* All blog posts are written by Jamie Chong-You unless otherwise noted.

Wednesday, December 31, 2008

It's a New Day

Here we are at the close of another year with so many things which have happened. I'm sure we all can go over a laundry list of the highs and the lows. Some really fond memories, and others which we would gladly lay to rest, never to remember. Regardless of what your year has been like, the truth of who our Father in Heaven is, remains unchanged. His mercy, grace, faithfulness, power, love, kindness, and the fullness of His character continues without ceasing year after year, generation after generation. Realizing this, what we ought to strive for as we close the chapter of one year to begin yet another is to walk faithful as our Father does each day.

If this year has been great as far as personal goals and accomplishment or whether you fell short in these areas, your main goal should still be to emulate the faithfulness of our Heavenly Father. The writer of Hebrews encourages us in chapter 4 that 'Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts' (Heb. 4:7; Psalm 95:7-8 - NKJV). There is a fresh opportunity each day to either continue in faithfulness or repent and get on the road of faithfulness. Yahweh our God is the epitome of a Father, in that He desires what is best for us and will provide us with every resource we need to succeed in His plan (not our plan). In Him we live and move and have our being and His divine nature has already been deposited in us by the Holy Spirit (Acts 17:28-29 - NKJV). Considering this, let's embrace the ability that God has given us to become more and more like Him in all we do. Don't limit yourself to the calendar year as a new beginning in these things, but realize that each day the mercy and grace of God is new. Remember the word declares 'now is the day of salvation' (2 Corinthians 6:1-2). Everyday is a new and fresh opportunity to walk in the fullness of God's purpose for us as individuals and the corporate destiny that He has established for His church.

Entering into a new year is a great and wonderful experience, but never feel as if you're limited to what you can accomplish within a calendar year, but realize that every day is a fresh opportunity to know the Father, obey His word and accomplish His plan. So as we wrap of 2008, let's make the decision to not limit God's plans for us to the calendar year of 2009, but let's allow His purpose to consume us every day of our lives and not just during a certain time period. Set goals and have aspirations for 2009, but let those pale in comparison to the way in which you embrace the wisdom and instruction of the Lord and live by every word that proceeds from His mouth each day (Deut. 8:3; Matt. 4:4). Make it your aim to live every moment realizing that truly, it's a new day!

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Continue in His Word

I would like to encourage you with something that was freshly brought to my attention by our guide, the Holy Spirit. The reminder came from Jesus' words in John 8: ...If ye continue in my word, ye are my disciples indeed (John 8:31 - KJV). I specifically used the King James in quoting this verse because of the power of saying that we must 'continue' in His word. With that stated, I must reference the the verse that follows, which is the one most people know: ...Then you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free (John 8:32).

Now, I'll be candid and say that verse 31 is often not quoted with the subsequent verse (which generally gets all the attention and lots of amens if you're speaking to a group). In fact, many times, people can quote 'the truth will make you free', but we don't see any of the responsibility that rests on us to obey the word of God which brings liberation. The very core of what it means to be one of Jesus' disciples is to keep His word, but funny enough, we don't quote this nearly as often as we quote the verse about freedom, even though the qualifier of being a true disciple and walking in freedom is 'continuing' in His word. Much of that stems from our society's desire to have the good fruit without having to plant the seeds and tend the crops. In short, we enjoy receiving benefits without having to put in time and effort. This is why freedom often seems to elude us in certain areas of our lives.

It would be nice to shout freedom and confess it with our friends during church, in our homes, or even in the streets, but what Jesus said would make us true disciples and in turn make us free was not confessing, but continuing. Continuing in what? His word. That is the end all be all for freedom entering into the life of the true disciple. By repentance and confession of Christ we are able to enter the Kingdom, but our continuance in His infallible word is that which will keep us there, and keep us living in freedom. That revelation must be a foundational stone in our life of faith. One that is not only to be acknowledged, but to be built upon continually. It is only then that we will see the true power of His word unleashed in our lives. It is only then that we will know the truth, and that truth which we know will make us free.

Life might be busy, tough, tiring and a host of other adjectives that we could conjure up with enough time and maybe a friend (or spouse like I have) that was an English major. Regardless of this reality, there is a greater reality which is that of God's Kingdom. And with that in mind, true discipleship and freedom are ours if we will be faithful to 'continue' in His word.