Aug 5, 2015
Some walk through life in darkness,
Blinded to the truth
Laid so clearly before them.
Their hands are tied,
Their feet in stocks,
Their voices silenced at a glance.
They stumble nearly every step
And find it hard to rise again.
The pain is great,
Their minds are crushed.
Like snakes crawling on the ground
They do not stand
And like a fish,
The ocean is all they ever know.
Others walk through life in light and gladness.
They are ever gazing
Into a beauty only they can see.
Their faith is planted on the truth.
Though they fall,
They rise again.
Their hands are free,
Their feet are dancing,
Their voices shout out songs of praise.
Freedom is their name
And love is their guide.
They are like an eagle
Gazing from a lofty mountain,
Like a bright light that cannot be dimmed.
Each of us have a choice to make before us, it is the choice of submission or rebellion. Those in darkness have chosen the way of rebellion, though they may not have realized it their hearts have been hardened by choosing their own way and now life has fallen from their grasp. But those who live in the light have found the greatest treasure of a heart in submission and brokenness. These are the people that touch godliness and truly experience the wonders and powers of the risen Christ in them.
Recently at School of Discipleship, us students went through a book by K.P. Yohannan, “Touching Godliness”. This book opened my eyes to see how God has created this world to work in submission. He created us dependent on one another and on Him. The authorities He has placed over us are for our own protection and growth. Just like the wild horse is useless to its master, while the broken and submissive horse is of great use to its rider; God can only use the people submitted and broken of their own wills.
Jun 17, 2015
We had the amazing privilege to have a pastor from a local church come and share with us just a little while ago. His first question that he asked us was “what do you love most?” Next he asked us “what do you think God loves most?” Right away my thought was “His people.” Well, to my surprise I learned that there is one thing that God loves more than me and you and that’s Himself. Then we were also asked “what are your thoughts when you think of God loving Himself most?” In our eyes it seems selfish. God is the greatest and He loves what is the greatest first. The only reason we think it to be selfish is because of our own selfishness and is not about us. But if God didn’t love Himself most, it would be idolatry.
Psalm 23:3 He restores my soul, He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
1 John 2:12 I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for His name’s sake.
Romans 1:5 Through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of His name among all the nations.
Matthew 5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see Your good works and give glory to Your Father who is in heaven.
Notice how these verses point to His name and His glory, and these are only a few of them. The Bible is filled with verses like these. Gods purpose for us and all His creation is for His glory and for His name to be lifted high. Let’s do all things for the glory of God and His Son Jesus Christ.
Jun 10, 2015
As my class and I read through How to Pray by R.A. Torrey I ask myself, how do I know if I am abiding in Christ and staying connected to the vine? If I am in Christ and the connected to the sap (the Holy Spirit), I will bear fruit accordingly.
Therefore, to abide in Christ means that I need to be surrendered to God. By surrendered I mean as the Lord shows me areas in my life that I need to give up, that I do. It will be a continuous process of surrendering to the Lord for the rest of my life.
Yes, this is going to take a lot of time. I wish I hadn’t prayed for patience all those years ago. The Lord is finally answering my prayers. If that is the way that it needs to be, then the Lord will give me grace and strength to persevere.
Now the real question is, how will I practically apply or act upon what the Lord showed me?
With the Lord’s help, I will surrender those things in my life that the Lord shows me and to seek to abide in Christ. I may have to surrender on a continual basis, maybe even moment by moment. Lord, I am going to need your help even more than before. I know You are faithful though, so I’ll make it. No problem.
Jun 5, 2015
Have you ever had a time in your life when you felt so stressed out you didn’t know how you were going to make it through?
Or maybe you have just been super worried about some big thing in your life that looks impossible to overcome e or get around. I know I have had to deal with these things before. Worrying doesn’t help anything! Worrying always seems to make the situation look darker and more impossible! Worry takes our focus off of Jesus and puts it on our own life. Worry makes us try to figure everything out ourselves when what we should really be doing is seeking the Lord more! I think that is exactly why the Bible tells us so many times not to worry.
God gives us trials and tribulations to draw us to Him and make us stronger in our faith—not to show us how awesome we are at figuring things out. We are to trust Him in hard times to take care of us, whether everything works out like it is supposed to, or if everything falls apart. This is not an easy thing! For me, I always think I know exactly how everything should go. How arrogant of me! God is faithful; His ways are so much higher than my ways! How could I presume that my plans and my preferences are better than His?
One of my favorite passages in Scripture is Psalm 146. This passage has been a real help to me in the hard times, especially verses 1-6. I encourage you to read this passage next time you start feeling stressed or are tempted to worry. It will be a great help to you!
Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord, my soul. I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save. When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing. Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God.
He is the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them— he remains faithful forever. He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets prisoners free, the Lord gives sight to the blind, the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down, the Lord loves the righteous. The Lord watches over the foreigner and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.
The Lord reigns forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations. Praise the Lord.
—Psalm 146:1-6
Jun 3, 2015
Here are a couple of testimonials of students who went through the School of Discipleship program:
“I have been serving the Lord at GFA for almost two years, and Lord willing I will continue to serve here for many more. I have been extremely blessed by being here. Every day I am surrounded by people who truly love the Lord and want to serve Him with their lives, and who truly have a heart for those who do not know Jesus as Savior. The leaders at GFA are gracious, loving and humble, and they represent the Lord well. I know I can trust them and that they truly care about every person serving here. I learn so much through their examples all the time. The Lord has used my time serving here to grow me and to make me more like Him, and I am so blessed that this is where He has placed me to serve Him.”
-Taylor
“I have been with Gospel for Asia for three years now, and I have been blessed in so many ways! Through my time at Gospel for Asia, I have been challenged to use my gifts for the glory of God and to grow in Him daily.
“Gospel for Asia has also given me the ability to be part of a movement that is reaching millions of people with the Good News of Jesus. This alone has blessed me so much! Lives are being changed, fellowships are being established, and every day people are hearing about Jesus for the first time!
“I thank God for the opportunity He has given me, through what I do at Gospel for Asia, to serve Him in what small capacity I have and carry His message to millions of people who have never heard of His amazing love. I am undeserving of the privilege.”
-Josiah
To find more testimonies from former students go to:
http://www.gfa.org/schoolofdiscipleship/student-testimonials/
May 20, 2015
Recently God has been reminding me of His call on my life here at Gospel for Asia. I know that God has called me here, but in recent weeks it has gotten tough.
It all started during Lent (the 40 days heading up to Easter). The whole focus of Lent is on Jesus’s death on the cross. I started having this thought, “If Jesus could give up everything to die for a sinner like me, then why couldn’t I dedicate my life to Jesus and reaching the 2 billion people who have never heard of Jesus.” As much as I tried to shrug it off, I simply couldn’t.
These are people who Jesus loves they are going to Hell, 80,000 of them every day without having heard of Jesus before. Why shouldn’t our hearts break for the people of Asia (especially in Nepal where the earthquake happened)?
Yet while this was going on, I was reminded of some of some of the difficulties serving here at Gospel for Asia. This is when God started asking me another question. He started asking me, “Are you willing to suffer hardships for my sake and for the sake of the call I have given you?” I was a little hesitant to answer that question.
With this question, you can go to two extremes. The first one is to blurt out something like Peter did and then be rebuked by the Lord at the end. The second extreme is to run away just like Jonah only to be turned back. The Lord knew my heart though. He knows I would be able to (with His strength) to continue in His calling and not run away.
Jesus never promised our life would be easy if we followed Him and shared the Gospel. On the contrary, He promised hardships and suffering to all who followed Him and His calling. Though this certainly didn’t attract followers, it sifted out His true followers from those who wanted to get something out of Him.
At the same time though, Jesus promised our lives would be fulfilling. Not only are we spreading God’s kingdom throughout the world, but the Lord promised heaven for those who believe in Him and do what He wants them to do. I choose to follow the Lord, what about you?
May 19, 2015
I’ve been asking myself a bunch of questions lately, questions like, How do I come before God when I pray? What would be the first thing that would come out of my mouth if I saw God with my own eyes? Do I trust God enough with my problems to come before Him on my knees instead of trying to change things in the flesh?
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord” Isaiah 55:8
Hearing the testimonies of the staff and what they willing left behind to follow Christ is mind blowing. Also, hearing field reports of individuals giving their life to become a missionary and suffer in the flesh to preach the gospel in an unreached village, having only the cross before them, giving their whole life, holding nothing back. Then hearing the amount of people that are baptized and added to the church daily, and all the lives that are transformed for eternity. It is challenging me to not hold on to anything besides the cross and trust God with everything and every detail of my life, to follow Him wherever He leads me and evaluate myself in the light of eternity. What will have truly mattered in my life?
I can build a reputation if I want. I can become famous for something and use up all my time and efforts for that. There are so many different dreams to chase but it will all come to an end sooner or later. I want to invest in something that will last. I want to be a good steward with the time, resources and talents God has entrusted me with. I don’t want to chase after dreams that will end and wake up at the end of my days with empty hands to present to Jesus. I want all of my life to belong to Jesus, because holding back is not worth it. There is no better place to be than in the center of God’s will even when I don’t understand His ways or see the whole picture.
May 13, 2015
“And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. Revelation 5:8”
Wow, the privilege of praying! We get to bring our petitions before God and He answers them (1 John 5:14-15).
Before I came to Gospel for Asia, prayer was not a significant part of my life . My eyes have been opened to the wonderful privilege and importance of prayer. Studying the life of Jesus, we find that He was always praying and also fasting.
I have discovered that things happen when God’s people fast and pray. Without prayer, I cannot do anything. I have learned to not just pray when I struggle but to purposefully take time to pray and even to simply be still before the Lord.
Here at Gospel for Asia, prayer is the means of the operation. Either the day begins in a prayer meeting or it ends in one. Three bells go off during the day for prayer to refocus on the Lord. Being in the School of Discipleship program, we have our own prayer night each week and on top of that, the first Friday of every month we have a prayer meeting that goes till midnight.
When I look at the life of Jesus, it seems He always had time to pray. In this fast food day and age we live in,we must choose (just as Jesus did) to carve out time to pray. Everything else will still happen but God does great things when we pray.
Apr 29, 2015
As Christians and students of the faith we are about the business of gaining insight into God’s character. It always amazes me how much more we can learn about His character as we move further along in our journeys.
Ever since God made me aware of my call to missions, I have been one track minded seeking out opportunities to go overseas and joining different missions organizations. I remember abiding in His strength only and being sold out to Him. I look back on that season with longing often as at that time I was completely sold out to Him.
For past few years I have been task oriented when it comes to my walk with the Lord and obeying His commands. If He tells me to do this or that, I will go do those things but in my own strength. What I didn’t realize is that I stopped abiding in his strength. After a while I became spiritually lazy and would be in self-indulgent. Of course, I would do whatever God told me to, which at the time I thought consisted of the notion of going to another country and dying for him. I began to rely on my walk in the past and therefore became lazy. Since I read the Bible and had learned so many lessons from it, I had the notion I didn’t need to read the Bible anymore. Even though I had no desire to read my Bible I would have gone and died for him.
Recently, my School of Discipleship class went through a book called Calvary Road. When I was reading through it I caught myself thinking that I knew these things, but then God convicted me the next several days saying, “There are so many things you think you know! You lost faith in the blood of the lamb, you lost hope in eternity.” I didn’t realize that I slowly but surely let the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches cloud my judgment. I had become a hearer of the word deceiving myself.
I was reading in the Word and read through Romans 3:25 “whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.” The Spirit led me to carefully analyze and consider these things. What is faith? Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, and the conviction in the things not seen. What is conviction? Conviction is belief. Somewhere along the way I stopped believing. I was running on fumes. But the Lord is faithful and assured me that He is with me always. I am thankful that my logic and judgment does not dictate the truth, such as whether or not there is a God and His Son is Jesus. He has helped me realize that I need to become a Christian who lives by faith and not by experience, feelings or emotions. He has shown me that reading his word refines my faith in Him. I love His faithfulness.
“If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:31-32)
Apr 22, 2015
Joseph. Joseph was a dreamer. He had vivid dreams of his family bowing to him. In one dream, he relates in Genesis 37:6-7, ““Listen to this dream I had: We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it.” This made Joseph’s brothers angry, who were wondering why their youngest brother would dare to say such things.
Not only did Joseph have these vivid dreams, but he was seen as their father’s favorite. Joseph got a coat of many colors from his father. One day, while Joseph was walking to the fields, his brothers began to plot against him. At first they wanted to murder him, but decided against it. Joseph’s brothers decided to sell him to a group of Ishmaelite traders who were heading to Egypt. When the Ishmaelite traders made it to Egypt, Joseph was sold into slavery. There he encountered false accusations by Potiphar’s wife and imprisonment.
His imprisonment was the turning point of his life, even though he was there for four years. After four years, when Pharaoh had a couple of dreams, it was found that Joseph could interpret them. Pharaoh was elated and made him second in command over Egypt in order to store grain for a famine. After this, Joseph’s brothers come back on the scene. His brother couldn’t recognize Joseph at this point. He demands they bring his younger brother Benjamin in order to test them. After a few tests, Joseph reveals himself saying, “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt. Now hurry back to my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt.’”(Genesis 45:8-9) In other words, everything that happened was for God’s plan to be fulfilled.
In the same way, God allows bad things to happen in our lives in order to fulfill His plans. In 
my own life, God allowed for me to become ill during my first year in the School of Discipleship. I didn’t understand why I had to go home in order to finish the rest of the course. God is starting to use that for His plan. Even though I don’t know completely how God will use my experience to reach others, I can trust God that it will encourage others to keep on going in their year at School of Discipleship and not give up no matter what circumstance they are in. I encourage you to keep going forward in what God has asked you to do. He has your best in mind.
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