On the Night He was Betrayed

At all the churches I had attended in the past, communion was always observed once a month on the first Sunday of the month. I grew so accustomed to it that I never even questioned it, and perhaps have allowed it to become more of a ritual than anything. When we first attended Berean last year, one thing that stood out to us was that communion was observed on the second and fourth Sundays. Before we could even find out the rationale behind it, the elders announced a couple months later with their unanimous recommendation for the church to observe communion every single Sunday. It was their conviction that communion is a Christian meal to be enjoyed within the Body and with Christ as often as is possible. It is a means of grace through which we come empty-handed to recognize Christ as the giver.

The other Sunday, the elder that was leading us in communion reminded us from 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 that it was on the night Jesus was betrayed that He took bread, gave thanks, broke it, and said, "This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." We come not as anyone worthy, not as anyone with anything good, for our righteous acts are like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6), or, even more explicitly as Andy put it, like feminine pads (Ezekiel 36:17). We come as someone who has betrayed the Lord Jesus. The Table is not a place where we bring anything, it is a place where Christ has given everything.

I've enjoyed celebrating this meal with my brothers and sisters on a weekly basis as part of worship. It brings me back to the cross, to the night He was betrayed, to be in awe of His wonderful love for me--the worst sinner and betrayer. Blessed be the name of the Lord! Who is like Him?!

Pray for Piper

John Piper has been recently diagnosed with prostate cancer and his surgery is scheduled for February 14. More information can found here so we can pray together with him. Having gone through recently what might be considered insignificant compared to Piper's diagnosis, I can testify so much more to what he shares in his announcements than if I hadn't experienced a small version of it myself.

With four small incisions in my abdomen healing away, I agree with Piper on the many reasons to "pray for God's sovereign hand to be on man and machine" as he also undergoes a laparoscopic procedure. It is God's grace on those who no longer need to be cut wide open!

Even after the surgery, I've had conversations with Andy about how we would know if the surgeon I had was good or not. We just went with what our family doctor recommended, no second opinions, no excessive consideration of alternative treatments. A lot of "what ifs?" did come up. But our conclusion was as Piper puts it, "The best surgeon can have a bad day. An average surgeon can have a really good day. In the end, God decides." In God, there is no "What if?" And I would also have to say Amen to what Piper quoted John Newton in saying: "Everything is needful that He sends; nothing can be needful that He withholds."

So let us pray with John Piper, not for changing the eternal plan of God, but for our sanctification and for His glory.

Piper on Missions

It was 3 a.m., and the old lady that I was sharing a room with in the hospital woke me with her loud snore. Good thing when Andy and Caleb left earlier that evening, they had placed an MP3 player next to my bed. I grabbed it hoping to use it as my earplugs, and at the same time I turned it on to see what's on it.

With the snoring fading in the background, John Piper's voice came up. It was a message he had given a long long time ago at Wheaton College entitled "Doing Missions When Dying Is Gain." Typical of Piper, the message was delivered with much conviction and passion. Even with the morphine and remnants of anesthesia in my bloodstream, I was kept awake throughout the sermon though not sure how much I have retained...

In one part of the sermon, Piper mentioned how the first question pastors who were interviewing at his church would ask was "Will my kids be safe here?" I assume the church must be in a neighborhood that is not very safe. Yet Piper lives there and ministers there. He is honest in dealing with realities of life. And he sees the steadfast love of God better than life.

Here I was lying there bothered by someone's snore, and to a greater extent, I often hold physical comfort and security as something hard to let go of in life. I pray for God's mercy on me. And I pray this message will humble you as much as it did me.

Gospel Centrality

Mark Lauterbach was invited to our church a couple weeks ago to give a series of seminar on Gospel Centrality. Due to my surgery, we missed the opportunity of attending in person. But the files are now available if you are interested. We hope the message will prove impactful to you and your faith. This series of seminar is the first of what our church is using to help us own the core value of Gospel Centrality as a body so that all we do as a church and individually will stem from the Gospel and nothing else. Andy has finished listening to it and I hope to get to it soon.

Alas, and Did My Savior Bleed

Was listening to this old hymn in new tunes on the Songs for the Cross Centered Life album this morning during my time of worship while Andy and Caleb went to church. Just wanted to share the words from the first verse and chorus, which deeply reminded me again of how sinful a worm I am, and how this knowledge and realization is so utterly important to my understanding of and response to the truth of the gospel...

Alas, and did my Savior bleed, and did my Sovereign die?
Would He devote that sacred head for such a worm as I?
Was it for sins that I had done He groaned upon the tree?
Amazing pity, grace unknown, and love beyond degree.

My God, why would You shed Your blood, so pure and undefiled,
To make a sinful one like me Your chosen precious child?

Listen to it if you have time, and all the rest in the album too! May the message of the cross be ever resonating in our hearts.

"Gung Hay Fat Choy"

Here's Caleb saying "Happy Lunar New Year" in his new outfit from my mom.

Nice Co-Workers

Andy returned to work yesterday after having taken a week off for my surgery. He came home telling me that the first question he got from those who greeted him at the office was "How's Grace?" and not "How are you?" He responded to his co-workers, "How about me?" thinking in his mind "I was the one slaving away this past week!" Andy's blessed with caring people at work, some of whom even sent me flowers after my surgery--a touch of blessing from above.

Life as a Vapor

While I was reading R. C. Sproul's The Invisible Hand this past week, I also picked up John Piper's Life As A Vapor from Andy's collection. It's been a week since my surgery and I am grateful to God for speaking to me through His own Word and through the writings of His servants. R. C. Sproul's comprehensive and profound analysis and presentation of the topic on God's Providence was very impactful to me, and John Piper's honesty in dealing with life as a vapor was a challenge to deepen my faith in a God who is sovereign, merciful, and wise. These three characters are important to my understanding of and response to life's light and momentary trials. I had wanted to quote something from Piper's book but realized I would end up quoting the whole book!

As I reflect on this past week, I want to thank God for:

1. Sending this timely trial to refine my faith
2. Granting me peace as an answer to my prayer in each step of the process, from learning about the diagnosis to the last dose of anesthesia injected before I fell asleep
3. Allowing Andy to take a week off to take care of Caleb and me
4. Brothers and sisters and family who prayed with and for me
5. Strength and grace in my recovery process

I have much growing to do still in this short life and I ask for God's mercy and patience in teaching me. I pray that as this momentary vapor prepares me for eternal glory I will catch a glimpse of it beginning in this life by finding my satisfaction in Him alone.