Holy Spirit.  Bless us, Lord, with sensitivity in our hearts when we seek your will, so that we may recognize your voice and walk on your path.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!       Participate in Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - by Donating a Seat for a future new believer!